the sonic franchise has such a wide variety of content, between all the games, comics, shows, movies, etc. along with the seemingly infinite amount of fan content. there's been so many wildly different iterations of him over the years, and everyone has a little bit different idea of what "sonic" should be, and it's fascinating to me.

so my question is, what does your ideal version of sonic look like? whether it's an already-existing piece of official or unofficial media, or a dream combination of your favorite aspects of the franchise, or maybe even something else entirely? i'm interested in hearing what everyone's preferences are!

A smash bros version of sonic. No more to be said.

This is a... quite complicated question I'm not sure I can answer without writing an entire essay on, but I'll try.

To start out, bring Sonic Boom back, we treated it too harshly.

I won't lie, I was on that initial bandwagon of absolutely hating Sonic Boom and everything about it ever since we got the first teasers. You know, saying how the sports tape looked stupid, everyone is way too lanky, Boom Knuckles is horrendous-looking, the comedy is dumb, yadda-yadda. All opinions I've come to severely back down on in retrospection on the TV show and Archie comics.

I lost count on how many times I've said this, but I consider the Boom designs a really good "Westernization" of the Sonic look, and are also just good designs in general, dare I say it has my preferred Amy look.

Another reason is just that I think it'd be nice for Boom to be running alongside the mainline Sonic games like, as the 2016 Boom style guide put it, "the funny bone of the Sonic universe".



Ever since I saw this artwork from the Sonic the Hedgehog 25th Anniversary Art Book, I've been thinking about the Sonic Boom that could've been, like the more comedic older brother of Modern and Classic Sonic (although technically he's the youngest). And now with the Paramount movies, we would've had Sonic content for games, movies and TV shows, all with their own respective version of Sonic and friends.

Sonic as a franchise has grown to be pretty flexible, so I don't see why not have multiple Sonic outs there to pick and choose and introduce you to the bigger franchise as a whole.

... Now, I'm not sure what else I could say that isn't preaching to the choir, actually writing that essay I said I didn't wanna do or going off the initially asked question. So I'll quickly go over these next ones...

- More games having more meaningful stories with lessons, often focusing on a newly introduced character, as a recent example, see Sonic Superstars and Trip's story of overcoming her social anxiety.

- Sonic himself being more in-line with his original Japanese character. He takes threats seriously but isn't afraid to have fun with it occasionally, he doesn't say much but he means a lot with his words, see Sonic Unleashed. He is all the good in the world and the force of nature given form, with a bit of cool factor added in, is how I see it.

- Putting more focus on the other characters, which at least seems to be happening recently. Like say lower budget, more experimental spin-off titles in between mainline releases.

- And on that, the thing I admire most about the Sonic franchise is how experimental it is, a trend that doesn't seem to be going away any time soon, so I guess I have my wish fulfilled on that as well.

Aaaaaaaaaaaaand I'm out....

Well, not really, but I gotta put a cap in my yap at some point.

... Been thinking on what to type for so long I lost where I was going, apologies if I'm just rambling... 

I think the takeaway here is that, for me personally, what I like about the Sonic franchise is it's variety in all sorts of media, alongside the personal touch some of the game stories have with some nice messages tied to them. In a way, I couldn't have a perfect piece of Sonic media since I just more like to see where the franchise goes next, but also how it adapts it's story-telling through it.

Like a mix of uncertainty and familiarity that keeps me hooked, it's... well, I did say it was complicated. 

(08-24-2024, 08:26 AM)Tominique Wrote: This is a... quite complicated question I'm not sure I can answer without writing an entire essay on, but I'll try.

To start out, bring Sonic Boom back, we treated it too harshly.

I won't lie, I was on that initial bandwagon of absolutely hating Sonic Boom and everything about it ever since we got the first teasers. You know, saying how the sports tape looked stupid, everyone is way too lanky, Boom Knuckles is horrendous-looking, the comedy is dumb, yadda-yadda. All opinions I've come to severely back down on in retrospection on the TV show and Archie comics.

