#//but from what i can remember from it; basically the sonic team was doing their usual saving the day stuff

[revvywevvy]

welp i couldn't get over that nightmare. knew i'd feel like a bad sister for a while if i didn't at least try to comfort my lil buddy :(

eventually got the lil man to feel safe enough to go back to sleep. job well done collie 👍

[kaylatoonz]

Movie Amy Rose 06

Context:

What if Amy gets introduced through the sonic 06 plot line kinda…

I don’t really remember much from the 06 plot so to save me the headache and to keep this short (hopefully) I’ll highlight some things I would add to a loose adaptation of 06.

Two parter- I may not remember everything from sonic 06 but I do know there was a lot going on so yeah they’re gonna need this movie to be at least two parts

Elise and Amy from another world/planet- so for this story Amy would be Elise's adopted sister. Shortly after the flames of disaster were sealed within Elise, her kingdom had some concerns on how to keep the young princess happy to prevent the destruction that would awake from her tears. Those worries come to an end when a neighboring kingdom presents a pink hedgehog for the princess to keep as a pet. Elise was appalled by the idea, dismissing it entirely, stating that the pink hedgehog will be her little sister instead. Since then pink hedgehog, Amy Rose lives with the princess doing her best to keep Elise happy despite disagreeing with Elise not being allowed to cry. Things are going well with the two sisters until the kingdom is attacked by a known entity that’s after Princess Elise. Having no choice, but to flea the princess and Amy escape to earth to find help and refuge.

Sliver is a time traveler that was tip off by mephiles to hunt down sonic to save his future

No blaze… maybe- depending on if blaze is introduced before or after this story.

Amy is the one to challenge silver ideas- basically those scenes with Silver and Amy bonding and her defending Sonic when silver attacks him. Have Silver question if sonic is the trigger and if it is right to kill one innocent person to save the world.

Time travel shenanigans with silver and shadow

Shadow’s story (plus team dark maybe)

Sonamy no Sonic x Elise- I think everyone can agree that Sonic x Elise was weird and it most definitely be even weirder in live action. So let Elise be Amy’s wing girl while Sonic and Elise are just besties.

Amy is Sonic and Elise therapy hedgehog- Amy would definitely not approve of Sonic and Elise bottling up their negative emotions( even if Elise has a good reason for it) so she would try to help with that.

Amy takes the hit from mephiles instead of Sonic- Amy’s “death” triggers both Elise and Sonic. Elise tears release the flame of disaster while sonic rage and sorrow poisons the chaos emeralds (and himself) with dark energy. This is what mephiles need for his plans. (Don’t worry Amy is saved by the power of sisterly love instead of romantic love and the chaos emeralds).

Maybe super Amy alongside super sonic, shadow, and silver- I know it might be too much to ask but a girl can dream😭

Time reset- Although I hate time reset endings (especially after the troll hunter movie😡) I think it would be neat if they pull a “your name” ending between Sonic and Amy. Despite not remembering each other they find their way back to each other again. And maybe Elise and Amy could have a bittersweet goodbye with the time reset erasing their meeting too.

[fernsnailz]

Wait, Shadow and the rest of Team Dark worked for G.U.N? That feels really weird given his backstory, as well as Rouge's distaste for the law...

yeah lol, it's a bit unclear because they only work for GUN in some canon. rouge has always been an agent of sorts, starting in SA2 where she worked as an undercover agent for the president. however, the president and GUN are treated as two separate entities in that game, and rouge doesn't seem to have any connection to GUN.

the first time it's mentioned that team dark works alongside GUN is Sonic 06, where rouge and shadow are explicitly stated to be working as GUN agents. rouge is in communication with them pretty consistently throughout the game, and shadow's story begins with him on an official GUN mission to find rouge and the scepter of darkness. omega's role with GUN in 06 is a bit unclear - as far as i can tell, it's never explicitly stated within the game whether omega works for GUN or not? idk. if anyone has any sources stating otherwise lmk

of course, given that 06's timeline is basically completely erased from existence once the game's story ends, it's entirely possible that team dark's involvement with GUN starts and ends within the 06 timeline. future games never bring it up as far as i can remember... which brings us to the archie comics (as it always does).

the archie comics take 06's concept of team dark GUN agents and REALLY runs with it. all three members seem to work for GUN full time, where they operate under commander tower (aka the commander from SHtH 2005) and work alongside hope kintobor (genius teen related to the robotniks. it's complicated. she's also only there pre-reboot).

pre-reboot archie doesn't dive deep into why each member decided to join GUN. shadow starts working for them soon after he regains all of his memories and seems to work alongside them to ensure the general safety of the world, rouge is likely there for a paycheck (and any missions that involve chaos emeralds and various gems), and omega is. complicated. technically archie omega (pre-reboot) is a combination of e-123 omega and e-102 gamma (quite literally. like both of their personalities in one robot) and he was just kinda brought to work at GUN after shadow found him in the middle of a forest. don't worry about it

GUN mostly serves as a vessel for team dark to be sent on missions and adventures throughout the various archie sonic stories, and team dark is able to work alongside them without much conflict. that is, until the reboot.

after the super genesis wave (aka the reboot), team dark's first mission with gun is to destroy the black comet 2 and the black arms forces on it. they're not alone this time - they have a number of other GUN soldiers with them, and here we start to see the cracks between GUN and team dark form. given that they're fighting the black arms and shadow is half black arms, some of the GUN soldiers very clearly Do Not Like Shadow and Do Not Trust Him.

but what really matters here is what commander tower does during this arc - before the mission, he asks rouge and omega to neutralize shadow if he falls under the influence of the black arms.

while the reboot never had enough time to dig much deeper into the gray morality of GUN, it's very clearly a consistent trait of the organization. it's most apparent in the arc i just talked about, but future arcs hint at some shady stuff happening when they can. for example, GUN seems to have snively robotnik (aka eggman's evil nephew) on staff as a scientist, and they very clearly show us (in this panel i think is honestly kinda hilarious) that snively is Up To Some Evil Shenanigans.

with all that in mind, i can finally give my opinions on team dark as GUN agents. i completely agree with the sentiment you expressed in your ask - shadow working for GUN completely conflicts with his past, his traumas, and his characterization within most of the games. despite shadow being a "for the greater good" sort of person, i don't think he would ever trust GUN enough to work alongside them. and i think the same goes for rouge and omega, though to a lesser degree. while i think both of them would find it beneficial to work alongside GUN in some cases, ultimately they're both entirely self-driven and wouldn't see much of a reason to work for GUN full time. and because of this, i generally think it was probably for the best that the modern version of team dark just kinda dropped the GUN agent narrative. it puts less limitations on their characters, and the stories don't have to make every team dark related event about GUN.

and yet... i really like the stuff that post-reboot archie had going on. i love the inside look at GUN, and i love seeing how much pressure and strain they put on team dark. because ultimately, GUN is an antagonistic force that a group of heroes are working for. the military is a consistent obstacle in sonic stories, and to see how they impact the characters they've hurt the most from the inside of their organization is so interesting to me. GUN is doing the same thing that all of team dark's previous foes have tried to do to them - they're using team dark as weapons and turning them against each other. maybe the members of team dark wouldn't want to work for GUN, but GUN would do ANYTHING to keep the three of them around because all three of them are liabilities if they're let loose into the world with no supervision. GUN is keeping their enemies close and using them as weapons. and i fuckin love that

so while i'm ultimately glad that team dark is no longer associated with GUN, i would have loved to see a version of the narrative exploring why they left. they would all know GUN was just using them, but what would have been the final straw? did they resign peacefully? are they all on the run as rogue agents? i dunno! but i wish it could be explored a little, even if it wasn't canon or whatever. wghelp that's all i got for this one good night tristate area

[tenebraevesper]

Shadow the Hedgehog (Sonic Prime, Character Analysis - Part 7)

Welcome back to Part 7 of my Shadow, Sonic, and to an extent, Nine character analysis! This one will cover Episode 21: Home Sick Home and Episode 22: The Devil is in the Tails. In addition, this and the next post will also have a lot of gifs coz I'm hellbent to analyze every detail of this show.

So, let's dive in!

''Shadow, you're alive! Help a brother up?'' ''We are not related.''

After getting knocked into the abyss Nine made, Shadow makes an epic return by saving Sonic from the Grim Variant Trooper, with Sonic being happy to see that he's alive. Shadow... doesn't get the joke, but Sonic doesn't care. Also, Shadow does the pose from Sonic X. X3

*sighs* ''Nevermind. You okay?'' ''I survived. Nine's Alphas deployed a massive army to keep me down here.'' ''Alphas? You mean the ones that can duplicate themselves?''

''If I still had that Chaos Emerald, I could've teleported out of here. But, it's lost to the Void. And, smashing hordes of Sonics isn't the worst thing in the world.''

''Up for smashing a few more of mes?''

Okay, hol' up a second there buddy! ''Smashing Sonics?'' I hope the writers knew what they were doing, because the internet is going to take this conversation WAAAY out of context... and they already did.

In any case, we get an explanation to what Shadow was doing, and while yes, we see Shadow literally flying out of the abyss without the need for a Chaos Emerald, I assume that he meant that there was such a huge army of troopers that he needed the Chaos Emerald to get out. However, by the time Sonic arrived, the number lessened, so he could escape.

In any case, he's definitely up for smashing more Sonics.

They continue fighting the troopers, and what I really love about this fight is how they basically start playing tennis with the robot, throwing it from one to the other before Sonic slams it down.

''Hahaha! Helloooo, teamwork! Up top!'' ''These troopers are one thing, but the Alphas can generate an endless army. They are the real threat.'' *sighs* *high-fives himself*

Hey, Shadow, Shads, Shad, dude! Don't leave Sonic hanging like that. At least you could've taken the moment and high-five him since Sonic just wanted to celebrate your amazing teamwork. Admittedly, I can also understand Shadow here, as he is all business, quickly pointing out to Sonic how Nine's army works.

