The alpha and omega. The source of all, if you like. The entire Sonic the Hedgehog franchise- juggernaut that it is- owes its existence and its legion of devoted followers to the video games that are at the root of it all.

In June of 1991, the landscape of video games was changed forever when Sega unveiled their new mascot's debut game. Sonic 1, as it's usually known to those who love it, was a revolution in platform gaming, with its clever level design based around gaining and using momentum to traverse the levels at speed. Clever use of speed allowed players access to new areas of the game's levels where rewards usually lay.

But it was Sonic himself that most captured the public consciousness. He was, in many ways, an embodiment of the 90s zeitgeist, a character whose confident cockiness and innate "cool" resonated with players young and old. While this has led to Sonic sometimes feeling like he's crawled out of a time capsule, it also explains his core appeal- a simple design with an easy to understand personality. That's what Sonic needed back in the days before voiced dialogue in video games- his personality had to shine through as the storytelling options offered by the Mega Drive in 1991 were limited.

At the end of the millennium, Sonic's platforming games took the step into the third dimension with Sonic Adventure. Redesigned with a new look, Sonic was almost defiant at the end of the 1990s, going down swinging with a refusal to accept the age of "extreme" characters was winding down. Whereas Nintendo's Mario manages to be a timeless everyman through his largely blank slate character, Sonic sometimes runs the risk of being a relic of his heyday with this staunch refusal to accept the world around him has changed- but we wouldn't have him any other way.

Sonic's video games are where many of his most beloved friends and foes originated, including Doctor Robotnik (now known worldwide as Doctor Eggman), Tails, Knuckles, Amy, Metal Sonic and the members of Chaotix. 2017's Sonic Forces allowed the fan community to live out a collective dream of playing a Sonic game with their own original characters at Sonic's side thanks to a customisable player avatar.

Wherever Sonic's adventures take him next, you can be sure there'll be plenty of action, lots of laughs and some great friends by his side. For the world's most famous hedgehog, it's all in a day's work.

Sonic has starred in many comic books over the years, but the one with the greatest volume of issues and widest breadth of stories is the series published by American comic book company Archie Comics.

Initially a limited miniseries, nobody could have predicted Archie's Sonic comic would go on to be the smash success it would end up. The comic was first promoted with a special "issue ¼" which contained part of the eventual first issue of the miniseries proper. In its original setting, the comic lay somewhere between the Sonic video games and the Sonic the Hedgehog cartoon, in production at the time. As a matter of fact, this comic would be the first time many of the characters from the cartoon would appear, explaining certain discrepancies as production elements shifted before the first episode's debut.

Come May of 1993, the first issue of Archie's ongoing Sonic the Hedgehog series was released, a continuation to the miniseries owing to the tremendous success that four issue run had enjoyed. Initially, the comic leaned heavily into comedy, with Sonic and his Freedom Fighter pals getting into all manner of scrapes, usually accompanied by groansome jokes you'd have to be a Badnik to not laugh at. Before too long, however, the book began to take itself a little more seriously and focused more on the classic Sonic/Robotnik conflict, with dramatic twists and turns along the way. Sonic and his friends would face very real threats and there'd be little in the way of laughs as they navigated the tough worlds of war and- yes- even romance.

At the height of the Sonic franchise's late-90s popularity, Archie Comics were producing multiple Sonic comics a month. Knuckles received his own ongoing comic, which ran for a respectable 32 issues and usually tried to tackle more serious themes (however successfully). The Sonic Specials and Sonic Super Specials greatly expanded the scope of Sonic's world and Tails, Knuckles and Princess Sally all enjoyed limited miniseries runs of their own- to say nothing of the ever-popular Sonic Quest miniseries. Later, these spin-offs would fade away but Sonic X, the popular Sonic anime would receive its own 40-issue series.

After a successful rejuvenation of the comic in issue 160, a change would eventually be necessitated, requiring a complete overhaul and tidy-up of the world of Archie Comics' Sonic. The in-universe explanation for this was something called the Super Genesis Wave- or SGW for short- seen in a crossover between Archie's Sonic and Mega Man comics. As a result, everything up to issue 251 of Archie's Sonic is "pre-SGW" and issue 252 onwards is "post-SGW". The post-SGW world soon calmed readers' fears- their old favourite main cast members would still be around, though with a few changes to bring them more in line with the rest of the Sonic franchise as it existed in 2013.

