E-123 Omega


 * Omega redirects here. You may be looking for the Omega Care Unit. Or you could be searching for E-102 Gamma. Or if you're looking for the story Sonic Adventure 2.5 Omega, see Archie Sonic the Hedgehog Issue 125.

E-123 "Omega" is a battle robot created by Dr. Eggman in 3236 and is the only known remaining unit of the E-100 Series line. After being kept in storage for over a year, Omega was finally released in 3237 with a mission to destroy the traitorous E-102 Gamma. Although successful in his mission, Gamma managed to reprogram Omega to grant him a soul before being destroyed. Following this and a conversation with Shadow the Hedgehog, Omega decided to follow in his "brother's" footsteps and fight the Eggman Empire as an agent of the Guardian Units of the Nation, where he later became a member of Team Dark along with Shadow and Rouge the Bat.

Year In Storage
Omega was built in 3236 as part of the E-100 Series line of robots, specifically made for combat against Eggman's greatest enemy, Sonic the Hedgehog, with the side-mission of covering Mobius in "glorious fire and doom". But Omega wasn't activated until over a year after his creation and had been left to gather dust for all that time, eventually coming to rest in the Eggdome's storage facility. (SU: #3)

First Mission & Joining G.U.N.
E-123 Omega was finally activated in 3237 just prior to the invasion of the Eggdome. Dr. Eggman ordered Omega to hunt down and destroy E-102 Gamma to guarantee his rematch with Sonic would go as planned. At first, Omega refused his assignment as he was built only to destroy Sonic, but Eggman informed Omega that he alone would deal with Sonic and threatened to put him back in storage for a decade if Omega did not follow his orders. Omega then flew off of the top of the Eggdome and began his mission. (StH: #200, SU: #3)



After locating E-102 Gamma in some remote mountains hours later, Omega was forced to battle the rogue robot as well as G.U.N. agent Shadow the Hedgehog. Delighted to fight an opponent stronger than Sonic, Omega focused on Shadow until Gamma fired at him, reminding Omega of his primary objective. Shadow then knocked over Omega to buy Gamma some time. Intent on completing his mission, Omega temporarily disposed of Shadow by using his arm cannon to capture and blast him away over the tree-tops, vowing to return and finish him off later. Omega then chased after Gamma, and after a lengthy verbal exchange of their respective advantages and disabilities, Gamma managed to temporarily subdue Omega by blasting him off his feet. However, Gamma admitted he was outdated and that E-123 was the true better, which Omega took as a sign of surrender. Gamma told Omega his soul would remain even if he was destroyed, but Omega paid no heed to it, saying robots did not have souls. Gamma then uploaded the programming that gave him free will into Omega before his robotic body was destroyed by Omega's barrage. (SU: #3)

After the smoke had cleared, Omega became overwhelmed by his new programming and free will and thought he'd been infected with a virus just as Shadow arrived. "Gamma" then spoke through Omega, informing them that he had uploaded his coding into E-123 and given him a soul. The coding integrated into Omega and he and Gamma became one. With a new respect for life, Omega was convinced by Shadow to fight against the Eggman Empire like Gamma had as a G.U.N. agent in his quest for vengeance against his creator. After Omega created a grave marker made out of rocks for Gamma, he declared his want for continuing Gamma's life's mission and he and Shadow were picked up by a G.U.N. helicopter and brought back to G.U.N. HQ. Upon arriving at the base, Omega underwent an examination by Hope Kintobor and met with Chief Commander Abraham Tower, the latter of which considered him a fine "replacement" for Gamma. (SU: #3)

Member of Team Dark
After Shadow and Rouge failed to obtain a Chaos Emerald from Feist in the Special Zone, a disheartened Shadow engaged in a sparring match in G.U.N. HQ's gym with Omega, who noticed Shadow was "agitated". Omega said that Shadow should not let his failure concern him, as Omega had been cleared for active duty and would accompany Shadow and Rouge on their next attempt to obtain an emerald in the Special Zone, saying they would have an advantage this time as he intended to "blast" Feist. This statement angered Shadow and he threw Omega to the floor in a rage. Omega was then left wondering if it was something he had said as he watched Shadow leave the gym. (SU: #4)

