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1* AbsurdlyShortProductionTime: Episodes were written at a pace of two scripts per week, resulting in Ben Hurst not being able to make the show as lore-driven as he'd have liked, outside of the three-part OriginsEpisode.
2* AccidentalDownerEnding: This fate befell this series twofold. The original cartoon series is all about Sonic and his two siblings learning to work in harmony so they can reunite with their mother and take back Mobius from Doctor Robotnik but by the end of the first season, they're no closer to their goal. The plan was to have a second season to wrap things up, but the second season never came. After a decade of silence however, [[HopeSpot it was announced that they would finally get a resolution]] in the ''Sonic Universe'' side-series of ''ComicBook/SonicTheHedgehogArchieComics''. Unfortunately, [[DevelopmentHell after years of postponing and hemming and hawing from Archie about when the story would arrive,]] Archie Comics would end up completely divorced from Sonic the Hedgehog after [[ScrewedByTheLawyers lengthy and costly legal battles]] and [[YankTheDogsChain Sonic Underground would (among other unresolved storylines as mentioned in Comic Book) again be denied any sort of closure]] since the new [[ComicBook/SonicTheHedgehogIDW IDW series of comics]] deal near-exclusively with the videogame continuity with no inclination of visiting anything to do with any of the classic cartoons.
3* AccidentallyCorrectWriting: There actually ''was'' a [[https://lostmediaarchive.fandom.com/wiki/Sister_Sonic_(Cancelled_1993_Sonic_Game) "Sister Sonic"]] planned early in the franchise's history, but was scrapped after ''VideoGame/PopfulMail'' fans complained about her replacing the titular character in a DolledUpInstallment based on that game. Given how she was only announced in a few issues by Electronic Gaming Monthly, with no information other than her existence, it's highly unlikely she served as an [[MythologyGag inspiration]] for the character of Sonia.
4* ActingForTwo:
5** Jaleel White voices ''all three'' main characters.
6** In the French dub, Eric Peter is the voice of both Robotnik and Dingo.
7* CreatorBacklash: Ben Hurst disliked the premise and had a bad time working with the material of other staff, in addition to this cartoon being greenlit as opposed to a ''WesternAnimation/SonicTheHedgehogSatAM'' continuation.
8* CrossDressingVoices: Creator/JaleelWhite voices Sonia using a modified [[Series/FamilyMatters Steve Urkel voice]].
9* DisownedAdaptation: Creator/SonicTeam reportedly hated this cartoon, with Creator/YujiNaka especially hating due to it giving Sonic siblings. To give one an idea, the [[ComicBook/SonicTheHedgehogArchieComics Archie Sonic comics]] -- which had been free to use characters from ''WesternAnimation/AdventuresOfSonicTheHedgehog'' and ''WesternAnimation/SonicTheHedgehogSatAM'' -- was forbidden to use any characters and elements from this series, with a planned epilogue comic getting cancelled because of it, despite having ''Underground'' part of the comic's multiverse. It's likely the failure of this show led to the development of ''Anime/SonicX'', which was made with Yuji Naka's input so it can be more [[TruerToTheText faithful to the source material]] than the previous shows.
10* EarlyDraftTieIn: The [[https://info.sonicretro.org/images/2/21/SonicUnderground_LCD_manual.pdf manual for the LCD game]] contains what appears to be an early draft of the show's premise, which mentions the medallions being golden with inscribed musical notes, the Oracle [[AlmostDeadGuy dying as he informs Sonic about his family]], and "sheriff" Robotnik seeking to marry Queen Aleena to legitimize his rule (which was only relevant for one episode in the final show).
11* ExecutiveMeddling: According to Ben Hurst, the show's infamous songs and rock band concept were added so that [[MoneyDearBoy DiC could receive royalty payments from them]]; this also led to the show's infamously rushed production.
12* FranchiseKiller: Due to terrible ratings, the series led to Creator/DICEntertainment losing the license to produce ''[[Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog Sonic]]'' television series not long after the show ended, leaving the West without a ''Sonic'' cartoon for 15 years (barring ''Anime/SonicX'', a Japanese production exported overseas by Creator/FourKidsEntertainment). When ''WesternAnimation/SonicBoom'' came around, it ended up being co-produced in-house by Sega of America. Sadly, [[https://comicbook.com/gaming/2019/10/16/sonic-mania-adventures-animated-shorts-yukio-kusumoto-interview/ not even that was enough]], and since that series got [[ScrewedByTheNetwork screwed by CN]], all ''Sonic'' animation has been in short-form and made largely in-house until 2022 when Sega partnered with Creator/ManOfActionStudios and Creator/WildBrain (the current owner of a majority of DIC's back catalogue) to produce ''WesternAnimation/SonicPrime'' for Creator/{{Netflix}}.
13* TheMerch: This show's mechandise included plush toys of Sonic and Knuckles that were sold at Denny's, a sticker sheet, puzzles of Sonic, Sonia, Knuckles, and Dr. Robotnik, and a handheld LCD game by Tiger Electronics.
