Shadow the Hedgehog Origins
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Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re racing through the origins of Shadow The Hedgehog.
Although the Sonic universe is full of a variety of colorful characters, only a small group can say that they had entire games dedicated to them. On paper, it makes sense why longtime franchise mainstays like Tails, Knuckles, and Dr. Robotnik each got their own titles. But how did Shadow the Hedgehog get a coveted spin off spot just 4 years after he debuted in “Sonic Adventure 2”? To answer that question, we’ll dive into his origin story, look at his reception, and show how his speedy rise in popularity got him a permanent place in the franchise. Without further ado, let’s race back to his epic introduction.
Sonic was minding his own business one day when he suddenly was captured by authorities for committing an unknown crime. Shortly after he escaped, he came face to face with another similar looking hedgehog named Shadow. During a brief fight, Sonic learned that this mysterious being could use a skill known as chaos control to manipulate space and time. Shadow spent some time demonstrating his abilities before leaving Sonic at the mercy of the authorities once more. After leaving the battlefield, it was revealed that he had stolen one of the powerful chaos emeralds as part of a scheme he was working on with evil Dr. Robotnik. Since Shadow was one of the few anthropomorphic hedgehogs running around earth, he was easily mistaken for Sonic. It was initially hard to understand why the new character would ever agree to a partnership with Robotnik. But as Shadow got closer to collecting all of the chaos emeralds, it became clear that his entire existence was tied closely to the doctor’s bloodline.
Around 50 years before the hedgehogs clashed, the young Maria Robotnik was fighting to survive a rare disease while living aboard a space colony near Earth. Her grandfather Gerald wanted nothing more but to save her from her suffering. So, when the government asked him to work on a project that could unlock the secrets of immortality, the scientist jumped on board. Although Gerald and his team successfully created a strong being known as the Biolizard, they found it too dangerous to control. The undeterred scientist continued the experiments while trying to create an ultimate lifeform that could become more thoughtful and caring. Eventually, Gerald’s experiments led to the birth of Shadow the Hedgehog.
Shortly after the anthropomorphic being started walking around the space colony, he became close friends with Maria Robotnik. Although the duo was content to hang with each other among the stars, they both wondered what it would be like to go to Earth. Their daydreams were rudely interrupted with one tragic incident. Believing that Gerald’s work had become too dangerous, the organization known as GUN boarded the space colony to put an end to his experiments. Since Shadow was part of the project, Maria rushed to get him on an escape pod to earth. But her kindness would cost her everything. While Maria was helping Shadow escape, she was mortally wounded by a GUN soldier. She used her last words to try to convince her friend that he should help the world before saying one last goodbye.
Shadow initially didn’t get a chance to save anyone. Shortly after landing on Earth, he was recaptured and put into stasis. He stayed that way until Dr. Robotnik came along and freed the hedgehog. Consumed by vengeance, Shadow volunteered to steal chaos emeralds so the scientist could activate a machine known as the Eclipse Cannon. The machine was originally meant to threaten the people of Earth. However, an angry Gerald had modified the Cannon so it would automatically destroy the planet. After some self-reflection and a few conversations with the heroes, Shadow decided to help foil his creator’s plans. He quickly teamed up with Sonic to defeat any and all obstacles that stood in between them and saving the world. While Shadow was working to stop the colony from falling, he ran low on power. The hedgehog sadly fell back to Earth before he could recover. It seemed like he had sacrificed his life to save the world full of people he once tried to hurt.
Fortunately, Shadow’s story didn’t end here. The edgy hedgehog became so popular amongst fans that Sega decided that reports of his death were greatly exaggerated. Four years after his apparent demise, Shadow was made into the lead character of his own title. Unfortunately, the game fell short of expectations. The biggest criticism and source of comedy about it was the fact that the ultimate life form Shadow occasionally put his own power aside and picked up guns. There were even shooting sound effects when you made certain selections! While there’s nothing wrong with making Sonic games more mature, fans thought the adult themes had gone too far.
Although the game’s edginess was ridiculed, the character would survive the fiasco with his popularity intact. Over 20 years after his first appearance, Shadow is still in high demand. Fans were particularly excited when it was announced he would appear in the 3rd live action Sonic film. Time will tell if Shadow’s appearance there will lead to another full game that lets the hedgehog put the guns down so we can fully see more of his story.
It’s amazing to see how a character who has had a relatively small amount of screen time over the years became a sensation among fans. While Shadow doesn’t appear in every game and show, he often gets a warm reception whenever he shows up. There’s still plenty of room for this mysterious hedgehog to run. It’s likely that Shadow will have a legion of fans following him wherever he goes next.
What’s your favorite part of Shadow’s pop culture journey? Share your thoughts in the comments!
