Archie Sonic the Hedgehog Issue 223 is the two hundredth twenty-third issue of the Sonic the Hedgehog comic series published by Archie Comics.
Official solicitation[]
- The vile wizard Ixis Naugus finally makes his bold move, and the Republic of Acorn will never be the same! As Sonic races to bring the villain down, Dr. Eggman makes the final preparations for his newest scheme in "Special Zone House Call".
Featured stories[]
Chaos and the Crown Part One: The Right To Rule[]
- Writer: Ian Flynn
- Pencils: Ben Bates
- Inks: Terry Austin
- Colors: Matt Herms
- letters: John Workman
- Editor: Paul Kaminski
- Editor-in-Chief: Victor Gorelick
- President: Mike Pellerito
- Special Thanks To: Cindy Chau and Jerry Chu at SEGA licensing
Synopsis[]
Outside the Civic Center in New Mobotropolis, a small crowd has gathered; the Forget Me Knots are having a small informal show. Sonic the Hedgehog jokes with Sally Acorn that staking out a free concert is not that great of a second date, but Sally wants to make sure things do not get out of hand again. As the band sets up by a fountain, Mina Mongoose speaks into a microphone, thanking people for showing up to the surprise show and for their support; she says she hopes to lighten the mood in the city. Suddenly, a cloaked figure strides through the crowd, asking how the mood can possibly be lightened; the city, he claims, is still at risk of being taken over by 'a computer' at any moment. Geoffrey St. John dramatically pulls of his cloak and tosses it aside, where it lands on a shocked Mina. He tells the crowd that the Forget Me Knots' message is still important; they need to act against NICOLE. Mina attempts to intervene, but Geoffrey smugly dismisses her, saying she has already done her part.
Seeing him, Sally orders Geoffrey to surrender as the Freedom Fighters approach; Amy Rose notices an odd swirl of smoke go by as Geoffrey tells Sally that he is totally in the right with his actions. He announces that all he is done has been in service to the true king of New Mobotropolis; from the smoke appears Ixis Naugus. The Forget Me Knots scatter, with Ash Mongoose helping Mina away. Sally and Sonic are shocked as last they had seen of him, Naugus had been rendered mindless by the Egg Grapes.
Naugus addresses the crowd, calling them his people; he proclaims that they will no longer need to live in fear of the 'digital menace' as he will save them from NICOLE and prevent her from turning the city against them. NICOLE herself appears, saying that the only person she will turn the city against here is Naugus; with a clap of her hands, Nanites form into a large clamped trap around the wizard's torso. She politely asks him to not resist further. However, with a flourish of his Chaos Emerald-topped wand, Naugus turns the nanite-made trap to magical crystal; it shatters, freeing him. He tells the shocked NICOLE that her 'artificial' methods are no match for his magic. "You hold no sway over me!".
As NICOLE recoils, Naugus again addresses the people, telling them they need no longer live in fear. He announces that he is going to go speak with the Council of Acorn in order to bring peace. He then mutters to Geoffrey, "Keep the rabble off my back." Geoffrey reminds him to stick to the plan.
Sally tells Sonic that they need to stop Naugus from reaching the council; Sonic speeds off towards the wizard, only to pass through him harmlessly as he strides towards Castle Acorn. Sonic dryly remembers that Naugus controls the elements. However, he believes that he can move faster than Naugus can change form—only for his spin dash to nearly collide with a tower of flame.
Sally orders the Royal Guard to take down Geoffery and tells the rest of the Freedom Fighters to help Sonic. With the Royal Guard about to ambush Geoffery commands them to stand down due to his rights as Secret Service commander. Sally points out that Geoffery is a traitor and once again orders for him to be arrested. Geoffery replies that he is acting on the king's orders and is on top secret business and still has power. Sally states her title as crown princess, but is cut off by St. John who snidely remarks that the king overpowers the princess. Sally points out that he did not have the consent of Elias. Geoffery replies that he was not talking about Elias. Geoffery tells Sally to give up, and that her 'clubhouse gang' will have to get their hands dirty if they want to attack him. Sally, indignant, ignores this and orders the Freedom Fighters to attack.
