Megathread Archie Sonic Main Discussion

[Shaddy Zaphod]

2 hours ago, Meta77 said:

Axer and spaz,are by far and large the best. Also what?? Afraid of boobs?

Spaz's posing and expressions were pretty fucking strange a lot of the time.

 

And I'm not "afraid of boobs", I'm just not interested in seeing furry tits when I'm reading a comic book marketed to children. At least in the games every girl has the decency to cover up.

[Meta77]

6 minutes ago, Shaddy the guy said:

Spaz's posing and expressions were pretty fucking strange a lot of the time.

 

And I'm not "afraid of boobs", I'm just not interested in seeing furry tits when I'm reading a comic book marketed to children. At least in the games every girl has the decency to cover up.

Have you SEEN Rouge? Or honestly see how many up skirt shots of Amy has been in games. And stories marketed towards kids. The stories are marketed toward older kids to late years. Stories of wiping out races. The dark legions past. Current stories are more toned down but still the fights are far and large above typical children tales.

[Your Vest Friend]

-I've seen Rouge, and Rouge isn't stylised realistically. Her breasts are just circles instead of being shaped realistically like what dominated that dark era. That's not to mention how the rest of the body is stylised; the dark age had realistic human muscle tone and proportions, Rouge is still a noodle-limbed Sonic-proportioned character. 

-The accidental upskirts are not intended to be lewd in any way, Japan doesn't really recognise it as anything other than innocent last I checked.

-The stories were supposed to be aimed at kids always. The comic veered off the track when the dark age was in full swing, but that's been reigned in since and it is now truly aimed at the proper audience. 

[Your Vest Friend]

Took the preview long enough. 

[BlueSky]

It's been half a week since i read StH #288 and I think it was rather good. Characters had well-made expressions, even when some where pretty.. interesting, like that one of Sonic on page 16 (I think)  in second panel. It was funny, but it felt a bit odd (so odd it got some smirks and sounds out of my friends too). By the way how can water actually even smell purple?

It's interesting how despite being a "genius" Eggman doesn't pay much attention to the fact that if his subordinate gets sick while hedgehog-smashing it will cause him more problems than profits. And good thing Snively got some underwear...

That thing about "funny" falling puns brought my mind the "pun entirely intended" thing from "Lost World", I'm not sure though if that's intended though. I like the fact how Sonic went all way back to the biplane and all, it felt kind of natural to get out the same way he came after all.

I'm just trying to imagine how hard it's to draw Wallys expressions on King Nigel's face (which I couldn't by the way look with a straight face that much) since it really felt like that was really Naugus (I suspect that's how it is). Like, whenever I look at those pictures I can imagine pretty easily Naugus having the exact same expression on his face. I suppose it really got into his nerves that Sally was clinging on him so much all the time (at one time she looked so determined it felt like she was up to something, not really about his daddys identity but she wanted to have some attention I think). It was actually a bit "dramatic" how Bunnie got up at that one point like making a point with it.

Actually about the art, it was kind of connecting that everybody had just black eyes, like it's a part of the "old-time reminiscence feeling" or something. But then again, being this obsessed over some appearances kind of almost-stalker (if one could actually stalk comic characters...  ) I found something strange. Like, I'm one of those who tend to use different changes on appearances in telling the part of the timeline each scene/story occurrs. So when I put my eyes on Antoine, I saw something funny; that white sash thingy wasn't there! I think at this point it was supposed to be one-sided and all, but it made appearance only in the last page so it would chalk over the possibilities like "it was a laundry day" (read: he doesn't use it all the time) and such. And only because of that I found also  that colour error in which also Bunnies fleshy hand was gray (it's not really shading in my opinion). I hate to feel that nitpicky, especially after so well-made facial expressions and all, but it felt a bit funny to me... I suppose there's a reason behind that stuff, I'd actually like to hear about it... since it bothers me a bit on that explanating-level...

