Sonic Prime confirmed to be canon to the games

[Dr. Mechano]

From this interview: https://comicbook.com/gaming/news/netflix-sonic-prime-deven-mack-logan-mcpherson-interview/

Quote

 

Logan, this series takes place in the continuity of the video games. What was the motivation for doing that?

Logan McPherson: Yeah, it's a great point. It's first and foremost, it is canon and it does draw upon the existing mythology from the games. And we work very closely with Sega creatively to establish that. 

 

While there was some speculation about how close to the games Prime might be, especially after seeing that preview clip that uses Origins' backstory for how Sonic and Tails met, this interview spells it out in no uncertain terms. Sonic Prime is canon to the same universe as the games.

What do you think of this? Do you like the newer cartoons and comics being set in the same world as the games, or do you prefer when spinoffs are their own separate continuity, like the live-action movie and the older cartoons? 

Either way, this seems to be what Iizuka meant when he said he wanted to unify the Sonic brand.

[Indigo Rush]

I'm warming up to the idea of a large unified canon across media, but I also see them only making half-steps and as a result watering down everything to avoid any possible conflicts.

[SticksSuperFan14]

My main issue with this is that since Rogue is part of Team Sonic in this show, then I guess it would imply she split from Team Dark in the main cannon. And if that's true then man, I really hope Sonic Movie 3 gives Sega a wake-up call in regards to Team Dark.

[Jovahexeon Jax Joranvexeon]

1 minute ago, SticksSuperFan14 said:

My main issue with this is that since Rogue is part of Team Sonic in this show, then I guess it would imply she split from Team Dark in the main cannon. And if that's true then man, I really hope Sonic Movie 3 gives Sega a wake-up call in regards to Team Dark.

Eh, to be fair, she could just as easily be off-duty at the time.

[DaBigJ]

Okay.

So how does Prime fit in with IDW, which is also canon to the games now? Where does it fit in? It can't just happen alongside IDW, as both have different plotlines going on?

I dunno about you, but I'm starting to think this unified brand thing is kinda a fucking mess. 

[Dr. Mechano]

7 minutes ago, DaBigJ said:

Okay.

So how does Prime fit in with IDW, which is also canon to the games now? Where does it fit in? It can't just happen alongside IDW, as both have different plotlines going on?

I dunno about you, but I'm starting to think this unified brand thing is kinda a fucking mess. 

I mean, it sure looks like the plot of Prime is just "a thing that happened one day" in the grand scheme of things.

Sonic breaks the Paradox Prism and goes on this multiversal adventure, but it probably doesn't take up a huge chunk of the timeline in the "main" universe once things are set back to right, I'm guessing?

I mean, that's basically how much time most of the games take up. Kinda one-to-several-day-long one-and-done adventures rather than the kinds of longer arcs you see in the comics. The plots of the individual games, and of Prime as a whole, could just slip between any given comic arc without too much fuss.

13 minutes ago, SticksSuperFan14 said:

My main issue with this is that since Rogue is part of Team Sonic in this show, then I guess it would imply she split from Team Dark in the main cannon. And if that's true then man, I really hope Sonic Movie 3 gives Sega a wake-up call in regards to Team Dark.

Eh, Rouge is a thief who has ulterior motives for seeking the Paradox Prism.

I feel like she's along for the ride for different reasons than the other heroes. She can do a little thieving on her own (something Shadow might not be into) without it meaning she's "split" from Shadow and Omega entirely.

[Indigo Rush]

Ultimately based off of the general vibe I get from Ian on the Bumblekast, "everything is canon" in the sense that they're simply making it so all stories aren't in direct contradiction to one another. Placement won't strictly matter unless there's blatant references to a past work, ala Frontiers. Things will probably shake out better once their new lore team is fully in place.

[Ryannumber1gamer]

55 minutes ago, SticksSuperFan14 said:

My main issue with this is that since Rogue is part of Team Sonic in this show, then I guess it would imply she split from Team Dark in the main cannon. And if that's true then man, I really hope Sonic Movie 3 gives Sega a wake-up call in regards to Team Dark.

From the clips I've seen, she isn't a active member of Team Sonic, she just happened to be searching for the Prism as a jewel thief, found out Eggman is after it, and decides to inform Sonic and Tails so she can get their help attaining it.

[Jovahexeon Jax Joranvexeon]

1 hour ago, DaBigJ said:

Okay.

So how does Prime fit in with IDW, which is also canon to the games now? Where does it fit in? It can't just happen alongside IDW, as both have different plotlines going on?

I dunno about you, but I'm starting to think this unified brand thing is kinda a fucking mess. 

Given how we've seen nothing really contradict each other (and if anything Prime's actually taken to mind, the new official canon of the classics), I'm afraid I don't see the logic in your point of view there.

[Blue Blood]

I'm very skeptical of everything being contained in one canon, and I'm also a bit confused by the desire for everything to be connected in the first place. Different mediums have different stories to tell, different priorities and most importantly, different audiences. Pick a central pillar, which in the case of Sonic would be the games. And from that, create other continuities that are free to do their own thing, but don't diverge into something unrecognisable.

