Megathread IDW's Sonic the Hedgehog - Megathread

[VO.SUPER]

8 minutes ago, KoDaiko said:

I am not enjoying the split story format used in this and the previous arc. They keep switching between stories and doesn't give enough page or focus to keep each of them equally engaging, to the point it feels like filler.

I think it's a fine format for plots that really don't have long running impacts and are not worth end of the world stakes. If it wasn't for the delays, I'd honestly not be complaining. After how long and drawn out the Zombot arc was; a good break was needed. But these constant delays have been just messing with all the pacing in places.

--

On the subject of the previews, I'm liking the art here and the immediate banter between Sonic and Eggman. It feels like a straight jump into the action.

By the way, do we still need these reminder balloons in this day and age of wikis, youtube videos, and the like? They just feel like they take up precious space.

 

[bingboomer]

i would say the icing in the cake is going to be when sonic eats chilly dogs in that cold town. 

[Razule]

41 minutes ago, Dejimon11 said:

 

Already off to a great start 

It has taken a surprisingly long time for "Baldy McNosehair" to be brought up in the comics

[SBR2]

Can I be honest. I don't get the problem with Baldy McNosehair. It's only been used in like 3 games and one of those was a Lego Dimensions pack.

[A super No.1 washedupgamer]

Spoiler

Even when not directly fighting sonic, eggman still winds up with a smoke face. It's also very weird how they just let robot and cubot go.

 

[Echidna Adventurer CC14]

Looks like the big news that IDW teased might've just been a giveaway? PS5 looks real cool, I guess.

[Kazhnuz]

I'm not sure the news was the giveaway, I think it was the "3 new comics and two graphic novel/compilations in one month" thingy.

[VO.SUPER]

Gotta say though, that is a really cool PS5 design, it's going to be great when it's been scalped.

[MetalSkulkBane]

1 hour ago, SBR2 said:

Can I be honest. I don't get the problem with Baldy McNosehair. It's only been used in like 3 games and one of those was a Lego Dimensions pack.

For starters that's already a lot. I don't recall Portal 2 using "cake is a lie" joke everywhere. Or even once.

But real problem isn't the phrase itself. "Baldy McNosehair" is a funny enough on it's own. It's how it was introduced. With this smug "oh man, isn't that funny. Yeah it's comedy gold. Writers of this game are SO SMART" sorta vibe, which is ever present in every Pontaff script.

[SBR2]

1 minute ago, MetalSkulkBane said:

For starters that's already a lot. I don't recall Portal 2 using "cake is a lie" joke everywhere. Or even once.

But real problem isn't the phrase itself. "Baldy McNosehair" is a funny enough on it's own. It's how it was introduced. With this smug "oh man, isn't that funny. Yeah it's comedy gold. Writers of this game are SO SMART" sorta vibe, which is ever present in every Pontaff script.

I really truly think people take it way too seriously. It's just Sonic finding it really funny. It's barely fucking used ever past that point. Hell the other games it's used in is only once. 

I really don't get that vibe that Pontaff think they're writing is super clever or hilarious. Half the time it's just Sonic and Tails snickering at a quip.

I'm really trying not to sound insulting but it really is something that people have blown completely out of proportion. 

[Diogenes]

Maybe Sonic's just a dork who laughs at dumb jokes.

[StaticMania]

15 minutes ago, Diogenes said:

Maybe Sonic's just a dork who laughs at dumb jokes.

Characters can't do that...

Characters don't laugh...

[VO.SUPER]

Just having Eggman comment and get mad at Sonic for the joke gives me more of the spiderman vibes than just the joke in its original context. I guess it's just because there's a proper reaction to the insult in a way that feels earned? Dunno how exactly to describe it.

It's like the straight man finally entered the building to rain on the funny guy's parade.

[Kuzu]

Guys...its a funny reference. For fuck's sake, get the sticks out of your asses.

[Razule]

1 hour ago, Kuzu said:

Guys...its a funny reference. For fuck's sake, get the sticks out of your asses.

I don't think anyone here is saying it's a bad thing.

[DabigRG]

Master Zik is kind of a piece of shit. 

 

Also, RIP comments section

16 hours ago, Jack-al said:

The feeling I had when reading the last issue was: things are shaking up and finally paying off quickly, not much happens... that's it? Way too short and I feel empty.

At the same time I feel not much happened and the thing last only a few minutes.

