Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog

Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog
Logo
Genre Action
Adventure
Comic science fiction
Slapstick
Developed by Bruce Shelly
Reed Shelly
Phil Harnage
Kent Butterworth
Directed by Kent Butterworth
Blair Peters (Special only)
Voices of Jaleel White
Christopher Stephen Welch Brian Drummond
Matt Mullins
Long John Baldry
Phil Hayes
Garry Chalk
Ian James Corlett
Theme music composer Clark Gassman
Composer(s) Reed Robbins
Mark Simon
Stephen C. Marston (Special only)
Country of origin United States
Original language(s) English
No. of seasons 1
No. of episodes 65 (+ 1 pilot) (+ 1 special)
Production
Executive producer(s) Andy Heyward
Robby London
Michael Maliani (Special only)
Producer(s) Kent Butterworth
Editor(s) Mark A. McNally
Sue Odjakjian
CK Horness
Running time 22 minutes
Production company(s) DIC Animation City
Bohbot Communications
SEGA of America
Hong Ying Animation
Saerom Animation
Tokyo Movie Shinsha
Rainbow Animation
Distributor Cookie Jar Group (2008–12)
DHX Media (2012–present)
Release
Original network First-run syndication
Audio format Dolby SR
Original release September 6, 1993 – November 24, 1996
Chronology
Related shows Sonic the Hedgehog
Sonic Underground

Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog is an American animated series produced by DiC Animation City and Bohbot Entertainment that was based on the Sonic the Hedgehog video game series produced by Sega. Airing in 1993, sixty-five episodes were produced for first-run syndication. In November 1996, USA Network aired a Christmas special which was produced to promote Sonic 3D Blast.

Premise

The series follows the adventures of the titular character Sonic the Hedgehog and his sidekick Tails as they attempt to stop Dr. Robotnik and his array of robots from taking over the planet Mobius.

The plots often used elements loosely borrowed from the storyline of the Sonic video games series. Three of Robotnik's henchbots, Scratch, Grounder, and Coconuts, are directly based on badniks that appeared in Sonic the Hedgehog 2. The series also incorporated several recurring original characters not seen in the games, such as Robotnik's mother, Stinky the Badger, and Wes Weasley, a salesman and con-man, not dissimilar to Phil Silvers. The show's other characters largely consist of non-human creatures, such as anthropomorphic animals and robots.

Episodes of the show normally revolved around Sonic and Tails foiling Robotnik's latest villainous scheme to dominate the zany, colorful world of Planet Mobius. At the end of each episode, Dr. Robotnik's plan would ultimately fail due to Sonic's and Tails's efforts, his own incompetence, and/or the foolishness of his henchbots, after which he says, "I HATE THAT HEDGEHOG!"

The end of the show is bookended by an additional segment called "Sonic Says" (or "Sonic Sez", as Tails misspelled it on screen). This segment teaches viewers life lessons about subjects such as alcohol abuse and general safety. The segment was edited out during the original UK broadcasts.

Voice cast

Additional cast

Production

Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog was created by DiC Animation City and Sega of America, Inc., which produced a total of 65 episodes each for its one season, and was syndicated by Bohbot Entertainment, now BKN International (in the original run, every episode began and ended with the "Bohbot Entertainment Presents" logo), and the Italian Reteitalia S.p.A., part of Fininvest. The show's animation was outsourced to four animation studios: the Chinese Suzhou/Rainbow Animation (not the Italian Rainbow S.p.A.), the Taiwanese Hong Ying Animation, the Korean Sae Rom Production, and the Japanese Tokyo Movie Shinsha. Pierre DeCelles was Senior Animation Director in Asia, he described the show as "fun and humorous".[1]

Episodes

No.
overall
No. in
season
TitleWritten byOriginal air dateProd.
code
00"Pilot"Kent ButterworthUnaired (produced in 1992) (Unaired (produced in 1992))100

This is the pilot used to sell the show. There is hardly any talking from most of the characters, except Sonic. The voices of Dr. Robotnik and Scratch are provided by Jim Cummings, Sonic is voiced by Jaleel White, While, Tails is voiced by Brianne Siddall Bob Buchholz, and Gary Owens plays the narrator. In one episode, Scratch and Grounder are watching the Sonic cartoon on TV. This is the episode they are watching. There is also no music or sound effects, with the exception of Tails screaming heard in the Sonic Sez segment.