''Rebel's plan is working. The Scavengers are through to the citadel. They're gonna cut Nine off from the Prism.'' ''Which is in Nine's lab, guarded by the Alphas. They'll never reach it!'' ''So, how do we destroy them?''

Earlier, Sonic had managed to team up with all of the Shatterverse Variants, and instead of being reckless, he left it to Rebel to figure out a plan to get them through. However, Shadow doesn't have much faith as he understands just how much danger the Alphas pose, with Sonic recognizing that Shadow is right and asks for advice. After all, Shadow is usually the one who can see the flaws more easily.

''We don't. We're going after Nine!'' ''No, we're not!''

''We''? Did Shadow just say ''We''? He did! He shows absolutely zero hesitation wanting to work with Sonic in taking down Nine, and I have to say, I'm so proud of him managing to get to this point. However, as it was shown last time, Shadow needs to acknowledge that, while he did accept that he and Sonic need each other, they also need more help.

Also, remember how Shadow attempted to reach out for Sonic when the latter grieved his loss back at Ghost Hill, but backed away? Well, Sonic shows no hesitation here, quickly grabbing Shadow's arm to stop him. Shadow doesn't even push him away or anything, just glances back before yanking his arm out of Sonic's grip and remains on the spot, listening to what Sonic has to tell him. Their communication skills have definitely improved.

''You said it yourself. If we don't go after the Alphas, we're cooked. And the only way to win this thing is if we work together. We need the others.'' ''It is the end of the universe-''

As Sonic talks to Shadow, we can literally see Shadow go through several expressions and emotional states, and honestly, this scene was killing me when I first watched it! X3

Shadow goes from ''Not this again!'' *eye-roll* to ''Yeah, that makes sense'' to ''What the hell, Sonic!'' in a matter of seconds and I'm loving every bit of it. He is so expressive and this little moment shows that he there is more to him than it seems.

That, and he's dealing with Sonic, so obviously, he'd show more emotion than usual, since Sonic seems to be the only capable of triggering such emotional reactions from him. Not to mention, Shadow is certainly comfortable enough in Sonic's presence to show these kinds of reactions.

''-and you're still thinking about your friends!'' ''Of course I am! They're all here, fighting, sacrificing themselves, for me!''

Shadow berates Sonic for thinking about his friends when the fate of the world is at stake, with Sonic arguing how of course he'd do that. They are fighting and sacrificing themselves for him, and he isn't going to let them down. Sonic will always put his friends as his priority and he is not wrong for doing that.

''All the more reason to go after Nine while he's distracted!'' ''And let my friends get pummeled when Nine only wants me? *gasp* Nine only wants me... I have an idea!''

However, I cannot argue that Shadow is wrong either. He is right that they need to go after Nine before everything gets destroyed.

Honestly, this very argument showcases best how Sonic and Shadow's minds work. Shadow will focus on the end goal and how to achieve it, while Sonic looks at the bigger picture, at the people affected by their decisions. Both are right and wrong at the same time, and both want to take a different approach, but the only way to win this is to work together.

Especially with Sonic suddenly realizing that there is a way for them to win this war.

As Sonic and Shadow go join the rest of the group, we see all of them taking down Robot Big, with Shadow and Sonic exchanging looks after seeing this feat happen. Sonic grins, giving Shadow an ''I told you so!'' look, while Shadow is genuinely surprised that the group had managed to succeed in taking down such a formidable foe.

''Gang, this is Shadow! Shadow, meet, well... everyone, I guess.''

Rebel is glad to see Sonic, with Sonic quickly introducing Shadow to everyone else, which... awww, just look at them!

Sonic literally pulls Shadow into a side-hug, smushes his face against his cheek and rubs his shoulder, showing nothing but pure affection and being completely oblivious to everything else.

Shadow in turn, goes first into panic mode when Sonic pulls him closer, not sure what is happening, but unlike last time when he pushed Sonic away, he let's Sonic hug him. He certainly shows annoyance, but I think it is more out of embarrassment for being hugged like that in the public. He really doesn't mind being hugged by Sonic, and he even stays like this until Nine makes his move.

Also, where is Shadow's arm? It literally disappears when Sonic hugs him. Honestly, I choose to believe that he placed it on Sonic's back.

D'awww, they're so adorable!

I also love how literally everyone's reaction to this is just being unimpressed (with Renegade Knux being 🤨?).

Everyone's reaction just screams ''Sonic, did you really have to introduce your boyfriend when it's the end of the world?''

Well, of course he had to. He and Shadow are closer than ever now and it's the end of the world. One might as well do whatever they want.

SONADOW FOR THE WIN!

''Well, that's... terrifying.''

However, things quickly go south when Nine starts gathering more and more energy, making the The Grim decay even faster. This then leads up to the Chaos Council's mothership to be blown up.

''Mr. Dr., are you alive? Say something!''

Fortunately, Mr. Dr. Eggman manages to escape in his robot mech, wanting to melt Nine for what he had done. I just love how Shadow is also in the circle, wondering if Mr. Dr. Eggman survived or not. It's kinda hilarious.

With Prim's team defeated and the Shatterverse Variants being back to square one, Sonic quickly tells them their plan, and one notable thing in this shot is that, after they confront Nine, he looks to Rebel, then to Shadow, who nods in response. It is as if he's not only seeking for approval, but also making sure that they all have his back.

They're all in this together.

''Finally! Prove your worth machine!''

The battle begins anew, and I love how Shadow has beef with Grim Alpha Sonic, given how the latter had knocked him down into that abyss.

Seriously, I kept an eye on Shadow during this whole battle, and whenever he's shown, he mainly seeks out Grim Alpha Sonic, which made me think about something...

How cool would've it been if Nine had made Grim Alpha Shadow as a reference to the Shadow Androids from Sonic Heroes? I think people's minds would be blown.

However, as the battle goes on, we see Sonic's team losing, with Sonic confronting Nine. Gotta say, even if Shadow lost, look at how many troopers were sent to take him down. He would definitely be able to defeat all of them, though, if it weren't for one thing...

As we learn in Episode 22: The Devil is in the Tails, Sonic had managed to convince everyone to act as if they lost (yes, even Shadow followed that plan) and let Nine focus solely on draining the Prism energy while fighting Sonic, leaving the robots without power.

This leads to a victory for Sonic's team as they defeat the de-powered robots... at least until Nine powers them up again. Nevertheless, while Sonic (and later on, Renegade Knux) is focused on getting through/defeating Nine, everyone else focuses on the Alphas.

''You aren't going anywhere.''

When Nine orders the Alphas to target Sonic, most of them get knocked back by the Shatterverse Variants, with Shadow once again facing Grim Alpha Sonic.

We can see a parallel to Sonic and Shadow's fight from Episode 02: The Yoke's On You, but unlike last time, with Shadow fighting against Sonic, Shadow is now fighting for Sonic. He does get knocked down, leaving Grim Alpha Sonic to join Nine. I also checked that episode, and both Shadow and Sonic got knocked out after colliding. I suppose the Grim Alpha survived due to being a robot.

''We're not finished!''

However, Shadow makes a comeback, destroying the robot, much to Nine's shock.

''No! HOW?!'' ''I am... the Ultimate... Lifeform'' ''Modest too!''

Shadow's statement is once again very simplistic and factual. He is the Ultimate Lifeform, of course he'd beat a robot duplicate of his rival. I also love how Sonic jumps in with a comment, mainly because I have no idea if he was just messing with Shadow and Nine, or if he was genuinely honest about Shadow being modest. It's hilarious nonetheless. X3

Nine refuses to give up, using the Prism energy to paralyze both Shadow and Renegade Knux, while Sonic uses his own ability to create a barrier as The Grim decays faster and faster.

''He's not gonna stop.''

Sonic knows that he has no choice. Nine won't stop unless Sonic stops him. So he spin-dashes into Nine, knocking him down into the light of the Paradox Prism.

I absolutely loved how we could see here both Sonic and Shadow's growth, as well as how their ideals both clash and work together, leading up to the final confrontation (and also getting more Sonadow content because, hey, why not? XP).

Considering how Ian Flynn was a consultant for Sonic Prime, this episode really gave me the impression that this was the House of Cards arc from Archie!Sonic, as in the issues where Sonic and Tails have their big fight, but was written way better, acting like a redemption for that rushed mess.

Rest assured, the next (and last Part) will show us he big finale of this show!

#Shadow the Hedgehog (Sonic Prime, Character Analysis - Part 6)

#Shadow the Hedgehog (Sonic Prime, Character Analysis - Part 8)

#Sonic the Hedgehog Analyzer (Masterlist)

[galaxysodapopdraws]

I don’t remember if I posted these yet but have some Elias doodles anyways ft. Sally and the SFF.

….and might as well talk about Sonic Genesis Elias a bit while I post this :]

I’ve said it before, but Elias is the younger brother of Sally just being born a little after his dad Nigel got sent to the zone of silence. And when he turned five Nigel came home. As much as he loves his birth dad, he does think Chuck is the cooler dad out of the two. Usually randomly popping over to Chuck’s workshop to see what invention he’s building. As well to hang out with his step-bro and basically best friend Shard.

Elias’s main weapons are dagger grappling hooks, able to flick out blades when needed and quickly get him out of tough situations. He also has a back up holo sword and shield like his sister and dad but isn’t to fond of using them, he’s more of a dual weapon person.

Being the leader of the SFF, he has major responsibilities to take note of, making sure his world is safe from newer threats and taking care of his team/best friends. But he does like to see what sort of crazy idea they will go with to save the day or have fun. He may be the more quiet member but he’s still up for some old fashioned chaotic missions!

