Sonic 2 & 3 Are Too Early For Those Shadow Theories To Come True

The upcoming Sonic the Hedgehog 2 and Sonic the Hedgehog 3 may prove to be too early for a heavily theorized character inclusion: Shadow the Hedgehog. Shadow the Hedgehog is a character introduced in the eighth installation of the Sonic the Hedgehog game franchise, Sonic Adventure 2. Shadow was designed as an opposite to Sonic, a black and red hedgehog, and created in-game to be the “Ultimate Life Form” by Professor Gerald Robotnik, Dr. Eggman’s grandfather.

Shadow quickly became a fan-favorite, with his apparent death at the end of Adventure 2 being later reversed due to heavy fan appeals. Since then, Shadow has appeared in most mainline Sonic games, even featuring in his own standalone game Shadow the Hedgehog. Shadow’s relationship with Sonic has evolved over the years, going from bitter enemies to rivals and occasional allies. Both hedgehogs’ senses of morality and goals often align, with only their methods of achieving those goals, which put the two characters at odds.

Sonic the Hedgehog 2 is set for release in April 2022 and continues the story of the first film with Robotnik trying to conquer the world in order to exact his revenge on Sonic. This film introduces two major players from the Sonic games, with both Knuckles the Echidna and Miles Prower/Tails making their first full live-action appearances. The inclusion of more prominent Sonic characters from the games has led to heavy fan speculation on when and where other characters will appear, with Shadow often being at the head of many theories. However, Sonic the Hedgehog 2 and the more recently announced Sonic the Hedgehog 3 are too early for a Shadow appearance for several different reasons.

Shadow’s Story Is Better Suited To A New Sonic The Hedgehog Trilogy

One of these reasons is Shadow’s rich story that has been told over his many Sonic appearances. In-universe, Shadow was introduced by the more benevolent of the Robotnik’s, Professor Gerald, as a means to develop cures for incurable fatal illnesses, including that of Gerald’s granddaughter Maria. While looking for this cure, Shadow and Maria formed a very strong bond. However, the government deemed Robotnik’s actions and Shadow himself a threat and murdered Maria as Shadow watched. With Maria’s last actions, she saved Shadow and sent him in an escape pod to Earth, with her last wish being for Shadow the Hedgehog to protect the people of Earth and give them a chance to be happy. Shadow was then placed into suspended animation when caught on Earth by the government organization G.U.N. Gerald was then driven mad by grief at his granddaughter’s death. Fifty years later, Shadow was awakened by Dr. Eggman, Gerald’s grandson, and agreed to aid Eggman in his plan of world domination, setting into motion the events of Sonic Adventure 2, as Shadow’s story continues as an anti-hero.

While this story seems large, it was only the beginning of Shadow’s story that is chronicled here, with the rest being evident in Shadow’s appearances after Sonic Adventure 2. Given this vast story, the decision to include Shadow in Sonic 2 especially would be a mistake. Given the sequel’s promises to focus on the story of Sonic, Knuckles, and Tails coming together to form the iconic trio and stopping Eggman, the inclusion of Shadow would feel forced and detract from both the story of the film as well as Shadow himself. Also, another character is heavily theorized to be the villain of Sonic 3, tying into the events of the second film, meaning Shadow’s inclusion in that film also wouldn’t have the freedom it deserves to tell Shadow’s story effectively.

Shadow Appearing In Sonic 2 or 3 Would Detract From This Trilogy’s Villains

This heavily theorized villain for Sonic 3 is none other than Metal Sonic, a character often considered one of Sonic’s greatest adversaries of the game series, second only to Dr. Eggman. Metal Sonic was created by Eggman as an evil ultra-high performance Badnik, another name for Eggman’s robots, for the sole purpose of destroying Sonic the Hedgehog. Metal Sonic was modeled with extreme accuracy after his namesake. Metal Sonic not only resembles Sonic closely but was built with the ability to mimic the hedgehog’s moves and has been known to achieve velocities matching, and often exceeding, those of Sonic’s.

With the trailers for Sonic 2 showing robots from the game like the iconic buzz bombers and also a massive robot resembling Dr. Robotnik, it is clear Eggman’s robotic skills are increasing. Combining this with the power he may harness from Sonic’s quill could lead to the creation of Metal Sonic for the third act of this movie. This could then carry over into Sonic 3, making both Eggman and Metal Sonic the villains of this trilogy. If Shadow the Hedgehog was to also make an appearance in either film, it would certainly detract from the events this trilogy has been building to thus far. As mentioned in the first point, Shadow has a complex story worthy of a more detailed look. Trying to include this rivalry in Sonic 2 & 3 would take the attention away from the potentially great villain role of Metal Sonic. Also, it simply makes more sense for a character like Metal Sonic to appear, given the actual ground-work that has been done up to this point to build to that outcome. Shadow, on the other hand, has had no foreshadowing at all, pointing to his appearance in a further trilogy being the right call.

Knuckles’ TV Show Is A Good Sign For Shadow’s Future

With the announcement of a Knuckles-centric TV show coming for Paramount+, it is more than possible that a similar outcome will happen for Shadow. As mentioned before, Shadow is one of the few Sonic characters outside of the titular hedgehog to be given a standalone game after his appearance in Sonic Adventure 2. Knuckles being given his own show then is a good sign for Shadow’s future.

It is clear that the remainder of this trilogy wants to focus on the coming together of the iconic trio of the Sonic universe, with Knuckles’ TV show likely being a stepping stone of that wider story. With another trilogy, after the events of Sonic 2 & 3 and the Knuckles spin-off, Shadow could appear as a bit-part like Knuckles will in Sonic 2 before being given his own show to further flesh out the character and his rich story. This would free up the mainline Sonic movies to put the blue speedster front and center, but it would factor into the first point, giving Shadow his own show and allowing his tragic backstory to be the core focus of a project. This would not only benefit the character of Shadow, but the wider Sonic universe as a whole, allowing more room to tell stories and flesh out this universe to fulfill the potential fans see from the games.

It remains to be seen, with the release of Sonic the Hedgehog 2 in April 2022 and the as-of-yet unscheduled Sonic the Hedgehog 3, just how this specific section of the Sonic live-action universe will wrap up. However, with all roads seemingly leading towards a final confrontation between Sonic, Knuckles and Tails, and Dr. Robotnik and his minion Metal Sonic, it is certainly safe to say that it is too early for another major character like Shadow the Hedgehog to be introduced despite theories. By waiting for this set of films to conclude, Paramount, Jeff Fowler, and his team could open up the universe, even more, allowing for other characters like Amy Rose, Rouge the Bat, and Blaze the Cat to appear, all alongside a true Sonic rival whose story deserves its own focus in Shadow the Hedgehog.

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