I lost count on how many times I've said this, but I consider the Boom designs a really good "Westernization" of the Sonic look, and are also just good designs in general, dare I say it has my preferred Amy look.

Another reason is just that I think it'd be nice for Boom to be running alongside the mainline Sonic games like, as the 2016 Boom style guide put it, "the funny bone of the Sonic universe".

[Image: https://i.imgur.com/uNmKplN.png]

Ever since I saw this artwork from the Sonic the Hedgehog 25th Anniversary Art Book, I've been thinking about the Sonic Boom that could've been, like the more comedic older brother of Modern and Classic Sonic (although technically he's the youngest). And now with the Paramount movies, we would've had Sonic content for games, movies and TV shows, all with their own respective version of Sonic and friends.

Sonic as a franchise has grown to be pretty flexible, so I don't see why not have multiple Sonic outs there to pick and choose and introduce you to the bigger franchise as a whole.

... Now, I'm not sure what else I could say that isn't preaching to the choir, actually writing that essay I said I didn't wanna do or going off the initially asked question. So I'll quickly go over these next ones...

- More games having more meaningful stories with lessons, often focusing on a newly introduced character, as a recent example, see Sonic Superstars and Trip's story of overcoming her social anxiety.

- Sonic himself being more in-line with his original Japanese character. He takes threats seriously but isn't afraid to have fun with it occasionally, he doesn't say much but he means a lot with his words, see Sonic Unleashed. He is all the good in the world and the force of nature given form, with a bit of cool factor added in, is how I see it.

- Putting more focus on the other characters, which at least seems to be happening recently. Like say lower budget, more experimental spin-off titles in between mainline releases.

- And on that, the thing I admire most about the Sonic franchise is how experimental it is, a trend that doesn't seem to be going away any time soon, so I guess I have my wish fulfilled on that as well.

Aaaaaaaaaaaaand I'm out....

Well, not really, but I gotta put a cap in my yap at some point.

... Been thinking on what to type for so long I lost where I was going, apologies if I'm just rambling... 

I think the takeaway here is that, for me personally, what I like about the Sonic franchise is it's variety in all sorts of media, alongside the personal touch some of the game stories have with some nice messages tied to them. In a way, I couldn't have a perfect piece of Sonic media since I just more like to see where the franchise goes next, but also how it adapts it's story-telling through it.

Like a mix of uncertainty and familiarity that keeps me hooked, it's... well, I did say it was complicated. 

You're a FOKING genius-

(08-24-2024, 08:26 AM)Tominique Wrote: This is a... quite complicated question I'm not sure I can answer without writing an entire essay on, but I'll try.

To start out, bring Sonic Boom back, we treated it too harshly.

I won't lie, I was on that initial bandwagon of absolutely hating Sonic Boom and everything about it ever since we got the first teasers. You know, saying how the sports tape looked stupid, everyone is way too lanky, Boom Knuckles is horrendous-looking, the comedy is dumb, yadda-yadda. All opinions I've come to severely back down on in retrospection on the TV show and Archie comics.

I lost count on how many times I've said this, but I consider the Boom designs a really good "Westernization" of the Sonic look, and are also just good designs in general, dare I say it has my preferred Amy look.

we genuinely didn't deserve Sonic Boom at the time... looking back on it now the series had some interesting elements to it, and as for the show there's some scenes that I go back and watch and realize how the humour matches up w/ the humour used now rather than at the time... though I was also someone who strayed away from Sonic Boom unfortunately bcuz it just wasn't interesting to me. I also disliked the sports tape but the other elements of the designs like Sonic having a bandana and Tails having goggles is smth I always liked, fashion and Sonic always go hand in hand in my mind so seeing the characters wearing more accessories would've been a nice detail to continue in future games - actually, we're somewhat getting the idea back w/ the customization in Sonic Colours Ultimate, even if it was just gloves and shoes colour I like it... but we all know the reception of Colours Ultimate, so idk if they're willing to go forward with an idea like that ever again

but I'm also like Tomi, and I can't help but write a mini-essay on my feelings, and it is a really complicated subject bcuz another thing I liked abt the Sonic series is all the different iterations the series has gone through, some ppl can see it as "throwing everything at a wall and seeing what sticks" but it was also refreshing to see Sonic and co. in so many different universes and situations, and unfortunately I'm missing the Freedom Fighters and that dynamic so dearly... but I'm not sure if it's bcuz I know some of the "possible futures" that were coming w/ Archie Sonic, like Antoine and the seven swords or w/e...

