#Anti Sega Fandom

[plumsaffron]

But seriously, people be like I hate or don't forgive what Elise said in the last story. HER CHARACTER IS RUINED! TERRIBLY WRITTEN! I guess 1 sentence kills them all. Ugh... Like do you really realize what happens to her if she blow's out The Flame of Hope? Gezz (blowing out The Flame of Hope...) (Man... That's despairing if you think about it)

Like asking a person stuck in the hour glass for like uh 17 years, who finally broke free and possesses the ability to actually take control of their life now; To just return back into the hour glass and patch it back to the original state.

And that brings me to final thing (I said in a previous post). That Elise unhappened, so why are you still upset again? And again circumstances are a thing.

[scourgethehedgehogshrine]

You seem to like scourge the hedgehog a lot (why do you like scourge so much?

Ah, this is a question that I'll love awnsering! /srs

I love Scourge for many reasons, but I guess one of the main reasons is the fact that I can relate to him. I can sympathise, see myself in him. I look at Scourge and I just see myself, only, in a different universe — And it's not even personality wise, it's backstory wise, too.

I had a terrible childhood and I'm still experiencing said childhood(considering I am still a child). My father wasn't the best, and he still isn't. He, at least in my point of view neglected me for ages. He never owned up to his responsibilities, and I ended up suffering the consequences to his actions because of that. Scourge is just like that. He too had a bad father, a father who didn't even care to look at him; he was neglected just like me.

His needs were non existent just like mine, he got so used to hunger that it felt like he was never hungry. That's what I went through, and that's what I'm still going through. To see such a character in a franchise for kids where most of the characters have a good life, it feels refreshing.

Because finally, I can relate to someone. Don't get me wrong, I love Sonic and I love the characters in it, but there are times where I feel left out because they all have such.. Well, perfect lives. Even the characters who went through hell and back, they learnt and moved on from their mistakes. But then all of a sudden, there's a character who still hasn't. A character who instead of having flaws, IS the flaw.

And that character was Scourge. A character with an ego, a character who suffered so much they chose to continue going down their path even though it's not a good one.

A character just like me.

But yeah, that's why I like Scourge, because in other ways, I am Scourge. Hope this helped!! Sorry if this was long btw, lmfao, I love to ramble a lot :))

[exposingtheidiocy]

This is your brain after several years of bootlicking SEGA:

You're racist because you *checks notes* don't like Sonic Forces, got it!

Do I even need to say anything? The simple fact that someone can conflate criticism of a product with racism is beyond sad. And by this person's logic, they're racist against Westerners!

[fumagus]

Honestly in regard to last post, this is why I'm sometimes like "Don't even pirate it" even if I'm pro-piracy. I only save piracy for media that's literally difficult to find or not even available in my native language (especially talking about older anime before it went mainstream or 30-year-old games for the PS1 or SNES that have never been ported or translated), or is heavily censored (particularly the dumb shit they used to do with 4kids shows or with spongebob skipping episodes and scenes for overdone reasons), or is difficult to watch in one place (such as the Pokemon series, which is spread out across too many platforms to count, or, better yet, if you want to watch it subbed).

This is also why I want to tell people to not even pirate things made by nasty ideals such as being anti-Palestine, transphobic, antisemitic, anti-Black, and what have you. Or if you actually want to strike against the shows due to workplace abuse, anti-consumer-friendliness, or use of AI.

Because at the end of the day, these large platforms and their shows still win in away by taking your time away from smaller producers who may benefit from you watching their show instead of something heavily advertised by Netflix, even if you're still doing it for free. These companies care just as much about making money as much as they are trying to leave a cultural footprint. And pirating the most recent season of Stranger Things or the latest superhero movie, and then talking about it might as well be free advertising to them, in regards to others who don't know how to pirate, don't want to risk pirating, or already have a Netflix they don't care about cancelling. Even if these companies can and will stop pirates of their favorite shows and shit on their fans.

Even if you aren't paying these disgusting corporations with your money, you're still paying with your time.

So instead consider choosing to watch an obscure movie or TV show made by or featuring minorities vs a more popular one featuring or made by cishet, abled, white bigots or push tired tropes in regard to minorities.

