It's a little early, but considering the December issue has the first parts of multi-stories [The new Shadow arc, and I'm assuming "See you later Chao!", confirmation Potto?], it's a little silly to include them without the whole stories intact.
So lets see what's happened in the last year:
January: Sonic The Hedgehog #145
"Shadows of Hope"
Writer: Ken Penders
Penciler: Ron Lim
Inker: Al Milgrom
Shadow returns in what is sure to be one of the most explosive Sonic epics ever! Shadow continues watching over young Hope Kintobor, who he believes is the missing piece to discovering his history. Meanwhile, a familiar Echidna lurks in the background believing Shadow is the missing piece to finding his family! When these two titans clash will anyone survive?
"Training Day"
Writer: Karl Bollers
Penciler: Al Bigley
Inker: Michael Higgins
Ever wonder what it's like to be a Swatbot in Dr Robotnik's employ? Here's your chance to find out: it's training day and the Doctor is in!
"Harbinger"
Writer: Ken Penders
Penciler: Dawn Best
Inker: Jim Amash
A loud, devastating explosion in the distance, and ever-closer tremors that rock Knothole's foundations can only mean one thing for Sonic and the Freedom Fighters: Shadow is coming! Is this just the beginning of the destruction to come?!
Feburary: Sonic The Hedgehog #146
"The Good, the Bad and the Unknown (Part 1 of 4): Prototype"
Writer & Inker: Ken Penders
Penciler: Steven Butler
It's all been leading up to this: Shadow is back and he's looking for a showdown with Sonic As if that wasn't enough, other threats both old and new are lurking in the darkness... and with an event this big rocking Sonic's world, could the attention of Dr. Robotnik be too far off? Don't dare miss what may be the direst situation Sonic has ever faced!
"Out of Your Shell"
Writer: Romy Chacon
Penciler: Ron Lim
Inker: Rich Koslowski
In this story, Tommy the Turtle makes a return appearance--but can he find his place with Sonic and the Freedom Fighters? Prepare to be "Shell"-shocked once again!
"Circuit Me"
Writer: Romy Chacon
Penciler: Al Bigley
Inker: Michael Higgins
Princess Sally always has her super intelligent device from the future, N.I.C.O.L.E. with her. But when a lab accident goes wrong will N.I.C.O.L.E. leave Sally trapped for a chance at life?
March: Sonic The Hedgehog #147
"The Good, the Bad and the Unknown (Part 2 of 4): Ignition"
Writer: Ken Penders
Penciler: Steven Butler
Inker: Jim Amash
The cover says it all: Sonic vs. Shadow vs. Metal Sonic! One of the biggest, baddest battles ever just got even bigger and badder! Can Sonic and the rest of the freedom fighters stand up to this ultimate onslaught? With the evil Dr. Robotnik and E-102 in the mix, can anyone stand up to this villainy? Don't miss the fight of Sonic's life as things go from bad to worse for the blue blur!
"Off-panel: This Side of Parodies"
Writer: Mike Gallagher
Penciler: Dave Manak
Inker: Rich Koslowski
Ever wonder what happens behind the scenes between artists, writers and Sonic? Well this is the scoop you've been waiting for. You'll learn of evil robot retirement homes, super powers, monkeys, and more.. all of it true... maybe!
"The Fox & the Hound"
Writer: Romy Chacon
Penciler: Al Bigley
Inker: Ken Penders
What do Tails and Sonic's dog Muttski, two of Sonic's best friends, do when Sonic leaves them behind to go save the planet again? Goof-off and play games all day, of course! Until things turn dangerously deadly, that is!
April: Sonic The Hedgehog #148
"The Good, the Bad and the Unknown (Part 3 of 4): Genesis"
Writer: Ken Penders
Penciler: Steven Butler
Inker: Jim Amash
It's another action-packed chapter in the Sonic vs. Shadow vs. Metal Sonic showdown! With the odds stacked against SONIC can even the help of his friends be enough to protect the Blue Blur? As if this wasn't enough, things are about to get even hotter, as a new unknown entity lies in wait to be discovered!
"Playing Around"
Writer & Artist: Nelson Ribeiro
Too much intense action and psychological hopscotch got you down? Look no further than this "just for fun" tale... its real "comic relief"!
"Destiny's Child"
Writer: Ken Penders
Penciler: Tim Smith III
Inker: Michael Higgins
By popular demand, Tails once again steps into the spotlight! And what a spotlight it is, as all the unanswered questions in his life begin to unfold and a familiar face returns to lead Tails on his journey to become the "Chosen One"!
May: Sonic The Hedgehog #149
"The Good, the Bad and the Unknown (Part 4 of 4): Armageddon"
Writer: Ken Penders
Penciler: Steven Butler
Inker: Jim Amash
The thrilling conclusion to the Sonic vs. Shadow vs. Metal Sonic showdown is guaranteed to bring the house down, literally! Will the help of his freedom fighter friends be enough to stop the onslaught?! More importantly, with the walls collapsing around him, is even Sonic fast enough to get out alive?!?!
