Line #6 YMMV/SonicUnderground


1	* AlternativeCharacterInterpretation:
2	** The Oracle of Delphius could actually be [[TheManBehindTheMan the true Big Bad]] of the show. He has amazing powers and [[WhyDontYaJustShootHim could have killed Robotnik in his own bedroom]] as shown in a flashback in the first episode, but he instead gives him the heads up about the prophecy, which gets Robotnik to start looking for the trio. Also in the same episode, if he hadn't directed the trio to meet at a public place then their foster parents would have been safe and not turned into robots; as if the Oracle is going with an "I'll finish off whoever is left in the end" approach. Alternatively, the Oracle just [[{{Troll}} likes to mess around with people]]. Alternatively, he doesn't do any of those things because averting from the prophecy would make it not come true. Or he's doing this to prevent something ''far'' worse from happening. whatever that may be.
3	** Queen Aleena is sometimes interpreted as a deadbeat mom trying to stay as far away from her children as possible [[{{Hypocrite}} while preaching about "responsibility" and "not turning away from the past."]] If she's not out-and-out abandoning her offspring, [[ParentalFavoritism she cares about Sonia to a greater extent than her sons]].
4	** There's a point where Sleet and Dingo stop being typical Saturday morning cartoon villains and become tired employees threatened into a job they don't want at all, even purposely engaging in counterproductive work behavior to spite their boss.
5	** Is the prophecy Delphius gave to Queen Aleena even true?
6	* AudienceAlienatingPremise: There are many ''Sonic'' fans who couldn't get into it even back when it was new, let alone in the modern age; on one hand, some fans were still bitter that there wasn't a season 3 of ''[[WesternAnimation/SonicTheHedgehogSatAM SatAM]]'', and this was on top of it being different from the games even at the time. On the ''other'' hand, the show came out shortly before ''VideoGame/SonicAdventure'', itself different from ''Underground'', changed the direction of the franchise for years to come, and even today still has more influence than this show did. Basically, the show is an oddity no matter how you look at it, since it doesn't exactly gel well with what came before ''or'' after it.
7	* SugarWiki/AwesomeMusic: The opening theme. [[ExpositoryThemeTune It perfectly lays out the whole story in only one minute]], it's catchy as all heck, and the animation on the opening is quite fluid. All the while, the singer is singing the theme like it's the end of the world, and it is ''amazing''.
8	* BaseBreakingCharacter: Bartleby, Sonia's fiancé, is either hated for being a cowardly snob, or liked for being a morally grey neutral party in a black-and-white conflict with decent amounts of CharacterDevelopment.
9	* BigLippedAlligatorMoment:
10	** In "Tangled Webs", Sonic eats a flower for no reason at all.
11	** During the episode song of "Winner Fakes All", Sonic briefly runs past and nearly accidentally flips up the skirt of a human girl, one of the few humans other than Robotnik, and the only one that isn't just background filler, which is given no explanation whatsoever.
12	* CompleteMonster: [[Characters/SonicTheHedgehogDrIvoEggmanRobotnik Dr. Robotnik]] is as power-hungry and evil as he has ever been. Having invaded and conquered Mobius years before through sheer force and UnwillingRoboticization of a vast majority of its population, Robotnik now rules with an iron fist as he seeks to round up any remaining organic beings to have them enslaved as his cyborgs. Along with regularly abusing and threatening roboticization or death to his CoDragons Sleet and Dingo, Robotnik frequently betrays his own allies to serve his purposes. Not restricted solely to roboticizing those who stand against him, Robotnik hopes to find the Sanctuary where resistance fighters raise their children so he may turn it into a "[[WouldHurtAChild cemetery]]", and on more than one occasion Robotnik tries to wipe out entire cities of life to demonstrate his might. Robotnik puts Sonic and his siblings through a variety of life-threatening and {{sadistic choice}}s in his quest to find and destroy their mother, and when all of Mobius is threatened by a Chaos Emerald storm, Robotnik is willing to let the world be wiped out just to spite Sonic.
13	* CrossoverShip: There's a small subset of fans that ship Sonia with Shadow the Hedgehog or Espio the Chameleon from the [[Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog main continuity]]. Alongside that, Manic with Scourge the Hedgehog from [[ComicBook/SonicTheHedgehogArchieComics Archie Sonic]] has its fans too. Sonia is additionally paired up with Silver the Hedgehog as a BattleCouple due to the popular romhack/fangame S-Factor that features the two of them as the playable characters (with Scourge along for the ride.)
