Sonic the Hedgehog (TV series)

Sonic the Hedgehog, known amongst fans as Sonic SatAM is an American animated television series created by DiC Entertainment based on the video game series of the same name. The show served as the partial basis for the Archie Sonic the Hedgehog comic series by Archie Comics, which continues even twenty years after the cartoon's cancellation and still features many of the cartoon's own characters.

The series aired from 18 September 1993 to 3 December 1994 on ABC. It ran for two seasons. A third season was in the early planning stages until ABC canceled the show due to a change in leadership lead to the new owner wiping away everything connected to the previous and initiating his own plans. At its height, it was actually rivaling FOX Kids' Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers.

Freedom Fighters

 * Knothole Freedom Fighters
 * Princess Sally
 * NICOLE
 * Antoine Depardieu
 * Bunnie Rabbot
 * Rotor Walrus
 * Sir Charles 'Uncle Chuck' Hedgehog

Villains

 * Dr. Ivo Robotnik (SatAM design)
 * Cluck (1st season only)
 * Snively
 * Naugus
 * Swatbots
 * Surveillance Orb
 * Buzzbomber (SatAM design) (pilot only)

Other Characters

 * House of Acorn
 * King Acorn
 * Dragon
 * Dulcy the Dragon
 * Sabina Dragon
 * Wolf Pack Freedom Fighters
 * Lupe Wolf
 * Rosie Woodchuck
 * Muttski (pilot only)
 * Shredbot
 * Gopher Highwayman (fictional)

Scrapped Characters

 * Nate Morgan

Unseen
While not featured in the comics, they were confirmed to exist in the Prime Zone through the Mobius Encyclopaedia.
 * Nicholas O'Tyme (The Keeper of the Time Stones)
 * Nasty Hyenas
 * Kraken

Vehicles

 * Destroyer

Items

 * Roboticization
 * Mega Muck
 * Power Ring
 * Ring Forge
 * Roboticizer
 * Roboticization
 * Time Stones

Locations

 * Badlands
 * Forbidden Zone
 * Mobotropolis
 * Great Forest
 * Knothole Village
 * Lake of Rings
 * Great Canyon
 * Great Jungle
 * Great Unknown
 * The Void

Miscellaneous

 * Great War
 * Ivo Robotnik's coup d'état
 * Minister of Science
 * War Ministry
 * Warlord

Unused
While some elements were used in the comics, others were left out for various/unknown reasons, though a few made cameo appearances as background characters or references.

Characters & Species

 * Cat - An elderly feline Freedom Fighter who sacrificed himself to protect the others.
 * Ari Ram - Leader of an unnamed group of Freedom Fighters, who made a deal with Robotnik to capture Sonic in order to spare his team's lives. Robotnik, as usual, didn't keep his promise and Ari was sent into the Void.
 * Griff - A Mobian goat from Lower Mobius, a hidden settlement directly beneath Robotropolis. Charming and suave, he tricked Sally into showing him the stone which powered the Ring Forge, which he later stole to help power his city.
 * Pollo & Dirk - A bear and rhino representing the Southern and Eastern Freedom Fighters. They never speak, so it is unknown who is who.
 * Lazaar - An elderly human-like sorcerer who slept for centuries inside his fortress in the Forbidden Zone. Robotnik later entered his rigged labyrinth and stole his prized artifact, a magical computer. Regretting the evil acts he committed long ago, Lazaar had a change in heart and decided to put his trust with the Freedom Fighters.
 * The Guardian - Lazzar's creepy bodyguard. He kept watch over his master's resting place, waiting for someone as evil as he once was to awaken him. He was unaware of his master's change in heart.
 * Terapods - A herd of dinosaur-like creatures that travel for great lengths across the planet, to reach their homeland through the Great Jungle. Like elephants, they posess a high intelligence and can communicate with others. Tails tried keeping one as a pet, but had to give him up to reunite him with his family.
 * The Mandaras - An ancient race of giants that seemed to have disappeared off the face of the planet. While seemingly extinct, they left behind many artifacts of magical properties, including Drood Henge and the mystical Deep Power Stones.

Items

 * Deep Power Stones - A pair of legendary, powerful crystals formed by the Mandaras and hidden by the royal family. Combined one way, they grant extraordinary power to the user (similar to the Chaos Emeralds); whereas combined the other way, they would cause mass destruction.
 * Lazzar's Computer - A crystalline repository device containing countless forms of magic. Spells, curses, charms, and other such powers are accessible via voice-command, making it a dangerous tool. If the computer were to be destroyed, it would unleash unspeakable evil.

