Sonic The Hedgehog (2006) And That Romantic Attraction.
There is within the dramatic final chapters of the video game Sonic The Hedgehog-- that failed attempt at simultaneously concluding the storyline established in the Sonic Adventure series and reinvigorating the basic notion of what a game called Sonic The Hedgehog could be—a moment of ironic power, that constructs itself in the prior symbolic state of romantic gestures as parts of the magical ritual, as a regenerative force coming from sentimental desire, and yet this sentimental romance is impossible in its own context. Our titular hero, Sonic, who represents the generation of available heroes within Sonic The Hedgehog has already died in resistance to the greater threat. Still, he is needed-- no disaster in this setting could be resolved without a hero—and so he is revived. This resuscitation occurs firstly with the power of the chaos emeralds, the ultimate fonts of power within the sonic mythos, and secondly, with the power of a kiss from the human princess Elise.
Normally, the shimmering magic forming when two pairs of lips meet would be considered painfully sentimental or even too obvious. This scene avoids the reaction because of who the participants are. There is brutal irony here. On one level, there is the hero being resuscitated by the princess. That it is the princess’s kiss reviving the hero makes sense within a romantic context, as the hero is often expected to woo the princess through some heroic action that proves his very heroism. However, the audience is repulsed because of the second level. The Princess Elise is a human, and Sonic is famously a hedgehog. She stands heads above him, and for her to kiss him, the chaos emeralds elevate him to her height. Sonic is no equal partner to her, and is not fit for her despite his heroism. He will always first be an animal before he is a hero to her. She can kiss him once, but as the story closes, we as the audience are forced to recognize the obvious tension between them. She and he will never and could never be together in the way a hero and a princess are supposed to.
Sonic the Hedgehog as a narrative emphasizes the dimensions of a hero’s sacrifice, and parallels them with the sacrifices of the secondary participants in a heroic narrative. For Sonic the Hedgehog it is not enough to exchange his body for the safety of those around him. He must also be willing to sacrifice his heroic nature to complete the acts of heroism expected of him. It can be recognized that the revulsion the audience experiences at this symbolic act of acknowledging heroism is tantamount to rejecting Sonic’s right to be called a hero. Likewise, Princess Elise must sacrifice her affection and respect for Sonic’s heroism as she expresses these feelings in a singular moment that cannot be sustained or recognized at the narrative’s resolution. Sonic The Hedgehog fails as a reinvigoration of the notion of what the Sonic franchise could be because of its willingness to explore its heroes as unable to satisfy archetypal notions of heroism, and to portray failed romance in the context of a romantic hero. Expressing this romantic attraction, the vary gesture required to revive the hero, necessarily divides him from his heroism. This failure to become a hero is the perfect representation of the failed effort at the heart of Sonic The Hedgehog.
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