Sonic the Hedgehog

Sonic the Hedgehog (ソニック・ザ・ヘッジホッグ, Sonikku za Hejjihoggu?) is the titular character of the Sonic the Hedgehog universe. He is an anthropomorphic hedgehog born with the ability to run faster than the speed of sound, hence his name, and possesses lightning fast reflexes to match. As his species implies, Sonic can also roll up into a concussive ball, primarily to attack enemies.

Ever since stepping into the battle against injustice, Sonic has been the victor of peace and is renowned over the world for saving it countless times. During his many adventures, Sonic has traveled from the ends of the world to the far reaches of space and time, facing countless trials that have tested him to the fullest, earning him many titles, allies and the scorns of several foes. Well-known for his legendary cocky attitude, easy-going demeanor and somewhat short temper, yet strong sense of justice, compassion, and love for freedom and adventure, Sonic uses his abilities to protect the innocent from his world and those beyond from the forces of evil, especially his arch-nemesis, Dr. Eggman.

History
Sonic was born on South Island and lived there for years.

Appearance
Sonic is an anthropomorphic hedgehog with blue fur that covers most of his body, peach skin that covers his arms, muzzle and torso, and emerald-green eyes. He has six quills on his head, two spines protruding from his back and a short tail.

He wears two light-weight, hyper friction resistant red sneakers with a white strap, cuffs and a gold buckle, and a pair of white gloves with sock-like cuffs on his hands.

Personality
Sonic is said to be "like the wind";undefined a drifter that is always on the move and is noted for being free-spirited and adventurous. He values freedom above all else and strives to live his life according to his own rules rather than the standards of those around him or for the sake of heroism and duty,undefined never thinking twice about what other people say or think.undefined Born to run, Sonic enjoys nothing more than traveling the world. Endowed with a strong passion for enjoying life, he is never in one place for long and always moves forward to look for his next challenge, making his life a never-ending series of adventures. Because of his need for freedom, Sonic loathes the idea of being constrained,undefined and being cooped up for too long makes him twitchy and restless.

Sonic's demeanor is always easygoing, cool and carefree.undefined However, he is often impatient, hates boredom, and possesses at times a short temper.undefined Because of his impulsive nature, Sonic can be reckless and quick to act before thinking, throwing himself into trouble without a second thought and regards for others' warnings.undefined Nevertheless, he is honest and always keeps his promises.undefined

Sonic's personality is a juxtaposition of kindness and ferocity.undefined He is extremely benevolent, driven by his own strong sense of justice and fair play,undefined and firmly stands for truth and freedom.undefined However, he is never the one to rest in the face of injustice or oppression. He hates lies and evil in all its forms, exploding with anger when witnessing anything unjust, and will do all he can to snuff it out, throwing his life on the line without hesitation.undefined However, he usually sees his heroics as an opportunity to have fun, making him a thrill-seeker. To Sonic, saving the world is no big feat and just another thrilling episode in his life.undefined When he finds himself in a pinch, he acts as though nothing can stop him.undefined In times of crisis though, he is aggressive and focuses intensely on the task at hand as if his personality has undergone an astonishing change.undefined At the same time, Sonic has a big and kind heart and is fully committed to helping out anyone in need at any time, even if it means getting himself into trouble or being despised by others.undefined

Sonic has a lot of self-confidence and possesses an enormous ego to match it, making him sassy, quick-witted, cocky, and at times overconfident. No matter the threat, Sonic always remains cool under pressure.undefined In the original Japanese version, Sonic omits honorifics and speaks informally (if not rudely), using "ore" instead of "I" when addressing himself or others ("ore" is a boastful way to say "I" in Japanese). However, he sometimes uses honorifics when addressing close friends or acquaintances. Possessing a narcissistic tongue and big attitude, he often jokes around to light the mood and will also take any opportunity to taunt his opponents. Being so smug, Sonic has developed a habit of talking to mindless robots, even when he knows they cannot hear him. Despite this, he can be quite the gentleman when he wants to and be modest with fancy titles. Following his free-spirited nature, Sonic never dwells on the past or allows his painful experiences to weight him down. Instead, he lives in the present and always looks forward to his next adventure, holding no regrets for what has transpired. It is only in the moments of greatest loss that his macho and carefree appearance falls away. Sonic is also of incredibly strong character and will: no matter the situation, he never doubts himself or gives up, never once submitting to the darkness in his heart.

