You cannot keep a good hedgehog down; and doubly so if it’s got blue fur, running shoes, and an overpowering urge to “gotta go fast.” Sega flagship video game character Sonic the hedgehog may still be going strong in the gaming scene, but for a while, it looked as if his time in comic books has ended. Last July, Sega of America and Archie Comics concluded their publishing partnership for the latter’s tie-in comic series that ran from 1992 to 2016 (last issue before hiatus to cancellation). Fortunately, IDW Publications quickly picked up the ball to have a new “Sonic the Hedgehog” comic book series with them by next year, and now they have a writer for the project as well.
Writer found
The New York Comic Con has been where all the major comic book companies have been making their pitches for their next big events on print, and IDW Publishing was no exception. While the initial announcement of the Sega-IDW collaboration shortly after the Archie Comics contract expiry stated that creative teams were being formed, this is the first time a name was dropped for the new comics. It is none other than Ian Flynn, last chief writer for Archie’s “Sonic” comic series, who has made the jump to IDW himself.
On a statement regarding his new writing gig, Flynn described himself as being a lifelong “Sega Kid,” and noted how his career as a comic book writer had been defined by his decade-long duty of steering the story of Sonic the Hedgehog on Archie Comics for more than a decade.
“I’m overjoyed to keep running with the little blue hedgehog,” he added, “and especially excited to be expanding my relationship with IDW at the same time.”
Other adaptation coming
IDW Publishing, currently considered to be the fifth largest US comic book house, is also the leading publisher of stories tied to licensed media properties, from film to animated cartoons and toy lines.
Its most prominent licensed comic properties include various toys from Hasbro, including “Transformers, “G.I. Joe,” and “Jem and the Holograms.” They also have a formidable library of original titles like the horror story “30 Days of Night,” which was made into a movie in 2007. It is remarkable that Sega of America announced their new publishing deal for “Sonic” with IDW Publishing mere days after cutting ties with Archie Comics in July.
Aside from the IDW Comics starting sometime in 2018, Sonic has been scoring big in other media adaptations. Paramount Pictures has secured the film rights and is developing a hybrid live-action-CGI treatment of the super-fast hedgehog and his adventures. It is expected to be produced by Neil Moritz and his Original Film studio, executively produced by Tim Miller, and directed by Jeff Fowler.
