Sonic the Hedgehog 3’sadaptation ofShadow’s origin storymay have brought one of the franchise’s most iconic moments to the silver screen, but it controversially retconned a major part of Shadow’s origin story. While changing any character’s lore is going to upset some segment of existing fans, the movie retcon was inferior because it swapped a great idea for a cliché. Now,Sonicfans are left hoping that IDW’s comic continuity won’t follow suit.
InSonic the Hedgehog 3,Shadow is presented as an alienwhen he was originally created by Professor Gerald Robotnik. The choice eliminated a dark irony connecting Sonic, Shadow and the Robotniks. This irritated fans who alreadyknew about Shadow’s original backstory, whether it was from theSonic Adventure 2game, where it debuted, Archie Comics' special tie-in issues or even theSonic XTV show.
Of course,Sonic 3’s retelling could have been much more of a disaster. Paramount could have easily tried to make the movie more family friendly by not having Maria die, removing a key tragedy.But Shadow being an alien is still an inferior version of his story, which is why IDW is Sonic fans' last hope.
What Happened To Maria In Sonic The Hedgehog 3
Sonic the Hedgehog 3 reveals Shadow’s tragic origins and his connection to Maria Robotnik, adapting the original Sonic games (with some differences).
Sonic the Hedgehog: Chasing Shadows Is Going To Be A Shadow Solo-Adventure
Chasing Shadows' Timing Makes It The Perfect Moment To See Where IDW Publishing Stands on the Antihero’s Origin
IDW’s comic continuity began its story after Sonic and Shadow were already acquainted. In fact, the first time Shadow appears,Sonic the Hedgehog fights him, so there was never a need to rehash what most readers already knew about the Ultimate Life-Form. However, now thatSonic 3has made quite a few changes to Shadow’s backstory, many fans are now desperate to see the comics upholdSonic Adventure 2’s original vision. Fans of IDW’sSonicmay get an answer quicker than they realized. Next month,IDW is releasing a special one-shot featuring Shadow titledSonic the Hedgehog: Chasing Shadows #1, from the creative team of Kiel Phegley and Mauro Fonseca.
The fact thatChasing Shadowswill debut just a few weeks afterSonic 3left theaters presents fans with enough hope thatthe one-shot could very well explore Shadow’s past, putting to rest whether IDW will use the original origin fromSonic Adventure 2or the movie version fromSonic 3. However, there’s one major caveat. Even though the one-shot is a Shadow solo adventure, there are no allusions in the official synopsis to the Ultimate Life-Form confronting his past. All that’s shared is thathe is going to"unravel the dark secrets"of an old isolated village where strange things are occurring.
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IDW’s Sonic Canon Can Reclaim The Dark Irony That Sonic Adventure 2 Created
It’s More Powerful That Dr. Robotnik’s Grandfather Is The Source of His Current Suffering
While every pop culture fan harbors some affection for the original version of a story, Shadow’sSonic Adventure 2origin story actually created an intriguing dynamic thatSonic 3eliminatedin favor of the possibility that Shadow and Sonic are related. The fact thatDr. Ivo Robotnik’s grandfather Gerald Robotnikcreated Shadow inSonic Adventure 2is ironic because of how that creation would later impact Ivo. Although Shadow initially teamed up with Ivo, the Ultimate Life-Form would later become an ally to Sonic. Gerald’s experiments created a major thorn in Ivo’s side. It’s an echo of how Robotnik’s arrogance is often turned against him, expanded to a generational level.Open the image gallery below for panels showing Gerald working on Project: Shadow.
Ivo’s grandfather created a creature that would eventually ally with his grandson’s greatest nemesis. From Ivo’s perspective, his grandfather created something that would make it much more difficult for him to destroy Sonic. Even more importantly,Sonic Adventure 2showed Gerald made Shadow specifically as an antidote for Maria. This is probably the most ironic thing of all, sinceIvo and Maria are supposed to be cousins. What began as an antidote for Ivo’s cousin became a poison for Ivo himself. WhileSonic 3’s retcon still has Gerald involved in Shadow’s experiments, he’s no longer the source of his grandson’s suffering and defeat.
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Chasing Shadows Can Avoid Sonic the Hedgehog 3’s Massive Cliché
Sonic Adventure 2 Already Connected Sonic with Shadow through Robotnik’s Grandfather, So Why Make Them Related Too?
It’s not just that making Shadow Gerald’s creation is a good idea - the original backstory exists in place of a needless cliché introduced by the movie.It’s obvious that Paramount wanted to connect Shadow with Sonic in the strongest possible way by bonding them by blood.But this conflicts with howSonic Adventure 2already connected Sonic’s world to Shadow’s past by making his nemesis, Dr. Ivo Robotnik, the grandson of the man who created his incredibly powerful ally.
Adding another tie between Sonic and Shadow feels like overkill, especially because the ‘secret relative’ trope is used in so many other movies.Soniclore already gave Shadow and Sonic a far more unique connection - one that IDW will hopefully keep in favor of the movie retcon. WhileSonic the Hedgehog: Chasing Shadowsmay well be a simple solo adventure, hopefully IDW uses the one-shot as an opportunity to look back atShadow’s lore and confirm that he’s a product of the Robotnik family’s dark science, not just an alien branch onSonic’s family tree.
Sonic the Hedgehog
Sonic the Hedgehog is a multimedia franchise that began with Sonic the Hedgehog’s release for the Sega Genesis in 1991. The franchise follows the adventures of the titular Blue Blur, Sonic, as he fights the nefarious Dr. Eggman to protect his friends, family, and the world. The series has expanded into several video games, multiple comic book series, television shows, and a Hollywood feature film series.
