New Sonic comic flips franchise's best feature in heartbreaking way

Archie's Sonic focused on animals becoming evil robots, but IDW's Scrapnik Island reintroduces the concept of good Badniks becoming villains.

Warning: Spoilers for Sonic the Hedgehog - Scrapnik Island #3

A new Sonic miniseries puts a heartbreaking spin on one of the biggest features of the old Archie comics continuity.

In Sonic the Hedgehog – Scrap Island #3 by Daniel Barnes, Jack Lawrence, Natalie Frederian and Sean Lee from IDW Publishing, a resurrected mecha Sonic is reprogrammed For a good robot, turned back into an evil Budnick. E-117 Sigma, the only one who proactively reprogrammed his fellow humans on Scrapnik Island into benevolent robots, told Tails that while he tried to do the same with Mecha Sonic, his subtle systems must have outstripped his try. As a result, Eggman's original programming took over even after Mecha Sonic showed such commitment by allying himself with Sonic and his friends.

This "reawakening", as E-117 Sigma calls it, essentially reverses the roboticization of Archie Comics' version of Sonic the Hedgehog. Accomplished in the Roboticizer, the gruesome process involves a living organism turning into an obedient robot lacking free will for Dr. Robotnik. Rescuing those captured by robotization and restoring those who have been robotized is a major storyline in Archie's Sonic continuity, haunting the blue Blurred for most series. Ironically, even though Sonic was able to restore the minds of his robotic uncle Chuck and his parents, the events that followed brought everyone's bodies back to normal except for his father, which not only made Sonic feel right This failure took responsibility and also caused friction in his home.

Sonic's Comic Series Might Break Mecha Sonic Forever

IDW's Scrapik Island seems to be emulating this dynamic, except instead of losing friends or family, Sonic loses a makeshift robot ally, since their original programming reverted them back to being villains. While markedly different, IDW's take on robotics remains emotive. Instead of seeing Sonic fail to rebuild his family, IDW readers will recall that moment earlier on Scrapnik Island when Mecha Sonic showed off a sunflower he'd been trying to keep alive, hoping to one day It can be grown in real soil off the desolate island of Scrapnik. The fact that Mecha Sonic's innocent side may be gone forever is devastating, forcing the reader to hope that something can restore E-117 Sigma's reprogramming so that Mecha Sonic can grow that flower as he originally dreamed.

Interestingly, this is not the first time IDW has Sonic borrows the concept of Archie's robotization. A more immediate callback occurred during the metal virus saga, where instead of Dr. Robotnik forcing animals into machines that turn them into robots, Dr. Eggman created a virus that automatically did it all for him. But, of course, this effect only lasts for the duration of the saga, and the only consequence of being infected is Sonic himself before he loses his memory, but the stakes are much lower since it's clear he'll be healed. While Scrapnik Island's Mecha Sonic is likely to "recover," the aftermath is far more emotional, leaving more readers on the edge of their seats anxiously awaiting the final curtain on the next and final installment.

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