Sonic Boom

With this show following an unfinished and poorly reviewed game, coming out to an unplease-able fandom, and very under-advertised, it seems like a wonder the show got a second season.

But is it really that surprising?

I went into this show clinging to the desperate hope that it would be good. With many of the Sonic games being disappointing as of late, I at least wanted some Sonic I could enjoy.

After watching all of season 1, I must say, I love this show.

There really is a lot to love about it. The animation is bright and smooth. The voice acting is well done. Many of the jokes are very funny, and I have laughed out loud multiple times. Since the show's goal is to be an action-comedy, if the action is good and you laugh at it, then the show has succeeded.

That isn't to say there are no flaws. I've noticed a few animation errors in a few episodes (i.e. Sonic falling face first but is shown right side up when he hits the ground). Some of the jokes do fall flat and the Knuckles-centric episodes are much weaker than many of the others. However, the above-mentioned pros make it a show worth watching.

Then again... there is one thing I have not addressed. As a show about Sonic the Hedgehog, how does it fare?

Well... It's okay.

Since Sonic Boom is a spin-off series, it does well as a show that is a part of the Sonic Boom universe, but many fans are enraged that they aren't getting the Sonic they know and love from the mainstream games. We aren't seeing the same personalities or character designs that we all grew up with, which is why this is only an "okay" Sonic show.

I consider myself to be a long-time fan of the Sonic franchise. Even though my first Sonic Game was Sonic Heroes, I fell in love with all of the characters. The Sonic Adventure series remains one of my favorites gaming series of all time (despite the fact that it appears I've lost my touch...). But as someone who loves Sonic the way he was in the mainstream games, please don't condemn this show so easily. Yes, I know Knuckles is an idiot and yes I know Kirk Thornton isn't a good fit for Shadow, but that doesn't change the fact that this is a good show that can be enjoyed because of its own merits.

In short, the show is good and fun with a few flaws, and even though it is not Sonic as many fans like to think of him, the show can still be enjoyed.

(... hey, why are people so mad about Tails's voice actor being a girl? She does a good job.)

Sonic Boom is the first Sonic TV series we've had in quite a while and it bursts onto the scene with full speed for Cartoon Network. The series is simple, short 11 minute episodes of various goofy misadventures of Sonic and his friends with schemes cooked up by Dr. Eggman. The series probably bears more resemblance to the original weekday afternoon Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog over the more plot driven serials of the Saturday morning Sonic the Hedgehog series, Sonic X and Sonic Underground before it.

The show is full of silly quirky comedy and the CGI animation is very well made though it does suffer a few moments from stiffness or poor lip synch.

The characters retain much of their personalities, Sonic is his usual cocky self, Tails is the dependable sidekick, Knuckles is still a little dumb. Amy however seems to have developed from an obsessed fangirl stalker with a crush to a new persona giving a little more depth to her.

This series would probably be more entertaining and have more action if it were full half-hour episodes or at least two 11 minute segments in a single half-hour-episode but as it is, kids will still find it an enjoyable experience. Cartoon Network's horrible time slot probably will hurt the series overall chances but there are plenty of ways to check it out and when you get a chance you'll be entertained.

I think they chose a nice set of voice-actors to play the actors, I never suspected Nika Futterman to be involved since (And I might be wrong) I'm certain the voice-over work is non-union.

Which brings me to a complaint which I hope someone will answer. I keep seeing better known actors like John Dimaggio, James Arnold Taylor, and just previously Mark Rolston?

But how do we know they were even casted? Not once did the first burnbot speak in episode 1, and here it says he was voiced by John Dimaggio?

This sounds like a lie to me... lying on a film site where people review things and offer information about shows, movies, games, and the actors in them, that could be false, is never good.

I don't know a lot about Sonic. I was a Nintendo kid when growing up so played Sonic a couple times at friends houses but that was it. I am aware of the lore that's grown around it and the concerns of people who've followed Sonic and friends throughout the games.

When a company continues a franchise there's always a concern about whether they will be treating the characters and story with the reverence due to them. Sonic Boom tosses all of that out the window and it is all the better for it.

The characters are reduced to their basic personalities which is bad if you've watched them grow but great when you intend to have them bounce off each other in stories. So Sonic is arrogant, Tails is brainy and good natured if a bit naive, Knuckles is a strong dimwit, Amy is conscientious, and Sticks is a paranoid anarchic lunatic. Dr. Eggman is a villain but more of a needy overblown weekly threat bully instead of an existential.

These characters combine together to work through standard sitcom plots. It's not an adventure show and I feel that's why many reviewers are disappointed. Sonic Boom has answered the age-old question "So you want a realistic down-to-earth show that's completely off the wall and swarming with magic robots?". One episode is about Tails in love with a girl with his friends in the giving advice on how to approach her while Dr. Eggman is in the background trying to pickup a courier package but continually missing the delivery. Another is about Dr. Eggman assembling a group of villains to attack Sonic and to train they go through a series of team building exercises while Sonic and friends try and fail to build a piece of off-brand IKEA furniture.

The animation is bright, colourful, and expressive. It don't showcase amazing setpiece battles and there's never a huge amount of stuff happening on screen but I'm pretty sure that they're limited by their budget. It would be nice if they could hire an action director to help. I don't really care if sonic's arms are blue or not, if he looks off-model it's still good. (Take that Sonic fans!)

Finally, there's the absolutely stellar writing. the plots are clichéd and hackneyed because you've seen them on every cartoon and sitcom before, the writing is aware of this and highlights tropes while continuing on with the story. It's a neat high-wire act, simultaneously charging ahead with a story while pointing out how ridiculous the situation is. There are jokes about the mundane aspects of everyday life. There are jokes with a specificity that kids shows normally don't bother with, it isn't enough that Dr. Eggman has an octopusbot that Sonic mistakes as a squidbot, Dr. Eggman points out the relative size of the head to the tentacles making it clear what animal it is.

This decade is a time of truly great cartoons, Bojack Horseman, Rick & Morty, Archer, Adventure Time, Legend of Korra, and others. Sonic Boom skews younger with it's bright colours but the writing really does put it up there. The second season seems to pretty good as well with a parody of Misery so I would encourage you to check it out.

Being a fan of the blue hedgehog, I was pleased to find that when this show came out that it was somewhat enjoyable but still mediocre. It had good animation but it just felt a little bland. But, season 2 turned it into a show that I legitimately love, no joke. It's become a lot more self aware with it's jokes and often pokes fun at Sonic and SEGA themselves which is always really funny, but there is some original comedy here that definitely works. The animation looks a little less polished in season 2 but it's still acceptable, the voice acting is still great with Roger Craig Smith being, objectively, the best voice of Sonic to date, and it really does bring justice to the Sonic Boom franchise. The games were horrible (except for Fire and Ice) so I think it's great that this interesting concept is actually being put to use. The new designs of the characters are still good, characters that started out as one dimensional like Knuckles haven't really changed but they aren't really seen as cringe worthy anymore, and I'm just gonna say this: Sonic's characterization in this show is top notch and is exactly what I expect from Sonic The Hedgehog. Overall, this isn't a show that will change anything or blow anyone away, but it's great if you want to watch something funny or something related to Sonic The Hedgehog that doesn't suck (except SatAm, that one's legitimately fantastic).