Welcome to the Archive site of The Sonic Stadium (2008-2023)
Please note that this site is no longer being updated or maintained; as a result, there may be design issues, and links to images and other media may be broken. Links to posts may redirect you to the same article on the current Sonic Stadium website.
While IDW’s new Sonic comic is still many months away, it already has an editor: Joe Hughes. As the editor, Hughes will effectively run the entire book. IDW is still on the hunt for writers and artists, and is reportedly considering both veteran Sonic talent and new faces.
Joe Hughes used to be the manager of a New York City comic book store called Forbidden Planet, before getting a job at DC Comics. Starting as a direct sales representative, he eventually became an assistant editor on DC’s Vertigo imprint. He left DC in 2012 to become the Editor-in-Chief at ComicsAlliance, a major comic book news site that closed earlier this year. He joined IDW just a month ago.
IDW’s Sonic comic is scheduled to launch at some undetermined date next year.
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SEGA and IDW Publishing have today announced a partnership to continue Sonic the Hedgehog comics in a new series in 2018. The news comes a day after SEGA officially announced the end of a 24-year partnership with Archie Comics.
According to SEGA, creative teams are still being formed at IDW, with more news to come later. The news shot also hints that the writers and artists are involved in the news comics, stating they are in talks with “Sonic fan-favourite creators and new creators alike”.
SEGA and IDW are thrilled to announce a partnership to bring Sonic Comics to fans new and old. The new series arrives 2018! pic.twitter.com/neT3oAMNUE
— Sonic the Hedgehog (@sonic_hedgehog) July 21, 2017
As always, TSS will keep you up to date as news comes!
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After six months without any release and and vast amounts of speculation of it’s fate, SEGA of America have finally announced that it is ending their partnership with Archie Comics, effectively cancelling it. The tweet sent out by the official Sonic the Hedgehog account is below;
— Sonic the Hedgehog (@sonic_hedgehog) July 19, 2017
As the tweet also says, this doesn’t mean that SEGA won’t foray into comics in the future. But it is the end of an era, and what a legacy it left;
290 regular issues of the main comic.
Four serial spin-off comics.
Over 500 issues combined.
Several crossovers with other franchises.
Dozens of beloved characters, stories and places that will always stick with the fans.
We are sure many fans, including ourselves are sad to see this chapter of Hedgehog history come to an end. We will keep on top of any future updates on what SEGA does in the comic industry next.
And with the final panel ever printed in Archie Sonic, that’s this case closed too.
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Today, it was announced that there would be news this week on the Sonic comics. During the usual fortnightly stream that Aaron Webber hosts, he finally addressed the question that had been asked session after session. While he had no news right then and there, he had this to say about the future;
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Right now, Archie Sonic is much like Schrodinger’s Cat. Until we get an official confirmation, he is both cancelled and not-cancelled. In this week’s Sonic Talk, we discuss Sonic’s apparent comic cancellation and what this means for the future of non-game Sonic media. We also discuss what recent games we’ve been playing and the flat level design of the Green Hill Zone in Sonic Forces. All that, and more so stay tuned! Sadly, this was recorded just before the news broke about the third character. Continue reading Sonic Talk 44: Schrodinger’s Sonic
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It’s rare a story twists so soon, but here we are with an important update.
Earlier today, I gave a general comic update on what had gone on in the last month regarding the Archie Sonic comics. As said there, Sonic #291 and Sonic #294 were listed as cancelled by the publisher on PreviewsWorld’s order form.
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Another monthly update of the Archie comic situation, and things have cycled around once again, with similar updates to last month.
First up, Sonic is absent from the July 2017 solicits, marking three months in a row as a no show. With Sonic Universe #95 not released for its slated April 12th release, and Sonic #291 not listed for release next week despite its previous given date of April 26th, we won’t be seeing any Sonic comics in April, and makes any May releases unlikely.
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We’ve been down this road last year. Delays, rumors of cancellations, ACTUAL cancellations (Mega Man, Sonic Boom) and a publisher that seems to be doing everything it possibly can to stay relevant while rumors of fighting and inner turmoil are going on within it’s offices. With a ton of characters that can no longer be used, a world that was reset but not fully rebooted and with Archie no longer allowing subscriptions to either Sonic books, we may be seeing the end of an era. But the question is….could this be a good thing? Is it time for the Sonic franchise to leave Archie and be refreshed with a new publisher?
Reason #1: Archie is focusing on Archie
Archie’s primary focus right now is on the Archie brand itself. The reboot of the Archie series using a more modern comic art style and shifting away from the classic look (outside of digests) has actually been fairly successful for them. Archie, Jughead and other books are now outselling Sonic rather than the other way around and their profits are up. Not only that, but they’re heavily focused on promoting the new CW show “Riverdale” based on the Archie characters which had a soft, but decent debut in the ratings, but has been slowly dropping since. Because of this, it seems like Sonic is taking a back seat to their top brand.
