Sonic the Hedgehog #201 (Aug 2009) Yardley!/Jensen cover: a view from the pit of the victory party/concert. No sign of the cloud on the horizon, or of its rider. "Change In Management" Story: Ian Flynn; Art: Tracy Yardley; Ink: Terry Austin; Color: Matt Herms; Lettering: John E. Workman; Editor: Mike Pellerito; Editor-in-Chief: Victor Gorelick; Sega Licensing reps: Cindy Chau and Jerry Chu Just what IS the population of Mobius, anyway? We had the stadium wedding of Sally and the Antiantoine in S155's "Line of Succession: Part 1" and now we get the stadium victory bash after the defeat of Eggman and his forces in issue #200. Sonic, however, is having trouble getting in the mood since he's still brooding on how Eggman snapped like a green bean after their last encounter. Sal tries to get him not to be such a Captain Bringdown, telling him to at least show some love for the opening act, Mina and the Forget-Me-Knots. Before they can launch into their set, however, the party is crashed by Monkey Khan, ranting at the top of his furry lungs and chastising the Mobians for partying while ... actually he's so in love with the sound of his own voice that he's in no hurry to get to the point. I wonder if any of his tirade can be heard by the furries in the nosebleed section. Meanwhile, Espio, who'd rather meditate than party, senses Khan's arrival and engages in the ancient ninja technique of Supplying the Dialogue of Foreshadowing. We'll get back to him, don't worry. Back at the coliseum, Sonic tries rushing the stage and reminds the reader that Khan really hasn't figured in this book since S92's "Wrath of Khan" which appeared something like 8 years ago. You newbies don't have to worry: it was another bad story in an incredibly bad year. Suffice it to say that Khan did little more than show up, smack Sonic around, and then leave, to the accompaniment of bad artwork and bad writing. Sally FINALLY calls off the hostility festival between Sonic and M.K. and gets Khan to say something that's actually helpful: that there's a new villain in town. Meet The New Boss: The Iron King and Queen have set up their throne room in what looks like one of Robotnik's old storerooms tricked out with several yards of raspberry-colored silk hangings. There's also a large industrial-sized exhaust fan right behind the thrones (courtesy of Cliches R Us). Don't know why that's there; I HAVE been downwind of a few dairy farms in my day, so I can guess. Then again, wall-mounted fans (oversized versions of the folding paper variety) are supposed to be good feng shui, unlike ceiling fans which are bad feng shui, especially if they're positioned over you when you sleep. Which reminds me of the fate of Pope John XXI, Pedro Juliao (ca. 1215- 1277), who only reigned for 8 months until the ceiling in his newly-built residence fell in on him when he was asleep and he died of his injuries. Now that's REALLY bad feng shui! But I digress. We learn from the rabbit with the steel-toed shoes and straw hat, whose name is "Conquering Storm," that aside from the building they happen to be occupying everything else in the city is a wreck. The Queen implies that this appalling neglect of the city's infrastructure was Snively's responsibility, and the fact that they think that it's a GOOD thing hammers home the point that these are the villains. The King, however, makes it abundantly clear that he doesn't like Snively, Megaopolis, or Snively; Queenie pacifies him by telling him they'll relocate back home at some point. In a display of biceps and attitude, the King leaves with Conquering Storm close behind. As they do, The Head Of Dimitri makes his appearance and engages in the ancient ritual of Sucking Up To The New Boss. His main point: to have the Dark Legion added to the new medical plan and to make sure it covers elective surgery to remove exploding implants. Queenie says that the best she can do is supply an additional implant to override the detonators. Dimitri is less than satisfied with this turn of events and after an insincere farewell he leaves. This leaves Queen Regina and Snively to engage in some hot and heavy exposition action (and in a kids' comic, yet!). She tells him she plans to dump the King at some point, but with villains, mneh, you never know. Back at the stadium, Khan is bringing Prince Elias up to speed on geopolitical conditions in the Dragon Kingdom. Sonic is up for a new battle, while Sally recommends throwing in with any resistance groups in the Dee Kay. When Khan tells her that isn't going to happen, Sonic proposes taking down the Irons directly. Khan as much as triple-dog-dares Sonic to try, as the scent of testosterone hangs heavy in the air. Sal specifies that they can reconnoiter the situation but Sonic is looking forward to doing a bit