Why Emerl Matters: The Mystery and Tragedy of the Gizoid

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There's been an overlooked robot in the Sonic franchise that's getting a second chance to make a big bang in the upcoming Shadow: Dark Beginnings animation. Today we're going to talk about what may be the most powerful robot "double" in the entire series, one that left a greater impact than most fans realize.
big shout out to ‪@ChannelPup‬ for another fantastic edit. Stevie Cole designed this killed thumbnail as well!
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/ gameapologist

[@KingoftheBashful]

It's crazy how Sonic Battle and Emerl himself are both super important to the lore of the franchise, and Sega never really took that into account until recently.

[@toonman5099]

Considering Emerl has connections to the Gizoids and a lot of their origins are fleshed out in Chronicles, and the well know issues Penders has with it...

[@extremmefan7305]

I blame Kenneth W. Penders the 2nd

[@ligtningdog6399]

Not surprising at all really. Sega treats lore and story continuity like it's the plague.

[@toonman5099]

@@ligtningdog6399 I mean they ARE changing about that, like they're ACTUALLY being a lot more lore conscious recently.

[@bandicootsauce4569]

Yeah. I myself never knew Emerl had any connection to Shadow before I saw that Dark Beginnings preview.

[@BonitoJoe111]

Everyone knows the bittersweet death of Gamma. But Emerl's death may be the most gut-wrenching yet overlooked loss in the whole Sonic franchise, second only to Maria in levels of tragedy. There is no sweet in it, It's just bitter. It's not like the Iron Giant, Johnny 5, or the Brave Little Toaster where it's a sentient machine that fakes their death or they come back to life/get repaired eventually. Emerl is gone for good, with no hope of ever seeing the full potential of his newly freed life. Strange how a silly kids game with colorful talking superpowered woodland creatures could help remind you to appreciate the life and friends you have around you while you still can.

[@slimboarder.o7]

It was so sad when he got killed by the troll king

[@reggielacey2235]

His death was meh. Never care for gamma. Also no doesn't help me appreciate anything

[@Eminster]

​@@reggielacey2235jeez what happened to you?

[@hahasamian8010]

Emerl was actually salvaged and put into the command interface of one of my Sonic engines, it's an important part of my canon (it makes his little beeping noises)

[@TheAzulmagia]

Emerl sort of comes back in Sonic Advance 3 when Eggman rebuilds him into Gemerl, but I imagine it's not the same AI/personality.

[@tastethepainbow]

It's depressing to see Emerl die in his debut game, but in hindsight from an out-of-universe perspective, it had to happen. From what we know of his true capabilities, he would've completely break every plot he was involved in. At that point, why even have Sonic when we have this robot who can theoretically do what him and everyone else does, but better? I think that's why his successor, Gemerl, feels so nerfed in comparison.

[@WolforNuva]

Well Sonic still managed to take out Emerl, who had copied Sonic's skills and enhanced them with the emeralds, so I don't think Sonic would ever become redundant, his force of will lets him take on threats that should be stronger than himself. Not to mention his personality wouldn't let him just retire and leave everything to Emerl, Sonic would still want his life of adventure... But yeah it had to happen, Emerl needs the 7 chaos emeralds in order to keep functioning as himself, there was no way he was going to survive while keeping the series biggest plot device to himself.

[@tastethepainbow]

@@WolforNuva To be fair, Emerl wasn't exactly the most clear in thought for that final battle. I think he might have the edge in terms of pure power. If this was a battle where Emerl's wasn't overloaded and fried by the Final Egg Blaster, the battle could've went very differently or honestly not happened at all, and even if it did, there's no way he would've willingly gone all out. Just saying, 4,000 years of battle knowledge and all Chaos Emeralds is going to make this one hell of an uphill fight for Sonic.

[@WolforNuva]

@@tastethepainbow Absolutely, it was one hell of an uphill fight. I would put it down to Sonic's skill using his abilities winning out, which is realistically how you'd win the game, by the player using Sonic with more skill to overcome the AI's much more powerful abilities. I don't think his core programming was ever overloaded or scrambled, just his heart - the additions that Gerald made, the rest was the ancient programming coming out and Eggman not knowing what he was messing with. Though it would be nice to think that what remained of the Emerl we knew put up just enough resistance to slow his body down just enough to give Sonic the ability to pull through. Since that Emerl did come back after he was defeated, we know he wasn't completely gone, maybe he was still there trying his best not to hurt his father figure.

[@Artista_Frustrado]

this is why Amazo never gets to be a recurring villain in any DC Show, even in Young Justice where they nerfed his ability to select which powers to use

[@1Hol1Tiger]

Funnily enough the reason Emerl has to die is because Sonic and Tails conclude he is better equipped to take on Robotnik which.. the Eggman was counting on for his plan.

[@mr.skateandwatch]

At this point I’m just gonna call the segment, “Mecha Monthly Madness”

[@TheArceusftw]

Glad to see Emerl getting more love and recognition these days. He's a sure definition of a one-time character having a very big impact.

[@Gaia_BentosZX5]

And sadly, there's a tragedy in gaming that played out exactly like Emerl's since there was a cheat code in this game that was the very basis for a certain individual's name, beginning with the letter E. A gamer's story cut short due to the cruel, indifferent nature of the world.

