Tag: Ian Flynn

Super Comics: Tangle & Whisper – #1

~ Matt Vetrano ~ Leave a comment

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Tangle & Whisper as well as Sonic the Hedgehog (the comic book series) and all the images you see in this recap are owned by IDW and SEGA of America

We’re back with what is OFFICIALLY the first issue of the Tangle & Whisper mini-series!  No more sneak previews or spoilers being doled out by IDW; it’s time to get to the real story and what we’ve all been waiting for!  Both these characters have been the highlight of the renwed Sonic series (Whisper more so, at least in my opinion) and giving them their own shot at the spotlight was a brilliant move by IDW; especially since they are original for the series so building them up as much as possible will either entrench them as neigh inseparable from the franchise it spun off of.  Does the Sonic Comic team at IDW make a brilliant case for their OCs’ place in SEGA’s world?  Let’s find out!!

The issue begins… well exactly the way that Tangle & Whisper 0 started since that was the first four pages of this one.  To quickly recap, Tangle is bored in her home town now that the threat of Metal Sonic has been thwarted (I’m assuming this is either right before the Zombot-pocalyse or the town is far enough away that they haven’t heard about it yet) and is itching for some adventure to break up the monotony of day to day life.  Fortunately there’s a commotion outside where Tangle finds none other than Whisper the Sniper Wolf who is in the middle of the street firing her laser rifle at a scampering Sonic the Hedgehog!  Say WHAT!?

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“IT’S THE ONLY WAY TO STOP SONIC FORCES 2!”     “NOTHING can stop Sonic Forces 2!”     “WELL I HAVE TO TRY!!”

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Super Comics: Sonic the Hedgehog (IDW) – #19

~ Matt Vetrano ~ 1 Comment

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Sonic the Hedgehog (the comic book series) and all the images you see in this recap are owned by IDW and SEGA of America

Welcome back to another issue of Sonic Adventure Z!  We haven’t quite gotten to climbing zombies yet, but give it time!  I’m sure Doctor Eggman is watching a whole stack of B movies for inspiration!  The invasion continues unabated despite Sonic’s best efforts and now the virus is spreading to SUNSET CITY which I’m sure was a very important place that we just never got around to mentioning before now, and he’s aided by his bestest buddies from Team Dark because I guess all the other buddies he’s saved are off doing something else.  Can Sonic stave off the zombie hoards as well as his own zombotic infection?  Will the exhaustion of putting the entire world on his shoulders day after day finally be too much for him?  Will he be forced to… GO SLOW!?  Let’s find out!!

In case it wasn’t clear already, the issue begins as many have already; with terrified furries running for their lives while Sonic and the secondary character team de jour running interference. In case you weren’t aware already, Team Dark consists of Batwoman (Rouge the Bat), Sonic The Try Hard (Shadow the Hedgehog), and ED-209 (E-123 Omega); which of those names are sillier I’ll leave you to decide.  Also, does anyone else miss when these three were ACTUALLY bad guys, or at the very least chaotic neutrals? I mean shouldn’t Rouge be out there planning some sort of heist or infiltrating Eggman’s secret base?  Instead she’s out here with a headset on directing the scared masses like an overly ambitious traffic cop, and I can’t be the only one feeling like that’s a waste of her talents, right?  At least Omega is getting into the swing of things a bit by chucking Zombots around and firing his lasers, but I guess to make it less horrifying they had to MAKE SURE TO TELL US that the bullets are minor annoyances to them rather than deadly.  What this tells me is that Omega is FAR less threatening than GEMERL, the latter of whom they had to stop from murdering people with HIS robot weaponry in the

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“And I can also see their parachutes! They’re OK.”

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Super Comics: Sonic the Hedgehog (IDW) – #18

~ Matt Vetrano ~ 1 Comment

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Sonic the Hedgehog (the comic book series) and all the images you see in this recap are owned by IDW and SEGA of America

We’re back with another issue of The Spin Dashing Dead, and unlike Robert Kirkman’s book I’m PRETTY sure this issue won’t turn out to be the final one.  Amazing as it would be for everyone to turn into robot zombies and the story to just end, we still have SOME hope for a triumphant conclusion to all this despite the tragic loss of Charmington L Beesworth (also known as Charmy) last issue and Sonic’s progressively worsening sickness.  Seriously, is Sonic trying to fill the gap that Game of Thrones has left?  I’m not saying we’re there YET (we’d need a few more decapitations), but we’re certainly closer to it than at any other point in the franchise’s history!  Anyway, before I go into any more random tangents about series that have come to a close (I could make an Archie reference here but I shall resist the temptation), let’s focus on the issue at hand and the continued efforts of THE RESTORATION to contain the ROBO-VIRUS!  Can Sonic and crew rescue those caught in the midst of Eggman’s latest attack, including Cream the Rabbit!?  Let’s find out!!

