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Sonic
Super Special #12
a
Review by
Rolland Therrien
"Turnabout Heroes"
Well,
here's yet another Sonic Special focusing on. Firstly, it retells the
"Turnabout Heroes" storyline that was featured in Comic Shop News as
a multi-part story.
Well, to make a long
story short, after some undetermined previous story, which appears set
up before Sonic #75, Sonic and Knuckles end up getting their minds switched,
and waking up in their respective home bases, expect they wake up in each
other's bodies.
First plot hole right there: If their allies knew who was who, despite
their body switch, why did they bring them to different bases, instead
of keep both at the same base, where they could research how to switch
them back?
After a brief Interlude where Dr Robonik (the Roboticized one, in his
disguised form) and Lord Dimitri are gloating together about how they
managed to do the mind switch (except Dimitri wanted to kill'em both)
Okay, let's skim a bit: The FFs and Sonic/Knuckles go to the Floating
Island and everyone gets ambushed by a combined Swatbot/Dark Legion attack
force.
Then, holo-images of Robo and Dimitri show up, and make a deal: Do something
for us, and we'll switch you back. Sonic and Knuckles seeemingly accept,
and are warped to the villain's base.
Turns out they want the Master Emerald (what else?), which keeps the Master
Emerald aloft, so they can power a Chaos Cannon with it, Beta-testing
it on the Great Forest. Oddly enough, Sonic and Knuckles accept.
They get warped to the Chaos chamber, talk a bit, then touch the Master
Emerald, which emits a blinding flash, which knocks out the spy cam the
bad guys were using on them. They then get warped back, and hand over
the Master Emerald, which the baddies put in the cannon and fire...
Of course, as you've probably guessed, that Emerald was bogus and scrapped
the Chaos Cannon. Sonic and Knuckles (who had their minds switched back
by the real Master Emerald, aka the Plot Device) mop the floor with the
goon squads, then face the villains, who make their respective escapes
(Robotnik's being the "Blow-up the robot body" approach).
Story ends with Sonic and Knuckles exchanging "friendly nemesis" banter,
which is now obviously friendly ribbing, rather then the all out character
attacks they used to be.
Rating: 0 Rings.
Poorly written story, with little believable characterisation, major
plot holes, and all-out gross errors all around. In one scene, we see
Antoine carrying a rifle, when it's established in K#21 that Mobians
never use guns...
The problem here is that this story was first written as a way to introduce
new readers to the Sonic and Knuckles universe in the CSN comic strip
mini-series. So it takes some "liberties" with the comic's world. That
and the 14 parter format of the mini-series kept the writers from writing
a full storyline with the story concept.
Which is a shame, since the "mind and body switch" concept had quite some
potential as a stand-alone storyline, featuring both heroes not only adapting
to new bodies, but getting a look at the world through the eyes of the
other, which would've built a better bond between them...
Instead, the concept was wasted on a cheap publicity gambit to draw in
more readers, which was reused because they obviously needed a filler
of some sort...
Now, the second storyline is another Zone War story.
Zone Wars: "Giant Robotno"
Sonic is having a bad day, it seems... First off, his day off fishing
is suddenly interrupted by a ship flying through a dimensional warp, with
it's pilot, a counterpart of Princess Sally, showing up and asking Sonic
for help with a problem.
Before Sonic can give a definite answer, Zonic the zone cop shows up,
reveals that Sally to be an evil counterpart, Sallactor, and calls up
her own enemies from the Sentai Zone, the "Science Ninja Team Sonicman",
consisting of Sonic, Amy, Knuckles, Tails and, surprisingly, Rotor. (if
you don't know what Sentai or that team name mean, go to your search engine
and look up "Sentai" and "Science Ninja Team Gatchaman"; you might get
the jokes then)
While the transdimensional heroes fight their foe using their Sentai techniques,
Sonic is just walking around, feeling really turned off by all this "Zone
Zapping" business (We all know how you feel, Sonic), and asks why Zonic
bothers to keep track of it all; Zonic tells Sonic it's his job, that's
all. He has to go from Zone to Zone, fixing problems, and that often means
getting people to where they can help the most. And Sonic gets called
the most because he's Sonic Prime, the original version (Some SegaSonic
fans might argue that point, though...)
Before the conversation can go further (and after the Sentai guys are
warped back home), ZOnic gets an urgent mission call: Some dimension needs
urgent help, or millions will die. After some original waffling, Sonic
agrees to help, and gets Zoned to a world of Overlanders.
After a few seconds, he sees the major threat: A giant, mutated version
of Bunnie Rabbot, Rabbotzilla!! To quote Zonic: "Good and Evil are relative
concepts in other zones".
After a moment of hesitation, Sonic finally revs up and runs towards the
giant Bunnie, melting the tar under her and trapping her in a makeshift
flytrap.
After his victory, Sonic meets the welcome wagon, which includes a good
Dr Robotnik, Doctor J. Kintobor, and gets some answers as to what the
deak with this Zone is: Turns out this Doc Kintobor split the Chaos Emerald
to try and harness the Chaotomic energy, doing it on Knothole Island,
and accidentally mutating the animals into their present giant forms,
and inexplicably, started to attack Kintopolis (well, if you'd gotten
mutated, wouldn't you be ticked at the guys who did it?)
Kintobor has tried everything against those giant mutants: armies (that
got vaped), robo-viruses (got Uncle Chuck's counterpart, but Bunnie is
only part-robotic now, like her real self), and a trio of giant robots
that lack a power source, as of yet. They need the split halves of the
Chaos Emerald to work. And Sonic's gonna help get those.
Sonic agrees to become both the pilot and the power source (treadmill
style) for "Giant Robotno", a Super Robot in Kintobor's image (it must
be a common malady in all versions, good or bad).
Sonic flies the giant Mecha to Knothole Island, where, to his horror,
he finds himself pitted against monstrous versions of his friends: Tails,
Amy, Rotor, Knuckles and Sally...
Following a harrowing fight against his own friends, which wears down
on both his body and his will, Sonic now finds himself against a truly
nightmarish scenario: his own mutated father, who has half the Chaos Emerald
inbedded in his chest.
After a brief struggle, Sonic accidentally rips the Emerald off of giant-Jules'
chest, and the large mutant keels over, apparantly dying... Sonic, in
horror, flies off, still clutching the Emerald. Moments later, his
giant, mutated counterpart appears, approaches it's dead father, and howls
in a mornful wail, seemingly swearing revenge...
Back in Kintopolis, the people are rejoicing, now that their first mechanized
guardian is fully operational. Sonic just wants to leave, and does so
as soon as Zonic shows up, leaving Kinotbor to wonder who was that young
hero, who's shape he gave the first robot, and which he wanted to name
after... (May we suggest Metal-Sonic?)
Back in his home-dimension, Zonic congratulates Sonic for a job well done,
since now the people in that dimension will be able to defend themselves.
Unfortunately, Sonic's in no mood to celebrate... he did kill a
version of his own dad, after all.
Zonic, to reassure Sonic, takes off his own helmet and reveals himself
as being another version of Sonic, before warping away, leaving Sonic
with more questions...
Rating: 
3 Rings.
This story was actually pretty good; good, dramatic storyline, clever
characterisation, a few nice, poignant moments, and even an ambiguous
ending. Would've been better if they'd skipped that silly "Sentai Zone"
scene, though. All in all, this was a better story.
Overall
Rating:
2 Rings.
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