Speaking of being quiet, Elias isn’t very talkative, not to be rude he just hasn’t got a lot to say. He thinks he should let things play out then for him to mess it up and ruin everything. Even leading the SFF he does have second thoughts about his actions, which can lead him to panic internally and try to leave and figure things out. A LOT of this comes from his grandfather, Maximillian pressuring him to be perfect at all times and that he needs to live up to his sister’s status. Thankfully he’s got his friends, sister and dad to let him know he’s doing his best and they’re proud of him.

And finally for now, Elias has zero interest in dating or marriage. To the point he doesn’t recognize when people flirt with him, despite having a ton of people constantly falling for him whenever he makes himself known in public. This has ended up giving him the title: Elias the Charming (Sally’s is Sally the Brave and Nigel’s is Nigel the Delightful btw)

Hope yall enjoy!

[karlie-what-you-want]

Grammy Voting, Record Labels, and Reputation…

An anonymous source with industry connections has provided me with some interesting context on the academy and has given me permission to share. I personally found it very eye-opening—just another layer or two that most of us would not even be aware of when considering things like awards, touring, and the power of record labels. Let’s begin.

* Grammy voting - 40% musical merit, 60% business

What does this mean? My source estimates that about 40% of the judging is based upon the content of the song/album/body of work being presented. Is the song actually good? Is the album sonically cohesive and coherent as a whole? What are the technical aspects that deserve recognition? Etc. This is what we, the audience, generally expect the Academy to be voting on, but that’s not all there is too it. In fact, my source feels that their estimation of 40% may actually be too generous based on what they have seen, because the business aspects of voting carry a lot more weight (again, roughly 60%, which means the business side matters more).

Look at it this way. Grammys are a form of currency in the music industry. Having a Grammy on a track or a record gives that project more exposure and more value, as well as being an excellent marketing ploy. The highest honor, the biggest gold star. So…

* Labels trade votes

According to my source, voting season is a big deal. A big part of the daily schedule for label executives at this time revolves around trading those votes. If you have something to offer, your artist will stand more of a chance. For example:

“Can you and your team vote for [my artist A] for album of the year?”

“Yes, but in exchange, I’d like you and yours to vote for [my artist B] for song of the year.”

Alternatively, and potentially more interestingly…

“Give me your votes this year, and next year, I will have my A-list artist give a collab and a few words of praise to your new up-and-coming artist whose first album you’re making right now.”

We’ve seen how much a little recognition can catapult a new artist into the stratosphere of fame and success. An IG story feature from Taylor is basically like having the light of god shine upon a new artist, and suddenly they’re not an obscure indie artist, but a shiny brand with big associations. Look at Conan Gray, Olivia Rodrigo, Girl in Red, Gracie Abrams. Allison were at varying levels of fame before Taylor acknowledged them, but they are massively famous now with a strong foothold in the industry that goes beyond their respective genres.

Please note, I’m not saying that Taylor is in charge of these things or at fault. I’m talking about the labels specifically, and the inner workings of them. I would imagine a lot of artists just do as they are instructed.

* Artists vs Labels, Labels vs Labels

It’s important to have a menial understanding of the labels themselves. The “Big Three” as it were (UMG, Warner, and Sony), while not technically being a conglomerate, have put in place a system of major cooperation. This is especially true for the big account labels.

What are big account labels? Well, using Sony as an example, they have a lot of “sub labels.” Some of these Sony created themselves, others they have bought. A lot of this is division by style. That said, a lot of the BIG accounts are with Columbia (Beyoncé, Springsteen, Adele, Bowie, and…oh hey, look, 1D, John Mayer, Calvin Harris…). For a lot of big accounts, this is where the vote trading happens. It determines who gets the best tour dates, the best venues, and in some ways, it stops mattering what label you have at this point—because there are so many outside factors.

* Yes, Grammy votes are even negotiated against touring dates and venues

My source has seen Grammy votes be traded in favor of freeing up a couple of nights at the O2, a big venue in London. When we look at these huge stadiums that popular artists often tour in, we have to remember how much has to be juggled in order to secure those dates. Many of those stadiums exist primarily for sporting events, so that is a big portion of any given year taken off of potential tour dates. Ie “You can’t perform there on any of these nights, because there’s a game happening.”

Tour dates and venues are often negotiated, planned, and booked years in advance. Oftentimes, a tour will be booked before the artist has even finished working on their album. Taylor’s next tour is probably booked already, or is being booked right now.

With that in mind, competition is going to be even higher for the nights that remain open. And how many artists are gunning to play at those stadiums? How can it be divided fairly and evenly? Well, it probably can’t, but that’s where the vote trading comes back into play. There is a lot of politics, trading, back-scratching, and back-stabbing going on regarding these things.

Let’s think of it in terms of X-Factor winners. They are all signed to Sony upon their victory—a huge label with plentiful resources and successful artists. But, Sony knows that most of the winners don’t actually find success in the industry, so are they going to invest time, money, and resources into the winners when they already see that track record? Of course not. My source says that in one particular year they have knowledge of, the season’s winner did not have a single person at the label assigned to them. Nobody to advocate, nobody to plan, nobody to book tours.

If a label loses interest or thinks you’re too much of a liability, they can simply let the contract expire (and potentially your career along with it).

In that regard, I can imagine how frustrating it would be to be signed to a label. You go on bright eyed and hopeful, excited that you got signed because you think that this will open up so many new opportunities for you. Then you discover that your label might not book you any shows at the best venues (or any venues at all), and you’re not allowed to perform without their permission. You don’t have much to negotiate with because you’re a new artist, so how can you ever prove yourself?

Alternatively, you’re a veteran artist who’s suddenly being neglected, but you notice the new artist without any released work is being promoted and getting all sorts of opportunities that you used to have. You don’t realize everything at play behind the curtain; all you know is that this thing that was supposed to put you ahead in the industry has now put you very far behind. Which brings me to…

* Why was Reputation snubbed during its Grammy season?

I’d imagine that if you’ve read this far, it’s all coming together for you now. In Miss Americana, we watched Taylor’s heart break over Reputation not being acknowledged by the Academy. She tearfully resolved to just make a better album. But there was so much more at play here.

We now know that during Reputation era, Taylor was in a battle with Scott B. and her label—hoping to secure her freedom. She wanted the rights to her work, and likely the freedom to show the world her true self. My source says that when Big Machine executives failed to campaign for Taylor at all in that Grammy season, they knew something was very, very wrong behind the scenes. A successful artist like Taylor would usually be the bread and butter of their label, and they were not advocating for her.

It was not a lack of talent or merit that lost Reputation a Grammy (or even a nod), but the fact that she had pushed back against the label in hopes of owning her own work and determining the direction it would go. This struggle seemed to start back with 1989 when Taylor decided to go full “pop” against their wishes. I can’t help wondering if Taylor wanting desperately to live her truth openly also contributed to this, which would make it even more heartbreaking.

I know some people in the GP were puzzling over why Midnights won AOTY, and I’m sure many of us around here have been baffled by the lack of critical acclaim for Reputation. I, obviously, am a huge fan of Taylor’s and I love to see her talents recognized. I also just enjoy discovering more about the inner-workings of Hollywood and the music industry. Fresh off the Grammys seemed like a great time to share this “insider’s perspective” that I’ve become privy to.

[the-sinful-voice-witch]

SONAMY ongoing evolution

I've been playing Sonic frontiers and I watched Sonic prime and I read the IDW comics... Omg where's do I start???

Sonic frontiers is just a work of art in general, but the sonamy inside is just beautifully portrayed, I can say that Ian Flynn totally ships them 😌😌. I'm just so utterly happy how things had changed even if it took so many years

Sonic changed a lot his perception of Amy! 🥲🥲🥲 Also the detail of the umbrella line, remember that sonic was created in Japan, say fellow anime fans what does usually means when two characters share an umbrella? What does it mean when students in Japan draw an umbrella in the blackboard with two names written under it? It is clear that Ian Flynn totally knows the meaning and the MUSIC! Seriously those scenarios with Amy and that music felt like it came right out of a shojo anime😖😖😖💗💗

But also the feels... THE FUCKING FEELS!! The way Amy is kind of too calm with her situation but Sonic is just so worried and you could tell how worried he was even if he tried to play it cool... His expressions girl... Look at him with his cute ears dropped 🥲🥲🥲 Guys this game fed us good stuff... We shippers finally got what we had always wanted.

Next topic: Sonic Prime.

So I'm a bit conflicted, cause i only liked one of Amy's different designs and that was Thorn Rose, I'm obsessed with her hair but dude Rusty Rose? That could have been better... Also why Rusty Rose and not Metal Rose? Cyborg Rose? Badnik Rose? Mecha Rose? Robot Rose? Rusty sounds a bit degrading... It is because she was made like that by the Egg council? Pff also her robot appearance is just so ugly! What with that eye? But I love the dark concept and I love her SASS 🤣🤣🤣🤣Anyway my problem with Rusty Amy and Sonic is that it feels like the situation is not treated nearly as serious as Nine situation and boy ok you are a hurt loner with bully victim issues but Amy is basically dead, like there's no flesh or organs in her, she literally has a Birdy as a source of life and what is the outcome of that? Is there another outcome different from Gamma's fate in sonic adventure? Because the second Amy gets back her emotions she will want to release the bird... But more importantly... I can't wait to see Shadow react to her... This is the girl that reminded him of Maria, i really shouldn't but I really have high expectations for what kind of interaction will they have, we really need to see Shadow and Amy interact more let's be honest. As for the other Roses, there's no much to say about Black Rose but with Thorn we got good stuff too:

But I have to say one thing... Ok I know Amy is a strong power character but... It's a bit ridiculous that she could fight off characters like Rouge and Knuckles THAT EASY is just...🙃🙃🙃 Well i loved the part when he tries to reason with her all like: you liked me... A bit? Remember? And she is just so irritated and done with him already 🤣🤣🤣 but then... We also got this:

Actually touch her cheek you COWARD!!😤😤 Also when he was about to smash her and but stopped because he has a flashback of his Amy 😭😭😭, it's curious that Thorn Rose seems to be more impactful in Sonic than Rusty Rose which is ok but is odd plot speaking, after all Rusty is the one in the worst condition and is the one hunting him down, I'll just wait for next season and see what happens

And last but not the least I Shall say something about THIS!!

