Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog is an American animated television series created by DiC Entertaiment and the Italian studio Reteitalia, in association with Telecinco. It follows the escapades of Sonic The Hedgehog, his comrades Miles "Tails" Prower and Sally Acorn as they attempt to stop the evil Dr. Ivo Robotnik and his array of vicious robots from taking over the planet Mobius. It marks the first televised cartoon to be based on the Sonic franchise.
The show is based on the video game series of the same name. The series aired from 6 September 1993, and aired on syndication until 3 December 1996.
Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog was created by DiC Entertainment, which produced a total of twenty-six episodes for its first season, and syndicated by Bohbot Entertainment, now 41 Entertainment. The first episode was "Best Hedgehog" (which was the thirteenth episode in production order) and the last was "The Doomsday Project" (which was the sixtieth in production order). Saban ceased production on Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog to spend more time on Power Rangers.
After the original airing, DiC created one more episode in the winter of 1996, "Sonic Christmas Blast", which has Sonic and Tails visiting Metropolis Zone for Christmas.
The letters page of issue #41 of the Sonic the Hedgehog comic book promotes the special as "An X-Tremely Sonic Christmas", suggesting that it was originally intended to promote the, eventually cancelled, Sega Saturn game, Sonic X-Treme. Due to this, the special's name was changed to match another game's name, Sonic 3D Blast.
Sometime in the early 2000's Ben Hurst attempted to revive the series via a film going under the name of Sonic Armageddon until the idea was tooken over by former Archie writer Ken Penders who wanted to make it more based off the Archie continuity. However, this film never saw the light of day.
Despite its cancellation and limited recent airings, the show enjoys a large and loyal internet fanbase. In response to popular demand, the entire series was released onto DVD by Shout! Factory on 27 March 2007. On 2 February 2015, the show began streaming on Netflix, though it was removed on 28 February 2016. On 15 March 2021, the first season aired on TA-DAA! channel in Malaysia.
Plot[]
In a planet called Mobius sometime in the 33rd century in the year 3224. An evil scientist named Dr. Robotnik attempts to conquered a the planet called Mobius, with his army of robot. He then used a giant airship called the Destroyer to turn Mobotropolis Zone into city base, renaming it Metropolis Zone, a polluted city of factories and warehouses.
Robotnik soon builted a citadel in the zone as his own personal headquarters. From there, he captured the rest of the citizens living in that zone, and used a machine called the Roboticizer to turn them into robot army.
Eventually warnings begin to cry all over the planet, especially in a zone named Emerald Hill Zone warnings were constally heard to hide from Robotnik. A speedy hedgehog called Sonic along with his best friend Tails: a young two-tailed fox who can twirl his tails to fly with a knack for machines, and their intelligence friend Sally Acorn, who carries a sentient mini-computer named Nicole decided to take arms and fight of the invador.
The title card of the Sonic Says segments.
The series features very few recurring characters, usually just Sonic, Tails, Sally, Robotnik and his three bounty-robot-hunters Clucker, Grounder and Coconuts. However, there are many occasional minor characters and robots who appear. The plots loosely follow the storyline of the video game series, although the franchise was relatively new during that time, and lacks much plot or character development, which was filled in by the show's writers. The end of each regular episode contains a short PSA segment titled "Sonic Says" or "Sonic Sez."
In the show's second season, Robotnik creates a new villain called Metal Sonic to conquer the future. In the third season, a new fighter in the form of Knuckles joins the team and they defeat Dr. Robotnik, ending the series on a cliffhanger.
The show ran for two seasons before it was canceled. The final episode, "The Doomsday Project" ended with a cliff-hanger suggesting a new villain for season three; it was later revealed that the villain would have been a sorcerer from a previous episode named Naugus. There were rumors of a fourth season, but it was never produced.
Many fans and newcomers have debated over whose eyes were in the background at the end of the final episode. On the popular semi-official AOSTH website, Ben Hurst revealed that the eyes belonged to "Ixis Naugus. Not Metal Sonic. Ixis Naugus." He also did not specify if Metal Sonic would appear later on in the series, had it been able to continue.
