Metal Sonic (メタルソニック Metaru Sonikku?) is an antagonist that appears in the Sonic the Hedgehog series. He is an evil Badnik[1] version of Sonic the Hedgehog and Metal Sonic's counterpart from another dimension set in the recent past.
Appearance
Metal Sonic was created in the image of Sonic the Hedgehog and is thus mostly built of blue metal. He has a yellow circular depression in his chest with a black center, mirroring the peach skin on Sonic's chest. His head has metal fins resembling Sonic's quills and a pair of triangular "ears." Metal Sonic has a muzzle, shoulder plates, upper arms, legs, and fingers made out of silvery metal. His palms are black, while the backs of his hands are square yellow plates. His forearms and lower legs are blue metal like his head and torso, and he has red feet with white stripes designed to resemble Sonic's shoes. He has optic sensors with black sclera and red irises.
In comparison to his mainstream counterpart, Metal Sonic is slightly shorter and chubbier, just like Sonic.
History
Games
Sonic Generations
Metal Sonic fighting Sonic.
In Sonic Generations, due to the actions of the Time Eater, Metal Sonic ended up in the White Space where he came into possession of the purple Chaos Emerald. Within this dimension, Metal Sonic eventually met Sonic, who challenged Metal Sonic to a fight for his Chaos Emerald. Using the time-space passages in the White Space, the two went back in time to a past version of Stardust Speedway where they had their battle. Despite Metal Sonic unleashing his full power against his rival, the robot was still defeated, and Sonic claimed his Emerald after they returned to the White Space.
When the Time Eater got destroyed, Metal Sonic was seemingly returned to his rightful place in his world's timeline.
Sonic Mania
In Sonic Mania, Dr. Eggman made efforts to locate/contact Metal Sonic on Little Planet from Press Garden Zone. Shortly thereafter, Eggman used his newly found power, the Phantom Ruby, to send Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles to Stardust Speedway Zone's past.
Metal Sonic powering up after receiving the Phantom Ruby.
Traveling to the present, the heroes encountered a Metal Sonic Projector. After destroying it, the real Metal Sonic appeared and began his assault. He chased the heroes along a path running alongside a giant Eggman-shaped tower, stopping to use a generator to produce Silver Sonics to assist him in battle. After the heroes destroyed the generator, Metal Sonic continued to chase them up the path. After finally reaching the top, Dr. Eggman appeared and gave Metal Sonic the Phantom Ruby who then used it to transform into Giga Metal. Metal Sonic then preceded to chase after the heroes, destroying the platform they were standing on as he walked. By attacking the glass dome on his chest that housed the Phantom Ruby however, the heroes were able to defeat Metal Sonic's new form, reverting him back to normal in the process.
Sonic Mania Plus
In Sonic Mania Plus, some time after Metal Sonic's last defeat, Dr. Eggman managed to locate/contact Metal Sonic on Little Planet from Press Garden Zone again. Shortly thereafter, Eggman used the Phantom Ruby, which he had reacquired after losing it, to send Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, Mighty and Ray to Stardust Speedway Zone's past.
Traveling to the present, the heroes encountered a Metal Sonic Projector. After destroying it, the real Metal Sonic appeared and began his assault. What followed next was a battle between Metal Sonic and the heroes that played out exactly like the last one that occurred in that Zone, and ended with Metal Sonic being defeated yet again.
Sonic Mania Adventures
Metal Sonic claims the last Chaos Emerald from Mighty.
After the Phantom Ruby incident, Metal Sonic arrived at a damaged section of Angel Island, alone.[2] Eventually though, he detected the last missing Chaos Emerald, prompting him to head out.[3] On the way, Metal Sonic came across Ray the Flying Squirrel and attacked him. Before he could finish Ray however, Mighty the Armadillo appeared and intervened by blocking Metal Sonic's attack and temporarily subduing him. Detecting that Mighty had the last Chaos Emerald however, Metal Sonic recovered and quickly took Ray hostage. Demanding the Chaos Emerald in return for Ray, Metal Sonic forced Mighty to comply to his demands. With the Emerald in hand, Metal Sonic relinquished Ray and made his escape while dodging the boulders Mighty threw at it, before heading towards Eggman's local base.[4]
Metal Sonic clashes with Sonic once again.