"The Chosen One, Part 1"
Writer: Romy Chacon
Penciler: Art Mawhinney
Inker: Jeff Powell
The universe is in danger and only the "Chosen One" can save it-TAILS!!! One of the most demanded stories by Sonic fans can now be told. But when a dreaded villain from the past returns, can the "Chosen One" prevail?
June: Sonic The Hedgehog #150
"From Hero to Zero In No Time At All"
Writer: Ken Penders
Penciler: Art Mawhinney
Inker: Jim Amash
After just being in one of the biggest battles of his life, Sonic is now faced with an even greater challenge--one that could destroy him once and for all. With Sonic not acting like himself, is he up to the challenge? This epic tale not only kicks off one of the biggest, deadliest story arcs to date--it also features the long awaited returns of Rouge the Bat and Nack the Weasel from the Sonic games!
"The Chosen One, Part 2"
Writer: Romy Chacon
Penciler: Art Mawhinney
Inker: Andrew Pepoy
An ancient evil threatens the multi-verse and not even SONIC can save the day... only the "Chosen One" can! Can Tails really stand up and defeat this evil... and the old villain who comes back to make life even harder for him?!
July: Sonic The Hedgehog #151
"Chaos Emeralds Are Forever"
Writer: Ken Penders
Penciler: Art Mawhinney
Inker: Jim Amash
When the one thing you can't do is swim and you find yourself up to your neck in water, well...you're in trouble! That's the mess Sonic finds himself in, and with the Freedom Fighters nowhere in sight it's going to be twice as hard to get out of it! Meanwhile, the circumstances behind Antoine's changed personality may prove to be the deadliest imaginable! All this, plus Rogue the Bat and Nack the Weasel return once more!
"Stargazing"
Writer & Penciler: Tania del Rio
Inker: Jim Amash
The superstar team behind Archie's fan favorite Manga Sabrina get an opportunity to weave their magic within the Sonicverse! Princess Sally awakens to find an intruder in her private chambers. Is this intruder a friend or foe? The answer may change Sally's life forever!
August: Sonic The Hedgehog #152
"Engage"
Writer: Ken Penders
Penciler: James Fry
Inker: Al Milgrom
Eggman frets about his inability to defeat Sonic, while A.D.A.M. decides to take matters into its own hands.
"Sonic's Angels"
Writer: Ken Penders
Pencilers: Jon Gray & Al Bigley
Inker: Al Milgrom
After all the trouble Sonic has had the last few issues, things just got worse! All the girls on the Freedom Fighters team are furious at the blue blunder head... just when their teamwork is needed the most! With all their squabbling, they barely have time to notice that The Eggman Empire is expanding and destroying all in its path. Can they curb the dissent long enough to prevent Dr. Robotnik's Nanites from taking over the planet?
September: Sonic The Hedgehog #153
"Songoose, Part 1 of 2"
Writer: Karl Bollers
Penciler: Ron Lim
Inker: Jim Amash
Sonic's day is about to go from dizzying to deadly when he faces off against one of the deadliest assassins on the planet: Nack the Weasel! Can even the combined might of the entire Freedom Fighters stop the Nack attack?! As if that weren't enough, Sonic must race to save his old girlfriend, Mina the Mongoose... but will her new boyfriend's jealousy put Mina and Sonic in even greater danger?! All this, plus Robotnik, too!
"Fairy Tale (or the Adventures of Pirate Sally)"
Writer: Romy Chacon
Penciler: Art Mawhinney
Inker: Rich Koslowski
Rosie tells a story to the sick Snaggle, Sasha, & Rory.
October: Sonic The Hedgehog #154
"Songoose, Part 2 of 2"
Writer: Karl Bollers
Penciler: Ron Lim
Inker: Jim Amash
When Mina the Moongoose is nearly assassinated, Sonic and the Freedom Fighters go into high gear to protect her. But Dr. Robotnik has two more aces up his sleeve - namely, the long-awaited return of popular Sega game characters Heavy and Bomb!
"More Than Meets the Eye"
Writer/Artist: Ken Penders
The Brain Trust analyzes the capabilities of the nanities.
November #1: Sonic The Hedgehog #155
"Line of Succession, Part One"
Writer: Ken Penders
Penciler: James Fry
Inker: Jim Amash
The biggest shake-up in Sonic history starts here! A mysterious illness has attacked Knothole and not even Sonic is fast enough to stop it. But is the illness real? Have the people been poisoned by one of their own, or worse, deceived? The mind-boggling events may even lead to Sonic losing Sally forever!
