In 2019, the trailer for the movie Sonic the Hedgehog was released, and there was a lot of backlash for Sonic’s design. They gave Sonic human teeth, and everybody hated the design. This design was later dubbed, “Ugly Sonic.” As a result, Paramount, the company making Sonic the Hedgehog (the movie), decided to listen to the fans, and change the design of Sonic. They even delayed the release of the movie to 2020 to change the design. Fans ended up liking the design, and it was decently received and did well at the box office. As a result of the success of Sonic the Hedgehog, there ended up being two sequels (with another set to release in 2027) and a spinoff TV show starring Knuckles the Echidna. Sonic the Hedgehog 3 came out in December 2024, and was much better received than the previous two movies and Knuckles. So the question is, is Sonic the Hedgehog 3 really that good? (Also, I will try not to spoil the movie, because if I do, you might as well not watch it).

Sonic the Hedgehog 3  is a film adaptation of the video game Sonic Adventure 2. Sonic the Hedgehog 3 uses many elements from Sonic Adventure 2 as a result. The movie,, like Sonic Adventure 2, focuses on Shadow the Hedgehog, and features flashbacks of Shadow’s backstory. I mention Shadow the Hedgehog’s backstory in my Shadow Generations Review, but they make new changes, where it is a fresh and new adaptation. In Sonic the Hedgehog 3, Shadow comes from an asteroid that hits Earth, and a bunch of government people and scientists look into Shadow the Hedgehog. One of these scientists is Gerald Robotnik, and he allowed his granddaughter, Maria Robotnik in the place where they experiment on Shadow. This is different from Sonic Adventure 2 because Maria Robotnik was not sick, and Shadow the Hedgehog (along with Gerald and Maria Robotnik) did not live in space. The movie does a great job with Shadow the Hedgehog. The flashback scenes between Shadow and Maria are great, Keanu Reeves does a phenomenal job with voicing Shadow the Hedgehog, and the movie does a great job showing the power of Shadow the Hedgehog. On top of that, Sonic the Hedgehog 3 does a great job adapting Sonic Adventure 2 by featuring some of the same plot, but with new twists, and also featuring many references to Sonic Adventure 2 for the fans to appreciate. Sonic Adventure 2 is often considered by many to be the greatest game in the Sonic the Hedgehog series, so fans will definitely enjoy it. I have just mentioned Gerald Robotnik, and from what I can tell since I have not played Sonic Adventure 2, Gerald Robotnik in Sonic the Hedgehog 3 is different from Gerald Robotnik in Sonic Adventure 2. I say that because in Sonic Adventure 2, Gerald Robotnik gets executed for his experiments on the Space Colony Ark. However, in Sonic the Hedgehog 3, Gerald Robotnik is still alive and wants vengeance against the world for what they did to his granddaughter. As a result, Gerald Robotnik breaks Shadow the Hedgehog from Prison Island, and finds his long-lost grandson, Dr. Ivo Robotnik (also known as Dr. Eggman), and teams up with them to try to achieve his goals. As someone who has not played Sonic Adventure 2, I do not think that is a bad change in the slightest. In fact, I thought that Gerald Robotnik and Dr. Ivo Robotnik were great villains, and Jim Carrey does a great job at playing both characters. Gerald Robotnik and Ivo Robotnik were fun to watch, and Jim Carrey deserved an Oscar for his performance as both characters. Even though Dr. Ivo Robotnik is one of the villains of the movie, he ends up getting a redemption arc by the end that is done very well. I also liked how the movie showed more of his relationship (non-romantic) with his assistant, Agent Stone, and how that played into Dr. Ivo Robotnik’s redemption arc. Even though Shadow the Hedgehog and the Robotniks are the highlights in terms of characters, Sonic the Hedgehog is still a good character. He received more character development in Sonic the Hedgehog 3 than he did in the previous movies. In Sonic the Hedgehog 3, Sonic the Hedgehog’s character arc is about not letting the loss of his loved ones change who he is. That reflects how Shadow the Hedgehog is because he became more angry as a result of the death of Maria Robotnik. In Sonic the Hedgehog 3, Shadow attacks one of Sonic’s loved ones and puts him/her in a coma (I will not say who to avoid spoilers), and Sonic wants to use the Master Emerald to go into his super form and defeat Shadow for it. Knuckles tried to stop him, but he failed. As a result, Sonic uses the Master Emerald, becomes Super Sonic, and fights Shadow. Eventually, they both realize that they were wrong to seek vengeance. In my opinion, this is one of the better examples of the “You and I are not so different” trope because we actually see Sonic become more like Shadow as the movie progressed, and they both realized that they were wrong by the end. Also, the other characters get their time to shine. The movie-exclusive human characters, Tom and Maddie are actually relevant to the plot, instead of being forced in a dumb wedding subplot that adds little to nothing to the story like the previous movie. The human characters help Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles on their mission to get the key and stop the Robotniks’ and Shadow the Hedgehog from accessing the Space Colony Ark. Tails and Knuckles also get their moments to shine in Sonic the Hedgehog 3. Overall, Sonic the Hedgehog 3 is probably as great as a Sonic the Hedgehog movie adaptation can be because it adapts the story beats and characterizations of the characters of Sonic Adventure 2 very well in a new and fresh way.

