Green Phoenix - Let's Talk...Sonic: Wonders of the World

It's time for yet another episode of Let's Talk..., where I go into a more free-form discussion about a specific subject of media or hypothesize about a specific theory or topic. Today, we actually have a request for collaboration. Cendoo is getting ready to release a new series called Video Game Classroom and he asked me to make an article parallel to his first episode. He is planning to discuss a cancelled Sonic the Hedgehog game from the mid 90s known as Sonic X-treme.

To promote his upcoming project and because of the recent Sonic the Hedgehog 3 trailer that just released, I felt it a fine time to discuss a tie-in movie that would've been released alongside Sonic X-Treme known as Sonic: Wonders of the World. In this episode of Let's Talk..., we will hypothesize about what this film would likely have looked like. How its plot would've likely developed, and whether the film would have been a financial or critical success, given the nature of the film industry at the time.

The answers might very well surprise you.

 

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LET'S TALK...

So in looking at the synopsis for Sonic: Wonders of the World, we aren't given a whole lot, which ultimately makes sense as the film really didn't reach very far into development before its cancellation. What information we did receive can give us an initial impression of what this film might've been. When we also analyze the nature of the industry at the time the film would've been released, I feel we will get an even clearer picture of what Sonic: Wonders of the World would've been.

 

The general synopsis, or elevator pitch really as the original plot idea was only a partial treatment, for Wonders of the World was essentially that Sonic and Dr. Robotnik would find themselves teleported from the video game world of Sonic X-Treme and forced into the real world, where Sonic would have to team up with a young boy to stop Robotnik, collect the Chaos Emeralds, and save the world. The treatment was apparently well-received by some executives, but the film ultimately did not come to fruition due to some monetary issues between MGM and Sega. But given the potential plot as described here, I am struck by something completely amazing.

If we repeat the plot as follows...Sonic the Hedgehog is teleported to the real world where he teams up with a human in order to reacquire a Macguffin and save the world from a mad scientist who seeks to use said Macguffin to take over the world. That is the plot of the 2020 Sonic the Hedgehog movie. And if you stop and think about it for a second, this makes total sense. While the Sonic franchise might've been at the height of popularity in the 1990s, for the average filmgoer (a baby boomer or Gen X-er), Sonic would likely be a complete unknown. As such, any film property intended for a general audience would need to do the following:

1. Introduce Sonic the Hedgehog, his history, personality, and special abilities.
2. The power of rings and the chaos emeralds (possibly)
3. Doctor Robotnik and his robot minions.
4. If you have time, you can introduce some of Sonic's friends and sidekicks.

If you treat this list as a literal checklist, you basically make the plot of the 2020 Sonic film, as well as do a lot of the heavy lifting for Sonic the Hedgehog 2. So its not really surprising that the 90s treatment would likely turn out narratively identical to what the film we later actually got.

 

The perfect Sonic the Hedgehog film

 

This is doubly the case when you also note that in 1996, the Sonic franchise had almost none of the traditional markers that we have come to expect from modern Sonic games. There was no Shadow the Hedgehog (as he wouldn't be introduced until Sonic Adventures 2). Amy Rose existed but was only a character in Sonic CD, none of the mainstream title games. All we would have is Robotnik, Tails, Knuckles, and Sonic, which wouldn't leave much for a cast of characters that we as an audience would likely recognize, only furthering the association that the film we would've gotten looking a lot like the first two Sonic movies we actually got.

With one major difference. And it is a difference that makes me say with almost absolute confidence that had we gotten a 90s Sonic the Hedgehog film, it would've been a complete flop.

 

For you see, Wonders of the World would've been a video game movie (likely live action) released in the mid to late 90s. The video game movies of this era were notoriously terrible, unilaterally, almost without exception. With the advent and quick exploitation of cheap CGI, a lack of production-side understanding of the video game media or its fans, and a history of making fast, cheap, or overly artistic crap; there was likely no chance that a 90s Sonic film would ever be good.

 

A dark time of terrors...and weird acting

The way I see it, a Sonic the Hedgehog film released in, let's say, 1998 could look a number of different ways, and all of them are terrible or terrifying in equal measures. The first option is also the least likely, a purely traditionally animated feature film. This would have aged the best and probably been the strongest option for potential long-term success. However, traditional animation from any high-quality and reputable source would've been prohibitively expensive. For a video game tie-in movie, the only option for traditional animation would've likely been outsourced Japanese or Taiwanese animation companies or very cheap television animation houses, which would've not put the best foot forward for a potential franchise.

