Sonic the Hedgehog (IDW comic)

[ViciousPhantom 6]

She's only been in a single issue and Tangle is already fantastic.

[Katmuffin 16]

My only negative comment on issue 4:

What happened to our villain the talking chair?

[ViciousPhantom 6]

My only negative comment on issue 4:

What happened to our villain the talking chair?

I imagine we'll get back to him in an issue or two. Playing the long game and such.

[Shinomi-chan 294]

Rough and Tumble are my new favorites, they're everything team rocket wants to be.

Uhm, technically Team Rocket got much better in Sun & Moon (in my opinion) But eh, those two were cool. Too bad they left such a bland memory. Well for now at least. Who knows they might get better. Also I DO hope our newest heroine will be sarcastic.

[ChaosKaiser 174]

I've read all the 4 issues, and so far, things are just fiiiiine... BUT I have some complaints.

The art is great. Except for issue 3 (Jennifer Hernandez has drawn WAY BETTER pages than these, what happened?). The rest looked awesome, making the characters slightly manga-ish. Great coloring too.

As for the script... meh. Character interactions were on-spot, they feel like their game couterparts, even better. Ian is still making a pretty good job on that. 
But the storyline... it's just "Sonic goes to a town, meets a friend, they save the town, THE END". I haven't felt invested in the story. I know these have been just the first episodes, and were trying to appeal to a broad audience, including those that don't know these characters. But yet... I feel this could have been better. 

Oh, and the action scenes... WOW, Outstanding. Sad thing is that most fight were against badniks (we knew the heroes would obliterate), and Rough and Tumble were not a big deal to me. Fun guys, hope to see more of them. 
Tangle is cool looking, and her powers seem to have a lot of potential to be used in fight scenes. 

Looking forward to see more of this new series. And hope this doesn't end up becoming just another way of advertising the games...

[Seviper the Fang Snake 368]

Tangle is definitely a neato character. She leaves a good impression for the first heroic non-game character in this new continuity. I would love to see how her tail would work in one of the games.

 

As for Rough and Tumble, their ok. I do love their showmanship attitude. Like the hooligans they can be formidable but their not exactly brainy.

[Thire 121]

If you think about it, her tail stretches and can grab onto things. The Avatar character could grapple things. If the comics become advertisement for the games then we could potentially see Tangle with a play style similar to that of the Avatar, sans Wispons.

[Katmuffin 16]

Is it just me or does Tangle's tail have the ability to expand indefinitely?

[Shinomi-chan 294]

Is it just me or does Tangle's tail have the ability to expand indefinitely?

I think there IS a limit. Unless this goes into DBZ territory like Nyobo staff in which case, yes. It can.

[Thire 121]

Did I hear someone say reused Sonic Unleashed content? 

[Katmuffin 16]

 

Did I hear someone say reused Sonic Unleashed content? 

Oh no.....

Ian you're better than this!

[Skye Prower 386]

Just read Issue 5.

Spoiler free views here.  After the lackluster first four issues, I wasn't confident.  And the 'Previously' and 'rollcall' pages are *bleep*ing awful and lazy.

But the story itself... This should have been the second issue, not the deja vu reused cookie cutter plot with no story we've had so far.  The actual story kicks in, there's some good character moments for Sonic (something that was lacking) and interesting mystery, an actual development to the voice in the chair beyond just being a voice in a chair, and it's still good fun.

So, all in all, it looks like the series is stepping up it's game now.  Let's hope it continues.

[ChaosKaiser 174]

Absolutely agree with Skye here. The first four issues have been visually stunning (except for 3, I'm sorry for Jen-Hen, but she could do way better), but story-wise, they told us almost nothing. Issue 5 finally starts telling an actual story we can easily be invested on, and I would say it raises interesing questions revolving morality and justice! SPOILERS AHEAD:

I'm talking about Eggman "having amnesia", and the heroes questioning if he should be captured for what he has done, or if should stay free and start a new life as Mr. Tinker. It's a deep theme I didn't expect to see from a modern Sonic comic: should a criminal be punished, even if he or she has lost memory? Is a person that loses memory a different individual?? AM I GOING TOO FAR WITH THIS???

Also, the inminent clash with Shadow, someone that has also suffered from amnesia... that can be really REALLY interesting. And we might have a Sonic vs. Shadow fight with a moral debate in the background! 

If the comic keeps this pace, IDW will have my money... if the comics ever get to Spain.

Edited 3 Jun 2018 by ChaosKaiser

[Katmuffin 16]

While I found the whole recap and role call thing really obnoxious, I feel it's a necessary evil, the comic is supposed to appeal to people beyond sonic fans, and they need to tell people who these characters are. (But they should of done it the way did it with Blaze.)

Also I'm glad mr talking chair did something more than Mwa ha ha, I'm evil

Edited 3 Jun 2018 by Katmuffin

[Skye Prower 386]

Sure, a recap and roll-call is useful, heck, the Archie comics did it too.

But the WAY they did it?  I've seen more effort put into a job by a corpse.

