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"Finding the Way" is the second episode in the Sonic X Shadow Generations: Dark Beginnings web series. It first aired on the official Sonic the Hedgehog YouTube Channel on 3 October 2024.
Synopsis[]
Shadow's search for answers brings him into the crossfire with his allies and Dr. Eggman. Is Shadow's unrelenting quest for answers worth the cost? And what will it cost Shadow to get the support he needs?
Appearances[]
Characters:[]
- Abraham Tower (flashback)
- Badniks
- Egg Breaker
- Samurai Egg Pawns (multiple)
- Death Leech (flashback)
- Maria Robotnik (flashback)
- Team Dark
- Sonic the Hedgehog (mentioned)
Races and species:[]
- Black Arms
- Eagle (end credits only)
- Human
Locations:[]
- Sonic's universe
- Earth
- Hidden Base
- Soleanna (end credits only)
- Moon
- Space Colony ARK
- Earth
Items:[]
- Air Shoes
- Dash Ring (end credits only)
- Jump Panel (end credits only)
- Limiter Ring
- Ring (end credits only)
- Spring (end credits only)
- Star Post (end credits only)
- Wind switch (end credits only)
Misc.:[]
- Boost (end credits only)
- Chaos powers
- Doom Powers (end credits only)
- Doom Surf (end credits only)
- Grinding (end credits only)
- Guardian Units of Nations (mentioned)
- Neuro-Immune Deficiency Syndrome
- Sonic's birthday (mentioned)
- Spin Attack
Plot[]
Like the previous episode, it begins on the Space Colony ARK fifty years ago. Maria is seen walking down a hallway, about to enter a room, when suddenly a boy named Abe runs past her, shouting for her to keep that "freak" away from him.
Briefly annoyed at Abe for his rudeness, Maria steps into the room and finds Shadow staring at a container holding a Death Leech. Concerned, she asks if he's alright. Shadow, with a heavy tone, replies that he is, but admits that he was created by Professor Gerald using the Black Arms' DNA, the same DNA as the "disgusting, heartless" larva inside the container. Though he may look like a hedgehog, he says, in reality, he’s no different from that creature.
Maria responds by hugging Shadow, reassuring him that what he's feeling isn't the truth. She tells him he has a big heart, and though it may be difficult for him to show it, she knows deep down that he genuinely cares about her and everyone else. Unbeknownst to them, Abe watches from the window of the door, conflicted at first but then glancing back down at the floor with a hateful look, giving back in to his dislike of Shadow and his nature. Maria comforts Shadow further, telling him that while he may be struggling to find answers now, she's confident that one day he will, and that he'll also find more people he can trust.
The scene fades to the present day, where Shadow is launching an assault on several of Eggman's samurai armor-clad Egg Pawns at Hidden Base. His goal is to reach a spacecraft that will take him to the ARK, as he suspects the Black Arms may have returned. He's joined by Rouge, who states that she's gathering intel for G.U.N. with E-123 Omega also on-scene and providing backup, though Rouge informs him that this is only a supply depot when he tells her of his intentions.
After Team Dark focuses their efforts on and easily destroys a giant, autonomous Egg Breaker that shows up to the battle, Rouge tells Shadow she can take him to a spacecraft. However, she makes him promise to attend Sonic's birthday party in return, much to his chagrin. As the episode ends, she teasingly asks if he's interested in raiding a G.U.N. base.
Trivia[]
- This episode reveals why Shadow shows up to Sonic's birthday party at the end of Sonic Generations.
- This episode marks the first canon appearance of the Commander in nineteen years in a non-port game since Shadow the Hedgehog.
- The Commander's name (or at least, technically a nickname), Abe, is a reference to his Archie comic counterpart of the same name. The next episode confirms his full name to be the same as in the Archie Comics.
- The Egg Pawns have their design from Sonic Colors (specifically, the Samurai-inspired ones in Aquarium Park), which further confirms the animation taking place in the timeline just before Sonic Generations.
- The Egg Breaker is an independent Badnik model rather than a piloted mech similarly to its appearance in the IDW comic series.
- The scene where Shadow observes a captive Death Leech resembles a similar scene from The Jet Black Hedgehog: Shadow the Hedgehog.
- This scene also makes clear that Shadow was aware of his ties to the Black Arms prior to the events of Sonic Heroes. In Shadow the Hedgehog, it was left ambiguous as to whether he knew of his ties to the Black Arms prior to his amnesia.
- The full version of Dark Beginnings implies that Black Doom regenerated from the Death Leech that Shadow observed in the flashback, which was ultimately confirmed in Shadow Generations.
- This scene also makes clear that Shadow was aware of his ties to the Black Arms prior to the events of Sonic Heroes. In Shadow the Hedgehog, it was left ambiguous as to whether he knew of his ties to the Black Arms prior to his amnesia.
- Maria's reassuring speech to Shadow that he ultimately has a heart that separated him from the Black Arms resembled a similar speech by Sonic regarding both Shadow and Emerl in Sonic Battle regarding their past as "weapons."
- The animatic version includes some deleted concepts among other things:
- Originally, Abe was not to have appeared in any capacity during the episode, with Maria simply delivering research materials to Shadow. Abe's scene was intended to occur in the next episode.
- Shadow's interactions with Team Dark were originally meant to be longer: more specifically, it would have been explained that Rouge's motivation for inviting Shadow to Sonic's birthday party was mostly to see the reaction of the other attendees. Omega also explains that the reason he was willing to destroy GUN robots during the raid despite technically being his allies is because his desire to prove his superiority towards other robots was not limited to Eggman robots.
Videos[]
References[]
- ↑ Finding the Way. Sonic the Hedgehog (3 October 2024). Retrieved on 3 October 2024.