#NOOT WANTED ME TO MAKE THIS POST BLAME HER

[105ttt]

I’m just going to ramble about how we see Shadow’s character develop throughout the Sonic games (mostly the Dreamcast era with some modern era stuff thrown in there) and why I think his character is a lot more than just being an “edgy hedgie with a gun”. Everything is going to be below a readmore, since this is going to be really long.

Yes, it’s an old complaint that Shadow is not just some edgy teenager with a gun who gets angry all the time and solely lives to pick on Sonic, but if you actually take time to sit back and consider all of Shadow’s actions from his first appearance in SA2 onward, he actually seems less evil and edgy than people make him out to be.

Shadow’s character changes a lot in my opinion from SA2 to Heroes, but there are reasons that he acts differently in these games. Starting in SA2, Shadow is depicted as a villain who helps Eggman in trying to destroy the world with the ARK, and of course his tragic backstory combined with his evil actions makes him look like a stereotypical edgy angst magnet. But we need to consider the reason why Shadow helps Eggman in order to make a judgement about how evil he really is.

Shadow wasn’t helping Eggman just because he wanted to see the world burn out of some innate sadistic desire or a desire to have power over everyone else for no reason other than being evil. He helped Eggman because he incorrectly remembered Maria’s wish before dying as her wanting revenge for her death. He was also somehow made to believe he owed Eggman a favor for waking him up from cryostasis (literally calling him “Master” and saying he will grant him one wish).

Speaking of cryostasis, a friend of mine brought up the fact that from Shadow’s point-of-view at that point in time, he had literally just plummeted to Earth after watching his only friend sacrifice herself to send him to safety and then be murdered by people he doesn’t know for reasons he doesn’t understand, was then captured and imprisoned by said people he doesn’t know for reasons he doesn’t understand, and now has been awoken by someone he hardly seems to know and is expected to fulfill that person’s wish of destroying the world. Shadow’s mistaken memory conveniently matches up with Eggman’s desire to destroy the world, and while it’s not justified to kill innocent people just to get revenge for the unjust death of one person, Shadow didn’t necessarily want to murder people out of sadism or some evil desire - his actions in SA2 are done out of his devotion to Maria, a trait which we see in later games.

Shadow’s actions take a dramatic turn when he eventually remembers what Maria really wanted after Amy convinces him to help the others stop the ARK. After that point, he abandons his stubborn refusal to help and leaves Amy immediately to go join up with everyone as quickly as he can (even though he had been Sonic’s nemesis up until that point throughout the entire game). He even goes as far as to fight the Biolizard for Sonic and Knuckles so they can stop the Chaos Emeralds and later joins Sonic in his super form to stop Finalhazard, only to sacrifice himself to save the Earth in the end. These actions are clearly linked with the fact that Maria’s true wish was for Shadow to protect the Earth, and we see here that again, his actions are done out of devotion to Maria and possibly a genuine sense of heroism.

What do I mean by heroism? Well, even as early as SA2, we see that Shadow is quick to defend or protect innocent people and his friends, and he doesn’t let innocent people be endangered if he can help it. One major example I can think of in SA2 is when Rouge is trapped on Prison Island. After running late in escaping the island on her mission to get the Chaos Emeralds, she calls Shadow and lets him know she won’t make it off in time with the Emeralds. Shadow naturally wants to save the Emeralds because he needs them to achieve his goal, but when he uses Chaos Control to get to Rouge, does he simply grab the Emeralds and leave again? Absolutely not. He takes Rouge with him right before the island explodes, thus rescuing both her and the Emeralds. When the two talk later, Rouge brings this up, and Shadow claims he only came to save the Emeralds, but that may be a cover so that he doesn’t show Rouge he cares (this connects to something I’ll mention later). After all, he could have, in theory, grabbed the Emeralds while Rouge was still shocked from seeing him use Chaos Control and then left Rouge to die in the explosion.