Archie's Sonic series is perhaps the "definitive" take on the hero. It adapted almost every one of the Sonic video games during its lifetime (and even doubled back to cover some of the ones that were released before its debut) and incorporated elements from all of the Sonic animated series which existed at the time (including a short-lived Sonic Boom series). Its inclusion of so many beloved elements, plus new characters of its own, make it easy to see why so many of its readers hold it in high regard- and why a dedicated contingent of fans keep the flame alive.

Sonic is a character who lends himself to all manner of storytelling, be it children's picture books or comics starring the blue speedster. But a series of novels published by Virgin Books in the UK represent Sonic's only licensed foray into full-length novels to date.

Written by James Wallis (books 1 and 4) and Carl Sargent (books 2 and 3) and edited by Marc Gascoigne to maintain a consistent tone between the four novels in the series, these books would be known to their many readers as the "Martin Adams novels", after the pseudonym the three creators were united under. It would be a number of years before devotees learned Martin Adams was not just one but three men!

This series takes influence from what was, at the time, the standard origin story for Sonic in all British adaptations, that same story laid out in the book Stay Sonic and originated in Sega of America's series bible. As a result, the writers were able to use a slightly expanded cast of characters, drawing from Sonic's animal friends in the games as well as Sonic, Robotnik and Tails.

That's not to say the books lacked any original characters, of course. Each instalment had at least a handful of fresh faces and some had dozens of named characters who appeared in at least one scene. These newcomers helped flesh out Sonic's world in a convincing way, written so naturalistically into the setting that it seemed like they had always been a part of it, making the world of Mobius seem not just alive but as varied and remarkably strange as the video games had made clear it could be. A number of these characters even showed up in more than one instalment, to really make the world seem cohesive.

The four books in the series differed wildly in their subject, with a comedic take on "body horror" (Sonic being turned into a toaster, anyone?) in Sonic the Hedgehog in Robotnik's Laboratory, complex but never complicated time-loop quandaries in Sonic the Hedgehog in the Fourth Dimension, a digitised world inside the computer realm in Sonic the Hedgehog and the Silicon Warriors and a daft slant on classic horror characters in Sonic the Hedgehog in Castle Robotnik. In each of these, the cool-talking Sonic would be forced to use some serious out of the box thinking in order to overcome his dastardly foe.

While the Virgin Novels remain popular with those who grew up with them in 1993 and 1994, Sonic fans have yet to see an officially licensed full-length Sonic novel since then. In a multiverse of endless possibilities, it may only be a matter of time- and until then, readers of these beloved tomes will continue to hold these stories dear.

Sonic isn't the first video game character to have an animated series to his name, but he's certainly the one with the greatest number. Sonic X was the first time Japan had created a full length animated series based on Sega's mascot and with animation powerhouse TMS Entertainment behind the series, the end result was visually stunning.

Sonic X saw a lot more involvement from Sega than previous animated Sonic jaunts, with Sonic Team founder Yuji Naka receiving an executive producer credit on the series. As a result, the main cast were much closer to their video game counterparts than they had been in any previous animated adaptation both visually and in characterisation. Furthermore, the series adapted elements of Sonic Adventure, Sonic Adventure 2 and- to a lesser extent- Sonic Heroes, with Vector, Charmy and Espio making their first appearance in the "modern" era of Sonic in this series, two days before the launch of Sonic Heroes!

Of course, it wasn't just Sonic and his friends who would star in the show. Somewhat infamously, the series' first season sees Sonic and his friends (plus Dr. Eggman and his lackeys) transported to Earth, where the heroes befriend a number of human characters, chief among which was schoolboy Chris Thorndyke and his family. Chris was somewhat shoehorned into events in a number of episodes, leading to many viewers resenting the character at the time- perhaps not realising that he was supposed to represent them and the desires of countless fans to befriend Sonic.

