Again, I'm the first?
Alright, so we pick up where we left off, with Tails and Sonic grappling in jail. While Sonic continues to get his "glutes" handed to him, Tails grows more and more frustrated with his cluelessness to the situation. Bent on beating Sonic into submission, he's pretty much set as far as fulfilling his other motive...
...Letting his parents get to Castle Acorn, which they've done, to their surprise, quite easily. It turns out Elias has allowed them to enter so he may talk to them himself. Turns out Elias has sided with his father's sentiments on this matter, and refuses to let Amadeus' desires result in the fall of the monarchy. The gloves come off, and suddenly we have an undercard, as Elias lunges into battle with General Prower.
(The stop by the house was to collect Amadeus' sword, by the way.)
Meanwhile, Sonic is getting ticked at the heckling of his spectators, and takes the fight outside, with Tails hot on his trail. We get a little more insight into why Tails is angry, but as the little things add up, Tails finally drops the bombshell...and you probably guessed it...Fiona.
At this point Tails is crying and swinging wildly as he chews out Sonic, caring not that he lost her, but that Sonic, knowing Tails loved her, went out with her. As he finally sums it up, "Everything I care about, you take away from me!", Sonic concedes the battle, and tells Tails to let him have it.
But while they've hit a pause in battle, Amadeus and Elias haven't, going at it quite fiercely until a partition of sorts suddenly appears before them. Shocked, the Prowers and the King turn to find Nicole has broken up the fight, and brought with her the one person Elias forgot to tell her not to get involved...Sally.
Back to her old form, Sally criticized both her brother and the General for clinging to extremes, then reminds them of her own days as acting ruler, when she headed the Knothole Council, and that there are compromises to be made. We're left with her asking them if they're ready to negotiate...
While Tails is left questioning this latest "trick" from his old friend. Sonic admits that he knew how much Fiona meant to Tails, but seeing that she had no interest in him, he felt that by hooking up with her instead, Tails would understand and move on. He admits also that it was a selfish move, just going with things as they come (having broken up with Sally and having someone else there), and apologizes. The two reconcile with a noogie and a handshake, and head off to stop General Prower and King Elias...
...Who have just settled their differences over tea. With Sally as a mediator, the two have agreed on a new government system: Six elected citizens to form the Acorn Council, while the king presides as the seventh. While everyone involved is happy, one person is, of course, not...
We're treated to a shot of the elections taking place in the streets while Max watches quietly alongside Alicia and Elias. Elias explains the praise they've received for their actions, but Max says nothing, quietly rolling away as his son pleads for his understanding. Alicia, however, reminds Elias that HE is king now, and it is his word that matters, not his father's, and to give him time.
Meanwhile, Sonic, Tails and Sally are outside watching the election, when the familiar silhouette of a head in a ball comes floating up looking for Knuckles. After a "WTF???" moment from the gang (you'd think they've never seen a floating head before), Dimitri introduces himself with dire news...ENERJAK HAS RETURNED!!!
To sum it all up, awesome issue. It's not overwhelmed by an emo rant from Tails, there are no ridiculous in-story twists, all bases are covered for better or for worse, and we're given the lead-in to our next big story. Enjoy it once you get it!
Oh, and more datafiles: Uncle Chuck's Diner, Royal Army Headquarters (With a Secret Operations branch for St. John & Co.), the Science Center Observatory, New Mobotropolis School, New Mobotropolis Power Plant (which runs off of energy from Robotropolis...yikes?), the King Frederick Airfield, and last but not least, the Tommy Turtle Memorial Hospital.
Also just as a heads up. Rosemary is running for Council...among those not running are General Prower ("Dad says he's the sword of the people") and Sally (Sonic: "Why didn't you run?" Sally: "Same reason you didn't, I imagine."). No word as to who else is on the ballot.
I'm not sure which topic to put this in, so I'll put it here.
First off, I'd like to say that I'm thrilled that Sonic and Tails worked out their problems, not that it was much of a surprise. I'm pleasantly surprised that Sonic admitted he was a jerk.
On another note: Go, Sally, go!! I figured she would be the mediator between Amadeus and Elias, and I'm glad everything worked out there as well. As for Max, I hope someone tells to to get over himself. He's not in charge anymore, so he should have no say in what Elias decides to do.
Ignoring the revival of Enerjak, everything's just peachy now.
Yeah...to hit both points.
It's nice to see Sonic realize he doesn't stop to think too long and hard about anything. It was a legit means to burying the hatchet on both his feud with Tails AND the whole Fiona fiasco that set the stage.