Sonic is extremely loyal to his friends and will risk his life for them without any due consideration.undefined While he can leave them hanging, act rude towards them, or endanger them due to his fast-paced nature, Sonic never intends to make his friends unhappy and values them above all else, treating each of them as the most important person in his life. Equally, Sonic will always accept help from his friends and show great trust in them, though he is not above making mistrusting assumptions of them.undefined

Regardless of the many foes he has faced, Sonic rarely considers them true enemies, and instead tends to admire them for how powerful some of them are and how much fun they can give to him.undefined Likewise, Sonic is shown to have a remarkable capacity to forgive, forgiving Silver and working with him after he had tried to kill him twice.

Despite his outward demeanor, Sonic has shown to be much more insightful than he usually lets on, capable of seeing things others would have overlooked and give valuable and comforting advice that drastically changes the outlook of others, such as in the case of Elise, Merlina and Blaze. This insight, combined with a charismatic personality, allows Sonic to get along with virtually anyone he meets, even if they were his enemies at one point.

Sonic has a fondness of the beauty of nature and he stands as a protector of it. He appreciates scenic views as seen in Sonic Colors and showed anger and rage when he found out that Eggman was polluting Planet Wisp's beautiful environment. In Sonic the Hedgehog (2006), Sonic is also shown to have a fondness for locations that are filled with flowers, trees, and other kinds of plants. Ironically, despite his inability to swim, Sonic also loves going to the ocean.undefined

Sonic has been shown to enjoy music, but seems to have a special interest in rock music.undefined Furthermore, it is displayed in Sonic Rush that Sonic also enjoys break dancing which is reflected in his Trick Actions. His battle moves in Sonic Battle are also based on break dancing, as mentioned in the attack descriptions. He also breakdances in numerous games, usually when he is victorious.

Powers and Abilities
Despite not having undergone any known training, Sonic's years of battles has made him a skilled and powerful fighter. He has defeated giant robots, demons, and god-like beings on his own, gone up against and bested those with far more combat experience, and even beaten people who are his equal in abilities. It has also been noted that Sonic is steadily growing stronger;undefined during the Time Eater incident, Sonic could beat the Egg Emperor/Perfect Chaos on his own where he previously required additional power. It is safe to say that Sonic is far more powerful than he lets on, but his overconfidence and reluctance to go all out usually keeps him from fighting at full strength. His victories over Emerl at the Gizoid's maximum potential and Perfect Chaos in his base form are prime examples of Sonic's true power. Regardless of his blocks, Sonic ranks amongst the most powerful characters in the series.

Sonic's greatest strength is his super speed, an innate talent that members of the hedgehog species possess.undefined Sonic, however, has proven himself in a class of its own with his speed, having been credited as "the fastest thing alive" and even the fastest being in the universe.undefined He has the ability to instantly accelerate to and run at speeds far greater than Mach 1,undefined which is at the blistering speed of about 768 mph, and can run backwards just as well as he can forwards.undefined Due to such speed, he can scale vertical surfaces and ceilings, run over water, outspeed lasers, and even cause the ground to explode in his wake. Even then, Sonic can take his speed even further. By revving up in one place, he can take off at turbo speeds in an instant. He can also envelope himself in a blue energy field that lets him accelerate beyond the sound barrier on both the ground and in midair for a short time,undefined allowing him to not only smash straight through enemies and obstacles like a living projectile, but also fly immense distances through midair. Using certain techniques, he can even achieve light-speed momentarily.

