Sonic 223

The first and the last pages from Sonic the Hedgehog #223. Page 1 is penciled by Ben Bates - this is one of my favorite splash pages to-date. I think of Sonic a little like a "team" book, like X-Men or something. There are alot of characters and alot of colors that go on one page, and I adore big cast line-ups like this to showcase them.

Page 22 is penciled by Jamal Peppers and is from #223's back-story. Often the Sonic the Hedgehog book is broken up into a "lead" and "back-up," with 17 pages to the main story and 5 pages to what is often a side-story - usually a plot or character that could have potentially gone unseen that's brought into the focus, or maybe a quick set-up story for future events, etc. The back-ups have also been where some of the new talent dips their toes in the water. Jamal impressed me from the first time I worked with him (#202), especially how on-model everyone is. His Eggman is one of my favorites!