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shamanicshayminWell that was fun, spending hours in there watching two guys play Sonic games for clean water in Ethiopia. It's fun watching the chat argue which game (Heroes, Shadow & 06) was the worst of the three. XD The highlight was when Tim started singing My Sweet Passion during a tragic cut scene with Shadow & Maria. Nothing beats busting Chaos bubbles on the ARK to the tune of shaving the Sphinx! XDDD
It's making me feel kind of nostalgic for Sonic games again. Sure, Heroes/Shadow/06 was bad, I'll admit that, but I'm still attached to them in a weird way. Especially Shadow the Hedgehog. I'll never stop loving that black bastard. XD Which again, makes me realize how deceptively dark Sonic games can be. All the bright colors and you're busting out cute critters after they've been through horrendous experimentation and used as fuel for robots. Then there's Shadow, which is a whole new ball altogether.
Several years ago, I couldn't pinpoint why it made me uncomfortable to see Shadow as the bad guy/villain. But hey, it's my birthday, I've turned 22. I think I know now. Since SA2 he's an anti-hero, yet I've admired him as a kind of Byronic hero in my eyes. O RLY? Lemme fetch Wikipedia: The Byronic hero is an idealised but flawed character exemplified in the life and writings of Lord Byron, characterised by his ex-lover Lady Caroline Lamb as being "mad, bad, and dangerous to know". The Byronic hero first appears in Byron's semi-autobiographical epic narrative poem Childe Harold's Pilgrimage (1812-1818).
The Byronic hero typically exhibits several of the following characteristics:
* a strong sense of arrogance (Yep!)
* high level of intelligence and perception (Yep!)
* cunning and able to adapt (Definitely)
* suffering from an unnamed crime (Ding ding ding!)
* a troubled past (not obvious to you before? SEGA will tell you again. XD)
* sophisticated and educated (he has to be, he's been made by Eggman's goddamn grandfather. :o)
* self-critical and introspective ("Who am I? Why was I created?" /repeat)
* mysterious, magnetic and charismatic (*fangirl sigh* He got Rouge's attention, and she was initially in it for the jewels. :P)
* struggling with integrity (lol yep. That's him all over)
* power of seduction and sexual attraction (He seduced Eggman {not in that way} and slain me in both matters. Yes, several years ago, I struggled for a long time to admit I found a anthropomorphic black hedgehog sexy. :P)
* social and sexual dominance ("I'm the coolest!" Jokes aside, he definitely has a dominating presence.Even when he's bottom, he's still bossy as hell.)
* emotional conflicts, bipolar tendencies, or moodiness ("Where's that DAMN 4th Chaos Emerald!?" "DAMN DAMN DAMN DAMN.")
* a distaste for social institutions and norms (he blows up cities {and a comet}, rides motorcycles, and baps aliens with stop signs)
* being an exile, an outcast, or an outlaw (lolololololol yep)
* "dark" attributes not normally associated with a hero ("Sonikkuuuu--aaaaAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!")
* disrespect of rank and privilege (Shadow's a total ass to Black Doom)
* jaded, world-weary ("Shadow! For all the people on Earth... give them a chance to be happy!")
* cynicism (Sonic Battle and Chronicles mainly. What a grouch! :P)
* self-destructive behaviour (I guess his "death" in SA2 was intentional. ;;)
His love for Maria was what won him over to me. Then you get a game like Shadow the Hedgehog where in order to beat the game and get the true ending, you have no choice but to explore every possible scenario that could've happened, including if he became a bad guy. Shadow, who would break Maria's promise? After living and dying for her? If he decided it was all an illusion or he completely misinterpreted what she wanted or had a dysfuntional view of preserving Maria's memory (mixed with his guilt and hatred for what happened to her)?
I keep thinking, "Dear god, Shadow would never do that. The hedgehog who sacrificed himself selflessly and became a hero. He can't do anything like that!" yet there's this tiny sick part of you that believed that yes, Shadow would. Shadow would do those things and not only would he betray Maria (unintentionally or not), he'd betray you, or rather, betray your vision of him. No, no, you don't want to believe this. Yet it happened and you want to deny it, but you can't. So your heart is broken at that fact. I guess it's why it's hard for me to play the Dark storypaths with him because I was making him do things that I believed he was not, yet he could do because he's a rebel and doesn't care what you think about him. Even if his ending lines are cheesy and stupid and overacted, I still feel hurt and D: inside (that, and I play the PS2 version with Japanese audio, so it was far easier for me to take Shadow seriously. :P) Hell, I still feel chills at that one scene in Sonic X when Shadow and tried to kill Cosmo and hit Tails around for trying to stop him. D:
At least Sonic wouldn't backstab me. Shadow you meaniebutt. >(
Off to bed so I can better celebrate a year closer to death. Oh boy! XD
It's making me feel kind of nostalgic for Sonic games again. Sure, Heroes/Shadow/06 was bad, I'll admit that, but I'm still attached to them in a weird way. Especially Shadow the Hedgehog. I'll never stop loving that black bastard. XD Which again, makes me realize how deceptively dark Sonic games can be. All the bright colors and you're busting out cute critters after they've been through horrendous experimentation and used as fuel for robots. Then there's Shadow, which is a whole new ball altogether.