Shadow actually shows this same willingness to protect others in Sonic Heroes and Sonic ‘06, both incidents involving Rouge as well. The example from Heroes is really striking because it’s implied that Shadow forgot everything that happened in SA2 after falling back to Earth again. In the opening cutscene of Team Dark’s route, Omega awakens when Rouge tries to unlock the capsule holding Eggman’s “secret treasure” and opens fire on her. Shadow wakes up to notice this and, instead of immediately facing off with Omega to stop his reckless shooting, actually pushes Rouge out of harm’s way and then tries to stop Omega. What’s significant about this interaction is that Shadow supposedly doesn’t remember Rouge at all, and yet he decides to keep her safe even though he doesn’t know her. He could have left her to die from Omega’s gunfire and used that to stall Omega so he could take him out, but he decides to make sure she’s safe first. On the other hand, he attacks Omega because Omega seems like a threat to him - Omega attacked first, and so Shadow feels the need to stop him. This scene brings up another interesting point in Shadow’s character we see a lot: Shadow doesn’t attack someone who doesn’t threaten him first or otherwise causes him some sort of problem. This may be why Shadow was so quick to fight Sonic in SA2 despite not knowing who Sonic is. Sonic often posed a threat to Shadow by trying to take the Chaos Emeralds away from him or otherwise just demanding a fight, to which Shadow obliged. The same is true for the inter-team boss fights in Sonic Heroes, where Team Dark faced off with the other teams because Rouge was worried they would get in Team Dark’s way. Rather than being the aggressors who pick a fight for no reason, both teams involved typically had a reason to defend themselves.

But getting back to Shadow’s heroism, the example from Sonic ‘06 I mentioned earlier is equally important in showing this facet of Shadow’s character. When Rouge and Shadow are on a mission to get the scepter holding Mephiles, they are ambushed by Eggman, and at one point Rouge is struck down from the sky. Shadow had a choice at this point to either keep his hold on the scepter and let Rouge crash or save her and let the scepter break. He goes for the latter and catches Rouge just in time, but as a result, the scepter breaks, and Mephiles is freed. This decision to save Rouge over keeping whatever dark power trapped inside the scepter contained shows that Shadow prioritizes his friends’ safety greatly, even if it means he has to sacrifice something else.

Shadow really is a kind and loyal person at heart, though sometimes his emotions get the best of him. The same friend I mentioned earlier pointed out that Shadow’s aggression in earlier games like SA2, Heroes, and ShTh was probably just a side-effect of him being so confused about who he is - and more importantly where he is. Keep in mind that Shadow had never been on Earth before SA2, and now that he has to face this brand-new world, all while not knowing what his intended purpose was in life, must have driven him to be aggressive. His dedication to achieving his goals probably fed this aggression as well, since it may have been the best way to deter any impediments to his goals. My friend also brought up the fact that Shadow, while being chronologically 66 years old, is mentally and physically 16 years old. He’s going to act and think like a typical 16-year-old, albeit with some behaviors found in people who experienced trauma, because that’s what he is. He likes blowing things up and being powerful because he knows how powerful he is (he brings up the fact that he’s the ultimate life form all the time), but he doesn’t use that power for evil or just for kicks, as we see in many games where, when Shadow acts like his true self, he uses his powers for only good. His overconfidence in games like SA2 and Heroes also stems from the fact that he is, in fact, a young teenager with lots of power at his fingertips and a new world to explore. In this respect, he and Sonic are very similar: both are kind and a bit prideful, but they don’t put down others unless they prove to be evil or a threat.

An interesting side note on Shadow’s power is that he seems to get untold amounts of strength from his love for and devotion to the people he cares about. We see this multiple times in the true ending of ShTH, where Shadow is able to instantly recover from the effect of Black Doom’s paralyzing gas through his accumulated memories of Maria and later when he breaks free from Black Doom’s mind control after seeing Gerald’s message to Shadow about the Black Comet. The entire premise of Heroes being that each Team grows stronger through teamwork and the friendship between all three people in each Team also remains true for Shadow, despite people typically seeing him as a loner-type. And just as much as Shadow gets strength from his loved ones, he encourages them as well when they need strength. Throughout the entire Finalhazard fight in SA2, Shadow constantly checks on Sonic to make sure he is okay and even compliments him at one point, saying with a laugh that he believes Sonic may be the actual ultimate life form. In Heroes we see this same kind of support towards Sonic when Shadow offers to distract Metal Sonic during the Metal Madness fight so that Team Sonic can go super, and later in Generations Shadow says the infamous line: “You’ve got this, Sonic!” as an expression of genuine encouragement and faith in Sonic’s abilities.