[@ToshisGarden]

​@@Gaia_BentosZX5 Curious, who are you talking about?

[@ToshisGarden]

​@@Gaia_BentosZX5 Curious, who are you talking about?

[@NickyShadow99]

The fact Sonic Battle might have the blueprints to where the franchise wants to go narratively, with those 4 civilizations, tying together the "Ancients", the black arms, and the the Gizoids all together holds a lot of potential. Can't wait for none of it to be touched on lol

[@andresmarrero8666]

I don't think the Ancients were involved with this one. Gizoids doesn't seem to be something that that they would make or even had the time to. Now while the Nocturnus Clan has been retconed out of existence the notion that gizoids are an Echidna creation makes the most sense to me. I guess that would make Emerl Shadow's Knuckles in a sense.

[@jestfullgremblim8002]

​@@andresmarrero8666 fair enough

[@anonymous_moose]

To be fair, they did try to touch on it. Unfortunately, that game was Sonic Chronicles, which--regardless of how you might feel about *that* game--got blasted out of continuity by the Ken Penders deal. SEGA is legally not allowed to make reference to the game's events and even outright declared that it is no longer in continuity.

[@agentomecha634]

Emerl… a victim of his own programming. Even when given sentience and the freedom to pursue his own path, he could never fully escape his original purpose. To be a weapon of mass destruction… It’s great to see SEGA and Sonic Team go back and reference Sonic Battle and Emerl again with the Shadow Generations Dark Beginnings prologue. I’m hoping with it, we can learn more about Emerl and the Gizoids as a whole. Especially since their previous origins have been retconned to oblivion.

[@mitchellhancock7920]

I just hate the fact that a PETTY old man is the reason why The Nocturnus Clan and everything about them had to be retconned. I REALLY hope that someday, that TREASON will be reversed.

[@zerocrashmurilo]

it won't, sega seems to not really care for their old characters nor what ken penders is doing, except maybe that one time where he tried to make a scourge comic but idk if sega was involved in it's non existance seems more likely for sega to just leave the past in the past and attempt to remake the story following loosely what the original emerl backstory is

[@HunhowsShadowStalker]

Reminds me of a scene from Star Trek: Voyager. A sentient warhead is intercepted by the USS Voyage. The ship's "Emergency Medical Hologram", the Doctor, argues for the warhead's programming to be set free so it can choose for itself. The warhead itself doesn't see it that way, discussing the situation with ensign Harry Kim. The warhead fails to see the point of why the Doctor would want this. Thus, the following conversation: *Harry:* "Even though he was only programmed to be a doctor, he's become more than that. He's made friends, he's piloted a starship, he even sings." *Warhead:* "Despite all of his achievements, did he ever _stop_ being a doctor?" *Harry:* "No, but..." *Warhead:* "And I can't stop being a _weapon."_ How is the day saved? The warhead doesn't change its function to detonate, but rather the _target_ of its detonation, destroying all the other sentient missiles before they reach their target. The problem with a machine being programmed or built for a specific purpose is that, no matter what else you add to it, the original programming/function will always remain as the baseline. You can replace a pistol's bullets with confetti, but it's still going to fire when the trigger is pulled. Despite how much Emerl wanted to change, nothing could prevent his original directive from activating. And that's the sad difference between organic and cybernetic lifeforms.

[@wakkaseta8351]

@@HunhowsShadowStalker Except a machine can have it's programming completely replaced with different software while biology is immutable.

[@Artista_Frustrado]

@@mitchellhancock7920 nah, even if Penders actually moved on is clear that ship has sailed & SEGA is already doing their own thing with the Echidna backstory, as we have seen in the movies... Maybe we could see an spiritual successor to Shade but yeah, the Nocturnus are gone for good & no amount of random caps will change that

[@AstroTom]

I really love Emerl. Sonic Battle is a weird game but I honestly really adore it. So to see Emerl making a comeback in the Shadow mini series is so exciting for me.

[@Gaia_BentosZX5]

And we can potentially see the kind of extent Gerald has tampered with Shadow's memories. When you compare Apologist's and Chaomix's videos side-by-side, you begin to have a horrifying realization as to how far the scientist is willing to go to avenge his fallen granddaughter since that tragedy of Emerl going berserk on the space colony prior to GUN's raid is a perfect place to sneak in false memories as a way to fuel Shadow's vengeful motives.

[@JPlaysGames312]

I can tell you how it felt to complete this game as a kid in 2005 - I cried, a lot. I replayed the entire game 3 times trying to find some way to change the ending, it never did - but I came out of it fully understanding the gizoid's lore Emerl's entire story is a tragedy, a robot striving to become his own person, and to fall to his own programming overriding his free will.

[@inkycreations1018]

Ngl, I knew next to nothing about Emerl and now I’m in love with this character! That part when Emerl said he didn’t want to die made me cry…

[@ElijahW2003]

If you can get your hands on an emulator, I recommend playing it. I knew Emerl died, but I didn't really appreciate it until I played a whole game getting attached to him, and then saw the full cutscene and just how emotional it really was.

[@TigerW0lf]

Sonic Battle was one of my favorite Sonic games growing up. Emerl's story was a big part of that. How could I not want to see more lore added to Emerl.

