INFO BURST

Format: Manga chapter
Initial Release Date: July 1991
Feature characters: Sonic the Hedgehog, Meg Gordon
Villain: None
Other Characters: Chuck Yeager, Henry Gordon
Locations: Earth (United States of America)
Items: None
Continuity: Sonic the Hedgehog Story Comic
Synopsis: In 1974, test pilots Henry Gordon and Chuck Yeager are tasked with breaking the sound barrier in a pair of new fighter aircraft. Henry, known to his colleagues as “Hedgehog” for his sharp technique, exchanges his jacket with Chuck. Henry’s jacket, now worn by Chuck, bears an image of a blue hedgehog on the back. Mere moments after breaking the sound barrier, Henry’s plane explodes, killing him. Chuck would break the sound barrier shortly afterwards and, so as not to spoil the joyous event, it is decided by the Air Force to cover up Henry’s death. Finding this unacceptable, Chuck and his fellow pilots take to wearing jackets with backs which have images of the blue hedgehog which they nickname “Sonic the Hedgehog” after Henry’s feat of crossing the sonic barrier. By amazing coincidence, nobody who wore one of these jackets ever suffered an accident. Ten years pass and Henry is forgotten, but Chuck keeps contact with Henry’s family. He gives Henry’s jacket to Meg, Henry’s daughter who is now an adult and working as a freelance photographer. Finding the jacket calming, as if her father was watching over her, Meg wears it to an aviation show. A midair collision occurs and one of the planes falls into the press box. Meg is trapped in a fire and begins to lose consciousness. Before passing out, the finds a hand being reached out to her- the hand of Sonic the Hedgehog. Sonic’s smile and finger wave remind Meg of her father. Sonic leads Meg to safety but she blacks out. Awakening in a hospital bed, having been asleep for a week, Meg looks around for her jacket. A nurse hands Meg the jacket… but the image of Sonic is no longer on the back.

CREDITS

Writer: Currently unknown
Artist: Currently unknown

Review

In addition to the three manga chapters, the Sonic Story Comic also gave us this “Gaiden” story. A gaiden, essentially, is a side story or sometimes a what-if story, which this one seems to be. This highly unusual tale presents a very different backstory for Sonic, one which was almost adopted as his origin story in the west. For one thing, we’re firmly in alternate history territory as actual historical figure Chuck Yeager is an important part of the tale, with Yeager’s real-world sound barrier crossing being an integral story point. For another, it doesn’t take long before mystical- nay, fantastical- elements begin creeping into the tale.

What’s most interesting is how, effectively, this is really a story about the Gordon family, particularly father Henry and daughter Meg. Sonic just happens to be along for the ride. The story makes subtle allusion to Henry’s spirit watching over his colleagues and his daughter, suggesting he may have been reborn after death as Sonic himself. I can sense the raised eyebrows, but if you’re willing to suspend your disbelief a little- bearing in mind, we are talking about series in which a blue mammal runs at hundreds of miles per hour- it all works quite nicely in context. To put things plainly, if the story had no Sonic in it whatsoever but Henry’s emblem had born the image of, say, an eagle, the tale would function every bit as well as a sort of modern fairy tale. There’s just the right amount of magic, mystery and fantasy to the story to make it tick all the right boxes. Things ultimately just seem a little odd given we are, when all is said and done, putting a cartoon video game mascot in the divine protector role!

In the short time we get to know her, we do come to care for Meg and sympathise for her as the father she lost was ripped out of the history books, an injustice that the story shows no signs will be righted. As a result, we want the happy ending for Meg. Admittedly, being saved from a fire is a somewhat strange happy ending as it might have been happier to not be trapped in a fire in the first place, but once again that magic strikes as Sonic disappears from the jacket. Had Meg imagined it all in her smoke-intoxicated haze? Or did it truly happen? Was Sonic real? And was he the embodiment of Meg’s father? The story doesn’t tell us and it isn’t interested in doing so, inviting us instead to speculate. Ultimately, it’s much more magical that way.

It’s all a bit unusual, downright strange even. Sonic is already pretty unique as characters go- he’s a walking, talking, upright blue hedgehog with shoes and gloves that runs at super speed. To now suggest he’s almost something of a spectre of protection, the embodiment of a character’s dead father, and lives on through jacket patches is… well, far-fetched might be putting it politely. So it isn’t terribly hard to see why this story isn’t to everyone’s taste. But, for our liking, this is a sweet story about family and love above all else. Sonic is just the conduit through which it runs. It was never likely to work as a permanent backstory for the Sonic character, but take away the magical element and ask yourself: isn’t it nice to think he’s just a special creature who helps anyone in danger?