Just as Shadow believes in his own power and others’ power, Shadow also has a capacity for understanding right from wrong, and though ShTH shows that he understands that some choices aren’t black and white, he knows when evil needs to be punished. It is ironic that people consider Shadow a villain simply because of his appearance when he has spoken out against evil multiple times in multiple games. In Heroes, during the Metal Madness fight, Shadow actually criticizes Metal Sonic for stealing data on all living life forms in order to become strong, showing that he doesn’t believe in unfair methods of obtaining power. In ShTH he shows the same kind of sentiment towards Black Doom, refusing to give him the Chaos Emeralds and becoming angry at Black Doom for tricking him into collecting them for him in order to enslave the human race. Shadow’s distaste for evil is shown directly in the lyrics of “Supporting Me”, where the “air of darkness” is said to be “disgusting”, and yet Shadow “never [loses] out” to it, indicating that he doesn’t let his past evil actions get him down or discourage him from wanting to change for the better. He even outright states in his victory phrase after defeating Finalhazard that he wants to destroy “all the evil [Professor Gerald] has created”.

Another point in Shadow’s character that is similar to Sonic but also shows his own unique perspective on life: he values his freedom just as much as he values his friends, and doesn’t let his past get to him. The Dreamcast era games really focused on Shadow’s identity issues, but they also showed that he handles them in a way that doesn’t let them bring him down. In fact, Rouge is the one to mention Shadow’s identity problems in both SA2 and Heroes. In SA2, Rouge confronts Shadow about the fact that his memories may be fake and that he may not be the real end product of Project Shadow, but Shadow doesn’t respond with sorrow or a typical “angsty” answer. He instead asserts that even if his memories are fake, he is who he is now as a result of his actions throughout the entire story of SA2, and he is content with the identity he has made for himself. He then doesn’t dwell on the issue any longer and focuses on his own goal. A similar situation occurs in Heroes, where, upon finding the Shadow Androids, Rouge attempts to console Shadow, who has gone silent. Rather than breaking down, Shadow simply tells Rouge to disregard the Androids and to keep moving. This action ties back to the point I made earlier about Shadow not letting others see that he cares all the time. Possibly because he doesn’t want to burden others with his problems or let those problems affect who he is as a person, Shadow doesn’t let Rouge dwell on what he may have felt upon seeing the Androids and decides to ignore them. We see a similar reaction in Sonic ‘06, after learning that Omega was the one to seal him away in the future, Shadow doesn’t go off on Omega or cause an uproar. He simply walks away, probably to give himself time to think or just to avoid burdening Rouge and Omega with his feelings at that moment.

During the final stage of Heroes, Shadow makes a declaration reminiscent of the one in SA2 and affirms his identity as who he is currently rather than what he was in the past. ShTH really brings this together during the True Ending, when Shadow outright declares to Black Doom after breaking free from the paralyzing gas, “I’m Shadow the Hedgehog. I’ve left the past behind me. No one can tell me what to do now!” Shadow not only retains his freedom to determine who he is but also his destiny - which brings up another quote from Sonic ‘06. After Mephiles shows Shadow his future self imprisoned in a capsule permanently for fear of his power in order to convince him to take revenge on the humans who imprisoned him, Shadow simply tells Mephiles to quit the act and that he will never listen to his futile persuasion. Upon Mephiles asking if Shadow will really forgive humanity for his fate, Shadow says only one thing: “I determine my own destiny.” We even see in ShTH that Shadow doesn’t let his memories of Maria and Gerald haunt him: in the final cutscene of the True Ending, Shadow tosses away a picture of himself and Maria while saying “Goodbye forever, Shadow the Hedgehog”, signifying that he won’t let his past define him or haunt him any longer. He doesn’t let anyone - whether it be his own father, Maria, Gerald, or even his friends - determine his path of action and his choices. The entirety of ShTH is spent with Shadow determining his course of action in order to get to what he believes in the truth, demonstrating his belief in his own strength and sense of right and wrong (which is shown to be less black-and-white than it seems at first). All of Shadow’s character songs tie back to themes of freedom to be oneself or confidence in one’s identity created through one’s actions, and these songs often give off a feeling of being victory songs because victory for Shadow is asserting that he is who he is no matter what may have happened in the past.

In the end, I think Shadow is a kind, loyal, and determined person at heart who knows that right and wrong aren’t always easy to discern at first but still wants to protect the world from wrongdoing and help those in the world who are symbols of goodness, and who also values his freedom and loved ones more than anything.

[mylifeisjustanime-blog]

Fall 2017 Anime: Initial Thoughts

I am currently watching quite a few seasonal anime. So far, I have watched two episodes of each show (besides Inuyashiki and Boku no Kanojo since the 2nd episodes still haven’t aired) and I wanted to share my thoughts. 