Season two of the anime saw parts of Sonic's world itself brought to Earth (largely to facilitate video game adaptations) before everything returned to normal and Sonic returned home. Season three was a real anomaly, however. Despite being produced in Japan, season three debuted in France first and then in America- the show's final run of episodes didn't air on Japanese television until 2020, fifteen years after its initial airing! This season saw Chris travel to Sonic's world before things went off the rails almost immediately with an extended jaunt across the stars to combat the Metarex forces led by Dark Oak- something of a shame as it meant viewers got to see so little of Sonic's world itself.

The English version of the series is quite different to the Japanese version in many regards. A number of edits were made during localisation which mean the two versions are often wildly divergent. Both versions have their supporters and many fans enjoy both as "alternate" takes on the story.

From 2005, Archie Comics would produce a Sonic X comic which ran for 40 issues. Initially seemingly taking place in the world of the anime, enough subtle differences emerge later on that mean it is technically its own continuity (with season three of the anime being essentially incompatible with the comic). Crucially, the comic saw many contributions from Ian Flynn and Tracy Yardley, who would go on to be tremendously important figures on the main Archie Sonic series and in the franchise at large, meaning Sonic X's influence continues to be felt to this day.

While Sonic has starred in a number of cartoons over the years, only one is completely and truly off-the-wall- Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog. Owing much of its visual identity to "stretch and squash" animation of the golden age of American animation, AoStH is completely bonkers- and all the better for it.

While American viewers got to enjoy two Sonic cartoons running in tandem, the same was not necessarily true worldwide. For fans in Britain, Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog was for a while the only Sonic cartoon on air, and with Milton Knight's redesign for Doctor Robotnik becoming the look the doctor would adopt in Sonic the Comic, European fans often have a greater fondness and familiarity for this series.

Ironically, despite "SatAM" being the Saturday morning Sonic cartoon, this would be the iteration perhaps more in keeping with the great Saturday morning tradition, with much more cartoonish plots taking place in a world not terribly bothered with restrictions imposed by such trivial matters as the laws of physics. In homage to Bugs Bunny, Sonic would quite often outwit his foes with the flimsiest of disguises which never failed to work, even when it was obviously him- to the point he managed to get Robotnik down the aisle in one episode while dressed as a bride.

The voice acting cast of this series remains one of the most entertaining, with each performer giving energetic performances, usually impeccable in their delivery. Chief among this cast were Jaleel White, who would voice Sonic in two additional cartoons, and Long John Baldry, who brought a wonderful pantomime villainy to his portrayal of Doctor Robotnik, turning in a character who never once failed to be a scene stealer.

In truth, it took quite some time before a number of fans came around on Adventures. Particularly around the turn of the millennium, a number of fans shunned this more comedic take on Sonic, preferring the brooding tones of, for example, SatAM and Sonic Adventure 2. A wave of comedic video edits ("YouTube Poops") meant the series enjoyed a late resurgence in popularity as more and more people saw scenes from Adventures out of context and, finding them funny, went in search of more, finding a surprisingly competent piece of cartooning.

Adventures enjoyed repeat airings for many years across the globe. In the Post-Super Genesis Wave era of Archie's Sonic comics, Robotnik's henchmen from the series Scratch, Grounder and Coconuts were reintroduced in a new role, giving them fresh life for a new audience and making clear that the series hadn't been forgotten about- and long may that continue.

As Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog ran on American screens from Monday to Friday, Sonic enjoyed a second cartoon on Saturday mornings, simply entitled Sonic the Hedgehog. So as not to lead to any confusion, fans soon gave it a nickname based on its timeslot- and the series is still known as SatAM to this day.

While AoStH became reknowned for its slapstick humour, SatAM was a Sonic of a darker shade of blue. Initially, the series bordered on grim, with a tone perhaps a touch too serious. In truth, season one of SatAM rarely feels like a Sonic cartoon as with very little imagination one could feasibly envisage any generic protagonists and antagonists in the cast's roles. It was with the cartoon's second season that writer and story editor Ben Hurst led a revamp of the series to make it more exciting, action-packed and just plain fun to watch.