I think it's hard to really pinpoint what my ideal Sonic would be other than a few ideas and characters from each iteration coming forward, obviously being a Dream Combination of all my favourite elements;

- Freedom Fighters, I miss Sonic having an inner circle of ppl also affected by the world he lives in, currently it's been feeling like "nothing's happening" even w/ IDW Sonic OR a restructure of Sonic and co.'s dynamic w/ the world, I actually like seeing areas where the characters reside and do their operations, I want to know why all these critters are where they were and what they do when Eggman isn't launching an attack

- I miss the Nature vs Technology theme in earlier games (specifically Sonic CD, which even included the idea of both coexisting like in the Good Future)

- a restructure of Sonic's World, unfortunately I'm not a fan of Sonic coexisting w/ humans really like in Unleashed, IDW only having critters and robots is the way I like it unfortunately, but I want the world to be redone, if I think of the World of Unleashed and Islands like Northstar and West Island existing all on one planet idk... it's hard to believe ig? and I know that's a stretch saying I want a world w/ fast blue hedges to be believable but if you can explain it existing, sure I'll accept it

I'm worried I'm sounding nitpick-y but at the same time there's elements I just miss so much, and with Sonic x Shadow Generations I feel myself being invested in the world and story once again after so many years of just... "whatever" content ig, and I know a lot of my wishes aren't the ideal for everyone either, but I love all these critters and I even see art of characters like Tangle and Sally interacting and I'm like, "oh, that's a really cool dynamic" so maybe I just miss characters being characters, but it also sucks that elements don't crossover more, at the time the Freedom Fighters had their own show w/ SatAM and were in the comics, Tangle was mentioned in the ENG script of Frontiers, and both her and Whisper are slowly being included in merch and mobile games, so maybe we're slowly getting to a unified cast among all Sonic Media... but at the same time I'm just /shrugs

I'll also agree though that it's complicated, even trying to write this reply I have so many more ideas and things I want to say but... I should really keep my reply short for the sake of a conversation happening, haha!

(08-24-2024, 08:47 PM)hooligan Wrote: - a restructure of Sonic's World, unfortunately I'm not a fan of Sonic coexisting w/ humans really like in Unleashed, IDW only having critters and robots is the way I like it unfortunately, but I want the world to be redone, if I think of the World of Unleashed and Islands like Northstar and West Island existing all on one planet idk... it's hard to believe ig? and I know that's a stretch saying I want a world w/ fast blue hedges to be believable but if you can explain it existing, sure I'll accept it

You know, it's funny, talking about humans coexisting with Sonic, this has been a hot-button issue for a lot of people, and while I personally don't mind them being in Sonic's world, I think the way they have been utilized is kind of bizarre. Like in Sonic 06, I keep asking myself wouldn't it have been cooler if Blaze was the Princess of Soleana instead of Elise? It would tie into her having fire powers and she could basically have the same story arc she had in Rush where she is unwilling to open herself up to others and ask for help. Instead, we got this, I'm just gonna say it WEIRD and CREEPY romance between Sonic and a shapely female lol

(08-26-2024, 01:00 PM)BurningBlaze Wrote: You know, it's funny, talking about humans coexisting with Sonic, this has been a hot-button issue for a lot of people, and while I personally don't mind them being in Sonic's world, I think the way they have been utilized is kind of bizarre. Like in Sonic 06, I keep asking myself wouldn't it have been cooler if Blaze was the Princess of Soleana instead of Elise? It would tie into her having fire powers and she could basically have the same story arc she had in Rush where she is unwilling to open herself up to others and ask for help. Instead, we got this, I'm just gonna say it WEIRD and CREEPY romance between Sonic and a shapely female lol

