Why Amy Was Amazing & How She Was Demolished

[@thepjshow]

So, what are your thoughts on the character of Amy? Do you agree with me? Disagree? Let me know in the comments and I'll respond to as many as I can. I'm especially interested in your thoughts on Frontiers.

[@catherinedermody4698]

Adventure Era was the golden age of Amy but Sega failed to keep her consistent dividing gamers in the process. Ever since Sonic Heroes and Sonic X happened, this trend got out of hand. How could anyone find the Sonamy concept cute and funny? Amy is a 12-year-old kid and Sonic is a 15-year-old teenager. Both of them are depicted as minors not adults. In reality, the shipping itself is creepy and annoying no matter how people spin it yet they'd resort to changing the goalposts in an attempt to "prove their argument" and have the last word. For example, whenever Amy does something off-putting (trapping and trying to drug Sonic in Sonic X, beating up Sonic in The Black Knight and aging up her body attempting to impress Sonic in Archie Comics etc), the fans give her excuses but when Sally does the same (slapping Sonic in Archie Comics) she gets none. Amy is always justified while Sally gets vilified. The Sonamy fans (some of them) aren't really helping the character's reputation at all as they only reinforce the people's inital perception of them. There's an odd conspiracy that Sega seem to know full well about the Sonamy craze and its polarising premise so they only made subtle teases/hints just to mock the ship. If the dynamics between Sonic and Amy were reversed, it'd be seen as inappropriate - Sonic himself would either be "cancelled" on the spot or be called "pathetic" for chasing disinterested girls like Pepe LePew. Double standards right there. The trope can get tiresome, at least characters like Johnny Bravo and Dot Warner did it better. This problematic pairing tells a message to the impressionable audience that they can chase their crushes to the point in harassing them as long as they are "good decent people" and if they keep persevering, then they will eventually get whatever they want, regardless the feelings of others who would think that having crazy obsessive admirers isn't so bad because they're destined to be together no matter what, so they shouldn't need to be harsh towards them otherwise they'd be judged as "bad inconsiderate people" for rejecting them, so they must accept having psychotic stalkers around just because they're "nice and misunderstood" and their abusive behaviour is better left unchallenged as it would make life easier for everyone, which isn't really the case. That's not how relationships work. Whenever Amy is on her own or with other characters, she seems fine enough. But put Sonic into the mix, then it's very uncomfortable seeing Amy fiercely act out whenever she doesn't get her way and she never gets called out or face consequences for her bad behaviour. Yet from the Sonamy fan's perspective, Amy (a sweet lonely little girl) is a victim for not achieving her childish dreams while Sonic (a selfish stubborn big jerk) is a villan for not accepting her advances but Sonic is forced to put up with Amy's wild delusions, just because everybody says so. Out of pity, Sonic only humours Amy just to stop her acting crazy and doesn't want to be seen as the bad guy, but in reality it is Amy who is in the wrong. What's frustrating for most Sonic fans is that being an annoying crazy fangirl that she really is, Amy never gets her comupence in the games, comics and cartoons. She doesn't even apologise for her crazy antics, with the exception of Sliver who she mistook for Sonic (which was an honest mistake on her part) but that incident ended up not canon in fact Sonic 06 was completely retconned due to time travel erasing previous character developmens. When it comes to Amy's unreasonable anger (often mistaken for love/passion by Sonamy fans), petty stubbornness (won't take no for an answer) and rude attitude (randomly being assertive just for the sake of it), she gets away with everything. There are some better depictions and there are some worse depictions in multimedia over the decades and have been interpreted in various ways. People will have different opinions and experiences on the subject. Many will say they are right while everybody else is wrong - some will always agree to disagree. To each their own. The other characters (except for Knuckles maybe) who'd see Amy behave like a spoiled brat in Free Riders don't do anything about it. Even when Amy acts like an entitled bully in some versions like Rush, everyone just watches on and let her do whatever crazy things she wants. Nobody tries to stop her and noone ever scolds her. They either ignore, enable or even reward Amy's abusive behaviour like they're trying to not offend Amy's feelings in some way. Battle, Chronicles, Colors DS and Generations versions of the character weren't ideal, leaving the fans put off. Don't get me wrong, having flaws is what makes a character interesting but it's never addressing them that's the big issue. Amy comes across as lacking any rational thought and is indeed very obnoxious believing only she gets "special attention" from Sonic whenever he interacts with her in the slightest manner and also ignorant of how Sonic treats all his friends including her equally the same way. Even when Amy acts nice to Sonic, respects his boundaries and let's him do what he wants, she still believes that she will marry him someday, as though she expects a long awaited pay-off in return, she sees Sonic as her ultimate prize for her "good behaviour" and thinks she deserves that happy ending. It must be the main reason why the Sonic fandom hate Amy so much is because they'd get the impression that at her most worst she behaves toxic and immature but doesn't get punished for it as her unlikeable traits get brushed off just because "she meant well and it was out of love" or ignored it completely like it never happened only to go back to it again, thus making her "kindly nature" seem redundant and drowning out her more positive and appealing traits. Even Charmy and Cream (both annoying yet likable) act more mature than her. In the Archie Comics, Tails in his confusion thought his destiny was with Fiona because of her robot clone he bonded with previously, only to have realised that obsessing over a crush and being a lovesick fanboy will get him nowhere in life as it only cause frictions with his friends, he even blamed himself for Fiona turning evil as he begged that it's okay she didn't need to love him to be a Freedom Fighter - but to no avail. Another example is Adventure Time where Finn started off as an lovesick adventurer seeking to earn a Princess' love through his heroic deeds while Jake enabled him by telling him persevere. Even when Finn successfully got a girlfriend, he didn't really mature because his obsessive nature was never addressed or resolved until he resorted doing questionable things to get the girlfriend's attention but he ended up losing it all which overtime he grew from the experience and bettered himself as a person. Another example is Pokémon where Meowth strived to develop human traits in an attempt to impress his crush, only to get rejected. Even when Meowth proved his strength and worth, he still got rejected. Although he was sad about it, Meowth didn't chase Meowzie around the world forcing her to change her mind because he thought she owed him her love because of how he put in a lot of effort only for her sake, Meowth just got on with his life. The valuable lesson that sometimes reality doesn't live up to someone's fantasy and they will not always get what they want no matter how hard they persist plus confusing the matter would only cause more upset so it's best to accept loss gracefully and move on, Amy never had a moment like that on-screen at least. The sad truth is that Amy isn't really a deep, strong and independent character because her entire existence revolves around Sonic (and not in a healthy way either) and nothing else, even removing her obessive tendancies makes her bland which actually proves my point. Amy is at best very basic. Sega did try to improve Amy but the damage was already done. Amy's divisive reputation is hard to shake off. She's not the perfect female lead of a franchise, yet she gets pushed over leaving other female characters like Sally, Bunnie, Sticks, Rouge, Blaze, Marine and Cream etc unfairly sidelined. Maybe if Amy was less like Jessebelle from Pokémon and more like Finn from Adventure Time with a tiny mixture of Amy from Sonic Boom and Sonia from Sonic Underground and not be a psychotic stalker, then her character would definitely be redeemed. As for Frontiers, a slight improvement but it could've been done better. Amy's characteristics should be mixed up with Fleetway incarnation where she had adventures with her best friend Tekno, be similar to Sonic and Helen's purely platonic friendship in Sonic X and I also think Amy should have more friends her age (Sticks, Zooey and Perci for example) who share the same love for Sonic and hobbies as her, she could create a fan club. The main question is will Sega stick to it or abandon it entirely in favour of the next gimmick they find and will IDW, Prime and Paramount help the character? Hopefully it does. ThePJShow have already said what needed to be said on the analysis video.

[@bakedbeans5494]

@@catherinedermody4698 What a demonising take.

[@animedood442]

I thought frontiers was a okay attempt at trying to get back into the more serious side of sonic. Although, was very clearly rushed in some aspects such as gameplay but aside from that it was decent. I feel that Amy was a character that should've been more important then she actually was. Aside from Shadow, Silver and Sonic she was the only other hedgehog in the games that isn't from the comics or show etc.. (which could've been important to a spinoff/side story). Her entire existence up to before frontiers purely revolved around sonic and to me that was a waste of what used to be a good character(not including sonic boom). all around she has been nothing but a bland character for almost 20 years. BUT I am glad they gave her a personality again with Sonic frontiers.

[@bakedbeans5494]

@@animedood442 You've got everything mixed up.

[@mephilesfan]

@@bakedbeans5494you’ve replied to almost every comment but i’ve yet to see you actually explain your arguments outside of “nope you’re wrong i’m right” would you care to actually explain your views on amy’s character?

[@liamphibia]

I'll never get over that scene of Amy begging Shadow to giving humanity a chance in SA2.

[@CedroEscarlate]

Remember in sonic x where they would put chris in her place, which was terrible

[@liamphibia]

@@CedroEscarlate Yeeeaaaah.😒

[@kieranstark7213]

@@CedroEscarlate Agreed, I feel like even when Knuckles was in Sonic X, Chris Thorndyke took his place as Sonic’s other best friend!

[@aexonity]

or that scene where she stood in sonic's way because she wanted to help gamma? or when she put herself in harm's way to save a literal bird. Or when she broke into a prison to save her friend? If I need to remind you, she doesn't have a high IQ, speed, or super strength, she's just amy. Frontiers did justice to probably EVERY character they had in that game, especially Amy and tails. I hope it continues this way.

[@aexonity]

@@kieranstark7213 honestly, the only negative I would give sonic X is chris, I just did not like him tbh, and bro literally looks like Sora from kingdom hearts.

[@rich355]

One aspect of Amy's early character that I wish was utilized more was that Amy was a user of Tarot Cards. They could have utilized that to give Amy's character a bit more depth to show that Amy believes in the idea of destiny and faith, and that things are preconceived which links to her Sonic love. Heck, they could even have a moment where Amy reads the Tarot and things look grim, but Sonic would go against that, believing in himself and those around him to save the day. Amy believes in Destiny to save the day, Sonic believes he makes his own Destiny.

[@skeetermagee2487]

Oooooo

[@Excelsior1937]

I’ve been thinking about the story potential of that too

[@thepjshow]

That is a really cool concept!

[@rickyrackey7930]

@@thepjshow For your Infinite video, you should talk about how much potential he has for the future especially sense Ian Flynn is writing. How he can get the redemption he deserves.

[@strawberryjogurt6134]

@Kevin Kevinson i believe it was first mentioned in the japanese manual for sonic cd, so say what you will about the concept, i'm not here to argue, but her being a tarot card reader does have a prior basis

[@TheIDcard123]

21:55 I would argue that Amy actually does have some levels of superhuman ability. She may not be the fastest character, but she has managed to get close when chasing Sonic on some occasions. She may not be the strongest character, but she has managed to do nasty damage to her foes, launch mini tornados, and crack the ground all with her hammer. She can also lift up Sonic with her hammer with one arm. She's not the most powerful Sonic character, but clearly you don't want to mess with her either.

[@pinkimark1018]

YES THANK YOU

[@chaincat33]

the piko piko hammer is really heavy, which is why when she swings it there's no wind resistance, it can just cut through and swing freely. She is able to then stop its momentum on a dime, and she can absolutely destroy robots with it. I know robots aren't a high bar to pass in this universe, but steel is still steel, and she breaks through it with ease. I'd argue the only characters physically stronger than Amy are Super Sonic and Shadow without his limiters or as Super Shadow (though, Amy is certainly one of the least durable characters). The point is she doesn't want to be a super hero. She doesn't want to save the day by beating people up unless she has to. She wants to save the day by doing the simple every day things. Helping lost children find their parents and the like.