Locations

 * Boulder Bay - The tropical destination and native homeland of the Terapods.
 * Dark Swamp - A massive marshland containing the ruins of Ironlock Prison.
 * Drood Henge - A set of ancient ruins located within the Great Unknown, and the secret location of the Deep Power Stones.
 * Lower Mobius - A secret, underground Mobian community beneath the sewers of Robotroplolis.
 * Nimbus Island - An abandoned mining facility and oil plantation.

Canonical Differences
While the comic was heavily influenced by the show, the writers were allowed to deviate from the source material; which resulted in several major differences between each series.


 * In the show, Robotnik is the one who seals Naugus in the Void, suggesting a former partnership which ended in betrayal. In the comics, it is Warlord Kodos who plans to betray Naugus instead, but Naugus gives him the slip by escaping into the Zone of Silence. All this takes place before Robotnik's allegiance with the Kingdom of Acorn.
 * Additionally, the Void serves as Naugus' prison in the show, instead of the Zone of Silence as seen in the comics.
 * In the first episode of the series, "Sonic Boom", it is implied that the King had managed to escape Robotnik's coup and was spending his time on the run; supplying the Freedom Fighters with useful information.
 * The events of this episode contradict what was established in the 2nd season, during the two-parter "Blast to the Past", in which Robotnik banishes the King into the Void to join Naugus. However, it's possible that this was a direct result of Sonic and Sally's attempt to alter history.
 * In the show, Sir Charles is still Cheif Scientist of the Ministry of Science, despite his failed attempt to utilize the roboticizer. In the comics, he was ashamed by his failure (having lost his brother to its affects) and retired his position by entering the fast-food business.
 * Sonic also states that Sir Charles was the one who created the Power Rings and the device which generates them. In the comics, it was Nate Morgan who created them; Charles was only his apprentice.
 * In the episode "Ultra Sonic", Sonic manages to temporally restore Uncle Chuck's roboticized mind with the use of a Power Ring, and later encouraging him to overcome his programing in "Sonic Conversion". In the comic, Chuck's mind is restored by a freak-accident caused by Robotnik experimenting with the Void's properties.
 * In the show, Bunnie is shown to have been childhood friends with the Freedom Fighters before the coup, and was amongst those smuggled into the Great Forest for safety. In the comics, she joined them at an older age, shortly after being roboticized.
 * Despite being classified as a villian, Naugus is depicted as more of an Anti-villain in the show; having shown mercy to the Freedom Fighters and admiring their skills and abilities, while harboring a taste for revenge against Robotnik. He is also shown using other forms of magic not seen in the comics, such as charming spells, telekinesis, hypnosis, shapeshifting (both himself and others), and foresight.
 * In the comic, Antoine was given the name "D'Coolette". In the 15-minute episode "Odd Couple", Antoine exclaims that his last name is "Depardieu".
 * This name would later serve as the last name of his Genesis reality counterpart, as well as his Dark Mobius doppelgänger.

When the comic switched over to the Post-Super Genesis Wave continuity, elements from the cartoon were carried over, albeit mixed in with game-based elements. Of course, there are still several notable differences.


 * Robotnik banished both King Acorn and Naugus into the Special Zone rather than the Zone of Silence
 * This may be based on how the Zone of Silence was later merged with the Void and turned into the Special Zone in the old continuity.
 * While not outright confirmed, it's implied that Sonic and the Freedom Fighters where not childhood friends like in the show.
 * Bunnie, who is once again a childhood friend of the Freedom Fighters in this canon, was partially Roboticized by Chuck rather than by Robotnik as in the old comic reality; the show never explained exactly how she came to be partially Roboticized.
 * A test video for the cartoon's intro bundled in the SatAM Complete Series DVD set, however, shows that a freak accident with Sally trying to free Bunnie accidentally partially roboticized her.

Background Information

 * The exclusive character, Lazaar, is known for speaking like the character Yoda from the Star Wars franchise, a trait he shares with Foreman Krag of the Kron.
 * Background characters resembling Geoffrey St. John, Hamlin Pig, and Dylan Porcupine can be seen throughout various episodes. Considering the episodes' airing time, it's highly likely that writer Ken Penders based his character designs after their likenesses.