This article contains spoilers for Sonic the Hedgehog 2!
In Sonic The Hedgehog 2, a recurring video game trope is fixed by Sonic’s character arc involving his fear of water. The sequel to the 2020 videogame adaptation brings back Ben Schwarz (Sonic), James Marsden (Tom), and Jim Carrey (Robotnik) alongside two new additions to the cast from the original Sega games. Sonic 2 introduces Colleen O'Shaughnessey as Tails and Idris Elba as Knuckles as the titular hedgehog teams up with his new sidekick to prevent Robotnik and Knuckles from obtaining the Master Emerald.
With this being the second film in a trilogy, Sonic’s character arc is further developed. He’s firmly settled with his friends and surrogate parents, Tom and Maddie, but like all growing kids, he is keen to find himself. In that regard, Sonic the Hedgehog 2 is a coming-of-age story, as he learns more about what it is to be a hero and realizes how far he still must go in growing up. Firstly, he needs to combat his fear of water. Looking back on the history of Sonic in videogames, his aquaphobia is understandable.
Sonic’s inability to swim is re-established in Sonic 2 during a fishing trip with Tom when he falls out of their boat. It’s clearly a knowing nod to the regular aquatic obstacles that plague players throughout the Sonic the Hedgehog series. It is said that co-creator Yuji Naka assumed that hedgehogs couldn’t swim, so he built that into the Sonic the Hedgehog video games. However, hedgehogs can swim. The only issue is that they’re often unable to get back out of the water afterward. Given the time limits and complicated platform challenges involved in getting Sonic out of the water, the games are accidentally quite accurate. What Sonic 2 does is make a virtue of this well-worn aquaphobic video game trope and incorporate it into both the protagonist and antagonist’s emotional arcs.
In his attempts to prevent Robotnik and Knuckles from obtaining the emerald, Sonic is regularly impeded by bodies of water. His fear of water is clearly so crippling that he doesn’t immediately think to outrun an avalanche with his supersonic speed. When villains Robotnik and Knuckles finally locate the emerald, it’s housed in a temple on an island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. “Water, why did it have to be water?” quips Sonic, riffing on Indiana Jones.
Knowing the devastation Robotnik can cause with the emerald, Sonic eventually puts his fears aside to run across the water. He does so because that’s just what heroes do. Washed ashore on the beach and pleasantly surprised to have survived the journey over the waves, he’s not quite overcome his fears. When Robotnik inevitably betrays his new sidekick and keeps the emerald for himself, he abandons Knuckles and Sonic in a collapsing temple. With the Pacific Ocean folding in around them and ancient stone walls and pillars crashing down around them, Sonic and Knuckles are forced to work together to escape.
In this particular scene, Sonic's fear of water finally pays off as something more meaningful than a tip of the hat to video game tropes, air bubbles and all. When Knuckles is trapped underneath a pillar with the water flooding in, Sonic must finally abandon his aquaphobia to save someone who had previously been an enemy. It's a surprisingly moving moment when Sonic dives in to rescue Knuckles from a watery grave. Even before his spectacular showdown with Robotnik in Sonic the Hedgehog 2's climax, it's clear that, in putting his fears aside for the benefit of others, the Blue Blur has what it takes to be a true hero.