#and as much as i hate to say it even sega themselves are contributing to this. | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

skull001 · 5 years

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Sometimes I gotta wonder what do Knuckles fans want:

a) A Knuckles the Echidna that only appears when he is actually going to be relevant to the story, have a memorable/important role and who can stand on his own merit as a character without affecting others via favoritisms.

b) A Knuckles the Echidna that "has to" appear solely for having been introduced in the Genesis trilogy, who is neither needed in the story nor contributes to it... something that not only degrades and cheapens his character, but also causes for other characters to be robbed from their rightful chance to shine and/or have their roles diminished to artificially make it appear like Knuckles is more important than he really is.

I ask because, I feel ever since SA2, ST has always gone for option "b" when it comes to how Knuckles has been used... and to say this is, apparently, to be "shitting" on Knuckles.

I personally do not hate Knuckles. In fact, I actually DO like Knuckles when he is written and displayed as what he is truly supposed to be and not as what Sega's PR/marketing team wants to turn him into to keep milking on some misplaced nostalgia. Knuckles to me is at his best not when he's shoehorned as a third wheel with Sonic and Tails as some sort of "Sonic's other best buddy" or "sidekick 2.0". No, Knuckles is at his prime when he is his very own character, with that short temper of his that reminds me of Donald Duck as well as displaying such a jealously towards Sonic similar or that of Daffy towards Bugs which IMO makes the character feel more humane and relatable, especially since his pride was hurt during the events of S3&K.

To take this away from Knuckles in favor of the so called (and often forced) "classic trio" is something that I feel is just as bad as taking away the one thing that gives his character a purpose in the world of the Sonic franchise: guarding the Master Emerald. I find genuine amusement in the idea of a Knuckles who in a very single tracked manner will do anything and everything he has to get the job done and protect or recover his beloved gem, whether it is plowing through both good and bad guys alike, to even throwing into the air little kids who dare desecrate his giant and shiny piece of rock with their filthy, casual paws.

Now, regarding Forces, I stand by my words when I say that he was a very awful choice for a leader of the Resistance... one that I migth add as well feels even more forced because of his association with the Genesis trilogy, obvious aspect that ST's PR/Marketing wasted no time exploiting to try boost sales. Being very frank, there is nothing Knuckles ever did in any of the games to foreshadow that he has what it take to lead others, and feel that the role of Commander of the Resistance was essentially robbed from a certain character that the IDW comic eventually gave proper credit, though this is a topic I have already discussed in the past.

Can Knuckles branch off from what his character was at the beginning? Of course. I personally don't see why Knuckles or any other character can't display other facets of themselves... of course, as long as they still are consistent with whim they are (for example Egman may show noble, even redeeming qualities, but he is still the bad guy). However, I feel it's very important to make a distinction between having a transition (for example Amy, who we see go from zero to hero and then leader by helping those who are in the same shoes she once was because she feels empathy for them) and making shit up (Knuckles suddenly being leader material out of thin air). And not only that, but it also has to be something that makes sense for the character's progression. To skip the transition or ignore the logical paths the characters can grow into only makes their sudden developments feel fake and undeserved.

Likewise, when it comes to what characters Knuckles can interact with, I much prefer for things to feel natural rather than imposed. An example of a dynamic that feels legit can be that between Knuckles and Amy in the last issues of Sonic Universe before Archie lost the license and cancelled everything. Amy sensed Knuckles' doubts about his ability to keep the ME safe, and while they come from Knuckles doubting himself because of how many times it has been stolen, Amy reminds him about the positives, such as how he has never given up nor failed to recover it and helps restore his confidence... they have something upon which a bond of friendship can grow and be developed. In contrast, despite all the times that Sega/ST insist and bombards with merchandise that Sonic, Tails and Knuckles are a very united team and best buds... When has Knuckles and Tails ever had a bond, chemistry... heck, even a meaningful interaction between the two? I can't stress how much I dislike the imposed teams that exist ever since Sonic Heroes (except the Chaotix... those three are as legit as any trio in the entire franchise can get, no matter how many times ST tries to pull them appart in the spinoff titles) since they only state that X, Y and Z characters are bestest buddies with each other... but don't really build anything to sustain such claims and only runs with the hopes that we the audience turn off our brains and just roll with it and take their word for it.

In the same manner, can Knuckles and Sonic be buddies? Sure. But just like with Tails and Amy, there also has to be something that makes Knuckles actually give a damn about Sonic to make things feel genuine... IMO it is what makes the difference between being a friend from being just an acquaintance. My beef has always been not that Sonic and Knuckles can be friends, but the forced and unnatural way ST plays things out at the expense of Knuckles character just to make it happen. If one can criticize the way Sonic's character is twisted to make something like Sonally work, then why is it any different when one points out the parts where ST does the same thing and twists/changes characters at whim with complete disregard of what is established?

#Knuckles the Echidna #A serie of very unpopular opinions

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