Sonic Says segment: Looking before you cross the street
123"Super Special Sonic Search & Smash Squad"Bruce Shelly & Reed ShellySeptember 6, 1993 (1993-09-06)101

When Sonic and Tails are captured by Grounder and Scratch, Sonic tricks them into letting them escape by reminiscing about how they all met. Several badniks seen early on in this episode later resurfaced in Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine.

Sonic Says segment: Emergency calling
29"Subterranean Sonic"Robert AskinSeptember 7, 1993 (1993-09-07)102

Sonic and Tails escape underground from Scratch and Grounder, but they are held captive there by a miserly mole named Spelunk.

Sonic Says segment: Sharing
38"Lovesick Sonic"Bruce Shelly & Reed ShellySeptember 8, 1993 (1993-09-08)103

When Sonic saves a female hedgehog named Breezie, he falls in love; Sonic does not know that Breezie is a robot Dr. Robotnik created to keep Sonic occupied while he floods a city near his fortress.

Sonic Says segment: Sexual harassment
417"Slowwww Going"Jack Hanrahan & Eleanor Burian-MohrSeptember 9, 1993 (1993-09-09)104

Sonic must save a family of sloths from Dr. Robotnik's slow-motion ray. But when he himself is slowed down by Scratch and Grounder, Tails and the sloth family must take action.

Sonic Says segment: Sloths
511"High Stakes Sonic"Robert AskinSeptember 10, 1993 (1993-09-10)105

Sonic and Tails infiltrate Robotnik's new Casino Night Zone to stop him and his henchmen from scamming a group of sheep into becoming Robotnik's slaves.

Sonic Says segment: Dares
642"Sonic Breakout"Douglas Zip PurgasonSeptember 13, 1993 (1993-09-13)110

Robotnik imprisons a satirical cartoonist named Sketch Lampoon for making fun of him in his comic book, much to the anger of Sonic, his biggest fan. Sonic purposely allows his own capture as well, but does not expect to be placed in a maximum-security jail cell. With Robotnik angrily sends Sonic in the cell for interfering with his plans once again.

Sonic Says segment: Graffiti
720"Trail of the Missing Tails"Bob ForwardSeptember 14, 1993 (1993-09-14)109

Robotnik's insane cousin, Dr. Warpnik, captures Tails and lures Sonic into his Zone of Confusion in order to enact revenge on Robotnik for banishing him.

Sonic Says segment: Remembering your phone number
833"Close Encounter of the Sonic Kind"Douglas Zip PurgasonSeptember 15, 1993 (1993-09-15)134

Sonic and Tails help an alien prince fix his space shuttle to return to his home planet for coronation to become king, or else his younger brother will be crowned in his place and destroy Mobius.

Sonic Says segment: Sunburns
916"Momma Robotnik's Birthday"Francis MossSeptember 16, 1993 (1993-09-16)107

Robotnik's obnoxious mother visits her son on her birthday and expects a present. After he fails to destroy a nearby forest as a present, however, she decides to capture Sonic as her own gift.

Sonic Says segment: Trees
1014"Big Daddy"Jess BorgesonSeptember 17, 1993 (1993-09-17)106

After being exiled by Robotnik, Coconuts finds a lost baby gorilla who thinks he is his father. Coconuts attempts to use the gorilla to stop Sonic. The baby gorilla's father, meanwhile, is under the control of Robotnik, and Sonic has to save him.

Sonic Says segment: Telling parents where you're going

Notes: Pierre De Celles, an animation director, described "Big Daddy" as an episode he felt "really proud of," though he described the editing as "poor." He described the animation process as taking "4 times longer than usual" since the animator of the episode was deaf and mute; De Celles described his translator as "just great."[1]
1155"Sonic's Song"Kevin Donahue & Donald P. ZappalaSeptember 20, 1993 (1993-09-20)112

Outraged by a popular song about Sonic, Robotnik outlaws music on Mobius and takes the song's composer captive with the intent of creating his own song.