[@dollpickle]

she’s extremely strong if you do think about it more.

[@MrsMamaMallow]

The ability they did give Amy from what I’ve heard was tarot card reading and I believe this comes directly from the Archie comics mentioning this ability of hers.

[@TheIDcard123]

@Sydney Sutter It actually comes from her character bio in Sonic CD, where she made her official debut into the series.

[@alemations8479]

Amy not having powers like everyone else basically makes her the rock lee of the sonic series

[@Undomaranel]

Except Rock Lee's arc was about acceptance and fighting back anyway. Amy? She takes the Sakura approach of just hanging out, trying to be useful, and getting overshadowed by her god tier companions anyway.

[@kacpermazurek4563]

Well I have buffed her and Sonic.First I have given Sonic ,Amy, Tails, Knuckles and Shadow the power to On and Off the force equall to 7 chaos emeralds and at 6th episode I have made Sonic and Amy Rose the chosen ones. When Sonic and Amy touches themselves, they are getting more power. Also I have made them a Married couple at the same episode

[@sonicwithglasses131]

Amy does have powers lol, EVERY sonic character has some type of power, literally everyone can breathe in space and the heroes manual says amy has super speed just not like sonic and shadow

[@bobtheball5384]

@@Undomaranel Yeahh Amy's more Sakura than Rock lee- but tbh at least she's a much better Sakura in comparison cause she actually does do stuff to help despite not being as powerful.

[@quietopinion9637]

@@bobtheball5384 Sakura is literally a healer tho she's literally told by ninja rules not to fight, let's not bring down a character to prop one up

[@knowledgeseeker4614]

It does seem like Sonic Frontiers helped steer her character back in the right direction. If she does appear in Sonic 3, they can further emphasize that like they did with Knuckles and Tails in Sonic 2.

[@bakedbeans5494]

She sucked.

[@liamphibia]

Oh with how *incredible* the Sonic movies have been, there's no doubt Amy will be done right alongside Shadow.

[@electricsoul3355]

While I was hoping sonic movie 2 would feature tails and Amy, this rework actually works in the story telling’s favor, as Amy’s sympathetic and passionate side can be absolutely highlighted in interacting with shadow.

[@HOTD108_]

@@liamphibia You think those movies are incredible? I mean, maybe if you really like Olive Garden.

[@cloudshines812]

Here’s hoping that they don’t Amy a “generic girl boss” character like Illumination did to Princess Peach

[@MexicanSheepMan]

I'm actually so glad that Amy's obsession for Sonic has been toned down to the point of being almost non-existent, it allows her to be her own character and makes her other traits such as her kind heartedness flourish even more, I'm really happy with her characterization in Frontiers, hopefully they keep it up.

[@skeetermagee2487]

I kinda wasn't! She feels too serious! Where's her jolly side?

[@bakedbeans5494]

Amy was never obsessive.

[@Terminal_Apotos]

Adventure 1 made her her own person while still having the Above average love for Sonic.

[@DemonDethchase]

If Amy was so blindly obsessed with Sonic would she have stood in between him and Gamma, in SA1, as Sonic sees the mech to be another one of Eggman's clunkers? Looked at helping Cream and Big find their lost friends in Heroes? Or looked at racing for Tails' honour when Wave tried to shatter the kid's confidence in Riders?

[@40kkidlock18]

@@bakedbeans5494 are you on crack or something bro

[@volcanicrose7158]

You forgot to mention that in Sonic '06, Amy had let Sonic go so he could be with Elise when they defeated Solaris. That is how much Amy loves Sonic, if he finds someone he loves who isn't her, she lets him go to be with them.

[@dragondelsur5156]

That entire action alone dismisses the notion that Amy is a yandere. Even if she realized someone else liked Sonic and viceversa, she'd let him go and be happy for him rather than act jealous and petty. She'd be heartbroken and upset on the inside but she would accept his choice.

[@lilstrawberry_lady]

I mean yeah I understand that. But it’s kinda sad tho. All she wants is for Sonic to be happy. Even if she has to let him good.

[@MrRAGE-md5rj]

It gets overwritten, though, so it's all good!

[@GumRobber]

Vector’s line in free riders it was like he knew Amy was written badly in that game. “keh, you’re a terrible actress. We all know you followed him here.”

[@dantemustdie00]

Free Riders was the start of the Meta era (well I think Colors might've been) so yeah, everyone was kinda a ass in the game

[@forkalamari6093]

Lol yeah, also she’s a terrible scripter too (she’s implied to have written the OVA as a fanfic). She reeeeally needs a new profession lol

[@ayrtonjoga]

God, Free Riders is such a mess that no one can defend it, even Forces has it's fans but this one just has no redeeming qualities

[@kieranstark7213]

Not to mention Knuckles called Amy “exceptionally dense” just because she kept on hating Sonic for forgetting her date after Black Knight.

[@rickyrackey7930]

@IAmBonnet~💕 Plus, fans can do worst. Remember Sonic Omens?

[@asxmeggy5049]

I really like Amy's classic self for the outfit, I wouldn't mind seeing modern Amy with her classic outfit

[@Ashly-28]

I feel like classic Amy's winter outfit(from sonic Mania adventures 6) was so ADORABLE

[@Starfall_abyss]

well if you want me to talk about the classic amy all I gotta say is she looked so cute and adorable.

[@GreenHillSonic_Roblox]

Quill shape included.

[@joutakujo9773]

Or at the very least an updated version

[@L0rdOfThePies]

Its cool, idk about the neon orange though personally..

[@_ChiaroScuro_]

Amy was one of my favourite characters but they transformed her in only a crazy fangirl when she was so caring that she even talks to shadow, one of the most emotional characters of the franchise. I think female characters like her where always not well developed or even misunderstood. I'm glad that today they actually write her with her best qualities like her kindness, gentleness and that she is the one who always talk about feelings in the group. I think characters like her don't always appear in games or media but they are for me the most important because they actually talk to help others people and thats for me is real strength. Sorry for this long comment I just wanted to say my opinion and I hope it's clear what I wanted to say because I'm not English 😣

[@bakedbeans5494]

Not a fangirl.

[@thepjshow]

I can very much agree with your points. Amy has so many qualities beyond her obsession that haven't had the biggest opportunity to shine because of bad writing. Her compassion is what ended up being a vital factor in saving the planet in Adventure 2. Luckily, Frontiers and the Comics are doing a good job at correcting the mistakes of the past games writing. By the way, there is no need to apologise for a long comment. They are my favourite ones to read!

[@bakedbeans5494]

@@thepjshow You've got it all wrong.

[@_ChiaroScuro_]

@@thepjshow yes let's hope they keep writing her like this and also the others characters. Thank you so much for taking the time to read my comment ☺️

[@bakedbeans5494]

@@_ChiaroScuro_ R.I..P Amy.

[@bluephoenix4241]

I'm gonna say that she doesn't lack physical strength. We already saw her backhand Knuckles into a tree and in the IDW comics she smashed a boulder with her hammer and creates a small fault line on the ground just so she could quiet down a crowd. But yes she does have all those other qualities.

[@EWOODJ]

The first was a comedic scene, any character could’ve done the exact same thing. The second, I’d say it’s more the ability of the hammer itself than Amy being super strong. She *really* knows how to use it. Other characters in Sonic Advance 3 could also use Piko Piko hammers to the exact same effect as Amy so she isn’t really special in that regard.

[@strawberrycrepesss]

Amy swings around a giant hammer ofc she's strong

[@firionkaiser8291]

@@EWOODJ Yeah but she's still pretty strong. The feats she's had with her heavy ass hammer prove that.

[@TheIDcard123]

​@EWOODJ ​Sonic Advance 3 had gameplay gimmicks that allowed other characters to use a hammer when paired up with Amy, so you using this as an example of Amy not being strong is very strange. In other examples, she can launch wind tornadoes by swinging her hammer, slam it hard enough to rebound her body, swing fast enough to float mid-air, and these are all things other characters haven't done with her hammer. And this is excusing how in the comics how she managed to displace a tree attached to a rock into a ravine with her own strength. The hammer isn't strong because it has certain properties, the hammer is strong because Amy makes it strong.

[@demiraykodal468]

Pretty sure the piko piko hammer gets stronger overtime and those "bracelets" stop her from going all out.

[@ドラゴンリュー-f1x]

It's wonderful and moving that she's been properly treated as the main heroine in recent years.

[@brunettebi4111]

Fingers crossed it continues in the third movie if she shows up.

[@mamodokod]

Recent? Shes been treated that way since adventure, just it's very random which games shes written well or not.

[@ドラゴンリュー-f1x]

@@mamodokod Lately, Tails has been treated more like a heroine...

[@antrox2346]

Amy was already treated as the main heroes since Adventure. There you have Adventure 1, the Advance saga, Chronicles or even Sonic Shuffle. What happened is that after Sonic 2006, all the characters became background characters with no personality or being flanderized. Look at Knuckles for example, he was always sold to us as one of the main heroes, but he was simply a Patrick Star for a long time.

[@erikbihari3625]

If being continuously shoved aside and said that She needs more independance even though she's already that so mutch might As well be canon fodder, counts for being"treated properly"then I don't wanna know how poorly would look like for her!

[@benadrylcucumbersnatch9401]

I've loved Amy since I was like 11 because I was also a hot-headed little girl who had a hard time properly expressing her feelings without people feeling like I was going overboard and it's really upsetting to see how Sega has treated her since like 2009. It's why I personally headcanon her as being autistic because I'm autistic and I see myself in her

[@kairi4640]

Yeah, especially sonic origins etc. Really wanted to play as her. 😮‍💨 Maybe there's hope for her after frontiers.

[@exist4046]

Honest to God Sonic is just "a bunch of autists end up being put in scenarios together, chaos ensues", the franchise. Like literally EVERY character has autism traits, personally I relate most to Tails, Sonic, and Shadow, however they've all got em, just different types of em. Makes sense, being a spectrum condition, but like... They really did collect em all huh?

[@benadrylcucumbersnatch9401]

@@exist4046 No no, you've got a point

[@freakonaIeash]

holy shit... i'm autistic too, and as for me i see myself in shadow the most which is the sonic character that usually comes to my mind when it comes to autism, but autistic amy actually makes SO much sense from what you've described! that's a wonderful idea and i will definitely headcanon it too now :)

[@exist4046]

@@freakonaIeash YOOOO fellow autistic Shadow fan? Welcome to the cluuuuub!! /Gen I just I love him

[@TheMamaluigi300]

I like how in the story where Amy develops independence away from Sonic, *that’s* when they redesign her. She used to look much more like Sonic, down to the hairstyle, before she combed that downwards to make her look distinctive Also, in the cases like Sonic Heroes, I personally would’ve liked it if they made her competitive against him, in a sporty-like manner. The others usually fight Sonic when it comes down to the greater good, or in Knuckles’s case sometimes, when he ticks him off. But Amy could probably compete with him to simply assert dominance, like “Hey, I could beat you in a game of X!”

[@dragondelsur5156]

Considering how sassy she got in TSR Overdrive, It's not far fetched to think how could she act with her head in the game.

[@ChaddyFantome]

Distancing from Sonic was NEVER the point of her story in SA1. It was Amy learning to take charge and stand on her own feet to not just be a burden and a damsel in distress. She wants to be someone Sonic can admire and see as an asset. She says it herself at the end. "I'll make that Sonic respect me!" Amy loving Sonic and chasing was NEVER a flaw. It was a strength. The start of the game begins with Amy being bored because she misses the days when she used to go after Sonic in the Classics. And it ends with her starting the chase again.

