Chaotix
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Image:Team Chaotix.jpg The Chaotix are a group of video game characters in the Sonic the Hedgehog series. They debuted in the game Knuckles' Chaotix (simply called Chaotix in Japan). The group has since appeared in Sonic Heroes and Shadow the Hedgehog. One of the members, Espio, also appeared in Sonic the Fighters, and another, Mighty, debuted in SegaSonic the Hedgehog
They have also appeared in many other Sonic continuties, including several Japanese Sonic mangas, Archie comics, the British comic series Sonic the Comic and the Sonic X anime series. While they show up for just one episode (episode 39) in the second season of Sonic X, they get much more screen time and play a much bigger role in Season 3. Most recently, a manga featuring Chaotix as the main characters has been released in Japan.
In virtually all of their incarnations the Chaotix are presented as a somewhat dysfunctional and indeed chaotic group and are often used in plots to add a sense of comedy to otherwise serious situations. In Sonic X, Team Chaotix seem to be able to see beyond the fourth wall, adding to their humorous image.
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Storyline from the games
Image:ChaotixX.jpg Knuckles the Echidna, Mighty the Armadillo, Espio the Chameleon, Vector the Crocodile and Charmy Bee were first brought together at the discovery of Carnival Island, where Doctor Eggman had just built his latest fortress called Newtrogic High Zone: a strange amusement park based on the island's power to amplify the Master Emerald. When Knuckles returned from patrolling the far reaches of the island one day, he found his friends imprisoned and Dr. Eggman in control of the Master Emerald.
Freeing his friends one at a time, Knuckles slowly fought Dr. Eggman's minions across the 5 worlds of Newtrogic High. Mysteriously, they were also aided in their quest by Heavy & Bomb, two robots who claimed to have escaped from Dr. Eggman's tyranny. In the final showdown, the island was nearly destroyed and Dr. Eggman summoned Metal Sonic to battle the Chaotix. Aided by the power of the Chaos Rings, he was eventually defeated, and the island reverted back to normal.
Knuckles quickly went back to guard the Master Emerald and the group of friends dispersed. Mighty went on his own way and traveled the world. The whereabouts of Heavy and Bomb are unknown.
Vector, Espio, and Charmy however soon started a detective agency together, ready to do just about any job for money. As the story in Sonic Heroes opens the three friends are enjoying a lazy day when a mysterious package is delivered to the agency. Inside, they find a transceiver, which promises a handsome payment if they take on a case. True to Vector’s policy to “never turn down work that pays”, the trio accepts and begins their adventure. Soon they find themselves opposite Dr. Eggman and Metal Sonic once more.
In Shadow the Hedgehog, they have gotten a job where they apparently search for information. They are seen collecting data disks, hacking into Eggman's computers, and looking for computer rooms on Space Colony ARK. If Shadow the Hedgehog follows the "Hero" missions during the game, he may ally with members of the Chaotix crew. The Chaotix also play a somewhat minor yet pivotal role in the final canonical ending.
Chaotix members in the games
Knuckles the Echidna
- Main article: Knuckles the Echidna
A former leader and full-time loner.
Vector the Crocodile
Image:Vector001.jpg Vector the Crocodile is the team's leader in the games since Sonic Heroes, and in Sonic the Comic. His trademark is a set of headphones, which he always listens to, even during missions. He is 20 years old, 5 ft 11 in tall, and weighs 440 lb - the second heaviest character in the series, while Big the Cat is the first. He has a rough demeanor, and at times he is even downright rude, but deep down he's actually quite a kind soul, and has been known to occasionally help people for charity. He is a skillful detective and the 'power' member of the Chaotix Detective Agency, and is also super fast as he must keep up with Espio in Sonic Heroes. He indeed possesses great strength (though not as great as that of Mighty or Knuckles) and (in Sonic Heroes) has shown some evidences of being able to breath out fire from his mouth. Due to the shape of his body, Vector's combat style is more based on using his arms and body to create powerful smash attacks. Although his loud, brash attitude might make him appear otherwise, Vector is in fact very intelligent, and while not a genius on the level of say, Tails, he is nonetheless a very clever and capable leader. Besides money, Vector's main joys in life are music, food, bubble gum and sports drinks.
Vector was originally slated to be one of the characters in the scrapped Sonic the Hedgehog sound test, and is thus among the oldest of the Sonic characters alongside Sonic himself and Eggman. His first game appearance was in Knuckles' Chaotix. He also appeared in Sonic Heroes and Shadow the Hedgehog.
