Good video with some more background

https://youtu.be/lixTJBSJTzY?si=DAbK7wUAotW_ptb-

The adventure games, Sonic unleashed, the black knight, and Sonic X had the best characterization of Sonic.

"Do i need a reason to help out a friend" is a quote i use to this day

Sonic shares a lot of his personality with Luffy. The guy’s got a biting attitude and a mean-streak, and he strongly dislikes doing what other people tell him to. He’s technically a hero, but he doesn’t actually think about saving people or freedom as an ideal. He just does what he does because he wants to. He lives for adventure, he’ll find fun in basically any situation, and he’ll throw hands with monsters, armies, empires and gods for his friends.

7:56 nothing wrong with being passionate about your interests lol. Society tries to make adults feel like they can't be passionate about their interests anymore, which is wrong

I was so glad that in the Chaotix Casefiles the director made Rouge's voice a lower pitch. The quickness i would've clicked off if they didn't.

"Die you bastard!" Was actually kinda badass ngl

The 2000’s era of Sonic began living and learning with “Live and Learn” and ended living life with “Live Life” How poetic 💙

Legit every Sonic character has lost their personality, not just the blue blur himself but hopefully that gets remedied soon with a new game.

Honestly I'm longing for a game where characters have anywhere near as good interactions as they do in the comics.

Was worried this was gonna be another “Sonic hasn’t been good since Unleashed” video but I’m glad I actually watched the entire thing. It’s rare to hear Sonic fans actually compliment Frontiers now.

I think there's a phenomenon that also helped games from Black Knight to backwards. The unconscious nostalgia for the 2000s, if you notice, we have mixed styles from the 2000s with clothing from the 90s in our society, as well as with games, programs, etc.
The fact that Sonic behaves like a "universal" character while still retaining the aesthetic brilliance of the 2000s was one of the points that brought Sonic back, In addition to the film and Frontiers

"People often refer to the 2000s as the dark era of sonic. But it was the 2010s"
SAY IT AGAIN FOR THE PPL IN THE BACK! ive been saying that everytime!

I'm just glad Sonic Team is allowing themselves to get out of that Saturday Morning Cartoon phase that they tried to be stuck in in the 2010s. I think one thing that is making Sonic successful is that the franchise is trying to approach a general audience more than kids.

Sonic as a franchise majorly, appeals to anime loving teens & adults because it seeks to be a franchise that PUSHES THE ENVELOP that other franchises won't do in its E to E10+ ratings. Sonic should be a franchise that should not be held back by what is expected from a franchise about animal mascots.

I'm not one of those japanese Sonic is the only true Sonic truthers. But I think that japanese essence is also what makes Sonic successful. In Sonic, people WANT the anime-esque action, storylines, drama, stakes, etc. and fulfills something that people do not find in other franchises.

4:26 Knuckles knows Amy is going to punnish Sonic 😂

While this video does a really great job in establishing and getting across in your head of what Sonic means to you and what in your head what was lost about Sonic, but I feel it was a disservice to not go over, the "why" Sonic when into the direction of Sonic Colors and 2010s, Sonic 06 being the catalyst for and why it had an impact on Sega, that forced them to take the wrongs lessons, trying so hard not to go back and resemble anything they did in Sonic 06 which inadvertently, destroy the idea of multiple playable characters and serious stories with how much the internet bullied Sonic team, Sonic and Sega back then.

People still wonder why we never gotten a Sonic adventure 3 or will ever get sonic adventure 3, without addressing the elephant in the room that was Sonic 06 which also used the adventure formula

You're opinions of Mania in the context of the games around it, perfectly explain the "dark ages" moniker. For every Black Knight, Unleashed, or Riders, you had Shadow, Sonic 06, and Secret rings.
At least it tried, yeah. But you gotta remember that these games were rooooouuuuugh. Time has been kinder to them thanks to fan efforts and the power of hindsight, but it would be disingenuous to completely remove the context of those games and how they were perceived.

I am hopeful that the new guard from Frontiers onward have the "sauce" if you will.

2010s is the true dark age of Sonic. Even SEGA themselves had admitted the 2010s was when Sonic lost popularity in the US. 5:29 Even for an adult it'll feel hurtful knowing a game franchise you grew up with is being mocked by its own company and you're watching it fall apart in real time

I think the 2000s should be called the ambitious age (the restrained ambition age?) because you can see the vision, but there's always one aspect of the games (at least one, anyway) that holds them back.

Always thought it was interesting that sonic has a message about friendship but liking it was so cringe at one point that making friends was actually tougher.

It's funny how you say the 2010s tried making Sonic more like Mickey Mouse when Mickey himself was removed of his personality that we only got to see in VERY old comics, the ones where he used a gun.