NegaMetallix

Well, at least we might get an occasional 'mini-crossover' (as in, the usual 4-parter instead of 12) between the Main and Boom worlds, most likely in Sonic Universe.

If there's anything I hope can be salvaged from this, I'd like it if they could still use 'Boom' as another zone in the multiverse. I know they're not really exploring the whole 'alternate universes' thing in the comic since the reboot (which makes some sense) but an occasional revisit in the main series and/or universe would be nice.   EDIT: Confirmed to end after Issue #11 by Archie Comics themselves, but the 'Boom' universe will still be used in the other books. Just as I hoped! ;)

Sad news, guys. A recent update on Issue 11's solicitation reveals something that you may find disappointing: (I've highlighted it so you can spot it easier)     Yep, Issue 11 will be the very last issue of Sonic Boom. I'm upset to see it go so soon, but at least we'll be getting the Worlds Unite issues before it ends.

Exactly, this crossover is packed as it is. (Which is also the reason Blaze isn't in this, as well as Metal Sonic most likely.)

I don't normally do this for regular issues, but since this is a special occasion, here's my summary of the story:     This was a good start to the crossover, though like the last one, it's mostly just setup for later on. Eggman was enjoyable to watch, as was Wily, even though he's practically clueless on anything that's happening. Still, it should give them a new angle to work with after 'Worlds Collide' ended with them as bitter enemies. It's a shame we didn't see too much of Sonic or Mega Man in this issue, but I'm sure we'll get a lot more later on. Besides, it'll likely give readers more time to know about Sonic's Freedom Fighters, Mega Man's Robot Master brothers, and definately the Maverick Hunters for the next couple of issues. Speaking of, I'm pretty sure next issue will focus on what X and Co. have been doing, since they only appeared at the beginning of this issue. And it's certainly gonna involve a certain paranoid badger.

I come with a little bit of sad news: If you're a fan of Blaze, then I'm afraid you won't be seeing her in this crossover. (Maybe the Sol Zone is just Genesis-proof?) Anyway, this honestly doesn't disappoint me too much, as it allows for more focus on the other franchises outside of Sonic (namely Mega Man & X).

  From what I remember, Nega couldn't be used due to SEGA... having issues with him? Actually I don't think they ever gave us a proper reason as to why, but if I had to make a guess, I'd say it might be due to the doctor having two different backstories; 'Sonic Rush' says he's Blaze's arch-enemy and Eggman's Sol Zone counterpart, while 'Sonic Rivals' says he's Silver's arch-enemy and Eggman's descendant from the future. (Granted, Takashi Iizuka stated not too long ago that his official backstory is the one from 'Rivals', but it still leaves a few plot-holes.) So SEGA probably just decided to not/barely use him in the comic to avoid any confusion from the readers.   (...And I just realised that I'm talking about Dr. Nega in the Sonic Boom thread. Welp, guess that fills my 'random tangent' quota for today.)

  I'd imagine that someone might upload them when they're released (probably in the 'Specials' section), but since they're optional I'm not too fussy.

Alright, there are the bonus issues, but their solicits don't seem to mention a lot of 'Hero vs. Hero' fights. Looking at them again, they only mention:   - Mega Man vs. Deadly Six - Maverick Hunters vs. Vile - Dr. Light's Robot Masters vs. Sonic Man - Sonic vs. Deadly Six - Knuckles vs. Break Man - Sticks vs. Roll - Something to do with Silver (mentioned in SU #75)   Only 2-3 of those fights seem to be 'Hero vs. Hero', and they likely all have valid reasons for happening; the Robot Masters vs. Sonic Man fight (if you really want to count it) is because they have to stop him in his roboticized state; Knuckles vs. Break Man, depending on when it's set, could be due to both of them lacking trust in others (especially in Break Man's case) or it's during the Deadly Six's possible 'overriding' of the MM/X characters; Sticks vs. Roll is also likely set at this time... but knowing Sticks' paranoia of 'the robot apocalypse', she could easily just be reacting to Roll. I'm going with the former option, seeing as Sticks is facing Roll on STH #274's main cover. I'll wait and see what other fights will be in those issues before fully judging my point. (Again, Silver is involved in at least one on Sonic's side.)   Believe me, you're not the only one who can be quite cynical. But as much as I may want to slam this crossover to the ground sometimes, I just can't do it yet.