New Seasonal Anime: Animegatari- Not completely sure how to feel. The art is nice and I enjoy the references, but I keep getting Best Student Council vibes (loathed that anime) and I can’t really see where this anime is going. Happy the over the top butler shenanigans calmed down a tad between the first and second episode. This show has hope.

Black Clover- very shounen; much screaming. Not expecting much, but will keep watching. I just might have to pop some Advil if Asta doesn’t learn how to calm the hell down. 

Blend S- I am surprised how much I am enjoying this. I am already addicted and look forward to it. It had a Working!! feel and I LOVE everything so far. Big highlight of the season! 

Boku no Kanojo ga Majimesugiru Sho-bitch no Ken- Expected trash and got a halfway decent anime. Need to see more before I express a strong opinion, but enjoying it so far. 

Houseki no Kuni- Hot damn, I love this show!! This is the only anime that I can recall that the CGI helped IMPROVE the anime. Oddly relaxing and satisfying without being even slightly boring. One of my favorites.

Imouto sae Ireba Ii.-Once again, expected trash...sis-con trash. Not ruling out the trash yet (I love a good trash anime here and there), but definitely no sis x bro shipping (yay). It has the potential for a relatively strong plot. Not anime of the season, but it is fun. 

Inuyashiki- That first episode tore my heart out. That old man needs a hug desperately bad!! Definitely the strongest first episode out of all the shows I watched. Might end up being the best anime of the season. Top 5 for sure. 

Just Because!- I LOVE slice of life anime, but this one is already feeling like a chore. I had to force myself to watch the second episode. I am going to blame it on being really sick and give it more time to grow on me. I was really hyped for this show, but the first two episodes were pretty big let downs. 

Juuni Taisen- First battle royale anime where I have ZERO idea who will win. I like the setting and the mentally unsound characters. I am excited to be part of this adventure. 

Konohana Kitan- Cute fox girls doing cute things at a bathhouse. Slow paced, but it feels relaxing. Have to watch it when I am not sleepy or super energized; have to find that perfect chill balance. 

Kujira no Kora wa Sajou ni Utau- I expected nothing and got everything. Beautiful and strong anime. I almost didn’t even try this anime because my list was getting overwhelming full, but I am so damn glad that I did. The artwork, story, characters, and everything feel perfect. Another strong contender for anime of the season (and probably even year). 

Mahoutsukai no Yome- The anime I was looking the most forward to. I love love love this show (just like everybody else). A very incredible show. It goes without saying, this show is one of the best of the season and is in my top 3. 

Net-juu no Susume- At one point, I felt like this would be a serious depiction of the NEET lifestyle (like Welcome to the NHK) and then turned into a cute video game anime with heavy romantic undertones.. I still like it a lot, but hoping it addresses real life issues in a mature manner. There was some hinting at stuff already in the 2nd episode. 

Omai Aite wa Oshiego, Tsuyoki na, Mondaiji.-Shit series.These short hentai-esque shows keep popping up every season and I haven’t watched any of them. For some weird reason, I decided to give this one a try. Very toxic all around. I haven’t dropped yet after 3 episodes and I am not sure if I will or not. It is one of those shows where I hate it so much, but I can’t stop watching. Like a trainwreck.

Osake wa Fuufu ni Natte kara- Nothing bad, but nothing special. Super short so no loss. 

Ousama Game: The Animation- It has potential, but it hasn’t lived up to it yet. The premise is interesting and I love battle royale-esque series so I am going to keep watching. If the pacing and character personalities improve, this will be a great show.

Pingu in the City- Watching it because the memes. Noot Noot. 

Shoujo Shuumatsu Ryokou- Most peaceful post-apocalypse show I could ever imagine. Top 5 so far.  

Taishou Chicchai-san- If I end up dropping a show, this will be it. No amount of hot guys can make up for how damn bored I am while watching this. 

Seasonal Sequels: Gintama: Porori-hen- Not sure if this is just missing comedy arcs or if it will be continuous and be the final season. No matter what: Gintama is love; Gintama is life. 

Himouto! Umaru-chan R- I like Umaru (do not want to know her in real life though) and I like this show. It isn’t laugh out loud funny (I never even giggled), but it is enjoyable and puts a smile on my face.

Shokugeki no Souma: San no Sara- I hate how they put crucial plot in an OVA, but other than that, this series can do no wrong. Thoroughly ecstatic that it is back.