SEGA's 35th anniversary animated short Sonic the Hedgehog: Memories and Beyond premiered today on Sonic's official channels, after a preview event for it last week. IDW Publishing also confirmed yesterday that Sonic the Hedgehog: The Road to #100 will be among its free issues for Comics Giveaway Day on May 1, 2027, setting up the 100th issue of the ongoing comic. That series has been running since April 2018, and its 92nd issue arrives on December 9. Check out the official post down below:
What Memories And Beyond Is About
SEGA first announced Memories and Beyond at Anime Expo in July and revealed the November 12 date with a new trailer at its Club Chaos event in New York City on October 9. In the short, Dr. Eggman steals Sonic's life-data and uses the power of the Chaos Emeralds to turn Metal Sonic into the ultimate fighting machine. Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, Amy, Shadow and Rouge face Super Metal Sonic and draw on the friendships they have built across their adventures to beat him. SEGA's Japanese Sonic account has confirmed that a Japanese dub is in production. Here is the trailer from the official Sonic the Hedgehog YouTube channel:
Archie's Sonic And IDW's Sonic Are Separate Continuities
Before IDW, Archie Comics published Sonic for nearly 25 years. Its series started in November 1992 as a 4-issue limited series and then ran as an ongoing book for 290 issues until December 2016. It drew its premise from the 1993 DIC cartoon, with Sonic fighting Dr. Eggman as a member of the Freedom Fighters, and it remains the longest-running comic based on a video game. SEGA revoked the license after issue #290 and announced in July 2017 that it was ending its relationship with Archie.
The official Sonic account announced the SEGA and IDW partnership on July 21, 2017. Ian Flynn, the longtime Archie writer, became IDW's lead writer, and Archie artists including Tracy Yardley and colorist Matt Herms came with him. IDW's book is a brand-new continuity with no connection to the Archie stories, and Flynn confirmed before launch that none of the characters he created at Archie would appear. The IDW series picks up after the game Sonic Forces and the war Dr. Eggman waged in it. The first 4 issues came out weekly in April 2018 before the book went monthly in May. Flynn and Evan Stanley are the series' current writers.
IDW's comic introduced its own cast alongside the game characters. Tangle the Lemur was the first new character revealed, in January 2018, and later additions include Whisper the Wolf, the villain Dr. Starline, the reformed Badnik Belle, and Surge the Tenrec and Kitsunami the Fennec. IDW's IDW Collection hardcovers present the ongoing series, annuals and miniseries in what the publisher calls recommended reading order, starting with issue #1.
IDW Sonic Reading Order: The Main Series
The ongoing series is collected in numbered trade paperbacks. These are the volumes in order, with the issues each collects:
- Volume 1: Fallout! (#1-4): After Dr. Eggman disappears, his Badniks start attacking towns in an organized way, and Sonic tracks down the source with Tails, Amy, Knuckles, Blaze and Tangle.
- Volume 2: The Fate of Dr. Eggman (#5-8): The Chaotix find an amnesiac Eggman living as "Mr. Tinker," and Neo Metal Sonic is revealed as the leader of the Eggman Empire.
- Volume 3: Battle for Angel Island (#9-12): Sonic and the Resistance take Angel Island back from Neo Metal Sonic, while Dr. Starline restores Eggman's memories.
- Volume 4: Infection (#13-16): Eggman builds the Metal Virus, and Sonic is infected while investigating.
- Volume 5: Crisis City (#17-20): Eggman spreads the virus from his Faceship, and Charmy, Cheese, Chocola and Shadow are turned into Zombots.
- Volume 6: The Last Minute (#21-24): Tails searches for a cure, Restoration HQ falls to an outbreak, and Tangle is infected.
- Volume 7: All or Nothing (#25-29): The Deadly Six seize the Chaos Emeralds, and Super Sonic and Super Silver destroy the Metal Virus.
- Volume 8: Out of the Blue (2020 Annual, #30-32): Jewel takes over the Restoration while Sonic, missing after the finale, turns up in Blaze's world.
- Volume 9: Chao Races and Badnik Bases (#33-36): Belle is introduced, and the heroes race Chao to rebuild Omega.
- Volume 10: Test Run! (#37-40): Sonic, Tails and Amy are trapped in Eggman's robot testing tower, and Belle's origin as a Badnik built by Mr. Tinker is revealed.
- Volume 11: Zeti Hunt! (#41-44): The reunited Deadly Six attack Restoration HQ.