Several years ago, I couldn't pinpoint why it made me uncomfortable to see Shadow as the bad guy/villain. But hey, it's my birthday, I've turned 22. I think I know now. Since SA2 he's an anti-hero, yet I've admired him as a kind of Byronic hero in my eyes. O RLY? Lemme fetch Wikipedia: The Byronic hero is an idealised but flawed character exemplified in the life and writings of Lord Byron, characterised by his ex-lover Lady Caroline Lamb as being "mad, bad, and dangerous to know". The Byronic hero first appears in Byron's semi-autobiographical epic narrative poem Childe Harold's Pilgrimage (1812-1818).
The Byronic hero typically exhibits several of the following characteristics:
* a strong sense of arrogance (Yep!)
* high level of intelligence and perception (Yep!)
* cunning and able to adapt (Definitely)
* suffering from an unnamed crime (Ding ding ding!)
* a troubled past (not obvious to you before? SEGA will tell you again. XD)
* sophisticated and educated (he has to be, he's been made by Eggman's goddamn grandfather. :o)
* self-critical and introspective ("Who am I? Why was I created?" /repeat)
* mysterious, magnetic and charismatic (*fangirl sigh* He got Rouge's attention, and she was initially in it for the jewels. :P)
* struggling with integrity (lol yep. That's him all over)
* power of seduction and sexual attraction (He seduced Eggman {not in that way} and slain me in both matters. Yes, several years ago, I struggled for a long time to admit I found a anthropomorphic black hedgehog sexy. :P)
* social and sexual dominance ("I'm the coolest!" Jokes aside, he definitely has a dominating presence.
* emotional conflicts, bipolar tendencies, or moodiness ("Where's that DAMN 4th Chaos Emerald!?" "DAMN DAMN DAMN DAMN.")
* a distaste for social institutions and norms (he blows up cities {and a comet}, rides motorcycles, and baps aliens with stop signs)
* being an exile, an outcast, or an outlaw (lolololololol yep)
* "dark" attributes not normally associated with a hero ("Sonikkuuuu--aaaaAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!")
* disrespect of rank and privilege (Shadow's a total ass to Black Doom)
* jaded, world-weary ("Shadow! For all the people on Earth... give them a chance to be happy!")
* cynicism (Sonic Battle and Chronicles mainly. What a grouch! :P)
* self-destructive behaviour (I guess his "death" in SA2 was intentional. ;;)
His love for Maria was what won him over to me. Then you get a game like Shadow the Hedgehog where in order to beat the game and get the true ending, you have no choice but to explore every possible scenario that could've happened, including if he became a bad guy. Shadow, who would break Maria's promise? After living and dying for her? If he decided it was all an illusion or he completely misinterpreted what she wanted or had a dysfuntional view of preserving Maria's memory (mixed with his guilt and hatred for what happened to her)?
I keep thinking, "Dear god, Shadow would never do that. The hedgehog who sacrificed himself selflessly and became a hero. He can't do anything like that!" yet there's this tiny sick part of you that believed that yes, Shadow would. Shadow would do those things and not only would he betray Maria (unintentionally or not), he'd betray you, or rather, betray your vision of him. No, no, you don't want to believe this. Yet it happened and you want to deny it, but you can't. So your heart is broken at that fact. I guess it's why it's hard for me to play the Dark storypaths with him because I was making him do things that I believed he was not, yet he could do because he's a rebel and doesn't care what you think about him. Even if his ending lines are cheesy and stupid and overacted, I still feel hurt and D: inside (that, and I play the PS2 version with Japanese audio, so it was far easier for me to take Shadow seriously. :P) Hell, I still feel chills at that one scene in Sonic X when Shadow and tried to kill Cosmo and hit Tails around for trying to stop him. D:
At least Sonic wouldn't backstab me. Shadow you meaniebutt. >(
Off to bed so I can better celebrate a year closer to death. Oh boy! XD