Sonic Says segment: Hearing
123"Birth of a Salesman"Steven J. Fisher, Bruce Shelly & Reed ShellySeptember 21, 1993 (1993-09-21)111

An energetic salesman named Wes Weasley sells Robotnik numerous gadgets to help Scratch and Grounder capture Sonic. However, Robotnik later comes to regret it when Weaseley's gadgets keep backfiring.

Sonic Says segment: False advertising
131"Best Hedgehog"Martha MoranSeptember 22, 1993 (1993-09-22)116

Sonic and Tails rescue Lucas, Robotnik's first prisoner, and attempt to reunite him with his girlfriend, Lucinda. However, Robotnik is also in love with Lucinda and pursues Lucas.

Sonic Says segment: Reading
1415"The Robotnik Express"Doug BoothSeptember 23, 1993 (1993-09-23)117

En route to stop a train of explosives from arriving at Robotnik's munition factory, Sonic and Tails must deal with a duo of bears named Big Griz and Big Mike after Scratch and Grounder tell them that Sonic and Tails are the enemies.

Sonic Says segment: Strangers
1522"Too Tall Tails"Rowby GorenSeptember 24, 1993 (1993-09-24)115

Robotnik takes Professor Von Schlemmer hostage and uses his growth machine to try and enlarge himself. However, the machine backfires, and enlarges Tails instead in nearby Wienerville. Robotnik tricks the citizens into thinking that Sonic is the villain, while Robotnik is the hero planning to save the city from Tails. Sonic must keep the famished Tails from getting into more danger and return him to normal size.

Sonic Says segment: Healthy diets
162"Tails' New Home"Bruce Shelly & Reed ShellySeptember 27, 1993 (1993-09-27)120

When Sonic decides to find Tails a suitable foster home to ensure his safety, Robotnik finds out and creates a robot fox family, who pose as Tails' long-lost parents.

Sonic Says segment: Running away
176"Over the Hill Hero"Francis MossSeptember 28, 1993 (1993-09-28)118

When overweight, elderly superhero Captain Rescue bungles in his attempts to help Sonic, he grows tired of his incompetence. Robotnik then uses Captain Rescue to successfully imprison Sonic in an impenetrable force field, and Tails and Captain Rescue must save him.

Sonic Says segment: Wisdom of elders
1812"Blank-Headed Eagle"Dennis O'FlahertySeptember 29, 1993 (1993-09-29)113

Scratch suffers a blow to the head and believes that he is his favorite television character, Edgar Eagle. Sonic uses this to his advantage in preventing another of Robotnik's schemes.

Sonic Says segment: Seat belt safety
1944"The Mystery of the Missing Hi-tops"Kevin Murphy & Ed FerraraSeptember 30, 1993 (1993-09-30)114

During a fair in his honor, Sonic's shoes are stolen, and he and Tails use detective intellect to try and solve the whodunit case.

Sonic Says segment: Stealing
2018"So Long Sucker"Cydne Clark & Steve GranatOctober 1, 1993 (1993-10-01)122

Tails adopts a squishy creature from another dimension named Goobster, who turns out to be a black hole.

Sonic Says segment: Pets
2132"Sonic Gets Thrashed"Cydne Clark & Steve GranatOctober 4, 1993 (1993-10-04)119

When Robotnik opens up a resort to make the resident Mobians his slaves, Sonic enlists the help of some robots from an area of Mobius called Scrap Valley.

Sonic Says segment: Rubbish
225"Pseudo Sonic"Cliff MacgillivrayOctober 5, 1993 (1993-10-05)126

Robotnik creates a robot Sonic suit with the intent of ruining the hedgehog's reputation. He forces a lab rat named Laurence to pilot by threatening his parents.

Sonic Says segment: Poison ivy
2310"Grounder the Genius"Doug MolitorOctober 6, 1993 (1993-10-06)121

Grounder accidentally puts a "genius chip" in his head, and it makes him so smart that he easily captures Sonic and even takes over Robotnik's operations.

Sonic Says segment: Using your brain
2426"Tails in Charge"Martha MoranOctober 7, 1993 (1993-10-07)124

When Scratch and Grounder zap Sonic with Robotnik's new freeze ray, Tails uses intellect and disguises to foil the two henchmen and ensure Sonic's safety.