It's interesting to see Sally, one of Mobotropolis' calmer and more experienced young leaders, staying out of the political leadership biz. I guess it's FF's all the way for her. XD
>> Ahh. The short Synopsis left out a key point-that Dimirti only ran into the core FF's. That explains things.
*yawn* Sally's gung-ho again. Yayness. And back to sleep 
!
My respect for Amadeus, and this arc, just went up a thousandfold, learning he doesn't want to run for the Council himself. Not that I disliked either of them before, but yeah.
DL: Even the core FF's don't know who Dimitri is...at least not in his floating head form. Their exchange in the comic:
Dimitri: Where can I find Knuckles?
Sonic: (Turning to Dimitri) HeeeYIE! What is that?!
Tails and Sally look shocked, while the visible background characters are either scared or disgusted. One has a distinct "Euuuuh!" face. XD
I'm highly surprised Amadeus didn't run for council member, because if he's the sword of the people, then there's no one else better to stand up for them, especially as a council member.
As for Sonic and Tails, I knew we wouldn't see a victor! =O Although if worst had come to worst, I would've liked to see Tails win, despite knowing that Sonic's got the skill and experience to beat him down.
Keep in mind that Amadeus AND Rosemary masterminded the revolution. Amadeus has the charisma and power to put the point out there, but it's his wife that's likely better suited as a politician. The General's strong suit is obviously the military, which he already commands, and is probably more keen about focusing on that rather than domestic issues (since he'd likely lose command to serve in the council).
At least everything is settled... for now.
But Max doesn't seen the way Knotehole Kingdom is run changing with the times, all he sees is his beliefs dying out. Considering the war he fought, you can almost understand his rigid sentiment. But I wonder what St. John and Hershy (who have been absent for far, far too long!) think of this.
On the brightest side, Sonic and Tails' friendship has survived. And Tails only seemed to get his best hits in when Sonic was holding back, and when Sonic had his back turned.
And Sonic had a point, "You don't see Ant' attacking me you?"
And Tails seemed to revert back to a hurt and angry eight year old when he finally blew.
But Sonic's choice to ASK Tails to punch him I think was the last thing Tails' expected, and woke him up.
I wonder who else is going to be part of Mobotropolis' decision making group.
To be honest, I can't even think of any takers. I only guessed Rosemary before, with the outside chance that Sally would go for it (maybe she'll be a write-in?).
Something that interests me...is there any possibility that Max could reassume power? If Elias and Sally were both incapacitated/went missing somehow? If the king/queen still presides over the Council and Max took charge...
And you can't blame Tails for reverting to an angry eight-year-old. Emotions like that can kinda cut a few years off your maturity, and the kid's pouring his heart out.
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Something that interests me...is there any possibility that Max could reassume power? If Elias and Sally were both incapacitated/went missing somehow? If the king/queen still presides over the Council and Max took charge...
I should hope not. The guy can barely get around, not to mention he's teetering on the border of senility. He did, after all, disband the FFs, barred Sally from seeing Sonic, forced Sally to marry Patch (which Elias had to rectify), and now he's sulking about losing his title. The man has problems, and has no business leading anymore.
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And you can't blame Tails for reverting to an angry eight-year-old. Emotions like that can kinda cut a few years off your maturity, and the kid's pouring his heart out.
Not to mention he's, what, twelve or so now? Everyone knows that your preteen and teenage years are the most emotional time of your life. You're experiencing all these new emotions that you didn't have a clue you could have, and on top of that your hormone levels are constantly changing and wreaking havoc with your body, and it can be pretty stressful. With all that, plus the fact that he believed that the person he idolized all of his life was dating the girl he loved, is it any wonder that Tails did what he did?
I feel embarrassed now I put my whole reply in the other topic before I realized there was this one as well, So if you want to see the brunt of it go up there.
I'm glad that it worked out, a few of the points I questioned were actually answered here so don't look TOO into my other post heh.
Tails and Sonic, I was so not expecting Sonic to ask Tails to hit him either. Maybe there is hope for sonic yet! 
I like the noogie and a handshake part. As for Tails reverting back to being a kid, with kid problems, its about time. I've known people who always have acted more mature then they're age and Tails is one of these. You try to act mature, which means that you start to lose perspective of being a kid. Tails shows that he is healing himself by dropping the facade and letting the kid in him back out, so I'm glad of the way this ended.
