Canon Immigrants

[Rabid-Coot]

I get the feeling that putting older comic characters in would cause them more annoyance.

Right now its a simple no but maybe blanket statement. Give the characters a cameo and you're on to when will they back again, why aren't they in more, when is this other character I liked coming back, I hate this change you made to this character and so on.

[Your Vest Friend]

35 minutes ago, Wraith said:

the Freedom Fighters being blatantly more popular than those other characters are why they would be getting "top privileges"

Are they more popular than Sticks and Cosmo? I'm pretty sure Sticks at the very least is more popular by way of her show being the most recent one. 

[CrownSlayers Shadow]

3 hours ago, Tangled Jack said:

It's still Sonic though. It was simply Sonic in the first games, the SatAM cast was around when SEGA had no idea on what Sonic was, and had lots of different continuities and cartoons. Now… they still don't have a clue on how to handle Sonic, there are various inconsistencies in their thinking, but Classic Sonic is back because he is popular, 90s big icon nostalgia. The Freedom Fighters meanwhile, are a niche thing.

Except the Freedom Fighters and Classic Sonic we’re part of the same popular, 90 nostalgia...

3 hours ago, Tangled Jack said:

I'm not against the Freedom Fighters, but why should they get top privileges?

I have a better question: When has literally anyone demanded they get top privileges? All that’s being asked is that they come back. They can rotate with the other characters—like they were already doing anyway in Archie.

3 hours ago, Tangled Jack said:

I don't see any harm in having them as guests in IDW, ONLY IF they are labelled as "past continuities outsiders", I know this sounds weird, but I'm a fan of Sticks, and she's from a dead continuity too, just like the Freedom Fighters, so basically, I would be okay with the SatAM cast showing up, as long as stuff from Boom, Sonic X, and AoStH, are allowed too.

That’s fine with me. Pretty sure people would love to see those characters come back with Ian at the writing helm.

3 hours ago, Tangled Jack said:

I also was not a fan of how the Freedom Fighters were protagonists in Archie, it was unnecessary, I only understand that it was like that because the book started as a SatAM tie in comic. So it was natural to keep them around in a big way, but now? Why?

The same reason they have Tangle and Whisper around in a big way?

 

[Zaysho]

I really wish people would stop assuming that demand to bring the FF back is a demand to have them take over the comic or that this somehow comes at the expense of other continuities. Everyone seems to understand that wouldn't be the case with Sticks or whoever else they want added back to IDW but the second Sally, et al are brought up people seem to have this knee jerk reaction because of whatever they didn't like about Archie or because they think their own demand is getting drowned out.

[Celestia]

I adore the FF and want to see them again in an official capacity someday, but I miss some of the other characters a bit more, even AOSTH weirdly. Scratch and Grounder are way more fun than Orbot and Cubot for one, and I liked seeing Von Schlemmer of all people show up as a character in Silver's future.

15 hours ago, Dr. Franken-Mike said:

I also don't know why Omega would HAVE to be introduced murdering someone. I don't know what you're even referring to there.

In the first draft of Eggman's destruction of Knothole in #175, Omega was going to make his first appearance and kill the infamous Tommy Turtle. Apparently Ian said it was SEGA that put a stop to that, which...as hilarious as that idea is, I think that was for the best. lol

Has it ever been said that SEGA was against Omega being used at all? I can't find anything about that.

[Ryannumber1gamer]

Other than the FF, I’m personally disappointed we lost Breezie, and as Celestia said, Scratch, Coconuts and Grounder. Breezie fit well as a grey area villain who knew how to manipulate situations to her favour, I liked how she wasn’t solely good, or solely bad. She helped Sonic when she thought she could get publicity and money from it, and when Eggman couldn’t offer a better deal, she told him to piss off, forcing him to send Metal to retrieve the emeralds for him.

Scratch and co was fun to have as lackies as well. The fact that they went from cartoonishly over the top robots trying to kill Sonic to bodyguards trying to retain some level of professionalism, as well as being able to screw with Sonc when he wanted something from Breezie was a fun twist on them. I really wish we could’ve got more from them before Archie bit the dust.

A lot of people ask for the Egg Bosses back, and I’m in the same boat, but Breezie tops the list for me easily in terms of villains to bring back into IDW. I was really interested in how Ian was setting Breezie up to have been involved with Neo Metal Sonic and Heroes’ plot line.

[Zaysho]

6 minutes ago, Celestia said:

Has it ever been said that SEGA was against Omega being used at all? I can't find anything about that.

I think Flynn and Bollers were the only ones to propose using him (I don't recall seeing Penders ever mention wanting to use him), though Ian's plans are the only ones that I'm aware of with any detail. I looked up Bollers' "One Year Later" plan and there's virtually nothing about Omega other than he appears and is a hero. Hard to say if Sega wasn't sure what to do with the character or if the rest of the proposal just put them off and Omega was held off because there wasn't anything else to attach him to.

