Twenty years ago, many veteran fans amongst the community will probably remember racing to their local newsagents in order to grab the first issue of Sonic the Comic for the paltry price of 95 pence, and thumbing excitedly through the first pages of Sonic and SEGA-themed strips. In the many years that followed, fans saw the publication of 223 issues, 9 poster magazines and several special one-offs across nearly a decade of production.
The comic was renowned for its well-pitched storylines that appealed to both the younger and older audiences, for expanding the Sonic universe beyond the canon of the game and introducing several original characters; some of whom suffered a grisly demise (poor old Johnny Lightfoot!). For the majority of issues, the comic was presented by Megadroid, a robot reminiscent of a SEGA Megadrive (and later a SEGA Saturn), who took to naming the readers “Boomers” (and the writers “Humes” – short for “Humans”). As well as the Sonic-themed strips, the comic included a whole host of stories from SEGA titles such as Golden Axe, Decap Attack and Streets of Rage, as well as features and reviews on games, as well as fan art and mail; many fan-works featured were created by many of those who have remained fans to this day! Indeed, the publication garnered many fans, and some of you reading this today will probably owe STC as your introduction to the world of Sonic the Hedgehog.