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Information in this article may not be canonical to the storyline of the games or any other Sonic continuity. |
Thunderbolt the Chinchilla[5] is a character that appears in the Sonic the Hedgehog comic series and its spin-offs published by Archie Comics. She is a mobian chinchilla and the Egg Boss of the Soumerca Egg Army division of the Egg Army stationed on Sonic's World.
Concept and creation[]
Thunderbolt was conceived long ago by Ian Flynn as a female and irredeemably evil underling of Eggman who was obsessively loyal to the doctor. Aleah Baker thought it would be funny and interesting to have her appearance be at odds with that, and suggested making her a chinchilla, whose fluffy fur would also fit well with her powers. Aware of her stature, she would use a mech to make herself more imposing.[1]
Thunderbolt's cybernetics were meant to confuse her design in her silhouette when she first appeared. Furthermore, she was originally sleeveless, with high insulated gloves covering most of her arms. Later design tweaks changed that, along with her button placement and general shape. Her color scheme is based on 70's decor.[1]
Appearance[]
Thunderbolt is a diminutive mobian chinchilla, close to two feet tall, with yellow fur, a brown nose, green eyes, and a white muzzle. She has a small head with round ears almost as large as her head, an over-proportioned, nearly spherical torso with bushy green fur fluff covering her chest all the way to the back of her neck, stubby legs and arms, and a long bushy tail. Having undergone the Cyberization procedure, she has a pair of cables on top of her head, a ruby-like object on the forehead, and a cable each connecting the back of her hands with a power generator on her back.
For attire, Thunderbolt wears an orange long-sleeved shirt, grey pants with suspenders and two yellow buttons on the front, grey gloves, and orange shoes with grey soles. In her powersuit, Thunderbolt is around five to six feet tall. The suit itself slightly resemble E-102 Gamma and the E-1000 series.
History[]
Shattered World Crisis[]
Act One[]
Thunderbolt inside her robotic suit, from Sonic the Hedgehog #264.
Thunderbolt and her forces managed to recover a Chaos Emerald. As she was about to report to Dr. Eggman of their find, the doctor contacted her. Thunderbolt promised to deliver the Emerald soon, but Eggman ordered her to keep it and use it as bait for the Freedom Fighters, a plan she took a liking to.[6]
Later, Thunderbolt and her Egg Army were entrusted with E-113 Xi. As Sonic the Hedgehog, Amy Rose, and Sally Acorn, along with help from Mighty the Armadillo and Ray the Flying Squirrel, managed to subdue E-113 Xi, Thunderbolt prepared for Eggman's plan to destroy the Freedom Fighters. The Freedom Fighters arrived at the Egg Army base, and defeated the badniks there, but were immediately ambushed by Thunderbolt, inside her robotic suit, and her Egg Soldiers. They activated electric projectiles at the heroes, which caused Sonic to succumb to his dark concentration energy, transforming him into the Werehog.[7]
Unwilling to allow Sonic's unexpected transformation to phase her, Thunderbolt ordered her forces to attack, only for the Werehog to throw them aside with ease. Annoyed, Thunderbolt entered the fray herself, only to be torn from her battlesuit, which left her furious. However, her electrical powers proved little use against an angry Werehog, and it was only the intervention of Mighty the Armadillo that allowed her to escape.[8] She subsequently reported her failure to Dr. Eggman, who furiously ordered her to make sure that she did not fail again, warning that if she did, he wouldn't "leave enough of [her] to make gloves!"[9] In response, Thunderbolt had her forces prepare a weapon known as the Flying Dynamo in order to destroy Sonic once and for all. However, shortly after the robot's deployment, Thunderbolt received a signal informing her of its destruction, much to her anger.[10] She later caught a couple of her Egg Soldiers watching the Chaos Emerald Championship, driving her into another fury.[11]
Act Two[]
Later, Thunderbolt was called upon by Eggman to join the other Egg Bosses in a mission to retake Eggmanland from Walter and Wendy Naugus, much to her evident joy.[5] While the other Egg Bosses expressed their dislike towards this, she angrily berated them for the criticism as they were here to serve Eggman "and like it". After the meeting she was forced to team up with Clove in order to shut down the defenses, with Thunderbolt bringing her suit of armor (becoming stuck in the door in the process). Later, Thunderbolt asked Clove why she wasn't thankful for everything Eggman had done for her, calling Cassia a brat in the process. Thunderbolt continued and said if she did not explain herself she would be punished but did not get to finish her threat as the walls started to close on her.[3] Clove managed to rescue her, despite being riled with disrespect about Cassia, and the two managed to complete their mission.[12]
After that, Thunderbolt presented the two Master Emerald shards that Team Bravo found, allowing Eggman to conceive a plan that they could be used in. Thunderbolt then got an alert that of the infiltration and proceeded to attempt to stop Knuckles, Amy, Mighty and Ray. She and her Egg Soldiers surrounded Knuckles and Mighty, but Amy messed with their audio and speakers in order for the four of them to escape.[13]
Personality[]
Thunderbolt has ruthless and sadistic tendencies; she does not tolerate failure nor does she take prisoners, and she seems to enjoy the suffering of her master's enemies. She also has an extremely short temper.[8]
Powers and abilities[]
Thunderbolt's electrical field, from Sonic the Hedgehog #265.
