Why Sonic is Way Past Cool

People Hate Him Way Too Much

I will never understand the internet's undying hatred for Sonic the Hedgehog. It seems that no matter where you go, there's always someone making fun of at least one of his games (or, if that's not enough for him, one of his many adaptations). Be it comparing a glitch-filled game to Sonic '06 or making a million PINGAS jokes, Sonic is a staple of derogatory memes that have just made it harder and harder to be open about a Sonic fan both online and in real life. Yes, somehow the internet's hatred has influenced the real world, with the false reputation the internet gave the series officially leaking into the minds of those I've met in real life, who will often ridicule the series for just existing. For some reason that I will never understand, people just seem to think that Sonic "was never good in the first place," "is super outdated," or even simply "had a rough transition into 3D," when none of these statements is true in the slightest.

No matter what, Sonic (and many members of his extended cast) just irradiate pure, unadulterated cool. That cool attitude, cool design, cool music (both in terms of the instrumental themes that accompany every stage and the fantastic vocal themes), and cool personality all add up into one of the coolest characters in fiction ever created. And if Sonic isn't your style of cool, you have the embodiment of all the best parts of edginess in the form of Shadow the Hedgehog, who somehow manages to rival Sonic's level of cool, with an equally cool design, attitude, and associated music (if "I Am (All Of Me)," "All Hail Shadow," and the soundtrack to his self-titled game are to be counted as music that belongs to him in particular). And yet somehow, the internet sees this level of coolness and says that it's "cringe" and labels it as a series for creeps and weirdos.

Even if we discount the character of Sonic, there's no denying that the best of his games (and even some of his worst) provide sensations unlike those found in any other game out there. The pure sense of speed and flow that one is able to achieve in a good Sonic game is so exhilarating that you almost feel like you're running right alongside Sonic, like the rush of the wind on your face as you move at supersonic speeds is a real, tangible sensation that you're experiencing for yourself and not just a visual effect on the screen. The feeling of being the fastest thing alive, of having that much speed and power at your disposal, makes you feel like you could take on any challenge, and that's something that Sonic's character, too, is able to help you feel.

This is something perhaps best embodied in the many speeches he gives and in the comics, but Sonic's attitude makes me feel like, as the Japanese opening theme to Sonic CD, I can do anything. The character himself in all of his best incarnations feels inspiring, and perhaps that, beyond everything else, is why I'll never hate this character, most especially not to the same extent nearly everyone else does.