Why Mephiles Is Actually A Great Villain

Mephiles, in my eyes, is one of the best villains to ever grace the Sonic games. I never quite understood the hate towards his character, but i can understand the misconceptions people have about him.
There has, more recently, been growing support for Mephiles and i'm happy to know that I haven't just been crazy because I liked this character.
With that said, here is my analysis of Mephiles the Dark. Hope you enjoy.
#mephilesthedark #sonicthehedgehog2006 #sonicthehedgehog

[@thepjshow]

So what do you guys think about Mephiles. Leave a comment below with your thoughts.

[@thepjshow]

It also just occurred to me that I forget to mention that the name of Mephiles derives from Mephistopheles. Mephistopheles is a demon from German folkore and appears in the story of Faust.

[@YaBoiSackoy]

Sonic’s villains really should be taking notes. Mephiles actually succeeded in his plan. How many villains do that nowadays?

[@IBL15]

Best villain in Sonic

[@themphantom9138]

I really really really Hate Him. Not because Character Poor Written or anything like that, I hate him because he is MADE to be Hated! (You can't convince me otherwise) But I also have Genuine Respect for him because he has No Sad Story or No Heroic Goal or Not being Bad for Greater Good, he is just.....Evil. (I hate how I like him) (Also he is the only Villain to ever Kill Sonic, so there is that too; Extra Points for Achieving the Goal everyone failed at)

[@geekzone5685]

There are so many villains in the franchise. Even if they'll be one time or recurring characters, Mephiles would be a cool one-time character in the films (after Shadow is introduced and have character development), maybe be voiced by Jared Leto.

[@vps8008]

"they don't treat you like a friend, they treat you like an item"

[@thepjshow]

Memphis Tenessee - The Alpha Gamer

[@IBL15]

@@thepjshow who is Also part lizard

[@Sonicjohnathon]

To quote Captain America I understood that reference

[@ElectrikStatik900]

"I wanna be in the friendzone! I'd like friends!" "That just makes you a beta cuck."

[@Sonicjohnathon]

@@ElectrikStatik900 Lol

[@music79075]

Look man no matter how legit his writing may be. He's always gonna be Memphis Tennessee to me.

[@yosnak8024]

And to us all…

[@thenyan3095]

*”well you see, it’s a gamer pad”*

[@yosnak8024]

@@thenyan3095 Not many girls come in here because I get friend zoned so frequently, but that’s okay.

[@thenyan3095]

@@yosnak8024 I’d like to be in the friend zone, I’d like friends

[@aidenliveandreloaded2522]

@@thenyan3095 its not as pleasant as you think

[@radbman5932]

He goes by many names. Mephiles the Dark Mephistophile the philosopher And Memphis Tennesse the Gamer

[@HuskerHornet3145]

Let’s not forget Me-philes the Mouthless. Gotta stay clear of those… 😶‍🌫️

[@user-ez2jm1fs4t]

And he'll have you respect his... Name!

[@RhapsodyHC]

I think Mephiles didn’t play mind games with Sonic because he knew Sonic wasn’t easy to manipulate since Sonic doesn’t appear to have any regrets or desires like Shadow and Silver. Sonic just lives in the moment and does what’s right. That’s why he represents the present (Shadow = The past, Silver = the future.)

[@Nov-5062]

That's deep man

[@projekttaku1]

meanwhile sonics carefree and living in the moment without any regrets, someone who isn't so insecure and self doubtful.

[@mr.irrelevant8826]

He’s literally the only guy who killed sonic like bruh infinite could never

[@freyaljones7368]

Its becuase by time it was 2010 sonic went child friendly 😔😔 i seriously miss shonen sonic

[@mr.irrelevant8826]

@@freyaljones7368 facts!

[@eyusuki9631]

@@freyaljones7368 same….

[@Aeoncalcos91]

You can easily chalk that up to the mandates, writing and tone of the 2010's. If Infinite was introduced in the 2000's like Mephiles was, there's a chance he may have been better.

[@freyaljones7368]

@@Aeoncalcos91 absolutley true they would have given him better backstory and made him an actual threat like what nazo is. I hope sonic will go back being shonen like he was in 2000 to 2009

[@arcticwolfplays5519]

If you think about Mephiles is the only villain to succeed in all of his goals. Thanos only succeeded in his main goal. Mephiles succeeded in every goal.

[@carnage0685]

Darth Sidious? Makuta Teridax?

[@arcticwolfplays5519]

@@carnage0685 Nah they only succeeded in some of their goals. Mephiles succeeded in all of them.

[@megablueflash1816]

I think we can add Kefka to that list right?

[@paperluigi6132]

@@arcticwolfplays5519 what was all of his goals again? I forgot some of them.

[@evdestroy4121]

He didn't decieve/kill Shadow, and he failed to get Silver to kill Sonic.

[@superbodoque7860]

Mephiles kills Sonic and they didn't even interact, Sonic never met or knew who killed him... holy shit the great Sonic was killed by someone who he didn't even know existed, that's how much control he had over the plan he was confident that he could achieve his goal

[@AEli5002]

Until Sonic beat him up in the final boss when he was Saloris with help of Shadow and Silver.

[@Wildue]

Your pfp is cute

[@kenyansimpo7356]

He's like Darkseid... Super op

[@bluerocket5127]

@@AEli5002 only his first form the second however was a superdimensional being that harm super sonic and he couldn't defeat

[@maryafantalia8614]

That is the problem. It's why I didn't like Sonic's death in 96 because that wasn't well executed. Sonic is killed by surprise without any fight against death, I think a real epic death of Sonic would be a sacrifice or a victory after a strong fight which exhausted Sonic, THAT would be a well executed Sonic's death. If Sonic dies in Frontiers, I hope his death is this way.

[@oliviahughes3158]

Mephiles, like Sonic 06 in and of itself, is a fantastic concept of a villain, held back by the fact that it's Sonic 06.

[@greenstarlover1]

Exactly

[@ishaansstoryworld5886]

I like sonico6 Don't kill me !!!!

[@SeriousStriker]

My only issue with Mephiles is the fact that it's never explained why he can't just merge with Iblis in the future. But like, that's more so poor writing on Sonic 06's part to do with time travel and the thousand of plot holes it creates rather then Mephiles himself.

[@oliviahughes3158]

@@ishaansstoryworld5886 Don't worry. We won't kill you. But we WILL have to get you professional help ;)

[@hubson1443]

​@@SeriousStrikermy headcanon would be that Mephiles and Iblis could only join when Iblis hasn't achieved his full monster form. When they join in the present, Iblis is just a flame, while in the future he grows to his full power. That's at least my explanation, shame the game never explained it.

[@rompevuevitos222]

Memphis "Mephiles" Tenesse is such a great character indeed

[@tarheelpro87]

Funny cause he’s so evil he’s the perfect embodiment of Memphis

[@Goofyorangecat]

He’s the Alpha Gamer. No one can stop him from releasing a new battle royale.

[@ToaArcan]

One thing I think is worth noting with Mephiles is that he _does_ have a deeper motive and backstory. Mephiles was _never meant to exist as a separate entity from Solaris._ Solaris is the natural state of him and Iblis, and the Duke ripped them apart from each other for what was, ultimately, a selfish reason. And then shortly after that, barely aware of himself, he's sealed into a tiny box by Shadow, at the direction of, again, the Duke. The guy is born in _pain_ and then crammed into a miniscule prison for a whole decade, no wonder he's crazy and misanthropic. And the two people he focuses his wrath on? Shadow, who sealed him, and Elise, the daughter of the man who ripped him apart. He's making them suffer and taking pleasure in it out of _revenge._ It's even in his opening monologue: "*What you gave to me, I now return to you.*" It actually ties into a running theme throughout the Adventure titles (of which I consider 06 to be one), the main antagonists (Chaos, Shadow, and Mephiles) are all set off on their violent, vengeful rampages by the selfish actions of a dead old man (Pachacamac, Gerald, the Duke). Chaos is less a sapient being and more a force of nature, and is eventually calmed. Shadow realises what he was truly meant to be stops his creator's posthumous vengeance, and later through stories like Battle and his own game, achieves full self-actualisation and makes peace with his history and Gerald's better, pre-madness intentions (and that's part of why Gemerl is a wasted character, their connection could be so good if it were brought back). Mephiles is somewhere between the two, sapient and aware, but still a pure, entropic force of destruction, unwilling to ever back down. That said... there's always a chance for him to return: His erasure was a _paradox._ Elise snuffing out of the Flame of Hope was only possible because she and Sonic were time-travelling through the power of Solaris. With Solaris retconned out of existence, Elise can't travel back to extinguish the Flame, so the Flame should be fine, which means she can travel back and extinguish it, so the Flame is gone, so she can't travel back, so the Flame is fine, etcetera, etcetera. Mephiles _could_ escape from that scenario... but given what's been done with other antagonists from the 1998-2009 era... maybe it's best that he doesn't. Chaos, Shadow, Neo Metal, Gemerl... none of them have faired well.

