The Sonic films have been major hits with audiences around the world, so it was always inevitable we were going to get spin-offs for fan favourite characters. That's exactly what Knuckles is, a series that follows the adventures of the Echidna who was always one of the cooler characters amidst the Sonic roster.
After teaming up with Sonic and Tails to defeat Dr. Robotnik, Knuckles (Idris Elba) struggles to fit in our world as a warrior. Coming across down-on-his-luck Wade Whipple (Adam Pally), a deputy sheriff, Knuckles takes it upon himself to train Wade in the ways of the Echidna warrior, to varying degrees of success.
Just like the Sonic films that have come before this series, Knuckles continues to be a lot of fun for all ages, children in particular sure to get a lot out of this as Knuckles learns a lot about himself and bowling(?!). Also, like the Sonic films that came before it, Knuckles has a bit too many moments later in the series that don't even feature the titular character, instead deciding to focus on the human characters, mostly Wade. It's understandable as there needs to be someone for Knuckles to interact with however, it runs the risk of losing the focus of its target audience as the main attraction goes AWOL for a little while.
That being said, the show should be applauded for trying to do something different and experimenting with a few of its episodes. The third and fourth episodes in particular go down routes I wasn't expecting, the latter going down the musical route that was a little strange yet very welcome. They make a great vocal casting choice that just made me want to go back and listen to the Jack Sparrow song by Lonely Island. Outside of this, the action and comedy combine to good effect, the former aided by great visual effects and the latter, while being a little juvenile, mostly landing.
In Idris Elba, Knuckles has found the perfect voice for the serious nature of the character. It plays with the tropes of the fish-out-of-water comedy well in the early stages before becoming almost a buddy cop movie of the 80s in the later stages. Elba had me cracking up early on with his no nonsense reactions to Sonic's advice on how to live his life on Earth. Adam Pally is the main human character in the series and he very much brings the silliness as Wade Whipple, the goofiness combined with his humble nature making him easy to root for alongside Knuckles. Ellie Taylor, Kid Cudi and Rory McCann all enjoy playing the devious and scheming villains however, none of them bring the zany energy of Jim Carrey in the Sonic films - leaving a sense of underwhelment in that department.
While Knuckles is an enjoyable series for all the family to enjoy, it joins the Sonic films in a franchise that just seems as if it's happy to be plateauing rather than striving for anything higher.
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