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TheSonic the Hedgehogfranchise added another media to its roster with the TV showKnuckles. Based on the character from the popular video game franchise, the show is the first live-action series in the film franchise and sees Idris Elba return to voice the titular echidna from the movies.
The first season ofKnucklesbegan streaming on Paramount+ recently and received mixed responses from critics and fans. While the films have been appreciated for their humor and action, the series was said to need more in both departments. One particular complaint against theSonicspinoff was that there was not enough of Knuckles in the show.
Sonic The HedgehogSpinoff SeriesKnucklesReceives Mixed Reviews
TheSonic the Hedgehogfilm franchise has received rave reviews since the first film’s release in 2020. The film starred James Marsden, Jim Carrey, and Ben Schwartz, who voiced the role of Sonic. It is based on the popular video game franchise by Sega. The film franchise expanded with the sequelSonic the Hedgehog 2and the upcoming threequel.
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Acting as a spinoff and lead-up to the third film, Paramount announced a live-action miniseries based on the character of Knuckles. TitledKnuckles, the show would see the character who made his cinematic debut inSonic the Hedgehog 2trains a local sheriff in the ways of the Echidna warrior. Idris Elba was set to reprise his role from the film (viaDeadline).
The series debuted on Paramount+ on April 26, with all six episodes set to stream together. The show received mixed responses from critics, with its Rotten Tomatoes score being a fresh 65% from critics and 79% from audiences. The show also starred Adam Pally ofHappy Endingsin the lead role and it received generally favorable reviews.
Fans ofKnucklesHave One Issue With The Miniseries
While theSonic the Hedgehogspinoff seriesKnucklesseems to have received positive responses, one complaint on the show was universal, and that might impact theSonicseries for good. The major complaint from fans was that for a show based on Knuckles, the focus was more on Adam Pally’s Wade Whipple rather than the Echidna himself.
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A review from prominent industry insider Daniel Richtman spoke about the same issue where the main character seemed to be missing from most of the show. Some fans also mentioned that the villains felt shoe-horned into the show to give Knuckles some action sequences and that it did not feel natural enough.
Daniel Richtmanmentioned how fans wanted to see more of Knuckles in his TV show and not the human character. It was also clear that the production house was trying to reduce costs as keeping a CGI character as the main draw would shoot the budget. He said,
“Really liked Knuckles, but the show isn’t really about him; it’s more about Wade (Adam Pally). I understand they wanted to save on budget, but they really need to start focusing more on the titled CGI characters. They are the ones we want to see, and less on the human characters.”
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Many fans agreed with the opinion and expressed they too felt like there was less of the main character in the show.
Can’t undestand the thought of making a show where your main character is CGI but you don’t have the budget for it. They tried to be cheeky with it and it didn’t work IMO.
https://twitter.com/CobaltNorm/status/1783844474025603207
True. It’s the Sonic movie without Sonic, it’s the Knuckles series without Knuckles
It might be a good idea to begin pivoting toward animation if they’re able to keep the same tone of the franchise. Expensive in its own right but cheaper than CGI.
If budget is the issue then it makes this whole Knuckles series feel pointless. Paramount got way too ahead of themselves due to the movies popularity and need to pump out something quick to keep the momentum going. They should’ve saved this budget for Sonic 3 instead.
Godzilla x Kong got this right the humans are now cannon fodder and expendable.
While having a central CGI character is certainly expensive, other studios have done it before to varying degrees of success. Marvel did it withShe-Hulk: Attorney At Law, and Peacock recently did it more successfully with theTedseries.
Nishanth A
Senior Writer
Articles Published :2419
Nishanth A is a Senior Entertainment Writer at FandomWire, majorly focusing on TV shows with over 2,000 articles published. He has been an entertainment journalist for the past two years and a scriptwriter at various corporations before that, working on educational content. With a Communications, English Literature, and Psychology triple major, Nishanth usually covers news and analyses on Star Trek, particularly Strange New Worlds and The Next Generation; Doctor Who, the DCU, and more.A Nolan fan, Nishanth spends his time exploring the filmographies of various directors with an auteurial style or can be found making short movies of his own. He has also contributed as a feature writer for Film Companion, focusing on the South division.
