#40 [Nov 1996]
Spaz cover: Look out, ol' Nackie is back!
     "Court Martial"
     Story: Mike Gallagher; Art: Dave Manak
     Who died and made Antoine "Commander"?  Nobody, actually,
but for the sake of the plot, everybody else is supposed to be
busy rebuilding Knothole after the village was trashed in "Mecha
Madness."  Left to his own devices, the only thing Antoine can
think to do is to bring charges against Sonic.  Which is why the
blue blur is cooling his heels in jail.  I STILL have problems
with this whole angle of a glimpse into the maintenance of social
order in Mobian society, but let's keep it moving for the sake of
the plot.  What's moving outside Sonic's window is Amy Rose,
carrying on a one-kid protest of Sonic's incarceration.  Kinda
cute, actually.  I don't know how many of the 8-12 year-olds out
in the audience would appreciate the "Shawshank" reference, but
then again how many Gen-Xers would have gotten it if she'd been
chanting "Attica!  Attica!"?  Sally, after a brief interlude to
let us know that despite the recent turn of events she still has
a good head on her shoulders and a heart that belongs to Sonic,
sends A.R. packing.
     The "court martial" itself is misnamed because Antoine is
the only participant in uniform, so let's just call a trial a
trial.  What can I say about the trial?  The good news is: there
are no O.J. Simpson jokes on display -- no references to bloody
gloves or Antoine spouting heavily-accented equivalents of: "If
it doesn't fit, you must acquit."  And if one of the animals in
the amorphous visitor's gallery was a white bronco, Manak didn't
single him out as a visual pun.  Still, we've all witnessed 
Gallagher's keen knowledge of medicine, ["Let's Get Small," #33]
and I have to say that as a lawyer, Gallagher makes a good
doctor.  Sonic isn't represented by an attorney, he's not shown
as electing to represent himself, he doesn't get to cross-examine
anyone except Antoine (who's the prosecutor), and despite the
fact that Sonic is convicted Sally elects to delay sentencing by
24 hours to enable Sonic to exonerate himself.  So it's probably
appropriate that, in the first of many guest appearances in this
saga, Hip and Hop appear to host this...sorry, I just can't say
it.  By the way, the proper title for Bunnie's role in this is
"bailiff" and the proper designation for her actions is "out of
character".
     With the clock running, Sonic heads for the Badlands to
interrogate some Model A badniks as to Nack's whereabouts.  After
tangling with Caterkiller, Moto-Bug, Bat Brain and some others,
he heads for the Bottom of the Barrel Bar and Grill but is
stopped at the door by a gorilla bouncer.  This delay is only
temporary; once inside, Sonic confronts Nack who once more gets
the drop on Sonic who once more gets the drop on Nack just as
Nack tries yet again to extract some cash from Robotnik.  Can you
say "deja vu"?  How about "repetitious plotlines?"  OK, how about
"repetitious plotlines?"  Anyway, by the time Sonic sends Nack's
scooter to Robotropolis in obedience to that law of cartoons
which says "When in doubt, blow it up" (as if there wasn't enough
of THAT in "Mecha Madness"), there are only two pages left, so
Sonic wraps it up by delivering Nack to Knothole (am I the only
one that thinks this is a mistake?) and we learn that there are
no hard feelings between Sonic and Sally.  Until next issue when
Geoffrey St. John shows up.
     Anyone familiar with the "Star Trek" movies knows there's a
certain law at work wherein every other movie sucks and the
others are good.  Gallagher's writing seems to respond to the
same law; the story here is generally as straightforward and
linear as "Rage Against The Machine" and manages to avoid
everything that made "Mecha Madness" so hateful -- puns,
anachronisms, plot holes, etc.  Much better than I had feared,
which I guess is a compliment.  Antoine, however, is simply too
big of a jerk in this one.  In this respect the story ranks with
such misbegotten TV eps as "Ghost Busted" and "The Odd Couple"
where Antoine ceases to be mere comic relief and turns into an
exposed nerve.  Unless someone's got a surprise up their sleeve,
it won't be hard to guess which Freedom Fighter will do a heel
turn in issue #42.
     After two straight doses of Spaziante's lovingly-rendered
mecha, I was surprised that Manak's cartooney style went down so
easy.  Kudos to Manak, BTW, for not saddling Sally with tacky
regalia.  The royal robe was an interesting item--not so much a
robe as it was an Eisenhower jacket with a peacock train
attached.  The acorn staff, however, looks more like a bishop's
crook than a royal scepter.  It just doesn't work, except
possibly as a vexilloid (standard) for the House of Acorn. 
Anyone who ever watched a tape of "Blast To The Past, Part 1"
with his finger on the Pause button knows that the emblem of
Mobius is the Cosmic Serpent (or, to put it in heraldic terms, a
serpent embowed about to bite its own tail).  This device was
featured on Sally's signet ring, by which the King recognized her
to be his daughter (almost) all grown up.  Do your homework,
Dave.  Since I came in late (with Sonic #18), I'll leave it to
others to appreciate Dave's own blast to the past in featuring
villains long retired.
     Sonic Art.  It's been a while since we had this feature. 
Brad Metcalf's rendering of Dulcy is slightly off in proportions
but looks quite good otherwise.
     Sonic Grams: Spaz favors us with a self-portrait of himself
being hectored by Antoine.  Not my idea of a good time.  Cover of
#41 looks like a three-way milk bath for Sonic, Sally and
Geoffrey turning into a "Tales From The Crypt" segment.  Speaking
of monstrous puns, Gallagher apparently is doing the story for
the Sonic Quest miniseries, with art by Manny ["Rise of
Robotropolis..."] Galan.  John Ritts asks, among other things,
for a map of Mobius; I wouldn't mind seeing that myself.  He also
asks about a Sonic movie and gets a non-answer.
     And now, a moment to compose myself before discussing...
     Notes From The Net: YYYYYYYYYYYYYEEEESSSSSSS!!!!!  The
patience of the Cyber-Mobians has finally been rewarded!  The
first Note to run is from longtimer Thad X Boyd.  He manages to
plug his homepage and Bookshire's.  He also recommends the
stories of a certain fanfic writer; his name has a familiar ring
to it...I think I went to school with this guy.  Watch for NftN
every other month.
     Myself, I'll be watching for Sonic #43 when it hits the
stands sometime in early November, featuring a trip to the Dream
Zone and "glimpses of pre-Robotnik times," according to the
Sonic-Grams Extra.  I've said it before, I'm a sucker for a good
origins ep.  I know it's already been written and drawn and, for
all I know, printed, but just a reminder: according to the canon,
Sonic, Sally et al. were only 5 years old at the time.  Hope you
get it right.  I'm NOT looking forward to Sonic Live #1: "Witness
two Sega-playing kids join Sonic...as they get pulled into the
Sonicverse through their TV screen."  I get the feeling that I've
just read either the description of a photonovel, or else the
premise for a stage/ice show.  If I've ever been wrong about
anything, please let me be wrong about THAT!  "We're HEEEEERE!"