For many fans, the stars of the series are Sonic's Freedom Fighter allies. This was the first time the concept had been brought to animation and Sonic's team each brought something unique to the table. While Sonic was the hedgehog of action, Princess Sally Acorn was essentially the leader of the team, the partially roboticized Bunnie Rabbot used her tremendous mechanical strength to fight, Rotor Walrus used his gadgeteering skills to invent new trinkets for the heroes and fastidious Antoine Depardieu tried to inject a little order into proceedings (whenever he could stop shaking at the sight of his own shadow). With handheld supercomputer N.I.C.O.L.E. and well-meaning dragon Dulcy rounding things out, the cast each had plenty to make themselves stand out against Sonic. Unfortunately, Tails was the biggest casualty of this, reduced to a "kid brother" role and rarely allowed by the writers to get involved in episode plots in any meaningful way.

On the opposite side of the trenches was an altogether more sinister incarnation of Doctor Robotnik, with a robotic arm that we later learned came about as a result of an accident with his own cruel Roboticizer. Robotnik, voiced by the iconic Jim Cummings, was joined by Snively, whose nasal voice was supplied by the similarly revered Charlie Adler. As the series progressed, it became clear that even Snively wasn't too keen on doing the bidding of his evil uncle Robotnik and would rather try to conquer the world himself.

In the tradition of Robin Hood, Sonic and his friends lived in the forest on the outskirts of Robotnik's Robotropolis, the former kingdom of Mobotropolis, rightful home of Sally Acorn and her regal family. In this regard, Robotnik might be considered a reasonable analogue for the Sheriff of Nottingham, always keen to wipe out Sonic's merry mammals but never able to find them.

While British Sonic adaptations all used Sega of America's Sonic Bible as a base, in America SatAM would be the inspiration for many of the adaptations. Chief among these would be Archie Comics' take on the character, meaning SatAM's legacy endured long after the show concluded.

Of all the American Sonic cartoons, perhaps the most divisive is Sonic Underground. And while that reputation may not be entirely unjustly earned, there's still rather a lot to love in this series.

For many fans of the Sonic the Hedgehog series, the two biggest missteps Sonic Underground makes both occur in roughly the first five seconds of the opening sequence. In this continuity, Sonic is a prince- and so too are his two siblings, Sonia and Manic! Both of these production choices mark a huge departure from what came before and are enough for some fans to write the series off without giving it a second glance. But to those that have given Sonic Underground enough of a fair crack of the whip, there exists here a series with a good grasp of character and world building.

Raised by his adoptive Uncle Chuck, Sonic learns of his royal heritage from the Oracle of Delphius, learning that his mother- Queen Aleena- was forced to abandon her children for their own safety, leaving them with foster parents in different walks of life in order to protect them from the coming invasion of Doctor Robotnik, here once again the conqueror of Mobius and responsible for overthrowing Aleena's kingdom. Meeting his siblings for the first time any of them can remember, the trio form the Sonic Underground, travelling Mobius and spreading hope through song while also combatting Robotnik and his allies and thwarting their plans more directly.

The music of the show, in particular the songs, is perhaps one of the things Sonic Underground is best known for, for better or worse. In the vein of a great many children's cartoons, each episode would feature a musical number which tied in to the plot of the episode in some fashion. Unfortunately, almost every single one of these songs suffers from being generic and forgettable. That said, the show's opening theme tune is still widely regarded by Sonic fans as one of the best songs in the series, gaining a following for the campy sincerity in which it delivers a ballad which relates the story of the series.

It's that same sincerity which has, over time, seen Sonic Underground develop a small but incredibly loyal following. Most of them are all too happy to admit the series is cheesy and silly, but those fans embrace that and enjoy the series on its own merits rather than comparing it to other iterations of the franchise.

Sonic Underground may not be the most popular of all the Sonic cartoons, but it has a heart to it that remains admirable. For all its unusual choices, there's no denying the writers and producers leapt into this series with both feet and left fans wondering for years to come just how the reunion between the trio of the Sonic Underground and their mother might have played out if we'd only had one episode more.