That was a quick argument and negotiation between Amadeus and Elias. I think it helps that Sally was there. She's been used to having more responsibility politically then both of the guys so its nice to have a real perspective on it, so I'm not surprised that she was the one to step in. I do like the whole "tea" part. The fact that they first decide to Duel it out like gentleman just shows that they were guys. fight first then talk later. A girl cuts in and verbally slaps sense into both of them AND gets them to stop AND gets them to negotiate. Go Sally!!
P.S.- Man I so hope that Rosemary gets elected. She is soooo right for the part. She DID say she wrote Amadeus's first speech. I can see her as a politician.
Not read the issue yet, but:
I said before that if Sally stepped in and started talking about compromise, it'd be a concrete sign that she'd actually learned from her behaviour in 134.
Thank you, Ian. I still don't approve of us having gotten the smart-mouthed, goo-goo eyes Sonic and Sally back, but at least she's had some character development.
Can we get one of these two topics locked, please?
I've already been thinking about it - but since they're both well established and making valid points, I'm at a loss as to which to lock, and wouldn't feel right basically tossing a coin for it...
EDIT: Decision made. Since the thread's going to drop, here's a link for anyone wanting to find a post to refer to.
Is there any way to merge them, instead of locked one or other?
Yea, I like the part where Sally gets the two to stop fighting and discuss things peacefully...though I will admit to getting giddy when Elias decides to throw down...
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Is there any way to merge them, instead of locked one or other?
Sorry, but no. 🙁
i cant believe i'm missing all this...
what on earth happened to my 178?
It depends. Are you a new subscriber, or renewed for 178? Sometimes they send it AFTER the second issue in your subscription. Kinda cheap, but it still costs less than buying it at the store.
And it might stand to reason, tornadot, that Elias' actions show he still has a LOT to learn about being king. He was so determined to satisfy his father's wishes that he literally set out to "destroy" Amadeus. Given Max's reaction at the end, I doubt that's one rough patch we've cleared.
By the way...not a particularly funny issue (though not in a bad way), but two big laughs from me:
BEAN: That was awesome! How do your glutes feel?
SONIC: (Plastered against Bean's cell) Shut up, Bean.
(Tails and Sonic burst into the castle)
SONIC: General Prower! You need to--!
(Sees everyone sitting around peacefully and smiling)
SONIC: --Um, continue what you're doing, I guess?
By the way, anyone notice the significant lack of tails, lately? Seems everyone's missing theirs at one point or another.
I can't wait until I can read this. Though it'll probably be another month or so. Stupid bookstores getting comics later than everyone else.
i28.photobucket.com/album...owdown.jpg
Feisty prince, isn't he? Yea part of me sees your point DA and why I don't really like him as the king...I mean this isn't the first time he's jumped into a major battle and kings shouldn't be pulling such dangerous stunts...
Congrats on #4,000 there, sir.
It seems jumping into major battles hasn't been beneficial to the king much...Max led them into battle way back when (89?) and ended up paralyzed. In their defense, they take it upon themselves to defend the kingdom they rule, and that's not exactly uncommon. Elias is certainly more than capable of holding his own against Prower, I'm sure, but both men made the mistake of being extremists here. As a ruler, killing people who criticize the government probably isn't a solid policy.
Especially if the general public caught wind of it.
Elias is looking kind of GAR, there. And is Rosemary OBJECTING! to the King's position?
Man, I'm way behind.
GAR? Moving from that question, I kind of like the handle weapons that Elias has. I've never seen anything like those before. Also, I love seeing him without his crown.
...That weapon is bananas. And I mean that in a bad way. It looks like an orange peeler >>....
it went...175...then two weeks later 176...then i got 177 a few weeks ago. everyone who has subscribed has received 178, mine...still waiting. maybe ny check boucned or something...
Well I don't have the issue yet, but I did look through the summary. And a question I have is, why has King Max become Captain Blood again? By that, I mean, the last time we saw the ol' man acting so cold and malevolent, he was turning into crystal, and being posessed by Naugus. What's his excuse this time? I don't totally buy that he's just a conservative old man hopelessly clinging to the old ways and traditions. He's supposedly an experienced ruler, so he above all should know that when one's subjects are unhappy with the status quo, then one should listen to their pleas. So what is his excuse this time? Is he going senile as a result of all his health troubles? Does it have something to do with Enerjak and the next story arc? Is the King going to croak soon?
And another problem I have is the Sonic and Tails fight ending so quickly. Tails's frustrations with his jerk-of-a-buddy has been building for a while now, and I was disappointed to see it defused in just two issues.