As soon as you expect the audience to keep up with different mediums to have a full understanding of the narrative and world, you've messed up.

[Jovahexeon Jax Joranvexeon]

1 minute ago, Blue Blood said:

I'm very skeptical of everything being contained in one canon, and I'm also a bit confused by the desire for everything to be connected in the first place. Different mediums have different stories to tell, different priorities and most importantly, different audiences. Pick a central pillar, which in the case of Sonic would be the games. And from that, create other continuities that are free to do their own thing, but don't diverge into something unrecognisable.

As soon as you expect the audience to keep up with different mediums to have a full understanding of the narrative and world, you've messed up.

I don't really see it that way. As it turns out, the branches are connected, but you don't necessarily have to always see all of them.

It's as simple as that. They're connected, but you don't need to know what was going on in the comics to get what's going on in the games, and the same goes for Prime. The games are the main tree branch, from which the others extend, ideally.

[Rabbitearsblog]

I reserve my judgement on all this until we see more episodes of this show.  They could have meant that certain events take place in the same universe. That doesn't necessarily mean that they have to reference the games and the comics constantly within this series.  It's clear that the people working on this show still want to tell their own stories with this franchise.

[Strickerx5]

As someone who has honestly wanted more of a canon for this series, I welcome this but am also cautious.

First and foremost, up to this point I always thought it was stupid to have so many canons for a franchise that barely does anything major with its cast between outings (outside of the comics at least and even one of them ended up resetting). Like, even though they're mainline titles, there is nothing really keeping Unleashed from happening before Heroes and that situation extends out to a lot of this franchise's material. It never made much sense to keep all of it separated bar from their stupid drive to keep things simple past BK. So I welcome Prime being put into it all as it does seem to be a story that could've happened on any old Tuesday. Of course, I haven't watched the show yet so I could eat crow with this but hey.

This makes way for many opportunities to build the world and cast up. To create places where we can have these more unusual character interactions that don't specifically require a "gameplay reason" but yet still matter going forward.

With that said, one of the main benefits to a canon is a consistent timeline of events. This is something that this series has always had trouble with due to there rarely ever being an effort to do so. That shit takes work to do right and nothing Sega has done really leads me to have faith on that front. Sure, Ian is there cleaning shit up now and they are hiring a lore keeper of sorts but it takes the combined effort of everyone involved. One bad party can screw everything up (my money is on ST honestly) so that is a part of this venture I'm weary on.

 

also it's all fun and games until they make the movies canon

[SticksSuperFan14]

1 hour ago, Strickerx5 said:

also it's all fun and games until they make the movies canon

I can see it happening in the way Sticks was cannonized, where characters like Tom, Maddie, Stone, and Longclaw exist in the games but serve different roles than their film counterparts to keep in line with the main cannon.

[jungle_penguins]

It's like the IDW comics: games are in comic continuity, but the comics are not explicitly in game continuity. They're being careful or not careful with their wording, but doesn't help that they're using words like canon and mythology. For example in another interview: https://www.comingsoon.net/tv/features/1253395-sonic-prime-interview-deven-mack-logan-mcpherson-on-sonics-multiverse

Quote

 

That’s the best. Logan, you mentioned that you guys did a separate story so that you didn’t rewrite history. So was that the main contributing factor to not having something take place in the main timeline of the games?

Logan McPherson: Yeah, absolutely. We wanted to use that mythology as as a springboard, but explore these characters and these situations in ways that have never been done before. So we felt like it was a way to really respect that legacy, but take it in a different direction at the same time

 

It's all confusing but keep in mind Iizuka's statement: https://www.sonicstadium.org/2022/08/takashi-iizuka-on-connecting-universes-and-creating-a-unified-sonic-experience-sonic-stadium-interview/

Quote

But if we’re talking about the comics, the Netflix series and the games? Moving forward, the idea of trying to get all of them into the same universe – or even if it’s not exactly the same universe, at least having them feel like they’re part of a connected universe – is something that’s very important to us

It likely is just, close enough. The main goal is brand unity, movies can be an exception but even that needs to be more reeled in. Universe connectivity is a big part of brand unity but it's not required and it seems like Sega of Japan are trying it somewhat. No more Sonic Boom like stuff (cowards), it's almost take it or leave it continuity, stories are separated in their own directions but it feels like there's a same source. It's not too dissimilar to Sonic Colors being in the same continuity as Sonic Adventure. Timeline placement doesn't really matter that much and hasn't for a long time too.

[Sega DogTagz]

pretty much what @jungle_penguins just said. You shouldn't be taking the brand unity angle or the word canon by itself and just tack Sonic Prime onto the back end of current events. That's not the intent behind what they are doing.

 

The idea they are trying to get across is that they want a singular interpretation of Sonic and his friends - so they all build off the same source material. Prime isn't canon in that it necessarily happens in the game timeline, but it is built up with plots and character motivations that fit within the games-verse and doesn't deter enough to make it an obvious outlier. Same with IDW. Everything that happens in either could be adapted or ignored. It doesn't change much because of the foundation.

