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And now, following the votes from my request poll, here's the tie winner with Pike Queen Lucy's Serpent Therapy, right on the week of what's no doubt considered the most important week of the Trainer and hedgehog's entire careers as heroes.

On Ash's side, he's battling Champion Leon in the Masters 8 Tournament of the Pokemon World Coronation series, and come Friday, the battle will reach it's apex, and the entire world will know for sure whether our young child hero, together with his Pokemon, becomes truly "the very best like no one ever was." After six League losses in a row, and finally winning one in the Alola region, this is the League battle that supposedly decides everything. Will he lose and have to work from the ground up all over again once he eventually makes it to the Paldea region? Or will he absolutely achieve his dream and give the undefeated Leon his true equal as a champion?

As for Sonic, 2022 has been his year, let's say this right now. Sonic Movie 2 ended up being the highest-grossing and highest-praised video game movie since honestly Pokemon's days, his "kill-it-with-fire" movie design was the Deus Ex Uglina...

(BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!)

...of the Chip n' Dale Rescue Rangers movie, Sonic Origins helped revisit his Genesis days for a whole new generation, his new TV series Sonic Prime is debuting this Christmas, and now, his newest main series game, four years after Sonic Forces added to his ever-growing pile of mediocrity, has released today, the open-zone game Sonic Frontiers. SEGA has gone on record to say this is the new direction Sonic games are going to go in throughout the hedgehog's near future. Will it just be another symbol of SEGA not giving a damn about their customers and succumb to the Sonic Cycle? Will following the formula that made The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild so accalimed rub off the praising quality for Sonic for the first time in decades?

Before I make my statement, I need to look back at everything our boys have been through this year and give my impressions. As you've been following, I have NOT been the biggest fan of this current Pokemon anime saga, mainly due to so many missed opportunities, plotlines just completely wasted or abandoned, Goh as a character REALLY getting under my skin, and how many fuddamuckin' recaps during this Masters 8 Tournament which could've been replaced by something more worth fans' time. But now, three years after Journeys premiered, the one question is, has my opinion on it changed at all? Well, I will give it this: like any Pokemon saga, there were SOME redeeming merits from following it, even from just Serebii.net screenshots and following reviews from people like Raf and Lumiose Trainer Zac. I'm gonna have to say, the fanservice and callbacks to previous gens like plots and characters/cameos are both the best and the worst parts of Pokemon Journeys. They're the best because they are consistent from where we last left off on them, and some of the most emotional or impactful episodes for me involved those callbacks, like Mewtwo, Lillie finding her father, and Serena. Of course, they're the worst because of what could've been done with them. Opportunities for like Team Rainbow Rocket or Cassidy and Bleck...

Butch: B! U! T! C! H! BUUUUUUUUUTCH!!!

...or a revenge of Chairman Rose were handed to the writers on a silver platter and they could've made some heart-pounding suspenseful arcs as epic as the Team Flare arc in XYZ. The closest we got this saga was the Darkest Day arc, Alternate Team Rocket and Pokemon: The Arceus Chronicles. With 2022 being the Pokemon anime's 25th anniversary, and Journeys focusing on every region up to this point, you'd expect at least a CRUMB more than what we were served. Tragically, however, we get what we get and we don't get upset.

This isn't the writers' or TPCi's entire fault however. I have seen articles on how the anime crew was understaffed and underpaid--just one of the many crapholes the animation industry has found itself in in 2022--so I can at least give SOME leeway to why things were what they were. I know very talented people work extremely hard on these episodes, probably costing thousands upon thousands to make, and pressure can get ridiculously high. As someone who contemplates going into the industry himself, as either in animation or voice acting, I'm learning more and more how brutal it can be to even veterans, and everyone has contempt for that when it happens, even the people behind my favorite anime.