[@bandicootsauce4569]

I'm reminded of a quote from The Incredibles: "It's a learning robot. Every moment you spend fighting it only increases its knowledge of how to beat you."

[@SHORYUKIN-SF6]

Im so so excited for my adorable boi to return in a new way. This run down is what im gonna point my friends towards when they ask me who emerl is when Dark Beginnings comes out

[@ThatGuy-tc6uv]

Not to come off as "UMM ACKSHUALLY", but the concept of the emeralds breaking dates back to Sonic Blast (yes, the game gear game) of all things: The Japanese manual plot states that the "Chaos Emeralds" you collect in that game are actually the fragments of a single Chaos Emerald that Eggman overloaded and shattered while trying to snipe Sonic with a laser. That aside, great vid, as per usual. The point that Sonic's experiences with Emerl would inform his behaviors in IDW is one that I never even considered.

[@xaviidk]

🤓

[@DamashiTheKaotic]

Sonic Battle is very special to me. It's my favorite Sonic story, and it's tone is exactly what I want to see more of in this franchise going forward, and have started getting with games like Frontiers and Murder of Sonic.

[@kenn_k]

my ocd ass trying to just listen to the audio and refrain from commenting something like "nick did you record this in a cardboard box in 2008"

[@GameApologist]

IM GETTING A NEW MIC SOON SORRY

[@technorave555]

You dont understand, this is actually Mecha Nick. this is how he naturally sounds

[@GameApologist]

@@technorave555 indeed, I'm the robot version of Nick. I am nothing more than a broken toaster.

[@MachExceler8]

@@GameApologist Lol i never even noticed there was a difference, so dont stress too much.

[@phantomstrider]

I've being doing audio recording for 14 years and honestly I didn't even notice 😆 I wouldn't stress too much about the audio. Still sounds better than my echoey green screen stuff lol

[@jameswilliams8555]

I recently started hyperfixating on Sonic battle and got SO HAPPY when they teased Emerl!

[@rubydragoon720]

Sonic Battle to this day still proves how powerful Sonic is😎😎 Bro, The Gizoids have always been my favorite robots in the franchise next to Neo Metal Sonic.

[@lilbasenji1]

Honestly this is the first time I kinda wished I played a handheld Sonic game when it came out. While I knew Emerl from Sonic X and Sonic Chronicles I never really knew the character nor its backstory aside from what I can remember from various articles that I read. And now, I am kinda sad that we don’t see more of Emerl in modern games. I could see it taking care of Cream and Cheese as well as hanging out with Shadow. Honestly Emerl’s story/history in Sonic Battle would make for a better side plot for a Shadow centric game than what we got in Shadow the Hedgehog. It would have been so interesting diving into Shadow’s history while learning his connection with Emerl as well as discovering who they are. Learning what makes us who we are and if the past should define what and who we are or if our future is decided for us by others and how they view us. I can see it showing so much about Project Shadow and how much Gerald struggled to make Shadow, control Emerl, and his desire to protect/help everyone. When I think about this, it makes Gerald’s mental breakdown after discovering Maria’s death more heartbreaking. He had so much compassion and worked very hard to be every thing that Eggman is not, only to have his heart broken by those people who he worked for. I could even see a beautiful scene where Shadow would have to decide whether or not to destroy Emerl, even though they are almost like brothers like Sonic and Tails. It would have made for an interesting story, more than “look Shadow you are part alien and you need to decide if you are a villain, hero, or just self centered”. Sorry everyone who love Shadow the Hedgehog game, I am sure that there are people who loved the game, I am sure not one of them. I hope that Emerl is mentioned in Sonic Movie 3 or at the very least is Sonic x Shadow generations.

[@spacepilgrim3023]

I beat this game when it came out, and to this day I can't think of a single other game where through your own choices, you unknowingly create your own last boss. Fighting a tough AI with all of the abilities you custom equipped that turns on you in the end is so shocking and satisfying, narrative aside. And having to play as Sonic instead at the end still reassures you that you're playing his game. It's a damn shame the game couldn't have a console release so playing against friends were more possible.

[@garciarodrigueznicolas7295]

I equiped on emerl g.pw shadow finisher.... I got my ass beat it 30 seconds

[@CandleBite]

Its weird how I grew up specifically getting the sonic games that brought up Emerl and the Gizoids, From Sonic Battle, Sonic Advance 3's Gmerl, and Sonic Chronicles: Dark Brotherhood Gizoids... and even Sonic X's version of Emerl. And Yes, you know i was hype seeing Emerl again in that Sonic Generations Animation

[@takeruneverborn4740]

Who hoping that Emerl will be in Shadow Generations also l love this Robot Power Copying Character,Also love that Emerl & Shadow are actually connected to Chaos Emerald mythos also Sonic chronicles despite it non canonicity gave more backstory to this robot species the "Gizoid"

[@nicholasharlan6504]

