Megathread IDW's Sonic the Hedgehog - Megathread

[Badnik Mechanic]

So I just read it...

It's a bit dull.

It's just... boring, I don't really know how else to describe it.

For me, it felt in many ways like I was reading an Archie book, if you're a fan of Archie, good for you. For me, I was hoping to see IDW's take on Sonic, not a continuation of Archie. 

And before anyone quotes that Ryan guy (who is he?) again, see Mega Drive 1 and even Fleetway issue 1 for an example of how to make a good issue 1 story.

 

Also something else I've noticed which really made the fight scene with the Egg hammers really poor, and I don't know if this is a Sega thing or if the artist just didn't care... I get that they're robots, but good grief, can they stop grinning for goodness sake! The only time they stopped is when Sonic destroyed them, but for the entire fight they just had that stupid grin, their expression was the same throughout, it made it look like the robots where not even trying, it just for me lacked any sense of drama or that this was a ferocious battle.

 

An Open Challenge

In fact... If anyone has good photoshop/art skills and wants to prove my theory right. When this comic eventually comes out and you get good scans or a digital edition. Take any page from that fight, say 2 pages into it. And photoshop/edit the grins of the Egg Hammers so they have some kind of expression. You know, as if they're actually fighting not just grinning all the time, and lets see if it improves it or not.

[RedFox99]

I guess I was being hasty in quoting Ryan Fair.

[Eurisko]

1 hour ago, Sean said:

Then convince Sega to buy the rights of the fan design from the original artist first.

Do we know who originally drew Omelette? I think there was a similar situation with Slenderman , I heard no one knew who originally drew him.

[Marco9966]

21 minutes ago, Mayor D said:

I get that they're robots, but good grief, can they stop grinning for goodness sake! The only time they stopped is when Sonic destroyed them, but for the entire fight they just had that stupid grin, their expression was the same throughout, it made it look like the robots where not even trying, it just for me lacked any sense of drama or that this was a ferocious battle.

 

But SEGA designed them like that, they're funny because they remind me of Eggman

[Badnik Mechanic]

3 minutes ago, Marco9966 said:

But SEGA designed them like that, they're funny because they remind me of Eggman

Yeah you just completely proved my point. 

If the robots are one expression and they're just grinning, no change to their eyes or any other facial expression. Especially if it's a still media since in a game you have dynamic cameras and the added adrenaline of the players movements to compensate, it doesn't look or feel exciting to read since the robots don't look like they're trying or care.

[Multikaris]

3 hours ago, PublicEnemy1 said:

So, does anyone else besides me still optimistic about IDW Sonic? I'm sensing some pessimism here.   

I’m still optimistic. Then again, this is still better than Pontaff by far.

[DabigRG]

18 hours ago, Shaddy the Zaphod said:

The only character I know of who's interacted specifically with both Sonic and Amy is Metal Sonic. I feel like it's probably Infinite though.

Well, the "real" Metal wasn't in Forces, so I guess it's possible.

18 hours ago, MetalSkulkBane said:

Tails being competent (I'm surprised that people were surprised by it).

Well they couldn't shut up about him before, so....

18 hours ago, MetalSkulkBane said:

As for mystery man, here are my guesses.

  Hide contents

1 I'm 90% sure it's not Eggman. That's bad mystery-making.

2 Ironically most Forces "generals" are good candidates. Zavok has power, Metal has access, while Infnite is fresh. But again, I think, they would be too obvious.

3 Even better idea would be Lyric. Villain from Boom, no one would see it coming. We know he could easily reprogram Eggman army, plus he kidnapped Amy in the past. Only drawback? I don't think he would fit on that chair.

4 But I think Flynn will go for someone even older. So my money is on one of Smart Badniks from older games. Mecha Sonic, Egg Robo, Zero, SCR-HD, maybe even Tails Doll.