Or choosing an obscure show or video game that's obviously a labor of love by a very small group of people vs a more popular, overfunded one that was either the product of crunch or AI to cut corners.

Or choosing a more obscure show and movie on youtube or game on Itchio that's free, if not consumer-friendly, to begin with vs more popular, overfunded media where you're only getting it for free by pirating it.

[flightyalrighty]

Everything you said about the Sonic movies is true and you're so real for it. I remember getting to that one part in the Knuckles show and turning it off right after because... what the hell LMFAO??

And like, I'm sure we all expect Sonic and his friends to not be 100% themselves in the movies, and I know he's supposed to be more of a kid, but them removing the core part of anti-authority is just... boring. Where is the sauce. Where is the Sonic?!

That's a part I like about your comic so far btw. Like, yes, G.U.N. SEEMED "friendly" at first, but secretly having inhibitor cuffs ready for Shadow? How these G.U.N. soldiers arresting them are totally okay with insulting him, and likely represent many more in the organization? Chef's kiss. Amazing work. BRAVO! So much shared with so little effort. I hope you're already proud of what you've written because it's so refreshing (and also just thank you for speaking up about the problematic aspects of the filmverse because its hard to find sometimes)! ❤️

You're speaking to my heart you know that? Thank you very much for this ask. Was too wiped out after work yesterday to answer it, but now that I am, I'd like to give you a big ol "YAAAAAAY" because goddamn, you're right. Where IS the sauce. Where IS the Sonic.

I think what you said at the end, "thank you for speaking up about the problematic aspects of the filmverse because its hard to find sometimes," is pretty sad. It makes me sad to think about the reasons why that might be besides general fandom nonsense.

I think that, because of that era older Sonic fans have been through in which there were a ton of youtubers and game journalists and stuff dumping a buncha bad faith criticisms into the internet about Sonic and influencing Sega/Sonic Team to change Sonic for THEIR sake, we've kinda collectively become this terrified, shaking little dog when it comes to actual GENUINE criticism regarding anything to do with this series. The Sonic fandom, from what I've seen since being here (2003) has this slight toxic positivity aspect to it. Slight.

This is pretty apparent when it comes to the Sonic movies, which are okay at best, but if anyone says this then a bunch of people are going to come marching into your inbox or comments making up a bunch of excuses as to why it's actually totally fine that there's no fleshed out women in three movies and a tv show. As one person once said to me: "Enjoy the boys and stop complaining about the girls"

Stop complaining? We complain all the time about games, why do the movies get a pass?

Well! Anyway! Thank you for reading Infested! Sonic the Hedgehog is braver than any G.U.N. soldier! Sorry for rambling!

[project-sekai-facts]

Here's a fun little Project Sekai fact! Almost all of your faves have appropriated other cultures as costumes and some have even done blackface. If you're supporting this game and refusing to make a meaningful statement about it beyond "b-b-but i said it was bad! 🥺", you are fucking racist.

You're either anti-racist, or you're a pro-seka blog. Choose one. You can't be both.

Basically everything is problematic and actually I have criticised the cultural appropriation and racism present in the game multiple times, at no point have I refused to acknowledge it (and you’re not the first person to send an anon in). You can play the game and be anti-racist actually it’s called being critical of the media you consume and having social awareness, we’ve been over this. Everything is problematic you probably like problematic media too.

Yeah the game did revival my dream and that was fucking racist, the costumes are stereotypical and they didn’t research into any specifc native culture they just wanted to make something that would get them money. it’s not princess mononoke put the trained costumes next to each other, the trained costumes are heavily stylised to look "pretty and fashionable" and forego accuracy. I’m aware of that, I’ve said this before multiple times but you wouldn’t know that because you just randomly came here to send me this message.

Then there's also the kamikou sports fes set. Luka's qipao is very obviously altered for the sake of fanservice which is just so wrong, do not sexualise other cultures for money. Rui's I think is meant to be some sort of military hanfu? But quite stylised, which again for someone outside the original culture to stylise a traditional outfit just is a no-go because you will probably get things wrong. Mizuki's outfit seems to be based on Qi-lolita and there's a whole thing surrounding that about whether you should wear it if you aren't chinese.

and then there's the island panic cards which are both orientalist. yes, not just the boys, the girls too. the outfits aren't based on any specific culture and just mishmash different swana and south asian cultures and stereotypes together to make something that looks "exotic".