[@zigzagintrusion]

@@ChaddyFantome I think she might have tried to distance herself a bit. She says something like “I need to be more independent.” Not that I think she needs to have her crush retconned or anything-it makes her interesting.

[@dragondelsur5156]

@@zigzagintrusion Not really distanciate herself but rather show Sonic that she too can fight.

[@paigeturner7513]

TheMamaluigi300 Ironically, when l had identified Amy Rose individually from everyone else. I did imagine her being in to sports and olympics. In my opinion, that's really where her bubbly personality fits the most.

[@Oceane1803]

This might surprise you, but the game where Amy hit me the most was Sonic Advance, despite the game having no dialogue. In this game, she can't eliminate enemies by simply jumping like Sonic does. She has to jump and then use her hammer (pressing A and then B instead of just A). So she's not as strong as the other characters, since eliminating enemies isn't as easy for her as it is for the other characters. And yet, she still goes after Eggman, and she manages to defeat him in the end just like any other character from that game.

[@dragondelsur5156]

The irony of Sonic Advance is that she is the most broken character in the game because of how she cheeses boss fights, particularly the boss in the Ice Cap ish zone, the rest have to take the long route because of the water but Amy's longer jump and hammer hitbox ends the boss in seconds.

[@Oceane1803]

@@dragondelsur5156 I can confirm that. But overall it's more complicated since she can't eliminate enemies by simply jumping.

[@ultrainstinctjordan]

@@dragondelsur5156 Actually Tails has a much easier time than Amy due to his flight ability

[@dragondelsur5156]

@@ultrainstinctjordan True but being able to hit springs and lauch yourself into the air adds more verticality to her moveset, especialy the infamous last zone.

[@ayrtonjoga]

People always complains she is the worst one in Advance 1, but she's my 2nd favorite to play because her unique movement is fun to mess around, and to figure the way out after getting used to familiar characters

[@raspberris]

I'm a huge Amy fan, with my favorite depictions being Adventure 1, IDW, and Frontiers by FAR. And while nothing else has really characterized her as well, I wholly agree with your thoughts on SA2! Lots of people like to point how the not so great characterization without recognizing the amazing parts. Personally, Heroes does have some good subtle moments for Amy, mainly after the halfway point of the game. She's already accomplished what she set out to do, but she's still passionately involved because she cares for her friends and never gives up halfway. This is echoed in Frontiers, when Sonic points out he has better things to do than help Koco with random quests but Amy gets upset that he'd abandon someone in need. Funnily enough, I think the worst aspects of Amy & Sonic's relationship mainly originated from weird localization. Sonic in the SA1 localization is weirdly mean to Amy, he doesn't like being around her and when she defends Gamma, he treats it like he doesn't really care and just wants to stop talking to her. But reading more accurate translations has Sonic more respectful of Amy's feelings. When he gets dragged to Twinkle Park, it's less annoyed and more amused by her antics. When she defends Gamma, he respects her opinion enough to back down. Sonic goes from treating Amy like a friend to an obsessed fangirl. Just goes to show how important translations are, even the small things can completely change a character.

[@bakedbeans5494]

So you agree with Amy currently being boring?

[@raspberris]

@@bakedbeans5494 I said in the first sentence that Amy in IDW and Frontiers have been some of my favorite takes on the character? I'm not sure how much more current you can get with that. Plus, she's really fun in both, clearly showing off her love of adventure even in the face of danger.

[@bakedbeans5494]

@@raspberris In Sonic Frontiers, Amy just felt flanderised with her only trait being compassion. Amy used to be an energetic girl with an open crush on a certain guy(Sonic) and now she has reverted to being gloomy in action and voice.

[@raspberris]

@@bakedbeans5494 Frontiers as a whole has a more serious, moody, and lonely tone than the other games. If you think Amy's "gloomy", it's hardly restricted to her.

[@bakedbeans5494]

@@raspberris Poor excuse; Amy was happier during Sonic Unleashed and that was an end of the world event. Not to mention how Dark Gaia caused humans to have personality switches during the night.

[@Anonymous-bi5pv]

I used to find Amy really annoying but I grew to sympathize with her over time. Unrequited love really does crazy shit to people man

[@it_is_thatboy]

'''sympathize with her'' bro cant even use proper grammar. no wonder you were stuped enough to find her annoying.

[@jamiegioca9448]

#relatable

[@bobtheball5384]

(Ik this comment is a year old but) fr fr, it'll literally make you defy logic and the speed of sound

[@emberthefox4951]

I know that Amy has some powers, like the ability to summon her hammer at will like she's accessing hammerspace and potentially being the magic in her tarot cards if that makes any sense, but nothing quite on par with a good sum of the cast. She doesn't have flight, she isn't fast enough to blitz anyone, she doesn't have an army of robots, she has no ESP, she isn't a secret bodybuilder, etc, but she always puts up the best fight she can for what she believes in. I really hope that Ian stays the main writer for a while, because he seems to really understand this about Amy.

[@redballoon9007]

Yeah……..but she can turn invisible apparently-

[@aspenwood3581]

Her superpower are her words xD

[@aspenwood3581]

@NES I have not forgotten about her magic hammer, I just veiw it as a separate entity from her.

[@wakkaseta8351]

Her superpower is Talk-no-Jutsu. She redeemed Gamma, Shadow, and Silver in their own games.

[@lilmao4482]

Shes charismatic, but “super-power” wise, shes strong as hell because she can carry her hammer around like its nothing. For reference, her hammer is so heavy that it doesn’t have air resistance, can crack the ground beneath her and can allegedly cause small tornadoes

[@gametap2651]

Amy is my third favourite character so is upsetting that she’s constantly getting misunderstood and ruined.Hopefully they continue improve her character in future games. Thanks for the review, I have been waiting for this review for a while and I hope you continue it.

[@Wtfisulookin10]

Tbf most of the sonic characters were misunderstood and ruined other than amy . I'm talking about Tails knuckles Shadow and silver. But i think people will give her a chance this time and not hyper focus her bad moments from the past games.

[@dragondelsur5156]

@@Wtfisulookin10 I want to believe people will take her fanderized moments as what they are, but this narrow minded fanbase disappoints me.

[@dooplissdarkly4363]

I think a HUGE thing here is the portrayal of the crush. You can think someone is great and talk about them, and it’s natural to do with a crush, but when it’s warranted in the conversation it feels best. Like the character can’t help but think of them when it comes to certain traits. She works best when she’s laid back because crushes are subtle, like being a bit more flustered at a compliment, leaning into them, generally sticking to them when in a group. I also would love to see her character think highly of and often compliment her other friends, as an extension of her being insightful and perceptive, but I understand she would generally do this most, and best with sonic, as she knows him well and has a crush on him. I also just think this would lean well into her character arc about independence, because when someone is good at noticing the positive qualities of the people around them, they tend to lack that insight when it comes to themselves. A good philosophy to have when writing characters who are each others potential love interests, is to make them best friends before anything else. It’s my favorite trope in fiction because it prioritizes the characters relationships, intricacies, and why they mesh well first. Good video, I love this character way more now !

[@ChaddyFantome]

The fact Amy did not hold back her love WAS her virtue though. Yes it gets under Sonic's skin, but that's what makes the dynamic fun! Really the problem was just not enough times did we have Sonic acknowledging and showing he does value Amy as a friend and a presence in his life, so some people come away thinking Amy is this character you aren't supposed to like when that was never the case. Sometimes friends mess with each other and that's just the nature of their dynamic. I don't wanna see that go away.

[@dooplissdarkly4363]

@@ChaddyFantome you make a great point!

[@fightingmedialounge519]

​@@ChaddyFantome that really wasn't the issue with amy.

[@sirejonesk591]

Amy was an amazing character until the demolition but I still like her btw this coming will never go dead edit: HOLY SHZZ THIS BLEW UP

[@SONICPLUSHTURBO]

She was

[@sirejonesk591]

@@SONICPLUSHTURBO yo sup bro

[@purpleflowers8723]

Same

[@sirejonesk591]

@@purpleflowers8723 :)

[@kieranstark7213]

*cough cough* Sonic Free Riders *cough cough* Who knew she could be *even worse* than Sonic at HIS worst (Sonic Forces) alongside Tails in the same game, Knuckles in Sonic Boom: Rise of Fail, Shadow in most of the stuff hems in except for SA2 and Heroes and 06… and Sally in the Archie Comics (issues 39-159)?!?!

[@slylancey]

I'm so glad that people are starting to warm up to Amy again

[@bakedbeans5494]

For the wrong reasons.

[@Nameless82284]

I warm up to her because I realized that she was a little girl. She was only 8 years old. That explains why she has a crush on Sonic and why he doesn't like her. It's just a little girl crush.

[@slylancey]

@@Nameless82284 That’s the main thing that fans have to remember! Even though Mobian age is probrably different compared to Earth's age, Amy is still a practically a young teen. Everyone has their fan crushes and inability to handle their emotions when their young! The older Amy gets, the less angry/fangirling she does (which in turn probrably makes Sonic more attracted to her now that Sega confirmed his hidden feelings towars her). Amy is no longer Sonic's "girlfriend" in my eyes. She's now a strong Independent woman who just so happens to like Sonic a lot and can now stand toe to toe with some of the strongest Sonic villains.

[@kairi4640]

@@slylancey I think it's because the sonic characters never really grew up with the players that people forget that tbh. So they just stay stagnant stereotypes.

[@edgystuffretarkidnormcring330]

What a useless pathetic pers- I mean reply

[@necasa4919]

You know? This video has made me realize how much I respected and looked up to Amy back in Adventure, at least in a more subconscious level. It may feel corny or cheesy as heck to attribute things to the "power of love", but I genuinely and highly respect someone that can defuse a fight or make a change in someone's mindset with words alone. Fighting the old fashioned way requires strength and bravery, but showing kindness and compassion is also a form of strength. Diplomacy is usually hard when the other party is not willing to cooperate, but when it succeeds, it procures the best outcome with little casualties. Again, I admit that to some this may feel too cheesy as it can basically be reduced to the "power of friendship". But personally, I like some cheese, specially among so many edges. Too bad the Adventure Amy was slowly watered down to being an obsessed love interest. But I am hopeful about what Frontiers is setting up, as we see an Amy that once again wants to make use of the love and compassion to make a change.

[@bakedbeans5494]

Amy is finished.

[@callofhaloinfinite6336]

In a messed up way, this actually the reason why Sonic Prime happened. Shadow's aggressive approach and Sonic's impatience, kickstarted the events of the Paradox Prism. If Shadow didn't just punch Sonic in the face and if Sonic explained what was going on and let Shadow join him, they would've made it on time to stop Eggman.

[@catherinedermody4698]

+NeCaSa Hopefully the franchise keeps it that way.

[@Zekken_The_Lodestar]

Tbh I feel like one of Amy's defining traits (her love for Sonic) was taken too far in the past. And seeing it toned down was a good thing to me. She still loves him for sure... But maybe they toned it down too much beforehand?

[@bakedbeans5494]

Amy's love for Sonic is pratically non-existant.

[@Zekken_The_Lodestar]

@@bakedbeans5494 and that's how it was toned down too much. Kind of funny how she went from being unhealthily obsessed to not really showing feelings for him at all. But it's sad at the same time.