more than that. On their way to the city, Sonic makes mention of the fact that he and Sally are "not together anymore." Given that Khan acted like a total Sally fanboy when he was introduced waaaaay back in S55's "Monkey Madness," it appears that his Hot Monkey Love Gland is kicking in. How the story gets from here to the next Sonic Universe arc where Sonic and Sally are married with children we'll leave for another time. Meanwhile, Connie (my shorthand for "Conquering Storm") informs Regina and Snively that Sonic and Khan are on their way. The two baddies greet the news with the kind of self-confidence that was on display by American government officials when we invaded Iraq ... six-plus years ago. HEAD: This is straight-forward story-telling, which is more than can be said for Monkey Khan's entrance. But it is in the nature of the story. As this is the beginning of what appears to be a major story arc, it begins with getting the characters in place, bringing in the odd bit of back story as needed, and setting up the initial confrontation. Sometimes, as in the various 2-part game adaptations that have appeared in the comic, the initial confrontation dominates, as it did when Sonic got beat up (to the extent that Editorial would let him show it) by the Babylon Rogues in S163-164. I'm usually not that big of a fan of fight stories; to me it's always been a cheap way to keep a narrative going. This time around, however, I'm sort of looking forward to it if only because NONE of the new villains has demonstrated their villainy. The Irons have been all talk so far, Connie/Conquering Storm has been used solely as an exposition delivery system, and Ian has gotten zero mileage out of the Ninja Kitties. For all of Monkey Khan's ranting about the shifting political situation in the Dragon Kingdom, we don't really have a clear idea as to just what these characters have brought to the party. I figure we'll start finding out next issue. Beyond the fighting, I'm waiting to see if (or more likely when) Snively will be betrayed by the Iron Queen. Maybe I believe too much in there being no honor among thieves, but I can't shake the feeling that Regina is playing ol' Lightbulb Head while planning to dump him instead of the Bull King later on. It would certainly be what he deserves. Also look for Dimirti to possibly switch sides since the Queen didn't comply with his request that he and the Legion be defused. When Frank Strom introduced Monkey Khan in S55, I wanted to give Strom props for reaching out to Asian legend and bringing in one of its most iconic figures to be featured in the Sonic comic. Strom, however, made the same mistake that gives fanfic a bad name: he created a hero who outperformed Sonic and generally upstaged him at every turn. To his credit, Ian has managed to keep Khan on a short leash in this opening act. Whatever powers he demonstrates in subsequent installments (including shape- shifting, which is part of the original Monkey King legend but which hasn't been used in the comic), here's hoping everyone remembers whose name is on the cover. Head Score: 9. EYE: Matt Herms's coloring lends some nice touches to the story, such as the color-keyed silhouettes at the bottom of page [2] and the green lightning accompanying Khan's entrance on the next page. Yardley! also neatly subverts Khan's rant on the next page by placing him in the mid-ground while in the foreground Ash clearly asks Mina if she's all right while Mina's expression states "I am now." Eye Score: 10. HEART: I recently heard from Ella Thompson-Tagoe, a long- time Sonic fan who asked me whether I'd seen the British Sonic The Comic (frankly, I hadn't, except for the odd excerpt here and there). She had this to say about that comic's treatment of Amy Rose, who hasn't figured in this story arc yet: "Amy Rose is more mature [in the other comic]; she's a strong, capable fighter and excellent marksman, and became Sonic's second-in-command, leading the Freedom Fighters when he was away. "I only wish Ian Flynn would portray Amy as a more rounded, mature Freedom Fighter; she still seems to be a fangirl without much of a personality to her." "Fangirl." That pretty much sums up Archie's treatment of her, and it was a treatment with the volume turned way up in the Sonic vs. Scourge story arc in the person of Rosy. To be fair, Sega seems to have gone the same route, at least in the games. Sure, they might not want to tie Sonic down in any romantic entanglements, but there is considerable tension and complication on this side of the Atlantic regarding this issue. That tension and complication can, of course, be summed up in one word: "Sally." When the Archie comic decided to model itself after the SatAM animated series, they must've had no idea what they were in