Shadow the Hedgehog Origins

WatchMojo

It's time to find out how this Sonic anti-hero came to be! Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re racing through the origins of Shadow The Hedgehog.

Transcript

00:00Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're racing through the origins of Shadow the Hedgehog.

00:23Although the Sonic universe is full of a variety of colorful characters, only a small group

00:27can say that they had entire games dedicated to them.

00:30On paper, it makes sense why longtime franchise mainstays like Tails, Knuckles, and Dr. Robotnik

00:35each got their own titles, but how did Shadow the Hedgehog get a coveted spinoff spot just

00:40four years after he debuted in Sonic Adventure 2?

00:53To answer that question, we'll dive into his origin story, look at his reception, and

00:57show how his speedy rise in popularity got him a permanent place in the franchise.

01:01Without further ado, let's race back to his epic introduction.

01:09Sonic was minding his own business one day when he suddenly was captured by authorities

01:12for committing an unknown crime.

01:14Shortly after he escaped, he came face to face with another similar looking hedgehog

01:18named Shadow.

01:31During a brief fight, Sonic learned that his mysterious being could use a skill known as

01:34Chaos Control to manipulate space and time.

01:37Shadow spent some time demonstrating his abilities, before leaving Sonic at the mercy of the authorities

01:41once more.

01:52After leaving the battlefield, it was revealed that he had stolen one of the powerful Chaos

01:56Emeralds as part of a scheme he was working on with evil Dr. Robotnik.

02:00Since Shadow was one of the few anthropomorphic hedgehogs running around Earth, he was easily

02:04mistaken for Sonic.

02:05It was initially hard to understand why the new character would ever agree to a partnership

02:09with Robotnik, but as Shadow got closer to collecting all of the Chaos Emeralds, it became

02:13clear that his entire existence was tied closely to the Doctor's bloodline.

02:24Around 50 years before the hedgehogs clashed, the young Maria Robotnik was fighting to survive

02:29a rare disease while living aboard a space colony near Earth.

02:32Her grandfather, Gerald, wanted nothing more but to save her from her suffering.

02:36So, when the government asked him to work on a project that could unlock the secrets

02:40of immortality, the scientists jumped on board.

02:50Although Gerald and his team successfully created a strong being known as the Bio-Lizard,

02:54they found it too dangerous to control.

02:56The undeterred scientists continued the experiment, while trying to create an ultimate lifeform

03:00that could become more thoughtful and caring.

03:03Eventually, Gerald's experiments led to the birth of Shadow the Hedgehog.

03:10Shortly after the anthropomorphic being started walking around the space colony, he became

03:14close friends with Maria Robotnik.

03:16Although the duo was content to hang with each other among the stars, they both wondered

03:20what it would be like to go to Earth.

03:33Their daydreams were rudely interrupted with one tragic incident.

03:36Believing that Gerald's work had become too dangerous, the organization known as G.U.N.

03:40boarded the space colony to put an end to his experiments.

03:43Since Shadow was part of the project, Maria rushed to get him on an escape pod to Earth,

03:59but her kindness would cost her everything.

04:01While Maria was helping Shadow escape, she was mortally wounded by a gun soldier.

04:05She used her last words to try to convince her friend that he should help the world before

04:09saying one last goodbye.

04:16Shadow initially didn't get a chance to save anyone.

04:18Shortly after landing on Earth, he was recaptured and put into stasis.

04:22He stayed that way until Dr. Robotnik came along and freed the Hedgehog.

04:33Consumed by vengeance, Shadow volunteered to steal Chaos Emeralds so the scientists could

04:37activate a machine known as the Eclipse Cannon.

04:39The machine was originally meant to threaten the people of Earth.

04:42However, an angry Gerald had modified the cannon so it would automatically destroy the

04:46planet.

04:59After some self-reflection and a few conversations with the heroes, Shadow decided to help foil

05:03his creator's plans.

05:05He quickly teamed up with Sonic to defeat any and all obstacles that stood in between

05:08them and saving the world.

05:18While Shadow was working to stop the colony from falling, he ran low on power.

05:21The Hedgehog sadly fell back to Earth before he could recover.

05:24It seemed like he had sacrificed his life to save the world full of people he once tried

05:28to hurt.

05:35Fortunately, Shadow's story didn't end here.

05:38The edgy Hedgehog became so popular amongst fans that SEGA decided that reports of his

05:42death were greatly exaggerated.

05:44Four years after his apparent demise, Shadow was made into the lead character of his own

05:48title.

05:49Unfortunately, the game fell short of expectations.

05:56The biggest criticism and source of comedy about it was the fact that the ultimate lifeform

06:00Shadow occasionally put his own power aside and picked up guns.

06:04There were even shooting sound effects when you made certain selections.

06:10While there's nothing wrong with making Sonic games more mature, fans thought the adult

06:14themes had gone too far.

06:18Although the game's edginess was ridiculed, the character would survive the fiasco with

06:22his popularity intact.

06:23Over 20 years after his first appearance, Shadow is still in high demand.

06:27Fans were particularly excited when it was announced he would appear in the third live-action

06:31Sonic film.

06:41Time will tell if Shadow's appearance there will lead to another full game that lets the

06:45Hedgehog put the guns down so we can fully see more of his story.

06:48Before we continue, be sure to subscribe to our channel and ring the bell to get notified

06:52about our latest videos.

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06:57If you're on your phone, make sure you go into your settings and switch on notifications.

07:04It's amazing to see how a character who has had a relatively small amount of screen time

07:08over the years became a sensation among fans.

07:10While Shadow doesn't appear in every game and show, he often gets a warm reception whenever

07:14he shows up.

07:15There's still plenty of room for this mysterious Hedgehog to run.

07:18It's likely that Shadow will have a legion of fans following him wherever he goes next.

07:22I'm Shadow the Hedgehog, and I made a promise that I intend to keep.

07:27What's your favorite part of Shadow's pop culture journey?

07:30Share your thoughts in the comments.

07:31Ready, team?

07:34Chaos Control!

07:40Did you enjoy this video?

07:42Check out these other clips from WatchMojo, and be sure to subscribe and ring the bell

07:46to be notified about our latest videos.

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