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IDW's Sonic the Hedgehog - Megathread


Dejimon11

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Another Annual page. I love how Big is somewhere near all of the events in the series so far, SA2 style.

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This issue just kinda...happened. Too much too soon. Too fast.

 

Action was great, but far too short and easy. Maybe they really are tired of writing this arc, which would be unfortunate. I was kinda enjoying this arc, especially Cream and Gemerl's segments.

 

Also gotta wonder how hard the writers had to fight just to get Storm to rock Zik in the jaw lol

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I haven't read the issue yet, but it's really disappointing to hear this crop up.

For anyone who didn't know, this used to be a massive problem with early Archie Mega Man, where the robot masters would get taken out within one to two pages. Things slowly improved with the Mega Man 3 arc which had eight issues, and a set-up which showed the events of their encounters with Mega Man from the robot masters' point of view, so we got to see more about them.

Really lame it's reared it's head up here again at the eleventh hour.

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6 minutes ago, Ryannumber1gamer said:

I haven't read the issue yet, but it's really disappointing to hear this crop up.

For anyone who didn't know, this used to be a massive problem with early Archie Mega Man, where the robot masters would get taken out within one to two pages. Things slowly improved with the Mega Man 3 arc which had eight issues, and a set-up which showed the events of their encounters with Mega Man from the robot masters' point of view, so we got to see more about them.

Really lame it's reared it's head up here again at the eleventh hour.

That reminds me of the end of the Mega Man 3 arc.

Spoiler

If my memory is still accurate...Copy Mega Man appears, is defeated in a page or so, convinced/redeemed in two or tree panels, then sacrifices himself immediately after. Mega Man shows sign of regret/sadness but it's pretty difficult to feel any emotion from it. Actually they really rushed through the bosses in that particular issue. Even Doc Robot, which is built up as a horrific amalgamation of the previous robot masters, didn't take half the issue to defeat iirc.

Pacing is definitely the biggest problem Ian struggles with. It's like he has a bunch of ideas for specific scenes and plot points, but doesn't know what to do with the rest or how to connect/make them flow well.

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1 hour ago, Folded King CC14 said:

2020 Annual preview is up, featuring the familiar combined forces of Ian Flynn, Jon Gray, and Big the Cat!

Love the nod to Big's theme.

Not gonna lie: I forgot there was even gonna be an annual, with Big having a proper introduction being the only notable thing I remember about it now.

How appropos that Dubs is doing the art for that, though it's hilarious Head writer Bumbleking is only doing that as well.

Was this supposed to be out once the Metal Virus arc was actually over, btw? I'm wondering what the other stories could be otherwise. 

1 hour ago, Folded King CC14 said:

Another Annual page. I love how Big is somewhere near all of the events in the series so far, SA2 style.

Oh, so there was another practical reason for retroactively naming those locations! And well after we last saw most of them too.

Still have a question about the second page though: who or where is that definition coming from?

1 hour ago, RadicalLaRuby said:

 

Also gotta wonder how hard the writers had to fight just to get Storm to rock Zik in the jaw lol

"You punched an old man--are ya proud?!"

That's a funny question there, depends on how important he is compared to the other Zeti and/or how SonicTeam wanted him to be treated.

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2 hours ago, RadicalLaRuby said:

Action was great, but far too short and easy. Maybe they really are tired of writing this arc, which would be unfortunate. I was kinda enjoying this arc, especially Cream and Gemerl's segments.

 

Also gotta wonder how hard the writers had to fight just to get Storm to rock Zik in the jaw lol

I really don't believe they grew tired of it. There's been a bit of a push to end the arc quicker and I guess that's what they're doing. I for one thought that the pacing up until this exact issue was totally my speed. The fights in the issue before were both great because they both had room to breathe. I really wish this one could have done the same with Zor and Zazz and then have the next one do Zik and the Zavok transformation. Then the finale.

Just would have taken one more issue... but I get it. 

Again, Ian's always had this issue with the sped-up finale. He had it rear its head in the last arc as well. It's also been a problem in almost all the Sonic Universe arcs he's done. 

Great writer but this one little thing of his he's never been able to fully overcome. 

It's funny because Zeena and Zomom are my least favorite of the Zeti and yet they had the best fights. I really like Zor and Master Zik. Zazz and Zavok to a lesser extent too honestly. 