I think the inks were a bit rounder in the first pages and got a bit angular in the later pages which is a bit sad since I think Yardley's art works best with round-like, not-angular inking style. I've been told it's about different inking styles and all, and a bit angular style is an actual line of style or something... But I like more that rounder style with different widths in line and all.

Somehow that issue felt a bit short after I read it first time. Then I noticed it was because I had pretty much concentrated the speech-bubble panels more than those without. Next time felt no different compared to others. Reason could also be the fact Next Level was the last Sonic comic I read before this one.

__________________

About that preview: that "gumshoe" part brought something to my mind about that one detective, I don't know how since I doubt it has that much to do with that line, but still. Also I get the feeling Razor and Vector are having plans for something, hence the "I wanna join your crew" thing. Really, being as practical as he is, even he has to have other motives that "it brings the food to the dinner table" and all. If not, it would pretty easily turn into "I like money!" joke, which isn't that funny I think. ...Was Vector whispering something to Espio on that one panel?

But still, "otterly no idea"... ehh... 

[DaddlerTheDalek]

Sonic Mega Drive: The Next Level was awesome, just like the first one. SU #91 was pretty fun. StH #288 was a nice beginnig.

[ContinuityFlubs]

SU #92 Previews

 

[Sonictrainer]

I really like Vector's design in his monologue. 

[ContinuityFlubs]

There's something about the way he's drawn in the last page's first panel…

I can't put my finger on it, but he just almost looks off there.

[Ellipsis-Ultima]

Echo's expressions are priceless I can't stop laughing!

[LukA8]

Some thoughts on Case of the Pirate Princess 2:

Spoiler

- Vector randomly picking up and throwing that boy must be a reference to his Generations mission where he did the same to help Sonic...I feel almost fanboyish for noticing that.

- Bryce's Vector spans from decent to just weird...While he sometimes reminded me of Dingodile in the first issue, here it looks like he ate Big. I hope he gets a better handle on him by the end of the arc, as he did get better by the second half of the issue (though he forgot the gold chain again).

- Undina is such a spoiled brat, which is perfect. Pirate-Zeena is also quite likeable.

- Speaking of bratty, Charmy feels underutilized for now. All he does is making some cute faces and poses. He was much more annoying in Chaos Caper, which he's supposed to be

- Despite the cover for part 4 indicating otherwise, it seems pretty obvious the pirates aren't the true antagonists here, so we'll probably meet Abyss and her crew on the island. The question is just who is leading her there? Echo?

- Either way, the Chaotix betraying Echo will definitely bite them in the ass later. Maybe she arrests them at the end.

 

[Your Vest Friend]

Me, I'm 2000% suspicious of what the heck's going on with this ship. 

-I would not trust Undina as far as I could throw her. I know there's a panel or two obviously suggesting that something isn't right, but there's honestly more to it from where I sit. 

*Exhibit A: Dive - He does suffer bodily injury from Vector, but something there strikes me as being beyond just repercussions of that. He's trying to ease his head both when going on deck in the middle of the issue and when in bed at the end. And when he spaces out with a clearly glazed expression and Vector is weirded out, Undina can be seen in the background, looking quite content. 

*Exhibit B: Most of the pirates in general - There's this weird contrast between what they do and how they act. Even if they are friendly and seem okay with it, some of them feel really out of place. What's a social butterfly like Opal doing in a such small and splintered crew?

*Exhibit C: Opal and Dive's unexplained presence - The flashbacks show the family unit there used to be. Abyss for now is unexplained but that possibly might be because the comic will want that perspective from the squid's mouth. Dive and Opal are currently completely isolated from that, possibly being very recent additions. I wonder why it wasn't exposited...

*Exhibit D: The flashback part 1 - In the initial flashback of Shellcracker and Mr Bristles finding the siblings Blade and Razor, there's a third, shadowed unnamed person there. Unlike Shellcracker and Mr Bristles who have pretty open eyes, her eyes are very much on the evil and sinister side. I wonder if that has anything to do with the current shenanigans about.