Reason #2: Past creators and lawsuits
Without naming very obvious names, Archie comics can’t use a large amount of past Sonic characters because of legal issues. This is main reason for the soft reboot of the series three years ago. In some cases, I believe those creators to be in the wrong. While in other cases, I feel them to be very much in the right. Let’s be honest, Archie hasn’t exactly done right by a lot of former creators, including the one they took their classic art style from. And just when you think everything’s been all settled and done, another creator comes in, staking a claim. Then there’s Archie offering reprints of old issues featuring creator-owned characters online which has caused even more controversy. At this point, it may be better for Archie to let Sonic go and avoid the hassle.
Reason #3: It’s gotten a bit stale
Now, this is just my personal opinion (and I know I’m gonna get a ton of comments on this one). When the first Mega Man/Sonic crossover was done, Archie did a soft reboot of Sonic with a long, long, too friggin’ long story known as “The World Adventure”, based off of the game “Sonic Unleashed”. For three full years, from September of 2013 up to October of 2016, we have been going through one very long story line with branching arcs along the way to build up a new world with new lands and new characters.
And at times, it was starting to bore me.
Here’s the thing: when I first heard about the soft reboot, I was elated! Finally, a chance to get rid of all the excess baggage and back story that has dragged down the book over time. We could focus on the main SegaSonic cast and build up their own back stories while slowly showing some new lands in this new world. While we were introduced to new worlds, we were also introduced to a lot of new characters with their own back stories. Suddenly, the world was cluttered again. SegaSonic already has a ton of characters, did we really need to have a bunch of new ones? I love some of the new arcs (“Champions” was fantastic) and some of the new characters like Thunderbolt and Relic, but after twenty years of Sonic traveling the globe to keep the Acorn kingdom safe, this was the opportunity to take the series in a bold new direction and instead, it does its best to fill the void of old characters as quickly as possible while telling an over-arching story that takes three…..years to finish. It may be new, but it doesn’t feel very fresh. This is no fault of writer Ian Flynn or the very talented artists, it just feels to me like it’s been going in circles for a long, long time.
So if rumors hold up and Archie lets go of the Sonic license, where should Sonic go? There only two real choices Sega should take IMO.
Boom Studios
Boom has not only done some of their own kid-friendly indie titles like the Lumberjanes, but Cartoon Network’s biggest properties like Adventure Time, Steven Universe, Over the Garden Wall, Regular Show and classic Sunday funnies franchises like Garfield and Peanuts. While I don’t know how well Sonic would do here, I could see Sega splitting the franchises and adding Sonic Boom with the Cartoon Network lineup. That said, I think there’s only one true place for Sonic after Archie and that’s…
IDW
Home of: Godzilla (okay, not kid-friendly but I love Godzilla), Skylanders, My Little Pony, Star Trek, G.I. Joe, Transformers, Disney Comics, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and more, IDW has some of the biggest franchises under the sun with some of the best talent working in comics today! This right here is where I’d like to see the Sonic franchise head with a new take and a fresh perspective, Both Boom and IDW tend to sell better in direct markets than Archie nowadays and think of the possible crossovers! Just surfing the forums alone, I know there’s probably a ton of people out there that would love to see a Sonic/My Little Pony Crossover. Heck, how about Sonic and crew visiting Spyro and the world of Skylanders?
The Sonic comic franchise had been around for over twenty years and deserves better than to be constantly delayed, have subscriptions halted and be tied up in lawsuits. In my opinion, it’s time for Sonic to break free of Archie and run a blazing trail on fresh, new ground.
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Our first all video episode! Stare in despair at Jason’s fat mug and incredibly messy room! Delight at GX’s poor haircut and massive Wii/WiiU collection! Watch as……Alex is too shy to show his face, so he just appears as an icon of Vyse from Skies of Arcadia. Continue reading Sonic Talk 42: The End of Archie Sonic?
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Fans of Archie’s Sonic comic series will be waiting awhile longer to get their next Sonic comic fix. According to the website Previewsworld, which posts solicitations for upcoming comic books, the next issues of both Sonic the Hedgehog and Sonic Universe have been delayed again to April and beyond.
Sonic the Hedgehog #291, originally scheduled for late January before being delayed to March 1, then March 22, is now arriving in stores April 26. Sonic Universe #95 will be shipping on April 12, three whole months after the last issue. Of course, these delays have also affected subsequent issues, with Sonic #292 shipping on May 24 and Sonic Universe #96 shipping on May 10. The solicitations for the remaining issues have yet to be altered, but they will no doubt be changed eventually to reflect these delays.