Sonic the Hedgehog 3 features many nods to the games and features lots of fanservice. One example of fanservice and nods to the games is with the soundtrack. The soundtrack features many songs from the Sonic the Hedgehog series, most notably from Sonic Adventure 2. The final battle of the movie has the song, “Live and Learn” by Crush 40 in the background. “Live and Learn” is the theme song to Sonic Adventure 2, and is one of the more well-known and beloved music tracks in the Sonic the Hedgehog series. “Live and Learn” is arguably the most well-known and beloved musical track in Sonic the Hedgehog history, so it was very exciting to hear that in theaters. Another example of music from the Sonic the Hedgehog series being featured in Sonic the Hedgehog 3 is that the music in the background of the scene where Sonic is running in London takes musical cues from the song, “Escape from the City” by Ted Poley and Tony Harnell from Sonic Adventure 2. “Escape from the City” is also one of the more well-known and beloved musical tracks from Sonic the Hedgehog history, and it is my personal favorite. I will admit that I kind of missed it the first time, and when I stayed after the credits, I was shocked to see “Escape from the City” credited as one of the songs used because I thought that I would have caught it. However, I very much caught it the second time. Not to mention that it is literally the perfect scene for it. Another reference to the music of the Sonic the Hedgehog series in Sonic the Hedgehog 3  was that Dr. Eggman had the song “E.G.G.M.A.N.” by Paul Shortino from Sonic Adventure 2 as his ringtone. I feel like Sonic the Hedgehog 3  is taking notes from The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023) in terms of the soundtrack because both of those video game movie adaptations take musical cues from their respective video game franchises, whereas the first two Sonic the Hedgehog movies did not. Even if the intention was not to take after The Super Mario Bros. Movie, I still like how they used video game music in the movie. The Sonic the Hedgehog movie series features nods to the fans by referencing memes, and Sonic the Hedgehog 3 is no exception. In Sonic the Hedgehog, Crazy Carl holds up a picture of Sanic, when trying to convince everyone that the “Blue Devil” (or Sonic) is real. Sanic is a meme of a poorly (or amazingly, depending on how you see it) drawn Sonic the Hedgehog in Microsoft Paint. In Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (the movie), when Knuckles the Echidna and Dr. Ivo Robotnik first meet, Knuckles asks Robotnik where he got Sonic’s quill from, and Dr. Robotnik responds by saying, “I got it from a blue menace on the planet called Earth. I would be happy to show you the way.” That is a reference to the Uganda Knuckles meme, where a weird-looking Knuckles the Echidna says, “Do you know da wae?” In Sonic the Hedgehog 3, after Gerald Robotnik got defeated, Tails, Knuckles, and Dr. Ivo Robotnik had to stop the laser of the Space Colony Ark from destroying the Earth. They are successful in that, but they end up splitting the moon in half. That is a reference to a meme from a Sonic Adventure 2 fandub cutscene where Dr. Eggman makes an announcement, and subsequently uses the laser of the Space Colony Ark to blow up part of the moon. Sonic the Hedgehog 3 features many easter eggs and references to the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise that do not include the soundtrack or memes, but I think that this review would drag on if I mention them all. Overall, Sonic the Hedgehog 3 does a great job featuring callbacks to the games, and it also does a great job with fanservice.