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1 hour ago, KoDaiko said:

That reminds me of the end of the Mega Man 3 arc.

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If my memory is still accurate...Copy Mega Man appears, is defeated in a page or so, convinced/redeemed in two or tree panels, then sacrifices himself immediately after. Mega Man shows sign of regret/sadness but it's pretty difficult to feel any emotion from it. 

L

Did he? I don't remember that at all.

Perhaps a revisit is long overdo.

1 hour ago, KoDaiko said:

That reminds me of the end of the Mega Man 3 arc.

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Even Doc Robot, which is built up as a horrific amalgamation of the previous robot masters, didn't take half the issue to defeat iirc.

 

To be little fair there, Doc Robot didn't seem to be a single entity in the game and so the comic tried to condense that into it's own thing for pragmatism. Still, I can see how it'd be rushed, given how the mini bosses were easy to breeze over.

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I liked #28, but yeah, it does feel a bit rushed. I do think #27 does feel better paced. #28 not only has 3 battles instead of 2, but also has a few pages setting up the finale. In actual page numbers:

#28: Zeena vs Cream & Gemerl: 10 pages

#28: Zomom vs Tails & Amy: 9 pages

#28: Zavok finds Sonic & Eggman: 1 page

#29: Zor vs Silver & Whisper: 4 pages

#29: Zazz vs Espio: 5 pages

#29: Zik vs Babylon Rogues: 3 pages

#29: Zavok vs Resistance: 8 pages

Seems slightly strange. Definetly makes me wonder if the intention was to have 2 battles in #27, #28, and the last battle and the finale stuff in #29, but then plans could have changed. As a stray thought actually, what if instead, we have #27 as per normal, Zor vs Silver & Whipser and Zazz vs Espio in #28, the issue ends with the teams returning only to find out that the Babylon Rogues failed. With Zavok just minutes away, another team, say Tails, Amy, and Whisper, have to go and fight Zik, whilst dealing with the turned Rogues as well, while Zavok is in the middle of invading Angel Island.

I dunno, just a thought. Ofcourse, can't really judge until the end of this, with #29 and maybe #30 as well. It is funny how slow the arc started, issues #13-#16 being quite slow, but how the arc just kept picking up in pace and stakes. Regardless if the ending is a bit rushed, I think it has been a great arc, and I hope the annual will add to it as well.

But yeah, #29 isn't the strongest. Probably the best of the 3 fights is the Babylon Rogues, if purely for the fact that Jet is willing to die along with his team rather than abandon them. I like the fact with Flynn, he treats even the fringe characters who probably don't have that many fans with such respect. Espio thinking of the Chaotix is great, and Silver's optimism versus Zor's goth/emoness is pretty amusing. My one laugh from the issue is Tails going "Zavok's found us!" and Eggman going "you catch on fast." I had to pause to laugh at that. I also do love that cliffhanger. With us so close to the end, I wonder if we're going to see basically everyone get turned right before Super Sonic saves the day. That'll be fun, in a very gruesome way.

But yeah, onto negatives. I do think Zeena vs Cream & Gemerl is the only of the 5 fights that I would label as being outright great. It's the fight I know I will remember. I think part of it is that I think Zeena might be my favourite of the Deadly Six, purely because her stereotype is slightly less one note, since it can alternate between bratiness, meanness, boredom, or just being extremely vain. That and I think she is the only one of the D6 that has a good design, although I imagine that is probably because she is meant to be attractive looking, whereas the others are meant to look like monsters. Zomom and Zor especially are just so ugly looking, and not in any kind of cool way. Not a fan of how much they clash against the Sonic style too, they just don't fit in this book, even when the great range of IDW artists draw them. Tangle & Whisper look like they could of come from a game, the Deadly 6 come across like lazy one off villians. I think you'd have to borderline reinvent the likes of Zomom or Zavok to make them actually interesting characters.

I don't know if there are plans for the D6 after this arc. Alot of IDW has been setting up the groundwork of establishing readers unfamilar to Sonic to his number of allies and enemies, so that they could be used down the line. So I wonder if the D6 being introduced means they will be used later? We know Zavok is to turn up in that Bad Guys mini-series. But honestly, I'd be happy to see the D6 return to the Lost Hex and never return, or if we have to have Zavok (since Sega seems to love the guy for some reason), just Zavok while the other D5 can just stay out of the way.