This illustration hit me right in the kokoro, date with hands holding and Sakura petals... is pure shojo manga energy!! I'm so blessed 😭😭💗💗

And of course the important reminder that Amy is a POWER CHARACTER and that's why she and knuckles make a good POWER SIBLINGS team as I stated in their own post about them... And dear Silver fucking gave her a COLOSSAL hammer 😂😂😂do not mess with the pink hedgehog buddy, and of course Sonic knows exactly how awesome she is as it should be, seriously she is really getting better and better, i really hope we'll see her in the next movie

[thefakehedgehogaroundhere]

i had a thought and i don't know where the fuck it came from, but it's that sonic adventure 2 happening at the same time as unleashed would be INSANE

dark gaia wakes up and the force of the planet splitting apart wakes shadow. rouge being a GUN agent has to go on multiple missions, including find out what the fuck happened to the planet, and what eggman is planning. she and shadow team up as usual but now trying to help fix the planet- rouge doing it because GUN is gonna pay her, and shadow doing it because maybe along the way, like chip, he'll find out what went down in the gaps of his memory.

sonic is still the werehog, and because he's without sunlight in space, the whole time he's in space, he is transformed for all of his time on the ark. when eggman blows up the moon he like winces in pain a little bit like he's about to transform back to normal but obviously he can't do that because there's no sun. so there's like dark gaia energy leaking everywhere and hes trying not to fucking die

eggman woke up dark gaia and blew up the moon so the world is distracted while he builds eggmanland, but he discovers some government secrets about his grandfather and his cousin maria ooooooooo.

tails has the same role from both games- make gadgets to stop eggman, try not to get attacked by any of the creatures, yk. nothing has really changed. they can't restore the planet fully because of the last chaos emerald but eggman is booking it to space already so tails makes the fake emerald to stop him and then they can restore the emerald when they get back.

same thing with knuckles- he teams up with tails and sonic, has some run ins with rouge, argues with her over the master emerald. the only thing is that now rouge wants the emerald not for her own selfish desire (okay maybe a little for her own selfish desire), but because maybe it can help restore the planet. very minor change here but still important!

chip is trying to patch his memory just like shadow, and to restore the emeralds with sonic. however this is a cool parallel because shadows only trying to remember one thing- maria's promise- and chip is trying to remember his whole life.

and this whole time amy has no idea who sonic even is, until she has to be explicitly told "the other 3 foot tall hedgehog isn't sonic, but the massive in comparison 4'1" dog is"

gameplay is pretty much the same as unleashed with some adventure 2 elements. run around, collect shit, fight the creatures. the worldbuilding just includes adventure 2 maps now too. and instead of fighting the biolizard, shadow and sonic fight dark gaia. shadow falls to earth, and chip saves sonic because shadows immortal he's fiiiiiiine this won't lead to any poorly received 2005 games at all. sonic wakes up and is like "what the fuck where's shadow" chip goes "lmao he's dead but not really"

basically this is a concept i hate but love

[star-critter]

(When someone asks Rough & Tumble about their ages)

Rough : Oh, I'm 4, and Tumble is 6 !

Mimic : What. You two are not that fucking young!

Starline : Not to mention you're twins.

Tumble : Yeah, We're twins. We just don't share a birthday.

Zavok : What?

Rough : Yeah! Every year, we fight to see who's birthday it's gonna be.

Tumble : And whoever wins turns a year older! The looser stays the same!

(Zavok quietly trying to do the math in his head)

Starline : Do you two at least know how old you were when you started this... tradition?

Rough : Nope.

Tumble : No idea.

(Zavok quietly gives up on the math)

Mimic : Do you two even know the day you were fucking born?

Rough : Nah, we just picked a random day.

Mimic : Fair.

Starline : Pardon?

Zavok : I can't say I've paid close attention to you Mobians and your smaller ages, but I'd say they're about the age you consider teenagers, just based on their behavior.

Mimic, getting flashbacks to having to work with Whisper during the original Diamond Cutters : Not again....

Tumble : Yeah, we can get behind that! We're uh- We're Sonic's age! How old is Sonic again?

Mimic : I don't know, maybe fifteen? Is he still fifteen?

Rough : Yeah! We're fifteen!

Tumble : Yep! We're fifteen now!

Starline : That's.... That's not how it - (tired and somewhat defeated sigh) Alright.

- Context & Headcanons under cut -

I was going to take this as an opportunity to show off the Bumblekast clip of Ian Flynn talking about how Rough & Tumble celebrate their birthday only to find out that I accidentally lost or deleted the screen recording at some point.

It does not help that because I'm Autistic and, therefore, struggle to read black text, making the concept of going through the Q&A Masterlist a nightmare.

Not to mention, I don't remember what year that question was from 🥲

[ Not mad just mildly annoyed that I lost the clip ]

But yeah, this incorrect quote post basically explains the Bumblekast's lore (based on my memory of it).

They don't know their actual birthday.

They picked a random date.

And they fight over who's birthday it is.

As for my headcanons :

Rough & Tumble are teenagers. High school age.

When Mimic was younger, he got annoyed about others trying to do things for his birthday (He does not like attention and has no idea how to accept kindness or gifts) so he just erased his date of birth from any records as he got older. He still knows his age and the year he was born. He just doesn't really have any specific day anymore.

The Original Diamond Cutters ages are wacky imo. Headcanon : Everyone in the team, except Whisper was an adult. Whisper was taken in as either a Tween or young Teen.

[cookieblobber]

The Defense of Steven Universe’s (OG Show) Ending

(This is basically a post where I put everything I said in a large Twitter thread so it’s more easily readable, with maybe a few changes and additions.

Spoilers BTW)

So I’ve been drawing a lot of stuff lately and in doing so, I’ve been rewatching a lot of old shows I used to watch and finishing whatever I missed out on. Steven Universe was an interesting one, as I recall having some form of obsession with it as a kid on Google+, however I barely remembered watching a lot of it or if I even watched it on TV or on websites like Kisscartoon. And after doing so,

I barely see the hate for it that it’s gotten for years.

It has its flaws, and issues that have plagued the show outside of what’s within it, but it’s no doubt memorable with a great cast of characters and very unique and fascinating lore and story telling. Now, I don’t wanna really get into a whole deep dive review on the whole show, as even though I’ve made a couple of essays lately (mainly on Sonic the Hedgehog), I don’t think I’m that experienced to go over an entire 5 seasons explaining each and every episode’s strengths and weaknesses and allat (though maybe I might discuss the amazing character development of each crystal gem in the future, who knows?), rather I want to discuss something that is partially why I started watching this show again: The Ending - Change Your Mind (S5E29).

——————————————

Now, the ending is understandably mixed, I understand the critiques of it being weird and anticlimactic and all and how it doesn’t feel like the diamonds’ actions on gem history was fully acknowledged and been punished for it. I completely get the criticism here and I don’t want to drive away people from making actual critiques on the show and where it could’ve improved upon.

What I mainly want to focus on is the notion that the ending can be summed up to, “Steven forgave Gem Hitler”

That is very incorrect.

See, the whole reason why White Diamond (the “Gem Hitler”) was involved with the story was because after Steven was able to prove to Blue and Yellow Diamond that he’s Pink Diamond, he takes the opportunity to use their stronger powers to restore one of the corrupted gems (Centipede). This works…for a moment, as they’re only restored once all 3 put their healing powers to use, but upon letting go of the gem, they reform back into their corrupted version. With Steven technically being part of the Diamond Authroity, he thinks maybe he can take advantage of his position to be able to speak to White Diamond, the highest gem in the patriarchy, and convince her to come to Earth to help the corrupted gems.

Throughout these last episodes, it’s clear this is all for a demand to help gems that were stuck on Earth. While Steven wanted to just try and talk to White, and convinced Blue and Yellow to express how they feel about how White has handled their civilization, there’s never a point where he’s all like “look inside your heart, please you have so much good in you I can feel it” or whatever. Considering how he had to fuse with the Crystal Gems and team up with others who showed up to be able to fight her mech and barely reach to the top of it to meet her, this whole plan wasn’t really as pacifist as many have made it out to be.

———————————

Sorry to stray off a little but, funny thing is, as much as people make fun of Steven Universe for being a show where characters just talk their feelings out and suddenly everything is good, they acknowledge in one of the episodes that not every gem has this deep trauma or pain they try to hold in.

In the episode, “Stuck Together” he and Lars get caught by Aquamarine and Topaz, they both open up to each other about how no matter what happens, they got each other. This leads Topaz who throughout her introduction has been mute and serious and who has them held hostage, to start crying and vent about how much emotional pain she’s been holding in so much because it’s her job. When Aquamarine finds out she’s trying to help them escape, they desperately start trying to convince her that she’s allowed to open up about whatever she feels, that they’re here to listen and talk.

This is was her reaction.

And I have yet to watch Future right now, but from what I’m reading, even after a lot has changed since the original show and tons of gems live peacefully with Beach City, she shows up again to get her revenge.

At no point is she ever redeemed in any way.

———————————

Anyways, the only reason why Steven was able to convince White to do something to corrupted gems on Earth was because he bested her and she couldn’t do anything about it.