Having undergone Cyberization, Thunderbolt is fitted with cybernetics, which lets her project powerful electrical blasts.[8]
Equipment[]
Due to her small size, Thunderbolt usually occupies a battle-suit that is larger than most average Mobians or even humans.
Relationships[]
Dr. Eggman[]
Thunderbolt's obsession with Eggman, from Sonic Universe #83.
On top of her obsessive loyalty to Dr. Eggman, Thunderbolt apparently has high opinions of him, referring to him as "Lord Eggman" when discussing him with her troops; when informed by one of her Egg Soldiers that "her" plan was ready, she roughly replied that it was actually Eggman's plan and that they merely had the pleasure of carrying it out.[8] In fact, she appears to have a form of crush on the doctor.[3] Despite her loyalty to Eggman though, it is apparent that she fears him as well.[9]
Clove the Pronghorn[]
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Friends/allies[]
Enemies[]
Trivia[]
- Thunderbolt's attire is similar to the "classic" design of Dr. Eggman.
- Her robotic suit resembles the Egg Breaker mecha design from Shadow the Hedgehog.
- Thunderbolt's identification as a chinchilla was first revealed by Ian Flynn in the Bumbleking Forums.[4]
- For practicality, Thunderbolt can remove the cables on her body if they are in the way of her clothing.[1]
- Thunderbolt's appearance as an electric rodent could be a reference to Pikachu from the PokƩmon franchise.
Gallery[]
Concept artwork[]
References[]
- ā 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Aleah Baker (20 January 2016). Lea's Unimportant Farewell to BK Q&A!. BumbleKing Comics. Archived from the original on 8 February 2016.
- ā 2.0 2.1 2.2 Aleah Baker (7 February 2016). Lea's Unimportant Farewell to BK Q&A!. BumbleKing Comics. Archived from the original on 8 February 2016.
- ā 3.0 3.1 3.2 Sonic Universe #84, "Eggman's Dozen Part Two: Power Meeting"
- ā 4.0 4.1 Ian Flynn (3 October 2014). STH#265 "Control" Part 2 - Spoilers & Discussion. BumbleKing Comics. Archived from the original on 2 November 2015.
- ā 5.0 5.1 Sonic Universe #83, "Eggman's Dozen Part One: Hostile Takeover"
- ā Sonic the Hedgehog #263 - "Consequences"
- ā Sonic the Hedgehog #264, "Control Part One: Breaking Point"
- ā 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 Sonic the Hedgehog #265, "Control Part Two: Unleashed!"
- ā 9.0 9.1 Sonic the Hedgehog #266, "Ambushed, Part One"
- ā Sonic the Hedgehog #267, "Ambushed! Part Two"
- ā Sonic the Hedgehog #269, "Champions Part Two: Climbing the Brackets"
- ā Sonic Universe #85, "Eggman's Dozen Part Three: Team Management"
- ā Sonic the Hedgehog #282, "Shards & Sparks"