Sonic and Tails return in a spooky limited series and a 30th anniversary one-shot this fall

Sonic the Hedgehog: Scrapnik Island #1 — (Image credit: IDW Publishing)

Sonic the Hedgehog turns 30 this year, and IDW has just announced two celebratory comics featuring the Blue Blur and his friends.

The first is a four-issue limited series, Sonic the Hedgehog: Scrapnik Island, written by Daniel Barnes, illustrated by Jack Lawrence, and colored by Nathalie Fourdraine.

Slated for launch in October, the series will follow Sonic and Tails as they attempt to survive an island of robots who want to kill them. Along the way, they'll cross paths with old adversaries – including fan-favorite Mecha Knuckles.

"When coming up with Scrapnik Island, I took a lot of influence from horror movies and comics," Barnes says in the announcement. "My goal was to tell a really creepy and atmospheric story with a vibe that Sonic fans aren’t normally used to. There are some surprises in this one that I don’t think readers are going to see coming!"

Lawrence says he "jumped" at the opportunity to draw another Sonic title for IDW. "I have a deep love of creepy stories, of dark corners and creaky floorboards, and Scrapnik Island has really given me the opportunity to scratch that itch."

Then in November, IDW will release Sonic the Hedgehog: Tails' 30th Anniversary Special featuring a 30-page story by writer Ian Flynn, artist Aaron Hammerstrom, and colorist Reggie Graham. This one-shot special follows the Sonic 30th Anniversary Special, which hit shelves in June.

In the announcement, Flynn says, "I had a blast with last year’s Sonic 30th Anniversary story, which was a celebration of the Classic Sonic cast. This time around I wanted to do something a little more restrained and focused so we could properly celebrate Tails, his courage, and his intellect. That said, you know I couldn’t pass up an opportunity to mine the Sonic series history for the villains!"

Hammerstrom says Tails was his favorite character as a kid, "so I’m glad to be able to help put him back in the spotlight for a bit. It’s so exciting to bring back these weird, obscure characters along with him, too! I think they’re gonna be a lot of fun!"

Sonic The Hedgehog: Scrapnik Island #1 will be available in October, with covers by Nathalie Fourdraine, Min Ho Kim, and Diana Skelley.

Sonic The Hedgehog: Tails’ 30th Anniversary Special will be available in November, with covers by Aaron Hammerstrom, Thomas Rothlisberger, and Tracy Yardley.

Now is a great time to check out the best Sonic games of all time.

Samantha Puc (she/they) is an editor at Newsarama and an avid comics fan. Their writing has been featured on Refinery29, Bitch Media, them., The Beat, The Mary Sue, and elsewhere. She is currently pursuing a Master of Fine Arts degree in creative nonfiction at The New School.