Her whole ordeal was how she wants to have this flawless world where nothing goes out of line, even if it means having to mind control them so they act just like her. She views herself as being the perfect gem of all time who knows what’s best for everyone. However, due to how she’s acted with Steven, being an adult gem constantly picking on a literal child because she refuses to accept he’s not Pink Diamond or is part human; how it’s all just a disguise and Pink Diamond is just lying to herself, she’s embarrassed and realizes she indeed does have a flaw. She’s shaken up with guilt over how petty and childish she’s been acting, being exactly what she’s been criticizing Pink Diamond, to the point where she questions who she is. If she’s not this flawless perfect gem who knows what’s best, then what is she? What should she be since throughout her whole life she’s been obsessed with perfection? She can’t be leader of a whole gem civilization trying to make everyone flawless if she herself is flawed. What further solidified it was how she was unable to control Pink Steven no matter how much she tried, and once she started blushing and feeling embarrassed, she lost control on the other gems she had brainwashed. Blue and Yellow even react in disgust/fear seeing her become “off-color” due to her blush, basically for a moment them losing respect for her.

Steven goes up to her and tries to tell her to just, let people be who they are, without trying to “fix” them, and maybe she can be whoever she wants to be. White is still in distraught, wanting to be someone who knows better, be better, and wanting to make everything better, which Steven offers her a way to do so (which is coming to Earth to help the corrupted gems), but first needing to leave your own head - literally and figuratively.

————————————

At no point throughout the ending is White crying about trauma or begging for forgiveness to Steven and having him go “it’s ok we all make mistakes 🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰”, all that happens is Steven sees her essentially having an identity crisis now that she cracked and realized she isn’t as perfect as she thought she was, and being the good natured kid he is, offers to show her how she can be a better person, taking the opportunity to make her do what he set out to demand from her. To say they should’ve shattered her would’ve defeated the whole point as to why Steven even went back to Homeworld to begin with, cuz he needed White’s help. Plus, still haven’t watched Future but,

There is a scene where Steven actually attempts to SHATTER White Diamond upon taking control of her body for everything she has done to him, he CLEARLY doesn’t find her to be in the clear of everything she’s done.

TL;DR They can’t just shatter her cuz she’s the big bad villain, the whole point of the final episodes was Steven needing her in order to restore all the corrupted gems they’ve saved throughout the show. No matter what it took, he was going to find a way to do it. While I do agree that there could’ve been better acknowledgment on everything that she’s done to Homeworld and all, same goes for Blue and Yellow, as they’re immediately relegated to out of touch aunts, to make the massive stretch that this is supposed to be Steven forgiving Hitler or proof that Rebecca Sugar (a Jewish person) is a Nazi apologist…come on bro.

EDIT: I really recommend btw watching this video I recently just viewed discussing the show’s ending and really diving in about the topic of Steven’s identity and White’s identity. It’s informative summarizing a lot of what’s been hinted at and led up to the final episode and goes over stuff I could never even attempt to bring to light with how amateurish I am at this sorta junk 💀

And even if with everything being said, you still believe in the notion that “Steven forgave Gen Hitler” or whatever, I’m about to bring up an argument so earth shattering that it will make you re-evaluate everything you know about the show. So, here it goes:

IT’S A FUCKING PG CARTOON SHOW

———————————

Listen, I know it’s very cliche to use the, “it’s a kids show it’s not that deep!!” argument or whatever idiots say to avoid people from discussing further about their favorite things, especially in an era where many are pushing the “Animation is Cinema” phrase and proving its not just kiddie shit only babies like, but what I mean is

At what point is it crossing the line when making comparisons from a thing in fiction to something in real life?

What makes a great story is how it’s able to draw connections to realistic issues or problems many face with unique metaphors and analogies and all of that, Steven Universe is no different. However, at what point are the metaphors or references to real life supposed to stop? At what point does it become stretching really hard? I can understand how people have had ideas that “fusion is a metaphor for sex” or whatever to some degree.

But going as far as to compare this obviously over the top dictator to the world’s worst man to have ever lived on planet earth who is responsible for the death of millions just because he so happens to also be a dictator, doesn’t that seem so…psychotic to even try to relate when it’s obvious that was never the intention? I mean look at this whole world of the show, it’s a futuristic jewelry space civilization filled with advanced technology and bright colors, how do you look at all of this and first thing that comes to mind is Nazi Germany? How do you look at a giant voluptuous white woman who’s existed for millenniums and think “yea that’s Hitler right there”, all because she’s simply a textbook definition of a dictator?

Trying to make her whole country this flawless world where no one goes out of line and disallows any form of diversity? Like any typical villain? Is that really all it takes to be considered as “animated Hitler”?

Does that mean the abandoned flawed gems in the abandoned Kindergarten that Steven and Lars met at the very bottom of Homeworld are supposed to be a reference to Anne Frank’s family hiding from nazis? One would say that’s a massive stretch to make and they’d be right, cuz it is…just like what people say about White Diamond.

These kinds of massive stretches and comparisons have been made in the past constantly, and for what? To gang up on a show that just wanted to teach kids the values of showing love and positivity, being there for your friends and families and trying to accept people’s flaws or differences in how they live? To make excuses to be blatantly anti-semetic towards the Jewish person who created this show? All because over shit like the fanbase was infamous at one point for how they treated each other and the show producers or because the ending wasn’t how many wanted it to be or how it debatably pushes the idea of positivity way too much in places where it shouldn’t try to?

At what point do people who criticize this show for it’s apparent farfetched ideologies of being kind to everyone, start sounding farfetched themselves for making these insane leaps in logic to make a blatantly slanderous argument and label on the show? If something like “White Diamond is supposed to be Gem Hitler” is something many easily gave into believing, what kind of fucked up comparisons would people make next about the entirety of Homeworld or gems as a species till these start to sound like psychotic conspiracy theories?

————————————

Steven Universe is no doubt a flawed show, I won’t deny that, will never deny that. As much as I defend the ending and go against how people have slandered the show, I can admit stuff could’ve been done better. However, like I’ve said at the beginning, I fail to see how all the hate the show’s gotten for years has ever been deserved or warrented. It’s clear that even with its flaws in storytelling, pacing, (sometimes animation), there is still so much to love about this show. It’s characters, it’s music, it’s themes, it’s lore, etc. There’s good reason as to why people love and still fondly remember it and consider it to be just as important as the other shows that brought in this renaissance era for Cartoon Network (Gumball, Regular Show, and Adventure Time).

After all, just like what the ending taught people, things aren’t always going to be perfect, and that’s ok. Flaws make things what they are, and unless said flaws actively have negative effects on things, there’s no reason to fight against them so excruciatingly. We may strive hard for perfection and flawlessness, to be considered perfect or for a thing we like to be considered perfect, but at some point, trying to do so much just to achieve said perfection will down the road start to become an issue and affect ourselves and the ones around us, the ones we love.

When you think about it, a lot of what has happened within the fanbase and the critics of the show mimic similar attitude to White Diamond. This want for perfection, for nothing to be going out of line, but all it’s done is damage the show’s reputation to many.

Fans on here long ago harassing an artist for the way they drew one of the characters of the show as she wasn’t in this “perfect” body shape they wanted her in. Or harassing producers of the show for how they’d handle things like (iirc) Lapis and Peridot’s “relationship” because it didn’t match their “perfect” connection between the two, and more.

On the other side, critics like the infamous Lily Orchard blasting the show for not being this “perfectly” told story and going out of her way to make these insane comparisons to have some leverage in this giant attack on the show and what it stands for.

These wild and out of pocket attempts to make everything perfect for the show, and what has it done? It heavily soured how people view the show, making people want to stay away from getting into it as from the POV of the outside looking in, it’s a whole rabbit hole they probably shouldn’t get into…for their sake of their mental health. This mindset to be caught up in selfish outlandish views of what’s deemed as being perfect has only made things worse for everyone on every side of discussion on this show. And while as of lately things seem to be recovering, as more people are giving the show a second chance and realizing how messed up people like Lily Orchard were, still the effects of what happened back in the mid-late 2010s are noticeable in some areas.

——————————

If it gets to a point where we’re fighting a flaw that barely affects anyone, is it really a flaw that is that important or even a flaw at all to begin with? We can strive to be better people and learn from mistakes, but a perfect person who can do no wrong is just impossible.

Flaws are what help make everything feel unique in it’s own right. That’s not to say some flaws can’t be acknowledged and called out, but as for flaws that sum up to “someone/something is different from what I expected”, it seems over the top to go so hard to fight against it, as we’d be fighting against having diversity among each and every one of us.

If every pork-chop were perfect, we wouldn’t have hot dogs.

[bexorok]

Poorly written Sonic Movie 3 pitch/outline

I’ve never really written anything in a script format, but I had so many thoughts about the next movie that I had to write them out otherwise my brain would actually explode. I’m kind of bouncing around with scenes I think should be in the movie as well as character introductions. Hope people find some enjoyment out of these!

This is the first couple of scenes I wrote out. I also had a little blurb about the opening credits, but it’s kind of just what the rumored trailer for Sonic 3 reviled at cinamacon was, so there’s not much point of it. Basically, Robotnik now looks like his original game design, and that’s all you really need to know

Introduction Scene

interior, prison island

Sirens are blaring and red lights are going off. We see automated doors closing, followed by an explosion. When the smoke settles, we see Stone and Robotnik together in a walking mech, destroying all doors that close in front of them. Military robots fight back but can do nothing against him.

They enter a final room at the end of the corridor. Inside we see a capsule that’s completely sealed.

Robotnik: We've hit the jackpot, Stone! Right inside this capsule is the key to ultimate power, and finally destroying that pesky hedgehog and his friends once and for all! I will finally have the power to rule over this world, and even more!

(Insert gay pining from Stone, we all know it’s canon)

Robotnik instructs Stone to search the files for the password to enter. He scrolls through the data for a moment before he comes across something.

Stone: M-A-R-I-A … really? A 5 letter password is protecting the key to ultimate power?

Robotnik: Remember Stone, this dusty bucket of bolts is over 50 years old. They were simpler times. Password decoders weren’t even invented, and our current program probably wouldn’t run on this hunk of junk.