  Reveal hidden contents

It's pretty much Eggman exposing Belle to the truth and her reaction, plus the tower is destroyed and Orbot & Cubot get thrown off the Tornado lol

But I liked how the reveal happened, quickly and sharp (thanks Eggman)

I liked the elemental Egg Vipers honestly, they deserved better. In general this arc had good ideas but they didn't do much with them. I wanted more consequences to Belle's story which should have been the focus, I agree, and they will come eventually it's just it felt like an empty filler arc just to get to this point. I mean, 4 issues to get here. Chao Races and Badnik Bases at least had a lot more going on.

Don't get me wrong, I don't mind focused game accurate stories with more character drama, action and less "big catastrophe" scale, I don't feel like this was done correctly. There is a lot of room for improvement. I mostly felt this way with the first 4 issues.

 

I totally forgot that arc had a second part to it's title.

7 hours ago, KoDaiko said:

I am not enjoying the split story format used in this and the previous arc. They keep switching between stories and doesn't give enough page or focus to keep each of them equally engaging, to the point it feels like filler.

Unrelated, I find it funny the main series is giving Belle 3+ arcs/12+ issues to flesh out her backstory and development, when all the other original character's story are pushed to a spin-off. From what I've seen, if we took out all the unrelated sections Belle's story would probably fit into one 4-issue arc like the other's just fine.

I guess her connection to Eggman makes Belle special but if then I wish they wove in the Bad Guys plot in the main series too, since what the villains (especially Zavok and Starline) were doing behind the scenes feel semi-important.

 

That's because she's more or less a no action hero like Jewel and one without connections to any of the comic cast upon introduction. Of course she'd be something for the main books--there was nothing special about her or her nonexistent company.

 

[Zaysho]

Read the arc in one sitting. I had read the first two issues months ago but needed a refresh because I don't pay attention to its release. Overall I just think it's a pretty boring storyline. I don't think the delays really contribute to how I feel about it; yeah, they suck, but it doesn't really change the storyline's quickly devolving pacing and unfocused narrative. It just feels like the story was started with a good idea but that idea is given the backseat for something that can be summed up as "Sonic doing the same shit he always does." I really liked Evan's Chao Race story in spite of my obvious issues with Shadow (but at this point, we know the character is so tied down in corporate mandate to be boring as shit so that's not her or Ian's faults), which I think was a refreshing change of pace after the pretty lukewarm conclusion of the Metal Virus arc (which I liked overall especially after how much I disliked the book's first year). Even the weaker parts of it are highlighted by the sheer absurdity and the interactions of the cast, most of which aren't the regular rotation characters. While this arc has some very cool imagery with how the dimension twists around and the lite horror movie vibes of the ghost town that could serve as backdrops for the games, there's not a lot going on in the "A" plot.

The main hook is really in the "B" plot: uncovering Belle's creator, which itself was so loudly broadcast even before her print debut just from her design, but I don't feel that's the journey readers are meant to be taken on--it's about Belle discovering the truth about Eggman and figuring out her place in the world now that she knows Tinker was a figment. The problem is so little time is spent on it, relative to Sonic and co. repeatedly wondering what's happening next, that it feels less important and rushed in. I get there will be fallout from this to explore it more, because monthly comics, but I'd have preferred if Belle was just with Sonic and had the four issues to learn and process something that's otherwise just chucked into two pages in the last part.

Still though, the storyline itself is creative for getting into Eggman's head why he does what he does and the things he does to develop his tech. I personally don't like Eggman as a character in any incarnation--never have--but I appreciate the comics (both Archie and IDW) actually trying to make him interesting. The "fused" badniks are pretty goofy looking, and it at least sounds like an interesting continuation of the Metal Virus in a more controlled manner, finding new ways for his machines to evolve and adapt to new circumstances. There's credit to be given in this story for sure, even if the overall plot feels half-baked.

Art's fantastic but that's not even worth talking about anymore. It's the one point I always put in IDW's favor. Evan and Adam are two of my favorite artists on this series and their work, along with Bracardi Curry's additional pencils, blend together so well. I've said this in the past but it bears repeating, this is how penciller-collab issues should look. Each artist does stand out and I can pick them out from one another, but they come together to form a near seamless whole that half the time I forget it's multiple artists.

[MetalSkulkBane]

8 hours ago, Kuzu said:

Guys...its a funny reference. For fuck's sake, get the sticks out of your asses.

1) Hey, question been asked, I answered it.