 

It's actually this discussion on cost that makes the next option equally nonviable, a purely computer generated film. Toy Story, the first fully CGI animated film, was released in 1995, and Antz, the first PG-rated CGI film was released in our hypothetical year of 1998, so its possible that we could've have a CGI Sonic film from a technical standpoint, just not a monetary one.

A more reasonable expectation, and the one most likely to occur is that we would have a live-action film, with CGI characters. Something akin to the 90s Mortal Kombat films, with live-action and the best CGI that a cheapskate cash-grab producer could afford. This led me to a terrible idea. A universe where Ugly Sonic was the only option we could have for how Sonic would look. Because unfortunately, in 1998 there was a serious limitations in terms of textures and a CGI Sonic would've likely looked like a truly horrifying monstrosity or an overly pixelated mess, meaning the filmmakers might've tried to limit the amount of time that Sonic and friends were actually on screen, which would be a real bummer but might be the only option that minimizes a character that looks like ass.

Though...there is a final, even more horrifying possibility. A possibility I actually was recommended by my therapist and may, in fact, now occupy my deepest nightmares. If animation is too expensive, and CGI is not an option, they may go the most dangerous and terrifying route. Full live-action.

That's right. We could've seen a Sonic the Hedgehog film with a live-action Sonic. Just an actor in a suit dressed like a hedgehog. Perhaps, this might turn out well. Perhaps, we have an opportunity for some really interesting practical effects and rely on CG only for Sonic's moments of speed. That doesn't sound so scary. Except that this is Hollywood, with people who don't understand anything about the property. Because while I'm hoping we see a loving tribute to the Sonic franchise, what we would likely get is a horrifying counterpart to Super Mario Bros. (1993). Picture if you will, a Sonic if the look and textures of the Gooma from 1993.

Of course, this then led me to a escalating realization. If we have a live-action Sonic, the effect will have some potential issues depending upon who he gets portrayed by. In the game universe, Sonic is 15-16 years old, however a teenager might not be able to fit the scale and size for a suit. They could go the Warwick Davis route, but that feels like a path that leads to litigation and cancellation. Then my mind went to an actor that would absolutely have had a non-zero chance of being cast as our titular hedgehog.

A child actor, entering teenage years that might've been pushed by the popularity of the Sonic franchise to restart his career. Widely popular, known for being typecast as plucky, adventurous, and a trickster. Incredibly popular in the 90s, but struggling with adulthood.

Macaulay Culkin as Sonic the Hedgehog.

 

The Horror

 

There...now my nightmare is your nightmare. Your welcome.

 

Seriously though, this image right here is what my brain went to when I heard of a 90s Sonic movie. When video game movies had no confidence, no money, and no ability to garner mass-market appeal. An era where such a film would've been doomed to either cult status or an immediate cash-grab bargain bin destiny. It is perhaps to our eternal salvation that Sonic: Wonders of the World was ultimately scrapped. While it would take another 20 years for Sonic to make his big-screen debut, I think we can all agree that the wait was worth it.

Nowadays, video games have widespread appeal and video game movies are far more common and popular. Even Super Mario Bros. was able to be redeemed with an amazing film adaptation. This is because the generation that grew up loving and playing these games are now at the age and position to create loving, and profitable, tributes to their childhood entertainment. Instead of corporate boomers failing to get these fancy-schmancy "compooter games", we have real fans behind the cameras and the pocket books, giving us the films we wanted as a child.

Sonic: Wonders of the World might endure as a fascinating what-if for fans of the franchise, but I will continue to insist that the world wasn't ready for a Sonic movie in the late 90s. The franchise needed the room to grow, for technology to improve, for fans to be willing to make the films instead of corporate pencil-pushers. 2020's Sonic the Hedgehog was nearly a victim of corporate nonsense and it was only strength of fans and internet pressure that saved the project.

Sonic the Hedgehog came out exactly when it needed to. Sonic: Wonders of the World was a dream the world just wasn't ready for and it died so that Sonic the Hedgehog could soar.

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