This time, I feel that I should make a note of when I am starting this editorial. Officially, I began typing on Wednesday, November 26, 2003 at 6:35PM. I just finished dinner, and just about an hour and a half before that, picked up my copy of Sonic #130. The thoughts flooded in that quickly about all this, that I just had to get them down now before they could go to waste. And the first thought that came to me to sum up all of the rest was this...

After all the worries and speculation, the end result was a welcome one that I should have seen all along.

You see, back when Robert, Francis and I wrote the last editorial, we received a LOT of comments from Ken Penders' message board. With it came the usual agreement/disagreement factions over various points, especially the one person who really decided to chew us out for still being fans of the Sonic/Sally relationship (You know who you are, and I'm sure you'll make yourself known again). But the one comment that made the most sense came from Ken Penders himself. Ken, in response to Robert's reasons for not reading the comics, you said that we as the public are free to believe what we want about the job that you do. But overall, what we say is nothing more than opinion because of the fact that we are not you, and most of us are not doing your job alongside you. We'll like or not like what we see for whatever reason and that's it.

After reading #130, my thoughts immediately came back to that train of thought, and it made me go back and remind myself of the things we said last time out. And it's made me appreciate the story more.

Let's start at the beginning once again, as we go, sing it with me: Star trekkin' across the universe...

(Yes, I had a couple of those Dr. Demento CD's. And if you don't like it, BOOT TO THE HEAD!)

Looking back at the entire "Tossed In Space" story arc of the last 4 months since Sonic's apparent demise, we saw many different and bizarre encounters that Sonic had to face. Some of the alien encounters saw Sonic in a non-action role as he adapted with his surroundings in order to continue his journey. I know that some felt it to all be a bit "deus ex machina" (a term I think gets kicked around way too much lately), just serving to get him to the next planet, but I just have to disagree. You have to understand that in a situation like this one, not everywhere you find yourself is exactly like home. That means that just pouring on the speed and trashing the bad guy is not always the option. So, in the end, Sonic simply had to grin and bear it. Hey, trust me, I'm sure that if the room was there in the script, Sonic was thinking deep down what a bore it was not to get any action.

(audience chuckles)

Aw, shut up, you hentais!

Sorry, first time I ever wrote one of these things and actually typed that out. Can't tell it me it'll never happen to you. Hey, they make countless blooper shows on TV based on these kinds of things.

OK, where was I?

Well, we finally get home. And my, how it has grown. We see that a year has passed in the six weeks that Sonic was gone. Just on that statement alone, I personally want to applaud the writers. One of the things that I didn't like about the "Sonic and Tails 'Round the World Tour" (copyrighted by Dan Drazen) was the fact that nowhere in the course of it all was it stressed exactly how long they were gone. And in an angle like this, it becomes crucial to stress that, especially since hyperspace travel does play with the laws of time. The lengths of time chosen were not as extreme as Robert said last time with the whole Flight of the Navigator plotpoint, but I think what they went with was plausible. Like I said, at least they said something about it this time.

As far as the characters go, this is an angle that I know some people have got to be going nuts over. I've heard of people who couldn't stand to look at the comics or read fanfics with future plotpoints because of the fact that the look and/or feel of the characters, while still themselves, has changed. But we have to be realistic here. In all of my life, I have NEVER known anyone who truly kept the same look, style, attitude, etc. about him/herself for his/her entire life, ESPECIALLY as a teenager, when you're struggling most to find yourself. I'm about the only exception to that rule. I STILL look like that picture on my page when I graduated high school over EIGHT years ago! I can still get carded at the movies or for drinks if I try! But I digress.

In any case, it seems perfectly natural to me that the Freedom Fighters have grown and evolved with the passing of time. And most of the changes really seem to show that level of maturity that these heroes of ours have been forced to accept too soon in their lifetimes. Let's take a one-by-one breakdown of everyone of note:

> TAILS & AMY ROSE - No change, actually. They probably got taller, but that's not clearly evident in the artwork. Steven Butler always drew everyone a little taller, anyway.

> KING MAX - Good to see him back on his feet. And a good thing, because keeping him in the wheelchair any longer would've drawn him much more Professor X flak than he's already gotten.

> BUNNIE - A Southern belle gone Indiana Jones... Looks pretty cool on her. An original idea, near as I can figure, which is nice considering that I know some will say the comic rarely ever has one. (I just know we'll hear one that she raided Sonic's closet from way back in #67.)