Sonic's adventures in the realm of comics are well known across the globe, be that in Sonic the Comic, Archie or IDW's Sonic the Hedgehog comics or even the many manga series to star Sonic from Japan. But not everyone knows of his exploits in the world of newspaper strips!

British Sunday newspaper The News of the World included for a time a pull-out section for children. Much like the popular newspaper comic strips enjoyed by adults each day, this pull-out featured pages of comedic gag strips and serialised adventures, some of which featuring popular characters of the day. Sonic joined the heady ranks of the likes of Gerry Anderson's iconic supermarionation superstar Captain Scarlet- no small feat indeed!

Written by Barrie Tomlinson, the strip would initially be drawn by Richard Elson until late 1994. Elson would, by this point, be effectively the lead artist for Sonic the Comic and his schedule was somewhat eased by switching out on the newspaper strips for Sandy James. Both Elson and James would also contribute to the two Sonic yearbooks, which are very much in the same continuity with the same characterisation given to the characters, starkly different to how Sonic would be characterised in Sonic the Comic.

Indeed, this was a Sonic who used "cool" lingo to comedic excess, with many of his phrases being amusingly translated by caption boxes to help bring less radically bodacious readers up to Sonic-speed. Rather than being irritating, however, the unusual phrases Sonic so readily drops only to be so dryly interpreted provided extra humour and charm.

As the strip went on it was reduced in size before eventually being phased out. In truth, the weekly serialisation model was perhaps not ideal, particularly when each part was only a few panels long, and especially so in a world where British Sonic fans were receiving between seven and twenty-two full pages of Sonic stories a fortnight in the pages of Sonic the Comic. Nevertheless, on their own merit these adventures retain all the fun they held during their original run.

Newspaper strip licensing is a somewhat tricky matter and it seemingly didn't occur to anyone to collect the strips in a physical edition after the series ended, meaning archiving them was an exceptionally difficult matter. A handful of fans, aided by Richard Elson himself, were able to locate and digitally preserve the strips and they can now all be found online, thankfully ensuring they don't become lost media.

Video games and Hollywood have an unusual, often uneasy history. It's a relationship that works both ways- and rarely pleases fans of either games or films. Oftentimes, if a video game is based on a game, it comes as no surprise to find the game is rushed or lazily hashed together. Vice-versa, cinematic renditions of games often have to make changes to satisfy the plot, meaning fans of the original are often left underwhelmed.

Suffice to say, then, there were concerns about Paramount's first Sonic the Hedgehog movie before the first images were even fully unveiled. And when they were- oh, boy. To say fan backlash to the new-look Sonic was unprecedented may be understating matters somewhat. In response, Paramount delayed the release of the film by three months in order to redesign Sonic and re-render every scene he appeared in. The expensive gambit paid off, with fans much more at ease with the version of Sonic longtime series artist Tyson Hesse helped create.

In truth, Sonic's first big-screen adventure spends very little time on Sonic's homeworld. Fleeing to Earth at a young age, we learn Sonic kept hidden from sight, living a lonely existence with no friends and no family. This all contributed to our hero becoming a bit peculiar in his teens, with a motormouth and a peppy personality seemingly trying constantly to convince himself that he's okay.

Over the course of the first film, Sonic befriends Tom (played by James Marsden), a police officer from the quiet town of Green Hills. A panic attack from Sonic accidentally triggers an electromagnetic pulse, attracting the attention of the United States government- who employ Doctor Ivo Robotnik to try and find the source of the energy surge. Robotnik- played by Jim Carrey, delivering a characteristic manic performance- steals the show in every scene he appears, with him and Sonic- here voiced by Ben Schwartz- having oodles of charisma to counteract a sometimes sagging secondary cast.

On the heels of the success of the first outing, Paramount released a sequel two years later, entitled- believe it or not- Sonic the Hedgehog 2. This film saw the big-screen debut of Knuckles the Echidna, voiced by Idris Elba, and Miles "Tails" Prower, brought to life by his long-time video game voice actor Colleen O'Shaughnessey, with the three coming together as a team to thwart Robotnik once more. As far at this sequel goes, the characters who first appeared in the film series were given perhaps more of the spotlight than absolutely necessary, considering the strength of the material featuring the Sega characters. Nevertheless, the film was a resounding success.