Three cheers for Sally, and congraulations to the people of Mobius! Maybe Sally will run for the counsel someday(I could see that happening)when Robotnik is taken care of for good. Right now it seems like Sally feels like, and wants to, she should be with the FF's. I wasn't too worried about Sonic and Tails, I was sure they would patch things up. It will been interesting to see who wins the election, though I think Rosemary will be one of them. Also, I am enjoying Max having to sit back and take having to watch others make decisions he doesn't agree with, for a change.
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He's supposedly an experienced ruler, so he above all should know that when one's subjects are unhappy with the status quo, then one should listen to their pleas.
No.
He's an autocratic ruler, and a monarch of the old-fashioned model. Several centuries of conditioning dictate that your subjects should do as they're told, because you say so and that's what they've always done.
Look up the history of the divine right of kings and the Russian tsars (although the Acorn population aren't serfs, Max has a similar mindset to most of all but the last fifty years of the monarchy) to see what I mean.
Likewise, Tornadot: Max represents an era when kings led from the front because they led by example (read Shakespeare's Henry V, for instance) - the last British king to lead an army in battle was in 1743, and don't forget that the whole Rasputin mess blew up whilst the Tsar was at the front during WWI.
The king used to be regarded as a soldier - the first professional soldier in the kingdom, which is why most kings have a lot of military titles. Wrapping monarchs up in cotton wool and the symbolic title more important than the duties is a comparatively recent innovation.
In the past, he's been regarded as a benevolent ruler. Although his word was ultimately final, he still at least listened to the opinions of those he ruled. When one thinks of an autocrat, it's a ruler who has his way or the highway. It's more akin to a dictator, really. And Max never struck me as that sort. And what I'm really asking about is in regards to his apparent shift in personality. Last time he was so cold, he was crazy and being posessed. I'd like to see some sort of explanation in the future for why he's become that way again. I personally think the guy may be going senile.
The monarchy is something very, very dear to him, I'm sure, and the fact that it is threatened would probably bring out the passionate hatred within. He was far more vocal about it in 178...in fact, that was the only time he was vocal about it. I think his response in 179 was more the brooding sort, supressing his frustration by simply rolling away. Part of me thinks he went off to cry somewhere, which is understandable. One has to wonder if he'll get over it, or something catastrophic will come of it.
Former King Max should be only 45-50 years old. Sally's only 16 herself, and her mother still looks fairly young. I don't think it's senility. Like Alrdan said, he's being very defensive. It's his family legacy.
ok this is...odd. i dont have 178...but today i receive 179??? hmm...
anywho, good issue. i agree w/ the sonic and tails thing, the made up too quickly. and from the looks of it tails had more to say, but what cut off, anyone else notice this? maybe theres more still of this...after the enerjak arc.
I agree that it was resolved too quickly, especially since Tails' emotions have been building up for many issues, and that Sonic probably isn't going to stop being a jerk any time soon. I liked that Sonic could admit his faults, but the whole thing just felt too rushed. Sort of like, oh, I dunno, "Sonic you jerk!" "Ok, I'm a jerk." "Ok, we're friends." They might continue their discussion, but I doubt it will be given much weight.
Well, I liked this issue. With the formation of the Council, it looks like the burden on Elias' shoulders will lighten a bit. Although it definetly looks like King Max needs to lighten up as well.
Also, seeing Sonic make a mature gesture with Tails was a nice touch.
Shig, it seems 25 is the age of choice for having kids, so that would make the parents about these ages...
Max: 43-44 (depending on Elias' age)
Alicia: 43-44 (though physically younger due to stasis)
Jules: 42
Bernie: 42
Amadeus: 37
Rosemary: 37
General D'Coolette, if still alive, would have been 44.
Well, I am definitely happy to see that everything worked out and the Kingdom isn't going to be divided with Enerjak coming back! I knew Sally would come in and resolve one of the disputes-I just expected it to be Sonic and Tails' fight!
Max's reaction isn't entirely unexpected, given the fact that he's not too dissimilar from Locke. Both of them are part of a long-standing tradition, and only under extreme circumstances will they tolerate any variation to that tradition without becoming very upset about it. The idea of the King of Acorn being reduced from absolute ruler to first among equals doesn't sit well with him, and he's just too set in his ways to really change. Locke demonstrated the same thing in his furious attempts to persuade Knuckles to remain on Angel Island instead of following his heart and defending Mobius as a whole.