 

Spoiler

1. Yeah, it's probably not him.

2. Zavok would be the better choice of the four, as Infinite would logically depend on how long it's been since the Mega Death Egg Robot fight. Though you'd also have to explain how he knew about what was going on and how he got off the Lost Hex.

3. "Actually, snakes don't have butts."   That would depend on whether SEGA finally eased up on the apparent embargo. I wouldn't mind him, tho.

4.I can't help but feel that'd be pointless.

 

[Eurisko]

3 minutes ago, Miragnarok said:

I’m still optimistic. Then again, this is still better than Pontaff by far.

Agreed, there is currently ONE issue so far. To say it's a failure or boring or whatever is like watching 30 seconds of a movie and and saying "nah this sucks" and switching it off. 

[Badnik Mechanic]

1 minute ago, Eurisko said:

Agreed, there is currently ONE issue so far. To say it's a failure or boring or whatever is like watching 30 seconds of a movie and and saying "nah this sucks" and switching it off. 

That's a pretty serious one issue for the one issue.

[Eurisko]

1 minute ago, Mayor D said:

That's a pretty serious one issue for the one issue.

But that's in your opinion. What's boring to you may not be to someone else.

[PublicEnemy1]

8 minutes ago, Miragnarok said:

I’m still optimistic. Then again, this is still better than Pontaff by far.

TBF, it doesn't take much to be better than Pontaff. That's like saying the Super Mario Movie is better than MK: Armageddon. (Not saying Ian's a bad writer, but that's a bit of an unfair comparison you're making).

2 minutes ago, Mayor D said:

That's a pretty serious one issue for the one issue.

Do you still have faith in IDW Sonic?

 

[DabigRG]

8 hours ago, Marco9966 said:

So you say we needed more characters?

I think the first issue is also meant to newcomers who don't know about Sonic, and it was heavily emphasized by writer and editors in interviews.

It's still a new comic for IDW, and I'm sure there will be newcomers.

We should take that into consideration.

The first issue was not only meant for us hardcore fans, but also newcomers.

. * Cue obligatory ANF references *

[NegaMix]

Haven't read the issue myself yet, but apparently there seems to be some kind of hint that...

Spoiler

...someone other than Eggman is commanding the badniks? 'Cause if that's the case, then I've already got a guess as to who it might be.

[DabigRG]

2 hours ago, Zulon Eredas said:

With Thunderbolt out of the picture, we need a new character to serve as Eggman's #1fan.

Make it happen, Ian. Make it happen.

I do love that design.

1 hour ago, Mayor D said:

Also something else I've noticed which really made the fight scene with the Egg hammers really poor, and I don't know if this is a Sega thing or if the artist just didn't care... I get that they're robots, but good grief, can they stop grinning for goodness sake! The only time they stopped is when Sonic destroyed them, but for the entire fight they just had that stupid grin, their expression was the same throughout, it made it look like the robots where not even trying, it just for me lacked any sense of drama or that this was a ferocious battle.

Pretty sure that's how they're supposed to look.

6 minutes ago, NegaMetallix said:

Haven't read the issue myself yet, but apparently there seems to be some kind of hint that...

  Hide contents

...someone other than Eggman is commanding the badniks? 'Cause if that's the case, then I've already got a guess as to who it might be.

Too Black, Too Strong.

[MetalSkulkBane]

2 minutes ago, PublicEnemy1 said:

TBF, it doesn't take much to be better than Pontaff. That's like saying the Super Mario Movie is better than MK: Armageddon. (Not saying Ian's a bad writer, but that's a bit of an unfair comparison you're making).

Since we're on topic of the Pontaff, I'm going to do something insane: praise him for something.

Sonic Lost World is only Sonic game, where story is about Sonic. As if, about him as a character. In every game there is a problem (Eggman or other villain) and Sonic is here to fix the problem, nothing more. All the drama/growth/something happens to Shadow/Tikal/Emerl/Blaze/Elise/Avatar/evenMarine. Sonic is here to fix a problem, maaaaybe make a friend. But we know it's Shara and Chip who were changed by this, not Sonic.

