Knuckles the Echidna
From Sonic Retro
Template:CharacterSheet Knuckles the Echidna (ナックルズ・ザ・エキドゥナ), a red-quilled echidna, is a character from the Sonic the Hedgehog series of video games. First introduced in Sonic the Hedgehog 3, his existence was heavily advertised and met with such success that by the time the second half of the game was ready to be released, they gave the character second billing, calling it Sonic & Knuckles. Since his introduction, he has gained a strong fan following, and been featured in nearly every main Sonic title since.
Contents
Character Conception
After the successes of the previous games in the Sonic the Hedgehog series, it was only natural that another game would be put into the pipeline after Sonic the Hedgehog 2 and Sonic CD were released onto the masses. Taken up by the Japanese portion of STI, production soon commenced on Sonic the Hedgehog 3. While the team had many goals in mind, one element they were sure of early on was they wanted inclusion of yet another new character in the world of Sonic, both to expand the world and to have someone new to advertise.
The internal process to find this new character began, with numerous animal concepts thrown about, but winning out in the end was Takashi Yuda's design of a spiny Echidna. Originally colored green, it wasn't until later in the design process that Knuckles was given his current red hue, making him distinct when on screen with Sonic and Tails.
While Yuda originally designed the character to be another friend to Sonic the Hedgehog, the team decided to take a different route with Knuckles, wanting to instead make a rival to Sonic, someone he would have to overcome during the course of the game in addition to, but not the same status as, Dr. Eggman.
Knuckles the Echidna (Video Game Character)
Origin of Knuckles
File:Classic knuckles orthographic.svg
- Source: Sonic the Hedgehog 3 JP Manual
For as long as Knuckles can remember, he has been the lone guardian of Angel Island (sometimes referred to as the "Floating Island"), given the sacred duty of protecting the mysterious gems that lie within - the seven Chaos Emeralds, and the Master Emerald. Thousands of years ago, the Knuckles Clan was a prosperous one, but when the gods went mad and wiped out his people because of their insolence, those that survived remained on the floating continent, swearing to protect the Master Emerald instead of using it for evil, to prevent the terrible events from happening again. By the time of Sonic the Hedgehog 3, Knuckles is the last survivor of this ancient race, and must uphold his oath to protect the gems that his forefathers once disturbed.
Knuckles could have sat at the shrine for the rest of his life had it not been for the events of Sonic the Hedgehog 2, the falling Death Egg crashing into Angel Island. Without warning, Knuckles was thrown from the Hidden Palace Zone, the force disturbing the island and causing it to crash into the ocean. Once the dust settled, Knuckles ran back into the shrine, and while the Master Emerald pillar was untouched, the seven smaller pillars surrounding it - which had been carrying the seven Chaos Emeralds - no longer held the glowing gems. Shocked at their disappearance, he quickly went looking across the island, searching for them, but to no avail. He did, however, come across the Death Egg, recognizing it as the "dragon of legend," an ancient legend represented on a mural hanging in the entrance way of the Master Emerald shrine. He also came across another foreign entity on the island - Dr. Eggman.
Because of his seclusion from the outside world, Knuckles was quick to fall for the doctor's lies. He calmly explained that he was here to prevent someone else from stealing the Chaos Emeralds on the island - Sonic the Hedgehog. And, sure enough, when Sonic finally arrived on the island with a set in hand, Knuckles had no reason to doubt Eggman, promptly stealing the emeralds away from Sonic. It was only after Sonic and Knuckles' confrontation in the Hidden Palace Zone, watching Eggman steal the Master Emerald out from under him, that Knuckles realized he had been duped. Wanting to mend his error, he assisted Sonic and Tails in their fight against Eggman, hoping they would be able to reclaim the Master Emerald and bring peace back to his island. Even though they were no longer enemies, Sonic and Knuckles would still be rivals in their future meetings, teaming up only when necessary.
Personality and Traits
Knuckles the Echidna is a 16 year old red echidna who lives upon his ancestral home, Angel Island. He has a fierce loyalty to his homeland, and does whatever is in his power to protect it and the Master Emerald, the source of power that allows the island to float over the Earth. Although there are times in which he is called away from the island (often to stop Dr. Eggman as he threatens the Master Emerald), he prefers to stay near whichever emerald shrine is in use, keeping a watchful eye over everything.
Even though he can be clever and knows the island like the back of his hand, Knuckles can be easily deceived due to his naive and gullible nature. Being secluded from the outside world, he grew up believing in honesty, and was not prepared for the manipulation and deceiving nature of Dr. Eggman. Even after being shown the error of his ways, Eggman has been able to trick Knuckles since, making him think that Sonic was out to get the Master Emerald shards in Sonic Adventure, and convincing Knuckles to pilot one of his robots in Sonic Advance 2.
Knuckles also has quite the temper, and while it can be helpful channeling it when fighting whoever might be threatening his island, it can also get him in trouble, such as his interactions with Rouge the Bat. He also is extremely shy around girls, which may be an after affect of living his isolated life before being thrown into the Sonic the Hedgehog story. While he would never admit it, Knuckles has become a bit envious of the lifestyle that Sonic has, being able to live carefree without anything holding him in one place, but Knuckles would never trade away his duties to live Sonic's life. He is also an avid treasure hunter, exploring the island on his down time as well as other locales when he knows the Master Emerald is safe. He is also well versed in the martial arts, and has quite the liking toward fruits, especially grapes.