*Exhibit E: The flashback part 2 - Mysterious person seems to definitely be female, at least. It's definitely not Abyss (who can be compared in shape because she's seen in the next flashback, and is entirely different in shape), it's definitely one of the finned giants like a shark, dolphin or orca, but it seems to bear some shape in common with the angler fish characters (Undina and Angelica). Now, the top fin rules out it being specifically them (plus Undina would likely be too young to fit), but I'd still be wary of someone similar.

*Exhibit F: Anglerfish properties. The whole point of the Anglerfish evolving their light organs is as bait. They lure their prey in by imitating prey, and then trapping them. In essence, they entrance the prey to take the bait. Could the comic version be similar in entrancing (with some give for the greater cognition of the victim)? 

*Exhibit G: The framing of the flashback and the end of the comic - The similarity between the glowing full moon highlighted in the panel with the mysterious person and the last panel where it's over the ship seem very similar in framing the mood as uncertain. Perhaps a suggestion that events are repeating themselves or similarly bad stuff is about to go down?

*Exhibit H: As pointed out by LukA8, Charmy pretty much contributes nothing to this issue. It's easy to overlook him when reading the comic...but perhaps also easily overlooked by potential threats, especially if there's some shenanigans going on that involves capturing more crew. 

Now, I'm not suggesting that this will turn out to be the case; unlike my Echo silhouette deductions (which have all pretty much been realised at this point), this is all based on how I read the comic and not based on established fact alone. This is a pretty deep rabbit hole, and I have no idea how far Ian would be willing to take it considering that kids need to follow along. But eh, fun to interpret.

[Fletch]

New comic solicits are out 

http://comicvine.gamespot.com/articles/archie-comics-february-2017-covers-and-solicitatio/1100-156194/

 

Someone can post them since I'm on mobile.

[Your Vest Friend]

*Freedom Fighter arc in Sonic Universe*

Bugger off please. 

[DabigRG]

So is it safe to assume we're getting a game character centric stories in the main book while the Freedom Fighters get individual spotlight in Universe? If so, that sounds interesting!

[Your Vest Friend]

The main comic seems Freedom Fighter-centric, though. 

I wouldn't have minded this so much if there weren't still characters MIA and we hadn't just followed up Genesis of a Hero with this, but as it stands...don't want it right now. 

[DabigRG]

4 minutes ago, VEDJ-F said:

The main comic seems Freedom Fighter-centric, though. 

I wouldn't have minded this so much if there weren't still characters MIA and we hadn't just followed up Genesis of a Hero with this, but as it stands...don't want it right now. 

I don't know, the Main Book seems to be setting up the Universe arc based on the description. Thus, I'm assuming that the following issues will focus on the game characters because of that. But I can see how some may not gel with that.

Besides the Babylon Rogues and maybe Thrash, who else is missing? 

 

[Your Vest Friend]

It's the Babylon Rogues I'm mostly referring to (since Thrash is unlikely to come back). They've haven't been seen in the book at all since Sonic Universe #36, focus of an arc or not. They've not been reintroduced into the reboot yet and I think it's unfair they have to wait in excess of at minimum five and a half years for anything (considering that this arc will take the comic to #98, and it's unlikely they'd get covered for SU#99 or SU#100) when other minor characters like the Chaotix and the Hooligans have managed to get three arcs apiece in three years to shine in, and the Freedom Fighters already get so much focus in the main comic. 

[Ellipsis-Ultima]

The SONIC SUPER SPECIAL MAGAZINE is back and here to give you the world of Sonic the Hedgehog comics as you’ve never seen it before! Collecting the best in comic stories, special features and exclusive articles on the latest and greatest in the world of the Blue Blur! This is a title no true blue Sonic fan should be without!

Script: Various

Art: Various

Cover: SEGA

On Sale Date: 2/22

128-page, full color comic

$9.99 U.S.

EVERYTHING CHANGES when SONIC and friends go down their "Branching Paths": The Shattered World Crisis is behind us, and the 25th Anniversary was well celebrated! So what’s next for Sonic and his friends? That’s up to them to decide! Sonic is racing around Westside Island on a mission—but for whom? And while Sonic’s away, each of his friends make decisions that will plot the course of their lives. Don’t miss out on the beginning of a whole new era of Sonic stories! Featuring cover art by Sonic comics veteran Tracy Yardley and a “Epic Movie Poster” variant by T. Rex!

