Reviews Film / Sonic The Hedgehog 2020

In Defense of Sonic Flossing: Sonic (2020)'s Themes on Childhood

Okay, we've all seen it. In the movie, Sonic indulges in the 2017 dance craze known as "the Floss" - twice, actually. Many people found this cringe-worthy, or an attempt to cash in on an outdated meme. You know, maybe it was. But looking at negative reactions to it online has some interesting meta implications in regards to the movie's themes.

One of the biggest changes to Sonic's character in this film is his age. He is quite a bit more immature than the Sonic we're used to in the games, less experienced about life and less sure of himself in general, which is helped by Ben Schwartz's great performance. He clearly needs a mentor or guide character in the form of Tom, which he's never needed before. Sonic's just a kid who's in way over his head, content to fulfill a bucket list of seemingly random tasks such as "eat a whole pizza" or "do a slam dunk." He's not yet concerned with justice or saving the world - he's just learning how to live his life. This is a very different Sonic than what we're used to.

Meanwhile, there are also some changes to Dr. Robotnik's character. He retains his arrogance and megalomania, but there's a certain nuance to his character absent in the games: his crippling inferiority complex. Several times throughout the film, Robotnik brings up accomplishments with those he is trying to belittle. With Major Bennington, he tells him that "no one cares about [his] feeble accomplishments," and later Robotnik ridicules Tom by saying he's already "surpassed everything [he's] ever going to do." He clings onto these achievements, these accolades and accomplishments given to him by society. Robotnik's self-worth stems entirely from whatever insane goals he is capable of seeing through. These beliefs are directly related to capitalism, and the supposed meritocracy of Western society - this "hustle culture" that more and more people are buying into every day. The idea that you must produce something extraordinary in order to have worth.

The conflict here is between Sonic and Robotnik's ideas of what gives life meaning. Sonic finds his happiness through performing menial acts of fun, while Robotnik finds his satisfaction through accomplishing major academic or military feats. When they finally meet, Sonic doesn't care about who Robotnik is or what he's done - all he knows is that he must protect his friends. This humiliates Robotnik and his self-confidence.

Additionally, Jim Carrey stated in an interview in regards to Robotnik that "Sonic is the innocence that [Robotnik] can no longer connect with; he wants to own it, but he can never be it." Maybe Robotnik was once capable of finding joy in little things like Sonic does, but he can't anymore. He's so caught up in the euphoria of achievement that everything else seems shallow to him. He's too mature and disillusioned for his own good, so much that it stops him from enjoying the things that he might have once loved.

This is where the Flossing comes in. Now sit down for a second and think: although he never saw it, how do you think Robotnik would have reacted to seeing Sonic Flossing? Confusion? Disgust? Anger? Horror? Maybe even... cringe? You see where I'm going with this.

Many people in the world, especially on the internet, allow their obsession with maturity and seeming "cool" to cloud their ability to enjoy things. They come to despise things that seem childish or naive, such as minor bucket list accomplishments or innocent dance crazes. They fall into the same pitfalls that Robotnik is in. This happens to all of us to some degree or another as we grow up - we are disillusioned with the things we once loved out of some sort of shame or distaste for what we once were. These emotions might make us feel revolted or annoyed upon seeing Sonic doing the Floss, for example.

I was the same way for a long time. I loved Sonic when I was a kid, I played all the games and watched the shows. But I got to a point where my own teenage self-importance met with the rampant cringe culture on the internet, and it made me try to avoid Sonic. Sonic was for stupid kids and furries, right? It went on like this for a long time - I was almost ashamed of my past as a Sonic fan. That is, until I finally watched this new film. It was kind of a wake-up call that snapped me back to reality, allowed me to finally accept that I still do enjoy Sonic. I enjoy his fun personality, his appealing design, his crazy abilities - it doesn't matter how old I am, it doesn't matter if I or anyone else finds Sonic ridiculous. The Werehog? Sure. Shadow is edgy? Yup. Sonic in King Arthur? Why not. I still find Sonic cool.

Basically, Sonic Flossing is completely harmless fun. The same people bothered by seeing a young cartoon hedgehog expressing happiness may very well be the same kind of cynical people who have lost touch with their youthful happiness. If that's the case, that's okay! People go through all sorts of phases in their life. But they'll find that they're a lot happier when they learn to escape their self-righteous nature and simply enjoy things. Just do what makes you happy - even if that isn't Sonic. We are all capable of this if we just take a deep breath, stop taking ourselves so seriously, and be true to ourselves.