If you notice a recurring thing is that all of these are in some way wxs related, and wonder why that is, it’s because they’re the theatre unit. They wear costumes, these are just cultures being appropriated as stage outfits, because the devs don’t care they just want a quick bit of money.

all of these are horribly common in idol games and gacha games, not just project sekai, and it's important to recognise the problems rather than just blindly consuming it. If it makes money, devs will continue to include ca, recognise that.

and yeah puchiseka episode 6 happened at no point have i ever denied that. it should have never happened but it did and at the very least the fandom was able to rally together and get sega to take it down. even after they did that sega and clpl should still be held accountable for even letting it be released. while they didn't make the episode, that was entirely handled by an external company (who should also be held accountable for their actions - we're never getting a second season for a reason), sega still released it knowing full well the contents. it wasn't ganguro like people said it was extremely clearly based on a very racist and crude interpretation of african tribes, and for part of a joke no less. It was disgusting. And it’s not ganguro like how people defend it; ganguro is part of the gyaru subculture and the outfits in that episode were not that. there is no defence for what happened. at the very least, it was impressive that the fandom called out the episode and actually got staff to listen and learn. that doesn't happen in other games, and we managed to do it again with rmd. the fanbase is calling the game out and actually educating staff. It’s just critical consumption - fans of the media were able to recognise that the episode was racist and correctly called out management with enough of a voice to make staff correct their mistakes. They apologised, it’s not my apology to accept, and I still hold them accountable for the fact it even happened.

This probably all makes me sound like a white saviour, and I don’t want to speak over the people affected by this, but that’s what you wanted, isn’t it? You probably have me blocked already and never followed me in the first place, but if you really wanted to call out racism, then maybe you should’ve sent this to blogs that do turn a blind eye to the flaws in this game, not one that calls them out. Why just me? Was it because of the username, because you’re not the first person to make that quip. I know you won’t see this anon, but a word of advice. Most media is problematic one way or another, you can enjoy something but still be aware of and acknowledge its problems. Project sekai is not made with the intent of encouraging or funding harmful behaviour, yet it still includes some harmful content. Call it out, educate staff and tell them not to do it again, they listened once they can do it again.

[dilfsonic]

alright i went through your entire #service animal au tag and i just wanna say that

super interested in exploring complicated societal and relationship dynamics, both negative and positive ones

the crazy thing about this au is that is could be done so so so wrong if made by someone who doesn't have the right amount of emotional / interpersonal / relationship intelligence or even just societal awareness but even before i read your explanation on Maria and Shadow's bond i could tell you were Very Aware of your dynamics and that's so cool

i had no idea SEGA personally didn't want us to draw mobians in pants before reading through your tag and i find that mandate so funny what the heck >u>

Oh gosh I appreciate this message so much!! It feels good to have the dynamics acknowledged like that, I certainly do try to communicate them as well as I can because the relationships are the heart of the story, as there really is no fast and hard plot to drive it along. I really like exploring relationships that I don’t see commonly in the fandom, and a strained Shadow/Maria bond is certainly not one you see often. Not only that, but a fully fledged relationship between Sonic and Maria too in the most elaborate “what if” I’ve ever explored with them LOL.

It’s really funny that Sega is so anti-pants but im giving them a reason to wear clothes HAHA.

Speaking of pants and societal relationships, Sonic wears shorts bc Mobians are prescribed to wearing covering clothing in a human-run world, even if they go without them when they’re in Mobian-only spaces. Shadow wears his vests/jacket and shoes, but distinctly does not wear other forms of clothing on his body, because even by Mobian standards he’s closer to property than the standard civilian. It’s like seeing dogs out and about; even though we like putting them in clothes, you aren’t offended to see a dog wearing nothing because they don’t need them. That’s the general sentiment regarding Shadow’s clothing situation.

Thank you again for this lovely message!

