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Information in this article may not be canonical to the storyline of the games or any other Sonic continuity. |
Princess Undina[4] is a character that appears in the Sonic the Hedgehog comic series and its spin-offs published by Archie Comics. She is an aquatic mobian and the princess of Meropis.
Appearance[]
Undina's original attire, from Sonic Universe #92.
Undina is a mobian fish of average height. Taking after both of her parents, she has violet skin, purple eyes with thick eyelashes, a white muzzle and a fairly rounded face. She has small round fins on the sides of her head and on her ankles, an esca on her forehead and a thin, long tail fin. While they are not always visible, she is usually depicted with fangs.
When it comes to her attire, she has a taste for gaudy and elaborate outfits with more than a few accessories.[3] Her most prevalent outfit consists of a sleeveless yellow blouse held together by a deep pink gem set in cyan, which opens to reveal her midriff, with cyan lining, over a black crop top and tight, black short shorts, along with a matching pair of yellow sleeves held together by thin cyan bands with matching cyan linings, a yellow hairband with a ribbon on the left side, a deep pink ring on her right index finger and a cyan ring with a pearl on her left middle finger. She also wears what looks like big circular white earrings on her head fins, green eyeshadow, and a pair of deep pink single-strap sandals along with matching leg straps.
Before meeting Honey the Cat, she was shown to have the scales on her head tied together with a small gold crown, and she wore a very simple yellow sleeveless dress with deep pink oval spots on the skirt, along with an armband and a matching pair of bracelets.
History[]
Past[]
Undina and Coral during their priestess training, from Sonic Universe #91.
In the past, Undina studied to become the priestess of the Eusebes Shrine alongside her friend Coral the Betta. While Coral ended up being chosen over her, Undina did not hold it against Coral; in fact, she told Coral that she deserved to be chosen, and showed her nothing but kindness.[5][6]
Undina eventually left Meropis to study in Spagonia, but she grew bored there and decided instead to go travel the world. During her trip, Undina met Honey the Cat in Empire City and decided to model some clothing she designed.[6] Undina also watched the Chaos Emerald Championship before leaving to continue her worldwide travels, visiting other cities such as Shamar and Adabat.[7][8][9] Unfortunately, the princess was apparently kidnapped by pirates who held her for ransom.[6] However, the captain of the crew, Shellbreaker, found out that she could read old sea charts that Abyss the Squid had left behind. Realizing her worth, Shellbreaker did not collect the ransom on Undina from Meropis and instead had her translate more of the charts.[10]
The Case of the Pirate Princess[]
Undina with the Pirates of the Setting Dawn, from Sonic Universe #92.
Undina was later found aboard the Setting Dawn by the Chaotix, Lieutenant Echo the Dolphin, Razor the Shark, and Crusher the Chao, though she was unharmed and seemed to be a member of the crew. She revealed to Vector that she had, in fact, been kidnapped by the crew of the Setting Dawn, but they had changed their minds about ransoming her when they learned she could decipher sea charts leading to ancient treasures, due to her prior training as a priestess. At first, Undina happily cooperated, finding it convenient that she could travel the world for free while also preventing the pirates from hurting anyone.[10] However, when it appeared that the most recent item they were searching for was, in fact, an ancient weapon, she quickly became more hesitant, especially when Shellbreaker expressed a desire to use it to crush his enemies and pillage nations, including her home of Meropis. Despite her doubts and attempts to warn them of the possible consequences, though, she found herself forced to keep complying with the pirates' demands.[2]
Eventually, the crew came upon an ancient tomb, although they were surprised to find that the place had already been robbed. Taking advantage of the situation, the Chaotix, Echo and Razor attacked the pirates and escaped, taking Undina with them. While they were able to make it to the Setting Dawn before their pursuers, the group was surprised to find that the ship was password-protected. Undina, however, was completely undisturbed, as she had been on board long enough to know what the password was. After assisting in their escape, she graciously thanked her rescuers, but made it clear that she would not be returning to Meropis, preferring instead to keep travelling around the world. Taking the Setting Dawn for herself and convincing Echo to remain on board as her bodyguard, she bid the others farewell and wished them safe travels.[11]
Personality[]
Undina relaxing before her kidnapping, from Sonic Universe #92.
When she first appears, Undina is presented as being akin to a stereotypical valley girl: ditzy, somewhat airheaded, and seemingly unaware of situations taking place around her. She frequently insisted that others simply refer to her as Deena, instead of bringing attention to her royal title. She also showed no compunctions about assisting her kidnappers, instead treating the pirates as if they were her friends and happily going along with Shellbreaker's orders, even going so far as to suggest ransoming Echo when she found out the Lieutenant had come to rescue her.[10]
However, Undina is later revealed to be quite clever. She admits to the Chaotix, Echo and Razor that she knew she could get away with more if her captors thought she was not worth paying attention to, and by pretending to be much less intelligent than she actually was, as well as making a series of seemingly random observations, such as recognizing Espio from a tournament match, she managed to keep her rescuers safe and stop the pirates from hurting others. She also managed to convince Echo to be her bodyguard by pointing out that, while she was safe, her parents would appreciate the added security.[11]
She is shown to be unfailingly kind and polite, even to her enemies, showing outrage at the notion of leaving Shellbreaker's crew to starve so she can escape from them.[11] In spite of this, she can also be somewhat shortsighted, not considering the consequences of leaving school to see the world without telling anyone or how expensive it would be, and failing to recognize that a group of pirates would be power-hungry and untrustworthy.[2]
Powers and abilities[]
Undina using the Mystic Melody, from Sonic Universe #94.