Script: Ian Flynn

Art: Tracy Yardley, Terry Austin, Gabriel Cassata and John Workman

Cover: Tracy Yardley & Elaina Unger

Variant Cover: T. Rex

On Sale Date: 2/22

32-page, full color comic

$3.99 U.S.

It’s SONIC’s SUPER TEAM, the "FREEDOM FIGHTERS": They’ve been Sonic’s closest friends in the comics for years! Now it’s their time to shine! Antoine takes the stage, traveling to his homeland to find some closure to his past. But he and Sonic find a new foe in the empty halls of Castle D’Coolette, and the beginning of a mystical new adventure! Featuring cover art by jammin’ Jamal Peppers and a “Team Blast” variant by Lamar Wells!

Script: Ian Flynn

Art: Adam Bryce Thomas, Jim Amash, Matt Herms and Jack Morelli

Cover: Jamal Peppers, Jim Amash & Matt Herms

Variant Cover: Lamar Wells, Jim Amash & Matt Herms

On Sale Date: 2/8

32-page, full color comic

$3.99 U.S.

[Heckboy]

Oh hey, Super Special's back. That was unexpected.

Also, that StH variant looks really off.

[DabigRG]

2 minutes ago, VEDJ-F said:

It's the Babylon Rogues I'm mostly referring to (since Thrash is unlikely to come back). They've haven't been seen in the book at all since Sonic Universe #36, focus of an arc or not. They've not been reintroduced into the reboot yet and I think it's unfair they have to wait in excess of at minimum five and a half years for anything (considering that this arc will take the comic to #98, and it's unlikely they'd get covered for SU#99 or SU#100) when other minor characters like the Chaotix and the Hooligans have managed to get three arcs apiece to shine in, and the Freedom Fighters already get so much focus in the main comic. 

Wow! Has it really been that long? Now that you mention it, the only mention towards their presence that I can recall was BattleLord Kukku comparing them unfavorably to Abyss. I don't mean to sound ...cynical when I say this but what exactly do you would provide the incentive to due their reappearance justice? They aren't the most major characters in the franchise, people tend to dislike if not outright forget about them, and, as you've indirectly stated, their reappearance probably isn't gonna be anything to distinct with the Chaotix, Hooligans, Desert Raiders, and Witchcarters already running around on their own agendas.

[SBR2]

Personally I'm digging the idea of a single Freedom Fighter focus story in Universe. Then I actually like the Freedom Fighters so.

I honestly was not expecting to see the Super Special Magazine ever come back so that's...neat I guess? I mean it seems kinda redundant with the Digest and all.

The main book sounds fun. I like that it's a one shot that's going to set up where we go from here. Plus I'm honestly feeling like we might be seeing a four issue Lost World Adaptation with the Freedom Fighters Universe "Arc' and all.

All-In-all I'm interested.

[DabigRG]

1 minute ago, SBR2 said:

The main book sounds fun. I like that it's a one shot that's going to set up where we go from here. 

Well, that is what Mr. Flynn has been hinting at for a bit now.

[Ryannumber1gamer]

Loving how Archie and SEGA's seemed to have eased up on the no Freedom Fighter exclusive arcs. Can't wait for the next Universe arc!

[Ellipsis-Ultima]

*hours of shoddy formatting later*

My thoughts on this: The variant cover for STH is kinda off. I honestly liked T- Rex's other variants, like the Espio one, the Back to the Future poster variant, and the Hero variant from Boom.

The Sonic Universe main cover is a nod to Sonic 4 episode 2 title screen poses! 

Personally, I was hoping we would be getting a Blaze arc. But from the looks of things this arc may be focusing on Antoine. He's had his moments, but hearing that he's getting some more focus is pretty cool!

Spoiler

Why am I getting the feeling that Mordred Hood will show up in this arc?