Archie Sonic Boom Issue 8

Archie Sonic Boom Issue 8 is the eighth issue in the Sonic Boom comic series published by Archie Comics. It is the second part of the "Worlds Unite" crossover.

Official solicitation

 * It slices! It dices! It joins line-wide crossover events: it's SONIC BOOM! "Sonic/Mega Man: Worlds Unite" Part Two: It was just another day at the races—y’know, the ones with the giant spider-mechs? Things start to get weird, even for the lovable, paranoid Sticks, when X and the Maverick Hunters arrived! Meanwhile, the epic bromance of the century is rekindled as the captured Drs. Eggman and Wily are forced to turn their life-long nemeses—Sonic and Mega Man—into minions for the terrifying Sigma! After the history-making "WORLDS COLLIDE" crossover event, Sonic the Hedgehog and Mega Man unite once more—and this time Sonic Boom and Mega Man X are joining the fray! Featuring cover art from the legendary Patrick "SPAZ" Spaziante, a special "happy fun time crossover" variant by Ryan Jampole and part 2 of the epic 12-part connecting variant cover series by artist Ben Bates!

Worlds Unite Part Two: Broken Heroes

 * Writer: Ian Flynn
 * Pencil Breakdowns: Dan Schoening
 * Pencil Finishes: Tracy Yardley
 * Inks: Terry Austin
 * Letters: Jack Morelli
 * Colors: Luis Delgado
 * With Special Thanks to: Peppers, Amash and Herms
 * Assistant Editor: Jonathan H. Gray
 * Editor: Vincent Lovallo
 * Editor-in-chief: Victor Gorelick
 * President: Mike Pellerito
 * Publisher: John Goldwater
 * Special Thanks to: Eddie Muzuno, Stacy-Arnold Strider, Patrick Riley and to the Character business and at Licensing Department of Sega Corporation.
 * Special Thanks to: Francis Mao, Noriko Matsunaga, Susan Suarez and Hiromi Iwasaki at Capcom media & Consumer products and to 飛田栄実.

Summary
In the universe of Sonic Boom, Team Sonic is in a battle with the Dr. Eggman native to that zone. Sticks is sent flying as Sonic finishes off Eggman's Spider-Kart. As Sticks recovers from hitting a coconut tree, a Genesis Portal opens in front of her, causing her to hide. From it step X, Zero and Axl. X is amazed at being in another world, but Axl confirms they are not in the one they were aiming for, despite using Sigma's own device and Silver's help. The portal suddenly closes behind them, but X notes that the situation back home is contained, so they should ask the locals for help.

Sticks suddenly attacks Zero, thinking them to be invaders, but stops when X explains the situation to her. Predicting surprisingly correctly that the group are robot cops from another world who are hunting down a diabolical evil that betrayed them, Sticks is ecstatic that her dream came true (a dream that her friends thought was due to her eating too many S'Mores that caused a fever), Sticks thus agrees to help the group, and recruits Comedy Chimp and the Fastidious Beaver to aid them (though it's closer to strong-arming them). Sticks leads the party to Eggman's lair in the Boom universe, reasoning Eggman would have an interdimensional travel device stashed away, with Fastidious Beaver still expressing confusion in a hushed tone as to why they had to tag along and Comedy Chimp deciding there is no thing as bad publicity. The group soon runs into the Orbot and Cubot of this world. The two attempt to threaten them off, a challenge to which Zero is more than willing to meet. The two are quickly cowed into submission and are able to provide a makeshift Genesis Portal.

At the Lost Hex, Dr. Eggman and Dr. Wily have a brief inspection by Sigma as they prepare to enslave Sonic and Mega Man. Seeing Wily truly has no memories of the Worlds Collide, Eggman spins his own take on it, claiming that his attempt to murder Dr. Light was a lie to sow distrust between the two. Wily seems to buy the story and the two work further on their plan: have the heroes end up saving each other, blame their problems solely on Sigma and attack him while Eggman and Wily use the Unity Engines for their own purposes. When Sigma returns, the scientists begin the Roboticization process on the heroes.

On Mega Man's world, Dr. Light is wondering where Rock is when reports of a Robot Master named Sonic Man begin coming in. Dr. Light sends out his own Light Robot Masters to engage this threat. Meanwhile on Sonic's World, Sally Acorn receives word from her father about a robot named M'egga Man about to attack the castle.

