important question: what are your top 5 favorite qualities of sonic’s character?
rattling you like a snow globe i am. OOOOOOOH i love sonic's character so much let's see (in no specific order)
1) moral ambiguity
sonic's not a typical goody-two shoes protagonist and i think that's super interesting, especially considering how his other "rival" video game protagonists at the time (like link and mario, etc) were. sonic's not a very cut ad dry character- he is a simple guy, sure, but when you start to peel away at some of his layers.... he's a lot more nuanced than you're lead to believe
sonic's very much a live by my own rules sort of person. and while his rules sort of match up to him being the good guy, it doesn't always make him "heroic". he killed king arthur under the complete understanding that king arthur was a real person. he kills erazor djiin. he encourages elise to kill solaris. sonic's not afraid to fight dirty, and he's not afraid to get his hands dirty when the situation calls for it.
most protagonists are more of a "we have to save everyone" or "if we kill the bad guy we're just as bad as them" type. but i think sonic specifically is interesting, because he does help some overcome their misdeeds- like knuckles, shadow, silver- but ultimately it's because those people weren't that bad in the first place. they were misguided and manipulated and confused. if they had a full grasp of the situation at hand, chances are, they would have chosen a different path. and even if they didn't, they still showed the potential for true growth.
but for a lot villains that are simply plain evil... sonic doesn't seem to particularly hesitate. sonic's attack in satbk would have undoubtedly killed merlina- he didn't know her well enough to assume that she could choose a different path, and was willing to act first and talk later, knowing he wouldn't be able to talk her out of it.
not even with eggman. he was going to let his counter part in satsr fall to his death, until shahra convinced him not to. he's used excessive lethal force before, especially in the classic games. and then of course there's the implications that sonic lets eggman get away because he finds their adventures fun. like yes, sonic's going to stop him- everything eggman does is against his principles. so sonic's going to fight him. but sonic is also a thrill seeker and a daredevil, and wouldn't life be quite dull without eggman?
2) villainous qualities
it sort of ties into sonic's more moral ambiguity but i think sonic's interesting because a lot of his qualities, depending on the framing, could be quite villainous in nature. a guy who chases after adventures, who fights just for the thrill of it, who's stubborn and doesn't ever compromise, who lives life by his own rules and doesn't care if the breaks other peoples rules?
if sonic ever chose to be a villain... he'd make a pretty good one. he has a different set of morals than others and he doesn't like compromising on his beliefs. he thinks he's right, so he's going to act on it. and quite a few sonic villains share a similar point of view- that their revenge, that their opinion, is correct, and they have no intention on listening to anyone else's.
additionally... sonic's not particularly shy with manipulating those around him. you can see this characteristic plainly in sonic x and idw, where sonic manipulates his friends into trying to get him off a boat and shadow into not killing eggman.
deep down, sonic isn't that much different from rouge, for instance. they're both thrill seekers who don't compromise on their beleifs and are, in some senses, quite selfish. they're very self driven and independent and are great manipulators. the only difference between the two of them is that sonic seems to have a bit more compassion. they're two sides of the same coin.
3) environmentalist
i kind of miss the messaging of the older games... sonic was always invested in maintaining the beauty of the natural world around him. he fights a villain who essentially pollutes just for the heck of hit. he started this heroing gig with little more motivation than protecting his woodland animal friends and their homes.
it wasn't always about gods and the hubris of men pretending to be them. at the very beginning, it was just about protecting a tiny island in the middle of the ocean and the little critters who lived there.
it's also interesting to note how this can translate to other scenarios, like with merlina. she wanted to go against the natural order of things, she wanted to try to create an eternal kingdom- sonic saw through her selfishness and also tried to convince her that some things just were meant to end. and sometimes you just have to enjoy it as it was.
4) kindness
i think the last point also segways into sonic's kindness- again, sonic didn't necessarily start this mission to save the world. sonic did this to save those little animal friends. he stepped up to the plate and challenged a mad scientist armed with thousands of robotic drones and fought him.
i think the best instance of his kindness is in sonic 06, where that same compassion actually causes the end of the world. sonic's insistence on helping elise, and not just saving her but getting her to smile, ends up dooming the world. he forms a bond so strong with her in the small amount of time they'd been together that seeing him die causes elise to cry for the first time in ten years. it's his death that sets causes the apocalypse, all because he was compassionate.
it's this kindness, too, that i think adds more nuance to his character. because sonic is at his core a devil may care daredevil, who only does what he thinks is right, and who only does things for the fun and the thrill of it. but its not entirely true, because sonic will go above and beyond the demands of the situations he finds himself in.
saving tails from his bullies? sure. he doesn't believe in oppressors of any form. but then essentially adopting that kid and letting him tag along on adventures, despite his solitary nature and unwillingness to settle down or be tied down? not necessary. saving angel island and giving knuckels abck his master emerald? well, he can't just let eggman win. befriending knuckles after? not necessary. helping shahra stop erazor djinn from devastating the arabian nights? well it's not like he's got anywhere else to be at the moment and it looks like a fun challenge. promising to get shahra to smile and taking the hit for her? not necessary. defeating merlina after she shows her true colors? it's what he thinks is the right thing to do, and her disregarding the natural order of things is just plain wrong. but trying to console her after they attempted to kill each other? unnecessary.
sonic is a bizarre juxtaposition of selfish and selfless. he's here to have fun and constantly seeks out danger, but he's not just willing to save the world- he's also here to help you smile.
5) subversion from usual "speed types"
sonic's also interesting to me in a sense that he's not really your average speedster, personality wise. yes, sonic can get impatient, and he that can lead to him being reckless, but for the most part... sonic isn't afraid of taking things slow and steady sometimes.
sonic's hobbies outside of fighting bad guys include reading, looking at pretty natural landscapes, and snoozing. when he's not fighting a bad guy he travels the world but otherwise has some pretty mundane, rather slow hobbies.
think of the usual speedster archetype- fast talking, always on the move, never sits still, chatty and friendly and kind of annoying.
and sonic can be all those things, but sonic's also allowed to be pretty slow. he's allowed to laze around and read a book or take a long nap. he's allowed to be solitary and non-social and quiet. he knows how to slow down and smell the roses. he knows to appreciate the moments he's got.
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