[@DLxxx]

Wonderful explanation here! I just want to quickly add that, considering Mephiles is half of a literal SUN GOD (more precisely, it's mind), I think it's important to consider why he's specifically taken the form of darkness incarnate to begin with. There's absolutely NO indication Solaris was inherently evil or insane (if it were, it would've rampages a long time ago, and it certainly wouldn't have been content being in the possession of humans). Frankly, the _only_ logical explanation is that it MUST stem from the original Solaris' growing hatred and malice toward humanity after they forcefully ripped it in half. While it endured the experiments, the sun god's primordial mind was corrupted by its own malice and hatred, to the point that when it's consciousness was forcefully stripped from its eternal flame (the source of it's power), it PHYSICALLY manifested as a swirling cloud of darkness. That's how "Mephiles" was born. He is the embodiment of Solaris' hatred and thirst for revenge (akin to something like perfect chaos' rampage). That said, Mephiles likely wasn't quite AS insane at first. Even though his spawn were running amuck and causing destruction, when he fled into the Aquatic Base, he never seemed to outwardly show any malice until Shadow started sealing him away. From his perspective, Shadow (at the Duke's direct request) sealed away Mephiles for no other reason than out of fear. And this action enraged Mephiles so much that he personally swore Shadow death when he returned. And by the time he was released a decade later, his dark hatred had only been festering for TEN YEARS. Of course the first thing he'd do is send Shadow to hellish future where Iblis rampaged. Of course he'd do everything in his power to torture Elise, the daughter of the man who tore him from his other half. Of course the first thing Solaris would do upon regaining it's original form is annihilate EVERYTHING in an act of rage. Mephiles, as you said, is motivated by revenge, and he bases his entire plan around it. He MUST be, otherwise how could you explain his hatred, his dark form, his sadistic cruelty, and his ultimate goal? He isn't dark and evil just because. Solaris wasn't going on a rampage at the end for no reason, _especially_ considering how it was nothing more than a harmless flame in the past. In summary, Mephiles DOES have a motive.

[@evdestroy4121]

Ian Flynn believes Time Eater was a remnant of Mephiles

[@neosolitudexevermore4895]

Wait I'm confused, if what you're saying about Mephiles is true, then wouldn't Mephiles be a Tragic Villain? He's on the Pure Evil Wiki, so he's supposed to be irredeemable and unsympathetic, but a backstory like that can easily make any villain sympathetic, and a Pure Evil can't be sympathetic, AND IF HE'S SOLARIS'S MIND, THEN DOESN'T THAT-GAH!!!!!! Brain ache!

[@isenokami7810]

I’m gonna be honest, I’d love to see a scenario where just Mephiles is brought back into existence. Well, okay, Silver too, I honestly really like Silver, but my point is, no Iblis. Not only do I just want Mephiles back as a villain, but I’d love to see what goals and motivations he comes up with when he has no way to become Solaris again. Given the sadistic nature touched upon in this video, I can totally imagine him going all in on being a dark tormentor in lieu of other goals. And in a Sonic setting, I’m down for that.

[@isenokami7810]

You’re right, Neo Metal has not faired well…because he’s been all but forgotten in favor of classic Metal. Which is a shame. Not only do I want Neo Metal to come back just as much as Mephiles, but keep in mind that you never fight the actual Neo Metal form, and dammit I want to fight the sorcerer robot. Hell, bringing the Neo form back wouldn’t be that hard from a story perspective. Classic Metal’s deal is trying to prove he’s the “real” Sonic, or at least better than Sonic. Have someone (perhaps Mephiles, he could work here) convince Metal that the way to beat Sonic is to break away from that mentality, to form his own identity and find more power in that. And thus he returns to Neo form, specifically to distance himself from Sonic on his continuing quest to destroy the blue hedgehog.

[@ShadowTheHedgehogCZ]

Funny thing is that Mephile's original Japanese voice sounds NOTHING like his English voice. Yet both of those voices perfectly fit in their own way. The English voice actor is rather strong, bombastic at times even, he has incredible presence. He sounds like a Devil dressed in a tuxedo who appeared in front of you to tell you how this contract he wants you to sign is Obviously the best and the only way. The Japanese voice actor approached it differently. He sounds way more creepy and zombie like. (Which is more fitting to the animation, as it's the original.) He is much quieter and slower. He isn't enforcing his view on Shadow like in the English dub. He is subtly eroding Shadow's confidence, as if speaking from bellow him while shriveling on the ground. Like Gríma Wormtongue from Lord of the Rings would.

[@djantouahmed7319]

Not so sure.

[@williammorahan4907]

@@djantouahmed7319 What’s not to be sure about? Each voice actor had a different approach to the character - and each did a great job despite those differences.

[@beenjamminbunny9977]

I'm pretty sure his English VA is Dan Green, aka Yami Yugi aka Knuckles in Sonic X

[@abicrystalwing1543]

His English va is the same va for knuckles, who also did yami yugi from yugioh lmaoo

[@kunii.9261]

But Memphis Tenesse’s voice actor is SO MUCH BETTER!

[@BoltBlades12]

Fun fact: Ian Flynn, the writer of Archie Sonic Comics, believed that the Time Eater(from Sonic Generations) was actually leftover remnants of Mephiles the Dark. So he may not be as dead as we think.

[@thepjshow]

That is interesting. But if that is true, then it sucks even more that the boss fight was horrible (In my opinion).

[@craiggilderdale3427]

Looks like a homing Shot

[@gregzotter6189]

But...Mephiles could NEVER be controlled by Eggman that easily. Eggman never managed to control all-powerful beings (outside of Generations).

[@andrewcosmicanimations8709]

@@thepjshow I feel like the 3DS version was a much better final boss.

[@bluestreaker9242]

Maybe it's just me, but I can swear Time Eater's guttural groans sounded like Dan Green, though Time Eater doesn't appear to have a listed VA...curious...

[@messofabeing9392]

I think it also seems to be overlooked just how badly Mephiles messed with Silver for no other reason than besides he can. Remember; Silver is not important at all to Mephiles' goals. His goal in '06 is to get his revenge on Shadow and fuse with Iblis to form Solaris, neither of which require Silver at all. He basically just forced a naive and vulnerable teenage boy into his universe-ending plan by giving him false hope that there is a way for him to achieve the peaceful life he so desperately wants, just because he can... and if that's not torturous, I don't know what is. Poor kid didn't deserve any of the stuff that happened to him in this game.

[@beegyoshi2068]

The fact that he deceived silver into killing an innocent hero just for his pure enjoyment is crazy

[@user-xo3eb4li6q]

​@@beegyoshi2068 I agree

[@DeltaBlazin]

I didn't even know people hated him, like wtf he's great.