Lost World focus really is about Sonic as a character. Sonic messed up. Sonic got into argument with his best bud. Sonic who goes through emotional conflicts.

..sorry I'm probably going off-topic here. I just didn't felt like starting whole new thread just to post it.

[Salamander]

Let's remind ourselves what Ian Flynn had to say about the surprise villain:

Quote

It's about the journey rather than the destination.

Exactly. That being said, folks who know my writing style know I love the long con, so we're going to be setting up a surprise early on that will play out within the first year. There's a new antagonistic force that...I don't know if I can talk about it, but the first four issues are all bite-sized, but they're all building to something, and boy howdy, it'll be amazing once we get there.

Any hints you can drop about this new antagonistic force or what direction it'll be taking the story in?

I will say that long-term fans will probably piece it together very early on. Casual fans will find it new, exciting, and interesting. They might not even know that it's a reference to something older.

So it'll feel like a new antagonist but is based on something obscure from the games' past?

Yeah. We'll put it that way.

So it's not necessarily actually a familiar character; it's specifically a "reference" to something older, but effectively made anew.  This ties in with something which strikes me about the final page, actually:

Spoiler

There are clearly two separate individuals involved, minimum.  There's the person in the chair, giving the orders; and then there's the person taking the orders, who is also capable of relaying information to the Resistance.  That seems enormously significant.  I wonder if it's possible to make out anything worthwhile from the shadow being cast on the chair?

Also seems important to highlight, while we're here, that Flynn describes the first four issues as "bite-sized".  It could be that we should be reading the first four issues as effectively one issue's worth of material, since that's the rate at which it's being released, and once we hit #5 onwards we might find them a bit meatier (in terms of narrative, if not page count).  Personally, I find that the art doesn't really sell me on the action scenes, which is a problem in this issue as most of it is action.   There's no real energy and movement to it.

43 minutes ago, Eurisko said:

Do we know who originally drew Omelette? I think there was a similar situation with Slenderman , I heard no one knew who originally drew him.

Actually, the creation of Slenderman is well-established and copyright fully asserted; I would suggest you follow this link to learn more.  For Omelette to become canon, Sega would have to want to purchase the design outright (designs are copyright their creators, though you probably wouldn't be able to use them if they're too obviously derivative of somebody else's property - and it would be an outright copyright purchase as there's no way Sega would merely license a fancharacter of their property from somebody else); to do that, they would have to contact both the first illustrator of Omelette and any further derivative illustrators who'd added unique qualities, and possibly whoever came up with whichever name they wanted to go with.  It'd be easier for them to create their own version, though obviously that would risk having less charm and harming goodwill.  (Ideas can't be copyrighted, as I understand it; only specific expressions of an idea.)

[PublicEnemy1]

1 minute ago, MetalSkulkBane said:

Since we're on topic of the Pontaff, I'm going to do something insane: praise him for something.

Sonic Lost World is only Sonic game, where story is about Sonic. As if, about him as a character. In every game there is a problem (Eggman or other villain) and Sonic is here to fix the problem, nothing more. All the drama/growth/something happens to Shadow/Tikal/Emerl/Blaze/Elise/Avatar/evenMarine. Sonic is here to fix a problem, maaaaybe make a friend. But we know it's Shara and Chip who were changed by this, not Sonic.

Lost World focus really is about Sonic as a character. Sonic messed up. Sonic got into argument with his best bud. Sonic who goes through emotional conflicts.

..sorry I'm probably going off-topic here. I just didn't felt like starting whole new thread just to post it.

If Ian can replicate that (except y'know, write it well), we'd be golden.

[Badnik Mechanic]

19 minutes ago, Eurisko said:

But that's in your opinion. What's boring to you may not be to someone else.

And yet lots of others here have said the same thing. Plus this is a weak defence and you know it, you're just ignoring criticisms with that for a 'well everyone is probably right opinions'.

18 minutes ago, PublicEnemy1 said:

Do you still have faith in IDW Sonic?

