#sth284

This issue is just full of really big “Woah“ moments, like a rollercoaster that never lets up. Get a load of Nigel Acorn, literal King, awaiting before the vault calmly drinking tea before revealing his lvl 99 Paladin weapons on the Hooligans. I guess his daughter wasn’t the only one outfitted with energy weapons on the wrists.

He totally wipes the floor with the bad guys, at least until a knock-out blow from Bark ends the battle early. Poor polar bear even looks regretful afterward though thankfully we know the attack wasn’t fatal.

As was set-up in the previous issue’s Eggman Reacts sidestory, he has already set out his henchpeeps to ruin the Freedom Fighter’s celebration party. That means Phage is here (looking the most twisted we’ve ever seen her thanks to the artist’s style, literally crawling out from under Tails Doll’s digital skin), and Nicole is probs gonna be out for the count as it were.

Not only that, but the Battlebird Armada swoops in for a surprise ambush!

No matter the era, I can never not appreciate Archie Sonic’s attention to detail in crowd shots. I loved it when Jon Gray did it and Diana Skelly‘s certainly carrying on that spark! The food must have all been acquired from all the places they visited (except Sonic’s reserved chilidogs xD), Rotor and Antoine seem to have completely opposite ideas for table etiquette, and I love the lil doodles of the world being repaired via band aids and the Death Egg cracking open like an actual egg!

THINGS GO FROM BAD TO WORSE!

Not only is Nicole offline and Chip and the Chaos Emeralds stolen, but the Freedom Fighters’ aircraft has totally lost power and is falling towards the magma core of the planet! All seems at a loss but we know the good guys will be safe for the remainder of the comic.

I’m really digging post-reboot Speedy’s exoskeleton suit! No longer a diaper flight harness, it now more heavily resembles the armour he wore in Tails Adventure and even changes his head shape thanks to the helmet mimicking his game sprites.

I appreciate the contrast with Sally and King Acorn in that while they both have the exact same plan, the King guards more gallantly and threatens with a sword and shield, while Sally just bares her twin-blades in a cold-looking prison dock and gets overwhelmed more easily.

We’re finally here...

the main book’s last complete arc.

Its been a long time coming but we’re inching ever closer to this comic’s end. The Panic in the Sky story certainly has a sense of finality to it, and it SHOULD, considering how long the Shattered World arc went on. A lotta plot points and characters come together, the story ramps up in intensity, Dan Schoening’s covers are very up to snuff with the contrasting BGs seperated by Sonic’s whooshing, and...the covers come together to form a panoramic picture! Good shit