Today, it seems even these dates may not be set in stone; while in the past Archie has re-solicited delayed comics, their recently released May solicits did not feature any Sonic comics, new or old.
Things have been rocky for Archie’s Sonic comics these last few months. In addition to these delays, subscriptions for the comics became (and remain) unavailable, which we first reported back in January. The exact cause of all this remains unclear, as Archie staff have remained mum throughout all of this.
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Wait, what? Read on and prepare…to get even more confused.
Yes, after what happened last week, Archie have actually released new solicits for April. We’ll cover the solicits themselves first, then provide an update on the whole situation after.
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After over 24 years in a near-continuous run, it appears there are some very strong signals that Archie’s Sonic the Comic is set to be cancelled in the near future. Following phone calls from multiple parties, including members of our own SSMB to Archie’s subscription office, we have learned that they are not taking any more subscriptions pending more information.
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Archie’s fastest selling Sonic the Hedgehog comic is due to make its way to trade paperback format in the Summer following the release of the third and final installment in the arc, Mega Drive: Overdrive. Many fans who have had difficulty in obtaining the sold-out first issue will be pleased, and probably not surprised these comics will be making their way to this format. Continue reading Summer 2017 Release for Archie Sonic: Mega Drive Trade Paperback
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It’s almost time to weigh anchor in the arc finale this week!
The preview for Sonic Universe #94 has been released, and things just keep getting deeper for the Chaotix! They’ve managed to get themselves into the heart of an ancient temple with their pirate captors and the hostage. This temple warns of an fearsome power being inside…and Captain Shellbreaker is on the verge of finding it!
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It’s time to look into the cosmic eternity in this week’s issue of Sonic the Hedgehog!
The preview for Sonic the Hedgehog #290 has been released, and it’s Sonic CD’s turn for some time in the spotlight! When Sonic attends the annual arrival of Little Planet, things don’t go as planned when it shows up robotic and chained to the planet.
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March is looking to bring a whole plethora of new Sonic content!
The solicitations for March have been revealed, and there’s a slew of stuff to get through! First up, in Sonic the Hedgehog #293, Sonic is with Honey on the set of a strange parody of Sonic’s antics, ‘Sonic Man Heroes’.
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Christmas specials in the comic
Have never been at all historic.
It’s too wrapped up in its own thing
To have the time to stop and sing.
But if you were around ten years ago,
There was a comic available to go
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There’s suspicion and scheming on the seven seas in the last Universe issue of the year!
The preview for Sonic Universe #93 has been released, and the Chaotix are still trying to find a way out of the mess they’ve managed to get themselves into! As they’re still scoping the ship and crew for opportunities to escape, there’s more to explore of the captors’ pasts, and loyalties are brought to breaking point.
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Continue the trip down memory lane as the comic looks back at the best-selling Sonic game of all time!
The preview for Sonic the Hedgehog #289 has been released, and the 25th anniversary celebration has moved forward a game in its adaptation of the classic quartet! After fighting against Dr Eggman’s menacing contraptions on the ground, Sonic and Tails have now gone into the sky to take the fight to the mad doctor himself in his Wing Fortress!
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It’s a Freedom Fighter extravaganza in time for the end of Winter! The solicitations for February 2017 have been revealed, and it’s very much a big month if you’re a Freedom Fighter fan! First up, Sonic the Hedgehog #292 has Sonic out for a run around the Westside Island, but he’s not just doing it for fun; he’s on a mission for an unknown person! Continue reading Comic Previews: Sonic the Hedgehog #292, Sonic Universe #95 and Sonic Super Special Magazine #14
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Do what you want ’cause a pirate is free, you are a…detective. The preview for Sonic Universe #92 has been released, and we’re on the high seas as the Chaotix try to solve their case! Apprehended by a band of pirates, the Chaotix are surprised to learn that the hostage they’re supposed to rescue is comfortably going along with them! Continue reading Comic Preview: Sonic Universe #92
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Two at the same time? Your eyes are not being deceived!
As it turns out, The Next Level was not the only comic Archie covered in their newest press release; the final installment of Sonic Mega Drive’s story has been announced as Sonic Mega Drive: Overdrive!
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The trip down memory lane continues with the follow-up to Archie’s hit seller set in the classic era!
An early preview of Sonic Mega Drive: The Next Level has been released, and it’s an extra-large continuation of what was started in Sonic Mega Drive! Sonic, Tails, Knuckles and Amy are now one team and still looking for the Ancient Gears to stop Eggman’s weapon in its tracks, but things go awry when Sonic decides to splinter off to do things his own way.