Whatever Max's problems, no doubt they'll come up later in some irritating way. Although, I am reminded of a seemingly cancelled story arc posted on Sonic HQ, where Ixis Naugus possessed the king again after #134 and Max's body slowly started transforming into Naugus'. Of course, that story included Naugus still being stuck in the Zone of Silence, and since he's neither trapped nor apparently capable of independent thought anymore, I don't see them bringing that idea back up.
I'm sure I can speak for everyone when I say I'm glad that the whole thing got solved, and I can't wait to read the issue for myself!
The comic's really been through a massive change in the past five issues, hasn't it? We've gone from 175 issues of the Kingdom of Knothole, to the Democratic City of New Mobotropolis in a few months...
It seems like this generation is bringing about huge changes to everything.
And that's a good thing! I mean, when you think about it, the Kingdom of Acorn hasn't changed all that much from the days when it was fighting the Overlanders. In two situations-that war and the one with Robotnik-we've seen that, sadly, the old monarchy just doesn't seem to be handling things right. On both occasions, they've needed something new to turn the tables: first Robotnik Prime, and now the Freedom Fighters and other members of the new generation who are bringing about change. The only real problem is a handful of die-hards who refuse to change, aka King Max. Hopefully, he'll either come to his senses or get killed off-at the moment, I don't particularly care which.
It wouldn't surprise me if this issue returns to the forefront somewhere down the road and DOES, in fact, end with Max's death. I doubt they'd keep him around if he didn't have another story arc up his sleeve, but the guy's cheated death way too many times to survive another one.
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And that's a good thing! I mean, when you think about it, the Kingdom of Acorn hasn't changed all that much from the days when it was fighting the Overlanders. In two situations-that war and the one with Robotnik-we've seen that, sadly, the old monarchy just doesn't seem to be handling things right. On both occasions, they've needed something new to turn the tables: first Robotnik Prime, and now the Freedom Fighters and other members of the new generation who are bringing about change. The only real problem is a handful of die-hards who refuse to change, aka King Max. Hopefully, he'll either come to his senses or get killed off-at the moment, I don't particularly care which.
Erm, but it was Max's idea to hire Julian so by that logic he did handle things right. Without Julian's help they would likely have lost the Great War. Yes he turned around and fought/imprisoned Max afterwards but it's not like he was the first or last guy to switch sides. (Benedict Arnold was a big help in Ticonderoga afore the whole West Point thing went down, but I don't see anyone ragging on Washington and co. for trusting him) And being stuck in void/crystal/wheelchair isn't going to give anyone much of a change to affect change. Yeah Max isn't going to win awards for World's Best Soverein anytime soon, but wishing him dead is kinda harsh. 'Sides do we need ANOTHER landmark named after an unpopular dead guy?
I think the real problem, Miss Puar, is that while Max did offer Robotnik a position, he either forgot that the Kingdom needed a new force on its side to defeat the Overlanders or he let his fear of a betrayal like Robotnik's blind him to the possibility that such a force would be needed again. Of course, he could just be a stubborn old coot who needs to have the lessons he should have learned years ago pounded into his head.
By the way, does anyone know what Elias' weapons are? A friend of mine directed me to a scan of the page where he and Amadeus start fighting, and I am very curious as to what those are.
i don't know what they're called, but Elias uses them on the cover of Sonic #70 as well.
They're called orange peelers.
You set an orange in the center, and you spin the blades around the circumference-perfectly peeling the orange.
o.o
About Max, I think that his attitude has to do with the family legacy along with a "divine right of kings" attitude(like Sam said). Remember that Nagus was able to take control of Max by using his thoughts and feelings. This is the way Max has always been, it is just taken to an extreme at times, like when Nagus had control of him or when someone questions him. I, also, wouldn't be surprised in Max died for real by the end of the comic. In fact, I am kind of expecting it.
Another thing about Sally not running, I am guessing she has gotten tired of the politics so she has decided to distance herself from it has much as possible, though in her position she can't totally get out of it. I am fine with Sally not running and being on the counsel for now. I was one of the ones callling for Sally to become more involved with the FF's again or to have more balance in her roles, because I didn't like how it was affecting her relationships with her friends and how it was hurting her emotionally.
As for who else might have run, what about Uncle Chuck? Although, it seems like he is prefectly happy in the restant bussiness and working in science.
You think they might elect Sally anyway? Not sure what the policy is on write-ins, but it wouldn't be a shock. I can't even give a legit guess as to who else would run...
Sounds like the perfect excuse for another 3 story arc. Something... Manchurian-ish?