"The Price of Flame, Part One"
Writer: Mike Gallagher
Penciler: Art Mawhinney
Inker: Mike Higgins
The history of Dulcy
November #2: Sonic The Hedgehog #156
Line of Succession Part 2 of 2
Writer: Ken Penders
Penciler: James Fry
Inker: Jim Amash
To save the kingdom, Princess Sally must sacrifice her feelings and do what must be done go along with an arranged marriage! Can her one- time love, Sonic, race to save the day before Sally walks down the aisle? Is Sonic fast enough to Stop the mysterious trader from destroying the Kingdom, or will a new king mean the end of the kingdom?
"The Price of Flame, Part One"
Writer: Mike Gallagher
Penciler: Art Mawhinney
Inker: Mike Higgins
The land of the Dragons has been found! Will Dulcy be able to thwart off the intruders and regain her ability to breath fire?
So plenty of stuff, unfortunately, a lot of medicore stories. Some great little pieces done by new coming talent, and a lot of up and down drawing talents.
So what's your favourite and most dispised story pieces or arcs this year?
Frankly, there wasn't much good this year. Stories that showed some promise were either far too long, or far too short.
My worst story of the year would have to go to three stories IMO: The Chosen One arc, and the whole Good, Bad, Hedgehog arc, and More than meets the eye.
The chosen one arc was such a sloppy way tie up a loose end, Tails supreme was just BAD ART, and Mammoth Mogul was used terribly, being FAR more powerful than he really should be, since he should be pretty much back to shard-stuck-in-chest power level. Instead he's become an eater of worlds. Just bad overall, and I hope we don't hear from "Romy Chacon" again.
The GBH arc was building up to something, but it ended up being a whole lot of nothing. Issac being an exact copy of Gamma is pretty suspicious, we do learn a whole lot about Mobius / Earth, but is said quite boringly and ends up being pushed along for 4 long issues.
More than meets the eye is just terrible for so many reasons. It's basically a story on how much of a pansy Tommy really is. Now being a living swiss army knife, he just seems that much more lamer than before. Ken's artwork needs a fair bit of work also. The main cast is okay, but Tommy is just ugly. Rubbing out the extra line around his mouth would have helped a LOT.
For the best this year, I give it to: The Price of Flame.
I really liked this story, oddly. It reminds me so much of some of the greater stories of the past [Mecha Madness, Sonic Blast Special], in how that it has a good story, keeps with continuity, but it also tend to have that little bit more charm with it. I liked how Gallagher went back and made a deal about Dulcy's black / gold nose ring. It's similar to the throwaway Sally / fur colour panel back in the Knuckles comics, but it makes me smile, and good to see Gallagher going back and doing some research.
Also, the fact that Eggman "chortle"'d at the end of Part 1 made me laugh. It's been so long since he's done that. Nowaday he "HAHAHAHAHA!"'s throughout the story but it's a good throwback to older times, which should be used more often. Lastly, the few panels where Dulcy "commentates" on the fight at hand reminded me of some of the great old Morning cartoons back in the early nineties 
Good to see Gallagher can still make some great stories this side of Mecha Madness and Sonic Kids 2, it feels like he's been chained up, forced to write off-panel stories and anime-ripoff side-stories for the last few years. But then, he did write the "Auntie-bodies" story way back when too
Shouldn't this include Sonic X stories, too?
Hell fire, this year was crap. I liked the Shadow story arc just for the fact that there were no alternate universes or love polygons involved.
Quote:
blue blunder head
Yeah, that about sums up this year. Here's to 2006 not sucking!!
I'm not combining Archie's Sonic X with the Archie Sonic The Hedgehog series when I ask for basically the same thing rlan is doing here in January (particularly since I count all issues for the year, which means the December issues count). I'm treating them as two separate entities.
Worst Issues: All of em
After much thought, the only decent stories were Line of Succession and Stargazing.
Everything else was laaaaaaaame.
EXCEPT: The beginning of Sonic's Angels, which recieves saving grace SOLELY because of Dub's art.
sonic #150 was terrible. it was a waste of a landmark issue and opened up way more relationship arguements than needed.
Ken really sucked that one up.
The best for me was GBU,or line of succession.
GBU was all right, it included some really good fights and lots of information that we've wondered about for years.
The bad side was the fact that Shadow and sonic fought for no reason at all.
Line of succession really had no downsides.
I'm glad it cleared MOST (and i use that word sparingly) of the Anti-sonic,antoine stuff up.
I think they could've done better with a lot of the story arcs. I think my favorite story arc would have to be the one that ran from issue 145 to 149, the high point for me being 145 and the confrontation between Shadow and that echidna (I don't recall what his name is right now.)
From the beginning of this year, the comic's steadily gone downhill as far as the plot goes, the low being with either this past story arc (Line of Succession, with all the soap opera crap going on) or the arc just before it, with Mina. Yay, Mina can sing, or something... uh oh, Robotnik doesn't like it.