Looking forward to the annual, wondering how bleak or hopeful it will be with the focus on the zombie virus.

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1 hour ago, Silvereyes said:

I liked #28, but yeah, it does feel a bit rushed. I do think #27 does feel better paced. #28 not only has 3 battles instead of 2, but also has a few pages setting up the finale. In actual page numbers:

#27: Zeena vs Cream & Gemerl: 10 pages

#27: Zomom vs Tails & Amy: 9 pages

#27: Zavok finds Sonic & Eggman: 1 page

#28: Zor vs Silver & Whisper: 4 pages

#28: Zazz vs Espio: 5 pages

#28: Zik vs Babylon Rogues: 3 pages

#28: Zavok vs Resistance: 8 pages

To be completely fair, I guess, The Babylon Rogues' fight with Master Zik had four pages dedicated to it at the end of Issue 26 rather than the single page every other fight got. Still, it feels rushed when the win just hits you so suddenly like it did. The Zeena fight had more of an arc to it. 

I really wish my boy Zor could have gotten just a bit more. 

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4 minutes ago, Dr. Detective Mike said:
11 minutes ago, Silvereyes said:

 

To be completely fair, I guess, The Babylon Rogues' fight with Master Zik had four pages dedicated to it at the end of Issue 26 rather than the single page every other fight got. Still, it feels rushed when the win just hits you so suddenly like it did. The Zeena fight had more of an arc to it. 

I forgot about that, and yeah you are right. Weird way of pacing it, especially when you realise that we never even see the Babylon Rogues in #27. So it jumps from 4 pages of the fight in #26, to 3 pages in the middle of #28. Strange way of doing it, it arguably would of made more sense to just get the whole Rogues fight done at the end of #26, sacrifice a couple of pages of exposition, give the Silver and Espio fights in #28 some more breathing room.

6 minutes ago, Dr. Detective Mike said:

I really wish my boy Zor could have gotten just a bit more. 

Talking about the Deadly Six is funny, because to me they are all so stereotypical, I think your favourite D6 members is just whichever stereotype you like the most. I actually havn't played Lost World yet, despite owning it on PC, and part of the reason is just how asinine the plot of it sounds.

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3 hours ago, DabigRG said:

Still have a question about the second page though: who or where is that definition coming from?

From Sonic snarking the robots after coming out of a manhole, as seen back in Issue #1!

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I think part of the issue with pacing also has to do with the short page limit for the comics which have been shortened over time. It feels sometimes like Ian has no other option but to rush in order to squeeze everything he wants in the issue and advance tell the story.

Have you noticed we are making critiques that the comic is both too rushed in certain issues but the arcs are drawn out too long?  I feel like if the comic had more pages per issue the pacing would be better to tell a grand story. Otherwise the length almost forces the comic to take an episodic approach where it is hard to have the plot and action in good balance in the same issue. 

Don't get me wrong, I like the comic a good bit! However, the pacing is my main flaw, as with Scattered Worlds. The issues go by so fast that we can't appreciate the characters and their accomplishments because we have to jump somewhere else to complete another plot point.

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I repeat, too many members of the Deadly Six, short time, how would you have handled it? Personally, probably make the arc longer, but that again, would have made fans bitter that it was dragging and going slow. It's an impossible situation, of course there are issues, I do think mostly it was issue 26 that tried to introduce all the fights... no way, just have 2 fights in 26, 2 in 27 and 1 (Zazz) in 28 plus the final battle set up in 29 with Zavok. Would have worked better, imo, that issue tried to do everything but it was just an introduction and messed up every following issue, besides the next one. One more thing: I would have made the Zeti co-operate in 2, like Zomom and Zeena together, Zazz and Zor together, at least, it would have created fun dynamics between them.

At this point I just don't care about the Deadly Six, they are just fodder bosses and stuff like that. Same for the other issues, I'm trying to ignore and bypass the obvious drama with Shadow.

Big's Adventure sounds fantastic, it's an opportunity to revisit the first issues, the callbacks. Plus, Vista View is actually the town from issue 1, and Riverside is the village from issue 2, cool! Plus of course, it's a very nice callback to the Big cameos in SA2 and Secret Rings. What are the other stories supposed to be again? I think one is about Metal Sonic?

