Warning! Spoilers ahead for Sonic the Hedgehog 2 - The Official Movie Pre-Quill!
IDW Publishing's Pre-Quill comic that serves as the prequel to the upcoming Sonic the Hedgehog 2 film just introduced Knuckles the Echidna in one of five short stories, and it got him all wrong. The character introduced in the prequel differs wildly from the one fans are familiar with from previous comic adventures.
Over the span of five pages, Knuckles is introduced as the last of a race of hunters who is forced to align with so-called Scavengers whom he clearly doesn't care for, in Sonic the Hedgehog 2 - The Official Movie Pre-Quill's "Always Bet On Red" short story by writer Kiel Phegley, artist Evan Stanley, colorist Heather Breckel and letterer Shawn Lee. Forming any type of alliance with the Scavengers is portrayed as a last resort Knuckles would have normally never have attempted. Not only does the Echidna reveal that they give his race a bad name, but they capture and force him to battle a giant beast in a rather one-sided gladiatorial battle that doesn't favor Knuckles in the slightest. But Knuckles has no other choice in the matter because the particular prey he's tracking is just that good: Sonic the Hedgehog.
The real difference between this depiction and previous comics is Knuckles' willingness to go out of his way to track Sonic. That's because Knuckles' entire identity in the comics revolves around serving as guardian of the Floating Island. This role is so infused in his character that this legacy actually becomes a major point of contention between him and his daughter in Archie Comics' pivotal Mobius: 25 Years Later arc. Although thrust upon him, Knuckles takes his position as guardian quite seriously, mostly because he erroneously believes that he is the last of his kind and wants to protect his heritage. At least these convictions are shared with that of Sonic 2's rendition of the Echidna.
As a result, the majority of his adventures in the comics transpire on the Floating Island, and the few times he is willing to leave are because a mission serves in the best interest of his home, like searching for a Chaos Emerald, which is what keeps the island afloat. One of the few times he makes an exception, however, is to help Sonic's girlfriend Princess Sally, whom he formed a close relationship with long ago. In fact, whenever his absence somehow affects the Floating Island negatively in any way, it leaves him devastated, causing him to embrace his duties more fervently. This isn't to say that Sonic and Knuckles never fight - because they have, countless times. In fact, Archie Comics created numerous Sonic and Knuckles special issues that solely revolve around the two duking it out - usually over a misconception. But Knuckles never seeks out Sonic directly. It is always by pure chance they cross paths.
Sonic's tendency to mistrust the Echidna actually derives from an unfortunate predicament that Archie Comics adopted from the Sega Genesis game Sonic 3. Similar to the video game, Dr. Robotnik fools Knuckles into believing that Sonic is trying to take over the Floating Island. As a result, Knuckles gives the hedgehog some major headaches early on in their relationship, a misunderstanding that makes it difficult for Sonic to trust Knuckles until much later. This all begs the question if Sonic 2 will find inspiration from this dynamic in some capacity, which has become somewhat of a staple in the overall Sonic franchise. But despite all of these differences, there's still hope in regard to why Knuckles is tracking the Blue Blur. Archie Comics proved that the Power Rings contained the same Chaos energy as the Chaos Emeralds. If that's the case in Sonic the Hedgehog 2, then Knuckles could be hunting the Blue Blur because the rings that Longclaw the owl gave to the young hedgehog to protect him could help power his home. Time will tell when the film is released on April 8.
