19 replies to this topic

[Gojira007]

Like it says in my Info Box, this is my personal favorite episode, primarily because it's the one that continues to set the SatAM interpretation of Sonic apart from the many others out there (barring Sonic: The Comic, which I haven't read extensively enough to comment). This is the only instance I can think of when Sonic's ever been portrayed as vulnerable, afraid not just for his own life but for the lives of his friends should he fail. It's a detail that serves to really humanize his character for me, and adds a layer of depth to it that no other version I know of has ever really tried.

[DCC]

I think "Sonic's Nightmare" was one of the best episodes of the first season. Sonic's dream was creepy, espeically Sally's "where were you when the brians were passed out" line. Like gojira007 said, the episode did show Sonic's vulnerablity, as well as the pressure he puts on himself. I believe Rotor was right in saying Sonic dream might have had to do with some fear; the fear that he is going to mess up horribly and it will cost his friends. It is also one of the first episodes that show just how intense his feelings for Sally were getting(I have to look up if "Sonic and Sally" aired before or after this episode).

[Gojira007]

I have to look up if "Sonic and Sally" aired before or after this episode.

Before. "Sonic and Sally" was the second episode of the series (excluding "Heads or Tails", the pilot which mysteriously got tacked onto the end of the first season), while "Sonic's Nightmare" was one of the last episodes of Season 1.

[wildfire]

Sonic's Nightmare is arguably one of the best episodes in Season 1. Sonic's dream sequences prove that he has fears as well. He's scared of letting his friends down, and it really shows when he freezes up on Nimbus Island. I think in the long run, the fear of giving Robotnik the win outweighed his fear of failure. He just didn't want to give Robotnik the satisfaction, and that was enough to snap him out of it. There's also the way he stopped the Cloudburster. That in particular proved that even someone as hard headed as Sonic can think outside of the box. The scene where Sally used the power ring to sap the cage left me a little confused, but I kinda liked the nod to Robotnik's classic creature capture methods. I think they could have kept the top of it though, just seems like lazy animating to me.

[SBaby]

This is the episode where I officially started to like Robotnik as a villain. That laid back and sinister persona of his really shows when he suddenly steps out of the shadows after Sally taunts him. I knew right then that this series would be different from the typical Saturday Morning cartoon of the time.

[wildfire]

Yeah, I think it's safe to say that this is one of Robotnik's better episodes. Despite being the villain, he doesn't really get much of a chance to shine. Especially in Season 2, but Sonic's Nightmare showed his darker side pretty effectively. I think it's appropriate to say darker in reference to Robotnik because all of SatAM's characters have soo much personality that they defy the typical molds. I'll have more to say on other episodes, can't wait till next months.

[J.E.Smith]

I used to watch the heck out of this episode back in the day. Mostly because my ABC affilate decided to not show Season 2 and the rest of the Saturday lineup to show news.

This was the only episode I had taped, so it was the only thing to satisfy my growing likeing to SatAM until Christmas when I asked for the three VHS tapes. Of course, I couldn't see anything new until USA started showing it.

I don't what else to say about it that's already been said, but I always found the bit with Sally wearing that oversized SWAT Bot head and Tails getting freaked out over it to be really cute.

[Gojira007]

I don't necessarily think that the episode was simply about Sonic fearing he's going to lose people he cares about. It also dealt with how inadequate he personally feels in his ability the think reasonably. I think it was also a good episode in the sense it alluded to some depth beyond the happy-go-lucky, always confident, always smiling Sonic. Sonic has another side to him. A side that is wary of his faults, wary of how others understand him to be, and just very...observant it would seem.

Y'know, the only part of the ep that ever really suggested that to me was Sally more or less saying just that at the end, that Sonic's dream was a way of warning him to think a bit more reasonably, but that always struck me as something of a tacked-on sentiment to give the episode its Aesop moment (sorry, been reading a bit too much TV Tropes lately >_>). When you look at his actual nightmare, though, no part of it really seems to suggest that was where it stemmed from. Where in Sonic's dream-chase to reach Sally would better thinking have helped him? The Mega Muck comes out of nowhere, and once it's on the ground, it's all over for the poor guy.

[Velvet D'Coolette]

There is a hint of a feeling that Sally's being very critical of him in Sonic's dream. More so than we really see her in waking life. Again, that points to Sonic feeling that he's doomed to fail one day, as is shown by his failure in the dream, but could it be that he feels her criticim more sharply than we might at first think?

As someone else (Dominic, was it?) suggested earlier, there's a hint of accusation along with the call for help in that 'where were you when the brains were handed out?' comment. Especially when it's repeated.

[DCC]

Of course, the reason why Sonic is worried about messing up is because he realizes he needs to think things though more.

[The Man]

Really good episode. Has an epicish feel to it. About half my age ago I turned on the T.V. to this episode half way over and I probably never knew till I found FUS that it was a dream sequence ep.

[Whammy]

RATING: *** out of 5
Throughout this series, Sonic is maintained to be this cocky, fearless hero who laughs in the face of any danger. But this episode proves that he has his moment of weakness, something that was rarely done anywhere else. It also proves just how powerful a dream can be, resulting in a fear that would make some crumble. But as Sonic proved, it can also drive some to moments of bravery that they never imagined they’d be able to accomplish otherwise.

Sadly, while the nightmare set the tone for the episode, it didn’t figure in later on as much as it possibly could have. The moment came for Sonic on Nimbus in front of the other Freedom Fighters, but that was it. I can easily imagine the fear flashing in his mind when he learned of the others’ capture. And Robotnik missed a prime opportunity to spot him in his frozen state, which would have really created a moment that could have doomed Sonic before he even moved a muscle. Overall, it was a really great setup, but there were spots that could have made it a phenomenal one.

(Side note: I originally had this episode on par with Hooked On Sonics, both tied for 2nd best of the season, but I had to put Hooked ahead because the character premise was played out better. Still a good episode, though.)