When Metal Sonic returned, he gave the final Chaos Emerald to Eggman. Soon after, upon Sonic and Tails' arrival, Metal Sonic briefly trapped the duo and took their two Chaos Emeralds away. Metal Sonic then used all the Chaos Emeralds to empower himself and take Sonic on. He soon found more opposition in the form of Mighty and Ray again, but this did not slow him down. Before he could land a final strike on Sonic however, he got trapped and stripped of all the Chaos Emeralds by Tails. Despite this, Metal Sonic attempted to harness the power of the Master Emerald which Eggman had procured. However, he was immediately stopped by Knuckles the Echidna, who punched him out of the facility alongside Eggman.[5]
Personality
Metal Sonic's profile in Sonic Generations
Despite being built to match Sonic the Hedgehog in all aspects, Metal Sonic is very different from his organic counterpart in terms of personality. Rather than fun-loving, cool, and carefree, Metal Sonic is a violent, aggressive and cold-hearted killing machine. However, he does have a habit of mimicing Sonic's gesture, if not in a mocking manner.
Efficient and to the point, Metal Sonic is cunning and intelligent, and knows how to manipulate his opponents. Upon noticing that Mighty had the Chaos Emerald it was looking for, rather than fight Mighty, Metal Sonic took Mighty's friend Ray hostage so he could force Mighty to give up the Emerald. Along those lines, Metal Sonic has also displayed a sense of honor, namely by relinquishing Ray as promised after he got what he wanted.[4]
While normally maintaining a very machine-like demeanor and no signs of a greater personality, Metal Sonic does display a strong desire to best Sonic, having admitted that he will face him as many times as necessary if it means eventually beating him.[6]
Powers and abilities
Metal Sonic was made to copy Sonic the Hedgehog in every way, including his speed and power.[7] Capable of going toe-to-toe with the likes of Sonic, Tails and Knuckles, Metal Sonic stands as one of Dr. Eggman's most powerful robots. As another a testament to his might, Metal Sonic is one of Sonic's few rivals who has come the closest to defeating the blue hedgehog.[7]
Metal Sonic shares Sonic's super speed, which he can achieve using a powerful jet engine-based propulsion system. With this system, Metal Sonic is able to equal Sonic's speed. Even then, Metal Sonic can take his speed even further. By overloading his circuits, Metal Sonic is able to quadruple his speed for a limited time. He is also quite durable and has impressive strength, enough to punch streetlights into midair and take a boulder to the face. He can also fire plasma blasts and is equipped with sufficiently sharp claws.[8] Metal Sonic can even channel internal radioactive force within him to produce powerful energy surges, and, when accelerating to maximum speed, surround himself in an energy field that lets him penetrate any substance caught in his path. Plus, by utilizing his jet engine, Metal Sonic can achieve high-speed flight.
Being a robotic clone of Sonic, Metal Sonic can imitate several of Sonic's signature techniques. The most prominent of these include Sonic's core offensive maneuver: the Spin Attack, a technique where he curls into a concussive ball or cutting disk and directs himself at his targets. With it, Metal Sonic can shred or burrow through just about any substance given enough speed. Highly adept in Sonic's usage of this technique, Metal Sonic can utilize other variants of the Spin Attack, including the Spin Dash and the Spin Jump. His arms can also be effective in combat; he is able to slash with his sharp claws and is strong enough to choke Ray with one hand.
Metal Sonic empowered by chaos energy.
Metal Sonic also comes equipped with a Chaos Emerald radar, which he can view both externally through projectable holograms or internally.[3][4] He can also harness chaos energy to empower himself. By using all seven Chaos Emeralds he obtains an extreme power up[9] that grants him a golden aura and yellow eyes.[5] This power-up was able to match the combined forces of Sonic, Tails, Mighty and Ray, although his power and durability was not as extreme as Super Sonic's.