[Rabbitearsblog]

2 hours ago, jungle_penguins said:

It's like the IDW comics: games are in comic continuity, but the comics are not explicitly in game continuity. They're being careful or not careful with their wording, but doesn't help that they're using words like canon and mythology. For example in another interview: https://www.comingsoon.net/tv/features/1253395-sonic-prime-interview-deven-mack-logan-mcpherson-on-sonics-multiverse

It's all confusing but keep in mind Iizuka's statement: https://www.sonicstadium.org/2022/08/takashi-iizuka-on-connecting-universes-and-creating-a-unified-sonic-experience-sonic-stadium-interview/

It likely is just, close enough. The main goal is brand unity, movies can be an exception but even that needs to be more reeled in. Universe connectivity is a big part of brand unity but it's not required and it seems like Sega of Japan are trying it somewhat. No more Sonic Boom like stuff (cowards), it's almost take it or leave it continuity, stories are separated in their own directions but it feels like there's a same source. It's not too dissimilar to Sonic Colors being in the same continuity as Sonic Adventure. Timeline placement doesn't really matter that much and hasn't for a long time too.

I just hope that Sonic Prime is still able to tell their own stories rather than be heavily tied down to the games.  Like, don't get me wrong, I'm glad that we actually have a Sonic cartoon (besides Sonic X) that takes place in the game universe.  But if SEGA is still restricting too many things for the franchise, including TV shows and movies, then it could hurt the brand if they don't compromise on what's working for the audience and what's not working for the audience in terms of the mandates.

[Jovahexeon Jax Joranvexeon]

4 hours ago, Rabbitearsblog said:

I just hope that Sonic Prime is still able to tell their own stories rather than be heavily tied down to the games.  Like, don't get me wrong, I'm glad that we actually have a Sonic cartoon (besides Sonic X) that takes place in the game universe.  But if SEGA is still restricting too many things for the franchise, including TV shows and movies, then it could hurt the brand if they don't compromise on what's working for the audience and what's not working for the audience in terms of the mandates.

If Tails' origin was anything to go by, while Prime follows the canon of the games, it's not like it'll go super complex to the point where you absolutely have to play the games.

Anything referential will most likely be established well enough with flashbacks, like how Tails' was.

[Kuzu]

I'm sure this isn't going to lead to any potential problems in the future at all.

8 hours ago, SticksSuperFan14 said:

I can see it happening in the way Sticks was cannonized, where characters like Tom, Maddie, Stone, and Longclaw exist in the games but serve different roles than their film counterparts to keep in line with the main cannon.

They're gonna make the movies canon and you guys will have nobody but yourselves to blame, because "everything is canon" :V

[Dr. Mechano]

1 hour ago, Kuzu said:

I'm sure this isn't going to lead to any potential problems in the future at all.

They're gonna make the movies canon and you guys will have nobody but yourselves to blame, because "everything is canon" :V

So far, IDW and Prime don't outright contradict anything from the games.

The movies absolutely would. The games take place on one world, with humans and animals being native to the same planet. So "two worlds" series, like Sonic X or the live-action movies, simply cannot be canon - and that's before we get into all the other ways they don't line up.

[Kuzu]

10 minutes ago, Dr. Mechano said:

So far, IDW and Prime don't outright contradict anything from the games.

The movies absolutely would. The games take place on one world, with humans and animals being native to the same planet. So "two worlds" series, like Sonic X or the live-action movies, simply cannot be canon - and that's before we get into all the other ways they don't line up.

Its just an example of how trying to connect things that were never meant to be connected is problematic.

[Jovahexeon Jax Joranvexeon]

7 minutes ago, Kuzu said:

Its just an example of how trying to connect things that were never meant to be connected is problematic.

IDW and Prime don't really have that problem though. And given how Prime showcases the origins mentioned in, well, Origins, they're obviously not going to contradict that by making the movie canon.

At best, expect some canon foreigners ala Sticks, or a crossover between the universes maybe.

[Kuzu]

I'm talking about the movie...

[The Deleter]

The only reason Sticks is in the canon currently is due to Ian citing the Sonic Channel material as his one lifeline that she's considered part of the main canon by Sonic Team. It's in one of the bumblekasts, but considering it was incidental to a question not related to it, I have absolutely no clue where to look for it, so finding the source for that will have to happen at another time.

Doesn't mean it's much better in terms of a character suddenly appearing overnight, but at the very least there's no mess involving dragging in new continuities for the sake of it.

[Jovahexeon Jax Joranvexeon]

1 minute ago, The Deleter said:

Doesn't mean it's much better in terms of a character suddenly appearing overnight, but at the very least there's no mess involving dragging in new continuities for the sake of it.

Oh yeah, it was always obvious that this wasn't going to be the same Sticks from Boom, 4th wall breaking powers notwithstanding.