[drunkin-kong-donic]

Hey, I just gotta say...

It's ok if you ship Vecpio. Really. Everyone knows I do. I don't try to hide it.

From what I've seen, new fans automatically ship them until some 'anti' pops up with the tell tale 'espio is 16 and vector is 20.' bullshit. BUT GUESS WHAT.... Espio isn't actually 16, and Vector isn't actually 20. I can tell you right now, no Vecpio fan ships them at those ages or ever have. Everyone can agree that's MESSED UP. Same with a 20 year old raising a 16 year old as their own kid. They're peers. Can't everyone at least agree on that? Platonically or not. (listen, we can all go on for ages about the characterization of each of these characters, but I digress. I'm trying to keep this short) For as long as those two existed, they were never written as their listed ages, which is why recently, Sega officially got rid of those ages and removed them from Sonic Channel. (remember, the wiki's are fan run) Espio and Vector have always been on equal grounds in the Chaotix, and just because Vector is the leader, doesn't mean Espio's any lower in status. With their personalities, its just why they click so well. Vector is naturally a leader, and Espio's a natural follower given his ninja background. Throw a rambunctious bee in the mix for them to take care of and you got a perfect found family. What's to hate? (again, platonic or the two of them as Charmy's guardians) People in fandoms NEED to stop letting other's force their headcanons onto others And if you don't ship Vecpio, that's fine too. Block it, mute it! Just like any other pairing you're not into. But don't go around to OTHER people and tell them what they can and can't do. And call them 'proship' like its a bad thing or say they're liking a pedo ship with no basis besides the intention to scare them onto your side with that word. (also plz look up the actual definition of proship i beg u) Trust me, I'm old enough to know that as soon as you stop caring about what other people think, life'll be so much easier on ya and you'll have a lot more fun in a fandom. I promise. UNTIL THEN....

IT'S OK to ship Vecpio and not feel bad about it. Don't let other people bully you away from having fun about a harmless pairing in a fandom. Everyone can stay in their own lane and live their lives peachy keen like. SssssEEYA!

[ninjapotatohead]

Honestly, with Graff's post, even if said info reaches most of the fandom's esrs, everyone is just gonna zero in on the "we had very little say" part and use it to boost their anti-sega-of-japan bias by painting it as even more of a soulless faceless corporation who doesn't get their own characters and uses all the "muh mandates" to stifle creativity of the writers, even the "bad" ones.

It's always a double-edged sword with Sonic fans, ain't it?

[crusherthedoctor]

I dont understand the argument fans were silence when other Sonic writers were bullied online, what is your point? It just seems like a whataboutism. Stanley is not just a Sonic fan, she's a friend of Flynn, they work together and she was tagged on several weird anti Flynn tweets so it makes sense for her to call it out

Except it's not just Stanley. Her, Flynn, and several others among the IDW crew have waved the finger within the same period of time, in a way that can easily be seen as coordinated. This is also the same group that openly encouraged Yardley's scat edit of Uekawa's Shadow, so for them to complain about the rest of us not being mature and respectful is an extreme lack of self-awareness on their part.

And I wouldn't be so certain about Flynn and Stanley being close buddies. They can say as much publicly, but given how often their writing in the comic clashes with and contradicts each other, which includes how their own characters are portrayed, it comes off like a pissing contest between the two. Which doesn't strike me as the sort of thing that would continue happening between two good friends with no bad blood between them.

My point is that the fandom at large - not just certain popular writers, the majority of the community in general - are so quick and eager to come rushing to Flynn and Co's defense the moment an unnecessary remark is made about them, yet when Pontaff received the very worst the fandom has to offer for a whole decade (and this still hasn't stopped BTW), and people involved with SEGA continue to be dogpiled on for reasons that aren't even their own fault half the time, there's much less of a public outcry. These aren't hard to find either, they tend to get spread around very quickly. Half the time, it's actively cheered on.

I have a low tolerance for hypocrites.

[bat-fan-sa]

SonAmy: Talk of Canon & Canon Expectations in Fandom

I understand that not everyone likes or supports SonAmy. I understand that there are plenty of annoying, obsessive shippers out there who turn people away from the ship entirely. I get why so many antis are sick of seeing SonAmy, especially with there being more of a focus on the ship in recent years, both in the fandom and in the franchise itself.