[@Underworlder5]

@KammyKat fortunately that phase has passed. the first impression for many was a broken game that was far below what they expected, and only really had fun abusing bugs and physics oversights. in the recent years, when the wound closed, people started looking back at the game and seeing what it did right, as well as ideas that were good in theory but executed poorly. i think a modding team is actually reconstructing the game and trying to realize the vision sega had for it

[@TheWrathAbove]

@@Underworlder5 I mean, even if you fixed all of 06's bugs, the level design is still largely miserable, the pacing is awful, some of the secondary gameplay styles (Amy, Tails, Knuckles, shadow's Jeep) are fundamentally poorly designed and would need total reworks to be good, basically all the bosses range from mediocre to awful, visuals are generally alright, but the animation for in-game cutscenes is stilted and looks really bad. Sonic 06 has good elements (the music is banging for one), but many of it's flaws are much more foundational then just "glitches bad."

[@nqk_0662]

@@TheWrathAbove wish they remade it and gave us a real ..good ..no GREAT GAME ,

[@laudj_art]

The only thing i don't like is the voice acting... it wasn't that good as i remember

[@genyakozlov1316]

@@TheWrathAbove None of this is objective truth, only your opinion, and I disagree heavily, especially about the bosses and levels. You can't say 06 has bad level design and then turn around and say Colours level design isn't absolutely awful without a huge amount of personal bias. Only one of the two games stops you from taking alternative paths through the levels until you replay them and it ain't 06.

[@larsliljeberg3970]

8:50 You can tell how Creepy and Intimidating Mephilis is, simply by the fact that he managed to SCARE Shadow to the point that Mephilis just raising his hand casualy, already sets off all the red flags in shadows head,literaly Jumping away from him and instinctivly protecting rouge from potential danger.

[@thesimpthatsimpsforeverysi6419]

YES! I ALWAYS SAID THIS- I always thought how mephilis is so evil to the point he scares shadow. Shadow doesn't say it but by body language, you can see how he backs off because he doesn't feel the vibe. Which is impressive if you ask- Imagine being able to scare shadow. And even to the point of getting to his head.

[@omarpikm2101]

SHOOK edit: THE HEDGEHOOK

[@acedelta12]

XD

[@rosiered6712]

I never really looked at the choreography of that scene. That's actually a really cool way to show both characters

[@vitarlinhomedeiros4703]

To me, Mephiles is more creeper than Sonic.exe, he is perfect and like a creepypasta character but official in Sonic verse.

[@theminecraft2516]

Sonic Exe is so over the top it’s just goofy, Majin Sonic and Mephiles are actually creepy

[@auditorbutabigshot1675]

@@theminecraft2516 have you listened to the Japanese version of the fun is infinite screen?

[@Breakaway-ic5gj]

@@auditorbutabigshot1675 Edgy satanic nonsense is all I can remember

[@mmdkk698]

@@auditorbutabigshot1675 you mean english

[@ditto7047]

I mean, Mephiles puts both creepypastas to shame, so I'd say it's kind of a moot point

[@GreaterGrievobeast55]

I wouldn’t say mephilies doesn’t have a motive. He’s an incomplete half looking to rejoin with iblis and become whole, and given humanity where the being that split him in the first place he had a reason to resent them.

[@walrus3571]

Then again iblis is in the future why does he need to get the one from the present

[@JargonMadjin]

@@walrus3571 Just because Mephiles is that twisted, he'd rather make people suffer in the process instead of taking the shortcut

[@acedelta12]

Amen

[@LloydTheZephyrian]

I think Happy Chaos is a similar story in Guilty Gear. I'm not too sure if merging with I-No, whom he is the other half of, is a strong motive for him, as he's all about creating drama, and he openly admits that he wants to see everyone again before merging with I-No.

[@TheDoomsdayzoner]

This guy is the best Villain. But why? Here are the answers: 1. He is unique. His design is the call back on Shadow, in both Visual and Psychological side, and it is unusal to see an Anthro Sonic character as the true Villain. Even Shadow didn't pull that off. 2. He is properly creepy and demonic, a very rare trait in Sonic Villains 3. He is Sadistic, absolutely Cruel Manipulator who played 4d Chess throughout the game. 4. Mephiles is smart as nobs. And powerfull to boot. It is a mistake to assume that Death of Elise would release Iblis, instead of causing both to perish. It was never stated this way.

[@Ledragonboi27]

Nah Man He was Playing 5D chess while we played 3D

[@Unoriginality_Incarnate_stupid]

@@Ledragonboi27 funni that makes sense when he can time travel at will

[@seematahir5970]

Actually, it is established that Elise's death would release Iblis. In the original timeline, Iblis was released when Elise died on board the Egg Carrier, a fate which Sonic and Silver were later able to prevent. I do agree with what you're saying though, and Mephiles likely did what he did out of spite and sadism.

[@TheDoomsdayzoner]

@@seematahir5970 Bruh. She didn't die on that ship. She was rescued by Sonic, as evident by lack of FUCKING IBLIS when the ship exploded. Time travel there made all the things work at the same time. So yah, never stated. In any way, shape, or form.

[@seematahir5970]

@TheDoomsdayzoner My guy, have you even played 06? How do you explain the release of Iblis in the primary timeline? Silver's future wasn't the product of the events of the last story, and that is the only time in the game where Iblis is released on screen. In Sonic's story, the egg carrier crashes and Elise dies. That was hapenned in the primary timeline, and was what was supposed to happen again. DID YOU MISS THE PART WHERE SONIC CRIES OUT HER NAME IN HORROR AND COLLAPSES TO THE GROUND? This time however, Silver was there and helped sonic travel back to the past and prevent it from happening, which is when Sonic rescued her. Was this stated directly? No, but to understand it you'd require something called a "brain". I even used the word "established" to make sure an idiot like you would understand that I did not mean it was directly said, but heavily implied and the logical answer. And you're half-assed explanation for why it played out the way it did was "Time travel there made all the things work at the same time." You don't seem to understand how logic and English work, let alone the nuances of time travel, which even a poorly written game like 06 still gives a competent explanation for. If you need it spelled out for you, it is literally on the fucking wiki page. And as for why Iblis wasn't shown when she died on the egg carrier, THEY WERE FUCKING MILES AWAY FROM THE EGG CARRIER, AND ELISE WAS DEAD FOR ONLY 10 SECONDS! Did you seriously expect them to be able to see it given the distance and span of time? By the way, thanks for being an ass to me in your reply when I simply offered my opinion on something. I literally told you I agreed with you on everything else you said, and just wanted to add some clarification, which I did POLITELY. If you disagreed you could've just said so and given your explanation. If I had acted like a jerk and tried to tell you off, I'd get where you're coming from, but you treated my reply as if I was attacking as you. You exemplify everything wrong with toxic people on the internet who become fixated on single mindset and can't maintain civil conversation, even with people who are polite with them. As angry as I am right now, I just wanted to say I have no ill will toward you. I'm just tired of people yelling at me for having an opinion, regardless of how polite I am. I'm sure you weren't trying to be as mean to me as I took it as. Have a nice day.

[@artistanthony1007]

If you look at Mephiles's chestfur, it looks like a Fallen Angel or Bird and so literally represents Solaris fallen from grace, I also like how the Crystalline Form is based on Solaris becoming a hard molten sphere that has cracked when Mephiles and Iblis were first formed.

[@thepjshow]

That is actually a pretty insightful observation. I had never noticed that.

[@artistanthony1007]

@@thepjshow I mean it looks like lava and his Eyes are also cracked.

[@DLxxx]

Oh, now that point that out, doesn't it also resemble Solaris' second form (which is when the god goes completely insane, according the pre battle loading screens)?

[@RobNtBob]

Looks like Shadows lol

[@Skycrusher]

It's literally just a copy of Shadow's chestfur. You guys are reading WAY too far into every little thing, like every fandom always ends up doing.

[@spideyviewer327]

He has the best lair, Tilted Towers. In all seriousness, you got me to see Mephiles in a way I never had before. He truly is one of the better Sonic villains and just happened to be in a not so great game. As for his return being impossible...well here's the thing. Sonic 06 ain't canon. It was meant to be more of a reboot, but obviously they just went back to the old timeline after the game tanked. So, if they were to have Mephiles again, it'd be more a new version. That or they could pull some space-time shenanigans or something. Anyways, great analysis.