Also, Nack got captured way too easily, pretty much going down without a fight. I would have liked to see him be more of a factor, instead of the plot going straight to the Heavy and Bomb clones. It was just lame the way it happened, even if it hadn't been Nack.
(I just don't like Mina, I think. Or Fiona, for that matter. They're supposed to be the "girl power," or something, right? Even though any combination of Lupe, Sally, Bunny, Julie Su, Dulcy, Hershey, etc, would be ten times more diverse than they are right now, and could probably kick their asses to boot. They're like the same character, especially when that one guy who always does some kind of chibi anime draws them. Same with most the characters, for that matter. "We all act the same, we all uaw the same facial expressions, we all act like hyperactive 12 year olds... la la la...")
Anyways, there's my rant. Sorry to anyone who likes those characters, or that particular artist. I certainly don't.
yeah...the "best story this year" would have to go to the ...*this really hurts me to say this*...Line of Succession, Part One and Two...
back story of the year is by far "Stargazing" by Tania del Rio. Pure awesomeness, especially when compared to the crap that regularly filled the comic...
The worst main story...wha?!? I can only pick one! It's impossible to narrow it down to just one... The GBU four parter (and it's intro #145) just sucked ...The intro was odd and the whole thing was hard to understand...150 and 151 just made me cry, and the rest of the season was a continuation of the travisty.
As for the back stories..."More Than Meets the Eye" was by far the worst...I thought it would be hard for Archie to top "The Choosen One" but once again they have shown me of little faith that anything is possible...
Here's to a new year with a better comic! (oh please, oh please, oh please!)
"Stargazing," the story with creature Nicole is probably the best story this year.
The "Line of Sucession" two parter had the worst basic idea that probably should have never seen print, though in the end the only real problem I had was the ending.
Best: Line of Succession 1 and Stargazing.
All the rest makes me crying.
Aside from Stargazing and Line of succession, I thought the story for 150 & 151 was pretty good... except for when I felt like I got kneed in the groin after realizing they used a so-so story for an issue that should've been of great significance. Then again, I shouldn't have been so shocked as #100 & 101 weren't too hot either. Actually I was more disappointed with those two issues than 50 issues later.
Quote:
the confrontation between Shadow and that echidna (I don't recall what his name is right now.)
Locke
Quote:
I just don't like Mina, I think. Or Fiona, for that matter. They're supposed to be the "girl power," or something, right?
It depends on how you're defining "girl power." Mina is supposed to be the "girl next door"-type and not much of a fighter (though she does have super speed). That's why she was a singer/baby-sitter. Mina's transformation is that she's gone from extremely shy to someone who is actually relatively sure of herself.
Fiona, on the other hand, is supposed to be scientifically inclined (unlike the other females) and another fighter. Beyond that, she hasn't been developed much other than her original "hatred" of Sonic & Mighty for "allowing" Robotnik to capture her (at least that's how she viewed the situation for years) has disappeared.
My best are Line of Sucession (because evil Antione was finally revled and sent back) and The Good, The Bad and The Unknown (because it showed hints of what we in saw in the Sonic/Image crossover years ago)
Couldn't find any worst issiues, because I always look at the postive side of things.
Not sure whether I should be singling out individual stories or story arcs here, but I'll go with the latter. I think "Price Of Flame" was my favorite this year. It was nice to learn a backstory about a minor character, and the art was somehow a lot more dynamic and eye-catching than Mawhinney's usual work (The final near-splash page of Dulcy is particularly effective). GBU is probly my least favorite as the story lagged in places and the dialogue alternated between confusing and outright silly (Sizzlin' SWATBOTS?!).
#151 was stupid too, Anti-Freedom Fighters wanted to kill Sonic, they used a gun to hit the rope and plunge Sonic into the river...
... why didn't they just shoot him?
I guess Sonic vs Shadow vs Metal Sonic was the best issues this year and maybe the last year's too.
Sonic moves quickly and in the games he can't swim. Therefore kill him in the way most torturous to him: slowly and by drowning. That's what I'd do. Afterall, a little mental trauma right before death never hurt anyone... MUCH.![:]](https://www.lighthead.net/misc/mofo/smilies/biggrinshaded.gif)
I personally like the Chosen One story arc. Or maybe I was just way to happy when they decided to resolve that plot point ALMOST TEN YEARS LATER... Ugh I'd hate to think what life would be like if I have to wait ten years for resolution on this whole Avatar business with Knuckles.
At this rate, userjpx, we just may be waiting that long, LOL... Apparently, Knuckles is a "supporting character" now...
#150 was by far theworst. It was a MAJOR letdown. It confuses me how Archie decided to make #150 part one of a non-revolutionary story arc.
