I don't think it's a particular stretch to say that Sonic The Hedgehog was a significant part of my early childhood. Ever since I was but a wee lad in the early nineties, playing Sonic 2 on the Genesis before I was even toilet trained, I can say that I was incensed by the speed freak's fast-paced platforming escapades. Though I was too young and too poor to be able to catch other parts of the franchise as it was developing in the west--the Archie comics, the numerous cartoons (both good and bad), and its many storybooks, I did try my best to keep up with the franchise as it crossed consoles and generations. I didn't own all of the games--I still don't to this day--I always kept pace in some fashion with the nitro-fueled needle mouse, even as I watched him burn out in much the same way a lot of Nineties kids did.