[@thepjshow]

Ah yes, he has the ultimate Gamer Pad. Maybe Mephiles could return, like you said, but I don't wanna get my hopes up just yet. But I'm glad that you enjoyed the video.

[@spideyviewer327]

@@thepjshow No problem. Thank you for making this video in the first place and getting me and others to appreciate Mephiles a lot more.

[@AEli5002]

Actually Sonic 06 IS Canon infact here's something most people don't understand it wasn't erased from the timeline it's actually still there. If it wasn't canon or didn't happen then how come it's brought up again in Generations? And even if 06 was erased that doesn't mean it's not canon it's 100% confirmed to be canon and it DID happen at one point.

[@AEli5002]

@Justin Arzola Thank you!

[@anomaly395]

@@AEli5002 Came to say the same thing. A lot of people don’t realize that just because something is erased doesn’t mean it isn’t canon. It still very much happened, it was simply just reset. Hell this is confirmed by the end of the game since Sonic himself still remembers everything (he’s desperately looking for Elise even though the only reason he showed up initially was because Eggman was there). Soleanna and all that is still out there.

[@JargonMadjin]

Mephiles is the best villain because he actually won; he killed Sonic which released Iblis and became Solaris once more, he also told Shadow that he was going to rewrite history, Sonic and Elise did that for him. I mean come on, he killed Sonic, that alone counts for something, I'm just saying that he had a plan, and it worked. Sure the emeralds brought back Sonic and then three super-hedgies took down Solaris, that's more than what we can say for other villains in the series though

[@pandogstudios1512]

He literally got beaten in the end. How is that winning?

[@JargonMadjin]

@@pandogstudios1512 I assume I didn't read past the first line, because I explain my conclusion after that

[@AEli5002]

I mean his plan was to become Saloris and it worked but then his plan unraveled when Sonic got his revange on him along with Shadow and Silver. But he did technically reach his goal.

[@bluerocket5127]

@@pandogstudios1512 he didn't sonic himself admit be side taking sonic cosmologie into account i won't dismiss the possibility that he made it sound like elise end it while he still have plans to go with the bastard is playing a high 4D chess along maybe even 5D chess at this point

[@airmanon7213]

The thing that's bugged me about Mephiles is the fact that he looks a lot like Shadow without the excuse of being a Shadow Android. This video does help explain why. Thank you.

[@lofthestars2088]

Many People have already stated why Mephiles is so hellbent on getting revenge and on Shadow specifically. Here is another thought why it had to be Silver who kills Sonic and subsequently releases Iblis. It's because Silver helped to seal Iblis.

[@OmarRodriguez-pj3qy]

I just occured to me in watching this video that Mephiles seemed to really enjoy the fact that Shadow, the hedgehog that sealed him away to begin with, set him free unintentionally. With that said, it’s kind of crazy to think that Mephiles wants Silver, the hedgehog that he maybe thinks sealed Iblis, to free Iblis and as a result make an unknowing Silver directly responsible for the world that he hates so much (the future, his present) by killing Sonic, a hero, in front of a loved one. You’re definite right in the fact that he simply wants the people around him so suffer greatly. Obviously that didn’t pan out though and so he just killed Sonic himself.

[@dc7981]

Merlina and mephiles are the most slept on Villains in sonic

[@thepjshow]

Agreed. They are too underrated.

[@gameman5804]

Merlina, yes. Mephiles, no.

[@haroldcallabrass6991]

@@gameman5804 also here's something funny mephlies is priased for killing sonic, right? So did robotic from adventures of sonic the hedgehog and no ones praising him for that

[@haroldcallabrass6991]

Rechecked episode 50, and sonic killed sonic by making the chill dog line wait, for his ancestor to never meet his wife, killing himself from time travel logix

[@JargonMadjin]

@@haroldcallabrass6991 No one takes AoStH seriously anyway, it's just a goofy TV show, lol

[@Pennsylvania343]

The fact that shadow was taken a back by mephiles when mephiles introduced himself says a lot about just how dangerous mephiles actually was shadow is not a character that is easily intimidated and the fact mephiles could just by looking at him speaks volumes mephiles was an awesome villain he was also meant to be a representation of what shadow could have been if it wasn't for rogue and amy

[@niggles6144]

I feel like Mephiles could still come back seeing as generations brought back crisis city aswell as the iblis creatures which would literally be impossible without Solaris /Iblis or Mephiles existing at all.

[@AEli5002]

He actually can

[@lukasruston8618]

I know I'm a bit late to this but there are theories that Mephiles' soul/essence/something about him ended up becoming the Time Eater and maybe even the Phantom Ruby. I mean, it would make sense why the Ruby was never mentioned before since Mephiles could travel through time

[@superbodoque7860]

Seeing as how Elise blowing out the flame of iblis creates a paradox maybe Mephiles can somehow escape and come back

[@artistanthony1007]

@@superbodoque7860 Yet the new reality Solaris made and yes it is a second one makes it impossible, he's clearly a higher being and Time Eater is just another one, there's also Light and Dark Gaia so yeah.

[@jellypuff7026]

Not once have I played, watched, or fully understood Sonic 06, but I’m glad to see it had a brilliant villain. Pure evil is a good villainous trait, but “doing it because I can” is an even better one to me. Having the power to achieve your goal but using that power to instead torture, manipulate, and kill random people because the option is there is something that will always give me chills.

[@acedelta12]

You’d be hard-pressed to find a villain better than Mephiles in that regard.

[@jpm7764]

"My name is Memphis, Tennessee, and I'm part lizard. Nice to yoroshiku onegaishimasu, as they say in Nippon."

[@arrowpirate9011]

What scares me most about Mephiles? Do I have to pick just one? The Theme that lingers in the background as he slowly walks with his head hanging low, his eyes that feel and look like daggers, the fact he killed Sonic, he gets into people's heads by tricking and deceiving them with words, he's able to be a puppeteer in his own dark and twisted way, his color scheme that just shows how dark and sadistic he is, you get my point. If Sega is able to rewrite his origins but nothing else, like his personality or instability, I hope we'll get to see him again.

[@LittleNamMan]

Okay, soft spot for Mephiles I can 100% stand by since his motive is actually pretty damn deep and unlike anything ever seen in Sonic, but I wouldn't go as far as to say the same for Sonic 06 lol. This is why we need a petition for a remake even though it's probably never happening. I feel a remake will finally do this game some justice and not be virtually unplayable actually.

[@GlaziolaNacht]

Mephiles is the best Sonic villain, end of story, no other villain can top him! God, I remember seeing him as a kid and having nightmares for at least a month! His fear factor is superior to all other Sonic villains! He’s unnerving, cunning, sadistic, he’s darkness itself! Though I think it’s best if Sega doesn’t bring him back, cause then he’ll just be dethroned as the ultimate villain, and that’s something that I can’t stomach, leave him to rest on his throne of eternal darkness!

[@randompersononytig]

Ikr. Eggman from heroes to 06 felt like not much of a threat and more exposition than anything and Unleashed onwards he seems more like a joke (At least in the Adventure games he felt more of a threat. He pis- I mean blew up half the moon to prove a point). Metal Sonic was only a “threat” in one game and yet for the majority of the game, we thought it was Eggman; he didn’t really get time too shine. Chaos was honestly boring. Shadow is an anti-hero than anything. Zavok and the other people I don’t care to remember the names for were boring. Infinite is Infinite. And Black Doom, Dark Gaia, That time god thing from Generations, etc were just “I’m evil hahaha” boring. Mephilis is more like “I’m evil. Want me to prove it?” Merlina was a cool villain tho

[@GlaziolaNacht]

@@randompersononytig EXACTLY!

[@maryafantalia8614]

​@@randompersononytig I liked Black Doom, me. Certain villains are good when they haven't real motivations to be cruel. You can even more hate them.

[@TheRoomforImprovement]

You should see his house. He’s knocked over many chairs because he gets so tilted at the towers.