[Red Hot Jack]

In fact I'm actually not a fan of the idea of Tangle and Whisper being around for too much time, I wouldn't have put so many characters in this arc, for example Team Dark and Chaotix were kinda unnecessary, I think T&W are in season 2 because other characters couldn't make it cause of mandates. But yes, as Ian said the book is still very young, Sega might rethink about it and accept the inclusion of dead cartoon outsiders. Maybe. What I wanted for this comic was a focus on Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, Amy and Eggman and that's it. Instead of this rotation system.

[Ellipsis-Ultima]

20 hours ago, Wraith said:

Updated topic title. Figured the Ian news can be discussed in here so I don't have to read dumb takes on the side bar all day. 

 

 

Basically, the FF are not 100% dead, Ian is still pushing for them to appear in the current comics. It's not the same as them appearing in the modern Sonic games but with how close the IDW world is to the games it would be as close as we'll ever get to seeing something like that happen.

Ian did such a good job updating the characters over the comic's history that I'd be up for it, personally.

Said it once and I'll say it again: I'd be cool with it if they appeared as a spin off series.

18 hours ago, Wraith said:

He said the post reboot designs are off limits so they'd receive another retooling.

Well that's disappointing, thought those designs were better than the others. I wonder how they'll top that and make them fit in this universe. 

If they get in that is...

[Shadowlax]

nah

[Red Hot Jack]

I'm gonna repeat myself, but Tangle and Whisper got a separate miniseries that focuses on them, while in the main comic, they still feel extra additions. (See: Battle for Angel Island, Last Minute).

[Kazhnuz]

6 hours ago, Tangled Jack said:

I'm not against the Freedom Fighters, but why should they get top privileges? I don't see any harm in having them as guests in IDW, ONLY IF they are labelled as "past continuities outsiders", I know this sounds weird, but I'm a fan of Sticks, and she's from a dead continuity too, just like the Freedom Fighters, so basically, I would be okay with the SatAM cast showing up, as long as stuff from Boom, Sonic X, and AoStH, are allowed too.

Well, it's logical that people fight more for the character they want to return, and not for every one that exists. It's not a question of "top privilege" or anything, it's just people advocating for their own favourite character. (EDIT : and as many other people said : nobody here is saying that other characters or continuity shouldn't happens, exactly like nobody say that they should be main character or whatever).

Though that I totally agree that IDW should use a bit the PostSGW!ArchieSonic way of adapting characters from older continuities into the modern world and creating good expy for those that aren't possible (Madonna Garnet totally made me in awe for the triple-reference… and I'm not even talking about that genius Von Schlemmer in a "robot form" in Silver future, that was just so fun xD) to spice things a bit. I would love to see another try at adapting Naugus, Breezie or the SSSSS, or tries around other characters. There might be some right limits about some because SEGA is SEGA, but salvaging some interesting parts of the "dead" continuities could really lead the comics to present interesting new twists around these characters.

They should be a bit less "extreme" about it, though, and not introduce a new character full team of characters every two comics.

[Tornado]

While it's true that any time spent showing the FF is time that is wasted by not having Shadow save the day by himself in the coolest way imaginable and thus is a complete waste of time, it would be absolutely trivial to write a story with the FF contesting Eggman even in the games. It's already dabbled in parallel universes, multiple timelines and what would happen if Sonic wasn't around for whatever reason in multiple games; and they wouldn't even need to go that far.

 

"Sonic discovers that there's a part of the world that Eggman has been secretly tightening his grip on. He goes there and discovers a group that were already battling his control. That group is the FF, with designs adapted as needed like Sonic Team had already done with immigrant characters in the series before.. He helps. He's thanked. He leaves at the end." Done. Personalities largely wouldn't even need to change much, outside of deleting their history with Sonic.

 

In a series that has already had its own tonally stupid shit like this:

They could even replicate the entire SatAM/early Archie setting in the context outlined above and it wouldn't be like it was particularly outlandish at this point; though I'd certainly prefer that they didn't go that far if they were to try.

[CrownSlayers Shadow]

It hilarious how as soon as they pull the plug on Archie Sonic, they end up doing the exact same premise to a T with Forces.

3 hours ago, Tangled Jack said:

 

What I wanted for this comic was a focus on Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, Amy and Eggman and that's it. Instead of this rotation system.

Since we’re on the subject of “top privilege” if there’s anyone who shouldn’t have it, its these five characters as a group.

Part of the main reason I favor a rotation system is specifically not to do that since that caters specifically to Classic fans as opposed to everyone else with a different favorite character. They haven’t earned that right anymore than Shadow the Hedgehog, and it’s far better they rotate out and let other characters have spotlight instead of playing favorites based on who was around or the closest around during the Genesis era.

Keep the top privilege to Sonic and Eggman with other characters coming in and out, and have a mini-series showing the extended stories of other characters, but enough of the “Classic Four and Eggman focus” sentiment.

Part of why I loved Archie is because it didn’t do that and shared the spotlight by giving even Big the Cat a place, and as part of the core cast of all places in the reboot, which was actually a decent change of pace for him—which is saying, because I for one disliked Big as a character and would have been against that under any other circumstances.

[Dr. Detective]

I really like the responses to the tweet Ian made on this subject, going through them now.

Just a ton of people reassuring him, whether they're fans of the Freedom Fighters or not, that they'll continue supporting and reading because they like the comics as they are and they like him. 

