It's over. The horror's finally over...note
| Written by: | Ian Flynn |
| Year: | Three |
| Saga: | Eggman's Legacy |
| Arc Duration: | #30 - #32 |
With the Metal Virus gone, the Deadly Six decide to lay low, though Zavok ends up imprisoned. As everyone else is caught up in the commotion of Sonic's disappearance, Dr. Eggman makes a quick getaway with his lackeys and Omega. In the following days, several events occur; Amy gives control of the Restoration to Jewel; Rough and Tumble are freed from Echo Mine by Tails and Tangle; Silver returns to a restored future; Vanilla, Cream, Cheese, Chocola and Gemerl help the Chaotix with missing persons cases; Shadow reflects on Sonic's previous warning. Later on, Eggman crashes Tangle's party at Spiral Hill Village with a more weaponized Omega. Meanwhile, Sonic turns up on Blaze's world and becomes amnesiac. She helps him regain his memories and sends him back home to aid the others in defeating Eggman once more.
Tropes
- Amnesiac Hero: After getting flung into the Sol Dimension by the exploding Warp Portal, Sonic has total amnesia, not remembering his name or anything else. He refers to himself as "Mr. Needlemouse", just like how Eggman became "Mr. Tinker" when he lost his memory. Fortunately, Blaze is able to use the Sol Emeralds to restore his memories, putting a quicker end to this trope.
- And the Adventure Continues: Issue 32 ends with Sonic happily reflecting on how everything is back to normal, before rushing off to find his next adventure. Meanwhile, Eggman escapes for yet another plan for world domination, and Starline thinks of a way to get back to Eggman's good graces.
- Answer Cut: As Blaze at the beginning of Issue 31 wonders what's happening in Sonic's dimension, the story cuts to show Amy miserably doing paperwork in the ruins of Restoration HQ, right before her below-mentioned Heroic BSoD.
- Any Last Words?: Zavok asks Cream this as he prepares to attack her and her friends. Her response?Cream: CHEESE! GET HIM!
- Attack Its Weakpoint: As usual, Eggman's Humongous Mecha of the day has a number of design and construction flaws (Rouge even lampshades this). The most glaring is how Omega, the power source, is positioned: front-and-center on the mech's chest and totally exposed. Tails determines that removing Omega from the mech will defeat it; Charmy tries to and fails, but Sonic, upon his return, is able to spin-dash Omega free, disabling the machine on the spot and allowing Omega to destroy it.
- The mech also has some easily-accessible USB ports on its back, which Tails and Rouge use to hack its systems; this causes it to temporarily go haywire, allowing the heroes to do a number on it. Eggman eventually regains control, but the sabotage stalls him long enough for Sonic to arrive and free Omega to finish the job.
- Its justified, as Eggman knew Sonic would inevitably return and threw the mech together as quickly as he possibly could.
- Behind the Black: When Metal Sonic stabs Gemerl from behind, he apparently does so by coming out of nowhere, judging by Tangle questioning where he was hiding.
- Big Damn Heroes: Sonic returns from the Sol Dimension just in time to save the others from Eggman.
- Bittersweet Ending: For the Metal Virus arc itself. The world is restored, but now needs to be cleaned up again. Eggman is foiled once more but gets away, likely preparing for his next plan. Sonic knows they'll meet again, but he and his friends will be healthy enough by the time they clash. While Silver leaves the present, he finds his future is better than ever.
- Break the Haughty: Shadow takes it hard that his pride got him turned into a Zombot and even more that Sonic is missing. Even though he doesn't show it, Rouge even states he's brooding more then usual when she finds him.
- Breather Episode: Until Eggman suddenly attacks in the last panels, Issue 31 is this, as there's no action; just the characters recovering from the trauma of the Metal Virus, and a few future plot threads being set up.
- The Bus Came Back:
- At the end of Issue 30, Blaze shows back up after being absent for most of the Metal Virus Saga.
- With Blaze is Gardon, her personal guard, who only appeared in Sonic Rush Adventure, now making his first appearance in this continuity.
- In Issue 31, Rough and Tumble are rescued from the mine pit they've been trapped in ever since being infected with the Metal Virus back in Issue 15.
- Starline also reappears in Issue 31, after being punted through a portal by Eggman back in Issue 25.
- But Now I Must Go: With the threat of the Metal Virus gone, Silver returns to his now restored time period.