[@tehcookievanilla1323]

Always loved Mephiles, never actually played Sonic 06 but saw walkthrough's of it which was more enjoyable really liked his design by far

[@Aeoncalcos91]

My only issue with Mephiles is how he handles his plans. I get that he's meant to be a puppet master in the grand scheme but if all he wanted to do was join with Iblis again, and nothing ever said that Iblis was too strong for him in Silver's time, so was there some reason he couldn't just do that in the future when Iblis was already freed,? But that's neither here nor there. His plans could be just a LITTLE simpler (or better explained) but aside from that, he's definitely a great villain and the fact that he not only killed Sonic (albeit temporarily) but also wins, certainly makes him out to be a powerful foe. Whenever he's in a scene, all eyes from the cast are on him and despite not being as strong as Iblis, he's still able to put up a good fight.

[@viniciusc9004]

My headcannon was that mephiles can only join iblis before it gets fully released. Either way the writing is pretty bad

[@tasmprogs4759]

Best way to see it is, Mephiles wanted to screw with everyone else first.

[@uzer141]

@@tasmprogs4759 facts - I think the first person didn’t watch the video or listen to how Mephelis is/was really sadistic. He COULD just kill Sonic (like he did later) and walla - he can become Solaris, but where’s the fun in that? That’s why he went around manipulating people and getting in their heads first

[@genericweeb7300]

I always see the reason being Iblis is not a fragment of Mephiles, they're both components of a singular being (Solaris) that was not meant to be split, Mephiles was the brain and Iblis is the brawn, reborn as separate entities without the ability to merge back.

[@Underworlder5]

@@genericweeb7300 that could have been resolved with a small explanation. it could have been as simple as a scene where he sees iblis in crisis city and laments that he cannot merge with him in this state. in fact, a lot of issues make sense when you think about it, and could simply be given some explanation, like why mephiles makes his plan so needlessly convoluted (he is a sadist, and the complex plan is him messing around) or why silver trusts mephiles so easily (silver is too desperate to be picky, and his culture probably associates fire and light with evil, so someone associated with darkness might seem more trustworthy in comparison)

[@michaelfryers1914]

This probably doesn't mean much, but I've always noticed that the close up on Mephiles' eye is very reminiscent of the close up of Perfect Chaos' eye. I feel like there could be a connection there, between the god of destruction and the god of the sun (or time?) although I'm not sure I can exactly see what it is I'm looking for

[@Mephiles_Rouge_Dark]

I LOVE Mephiles hes the awesome best villian in the sonic franchise

[@DemonDethchase]

While there maybe some problems with Sonic 06, you still have to give it credit for having a tone and unashamedly sticking to it. Which is alot more than can be said for the games of the past decade. The way the series can poke fun at itself with self deprecating humour its like its almost afraid to take itself seriously, because that could lead to... Gaming press: The game's taking itself seriously, just 06! We can't have that! All aboard the Sonic hate train for those easy clicks, because Sonic was never good! Also for a character request, could you do a video on the villainess Merlina? The only good female Sonic villain in the games.

[@thepjshow]

Yeah, I'm annoyed with how the media constantly slates Sonic 06, making seem way worse than it actually is. I get that there are many issues due to its rushed production, but I still personally enjoy the game. Also I will definitely get around to talking about Merlina. I agree that she is a great villain with genuine motives for her actions.

[@DemonDethchase]

@@thepjshow I'm not sure I've said to you before about feeling as if Merlina's got her hand on the wheel of the series, not allowing it to move forward, what with the past decade leaning heavily on nostalgia like a crutch. Also despite it turning out that Roger is in fact NOT leaving (dammit!), at least hopefully with new and better writers as well as better voice direction both him and the series should refind its stride again with Roger still voicing Sonic. I just hope someone tells him to stop sounding so obnoxious going forward and not throw out Green Hill. and Classic (Sonic), again for the dozenth time again. [Merlina, now transformed as the Dark Queen, is sitting on a throne.] Dark Queen: I've been expecting you. Sonic: Just one question before we settle this. Why'd you do it? Weren't we trying to save this franchise from the underworld? Dark Queen: This franchise will fail one way or another. Such is its fate. Sonic: Huh? Dark Queen: Do you know what is to become of this franchise? Sonic: Beats me. [The Dark Queen starts to walk forward] Dark Queen: The introduction of humans and guns shall doom the franchise. Sonic is struck down by Mephiles, and is then kissed back to life by a human princess. Sonic: ... Dark Queen: This was to be our ideal world. But it will not last... Sonic the Hedgehog and his friends will end in ruin. The 3D world my grandfather Merlin created led to nothing but mistakes... But I can succeed with the power of the scabbard. Creating a 2D kingdom that never ends. [Uses a small portal to summon a Sonic The Hedgehog Mega Drive cartridge.] [A flashback of the "To the Blacksmith" scene with Merlina picking up the same Mega Drive cartridge. Sonic finally realizes what her plans are.] Sonic: What good is a world where Green Hill goes on forever!? Dark Queen: My sorrow at its ruin runs deeper than the depths of the underworld. Do you not understand? Sonic: No! And I don't want to!

[@DemonDethchase]

@Tayron Chenault it seems to be the same story with Colours Ultimate as well, but it's quite amazing the double standard for Colors, and how alot of people just want to look past the bugs and glitches, or brush them off being fake news "because I never saw any glitches." Even though there's plenty of video evidence out there proving there is bugs. Meanwhile 06 gets constantly heralded as one of the buggiest games around by near enough all. With the video evidence to prove it. Now ofcourse I'm not trying to say its ok for 06 to have bugs, as Sega should have given it more time in the oven - as with Colours Ultimate - but its just interesting that, there being the double standard.

[@demi-femme4821]

Didn't stop them with Infinite.

[@ChangedMyNameFinally69]

Maybe Sonic just was never good?

[@KamiKoroshi_]

Definitely the best Sonic villain ever man, I would love to see Mephiles return. That's a pipe dream though.

[@thepjshow]

God, I would love to see him again. Even if it's just a cameo or alternate universe.

[@AEli5002]

They actually could return Mephiles

[@bluerocket5127]

@@AEli5002 so they can milk him ? no thanks

[@arcticwolfplays5519]

Just by looking at Mephiles, I liked him instantly. His origin was the best.

[@Miffelmesh]

Something I noticed through this video and absolutely adore, when Mephiles introduces himself to Shadow he says "I'm Mephiles, Mephiles the Dark." and I always thought this was really cheesy for someone who's supposed to be so intimidating. But then when I paused the video and watched the cutscene where Shadow seals Mephiles - Mephiles' first meeting with Shadow - Shadow introduces himself in the exact same way: "I'm Shadow, Shadow the Hedgehog", and I think it's so cool that Mephiles sort of taunts him upon meeting again by not only taking his physical form but also using the same words that Shadow used a decade ago.

[@meganshaw1949]

It’s a sheer delight to hear Dan Green who also voices Yugi and Yami/Pharaoh Atem in Yu-Gi-Oh as well as Mewtwo in the Pokémon series do Mephiles’s voice. He’s perfect at it.

[@charmyzard]

As for SEGA bringing him back, I believe it to be entirely possible lore-wise. (Came up with this a couple of showers ago.) You see, we have the big question on what happens to your conscience when errased from existance like Mephiles. Let's say you can't see, hear, smell, taste, or touch anything: A blank void. (Like how Tails described the white-statue state in Generations?) But what if, after being vanquished from existance, he formed his own space to regain strength? A *Null Space* if you wish? After all, if it is the ONLY thing in non-existance, it becomes the only thing that exists, and a universe on itself. Before you think about it: No, not many things have ben WIPED from existance, as you might suspect, so the blank void wouldn't be all crowded with elements or characters, probably just him (given that 06 Blaze, the one who assimilated Iblis was transported SOMEWHERE, so he exists, but as part of Blaze's power, so not really?) Given his desires to pay back people (as explained in his Japanese ver. backstory) he could have tried to errase Sonic & co from the timeline, or just doom them to fight over and over with his time powers. But how? *Time Eater.* What is if is not remains, but something he manifested with his slowly re-growing power? After all, it came to Eggman in a VERY convenient moment, having been tossed into the far-reaches of space with no supplies or air whatsoever, guaranteeing at least a shot at using Eggman to take care of those who vanquished him into non-existance to begin with. The Phantom Ruby could also play a part as a gateway between his "Null Space" and reality, and the disturbances it can create. Forces, you threw away so much...