He pauses a moment, seemingly thinking back.

Robotnik: Maria, huh? Haven’t heard that name in a long, long time. Still, I wouldn’t have thought of my grandfather as the sentimental type.

He walks over and types in the password. The capsule opens with a cloud of smoke, and an orange light reveals a figure not unlike Sonic’s. His eyes open and glow red as the restraints around him detach.

Robotnik and Stone stare in awe as he steps out. He kneels to the ground on one knee.

Shadow: I am Shadow, the ultimate lifeform, created by doctor Gerald Robotnik. You have awakened me, which can only mean you seek the ultimate power.

Robotnik yells in exasperation: Yes! Finally, a creature who knows its master! Welcome to the team, Shadow the hedgehog

The camera zooms back, revealing prison island, going further until it shows the entire earth, zooming further to reveal space colony ARK. The rendition of “live and learn” from the original trailer plays as the logo for the movie is finally revealed, with ARK shown just underneath.

Cut to an overview of Green Hills, where we see the blur of sonic, quickly followed by tails and knuckles, all laughing and whooping. They go through the forests and mountains of Green Hills, eventually getting to the peak of a mountain top, where Sonic jumps off and is caught by tails. Knuckles follows, gliding next to them. They fly over a house, where we hear Tom shout to them.

Tom: Dinner is ready! Get here quick, before all the burgers and hotdogs are gone!

They all fly down, landing in the backyard, where Tom has the grill set up. At a table nearby, we see Maddie, Rachel, Randel, JoJo, and Ozzy sitting down. Tails quickly flies to a tree house connected to the garage.

Tails: Just have to grab something!

Knuckles steps to the side of the yard, opening what looks like a cellar door.

Knuckles: I will join you all in a moment. I must double check the emeralds status.

Tails flies back from a window in the tree house, carrying with him a gadget.

Tails: It's fine, Knux, we would have gotten an alert if anything happened to the emerald.

Knuckles: Fox, I trust nothing but my own eyes to confirm if the emerald is safe or not.

He opens the doors and goes down a dark flight of stairs.

Maddie: Let him go sweetie, you know how he gets when he’s away from the emerald too long.

Tom: Sonic, do you mind getting the plates from the kitchen?

In a flash, sonic runs inside the house and back again, setting a plate in front of each person at the table.

Tom: Thanks pal!

Maddie nudges Rachel, nodding her head.

Rachel: Alright, I’ll admit it, the weird little alien things are starting to grow on me, especially considering how much JoJo likes spending time with them. But I still don’t know if I want to move to this town.

Sonic: aw, come on, Green Hills is the best town ever! Pulse as long as we're here, it’ll be the safest town ever.

Tails: That's right! We’re patrolling every day, looking for signs of danger! And for the chaos emeralds, of course.

JoJo: Oh yeah, have you guys found any yet?

Tails: (laughs awkwardly) well, not yet. But as soon as I’m done with my tracking device, we’ll be able to use it to hunt them down!

He shows them the device in his hands. It has a radar map on it with a single, large blinking light next to the yard.

Tails: right now it can only detect the master emerald, but once we find a chaos emerald, I can use its energy frequency to find other similar frequencies.

JoJo: Wow! That’s so cool! Mom, can I help them look for the emeralds too?

Rachel: Woah, woah, woah. No way young lady, I can not have you running around the world, you’re still just a kid.

JoJo: but mom! Tails is, like, 8! I’m two whole years older than him! Why can’t I go on cool adventures?

Randal: because, you’re still a *human* kid. You can get hurt a lot more easily than these guys can.

Rachel: hold up, do you mean to tell me that that little scientist who makes bombs and guns is only 8?

Maddie: We were surprised too. You’d have no idea any of these guys were so young if you didn’t ask.

Sonic: mom! We aren’t that young! I’m 14 now, I’m basically a grown up.

Maddie: Okay, Mr. grown up. But most grown ups don’t like getting tucked into bed every night.

Sonic: MOM!

Everyone at the table laughs, and Tom comes to the table with a plate of hot dogs and burger patties. Maddie looks over at Tails, who is still tweaking with his tracker.

Maddie: Miles Prower-Wachowski, what did I say about gizmos at the dinner table?

Tails: oops, sorry mom!

He puts the radar down, where the camera zooms in on the blinking light. We then fade to the room in the cellar. An automated door with an eye scanner blocks the way, and we see Knuckles take the last few steps down the staircase. He approaches the door and puts his eye near the scanner. A red laser appears and scans his eye, confirming his identity and unlocking the door. It opens, and inside the room we see a small shrine (designed after the shrine from sonic adventure 1) and resting on it is the master emerald. Knuckles nods in content.

Knuckles: as long as I am here, no harm will come to the emerald ever again.

[blazehedgehog]

I’d love a completely new Sonic and Sega All Star Racing Game in 2025 or 2026. Both to see an expanded cast from more Sega franchises (Yakuza, Persona, Puyo Puyo, Hatsune Miku, Angry Birds, the “Power The Next Level” IP revivals) and due to untapped gameplay potential for a sonic racing game. My question is: if we were to get a new Sonic and Sega ASR do you have any ideas or hopes for how they could evolve the gameplay of a sonic racing game? (Aside from adding all content from the past titles)

I mean, do you have to evolve it? I'd like a straight collection, which means basically freezing all the gameplay features in time in the Transformed era.

The thing about those games and Mario Kart is that they don't evolve much. With a few exceptions, most Mario Kart games are what they always have been. More evolution than revolution. Tweaks to power sliding mechanics, maybe the ability to better mix and match characters and parts, but still Mario Kart after 8 or 9 games.

Where Sega and Sumo's games differed was having a real, proper singleplayer campaign. The plan was apparently to always have a story mode in those games, but they didn't get enough budget to pull it off until Team Sonic Racing. Regardless, they always contained at least some kind of singleplayer mission structure outside of the context of just racing, racing, racing. That's something that Mario Kart always lacked.

They can keep those as-is and still be a step ahead of most Mario Karts.

I dunno. I have a lot of ideas for what could make racing games better, though. I like to play those alone, by myself, against the computer. At risk of giving these ideas away for free, it's like...

One feature I liked from Dirt 2 that Codemasters struggled to carry forward was the idea that other racers on the track were characters you could interact with. Real people. They would banter with you as you raced, get angry if you bumped into them too hard, chat with each other during races, etc.

Codemasters got away with that for a few games but did sort of bring it back in newer entries like Grid 2 and Grid Legends, but it's lacking that human element -- you'll get an alert that you have "a new rival" because you were too aggressive with another racer, but there's no visible reaction or audible dialog to reflect that. And with how much Codemasters leans on having stories in those games, despite having the foundation for a Telltale-style "[xyz] will remember that" system, it never has bearing on the plot.

They are so close to unlocking the true potential of that system and they never fully commit. There's untapped possibility there for sure.

The other thing is, like, these games always have a finite amount of content. You play something like Ridge Racer 4 and it's always the same tracks, in the same order, every time you play. But does it have to be?

A lot of racing games will let you pick individual tracks one at a time if you want to switch it up, but I don't want that. I want to be able to tell the game "give me a new cup" and have it assemble one on the spot.

It's like a fighting game, right. What's the main fault of early Smash Bros. games? You fight the same characters, in the same order, every time. Later Smash games, and indeed most fighting games, offer you up fighters in a random order, so every time you fire up Arcade Mode, you're never entirely sure who your next opponent is.

So back when stuff like the Spelunky Daily Challenge was a hot conversation topic, I often wondered why racing games couldn't have, like, "The Grand Prix of the Day." Generate a playlist of four existing tracks in a random order for every day of the year.

Like, Mario Kart 8 has, what, 64 tracks right now? It should be able to generate me a new Grand Prix playlist of four tracks on command in trillions of variations. Technically, this is sort of what Mario Kart Tour does, but even then that's locked in to a live service model of "seasonal" content and you still eventually run out of Grand Prix cups to race on for that month. Also, Mario Kart Tour sucks and is bad to play.

And, like, what if you could share your Grand Prix playlists with others? Send them to your friends, issue challenges, configure parameters like mirror mode and reverse races. Maybe designate specific racers as being "experts" for that GP with different traits to race against. Maybe even let the friend record a ghost or some kind of Drivatar-style profile to race against as part of the GP.

This feels so natural and obvious to me. And to be fair, Forza Horizon games also kind of do some of this, but it's still not the same. It's not what I'm looking for.

When I play a racing game, the less I have to interface with the menu, the better. I'm here to race, not to scroll through track lists and be indecisive.