for. Even though they tried dropping Sally off a building to her death in the infamous "Endgame" arc (S47-50), and even though they had Sal and Sonic rather melodramatically split up in S134's "Say You Will," you'd never know it to look at THIS issue. Who is Sonic arm-in-arm with in the opening? To whom does he confide his feelings at having driven Eggman crazy? Who gets in between Sonic and Monkey Khan when they're about to come to blows? I know there's a portion of the fandom who've never liked Sally, but let's face it: she ain't going away. This is especially true when you consider the upcoming Sonic Universe arc featuring Sonic and Sally, who not only have gotten married but who have also been busy begetting an heir and a spare [see the full-page ad facing page [21]]. Even the Sonic-Grams in this issue can't lay the issue to rest. So HOW, knowing all this and having the ads for SU in our face, are we supposed to take Sonic seriously when he tells Khan that he and Sally "aren't together anymore"? I think Monkey Khan is the only person who actually believes him; I'm pretty sure most of the readers don't. I know that Amy Rose still exists in the games to pursue Sonic, especially when he has to interact with humans such as Merlina and Elise. Still, this is the fork in the road where Sega and Archie (which decided to keep the SatAM continuity alive as an anchor for the comic) parted company long ago. The comic simply wouldn't have lasted as long as it has without some kind of narrative to keep it standing, and Sally is part and parcel of said narrative. So I'm genuinely stumped as to why Sally's free agency was introduced as a plot point, unless it was to set up a Sonic vs. Khan rivalry for Sal's affections when they get tired of battling ninjas and Chinese deities. This doesn't make any narrative sense, but I'll wait and see where Ian goes with this. Heart Score: 5. "Devotion" Story: Ian Flynn; Art: Tracy Yardley!; Ink: Jim Amash; Color: Matt Herms; Lettering: Teresa Davidson Remember that one-shot of a page where Espio senses Khan's presence at the stadium? I told you we'd get back to it, in this case in the form of a 5-pager. Espio is intercepted by Nicole but then his ninja sense gets the better of him and he throws one of his knives at ... Lightning Lynx. Considering how lame Espio's ninja powers were in Sonic Heroes and how far down on the villain scale L. L. is, I'd say that this is a pretty even match-up. Nicole, doomed to be one gear in the exposition machinery of this story, tells Espio that the rest of the Destructix aren't in this story, a fact that Lightning confirms as we wade into the swamp of Dragon Kingdom politics. Pay attention: Seems Regina, alias the Iron Queen, alias the Bride of Four Houses, is now ruler over what were once a group of feuding clans in the D.K. This happened after she killed the Bride of Rich Nights, thus enabling her to absorb the Yagyu Clan, whereupon the other clans, including the Shinobi Clan to which Espio belongs, got the message and fell into line. At least, I THINK Espio is from the Shinobi Clan; Lynx's exposition is a little fuzzy. And no, I'm not sure who the Brides of Constant Vigil or Conquering Storm are; with any luck, this will be made clear as Ian moves the narrative along. Anyway, Espio realizes that he's been traded and accompanies Lynx in pursuit of Sonic and Khan, who put in an appearance in this story to remind Espio where he is. HEAD: Sorry, but I've never been a huge Espio fan. I mean I can understand his abilities and such, but when I saw them in action as part of Team Chaotix in Sonic Heroes I was definitely underwhelmed. His knife-throwing in that game never seemed to accomplish anything, though the invisibility worked for him. So I can see him being a ninja stand-in. I can NOT say the same for Lightning Lynx, and not because lynxes aren't even indigenous to Eastern Asia. Up until now, he was just a former Fearsome Foresome member and Destructix member. But once we're told by Ian that L. L. is a ninja himself, despite nothing that I can think of in his background that would even hint at it, we're supposed to accept it and move on. And that, boys and girls, is how Loose Continuity works. To his credit, Ian has done his homework. Though "Shinobi" is the name of a Sega ninja game franchise, "Yagyu" has some historical weight behind it. It is the surname of one of Japan's most famous samurai, Yagyu Jubei Mitsuyoshi (ca. 1607-1650). The son of the master swordsman to the Tokugawa shogunate (a post he held himself off and on during his life), the facts of Jubei's life are few and muddled, but that didn't stop future generations from embellishing them. Part of the problem is that between 1631 and 1643 Jubei dropped out of sight and not even the Jubei clan