Well, in fairness this is only one of a few things that are similar to 'Worlds Collide':   - Roboticized Masters: Last time, we had the whole second Act dedicated to saving Sonic's friends. This time it's just Sonic (and Mega Man, if you really want to count him), so it's less of a focus this time around (probably only taking up around two issues). Plus, it's to gather our heroes together for the bigger fight. - Heroes fighting each other: This isn't happening until the second Act and, once again, is much less of a focus this time. Like the issue above, WC had the majority of Act 1 being 'Sonic vs. Mega Man' and not much else, while WU only has one issue of this in Act 2, and it's more than JUST Sonic fighting Mega Man. - Act 3 Showdown: Again, less of a priority this time. While WC had Sonic's friends fight the Robot Masters throughout the whole of Act 3, WU is spending half of its third Act just recruiting (and introducing to newcomers) the various SEGA and Capcom worlds, then kicking off the big showdown later. - Super Finale: Okay, THIS one admittedly looks to be more of the same (especially with Super MM), so I'll give you that.   Still, three out of four ain't bad. I'm still excited for this crossover, but that doesn't mean I'll ignore its possible faults. And it's funny you should mention money, Skye. You see, it turns out that, if the original 'Worlds Collide' didn't happen or failed to sell, then Capcom were gonna axe off the Mega Man comic due to low sales.

So after reading Issue #49 today... Now to bring on 'WORLDS UNITE'! I'll see you all in that thread for Sonic Universe #76.

  Well, I guess we'll have to wait and see whether this actually goes somewhere or not. As for the Metal Series idea... I dunno. It most likely depends on SEGA being okay with the idea, since last I heard Ian was only allowed to use existing characters from the show (and maybe create some new ones, like Kyle the Gorilla?) but not from the games. If that's still true, then Lyric is likely unavailable, along with the Boom versions of Shadow and, of course, Metal Sonic. So, as cool an idea as it sounds, I sadly don't see a 'Metal Series' coming from this, especially since it's possible that Ian might still be using that idea (or at least, Metal Knuckles) for the main series.

Keep in mind that, in Rotor's origin story, his dad was an extremely anti-machinery/technology type of guy, so him being Tundra seems... unlikely to me.

  Maybe, after all we do have at least one alternate Sonic world (the 'Boom Zone'). But at the same time, it might just be reduced to alternate worlds seen in the games, Ifrit's Dimension and the Sol Zone being the prime examples. Personally, I hope that it involves a certain future-egghead making his proper debut... but that's just me.

  I wouldn't be surprised if that's what the Spider-Bot at the end of Issue 7 was supposed to be, but it didn't seem that way. Heck, for all we know, it could just be a red herring: Maybe Eggman does use a new robot against Sonic and Co... but it all happens while Sticks is away with Mega Man, X and the other Sonic. I doubt it, though.

Right, now for the first Boom issue post-crossover (not that it really matters in this series) we have... 'Eggman Gets A Gorilla'?       Yeah... I don't have much to add with this one. It's just back to basics after 'Worlds Unite', so there's nothing I can really say. Oh well... gorillas are cool, right?

Good news, everyone! We have the covers and solicitation for Sonic's first story arc set after 'Worlds Unite': Cold-Hearted!       Nice to see that we'll be heading straight back into the 'Unleashed' story after the crossover, and it looks like Holoska is the first continent up. And with Tundra finally getting a chance to show... something, maybe we could see a possible rivalry with Rotor? Also, it seems like Eggman will still be looking for Metal Sonic after all this. So could that mean poor Metal is still stuck in that meteor-space-dimension from Universe #75, even during 'Worlds Unite'? That'll be a shame, but we'll see soon enough.

Sorry for the double-post (again), but we now have the covers and solicitation for the first Universe arc post-crossover: The Silver Age!       Fun fact: I believe this is the first story arc to be written by Evan Stanley, who's been doing her own Silver fan-comic for a while now. So this should be an interesting read. Also, it's nice to hear that the Genesis Portals aren't exactly gonna be finished with after Worlds Unite, but I wouldn't expect any proper crossover aspects.

Sorry for the double-post, but we now have the final covers and solicitation for 'Worlds Unite'! Part 12 (the finale) kicks off in Mega Man #52:  

Ian Flynn already gave the official order of events on his Twitter. It pretty much goes like this:   'Champions' (STH #268-271) > 'Spark of Life' (SU #71-74) & 'Into the Unknown' (FCBD/SSSM #14) > 'A Ray of Hope' (STH #272) > 'Fury' (SU #75) > 'Worlds Unite'   So 'Into the Unknown' (the Genesis Portal origin story) takes place around the same time as 'Spark of Life', and before STH #272 and SU #75.

  I'm hoping to see some lingering effect on each side. Maybe in a future Mega Man arc, people will be more reliant on robots due to the fusion of the two worlds, while Sonic and Co. will be even more determined to fix their world. I think Sonic Universe is gonna have a blast after this, with non-crossover characters (e.g. Breezie, Eclipse) commenting on these events. How will everyone on each world feel after witnessing two worlds being fused together by a crazy-powerful robot, and possibly learning of multiple other worlds that exist? It's these potential reactions that are what I'm looking forward to the most. Though the crossover itself should be fun.

To answer those questions:   ...I dunno. If I had to guess, maybe it's because both 'Genesis' and 'Worlds Collide' kicked off Sonic's world with GHZ, so they did it again for this crossover.