[f4nggzz]

ALL MY FANG AUs TO THE ACTUAL MOMENT

Jet:

Jet the Jerboa is basically the Fang that's in the Fleetway comics, following the events of team chaotix until he's revealed as a villain, I didn't made many things about him, I just like to draw him, maybe one day I'll make more things about him

Flake:

Flake also follows the Fleetway comics lore, he's a hybrid in this AU, and because of that he has a medical condition that causes him a loss of melanine, making his body have a kind of albinism that evolves with time, and because of that, he's extremely insecure and makes many impulsive actions

BFang:

Buried Fang is basically a creepypasta from Sonic Triple Trouble, me and @hmmmzin always found creepy that Fang was "Buried alive" and then I had the idea of making a horror fangame related to this event, I'm not on the hype to do it now, but who knows? X3

EFang:

This Fang is part of an AMV series that I think on doing from the Vocaloid Saga of Evil (Daughter of Evil, Servent of Evil and all...) Where Fang would be Len and Nic would be Rin, at the time I even made art of Fang and Nic as Len and Rin, one day I'll do it, I was animating it but my phone broke so AAAAAAAAAAA

Nack:

This Fang follows the majority of the events from Archie comics, however it has some changes!! Nack's family was part of the Royal family where obviously Nack suffered from a kind of psychologic pression caused by his parents of being the best in everything, and that made Nack end up as someone very paranoid when it comes of committing errors and giving him a very self destructive vision of himself, Nack kinda went against his parents because of the pression, and he decided to enter in a bounty hunter life, until his adulthood, when he accepts his parents offer to clear his criminal record and live a "normal" life, what ends up with him isolating himself

Asir:

Yea, this little guy originated Andy :3 he's a Fang that I've created in 2014, all of his backstories are:

2014: originally he were a Fang from another dimension, where he is one of the main villains that fights against another sonic series corresponding heroes (considering that in the time I thought that putting hair on a sonic png was considered as making a new OC XD)

So after some more adventures he decides to explore new universes until he finds the original universe

2015: he's apparently the younger brother from Fang and Nic, his change of color is because he was beaten up (I had 10 in the time I wrote this :'3) and in that time he was extremely evil, however after some time he turned to good XD

Another lores that I remember: at the time when I wrote comics (unfortunately I can't show because my parents threw it away :c) he was a character extremely unlucky and misfortunate XD he's also had a younger brother called "Léu", who he had a rivality with (Léu was on the side of the heroes and Asir was on the side of the villains), the most recent story was related to racism against weasels (it was 2018 and I didn't knew that Fang wasn't a weasel) about how it had some kind of racism against weasels because of the "representative" being a villain

(Asir and Andy are NOT the same character, it means that Andy is not an alternative version of Fang!!)

And that's what I can remember of him (9 YEARS OF HISTORY WITH HIM HHHHHHH)

Aaannd yep, that's it (poor hmmmzin that had to translate everything aaaaaaa TwT)

[nonbinary-sticks-the-badger]

the OFFICIAL sonatchet propaganda post from the REAL ceo of sonatchet

are you a fan of sonic the hedgehog? perhaps ratchet and clank is more your style? or maybe you like both? well, have I got the ship for you.

now, why should YOU ship sonatchet? it's simple: the franchises have so much in common. now, sonic fans, when i say, an anthropomorphic creature has to stop the evil capitalist baddie from taking over the world with his little buddy, smart as a whistle. along the way, he grinds rails, he follows his own path, not exactly good, but certainly heroic. he does this all with an absolutely brilliant soundtrack. and yeah, maybe the more recent games haven't been so good, writing and gameplay-wise, but hey, we're getting back on track.

what i have just described to you is ratchet and clank. initially created a year after everyone's golden child of sonic games, sa2, by ex-members of sonic team, ratchet and clank has been a vital part of my upbringing, more so than sonic has. for me, sonic is a more recent thing. i've been a fan since i was 5. when did i become a fan of r&c, you may ask? well, my first memory is my dad playing it in front of me, to give you an idea. i couldn't walk or speak properly, sat in a high chair, presumably eating soggy toast, one half marmite and the other of bovril. but, by that point, i was used to the experience - i can't even remember the first time i watched him play.

for any sonic fans who havent yet got the gist, imagine shadow the hedgehog (2005) with good writing that sounds like how actual people speak and less goofy weapons. edginess for the sake of humour rather than for edginess. oh also there is actual genocide in r&c1 quick heads up.

so, r&c fans, with it being far more mainstream, you're probably well aware of the overlap between the two franchises. hell, most of you reading probably are sonic fans. so, of course, i probably wont have to explain sonic in ratchet and clank terms. i want to but i wont. at the end of the day, all you need to know is that sonic is a hedgehog who runs fast and is kinda like ratchet.

THE SIMILARITIES

quickfire round! if it's in blue, it's headcanon, if it's plain text, it's canon!

transmasc and bi

somewhat morally grey, however definitely on the good side and classes themself as a hero

has a younger brother-figure/best friend who's good with electronics and can let him fly

has to fight robots

the biggest baddie is usually capitalism or actual cosmic horrors

space is vaguely related

sci fi

both quite calm and laid back but can get very serious and angry if you let them

adventurous travellers

fairly flirty but never seem to settle down (aroace reference?)

from what ive heard stc sonic is basically slightly angrier 2002 ratchet (i havent read stc though)

both almost the exact same age, with ratchet being 14-16, depending on which game, and sonic being 15

THE DIFFERENCES

ratchet LOVES weapons, with the vast arsenal being one of the main selling points of r&c1/sonic is known for spin dash

ratchet canonically has negative rizz (though i believe has had canon love interests iirc?)/sonic is attractive to almost everyone

ratchet has explored multiple galaxies/sonic has only explored a single planet and the odd space station

sonic is probably more likely to do the right thing

sonic is a giant environmentalist, literally has befriended nature/ratchet cares more about saving people than planets, unless it's an actual planet blowing up. like, the planet will cease to exist from quark's super laser piss or something

all of this ties together to create the wonderful ship we call sonatchet, a real and true yearning across franchises. truly, god made them in different game studios because he knew they would be unstoppable as canon lovers.

for any sonic fans wanting a really good comparison, id say the best i can give you is sonadow with a sonknux dynamic? though, not entirely. obviously, if there were a comparable ship, i wouldn't bother tagging in another guy from a completely seperate franchise, so please, please, understand the joys of sonatchet.

[krafterwrites]

All The Sonic Cafe Foods

Because I can’t find a concrete source that lists every single food from the Sonic 25th Anniversary Cafe, I’m going to list all the foods I can find here (And talk about them a bit I guess)

Sonic Chili Dog

I don’t like hot dogs or chili but it looks decent, and the onion rings with the leafy greens seem pretty nice

Shadow Burger

Not going to lie I would genuinely eat this. The black bun looks a bit weird but I love burgers, and it would be really funny to eat a slice of cheese that has a render of Shadow printed on it

Eggman Takoyaki

This looks really good, it’s probably one of the most appetizing things on the menu. I’ve never had Takoyaki before, but it looks sooo good here, so I’m sure I would love it

Imagawa-yaki

This is basically just a pancake filled with sweet red bean paste, which sounds pretty good. I also really like the illustrations on them, they look very nice

Classic Team Sonic Pancakes

This is a pretty good one, it’s three pancakes that have Team Sonic printed on them with maple syrup, butter, and I think cream with raspberry? It’s pretty simple, but still good

Sundae Supreme

This is definitely the best item on the entire menu. This looks soooo good. If I had amnesia and didn’t remember my name, I would name myself after this too, because it looks amazing

Triple S Cafe Drinks

Sonic’s drink is a latte, Shadow’s drink is cocoa, and Silver’s drink is mocha. I don’t drink cafe drinks, but apparently a mocha is a chocolate drink, so that sounds pretty nice

Tails’ Hot Lemonade

I’ve never heard of hot lemonade before, but it probably isn’t as good as cold lemonade. I would try it at least once though, because it does sound interesting

Amy, Knuckles, And Chao Sodas

Amy’s soda is peach flavored (The description also says that if you drink it, your girl power will improve and you might become like Amy, so I suppose they put estrogen in the soda), Knuckles’ soda is strawberry flavored, and the Chao soda didn’t have a flavor listed so I’m guessing it’s just blue flavored. All these sodas also look like they have a scoop of vanilla ice cream in them, which is a nice extra

Eggman Omurice

This looks a tiny bit gross because of the sauce, but honestly it doesn’t seem that bad. I like eggs and rice, so I would probably enjoy this if I got it. The veggies are a bit random though, they could have just done bell peppers and it would have gone with the eggs and rice better

Another Chili Dog

This looks like a different dish from the one at the top of this list, and it looks a bit better than it too. The sign is a nice touch, the onion rings look more normal, and there’s more veggies on the side

Shadow Curry

Like the omurice, this looks a bit weird, but I would eat it if I was given the opportunity since curry and rice is delicious. Once again though, the veggies are just kind of random, although they do have a bell pepper this time around (Or it could be a weirdly shaped tomato wedge). They also have what looks like fried... something, I genuinely cannot tell in the slightest. Also they should have made Blaze Curry instead, it would’ve been more fitting

Tails Carbonara

Okay, this one is a little bit unappetizing even to me. Just a little bit though. It’s entirely because of the slice of cheese they printed Tails on, cheese on pasta is nice, but an uncut slice of it draped over wet noodles and sauce is not. I would still eat this though, maybe because my standards for food are low

Green Hill Roll Cake

This one looks nice, it’s chocolate cake with green frosting and some sort of cream filling, as well as a few pieces of assorted fruit. I’m not much of a fruit person, but this still looks tasty

Amy’s Homemade Pink Cake

This is probably the best looking desert (Aside from the Sundae Supreme of course), I can’t tell precisely what all of it would taste like just from looking at it, but I’m sure it would be enjoyable

Tails’ Lab Experiment Solution

This looks like another soda, although I can’t really tell what flavor it is by looking at it, if I had to guess I’d say it’s orange. I also don’t know what’s up with the stuff in the cup. I think I vaguely remember having sugar crystals at a restaurant one time that looked like these and fizzed in my mouth, so maybe you’re supposed to add those things to the soda to make it extra fizzy/sweet?