documented his whereabouts. In his book "The Book of Gazing At The Moon" Jubei hints that he spent these lost years wandering the countryside perfecting his fighting skills. After several years at court, he dropped out again and returned to his home village where he died in 1650; exactly how he died has been disputed. Even the circumstances of how he lost his right eye have been in dispute. He is supposed to have lost it due to an accident while dueling with his father, while others claim that he had two good eyes and that the eyepatch was just an affectation. Even the patch itself is the stuff of controversy; in some accounts it is a simple leather strap, in others the strap holds in place a tsuba or sword guard which Jubei wore as an eye patch. Yagyu Jubei was a samurai, attached to the Shogun's court, so of course he couldn't have been a ninja. That doesn't mean that a case can't be made for the claim that he was; the Yagyu came from Iga Province in what is now Mie Prefecture, and Iga was the hub of ninja activity at the time. Yagyu's father also knew about the ninja intelligence network. Couple that with the Lost Years of Jubei and you have a circumstantial case for a samurai- ninja crossover. It should be noted in rebuttal, though, that in all the Japanese pop culture treatments of Yagyu Jubei, including such anime as "Ninja Scroll" and "Jubei-Chan The Ninja Girl," all of them depict him as an out-and-out samurai. In any event, it's enough for Ian to hang this part of the story on and he manages to deliver enough exposition for a 5- pager without having everything grind to a halt to explain the business about Brides and Clans. Here's hoping he gets around to it at some point, though; Loose Continuity can only stay loose for so long. Head Score: 8. EYE: After a bare minimum of action (read: "fighting") between Espio and Lightning, they turn into talking heads. This presents as much of a challenge to Yardley! as any fight sequence would if he wants to hold the interest of the readers. Yardley manages to do so by the way the pages are laid out, especially page [3] with its use of diagonal rather than horizontal panel breaks and page [5] with its overlap of quadrangle panels instead of neat rectangles. Something about that reinforces the tension of the sequence. Eye Score: 10. HEART: On the surface, it appears as if Nicole has no real function in this story and that, in fact, it could go along quite well without her. Wrong. Her part, though subtle, is extremely important: she plays the role of Espio's conscience. A conscience is not the best thing to have in a ninja's arsenal. They literally have killer job skills and put them in the service of whomever hires them to do their dirty work. It is this level of amorality that helps impart menace to the ninja. Nicole, for her part, doesn't understand the whole business about clans and so on; in fact, most readers can probably agree with her on this point. But conscience doesn't really work that way; it is as much intuitive as rational. It also doesn't exercise any veto power over the will. Thus Espio is completely free to throw in with Lynx. So what does Nicole have to do with this? Her function is to subtly present Espio with the question "Is this really a good idea?" This isn't the conflict between giri and ninjo, between duty and desire, that informs so much of Japanese relations via Confucian ethics. Rather, Nicole represents the obligation Espio has to the Chaotix and to the residents of New Knothole. Not that she succeeds in making a case; Espio goes along with Lynx out of his obligation to the Clan. He's not allowed to question whether his doing so is a good idea or not ... not yet, anyway. He may break out further along in this story arc and recognize where his loyalties really lie. I can only hope so. Heart Score: 10. Sonic-Grams: Tyler states that Sonic is "destined" to be with Sally, and no matter what Mike Pellerito or whoever answers these letters has to say about it, the upcoming Sonic Universe #5 stands in stark contradiction. Trey wants to know when Sonic got a makeover; for the record, it was with issue #71 to coincide with Sega's launch of Sonic Adventure for the Dreamcast. Austin provides an excuse to promote back issues of the comic as well as compilations. Henry thinks Sonic's not paying enough attention to Amy Rose's feelings toward him, and wants to know how the comic squares Sonic's attitude with his relating to her in Sonic And The Black Knight. While the answer to the letter is a lot of nothing in particular, it should be mentioned that in the REAL ending of SatBK Sonic's last words are something along the lines of "Amy! Put down that hammer!!" So the sentence about Sonic's "really rocky love-life" qualifies as the understatement of the year.