I could see the timeline slotting Emerl as being one of the two keys Gerald needed to bring Shadow into the world. Being the timelines first "Ultimate Lifeform." Gerald would never be able to fully analyze or understand the robot, but its notable ability to self regenerate would no doubt have caught his eye, as his personal intentions with project shadow was to find a way to cure Maria's terminal illness. But instead of making a successor robot, Gerald would turn to a biological blueprint based on the figure seen in the angel island mural of super sonic. Again, I see this decision most likely being out of a desire to transfer the success of creating an ultimate "biological lifeform" and the life giving capabilities of the emeralds, to saving his granddaughter. Shadows amazing combat prowess then could be seen as a benefit to having had some influence from the Gizoid. Of course, Gerald would fail time and again until partnering with Black Doom to create the Hedgehog we know and love. As for their clash on the ark, I actually think it ties in perfectly that Emerl was the catalyst that led to the Ark disaster. According to battles Journals, Gerald handed over the Gizoid specifically so that he could have more time to work on project Shadow as he was already growing paranoid over GUN and the government, hinting that he knew that they knew (future gun commander witnessed black doom and most likely blabbed about it) about his secret agreement with an Alien lifeform to complete shadow. Couple that with the biolizard catastrophe as well as Emerl going berserk, and the government most likely lost all trust in Gerald and set the stage for the GUN shut down of the station.

[@SpiderGoblin2012]

Sonic Battle deserves a remake. Between the controls and OST being limited by the GBA, gameplay having really cool ideas hampered by... well, janky hitboxes and excruciating amounts of padding, and a story that is so much better than it has any right to delivered by static PNGs (in an admittedly really cool art style) that barely anyone has experienced because of all the issues listed above, I think Battle deserves a remake more than almost any game in the franchise, especially now that they're bringing Emerl back. At the very least, they should put it on NSO, along with the Advance Trilogy. Seriously, it's kinda ridiculous that they haven't already. They already made a deal with Nintendo to get Genesis games on there, why not the GBA games??

[@WolforNuva]

Yeah, Battle suffers from having an amazing plot and terrible gameplay. If they remade the game with the same story and writing, but made the gameplay... I dunno good, then it could have been so much better. Then again I'm not in a hurry to have the game stab my heart again.

[@hatmaster7774]

This video really showed me why so many people loved Emerl. Amazing how much weight and importance seemingly simple characters like this can have in this franchise

[@raequizzle9713]

I would love for Sega to flesh out the relationship between Emerl and Gemerl. Part of the reason I love Gemerl is that I always saw him as Emerl’s spiritual successor, and wasn’t sure if Gemerl was ever even aware of that history or has any sort of memories from Sonic Battle. Either way, great video Nick! I love to see more spotlight on Sonic Battle, it is one of the best Sonic stories

[@jraulerson3081]

I had three games as a kid on my GBA SP. Sure, Pokemon Emerald took up the majority of my time (as they often do), but Sonic Battle was a story that I couldn't come to grips with all those years ago. It left me almost speechless seeing Emerl actually die. While walking around a supermarket with my sibling I watched in shock as for the first time a Sonic character actually made me cry with their passing. The dialogue really gave the little robot a life of its own and each character who helped raise it from where it started added that much more impact. We as the player invested a lot of time and effort into making Emerl the best it could be, the person it wanted to be and in the end it was one moment, one last trick by Eggman which forced Emerl to even briefly throw it all away. Shadow is Gerald Robotnik's ultimate creation, but what he did for Emerl allowed us to go on a journey that for a side-story is in my opinion second to none. Also, I was so hyped for that story to be retold in Sonic X...and they botched it. Anyway, here's to hoping the new story/battle in Generations gives us something to honor our long-lost fighting robot!

[@Peanut6193]

Was pretty much just waiting for the inevitable Emerl video from you, and yeah having completed Sonic Battle back in the day I can tell you I am extremely happy to see him again in anything new after all these years.

[@sethisevilone02]

him being back is a W

[@NightFuryLover31]

It would be very cool if Emerl is the mystery character. I am looking forward to seeing how his story connects with Shadow’s past! Love the helmet! At this point, I think a lot of us come also for hearing you rant on the names at the end. 😂

[@nathanl.8095]

Sonic Battle has had a place in my heart ever since it first came out when I was still in school. Amazing game that I wish was on Switch or PS so I could replay it.

[@flannelshirtenthusiast4159]

This game DESTROYED me as a kid. I was not prepared for this spin off fighting game with this super rad grafitti art style to be about raising a child from infancy to adulthood, and then having to kill it. I cried alot after beating it

[@Alabaster-White]

Ah, Emerl. The Gamma to Gmerl's Omega.Still annoyed we won't get to see Gamma story in Sonic adventure movie. Glad that we are getting to see return of Gizoids though. never imagine this was possible back in early 2010s.

[@Izak_Klark]

I like the new avatar! Mecha Nick, like... "Mechanic" You nailed everything I love about Emerl. We need a fan game about him. And a super form where he becomes Gemerl instead of going crazy 🤔

[@GigaKaiju]

Glad to see Emerl being given a chance once again in the overall Sonic lore once again with the Dark Beginnings animation. And also for it to be the focus of a video in the channel here. Emerl has been a favorite of mine and part of it has been due to the game Sonic Battle and how it connects to Shadow and Gerald Robotnik, other favorites too. Part of the charm of Emerl was the self insert element inherent to him through the plot just like some RPG protagonists or VN protagonists, however there's development and traits that make him it's own.