Sonic Says segment: Home safety
2556"Sno Problem"Sandra RyanOctober 8, 1993 (1993-10-08)125

Robotnik introduces the "Ultra Freeze-O-Matic", announcing his plan to freeze every citizen on Mobius so that he can install "Servitude Chips" into the frozen citizens and make them unquestionably obedient. Sonic and Tails must foil the scheme.

Sonic Says segment: Bicycle safety check
264"Submerged Sonic"Bob ForwardOctober 11, 1993 (1993-10-11)123

Robotnik is after the Power Gems from the city of Submerbia in the Labyrinth Zone. Sonic and Tails are enlisted by a local citizen to stop Robotnik.

Sonic Says segment: Shallow water
2713"Boogey-Mania"Rowby GorenOctober 12, 1993 (1993-10-12)129

Robotnik reprograms a machine created by Von Schlemmer capable of turning dreams into reality and unleashes a Nightmare Monster upon Mobius.

Sonic Says segment: Sleep
2827"Musta Been a Beautiful Baby"Gordon BressackOctober 13, 1993 (1993-10-13)130

Robotnik's attempt to turn Sonic into an old man with his newest device backfires, turning him and Tails, and later himself, into babies. Now stuck in a day-care the infantile Sonic and Tails must try to keep Robotnik under control, while Scratch and Grounder attempt to get him back.

Sonic Says segment: Tumble dryers
2935"Robotnik, Jr."Robert AskinOctober 14, 1993 (1993-10-14)127

Robotnik constructs a robot son in order to help him with his conquest of Mobius. Robotnik Jr., however, is inspired by Sonic, and helps him thwart his latest plan.

Sonic Says segment: Peer pressure
3050"Full Tilt Tails"Robert AskinOctober 15, 1993 (1993-10-15)132

Robotnik makes chewing gum that makes the consumer as fast as Sonic. Robotnik gives it to Grounder, but he loses and Tails gets a hold of it.

Sonic Says segment: Smoking
3148"MacHopper"Doug BoothOctober 18, 1993 (1993-10-18)128

Robotnik attempts to brainwash MacHopper, a friend of Sonic's into doing his dirty deeds, but an explosion causes his memory to become unstable.

Sonic Says segment: Currents and riptides
3221"Momma Robotnik Returns"Francis MossOctober 19, 1993 (1993-10-19)136

Momma Robotnik visits her son, and after he fails once again, she disowns him and decides to adopt Sonic as her own son in order to capture him.

Sonic Says segment: Obeying laws and going to court
3347"Spaceman Sonic"Bruce Shelly & Reed ShellyOctober 20, 1993 (1993-10-20)138

Robotnik sends Scratch and Grounder into space to pillage the asteroid belt, with Sonic and Tails in pursuit. When the spaceship runs out of power, they are stranded at an abandoned space station, pursued by a residing alien.

Sonic Says segment: Common colds
3458"Mad Mike, Da Bear Warrior"Doug BoothOctober 21, 1993 (1993-10-21)131

Robotnik starves a village of rabbits into building a statue of himself. With help from Big Griz and Mad Mike, Sonic and Updike, one of the villagers, manage to infiltrate the statue.

Sonic Says segment: Medicine
3530"The Last Resort"Gordon BressackOctober 22, 1993 (1993-10-22)146

Robotnik seemingly announces his surrender to Sonic, and he invites him to a resort in his gratitude. Unbeknownst to Sonic, the resort is just another trap created by Robotnik.

Sonic Says segment: Walking alone
3619"Robotnik's Rival"Gordon BressackOctober 25, 1993 (1993-10-25)137

Robotnik and a rival named Quark Rex try to cooperate in capturing Sonic. However, Sonic tricks them into becoming enemies, and they try to outdo each other.

Sonic Says segment: Cheating
3736"The Magic Hassle"Douglas Zip PurgasonOctober 26, 1993 (1993-10-26)135

Coconuts acquires a magic wand and magical gadgets from Wes Weasley and warns Sonic (after agreeing to forward all payments to Robotnik), and attempts to master them. Meanwhile, Robotnik tries to change Sonic-themed mobium banknotes into Robotnik banknotes in the Mobius Mint.

