Did I celebrate @sonicthehedgehog's 35th anniversary? Sadly, no.
How could I? Between the fanbase tearing itself apart, the lame crossovers, and the underwhelming state of the franchise as a whole, I just was not feeling it this time.
I have previously shared how alone I am in this fandom, and this post DEFINITELY won't change that, but I'm posting it regardless, because things haven't gotten better. If anything, they've gotten worse, and many of my takes reflect this:
I still hate Mania, and I won't be playing Superstars for the same reason.
I still believe that making the IDW comics canon to the games was a bad idea. Same with the Prime cartoon.
I believe that Ian Flynn should not be writing for the games since he notably doesn't play them or engage with them.
TailsTube, the Murder of Sonic, The Chaotix Casefiles, and other side projects like that - while harmless in concept - are of low quality and have diluted the feel of Sonic, if that makes sense.
Sexual orientation and gender ideology have no place in Sonic.
The "Two Worlds" theory is stupid, and is no excuse for keeping humans and Mobians apart.
Sally and the Freedom Fighters do NOT need to be added to the games, especially as they were, even after the reboot.
The longer Sega & Sonic Team play it safe and take half-measures towards evolution, the longer the series will be stuck middling and wheel-spinning.
These and my other opinions have not endeared me to y'all or any other Sonic fans. It's like I will never have a place as a fan unless I like what literally everyone else likes, play what everyone else plays, consume what everyone else consumes, and share the exact same opinions as everyone else. Unless I join the herd, I will never belong.
How is that even fair? How is it fair that wanting the Sonic series to progress, evolve, and be better is a bad thing, yet mindlessly accepting flawed ideas like the DC & Godzilla crossovers is not only encouraged, but demanded? It's like we're stuck in this safe holding pattern of mediocrity; for every Frontiers we get, we're forced to put up with Rumble, Dream Team, and EVERYTHING that IDW does.
That's not even mentioning the dumbass memes, the political discourse, the willful ignorance of the fandom's degenerate nature, the broken lore, crappy writing, and, AGAIN, the satisfaction of being mid as long as everything reviews/sells well and is popular. Everyone is afraid of taking a chance on something different for fear of failure and its resultant mockery.
It's just...tiresome, y'all.
The Sonic franchise is supposed to be cool, now it's like its content to be successfully meh, but saying this immediately gets you canceled or shunned. This franchise is supposed to eat, sleep, and breathe the "Rule of Cool", but it's being held back by a desperate company, and a hateful, loathsome part of the community that gets away with so much, they proudly wallow around in their own crap believing that Sonic would join them.
I already feel alone in the world, and I really don't want or need Sonic or his fans telling me to conform or stay out of the community. Honestly, what would I have to sacrifice in order to be let in back in? Would I have to hate who I'm told to, accept what I'm forced to, mindlessly consume everything on offer, regardless of quality? Do I have to leave my own beliefs and principles at the door just to make/keep some damn friends?
Is that it? I have to join the herd of clapping, hateful, degenerate seals that most of the Sonic fan community seems to have become, or be alone?
If not, great, but if so...if so, then......maybe I'm not meant to be a part of it. I'll just have to create my own space, with content so solid and striking, it'll get SEGA's attention on my own terms. I just have to hope that what I'm doing is good enough to gain some traction. I'm still a Sonic fan, I just don't engage with the official stuff as much as I used to. I...I can't engage with it. The games are still good, and have been all this time, but everything else? Miss me with it.
Again, I don't expect this post to be popular or win anyone over (Reddit hated this, for example). I just hope that at least one person understands what I'm saying.