As an aquatic mobian, Undina is capable of aquatic respiration, allowing her to breathe both on land and underwater. Using her esca, she can also generate light to help her navigate through dark places.[11]
Thanks to her priestess training, Undina is capable of playing the Mystic Melody. With it, Undina can aid the reincarnation of Chao, activate magic rings to power Meropis, sustain the watery shield that protects the citizens from harm, and communicate with ancient spirits. More prominently, she used it to help Shellbreaker's crew locate mystical objects whenever it was needed.[2][11]
After taking a hit from her, Opal claimed that Undina is much stronger than she looks.[11]
Relationships[]
King Puff and Queen Angelica[]
King Puff and Queen Angelica are Undina's parents. They are shown to love their daughter dearly; when they found out she had been kidnapped by pirates, they were quick to give in to their demands, and sent a member of the Meropis City Guard to find her when the exchange did not work out. They were also fully supportive of her studies to try and become priestess of the Eusebes Shrine; when their city was at risk, they made it clear that they suspected that Coral the Betta was incompetent and felt Undina would have been a better option. While talking about them, Undina mentions that they were somewhat overprotective of her, as well as unenthusiastic about her going to the surface world to study at Spagonia University.
Coral the Betta[]
Coral the Betta studied alongside Undina in the hopes of becoming a priestess, and they are shown to have been very friendly with each other. When Coral was chosen for the position, she distinctly remembered that Undina was kind and supportive to her, even as others were upset over the choice, and when she heard that the princess had been kidnapped, she was very distraught and bemoaned her inability to help. Undina, for her part, remembers Coral as being very sweet and thoughtful, and asked Razor the Shark to give the priestess her best.
Echo the Dolphin[]
Undina convinces Echo to be her bodyguard, from Sonic Universe #94.
Lieutenant Echo is very loyal to Undina. She is presented as being very concerned about the princess' safety, and it is implied that the king and queen sent her to look for Undina because she sincerely cares about her. Her loyalty is so great that, when Undina asked if she would join the Pirates of the Setting Dawn upon being ordered to do so, she would have done it despite it being against her principles. Undina seems to be fond of Echo as well, expressing sympathy at her rescuers' perceived betrayal of the lieutenant even in the middle of her ditzy charade and taking action to ensure the pirates wouldn't harm her. After escaping from the pirates, Undina convinced Echo to stay with her and be her bodyguard for the remainder of her travels.
Honey the Cat[]
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Captain Shellbreaker[]
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Friends/allies[]
- Coral the Betta
- Razor the Shark
- Crusher the Chao
- Echo the Dolphin
- Chaotix
- Honey the Cat
- Professor Dillon Pickle
Enemies[]
Trivia[]
Honey presenting the design for Princess Undina's umbrella, from Sonic Universe #92.
- Undina's name is derived from the mythical Undine, a water nymph in Greek mythology. It could also be derived from "Undina", an extinct genus of fish named after the same water spirit.
- Despite debuting in Sonic the Hedgehog #271, Undina's actual name was not revealed until Sonic Super Digest #15.
- Undina's signature umbrella was designed and created by Honey the Cat.[10]
Gallery[]
| Gallery |
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 Concept artwork  Undina's first cameo appearance, from Sonic the Hedgehog #271.  Undina's second cameo appearance, from Sonic the Hedgehog #278.  Undina's third cameo appearance, from Sonic the Hedgehog #285.  Undina on an advertisement for Honey Clothing, from Sonic Universe #91. |
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Aleah Baker . Lea's Unimportant Farewell to BK Q&A!. BumbleKing Comics. Archived from the original on 8 February 2016.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Sonic Universe #93, "The Case of the Pirate Princess Part 3: Strangers On A Ship"
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Media:UndinaConcept.PNG
- ↑ Sonic Super Digest #15, "Sonic Comic Origins - Castaway"
- ↑ Sonic the Hedgehog #261, "Waves of Change Part Two: Current Events"
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Sonic Universe #91, "The Case of the Pirate Princess Part One: Dial "C" for Chaotix"
- ↑ Sonic the Hedgehog #271, "Champions Finale: The One Left Standing"
- ↑ Sonic the Hedgehog #278, "Face of the Enemy Part One: Friends in Need"
- ↑ Sonic the Hedgehog #285, "Panic in the Sky Part Two: Falling Into Place"
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 10.3 Sonic Universe #92, "The Case of the Pirate Princess Part Two: The Princess was Shanghaied"
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 11.3 11.4 11.5 Sonic Universe #94, "The Case of the Pirate Princess Finale: In A Lonely Place"
External links[]
- Princess Undina at Mobius Encyclopaedia, the Archie Sonic wiki.