Well I sure ain't dropping any money on it after that issue.

2 minutes ago, DabigRG said:

Pretty sure that's how they're supposed to look.

Again.... it still doesn't change the fact it makes the fight look dull, take some artistic license.

 

====

 

Actually.... now that I think about it, the cliffhanger/hook for the next issue is also pretty poor. If I think back to Issue ones like 'MegaDrive' or even Fleetways issue 1. Their strips finished on either raising the stakes or a clear progression for the story. But this issue ends with Tails staying to help repair a town, Sonic runs off to fight the next badnik gang and a mysterious Eggman promises to attack another town and Amy will probably be there.

 

That... sounds.... Exactly like Issue 1's plot... but with Amy instead of Tails....

[Diogenes]

32 minutes ago, Eurisko said:

But that's in your opinion. What's boring to you may not be to someone else.

Buddy, would you want someone rushing in every time you praise a thing to say "well that's just your opinion!"? Because this shit is annoying and only gets in the way of actual discussion.

[Your Vest Friend]

I think part of the issue with the Egg Hammers is that the proportions of the head and face are off, and that can affect things quite majorly when it's such a simplistic design.

[PublicEnemy1]

Uh oh, he brought out the Knowing Smile again. 
Anyways, I'm still interested in the comic, and I trust Ian as a writer to surprise us. I do think it's a slow start, but I have no doubt the ball will be rolling. I go into this with low expectations, as we shouldn't get anything too surprising in the first year.

[Eurisko]

3 minutes ago, Mayor D said:

And yet lots of others here have said the same thing. Plus this is a weak defence and you know it, you're just ignoring criticisms with that for a 'well everyone is probably right opinions'.

Well I sure ain't dropping any money on it after that issue.

Again.... it still doesn't change the fact it makes the fight look dull, take some artistic license.

 

====

 

Actually.... now that I think about it, the cliffhanger/hook for the next issue is also pretty poor. If I think back to Issue ones like 'MegaDrive' or even Fleetways issue 1. Their strips finished on either raising the stakes or a clear progression for the story. But this issue ends with Tails staying to help repair a town, Sonic runs off to fight the next badnik gang and a mysterious Eggman promises to attack another town and Amy will probably be there.

 

That... sounds.... Exactly like Issue 1's plot... but with Amy instead of Tails....

First of all Mayor I haven't defended anything, all I was saying was that judging a long running series on the first issue seems a bit hasty. No one else seemed to mind. But that's what you do on here right? Nitpick , belittle and criticise other people's views and thoughts especially if they don't match up with yours. 

 

Secondly , and I'll say it again YOUR opinion isn't and can't be representative of everyone else's. 

[Red Hot Jack]

I mean, even Boom (comic) had a more interesting first issue, more characters and dynamics, and had some sort of hook/plot twist/cliffhanger with Knuckles joining Eggman. But I agree, this is just the first issue so it's like a cover of a book, it has to leave a good impression but if you judge it before reading further issues, you definitely weren't interested in it in the first place.

[Badnik Mechanic]

7 minutes ago, Eurisko said:

Secondly , and I'll say it again YOUR opinion isn't and can't be representative of everyone else's. 

Ever since the comic got leaked, we've had around 3-4 pages of content and other people have also said they found it dull/not that great? 

Even the guy who posted after you just said it wasn't that great. Nobody has said that 'everybody hates it' but claiming that somehow I'm alone or it's not representational is complete nonsense and you know it.

If you want to ignore criticisms and play the 'just your opinion card' go right ahead but you're only making your own stance look very weak.

[Eurisko]

Just now, Mayor D said:

Did we not just have around 3-4 pages of other people also saying they found it dull/not that great? 

Or did I just dream that?

Even the guy who posted after you just said it wasn't that great.

And that more than fine , no problem. All I'm saying is just give it a chance to get going. No doubt after these first four issues are done is going to be a big indicator of how the series is going to be.