Warning: SPOILERS for Sonic the Hedgehog #54!The latest adventure for Sonic the Hedgehog is teasing a reinvention of Tails that many fans have been demanding for years. While often seen as a tag-along sidekick, Tails does have a purpose - one he himself is acutely aware of.
This massive tease comes during a pivotal time for Tails in IDW's continuity. In addition to receiving an upcoming miniseries in celebration of Sonic's 30th anniversary, Tails has recently played crucial roles in various battles against the Deadly Six and his cyborg replacement Kit that have dragged him out of Sonic's shadow. But each time, he's still had to rely on Sonic.
Recently, IDW created the convincing impression that Tails' recent dependency would culminate in one epic speech when Tails confronts Kit in Sonic the Hedgehog #54 by writer and artist Evan Stanley, artist Natalie Haines, colorist Reggie Graham and letterer Shawn Lee. This follows Kit dedicating his life to serving Sonic when he believed that his own "Sonic" - the cyborg Surge the Tenrec - had died. When Kit learns Surge is alive and yet Tails continues to reach out to him, Kit asks Tails why he's trying to make a connection when he still has Sonic. And just when Tails is about to answer, Surge wakes up, forcing Kit to divert all his attention to her.
Why Fans Want Another Tails vs Kit Rematch
The series had set up Tails and Kit's battle - a true conflict after Tails beat his opponent by technological means earlier in the story. The suggestion of a true clash crowned by the invitation for Tails to give a defining hero speech seemed like a set-up to explore what really makes the "sidekick" tick, but the comic then pulls the rug out from under fans with Surge's recovery. With recent emphasis on Tails' perennital sidekick status, Sonic the Hedgehog is primed to show him in a whole new light, but it turns out this fight wasn't intended to be the moment where Tails finally got to play the true hero.
Those who have been reading Sonic before IDW have even higher expectations for him since they undoubtedly remember how Archie made Tails into the Chosen One. In addition to physically besting Kit, Tails needs to articulate how Sonic isn't his whole life and that he's his own separate person - the comments the moment seemed to be building to this issue.
Tails can always have another rematch against Kit, but will Kit ever ask him such a pivotal question again? Hopefully something like that does happen so Tails can detail how he views himself as an individual and position himself as being so much more than just Sonic the Hedgehog's sidekick.
Sonic the Hedgehog #54 is available now from IDW Publishing!