[@smugsneasel]

Damn man. Sonic by himself, dealing enough damage to stop Ultimate Emerl is still one of his greatest feats to this day. But the aftermath still makes me cry a bit.

[@nashmanmafiaman7305]

34:16 If Emerls backstory is modified to be that he was created by The Ancients from Frontiers it could be that The Ancients make the Gizoid to fight The End, because (If I'm wrong) they had some time on Earth, Mobius, Sonic's World before The End show's up and they seal it in cyberspace and they try to create the Ultimate Fighter for The End a controllable creation that has the power of The Seven Chaos Emeralds. With the results being what the story already says, The Gizoid went out of control, did a lot of damage to the world and you all should know the rest.

[@andresmarrero8666]

They had about 30 years before the End found them I think and Emerl really doesn't fit their architecture and design style. Besides why make a small trooper bot run on the seven chaos emeralds to face an eldritch entry when a series of ultra mecha that can fight on even footing with Super Sonic couldn't do the job? The concept of the link and the destructive programming are things that never was going to fly with them. I am fine letting gizoids be an Echidna creation as those guys were quite advanced and were quite proficient with the use of chaos energy. I can buy them making a killer robot and Emerl's design kinda does match their's.

[@KaiserShield]

Incorporating Emerl into sonic X shadow generations was a genius move. It’s not really conflicting with anything canon or not and makes sense if it was the former. Hope this means we get a sonic battle remake sometime down the line.

[@Kibui]

Battle was one of my first Sonic games so Emerl is very nostalgic to me. When Sonic Chronicles came out I was so happy to see them explore his origins and the cast remembering him It's a shame the game is no longer considered canon but I hope they'll use as much of Chronicles as they can should the upcoming Dark Beginnings animations even touch upon his origins. I'd love to see Scylla and Charyb, the other two named Gizoids, again

[@karenbonds264]

2:49 That’s a sneaky little SegaScourge reference there.

[@wakeangel2001]

Now I feel bad referencing Amy's eating disorder whenever I talk about this game...though to this day I wonder how much of Emerl "lives" on in Gemerl, did Eggman salvage any of his data or body?

[@Keyshooter]

as someone who played the crap out of this game when i was a kid, to the point of unlocking all gerald's diary entries, i was so hyped when i saw emerl in the teaser trailer, i exactly knew where that falled in the "shadow timeline" and i was literally crying of happyness

[@SXMDUB]

Emerl is such an underrated character. I’m glad he was brought back! ✨

[@AnxiousDoe]

I'm not a patreon subscriber (at least not anymore, financial difficulties) but I do want to say that I really enjoy the name reads at the end. The bizarre humor of your patron's is a delight to behold.

[@mediamuncher69]

Sonic Battle takes place after the events of: Sonic Adventure 2. Sonic Advance 2 Sonic Heroes.

[@TheKTheman]

FINALLY! Sonic battle is getting some love! I played the game years ago and loved it I agree with the difficulty being high but the story hooked me completely. That last battle broke my heart. 😢

[@fireyums]

I do wish you touched on Gemerl a bit more. But that's probably going on the thought process that Emerl and Gemerl are basically the same character. Or maybe that's just a hopeful headcanon? The idea that Tails might have been able to recover some of Emerl's memories while repairing Gemerl? As I think Gemerl was built using Emerl's parts, not simply a copy like the E-121 models. And while we're on that subject... It always bothered me that Gemerl didn't make a Cameo in Sonic Rush when Cream takes Blaze to her house.

[@autobotkirby1up]

frankly it feels all but outright confirmed Gemerl is a rebuilt Emerl. Gemerl's final boss rampage only happens when you have all 7 chaos emeralds on you, the gizoid motif is mixed into Gemerl's boss theme (which is titled "Nonaggression"), the fact that Gemerl's even staying at creams place to begin with. plus from what I recall Gemerl's debut in the archie comics brought back Emerl's cocky personality and it transferred over to the IDW comics despite Saga imposing more restrictions (like fang,bean and bark not being restricted to classic sonic stuff). also it wouldn't be the first time eggman cheated the tragic demise of a one and done character (looks at shadow and Sage)

[@polocatfan]

they aren't. they're different characters. gemerl can't copy techniques.

[@ProtonetMan]

I absolutely adored this game's story. I'm really glad you got the chance to finish it.

[@ThisisTheUltimate]

The thing that sattles the debate of Sonic Battle taking place before or after Shadow the Hedgehog is the fact that Shadow knows Gerald in Sonic Battle, while in Shadow the Hedgehog he's confused to hearing that name, doesn't even know who that is, Black Doom even finds intriguing how Shadow didn't even knew his own creator's name, and although Shadow let his past behind in Shadow the Hedgehog's ending, it's clear that to this day he still recalls it and remembers it a lot, especially the good moments, as we see by many Sonic Channel artworks and some of the stories involving Shadow

[@michaelrhett4958]

2:11 Nick mentioned Kamen Rider! THIS IS AMAZING!

[@Logan-tinyplanetss]

extremely compelling video. thanks for going over battle's story so thoroughly!! i've been stuck on knuckles's story for MONTHS. the way this impacts sonic's interactions with all robots, and how impressive it is to have sonic fight the power of the chaos emeralds as-is! and how well he was intertwined with the story!! i was SO excited seeing him in dark beginnings, i am ECSTATIC!!!!