This might explain why everyone is concerned for the Pokemon anime's future once Journeys is over. Last year's Pokemon: Secrets of the Jungle was, as of this drawing, the final Pokemon movie, and absolutely no signs of another one are popping up in Japan. Not to mention some other news about the anime I won't spoil here are REALLY making it seem that Ash's entire adventure will end here. I mean, even when XYZ or the Alola saga were wrapping up, they had SOME preview for the following saga just a few episodes before the concurrent saga ended. We don't have that yet with this saga. We have absolutely no info about whether Ash and Pikachu will travel through the Paldea region, and Pokemon Scarlet & Violet's release date is just next week.

Let me make this 100% clear and honest: Ash and Pikachu ain't goin' NOWHERES. There have been so many attempts by the anime's promotions in the past to make it look like this is gonna be Ash's last journey when in reality, it's NEVER the last one. They're the poster boys of this franchise and even Ash himself has said multiple times that being a Pokemon Master, in his eyes, is about way more than just being the strongest Trainer, or even being a Champion. Everybody has their own definition of what a Pokemon Master is, and nobody knows what Ash means by this when he says it's about more. I honestly don't even think he himself knows, but that's why he's determined to keep adventuring and reach his dream even though he looks like he's already reached it. What does it truly mean to be a Pokemon Master? That's an answer he aims to find out for himself.

My personal definiton is pretty much everything Ash has been doing all along throughout the series; learning as he's traveling and battling, utilizing good battle strategies, treating Pokemon as partners and friends with love and caring, inspiring others to bring out the best in themselves, saving and protecting those he cares about, and standing up for what he believes in and for what's right no matter how the odds are stacked against him. This is a 10-year-old child who's faced off against some of the vilest written villains in not just Pokemon, but all fiction, and he's been put in intense and overwhelming situations usually reserved for superheroes or grown warriors, situations most 10-year-olds would get easily scared and run and hide from. Ash shows even the tiniest and youngest voices can make a diffrence for a better world, and you should never underestimate someone's potential even if they're just kids.

This is why, as I've stated before, Ash is already a Pokemon Master and he hasn't found that out yet. And honestly, I kinda hope he never finds out because this is all why I don't believe a single rumor of him and Pikachu leaving the anime after Journeys. Besides the fact that there'd be WAY too many plotholes and unfinished stories if everything ended here--I'm STILL waiting for Ash to properly battle Giovanni himself and take down Team Rocket's organization for good--there's still an ever-expanding world of Pokemon to explore, especially the open-world of Paldea Pokemon Scarlet & Violet provide. This sounds like absolute HEAVEN for Ash, and it'd be exciting for the generations of the kid demographic that the Pallet Trainer's a surrogate for. So whether Ash wins against Leon or loses, his adventures are still gonna continue as long as Pokemon exist.

Okay...that...is enough about Ash. What about the other spiky-haired young hero in blue?

As I've mentioned, this is Sonic's year, probably his most important year since his 20th anniversary in 2011 with the launch of Sonic Generations. Ever since Sonic Unleashed, the hedgehog's stuck to the Boost-style action gameplay seen in Colors, Generations and Forces. The Cyberspace levels in Frontiers seem to be folowing this too, which might sound like a letdown for players like me who still consider the Sonic Adventure gameplay the best 3D Sonic genre. We'll talk about this later, but for now let's discuss my impressions on Sonic Frontiers as a whole and it's main draw: the open-zones. One thing I've sadly noticed about how and why Sonic games as of late get slammed is because they're usualy trend-chasing with gimmicks that were already on their way out by the time Sonic used them. The Werehog gameplay in Unleashed came two years after Twilight Princess and Okami's wolves. Sonic Lost World's gravity planets came three years after Super Mario Galaxy 2. Sonic Forces' custom avatars came years after games like Elder Scrolls milked that concept dry. Open-world gameplay is the next video game trend that's popular, and I don't know if it's getting to be a passing fad yet, but after Breath of the Wild made it even more of a staple, games like Pokemon Legends Arceus are cashing in on it, with high 80% or higher scores. Sonic Frontiers is looking to be the same, probably even delivering on what was hinted at by Sonic 2006 and it's TGS 2005 trailer.