[@thepjshow]

This is a very interesting idea. I like it.

[@acedelta12]

Wow

[@Sonicjohnathon]

Mephiles is a awesome villain he actually kind of gave me the creeps when I was a kid like damn. He can be a horror villain

[@nman551]

I love your take on mephiles. I could not agree more even as an adult I’m terrified by him. What a great villain he was.

[@williamrobbs]

many people hate this game. I love this game despite a lot of it's bugs and short time to make. I don't like the new games because it feels like they don't put a lot of effort into a story and are doing it to make quick cash. They put a lot of effort in this storyboard especially with the screwy timeline. I feel like they try to bring back villains that are like Mephiles but are not as intimidating as Mephiles. Think about it. Every five years in a Sonic game, there is always a villain that has something to do with TIME. Sonic 06 (2006): Mephiles Sonic Generations (2011): Time Eater Sonic Forces/Sonic Mania (2016/2017): Infinite

[@thepjshow]

Yeah, I also really like 06. For me, it represents a time where Sonic Team were not afraid to take risks with the franchise and wanted to make it something much bigger than a platformer.

[@schakiarligonde1736]

Nope 06 is really bad

[@williamrobbs]

@@schakiarligonde1736 I can understand that. It's a flawed game with a flawed storyboard. Don't get me wrong, I hate it too. But I love it as well.

[@Bone-Owner]

If every 5 years there’s another time villain….so that means in sonic frontier….

[@williamrobbs]

@@Bone-Owner probably. It better be a good Sonic game when they are stalling the fanbase with the Sonic Colors reboot

[@AkaE5]

To this day 06 still remains my favourite Sonic game. Mephiles is still in my mind today not because of everything you just said, but because he was the first villain to ever kill Sonic. This video helped me understand Mephiles more, thanks.

[@hihi-nm3uy]

one of mephiles’ biggest issues is that a lot of his charm factor; his enjoyment of destruction and how sadistic he is; stems from how we interpret his actions the story doesnt take time to really establish any of this, making some of his charm seem like headcanon. it sometimes feels like we only like him because we had time as kids to postulate on who he is and why he does things i think mephiles needed much better execution, but what we actually had in theory was extremely good

[@SilverH3dgehogGameing]

I REALLY Like Mephiles as a character, he is very different from other sonic villains, and you make a lot of good points that he literally does everything in that game because he CAN. HE has a very sadistic, cruel, and creepy nature and I love him to death. I love his interaction parallels with Silver and Shadow. Like you explained: I also thoroughly enjoy the interactions he has with the two characters. With Silver, he's calm and somewhat collected taking control of the entire outcome with silver and he keeps feeding him lies and deceit, convincing Silver to do what he wants. However, with Shadow, Mephiles tries to talk to him and get into his head (like he did with Silver) but he uses manipulation tactics and the fears he knows about due to being a technical time god and likely seeing into the past through Shadow. He knows what triggers Shadow and what doesn't in a way. He knew telling Shadow about the future and him being sealed away again would get to his head, but was shocked when Shadow did not take his offer and I love the fact Mephiles showed surprise to that answer and decided to try and take Shadow down by force. Also it's interesting to think about the fact Shadow has someone who has bested him in combat and almost defeated him! Last time we had that in any way was with Black Doom in Shadow the Hedgehog (2005) but even in that instance Shadow managed to beat him on his own, he probably would not be able to defeat Mephiles on his own without massive power bursts which, since Mephiles is very intelligent would likely catch in on and wear Shadow down and get to him when he's vulnerable. When you fight Mephiles in the boss battles (which are both AWESOME by the way) I love the way in the first fight Mephiles was more focused in trying to continue on in getting to Shadow's head, confusing him as his shadow in the ground or talking to him about what could happen in the future. This is more on Shadow's point of view but I noticed Shadow had a bit of hesitation when Mephiles told him to join along side him and I found that very interesting! I love the sinister, manipulative, and torturous way Mephiles handles things and his obsession with Shadow makes it even better in a way. He's so angry with Shadow in sealing him away he won't stop at nothing to get Shadow to basically kneel before him and take control of the situation at hand. Another thing I really like about Mephiles that I wish they touched up on a bit more was his ability to shapeshift. They sorta show it in the Mephiles Phase 2 battle with the large energy creatures but I think it would have been cool if he managed to take some of those monstrous forms himself. ALTHOUGH it's very cool to see him manipulate his energy like he did and it makes you wonder what he can do with all that energy. Theoretically, He could've used it to capture Shadow and continue to try and verbally get to his head due to his manipulative nature but he chose to fight and scare him in a sense I like that. Also him being weak to light based attacks makes sense and that's something I see people complain about a lot, the fights with him being "too easy"

[@Virtualsinner]

I think there is a way to bring him back. Just like Silver and Blaze. It probably takes an entire game to do so but he's literally the only villain who isn't a joke.

[@maryafantalia8614]

Black Doom, Erazor Djinn and Merlina weren't jokes either.

[@obsidianflight2758]

@@maryafantalia8614 I think its funny how two of those characters are storybook characters, Merlina was so good imo

[@maryafantalia8614]

@@obsidianflight2758 They're still full villains of the series, Storybook or not. Black Doom was cool with alien army, it's the villain who is the closest of Dark Oak, who literally beats all villains in the entire series with his unlimited cruelty (killing a 14 year girl, using Cosmo's brain to spy Sonic and friends, merge humans with trees, drowning Sonic in an aqua planet and forcing him to join him). Black Doom paralyzed Sonic and friends with his mortal gas, tried to make them being eaten by his cubs, tried to control Shadow's mind and released a mortal comet in the planet. Hell, The End beats all of them.

[@noneSonic]

@@maryafantalia8614 you are right about the end but it isn't the most powerful being in sonic franchise

[@maryafantalia8614]

@@noneSonic Wrong. Kishimoto confirmed it is. Excuse me but a faceless entity which can reincarnate itself to infinity (with forms symbolizing the death), destroyed a lot of universes and killed Sonic in the most sadistic way possible, is way worse than any villain you can quote. At least other ones have faces and were targeting only the Earth, while The End is absolutely the opposite of it. We talk about the only villain who can come back one day. None of Sonic villains already did that before.

[@NIGHTBLOODUSAGI]

There are two main characters from Sonic The Hedgehog with nicknames. Miles "Tails" Prower. Memphis "Mephiles" Tennessee.

[@everythinggmod7204]

I love how in silvers cutscenes, you hear a little bit of Mephiles’ theme, but in shadow’s, you hear the theme crack and struggle but maintain control.

[@seematahir5970]

One thing that I think people often overlook when talking about Mephiles is the actual reason he tricks Silver into trying to kill Sonic. Its established that Silver is one of the more powerful characters in the Sonic universe, surviving a dystopian future and defeating Iblis many times over. Naturally, Mephiles wanted to get him out of the picture, so if Silver had been successful in killing Sonic, Mephiles would've gathered together everyone who posed a threat to him in one easy to destroy group. It's really quite clever.