And as a SonAmy shipper, I’m fine with that because what others think won’t change my own enjoyment of the pairing. Toxic shippers and toxic antis won’t make me stop from shipping the two together regardless.

But what I do take issue with are those antis who still persist with the idea that SonAmy has no canon basis to it and that Sonic doesn’t have any romantic feelings towards Amy. Going further by using the whole, “It’ll never be official/canon, so stop shipping it.”

The thing with that is, I’m fully aware that Sega is never going to make SonAmy “official.” By official, I mean, Sonic and Amy are never going to openly confess to one another (on screen) and start dating. Sonic and Amy are never going to be a canon couple or get married.

Because the Sonic franchise does not progress that way. It’s known for sticking to the status quo when it comes to character relationships, and one of the biggest selling points for Amy and Sonic’s dynamic is that Amy openly loves Sonic and pursues him, and Sonic is too shy to openly admit his feelings for Amy, focusing more on freedom and stopping Eggman.

Sonic is a franchise that doesn’t focus too heavily on romance, but there has been romance present in the games, shows, and other spinoff series. And unlike what many have claimed, Sonic has been shown to return Amy’s feelings, he just isn’t as open about them as she is towards her own feelings.

Example 1: Sonic X (produced by TMS Entertainment, but was in partnership and oversaw by Sega & the Sonic Team)

Was full of moments that were heavily coded as romantic, from Amy giving the seashell bracelet as a gift and Sonic later on wearing it and saving her from drowning to the scene where they fall into the hay and just relax together in that moment, Sonic even letting her blow some stray hay out of his ear.

This specific scene also come to mind because it is heavily, heavily romantic coded. From the lighting to the positioning, to Sonic being the one who gifts Amy a white rose (which is typically used at weddings) after Amy has a heartfelt confession and asks him to just tell her he loves her.

Example 2: Sonic Unleashed

When Sonic is turned into a werehog and Amy spots him and comes rushing over, he immediately becomes insecure about the way he looks and runs away. He doesn’t want Amy to see him in such a state and fears scaring her away.

But the real indicator of any romantic feelings shown in the game is the fact the player is given the option to accept Amy’s date proposal or not.

If Sonic doesn’t have any feelings towards her, then why would that even be an option in the first place? If Sega never intended for Sonic to ever return Amy’s feelings, then he wouldn’t agree to a date, nor would the player be given the option.

Example 3: “Sonic is too shy to confess.”

Says right there on the tin. Sega was asked and they answered with this. And if this is supposedly fake, wouldn’t have Sega caught wind of this and cleared things up as to prevent any misunderstanding?

I could also go into other examples, such as the recent IDW comics (not Archie) or Sonic Boom, but I’ve already made my point and this is already getting quite long (sorry).

While, yes, there’s never been a concrete moment where Sonic proclaimed, “I love Amy Rose!” in the games or spinoffs, there’s plenty examples of subtle moments indicating that Sonic has some feelings towards Amy. Sega has had many romantic moments shared between the two where Sonic didn’t run away or reject Amy’s advances, sometimes openly reciprocating or initiating them (albeit not as eccentric as Amy does in comparison).

So, the argument about whether SonAmy is “canon” or “official” has always been a pointless one to me because there’s already evidence that the two have some level of romantic feelings towards each other. Sega has made it rather clear that SonAmy is a thing.

But they’ve also made it clear that they have zero plans to ever have the two officially date or marry in the games or spinoffs.

This does not mean that SonAmy isn’t canon; it just means that the franchise isn’t going to risk making any major decisions that will change the already pre-established status quo. So, in a way, yes, SonAmy is not “official” in the most canon-sense of the word.

But none of that even matters when it comes to shipping, because shipping has never been about whether or not characters end up dating or married in canon. People ship crack and uncanon pairings all the time, sometimes with characters who’ve never even met or interacted before. Even if SonAmy didn’t have any canon basis to it, people would still be shipping them because canon has nothing to do with shipping.