Antoine attacks St. John first and scolds him for stealing his father's idea for the Rebel Underground. Geoffery kicks him in the stomach and replies that he did impress him during the invasion. Bunnie goes in to attack Geoffery with her extending arm only to have Geoffery dodge it and attack her. Next, Amy and Tails surround Geoffery by running circles around him. Geoffery replies that the 'pincer move' is pretty predictable and predicts where Sally's next attack will be and lands a kick, only to have it completely of the mark. Sally states the Geoffery is to smart for his own good and signals Nicole, in which the A.I. traps Geoffery in a nanite bubble. Nicole is confident the trap will sustain St. John since he does not possess the crystalline magic. Sally thanks her and tells the others to regroup. Just then, Geoffery shadow melds out of the bubble and remarks that he does not enjoy it. Sally is taken back by the realization the he is an Ixis Wizard. Geoffery remarks that he is full of surprises.
At the abandoned Eggdome, Eggman commands Snively to have his Egg Mobile ready for launch and will meet him at the Zone gate. Snively indignantly accedes. Lien-Da walks up to Eggman in which he greets her calling her a patched-together lackey. Lien-da tells Eggman the report of the Mobile and is ready for launch, if the mission actually succeeds. Eggman is sure of himself and states the soon the 'real fun' will begin.
Back in New Mobotropolis Sonic is steady fighting Ixis Naugus. Sonic goes in to attack and is easily hit with a stone that forcefully unearths. Naugus puts up a crystal wall at the entrance to the castle as caution. With Naugus finally in the castle, the Council of Acorn is still debating over the "Nicole Issue". Ixis draws attention and claims that they can enact a great justice by handing over the Kingdom to him.
Back with Geoffery and the others, Sally tells the other citizens to stay back while they handle the traitor menace. Geoffery says she should let them stay if they are not afraid of hearing the truth. Amy replies that no truth could come from a backstabber like him, but Geoffery cuts her off by saying he always served the king and tosses Amy into the air. Tails goes to catch her and Geoffery adds that they never thought clear of which king he was serving, and with old Mobotropolis gone and a new government system, he had to act before the 'rightful king' lost everything. Geoffery dodges Sally's kick and Sally states that he is not making sense. Geoffery claims the Sally does not want it to make sense. Sally, in disbelief, questions why he did not act sooner and what say Hershey has in the situation. Geoffery replies that she does not have much to say, because she is dead, which shocks the Freedom Fighters.
Back at Castle Acorn, Elias refuses to give up his position as king, saying it was passed down to him after Maximillian became too sick. Ixis points out that Maximillian Acorn became his knight in the Zone of Silence and swore obligation to him and therefore it is Naugus's kingdom. Rotor indignantly refuses to submit. Naugus explains that his apprentice has informed him of the changes and will not disassemble the council and does not hold a grudge against the Acorn Line. Elias is unswayed and is still angered by what Ixis did to King Maximillian. Suddenly Sonic bounces on Naugus, cooly remarking he forgot to cover the windows. Sonic informs Elias of what happened with Geoffery and knows why. Naugus angrily remarks that 'quips and fists' cannot overcome his magic. Sonic asks Elias if he could have a 'magical edge' and Elias throws Sonic the Sword of Light. Sonic unsheathes the sword and Ixis replies he cannot stand in the way of justice.
Appearances[]
Characters:
- Ash Mongoose
- Armand D'Coolette (mentioned)
- Bivalve Clam
- Council of Acorn
- Doctor Eggman
- Forget Me Knots
- Geoffrey St. John
- Knothole Freedom Fighters
- Hershey St. John (mentioned)
- Ixis Naugus
- Lien-Da
- Mammoth Mogul (mentioned)
- Maximillian Acorn (mentioned)
- Snively Robotnik
Locations:
Races and species:
Items:
Misc.:
- Figure-Eight Peel-Out
- Grandmaster
- Ixis Magicks
- Crystalline Magic
- Ixis Earth Magic
- Ixis Fire Magic
- Ixis Wind Magic
- Shadow Meld
- Ixis Wizard
- Propeller Flying
- Sole Thruster
- Sonic Spin
Continuity[]
- Naugus is confirmed to have regained his elemental powers after having his sanity restored three issues prior in Sonic the Hedgehog #220.
