I stopped reading the series after issue #50 and came back in #160.
Things have changed.
I saw, in fan art on the net, the Mina character. I fell in love with the design and made her the twin sister of my fan character.
When I came back in issue #160 and later, I found she was no longer in it, due to leaving Sonic for *ASS* (I'm not really a SonMina fan, I just like the character). From the look of things she only exists in brief mentions (#167 and #175), and a blink-and-you'll-miss-it cameo in #174.
On top of that, the tone of the series has changed. When I started reading it, it was pretty cool. It was funny. Witty. Didn't take itself too seriously.
When I came back, I couldn't believe it. The stories were pitch-black. Gallagher was replaced with Archie's response to Yoshiyuki "Kill 'Em All" Tomino, Ian Flynn (For some reason, after the deaths of Tommy Turtle and Sir Connery, I think Tomino's influencing them). #167B "Hedgehog Day" was the closest thing that could echo back to the series' tounge-in-cheek days.
Who knows what's next.
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Who knows what's next.
I know! I can't wait! It's going to be awesome! 
You think the comic is bad NOW?
Read all of the issues you've missed over the years. I'd have to say you've pretty much avoided all of the bad stuff. Then you'll know just how bad the comic can get.
The only reason we still have occasional stories that harken back to the "super happy fun fun days" of the comic is because Gallagher and Manak seem to be trapped in 1993. 
Not that their stories aren't still enjoyable, but they just don't really fit in with the comic's tone today.
Come on did you really expect the guy who made Other-M to write happy everything goes the way they are supposed to stories?
Except, PC, if this person liked it better when the comic wasn't as serious as it is now, then this will not be considered better. The comic has been relatively serious ever since Sonic #46. There will be stories occassionally like the "early years," but the tone changed a long time ago--and I don't think it's going back to that.
I was/am a HUGE other M fan, any chance of a continuation someday? Perhaps a full blown Archie-published Title? It would sell like MAD!
Gundam0079, if you're pining for the old days of the Sonic comic, you might want to check out the Sonic-X comic. It's a completely different continiuty -- Sonic and Friends, along with Robotnik, are stuck on Planet Earth. But it generally is alot more lighthearted than the Archie Sonic comic. For example, in the last issue I read, Dr. Robotnik tried to take over Las Vegas.
This isn't a paid advertisement...Yet.
be glad you missed the awfulness that was issues 101 to about 150 something. you came back just in time for things to pick up.
You missed 125#, probably the only fantastic issue between 100# and 160#. My luck was that I quit subscribing right before the comic picked itself up. I'm so pissed. Plus, there's no comic stores around anymore.*sob*
Besides that, I actually liked RTAI, but that's about it.
I stopped reading for a while from 82 to 105. The SA adaptation just bored me away from the comic.
I've enjoyed Ian's work for the most part, though there seems to be some wasted potential in the newest issues.
That's funny! I loved the SA adaptation, and issue #125 bored me to death! 
oh for me the SA adaptation started my decline of interest. i didn't even get the last couple comics that dealt with that. i gave the comic another shot close to issue 100 then gave up around 116. RTAI is what got me back into the comic, and so far i've been relatively pleased. i hope they keep it up
Sorry, RtAl, the 2 Sonic/Sally/Mina issues, and the emotional and climatic end of 125# were the only real gems in the time you missed. I forgot about those. But you (luckly) missed the literary genius of...
Sonic 150#
Sonic hooking up with everything that breathes.
Tommy "I can't die" Turtle
Romy Chacon.
The huge decline of quality of the covers.
Shadow's angst.
Teen drama Sally.
Weird and plothole causing filler.
Trust me, you made a very smart decision skipping those 110# issues.
The last issue I got was # 79.
D:
Yeah, you see, the only place where they sold the comics stoped selling them. So I ACTUALLY thought that Archie put it in the can. After about four years of any knowlege of the comics, I was browsing through Ebay and saw Sonic #112. WHAT!!! So the comic wasen't dead! I was pretty thrilled. But I didn't actually find a store that sold them until I accidently found # 160.
All in all, i'm pretty much in the dark as much as you are Gundam. And the series has changed.
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Sonic hooking up with everything that breathes.
Not true. Evil Sonic had fun messing with a bunch of girls while pretending to be Sonic though. Sonic only went out with Fiona (which only happened after Evil Sonic did his number).
Really, I refuse the reread those issues with that plot. The way Penders solve the Dark Antoine backstory just killed any real potential development he could of have. Sonic 150# was one of the most dissapointing issues ever.