In Shadow the Hedgehog, he is the hero partner in the Cosmic Fall level. He also partners with Shadow during the Black Doom & Egg Dealer Boss Battles following Cosmic Fall.
In the Archie comics, Vector is a punk who likes having things his way and listening to loud music. He also somewhat disliked Knuckles' girlfriend Julie-Su in the past issues. In the Sonic the Comic, he is the intelligent leader of the Chaotix crew and a close friend to the Omni-Viewer. In Sonic X, Vector watches a lot of detective-based animes, and also has a strong conviction for settling favors. When Tails has to repair the Chaotix's ship, Vector decides to help him get involved with Cosmo, a girl that Tails likes. He also appears to have a crush on Cream's mother, Vanilla the Rabbit.
Vector's appearance has changed a bit since Knuckles Chaotix. In Chaotix, Vector seemed slightly taller and was much skinnier. In his newer appearances, he looks somewhat shorter and definitely more muscular.
Vector's voice actor in Sonic Heroes was Bill Corkery. He has now been replaced by 4Kids Entertainment employee, Carter Cathcart (although in Sonic X, Vector is voiced by Jimmy Zoppi). Because of this, Vector now sounds like something of a cross between Pee-Wee Herman, Bubs from Homestar Runner, and Barney Gumble from The Simpsons. Many fans find this voice very annoying and out of character, as opposed to his gruffer, New Yorker-accented voice in Heroes. A fan-cult has been created around the infamous line "Find the computer room!", uttered in the Cosmic Fall level in Shadow the Hedgehog. This quote can be heard here:[1].
Espio the Chameleon
Image:Espio001.jpg Espio the Chameleon is a 16-year-old chameleon. He's 3 ft 7 in tall, and weighs 79.2 lb. He is a calm, disciplined ninja. Prior to Sonic Heroes he was the only detective of the bunch, and nowdays he is the Chaotix Detective Agency's speed member. He owns what are possibly the biggest shuriken known to man and can render his skin to match the environment around him, making him seem completely invisible. Espio's main interests include ninja training and camping. One thing he strongly dislikes, though, is Eggman (One can presume that most Sonic characters dislike the evil doc, but Espio's particularly strong hatered for Eggman is specifically stated in the Japanese Chaotix manual).
Espio first appeared in Knuckles' Chaotix. It has been speculated that he was originally meant to be the games main star. He later appeared in the arcade game Sonic the Fighters (Sonic Championship). He also appeared in Sonic Heroes and Shadow the Hedgehog.
In Shadow the Hedgehog, he helps out in the Mad Matrix level and the Mad Matrix Egg Breaker boss battle.
In the Archie comics, Espio is a bonafide hothead, which causes friend Charmy to remind him of his manners. In Sonic the Comic, he is a friendly (or sometimes not so friendly) rival to Mighty. In Sonic X, Vector and Charmy sometimes require him to use his cloaking abilities for pranks, which he dislikes.
Espio was originally played by Marc Biagi, but has been replaced with David Wills. In Japan, Espio's voice is provided by Yuuki Masuda. Due to a mistake on the website GameFAQS, many fans mistake Espio's voice actor for Jason Griffith.
Charmy Bee
Image:Charmybee.jpg Charmy Bee (spelt Charmee Bee in the Fleetway comics) is an extremely hyperactive 6-year old bee with a heart as big as his trademark flight helmet. He's 2 ft 3 in tall, and weighs 22 lb. He works in the Chaotix Detective Agency as the flight member. He can fly as well as run at super speed. He also has the ability to warp between special flowers. He loves all kinds of flowers, and he also loves honey and taking long naps, which Vector and Espio make him take in a locker in the Chaotix Headquarters (a rickety old two-story house that seems to take the brunt of their abuse when caught up in mishaps).
His first appearance was in a Japanese Sonic Manga. His first game appearance was in Knuckles' Chaotix. There he was labeled as 16 years of age in the US game manual, though his age was never stated in the original Japanese manual. He also appeared in Sonic Heroes and Shadow the Hedgehog.
In Shadow the Hedgehog, Charmy helps out during the Prison Island level. In the Last Story, Charmy inadvertantly saved Earth when ramming himself into a computer aboard the Space Colony ARK while helping Espio and Vector hack in. By doing this, Charmy activated a videotape that allowed Shadow to break free of Black Doom's mind control.