[@bakedbeans5494]

@@Zekken_The_Lodestar Amy wasn't obsessed with Sonic; it's just more misunderstanding from Sonic fans. PJ was just praising already established traits when it came to Amy in Sonic Frontiers and his arguments about Amy being boring in past games applies to Sonic Frontiers as well.

[@Zekken_The_Lodestar]

@@bakedbeans5494 I made the comment before the video as a thoughts before the video sort of comment. But yeah, I am rather new to the fanbase so there are going to be some things I misunderstand. I guess that sometimes it feels like she's obsessed. Especially when I was watching Sonic X.

[@bakedbeans5494]

@@Zekken_The_Lodestar Sonic X isn't canon.

[@SoranotRoxas]

Actually, I think Amy is doing well nowadays than in the mid 2000's. Her obsession with Sonic has been toned down, and they're actually referencing the fact that she uses tarot cards. Her and Sonic's relationship is more realistic and healthy now then the nonsense they had before.

[@bakedbeans5494]

Well done for accepting character derailment.

[@justinterry7853]

Mid 2000s for Sonic and Amy especially Amy looked good on paper but actually seeing how she was would be a nightmare, Here 2020-present self is a step to the right direction of herself

[@bakedbeans5494]

@@justinterry7853 Just say you hate Amy.

[@justinterry7853]

@@bakedbeans5494 um no, I don't hate her, I actually adore her lol

[@bakedbeans5494]

@@justinterry7853 You only love Amy because she's become something she's not.

[@BlackFlash09]

Actually, Amy joked that she'd tell Sonic info about Shadow if he married her. Most of the team fights in Sonic Heroes started for superficial reasons. For example, Amy got tired of NPCs hitting on her in Sonic Adventure, so she was dismissive of Vector. After he calls her a brat, Espio threatens Cream to hand over Cheese. At the very least, Amy did teach Emerl good manners after he learned bad habits from Sonic and Knuckles. At most, Sonic Battle did show that Amy can box, does weight training, and can create tornados with her hammer like in Sonic Heroes. Amy's character in Sonic Rush was so off that even the design of her hammer was wrong. Apparently the IDW Comics are canon... as long as they don't contradict the plot of the games. So, if you want Amy written at her best, read these comics.

[@viruschris3160]

"For example, Amy got tired of NPCs hitting on her in Sonic Adventure"... wait, what? I know I didn't talk to all of the NPCs at the time when SA1, but really? Also... they were all humans too! XD Oh my gosh, that's somehow funnier when I think about it.

[@BlackFlash09]

@@viruschris3160 Yep! And almost all of them were grown men too.

[@viruschris3160]

@@BlackFlash09 That is funny. I wonder if they couldn't tell she was 12? Then again Rouge is 18 and only slightly taller than Amy and that's with heels. Still Amy and Rouge are very pretty so I don't blame them. I wonder how flirting with Rouge would go. Any videos with this dialogue? I like to see them. Hmm... I'm probably looking too much into it, but I guess Humans don't mind wooing Anthros (I don't know if SEGA considers Mobiusian as an official term for Sonic's kind).

[@BlackFlash09]

@@viruschris3160 Mm, not sure. Try Cybershell's "The Weird Humans of Sonic Adventure" video. I'm sure you'll find it there.

[@Soulferno]

Amy didn't have all that much involvement in Rush but she was perfectly fine in that game. She only felt threatened by Blaze since in her mind she could easily chase after Sonic and gain his attention. Plenty of fans certainly think so and the game itself doesn't shy away from their dynamic (Rush Adventure certainly did tho). Plus, she ended up helping Blaze after she confirmed that she had no romantic interest in him. If that seems off then I would like to remind you that apparently Sonic Team never really adjusts character ages so she's still a love struck pre-teen. And the IDW comics are kind of a mess if you want to apply them to canon. Frontiers makes the issue worse since they reference things that shouldn't at all be canon in the main universe yet they do. I personally wouldn't put any stock in IDW canonizing itself and the game canon because the games themselves never really make any of it's canon cohesive enough to make sense for even most of it

[@Rafissima]

I wanted to know your opinion about Amy in Sonic Prime series of Netflix. We actually got just a few pieces of her character in a certain episode, but it made me relieved that they gave her the emotional and caring aspects of what she believes (like friendship and memories). For me, it was a powerful scene when she showed Sonic what he didn't care first, but he clearly remembered her words and that helped him to think on a better solution. If you watched it you'll understand what I meant here, if not, I recommend you paying attention to 5th episode

[@BoyTrain872]

Amy Rose must get her own spinoff series.

[@liamphibia]

You mean her own game?

[@dragondelsur5156]

@@liamphibia Isn't that the same thing?

[@liamphibia]

@@dragondelsur5156 Maybe? I donno let's see what the future holds.

[@BoyTrain872]

Whatever the outcome may bring I sure hope it might be a good one for Amy Rose.

[@MrRAGE-md5rj]

DLC might work better.

[@TailsAndSonicPals]

Great video

[@liamphibia]

Yo, what up what up!😃

[@walteranurantha5014]

I've seen your videos before, tails! Especially the deviant art reaction which is very funny

[@Therealones745]

I disagree

[@JayAndSonicYT]

Is this Amy on Tails' account watching a video about herself? YO AMES!!! - S. T. H 🌀

[@JakeThehedgehog-m1x]

Holy shit!

[@ihateflaky12]

This video is the reason why Amy is my favorite character, she is powerless but that doesn't stop her from being her passionate self. Thats what i like about her. Lets hope sega gives her more screen time cause she honestly deserves it

[@shisah5544]

I guess you could think of it as Amy realising her approach before with chasing Sonic around really wasn’t working so she decided to take a step back and work on herself at some point. And then she realised Sonic was more open to talking and spending time with her now she’d grown up a bit Honestly it was the right direction to go in, Sonic sounds, acts and talks like a young adult now so having a silly pink hedgehog running around asking him to marry her at every opportunity would just be too stark of a contrast. It worked in sonic adventure and SA2 because sonic’s characterisation was just “ the hero”. He’s developed into less of a one dimensional character into someone with a bit more to him and so should Amy in that regard

[@catherinedermody4698]

I agree completely. Hopefully, Amy's toxic obsession is resolved so that her platonic friendship with Sonic can flourish. The dynamics will now be healthy, refreshing and enjoyable - similar to the Sonic X episode That's What Friends Are For. That applies to other characters as well. The Sonic franchise is slowly improving.

[@massimo5477]

I think to fix Amy in sonic battle is to make her motivation for training Emerl is to, well, train and teach him to not only be a better fighter but to be a better person as well. Amy would see that everyone else trained Emerl so she wants to as well, to teach him morals and also help herself with her exercising. Emerl would only start calling Amy his mom (yes i'm keeping that in because I found it charming) because of Cream telling him that Amy is like a motherly figure towards him, also giving him an explanation on what a mom is since Emerl doesn't understand what a parental figure is, through her own words with comparisons to her own mother Vanilla. Finally Amy would be surprised that Emerl is calling her his mom but she lets him do that taking it as a sign that she was doing the right thing when training him.

[@AshkarBehek0]

My only problem with Frontiers' Amy is that she seems to be completely missing the energie she had in adventure, heroes and even the latter games. Sure, you could argue that she "matured up", but the problem is that we didn't really see that evolution. Going from Unleashed straight to Frontiers (and even if you include the '10s) it just doesn't feel like the same person. She's too melancholique now, she lost that playfullness that, in my mind, was also part of her character. I don't know if they did this so that she can contrast more with Sonic's personality (because they want sonamy to be a thing now) or if it's just to fit Frontiers' more silent tone, but it definitely feels off to me.

[@bakedbeans5494]

Even in Sonic Unleashed, Amy was happier and more energetic and that was an end of the world event.

[@bakedbeans5494]

@Zero Not funny.

[@bluwulfjohnson5530]

Well it was at the beginning of discovering the islands, Amy couldn’t really be her bubbly self when the Koco they were helping ended up ‘dying’, I’m sure if you switched Amy on the first island with Tails or Knuckles you would get the same result. Hopefully the future DLC brings back her happier self.

[@bakedbeans5494]

@@bluwulfjohnson5530 You clearly refused to read my other comment. Amy is the most energetic character in the series.

[@mediakira6621]

That and it got us maybe the laziest performance I heard from Cindy Robinson. The voice she used for Boom would have been fine for Frontiers . Tails VA didn’t suddenly start talking with his VA’s real voice so why should Amy? I blame the directors of course cos hearing that deeper voice out of Amy’s clearly young design was jarring as fuck and it reeked of “give us a Oscar”. One of the reasons why I’m still not impressed by Roger’s Sonic to be honest.

[@lukescrew1981]

To be fair Amy is crazy for sonic in Heroes but remember that she still is going on in that adventure for Cream and Big

[@kahuna_44]

im glad you mentioned that the little moment in sa2 when she asks sonic to marry her was that, a simple joke both to the player and between friends, because we know amy wouldn't have actually let sonic just stay there for saying no (can't say the same about other portrayals of amy tho) amy has always been such an important character to me and it made me so happy to see how she was written in frontiers thanks for this video and i cant wait for the gamma analysis

[@NKL3085]

the marriage gag in sa2 was over information on shadow, not letting him out

[@Fnaffan777]

I’m so glad Amy is being written better now in Sonic media like Frontiers and obviously the IDW comics (I still need to check out the IDW comics they look so good!). Something I realised while watching this is that one of the most important elements of the Sonic games to me is the writing, this is why I personally enjoy games like Sonic Adventure 1&2, Sonic 06 etc even if we all know how the gameplay is (most notably for 06). This is why I don’t personally like games like Sonic Generations, Colors and especially Forces because of the writing even though the gameplay ranges to decent to really fucking good (at least to my knowledge, I’ve never played Generations, Colors etc but people’s reasons for liking those games in the 2010’s HAS to be because of either nostalgia or the gameplay because I don’t personally see it if it’s the writing). Can’t wait to see you cover more characters in this series PJ! Loving them!

[@thepjshow]

Glad you enjoyed the video! Yeah, I highly recommend giving the IDW comics a go. And I completely agree with your sentiment on the story being a very important factor with the games. I can almost guarantee that had it not been for the stories in the past games, I probably would not be as big of a Sonic fan as I am now.

[@rickyrackey7930]

@@thepjshow A cool idea for a video should be about IDW’s interpretation of the Deadly Six. From Loathed To Loved.

[@tonyhakston536]

Honestly I wouldn’t really say Frontiers Amy is better, just wrong in a less egregious way. She’s too… subdued. I don’t like it. It makes moments that should only be somber feel downright depressing. Imagine if the bubbliest person you knew started acting subdued and stayed that way for a prolonged period. It’d feel like something was deeply, irreparably wrong.

[@rickyrackey7930]

@@tonyhakston536 She’s suppose to maturing.

[@rari2xx]

@@tonyhakston536her being trapped in cyberspace caused her to see things from a different pov

[@CodinskiSchwartzando]

I know this was likely written and recorded in advance of Prime’s release, but I would have loved an opinion on Prime Amy here because they did such a good job with her. I really think we’re moving away from the Annoying Amy Era toward a much more respectful treatment of her character.

[@bakedbeans5494]

Amy was hardly in Sonic Prime.

[@dragondelsur5156]

@@bakedbeans5494 They mean her variants.

[@CodinskiSchwartzando]

@@dragondelsur5156 yes, between the four versions of Amy that we saw, I liked all of them (Pirate Amy being the least interesting). Original Amy got most of her scenes in flashbacks, but they were still good.