A while later, Omega accompanied Rouge and Shadow (with confidence restored) on their second attempt to retrieve a Chaos Emerald, this time as a member of the newly formed Team Dark. After being teleported via Hope's Zone-Breaching Platform, Omega and the rest of Team Dark were given a new challenge by Feist upon their arrival in the Special Zone. Their task was to retrieve a Chaos Emerald from the centre of a cube-shaped maze to claim it as their own. With help from Shadow's speed, they quickly found the emerald above a floor of spikes, but Feist encased it within a box made of gems and they failed to get through it and snag the emerald in time. Feist then teleported Team Dark and the emerald out of the maze and began to mock them in the palm of his hand. The trio then initiated "Plan B" and Omega attacked Feist with his weapons full in the face as a distraction while Rouge and Shadow stole the emerald from the Special Zone's master. Feist became enraged by this, but Team Dark escaped thanks to Shadow's use of Chaos Control. Omega and the two Mobians then returned to G.U.N. HQ, and Rouge complimented Omega on his work, who replied it was "only a small megaton of ordinance." (SU: #4)

Sol Searching
Omega and Shadow were later called upon to assist their teammate, Rouge, in locating the source of a mysterious energy reading; namely, a Sol Emerald. The emerald was difficult to track due to irregularities in their readings and Rouge eventually stumbled across Amy Rose, Cream the Rabbit, Blaze the Cat and NICOLE in her handheld form. The two power members of Team Dark then tailed Rouge as she earned the trust of the others searching for the Sol Emerald, ready to assist when she needed back-up. That moment came right after Rouge stole the Sol Emerald and got herself cornered by Blaze. Omega and Shadow blasted through rock to land behind Rouge, who delivered a warning to them to stay back or else the robot and hedgehog would strike. To Omega and Rouge's surprise, Blaze revealed she knew Shadow and said he'd betrayed her generosity for giving him a Chaos Emerald, though he said the situation had changed. When Team Rose refused to back down, Rouge ordered Omega to attack and he unleashed his arsenal with a cry of, "Yippie-ki-yay, pastel-colored resistance!" To his and Rouge's astoundment, Blaze created a wall of fire that "trumped" Omega's barrage and the robot was then attacked with the cat's flames when Shadow voiced his objections to the assault. A somewhat dazed Omega then told Blaze he liked her and said that he wished they would "burn stuff" together. Amy then took a swing at Rouge with her Piko Piko Hammer, causing the spy to drop the gem for Cream to catch. Omega went in pursuit of the rabbit girl, only for her to throw it in his face. The Sol Emerald riccocheted off him and Shadow caught it, only for Amy to smack it away from Team Dark again. Blaze tried to catch it only for Rouge to slide into her and then the gem bounced off her head into the arms of Cream's pet Chao, Cheese, who flew into the woods at his owner's command. Rouge then decided to take Blaze's Sol Emerald as a consolation prize, squeezing the princess's wrists to cause it to appear. She threw it to Shadow and he attempted to use Chaos Control, only for the jewel to erupt into fire since only Blaze could use their power. Team Dark ended up momentarily dazed by this and Team Rose took the chance to find Cheese and escape. They soon recovered and Omega unleashed gunfire after seeing Team Rose embroiled with Team Hooligan, consisting of Nack the Weasel, Bean the Dynamite and Bark the Polar Bear, the three also there to claim the Sol Emeralds. Rouge demanded Team Rose hand over the emeralds and Amy was then kicked in the chest by Shadow before she could tell them she didn't have it. Omega then went in pursuit of Blaze and Cream, guns shooting and tearing down tree cover. Cheese then knocked into the robot's head and Omega received another dose of Blaze's powers of pyrokinesis. The attack was cut short by Rouge who kicked the feline in the back and elbowed her in the back of the head, causing her to fall unconscious, while Shadow proceeded to knock out Amy. Shadow and Rouge brought the two members of Team Rose out into a clearing for Cream and Cheese to see. They soon arrived and Omega quickly captured them. Cream then started bawling, saying they didn't have the Sol Emerald anymore. When Omega told her to calm down and explain this, saying Team Hooligan took it and Amy recovers just in time to confirm this. Rouge reveals she knew the trio of criminals from her past and that they shouldn't pose a problem. Blaze then awoke, determination and powers firing back up, ready to fight for the Sol Zone's safety. (SU: #21, #22)