[@darkchaos3474]

Not to be that guy but Sonic Battle isn’t the first game to establish the Chaos Emeralds can be shattered, Sonic Blast did that first

[@LordLuminous_YT]

Emerl is my favorite sonic character of all time, I'm so glad that he's coming back into the spotlight! HAIL EMERL BOIS!!!

[@RichieGonzo]

Fantastic video. Emerl and Gemerl are by far my favorites from the series. I really hope SEGA revisits the Gizoid lore one day and properly gives them a canon origin, thanks to Chronicles no longer being canon, thanks to REDACTED lmao.

[@zero69kage]

I love how unhinged his Patrion reads are getting.

[@spoopygirl2377]

Sonic Battle was the game I played as a kid. I played this game so much and never realized how niche of a character Emerl was. I'm glad Gemerl still exists in IDW, at least we got a piece of Emerl.

[@Krissylis]

YEAHHHHH LOVE YOUR VIDEOS DUDE. Keep up the great work✨✨

[@infiniteoctopaw]

I never saw Emerl as a oc self insert. I saw him more as a robot the player helped raise invisiblely alongside the cast. It would be like saying in mainline pokemon we play as the pokemon because we chose the attacks. but there is a filter between the player and pokemon. My Emerl and your Emerl is still the same guy even if the colors and combos are different. Seeing Emerl in that teaser had me doing laps. I never expected us Sonic Battle fans to ever eat again after advance 3. We got our happy ending with Cream and Gemerl. I was happy with that and we got more answers in Sonic Chronicles. I was satisfied with what we got. But yeah, teaser made me incredibly happy. I'm happy we get to have lore again. I can't believe they are gonna make the Shadow Chapter in Battle somehow hit harder knowing there was fist to fist beef.

[@CreationsFlare]

Sonic Battle was honestly terrifying as a kid. I remember dying so much in Gamma's missions it made me so mad I had to look up GameFAQs at the time and try to get various cheats to unlock more Emerl memory or some of his broken cards for cheesing. But the end just, made me so sad. Emerl's such a poignant character from when he finally said his first full sentence to his last breath. I'm so excited to see what they'll do in SonicXShadow Generations because dude's been underrated for over a decade and I can finally be free to express that.

[@Thecolorgreen]

Yo, thanks for this. I've been subbed to you for a few years now, but this specific video means a little more to me than usual. Last time I played Sonic Battle was around 15-16 years ago as a young teen, and I'd forgotten how powerful its story was. I remember getting attached to this character and being sad about the ending, but I wasn't prepared for the emotional gutpunch of actually reliving some of those scenes now that I understand them all that much better as an adult. You've dug up feelings that I've missed for a long time, not to mention memories of being introduced to Sonic in the early-Modern era as a kid. I'm very happy to see they're including Emerl in the celebration of such a huge legacy. This series deserves it, and people are finally realizing it.

[@CustardBear25]

I just wanna take a moment to say how glad i am to have found your channel about a year or two ago, I love listening to how passionate and clearly you explain these stories, you are also the reason I subscribed to the IDW comics, and still go back to the speed reading segment of the metal virus arc, and listening to and learning more about Emerl is so exciting with the run up to the new game, bit of a random comment but hey, thanks for the vids!

[@GameApologist]

Random or not it was very kind, thank you so much!!

[@archiox0628]

I was not much of a fan of the Sonic games especially the platforming racing ones, but I remember this game as a kid and played the heck out of it. I was in love with the concept of a copy robot mix and matching moves.

[@cainformerlyhinja]

a shame sega doesn't do anything with Sonic Battle

[@SonicTheHedgehogX15]

They will now with shadow gens

[@SHORYUKIN-SF6]

Whos gonna tell em?

[@zerocrashmurilo]

feels hard to when the main character for it is dead, at best they can try to expand his story in backstory but even that feels hard to do when they tried it once and it resulted in a lawsuit

[@patrickcarter2829]

​@@zerocrashmurilo But isn't Emerl a part of Sonic IDW? Meaning he's technically in the current canon?

[@friendlyhedgehog3726]

@@patrickcarter2829 Thats Gemerl

[@TechnicSky]

So we can all agree Emerl is basically Sonic's kid right?

[@superaustin6383]

Emarl actually shows up in the Sonic X comics showing how Eggman finds him and they actually use the Emarl name

[@rapto1090]

Yay one of my favorite youtubers covering probably one of the most developed sonic characters !!!

[@HedgehogY2K]

It's kinda funny how Battle released a week before Sonic Heroes but takes place after it.

[@toraLoveArt9890]

I remember playing this game when I was a kid. I cried when I beat the game and the last journal entry. I miss this game.

[@Preteristboy]

Shadow is clearly going through his own memories. Not only do we see Rouge's line from Heroes, but if you watch Windii's retranslations of Heroes and Battle, Sonic's line in the flashback is pulled from their reunion in Heroes. (You probably know it for "Talk about being stubborn and full of surprises!") Also, _if_ the Ancients built Emerl, it was likely to combat The End. Keep in mind, not even their most powerful weapons could damage it, as The End's power was unmatched. But what if they had a weapon that could copy and match that power?