[@BonaparteBardithion]

It's interesting that despite how little her original version is in the show it's almost as much her show as Sonic's. Two of her variants play major roles in events and Sonic's arc (as ham-fisted as the execution is sometimes) leans heavily into flashbacks about things Amy specifically said. She's starting to make as big an impression on him as he did on her years ago.

[@naitsabes6222]

Annoying era of Amy bro that was in the 2000s amy has changed since then and for the worse, thankfull the comics, superstars and murder of sonic got amy right

[@jwroot]

My favorite part from Frontiers was when Amy finally got her Piko Piko Hammer out and said "It's Am'in Time!" And smashed so many mini Titans after they've hurt Sonic! Talk about character development!

[@NovaBoi7]

Delete this

[@thehevandragon]

Cringe

[@MadMax-ii8gq]

Happy to see another one of these character analysis videos.

[@mob709]

I never realized how much Amy's character changed over the years, especially given the fact that she (like everyone) was pushed to the background, but i'm happy that Frontiers managed to make her an enjoyable character instead of an annoying fan girl. Imo Frontiers fixed all of the "classic" characters (and Big), and it made me realize that i should really read the IDW comics. Someday, i'll buy them... hopefully.

[@antrox2346]

Frontiers didn't "fix" Amy. They simply changed Amy into a generic female character that takes away many other qualities and personality.

[@jmcfar03]

@@antrox2346 by not having her have an incessant obsession with sonic?

[@antrox2346]

@@jmcfar03What? I'm not talking about that. I'm talking about when Amy had more personality and showed other qualities.

[@dragondelsur5156]

@@jmcfar03 That's all you care about? Not about how she has less personality than before?

[@joaks1969]

​@@dragondelsur5156 She still has personality, but If I were trapped in a form where I could barely make contact with most objects, and had just seen a tragic story, I wouldn't be very bubbly either.

[@Firedrake-SP]

If Amy ever appears in Sonic 3, hopefully her personality will be based on either Adventure 1, Boom, or Frontier.

[@dragondelsur5156]

Better be Adventure, I hope Paramount never touches that false role model from Boom.

[@antrox2346]

The movies are more based on the main games. Why should they be based on her Boom version?

[@fightingmedialounge519]

​@@antrox2346 because they don't exclusively take inspiration from the main games.

[@pattik_]

she is back to her passionate self in sonic frontiers let’s hope it stays that way

[@bakedbeans5494]

Not even close.

[@dragondelsur5156]

Where?

[@zigzagintrusion]

@@dragondelsur5156She spends like all of her screen time trying to help the little rock things (forgot the name lol)

[@dragondelsur5156]

@@zigzagintrusion That's something that never left.

[@JakeThehedgehog-m1x]

​@@zigzagintrusion koco

[@9thFlame]

I appreciate Frontiers having everyone reflect on their personalities up to that point,Amy helping the world,Knuckles living life outside of his usual bubble,Tails striving to become more of his own person,it’s a bridge im glad we’re crossing. Things like Sonics attitude and Amy’s pep or Knuckles and his hotheadedness are subdued more for the story they’re telling but I don’t think those are aspects exactly missing from the characters,to me Frontiers was course correcting at its core and the characters themselves are finally in a position to grow from their experiences instead of just carrying the same characterization from game to game. Granted I’d love some of those personality traits to show up more often moving forward ,but I want some character growth with them as well, where we go from here is anyones guess but I’m glad we’re going SOMEWHERE with these characters.

[@catherinedermody4698]

I agree the characters improved. But there are some people who say otherwise. Here, the complaints are about Frontiers Amy being boring and bland because she seem to lack the passion. Well imagine being trapped inside Cyberspace where your spirit is suddenly drained both physically and emotionally, would you be happy about it? It only shows how far the threat tested the characters and how they reflected on their old priorities while trying their possible best in spite of the difficult circumstances. That's what makes them relatable in a way.

[@lucasmartinez5703]

+Catherine Dermody I agree. Amy having less energy in Frontiers didn't make her any less passionate and loving which I feel are her biggest traits. And as you point out, her being that way made sense considering her predicament.

[@antrox2346]

@@catherinedermody4698 Nah. Even in spite of everything they went through. Sonic and Knuckles had fun dynamics despite the tone of the story, even Amy was less boring when the world was in darkness under Dark Gaia.

[@MagillanicaLouM]

I'm probably in what's a minority at the moment in that I actually like her way more when she's a bit more comedic. Not that I need her shouting Sonic's name every 5 seconds, but she's always in some fashion been one of, if not the, primary source of comedy in whatever games she was featured in up until like... Lost World maybe. And for the most part she's always worked for me. Even in Heroes, sure looking at it as a straight continuity follow up from the adventure games it's mad regression, but i personally always looked at Heroes as a mostly standalone venture, aside from the Shadow stuff. And she's just... Really entertaining here lol. Yeah it's a stupid reason for a boss fight, and really was only very obviously done so no 2 teams have the exact same match ups in team boss fights. But outside of that I'd hardly consider her gag played up to an obnoxious degree, as you even stated she's shown to also genuinely care about her teammates goals in this journey as well on a few occasions, so it's not like she's slacking in her overall compassion. Though in Battle, yeah she's genuinely unhinged and much as i love that game even i found her a little annoying there even as a kid lol. But I talk about this because, and maybe it's entirely nostalgia fueled, but I just genuinely enjoy the "one sided love, funny chasing after Sonic into the sunset" shtick. Just something about it was pretty charming, that she had this determination and idk just never bothered me that it was a presumably eternal running (pun not intended) gag especially when despite him running away, Sonic himself kinda felt comfort through this dynamic, kinda shown in Unleashed. And especially now that it seems that dynamic is on it's way out these days. Yeah, I won't front, I'm not a huge fan of Amy in Frontiers. Not because i think she's written badly, but just cause she's less... Fun to me. Lost World i chalk it up to the low screen time and never actually physically being in the same place as Sonic till like the last cutscene. Forces, everybody was acting strangely... Serious? With the story context i guess i get it (though honestly I say that even without sonic they should all be able to handle Eggman perfectly fine but whatever). It's just like, the weird "underdog resistance members" vibe everybody outside of Sonic had was just such a weird ass departure from everybody's personalities in general is all. Better handled in both archie and idw comic runs. Boom was funny enough, the most Amy felt like Amy to me after Generations. She's funny cause it's all a comedy primarily and while her affection is handled different actually being a MUTUAL crush that both keep secret from each other (and the instances where Sonic openly hits on other chicks or the couple times Amy gets infatuated with another guy briefly lol), it did a great job of giving a different take of her comedy, though Boom's nature as a non canon spin off verse lead me to believe nothing about the usual Amy would shift heavily. But in Frontiers... It might just be the tone the game is going for overall, but i just can't really get into her here. This is just largely a different person, i wouldn't say its a perfect amalgamation of what she was previously but more mature. I know the issue isn't Flynn, i think he's handled Amy great in past comics and even now. I guess something about Frontiers specifically makes Amy feel off. She's got the hopeful, romantic worldview still true, but the game is just too... Fucking moody for her i guess. Again the writing overall is fine, just Amy is off to me. I hope that's not the kind of tone they prioritize with her going forward. I'm even ok with her like, feeling down for a character arc or something, but idk. It's Amy Rose, let her be fun, the mood setter, the levity. Let her chase after big blue into the horizon at the end of a game, let her have a fangirl moment or 2, deliver light slapstick. Frontiers lacked the fun of the Rose imo. TL;DR: Amy imo is at her best when she's allowed to be funny, i enjoy when she's a cheerful fangirl that chases Sonic as long as its not getting into the sheer delusion level of like Battle lol, and I think Frontiers has great writing but was the wrong tone of game for what i like about Amy and hope it's not the norm going forward. Extra thoughts: you understandably shat on Free Riders, but neglected to talk about the first 2 Riders portrayals of her. I'd say they did pretty great with her from what i remember by my standards. Especially zero gravity. Though i actually think the first 2 Riders are the ideal Sonic stories for me as far as tone and character portrayals go. The exact right kind of vibe the 3d games should usually aim for, though i do think of others like unleashed or the adventures or rushes are good too. Another extra thought is the no powers thing. I get what you're saying and going for, and it does make sense. It's just funny that a lot of the games themselves definitely contradict this whenever she's playable by giving her enhanced acrobatics, making her a speed type when applicable, she can homing attack and shoot tornadoes, yes has to use a weapon but is a formidable combatant with it, definitely DOES have some degree of super strength, and can likely beat a pro boxer blindfolded in a match. And can turn invisible or something. And i guess genuine clairvoyance abilities is something they're digging up more lately. Though of course when put next to Sonic or Knuckles and the like, then yeah. One of the normies relatively lol. Overall great video, sorry for the thesis paper of a comment

[@bakedbeans5494]

Not a fangirl.

[@ChaddyFantome]

Trust me, you aren't in the minority. You are in the formerly silent majority from what I can tell.

[@antrox2346]

This. I think the same. It seems that now they want to turn to Amy as the typical "good girl" who shows almost no flaws. Amy now feels less dynamic, I don't know, now Amy feels a bit like Cream. I guess because of the criticism and all that, it seems like now the developers are afraid to show Amy's flaws.

[@dragondelsur5156]

@@antrox2346 They are afraid of even showing her most basic traits thanks to the fatasses that never bothered or even want to understand Amy's character.

[@antrox2346]

@@dragondelsur5156 Exactly, to start, those who complained so much about Amy don't even care about Amy or don't know her well. It's fine if they don't like the character or don't care about her, that's their right, but those of us who like and care about Amy, have to see how the character has been changed to satisfy those who didn't even like Amy. I won't deny that there were bad characterization on Amy, but it's not like that didn't happen with other characters. I really hope that in future games and other media they don't go the same route as Frontiers.

[@meltyluvs711]

i hope shadow and amy have more interactions in the future. a lot of people seem to forget that she literally is the sole reason why shadow remembers the truth and goes to help save the planet at the end of adventure 2, and i think it's incredibly wasteful on both sega and idw's parts not to do anything more with their characters considering how HUGE this should be. of course, this mean would have to mean they both get written properly, so.....

[@EliRetroVHS642]

Well from Frontiers light Amy could go back to a positive charater and she's actually in a good spot right now.

[@CraftBros890]

I'm glad Amy's character is now back on track in frontiers I can't wait to see if tails and knuckles are in frontiers when I play it

[@bakedbeans5494]

Amy's been ruined.

[@antrox2346]

Back? But they've changed and toned down Amy so much that she now feels like a completely different character.

[@Sly88Frye]

I don't know why I've never thought about that. Yeah Amy doesn't have the super speed or the super strength or even really high intelligence that some other characters do have. She's average and relatable but she's brave and will stand up for herself and others.

[@loiiysailor1177]

she is strong tho

[@antrox2346]

Well, I could say that Amy had some potential in things related to the mystical, but Sega doesn't do anything with that, hopefully the movies take that into account.

[@EWOODJ]

I’d say it’s more the ability of the hammer itself than Amy being strong. She *really* knows how to use it. Other characters in Sonic Advance 3 could also use Piko Piko hammers to the exact same effect as Amy so she isn’t really special in that regard.

[@loiiysailor1177]

@@EWOODJ no she strong

[@dragondelsur5156]

@@EWOODJ To say that Amy is not strong because she uses a hammer is dumb, you need strength to use it effectively.