- Volume 12: Trial by Fire (#45-49): A camping trip turns into a forest fire, and the Badniks of the world are summoned to Eggperial City.
- Volume 13: Battle for the Empire (#50, #51, 2022 Annual): Sonic and Tails fight Surge and Kit as Eggman and Starline split for good.
- Volume 14: Overpowered (#52-56): Surge takes the Dynamo Cage, forcing Sonic and Eggman into a truce.
- Volumes 15 to 20 (#57-78): Urban Warfare, Misadventures, Adventure Awaits, Extreme Competition, Collision Course, and Cause and Effect cover the Clean Sweep Saga, including the Clean Sweepstakes Extreme Gear race and Sonic's turn as the Phantom Rider, plus several specials and the 2024 Annual.
Volume 21: Reprise followed on April 21, 2026, and Volume 22: Stealing the Show is set for December 22, 2026. The arcs group into named sagas: Neo Metal Sonic (Volumes 1 to 3), Metal Virus (Volumes 4 to 8), Eggman's Legacy (Volumes 9 to 14), Clean Sweep and the current Road to #100.
The Miniseries And Where They Fit
IDW has published 6 miniseries alongside the main book, all of them 4 issues long:
- Tangle and Whisper (2019): The 2 IDW originals team up. Ian Flynn wrote it and Evan Stanley drew it, and Flynn has placed it after issue #16. IDW Collection Volume 2 collects it with issues #13-20.
- Bad Guys (2020): Dr. Starline recruits Rough, Tumble, Mimic and Zavok after the Metal Virus Saga to take over an abandoned Eggman base.
- Imposter Syndrome (2021-2022): Introduces Surge and Kit and ties into Trial by Fire ahead of issue #50.
- Scrapnik Island (2022-2023): Sonic and Tails are trapped on an island built to be their nightmare, facing foes like Mecha Knuckles. It is the first IDW miniseries not written by Flynn, with Daniel Barnes writing.
- Fang the Hunter (2024): Fang, Bark and Bean hunt a rumored 8th Chaos Emerald in the Classic era, between Sonic the Fighters and Sonic Superstars.
- Sonic the Hedgehog x Godzilla (2026): The crossover with Toho's monster, with issue #4 out today.
Collected Editions On IDW's Store
IDW sells the collections directly through its online store. The Volume 1: Fallout trade paperback lists at $15.99, and an IDW-exclusive box set packs Volumes 1 to 3, which together collect the first 12 issues. The On the Go, Vol. 1 edition also reprints those 12 issues, and the Tangle and Whisper collection adds the 2019 Annual.
The oversized IDW Collection hardcovers group the material in larger chunks. Volume 1 ($59.99) collects issues #1-12, which IDW describes as "everything a beginner could need, everything a diehard could want!" Volume 2 collects #13-20, the 2019 Annual and Tangle and Whisper. Volume 3 collects #21-32 and the 2020 Annual, which finishes the Metal Virus Saga. Volume 4 picks up with Bad Guys and the Chao Races arc, and Volume 5 covers Zeti Hunt and beyond. Volumes 2 through 5 each list at $41.99.
The Road To #100
The current saga is building toward issue #100. Silver and Blaze led issues #89-91, and Tangle and Whisper take over in issue #92 on December 9, when a mysterious fog spreads through Spiral Hill. IDW's editors have said Silver and Blaze return from issue #97 onward, that characters from across the Road to #100 will have roles in the final fight, and that the ongoing series continues with a new adventure in issue #101. An Amy Rose one-shot described as "slightly spooky" is scheduled for March 2027, and Amy is also coming to theaters, as covered in SONIC THE HEDGEHOG 4 Casts FROZEN Star Kristen Bell As Amy Rose.
The free Comics Giveaway Day issue recaps the mystery so far. It tries to pull fans with the story that a Mysterious Villain has been pulling strings in Sonic's world with mind-altering illusions, spreading mayhem from Blackwood Castle to Spiral Hill, and that the issue prepares readers for the showdown in #100 whether they have read since issue #1 or not. Comics Giveaway Day is a Penguin Random House event, and IDW's lineup also includes a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles issue and Worm #0. Here is IDW's announcement:
Which IDW Sonic saga is your favorite so far: Neo Metal Sonic, the Metal Virus, Eggman's Legacy, Clean Sweep or the Road to #100?
Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.