[@josh_miester_x511]

I always loved the design of Emeral. He was always a mystery to me in Sonic X, and I'm glad you helped me see where he came from and how much he matters. Your videos are always amazing and informative.

[@WithFearGaming]

You uploaded this as i was deep diving sonic/shadow lore. Let's gooo

[@hershy1594]

As a kid who played a lot of game boy Sonic games, this was easily my favorite, and I did not understand why there wasn't more character like Emerl. He was easily the best character to come out of the game boy era of Sonic imo.

[@christian8657]

As a kid, Sonic Battle’s story told in the simple visuals and dialogue box made my imagination run wildddd The death scene at the end is something I’ll always remember Sonic battle was like reading a book, a book that punches characters in the face and I love it

[@Cozmix-7]

Finally, someone givin my boy the spotlight he deserves! Thank you for taking a look at Emerl and bringing attention to his story. It was one of my first sonic games, and I’ve been attached to it since I beat it as a child, but since I never saw it meaningfully acknowledged anywhere beyond Chronicles & Advance 3, I thought I’d just take my appreciation to the grave. I also didn’t even connect how Battle could have influenced the way Sonic treats robots henceforth, especially in IDW. I started reading recently and it didn’t occur to me that his compassionate approach might be controversial. The sonic I grew up with was the one who raised Emerl and gave Gemerl a 2nd chance, so it just always made sense to me that that kindness would be extended to Metal Sonic & others like him.

[@gamingonamonday6342]

This game [Sonic Battle] was my CHILDHOOD. The gizoids are awesome and I wish theyd make a come back. Emerl was such a good character, I love them so much one of my main sonic OCs is a Gizoid. Thank your for covering it, emerl and the gizoids deserve more love and attention!

[@GaironEX]

I beat Sonic Battle as a kid when it came out. I loved it to death. I lost my mind when he was shown in the Shadow origin teaser thing! I'm so giddy that the Gizoid is back in the spotlight. I wanted to also add to how awesome the final fight was, tears and all. It's one of the few final fights that I can remember where Sonic doesn't just crutch on Super form to win the day, which is also awesome.

[@azenaku]

Not the first time Chaos Emeralds have been shown to be breakable in some form. In SA2, the Chaos Drives dropped by GUN robots are described as tiny shards taken from the Chaos Emeralds.

[@matthewmccoyd2578]

Ultra Sonic: Emerl, my final command for you... is to live and learn so that you might decide your own destiny. (and this will be permanent, since there's literally nothing stronger in the Sonic Multiverse than full-power Archie Sonic)

[@msgameandcake628]

I know you put a big emphasis on the fact that Emerl didn't ever come back, but I always assumed that Gemerl effectively became Emerl reborn at the end of Sonic Advance 3. I mean, we know so little about Gemerl that he doesn't really have any of his own characterization, I always envisioned the two as, effectively, the exact same character just with some design modifications.

[@t0nyxaka90]

... WAIT GEMERL AS THE 4TH PLAYABLE CHARACTER IN SXSG WOULD BE GENIUS HOLY- Cuz like, Gemerl is literally the Shadow to Emerl's Sonic.

[@SubwaySpyro]

I just wanted to say I've been thinking of this video a lot lately. To be honest I haven't felt inclined to watch your content in a good while but this and the Knuckles show video were great. This though is special to me because Sonic Battle was a game lent to me by a friend in middle school and as terrible as my memory already is something so far back was about as buried as it gets. I knew Emerl and his game had a special place in my heart even from the foggiest of fragments where even then I was playing it at a time I was trying in vain to fill in the gaps of the brand. So thank you for unlocking the context and giving back a memory. I've tried replaying it but it is the most tedious and that much moreso unfriendly-to-replay of games even after so long. Hell, I still don't even understand how he did it but on my friend's cartridge he had a cheat active to have Emerl's equipment points at the 500 cap before I even made a new save file (thus not edited). Then again Sonic Advance has a severe and easily-triggered Tiny Chao Garden glitch even without tampering so whatever. Point of this tangent is that it was a convenience I wasn't going to be without so all the more of a favor.

[@liamsanimationstudio]

I love how Dark Beginnings KNOWS Shadow vs Emerl on the Ark makes no sense and that this (Along with seeing G.U.N. Soldiers when touching Maria’s hand) is when he starts thinking “Wait a minute…. THIS DIDN’T HAPPEN- THIS IS FAKE”

[@nickbotful]

As someone who played and beated and cried to sonic battle's ending on release the scream i let out when i saw that they were adapting gerald's sonic battle journals was huge. I was so fucking happy to see emerl get acknowledged again and im so fucking glad people are realizing just how important emerl is to shadow's story

[@DesireeSelch]

Seeing an Emerl video essay in 2024 was an industrial strength flashback. Glad to see he holds up so well after all these years c:

[@CyberTiamat]

I’d love to see Emerl come back but I understand him being a one off character who also gets some attention every now and then. If they ever do bring him back, then I can see them making it so that GUN finds him and rebuilds him with his original coding to act as another agent for them, and it causes him to have the same kind of amnesia Shadow had in his game where he kinda remembers Cream the Rabbit but not entirely. He eventually remembers who he was and makes the decision to try and change his coding to not follow the orders of the strongest but to protect Cream but still work for GUN due to a friendly rivalry with Shadow (cuz he remembers their fight on the Ark). I can dream though

[@CyberTiamat]

Never mind, I forgot Gemerl was a character. I still want to see more of him though, he’s a badass bot

[@FuzHammer]

When dude almost said March I swear I would have transcended time and space and smacked this goofball 💀💀

[@ThePteropterus]

I've been playing through ring racers, and getting these lore videos with commentary and perspective has been great for telling me who all these weirdo tertiary characters are. I unlocked Emerl most recently and I'm excited to make him my new go-to driver choice.