It is unknown what Sonic's unaided top speed is. In Sonic Battle, it is stated that he can move several times the speed of sound and when facing Ultimate Emerl, he went at least ten rounds with him in less than thirty seconds. It has often been stated that Sonic can move at supersonic speedundefined (which ranges from 915-3,840 mph), and he has once been called the "the world's fastest, hypersonic hedgehog"undefined (which ranges from 3,840-7,680 mph). There are as well records stating that Sonic can move faster than the speed of light, although their accuracy cannot be guaranteed;undefined E-123 Omega himself calculated that Sonic's speed could potentially exceed light speed as Sonic confidently replied that light speed was "small time" to him.undefined

Sonic has demonstrated complete mastery of his speed in any environment, and can use it for both high-speed offense and defense.undefined Not only can he run at maximum tilt in straight lines, but also in full tight circles and through sharp turns with full control over his momentum. However, he has trouble keeping his balance when coming to an sudden halt. As far as stamina goes, Sonic's is seemingly limitless as he is never winded from running. His speed also allows him to perform several impressive feats: he can heal himself by vibrating his body, launch shockwaves by spinning rapidly, leap in midair, launch stunning waves with fast kicks, increase the force of his blows by striking with increased momentum,undefined and create barriers of super speed. He can also spin in circles or rotate his extremities at super speed to create winds strong enough to attack or blow away opponents, similar to aerokinesis.

Sonic possesses astounding kineticism, precision and has reaction time to match his speed. He has profound acrobatic skills and agility, alongside with enhanced reflexes that lets him avoid any incoming obstacles with precise and delicate movements. As seen in his first meeting with Silver, Sonic can even detect attacks beyond his field of vision due to his sharp reflexes. When launched into the air, he can also pull off several tricks before landing. He also has incredible jumping skills, capable of jumping up to several hundred meters even with extra weight.

Sonic possesses enhanced strength, though he has been noted to lack overall raw power by comparison.undefined He can push and lift things several times bigger and heavier than himself, run without extra weight slowing down and his attacks can smash through metal and rock, and damage foes countless times his size. However, it is debatable whether the latter's power comes from his speed, strength, or a combination of both. Sonic's strength particularly lies in his legs; with a single kick, he can topple the Egg Golem, knock back several Egg Gunners at once and send Badniks flying. This does not mean that Sonic's arms are not strong either; he has enough strength to tear robots apart by hands and punch through a collapsed wall.undefined

Sonic has several times demonstrated extreme resilience to damage. He can survive getting caught in the crossfire from all angles by Eggman's robots (which only knocked him out cold briefly), withstand the force of a massive explosion and a Hyper-go-on-based black hole unscathed, being pummeled with swords, and smash through several robots with his fist without discomfort. Additionally, Sonic has more than once survived impacts from falls at extreme heights, bordering at the edge of space, only to shake it off when landing, and has even withstood atmospheric entry.

Sonic possesses an indomitable force of will; in situations where most others would give up and where he is severely outnumbered and outgunned, Sonic never loses faith in himself and never surrenders. This trait enables him to keep on fighting when utterly exhausted or after taking an abnormal amount of damage. His will even lets him withstand mind-controlling powers, like the corruptive influence of Dark Gaia and the Overmind's psychic powers, though he did have some protection in the latter case. Even when possessed by the Ifrit, Sonic was arguably able to occasionally regain control.

Sonic has also demonstrated the ability to harness the power of the Chaos Emeralds for his own use. With a Chaos Emerald, Sonic can perform Chaos Powers, such as Chaos Control which lets him warp time and space, and occasionally gain a boost in power.

Sonic's core offensive maneuver is the Spin Attack, a technique where he curls into a concussive ball or cutting disk and directs himself at his targets. With it, Sonic can shred or burrow through just about any substance given enough speed and hit with enough force to pierce colossal boulders.undefined Highly adept in its usage, Sonic can utilize several variants of the Spin Attack for both ground- and aerial maneuvers, including the Spin Dash, Spin Jump, Homing Attack and the super-charged Focused Homing Attack.

Even without his Spin Attack, Sonic is a skilled hand-to-hand combatant. He mostly relies on his fast footwork since the majority of his power lies in his legs, though he has been known to use his fists and arms as well, albeit in a rather straightforward manner. His fighting style is mostly derived from breakdancing movesundefined which utilize Sonic's legs to their fullest, allowing him wide-ranged and swift kicks. He has also been known to use flying forward kicks, split kicks, and scissor kicks.undefined What Sonic lacks in strength for combat, he makes up for it in speed which he use to deliver lightning fast strikes in a short time.undefined Sonic is also shown to excel in swordsmanship. Even as a rookie swordsman, Sonic could beat a dragon, and after receiving formal training, he could best master swordsmen like the Knights of the Round Table. In addition to using advanced techniques, Sonic can apply his speed to his swordplay for quick and swift slashes, and become a buzzsaw by spinning with his sword, enabling him to slice clean through enemies.