I know the game's review embargo was lifted yesterday, but for the sake of this description, I'm not referencing how it's scoring with critics. But I will say how Sonic Frontiers will fare will largely depend on what's hot and what's not, and how Sonic's main gameplay will fit into it. And for the most part, the open-zone environments are calling me back to the Adventure Fields of Sonic Adventure and Sonic 2006, making for a good sandbox to help get you used to Sonic's speed and moves. It's like one step closer to coming back to the Adventure-style gameplay I grew up on, and with the Starfall Islands being so expansive and free, that is, of course, what Sonic lives for.

The fact that you can change the gameplay style to better fit action or speed is a good option, although I'm wondering which style better suits the Adventure veterans. I've gotten used to the Boost gameplay and can handle that fairly well, but it might cause some players confusion as to how "Sonic" they want Sonic Frontiers to be. The Skill Tree supposedly can be adjusted to your liking, so that might help.
The Cyberspace levels I hear are partly recycled level designs from past Sonic games, which might PO some players and accuse SEGA of laziness, but I personally find that a fun Sonic legacy fanservice, being someone who loves similarities between different pieces of media. I know there might be some level designs from games I just want to smash with a hammer (PLEASE nothing from Lost World, PLEASE!!!) but it'll be interesting to see what can be done with this concept.

The only thing I'm absolutely DREADING in Sonic Frontiers are those goddamn Red Star Rings. Those are the bane of my Sonic existence and I believe they're the main culprit to why most modern Sonic games flop. I've already talked about why I hate them so much on a past tweet and I'm gonna say it here. They beta-started in Sonic Unleashed as the collectible music, cutscenes and medals throughout the stages, both day and night, and they were the only way to progress through the game's story and unlock all it's features. The problem was once you passed them in the day stages, it'd be impossible to backtrack for them most of the time, and most of them were placed in area's you'd die OVER and OVER and OVER again just to get ONE of them, making completion of just one stage take up to like 10 minutes if not longer. Once Colors came out, the Red Star Rings took their place, and you'd need to collect five on EVERY level to get Chaos Emeralds and unlock Super Sonic. With the releases of Generations, Lost World and Forces, the Red Star Rings were getting harder...and harder...AND HARDER to get, and even the re-release of Sonic Colors Ultimate SWITCHED UP the locations of the Red Star Rings just to troll you even more. One of the reasons the Adventure games were so awesome was because of the in-game Emblems, which offered rewards when you got them like Red Star Rings, except they come AFTER clearing the level or mission, not finding them during them. I don't know what Red Star Rings will unlock in Sonic Frontiers, but unless there's an easier way to get Chaos Emeralds, it's just not worth it, man.

I'm curious about the game's story, or lack thereof. I hear Ian Flynn of Sonic Archie comic fame is working on it instead of Ken Pontac and Warren Graff, and thank Arceus because by the time Lost World came out, the duo's writing wore out it's welcome. I'm one of the very few who enjoyed Forces' story but mainly because I found so many similarities to Mastermind of Mirage Pokemon in it. That doesn't mean it's the best Sonic story. This game seems like it's going back to the serious but character driven plot found in the Adventure games, which I'm all for as long as it's not all doom and gloom like Forces. I'm a little iffy on Roger Craig Smith being given a lower voice direction for Sonic, it just doesn't sound like the Sonic I know. Then again, neither was he when he first replaced Jason Griffith, and neither was he when he replaced Ryan Drummond. I hope a future Sonic game has Smith do his heroic, snarky attitude again if this game doesn't have enough of it. I man, I definitely hear it in Deven Mack for Sonic Prime.

The new entity Sage is perhaps the first new human-like character in a Sonic game since Merlina in Sonic and the Black Knight, and one hope I desparately have is that she either gets redeemed in some way or she's the final boss, instead of being a red herring pawn tossed out for an Eggman Death Egg Robot. The Dark Mother Wisp (3DS version of Colors), the Time Eater, the Deadly Six and Infinite were all victims of this storywriting, and that's a shame because they had potential to be impactful villains in the way villains like Black Doom, Eggman Nega and Mephiles the Dark were. Yeah, I know, Eggman's always been a final boss since the Genesis days and that's what he's meant for but things always got more interesting when he took a backseat to let someone else antagonize Sonic. Perhaps Sage could be an antagonist we're meant to sympatize with, much like the Sanderson sisters in Hocus Pocus or just be misunderstood trying to warn Sonic against the dangers of Starfall Islands, despite her menacing demeanor. Plus, she looks goth-cute like Ashley from WarioWare.