[@TheDoomsdayzoner]

It is sad that we never got Chronicles to be canon. Because of Ken Penders. I wish we saw more of the Nocturnus clan. And Gizoids.

[@TheAlphazoneYT]

Yeah, it just makes a lot more sense if Sonic Battle takes place right after Shadow’s own game. In Sonic Heroes, Shadow still hadn’t regained his memories of Gerald or Maria.

[@jellystarlight44]

as a long time Emerl fangirl, im so, so, SO happy that he's getting the spotlight he so deserves and that so many people are meeting him anew, i missed my baby boy... (They should put him in the mobile games, tikal and longclaw are in them, death is weaker than the power of marketability)

[@BallGuy2]

I'm surprised you haven't already made a video about Emerl or Gemerl!

[@DaFunniGuy]

The thing you mentioned about how Sonic Battle made you appreciate and respect IDW more, is something simillar that happend to me, each time I watch more and more of Sonic's 2000s games stories and cutscenes I start appreciating more the way they write those characters in IDW, especially when I watch the cutscenes in japanese and consume more of the japanese content of the series, and that happend ESPECIALLY with Sonic Battle and with the 2021 Cover Stories from the Sonic Channel, I started noticing the same points you mentioned, Sonic talking with Shadow in IDW about they giving him a second chance even though he was evil at first in SA2 as a way to protect Mr. Tinker from Shadow, that is REALLY simillar to the way Sonic talks with Shadow in Sonic Battle about how Shadow also changed his mind to protect the planet at the end of SA2 as a way to protect Emerl from Shadow, or how Sonic gave a second chance to Metal Sonic, just like how he gave a chance and trusted Emerl even after Shadow told he was a mass destruction weapon, and there are many more small things like that which ARE in IDW, for example, the way Silver acts in the 2021 Sonic Channel Story is really similar to how Silver acts in the Eggperial City Arc when he wants to free Shadow, the way Sonic talks about how he wanted to have Tails' translator to talk to the Wisps both in the Wisps 2021 Sonic Channel Story and in Issue 3 of IDW when he and Knuckles save a town from Rough and Tumble, and many many more comparisons I can make Tbh, it even made me understand more the 2010s characterization, not Battle and Sonic Channel in specific, but the 2000s stories in general, they may be simpler, and not as cool as the 2000s storylines, but they do not descharacterize those characters at all, they give the right traits to those characters and show who they are and how they act rightfully

[@iponce2]

sonic battle was super cool to me as a kid. sonic in smash could use some of those moves imo

[@DerrickWillingham-b6h]

Mecha month madness

[@ArtHollow]

Your Patreon reads are always so much fun, Nick. If you choose to change how you do it, it would certainly be a shame in my opinion. However, I am (regrettably) not a Patron, so my opinion is not to be considered on the same level as whatever all the cool people supporting you think. It is pretty wild to see how long they have gotten, and I am personally glad they have. So many people supporting you, and your appreciation for them all really comes through. I love your Patreon reads, thank you for these. To make at least a small part of this comment about the video subject matter: great editing by Pup, and a really good summation of Emerl and his story by you. I knew most of Sonic Battle's story going in, but I had zero memory of the parallels between him and Shadow. That enhances both characters for me quite a bit. Like pretty much every Sonic fan you could ask, I am looking forward to seeing what they do with Emerl in the upcoming animation. Even if he is really only there to be an opponent to Shadow, the fact that he is here at all is such a big deal. This video will be very handy for a lot of the people going into Shadow Generations without knowing who Emerl is, so I hope this does well and everyone sees it. This comment is too long. Awesome video, Nick. Hope you are doing alright. Keep up the great work.

[@dragonborn7955]

The Bio lizard is the reason why Project Shadow was shut down.

[@SheetsInc]

This game was what got me into the series. I played through this game 4 times when i was 11. I wish it would be remade on modern consoles.

[@NickReyes-vd2ke]

For someone who loves sonic robots I’m surprised you haven’t made a vid on the badniks themselves I would love to see you talk about your favorites see what you think of the designs and see what you have to say on eggmans colorful cast of robots

[@SariasEpona]

Its always a good day when nick uploads right when i finish cooking Edit: Also I really love the design of your new avatar been meaning to say that for a while.

[@picawood]

this game makes me wish to see a game where sonic have to fight with hos teeth and nails without the emeralds to defeat a bigger threat, something like frontiers but with less automated moves

[@MilkshakeSkunkette]

man the ending of that game devastated me as a kid... and it still tugs at the heartstrings ;3;