| Sonic Super Special #1 |
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Archie Sonic Super Special Issue 1 (also known as Battle Royal) is the first issue of the Sonic Super Specials series published by Archie Comics.
Featured stories
"Battle Royal"
- Writer: Kent Taylor and Ken Penders
- Pencils: Sam Maxwell
- Inks: Jim Amash
- Colors: Karl Bollers
- Letters: Jeff Powell
- Editor: J. Freddy Gabrie
- Managing editor: Victor Gorelick
- Editor-in-chief: Richard Goldwater
- Special thanks to: Susan Suarez and Helen Bell at SEGA
The Freedom Fighters travel to the Floating Island to retrieve the Sword of Acorns from Knuckles and help him defend the island from the siege. Having no success finding Knuckles, the Freedom Fighters run into Charmy, Mighty, Espio and Vector. Vector tells the Freedom Fighters that they've defeated their enemies, thanks to the Sword and have been given orders by Knuckles to send the FF packing. Sally is curious because Knuckles vowed peace between them, but Sonic says that "ol' pointy head can't be trusted". Mighty grabs a nearby tree and swings it towards Sonic, but Sonic quickly dodges. Espio is ready to attack Bunnie, while Charmy and Tails fight in the air. Vector about to attack Rotor tells them that the Floating Island is too full of visitors and Knuckles only wants to hang with his homeboys. Rotor objects, wanting to find Knuckles to sought out the fight. Sally orders the FF to take them down with minimum force. Dulcy stops a nearby Tails from hurting Charmy, as Bunnie, Sally and Antoine take down Mighty and Espio. Vector gets stuck by a device used by Rotor. The Chaotix prove weak towards the FF, but Espio shouts "not if the powers of the nearby Archimedes have anything to say about it!". The Chaotix are teleported away in a puff of smoke, but Archimedes is nowhere to be seen. The FF still wondering why they were attacked set off to find Knuckles and the Sword of Acorns.
Elsewhere in the jungle, Vector, Mighty, Charmy, Knuckles and Espio are relaxing, but Espio notices that they have company. Knuckles asks Sally, Bunnie, Tails and Sonic why they threatened them on the radio, and Tails begins the fight that Knuckles took too long with the Sword of Acorns. Mighty dodges two giant boulders thrown by both of Bunnie's arms, objecting to the fight. The FF fight the Chaotix, because they've kept the Sword too long. The Chaotix subdue Sally, Bunnie, Tails and Sonic, but they flee from the scene. The Chaotix wondered what had happened and why the FF didn't put up a fight, until Archimedes appears to warn Knuckles. Archimedes warns Knuckles that things aren't what they seem, but then the FF confront the Chaotix.
The FF fight the Chaotix, but Sally and Archimedes try to calm them down. Sonic and Knuckles fight hard, but both are equal to each others attacks. Charmy being chased by Dulcy is told telepathically to lure the dragon to him and Sally. Dulcy uses her fire breath on Charmy, but Charmy avoids and Archimedes uses his fire powers. A giant explosion is triggered and it appears that the Freedom Fighters and the Chaotix had wiped each other out.
Appearing out of nowhere with the Sword of Acorns, Mammoth Mogul with the Fearsome Foursome celebrates his victory. Sergeant Simian tells Mogul that they might be getting ahead of themselves, but Mogul attacks him with the Sword. Mammoth Mogul tells them his plan had come together since their encounter with the Chaotix (Mecha Madness). When he saw that Knuckles had the Sword of Acorns, Mogul discovered that if the FF and Chaotix worked together, they would wipe him out. Mogul alters the radio message between the FF and the Chaotix, sending the FF to the Floating Island and making it seen as a threat to Knuckles with the FF.
Mammoth Mogul used his illusion powers to create the Fearsome Foursome as members of the Chaotix and the FF. After their encounters with each group, Mogul gladly watched as the groups would fight until they destroyed each other. Suddenly, Sonic appears with the Freedom Fighters and the Chaotix, ready to fight Mogul and the Fearsome Foursome. Mogul surprised that they're still alive, Sally explains how they discovered his plans. Archimedes managed to teleport them away as the firely explosion was triggered.
The FF and the Chaotix explain how they found out his scheme; Archimedes could only teleport when touching someone, Bunnie didn't have super strength with her normal arm, Knuckles was faster than Sonic at one point and only four members of the FF and the Chaotix attacked them. Mammoth Mogul will not accept defeat and attacks the teams. Mogul proves too powerful from them, so Archimedes gambles and uses a Chaos Emerald against Mogul's Emerald. Mammoth Mogul and the Fearsome Foursome disappear; the FF and the Chaotix thinking that they were teleported out of the universe. Knuckles finds the Sword of Acorn's and gives it to Sally. For Knuckles' courage and fortitude on behalf of the realm, Sally knights Knuckles as Sir Knuckles in the Kingdom of Acorn. Both the FF and the Chaotix celebrate Knuckles' knighting.