Sonic Says segment: Money
3828"Sonic the Matchmaker"Robert AskinOctober 27, 1993 (1993-10-27)139

Robotnik pursues Breezie and Robotnik Jr. in order to find out why they betrayed him with the intent of building a perpetually loyal robot wife. In a subplot, Junior is in love with Breezie, and enlists Sonic's help in wooing her.

Sonic Says segment: Playground safety
3934"Tails Prevails"Bob ForwardOctober 28, 1993 (1993-10-28)133

On Sonic's birthday, Tails builds a flying bicycle. Realizing Tails' potential with mechanics, Professor Von Schlemmer invites Tails to be his research assistant, but then Robotnik captures and impersonates him to get Tails to build his latest anti-Sonic weapon.

Sonic Says segment: Boredom
4025"Zoobotnik"Rowby GorenOctober 29, 1993 (1993-10-29)144

An intergalactic huntress captures various citizens of Mobius and falls in love with Robotnik during her visit.

Sonic Says segment: Wildlife
4129"Attack on Pinball Fortress"Bob ForwardNovember 1, 1993 (1993-11-01)145

Robotnik has unleashed his "Stupidity Ray" on Mobius, knowing that the newly-stupefied Mobians will be too braindead to stop him. As Sonic and Tails make their way to Robotnik's new lair, the Pinball Fortress they find themselves competing with Wes Weasely and Sergeant Doberman, both of whom want to capture the Stupidity Ray for their own purposes.

Sonic Says segment: Stupidity
4246"Mass Transit Trouble"Kevin Murphy & Ed FerreraNovember 2, 1993 (1993-11-02)140

Robotnik threatens to demolish an airport, a lighthouse, and a train station. Sonic is forced to travel to all three places in order to remove the bombs.

Sonic Says segment: Bicycle safety

Notes: This episode ran for approximately a year and a half before the Oklahoma City bombing forced the episode's withdrawal from circulation. Later, as the incident died down, Toon Disney picked the episode up again, only to have it removed from circulation after about three years of airtime due to the September 11th attacks.
4331"Coachnik"Doug MolitorNovember 3, 1993 (1993-11-03)142

Robotnik constructs a pushy robot coach in an attempt to increase Scratch and Grounder's fitness. This leaves Robotnik time to create a football-shaped bomb in order to destroy Sonic.

Sonic Says segment: Warming up
4441"Untouchable Sonic"Dennis O'FlahertyNovember 4, 1993 (1993-11-04)143

Sonic comes to the rescue of a town that is held for ransom by Robotnik's crime syndicate. A few scenes from the pilot animation are integrated into this episode.

Sonic Says segment: Gangs
4545"Super Robotnik"Rowby GorenNovember 5, 1993 (1993-11-05)152

A chemical accident caused by Coconuts ends up giving superpowers to Robotnik, who quickly uses them to threaten Mobius's world leaders and publicly humiliate Sonic. However, Robotnik isn't completely invincible, and Sonic must find a way to exploit the weak chink in Robotnik's newfound powers in an Olympics-style gladiator match.

Sonic Says segment: Chemicals
467"Robolympics"Jeffrey ScottNovember 8, 1993 (1993-11-08)108

An asteroid is heading for Turtle Town and Robotnik offers to save it, but only if Sonic agrees to play in the Robolympics against him and his robots.

Sonic Says segment: Being active
4724"Magnificent Sonic"Jeffrey ScottNovember 9, 1993 (1993-11-09)141

Sonic becomes the sheriff of Tranquil Gulch, in hopes of keeping Robotnik's robots from harassing the locals.

Sonic Says segment: Gun safety

Notes: This episode was banned from Fox Kids airings due to the Columbine High School Massacre in 1999. Nowadays, this episode is no longer banned and continues to air on many TV networks.
4837"Black Bot the Pirate"Jeffrey ScottNovember 10, 1993 (1993-11-10)148

Robotnik goes time-traveling to find four Chaos Emeralds that could make him all-powerful. His first stop is the time of Blackbeard the Pirate, where he enlists the pirate's help to find the Emerald of Invisibility. However, with help from a local scientist, Sonic and Tails go after him, and thwart his attempts to obtain the Emerald.