- Immediately after Blaze returns Sonic's memory's back to normal, he asks her to send him back to his home dimension, which she does.
- Call-Back: Whisper is still mad at the Babylon Rogues for attacking Spiral Hill back in the first Annual.
- Clerk: Cream's family begins working at the Team Chaotix Office while the team sets out to find people displaced by the Metal Virus plague.
- Covers Always Lie: Issue 31's cover has Shadow overlooking the party with Rouge. In the story, Rouge does invite him to the party, but Shadow, kicking himself for his stubbornness that got him Zombot-ified, declines. And indeed he doesn't show up at the party in this nor the following issue. Ditto Vanilla, who is also on the cover but not present at the party.
- Curb Stomp Cushion:
- Zavok is back on his feet within minutes of being thrashed by Super Sonic, and with only minor injury to boot—a rare occurance. However, still weakened and now outnumbered as well, he goes down for the count in two pages flat despite his tenacity.
- Eggman's Omega mech does a handy job beating down the Restoration, but they hold their own and do a number on it in turn, making it easy pickings for Sonic when he shows up. The only reason Eggman wasn't fully curbed is because he cheated and pulled a gun on the heroes.
- Deer in the Headlights: When Sonic comes back, Eggman freezes dead in his tracks and drops his guard, making no attempt to attack the heroes further or even defend himself. Tails and Sonic waste no time take advantage of this.
- Demoted to Extra: Whisper. She plays only a minor role in the fights with Zavok and Eggman, is absent altogether from Issue #31 until the last two pages, and would subsequently ride the bus for a while. The spotlight she'd previously shared with Tangle and/or Silver is instead taken up by Jewel.
- Ironically, Sonic himself gets this until the second half of Issue 32, after Blaze (as Burning Blaze) restores his memory. In fact, he is absent from the "Roll Call" sections of Issues 31-32, which instead feature his allies and Eggman.
- Dénouement Episode: While considered the prologue of the Eggman's Legacy Saga, Issues #30-32 are focused on the aftermath of the Metal Virus Saga's finale, touching upon some of the lingering threads leftover from the previous arc, and setting up the next major Myth Arc. After Zavok and the Zeti are either apprehended or go their separate ways, Eggman takes the opportunity to retreat and make an impromptu attack on the remaining heroes at a party while Sonic is gone. Meanwhile, Sonic himself has been sent to Blaze's world and is dealing with the effects of the Warp Topaz before he returns home. The stakes are much lower compared to the harrowing global threat of the Metal Virus, and the arc closes the book on a lot of the plot threads introduced throughout the saga. These issues would also mark the end of Ian Flynn's 15-year uninterrupted run as head writer of the main Sonic comic for both Archie and IDWnote .
- Determinator: Omega won't let being just a severed head stop him from destroying all of Eggman's robots. See Grievous Harm with a Body below.
- The Dog Bites Back: Cheese, Tangle, Vector, and Charmy readily beat the crap out of Zavok as payback for enslaving them while they were Zombots. Whisper and Espio, who avoided infection but were painfully pitted against their friends, likewise get revenge on Zavok for that.
- Don't Celebrate Just Yet: At the end of Issue 31, Eggman shows up to crash the celebration party, hoping to capitalize on Sonic not being there to protect his friends.
- Downer Beginning: Even with the Metal Virus finally disposed of, the heroes STILL can't seem to catch a break. On top of Sonic's absence and the sheer amount of rebuilding they'll have to do, the Deadly Six are still on the loose, and Eggman also manages to escape with Omega in tow. Shadow and Gemerl attempt to go after Eggman but fail to stop him, with Gemerl getting impaled by Metal Sonic for his troubles. Meanwhile, Blaze and Gardon find a battered and unconscious Sonic marooned the Sol Dimension.
- Earn Your Happy Ending: While a few plot threads are Left Hanging, this arc's conclusion cuts Sonic and co. some slack after all they've been through.
- Played straight for Silver, who visited Sonic's timeline to undo the Bad Future the Metal Virus caused. Returning home, he sees that the effort pays off.
- Subverted with Shadow and the Babylon Rogues, for whom things end on a bittersweet note.
- Evil Is Petty: Even with the Metal Virus gone, Zavok and later Eggman continue menacing Sonic's friends just to spite them and Sonic himself. Zavok threatens to kill Cream so she won't be around to welcome Sonic home, and Eggman likewise tries to wipe out Sonic's friends before he comes back in a last-ditch effort to deny his enemies a happy ending. Neither villain's pettiness gets them anywhere.