Abilities
Omega is described as a "walking arsenal" due to being equipped with a considerable amount of weaponry, which is mainly concealed in his arms (somewhat similar to that of Grounder) and the rest of his upper body. His known armoury consists of machine guns, lasers, missile launchers and cannons, giving him "more firepower than all of the old Badnik horde combined," according to Snively. Some of his weapons seem to be specifically made for combat with Sonic, such as his arm cannon that was able to capture and launch Shadow when he performed a spin-dash, one of Sonic's signature moves. Although Omega is primarily built for weapons' usage, he also seems to have been programmed with a limited knowledge of hand-to-hand combat, as he could deflect some of Shadow's attacks during a sparring match while attempting to get in some of his own, only for Shadow to push him to the floor once he became aggravated. Omega has also displayed considerable physical strength, making him capable of destroying thick trees by smashing them with his metal fists or breaking G.U.N.'s training equipment. He was equipped with heavy and remarkably strong armour that can withstand laser blasts from elite fighter robots such as Gamma, small explosions, raging fire, powerful blows from opponents such as Shadow and possibly Chaos Spear attacks. (SU: #3, #4, #22)

Aside from his combat capabilities, Omega can also use radio waves to talk with other Eggman robots and has sensors that allow him to detect energy signatures in various objects, areas, and beings along with changes in the air such as when smoke is present. Omega also seems to be made to go across different terrains as well since he was able to get around the snow laden mountains with ease and could smash trees with his bare hands, which are natural obstacles that could get in his way all over Mobius. He also has impressive speed and can jump fairly long distances others would have to fly over, but in the cases where he can't jump far enough, Omega can utilize a jet booster built into his back to hover and fly long distances. (SU: #3, #4)

Personality
Like many of Eggman's other robots, Omega was programmed with a limited personality, but thanks to Gamma's upload, it expanded considerably and gave him free will. Before then, he was just an obedient robot who feared his creator with a keen sense of sarcasm at his disposal. (SU: #3, #4)

Omega is somewhat arrogant and prideful, making him think his enemies are inferior to him and are nothing but playthings to be fought with, no matter how powerful those beings are, and will jump at any chance to prove his capabilities. Currently, Omega's only goals in life are to take revenge on Eggman for keeping him shut down for a year and to carry on Gamma's mission, which are close to the same thing. His pride of being a destructive war machine is a major part of him, and even threatened to turn Shadow into "linked sausage" if he told anybody at G.U.N. he showed himself to be weaker than usual by building a grave marker and "whining" about not knowing his purpose in life. Although his pride will make him do anything to prove how powerful he is, Omega will not let it get in the way of his current mission objective and won't stop until it is complete. (SU: #3, #4)

Despite the fact that Omega has received the more peaceful Gamma's programming and now finds destroying life an experience that makes him feel "uneasy," Omega still likes to use destructive methods, battle with powerful opponents (even if they're his allies), and purge things with "fire" in most situations. (SU: #3, #4)