I don't exactly know what the Koco species serves to this game, but I have a feeling they're gonna be the cash cow sidekicks in Sonic's new era in the 2020's, like the Small Animals in the 90's, the Chao in the 2000's, and the Wisps in the 2010's. Speaking of the Wisps, my biggest fear for Sonic Frontiers is that if the open-zone gameplay is successful, and this is indeed the direction Sonic's heading for the forseeable future, SEGA might run that key gimmick right through the mud until everyone's so fatigued from it, like what happened with the Wisps throughout the 2010's. Everyone loved their powerups for Sonic at first, but as the games went on, they got more overused, gimmicky and harder to utilize throughout the stages. Hell, using a WIsp could outright KILL you in a place the game expects you to USE it. Whatever gimmicks Sonic uses here, like the Cycloop, may help him in Frontiers but I hope doesn't hinder him in future titles.

In sum, Sonic Frontiers seems promising, and even though modern Sonic games can grind my gears when they get frustrating, I still stick with them since that hedgehog's got the willpower and grit to keep on running through whatever danger he faces, and that's a trait worth admiring and following thanks to his heroism. Same goes for Ash for whatever he faces following Pokemon Journeys' end. Both heroes may be young, they may have flaws, they may have their share of failures over the years, but they endure, persevere, grow, learn, and most importantly, try. It just shows how much you really can learn from high-speed multicolored Japanese rodents and pre-teens with red accessories clad in blue. No matter what Ash, Pikachu and Sonic may face going forward, one this is true: they live to be free, and to be the best heroes, they'll always keep on exploring this vast, open world.

Pokemon Scarlet & Violet and Sonic Frontiers are just the beginning of those open worlds.

Description
And now, following the votes from my request poll, here's the tie winner with Pike Queen Lucy's Serpent Therapy, right on the week of what's no doubt considered the most important week of the Trainer and hedgehog's entire careers as heroes.

On Ash's side, he's battling Champion Leon in the Masters 8 Tournament of the Pokemon World Coronation series, and come Friday, the battle will reach it's apex, and the entire world will know for sure whether our young child hero, together with his Pokemon, becomes truly "the very best like no one ever was." After six League losses in a row, and finally winning one in the Alola region, this is the League battle that supposedly decides everything. Will he lose and have to work from the ground up all over again once he eventually makes it to the Paldea region? Or will he absolutely achieve his dream and give the undefeated Leon his true equal as a champion?

As for Sonic, 2022 has been his year, let's say this right now. Sonic Movie 2 ended up being the highest-grossing and highest-praised video game movie since honestly Pokemon's days, his "kill-it-with-fire" movie design was the Deus Ex Uglina...

(BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!)

...of the Chip n' Dale Rescue Rangers movie, Sonic Origins helped revisit his Genesis days for a whole new generation, his new TV series Sonic Prime is debuting this Christmas, and now, his newest main series game, four years after Sonic Forces added to his ever-growing pile of mediocrity, has released today, the open-zone game Sonic Frontiers. SEGA has gone on record to say this is the new direction Sonic games are going to go in throughout the hedgehog's near future. Will it just be another symbol of SEGA not giving a damn about their customers and succumb to the Sonic Cycle? Will following the formula that made The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild so accalimed rub off the praising quality for Sonic for the first time in decades?

