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bekahmccue's review
dark
tense
slow-paced
5.0
First and foremost, the cover did NOT prepare me for what was inside at all. Comics is a HARD medium to pull off horror in, but I think the annual did it the best I've seen so far, and in my opinion even better than the main series installments.
Big's Big Adventure: Seeing the entirety of the comics thus far through Big's perspective was thoroughly enjoyable, especially because of realizing it relatively early. The easter-eggs kept me so involved that I forgot about the unsettling first few panels until the branches and vines serving as the gutters began being overtaken by the metal virus, and that slow creep continued until the inevitable realization that Froggy infected Big, and he was watching the forest be infected around them.
Darkest Hour: Always a fan of Evan's work, though I wasn't sure what to expect from this one at the first page or two. The dichotomy of a rooster and an owl running a night radio show was great, and I'll credit this one as being the only story to start dark and end hopeful rather than the other way around, and the change of pace was welcome. It is EXCEPTIONALLY short, more of a single scene than a full story, but it does that very well.
Reflections: I was excited to see that this one was wordless (almost), as it focuses on Metal Sonic who does not communicate through speaking. As such the art and paneling took center stage. This was also the only hint we've gotten to the idea we've seen in other media with Metal Sonic where he truly might believe he's the original Sonic. The identity crisis showed by the gutters changing from black to white with just a silhouette of him after he touched the metal virus and was unaffected was EXTREMELY effective and actually made me feel legitimately bad for him.
Eggman's Day Off: A short scene showing Starline beginning to rift from Eggman because of seeing a metal miniature of himself (implying Eggman intended to turn him into a robot as well). Not much to say about it; effective at what it wanted to do, but not entirely memorable or impactful.
Flock Together: An action comic about the Chaotix separating zombot Charmy from a flock of zombot flickies. While the story is well put-together, the art style is a little stiff/unexpressive and makes it hard to get the feel that the words are spoken with any real emotion.
The Catalyst: This one played well with the fact you knew Jewel was a zombot in present day, but she's perfectly fine in the first panel. The entire time you're just waiting for her to get infected, and when you see it happen without her noticing and then the slow trickle after that... oof. It's such an effective structure that even though you know Jewel infected Tangle, the last panel revealing her zombot form is no less impactful.
Big's Big Adventure: Seeing the entirety of the comics thus far through Big's perspective was thoroughly enjoyable, especially because of realizing it relatively early. The easter-eggs kept me so involved that I forgot about the unsettling first few panels until the branches and vines serving as the gutters began being overtaken by the metal virus, and that slow creep continued until the inevitable realization that Froggy infected Big, and he was watching the forest be infected around them.
Darkest Hour: Always a fan of Evan's work, though I wasn't sure what to expect from this one at the first page or two. The dichotomy of a rooster and an owl running a night radio show was great, and I'll credit this one as being the only story to start dark and end hopeful rather than the other way around, and the change of pace was welcome. It is EXCEPTIONALLY short, more of a single scene than a full story, but it does that very well.
Reflections: I was excited to see that this one was wordless (almost), as it focuses on Metal Sonic who does not communicate through speaking. As such the art and paneling took center stage. This was also the only hint we've gotten to the idea we've seen in other media with Metal Sonic where he truly might believe he's the original Sonic. The identity crisis showed by the gutters changing from black to white with just a silhouette of him after he touched the metal virus and was unaffected was EXTREMELY effective and actually made me feel legitimately bad for him.
Eggman's Day Off: A short scene showing Starline beginning to rift from Eggman because of seeing a metal miniature of himself (implying Eggman intended to turn him into a robot as well). Not much to say about it; effective at what it wanted to do, but not entirely memorable or impactful.
Flock Together: An action comic about the Chaotix separating zombot Charmy from a flock of zombot flickies. While the story is well put-together, the art style is a little stiff/unexpressive and makes it hard to get the feel that the words are spoken with any real emotion.
The Catalyst: This one played well with the fact you knew Jewel was a zombot in present day, but she's perfectly fine in the first panel. The entire time you're just waiting for her to get infected, and when you see it happen without her noticing and then the slow trickle after that... oof. It's such an effective structure that even though you know Jewel infected Tangle, the last panel revealing her zombot form is no less impactful.
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