Title: Sonic the Hedgehog
Issues: #5 and #6
Writer: Ian Flynn
Artist: Tracy Yardley
Series: IDW
So far, the previous four issues were mostly about Sonic meeting up with random characters, either from the franchise or made exclusively for the comics. Issue 5 marks the first major story element that will eventually affect the rest of the comic's run. But before I go into that, here's a brief summary of this issue.
The issue begins with Sonic and Espio fighting more badniks and they come across a peaceful village. It was there that Sonic meets the rest of the Chaotix, Charmy and Vector, and they tell Sonic that they found Dr. Eggman, who has been missing from the story after the events of "Sonic Forces." But, this is not the crazy madman that we all know and love. No! Dr. Eggman has suddenly become a kindly inventor named Mr. Tinker and it turns out that Dr. Eggman had received amnesia after the war. Sonic is suspicious about the whole thing, since he's not sure if Dr. Eggman has turned over a new leaf for good. But before he could decide, Shadow and Rouge suddenly come to the village and Shadow demands that Dr. Eggman pays for his crimes.
Even though I really enjoyed the first four issues, I was wondering about what happened to Dr. Eggman and whether or not we will be getting a major story arc at some point in this comic. Well, we finally find out what happened to Dr. Eggman in this issue and it was a pretty interesting turn of events! I never would have thought that I would see the day where Dr. Eggman could potentially be a good guy. I thought that his Mr. Tinker persona was really interesting as it shows us what Dr. Eggman would have been like if he had used his inventions for good, instead of bad. I am curious though about how Dr. Eggman got amnesia in the first place (although it might have something to do with the phantom ruby).
Another thing that I enjoyed about this issue was the moral dilemma that Sonic finds himself in. This issue tackles the subject of what would happen if you are faced with a person who has done terrible things in their lives. But, because that person suffered from amnesia and they don't remember what they did wrong or at the moment, they are not considered a major threat; should that person continue to live their lives or should they be arrested for their crimes, even if they have amnesia? I'm actually surprised that this comic is tackling this complex issue and handles it in a pretty mature way. You have Sonic, who at first was hesitant about trusting Mr. Tinker because of his past, but is willing to give Mr. Tinker a chance since he's not a threat at the moment. But on the other hand, you have Shadow who points out to Sonic that Mr. Tinker should pay for his crimes, because he could still be a threat to the heroes if he regained his memories. I think that both Sonic and Shadow have good points in how to handle this situation and it's interesting to see what the fallout of this situation will be in future issues.
As usual, Tracy Yardley's artwork is fantastic to look at! I especially loved the facial expressions of the characters and I loved the new look of Mr. Tinker, looking like a kindly old man in pink and green colors, something that strongly contrasts Dr. Eggman's black and red clothing style.
The only minor problem that I had with this issue is Shadow's characterization here. I say minor problem because he's not too bad in this issue, as he does bring out great points about how they need to take in Mr. Tinker because he could become a threat to them later on if he regained his memories. However, this characterization of Shadow seems to be of a Shadow who is nothing but a jerk to everyone, which is strongly contrasted in how he acts in both Sonic Adventure 2 and the Shadow the Hedgehog game where, yeah, he's a bit harsh at times. But, can show that he does care about the people he loves. I will definitely go more into his characterization in later issues.
Overall, I give this issue a rating of:
While I wasn't the biggest fan of Shadow's characterization here, I do appreciate this issue in tackling a complex situation about what would happen if you meet up with a person who has done some terrible things and whether or not you should arrest them or let them live their lives if they don't pose a threat at that moment. Definitely looking forward to reading the next issue soon!
