It’s time for a Sonic arc that is a little more recent than the last pair of archives that I reviewed. Sonic Genesis takes us back to the good ole days where all we needed to see was Sonic defeat Eggman. No side plots, No Sonic clones, just good ole fashioned speed. It’s ironic since this is basically a tribute to the original Sonic comics that I am currently reading. As always, Sonic Genesis makes for a pretty fun read and Sonic is as intense as you would expect from the hero.

The arc starts off with a big battle between Sonic and the latest Silver Sonic robot while Sally tries to deactivate Eggman’s ultimate weapon. The battle is going well, but they are unprepared for Eggman’s plan. Let’s just say that Eggman basically takes the decisive victory and Sonic is thrown into a whole new world and his memories have been taken along with everyone else’s. Can Sonic defeat Eggman in this new timeline and what has changed with the time shift? The only way to find out is to take Eggman down once and for all.

The art is pretty solid as you would expect from the Sonic comics. The opening and ending are particularly good since it really has a modern feeling to it and the fight scenes are intense. The majority of the comic still looks great, but it’s a homage to the classic comics so it’s not quite as intense. It’s a lot brighter and more colorful though and witnessing the old designs is cool. I definitely have no complaints on this end.

The comics continue to show me why Eggman is a much better villain in this continuity than in the games. He had his moments in the video games, but they are all over and it could be a long time until he looks cool there. In the comics, he’s pretty serious when he wants to be and his victory in the beginning is easily one of his biggest ones. He actually murders one of the Freedom Fighters and let’s just say that the planet has seen better days after he’s done. This is basically the second time in a short period that he has brought Sonic onto the losing side and I’m sure that it won’t be the last occurrence. Eggman goes back to being a comic relief character in the new world so we may have to wait a bit until his next serious moment. (Or will we……)

Sonic is true to form in this arc. There’s not much more to say here than what I’ve said in past Sonic collections. He’s a great leader and he knows when it’s time to go in solo. He made the heroic choices when necessary and he was also careful to learn from his mistakes in the first issue. He did get a little distracted by romance at one part, but I’ll let it slide for now since nothing came of it. Sonic starts out the collection epicly and ends on a solid note as well since he managed to take Metal Sonic and Silver Sonic on at the same time. That’s a pretty impressive display if you ask me!

Sally gets a decently big role from the Freedom Fighters since she is the leader in the new world. (Although, she’s always the leader right?) I don’t know how the Freedom Fighters ever managed without Sonic, but she comes up with the plans and the others follow her. They figure that they will destroy Eggman’s facilities, which will take away his power and halt his plans. A good strategy to be sure, but it is time consuming so it’s good that Sonic split away from the group. Sally was all right here, but she really needs to keep her guard up. There were a few times where she would have been doomed if not for Sonic.

Antoine isn’t a good character in this collection. His accent is still hard to read, but the real problem is that he never actually helps out when the going gets tough. He’s just there to remind the heroes that he’s still around and he typically gets in the way. He has his big moment, but he’s still comic relief during it. Unlike Eggman, he never turns serious, which certainly doesn’t help his case.

He still does have more of a role than Boomer/Rotor and Tails though. Boomer is really just there to remind the Freedom Fighters that they would do better if Sonic was around and Tails provides air support for Sonic. Keeping them as assist characters isn’t bad though since every team typically has a member or two who doesn’t appear all that much. We know that Tails gets some comics to himself and maybe Boomer will someday as well.

Silver Sonic looks pretty impressive and he’s definitely not someone to be trifled with. He gives Sonic a very good fight in the first round and the second one barely counts since Sonic knows what he will do ahead of time. Metal Sonic is given more of an expendable role this time since Sonic is able to deal with him as an afterthought. That’s the main problem with appearing so much. Eventually, the villain will just start to get weaker and weaker until he isn’t even a threat anymore.

It’s always fun to see teams forming so it was nice to see how Sonic and Tails met the Freedom Fighters. Sonic definitely showed them up right away and we even got to see his first meeting with Eggman and Snively. Sonic’s origin stories actually aren’t told very often so I didn’t mind seeing these new experiences. If only Sonic had a rival back in those days to spar with. Shadow is referenced, but it wouldn’t be fitting to have him in a homage to the old comics.

This Sonic comic goes back to its roots since there is a lot more humor while maintaining the tense feel of the new comics. It’s a tough blend to achieve, but the collection does it well. The bright levels and backgrounds really contrast with the present setting of the beginning and ending. The ending is pretty great as it ends with a pretty big cliffhanger that shows a brand new villain to the franchise. This villain is pretty tough and I’ve read an issue with her in the past. Let’s just say that she may be able to give some of the Metal Sonics a run for their money! The next volume will likely not be quite as cheerful since things are getting pretty personal for Sonic. Of course, it could be a while before I read that graphic novel.

I can’t really say that there are any weaknesses in this volume. It’s a blast to read and you’ll be stuck to it until you are done. The comic has no negatives and that’s pretty rare although not really for this series. The ultimate factor in a comic is how much fun it is and Sonic is never lacking in that area. The collection never drags on either. Even if you don’t understand the references and homages to the olden days, you will still enjoy this collection for its solid story and witty dialogue.

Overall, Sonic Genesis is yet another solid installment to the Sonic franchise. I haven’t met a bad Sonic comic yet and I don’t really see that happening at this rate. His comics are just too interesting and the artwork is too good. The writing is always well done and the characters all have the potential to be likable. (With a few exceptions) Eggman finally gets the respect that he deserves in these issues and the stakes continue to get higher and higher. I highly recommend this title to all Sonic fans and to all people that like a nice blend of comedy and action.

Overall 7/10