> ROTOR - Good ol' Rotor. You can clearly see that being the techno savvy has taken its toll on his eyes. That only makes sense. And call it redundant if you want, but I think adding the vest and the brown flannel sweater only makes him more of a nice guy to warm up to.

> UNCLE CHUCK - If you think the vest-sweater deal didn't work for Rotor, OK. But you can't deny that it definitely works for Chuck. I could see him sharing stories with the kids on the couch in front of the fire during the holidays. Lord knows I can sure use some now.

> GEOFFREY & HERSHEY - No real change here, but MARRIED?! Gotta say it surprised me. A little rushed, perhaps, since the time they first declared their love, which was itself a rushed moment without much explanation. And notice both that moment and this one were both the result of a cruel twist of fate caused by Robotnik. Hope we get some answers to this one.

> ANTOINE - And here's one I hope to REALLY get some answers to. We know Antoine's always been a bit of flake, especially when his many efforts to show false bravado fall short. But one look at him here, and it's clear that Antoine definitely earned his stripes, and he has the scar to prove it, too. Scares me to know that it's so close to his left eye. It would be a shame if he was to have to live with only one eye considering he's only 19. And the stonefaced attitude he was briefly allowed to show (which was only truly emphasized when Sonic thought about it)... Well, I said earlier that when a major life- altering event takes place, it triggers something deep within you that forces you to grow up. I worry that in Antoine's case, it happened a little too much. Here's hoping that we'll not only get our answers on just what happened to him in this year of war, but that we'll get to see that softer of Antoine one of these days again. Going from one extreme to the other like this isn't very endearing and an insult to his fans if he stays like this for too long.

(Granted, if I kept my Sonic Street Fighter game adapted to the current storylines now, Antoine would DEFINITELY get a stat boost. Only wish we had about... oh... 100 more matches in the books. ;-P)

> SALLY - Of course I'm saving her for last. And here lies the biggest part of my initial argument of not having to have worried about this moment of Sonic's return. If you know Sally like I'm pretty sure I do, you'd probably guess that she's spent many a day kneeling at that memorial, not just on this anniversary. And after all that she did to convince her parents that Sonic was the one, there was no way that they would get her to choose another. That just made it all the more heartwarming to see the two of them back together. Her words rang deep and true: "I knew you'd come back to me, Sonic... It was only a matter of time." Yep, you have to love our dear Princess for that heart she's always had.

Which is WAY more than I can say for those jerks who had to go and ruin the moment! Yes, run and hide, Mobius has a paparazzi now! And sure, it has to make itself known with news centering around the Princess. Oh gee, doesn't that sound familiar. Dan Drazen, that scene just made that last "Candle In The Wind" entry in your Cybershrine a very far too realistic piece. I feel I've gotta hurl now just thinking about it. This was an angle I think we could've done without.

BTW, looks-wise, I personally have to get used to Sally having the longer, wavy mane of auburn that she's sporting now. If there's anyone that I've grown the most accustomed to seeing in their signature look, it's Sally. Then again, all the major artists have been giving her the windswept bangs for so long now that this was the next logical step. Ah, well.

And all of this now brings us to the state of Knothole now. My first thought: NO!!! ROBOTNIK ROBOTICIZED EWOK VILLAGE!!! I can't think of of anything else to say about it, except that this was sure darn quick. I mean, all this - the total metallic housing, the "Technolo-Tree", and who knows what else - was done in ONE YEAR?! Man, no wonder Rotor and Uncle Chuck needed prescriptions. Hats off to you two. May your genius forever be rewarded.

And hopefully, with the war about to reach a head next issue, those kudos won't be short-lived.

What am I saying? Of course they won't be! Hasn't the exercise of this whole piece been that I shouldn't worry about the future? It's pretty clear that whether it's the future of Mobius (Why would you start the long-awaited and anticipated 25 Years Later angle if you didn't know the outcome of the present situation, without any of that "alternate reality" junk), or my personal future (I'm on the job search once again with a few prospects as we speak), I think that everything's going to be just fine. We will all find a way to make it through even in the worst of times.

I'll write you all when I have a teaching job again.

Thank you for your time. I am

Brian Sapinski
The Sonic Whammy

Agree/Disagree? Shout out on the message board for yourself.