- Eyelid Pull Taunt: Cheeses gives one of these (and a well-deserved punch in the kisser) to Zavok when ordered to attack him by Cream.
- Family-Friendly Firearms: Eggman has a stocky-looking Ray Gun which shoots blue laser beams.
- Foreshadowing:
- While the other heroes are celebrating, Rouge is shown lovingly eyeing Jewel's gem collection through her museum's windows. When the Babylon Rogues try to rob Jewel (again) during Eggman's attack, it turns out Rouge preempted them with plans to return the gems once all is said and done.
- #32 marks the first time in the comic where Eggman goes No-Nonsense Nemesis on his enemies, proving that he can be one unless his opponent is Sonic. Starline's obliviousness to this side of his idol would come back to bite him much later in the series.
- Get Out!:
- Cream, fed up with the Zeti after what Zeena put her through before, outright tells Zavok to screw off and go home when he threatens her and Vanilla, siccing Cheese on him when he refuses.
- Knuckles, finding Rouge still on top of the Master Emerald, tells her to scram or else he'll throw her off Angel Island. She complies, but takes his attitude in stride.
- Grievous Harm with a Body: When Orbot and Cubot find Omega's severed head, the latter demands that Cubot use him to beat Orbot and then himself to death.
- Group Hug: After Sonic chases Eggman off, nearly everyone comes to hug Sonic. Only Jewel doesn't due to having to remind everyone the town's still on fire.
- Hand Wave: The rest of the Deadly Six disappear after Issue 30 once Zavok is captured and arrested. In the following issue, Orbot mentions that they’re still at large, but they currently seem to be laying low.
- Here We Go Again!: For the second time during the Metal Virus Saga, and the fourth overall in the series, Tangle's hometown of Spiral Hill Village comes under attack. Sonic even calls the town "invasion-prone" after driving Eggman off, earning a defensive retort from Tangle.
- Heroic BSoD:
- Amy goes through a brief period of depression as the pressures of running the Restoration and cleaning up the aftermath of the Metal Virus catch up with her.
- Shadow is shown quietly blaming himself for how he was infected and taken out of the fight due to his own stubbornness.
- Hoist by His Own Petard: Eggman uses Omega to help power his mech, but once Sonic frees him, Omega wastes no time paying him back for that action via emptying his entire arsenal at Eggman. It's a miracle the doctor wasn't Swiss cheese from that attack.
- Impaled with Extreme Prejudice: Metal Sonic does this to Gemerl from behind to keep him from going after Eggman. Luckily, Gemerl is fine by Issue 31, Tails presumably having fixed him off-screen.
- Incoming Ham: Eggman, when he crashes the victory celebration.Eggman: MWA-HA-HA-HA! The life of the party's here! And I'll be ending all of yours! TREMBLE IN FEAR, FOOLS! I AM DR. EGGMAN—GREATEST OF PARTY CRASHERS IN THE FIERCEST OF PARTY CRUSHERS! (drops the volume to pose atop his mech) I simply must thank you for gathering together in one place! It makes destroying you all so much easier!
- Irony: Most storylines in the franchise since Sonic Heroes have Team Chaotix barely scraping by for cases. After the Metal Virus was destroyed, they began receiving so many calls for missing persons, they are practically bury in them.Vector: It almost makes me miss the days where we couldn't find work!
- Karma Houdini: Eggman and the Deadly Six get off easier than they ought to, considering the severity of what they've done. Starline wouldn't get his full comeuppance either until much later in the comic.
- King Mook: The Humongous Mecha Eggman that integrates Omega into resembles a giant version of Omega himself.
- Know When to Fold 'Em: After his mech is destroyed, Eggman declines to continue the fight, knowing Sonic is just itching to pay him back after all the trouble he caused with the Metal Virus.Eggman: (Sweatdropping) Still sore about that whole "getting infected and nearly becoming a mindless machine" thing, huh?Sonic: That's part of the list, yes.
- Lighter and Softer: After all the horror and high drama of the Metal Virus Saga, this arc returns the series to a relatively lighter tone.
- Last Villain Stand: Despite losing the Faceship, the Zombots, and his Chaos Emerald, Zavok refuses to accept defeat and keeps coming after the heroes until Silver manages to restrain him.