Before I make my statement, I need to look back at everything our boys have been through this year and give my impressions. As you've been following, I have NOT been the biggest fan of this current Pokemon anime saga, mainly due to so many missed opportunities, plotlines just completely wasted or abandoned, Goh as a character REALLY getting under my skin, and how many fuddamuckin' recaps during this Masters 8 Tournament which could've been replaced by something more worth fans' time. But now, three years after Journeys premiered, the one question is, has my opinion on it changed at all? Well, I will give it this: like any Pokemon saga, there were SOME redeeming merits from following it, even from just Serebii.net screenshots and following reviews from people like Raf and Lumiose Trainer Zac. I'm gonna have to say, the fanservice and callbacks to previous gens like plots and characters/cameos are both the best and the worst parts of Pokemon Journeys. They're the best because they are consistent from where we last left off on them, and some of the most emotional or impactful episodes for me involved those callbacks, like Mewtwo, Lillie finding her father, and Serena. Of course, they're the worst because of what could've been done with them. Opportunities for like Team Rainbow Rocket or Cassidy and Bleck...

Butch: B! U! T! C! H! BUUUUUUUUUTCH!!!

...or a revenge of Chairman Rose were handed to the writers on a silver platter and they could've made some heart-pounding suspenseful arcs as epic as the Team Flare arc in XYZ. The closest we got this saga was the Darkest Day arc, Alternate Team Rocket and Pokemon: The Arceus Chronicles. With 2022 being the Pokemon anime's 25th anniversary, and Journeys focusing on every region up to this point, you'd expect at least a CRUMB more than what we were served. Tragically, however, we get what we get and we don't get upset.

This isn't the writers' or TPCi's entire fault however. I have seen articles on how the anime crew was understaffed and underpaid--just one of the many crapholes the animation industry has found itself in in 2022--so I can at least give SOME leeway to why things were what they were. I know very talented people work extremely hard on these episodes, probably costing thousands upon thousands to make, and pressure can get ridiculously high. As someone who contemplates going into the industry himself, as either in animation or voice acting, I'm learning more and more how brutal it can be to even veterans, and everyone has contempt for that when it happens, even the people behind my favorite anime.

This might explain why everyone is concerned for the Pokemon anime's future once Journeys is over. Last year's Pokemon: Secrets of the Jungle was, as of this drawing, the final Pokemon movie, and absolutely no signs of another one are popping up in Japan. Not to mention some other news about the anime I won't spoil here are REALLY making it seem that Ash's entire adventure will end here. I mean, even when XYZ or the Alola saga were wrapping up, they had SOME preview for the following saga just a few episodes before the concurrent saga ended. We don't have that yet with this saga. We have absolutely no info about whether Ash and Pikachu will travel through the Paldea region, and Pokemon Scarlet & Violet's release date is just next week.

Let me make this 100% clear and honest: Ash and Pikachu ain't goin' NOWHERES. There have been so many attempts by the anime's promotions in the past to make it look like this is gonna be Ash's last journey when in reality, it's NEVER the last one. They're the poster boys of this franchise and even Ash himself has said multiple times that being a Pokemon Master, in his eyes, is about way more than just being the strongest Trainer, or even being a Champion. Everybody has their own definition of what a Pokemon Master is, and nobody knows what Ash means by this when he says it's about more. I honestly don't even think he himself knows, but that's why he's determined to keep adventuring and reach his dream even though he looks like he's already reached it. What does it truly mean to be a Pokemon Master? That's an answer he aims to find out for himself.

My personal definiton is pretty much everything Ash has been doing all along throughout the series; learning as he's traveling and battling, utilizing good battle strategies, treating Pokemon as partners and friends with love and caring, inspiring others to bring out the best in themselves, saving and protecting those he cares about, and standing up for what he believes in and for what's right no matter how the odds are stacked against him. This is a 10-year-old child who's faced off against some of the vilest written villains in not just Pokemon, but all fiction, and he's been put in intense and overwhelming situations usually reserved for superheroes or grown warriors, situations most 10-year-olds would get easily scared and run and hide from. Ash shows even the tiniest and youngest voices can make a diffrence for a better world, and you should never underestimate someone's potential even if they're just kids.