I'm gonna enjoy the final fight next issue, although I feel like the epilogue stuff is kinda unnecessary, yeah, I wanted them to move on to the next mini arcs. But it doesn't make me enjoy the book less, it's really refreshing and fun. 

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4 hours ago, prowerboy26 said:

I think part of the issue with pacing also has to do with the short page limit for the comics which have been shortened over time. It feels sometimes like Ian has no other option but to rush in order to squeeze everything he wants in the issue and advance tell the story.

Have you noticed we are making critiques that the comic is both too rushed in certain issues but the arcs are drawn out too long?  I feel like if the comic had more pages per issue the pacing would be better to tell a grand story. Otherwise the length almost forces the comic to take an episodic approach where it is hard to have the plot and action in good balance in the same issue. 

Don't get me wrong, I like the comic a good bit! However, the pacing is my main flaw, as with Scattered Worlds. The issues go by so fast that we can't appreciate the characters and their accomplishments because we have to jump somewhere else to complete another plot point.

This, plus the issue of writing for the trade, which has become more of an industry standard.

On top of that, I think that while the standard from Marvel and DC is 5-6 issues, Archie made it four. Take something like a whole Mega Man game, each of which (save the first) introduces eight antagonists in eight different locations, plus all the crap in the castles and whatnot, and you're going to have a very tight fit.

For whatever reason, IDW seems to be following the 4-issue trade format as well, even though they've had other series go with more. So then something like the Zombot arc likely has to be divided into "chapters" or even "volumes" that fit that space as neatly as possible.

Depending on the story, I imagine it can be a very difficult juggling act.

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The simplest way out would be if Flynn just stops being so rigid and broke formula.

Say Megaman 3 in Archie: he did two 4-parters, one for Robot Master, the other for rest. How about instead Megaman beats only 4 robot masters and "final boss" of the chapter is Proto Man. Then he goes after Wily properly, with 4 Robot Masters in actual castle.
It's less true to the games, but more paced like actual story would do it, Proto Man fight has more weight and first 4 parter feels less like filler.

 

Of course this time there was no need for this. 5 Zeti to beat in 3 issues, last issue for Zavok conclusion. It would be easy fit (even including proper Rouge robbery) if Flynn just did issue #26 better.
Like, instead of talking how takes who, why not just send them instantly, maybe with some caption boxes explaining things (compare it to FF saving Prof Pickles in Archie 258). Showing campers on Island or Sonic  on run mill could been cut, even Rouge scene could been condensed/cut. It doesn't move plot forward, just reminds us she's there.
And I know I keep bringing this up, but same thing happened in "Panic in the Sky". Flynn just loves people sitting in the circle and explaining the plot, which leads to rushed action scenes.

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Don't got much to say honestly; everything went by incredibly fast. I liked Espio's fight at least.

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I was kind of waiting to see how Zazz was able to detect Espio sneaking up on him while invisible...

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3 hours ago, Jack at Home said:

I repeat, too many members of the Deadly Six, short time, how would you have handled it? Personally, probably make the arc longer, but that again, would have made fans bitter that it was dragging and going slow. It's an impossible situation, of course there are issues, I do think mostly it was issue 26 that tried to introduce all the fights... no way, just have 2 fights in 26, 2 in 27 and 1 (Zazz) in 28 plus the final battle set up in 29 with Zavok.

I am not sure if this is directed towards me, but I just want to make the record clear that I agree with you that it is a near impossible task. Which is why I said the page length puts Ian in a position where he has no choice but to pace this way if he wants to work with a lot a characters.

I also agree with you that I enjoy the comics! I was just describing my one main criticism out of a series I really enjoy reading. Just wanted to clear that up.

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16 minutes ago, Sonictrainer said:

I was kind of waiting to see how Zazz was able to detect Espio sneaking up on him while invisible...

He picked up his scent, hence the sniff sniff sound effect.

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I would like to talk more about the book but like...i dunno man it just kinda happens. Ain't bad but yeah

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6 hours ago, KingScoopaKoopa said:

Take something like a whole Mega Man game, each of which (save the first) introduces eight antagonists in eight different locations, plus all the crap in the castles and whatnot, and you're going to have a very tight fit.

5 hours ago, MetalSkulkBane said:

The simplest way out would be if Flynn just stops being so rigid and broke formula.

