Sonic

"Sonic's the name, speed's my game!"

- Sonic the Hedgehog

Sonic the Hedgehog is a blue hedgehog who can run at supersonic speeds. It is heavily implied that he has visited Mushroom World at least once. This visit was largely uneventful and ended in disappointment for Sonic. He is competing with Mario in Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games and with other Nintendo all-stars in the upcoming Super Smash Bros. Brawl.

Mascot Rivals
Nintendo was once business rivals with Sonic's company of creation, Sega; this rivalry peaked during the 16-bit era (the era of the Super Nintendo). As such, Nintendo and Sega often attempted to put each other down through their games (thus explaining Sonic's humiliation in Donkey Kong Country 2 [elaborated on below], and possibly explaining the blue hedgehog enemies of Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island). Examples of Mario mockeries in the Sonic the Hedgehog series forms of media include the emphasis on "Super" on the back of Sonic the Hedgehog's box (a reference to Super Mario Bros. and other Mario series titles beginning with "Super") and the Marxio Brothers of Sonic the Comic, a British comic book about Sonic and his friends. Their rivalry went throughout the 90's and until 2001 when Sega left as a console manufacturer and became third-party. Sonic's first game for a Nintendo system was a port of Sonic Adventure 2 titled Sonic Adventure 2: Battle.



A Failed Quest
During the events Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest, the elderly Cranky Kong held a contest to see who was the greatest video game hero of the 16-bit era. Contestants were ranked based on how many hidden DK Coins they could discover while progressing through the areas of Crocodile Isle and defeating Kaptain K. Rool (and his Kremling Krew). Although a great video game hero, Sonic did not collect many coins. As a result, he did not even place in the top three (Link was #3, Yoshi was #2, and Mario was #1. Eventually Diddy Kong claimed first place.). Distraught, Sonic left Mushroom World, leaving behind his trademark shoes (next to a trash can). Along with Sonic, Earthworm Jim is implied to have failed the contest as well.

Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games
"Mario and Sonic have been respectful rivals since the early days of video games. In fact, for a long time they have been discussing the possibility of one day competing against each other. Now that they have been given the perfect opportunity to meet at the Olympic Games, we may finally learn who is actually faster, Mario or Sonic?"

- Shigeru Miyamoto

Sonic competes against Mario and others in Olympic events in the game Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games. He is a Speed character, similar to Yoshi, meaning he has great speed, but low power. Interestingly, Sonic wears a life jacket during the swimming events, as he can't swim, but he is not against water entirely, which is why he is competing in these events.

Profile
''The fastest hedgehog in the world, this little blue speed demon often gets going so fast, he appears to be just a whirling blur. He'll usually be found in front of any of the speed-based events in these Olympic Games, and will be very dificult to catch in any of the short-distance sprints.''

Super Smash Bros. Brawl
Sonic has been confirmed to be appearing in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. He will be a very speedy character, and has been confirmed to be using many of his moves from the Sonic the Hedgehog series. Several of Sonic's moves are from the original Sonic the Hedgehog. Sonic will be voiced by Jun'ichi Kanemaru in the Japanese version, and by Jason Griffith in the English version. Additionally, the main theme from Sonic Adventure 2- Live and Learn- was heard during the movie trailer. This was most likely done, as Sonic Adventure 2 was remade into Sonic Adventure 2: Battle, which became the very first Sonic game put onto a Nintendo console, and marked Sonic as a 3rd Party series to Nintendo. He will also transform into Super Sonic as his Final Smash move.

Trivia

 * An April Fool's Day issue of the magazine Electronic Gaming Monthly once said that Sonic and his friend Tails were unlockable in Super Smash Bros. Melee. However, this was soon proved to be a hoax.
 * All of Sonic's television shows (except for the recent Sonic X) were made by DIC Entertainment, the same company that made all of Mario's American shows. As such, the television programs shared certain similarities; for instance, the Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog episode "Sonic is Running" ended on an almost identical note to that of The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3 episode "Princess Toadstool for President", the Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog episode "Lovesick Sonic" has similar themes to those of The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3 episode "The Beauty of Kootie", and DIC gave the protagonists of their shows certain food affinities almost exclusive to the programs (specifically, Mario's television love of Italian food and Sonic's of chili dogs).