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IDW Sonic the Hedgehog Issue 23 is the twenty-third issue in the Sonic the Hedgehog comic series published by IDW Publishing.
Official solicitation
- "The Last Minute," Part Three! Sonic has been infected by the Metal Virus, and so far the only thing keeping him from going full-on zombot is his incredible speed... but how long can that last? As Sonic pushes himself to his limits gathering data for Tails, he comes face-to-face with the one problem more important than the Metal Virus: its creator, Dr. Eggman.[1]
Featured stories
The Last Minute, Part 3
Synopsis
Passing the outskirts of Barricade Town, Sonic puts in a call to Tails, who is at his lab in Central City. Tails tells Sonic that the data from his bio-scanner is coming in perfectly; on the other hand, Dr. Eggman had hit Central City with Metal Virus just as he, Tangle and Whisper had arrived. Sonic offers to turn around and come help with the situation, but Tails tells him to keep running; his speed data may be their only chance to find a cure, and it may serve as a backup should something happen on his end. Sonic complies and tells Tails to stay safe. As the call ends, Sonic puts into perspective how he feels slightly more lonely than usual. The hedgehog manages to arrive at Barricade Town and reflects on his last visit when he and Knuckles ended Rough and Tumble's extortion racket. He also recalls how the skunk brothers were now Zombots stuck at the bottom of Echo Mine. Checking the beaten down state of the town, Sonic realizes that Barricade Town had already been affected by the Metal Virus. Sonic thinks about checking for survivors but knows he cannot carry any out. He also knows that if a Zombot managed to land a hit on the bio-scanner, they would lose the data. Sonic soon looks up and manages to spot Eggman. Inside Barricade Town, Eggman and Starline are testing different radio frequencies in an attempt to communicate with the town's Zombots. Not enjoying its tediousness, Eggman exclaims that he should have rigged an automated version of the broadcast to play from the Faceship. Annoyed, Starline reminds Eggman that wide-band broadcasts had no effect and they agreed to try localized attempts next. Eggman snaps at Starline, telling him not to get passive agressive with him but instead have his back if he wished to follow him. Starline replies saying that it would have been smart to have a fail-safe for the Metal Virus mutating beyond Eggman's control. Eggman considers his options and suggests using Starline's Warp Topaz charged by the Chaos Emeralds aboard the Facehsip. Starline refuses and explains that the Warp Topaz reacts strongly to the most passive of energy waves. In his early experiments, anything above a light, controlled charge resulted in extreme reality alteration. To summarize, the Warp Topaz is a useful tool when used correctly but Starline believed that what Eggman was proposing was exceedingly dangerous. When Eggman protests, saying that they just have to be cautious, Starline disagrees saying that he is anything but cautious and adds that he has not created a vaccine to the Metal Virus. From this, Eggman reveals that there is cure for the virus and states that they were going to avoid infection by simply not touching any Zombot. Infuriated, Starline brings up scenarios of if there was a spill on the Faceship, a mishap in the field or further mutation to make the virus airborne. Eggman tells Starline that he should no longer nitpick him but the platypus claims that he is only bringing up common sense. As Eggman tells Starline to shut up once again, Sonic appears before the both of them, sarcastically asking if their honeymoon was over.
Appearances
Characters:
- Dr. Eggman
- Dr. Starline
- Knuckles the Echidna (mentioned)
- Miles "Tails" Prower
- Rough the Skunk (mentioned)
- Sonic the Hedgehog
- Tumble the Skunk (mentioned)
Locations:
- Barricade Town
- Central City
- Echo Mine (mentioned)
Items:
- Bio-scanner
- Chaos Emeralds (mentioned)
- Metal Virus
- Warp Topaz
Vehicles:
- Egg Mobile (first appearance)
- Faceship (mentioned)
Continuity
- The events of this issue occur simultaneously with Sonic the Hedgehog #21 and Sonic the Hedgehog #22.
- Sonic recalls fighting Rough and Tumble with Knuckles in Barricade Town, an event that occurred in Sonic the Hedgehog #3, "Fallout, Part 3".
- Sonic recalls Rough and Tumble getting turned into Zombots and leaving them stuck in Echo Mine, an event that happened in Sonic the Hedgehog #15, "Patient Zero".
- Dr. Starline reminds Dr. Eggman that wide-band broadcasts do not work on Zombots any longer. This was first discovered in Sonic the Hedgehog #18, "Victims".
Trivia
- The Editor's Note on page two incorrectly states that Rough and Tumble were turned into Zombots and left in Echo Mine in Sonic the Hedgehog #14, "Misdirection", whereas this event actually happened in Sonic the Hedgehog #15, "Patient Zero".
- On page three, Dr. Eggman tries to communicate with the Barricade Town Zombots at a frequency of 141.12. This is the contact frequency for Otacon in Metal Gear Solid.
Other features
Quotes
Trivia
- This issue was initially going to be released on 27 November 2019, but was soon moved to 20 November 2019 instead. It was later moved back to 27 November 2019.
- There was some inconsistent reporting on the art team for the issue when the solicits were released: while the ComicList solicit correctly listed Jack Lawrence as the artist for the issue, the Previews World solicit listed Priscilla Tramontano instead.[7]
- Cover RI acts as parallel artwork to cover RI of Sonic the Hedgehog #5.
Gallery
Cover artwork
Early covers
Preview pages
| Gallery |
|---|
 Page one Page two Page three Page four Page five |
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 SONIC THE HEDGEHOG #23 CVR A TRAMONTANO. Previews World (26 July 2019). Retrieved on 23 August 2019.
- ↑ SONIC THE HEDGEHOG #23 CVR B YARDLEY. Previews World (24 August 2019). Retrieved on 24 August 2019.
- ↑ SONIC THE HEDGEHOG #23 10 COPY INCV FOURDRAINE. Previews World (24 August 2019). Retrieved on 24 August 2019.
- ↑ Bracardi Curry on Twitter. Twitter (26 October 2019). Retrieved on 26 October 2019.
- ↑ IDW Publishing November 2019 Solicitations. ComicList (23 August 2019). Retrieved on 26 August 2019.
- ↑ David Mariotte on Twitter. Twitter (26 August 2019). Retrieved on 26 August 2019.
- ↑ Digamma-f-wau on Twitter. Twitter (26 August 2019). Retrieved on 26 August 2019.
External links
- IDW Sonic the Hedgehog Issue 23 at IDW Sonic Hub Wiki, the IDW Sonic wiki.