[@thayenryan7448]

I’d love to see Mephiles return, and to be honest, it seems like a plausible option. For starters, Sonic as a franchise seems to be going back to its older titles and taking things from them (take for example Forces with the returning villains and baddies, more specifically the Egg Dragoon), and Mania with its entire gamestyle. Now, given that, to my knowledge, the Sonic series is gonna be quiet for a long time, I don’t know what could happen, but my guess is that maybe, just maybe, they will bring him back. Another thing to consider, he could come back in a number of ways. One way that comes to mind, and one I’m sure you all thought of at one point, would be the one-off dark entity, the Time Eater. It could be a simple matter of Mephiles hitching a ride on them, perhaps the Flame of Hope paradox ends up sending him to the space where the Time Eater resides and he gets assistance from them, or more accurately manipulated them into doing his bidding. Perhaps he could find a way back on his own, perhaps by breaking the cycle, or again with the Time Eater’s domain, or some other way I can’t think of. Another idea is the theory that the Time Eater is connected to Mephiles/Solaris in some way, which I could see *sort of*. Lastly, how this could be executed in a game. I’ve had this one stewing for a bit, so here it goes: Imagine a time of peace for once, perhaps after the whole clean-up stuff after Forces to keep continuity and explain the peace. Nothing bad seems to be happening, and nothing from Eggman in a while. Well, Eggman would be somewhere, perhaps a rebuilt Death Egg, perhaps another base, doesn’t really matter much. He’s experimenting with the powers of two Chaos Emeralds, when suddenly they create a rift, and out pops our boy Mephiles, pretty fed up with humanity (more than he already was) and very much ready for round 2. Perhaps an uprising of robots would alert Sonic and his friends to Eggman’s resurgence, but nothing about Mephiles. Perhaps Mephiles could take the form of Eggman, or another character, or perhaps stay with the Shadow clone look, but he wouldn’t come up fully until much later on. Instead, little hints to him here and there, perhaps a small glimpse of him could be in the backgrounds of different levels, as if he’s spying on Sonic, biding his time… I’ve got nothing else to add, really. I hope I’m not too far off my rocker with all this, lol.

[@acedelta12]

You definitely aren’t. This is a really good plot for a fanfic.

[@HighStars4]

I Always loved Mephiles, he's such a forgotten character. I remember being scared of the shadow form of Mephiles at his first boss fight and I just couldn't do the fight because I was too scared. I'm glad that someone like you made a video on him, very neat ! -'v'-

[@shinji-kun6753]

Once again, with a bunch of polishes and a few tweaks and fixes on the storyline, Sonic '06 would have been a gem

[@TACTIK00L]

remove the kiss scene and fix the bugs and boom you got sonic adventure 3

[@ZERARCHIVE2023]

His best line is "It's because you're a Beta male, Silver"

[@garrettviewegh9028]

The wonderfully evil laugh, followed by the organ playing, after Mephilis had killed Sonic, is peak villainy. So deliciously evil! I’d gotten chills in that scene.

[@johnsonsharon81]

Dan Green 😌

[@johnhayden4226]

We'll never see Mephiles again, cause he'll make the story very dark and not child friendly, which Sonic plots are currently. What I love about the early-mid 2000s is that Sega went all out with their ideas with alot of freedom aiming for adult -teen audiences.

[@thepjshow]

Well, It looks like SEGA are heading back towards that direction of storytelling with Frontiers. I guess we will just have to wait and see...

[@KindaCringe404]

This video turned out really well, nice work! It's a bit strange since Eggman is the main villain of the series, but I gotta say that Mephiles is probably my favorite Sonic villain. Here's a weird request, what do you think about making a video about Emerl from Sonic Battle. I think his story is one of the greatest, and should be talked about more.

[@thepjshow]

That can be done. I've been meaning to play Sonic Battle again since it has been a really long time since I last played it, so this will give me a good excuse to do just that.

[@KindaCringe404]

Awesome! I just know this will make a fantastic video! Looking forward to it!

[@AdamSelvig]

Honestly Mephiles is the most sinister darkest villains in the sonic universe that I commonly know

[@TheBLUEM64]

13:47 The bad lip sinking kills the seriousness but god damn, I miss this shadow so much 😍

[@backwardsbandit8094]

He has always been my favourite sonic villain. I think the general STORY of 06 is horribly flawed however the character writing was at its peak in this game. It really is a crying shame about the game being so glitchy and broken because it could have been the greatest sonic game of all time.

[@maryafantalia8614]

True. 06 has problems, but the characterization is excellent. And at least, the most of characters had a role. In Unleashed, all of them were absent and only Sonic and Chip had a role. Tails and Amy are here but didn't do anything. In Black Knight, that was improved because there were Shadow, Blaze and Knuckles (even if that was their Arthurian counterparts) and after... Pontaff came.

[@ShadowTheHedgehogCZ]

The one short part where Mephiles tells Omega that humanity reprogrammed him in the future to defeat and imprison Shadow... AND that in addition to that, Omega also did it because he wanted... I thought that was mind blowing story development. Something that hits you very hard, because it has an actual meaning. It is a story. Unlike the modern Sonic stories like: "Go to place X and collect Y. Once you have all Y, you can fight the final boss." That's not a story, that is gameplay. This relationship between Omega and Shadow... that was the story. And they only mentioned it in 06 in this one bit of dialog. And then when Shadow and Rouge approached... they let Omega explain what Mephiles meant... OFF SCREEN? The first time I saw that, I thought that was either underwhelming, or hiding something on purpose. It either meant that it would be elaborated on later in the game... or in a sequel. It never happened later in the game. And for the longest time, I was foolish enough to think there would be a sequel. Or any kind of Sonic game where this plot point would come up and be central to the story. I hoped that we would get "Shadow the Hedgehog 2", where Shadow would be shown working for GUN. During that game, a secret part of GUN would be planning to get rid of Shadow for the same reason they tried to get rid of him 50 years ago (which is basically the reason Mephiles stated). And they would get their hands on Omega and reprogram him. Maybe they would even make a deal with Eggman to achieve this goal. And Omega would betray Shadow just because he always wanted to prove he was the strongest. And Rouge would at first believe the GUN propaganda that Shadow went rogue and needed to be neutralized... but then she would realize that he was framed. She would be the only one to know that. So she would have to save him. And in the end, Omega would finally have some character development, where he would realize that he cannot be just a dumb meathead who only lives to keep proving to everyone that he's the strongest. Because then others will take advantage of him. And most importantly, he will lose his only friends because of that. In the end, the GUN general from the first ShtH could be shown to help discover the traitors inside GUN and help GUN to clean its name. But after this experience, Shadow would decide to leave GUN and be on his own for a while,. To think about what his role in this world is. Because being an agent (basically a weapon) for a military organization that has this much power and influence over the entire world doesn't really feel that heroic. Not in practice, and not even in principle. I still hope that one day we will get a game like this. But the way things are going right now, it will happen maybe in 100 years, once Sonic franchise is resurrected from the dead and completely restarted from scratch.

[@AdjutantAntithesis]

I think all the remakes of 06 coming out to make it not (play) terrible at least are bringing some of that reevaluation of it's plot and characters forward after all the original hate died down, that or just a new audience experiencing it that wasn't around back then at all.

[@AdjutantAntithesis]

2:40 And I have no idea how intentional it was but this zoom on his eyes and their design itself reminds me of the same zoom to Perfect Chaos's eyes in SA1.

[@mindburnjw]

Yo this just popped up on my feed. Something I like about ur channel, is that i can have a reasonable disagreement, and when we agree, u articulate my own position better than I can ! Solid ! . Definitly about to watch this after work

[@thepjshow]

Thanks for the kind words. I hope you enjoy the video.

[@mindburnjw]

@@thepjshow man a solid video!!! Imma tell my friends now . Solid bro. Well only my brother and I r sonic fans, but imma force in these mario ppl.

[@jeremyrossi2716]

As good as a villain he is 1. He is buried under bad writing in 06 2. Snapcube’s Real Time Fandub of 06 has become the dominant version of him online, which I think is great and hilarious, but cracks begin to show when a bunch of improv comedians do the character more justice than his own game series.

[@mrbutt4eva625]

Another thing is that when Mephiles killed Sonic, he keeps that blade in him to make him feel pain l, rub it in, and/or savor the murder

[@cythebunny]

Mephiles: have you ever been f by a clone feels great they know all the great spots

[@turtleninja16tn66]

That opening for Mephiles just makes me CRAVE a Sonic 06 animated series.

[@mephilex01]

No one but NO ONE can top mephiles he is the greatest villain in all sonic games i wish he was brought back

[@owenmcbride1]

He was so popular, they named a city after him!