[@inkromancer_studios]

I always liked the theory that the bracelets Amy wears are actually inhibitor rings. (Like what Shadow Wears) But it wasn't until I started reading IDW sonic that I was fully convinced that it's definitely the case. I cannot get over how well they write Amy, and the rest of the crew. They know the characters better than Sonic Team does at this point...Honestly I refuse to believe she doesn't have super strength.The bracelets just keep her power in check, giving her just enough strength to wield her hammer and nothing else.

[@EWOODJ]

I’d say it’s more the ability of the hammer itself than Amy being strong. She *really* knows how to use it. Other characters in Sonic Advance 3 could also use Piko Piko hammers to the exact same effect as Amy so she isn’t really special in that regard.

[@levlarl1463]

I agree that her redesign does give her more of an identity than her original design did. Although I will say that instead of looking like a hedgehog, she looks more like an echidna thanks to her quills. It's no a problem I have, just something I noticed.

[@jeshuarestituyo284]

I’m more excited to see what Amy’s story will develop next year with her dlc! And hopefully sega keeps their characterization of her, cuz frontiers really nailed her personality perfectly

[@Man_Aslume]

In sonic mania adventures with metal sonic and Amy, it showed Amy being passionate to even a cold calculated being But that kinda backfired on sega as people ship Metal sonic and Amy now We can never have nice things

[@adil0028]

Amy seems to be a main aspect of the Shatterverses in Prime. We just don't know why yet. Also why hasn't Eggman's other selves appeared yet except for the Chaos Council?

[@mazkeraid4039]

As much as I feel that Amy had inconsistent character motivation and how she was crowbarred into the main cast after Sonic Adventure, I believe this makes it implicitly clear that she shares more similarities with Tails than she has with Sonic, it almost seems like they could be childhood friends that was not brought up to be.

[@dragondelsur5156]

Sega denied us of Tails and Amy having a sibling dynamic.

[@dianathespace637]

Also to mention the Egg Memos from Frontiers; God hearing Eggman give his own perspective on the rest of the cast was so interesting. Also, doesn't she appear in Colors DS?

[@Starfall_abyss]

no, amy doesn't appear in colors, only sonic and tails appear in colors.

[@targettoad691]

@@Starfall_abyss everyone appears in colors ds via the missions. Not in colors wii

[@dragondelsur5156]

@@Starfall_abyss Colors DS, not Colors dead console.

[@Starfall_abyss]

@@dragondelsur5156 oh, colors DS I didn't try that game and don't know anything about it so say whatever you want.

[@dummmi_balls9424]

Amy appears specifically in Aquarium Park missions in Colours DS.

[@justinc.5591]

I still think Amy shoving Knuckles into a tree in Generations was hilarious.

[@dankdilly]

Yeah, I think most of her moments are silly and funny. She isn't meant to be mature and serious like ppl want her to be lol

[@antrox2346]

​​@@dankdillyFr, I don't understand Why ppl want her to be very Mature, because when they Make her very mature, she's bored.

[@antrox2346]

My only complaints with Amy in Frontiers is that she's lost that sassy attitude, joking with Sonic or being more energetic when expressing her feelings, I still think that in Frontiers, Amy feels too calm and insipid at times, it seems like she has depression or something, but hey. I just hope this is not the pace they take, because Amy feels like a generic female character as if she was Boom's counterpart. I feel that Sega doesn't know how to find a good balance to Amy's characterization as in SA1.

[@bakedbeans5494]

Amy stopped being a great character when Shiro Maekawa left.

[@PilloTheStar]

Everyone in frontiers has depression lol

[@CottageDreams23]

Thats bcuz its a moody game bruh.. they're in a serious situation rn

[@antrox2346]

@@CottageDreams23 Yes, Sonic Frontiers, the same game where Knuckles and Sonic were joking around even though Knuckles was trapped. With Amy I understand why the change, because of the tone of the game, but I feel it could have been done better, the fact of making Amy feel melancholy and kind of a mother role, honestly I don't like it, it doesn't feel like Amy, I feel that could have been handled in a better way.

[@whiten4635]

​@@antrox2346to be fair she was in a state of self reflection. See the death of the ancients love and how she might have to part ways with someone she truly loves for s long time. It makes sense that she's more melancholy compared to other games. Frontiers gave us a chance to see a vulnerable side to Amy that we really haven't seen much of before. And I don't think it's bad thing

[@BlueJayBaby]

I know it’s not really the same as the games, but in Sonic Prime she has very little love interest for sonic. Her scenes with him (that aren’t battle-based) have always shown her as headstrong, compassionate, and loyal, and it’s written in a way that makes me love her character.

[@bakedbeans5494]

Nah Sonic Prime opted to have Sonic be the one with crush on Amy.

[@broom9155]

@@bakedbeans5494 I mean, not really? 😭 I wish but it doesn't really seem like it, might be, but if that's the case it's not straight up obvious

[@bakedbeans5494]

@@broom9155 Are you silly? Sonic in the first episode flirts with Amy and he even tried to convince Thorn Rose that they know each other while addtionally sayibg "You like me, to an extent".

[@sonicthehedgehog1606]

​@bakedbeans5494 that's not a flirt 💀

[@chackbro1]

"She wasn't in Colors" Uh... Yes she was. She was in Colors DS. One of the missions involves her having Sonic do cool tricks and she's PG horny over it. The mission after that, she promises Big to help find Froggy, but she's actually just using Big to try to find Sonic again And then She never appears again in the game

[@LotsOfToubleUsuallySerious]

The best of Amy in IDW has to be vol. 6, called "the last minute" wich is 3 points of view of the same story, first one being Tails, third one Sonic and the second being the resistance with about 51 to 60% focus on Amy. And this segment shows everything that was good in the character but amplified, without diluting her to a generic "leader of the resistance"

[@polishbeensing]

I think when it comes to sonic forces, Amy’s character was kept pretty consistent. She had missed sonic, but then again, everyone else had also missed sonic., and her affection for him wasn’t the main feature. She even takes on a roll that she takes on in the comics where she seems to be one of the main leaders of the resistance. At the end fight again like you said, she even helps by beating up some clones not relying on sonic to do so. so while it wasn’t that good in sonic forces, I do feel like it was kept consistent with her overall character.

[@dankdilly]

Amy Rose was always my favorite I just wish she had more playable moments and screentime in the games.

[@miyukihikawa18]

Honestly as someone who is a fan of Amy, it's disappointing how she's been written lately, like even with how much I love Frontiers, for me I don't think that game helps her character, she just feels empty tbh which again is disappointing as a fan of her, so I still prefer how she's written in Adventure 1, 2, Heroes, 06, and Unleashed, but who knows maybe when we get to play as her in the dlc, and if it has a story that maybe does something with Amy's character in some kind of way, then my opinion might change. Edit: Can y'all not start an argument in comments please? Like I really don't mind if you like Amy or not just please don't start anything. 😫 And with the Chris thing, people didn't really hate him for the portal thing, like yeah it might be that for some people, but majority of people didn't like him, because he's just not a really good written character, well at least for season 1 and 2, if I remember correctly in season 3 the writing for Chris was actually pretty good tbh.

[@bakedbeans5494]

Agreed. People who hate Amy love her now because she's become something she's not.

[@LannyLeArtist]

Yeah, shes like a whole different person in frontiers

[@bakedbeans5494]

@@LannyLeArtist True.

[@Ceo-Of-Shadouge]

Ngl, i kinda agree there

[@Cupcom5]

@@bakedbeans5494 TBH I still hate her. At least Ian Flynn makes her character tolerable.

[@DreamOfTheRebel]

In "Sonic Heroes" Amy's defense, if you piss her off in the Team Sonic fight (leave her the last one standing) she tells Team Sonic to hand over Froggy and Chocola, meaning that she didn't fight them just to convince Sonic, but also because she thinks they kidnapped her friends' pets.

[@TheSilvershadow200]

That also doesn't make sense cause she would never think that about them.

[@TheIDcard123]

I wish that was stated in the introduction dialogue against Team Sonic and not when she's the last man standing, so her intent was more transparent.

[@soya_kitchens]

I feel like I'm the only person in the fanbase that actually likes Fangirl Amy... (when it's not super obnoxious, of course) Like, I'm even fine with Heroes and Battle Amy, even if it's technically a character regression. Although, I don't just because she's still outwardly infatuated with Sonic means she's still dependent on him. And I find Frontiers' (and the IDW Series to a lesser extent) changes to her character to be more annoying than the reverse... It feels like the Amy I know is just being slowly sapped away because game critics and KZbin Reviewers used to call her annoying. All of her cheer is for all intents & purposes gone save for a scant few moments in the comics, and in Frontiers it's been replaced with the dumb "power of love" laidback hippie bs. Then she snaps at Sonic for wanting to hurry and save her and Tails (who he knows is NOT exactly feeling healthy in Cyberspace, and the other is completely MIA) instead of a bunch of random rock creatures?? I get where she's coming from, but like Sonic said, look at yourself! The voice direction for that game definitely didn't help things, either. Anyways, that's the end of my """hot take""", as the kids say.

[@antrox2346]

You are not alone. I think the same.

[@P-P-Panda]

“She just has to use a plain old car” The car: *turns into a hovercraft to go over water*

[@skeletonlover3214]

Amy is just as much as a hero as the rest of the cast, even without super powers like the rest. That, as well as how emphatetic she is, her being able to understand others really well, makes her really cool and admirable to me.

[@notstonks432]

Hope she's well written whenever she appears in the movie franchise

[@garrettviewegh9028]

Amy really is the heart of the main cast. She brings the love out of everyone she meets. And, she may not have powers, the power of love, if you count it, but look at the Eggperial City ark. She demolished a couple giant Super Badniks with its own giant hammer. I guess Amy can be a physical powerhouse at times. Not as strong as Knuckles, but still.

[@maytalacedo20]

Amy had an interesting roller coaster of character development or even different versions of her which is interesting.

[@actionbreeplay8256]

While I agree that the 2000’s got her character right and the 2010’s were overall a major low point for her, I have to completely disagree that the 2020’s are better lol. Honestly as flanderized as Amy was in the 2010’s I hate her a lot more in her current portrayals because frankly, she’s so stale and boring now. Amy’s personality was defined by her bubbly, girlish nature and her go-getter outlook on life. She wore her heart on her sleeve and was NEVER shy about her feelings on anything, which was something that could be both very funny and strangely admirable about her; something other characters like Shadow and Silver took notice of, which was a big reason she was able to get through to them in their respective stories. She was the kind of character who could be a bit of a pain at times, but who you also really enjoyed and wanted to be friends with simply for how refreshing and uplifting her presence could be. But above all else, from her very inception, she was intended to be a subversion of female protagonists in video games and in hero stories in general. She wasn’t just a simple objective for the hero and she wasn’t just lingering in the background with no discernible personality, she was the one pursuing the hero and she was always in your face exploding with personality. It was part of her charm and gave her a significant presence in the gaming world as a female character (at least imo). And that’s the tragic irony of her portrayal nowadays; her personality has been completely toned down to the point where she’s just like any other “the girl” archetype, the very thing she was created to counter in the first place. What’s her personality now? Well, she’s emotional sometimes because girl. Also, her crush on Sonic is a “secret 🫢” that she gets “embarrassed😳” by now. Oh yeah that’s pretty unique if you forget the million other boring female characters in every other hero story. But she does things in the story now so you know that’s interesting! I think a lot of characters in the Sonic pantheon have been tragically bastardized, but for me personally, none offend me more than what they did to Amy Rose.

[@tidepoolclipper8657]

2004 to 2009 really did not get her right.