I guess what I’m trying to say is, antis claiming that SonAmy isn’t canon based solely on them not officially dating or being married, while also ignoring the evidence that proves they share mutual feelings towards one another, has always felt like an inconsequential point to me.

It’s just an outdated way to look at shipping.

[plumsaffron]

Shadow 2005 was not badly executed. Some of you Sonic related or Shadow Fans just ruin a lot of things. Y'all always been bitch always. You think you know Shadow but you don't accept what you know, nor the given circumstances. Most of y'all don't even see the faults of most of his "so called" friends and brush off that accursed G.U.N.

Fugly targeters. I could go on with why your favorite SA2, Heroes, Unleashed, and Generations are wack and why Lost World Ain't Trashy as people make it out to be (well the 3ds mostly). Y'all keep going on and on and on and on and on.

Oh yeah you losers saying Elise thing for 2006 doesn't fit for a Sonic game need to grow up. Y'all ain't slick. Y'all say it whenever unsatisfied with something different or unique or new. Quit being so bounded against new things. Are you the controller of the tale? And you should be happy cause it all ends up technically unhappen.

Oh but Elise should be. I wish the princess was. Aw too bad so sad. Go COPE and whine some more. Accept she's a human that didn't fulfill your power deviantart dreams. Sonic's story isn't that bad.

[mirqmarq428]

Friend me on discord: mmarq428

i self host a fedi account: @mir@talk.marq42.xyz

Backup account here: @mirmarq429, not using it tho

Tumblr has deleted me once already, and because of their recent conduct i am absolutely not using their hellsite (derogatory) any more. the Fediverse is better in literally every single possible way. in the interest of information saving this account shall remain, but i am using it only to get people off of tumblr. you're worth more than a website that treats you and your people like this.

old pinned under the cut

Hi my name is mir and im actively congealing into a girl! If you don't want to see that, block the tag #mirgirlification.

Most of mine original posts will be liveblogging about computer struggles. i occasionally put minor life choices up to a poll, under the tag #mir polls.

if i reblog discourse without adding anything it usually means i generally agree with the last thing that was said but am open to refutation. I am bad at having opinions, deal with it.

im not a gamer. I am actively annoyed by any reference to Nintendo and Sega IPs, and will go out of my way to be confused and wrong about them. Hope this clears things up! also mcu references can go to hell

i am interested in and will reblog:

Linux (especially Emacs and vim stuff) - THIS IS A PRO-NOOB SPACE. if you are being elitist in my notes i will debate you.

Polls (tag is #poll answered)

Short relatable vent/complaining

Learning Japanese (i just think it's neat okay)

OCCASIONALLY trans/egg memes (most of them are not funny)

Left Handed awareness (rarely mostly bc theres just not that many posts)

Will try to tag things correctly but may slip up - feel free to call me out. Cringe is how we enforce society.

Things I do not reblog or interact with:

Spam (unless it's funny)

Fanart (unless it's really good)

Hornyposting (unless it hits just the right surreal melancholy)

Geopolitics (unless the post is actually profound)

Mutual/financial aid / any asking for money

i don't consider myself a member of fandom but i have enjoyed a few pieces of media and i support others who engage with it. im against the dichotomy of pro/anti shipping, but don't have anything against people on either side

Not a 196er, and im generally against the reposting aspect of the subculture, but y'all are welcome here.

My alt is @mirmarq429, wher i occasionally liveblog about hardware. im also on the fediverse at @mir@talk.marq42.xyz, tho what i do there remains to be seen...

Selfie tag: #mir ror

[skaruresonic]

"Shadow isn't always an aggro douchebag, look at all these times where he was slightly chill for three seconds in a row! Sure there are just as many if not more examples of Shadow being a raging knob, but I personally do not like those instances and therefore I am going to say they were bad writing and ignore them in favor of the reading of his character that personally appeals to me more!"

What is it about Shadow that makes people be trippin so much? lol

How hard is it for people to just wrap their heads around the idea that Shadows chemistry is different with everybody? He has a MUTUAL competitive relationship with Sonic BECAUSE they have just as much in common as they have differences. Rouge is probably the most trustworthy person in Shadows life currently but it's more like they're co-workers than friends. Amy seems to be able to tug on his heartstrings and get him to do whatever she wants with her earnest personality even while he acts all tsundere about it. Ect.