[@callmebluyie2252]

dude, u have the time and talent for this and im glad i got to experience a few of ur vids, u can see through the writing and thats already a pretty powerful skill lol

[@trystero1729]

Why Mephiles is a great villain? Because he’s an alpha gamer. Next question.

[@Scien1211]

I think there wasn't really any interaction between Sonic and Mephiles because he didn't need to be around. His plan was going perfectly. Using Silver he put Sonic and Elise in situations where they would grow closer and by staying away from Sonic he didn't give Silver the chance to see his true colors too soon . He set everything up so perfectly. Waited until Sonic and Elise was very close. Waited until Elise was at her happies and then killed Sonic in front of her. Sonic not knowing Mephiles even existed made it very easy. He made sure is was sudden.

[@thepjshow]

That is actually a pretty cool explanation for their lack of interaction.

[@emberthefox4951]

It's such a shame that SEGA can't even get his name right now. He is the one Sonic villain, or even villain in general, who got exactly what they wanted. It took time travel shenanigans to defeat him, and he's still finding a way to influence the spin offs!

[@s.crosby417]

i think the most terrifying thing about mephlise is that he has no actual motive, he just wants destruction, no less, no more

[@fen_scrawl04]

Mephiles just has a thing about him ,that gives me slight chills ,the way he talks ,toys with everyone he can and the sadistic nature of him turn him into a sonic villian that i actually take seriously , the only other villian that could do that was chaos . Like eggman is iconic ,but i xan never take him seriously, metal sonic in heroes is just whack , zavok and the other of the deadly 6 are annoying at best and infinite looks cool ,but lacks both interesting abilities, backstory or personality traits.

[@Valroirr]

Of all the videos you've made that outro music just fit so well after talking about mephiles, not to mention I really wanna play 06 at this point just to experience this villain in all his glory

[@thepjshow]

That song is actually one of his boss battle themes.

[@freyaljones7368]

Ever sinse after 06 sonic in 2010 becoming less shonen and more child friendly witch annoys me because sonics got potential to be more then that

[@KindaCringe404]

I suppose we can only hope that Sonic Team gets their act together soon. I miss the 'Dark Age' of Sonic because of the amount of effort put into its stories back then.

[@Spider-Fan006]

Then the series would've ended with a bang I like that idea 06 had the potential to be the best Sonic game of all time but it failed due to bad decisions and unfortunate circumstances with the revealed specs of the Wii which forced Sega's hand as they already had set a release date but made a terrible decision with separating the Sonic Team into two groups this cost them not only their reputation but the kindness of the Sonic fans

[@AEli5002]

Sonic 06 was our last Sonic game that was edgy (except for Sonic black rings)

[@arturocastroverde3349]

@@AEli5002 unleashed

[@maryafantalia8614]

​@@AEli5002 Black Knight were the last, after Secret Rings and Unleashed.

[@TheBohobemeister]

As always, wonderful video!

[@mr.werb15md90]

I remember the "Some Call Me Johnny" review of 06 and the line that I always remember from it was "can you honestly tell me that he instigated the whole 'have Silver kill Sonic to make Elise cry' plot just to be a d---!?" and just think to myself "yes, yes he did." also, even if Mephiles wasn't both killed and retconned (in his own game), I'd only want him to appear (in the mainline games) one more time, as part of what makes him cool is that what he accomplished in just one game greatly outshines anything anyone did both before and after him. also, just look at Metal Sonic, he's also cool, but he's been run into the ground that it almost loses his cool.

[@nikospsomas3237]

What if Mephiles after merging with Solaris left a fragment of his Soul (The Phantom Rudy) back in the Sonic 3/Mania on the Angel Island through the timeline so he can resurrect himself through Infinite?? The Infinite Symbol he does with the Chaos Emeralds, doesn't seem that random to me! I just heard that Mephiles may be in the new Sonic game!

[@bluerocket5127]

no please i don't want him to be milked

[@nikospsomas3237]

Neither do I! He is one of best "bad" guys in the series

[@Geobot3000]

Mephiles is automatically the best villain because he killed sonic just for the lols. He could have time traveled to LITERALLY ANY POINT IN TIME with iblis and joined with him then, but he went out of his way to trick silver, fight shadow, and kill sonic just to be a dick. And this is what also led to his downfall. If he had just went to the future and joined with iblis without encountering sonic, shadow, or silver then no one would know who he is or how to stop him. But him choosing to fight everyone gave them the knowledge of how to defeat him.

[@cadeshanley218]

You got yourself a subscriber for this video in me. Mephiles is definitely my 3rd favorite Sonic Villain behind Metal Sonic and Eggman.

[@thepjshow]

Thanks for the Subscription. It means a lot.

[@cadeshanley218]

@@thepjshow Just keep up the Sonic fandom no matter how things go downhill. Hope the next Sonic game will have Roger Craig Smith's Sonic have the same plot as Ryan Durmmund's or Jason Griffith's Sonic.

[@ViltrumiteIsRite99]

@8:10 Mephiles intro scene is nothing short of well done! Music, cinematography, posing, voice acting. This game does have its positives & merits.

[@nekochiyu5060]

Honestly, creating such an elaborate and somewhat complicated plan when he can just do the thing, is a such a good villain thing to do. Why just do the thing when you can have fun with it? Like doing a chore vs doing a chore to music. The music being sadistic glee in this case. It's a simple question he asked himself. "What would cause the most pain for them?" I can feel a smile where there is none. Where there shouldn't be.

[@syinthesis]

Am I the only person who when hears Mephiles’s name, my mind immediately goes to… M E M P H I S T E N N E S E E

[@franciscopenajr3909]

0:20 I think the reason some still hate him, is because those who hate the character also hated the game. There is some truth about the hatred of the game (probably the numerous glitches and bad controls)

[@Espartanica]

Numerous glitches and bad controls? Sounds like Sonic Adventure to me.

[@RoboMilo]

As someone who recently acquired Mephiles in Sonic Forces, this video has been very useful for backstory. Thanks!

[@saigotheanimator1098]

When you showed mephiles laughed I just laughed along his laugh is so cool

[@Rambo5l0]

Good video, 06 was always my favorite game

[@AtomBacon]

This video has given me a different kind of insight than I expected. The analysis on Mephiles was great as is, but I've been wanting to make a video somewhat like this about *my* favourite villain, but was struggling with how to approach the presentation of information (speaking more from a writing standpoint than visual)

[@halffullofit]

got here after looking at a meme my friend sent me at 4am from after i stumbled across the knuckles video. gotta say you make some compelling arguments even though i’m too half awake to understand shit right now

[@tvl8681]

I think Mephiles was the first sonic villain to actual scare me, genuinely. Especially with his theme song playing in the background it does not help😰

[@afro025]

ok i just binge watched all of your sonic analysis videos and i was shocked to see you had 339 subscribers (it's 340 now 😉) since your content is extremely good, and the editing is perfect. i really would enjoy it if you keep making the character analysis videos 15:47 i was thinking you could do a character analysis about a character from the pokemon franchise, be it the games, anime, or manga (specifically the pokemon adventures/special manga) i don't know how passionate you are about pokemon videos, but i saw that you had one talking about the generation 4 remakes so i decided to give it a shot at asking about it. i don't have any particular character in mind, as i want you to choose which character you'd like to make a video about. other than that, great video! i hope you channel blows up soon, you deserve it 😄

[@thepjshow]

Thanks so much for the support. It is truly appreciated. As for the Poke'mon stuff, I can give it a shot. I've played so many of the games, watched a few of t he anime and read some of the Manga (Although that was a long time ago back when I was 12). I probably will end up doing reviews of the games one day but in terms of specific characters, that one will take some thought. But I don't see why not.

[@DaleStrickland]

I've barely played any Sonic games yet I still find myself enthralled with your videos. You convinced me to buy Sonic Heroes after not playing it since I was a kid.

[@arsenal4444]

really didn't expect this to turn my opinion completely around, but I gave it a shot, and wow you do not disappoint absolutely nailed it, man