It appears that Sonic can control the strength and durability of his otherwise soft quills at will.undefined While he is in spinball form, they appear to be extremely hard like buzzsaw blades; as demonstrated in Sonic Heroes, his quills (and body) are durable enough to slice through battleships without even moving at the speed of sound. In addition, Sonic's quills can sense nearby dangers, which they warn him about by creating a tingling sensation.undefined Sonic has also demonstrated the ability to transfer his speed throughout various parts of his body, allowing him to immediately set off from stationary positions, and even channel it into objects to speed up their movements and make them pierce through solid objects as he does while running.undefined He can also create an effect reminiscent of a time halt, although it is unknown what it is derived from.

Equipment
Though he does not prefer to use weapons (mainly dissing firearmsundefined), Sonic has wielded a number of tools during his adventures, albeit never permanently. During the Emerl incident, he utilized deployable landmines in battle, and one time, he would wield his own version of the Piko Piko Hammer. On his trip through the world of the Arabian Nights, Sonic also wore Shahra's Ring, allowing him to harness Shahra's magic for himself. Similarly, in the world of Camelot, Sonic would wield swords: he initially wielded Clarent, but later exchanged it for Caliburn, a sentient sacred sword with magical properties.

Super Sonic
Main article: Super Sonic

By using all seven Chaos Emeralds, Sonic can enter a Super State, transforming him into Super Sonic. Easily his most frequent transformation, Super Sonic is Sonic's ultimate form. In this state, all of Sonic's abilities far surpass his normal ones and he is as well able to fly and is nearly invulnerable.undefined However, this transformation consumes a lot of energy, meaning it cannot be maintained for long.

Hyper Sonic
Main article: Hyper Sonic

By using the power of the seven Super Emeralds, Sonic can achieve an extended and more powerful form of Super Sonic, called Hyper Sonic. This form basically shares the same traits as Super Sonic, except Hyper Sonic commands greater power and his Super State abilities are all upgraded.

Darkspine Sonic
Main article: Darkspine Sonic

By harnessing the World Rings of rage, hatred, and sadness, Sonic can become Darkspine Sonic, a form powered by his emotions over Shahra's death. In this state, Sonic can fly, has greater strength, unlimited usage of his Soul Gauge powers and pyrokinetic abilities. Because of the intense emotions sealed inside the World Rings that Sonic uses to transform, however, he becomes slightly darker and more violent.

Excalibur Sonic
Main article: Excalibur Sonic

By using the power of the four sacred swords, Sonic is able to transform into Excalibur Sonic. This form grants Sonic a strong golden armor with a red cape, the ability to fly, greater strength and the power to wield the legendary sacred sword, Excalibur.

Color Powers
Main article: Color Powers

By harnessing different variants of Hyper-go-on from Wisps, Sonic can use specific Color Powers to transform into a certain form, such as a drill, a laser or even a fireball, each one possessing its own unique abilities. So far, Sonic has been able to transform into the Cyan Laser, Yellow Drill, Blue Cube, Green Hover, Pink Spikes, Purple Frenzy, Violet Void, Orange Rocket, Red Burst, Indigo Asteroid, Magenta Rhythm, Crimson Eagle, Ivory Lightning, Gray Quake and Black Bomb. However, these transformations require a steady supply of Hyper-go-on to be maintained.

Weaknesses
Sonic is incapable of swimming and sinks like a stone in water, which may be due to aquaphobia (Sonic believes that if he falls into water, he will be trapped with no one to get him out),undefined though he does not demonstrate that fear very often. A slight exception is in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, where he is able to swim briefly before drowning (although it is more of flopping around like a fish rather than actually swimming) and in Mario &amp; Sonic at the Olympic Games and Mario &amp; Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games, Sonic is the only character to wear a life-preserver. In some games, Sonic can bypass his weakness to water by running or sliding across its surface, leap out of the water with successive jumps, and survive extended periods of time underwater with air bubbles.

It has also been stated that if Sonic does not sleep for eight hours during the night, it would spoil his running.undefined

Relationships
During his adventures, Sonic has encountered many people and throughout it all, he has received many friends and foes alike. Sonic is well-known with his brotherly relationship with Tails, his friendly rivalry with Knuckles and his fierce arch-rivalry with Shadow. Sonic's arch-enemy is Dr. Eggman, but Sonic has come across even greater enemies throughout his adventures and escapades.

