[answered on 4/24/2022]

I have a funny relationship with Sonic. I would say I have been a lifelong casual...? Lol. I think my first exposure to it was when I was under 10 years old, I believe I played... Adventure 2 Battle for the gamecube (I didn't own any non-Nintendo consoles, so!) And thenn.. a little while later, I got my hands on Sonic Heroes and Sonic Adventure DX. Oh and then Sonic X was on TV so I watched that rather diligently. Around this time, I would say I was 'peak' into Sonic, like... I made a few OCs and had lowkey ships. I remember liking Tail and Cosmo's arc in the anime. Oh, but being honest, the #1 thing I was utterly obsessed with were Chao.

Actually, the Chao were like... THE... sole motivation for me playing the Adventure games. I still remember my babies names & colors & alignments so well... Was obsessed with breeding them and getting two-toned Chao also. The holy grail was getting my two most beautiful Chao to mate and produce a beautiful baby. I still think Chao are like.. the cutest and best thing from Sonic, and my actual favorite element of the world. I'm of the opinion they need to bring back Chao Garden. Like. Please. Release us

Tho, like, as a result of all this, I would say I didn't even actually process any of the narrative elements of the games very well until I replayed them later, as a tween/young teen lol?? It's like it was all garnish to me, like... something something....... Shadow has some sick girl he knows? Biolizard? Teh chaos emeralds. I remember being somewhat intrigued by Tikal & her storyline but-?? Like I couldn't parse it, in reality, omg. He just wasn't motivated quite enough to drink in more than a few cursory details. Though to be like, candid, I just think the series' overall aesthetic and design theory isn't very harmonious with me. I don't like the proportions of hands/feet and uah. Textures. Sonic himself just looks strange to me, I've never really understood the... spiky head... back spike... his weird tan little belly. And the brow ridge. As a rule of thumb I prefer SMALL hands and feets, not big cartoon gloves and shoes. Lots of things are either neutral or outright unattractive to me so I find it hard to stay attentive, ig, wwwww...

As a teen I had several friends who were crazy into Sonic, and inundated me with it, so I like... am fairly educated on games/history and some lore, like. I have been shown the old Saturday morning cartoons and the comics and the older games. Have watched some of Sonic Underground, and Sonic Boom. and, like, I played modern games like Secret of the rings, Unleashed, Colors. That uhh air racing one.... Riders. Rush. But god despite this all I can't say I got a lot out of it kdjghf.f.... and my friends shipped like. Sonadow and Silver & Scourge & Sonic. and like Sonic/Tails, which I JUST. dont care. about. like 0%. f.d,gfhf... *my anti-yaoi DNA flaring up* ... Ueh, it's almost like, observing my friends who REALLY REALLY liked Sonic made me understand I do not really feel. Those things. so much. It's all been so capricious.

Like, I remember that I really liked... CHIP?? From Unleashed, when he was new. I liked him so much i. Designed him a gf (girl version of him)... and I like the Night of the Werehog short a lot when that came out too. and I would say it's still cute... But omg it all feels so random. Yk.

Oh I should mention, at this point... the new CG Sonic movies are LITERALLY the most I've enjoyed Sonic himself, he. Is incredibly cute and delightful. I think the movies distill everything down to something I can find really entertaining? Oh and like. Idk it literally helps that he is covered in fur and a cute tragic orphan. Unlike the average like smug guy Sonic. I prefer it if he's more on the... like mischievous kid side, than shitty older teen side ig. (I haven't watched the 2nd movie yet bc I'm not near a theatre and I haven't seen it online yet BUT. I WANT TO REALLY BADLY-!!!!!!!)

In conclusion... I would say my modern-day favs of the 'main' cast are... Cream and Tails! I've always liked them best out of the mains, tbh, and I think they're the most stimulating to consider. I like that Cream is Chao-aligned and nurturing, and I like that Tails is a precocious boy. I think they're cute together. Some real kindergarten romance here. I don't have a real particular 'canon' I imagine them in, I just sort of chop & screw all the details of the canon that I know and create my most ideal verse. I do imagine them on their own planet, not related to Earth/humans at all, with Tails being self-made and independent from a very young age and Cream living with her mom. Very incidental and serendipitous meeting one another. Despite Cream being soft spoken and gentle, she's actually the one that is bolder and more forward between the two, as she's curious about Tails, and he's more skittish and... like poorly socialized? He's book-smart but not people smart quite — though, very polite, inherently. Maybe so polite he's like endearingly awkward?

Ideally they come together as like, a meld of Cream's gentle caretaking side and Tails' thoughtfulness making for a cute match up. I like Tails to be struggling with wanting to be seen as mature and as smart and capable as older individuals around him.... Insecure about this and almost overcompensating by presenting this mature veneer. But around a peer like Cream there's not actually a reason to posture as much and he can be more relaxed and wee bit childish. Though, I do think he just naturally IS more mature and has more mature interests/hobbies; so this is just about lessening the pressure and helping build his confidence so he doesn't doubt himself as much. ^^ Um and then kiss. and stuff. ehe.