14	* CultClassic: While the show didn’t really do that great in reviews or ratings, it does have a small, but loyal fan following.
15	* EnsembleDarkhorse:
16	** Mindy [=LaTour=] only appeared once, but she's a popular character for being childhood friends with Sonia, having an interesting character design, and being the only non-band member to sing lead vocals.
17	** Sonia, Manic, and to a lesser extent Aleena are this for the entire franchise, as many fans like them and use them in fan works, even if they are not familiar with or even fans of ''Sonic Underground'' as a whole.
18	%%** [[WebVideo/{{Tamers12345}} Bartleby]].
19	* EpilepticTrees: Thanks to so many original characters and the omission of almost all the official characters existing at the time, despite there being potential room for them, and since many of the background characters were more alien than any Earth-based animal, many ''Sonic'' fans and even fans of the series debated whether it was really even intended to be a ''Sonic'' show, and that the characters of Sonic and Dr. Robotnik were just a hook for ''Sonic'' fans. Even the series plot is basically a ThisIsYourPremiseOnDrugs take of the Sonic vs. Robotnik story.
20	* EvilIsCool: This would be a primary reason for why Special Agent Sleet has as many fans as he does.
21	* FanficFuel: Who was the royal triplet's father? Many fans speculate through fanfiction that Sonic, Sonia and Manic are twins/half-siblings and have two different fathers, due to Sonia most resembling her mother Queen Aleena and Sonic and Manic most resembling either his father.
22	* FanNickname: The overpowered, Chaos Emerald-fused version of Dingo has sometimes been called "Chaos Dingo".
23	* {{Fanon}}: The show never explored the trio's DisappearedDad. FanFiction and FanArt, however, speculate that his name might have been Jules (essentially emigrating the Archie Comics character into this universe). His purported appearance, however, varies -- some say his fur color was blue like his son Sonic's. Others say it was green like Manic's.
24	* HarsherInHindsight:
25	** In "Art of Destruction", Manic complains to his siblings and the recently reformed ART that the prophecy never said ''when'' they would win, and that it could be twenty years later. Given the show was CutShort before they could win, and the DevelopmentHell and eventual cancellation of the epilogue meant to be in ''Sonic Universe'', it's depressing if you were a fan of the show.
26	** "Virtual Danger", the last aired episode of the show, ends with ships being flown into the tower that is Robotnik's main base, causing it to explode. This aired about two years before the 9/11 attacks.
27	* HilariousInHindsight:
28	** When the halves of the names Sonia and Manic are switched, they make up the words "VideoGame/SonicMania".
29	** Chomps, Knuckles' pet dinosaur, shares almost the ''exact'' same colors as [[VideoGame/SonicAdventure2 the Biolizard]] and has a near-identical body-shape.
30	** One of the early concepts for ''[[VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog1 Sonic 1]]'' when it was still in production was to have Sonic as part of a rock band, though sources say they had to take that part of the game out to save space on the cart, and that Sega of America told their Japanese counterpart that that concept for Sonic wouldn't go over well with American audiences.
31	** Some five years after the show stopped, Robotnik had to deal with ThePowerOfRock [[VideoGame/SonicHeroes once again]].
32	** One episode has Sonic playing tennis against himself, and throwing a John [=McEnroe=]-esque tantrum when the umpire (also himself) makes a call against him. Twenty years later, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=szby7ZHLnkA the second trailer]] for the [[Film/SonicTheHedgehog2020 film adaptation]] has Sonic playing both table tennis and baseball against himself.
33	** In "No Hedgehog is an Island", when Dingo double-crosses Sleet and plans to become ruler of Mobius himself, Sleet objects on the basis that "[He] can't even drink a glass of water without using both hands!". Twenty-one years later, UsefulNotes/DonaldTrump drinking a glass of water with two hands was seized upon by opponents for jokes and as a sign of him being physically unfit for office.
34	** Manic is a thief and a high-tech specialist who rides a HoverBoard, all of which anticipates the Babylon Rogues of the ''VideoGame/SonicRiders'' series. Bonus points for being green just like [[TheRival Jet the Hawk]].
35	* IncestYay:
36	** At the end of the second episode, Sonia kisses Sonic on the cheek for a job well done, and Sonic turns to Manic and says, "You're not gonna kiss me, are you?" Manic's answer? "No way, but you are kinda cute." [[SugarWiki/FunnyMoments This is one of the funniest lines on the show]].