This is why, as I've stated before, Ash is already a Pokemon Master and he hasn't found that out yet. And honestly, I kinda hope he never finds out because this is all why I don't believe a single rumor of him and Pikachu leaving the anime after Journeys. Besides the fact that there'd be WAY too many plotholes and unfinished stories if everything ended here--I'm STILL waiting for Ash to properly battle Giovanni himself and take down Team Rocket's organization for good--there's still an ever-expanding world of Pokemon to explore, especially the open-world of Paldea Pokemon Scarlet & Violet provide. This sounds like absolute HEAVEN for Ash, and it'd be exciting for the generations of the kid demographic that the Pallet Trainer's a surrogate for. So whether Ash wins against Leon or loses, his adventures are still gonna continue as long as Pokemon exist.

Okay...that...is enough about Ash. What about the other spiky-haired young hero in blue?

As I've mentioned, this is Sonic's year, probably his most important year since his 20th anniversary in 2011 with the launch of Sonic Generations. Ever since Sonic Unleashed, the hedgehog's stuck to the Boost-style action gameplay seen in Colors, Generations and Forces. The Cyberspace levels in Frontiers seem to be folowing this too, which might sound like a letdown for players like me who still consider the Sonic Adventure gameplay the best 3D Sonic genre. We'll talk about this later, but for now let's discuss my impressions on Sonic Frontiers as a whole and it's main draw: the open-zones. One thing I've sadly noticed about how and why Sonic games as of late get slammed is because they're usualy trend-chasing with gimmicks that were already on their way out by the time Sonic used them. The Werehog gameplay in Unleashed came two years after Twilight Princess and Okami's wolves. Sonic Lost World's gravity planets came three years after Super Mario Galaxy 2. Sonic Forces' custom avatars came years after games like Elder Scrolls milked that concept dry. Open-world gameplay is the next video game trend that's popular, and I don't know if it's getting to be a passing fad yet, but after Breath of the Wild made it even more of a staple, games like Pokemon Legends Arceus are cashing in on it, with high 80% or higher scores. Sonic Frontiers is looking to be the same, probably even delivering on what was hinted at by Sonic 2006 and it's TGS 2005 trailer.

I know the game's review embargo was lifted yesterday, but for the sake of this description, I'm not referencing how it's scoring with critics. But I will say how Sonic Frontiers will fare will largely depend on what's hot and what's not, and how Sonic's main gameplay will fit into it. And for the most part, the open-zone environments are calling me back to the Adventure Fields of Sonic Adventure and Sonic 2006, making for a good sandbox to help get you used to Sonic's speed and moves. It's like one step closer to coming back to the Adventure-style gameplay I grew up on, and with the Starfall Islands being so expansive and free, that is, of course, what Sonic lives for.

The fact that you can change the gameplay style to better fit action or speed is a good option, although I'm wondering which style better suits the Adventure veterans. I've gotten used to the Boost gameplay and can handle that fairly well, but it might cause some players confusion as to how "Sonic" they want Sonic Frontiers to be. The Skill Tree supposedly can be adjusted to your liking, so that might help.
The Cyberspace levels I hear are partly recycled level designs from past Sonic games, which might PO some players and accuse SEGA of laziness, but I personally find that a fun Sonic legacy fanservice, being someone who loves similarities between different pieces of media. I know there might be some level designs from games I just want to smash with a hammer (PLEASE nothing from Lost World, PLEASE!!!) but it'll be interesting to see what can be done with this concept.

The only thing I'm absolutely DREADING in Sonic Frontiers are those goddamn Red Star Rings. Those are the bane of my Sonic existence and I believe they're the main culprit to why most modern Sonic games flop. I've already talked about why I hate them so much on a past tweet and I'm gonna say it here. They beta-started in Sonic Unleashed as the collectible music, cutscenes and medals throughout the stages, both day and night, and they were the only way to progress through the game's story and unlock all it's features. The problem was once you passed them in the day stages, it'd be impossible to backtrack for them most of the time, and most of them were placed in area's you'd die OVER and OVER and OVER again just to get ONE of them, making completion of just one stage take up to like 10 minutes if not longer. Once Colors came out, the Red Star Rings took their place, and you'd need to collect five on EVERY level to get Chaos Emeralds and unlock Super Sonic. With the releases of Generations, Lost World and Forces, the Red Star Rings were getting harder...and harder...AND HARDER to get, and even the re-release of Sonic Colors Ultimate SWITCHED UP the locations of the Red Star Rings just to troll you even more. One of the reasons the Adventure games were so awesome was because of the in-game Emblems, which offered rewards when you got them like Red Star Rings, except they come AFTER clearing the level or mission, not finding them during them. I don't know what Red Star Rings will unlock in Sonic Frontiers, but unless there's an easier way to get Chaos Emeralds, it's just not worth it, man.

