Since I've talked so much about the Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog episodes that considered pretty bad, I think the time has come to talk about another one that's pretty good. In fact, I think Mass Transit Trouble is among the best of the series. It has a good story, good plot, and it has some genuine suspense. Sonic and his super speed are put to the ultimate test when Dr. Robotnik unveils his most diabolical plan to date. This was the big one. He's not messing around this time. Ordinarily Robotnik's schemes are pretty hackneyed and far-fetched, but this time, he pulls out the big guns, or in this case, bombs. That's right, Botsy threatens to destroy some major transportation companies around Mobius, bringing everything to a standstill. Very fiendish idea, he must be having an off day. Will Sonic be able to save the day like he always does? Let's find out, shall we? Our story begins on a dark and stormy night out at sea, where a ship is about to run smack bang into icebergs, but luckily, the captain brought along a secret weapon: Sonic and Tails. The icebergs won't be a problem for them, but what does become a problem is that Lighthouse One suddenly goes dark, and without that lighthouse, all the ships at sea would be doomed. Our heroes go to investigate and find that Coconuts has taken over the controls, bounding up the lighthouse keeper, Angus McKilt-Bagpipe-Scottish-Stereotype. As expected, Sonic bounds up the robot monkey and frees the hostage just as an SOS comes over the shortwave, calling for help all the way from Mobius Intercontinental Airport located a convenient 100 miles away. Our heroes book it, just as Coconuts frees himself and knocks out Angus, preparing to plant a bomb as per Robotnik's instructions. Over at the airport, Sonic is informed that the control tower was sabotaged preventing planes from landing, including a jumbo jet that was falling apart at the seams, but an instant hedgehog whirlwind helped that puppy to land. Inside the control tower, Sonic found Scratch tampering with the machines, but before he can stop him, he gets yet another call, begging for help at Infinite Points Railroad Junction, allowing Scratch to make a clean getaway, but not before secretly planting a bomb. Now, I find it strange that Sonic is out of breath and exhausted when going about this task, when in previous episodes, he dashes to and fro without breaking a sweat. To him, running a thousand miles is a brisk jog, yet for some reason, all this running around at sea and at the airport is taxing. No matter, they have to go to see who's been working on the railroad. Bet you can guess who, right? They meet Cecil Turtle, who informs them of an impending train collision caused by a robot sabotaging the switching house. "Sounds familiar," said Tails, who sounds more bored and annoyed than he does concerned. Sorry if this impending tragedy is boring to you, kid. Anyway, Sonic sets to work physically rebuilding sets of tracks to allow all the trains to narrowly avoid crashing into each other. I also like how the turtle pays him no mind while performing this heroic act, but then in this guy's case, if someone stole his wallet, it would take him two weeks to notice. Anyway, Grounder managed to sneak away from the switching house after surreptitiously planting a bomb. With everything in place, Dr. Robotnik broadcasts his scheme to all of Mobius, stating that within five minutes, the time bombs he planted at the lighthouse, airport, and train junction would detonate.
After Robotnik spells out his entire plan, the first order of business was to locate the bomb at the train station. When they find it glued to a board, dummy Tails thinks it's a good idea to hit it with a mallet. Luckily he missed and smashed Sonic's foot instead, but really, how stupid does one have to be to hit an explosive with a blunt object? Sonic manages to pry it loose due to the heat caused by the friction of his shoes when he runs and skids to a hard stop. With one bomb in his possession, Sonic makes a beeline for the airport. Now you might be thinking to yourselves, wow, Scratch, Grounder, and Coconuts are more competent in this episode than the rest of the series. They did as instructed with no screw-ups. Well, let's rectify that and have them try and place a trap for Sonic that involves a trip wire and a hidden bomb. You should've quit while you were ahead, dunce-bots, or in this case, three disembodied heads. The trap blew chips. Back at the airport, Sonic borrows a metal detector from the flirtatious flight attendant to help locate the explosive. The clock was ticking, and so were the bombs. With time being of the essence, Sonic bore through the planet all the way back to Lighthouse One, just as the ship from earlier broke away from the anchor and was sailing right toward the icebergs! Uh oh, looks like this is it. The ship is going to hit the fan now. With only a few seconds to spare, Sonic finds the bomb in the lighthouse and tosses the bag with all three explosives at the icebergs, destroying them. Robotnik had been foiled and the day was saved. Our Sonic Says is about bicycle safety, though I'm surprised Sonic neglected to tell us to wear a helmet, as such laws were put into practice around this time, and we all know what a stickler that hedgehog is in following the law.