[@Chibuga]

Amy actually has the biggest character growth from a gameplay perspective. She went from only being able to do basic jumps that couldn't hurt anything in games, to boxer-cising in Sonic Battle, to learning to spin dash and her abilities have peaked in Frontiers. No character has had such an improvement in skills as her. She went from nothing to a respectable playable Character

[@wadeyhyena1657]

I'd argue that her portrayal in Archie was decent too. Whilst it fluttered up and down like it did in the games, I think the series did her decent and it stinks that we'll never see what could've been done with her now that the comics are being discontinued.

[@valriver864]

Really sad Amy in Sonic Prime didn't even get a passing mention at the end. "Prime" Amy continues the trend of having a personality outside of obsessing over Sonic, having been shown so far to value her friendships as a whole rather than singling out Sonic as the only one really worth her time. The few "shattered" Amy's we've seen so far also display other traits we've seen her have over the years: loyalty; love of adventure; empathy and the willingness to protect. A version of her has even been shown to be so passionate about what she's fighting for that she becomes obsessive to the point of actually making things worse. While I don't think I've ever truly hated her, I've always found her annoying and unlikeable. Yeah she had her moments, but in my eyes that's all they were. Moments. As you said in this vid, any good character writing done for Amy pre-Heroes was more or less stomped out before her rewrite in the IDW comics/Frontiers. She was terrifyingly obsessive, persistently stalker-ish, and yet so blinded by her own delusions of SonAmy that she mistook not one, not two, but *three* hedgehogs that look *nothing* like Sonic for Sonic (the real irony being that one of those three actually *was* Sonic, yet she dismissed it as a mistake and moved along). What I like so much about the Prime versions of her is that she no longer has those traits that I felt completely overshadowed any good writing that could be found for her. The good and bad are all here, but it doesn't focus on Sonic and feels way more natural and believable than it ever has, and I think that's what makes this show my favorite take on Amy so far.

[@catherinedermody4698]

Very true.

[@broom9155]

True stuff I love Sonamy but her obsession ruined it, fancomics made it better

[@dr.shakib9961]

"Amy lacks physical strenght" *Proceeds to knock over eggman's flying ship in Sonic X with just a swing of her hammer*

[@emilycurrent7489]

Anyone else feel that SA2 Amy's journey was trying to prove herself to the others? She's not reliant on them, she stands up for what she believes in and fights (she broke into Prison Island before even Tails and rescues Sonic with a keycard she got from somewhere) but the boys don't see her as the new person she is. She proves herself to someone who didn't know her (Shadow) through grit and kindness, and I love it.

[@fightingmedialounge519]

She didn't really break into prison island. More so just arrived at its entrance; also she likely git the key card from tails.

[@emilycurrent7489]

@@fightingmedialounge519 she was there before Tails got there. And we play as Tails, and we know he didn't get a key card.

[@fightingmedialounge519]

@@emilycurrent7489 shes on the deck, not inside the facility. We actually don't know that. We play as him during the boss fight, but afterwards we just get a cutscene of him telling her to go find sonic. Whether or not he helped get the key is up in the air.

[@emilycurrent7489]

@fightingmedialounge519 sure, she's on the deck, but she got there before Tails. It's not a stretch to say she prolly crossed a building by foot easier than an ocean. Also, I find it MORE of a stretch that Tails helped when, again, nothing was said. Tails wasn't in the cut scene. If he helped, why wasn't he shown even in the background? Why isn't he heard from? Doesn't seem beyond the game to tease Amy with a "Don't make rules for the key you didn't get yourself" (referencing the marriage).

[@fightingmedialounge519]

@@emilycurrent7489 considering she would still need to cross the ocean to get there I'm the first place, that really doesn't matter. You find it a strech that the genius hero who we see decipher sonics location with plans to break him free was also able to acquire a security card? Because he was busy dealing with the rest of security, which we do play through and see in a cutscene. We also don't see or hear how Amy got on the ship, so really your complaint applies to other areas of the game.

[@SuperMetalyrics]

Dude , now I wanna spinoff where Amy's adventures start of from slice-of-life to action. It'll be a great way to show the many sides of her

[@ericmiller5080]

100% agree Amy hAs always been a great character but always been sidelined by plots adventure gave her a great start and frontiers put those characters in a place where they can lead their own lives I love them

[@legoawcstopmotioner9435]

I wasn't really a big fan of Amy for a while as I had never played the Adventure games until recently. She's still not in my top 10 favorite characters, but that's mainly because I just have characters that I like more.

[@geomania8533]

Wouldn’t necessarily say she is powerless. See during her time as Sonics Fangirl, she often chases him. And chased him so much she could keep up with him. She can summon more Piko Piko hammers if she loses her main one and even launch them from ground level at Eggmans battleship in the air with enough force to make her piko hammers stick to the hull and have enough power to cause the ship to shake. She’s also quite durable. Surviving a fight against Knuckles and getting crushed under an 8 ton piece of concrete. She can also create tornados from her hammer which is ridiculous and amazing. So while she isn’t as powerful as Knuckles or as fast as Sonic she certainly isn’t powerless.

[@dragondelsur5156]

I like to think that she's an all rounder, not really excellent in a specific aspect but good in all of them. Kind of like Advance 3 where she's the only character that does not change the alignment.

[@JRENZO10]

In conclusion, it's pretty cool when Amy is an actual character an not just defined by "wow that blue guy is so handsome"

[@catherinedermody4698]

Simple but good take.

[@apex2000]

Early issues of the UK comic Amy became more mature than sonic (apart from a phase when the changed all the writers & artists for a while to be cheaper). So she grew out of the crush. But still taunts sonic with it to see him squirm in discomfort. She was basically Sonic's second in command in freedom fighters (UK didn't have Sally) ... Long before Dreamcast landed.

[@runningoncylinders3829]

The one line in Heroes that hits part of the nail I'd say is Amy accusing Eggman of being in the way of her being with Sonic. Such an oversight of her own shortcomings in the moment that also illustrates the kinds of dangers Sonic thrives in and how much of a departure from civilian life Amy has to do to chase Sonic, possibly even leading her to take up anger with Sonic to pose some kind of obstacle herself. This is not a good look, but I'll go and put the dots to connect for now.

[@gleamingroses2952]

YES! I 100% agree with this, they are not improving Amy they are making her regressive! Amy has not "improved" They changed Amy, that's all. Currently they not only toned down her love for Sonic, but they also took away a lot of her personality. Now Amy feels more like "the girl". Many justify this with "maturity", but that's not maturity. A person can be mature and keep all their traits and be the best version of yourself and know how to cope. Maturing is not changing and becoming bland and boring. I'm not a big fan of how Amy was characterized in Frontiers, but at least she got a better characterization than the last few games, however they've toned her down a lot and taken away a lot from her character, making her more philosophical and quieter, which feels strange. (As a side note, I find Heroes Amy overcriticized when other versions of her depicted far worse of her character) I take issue is critics and fans find it progressive for the character because she isn't infatuated with Sonic, because the most criticized aspects were that and her temper, which I find regressive because you're basically saying a woman shouldn't have a temper. Regardless of if Amy was annoying, she had a distinct personality. The fact that a detractor or a fan could describe her using any trait means they are giving a direct description of the character. What exactly could you say about Amy's personality in 2010s-Frontiers that makes her standout? Okay she has normal conversations with Sonic, but at the cost of losing any expressive character or defined characteristics. Amy should be allowed to be mature, but being mature isn't a personality, she should do things that emphasize that. Not even mentioning her infatuation with Sonic or how she comes to this realization would've been far better, utilizing her flaws to show HOW she's grown, instead of telling us she is. Especially if IDW already established it given her position of the Restoration, why would she have another revolution about it and the gang have parted ways many times. She has an interesting character arc in wanting a goal that isn't just down to chasing Sonic, and that's fine. That's a nice goal to have, but Amy herself has no character and always seeing how she "is the best of the 2010s" when she literally has no character feels regressive. That's like if Nintendo responded to the criticism of Princess Peach being a damsel in distress decided to make her Samus Aran or Bayonetta. That's TOO drastic of a shift to make. They didn't fix Amy's character they went too far in the other direction with it, rather than balance the character around her love for Sonic, they stripped it and her other characteristics away just to say she's mature, yet critics think removing a character is better? That isn't how that works, you don't improve a character by making them have no character. Even on her character bio from Frontiers on the Sonic Wiki NEVER mentions Amy likes Sonic, indicating they are rebooting her entirely, they just tell use she's a girl who loves adventure, basically defining her main characteristic as being female.The current Amy lacks any distinct characteristics, and I feel that she has been made too calm and dull. And no, that's not "maturing". Maturing is not stripping away your qualities or looking calm again. Amy being this mature person in 2010s-Frontiers doesn't feel organic, like she got there naturally, it feels like it was done as a retcon solely for Sonic Team addressing the issue people had with the character, basically damage control. Because I always find it weird that Post Generations it never feels as if she is allowed to like Sonic, almost like they think doing so in anyway will "ruin how perfect they made her". Even if you want to argue tying into the IDW comics, it doesn't work because Amy is actually expressive there, is allowed to show her feelings, but in a more mature and grounded way and the character never feels as if she's drained of any character. It also feels going by many of Sonic and Amy's interactions that the actress (and the script) tries to make Amy like her Boom counterpart, only her Boom persona had a personality and actual character flaws. They basically just merged Amy into her Boom persona but didn't give her any of the characteristics of her Boom counterpart's personality, she feels like Boom Amy in the games who was just a generic action girl. Amy doesn't even have character flaws anymore, if you want to say this "she does because its same character" then why doesn't she show them? Frontiers at least makes effort to acknowledge Tails and Knuckles flaws with their characters over the years and uses that to develop them, Amy? They don't even mention her infatuation with Sonic, which the comics do to capitalize on this new goal of hers. All of the Sonic characters are just tropes at the end of the day, but it's what you DO with them take makes them good. Amy also uses to serve as a foil to Sonic. Now? She's just a diet version of her Boom persona with no distinct characteristics or flaws. I literally saw a review where someone just described Amy as "not Sonic obsessed" meaning they could've even thought of adjectives to describe her newer character despite being considered her "definitive" version. And if you want to argue "her compassion for the Koco is a personality" Amy was already a compassionate person, it's just some games chose to either showcase or deemphasize that depending on her appearance. Even so, that doesn't mean you strip away her entire character to make her mature or compassionate, that's not what maturity is. It's basically no different than how she's used in Adventure 1. I cannot think of a single character flaw Amy has in Modern games, or character for that matter, whereas identifying her as "annoying fangirl" in the past means you were describing who she was. Tropey or not. And yeah, it is a problem with Sega trying to make Amy come off as Boom Amy in Modern games because Boom Amy was designed for that series, so the character fits for that canon, you don't merge that into what Amy was already established as and say "hey guys she's better now" fans are literally feeding into this reboot of her character simply giving illusion of "being mature" when it's just a poor attempt to showcase that by playing it safe. Her character development in Frontiers is fantastic like I said, but it's coming off the fact she doesn't have a character to develop on anymore. Her character since Lost World now just amounts to Passive Girl. As the writer's way to show her as a "more mature version" is to have her act passive and calm. Which again, is very regressive! This even expands to just Modern Amy as a whole, ever since Lost World what exactly has, she does since she had this shift in character? Because she does nothing in Forces, Lost World or the TV shows. They didn't improve Amy, they rebooted her, like a mishmash of things. I really wish the writers would do the simple task of bringing back Amy's original personality, just make her not say obsessive things or be too mean. It's honestly all that needed to happen. You know what game did this? Adventure 1, it perfectly balanced her love for Sonic with her personality. It's used more as motivation for her than a goal. It's also strange, considering IDW takes Amy's mature persona, while making it feel like Amy! She's so much more playful and organic, unlike Frontiers which feels like a poorly done reboot of the character to address a more "progressive female character" while acting like removing her character has to be the step to do so.