I'm curious about the game's story, or lack thereof. I hear Ian Flynn of Sonic Archie comic fame is working on it instead of Ken Pontac and Warren Graff, and thank Arceus because by the time Lost World came out, the duo's writing wore out it's welcome. I'm one of the very few who enjoyed Forces' story but mainly because I found so many similarities to Mastermind of Mirage Pokemon in it. That doesn't mean it's the best Sonic story. This game seems like it's going back to the serious but character driven plot found in the Adventure games, which I'm all for as long as it's not all doom and gloom like Forces. I'm a little iffy on Roger Craig Smith being given a lower voice direction for Sonic, it just doesn't sound like the Sonic I know. Then again, neither was he when he first replaced Jason Griffith, and neither was he when he replaced Ryan Drummond. I hope a future Sonic game has Smith do his heroic, snarky attitude again if this game doesn't have enough of it. I man, I definitely hear it in Deven Mack for Sonic Prime.

The new entity Sage is perhaps the first new human-like character in a Sonic game since Merlina in Sonic and the Black Knight, and one hope I desparately have is that she either gets redeemed in some way or she's the final boss, instead of being a red herring pawn tossed out for an Eggman Death Egg Robot. The Dark Mother Wisp (3DS version of Colors), the Time Eater, the Deadly Six and Infinite were all victims of this storywriting, and that's a shame because they had potential to be impactful villains in the way villains like Black Doom, Eggman Nega and Mephiles the Dark were. Yeah, I know, Eggman's always been a final boss since the Genesis days and that's what he's meant for but things always got more interesting when he took a backseat to let someone else antagonize Sonic. Perhaps Sage could be an antagonist we're meant to sympatize with, much like the Sanderson sisters in Hocus Pocus or just be misunderstood trying to warn Sonic against the dangers of Starfall Islands, despite her menacing demeanor. Plus, she looks goth-cute like Ashley from WarioWare.

I don't exactly know what the Koco species serves to this game, but I have a feeling they're gonna be the cash cow sidekicks in Sonic's new era in the 2020's, like the Small Animals in the 90's, the Chao in the 2000's, and the Wisps in the 2010's. Speaking of the Wisps, my biggest fear for Sonic Frontiers is that if the open-zone gameplay is successful, and this is indeed the direction Sonic's heading for the forseeable future, SEGA might run that key gimmick right through the mud until everyone's so fatigued from it, like what happened with the Wisps throughout the 2010's. Everyone loved their powerups for Sonic at first, but as the games went on, they got more overused, gimmicky and harder to utilize throughout the stages. Hell, using a WIsp could outright KILL you in a place the game expects you to USE it. Whatever gimmicks Sonic uses here, like the Cycloop, may help him in Frontiers but I hope doesn't hinder him in future titles.

In sum, Sonic Frontiers seems promising, and even though modern Sonic games can grind my gears when they get frustrating, I still stick with them since that hedgehog's got the willpower and grit to keep on running through whatever danger he faces, and that's a trait worth admiring and following thanks to his heroism. Same goes for Ash for whatever he faces following Pokemon Journeys' end. Both heroes may be young, they may have flaws, they may have their share of failures over the years, but they endure, persevere, grow, learn, and most importantly, try. It just shows how much you really can learn from high-speed multicolored Japanese rodents and pre-teens with red accessories clad in blue. No matter what Ash, Pikachu and Sonic may face going forward, one this is true: they live to be free, and to be the best heroes, they'll always keep on exploring this vast, open world.

Pokemon Scarlet & Violet and Sonic Frontiers are just the beginning of those open worlds.