While Knuckles can not reach the speeds that Sonic can, or jump as high as either Sonic or Tails, he does contain some unique abilities that neither of them have. He is the strongest of the main Sonic characters, said to be as strong as Sonic is fast. He is able to use his knuckles to punch through structures that Sonic can not spin dash through, and shatter boulders with his fists. Additionally, he is a master of martial arts with a specialty in punching. His spiked knuckles also give him the ability to climb almost any surface, compensating for his short jump. He can also glide, aided by his dreadlock-like spines spreading out as he slips through the air. He also enjoys burrowing underground, and is sometimes mistaken as being a mole because of this. Curiously, the only time in-game Knuckles digs is in Sonic Adventure, and only then with the assistance of the Shovel Claw. In addition to these unique moves, Knuckles possesses his own variations on the spin and spin dash. He also shares Tails' ability to swim.
Knuckles also has the capability to transform into various super-powered states, featured in Sonic 3 & Knuckles. The Chaos Emeralds give Knuckles the ability to turn into Super Knuckles, while the Super Emeralds allow him to turn into Hyper Knuckles. While this is the only game he turns into these forms, he does use a pseudo-super form during the finale of Sonic Heroes.
Knuckles in Other Media
As is the case with Sonic the Hedgehog, Knuckles the Echidna's storyline has been modified as he's been adapted into other media. Oftentimes attempting to fit in Sega canon into other, often western stories, they have been met with varying degrees of success.
Sonic the Hedgehog (Archie)
Knuckles the Echidna was introduced in the Archie series Sonic The Hedgehog in issue #13, a loose adaptation of Sonic the Hedgehog 3. In the issue, Dr. Robotnik finds the Floating Island because of the Chaos Emerald energy it is emitting, and sets off to steal it for his own use. Sonic and Tails follow the Doctor, wondering what interest he has in the island, but assume that it has something to do with a Chaos Emerald. When they land, they are quickly confronted by Knuckles, who has already been tricked by Dr. Robotnik into thinking that they want to steal the Chaos Emerald keeping the island afloat. Eventually, the guardian of the island realizes he's been tricked, and teams up with Sonic to get the emerald back and to keep the island safe.
With each subsequent adaptation of a game Knuckles was featured in, the Archie series continued to add layers to Knuckles' history, showing that he used to once live with his father Locke until he mysteriously disappeared in a wall of flame. Because of this act, Knuckles knew very little of the island's secrets, and was forced to rely on himself. It would take some time for Knuckles to fully allow himself to trust others, though he became quick allies with the Chaotix once they were introduced. He also soon met a fire ant named Archimedes, who up to that point had been trying to mentor Knuckles in secret. It would not be long before Knuckles was to discover that he wasn't the last of his race, and that another group of Echidnas, known as the Dark Legion, had separated from the main clan because of differing beliefs regarding technology - while the Legion wanted to embrace it, the other elders wanted to stay as far away from it as they could.
Eventually, Knuckles was to discover that his entire civilization - including his father - was in fact still alive, just displaced from the island in an alternate zone. It was only a matter of time before the city of Echidnaopolis was restored to Angel Island, returning the civilization to the way it once was. The cast of characters in Knuckles' world soon became so large that Knuckles was able to get his own short-lived series, Knuckles the Echidna, penned by Ken Penders.
Knuckles also has a love interest in the comic named Julie-Su. Once a member of the Dark Legion and subsequently an enemy of Knuckles, she eventually gave up her evil ways and fell in love with the guardian of the island, starting up a relationship that, at least in one possible future, progresses to the point where they have a child, Lara-Su.
It is of note that as Sonic the Hedgehog comic reached its 100th issue, Knuckles turned from red to green for a story arc, an homage to his original concept art.
Sonic the Comic
Introduced in a similar fashion to the games, Knuckles is tricked by Dr. Robotnik into thinking Sonic the Hedgehog is his enemy. Sonic and Knuckles go the rounds, and while Robotnik focuses on rebuilding his Death Egg, Knuckles steals Sonic's six Chaos Emeralds and combine them with his own. However, he realizes that he has been tricked, and when Robotnik is ready to use the emeralds for his own gain, Knuckles reveals that he had another emerald that he hadn't told Robotnik of - the Grey Emerald. The Grey Emerald, able to neutralize the others, prevents Robotnik from using them for evil, and he is quickly defeated. Driving him off the island, Knuckles thought that he would be able to peacefully go back to guarding the island, waiting for his people to return from wherever they disappeared to. But this was not to happen, and Robotnik once again stuck, discovering that in addition to the Grey Emerald, Knuckles had another mysterious gem he had not revealed - the Master Emerald. Stealing it, he tried to use it to power his Death Egg, but the combined efforts of Sonic and Knuckles prevented this plan from succeeding.