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They’re detectives you want on your side, and they’ll show you why in the upcoming arc they have!
The preview for Sonic Universe #91 has been released, and the Chaotix have a new job to deal with! The Chaotix are approached by a Meropis guard as their princess has been held to ransom (from what it seems, anyway) and they need their expertise to find her again.
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We start off the year by ending our look to the past and wrapping up the sea-faring case!
The initial solicits have been released for January’s comics, and there’s thrills to be had as both of the running arcs reach their climax! First up, in Sonic the Hedgehog #291, Sonic and Tails have spent the entire adventure running around Angel Island and becoming victim to Knuckles’ nefarious traps.
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The “Shattered World Crisis” arc came to an end with Sonic the Hedgehog #287, three years after the “Worlds Collide” crossover between Archie’s Sonic the Hedgehog and Mega Man series. While the stage is set for new arcs with an earnest Sonic Lost World adaptation in the works and Team Chaotix taking to the seas with the upcoming Sonic Universe saga next week, the main series will now be taking a step back in time with “Genesis of a Hero,” setting the stage for the Blue Blur’s humble beginnings within the new continuity.
Issue #288—”Genesis of a Hero” Part One—arrives in comic book stores three weeks from now on November 9th, and a preview of the issue’s art has been provided courtesy of Comics Alliance! Check out the gallery and the official solicitation below.
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It all comes together as the finale of the Shattered World Crisis is upon us!
The preview for Sonic the Hedgehog #287 has been released, and it’s make or break time for our heroes! Sonic has managed to turn super and, with the help of Chip in the Gaia Colossus, is taking Dark Gaia on for the fate of the world!
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There were a lot of ways to celebrate Sonic’s 25 years, and fans of the classics have certainly had their attention caught by Archie Comics when the Sonic: Mega Drive #1 special was released during the summer. The commemorative comic depicted Genesis-era Sonic and friends in a brand new adventure as Eggman seeks relics known as the Ancient Gears to power his MEGADRIVE doomsday device.
The sequel issue—The Next Level #1—is expected to release in November, but you can enjoy a taste of its awesome artwork early thanks to an exclusive preview from Comic Book Resources. Check out the gallery below for some Tyson Hesse and Matt Herms goodness!
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Everything will become crystal clear in the finale for the fate of Angel Island!
The preview for Sonic Universe #90 is now available, and you’ll certainly feel this one! Walter Naugus has managed to restore the Master Emerald, get his powers back and leave the heroes in crystal. Worse than that, Angel Island is now beginning to fall, and Knuckles and Amy have mere hours to put it right before the restoration of the planet finishes it off for good!
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Hoist the anchor, raise the sails and…get up the chain? December will have you do just that!
The solicitations and covers have been revealed for this December, and adventure awaits once again! Firstly, in Sonic the Hedgehog #290, we’re looking back at Sonic CD and its time travel shenanigans.
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Eggman’s really pulling out all the stops in the penultimate issue of the Shattered World Crisis arc!
Sonic the Hedgehog #286 has had its preview released, and it’s cranking up to a world-shattering finale! Eggman seems to have all the aces right now; he has hold of Chip and is using him to control the Gaia Colossus, the Egg Dragoon is out to play, Eggmanland is working as it should and the Death Egg is still in town.
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We certainly have a rare occasion today; there are two different Sonic books coming out on the same day, and the previews for both have been released! First up, Knuckles, Amy and team Dark have finally reunited. But that may not be a good thing; Omega is under Walter Naugus’ control and aiming to wipe out the others!
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Whether you’re into ships of the sky or ships of the sea, November has you covered!
The solicitations and covers for November have been revealed, and this is quite the world tour! First up, we join Sonic and Tails as they take to the skies after saving Westside Island, but Eggman’s got his most lethal attacks up there!
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It all comes tumbling down, tumbling down, tumbling down for our heroes this week!
The preview for Sonic the Hedgehog #285 has been released, and things are not looking good for Sonic and his friends. After a multi-pronged assault from Eggman and his allies, the Freedom Fighters are left reeling badly. They’re going to have to get back on their feet soon or the world could become Eggman’s to control!
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Back in the early 90’s, there was a newspaper in the UK which went by ‘The News of the World’ on a Sunday like many papers at this time they had a special supplement, this was often filled with crossword puzzles, random stories from it’s readers, a TV guide and usually, comic book shorts.
Well… Sonic had a comic series in this supplement. This comic series ran as best as we can from October 1993 – April 1995, over 70 comic strips were produced. This comic series was first brought to my attention 7 years ago, in that time many fans have found the odd one or two issues and uploaded them online. However with the magazine being a throw away thing which very few people kept, it’s become near impossible and expensive to find a complete collection.
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