Silver’s ESP Soda

I really want to drink this one. It looks like it’s made up of clear soda, blue sorbet (Which I almost mistook for cotton candy the first time I saw this image because it looks so light) and green jello just kind of sitting there at the bottom. I don’t know what you’re supposed to do with it, maybe slurp it up like boba? Or just eat it once you’ve drank all the soda, I guess

Sticks’ Jungle Juice

Another soda drink with ice cream! I don’t know what flavor this is for sure, but based on the fact that it’s orange and it was described as wild and tropical, I’m going to say it’s mango soda. No clue what the icre cream is, but I do love the little boomerang that’s stuck into it

Knuckles’ Power Drink

Knuckles gets two drinks, and this one is basically a red slurpee with vanilla ice cream, which actually sounds really nice. It’s probably cherry flavor, although it could be strawberry or even watermelon

Sonic Latte

Not much to say about this one, it’s just a latte with Classic Sonic’s face on it

Infinite’s Jello Dessert

This one looks tasty, mostly because of its great presentation. I’m not sure what flavor the jello inside or outside the cup is, but I’m going to go with strawberry and bitter cherry respectively. It also looks like there’s some whipped cream in addition to the fruit and mint sprig (I think? It could be something else but it’s probably mint), which would all pair nicely with fruit jello

Knuckles Boba

That’s right, Knuckles has ANOTHER drink. He has three drinks. The site that I’m using for this last series of images (Which started with the Infinite Jello Dessert) doesn’t have any descriptions, so I just have to guess from here on out. I really have no clue what the drink could be, and even less clue on what the boba taste like since I’ve never had boba before. My best guess for the drink is peach flavored soda or possibly sweet tea, but I’m completely stumped on the boba pearls

Eggman Scotch Eggs

This one doesn’t look too bad (Except for the watery and slimy looking meat sauce), the eggs, meat, and casing all look pretty nice. Even as I was typing this, I thought the mark on the right egg was some seaweed or something, but I just realized that it’s the Eggman Empire logo. I may be stupid. Anyways, I still don’t get why they put broccoli and cauliflower with all of Eggman’s meals. Broccoli does not go with scotch eggs, or eggs in general

Cat Rookie Drink

This is one of the best looking drinks, it looks super appealing. The drink itself looks like strawberry milk with ice, and you also get whipped cream and sprinkles to go with it. This is definitely an extremely sweet drink, which I really like

Bird Rookie Drink

This one also looks really good, entirely due to its neon green coloring that looks straight out of Shadow’s tube. We have a clearer view of the sugar crystals that went with Tails’ drink, which fit this drink pretty well, since making it even fizzier adds to its forbidden science liquid vibe. I think there could be boba pearls or something like that at the bottom, but it’s hard to tell, and I have no clue what they would taste like if they actually are there

Shadow’s Root Beer Float

This is a super good drink, it’s a root beer float with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and two cherries. I guess it could be coke, but it’s way more likely than it’s root beer. It doesn’t have much to do with Shadow, the last drink probably would have fit him better since it looks like the liquid he was birthed in, but now that I think about it Shadow probably would enjoy a good root beer float

Chaos’ Soda

Now this is a drink! It’s so blue and refreshing looking, I want to slurp this up right now. I don’t know for sure what it’s flavored like, probably blue raspberry, but I know it has to taste amazing based on how good it looks

Classic Sonic’s Boba Drink

This one is also a delicious looking cool blue that makes me want to down the whole glass, but like the battery acid/Shadow’s nutrient fluid drink, it has some mystery boba pearls (I think?) in it too. Like I said last time, I have no clue what these would taste like, but they can’t be that bad if they’re soaking in such a pretty liquid

Sonic’s... Something

I’m going to level with you, I do not know what this is. It just looks like a patty of rice with onion rings, veggies, and a cutout of Sonic on it. Maybe that’s what it actually is. Honestly that wouldn’t be too bad since rice and onion rings are tasty, but it would be a very strange dish to serve if that’s really it, which is why I think I’m missing something here. Let me know what you think this is if you have any theories

Tails’ Udon

This looks gross and tasty at the same time. I love udon noodles, and the chives really add to it, but the omelette looks very soggy and wet, which is gross. At least, I think that’s an omelette. It could be fried meat or something, which would make this dish really good, since fried meat and noodles are a killer combo. Also, carrot stars. I didn’t mention them on any of the foods before because they were just a little garnish, but they’re cool! I wouldn’t eat them with the dish though, carrot wouldn’t go well with most of the dishes I’ve listed

Gadget’s Pancakes

This is a great pancake meal, it puts the one with Team Sonic on it to shame. There’s two pancakes (One with Gadget printed on it), maple syrup, sprinkles, whipped cream, fruit and mint, and a chocolate pen thingy. I think the chocolate pen thingy either has chocolate liquid in it or is meant to be broken up and put onto the pancake like chocolate chips. Either way, this is a spectacular desert/breakfast, and I really wish I could try it

And with that, we’re done! I suppose there could be foods out there that I missed, considering I had to scour several unofficial sources to find all this, but I’m pretty sure I got them all. If you got this far, thanks for reading! I’m glad you liked it, because typing all this hurt my finger

[descendant-of-truth]

For anyone confused about the canon status of any given Sonic game, I've put together what's hopefully a helpful chart breaking it down! Worth noting is that every single TV and comic series exists in its own canon as well, so they would be in the "AU Territory" section.

Detailed descriptions of the games in each section and how they fit into canon are beneath the cut - but they do contain spoilers if you're concerned about that at all.

Universally Agreed Canon: Sonic 1, CD, 2, 3 & Knuckles, Adventure, Adventure 2, Heroes, Sonic and the Secret Rings, Sonic and the Black Knight, Unleashed, Colors, Generations, Lost World, and Sonic Forces

Pretty straightforward; these are most of the main console releases, and so people treat them as more definitively canon than anything else. I feel like I remember there being a bit of debate about Secret Rings and Black Knight, but with the former being clearly referenced in Generations, it's safe to assume the latter happened as well.

This post is being written before Sonic Frontiers releases, but it's safe to say that'll be in this section, too.

Canon but in a confusing way due to storytelling: Sonic Rush, Rush Adventure, Shadow the Hedgehog, Sonic 06, Rivals, Rivals 2, and Sonic Mania

So, this is where it gets weird. Nothing about the Rush games is weird on their own, but them being the origin story for Blaze and Eggman Nega creates major complications for Sonic 06 and the Rivals games. Those two characters are cited as being from an alternate dimension, but in 06, Blaze is simply there in the future with no indication given as to whether this is the same Blaze from Rush or not. And in the Rivals games, Eggman Nega is explicitly said to be from the future instead, now.

However, you can't write the Rivals games off as being non-canon because they're the only instance of Silver being reintroduced to the rest of the cast. And why did he need to be reintroduced? Because of Sonic 06, whose entire plot gets undone at the end of the game.

But you also can't say that 06 isn't canon because it gets undone, because Crisis City - a stage that is dependent on 06 events to exist - is in Sonic Generations, a game all about exploring Sonic's past.

Shadow the Hedgehog is a game with multiple branching paths, but it does have a True Ending that... is basically just the ending and shows none of the steps any of the characters took to get there. So technically, we have no idea what truly happened between the start and end of that game, and so information that was true in one route and not another is made even more ambiguous.

Sonic Mania has to be canon because in the true ending, Sonic is whisked away to be "Classic Sonic" in Forces. However, Tails recognizes Classic Sonic as being "that Sonic from another dimension," which can only refer to his appearance in Generations, but... they were very clearly dealing with time travel in that game, not dimension hopping.

Does this mean all Sonic games pre-Adventure are now retconned into another dimension? Possibly, but fans collectively don't like that which is why I put all those games in the "Universally Agreed Canon" section.

Spinoff, but doesn't contradict canon much: Knuckles' Chaotix, Sonic Blast, 3D Blast, Sonic R, Tails Adventure, Tails' Sky Patrol, Shuffle, Riders, Riders: Zero Gravity, Free Riders, Team Sonic Racing, Spinball, SegaSonic the Hedgehog, Triple Trouble, Labyrinth, Sonic Chaos, and Sonic the Fighters

These are basically "take it or leave it" when it comes to canon. Sometimes the setting seems more obviously different from the mainline games, but not so much that you couldn't justify them being in the same world.

Handheld adaptation that changes the script so we assume the console version is the true canon: Sonic Colors, Generations, and the Mega Drive games

I couldn't actually find the icons for all the Mega Drive games, but this category is pretty much what it sounds like. The handheld versions of Sonic 1, 2, etc. didn't have scripts though, so what changes is more on-screen events and level design.

People still use these titles as reference for characterization, though; especially Colors, which had a much wider cast of characters than its console counterpart.

Wanted to be canon but got rejected: Sonic Chronicles: the Dark Brotherhood, Sonic 4 episodes 1 and 2

Chronicles pulls from a lot of pre-established lore in order to tell its story, so I believe it was written with the intention of being canon. It even ended on a sequel hook, but the game was so poorly received that no mention of its lore additions have come up ever since, and without a conclusion, it's safe to say it's non-canon now.

Sonic 4 was more obviously marketed as a follow-up to Sonic 3 & Knuckles, and its events do work under that premise from what I can tell. It was originally meant to have more episodes, but like Chronicles, its reception led to the project being scrapped and we have no particular reason to assume it's canon anymore.

AU Territory: Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine, Sonic's Schoolhouse, and the three Sonic Boom games (Rise of Lyric, Shattered Crystal, and Fire & Ice)

You could make the argument that there's nothing saying Sonic didn't run a schoolhouse at some point, but I think it's safe to say they weren't too concerned about this being canon at all.

Mean Bean is a glorified recolor of Puyo Puyo, and it has more in common with the cartoon Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog than anything else.

Sonic Boom is its own thing entirely, but oddly enough the games seem to be AUs of each other as well? Fire & Ice could reasonably be a sequel to either one (Shattered Crystal more likely due to being on the same console), but there's no way the other two can coexist in the same universe together. It's also unclear which, if any, of these games are canon to the TV show.

Genuinely don't know what the consensus on these is: The three Sonic Advance games, and Sonic Battle

I'm personally unfamiliar with the plot of Advance 3 especially, but I do know that it introduces a new(?) character that's related to events in Battle, and they haven't appeared in a game since. No other game references the events of Battle, either.

But it's also the series of games that formally introduced Cream to the other characters, so that means it has to be canon, right? I don't know, but I think 4 out of 53+ games is an alright number to not know how to place.

This ended up being a lot to write, but hopefully it makes sense! I didn't want to go too deep into the stories themselves or the lore details because that would take way too long, and the goal here was to show more how they fit together rather than what specifically happens in them.