Hah, hah, hah. I've been re-reading the comics from the begining for the last month and pretty much anything that happened after the Return to Angel Island story arc I had to force myself to read! And 150 was only disapointing (to me) because I was expecting something you know really big to happen as in all the other aniversary issues!
I don't re-read those issues either. I couldn't stand them--and yes, the Antoine-thing is one of my zillion gripes with how things were handled back then.
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When I came back, I couldn't believe it. The stories were pitch-black.
Return To Angel Island has a Robotnik-backed dictatorship running prison camps for echidnas, the Dark Legion (who are baddies) being the only resistance, civilians being trapped in Eggman's Egg Grapes where their souls are being burnt out, the off-screen deaths of the Brotherhood and on-screen capture of other characters, and Knuckles & Locke having a severe clash at the end.
THAT is pitch-black.
I loves it!
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What do you guys mean by "pitch-black"?
It means there was a dark tone to Return To Angel Island. Except for the whole "Baby brother" scene. Kneecaps. LOL
RtAl was darker than some of the regular stories, but it didn't turn Sonic into Spawn. The only thing that was really dark was Hunter capturing almost every echinda on the island.
RtAL was dark because of emotion! If you won't pitch black then read #175!
Here's a bit of a refresher course: Tommy Turtle was a much-hated character by the fans. Ian's killing of him was practically more of a mercy than anything else. Really, anyone who died during Darkest Storm was either a character the fans didn't care about or a character the fans disliked. Ian was just trying to do a lot of housecleaning to clear up lots of the loose threads that previous writers left hanging (i.e. the Sword of Acorns and Anonymous)
Tommy Turtle was a small, low-key character who didn't have much of a role. Sort of like Nate Morgan. They both joined for a while, then became a victim of Dr. Eggman (Nate becoming roboticized and Tommy dying.)
What happened to Nate after everyone was drroboticizes? They never elaborated.
He got nuked in Robotropolis. Sucker's dead.
Wait a minute! If Robotropolis is nuked, what is Robotnik using as a base?
New Megaopolis. Base of the Eggman Empire.
The series has changed; basically, it's all been downhill since #125. Sonic and Sally broke up-dumbest decision ever-, Julie-Su and Rouge began fighting over Knuckles, and a host of other stupid new elements were thrown in.
Personally, I agree that Mina is a pretty good character. I don't support herxSonic in Archie, because that's where Sonic and Sally are supposed to be together. She should have been Sonic's girlfriend in Sonic Underground; that show was all about music, and she's a singer. If DiC could take Athair, why not Mina?
Anyway, I'll agree that the comics need to make some serious changes. I don't mind characters dying that much, it's just that Archie is killing the wrong characters. Robotnik, Snively, and all the other humans-why doesn't Archie get rid of them? I also wouldn't mind if King Max or Locke died, since they're both the worst dads in history.
Here are a few changes Archie should make, in my opinion. Sonic and Sally should get back together, Tails and Sonic should become pals again, Enerjak should be brought back permanently instead of the likely handful of issues he's going to show up in, and Finitevus should become another Knuckles arch-enemy. The Dark Legion should be reunified, Rouge should stop chasing Knuckles and go after someone else (Shadow, maybe), Robotnik and all his crew should die, and they should introduce all the cool characters from the games to liven things up.
Sorry Spectre, I know you're new here, but there's no relationship talk allowed.
Eggman is'nt going anywhere, because he's the main villain of the series, AND is game material, so he's going to be in the book, whether it's liked or not.
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Robotnik, Snively, and all the other humans-why doesn't Archie get rid of them?
I doubt Sega would be happy with them killing Eggman.
Well Toby, I apologize for that, but that's just the way I feel and am used to expressing. I'll try to tamp down on that.
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She should have been Sonic's girlfriend in Sonic Underground; that show was all about music, and she's a singer. If DiC could take Athair, why not Mina?
She didn't exist as a singer when SU existed. She probably didn't exist when the show was created either.
You're probably right, True Red, but you can't tell me that if she had been around and a singer at that time, the idea wouldn't have made sense.
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Not that their stories aren't still enjoyable, but they just don't really fit in with the comic's tone today.
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Yeah, nowadays, EVERYTHING has to be gritty and downbeat
I don't have too much of a problem with the comic's current tone, but I just they would quit focusing so much on the relationships and put in more better action. It would be nice if they could portray the acition in them to have more elaborate stunts and actually show Shadow using chaos control in battle.