The Freedom Fighters take off from the Floating Island and arrive back in Knothole. Sally asks Rotor to contact Uncle Chuck, to help retrieve the Crown of Acorns, while Sally does research in her hut. Sally is then told by Rosie about a discovery found by King Max (STH: #47).
The epilogue shows that Mammoth Mogul wasn't destroyed and that he still has the real Sword of Acorns in his possession.
The Map
- Writer: Tom Rolston
- Pencils: Dave Manak
- Inks: Rich Koslowski
- Colors: Barry Grossman
- Letters: Vickie Williams
- Editor: J. Freddy Gabrie
- Managing editor: Victor Gorelick
- Editor-in-chief: Richard Goldwater
- Special thanks to: Susan Suarez and Helen Bell at SEGA
Searching through his father's possessions, Antoine discovers half of a map, hidden in the hilt of General Armand D'Coolette's sword. Though Bunnie visits, Antoine, caught up in the mystery of his father's map, asks to be left alone. He discovers that his map piece has one complete side with drawing of a location called the Budding Circle.
Meanwhile, in Robotropolis, Snively looks for a weapon to use in bringing down his uncle, Dr. Ivo Robotnik. Searching through some files, he comes across the opposite half of the map, also with a complete drawing of the Budding Circle. After a bit of research, he learns that the Budding Circle was a site on the South side of Mobotropolis that his uncle destroyed with Krudzu.
Antoine, in search of what his father left behind, and Snively, deploying his Eggbots to dig at the site in hope of finding any remaining Krudzu seedlings to use against his uncle, set out to toward the South side of Robotropolis. Antoine, alone and the second to arrive on the scene, overhears Snively's plan and mention of the Krudzu. Returning to warn the Freedom Fighters, however, he slips on a pile of metal bars and causes a commotion. Alarmed, Snively sends his Eggbots to silence the intruder, so as to keep his plot against his uncle secret. They chase Antoine, until a laser blast destroys the ground below Antoine and causes him to fall into the sewers.
While the Eggbots hunt for Antoine, he finds a Power Ring stored in one of his pockets. He uses it to enhance his natural abilities in order slice one of the Eggbots in half with his sword. The remaining two Eggbots in the sewer continue their pursuit for Antoine, but he uses a prism-like device to create an illusion, confusing the Eggbots. With help of a locator device, Antoine succeeds in finding the Robotropolis Spy Network. There, Antoine relates to Uncle Chuck his side of the story. Uncle Chuck informs him that Rotor detected some seismic activity in the area already, and that he is already on his way to investigate it with Sonic and Bunnie. Antoine leaves in a hurry to meet them. Back at the Budding Circle, he finds Sonic, Rotor and Bunnie surrounded by the Eggbots.
Antoine gets Sonic's attention and throws him the Power Ring, which he uses to fight off the Eggbots. But the Eggbots retreat when a group of SWATbots fly in, unexpectedly. Sonic, Antoine, Bunnie, and Rotor take this opportunity to escape back to Knothole. At this point, the SWATbots welcome Dr. Robotnik's return to Robotropolis. Holding Snively furiously by the neck, Dr. Robotnik questions him about a tip he received that he had some new, super-powered ‘bots. Snively, who found no trace of the Krudzu at the Budding Circle, who makes up a story about digging robots. The story ends with Antoine, again at his cottage in Knothole, studying his half of the map, wondering if he'll one day discover what the combined back side leads to.
Quotes
(After being attacked by the Chaotix)
- Bunnie: *looking at the reader* What we have heah is a failure to communicate!
Key events
- The Knothole Freedom Fighters and the Chaotix are tricked into fighting each other.
- The Knothole Freedom Fighters and the Chaotix learn of this and fight the Fearsome Foursome.
- Knuckles gives Sally a fake Sword of Acorns while, unbeknownst to them, Mogul stole the real one.
- Snively secretly sends out his Eggbots to the Budding Circle to search for and collect any remaining Krudzu seeds.
Trivia
- The first story continues off from stories in issues StH: #42, Sonic Live, StH: #45 - #46. The Sword of Acorns arc concluded in KtE: #9 and STH: #56.
- The design of this issue's cover is similar to that of the one used for StH: #211, albeit with the Iron Dominion in place of the Chaotix, a lightning bolt replacing the Sword of Acorns, Tails being removed from the Freedom Fighter group image and having no enemy counterpart, and with Monkey Khan and Amy Rose replacing Antoine and Bunnie.
- The Krudzu plant first appeared in StH: #1.
- This comic was originally published as "Sonic vs. Knuckles: Battle Royal." When the Sonic Super Special series was made into a quarterly publication, it was reprinted as "Sonic Super Special: Battle Royal," with the cover text changed to match.
- The first printing of this comic had a cover price of $2.00 (USA) / $2.50 (CAN), while the reprint had a cover price of $2.25 (USA) / $2.75 (CAN).