Sonic The Hedgehog 2 is introducing the characters of Knuckles and Tails, and hopefully will set up the series' greatest villain for a third film. With a first film that met mixed fan and critical responses, it is important that the sequel hits the right notes. With the inclusion of many more characters, it is seeming likely that the films will carry over the game and comic lore - one of which is the character of Chaos and the Master Emerald.
Sonic The Hedgehog has been part of pop culture since the early 90s, having received multiple games, television shows, comic series, and now films. Beginning with solo outings, Sonic very quickly was joined by a wealth of teammates and enemies - the most popular of these was Dr. Eggman, who appears in the first film. As the games developed, Knuckles was introduced as an enemy, tricked by Dr. Eggman into fighting Sonic and protecting the Master Emerald. As the Emerald's history was explored, the character of Chaos appeared in the 1998 game Sonic Adventures. Chaos had agreed to absorb the negative energy from every Chaos Emerald and destroy the Knuckles clan.
The most sinister form of Chaos, whose origin and goal is different than the Sonic Adventures game is found in the Sonic the Comic (1992-2002). This version of Chaos was a hungry water deity that craved limitless power, traveling time and space to accomplish this. He appears more like a monstrous Thanos, attempting to collect emeralds to gain universal power and his physical form of water creature is considerably different than the games' traditional echidna style. With the possible introduction of Chaos into the film series, Knuckles' desire to protect the Master Emerald would act as a great catalyst for an emerald-searching monster whose final form of Perfect Chaos can only be defeated by Super Sonic - who builds this power by absorbing the positive energy of the Chaos Emeralds. Introducing this character, therefore, would completely change the stakes for the series and potentially set up an epic final confrontation for the protagonists.
The trailer for Sonic The Hedgehog 2 presents Dr. Eggman, and Knuckles, as the antagonists for Sonic's second venture. Dr. Eggman has always held the number one billing as Sonic's greatest villain, but he makes for a very one-dimensional character with unchanging motivations. It is highly likely that fans will tire of Jim Carrey's portrayal of the character and the never-ending battle he has with Sonic. Introducing the monstrous form of chaos would present a very different villain for the film's titular hero to duel. It's a little like swapping Spiderman's Dr. Octopus for Carnage - the challenge and combat will be extremely different and pose a real challenge for Sonic and his friends.
With Knuckles confirmed for Sonic The Hedgehog 2, the Chaos Emeralds will hopefully begin to feature more and more in the film franchise. By setting up the comic's water diety form of Chaos, the films will avoid the risk of running stale and encourage the characters to explore a variety of Sonic's popular realms in search of the Chaos Emeralds. Beyond this, however, introducing Chaos will pit Sonic against a potentially terrifying opponent who could really raise the stakes for the entire franchise.
