Friends 'Til the End

Sonic X episode #51 "Friends 'Til the End"
Written by: Kiyoko Yoshimura
Directed by: Shigeharu Takahashi
Production no.: 051
Original airdate: 2004-03-21
Country: Japan

Chris' Long Journey is the 51st episode in the first season of Sonic X. In the English dub, it is known as Friends 'Til the End.

The episode opens with a look at Chris's memories: his mother and father have been estranged for long periods of time and, while behaving well, have not brought them back any faster. Faced with these memories, Chris stops the dimensional teleporter before Sonic can cross it, runs away with him, grabs a bicycle from the road, and rides off, with Sonic leaning on the carrier. Although Chris's family is concerned about Sonic's inability to return home, Sonic is very relaxed and lets Chris decide where to go.

Chris's parents launch a search and rescue operation, so Chris and Sonic elude them by hitchhiking on a truck. While Chuck scolds Nelson and Lindsey for not spending enough time with their son and thus neglecting his family duties as well, where he admits, however, that he knew Chris was suffering from missing his parents, but that he had turned the other way, immersing himself completely in the search and giving Chris very little attention, but this was not enough because Chris needed his parents. Meanwhile, Chris leads Sonic to a cottage near a beautiful lake where he and his parents had spent their first time as a real family.

During the bonfire that evening, Chris and Sonic resolve Chris's conflicted feelings and Sonic admits that he doesn't care what world he lives in: the freedom to run is all he needs, helping Chris understand that he doesn't have to condemn himself (because Sonic himself realized that his best friend is not selfish, which was fully demonstrated by the fact that Chris always cared about how Sonic felt) by giving him three important lessons/discoveries: he has always been independent and brave because without him he would be dead (this is said in the original version, in the English version he says that he does not believe theirs is a goodbye and that who knows maybe the two worlds are meant to be one and that one day they would see each other again, this is said explicitly in the English version but is seen implicitly in the original version and in episodes 53-54) ; he is free to decide what to feel and what to do, no one, not even Sonic, can decide for him (with this "lesson" in the original series we were made to understand that the decision to follow Chris, to be with him and to be his friend, was all his own free choice because Sonic was not only referring to Chris but also to himself), is Chris understands that if he is free to choose, Sonic is also free to choose otherwise it would not be true friendship, finally the third most important lesson in which it was also a way to comfort him by giving him hope : " the Moon is the same in whatever world you look at it " with this last " lesson " Sonic makes Chris understand that even if they come from two different worlds they are actually the same, that there is no difference between them ( with this exclamation Sonic lets Chris know that there isn't reason why one day they cannot see each other again in the original version even if said implicitly, they make us understand with this sentence that for them it is not a goodbye because Sonic himself never said goodbye to him but an : " we will see each other again one day " implicit )

Nelson and Lindsey understand that Chris is at the cottage because it is the only place where they spent the summer together. When they arrive, they find Chris standing on the dock at the lake, looking at the moon with tears in his eyes.... and Sonic is nowhere to be seen.

Localised names

Also known as

Language	Localised Name	English Translation
Portuguese	Amigos Até ao Fim	Friends 'Til the End

Eyecatch cards

• 

  Nelson Thorndyke

• 

  Linsey Thorndyke

References

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