[ChaosKaiser 174]

The recap was... sort of fine, using previous panels, but some text could have helped more. As for the roll-call... well... I could have made a better page layout. And I'm not a graphic designer. 
Also, am I the only one that found odd that the character logos are just pasted over the panels, instead of being inside a box?

Also I'm glad mr talking chair did something more than Mwa ha ha, I'm evil

What if the new villain is actually THE TALKING CHAIR?? Or a robot that transforms into A TALKING CHAAAAIR??! 

 

[Thire 121]

I really like #5 over the first four. There’s just a better narrative to it and not the same ‘ol same ‘ol as the first ones, granted they were all pretty much one part.

OUR CHAIR IS SLOWLY COMING TO LIFE!! 

#5 got me excited for the next ones and I really can’t wait to see the fated Sonic/Shadow duel that was hinted considering we NEVER ACTUALLY FOUGHT HIM IN FORCES. 

Ahem, anyways I think everyone who read from #1-5 can agree it’s just much better. I hope to see more magic like this one, Flynn.

[Seviper the Fang Snake 368]

Defiantly the best issue yet. 

 

 It is interesting to see how the heroes dealt with dealing with an evil megalomaniac who had no relocations of his previous deeds. It also show how good the Chaotix are at their day job, despite being called goofballs. At least two thirds of them. Now to wait next month to see how the Blue Blur and the Edge Lord handle this.

[Skye Prower 386]

So.... Read Issue 6.

Overall... still better than the first four issues, but still feels it's lacking.... something.

Shadow feels a bit Flandersized.  Not out of character, just a bit... exaggerated.  But other than that the conflict with Sonic was pretty neat.

I do feel the comics aren't sure whether they're writing for fully new readers or long-term fans, so character introductions have been variable in terms of detail.  This one really did assume you knew the basics of Rouge and Shadow beforehand.

And as for the final reveal....

 

Grooooooaaaaaaaannnnnnnnn......  It was both the most obvious, and the most boring, direction to go in.  *sighs*
 

[Chapmic 7]

So.... Read Issue 6.

Overall... still better than the first four issues, but still feels it's lacking.... something.

Shadow feels a bit Flandersized.  Not out of character, just a bit... exaggerated.  But other than that the conflict with Sonic was pretty neat.

I do feel the comics aren't sure whether they're writing for fully new readers or long-term fans, so character introductions have been variable in terms of detail.  This one really did assume you knew the basics of Rouge and Shadow beforehand.

And as for the final reveal....

 

Hidden Content

Also, I don't know if it's jus artistic choice, but "Mr. Tinker" from issue 4 wears the same slightly more detailed costume than Eggman in Forces, while "Real Eggman" in issue 6 has his previous less detailed costume. Probably nothing, but you know, it's the kind of detail you notice and can't ever unsee after that.

Other than that, do you think they're recycling the (robot) duplicate that pretends to be nice again ?

[Skye Prower 386]

It's a different art style and artist between the two drawings.  For another comparison, see the outfit on the Mr Tinker Eggman in Issue 5 when he's first found by the villagers.  It's identical to Issue 6.  So it's unlikely to mean anything.

And no, not a robot.  Phantom Ruby projection.  See those little glitch cubes around that panel I mentioned above in Issue 5.

[ChaosKaiser 174]

I feel like these comics are trying to hard to give a story with the very same tone the games recently have: we have an almost perfect Sonic, a bunch of secondary characters that doesn't do much (at least, not yet), a story that progresses very slowly, and...

...a plot twist that doesn't feel powerful enough. Like, another Eggman? Really? Of all possibilities they had... Ian chose THIS?
Also, I expected the "amnesia dilemma" to be better explored. Maybe I was expecting too much?

As Skye said, seems like they aren't sure who to aim this comics for, and that's a little concerning. I feel like Ian Flynn is somehow "tamed", considering previous stories he has written.

Art is cool tho. I mean, it's Tracy Yardley, Jim Amash and Matt Herms we're talking about. These guys know how to handle this world and its characters perfectly.

[ViciousPhantom 6]

We're still right at the beginning of the book. They're not gonna toss a giant, complex, or super serious story right at the start. Gotta let stuff settle in first.

[Skye Prower 386]

Sure, they don't need a giant complex, grim dark, over serious story.

But...... a STORY would still be nice.  That was something we didn't have in the first four issues.

And as for the next two, it's not an interesting story anymore.  It was, until the reveal.  That killed all the interest I had.  5 issues of buildup, for that.

I don't hate this new series.  I think it's fine.  But I also feel for a new series, fine just shouldn't cut it. It should be more.

[ChaosKaiser 174]

As I see it, they haven't settled much... We as fans know who these characters are, but whoever doesn't know about the Sonic universe (not the comic, I mean the general concept :P) will think these characters don't have much to show or do, aside from Sonic himself.

They don't need to throw a "bigger than a lifetime" story, just the beggining of a nice narrative, something more promising and engaging. C'mon, it's not that hard, considering who the members of the creative team are...

Nevertheless, that last point, the fact that the Archie team is still behind this new series makes me keep hope alive (even if it seems otherwise!)