Characters[]
Main characters[]
• Sonic the Hedgehog
• Miles "Tails" Prower
• Sally Acorn
• Knuckles the Edchina
• Dr. Ivo Robotnik
• Scratch
• Grounder
• Coconuts
Recurring characters[]
• Flicky
• Johnny Lightfoot
• Joe Sushi
• Tux
• Chirps
• Poker Lewis
• Professor Caninestein
• Professor Von Schlemmer
• Wes Weasely
• Ball Hog
• Batbrain
• Bomb
• Burrobot
• Buzz Bomber
• Caterkiller
• Chopper
• Crabmeat
• Jaws
• Moto Bug
• Newtron
• Orbinaut
• Roller
• Spikes
• Metal Sonic
• Ixis Naugus
Voice cast[]
| Voice actor | Role |
|---|---|
| Jaleel White
Christopher Welch Kath Soucie Brian Drummond Jim Cummings Phil Hayes Gary Chalk Ian James Corlett |
Sonic the Hedgehog
Miles "Tails" Prower Sally Acorn Knuckles the Edchina Dr. Ivo Robotnik Scratch Grounder Coconuts |
• Casting director: Marsha Gooodman
• Voice director: Ginny McSwain
Development[]
When various companies, such as Saban and DiC, were battling it out for the rights to make a Sonic the Hedgehog cartoon, the SoA story bible was given to each company as reference, something Al Nilsen confirmed himself. DiC put together a pitch, likely either to get the rights to make a Sonic cartoon or to sell it to the network, or both. This pitch was likely written by Phil Harnage, although the artists of the pitch art is unknown. The pitch was greatly unrecognizable the SoA story bible, featuring re imagined versions of many characters from it.
Pre-production image of Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog
Eventually, Sega gave DiC the rights to make the Sonic cartoon, and they pitched it to ABC. ABC gave them an on air commitment, under the condition that the story editors for the show be Len Janson and Chuck Menville. While Chuck was unfortunately very ill and couldn't be involved, Len was indeed put in charge of the show, and he wrote the story bible for the show, developing many characters to the point that they were greatly resembled from their SoA story bible counterparts.
Pre-production image of Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog
In 1993 an article in Sonic the Poster Mag #1, a spin-off of the British Sonic/Sega comic Sonic the Comic officially licensed by Sega Of Europe, announced a new television series staring Sonic the Hedgehog, The adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog. Within the four pages of plot synopsis and concept art, a group of screen shots that greatly differ from the rest appear without explanation. These shots are considered to be very early concept artwork for the show, likely drawn as part of a pitch to Sega by staff writer Phil Harnage.
One of these images, was previously used (in Sonic the Comic #12) to promote the Sonic the Hedgehog The animated series, along with another, using similar art, presumably from the same timeframe. The supporting characters in the Pre-AOSTH cartoon are most likely based on the small animals freed from enemies in the original Sonic the Hedgehog game. Most notable is the lack of Tails; it could be that the concept was drawn up before Tails' arrival in the franchise.
According to Milton Knight when ask about some of the creative liberties when making Robotnik’s design, SoA didn’t gave them any designs of the main characters to go off of, so he had to design them with material he could find.
Amy Rose was supposed to be featured in the series, going by the name Rosy the Rascal, however because SoA had asked for the series to be delayed due to continuity problems with Sonic CD at SoJ, she was cut by the animadors. Instead, a reimagined version of the characters Sally Acorn, with her now being a pink squirrel wearing a blue uniform.
Music[]
The opening theme of Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog is an instrumental piece of music written by Andy Heyward and Robby London. The tune borrows from the main theme of the original Sonic the Hedgehog and Sonic the Hedgehog 2, composed by Masato Nakamuro. Some refrains are based on certain pieces of classical music, including "Flight of the Bumblebee" by Russian composer Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, and "In the Hall of the Mountain King" by Norwegian composer Edvard Grieg. The background music of the series was composed by Dena Goodmanson and Steven Arbitter.
A different version of the show's theme song appeared in the Italian and French versions. It was sung by Cristina D' Avena in Italian and Alexis Tomassian in French. Also, the Persian dub has a song based on the instrumental of "Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.)" by Katy Perry, albeit with original lyrics. The Arabic version has a revamped version of Catty's Sonic Song.
Broadcast history[]
The poster for Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog on Netflix.
Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog was most recently shown weekdays at 8:00 a.m. Central Time on ABC in the United States. Robotnik was also the featured villain occasionally on the "Chillin' with the Villains" marathon block at Toon Disney, even being featured in their commercials. In the United Kingdom, AOSTH was originally shown on Channel 4 until the show's end; recently it was also shown on the satellite channel POP. It was shown on that channel as part of a "Sonic Week". This TV subsequently aired the first thirteen episodes of the show from 2010 to 2011. As of 2015, Netflix has the first twenty episodes available, with the entire series available on Paramount+. It also aired on Starz (specifically Starz Kids & Family). The series also aired outside the United States in countries such as Latin America, Spain, Saudi Arabia, etc. The cartoon aired in the Republic of Ireland on RTÉ Two from 12 September 1994 to December 1997.
Home releases[]
There were six VHS tapes released in the US by Buena Vista Home Video with two episodes each per tape. In the UK, there were about ten tapes released; Volumes 1 to 6 (except Volume 5 which is Quest for the Chaos Emeralds, a four part-series edited without the title cards) had three episodes per tape, "High Stakes"/"Breakout" and "The arrival" tapes had two episodes each. Also there was a bumper tape released that was roughly three hours long. None of the UK videos had the Sonic Says segments included except the episode "High Stakes". One of the UK videos had four different versions. All of these four had the episode "Breakout" in it. However, in one the other episode was "High Stakes". In another it was "Slowwww Going" and the final version had all three of these episodes. Also there was a tape with just the "Breakout" episode.
A "Sonic Christmas Blast" DVD was released, featuring the title episode.
Shout! Factory has released two DVD sets of the series in the US, each with twenty two episodes in chronological order. The remaining episodes, as well as the "Sonic Christmas Blast" special, were released in a third and final volume (also in chronological order) that is only available for purchase on Shout! Factory's website.
In the UK, the show was released in its entirety by Delta Home Video, as one boxset with eight discs on 11 June 2007.
NCirlce Entertaiment released several themed DVDs and two-disc boxed sets, called "season set collector's editions", titled "Let's Race" and "Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog: The Complete Animated Series".
Invisible Pictures, the successor-in-interest to Bohbot Entertainment, released a complete series box set on DVD in 2019.
In 2021, Discotek Media released an SD Blu-ray set of the complete series with bonus features including episode commentaries, the original pitch pilot, "Sonic Christmas Blast", and the rushes of the first episode.
DVD[]
• Shout! Factory:
• Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog Volume 1
• Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog Volume 2
• Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog Volume 3
• NCircle Entertainment:
• Best of The adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog
• Like a race car
• Robotnick Strikes Back
• Robots Attack!
• Sonic Christmas Blast
• The Doomsday Project
• Tall Tails
• The Fastest Thing Alive
• Sonic goes green
• Sonic the Hero
• Invincible Pictures:
• Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog: The Complete Animated Series
Blu-ray[]
• Discotek Media:
• Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog: The Complete Series
Reception[]
Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog received mixed reviews from both fans and critics alike.
Mark Bozon of IGN criticized the show for not aging well, and being "so bad, it's good," comparing it to The Super Mario Bros Super Show and The Legend of Zelda. Bozon continued on to say that it "seemed cool when you watched [it] decades ago," but that in retrospect, that is what made shows like AOSTH so special.
The show received good ratings on TV.com, gaining mostly positive reviews, getting an 8.3 out of 10 from voters of the website. IMDB, based on members' ratings, gave the show a 6.8 out of 10.
Patrick Lee of The A.V. Club praised adventures of Sonic for the challenging storylines and elements in a cartoon of its time.
However, despite these reviews, the show has gathered a cult following, with fans of the show claiming this is the best Sonic television show, with many showing support for a potential reboot or continuation with a fourth season.
Season 4 (cancelled)[]
According to writer Ben Hurst, thirteen episodes were originally planned for the show's fourth season, but no scripts were written.
The planned fourth season would have featured Naugus temporarily taking over Robotnik's position after escaping. Robotnik' attempts on getting back to power quickly fail in the process and Robotnik, Clucker, Grounder and Coconuts are forced to release Naugus and his creation Metal Sonic (whose eyes were seen behind Naugus at the end of Season 3), from the Void. Naugus would eventually challange Dr. Robotnik for control of Mobius, while Naugus uses a bait to lure Sonic and Tails into a trap.