Paramount's series shows no immediate signs of slowing down. With a third film currently slated for a 2024 release and a mini-series starring Knuckles due to debut before then, the studio clearly recognises the passion of Sonic's devoted legion of followers and evidently intends to give them more of their hero for a while yet to come.

The beauty of Sonic the Hedgehog, as a character, is that he appeals to an audience so wide and varied that you can almost say no two fans are alike. He appeals to those fans in so many different ways too, making him an icon for all manner of enthusiast. This includes, perhaps obviously, his appeal to different age groups. Sonic lovers of all ages may find different things to like about Sonic, but there's no denying he finds a home in each of their hearts. In Britain, Ladybird is a publishing imprint that traditionally publishes books for younger readers. Seeing the rise in popularity of Sonic among children and keen to get them reading, Ladybird secured the rights to create a number of Sonic publications.

One of the most interesting of these Sonic books would be Sonic the Story. This picture book was narrated by Sonic and Tails and told readers the story of how Sonic and Dr. Robotnik came to be the characters we know them as. In a sense, it was the younger brother of Stay Sonic and retold many of the same elements of Sega's internal Sonic Bible series document, though in a way appealing to younger readers. The humour and charm evident in this story would be carried over to Ladybird's other Sonic books.

Younger readers were also catered to with Robotnik's Oil and The Invisible Robotnik, a pair of picture books in which Robotnik would put Sonic in (fairly mild) peril and Sonic and Tails would of course have the last laugh on the baddie. These stories had an added bonus- their centre pages would open out in a "gatefold" style to display a double-sized image in the middle of the book.

Ladybird didn't only produce Sonic storybooks, however. They also produced a pair of Sonic Puzzle Books, with all manner of brainteasers and headscratchers themed around Sonic and his pals (which were sometimes a little unfair if you weren't already familiar with the characters!). Perhaps the ultimate evolution of this were the four Adventure Gamebooks Ladybird produced. Unlike Fantail's efforts, these Adventure Gamebooks were not "Choose Your Own Adventure" style affairs, but contained puzzles on each page, themed around the Zones seen in the Sonic video games. Readers would be tasked with solving a puzzle and the answer they got would send them to a particular page of the book. Of course, astute readers would be clever enough to realise which pages were higher numbers and sometimes be able to work out the solution to the puzzle that way. But with gorgeous art throughout, you'd want to see every page anyway!

That gorgeous art was at its pinnacle in Where's Sonic? and the sequel Where's Sonic Now?. These books were in the style of Walker Books' indomitable Where's Wally? series by Martin Adams, featuring incredible double-page spreads with hundreds of Badniks sprawling through the Zones of the Sonic video games- and it was up to players to find Sonic and his friends!

As well as a Colouring Poster Book, Ladybird also produced the Sonic the Hedgehog Joke Book, a book full of cheesy gags, puns and groaners which has taken on a life of its own as the source of countless internet memes. Interestingly, this joke book sees appearances from Porker Lewis and Johnny Lightfoot not in their cutesy "animal friend" appearances, but in their redesigned and re-attired look from Sonic the Comic, which was proving to be a huge hit with British Sonic fans at the time. This would be the final collaboration between Sega and Ladybird, which is something of a shame but means that to a generation of British fans, Ladybird's efforts are rooted forever in those glory days of Sonic's youth.

For an entire generation of British Sonic the Hedgehog devotees, one adaptation stands above all the rest as their ultimate iteration of the world's most famous hedgehog. Launching in 1993 with fortnightly releases, Sonic the Comic would challenge exactly what a story about the cartoon blue hedgehog could do, with a number of adventures in this publication comfortably sitting among the greatest in the entire Sonic pantheon.