Right off the bat, I want to point out that they gave us an ACTUAL map of the world we’ve seen so far as well as a running tally of who’s missing or zombified which actually helps a lot in making the world feel a lot more cohesive rather than a series of random cities plopped into the story whenever convenient.  I mean… that’s still KIND of what’s been going on, but at least they’re keeping track!

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Super Comics: Sonic the Hedgehog (IDW) – #17

~ Matt Vetrano ~ Leave a comment

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Sonic the Hedgehog (the comic book series) and all the images you see in this recap are owned by IDW and SEGA of America

We’re back with another issue of Knuckles-less Chaotix!  Are we ever gonna get an explanation for that by the way?  Or the disappearance of Mighty the Armadillo?  Ah, it’s probably not important!  What IS important is that Eggman is finally putting his latest plan into motion with terrifying results; not just because of how effortlessly it transmits itself from host to host but, but also how much damage its surely causing to the fragile infrastructure that’s been built up since the last time Sonic stopped Eggman’s nefarious schemes.  Even if they do find a cure, will there be anything left of the old world to salvage?  What will The Chaotix do if the market for Private Investigators dries up!?  Charmy’s barely old enough for THIS job; let alone work in a factory or be trusted around a stove!  Well before we start speculating on the POST-apocalypse, we might as well see how it plays out live and jump right into the issue proper!!

The issue begins with everyone’s favorite third rate detective agency (a step above Aqua Teen Hunger Force but a step below Schmidt and Jenko in 21 Jump Street) getting an update from Amy about the Robo-virus, and then proceeding to do absolutely nothing about it!  I mean I guess I can kind of see the logic behind it as there’s no indication the disease has spread to their city yet, and they aren’t exactly the A-Team in the Sonic Universe.  They’re The Defenders to everyone Else’s Avengers.  You call them to rough up a mugger or fight a biker gang; not to single handedly reverse a Romero Apocalypse.  Sadly their ingenious decision to do nothing has one fatal flaw which is that the zom-pocalypse already reached Seaside City and the zombots are breaking down the Chaotix’s door which is bad news for everyone.  Now I want to be VERY clear about what happens next.  None of the Chaotix have seen a zombot up to this point or seem to know what they are capable of.  The door bursts open and a couple zombots come waltzing in.  Espio then proceeds to take a KUNAI, which if you didn’t know are very sharp, and throws it RIGHT AT THEIR HEAD!  The kunai bounces harmless off their metallic cranium, and Espio is shocked that it didn’t work.  In case there was any doubt as to what was supposed to happen, Espio threw a bladed weapon with the intent of burying it right between the eyes of an anthropomorphic animal; killing them instantly by hemorrhaging a vital organ like he’s in a John Wick movie.  Yes.  That just happened.

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“My lust for murder has yet to be satiated…”     “Well then learn to throw better, you wuss!!”

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Super Comics: Sonic the Hedgehog (IDW) – #16

~ Matt Vetrano ~ Leave a comment

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Sonic the Hedgehog (the comic book series) and all the images you see in this recap are owned by IDW and SEGA of America

We’re back already with even more Sonic the Hedgehog!  Apparently we just can’t get enough of the little blue bugger, what with his trailer dropping, the Annual last week, and now this issue that gets us back on track with the ongoing story of Eggman trying to take over the world!  All we need now is for SEGA to announce both a good Sonic game and a bad Sonic game for the ritual to be complete and usher in the apocalypse!  It’s in revelations I think.  That beast they talk about?  Actually a hedgehog!  ANYWAY! With the last issue ending on quite the interesting cliffhanger, can this issue capitalize on it and deliver a satisfying narrative for the good guys, or will this storyline falter; leaving the bad guys to continue being the highlight of the series?  Let’s find out!!