Say Megaman 3 in Archie: he did two 4-parters, one for Robot Master, the other for rest. How about instead Megaman beats only 4 robot masters and "final boss" of the chapter is Proto Man. Then he goes after Wily properly, with 4 Robot Masters in actual castle.
It's less true to the games, but more paced like actual story would do it, Proto Man fight has more weight and first 4 parter feels less like filler.

I like to give the Mega Man Megamix series as an example. They were very loose adaptations as they were created as extra/supplementary manga for the game. It has it's own flaws but man I love the story...

Spoiler

Mega Man 1 is a straightforward adaptation, with Mega Man fighting each boss in order.

Mega Man 2 has Mega Man get ambushed by two Robot Masters in the city. The Light bots come to his rescue but is joined by more bosses. Mega Man rushes off to stop Wily's plan while dealing with the pursuers. Only three of the enemy is defeated by the heroes.

Mega Man 3 had two stories. The first one happens after the game plot where Wily and Mega Man has to team up against a certain character. The one written later in Gigamix was a proper adaptation of the game. Mega Man is pursued by multiple Robot Masters, but is interrupted/saved by Break Man. After barely defeating him, he rushes to fight Gamma while Wily and the rest escape.

Mega Man 4 already happened, and the focus is on Cossack, Kalinka and the robots. 

Mega Man 5 is mentioned in a page or so, the rest is fun filler (plus formal introduction of Bass). There is a proper fight with Bass in the next story.

Mega Man 6 is loosely adapted, the game stuff do happen but mostly offscreen. The story is focused more on a certain character...oh, they also have Bass and the Cossack family.

It's not newcomer-friendly but I like the manga doesn't follow a strict formula or tries to include all the location/bosses, and has more characters involved in the story than in the game. Unfortunate that I couldn't enjoy Gigamix as much...

7 hours ago, KingScoopaKoopa said:

For whatever reason, IDW seems to be following the 4-issue trade format as well, even though they've had other series go with more. So then something like the Zombot arc likely has to be divided into "chapters" or even "volumes" that fit that space as neatly as possible.

Depending on the story, I imagine it can be a very difficult juggling act.

Yeah 4-issue format may be a big factor too. I wonder how Evan Stanley would handle this restriction when her turn comes.

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18 hours ago, Shadowlax said:

They issue with ignoring it, is that they are as of currently enforcing it. IIzuka say wild shit all the time I just ignore because its clear it means nothing, shadow just did a full time stop chaos control with no emerald in the last game. But this restrictive and kinda lame so people are a bit peeved.

I mean, that last game was Forces, so...

18 hours ago, Shadowlax said:

That money thing def weirds me out though, then why do we use rings as currency in multiple games?

 

17 hours ago, Razule said:

Could say that's just a gameplay feature.

Which technically makes it fair game.

16 hours ago, Dr. Detective Mike said:

It's funny because Zeena and Zomom are my least favorite of the Zeti and yet they had the best fights.  

Yeah, seriously.

But then, I guess that's part of why those fights was the best: those two had the most to prove, the other ingredients for an effective/solid story/struggle was there, and the issue(s) made good use of them. 

Hell, I'd even say Zomom carried his half for the most part.

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2 hours ago, KoDaiko said:

I like to give the Mega Man Megamix series as an example. They were very loose adaptations as they were created as extra/supplementary manga for the game. It has it's own flaws but man I love the story...

  Hide contents

Mega Man 1 is a straightforward adaptation, with Mega Man fighting each boss in order.

Mega Man 2 has Mega Man get ambushed by two Robot Masters in the city. The Light bots come to his rescue but is joined by more bosses. Mega Man rushes off to stop Wily's plan while dealing with the pursuers. Only three of the enemy is defeated by the heroes.

Mega Man 3 had two stories. The first one happens after the game plot where Wily and Mega Man has to team up against a certain character. The one written later in Gigamix was a proper adaptation of the game. Mega Man is pursued by multiple Robot Masters, but is interrupted/saved by Break Man. After barely defeating him, he rushes to fight Gamma while Wily and the rest escape.

Mega Man 4 already happened, and the focus is on Cossack, Kalinka and the robots. 

Mega Man 5 is mentioned in a page or so, the rest is fun filler (plus formal introduction of Bass). There is a proper fight with Bass in the next story.