The way Shadow is isn't mutually exclusive, but folks seem to want to just disregard interactions they don't like because they're different from interactions he has at other times under different circumstances. If your view of Shadow requires trimming fat and going "yeah well that time he was being 'OOC' so I just ignore it" then maybe your view of Shadow isn't accurate.

>>me @ me: the damage is done. you've said your piece. do not drop the Even Spicier Take(tm)

>>me: instructions unclear, failed step one

Tbh, I didn't want to say this because quite frankly, I didn't know how to word it in a way that wouldn't come across as though I was passing judgment since that's not my intention. But… ever since Shadow dropped that "go help your teammates" line in Sonic Forces Overclocked, this general notion has percolated in the back of my mind...

...Well. I think this idea of Shadow as modern fandom conceives him is... made up. And that's the lightest way I can put it.

Over time, I've come to suspect that fandom's constructed this mental image of Shadow as a noble protector archetype, soft-spoken and who always strives to fulfill his duty, and they've become quite attached to it to the point of rejecting other aspects of his character… like the pettiness and the bullheadedness.

It's possible the reason for the backlash against Sega's current portrayal is because the image doesn't match reality. His canonical pettiness chafes against the grain of who he "should" be. I'm not sure how well I'm explaining myself, but I hope the sentiment is received in the spirit in which it's intended.

That's not to say the archetype or the better parts of his personality are necessarily wrong in every circumstance (mandatory disclaimer that I am speaking in generalities and am not personally knocking your fic), but rather, insisting that noble side is all he is and lumping the less palatable traits under that umbrella paints an incomplete picture of his character. Although nobility and pragmatism do inform important parts of his character, they aren't his only traits.

It's like if people took umbrage with Sonic saying "I have no master except the wind that blows free." What, precisely, is there to take umbrage with? If part of the character's personality rubs you the wrong way, that doesn't necessarily have to indicate OOCness, especially when the character is supposed to be an anti-hero.

I have no legit idea what folks even mean by "Vegeta!Shadow" anymore because, for one thing, never watched DBZ, and for another, he gets slapped with the label regardless of his behavior. I can't isolate the offending variable because there doesn't seem to be one, aside from "Sega sucks." Forces!Shadow is relatively chill but still Vegeta!Shadow because Reasons. Flynn fucks up issue 19 so therefore his portrayal is evidence that Sega wants Vegeta!Shadow, because that's how logic works I guess. Shadow goes on vtube and his rivalry with Sonic gets acknowledged? Vegeta!Shadow. Like, is there no sense of scale or degree with which people apply the label? These are three different portrayals. I don't understand.

Obviously I don't want to be all "you must have a high IQ to understand Shadu Le Hedgehog(tm)" because that's very not much the message I want to convey. Lol and lmao I would be so far up my own ass if I did.

But it is interesting how discussing him specifically results in particular problems of communication. The issues with discussing Shadow appear to be that A.) folks tend to think your personal opinions and gripes are indicative of those of all Shadow fans AKA the SA2 fan problem, and B.) you're always going to miss some nuance that someone else is going to point out, and sometimes you have to decide to take the L for the sake of conserving energy.

I've written about his character at length, sometimes embarrassingly so (he rotates in my brain like a TV dinner. hehe Shadow go brrrr). And I think anyone who follows me at this point knows my attitude on Shadow is always changing in subtle ways, because there are as many ways of looking at him as there are facets of his character.

On the other hand… I get that people flanderize him, and his multiplicity can be difficult to capture in the limited space a post can permit. But also, there are times where I'm tired and can't English(tm) and I just don't feel like including footnotes every time I'm like "hehe Shadow's kind of an asshole <3," you know what I mean? It should go without saying that Shadow's character allows enough berth that "hehe Shadow's kind of an asshole <3" does not inherently preclude those moments where he's not-an-asshole. Or less-of-an-asshole. Whichever. You know what I mean.