My ranking of the SCU (Sonic Cinematic Universe) from worst to best goes something like this: Last place is Knuckles. Knuckles is a fun watch, and it has its moments, but the problem with it is that it does not star Knuckles the Echidna. Instead, it stars Wade Whipple, who is a cop who appears in the Sonic the Hedgehog movies. It is more of a Wade show featuring Knuckles the Echidna, rather than a Knuckles the Echidna show. I do not think Knuckles is a bad show, but it could have been way better. If you have a Paramount+ subscription, I guess I would recommend it, but it is definitely not worth getting a Paramount+ subscription just for Knuckles. Overall, I give Knuckles a 6-6.5/10. Third place is Sonic the Hedgehog. Although it is enjoyable, it is one of the few movies that actually listened to the people’s backlash (with changing Ugly Sonic), and started the SCU, it is not really a Sonic the Hedgehog movie that adapts the games, and is rather a road trip movie featuring Sonic the Hedgehog. I would still recommend giving it a watch because the other two movies greatly improve what the first movie started. Overall, I give Sonic the Hedgehog  a 6.5-7/10. Second place is Sonic the Hedgehog 2. It is in my opinion, a near-perfect film adaptation of the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise. Dr. Robotnik is more like Robotnik in the second. They got Tails’s characterization right in Sonic the Hedgehog 2. Knuckles was definitely the highlight of Sonic the Hedgehog 2, and Idris Elba does a great job voicing Knuckles throughout all three projects he has voiced Knuckles in. Sonic the Hedgehog 2 does a great job showcasing Knuckles’s power, and adapting the plot of the game Sonic the Hedgehog 3 and Knuckles. My only real issue with Sonic the Hedgehog 2 is the wedding subplot. Honestly, Sonic the Hedgehog 2 would have been better off without it because it adds basically nothing other than time and is pretty dumb. Overall, I give Sonic the Hedgehog 2  an 8.5/10. First place is Sonic the Hedgehog 3. It is definitely the best movie in the franchise. It does a refreshing take on Sonic Adventure 2’s story, the characters are adapted really well, and the fanservice is done very well and not extremely shoved in your face like other movies (*Cough Cough* Spider Man: No Way Home *Cough Cough* The Flash *Cough Cough*). Also, in my opinion, Sonic the Hedgehog 3 is the funniest movie of the three. On top of all of that, there is no useless human subplot and the human characters are actually relevant to the plot. Overall, I give Sonic the Hedgehog 3 a 9/10.

In conclusion, Sonic the Hedgehog 3 is probably as perfect as a Sonic the Hedgehog movie adaptation can be with well-done references to the games and fanbase, a refreshing take on Sonic Adventure 2’s story, characters that are adapted well, and great performances by Keanu Reeves as Shadow the Hedgehog and Jim Carrey as Gerald Robotnik and Ivo Robotnik. If you are not a fan of the Sonic the Hedgehog series and did not enjoy the first two movies, this movie will most likely not convert you into a Sonic fan. However, this is practically the perfect Sonic the Hedgehog movie, and fans will enjoy this movie (assuming that they still have not seen it. It came out months ago, so I would imagine that they have seen it by now, but this is in case they have not.). Sonic the Hedgehog 4 is currently set to be released in 2027, and I along with many others are excited. There are two post-credit scenes in Sonic the Hedgehog 3 that tease Sonic the Hedgehog 4. I wonder how they will end up doing a Sonic the Hedgehog 4 with how the third one ended, without spoiling anything, but I guess we just have to wait and see what happens next in two years. Another thing: if they used the Ugly Sonic design for Sonic in the first movie, we would probably not have the SCU. Just goes to show how listening to the fans saved the SCU. Listening to the fans is why Sonic’s design eventually changed for the better, and listening to the fans is basically what gave us the best movie of the SCU so far. So the moral of the story? I do not really know. I guess, if you are making an adaptation of a famous franchise, always listen to the fans, unless they truly do not know what they want or are doing. Overall, I recommend Sonic the Hedgehog 3 (Movie), and give it a 9/10, as I previously stated.