Vanilla X Vector Vanilla X Vector LOL-

(08-26-2024, 01:00 PM)BurningBlaze Wrote: You know, it's funny, talking about humans coexisting with Sonic, this has been a hot-button issue for a lot of people, and while I personally don't mind them being in Sonic's world, I think the way they have been utilized is kind of bizarre. Like in Sonic 06, I keep asking myself wouldn't it have been cooler if Blaze was the Princess of Soleana instead of Elise? It would tie into her having fire powers and she could basically have the same story arc she had in Rush where she is unwilling to open herself up to others and ask for help. Instead, we got this, I'm just gonna say it WEIRD and CREEPY romance between Sonic and a shapely female lol

yeah, humans in Sonic are decisive, and it's odd bcuz when it comes to the Sonic OVA and Archie Sonic, which both include humans, do it in a way that doesn't make them seem intrusive? it also helps that "human" characters like Sara (she's a catgirl/kemonomimi) and Snively, look like they belong in the style, where as the Unleashed humans feel like a completely different style. But even the humans in Sonic Adventure/SA2 didn't feel out of place either, but I think that was also part of the "two worlds" canon at the time where there was the human world, like our Earth, and Sonic's World/Mobius like in Sonic X.

Blaze being the princess of Soleanna instead of Elise sounds like a really interesting idea too, if Sonic '06 somehow just included elements of the Sol Dimension instead of rewriting her character to being from the future and further excluding characters like Eggman Nega and Marine (aside from IDW) like, her being connected to Iblis would make much more sense and even the ending of Silver's story with her sealing Iblis inside her, it all could've worked and even make a bigger impact on the story imo

but yeah, the story beats between Elise and Sonic were written quite odd, watching them now I can understand, most likely, what the intentions were of the cutscenes, Sonic is someone Elise has never experienced in her life before, someone she could open herself up to, similar to Blaze... actually, Blaze and Elise could've been great chemistry too! since Blaze would be someone who "knows how she feels" ... but that's another thing w/ Sonic, there's so many different characters and stories that ideas like this can easily come from discussion

Say, albeit mostly in jest, I remember a suggestion that Princess Elise should have just been Sally. 

Really though, I like the idea for Sonic and Elise's dynamic, of a very free person meeting someone very secluded, and both kind of getting to see into each other's lifestyles and learning something from it. Heck, I don't even dislike the idea of romance between them, just the execution was way too forced and unearned, which was what gave us that wretched kiss to begin with.

And throwing in my two cents in the humans thing, along with just Sonic's world in general. Just like BurnBlaze, I don't really mind the humans and more actually like their inclusion just for the variety they bring to the world, I like critters and humans coexisting. And how that can only happen since, how I see it, Sonic's world is just way, way, way bigger than ours, and full of different natural anomalies and interesting little places to explore with a wide variety of locals to each place.

Which I guess is why I'm not big on outright showing the planet Sonic lives in. It gives scale to everything and kind pulls back the curtains, saying that yes, there is a limit to this world.

Though at the same time, both seeing Sonic's world in full and humans being inconsistent doesn't bother me that much because at this point, I see Sonic games as more being their own isolated stories of sorts in their own isolated universes, that only bring up past things when they're relevant.

It's no novelty to say the Sonic canon is all over the place, which is why I say there is none. Sure, it's fun to have discussions on how games connect to each other, but at the end of the day I prefer them being so unbound by previously established details like that. At this point, a game would be asking to be picked apart if it ever tries to connect everything, which is why I'm a bit unsure on the emphasis to actually connect everything recently.

Don't get me wrong, minding what the previous games do helps keep stuff like characters consistent. Gaia forbid we all start lighting fires again because Tails' character didn't get handled properly. I just more mean that I prefer games, and just overall Sonic media in general, being wild with their ideas, and thus, their own interpretation of Sonic's world/Earth/Mobius.