Sonic Says segment: Caution with sharp objects
4938"Hedgehog of the "Hound" Table"Jeffrey ScottNovember 11, 1993 (1993-11-11)149

Robotnik's next stop is the time of King Arfur and the Knights of the Round Table to get the Emerald of Invincibility. Sonic follows him, but Robotnik, with the unwilling help of local wizard Merlynx, obtains the Emerald, and takes over the kingdom.

Sonic Says segment: Swimming alone
5039"Robotnik's Pyramid Scheme"Jeffrey ScottNovember 12, 1993 (1993-11-12)150

Robotnik is erasing Sonic's family tree in order to get the Chaos Emerald of Immortality. Sonic goes after him, prevent Robotnik from interfering with his ancestors' meeting, and then race to the crypt of Robotnik's ancestor Robotnikhotep, where the Emerald is kept.

Sonic Says segment: Skateboard safety
5140"Prehistoric Sonic"Jeffrey ScottNovember 15, 1993 (1993-11-15)151

Despite the intervention of Sonic and Tails, Robotnik obtains the Chaos Emerald of life in prehistory and the other emeralds and becomes the Supreme High Robotnik.

Sonic Says segment: Electrical appliance safety
5249"Baby-Sitter Jitters"Jeffrey ScottNovember 16, 1993 (1993-11-16)147

Sonic and Tails babysit a trio of unruly baby beavers who end up being abducted by Scratch and Grounder. Robotnik uses the beavers as bait to capture Sonic and Tails, but the beavers become resourceful and help their friends thwart Robotnik.

Sonic Says segment: Babysitting
5354"Honey, I Shrunk the Hedgehog"Jeffrey ScottNovember 17, 1993 (1993-11-17)153

Sonic, Tails and a group of miners are hit by Robotnik's shrink ray and must work together to undo the effects.

Sonic Says segment: Recycling

Note: This episode is inspired by the Honey, I Shrunk the Kids Franchise.
5459"Robotnikland"Jeffrey ScottNovember 18, 1993 (1993-11-18)154

Robotnik takes control of the local amusement park on Sonic's birthday and uses it to try to finish him off.

Sonic Says segment: Cooking
5553"The Mobius 5000"Jeffrey ScottNovember 19, 1993 (1993-11-19)155

Sonic and Tails enter a car race in order to save an orphanage that Robotnik threatens to shut down.

Sonic Sez segment: Car safety
5660"The Little Merhog"Jeffrey ScottNovember 22, 1993 (1993-11-22)156

Sonic and Tails help a mermaid hedgehog named Merna save her underwater city from the wrath of Captain John Paul Memo.

Sonic Says segment: Matches
5752"Road Hog"Jeffrey ScottNovember 23, 1993 (1993-11-23)157

Sonic and Tails are arrested for speeding as a result of Robotnik having hypnotized the law through pollen.

Sonic Says segment: Calling for help
5864"The Robots' Robot"Jess BorgesonNovember 24, 1993 (1993-11-24)159

Scratch and Grounder build a robot of their own who soon runs away and ends up befriending Sonic.

Sonic Says segment: Fire
5963"Tails' Tale"Bruce Shelly & Reed ShellyNovember 25, 1993 (1993-11-25)160

When Sonic mysteriously vanishes, Tails, Professor Von Schlemmer, and a pilot named William le Due search for him in the Pyramid of Kommamachs.

Sonic Says segment: Computers
6065"Hero of the Year"Bruce Shelly & Reed ShellyNovember 26, 1993 (1993-11-26)165

Wes Weasley pretends to host a roast (actually a clip show) to Sonic that Robotnik uses to force his surrender.

Sonic Says segment: Alcohol
6162"Fast and Easy"Bruce Shelly & Reed ShellyNovember 29, 1993 (1993-11-29)161

A pickpocket named Easy Eddie picks at Robotnik's Chaos Emerald ring, much to his anger. Sonic must keep Easy Eddie hidden so that he can discard the ring.