So that was Mass Transit Trouble, and it's really good. Like I said, among the series' best. The animation is more decent this time around, there's plenty of suspense, and it has some pretty funny jokes, like the "movie bomb" thing. It's also interesting to note that Robotnik only appears on TV screens in this one, he's never seen in full body. Makes him all the more threatening and mysterious, and he certainly was much more competent and sinister this time around. Now, the subject matter of bombs being planted in transportation companies is why this episode was pulled from syndication following the 9/11 attacks, which is understandable, but I hope it has since returned as it deserves to be seen. Despite Mobius being a planet, I assume it isn't a very big one as it manages to have only one of each transportation outlet, such as airport, train junction, and lighthouse, which I guess made the whole thing easier on Sonic. If Mobius were as big as Jupiter, he would've failed after the first bomb. And again, I find it odd he gets so winded and tired out after running a few miles, but I guess they did that here so he wouldn't seem quite so invincible, which allows for suspense. Too bad they didn't do that more often. In closing, I recommend Mass Transit Trouble, unless you're planning to travel.
After Robotnik spells out his entire plan, the first order of business was to locate the bomb at the train station. When they find it glued to a board, dummy Tails thinks it's a good idea to hit it with a mallet. Luckily he missed and smashed Sonic's foot instead, but really, how stupid does one have to be to hit an explosive with a blunt object? Sonic manages to pry it loose due to the heat caused by the friction of his shoes when he runs and skids to a hard stop. With one bomb in his possession, Sonic makes a beeline for the airport. Now you might be thinking to yourselves, wow, Scratch, Grounder, and Coconuts are more competent in this episode than the rest of the series. They did as instructed with no screw-ups. Well, let's rectify that and have them try and place a trap for Sonic that involves a trip wire and a hidden bomb. You should've quit while you were ahead, dunce-bots, or in this case, three disembodied heads. The trap blew chips. Back at the airport, Sonic borrows a metal detector from the flirtatious flight attendant to help locate the explosive. The clock was ticking, and so were the bombs. With time being of the essence, Sonic bore through the planet all the way back to Lighthouse One, just as the ship from earlier broke away from the anchor and was sailing right toward the icebergs! Uh oh, looks like this is it. The ship is going to hit the fan now. With only a few seconds to spare, Sonic finds the bomb in the lighthouse and tosses the bag with all three explosives at the icebergs, destroying them. Robotnik had been foiled and the day was saved. Our Sonic Says is about bicycle safety, though I'm surprised Sonic neglected to tell us to wear a helmet, as such laws were put into practice around this time, and we all know what a stickler that hedgehog is in following the law.
So that was Mass Transit Trouble, and it's really good. Like I said, among the series' best. The animation is more decent this time around, there's plenty of suspense, and it has some pretty funny jokes, like the "movie bomb" thing. It's also interesting to note that Robotnik only appears on TV screens in this one, he's never seen in full body. Makes him all the more threatening and mysterious, and he certainly was much more competent and sinister this time around. Now, the subject matter of bombs being planted in transportation companies is why this episode was pulled from syndication following the 9/11 attacks, which is understandable, but I hope it has since returned as it deserves to be seen. Despite Mobius being a planet, I assume it isn't a very big one as it manages to have only one of each transportation outlet, such as airport, train junction, and lighthouse, which I guess made the whole thing easier on Sonic. If Mobius were as big as Jupiter, he would've failed after the first bomb. And again, I find it odd he gets so winded and tired out after running a few miles, but I guess they did that here so he wouldn't seem quite so invincible, which allows for suspense. Too bad they didn't do that more often. In closing, I recommend Mass Transit Trouble, unless you're planning to travel.