Dr. Eggman
Dr. Eggman is Sonic's eternal arch-enemy and nemesis, whom he has known longer than anyone else. Along with Tails, Eggman is one of the figures who has often shaped Sonic's destiny.undefined Because of Sonic's hatred of anything unjust, he holds a great mutual hatred for the doctor and his evil plans to take over the world, and he has spent years rescuing the victims of Eggman's conniving schemes.undefined Whenever Eggman is cooking up a plan to conquer the world, Sonic always shows up and thwarts him. Because they always fight each other to win, Eggman has become a long time rival of Sonic's as well as an enemy.undefined Also, whenever Sonic's anger explodes over injustice, he always makes Eggman the receiving end of this aggression.undefined

Despite his dislike of Eggman, Sonic has never really taken account of his adversary and does not consider him his enemy in the true sense of the word.undefined Whenever dealing with Eggman, Sonic remains fully confident that he can spoil his plans and never really takes them seriously. In fact, Sonic finds entertainment in spoiling Eggman's plans, seeing as a way of making his life an adventure, and is so used to beating him that he considers it an everyday job.undefined

Usually, Sonic is rather frank or taunting towards Eggman and will almost always seize the opportunity to tease him with jokes and sarcasm. Sometimes, Sonic even finds Eggman more bothersome and annoying than threatening: when he discovered Eggman was behind the Time Eater in Sonic Generations, Sonic just facepalmed and shrugged disapproving. Nevertheless, he remains vigilant about Eggman and his actions, like when he alone refused to believe that Eggman had turned over a new leaf in Sonic Colors. In the cases Sonic does deem Eggman a legitimate threat though, he becomes very serious about the doctor and targets him with fierce anger.

When presented with a more terrible threat that endangers both of them and their goals, Sonic is willing to put aside his differences with Eggman and join forces with him to stop it. Even in such cases though, Sonic remains reluctant about it, feeling that teaming up with Eggman is like the end of the world and a dirty affair,undefined and will in some cases suspect the doctor has an ulterior motive (which is often proven true). Because of Eggman's complicated tendency to instantly switch between morals, Sonic has a hard time figuring him out.

While Sonic has been know to make fun of Eggman by using his alias instead of his real nameundefined (which was possibly given by Sonic), he actually uses this name affectionately, rather than trying to make fun of him.undefined

In spite of Eggman's horrible deeds, Sonic is content with just stopping the doctor and is never out to put him out of commission for good on purpose. Because of Eggman's tendency to survive their encounters and refusal to give up however, the doctor always returns with a new scheme, prompting Sonic to stop him again. As such, Sonic remains forever locked in a conflict with Eggman where it is nearly impossible for both individuals to defeat the other once and for all, making their battle a never ending one.

Miles "Tails" Prower
Miles "Tails" Prower is Sonic's best friend and sidekick, as well as his most faithful and loyal friend.undefined Besides Eggman, Tails is one of the figures in Sonic's life who has often shaped his destiny.undefined Sonic first met Tails on West Side Island where he noticed Tails following him. Though he was not interested in Tails at first, Sonic grew impressed with his tenacity when he kept up with him and let him tag along. When Dr. Robotnik then attacked West Side Island, Sonic joined Tails when the fox followed him into the conflict.undefined In time, Tails proved himself a great ally to Sonic, and after defeating Robotnik, the two had built the foundation for the friendship that would define their future. Eventually, Sonic took Tails under his wingundefined as his sidekick and took upon himself to train him. In time, the fox would become his protégé.undefined Additionally, Sonic would stop bullies from teasing Tails for his twin-tails, which only improved Tails' admiration of him.undefined

Since meeting each other, Sonic and Tails have been inseparable, their friendship having grown to the point where they have a brotherly relationship. In Sonic Advance 3, they are even noted to have an "Unbreakable Bond," and when Tails was once mind-controlled into fighting Sonic, Sonic never laid a finger on him in refusal to hurt his friend. Sonic himself sees Tails as a cute "adopted" kid brother and looks over him accordingly.undefined