Furthermore, Tails matures and plays a much larger role, even showing a bit of a rebellious side and would save Green Hills from a major disaster. Sonic would go through a major character change as well. Sally's backstory would be told, revealing that she was once a.
Robotnik's backstory would have also been revealed. Robotnik was originally from Earth (Mobius' past) and in the year 2200, attempted to take over the space colony they were living in. Inadvertently destroying it instead, Robotnik narrowly escape with his lives, and was somehow sent into the distant future where they return to Earth, only to find it had became Mobius. Thinking that he was superior to the sentient animals that inhabited the planet, Robotnik set about to conquer it in any way he could.
Numerous attempts have been made by fans to revive the series or recreate the lost season, but most have failed. The semi-official AOSTH page hosts an unofficial web comic that aims to reproduce many of Ben Hurst's ideas and give the series the conclusion it never had. Appropriately, it is known as "Sea3on," and it is currently the most successful of the attempted continuations, having started in 2009 and still ongoing.
Trivia[]
• In this series, there are references to Sonic games, these being: Sonic the Hedgehog, Sonic the Hedgehog 2, Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (8-bit) and Sonic Spinball. These references include the Zones of the games, Badnicks, Chaos Emeralds, Rings and the Special Stages. The main characters also appear in Sonic the Hedgehog 2.
• The show's first produced episode, "Here comes Sonic," was aired as the first episode of season one. This episode features a number of inconsistencies with the rest of the show, such as slightly different designs and characters behaving differently.
• This was the only version of the American cartoons where Robotnik was referred to as "Eggman" in an episode, keeping with the egg-themed insults used by both Sonic and Tails. Many of his inventions were egg themed, and eggs are repeatedly mentioned to be his favorite food.
• The episode "Tails' Tale" is the only time where Tails reveals his full name to be "Miles Prower." In "Tails' New Home", however, he does state that his given name is Miles and goes on to say that he dislikes it.
• Before this show first premiered in England, Sonic the Comic (#12, 30 October 1993) showed pictures advertising a new Sonic cartoon and telling readers to watch out for it coming soon. A groupnamed the Freedom Team which comprised all the animals rescued by Sonic in Sonic the Hedgehog (1991). The members were: Sonic, Johnny Lightfoot (rabbit), Tux (penguin), Sally Acorn, Joe Sushi (walrus), Chirps (chicken), Porker Lewis (pig), and Flicky (bird). These characters were later used in all the Sonic novels released in the UK, and Johnny and Porker became part of Sonic's supporting cast in the Sonic the Comic stories.
• This was the only animated incarnation until the Sonic X anime series to use music from the Sonic video games in any form. The only piece that was constantly reused was the classic title theme from Sonic the Hedgehog.
• In Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing, the tips that Sonic is shown giving during the loading screens are entitled Sonic Says, presumably a call back to Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog.
• Due to poor translation issues, the first Hispanic American dub of The adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog made in Argentina accidentally made Tails into a female character, confusing many children in Latin America. Also, the first Latin American translation include character renames: Tails for "Colitas" (Spanish for "Little Tails"), with his full name being "Vivi", and Dr. Robotnik for "Dr. Mostachón" (Spanish for "Dr. Big Moustache"). None of the these changes are present in the second version dubbed in México in 1999.
• One episode was adapted for the Sonic the Hedgehog comic books published by Archie Comics, specifically "Metal Sonic" in Sonic the Hedgehog #9.
• A teaser pilot for The adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog was made, but never aired on television and became a partially lost product to this day. Some scenes from the pilot were recut and worked into episodes such as "Untouchable Sonic", commercials, and in a behind-the-scenes video for Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood. The scene of Robotnik attempting to crush Sonic on the highway was used for the ending credits, while several other scenes were used in "Magnificent Sonic". It was also made the same year Sonic the Hedgehog 2 was made.
• This was the only Sonic television series to have a theme song without lyrics until Sonic Boom.
• The episodes or characters can have very slightly different artstyles dependent on which studio they were animated by.
• Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog and Sonic X are the only Sonic TV shows to recycle themes from the Sonic the Hedgehog video game series. In the former's case, several remixes of the title screen from Sonic the Hedgehog (1991) are used.
• Some of the show's background music would be recycled for another DiC production, "Superhuman Samurai Syber Squad", in 1994.