37	** In another episode, Sonic asks for a dance while looking Sonia's direction. She accepts, but then he says he was talking to Manic, and the two begin slow dancing. The pair had a surprising amount of this.
38	* JerkassWoobie: Dingo at times, thanks to all the abuse he takes from his partner Sleet, and being mostly an IneffectualSympatheticVillain.
39	* JustHereForGodzilla: Quite a few people only took interest in the show because of the episode(s) Knuckles appeared in.
40	* MemeticMutation:
41	** Knuckles screaming, "I ''HATE'' THIEVES!"
42	** The [[ExpositoryThemeTune theme song]] has been synced to numerous webcomics and bottom-text memes, notably ''WebComic/CtrlAltDel''.
43	** I am Hothep, you are hedgehogs, we know not each other, but Aman-Rapi smile on me if I help find queen mother![[labelnote:Explanation]]A small part of the lyrics of "Mummy Wrap" from the episode "Mummy Dearest". It became a meme after a level in ''VideoGame/SunkyMpeg'' featured the part where Hothep says the lyrics as its background, except that it's [[BrokenRecord looped ad nauseam]]. This also helped turning Hothep into somewhat of an EnsembleDarkHorse.[[/labelnote]]
44	* MoralEventHorizon:
45	** Robotnik firmly crossed this in "Three Hedgehogs and a Baby" when he tricked Manic by letting him find Hip, a surveillance robot that resembled a living baby hedgehog, in the hopes that he'd get attached to it and accordingly take it to -- and thus reveal the location of -- Sanctuary, a hidden place of refuge for children and infants. So he could ''destroy'' it, then [[WouldHurtAChild roboticize and enslave everyone there]]:
46	--->'''Robotnik:''' When we find it, Sanctuary will become... ''Cemetery!''
47	** If Robotnik through some miracle hadn't already crossed it then, he definitely did when [[SuperpoweredEvilSide a Chaos Emerald-empowered and mindless Dingo]] is in danger of destroying the whole planet. [[AccompliceByInaction He was completely content to let it happen,]] so long as the hedgehogs died with him.
48	* {{Narm}}:
49	** Creator/JaleelWhite voices Sonic, Manic ''and'' Sonia. As one might expect, he does fine with the first two, but Sonia ends up sounding like a cross-dressing [[Series/FamilyMatters Steve Urkel]], which neuters any scene she has that's meant to be taken seriously.
50	** While Sleet is shown to be a reasonably competent villain, his Creator/PeterLorre-esque voice -- and [[WesternAnimation/RenAndStimpy Ren-esque tendency]] to call Dingo an "EEEEEEDIOT" -- makes it hard to take him seriously a lot of the time.
51	** The characters' constant smiling in the early episodes.
52	** The death scene of Hip, the exploding baby hedgehog robot. ''[[https://youtu.be/Q0uh7JcfGYg?si=mU5kDU5OkzO9cx97 All of it.]]''
53	** The ''many'' wonky [[SpecialEffectsFailure animation errors]].
54	* OlderThanTheyThink: This show is not the earliest instance of Sonic having siblings; that would be the arcade puzzle game ''VideoGame/SegaSonicBros''
55	* {{Padding}}:
56	** In "The Price of Freedom", the camera pans up to Dingo's face for ''seven seconds'' at one point.
57	** Most of the songs can be considered this, especially "Where There's a Will, There's a Way".
58	* PopularWithFurries:
59	** Sonia and Aleena have proven to be popular amongst furries.
60	** [[TheBrute Dingo]] himself has a minor cult following with [[BaraGenre muscle/Bara fans]], especially with the rising popularity of "[[DumbMuscle himbo]]"-type characters.
61	* QuestionableCasting:
62	** By the time the series premiered, fans were used to Creator/JaleelWhite's voice as Sonic. The voice he used for Manic isn't too bad, either, and sounds distinct from his brother's. But having White voice ''Sonia'' is really pushing it and a prime source of {{Narm}}. She sounds an awful lot like Sonic pretending to do a woman's voice and failing. Most agree that her singing voice, Creator/StevieVallance, sounds ''much better'' in the role and should have fully voiced her.
63	** Knuckles' voice sounds like a nasal, slightly higher version of Manic's voice, even though a deeper tone would better suit the character. And this from Creator/BrianDrummond, known for [[Anime/DragonBallZ Ocean's Vegeta]] -- and much later, [[WesternAnimation/SonicPrime Dr. Eggman and his various incarnations]] -- of all characters.