Mega Man 6 is loosely adapted, the game stuff do happen but mostly offscreen. The story is focused more on a certain character...oh, they also have Bass and the Cossack family.

It's not newcomer-friendly but I like the manga doesn't follow a strict formula or tries to include all the location/bosses, and has more characters involved in the story than in the game. Unfortunate that I couldn't enjoy Gigamix as much...

Yeah 4-issue format may be a big factor too. I wonder how Evan Stanley would handle this restriction when her turn comes.

I considered bringing this up as another potential factor. Maybe something like this is how he would have done it... had Ariga not beaten him to the punch. He has shown he can and will divert from how things were in the games, like having the Light Robot Masters make the iconic assault on Willy's fortress in Mega Man 2's adaptation.

9 hours ago, MetalSkulkBane said:

The simplest way out would be if Flynn just stops being so rigid and broke formula.

Say Megaman 3 in Archie: he did two 4-parters, one for Robot Master, the other for rest. How about instead Megaman beats only 4 robot masters and "final boss" of the chapter is Proto Man. Then he goes after Wily properly, with 4 Robot Masters in actual castle.
It's less true to the games, but more paced like actual story would do it, Proto Man fight has more weight and first 4 parter feels less like filler.

Could have been an editorial thing. If I had my way, I'd retell a Mega Man game in 12 issues. Editors may not see it the same way.

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Anyone else completely forget about Zavok's size shifting when you first saw the cover for next issue?

18 hours ago, Silvereyes said:

I liked #28, but yeah, it does feel a bit rushed. I do think #27 does feel better paced. #28 not only has 3 battles instead of 2, but also has a few pages setting up the finale. In actual page numbers:

#27: Zeena vs Cream & Gemerl: 10 pages

#27: Zomom vs Tails & Amy: 9 pages

#27: Zavok finds Sonic & Eggman: 1 page

#28: Zor vs Silver & Whisper: 4 pages

#28: Zazz vs Espio: 5 pages

#28: Zik vs Babylon Rogues: 3 pages

#28: Zavok vs Resistance: 8 pages

Plus #26 an extra page for the other Zeti, with Zik getting four as Mike said. 

Probably wouldn't count what happens with before Zavok at least transforms(or the whole page cutaways for that matter), but whatever. Still serves the point well for the entire group, with him being the leader and all.

18 hours ago, Silvereyes said:

Seems slightly strange. Definetly makes me wonder if the intention was to have 2 battles in #27, #28, and the last battle and the finale stuff in #29, but then plans could have changed. As a stray thought actually, what if instead, we have #27 as per normal, Zor vs Silver & Whipser and Zazz vs Espio in #28, the issue ends with the teams returning only to find out that the Babylon Rogues failed. With Zavok just minutes away, another team, say Tails, Amy, and Whisper, have to go and fight Zik, whilst dealing with the turned Rogues as well, while Zavok is in the middle of invading Angel Island.

 Hm...that could've been interesting. It would solidify Zik's experience and cunning compared to the other Zeti and create secondary fight out of an extended one to give the less prominent heroes something else to do.

Speaking of which, there's another point that should be safe to bring back up: isn't it a bit funny that the reasoning behind everyone going at the same time didn't get compromised? 

18 hours ago, Silvereyes said:

Probably the best of the 3 fights is the Babylon Rogues, if purely for the fact that Jet is willing to die along with his team rather than abandon them. I like the fact with Flynn, he treats even the fringe characters who probably don't have that many fans with such respect. 

True dat. 

In this case, it could also be making up for the fact that the Rogues generally don't get to be around much anyway, nevermind in this light.

18 hours ago, Silvereyes said:

 I think part of it is that I think Zeena might be my favourite of the Deadly Six, purely because her stereotype is slightly less one note, since it can alternate between bratiness, meanness, boredom, or just being extremely vain. That and I think she is the only one of the D6 that has a good design, although I imagine that is probably because she is meant to be attractive looking, whereas the others are meant to look like monsters.

Really now? I actually kinda had the read that she almost had no note since she and to a different level Zavok weren't very easy to pinpoint, collectively speaking. But you're right, as the hint of inconsistency regarding what she was supposed to be across Lost World and it's marketing kinda shows.

And yes, she really does have a good design.