Giga Metal
Giga Metal.
By using the Phantom Ruby, Metal Sonic is able to become Giga Metal.[note 1] In this form, Metal Sonic is capable of deploying time bombs and emitting a large laser from his mouth. Other than that, Metal Sonic's speed is slightly reduced in this state, even though he can still catch up with Sonic.
Relationships
Sonic the Hedgehog
Metal Sonic's arch rival is none other than Sonic the Hedgehog. Designed for the sole purpose of destroying Sonic by copying the blue hedgehog in every way, Metal Sonic is Sonic's robotic alter ego.[7] Aligning with his one true purpose, Metal Sonic is fiercely determined to defeat Sonic; even after losing to him once during the Time Eater incident, Metal Sonic kept accepting challenges from him, all while openly admitting that he will keep fighting Sonic until he defeats him.[6]
Allies
- Dr. Eggman
Enemies
- Knuckles the Echidna
- Mighty the Armadillo
- Miles "Tails" Prower
- Ray the Flying Squirrel
- Sonic the Hedgehog (arch-nemesis)
Quotes
- "FACE ME IF YOU WISH TO HAVE THE CHAOS EMERALD."
- —Classic Metal Sonic before Classic Sonic fights him, Sonic Generations.
See also
Notes
- ↑ While not listed in any instruction manuals, the internal files in the PC release of Sonic Mania Plus refers to this enemy as "GigaMetal".
References
- ↑ Sega of America . Metal Sonic. Sonic Characters. Sega of America. Archived from the original on 5 March 2005. Retrieved on 26 October 2017. "Metal Sonic was created by the evil genius, Dr. Eggman, and is one of Sonic's earliest foes. He is modeled with extreme accuracy after our blue hero, giving him the ability to predict Sonic's moves and match his great speed. The red-eyed Badnik first appeared in Sonic CD in 1993."
- ↑ Hesse, Tyson (30 March 2018). "Sonic Returns". Sonic Mania Adventures. Season 1. Episode 1. YouTube.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Hesse, Tyson (31 May 2018). "& Knuckles". Sonic Mania Adventures. Season 1. Episode 3. YouTube.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Hesse, Tyson (22 June 2018). "Mighty and Ray". Sonic Mania Adventures. Season 1. Episode 4. YouTube.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Hesse, Tyson (17 July 2018). "Metal Mayhem". Sonic Mania Adventures. Season 1. Episode 5. YouTube.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Sonic Team (4 November 2011). Sonic Generations. PlayStation 3. Sega. Area/Level: White Space. "Metal Sonic: I WILL BATTLE YOU AS MANY TIMES AS IT IS NECESSARY.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Sonic Team (4 November 2011). Sonic Generations. PlayStation 3. Sega. Area/Level: Collection Room. "Metal Sonic's character profile: Metal Sonic is Sonic's robotic alter ego. created by Dr. Eggman to destroy our fleet-footed hero. Metal Sonic was made to copy Sonic in every way, including his speed and power- he is perhaps one of Sonic's few rivals who has come the closest to defeating him."
- ↑ Sonic Generations official website (Japanese). Characters: Metal Sonic. Sega. Retrieved on 18 March 2016. "ソニックに対抗すべくDr．エッグマンによって造られた超高性能ロボット。 ソニックと同等のパワーとスピードがあり、鋭いツメと 放電攻撃で、容赦なくソニックに襲いかかってきます。"
- ↑ Tyson Hesse on Twitter. Twitter (17 July 2018). Retrieved on 17 July 2018. "Alexander Soerensen: Serious question: in Metal Mayhem, was it a Super State Metal Sonic achieved (did we just see "Super Metal Sonic"), or was it just an extreme power-up? / Tyson Hesse: I'd say judging by his look that it was more of a power-up (The look, btw, was designed by the original creator of Metal Sonic). In my mind, "Super Metal Sonic" was what we were about to see at the end. Hopefully one day we can get a look at that too."