Its pretty sweet. 

[Shadowlax]

1 hour ago, Conquering Storm’s Servant said:

It hilarious how as soon as they pull the plug on Archie Sonic, they end up doing the exact same premise to a T with Forces.

.

Rolls out of my bed

I'm not fond of a lot of the archie characters, or archie. You know this, we have had arguments over this.

Why would you insult archie like that

[CrownSlayers Shadow]

47 minutes ago, Shadowlax said:

Rolls out of my bed

I'm not fond of a lot of the archie characters, or archie. You know this, we have had arguments over this.

Why would you insult archie like that

That was simply what was done. Kinda hard to deny it given the premise.

If anything was basically closer to pre-Reboot Archie than post-Reboot.

[KoDaiko]

I wonder how much Ian would be able to recycle, and how much he can juggle without making IDW into Archie 2.0.

The FFs and game cast most likely won’t be friends anymore. Will there be a change in dynamic? Can Sally still be a princess? Can Nicole keep her lynx-avatar? Can Antoine and Bunnie still be in love? Will the kingdom and relatives/friends of the FFs be carried over? Will the FFs be entirely new characters at that point? Will fans be happy with that??

Another concern/question I had was that the FF is a team of 5 with much lore. It's different from wanting Sticks, which is one character with simple lore. I'm not saying they'll "steal" the spotlight, but I feel  it'll be hard to treat them as minor/cameo.

 

Under spoilers cuz it's more of my idea and not important:

Spoiler

I just had an idea of the Freedom Fighters not forming yet, and the members appearing as each individual character. Like, one introduced every other arc.

Whenever they appear it's only in one or two, and have the game cast/T&Wh interact with them so people won't be upset that the comic is focusing too much on them.

And then waaaaaaaaaaaaay later when the readers get used to and warm up to them, they come together and form a team.

Then laaaater again Sonic breifly revisit them and see how they changed.

 

Idk. stupid idea.

[CrownSlayers Shadow]

If anything, it might go more the way of SatAM or early Archie, but will beer into something else Ian would have.

The Kingdom of Acorn would basically be no more, so Sally being a princess would be as meaningful as Princess Leia being one over a blown up planet. She’d probably start something new.

Hell, go the same route and make her a general of a resistance cell—“General Sally” has a nice ring to it. And she could lead a team similar to what the Diamond Cutters are with their own specialized Wisp-ons and Gear.

Beyond that tho, Nicole would more than likely keep her Lynx avatar, and Bunnie and Rotor would still be in a relationship. I can’t see them doing away with those things that easily. Everything else would be fair game—considering how Ian was still able to keep the essence of their characters while changing their backstories to be in-line with game events, I can trust him to make a new one without pissing off fans. The real problem would be if Sega strong-arms him into writing them a specific way like they have him writing Shadow.

[Splash the Otter]

Ngl, I really hope the Freedom Fighters never get into IDW Sonic. I still resent that they got to survive the Super Genesis when my favorite characters didn't.

On 10/21/2019 at 2:23 PM, Conquering Storm’s Servant said:

Keep the top privilege to Sonic and Eggman with other characters coming in and out,

Why should Eggman get top privilege?

[CrownSlayers Shadow]

38 minutes ago, Splash the Otter said:

Ngl, I really hope the Freedom Fighters never get into IDW Sonic. I still resent that they got to survive the Super Genesis when my favorite characters didn't.

How is that their fault?

Quote

Why should Eggman get top privilege?

Because he’s the main villain? Just like Sonic is the main hero?

Those two are the driving conflict: Sonic vs Eggman. You’re not playing favorites with those two compared to prioritizing Knuckles, Tails, and Amy at the exclusion of other characters who have every right to appear as often.

[StaticMania]

2 minutes ago, Conquering Storm’s Servant said:

How is that their fault?

Because rationality.

[Almar]

2 hours ago, Conquering Storm’s Servant said:

How is that their fault?

Because he’s the main villain? Just like Sonic is the main hero?

Those two are the driving conflict: Sonic vs Eggman. You’re not playing favorites with those two compared to prioritizing Knuckles, Tails, and Amy at the exclusion of other characters who have every right to appear as often.

To be honest, at times I wonder if Eggman only shows up in games out of contractual obligation rather than Sonic Team having an interest in him as a character. Even in Sonic Forces which had the gimmick of him allegedly conquering the world (which was hardly reflected in the world around Sonic), the game still had Infinite as the new edgy villain who was the one from all evidence doing the hardcore conquering.

So we could amend this post to say that only Sonic is really necessary in a Sonic story. Sonic games have tried telling stories with Eggman in only a bit role to having him be outright absent.

[King Scoopa Koopa]

I want Sticks and Cosmo to found the new Freedom Fighters, but get captured by Eggman and trapped inside Scratch and Grounder Badniks, leaving a humble, low-ranking rookie computer analyst named Sally to step up and take charge.

[Big Panda]

On 10/22/2019 at 4:13 AM, Conquering Storm’s Servant said:

and Bunnie and Rotor would still be in a relationship.

...you mean Bunnie and Antoine right?