Writer- Evan Stanley

Penciller- Tracy Yardley

 

 

What I know about Sonic the Hedgehog could fit in a very small shoebox. Like toddler size. The original game came out when I was in my early teens, and being a SEGA Genesis owner, I bought and played it, cause let’s face it, we had no Mario. I picked up the first few games and enjoyed them, but that is where my relationship with Sonic as a firm of entertainment end. Well, not for everyone. In 1993, the main book in the Archie Comics Sonic line, Sonic The Hedgehog began publication that continues today, and is registered in the Guinness Book as longest video game comic book adaptation ever. Comic scribe Mark Millar, famous for series such as Kick-Ass and Nemesis, wrote over 20 issues early in his career. With a long running comic, come spin offs, and I chose to review the latest issue of the currently longest running member of the franchise.

Sonic Universe focuses on characters other than our main hero, as he has his own book, and there is a huge supporting cast in this universe. Every few issues the book shifts to a new lead, and follows their adventures. Silver the Hedgehog is a telekinetic whom resides in Onyx City, 200 years after Sonic’s time period. Onyx City is a frightening paradise, as the veneer of a nice city is upheld by a masked council, who use robot enforcers to ensure its populace report to mandated jobs daily. Silver fears being discovered by the council, as his powers would get him the lab animal treatment. Rifts in space-time called Genesis Portals are popping up all over the city, controlled by the council, and Silver shows that he can manipulate them with his powers. This brings him to the attention of Professor Von Schlemmer, a scientist that knows a lot about Silver, who feels it best that the council sees what the hedgehog is capable of.

Writer Evan Stanley makes it easy to step into an established setting and not feel like you are missing anything. The story is tight and to the point. Tracy Yardley’s pencils are a familiar mix of Saturday morning cartoon in style with inventive panel work throughout. I particularly liked the dice faced theme of the five members of the council’s masks, and the effect used to signify Silver’s powers being used, which manifests in a neon green glow encompassing his body and the objects being manipulated.

In all honesty, I thought this issue was good, not great by any means. What I did find great was in the research to do this review. The Sonic family of titles are full of their own history, many diverse characters and a ton of story arcs. I could easily recommend this line to anyone looking for a step between easy reading kid’s comics and the long standing superhero universes. Any parents looking for a solid book to get their young readers into, could do much worse than picking some of these up. Take a trip down to your local comic shops with your kids and listen for the sound of a super speed rodent spinning, great adventure awaits.

 

3 Civil Protection Robots of 5