In the aftermath, Knuckles attempted to restore his island to normality, but was unable to escape from the conflicts that Dr. Robotnik would begin time and again. Before Robotnik's reign was to end, Knuckles agreed to hide the Emerald Hill folk in the Mushroom Hill Zone, away from the evil dictator's watch. This arrangement was only temporary, and once Robotnik was usurped from power, the refugees returned to their home, leaving Knuckles to once again sit and watch over the emeralds and try to discover what happened to his people.
While another echidna, Doctor Zachary, was introduced into the series, he only hinted at what happened to the final fate of the Echidna tribe. At first pretending to be friendly, Zachary turned on Knuckles, even allying himself with Dr. Robotnik for a time. Although Nigel Kitching, the main writer through most of Sonic the Comic's lifespan, had intended to wrap up the threads involving Knuckles' lost people, the comic was canceled before he was given the chance. The final arc in the series, and adaptation of Sonic Adventure, revealed that Knuckles actually lived thousands of years ago, and that his tribe had been attacked by the Drakon Empire. Had the series continued, it would have been revealed that it was the Drakon's who had been the cause of the fall of the Echidna's, and that the few who had survived were not scattered across the galaxy, enslaved on numerous planets.
It is also interesting to note that while the white markings on Knuckles' chest are part of Knuckles in every other continuity, in Sonic the Comic it is actually a necklace that he wears.
Sonic the Hedgehog (Anime)
While this two-part direct-to-video anime was produced with the supervision of Sonic Team, Knuckles is presented with a simpler backstory, omitting all references to Angel Island and the Chaos Emeralds. Instead of being the guardian of the Master Emerald, he is a worldly treasure hunter who seeks out adventure wherever it hides. While he and Sonic the Hedgehog seem to have a rivalry, Knuckles is far more laid back about their relationship, going as far as calling himself Sonic's best friend. Being levelheaded, he is portrayed as far less naive than his gaming counterpart. He also is never seen without wearing his trusty hat, even if it happens to be on fire.
Sonic Underground
Returning to the classic Robotnik-tricks-Knuckles origin, Sonic Underground was the first Western animated series to feature the echidna, once again the guardian of the Floating Island and the Chaos Emerald inside. While Dr. Robotnik and his cohorts Sleet and Dingo try to get the emerald for their own purposes, Knuckles eventually realizes his folly and joins up with Sonic, Sonia and Manic and defeats the doctor, getting him off his island. Knuckles becomes a permanent ally of the team, even though he spends most of his time on the island.
Curious enough, not much is said of Knuckles' ancestry, and even has a relative - his grandfather Athair - on the island from the beginning, removing one of the major plot points that other media had been using in regards to Knuckles' character and story arc.
Sonic X
Caught up in the Chaos Control wave that sends the rest of the main cast to planet Earth, Knuckles found himself on a unfamiliar planet, and without Angel Island to guard. While he eventually finds Sonic and company on the planet, he tends to avoid them whenever possible, instead going off on his own, first to find the Chaos Emeralds and then, when Angel Island finally does appear, to guard his home. Since the series was produced under the supervision of Sonic Team, Knuckles tends to stick close to his video game persona, although certain characteristics such as his anger and gullibility are enhanced during the series.
Miscellaneous
- The trademark white swoosh on Knuckles' chest is the remnant of a promotional deal that fell through. Sega had been in negotiations with Nike to do a campaign with them, and Knuckles was meant to have the Nike logo on him. When nothing came of the plans, the echidna we know kept the white patch, albeit in a more generic form.
- While Sonic affectionately calls Knuckles "Knucklehead," and he has gone by other nicknames such as "Rad Red," "Red Storm," and "Knux," the original Japanese manual of Sonic the Hedgehog 3 states that his original nickname was simply "Knuckle."
- While Knuckles has been listed as being 16 years of age since Sonic Adventure, his original age was given as 15. Since the opposite happened to Sonic between Sonic Jam and Adventure, Sonic and Knuckles effectively swapped ages for no discernible reason.
Appearances
Video Games
See Games featuring Knuckles the Echidna.
Television Series and Film
- Sonic Underground (US, France)
- Sonic the Hedgehog (Anime, Japan)
- Sonic X (Anime, Japan)
Comic Books
- Sonic the Hedgehog (Archie Comics, US)
- Knuckles the Echidna (Archie Comics, US))
- Sonic the Comic (Fleetway, UK)
- Sonic X (Archie Comics, US)
- Dash & Spin (Shogakukan, Japan)
Game Books and Novels
Theme Songs
Voice Actors
- Yasunori Matsumoto (Sonic the Hedgehog (anime) - Japanese)
- Bill Wise (Sonic the Hedgehog (anime) - English)
- Ian James Corlett (Sonic Underground)
- Nobutoshi Kanna (Japanese game voice (1998-Present) plus Sonic X)
- Michael McGaharn (Sonic Adventure - English)
- Ryan Drummond (Sonic Shuffle - English)
- Scott Drier (English game voice (2001-2004))
- Dan Green (English game voice (2005-2010) plus Sonic X)
- Travis Willingham (English game voice (2010-present)