(08-26-2024, 03:42 PM)Tominique Wrote: Say, albeit mostly in jest, I remember a suggestion that Princess Elise should have just been Sally. 

Really though, I like the idea for Sonic and Elise's dynamic, of a very free person meeting someone very secluded, and both kind of getting to see into each other's lifestyles and learning something from it. Heck, I don't even dislike the idea of romance between them, just the execution was way too forced and unearned, which was what gave us that wretched kiss to begin with.

And throwing in my two cents in the humans thing, along with just Sonic's world in general. Just like BurnBlaze, I don't really mind the humans and more actually like their inclusion just for the variety they bring to the world, I like critters and humans coexisting. And how that can only happen since, how I see it, Sonic's world is just way, way, way bigger than ours, and full of different natural anomalies and interesting little places to explore with a wide variety of locals to each place.

Which I guess is why I'm not big on outright showing the planet Sonic lives in. It gives scale to everything and kind pulls back the curtains, saying that yes, there is a limit to this world.

Though at the same time, both seeing Sonic's world in full and humans being inconsistent doesn't bother me that much because at this point, I see Sonic games as more being their own isolated stories of sorts in their own isolated universes, that only bring up past things when they're relevant.

It's no novelty to say the Sonic canon is all over the place, which is why I say there is none. Sure, it's fun to have discussions on how games connect to each other, but at the end of the day I prefer them being so unbound by previously established details like that. At this point, a game would be asking to be picked apart if it ever tries to connect everything, which is why I'm a bit unsure on the emphasis to actually connect everything recently.

Don't get me wrong, minding what the previous games do helps keep stuff like characters consistent. Gaia forbid we all start lighting fires again because Tails' character didn't get handled properly. I just more mean that I prefer games, and just overall Sonic media in general, being wild with their ideas, and thus, their own interpretation of Sonic's world/Earth/Mobius.

Sally filling the role of Princess Elise is another really interesting idea, and it also makes me realize Sonic has/had quite a few princess friends/friends that were royalty, but I guess that came w/ him being a Freedom Fighter

but yes, I totally agree in the idea that Sonic's canon is all over the place, or that there's none at all, and I don't see it in a bad way! In fact, I almost liked the idea of Sonic not having a set universe and I got to see my favourite characters in different stories; like, as odd as Sonic underground was it was a natural progression of Sonic SATAM, even though none of the Freedom Fighters were really allowed to be in the story bcuz DiC/ABC (?) didn't want to continue the story of SATAM unfortunately.

The only downside is they started excluding specific characters from different canons, which over time led to the Super Genesis Wave/Reboot Archie Sonic, and the into the cancellation of Archie Sonic. And again, the thing I did like abt Sonic canon was the different iterations, I just really wish characters stayed consistent over it's run, which is why I heavily mention the Freedom Fighters, bcuz SATAM (which I barely even watched, if I must confess, I barely got a few episodes in /gasp!) and Archie Sonic still had the characters I had grown to like, I genuinely was interested in Sally overcoming struggles w/ family and royalty, and Antoine actually becoming a greater swordsman, and Bunnie... accepting herself and her robotic parts! (which I wasn't a fan of her robotic parts being de-roboticized, I liked the contrast between her and Cassia in Post SGW/Reboot, where Cassia had to be cyberized due to her illness, where as Bunnie accidentally became roboticized and accepted that part of herself) but I digress! I shouldn't continue to ramble like that, haha

I think you worded it better than I could though, Sonic's world is really big and almost indescribable, so humans existing in it seems natural, or even detrimental to pinpoint exactly what Sonic's world is; so stories should be considered more isolated, I know it's a very Japanese Developer (???) thing to create a game/story within a series and have it as standalone or not related to the main canon, it's a very ENG fandom/western thing to want everything to connect together.... so at the same time I'm keeping that in my mind as well as I think of such a large series as Sonic is