18 hours ago, Silvereyes said:

Zomom and Zor especially are just so ugly looking, and not in any kind of cool way. Not a fan of how much they clash against the Sonic style too, they just don't fit in this book, even when the great range of IDW artists draw them. Tangle & Whisper look like they could of come from a game, the Deadly 6 come across like lazy one off villians.

I suppose Zor's lips does sorta break it thanks to this recent issue.

Of course, part of me kinda sees that as something of an inevitability: villains often have designs that are more jagged, sinister, or otherwise unconventional compared to the other characters in series like these.

18 hours ago, Silvereyes said:

I think you'd have to borderline reinvent the likes of Zomom or Zavok to make them actually interesting characters.

Oh? What is it about Zavok in particular?

18 hours ago, Silvereyes said:

I don't know if there are plans for the D6 after this arc. Alot of IDW has been setting up the groundwork of establishing readers unfamilar to Sonic to his number of allies and enemies, so that they could be used down the line. So I wonder if the D6 being introduced means they will be used later? We know Zavok is to turn up in that Bad Guys mini-series. But honestly, I'd be happy to see the D6 return to the Lost Hex and never return, or if we have to have Zavok (since Sega seems to love the guy for some reason), just Zavok while the other D5 can just stay out of the way.

I was just about to bring up the Bad Guys miniseries. But yes, I'm sure there's further plans for them to come and there just might be a decent backlog of ideas for them since Mr. Flynn only got to use them for a prequel to Lost World and by necessicity World's Unite before.

They were evidently always intended to play a role in the Archie Reboot version of the Metal Virus Saga and there was setup for a possible Lost World adaptation involving the Witchcarters as well, though some of that is most likely no longer usable now.

As for why Zavok in particular keeps showing up, it's quite simply: the Deadly Six are collectively a recurring group of villains, he's the leader of the band, and most of the games since their debut being spinoffs, crossovers, and Forces all mean it's easier to just use him to fill a place in their limited rosters.

18 hours ago, Silvereyes said:

I forgot about that, and yeah you are right. Weird way of pacing it, especially when you realise that we never even see the Babylon Rogues in #27. So it jumps from 4 pages of the fight in #26, to 3 pages in the middle of #28. Strange way of doing it, it arguably would of made more sense to just get the whole Rogues fight done at the end of #26, sacrifice a couple of pages of exposition, give the Silver and Espio fights in #28 some more breathing room.

I guess part of the issue(heh) is that in addition to Zik going down in one page, 27 was wholly dedicated to the Filler Two fights with only the last page being free as a last minute segueway back into the main plot.

18 hours ago, Silvereyes said:

Talking about the Deadly Six is funny, because to me they are all so stereotypical, I think your favourite D6 members is just whichever stereotype you like the most. I actually havn't played Lost World yet, despite owning it on PC, and part of the reason is just how asinine the plot of it sounds.

Essentially.

You sure the incredible slow mo lag has nothing to due with it, btw?

14 hours ago, Folded King CC14 said:

From Sonic snarking the robots after coming out of a manhole, as seen back in Issue #1!

Oooh...the preview made it look like it's coming from offscreen.

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4 hours ago, KingScoopaKoopa said:

I considered bringing this up as another potential factor. Maybe something like this is how he would have done it... had Ariga not beaten him to the punch. He has shown he can and will divert from how things were in the games, like having the Light Robot Masters make the iconic assault on Willy's fortress in Mega Man 2's adaptation.

Could have been an editorial thing. If I had my way, I'd retell a Mega Man game in 12 issues. Editors may not see it the same way.

I wonder how much was Ian's idea and how much was the editor. As mentioned has done loose adaptations like Unleashed and Fighters, and have done creative interpretation on specific plot points (Proto Man, Mr. X, Super Adventure Rockman, Shadow Man and all space-related robots). But he also seemed to be committed to including every canon detail or reference from other materials that he think is neat or neccessary. 

Ariga does mention on his twitter that he had much more freedom in creating his manga back then, but doesn't think he'd have the same freedom now. They weren't given any references by the companies, and there were barely any official materials aside from the game itself and manuals/occasional official guidebooks (he still did ask Capcom for approval whenever he did anything new). Now each Robot Master is given a detailed backstory and personality with official references, and Capcom would probably have a tighter grip on how to present the series.

 

(This is completely off topic, but this discussion is reminded me of Ian's initial pitch for a Mario comic on his twitter)

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