Despite being frustrated with fanon, I'm not trying to pass indictment and say This Is How Shadow Ought To Be Characterized Forever. Rather, I'm just expressing frustration at how fandom continuously refuses to accept the most baseline traits, like (checks notes) "annoyed by Sonic sometimes."

Like it or not, he does have some rough edges. It wouldn't be fair to sand down the bad boy side of Sonic, and indeed some subsects of fandom complain about its erasure. So why is it okay to do to Shadow?

[number1puyopuyofan]

[ON AIR]

About Me! [post inspired by @sydsfandomhub] names: erina / television / teevee / mango pronouns: any, currently prefer she/her sexuality: nothing nowhere at no times (aroace)

current hyperfixations: overwatch, brawl stars, fortnite minor hyperfixations: SMG4, the owl house, the puyo puyo franchise general info: hi im teevee, a huge nerd who loves shooters, roleplaying, watching youtubers and puyo puyo. i have autism so if im pushy please tell me.

DNI

the basic shit really. no proshippers, no anti-LGBTQ in any way, no zionists, no terfs. i just dont want any politics in my account. tags to potentially blacklist, ranked from most likely to be used to least likely

#overwatch #fortnite #brawl stars #puyo puyo #puyoposting #the owl house

#smg4 #tv rambles #friends -- used if any of my friends are in a post --

#mario #sega #sonic #rpstuff -- used if im posting about roleplays i do on discord

not a specific tag but if theres any fandom you dont like, blacklist their main tag.

[kinopioa]

>Me seeing Classic "purists" and later fans treating Sonic with headcannoned flanderizing in either woobifying or animalizing

It's funny how common it is, throughout 20+ years of fandom

For the former I generally see them overly push the Felix cat and rubberhose inspiration, and aggressively ignore the Japan influences (despite saying they're anti US) unless relevant to dunk on others. The fact throughout Sonic 1 dev we can see environments get less weird and Oshima admit Sega Harmony stuff misrepped Sonic into being percieved as "innocent", along with Oshima admitting to liking Greg Wray/Martin's art despite other members of Sonic team before he left is funny. The glorification of bringing stuff scrapped in Sonic 1 dev for fangames is ironically, creatively bankrupt. Those fans awkwardly think Classic Sonic can't throw a punch or do anything outside rolling entirely just to prop up Metal Sonic the overrated. Eggman is either ignored, or treated as silly thing only with no threat, a mirror to what later era fans do. They overall treat Sonic as a bootleg clone of 90s Felix, which is ironic cuz Felix wasn't wacky for the 1940-60s, then dead until the 80s movie based on that era, and thep 1995 show reintroducing wackiness. And then this ignores design parallels or flaws they purposefully ignore to dunk on later eras, and generally ignoring other chars unless relevant to dunking on later. They hate "gotta go fast", but sure love "gotta bitch fast". And only liking at max 3 games, unless relevant to dunking on later ones

Either that or they're the US Sonic fans that act like Sonic wouldn't be popular without the design changes, which eh. Heavy doubt

Later Era fans meanwhile latch SO HARD to Sonic X and Archie/IDW over games despite inaccuracies, half likely cuz they still are seeking approval from none fans, the other only liking Sonic superficially. And I'm gonna admit, I liked X and OVA and other media back then, but they aren't Sonic, and the former definitely is shitty in aspects. The aspect of flanderizing or misrepresenting Sonic and co while hypocritically attacking companies for doing so is annoying. Same for ignoring char dev, but then crying that Sega is ignoring it when they didn't really (looks at Shadow). The pushing of IDW being canon so that they can prop up another "fan" is exhausting. Same for unfunny fandom jokes

Both are annoying as fuck on Twitter, especially when they attack others that are right on how Sonic isn't a slapdash OC creation tool for personality. And the fangame/romhack scene has been miserable under wraps since the early 2000s with the pushed "Fans do what Sega can't" mentality and nostalgia spam. No one learned from Omens

No one

Ps. you'll notice I ragged more on Classic Sonic fans. This is cuz everyone mostly has already bitched about later fans. Older fans are pretty ignored these days, though I find that an issue. The Sonic 4 campaign was hyper toxic for a reason...