Sonic Says segment: Breakfast
6251"Lifestyles of the Sick and Twisted"Kevin O'DonnellNovember 30, 1993 (1993-11-30)158

When Throbbin Screechpicks features Sonic on his talk show, Lifestyles of the Very Good, Robotnik kidnaps his unnamed niece in order to be featured on the show.

Sonic Says segment: Vandalism
6357"Sonic is Running"Doug MolitorDecember 1, 1993 (1993-12-01)162

When Momma Robotnik threatens her son into campaigning for the Mobius presidency, Sonic decides to run against him.

Sonic Says segment: Tooth pain
6461"Robo-Ninjas"Francis MossDecember 2, 1993 (1993-12-02)163

Robotnik captures Kwai Chang Crane, a martial arts master, and uses him to turn Scratch and Grounder into effective ninja to defeat Sonic.

Sonic Says segment: Road safety
6543"Sonically Ever After"Gordon BressackDecember 3, 1993 (1993-12-03)164

Scratch and Grounder use a ray gun Robotnik invented to transport Sonic, Tails, and Robotnik into a book of fairy tales. When some of the fairy tales come to life under Robotnik's control, Sonic and Tails have to try to give them happy endings to stop Robotnik.

Sonic Says segment: Library

Special

No. in
season
TitleWritten byOriginal air dateProd.
code
S1"Sonic Christmas Blast"Bruce Shelly & Reed ShellyNovember 24, 1996 (1996-11-24)S01

Robotnik disguises himself as Santa Claus in order to force him into retirement and con the children out of presents during Christmas. During a visit to Robotropolis, Sonic and Tails rescue the real Santa Claus, who presents Sonic with a speed run test due to a ring Sally Acorn gave him as a gift serving as a key.

Oddly, this special includes aspects of the Saturday morning Sonic TV show, such as Robotropolis and SWATbots (neither of which appear as they did in that series) and Sally Acorn (who appears in her regular design but with her pilot episode color palette). Said series had aired concurrently with the original run of "Adventures", but in a different time slot, and had stopped producing new episodes by the time "Christmas Blast" premiered. Despite this, the special maintains the humorous tone of "Adventures" rather than the darker one of the Saturday morning series.

Trivia: The letters page of issue #41 of the Sonic the Hedgehog comic book promotes the special as "An X-Tremely Sonic Christmas" as this episode was originally going to be a tie in for Sonic X-treme on Sega Saturn. However, the game was cancelled, and the title was changed to tie in with Sonic 3D Blast instead.

Broadcast and distribution

First-run broadcast

The series was shown through syndication in the United States in 1993 on weekday afternoons. In the United Kingdom, the series was screened on Channel 4 in 1993 on Sunday mornings at 9:00, but with the "Sonic Says" segments edited out. They were also edited out on the UK VHS releases of the series. The weekday mornings airings in Australia on Seven Network as part of Agro's Cartoon Connection retained the segments. The cartoon was broadcast in the Republic of Ireland on RTÉ Two in 1993 on weekday afternoons.[2]

Rebroadcast

USA Network re-aired the original episodes of the show in the United States from 1994 to 1996 (with an additional Christmas special ordered by SEGA to be produced for the Christmas season of 1996 to coincide with the release of Sonic 3D Blast), before Toon Disney picked the show up in 1998 for a four-year run. This TV subsequently aired the first 13 episodes of the show from 2010 to 2011. Netflix, however, put the first 20 episodes on there.

In the UK, Channel 4 and POP! (2003–2010, 2013–present) re-aired the show with the "Sonic Says" segments restored. The show was re-aired on in Australia Saturday mornings on Network Ten as part of Cheez TV from 1993 to 1999, Nick Jr. from 1995 to 2001 and 2014–present and Disney Channel from 1996 to 2002 and 2014–present. Sweden rebroadcast the show on TV3, while RTL4 did the same in The Netherlands. Germany also rebroadcast the show on RTL II. KidsCo subsequently acquired the rebroadcast rights for several regions, including the UK, Australia and Portugal. Spacetoon started rebroadcasting the show for the Arab world in 2005. In Brazil, the show aired on January 1996, on Rede Globo on the block Colossus TV. Only the first twenty-two of the sixty five episodes aired in Brazilian Portuguese, as well as the Christmas special.