Background Information

 * Former writer Karl Bollers planned to introduce Omega in a story after StH #134 as a sentient robot later rebelling his creator, but the idea was scrapped. (1)
 * Current writer Ian Flynn planned on using Omega in the milestone StH #175. In it, Omega would have replaced Snively's role of attacking Freedom HQ and would have killed a still-living Tommy Turtle before fighting Bunnie "Rabbot" D'Coolette and finally Sonic. Afterwards, Omega would rise to become one of Eggman's top enforcers for a while before the events of SU #3 took place. (2) However, SEGA asked that Flynn not use him in the story. Archie finally managed to convince SEGA to let them use Omega in Sonic Universe to complete Team Dark. (3)
 * Omega's design was used for the Omega Care Unit in issues following StH #193 with minor changes. Although the early prototype designs for the care unit looked more like E-102 Gamma than Omega, the design was changed to be like Omega's over the years because "it seemed to lend itself better to housing a mobian, and it seemed much more apt for her character."(4) This makes Omega the first character on Mobius Prime to appear after their Moebius counterpart, though had Ian's original plans for Omega gone through the Omega Care Unit would presumably have first appeared after Omega himself.
 * On the covers of Sonic Universe #3 and #4, Omega is depicted with a metal plate between his eyes just like in the games, though this was not included in the actual issues. It seems that the plate was a last minute addition, as it was not seen on both promotional covers for those Sonic Universe issues. In future issues featuring Omega (minus his Off Panel appearance in SU #14), the plate is included both in issues and on covers.
 * The pipe surrounding Omega's waist originally had multiple slots in the comics. Now it features arrows to more closely mirror his game appearance.

Appearance
Omega has a similar design to the first models of the E-100 Series (particularly Gamma). Noticable differences include a stockier upper body and arms, different coloured eyes and claws for both hands. His height is also greater than the other models and his shoulders larger with a visible Greek symbol on the front of the left and back of the right with red handlebars on the top. He is without the twin exhaust pipes and grav-linked jet disc ("Jet Booster" in Sonic Adventure) of the first E-100 Series robots, instead with one circling pipe around the waist with two flaps attached and a jet installed in his back. The stripe running from his head to stomach has also been changed so that it is a seperate piece of metal altogether and not simply painted on like the others that noticeably sticks out, and he also has one extra finger, two hands with yellow wrists studded with large spikes like a dog collar and just below his stripe is a silver plate. He also lacks the twin dots between his eyes and the large light above his waist.

Tracy Yardley's design of Omega is mainly based on that of his appearance in Sonic Heroes and Shadow the Hedgehog, but design elements from Omega's other game appearances were also worked in, such as the sharper fingers on his hands from Sonic the Hedgehog. (5) Yardley's depiction shows Omega as much taller then his game counterpart with bigger shoulders and the black stripe of metal jutting out unusally, and has given him the ability to display emotion by making the yellow metal encasing his eyes change shape like a person's forehead would in reaction. After the first two issuees featuring Omega, Yardley increased detail by including Omega's face plate and adding ridges to his shoulders akin to his design on Sonic the Hedgehog.



Steven Butler's depiction of Omega in the Off-Panel of SU #3 is similar to Yardley's, and appears to also be based off his Sonic Heroes design. Though his Omega looks much more stout with the shoulders and head bearing closer resemblance to Omega's original design, while the stripe falls short of Omega's stomach. Butler also gave Omega additional weapons in SU #3's Off Panel consisting of a cannon in his right arm with twin missiles, some type of automatic weapon and a single missile of his left arm, and one larger missile perched on each shoulder. Butler changed his depiction of Omega in the Off-Panel of SU #4 to mirror that of his appearance in Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood, as evidenced by both shoulders appearing much larger than last issue and Omega having two Omega symbols instead of one. Although, many artists (both those who have worked on the games and fans) have mistakenly given Omega two symbols instead of one in the past.

Jamal Peppers depicted Omega much like Yardley originally did in the Off Panel of SU #14, but made the shoulders even larger so they were bigger than his chest.