14* NonSingingVoice: All three hedgehogs had three separate voice actors for the singing segments - Creator/SamuelVincent for Sonic, Tyley Ross for Manic, and Louise Vallance for Sonia.
15* OutOfOrder: The Origins and Chaos Emerald three-part episodes aired in between standalone episodes in the initial broadcast, with home video releases adding the former at the start of the series and the Chaos Emerald episodes in sequence.
16* PopCultureUrbanLegends: ''Underground'' was once rumored to have had a total of 60-65 episodes produced, of which only 40 aired. However, series writer Ben Hurst confirmed in 2008 that only 40 episodes were ever produced for the series.
17* ReleaseDateChange: The show was ''supposed'' to premiere in 1998.
18* RecycledScript:
19** The episode "Winner Fakes All" has the same plot as the ''WesternAnimation/SonicTheHedgehogSatAM'' episode "Sonic Racer", and "Sonic Tonic" is a rehash of the ''WesternAnimation/AdventuresOfSonicTheHedgehog'' episode "Full-Tilt Tails".
20** "Moby Deep" is recycled from ''Series/TheSuperMarioBrosSuperShow'' episode "20,000 Koopas Under the Sea".
21** ''Underground'' wasn't afraid to recycle its own plots either; "the hedgehogs meet a foe pretending to be a friend who ends up being a friend" could describe at least five different episodes.
22* RoleReprise: Creator/JaleelWhite returns as the voice of Sonic and also voices Sonia and Manic. The only key difference is the hedgehogs' singing voices were provided by different voice actors.[[note]]Sonic's singing voice was provided Creator/SamuelVincent, Sonia's was provided by Stevie Vallance, and Manic's was provided by Tyley Ross.[[/note]] However, Jaleel sang in his Sonic voice five times in the previous two series.
23* ScrewedByTheNetwork: On the syndication block Bohbot Kids Network, the show aired at 7:00 AM Eastern on weekdays, when its target audience was getting ready for school. To make matters worse, eight episodes that were originally scheduled to air on Fridays were skipped and replaced with ''WesternAnimation/DoubleDragon1993''[[note]]which was later replaced with ''WesternAnimation/KingArthurAndTheKnightsOfJustice''[[/note]] instead. As a result, only 32 of the 40 episodes produced aired.
24* ShortRunInPeru: The entire series first aired in France and the United Kingdom before its American debut in August 1999.
25* UnfinishedEpisode: "Three-Part Disharmony", which seemingly only made it to the premise stage. In it, Sleet disguises himself as Queen Aleena and sows discord among each of the hedgehogs, claiming that their siblings are secretly plotting to betray them.
26* WhatCouldHaveBeen:
27** ''[[ComicBook/SonicTheHedgehogArchieComics Sonic Universe]]'' #50 was initially announced as [[ConclusionInAnotherMedium a proper conclusion to the series]], and had cover artwork revealed for it. However, [[ExecutiveMeddling Sega went back on these plans for unknown reasons]], and #50 wound up having nothing to do with ''Underground''.
28** Early concept art shows Queen Aleena with a [[https://www.sonicstadium.org/2012/07/freak-out-friday-the-original-sonic-underground-concept/ very different design]].
29** According to Ben Hurst, this series would have at one point been a continuation of ''WesternAnimation/SonicTheHedgehogSatAM''. Instead, it was decided to retool the concept and make it into a separate series.
30** In early drafts of the show's premise, the band's name was "the Newsonics", [[WesternAnimation/AdventuresOfSonicTheHedgehog Scratch and Grounder]] would have returned as Robotnik's lackeys instead of Sleet and Dingo, Manic was named "Edsel", and Queen Aleena was named "Rachel". Additionally, what happened to the triplets' father ([[AmbiguouslyAbsentParent whose existence is never mentioned once in the final show]]) would have been a DrivingQuestion alongside the search for their mother: he was, in fact, killed by his brother Robotnik (which would have made him Sonic's uncle).
31** Alongside ''Underground'''s development (and possibly predating it), [[https://www.dropbox.com/sh/h5cord7nqsfpy94/AAAe8c1sjQlFLjUG-inr0xZUa?dl=0&preview=1997-02-04+-+Sonia+the+Hedgehog+Document.DOC a pitch was written for a separate show]] starring Sonia, in which she protects the planet while Sonic and Robotnik are off in space. She had a sidekick in a HopelessSuitor porcupine named Quilley, and would have battled Robotnik's twin brother Grotty, alongside a returning Scratch and Grounder.
32* WordOfGod: According to executive producer Robby London, the series never had a "final episode" planned or even discussed. This was because they were uncertain about the number of episodes or seasons the series would have before being cancelled. If they were to create a "final episode" and then additional episodes were ordered, it would pose significant challenges for the writers in terms of continuing the story seamlessly. Hence, the approach they took was to craft each episode as a standalone adventure, without a linear storyline, which made it easier to keep producing episodes without interruption.

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