- Laser-Guided Karma: In All Or Nothing, Zavok brought Sonic's formerly-infected allies to Angel Island as a psychological weapon against the survivors. It worked for a time (Whisper outright froze when Tangle came after her), but with the Metal Virus gone, he's now hopelessly outnumbered by the heroes he himself gathered in one place.
- Mythology Gag: Sonic's amnesiac persona, Mr. Needlemouse, was a supposed prototype name before the franchise officially began.
- Near-Villain Victory: Eggman has the heroes on the ropes and is about to finish them off when Sonic returns and gains a victory over Eggman by destroying his mech and saving his fronds in the process. Played for Drama on Sonic's behalf (see Curb Stomp Cushion above), since even before he showed up, his friends and Eggman were evenly matched.
- Not Afraid of You Anymore: Cream had to deal with one Zeti (Zeena) already, so she doesn't hesitate to stand up to another in the form of Zavok and tell him to "go home". Luckily, like last time, she has her friends to back her up, including the ones who were freed from their Metal Virus infections.
- Oh, Crap!:
- Tails, Amy and Knuckles get this when they notice the shuttle is flying away, then realize Eggman is nowhere to be found before putting two and two together.
- Eggman's initial reaction when Sonic returns, and again upon defeat when Sonic foregoes his usual banter (which he rarely does, except when he's pissed).
- Post-Final Boss: "Giga Omega"note , of the Metal Virus Saga, is Eggman's attempt to wipe Sonic's friends out before he comes back, which he threw together in a hurry. There are far less stakes in this battle than the climactic struggle against Zavok during the prior arc, but the heroes and Eggman are evenly matched until Sonic comes back.
- Powered by a Forsaken Child: Eggman's Party Crusher mech uses Omega as a processor core. Gemerl is briefly also grabbed and used as an additional one.
- Pre Ass Kicking One Liner: Omega gives one before annihilating Eggman's "Giga Omega" mech.Omega: Unleashing stockpiled wrath!
- Put on a Bus: Knuckles, Blaze, Silver, Whisper, and all of the Zeti except Zavok vanish from the cast after this arc. Justified with Silver and Blaze, the former being from the future and the latter from another dimension.
- Redemption Rejection: Rough and Tumble are given a chance to turn good after being rescued by Tails and Tangle, as they were tricked into being catalysts of the Metal Virus. They rejected the offer and took off to plan more mischief. Tails and Tangle expect them to be arrested soon after they leave the caverns (if they manage to find the exit).
- The Reveal:
- Where'd Sonic end up? The Sol Dimension, Blaze's home.
- We see that Starline ended up in one of Eggman's storage warehouses after he was thrown through a portal. Despite Eggman's actions, he's still loyal to him, though wants to surpass him so that they can not only rule the planet together, but be recognized as an equal.
- Scenery Porn:
- Blaze's palace in the Sol Dimension is truly a sight to behold.
- Silver gets a good future: a high-tech metropolis with beautiful blue skies as a backdrop.
- Shout-Out: To JoJo's Bizarre Adventure in Issue #32, referencing the "Oh, you're approaching me?" scene from Stardust Crusaders.
- Shut Up, Hannibal!: This exchange between Zavok and Silver, as the latter subdues the former:Zavok: I... will... not... fall!
Silver: Then you'll be crushed! - Silence Is Golden: Shadow versus Metal Sonic in Issue #30. Indeed, Shadow has just four lines of dialogue in this arc, all of them near the end of #31.
- Status Quo Is God: Lampshaded, after Eggman is defeated and flies off, swearing his next plot will be just as sinister as the last one. Sonic tells him he'll always be ready for him, but even he seems to have gotten weary of their feud; he laments that they'll likely keep going for a long time with a sullen expression on his face, but hopes Eggman will come around someday.
- Stepford Smiler: Tails in Issue #31, after Tangle worriedly asks him how he's feeling in Sonic's absence. She sees right through it, but Tails puts her mind at ease with his optimism that they'll see Sonic again.
- Surprisingly Realistic Outcome:
- Despite the heroes saving the day, they once again have to clean up the damages sustained from the arc. The Restoration building itself is in complete shambles and we find Amy having to do paperwork on a desk amidst some rubble. Jewel arrives and offers to take over as leader.