2) I actually think that Flynn used it brilliantly. He sad it's bad joke, but only through Eggman's mouth. That's keeping the meme alive, agreeing him people who don't like it, and not agreeing at the same time. Insert "outstanding move" meme here.

9 hours ago, SBR2 said:

I really don't get that vibe that Pontaff think they're writing is super clever or hilarious. Half the time it's just Sonic and Tails snickering at a quip.

Some do. Internet, some always do. But at the same time I'm allowed to say "yeah, I find those jokes cringy-worthy" and not be accused of hating all fun on earth.

If you like it, good for you, but I liked Sonic when it had once of seriousness and stakes. If you turn in into light heart comedy, make sure it's GOOD comedy. If I don't find the jokes funny, then making characters laugh at them only makes things worse.
I mean, joke where Sonic brings order of "beatdown" to one boss. It's a single joke, that just goes and goes. That's not Sonic annoying Eggman or having fun with his bro. That's just writers thinking this is funny, or that they don't feel too lazy to come up with more jokes.

(granted, Colors has few good lines. Heck, Eggman announcements are down right hilarious).

[StaticMania]

41 minutes ago, MetalSkulkBane said:

...make sure it's GOOD comedy.

I don't think this means anything.

It's just a myth.

Comedy does work better in quick burst, but if a writer wants to do a longer gag...then that's it. They're running the risk of a potentially unfunny joke going on too long and annoying people.

Due to the setup of the game, they only really have the jokes to work with for making the boss cut-scenes unique.

[SBR2]

5 hours ago, MetalSkulkBane said:

If you like it, good for you, but I liked Sonic when it had once of seriousness and stakes. If you turn in into light heart comedy, make sure it's GOOD comedy.

Comedy is subjective. There's no way to make a joke universally funny. There's no formula for everyone to enjoy it.

Like for example I don't get why there are people who like the Big Bang Theory. It's just a bunch of science words and pop culture references that are apparently jokes. But that shit ran for a decade so I guess someone found it funny.

[CrownSlayers Shadow]

5 hours ago, SBR2 said:

Comedy is subjective. There's no way to make a joke universally funny. There's no formula for everyone to enjoy it.

Like for example I don't get why there are people who like the Big Bang Theory. It's just a bunch of science words and pop culture references that are apparently jokes. But that shit ran for a decade so I guess someone found it funny.

I’m a massive sci-if nerd with a preference towards hard sci-fi, and I love many things science.

Even I don’t find Big Bang Theory funny—I get the jokes, but they fall flat with me. There’s a way to make things funny for most people, but then there are those with niches.

 

[MetalSkulkBane]

5 hours ago, SBR2 said:

Comedy is subjective. There's no way to make a joke universally funny. There's no formula for everyone to enjoy it.

By that logic, there was no point to this conversation. Why so people don't like that joke? Because they don't find it funny. Why? Because comedy is subjective, end of story.

I feel like this is a cop out argument. Music is subjective.  Tastes are subjective. Liking a comic about blue hedgehog is subjective. But we still talk, argue, converse.  We still have review, essays, dissection.

...with that said I don't want to drag this any longer, so let's just agree to disagree.

[Wraith]

18 hours ago, SBR2 said:

Comedy is subjective. There's no way to make a joke universally funny. There's no formula for everyone to enjoy it.

Like for example I don't get why there are people who like the Big Bang Theory. It's just a bunch of science words and pop culture references that are apparently jokes. But that shit ran for a decade so I guess someone found it funny.

Humor is subjective, but most things are subjective when it comes to discussing games. Thing is the target with Sonic games is critical and commercial acclaim(I think), and we discuss when they miss this mark all the time, in all regards.

And, to be blunt, I don't ever see Sonic Colors's script regarded with any real fondness. Certain creative choices with regards to the tone and atmosphere are praised, but when was the last time you've seen anyone recall their favorite jokes? This is a game that's trying to be funny, and the jokes get less play than some of the unintended humor from previous games. I consider that a failure, and no one has any problem talking about a Sonic game coming short when it's SA1-06.

[StaticMania]

1 hour ago, Wraith said:

...but when was the last time you've seen anyone recall their favorite jokes?

Well, they'll say Eggman's PA announcements, but they won't say which ones.

But I'll give one, it's small and visual and it's after Sonic beats the 2nd boss.

Actually it's right before the Baldy Nosehair line, Sonic's little chat with broken boss and his surprised reaction to Tails showing up is nice.

[Sonictrainer]

Spoiler

Zavok & the crew looking for beans