Characters

 * Auto
 * Comedy Chimp
 * Cubot (Sonic Boom)
 * Dr. Wily
 * Dr. Eggman
 * Dr. Thomas Light
 * Egg Swat (multiple)
 * Fastidious Beaver
 * King Acorn
 * Maverick Hunters
 * Sigma
 * Miles "Tails" Prower
 * Nicole the Holo-Lynx
 * Orbot (Sonic Boom)
 * Reploids
 * Maverick Hunters
 * X
 * Zero
 * Axl
 * Robot Masters
 * Mega Man
 * Super Armor Mega Man
 * Air Man
 * Cut Man
 * Elec Man
 * Guts Man
 * Roll
 * Stone Man
 * Top Man
 * Quick Man
 * Roboticized Masters
 * M'egga Man
 * Sonic Man
 * Sally Acorn
 * Sonic the Hedgehog
 * Super Sonic
 * Team Sonic (Sonic Boom)
 * Sonic the Hedgehog (Sonic Boom)
 * Miles "Tails" Prower (Sonic Boom)
 * Knuckles the Echidna (Sonic Boom)
 * Amy Rose (Sonic Boom)
 * Sticks the Badger

Continuity

 * The beginning of this story picks up from when Sticks sees the Maverick Hunters for the first time in Sonic Boom #7, "Everybody Super Sonic Racing Part 2".
 * Sticks joins the Maverick Hunters in their mission to stop Sigma.
 * Comedy Chimp comments at Fastidious Beaver's line at the end of Sonic Boom #7, "Everybody Super Sonic Racing Part 2", where he accidentally called Sonic's friendship speech corny when he was actually enjoying his snack.
 * Sticks and the Maverick Hunters create a Genesis Portal which they use to find Sigma.
 * Sonic and Mega Man are still in captivity, due to the Deadly Six in Sonic Universe #76, "Worlds Unite! Part One: Across Time and Space".
 * Dr. Eggman and Dr. Wily are still in Sigma's captivity, which began in Sonic Universe #76, "Worlds Unite! Part One: Across Time and Space".
 * It is revealed that the events of Worlds Collide happened in the Post-Super Genesis Wave World, though with a different course of events leading up to it, specifically tying in with where Sonic Generations left off.
 * Dr. Eggman recalls the events of Worlds Collide, though lies about his attempt to kill Dr. Light to restore his friendship with Wily.
 * Sonic and Mega Man are turned into Sonic Man and M'egga Man, and attack the other's world. This attack continues into Sonic the Hedgehog #273.
 * Dr. Light sends the Light Robot Masters' to face Sonic Man, while King Acorn call for the New Freedom Fighters to face M'egga Man. Both parties would engage their foe in Sonic the Hedgehog #273.

Trivia

 * The first two pages of this stories are condensed versions of the last four pages of the previous issue.
 * Shortly before Sticks the Badger "recruited" Comedy Chimp and Fastidious Beaver into Team Sticks, she is seen hiding in the bushes in a manner similar to Knuckles the Echidna in the Sonic the Hedgehog 3 box art.
 * Cubot complaining about "Seven-point-five paint jobs" for a robot is a references to the eight different variant covers for Sonic Universe #75, which is the largest number of variant covers for any Sonic-related comic issue published by Archie Comics.
 * Dr. Eggman's flashback to how he first met Wily is stated to take place directly after the ending of Sonic Generations, leading to the current continuity's version of Worlds Collide. Silver was also in Sonic Generations, but according to Tails in Sonic the Hedgehog #252, he was last seen during the events of the Nintendo DS version of Sonic Colors; which led to Dr. Eggman's discovery of the Time Eater.

Off Panel

 * Script: Bill Freiberger
 * Pencils: Lamar Wells
 * Inks: Rick Bryant
 * Letters: Jack Morelli
 * Colors: Matt Herms

Synopsis
Sticks examines Sonic and asks him about his beige arms. She later irritates Knuckles by telling him he needs to work out. She then sees Amy marveling at a picture of Sonic the Hedgehog (Sonic Boom version), and tells her to chill out. She then looks at her own picture, saying that the world was not ready for two Sticks' (though she has trouble saying her name in plural), and claims she is one of a kind.

Characters

 * Sonic the Hedgehog
 * Sonic the Hedgehog (Sonic Boom)
 * Knuckles the Echidna
 * Amy Rose
 * Sticks the Badger

Trivia

 * The picture of Sticks on the wall in the last panel is taken from the regular cover of Sonic Boom #2.

Trivia

 * This is the first issue in which Sonic (from Sonic Boom) does not make an appearance on the front cover. In fact, Sticks is the only Sonic Boom character to appear on the cover.
 * This issue marks the first time an Archie-exclusive character from the main Sonic the Hedgehog comic continuity has appeared in the Sonic Boom series, with Sally Acorn, Nicole and King Acorn all making an appearance.
 * Despite appearing on the main cover, neither Signas nor Alia appeared in this issue.