Produced initially by Fleetway Editions, Sonic the Comic- or STC as its loyal readers call it in shorthand- has two stylistic forebears it owes its identity to. Much of the comic's humour- irreverent and identifiably British- is in keeping with DC Thomson's range of humour comics, most notably The Beano, the anarchic weekly comic which has been running since 1938 and houses a number of British popular culture icons. The other, perhaps more obvious, influence on STC was Fleetway's own 2000 AD, another weekly comic which has been running since 1977. Many of STC's creative talent passed through 2000 AD at some stage, including its first editor Richard Burton, who had previosuly performed the same role on the iconic sci-fi comic. It was the anthology nature of 2000 AD which most informed STC's style, with each issue in the early going giving page space not just to Sonic himself but to a variety of other serialised adventures starring various other Sega Superstars.

In relatively short order, it would be the team behind the Sonic stories themselves which would make STC a must-read publication for children across Britain. Over time, the team of creators would grow to include as its two mainstay writers British humour comics legend Lew Stringer and the man perhaps most associated with STC's stories, Nigel Kitching. Both utilised their strengths to create a world which was not only dramatic and exciting but had plenty of humour to keep readers laughing, ensuring they'd never worry too much about whether Sonic would be alright- and which only served to heighten the moments of drama by contrast. The art team, meanwhile, was an embarrassment of riches. Iconic artists for the comic include Ferran Rodriguez, Carl Flint, Roberto Corona and Mick McMahon, but the two most popular artists by far were Nigel Dobbyn with his beautiful, intricate paintings and Richard Elson, the almost incomparable talent who excelled at drawing dynamic images of Sonic and company. Each page was hand drawn and, for most of the comic's run, hand coloured, giving STC a glorious, beautiful visual style, with individual paintbrush strokes often identifiable on the finished work to reveal just how painstaking a labour of love the art had been.

Sonic the Comic's world was largely that of the Sonic the Hedgehog video games, though much more "lived in" than those often simplistic stages. Over time, Sonic's world of Mobius became a thriving, populated planet with heroes, villains and civilians from all walks of life, from the relatively mundane (a television repairman who happens to be a fish) to the comically outlandish (the world's most oblivious crooner, unaware in equal measure that it isn't the 1970s and that he's devoid of talent); from the fantastical (a short-tempered squirrel permanently locked in a mechanical prison but from which he can fight evil) to the everyday (a young boy who befriended a Badnik, not judging the nature of their origin). Some of Sonic the Comic's characters have gone on to be adopted by the wider Sonic community as standouts, including Shortfuse the Cybernik, Tekno the Canary, Commander Brutus and Metamorphia, to say nothing of the comic's incredible takes on Metal Sonic (the Brotherhood of Metallix, a loving homage to the Daleks of Doctor Who) and Super Sonic (a crazed chaos demon and the Mr. Hyde to Sonic's Dr. Jekyll).

The real strength of Sonic the Comic was its recognition of its audience. STC knew its readers were largely children, so shied away from darker concepts that were a poor fit for Sega's mascot and eschewed the romantic subplots that were so popular in the American Sonic comics in favour of action and comedy. But it also recognised children are intelligent and never spoke down to its audience. STC's readers would meet characters who represented morality, compassion, obsession, hatred, anger, nobility, righteousness and destruction- and were never handheld in reaching conclusions about these characters. Even the title character was more nuanced than most takes on Sonic, with the hedgehog here being sarcastic and often rude to mask deep insecurities and fears he struggled to voice, yet never wavering in his loyalty or dedication to his friends and to justice.

After nine years on shelves, Sonic the Comic was cancelled by a group of executives who, frankly, didn't understand they had something special on their hands. STC was unlike any comic Fleetway had produced before and the out of touch higher-ups didn't grasp that in the same way the creators and readers did. For STC's tenth anniversary, a dedicated group of fans resurrected the comic online and continued the story- it is in this format that the comic has endured as a passion project for the following twenty years and on. In 2023, the third Sonic the Comic-themed convention was held, smashing previous records for the comic on Kickstarter and seeing hundreds of attendees flock to meet the heroes of their youth, the comic's creative team. It stood as a beautiful reminder that even if the publishing company behind STC didn't get it, the readers definitely did- and will never let Sonic the Comic die. Thirty years on, Sonic the Comic is still sharper than a cyber-razor cut.