UK VHS releases

  • Abbey Home Media (1993–1994)
  • 4 Front Video (1997)
VHS Title Release Date Episodes
Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog Volume 1 1993 The Super Special Sonic Search and Smash Squad!, Subterranean Sonic, Lovesick Sonic
Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog Volume 2 1994 Best Hedgehog, The Robotnik Express, The Birth of the Salesman, Slow Going
Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog Volume 3 1994 Too Tall Tails, Big Daddy, Tails New Home, Momma Robotnik's Birthday
Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog Volume 4 1994 Close Encounters of a Sonic Kind, Sno Problem, Tails in Charge, Grounder the Genius
Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog Volume 5 1994 Blackbot the Pirate, Hedgehog of the Hound Table, Robotnik's Pyramid Scheme, Prehistoric Sonic, Trail of the Missing Tails
Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog Volume 6 1994 Honey, I Shrunk the Hedgehog, The Mobius 5,000, Spaceman Sonic
The Adventures Of Sonic The Hedgehog - Sonic Breakout 1994 Sonic Breakout
The Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog - The Biggest Ever Video 1994 Road Hog, Robolympics, The Little Merhog, The Birth of a Salesman, Robotnik's Rival, Tails' New Home, Love Sick Sonic, Sonically Ever After, Hero of the Year
The Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog - Momma Robotnik's Birthday 1994 Momma Robotnik's Birthday, Grounder the Genius
The Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog - High Stakes Sonic & Sonic Breakout 1997 High Stakes Sonic, Sonic Breakout

DVD releases

Shout! Factory and Vivendi Entertainment have released all 65 episodes of Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog on DVD in Region 1 in three volume sets. Numerous single disc releases were released containing a handful of episodes based on a specific theme. They were produced by NCircle Entertainment and were sold at stores such as Sears, Target, and Toys "R" Us.

The first volume, released on July 17, 2007, features the first 22 episodes along with two featurettes: "A Conversation With Artist Milton Knight" and "How to Draw Sonic the Hedgehog".

The second volume was released on December 9, 2008, and features episodes 23–44 with the featurette "How to Draw Dr. Robotnik". The third volume contains the final 21 episodes of the series, plus the "Sonic Christmas Blast" special and the featurette "How to Draw Tails". These episodes were not compiled in the correct airdate order in the final volume.

These sets were discontinued in 2012 along with Sonic the Hedgehog and Sonic Underground after Shout!'s deal with Cookie Jar Entertainment expired.

In Region 2, Delta Home Entertainment released Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog: The Complete Series on DVD in the UK on June 11, 2007.[3]

Reception

The show met with mixed reviews. Randy Miller III of DVDTalk said, "While it's obvious that The Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog [sic] won't ever be mentioned in the same sentence with Disney, Pixar or Studio Ghibli (except for this one), there's enough goofy fun here to entertain any resident of the 16-bit gaming era."[4] Michael Rubino of DVD Verdict criticized the show for being dated, contrived, and bloated with chili dog jokes.[5] Emily Ashby of Common Sense Media gave the series an overall rating of 3/5 and noted that while the show's pace is "frantic", "the series emphasizes positive themes for kids about personal safety and interpersonal relationships."[6]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Burns, Walter (July 25, 2007). "Pierre De Celles on Animating Sonic the Hedgehog and Other Tales". ToonZone.net. Retrieved 29 October 2015.
  2. "none". RTÉ Guide: 5–12. November 1993.
  3. "The Adventures Of Sonic The Hedgehog [2007] [DVD]". Amazon.com. Retrieved 7 July 2012.
  4. Miller III, Randy (July 25, 2007). "The Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog: Volume 1". DVDTalk.com. Retrieved 7 July 2012.
  5. Rubino, Judge Michael (August 8, 2007). "The Adventures Of Sonic The Hedgehog". DVDVerdict.com. Verdict Partners. Archived from the original on 23 May 2012. Retrieved 7 July 2012.
  6. Ashby, Emily. "The Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog TV Review". Common Sense Media. Retrieved August 18, 2017.
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