So remember at the end of the last issue where Sonic got infected with the Robo-virus and it was only a matter of time before he turned into a cybernetic killing machine?  Yeah, it’s all fine now!  Nothing to see here, just move along!

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“Despite all my rage, I’m still just a hedgehog in a cage!”     “He’s been saying that for three hours, and yet I don’t think it has anything to do with the virus.”

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Super Comics: Sonic the Hedgehog (IDW) – Annual 2019 & Tangle and Whisper #0

~ Matt Vetrano ~ Leave a comment

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Sonic the Hedgehog (the comic book series) and all the images you see in this recap are owned by IDW and SEGA of America

We’re back with even MORE Sonic the Hedgehog, because I guess it wasn’t enough to get that terrible trailer; they had to release not one but TWO issues of the comic two days later!  Not only that but the one we’ll be looking at today is an Annual which is a series of short stories that is twice as long as a standard issue, and if that wasn’t enough there’s ANOTHER issue coming out next week!  That’s about four issues worth of comics in only two weeks which is great for most people out there, but now I’ve quadrupled my workload all at once!  If you have any tiny violins in your immediate vicinity I would recommend playing a sad song for me and my misfortunes.  ANYWAY!  Does the first Annual of the IDW series manage to knock it out of the park, or does the short story format (reminiscent of the early Sonic Archie comics) end up hampering their ability to tell decent stories?  Let’s find out!!

Our first story begins with what I can only assume is a preview of the Tangle/Whisper miniseries as the latter visits the former in her home town.  I can only ASSUME this is the same village as the one from issue 4, but they don’t bother to clarify this in the story itself, and I guess I COULD take this time to once again say how nice it’d be if they would establish some key locations to make the world feel real and to give some degree of stakes to Eggman’s rampant destruction, but I’m pretty sure I’ve already beaten that dead horse a few times already.  That, and they do a good job fleshing out the interplay between Tangle and Whisper so I guess I can’t complain too much when they’re at least giving me that.

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“If I open both of my eyes all of existence will cease to be, and you just inadvertently opened one of them.”     “Are you… are you serious?”     “No, I just don’t want you to hug me.”

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Super Comics: Sonic the Hedgehog (IDW) – #15

~ Matt Vetrano ~ Leave a comment

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Sonic the Hedgehog (the comic book series) and all the images you see in this recap are owned by IDW and SEGA of America

Things are starting to get serious around here now that Eggman has a robo-virus thingy as well as two ignorant test subjects to use it on!  The villains have certainly been the highlight of this arc to be sure and giving Rough & Tumble a cybernetic upgrade could certainly bring them up to Eggman and Starline’s level, but the more and more the writers put into that side of the story, are they letting the good guys fall to the wayside?  Let’s find out!!

The issue begins with Sonic and Amy who are trying to suss out Eggman’s latest plan and end up finding his lair which is adorned in typical Eggman fashion.  No one can expect him to inhabit some place with anything less than Baz Lehrman levels of flair, and frankly that’s why I love the guy!  I mean how can you NOT respect someone who will exert that much effort on something so vain!?

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“YUMMY YUMMY YUMMY, I’VE GOT SONIC IN MY TUMMY!!”     “Did he have to install the speaker system too?”

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Super Comics: Sonic the Hedgehog (IDW) – #14

~ Matt Vetrano ~ Leave a comment

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Sonic the Hedgehog (the comic book series) and all the images you see in this recap are owned by IDW and SEGA of America

We’re back with another issue of The Excellent Eggman Escapades which should be the OFFICIAL title of this series if the villains’ story line continues to be such a big highlight of this series!  Ever since Eggman came back to his senses and took the villain role once again, the series has improved significantly with a much more focused story line and an interesting new antagonist in the form of Doctor Starline.  With his first fight against Sonic himself, can this new villain continue to impress along with everything else the bad guys are doing?  Let’s find out!!