Trivia[]
- Despite them being published only 14 issues apart, this story shares its main title with an unrelated story from Sonic the Hedgehog #237. The reason for this similarity is unknown.
- In the first panel of this story, a black helmet with the Battle Bird Armada's logo on it can be seen in the crowd.
- When Lien-Da walks up to Dr. Eggman, Bivalve Clam can be seen as a cameo through the far left monitor.
Special Zone House Call[]
- Writer: Ian Flynn
- Pencils: Jamal Peppers
- Inks: Terry Austin
- Colors: Matt Herms
- Letters: John Workman
Synopsis[]
At the Zone Portal in the Eggdome, Snively and Eggman are preparing to enter the Special Zone with his portal. Eggman admonishes that they only have one shot to succeed and reiterates, since he is using every watt of power to open it. The two enter only to come face to face with Feist, who is excited to have "mortals" enter his territory. With Snively panicking and Eggman observing, Feist anticipates that they have come for a Chaos Emerald. A corkscrew loop appears with the emerald at the end and Feist demands that they compete for it. Eggman is confident, while Snively plots that overthrow the operation and leave Eggman. Snively accepts the challenge while Eggman remarks that a little fun before world domination would not hurt. Feist is amused by the rivalry and commences the race.
Snively races ahead of Eggman, in which Eggman tells him to be wary; they are competing for the same thing. Snively sardonically replies that all his weight must be slowing him down. Just as Snively is about to win, his Egg Mobile suffers an explosion and he is left dangling on its edge in open space. Eggman grabs the emerald for himself in triumph, a small panel open on the underside of his vehicle revealing a missle array with a single empty rack space. Feist cuts off Eggman's gloating by teleporting the emerald out of his grasp, stating he has to choose between Snively or the emerald. Without contemplation, Eggman chooses the Blue Chaos Emerald and exits the Special Zone, remarking that it is "Sonic-blue" which is fitting. Eggman uses a teleportation device to warp Snively back since he claims that he does not get denied anything. Eggman commands Snively to get up and walks out to have his plan commence.
Appearances[]
Characters:
Locations:
Races and species:
Items:
- Chaos Emerald
- Zone Portal
Vehicles:
Off Panel[]
- Script: Ian Flynn
- Pencils: James Fry
- Inks: Terry Austin
- Colors: Paul Kaminski
Synopsis[]
Continuing from Story 2, Eggman gloats about obtaining the blue Chaos Emerald. He announces that his preparations are complete and unleashes the power of the chaos emerald and transforms into El Gran Gordo. He runs off with his arms out announcing that he will defeat the hedgehog in the ring of honor and runs off. In the last panel, Snively addresses the reader apologizing for what they have seen and that Eggman is still recovering from his breakdown in #200.
Appearances[]
Characters:
Races and species:
Items:
Quotes[]
- Sonic: Scoping out a free concert all day. You sure know how to plan a second date.
- Sonic: Oh, right. Master of the elements.
- Naugus: Do you forget so easily, quickster?
- Geoffrey: And the junior league comes in with the predictable pincer movement, which puts Sally's ambush...here?
- Sally: You're too smart for your own good.
- Sally: And what does your wife have to say about all this?!
- Geoffrey: She...doesn't care about much anymore. Hershey's dead. She's been dead for a while.
- Sonic: You forgot to cover the windows, Naugy!
Trivia[]
- This issue featured artwork from three winners from the "Sonic Versus" art contest.
Gallery[]
Cover artwork[]
Preview pages[]
Gallery |
---|
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Archie Comics News: December 2010 Archives. Archie Comics (25 December 2010). Archived from the original on 25 December 2010. Retrieved on 5 June 2021.
External links[]
- Archie Sonic the Hedgehog Issue 223 at Mobius Encyclopaedia, the Archie Sonic wiki.
- Archie Sonic the Hedgehog Issue 223 at Sonic Retro