In both of the comic continuities he is a prince of the bees. In the Archie comics, he is a sophisticated 18-year-old, and is married to a girl named Saffron. In the Fleetway comics however, his teammates do not know that he is a prince. Charmy once stated that when he flies, he shrinks down to the size of a normal bee.
In Sonic Heroes, Charmy is played by Emily Corkery, who was replaced with Amy Birnbaum. Many fans find Amy Birnbaums voice as Charmy very annoying and have preferred that Emily Corkery voice Charmy again. In Japan, Charmy has the voice of Yoko Teppoucho.
Mighty the Armadillo
Main Article: Mighty the Armadillo
Mighty the Armadillo is an old friend of Sonic the Hedgehog and Ray the Squirrel, who first appeared in SegaSonic the Hedgehog (arcade) game.
Heavy & Bomb
Image:Chaotix heavy bomb.jpg Heavy & Bomb are two robots who first appeared in Knuckles’ Chaotix. Heavy is a clunky, silver robot, who was Dr. Eggman’s chief mechanic. He’s just as his name says: heavy, and slow. Bomb on the other hand is a small red bomb robot. He’s not very strong or quick, and he blows himself up when things start looking bleak, and can regenerate after blowing up. The two robots claimed to have escaped from the clutches of the evil Dr. Eggman, and are simply trying to help Knuckles and his friends. However no one knows if they speak the truth or if they are simply planted by Eggman to slow them down. After Eggman’s demise at Newtrogic High the duo disappeared and has not been seen since.
Heavy and Bomb also made appearances in the Archie Comics, serving in King Acorn's Secret Service under Geoffrey St. John. However, on one mission, the two were reprogrammed to assassinate the Acorn family, and were destroyed by the defending Sonic and co. Later, rebuilt versions of the two were sent to assassinate Mina Mongoose. However, they were also thwarted, and presumed destroyed (although they are never seen being destroyed. The new Heavy was last seen sinking in a lake.)
As minor characters (and minor nuisances), they have remained somewhat unpopular amongst fans.
Chaotix members in other continuities
Nack the Weasel
- Main article: Fang the Sniper
In Sonic the Comic, Nack the Weasel was one of the original members of the Chaotix Crew, but he betrayed the team to the Brotherhood of Metallix and left.
Ray the Squirrel
In the Archie comics, Ray was a close friend of Mighty and for a while a member of the Chaotix. He originally appeared as a prisoner in the same facility that held Fiona Fox, as well as Mighty and Sonic for a brief time. After a failed rebellion (which was also an attempt to rescue Fiona,) Ray grabbed the base's power source, a large gemstone. This caused him to disappear, leaving behind his distraught friends. When Mighty came back later, he found Ray alive and well, but stuck to the gem and unable to leave the base. With a little help from Fiona and Nic the Weasel, Mighty freed Ray and brought him home to the Floating Island.
In his one game appearance, Sega Sonic Arcade, Ray helped Sonic and Mighty defeat one of Eggman's plots. The three then parted ways, and Ray has not appeared in a game since.
Ray's abilities include the basic Spin Dash, and he is also rather agile. Being a flying squirrel, he has the ability to glide through the air. Ray is very timid, often stammering because of his shyness.
Julie-Su the Echidna
- Main article: Julie-Su
Exclusive to Archie comics, Julie-Su was a late addition to the Chaotix team, and is now a love interest of Knuckles the Echidna. In the Archie comics in the future story Knuckles and Julie-Su have a daughter, Lara-Su, 17 years old.
Omni-Viewer
In the Fleetway comic, The Omnipotent Omni-Viewer, or Omni for short, was a sentient energy field that was the guiding force for the Chaotix team. It resembled a floating flat-panel television with a force field instead of a screen, and a face formed out of deviations on its surface. The Omni-Viewer had been a part of the story for a while, having been the one that transported Sonic the Hedgehog and his friends into the future (against his will), thereby allowing Dr. Robotnik to take over.
Omni could travel anywhere in the Special Zone or Mobius instantly (or transport other characters if they passed into his energy field). For a lengthy run, Omni attempted to imprison Super Sonic, a demonic entity who by that time had been separated from Sonic entirely, within his energy field by stopping time. However, he could not do this completely, merely slow down time to a crawl. Because of Super Sonic's great speed, though, he eventually managed to escape, and was instrumental in ridding Mobius of Robotnik's rule.