- Because they were "programmed" into infecting people all over the world as Zombots, people have been displaced after the Virus was destroyed, with many presumed missing. The Chaotix find themselves up to their necks in people trying to hire them to find their loved ones. Vanilla offers to have her family take over office work so the Chaotix can start searching.
- Despite them having helped save the day, Whisper isn't happy to see the Babylon Rogues at the party as they likewise had robbed from Jewel's museum and almost killed her the last time they saw each other. Tangle has to calm her down and tell her to give them a pass this time. Unfortunately, her distrust does turn out to be correct as, at the start of Issue 32, the Rogues decline to help the heroes fight Eggman and instead go to rob the museum while everyone is busy. Luckily, Rouge beats them to the stones inside, though she does plan on returning them.
- When Eggman comes to attack the party in Issue 32, Whisper defers to Amy for orders. But she states Jewel's the one in charge now. But when she's asked, Jewel states she doesn't know as her skills lie in management organization, not combat leadership. Vector ultimately has to take charge and lead the others.
- Tempting Fate:
- When Gardon reports that all is peaceful, Blaze hopes things will stay that way for a while to come. Cue a battered and unconscious Sonic crashing in her palace garden.
- Upon returning home, Silver thanks Sonic and co. for helping make a good future and wishes them a peaceful time, too. Cut to show Eggman preparing to shatter the post-pandemic calm using the captive Omega.
- When Tangle talks Whisper down, she remarks that she'd rather not have another battle in her hometown so soon after the plague. Eggman shows up in her neighborhood mere seconds later.
- Unfinished, Untested, Used Anyway: Eggman, well aware that Sonic is almost certainly not dead and would show back up sooner rather than later, decides to strike while the iron is hot and take out the exhausted heroes before he can get back. Unfortunately for him, the Humongous Mecha he builds for this purpose had to be rushed into service without much time for a shakedown period and as such it has a large number of glaring weak spots even by his standards, and these weaknesses end up costing him valuable time during the fight as the Restoration prove to be an even match that quickly end up spelling its doom when Sonic does make it back to turn the tide firmly in their favor.
- Villainous Breakdown:
- Zavok has suffering one since the Faceship crashed in Issue #28, but any composure he had left falters entirely as the heroes come to arrest him.
- Eggman has a brief one when Sonic returns just in time to stop him.Eggman: No no no!!! I had them! I'd won!
- Villain: Exit, Stage Left:
- Eggman decides to get out of dodge while the others are worrying about Sonic's fate. By the time they realize they forgot about him, he's managed to get their shuttle up and running and is flying away in it. Shadow tries to stop him but Metal Sonic gets in his way long enough for Eggman to blast off.
- Zeena, Zik, and Zazz make their exits from their areas once the Metal Virus is dealt with. While they do consider terrorizing the locals on their own, they figure it better to regroup with Zavok for the time being. Zor is in hiding at at the moment enjoying the anxiousness of the recovering citizens and Zomom manages to recover from the gate dropped on him but more worried about getting food.
- Once Blaze transports Sonic back to his world in the midst of his battle against Sonic's friends. After giving him the usual wallop, freeing Omega from where he was strapped to and his mech getting trashed, Eggman makes a false claim the day is his since he still crashed the party. Even after being berated during the Metal Virus arc by Espio and Shadow for letting him live long enough to unleash said virus, Sonic still allows him to leave, hoping Eggman will finally come around but will not hesitate to foil his future plans of conquest.
- Villain Respect: While Zik is fleeing the area, he does concede the victory to the Babylon Rogues, stating they earned it.
- We Are Not Going Through That Again: When Charmy tries to go fight Metal Sonic, Vector holds him back, stating they're not going through another scenario where Charmy foolishly charges into danger without thinking.
- What Happened to the Mouse?: For some reason, Chocola disappears after Issue #31, even though he was at the party before Eggman crashed it.
- You Are in Command Now:
- Inverted with Vector and Espio, the former of whom named the latter acting lead-detective after Vector got infected with the Metal Virus. By the time they fight Zavok in Issue #30, Espio has already passed the baton back to Vector.
- Played straight with Amy and Jewel. The pressures of leadership have taken their toll on Amy, and Tangle tells Jewel about this at some point off-screen. Jewel sympathetically offers to lead the Restoration instead, and Amy accepts.
- You Have GOT to Be Kidding Me!: Tangle's reaction when Eggman shows up to crash the heroes' celebration.