The issue begins with Sonic and Silver climbing a mountain which helpful little box informs us is FROZEN PEAK, but I can’t tell if it’s a pronoun or just a vague description of where they are.  I mean sure, in a world where half the charactesr have a first name foled by THE SPECIES it wouldn’t be that hard of a leap for things to be named so bluntly (I’m guessing that would mean Sonic was chillaxing on HOT BEACH in the last issue), but it must be a nightmare for the Woodland Critter Cartographer Society.  Why are we even up here in the first place?  And why do neither of them have jackets?  While the latter question will remain a mystery that’ll haunt me to the end of my days (does sonic have fur?  IS HE ONLY FURY ON THE BLUE PARTS!?), the former is a lot easier to answer.  Apparently SOMEBODY, not gonna name names, walked up to Silver, told him Eggman has a base on a mountain somewhere, and then disappeared without a trace.  I don’t know about you, but that sounds like an A PLUS lead right there!

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“If I didn’t foolishly dive head first into danger, then I wouldn’t be going fast!  It’s possible that I’d be… going slow.”     “Don’t say that, Sonic!  Don’t EVER say that!!”

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Super Comics: Sonic the Hedgehog (IDW) – #13

~ Matt Vetrano ~ Leave a comment

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Sonic the Hedgehog (the comic book series) and all the images you see in this recap are owned by IDW and SEGA of America

We’re back with a brand new issue of the brand new Sonic comic!  A bit late to be sure, but I’m gonna go ahead and blame that on this being the thirteenth issue… and the fact that I’m SUPER behind on everything else I’ve got going on.  ANYWAY!  Now that Eggman is back in business and ready to take over the world once again, what will his opening salvo be, and will Sonic and crew be prepared for what happens next?  Let’s find out!!

The issue begins with a quick recap of the status quo since the last arc ended.  Amy is running The Resistance which has been rebranded as The Restoration (thankfully they didn’t go with The Reconstruction), Knuckles is watching guard on Angel Island which he SHOULD have been doing this whole time, and for some reason they want us to know that Silver is still out there looking for whatever it is that may be threatening THE FUTURE, so chances are he’s gonna play a role in this story later on.  Oh, but what about our dear pal Sonic?  What’s HE been up to since saving the world!?  Well instead of doing something IMPORTANT like seeing if Mr. Tinker is still where he left him or possibly checking into what Metal Sonic is up to, he’s just chillaxing on a beach.  I mean sure, down time is necessary for mental health, but considering what he just went through the LAST time they assumed Eggman was gone for good (if you recall, the series started after the supposed death of the guy) it might be prudent to take a few preventative measures as well.  Heck!  If nothing else, make sure that the guys you captured back in issue 3 are STILL in Resistance/Restoration custody!  Oh, whatever!  I’m sure there’s no extraordinary evil schemes underway that are gonna blow up in his face any minute now, right!?

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“I’m probably gonna get blamed for this, but whatever.  I’ll fix it just like I fix EVERYTHING ELSE that goes wrong around here…”

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Super Comics: Sonic the Hedgehog (IDW) – #12

~ Matt Vetrano ~ Leave a comment

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Sonic the Hedgehog (the comic book series) and all the images you see in this recap are owned by IDW and SEGA of America

Well now that we’ve dealt with that distraction from Team Sonic Racing (again, they REALLY should have gone with Sonic Team Racing!  It sounds SO much better!), we can FINALLY get back to the actual series and all that juicy plot we’re all so ready to lap up!  Will the defeat of Super Metal Ultra Chicken and the return of Angel Island to its former glory signify a longstanding era of peace and prosperity for the citizens of… wait, have we officially called this place Mobius yet?  Maybe they’ll clarify that in this issue!  Let’s find out!!

The issue begins with Sonic and Tails who are in some sort of basement with Metal Sonic chained up in a very suggestive manner; not something unfamiliar to Sonic Comics (check out the cover for issue 175 of the Archie series), but you can all relax because they’re about to let him go.  It seems that between the end of the last issue and the beginning of this one, they repaired Metal Sonic from the damage he incurred in their last battle, but JUST enough to get him moving instead of in fighting shape.  That said, even if he doesn’t have his laser beams and whatnot, he still very clearly breaks through his metal constraints, so it’s not like he’s totally harmless, but I guess Sonic is too impatient to either wait for Tails to utterly de-power him or find a better way to keep him in place.

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“Eh… a little from column A and a little from column B.”     Hey!  Sonic says that forgiveness is the truest measure of strength!”     “Oh please, can we just NOT with the whole Sonic Says thing?  It wasn’t cool when you did it back in the nineties!”

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