Step Aside Shadow, Sonic The Hedgehog’s New Character Needs A Spinoff TV Show More

Shadow the Hedgehog might be a fan-favorite choice for a potential Sonic the Hedgehog spinoff, but there’s officially a video game character who needs a TV show after their movie introduction. Since the introduction of Keanu Reeves’ Shadow the Hedgehog in Sonic the Hedgehog 3, the fandom has pushed for Paramount+ to make a TV show centered on the villain.

The live-action animated version of the character is just as lovable as the video game character. Plus, Sonic 3’s Shadow backstory makes him more empathetic and interesting.

The flashbacks make it clear that Shadow is an alien who crashes onto Earth, and his only friend is the perfectly healthy Maria. His turn towards evil makes so much more sense when Maria is killed in the movie because she has a long life ahead of her when she’s murdered.

This wave of support for a Shadow TV show only grew once Paramount+ announced that they’re expanding the Sonic franchise with spinoffs.

Despite there being a strong argument in favor of a Shadow the Hedgehog miniseries, Sonic the Hedgehog 3’s first end credits scene introduces Amy Rose, who will have her official debut in Sonic the Hedgehog 4. This movie character needs a TV show much more than the black and red hedgehog.

An Amy Rose Spinoff Would Vindicate The Previously Hated Character

Shadow was always pretty beloved because of his edgelord humor and compelling backstory. However, Amy Rose was very hated at first. People found her obnoxious, creepy, stalkerish, and many other unpleasant descriptors. Her crush on Sonic could easily be perceived as overbearing and obsessive.

All her great traits were ignored, largely because she was seen as having less character. However, there was also a bit of misogyny at play. Historically, girl characters in Sonic haven’t been very well-received at first. Amy Rose’s major changes throughout the franchise are pointed to as a reason to hate her when the male characters’ changes are mostly ignored. It feels like there has always been a double standard for Amy Rose.

However, attitudes have changed significantly, especially towards Amy Rose. She is now seen as a core part of Team Sonic alongside the titular hedgehog, Knuckles, and Tails.

An Amy Rose show would be vindication. Because she is finally getting more of the love and appreciation she deserves, Amy Rose deserves a chance to shine. In a TV spinoff, she could get. An Amy Rose TV spinoff would give her the time and attention that she deserves.

In contrast, Shadow has gotten plenty of praise, and most of Sonic the Hedgehog 3 focused on him as a character. Would I love to see more of him? Absolutely. He is my favorite character. Do I think that it’s necessary to get a TV show focused on him? Not really. He would be better off with a solo movie.

An Amy Rose Spinoff Would Establish The Character’s Personality In The Films

One of the biggest questions that has come up since Sonic the Hedgehog 3’s epic Amy Rose introduction in the credits scene is what her personality and abilities will look like. Amy Rose has gone through multiple personality changes in the Sonic the Hedgehog video games and cartoons.

Amy Rose was an adoring fangirl. She was a girl with a crush, but that wasn’t the focus of her entire personality. She was a character who had to grow as a fighter. She was a powerhouse who could do virtually everything Sonic could. She was hyper-feminine, then less of a girly girl. She had a strong personality, and then she became a generic woman hero.

Because of how often she has changed as a character, the Sonic the Hedgehog movie franchise will need to decide which direction they want to take her.

Obviously, Sonic the Hedgehog 4 will help with establishing her personality, but the movie has to give just as much time to Metal Sonic. Given that the latter is more beloved, he will probably get more backstory and development in the next movie. Plus, they tease that Shadow is still alive in Sonic the Hedgehog 3’s end credits scene, which also might take up some of the runtime.

What’s more, they will have to put more time into establishing her personality than, say, Tails or Shadow, who aren’t too different in the movies than they were in the games. These two would be better off with their own movie, instead of a TV show, because they don’t need as much character development. Meanwhile, Amy Rose is a wild card, so the extra time granted in a TV show would benefit her.

Amy Rose’s Spinoff Could Be A Prequel To Sonic The Hedgehog 4

Every spinoff of a franchise needs to justify its existence. If there isn’t a good reason for something to exist, it feels like a frustrating cash grab on the part of the production company. Luckily, a possible Amy Rose TV show could benefit the story in more ways than just establishing the character’s personality.

There are so many question marks created by the ending of Sonic the Hedgehog 3. The fourth movie is bound to answer the question of where the Metal Sonics came from and how Amy Rose knew where they would be. Sonic the Hedgehog 4 will likely provide insight into the relationships among the newly introduced movie characters.

However, they can’t spend too much time on this because they also have to move the story forward. They set up a big conflict for Team Sonic, and they have to actually follow through on that story.

The good news is that an Amy Rose spinoff could serve as a prequel to the fourth movie from the perspective of the spunky pink hedgehog, filling in the gaps in much more detail than the fourth movie can.

A miniseries could explore where she came from and what her life was like leading up to meeting Sonic. She seems to be about the same age as Sonic in the third movie, so she has about 15 years of life that a show could explore. I’m particularly interested in seeing how she became such an adept fighter. Plus, her TV show could introduce Little Planet, which is an important place in the video games.

An Amy Rose Spinoff Needs To Avoid The Mistakes Of The Knuckles TV Show

If the Sonic movie franchise decides to make any more TV shows, they need to learn from the Knuckles TV show. The miniseries wasn’t terrible, but it was also underwhelming. The Paramount+ original show had two significant missteps that made it a letdown.

Knuckles is an absolutely epic character. Unfortunately, the show focused way too heavily on the humans instead of the titular echidna. They cannot repeat this mistake if Amy Rose gets a spinoff. She would need to actually be the focus of the series instead of spending too much time on characters who aren’t in the title.

Additionally, Sonic the Hedgehog 3 proved that the Knuckles show didn’t actually matter in the grand scheme of things. The movie basically ignored its existence, rather than incorporating the show’s events into the film series. An Amy Rose spinoff show would need to actually matter.

Luckily, the Sonic creative team has already taken audience feedback into account, which is proven by the main character’s redesign and the reduced screen time for the humans in the third movie. There’s no reason to think they wouldn’t make the same choice with future Sonic the Hedgehog-related live-action TV shows.

Movie(s)

Sonic the Hedgehog: The Movie (1996), Sonic the Hedgehog (2020), Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (2022), Sonic the Hedgehog 3 (2024)

First Film

Sonic the Hedgehog: The Movie (1996)

Video Game(s)

Sonic the Hedgehog, Sonic the Hedgehog 2, Sonic the Hedgehog CD, Sonic the Hedgehog 3, Sonic & Knuckles, Sonic Adventure, Sonic Adventure 2, Sonic Heroes, Sonic Unleashed, Sonic Colors, Sonic Generations, Sonic Lost World, Sonic Forces, Sonic Frontiers , Sonic Shuffle, Sonic Advance 1, Sonic Advance 2, Sonic Advance 3, Sonic Rush, Sonic Rush Adventure, Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood

Character(s)

Sonic the Hedgehog, Tails Prower, Knuckles the Echidna, Amy Rose, Dr. Eggman, Mighty the Armadillo, Ray the Squirrel, Vector the Crocodile, Charmy the Bee, Espio the Chameleon, Shadow the Hedgehog, Big the Cat, Rouge the Bat, Metal Sonic

Comic Release Date

229797,248991,248992