[@PlanetZoidstar]

Sega are too gutless to do that because in 'current year' it would be 'problematic' to write Amy the way she was in 1999-2003.

[@redballoon9007]

(Spoilers for Sonic Prime below) This is why I like Prime. As much as we don’t get to see Regular!Amy we get to see her if some of her flaws were pushed to the extreme or even if her traits were non-existent. With Thorn, we get to see her love of nature get turned into a weapon and a justification to keep anyone and everyone from the jungle, not realizing it was harming the jungle in the process. With Rusty, we get to see what would happen if Amy lost all of her compassion. She’s a robot , yes, but she still kinda can feel anger and determination (determination to kill Sonic but determination none the less). Black Rose is arguably the closest we’ve got to Reg!Amy and while she isn’t as fleshed out as Thorn of Rusty (which might change depending on her relationship with Rusty) she has that bubbly persona you and I have grown to miss. And we have one shard left sooooo possibilities for that are endless I personally hope it’s a more magical setting because for a good while now I’ve argued that Amy has magical properties and has the potential to be a very powerful witch like character. It would be new and it would fit Amy cus of her tarot cards and her ability to turn invisible. They never explained why she was able to do that and they also never explain how she’s a low to just summon her hammer in Sonic X. But yeah, I agree with you. Amy shouldn’t have to stifle her love for Sonic just because some angy fans think it’s “annoying”. She had a perfect balance of her love for Sonic and her compassion of others and she’s willing to sacrifice Sonic’s opinion of her to protect those who she thinks needs protecting. All they need to do is make her not say things that are out of pocket and problem solved. Or better yet, make her say out of pocket things and have her reflect on it. I’d argue, however, that while it was kinda missed placed, the was she prioritized her safety over the rock creatures is nothing new and actually is kind of character for her. She was willing to split from Sonic to save the rock creatures she just met which is a flaw as well as a strength. And just to strengthen my whole “super natural Amy suggestion” Amy is the only one who pointed out just how “unnatural” the clouds were in Sonic Prime

[@dragondelsur5156]

@@redballoon9007 I'd argue that the last dimension will focus on Rouge given the pattern of dimensions we've seen. I mean, we already have Nine (Tails), Thorn (Amy) and Dread (Knuckles) as central pieces with Rusty and the Egg Council as antagonists, only Rouge is left.

[@redballoon9007]

@@dragondelsur5156 True………doesn’t mean it can’t have magic. Maybe it’s medival and Rouge is a corrupt Queen and Amy is a witch? (I’m just grasping at straws at this point djnsjs)

[@dragondelsur5156]

@@redballoon9007 Lol, don't blame you.

[@zigzagintrusion]

Your character analyses are always spot-on and I think you did Amy a great justice with this video. She’s always been an interesting character to me, and I hope Sonic Team will do her right in the future! I cant wait for another one of these :) Also, 16:32 😭

[@catherinedermody4698]

Too right. Spot on.

[@Purinwolf]

Amy's my most favorite character and I love Amy & Sonic together. I never find her annoying but I know that they messed up her character in a few games like Sonic Heroes, Sonic Battle, Sonic Generations. But all the time, all her friends were against her having her feelings to Sonic and that makes me angry. It is not one of business for Tails, Blaze, Knuckles, Rouge and anyone else who were clearly against her. They got annoyed of her, disagreed to her and made fun of her about her loving Sonic. Even Daisy from Mario in Mario and Sonic at Olympic games at 3DS. And I have pity with my Amy because Sonic isn't friendly to her at all even if she is not acting obsessed. Pushing her face with his hand was the most mean thing ever. And running away instead of talking to her. All of this made Amy's warmhearting and empathicness more behind her obsession and her powerful and large moveset were not put in games like she can see the future, having telepathic and magical moves with her hammer. I'm happy about her character in Sonic Frontiers and I"m glad that she is getting to be playable soon for I hope so much for Sonic games playing as Amy. I still miss her running after Sonic and searching him because it is sweet. And Amy is alongside with Eggman the most funny character for comedy. I'm glad that Sonic secretly loves her and I always believed in it. I love Amy and feel more comfortable to her since I'm like her. Thank you for your video.

[@bakedbeans5494]

The meatriding is crazy.

[@ookittythelittlecatoo8880]

You really just blamed sonic for being uncomfortable/not liking Amy’s “in your face” show of love..... Damn dude just Damn💀

[@whatagirthypooyouvetaken5825]

Sonic and amy are a shitty pairing and im dissapointed in sega for trying to make it cannon JUST to appeal sonamy fans. Sonic put his hand in amys face because he deserves his own personal space and privacy, he clearly didnt want amy smothering him and thats perfectly notmal. Instead of being angry at sonic why not ask why amy didn't respect his boundaries? Really hope sega changes the direction their going in

[@bakedbeans5494]

@@whatagirthypooyouvetaken5825 Stop making this about shipping and Sonic actually accepting a hug from Amy doesn't equal Sega supporting Sonamy.

[@ookittythelittlecatoo8880]

@@whatagirthypooyouvetaken5825 same bro I swear the only people that could love to see them together are the same people who would ship any character together because “it’s a boy and a girl they are totally in love” Let’s just hope sega leaves sonic alone the dude doesn’t have to be in a relationship just leave him be let people ship for fun outside of canon

[@acesamm]

Wow, not half bad! This was an enjoyable watch. That was a great analysis of Amy’s character that I wish more people got to see, especially the haters. As for my afterthoughts, I never thought about Amy being powerless, at least when compared to the main cast, and how that’s another trait that’s important about her. As well as that, I don’t mind Amy being more relaxed. It’s a nice way of character development, but I do wish she still has some of her more- you know, bubbly, cheerful nature that was part of why I enjoyed her character. Eh, maybe later games will do that, especially since Amy will go solo (as well as the 2023 Frontiers update).

[@bakedbeans5494]

There is no character development.

[@acesamm]

@@bakedbeans5494 and you are very weird, forcing a certain belief on everyone.

[@bakedbeans5494]

@@acesamm Says the guy spreading false information casually.

[@acesamm]

@@bakedbeans5494 I dunno. I read some of your comments and you are pretty wild. I dunno what side you’re on? For Amy, or against her?

[@bakedbeans5494]

@@acesamm I'm for Amy.

[@theedgyduo7091]

I feel like sonic frontiers is a new beginning for the sonic series, so far I think it’s fixed Amy in a way we thought was impossible

[@bakedbeans5494]

You're naive.

[@theedgyduo7091]

I get that a lot and I’m fine with that

[@Ticketman99]

You must be a MCU Captain Marvel fan

[@alextalbain9269]

I'm really happy with hoe Frontiers handled her character. Heck, I'm happy with how it handled everyone. They are getting the chance to go out and explore the world and themselves. Who knows, maybe this means we'll get new sonic games that DON'T revolve around sonic, but instead they will tell the stories of his friends and their adventures away from the blue blur. The ending does seem to indicate that and it's a great chance to bring these characters to life again.

[@bakedbeans5494]

Look what happens when someone gets too excited. They start spouting nonsense.

[@catherinedermody4698]

+Alex Talbain Plus, it is a positive sign that the characters will be playable again in more games.

[@antrox2346]

Not really, Amy feels like a different character nowadays, but I agree that it's good for these characters to have adventures of their own (so it seems).

[@RaveDX]

I really hope they don't tone down Amy's open love of Sonic too much in the future. That side of Amy made her a little more interesting and acted as a flaw or strength to her character.

[@CottageDreams23]

Yea I dont want her to be like one of those being independent woman or tomboy..

[@777Rowen]

Fantastic discussion on Amy’s character! 🦔 💖

[@dreamsprayanimation]

Amy’s story is kind of similar to that of Tails in Sonic adventure. Both kind of have always looked up to but also relied on sonic forever and learn to find their own way.

[@kamenriderwarrior5645]

Amy is fast, just not at the level of sonic, she's a somewhat speedster sonic advance as a example

[@tidepoolclipper8657]

"Amy has no powers" She can run almost as fast as Sonic, Shadow, or Tails Is much stronger than she physically looks, considering the piko-piko hammer is no doubt quite heavy (likely has more arm strength than Sonic) Can create mini tornadoes with her hammer Later learns how to do the spindash Might have some amount of psychic ability

[@JayAndSonicYT]

Well Then Where and When was Amy (or a Variant of her) Using The Spindash In Sonic Prime?

[@jamiegioca9448]

​@@JayAndSonicYT Origins and Frontiers' Final Horizon

[@JayAndSonicYT]

@@jamiegioca9448 I was talking about Sonic Prime!

[@santiagoarrieta2175]

the tarot cards are a really weird characteristic of Amy. There are a lot of small hints in nearly all the games she appears, of her having a high affinity to magic, tarot reading, her hammer is hinted to be a magic weapon(that appears of nowhere happen in game) ,inclusive her counterpart on the black night is Nimue, who is basically a magic being), but it's never properly developed or said. Only in the las part of Archie comics give it a major role, and recently in idw comics she read the Tarot for Tangle, Jewel and Bell they became real in a way in the following arcs.

[@yotomoe5953]

Sonic X and Sonic Battle are actually the versions that made me like Amy. Mostly because I like that she was a bit of a passionate hothead. Amy to me has always been a character that feels her feelings strongly. If she's in love she's head over heels, if she's angry she's furious, and if she's sad she's a sobby mess. I like the idea that she's formidable in her own right and swings around that massive hammer with ease. I feel like I'm less interested in her nowadays with IDW/Frontiers because they made her a bit too mellow. I like my sonic characters when they're a little exaggerated. They're very cartoon inspired so when they're played mostly straight it makes them a bit boring. Not saying she has to be exactly like Heroes/X in terms of obsession but I'd like a little more spice.

[@Moonbovine]

Sonic X version of Amy was my FAVORITE Amy. Or Japanese translation of Amy. Those felt like the best times of her character

[@TequilaMockingBird91]

Sorry for the wall of text. Just wanted to post my head canon here. I’ve always thought it would’ve been cool if Amy was a playable character in Sonic Adventure 2’s Story. Her stage’s missions could be like a game of tag where the objective is not to reach the goal ring, but rather she needs to “capture the target!” (Usually Sonic). Think Tail’s stages from SA1 but instead, Sonic already starts a quarter or halfway from the goal ring and Amy needs to catch up to him and tag him. I figured that Dark Story’s counter-part for Amy could’ve been Omega. Omega could’ve been designed by Eggman specifically for the sheer purpose of capturing small animals for robotics purposes. Maybe instead of Dr. Eggman capturing Amy himself, Eggman sends Omega to capture Amy and that could be one of his stages (which didn’t really make sense for Eggman himself to capture Amy anyway; he would’ve never left the emerald station in the ARC ungrounded knowing that Sonic is already on board) The rivalry between Amy and Omega could be a neat juxtaposition and a great callback to SA1. Also, SA2 could explain how and why Eggman decided to lock Omega up and abandon him. Also, Amy maybe could’ve “jailbroken” Omega just as she did Gamma which would explain how Omega has intense rage against Eggman to begin with. The possibilities are endless.

[@AlastorAltruistGaming]

I feel that it’s not just Amy whose character was bastardized; every single character is a completely different version of themselves compared to when they were first realized.