64	** While Creator/MauriceLaMarche was a good casting choice for Sleet, the decision to have him sound like Creator/PeterLorre doesn't match Sleet’s character at all. Tellingly, many dubs, such as the German dub, give Sleet a deeper and more respectable voice.
65	* SignatureScene: The scene from "Three Hedgehogs and a Baby" where Manic fails to save the titular baby and it explodes. It's either {{Narm}} or horrifying depending on who you ask, but it's hard to forget a robot baby dying.
66	* SoBadItsGood: With the show's InNameOnly relationship to Sonic, the poor animation quality and the plot, the show is considered as this by some fans.
67	* SpiritualSuccessor:
68	** The series received one in ''WesternAnimation/SpacePOP'', a girl-targeted show about royalty going underground as a rock band to search for their missing parents against a dictator with MechaMooks and a hired bounty hunter.
69	** Thanks to the reuse of Mobius, roboticizing, and other aesthetics, ''Underground'' itself was likely intended to be one to ''WesternAnimation/SonicTheHedgehogSatAM''.
70	* StrawmanHasAPoint: In "Art of Destruction", Manic complains that no matter how far they go or what they do, Robotnik will just throw something else at them, and the situation doesn't ever seem to change no matter what they do. When you look at many of the previous episodes where the robots seemed to only ''escalate'' in how powerful they are, as well as [[StatusQuoIsGod the generally unchanging nature]] of the show, it's hard to not agree with Manic.
71	* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter: The role of GadgeteerGenius and AcePilot Cyrus -- and by extension, Trevor, who had pretty similar gimmicks -- could have easily been filled by Tails.
72	* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
73	** "Winner Fakes All" has Robotnik trying to build a robot that can outrun Sonic in order to lead the heroes into a trap. This would've been the perfect way to introduce [[ArchEnemy Metal Sonic]], especially with said plot working well to set him up as a [[KnightOfCerebus tougher, deadlier foe than anyone they've faced before]]. Sadly not; instead, it's just a generic, turtle-looking 'bot that serves no purpose to the overall plot and is defeated comfortably.
74	** "Bug!" is about a swarm of robotic flies with the ability to mind-control people with a serum, which ends up affecting Manic. This could've been a great opportunity to have the bond of the three siblings grow stronger as they try to diagnose and cure Manic's brainwashing, but they quickly find out what's wrong and fix it, then Robotnik gives up as soon as he loses connection with Manic.
75	* ThisIsYourPremiseOnDrugs: The show follows the Sonic versus Robotnik formula… featuring Sonic's long-lost siblings and fighting him with ThePowerOfRock. Beyond a few elements from the games -- such as some of the characters, the [[VideoGame/Sonic3AndKnuckles Floating Island and what is essentially the Master Emerald]] under a different name -- the show is really InNameOnly when it comes to its connection with Sonic.
76	* UnintentionalUncannyValley:
77	** Some of the characters in this show ''really'' come close to this territory. For example, look at Sonia's adoptive mother in the first episode; she looks like someone pulled out of a Renaissance Fair.
78	** This version of Mobius has plenty of insectoids and bugs, with some looking monster-ish.
79	** The Do-Bot in "Haircraft in Space."
80	** Dingo's character model sheets depict him with a [[http://68.media.tumblr.com/3584483a1a5a16fdda82945f60b20ce7/tumblr_n1vff6OvbK1tug5afo1_1280.jpg jarring amount of lines]] in his face compared to the rest of his body. Thankfully, this was toned down in the cartoon itself.
81	** The robot baby from "Three Hedgehogs and a Baby" is infamous for this because it doesn't have the same eye pattern as most hedgehogs in the series, but has smaller, ape-like eyes. Many people have compared it to ''[[Film/SonicTheHedgehog2020 Sonic's original live-action movie]]'' design.
82	* UnpopularPopularCharacter: Sleet and Dingo are surprisingly popular. Blame it on their fun voice acting and their [[Anime/PokemonTheSeries Jessie and James]]-like appeal.
83	* WhatDoYouMeanItsNotPolitical: The show does a rather interesting job depicting a region (in this case, a whole world) under an oppressive regime, dealing with topics of colonization, imperialism, even learned helplessness. The pilot even opens with the rich funding Robotnik's tyrannical endeavors in exchange for being left out of the roboticization and enslavement (in other words, class warfare).

Context YMMV / SonicUnderground