While Knuckles has been something of an enjoyable goofy blast that’s contained some genuine surprises (the entirely batshit episode 4 may actually be a bizarre highlight of the year), I’d also be the first to admit that the adventures of Sonic’s big red bruiser hasn’t exactly been the tightest when it comes to narrative. Up to this point, I honestly haven’t cared, as this frenetic and funny spin off to the larger, hedgehog lead universe hasn’t required the storytelling talents of a Billy Wilder to keep things moving.
However, after five episodes of madcap happenings that’s involved high-tech brawls, jewish dinners, rock opera vision quests and a whole boat load of bowling, it’s time for Knuckles to try and make sense of its flailing plot threads and tone in order to finish out the season in style. Does the hefty echidna close things out with a knockout blow, or does he merely keep spinning in place?
The last we saw of Knuckles and Wade, Wade’s estranged, bowling champion father, Pistol Pete had betrayed our heroes and rattled them out to rogue GUN agents Mason and Willoughby who lay in wait for the multi-dimensional mammal in Pete’s penthouse with their high-tech weapons drawn. However, Wade’s lessons in the way of the warrior has left him a bit more savvy than he once was and even though it looks like he’s sold Knuckles out to protect his mother and sister, the whole thing is actually a big double cross.
After the standard, red, crackly fight ensues and Mason and Willoughby are finally brought down by Knuckles’ bludgeoning might, Wade is free to face his father in the final of the Tournament of Champions bowling contest that brought them all to Reno in the first place. However, while Wade faces his greatest test on the battleground of strikes and gutterballs, Knuckles has a whole lot more strenuous fight ahead of him when the villainous Buyer, the man who’s been sending people after our fuzzy hero all along, finally enters the fray. However, there’s no power gloves or laser gun for this guy as he shows up to rumble in a robotic power suit that’s equal parts Doctor Octopus and Whiplash from Iron Man 2, and soon the pair’s fight to the finish spills into the alley where Wade and Pete are bowling to the finish.
Can Knuckles win? For that matter, can Wade win? And what, if any, ramifications are ahead for the two and their extended family in the aftermath of their great battle – well, not to get too spoilerific too soon; but there’s actually none. But then this is systemic of the issues that drag down Knuckles’ final episode.
Some were eager to write Knuckles off as a mere kids show, and even though that’s technically true, the show has constantly and repeatedly hit us with more fun stuff than Sonic hurling himself at an end of level boss. The positive points were a bouncy, pop culture savvy tone that took big swings in order to secure some legitimate huge laughs and some production values that easily matched those seen in the Sonic movies. However, cause and effect requires that pluses come with negatives and virtually all of the show’s shortcomings that have previously been hidden by the bright colours and rapid fire jokes, now rise to the surface.
One complaint that’s been leveled at Knuckles is that due to the expense it takes to slap a red, CGI, echidna on the screen means that Knuckles regularly had to step aside in order to let the much cheaper Adam Pally take centre stage. However, while previous episodes have come up with ingenious ways to make it work while keeping Knuckles off screen (seriously, episode 4 was a banger), the finale finds that it’s far more cost effective to focus on Wade Whipple and his bowling tournament than linger too long on Knuckles’ show down with the season’s underutilised big bad.
The other issue the finale has that it can no longer disguise is that its villain plot was so poorly established, we actually know less about Rory McCann’s Buyer than we did when the series started. Until this final episode, McCann only had about two scenes in five episodes to build his antagonist, and aside from growling, shouting and looking incredibly sweaty, his motives were weirdly nebulous beyond “wanting Knuckles’ power”. As a result, his final act appearance – in a mech suit that looks absolutely awsome – ends up being completely unearned and thus doesn’t bring the tension you’d hope that comes with all the epic, CGI tentacle smashing. Furthermore, after an entire series, we haven’t really gotten under our lead character’s quilly skin other than he likes fighting and is honest to a fault – but we already knew that. And so it’s left to Wade’s daddy issues to save the day, and while this showdown with Cary Elewes’ tea sipping fop pretty much plays like Kingpin for kids, it shouldn’t be dominating the episode this much even if the continued shot of a teetering pin succeeds to shifting you to the edge of your seat.
The final issue, although not exactly a fatal one, is that with a third Sonic movie due to land near the end of the year, Knuckles curiously doesn’t bother to give us any mid credit sting to get us hyped for the upcoming romp. No, it’s not necessary to the overall story, but it is good business to tee up the very expensive movie that’s connected to your very expensive TV show.
And yet, despite my last episode bitching, Knuckles has been a hell of a lot of fun and even though this season finale can’t quite stick the landing after five episodes of entertaining lunacy (Edi Patterson’s gag about dislocating her thumb to escape handcuff when the keys are right there is a cracker), Knuckles has zipped about the place with the same aplomb as his blurring, blue buddy.
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