Manic the Hedgehog


 * Disambiguation: Manic redirects here. For Sonic's son in the Archie comics, see Manik.

Manic the Hedgehog is a green anthropomorphic hedgehog appearing in the TV series Sonic Underground. Here, Manic is the brother of Sonic the Hedgehog, on a quest with Sonic and their sister, Sonia, to find their mother, Queen Aleena Hedgehog.

Manic's spikes are shaggier than Sonic's and Sonia's, and he is green while Sonic is blue and Sonia is pink. He wears a red vest, black spiked wristbands, and an orange fanny-pack, which he seems to fit anything and everything in, from his drumsticks, to his lock picks, to whatever he steals. He has brown eyes, and his left ear is pierced with two small gold loop earrings. Interestingly, his shoes bear a striking resemblance to those of Miles "Tails" Prower, who is absent from the series. Manic always addresses his mother as "Ma", though he referred to her as "Mother" twice in the episode A Hedgehog's Home is Her Castle.

Manic was voiced by Jaleel White, and his singing voice was provided by Tyley Ross.

Role
Manic plays the drums in the triplets' band. Like his siblings, he possesses a medallion resembling a drum kit that doubles as a weapon.

Manic's character is a pickpocket, placing him in the lowest role of growing up for the siblings: Sonic lived in an average home, while Sonia lived like a princess. When their mother was forced to separate them, his basket was stolen and brought to the thief, Ferrel, who raised Manic to be a thief. Though Sonia has a distaste for Manic's lifestyle (and his tolerance for sewers), his thieving skills and mastery with computers and machines is greatly needed. Manic seems to be the only one of the three that can pick locks, get away with stealing, fix auto machinery, and hack into computers. While he gets defensive when his old background is criticized, he grew up without ever feeling he had a real home until he met his siblings. Manic is the "laid back" sibling, and speaks slang sometimes in the show.

Manic possesses neither his brother's speed nor his sister's strength, thus making him the only member of the Sonic Underground with no superpowers on his own. However, when used properly, his drum set can control the earth, creating seismic activity under Manic's direction, and fire lasers like those of his siblings. His cymbals can even reflect laser fire. According to the Oracle, his drums are the most powerful weapon of the three. He rides on a hoverboard, which also acts like a surfboard.

Personality
Manic is good natured and has a good sense of humor, he's also a bit of a thrill seeker. He can get jealous of his sibling's special abilities; putting himself or others in danger by attempting to prove himself or doing things on his own.

Manic the Performer
Manic, of course, plays the drums in Sonic Underground. He can twirl his sticks with his left hand (later episodes show with his right hand), twirl both sticks in his right hand (shown twice), and throw them in the air and catch them like what most drummers do. His sticks are small, and "bend".

Manic's singing voice was done by Tyley Ross. His voice is smoother (in the French shows it was scratchy like Sonic's singing in the American), and can go pretty high in songs like "Working Together In Harmony" and "Fun In The Sun".

Sonic the Hedgehog (comics)
Manic, along with Sonia and the Sonic Underground version of Sonic, appeared in the Archie Comics series in Sonic Super Special #10. In this special, the Underground triplets team up with the main Archie Sonic to battle Evil Sonic. While their Sonic teamed up with his alternate self to battle Dr. Robotnik, Manic and Sonia freed Evil Sonic from prison, only to turn him over to Zonic the Zone Cop, who placed him in custody. Manic, when introduced to Sonic Prime and told a little about Mobius Prime, was incredulous that his "brother" had a sidekick named Tails.

In addition, the character of Manik Acorn, the future son of Sonic and Princess Sally from the Mobius: X Years Later series, is named after Manic the Hedgehog.

Trivia

 * In the episode "Mobodoon", it is not only revealed where Manic and his siblings were born, but when. Manic points out that "on the second even day of the third month when the moon is full, BAM it shows up just like clockwork", most likely meaning they were born on March 4th.
 * It is possible that Manic was named after the Radiohead demo tape Manic Hedgehog.
 * In the Episode "Sleepers", Manic's speaking voice is lower than normal.
 * Manic doesn't have any physical ability, but, in the episode "The Big Melt", he is shown doing a huge "Sonia Spin" with Sonic.
 * In the episode "Wedding Bell Blues", when the trio go to Bartleby's house, they pretend they are carpet cleaners; Manic's outfit looks a little like Mario's overalls, and Sonic's outfit looks somewhat like Luigi's overalls.