The Knuckles TV show is out now, and one of the best things about the series is that Idris Elba’s version of Knuckles has finally fixed the character after 14 years of mischaracterization. Alongside Sonic and Tails, Knuckles is one of the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise’s most popular protagonists, with him being a major player in the series ever since Sonic the Hedgehog 3. However, Knuckles has undergone an interesting and controversial transformation in recent years, but the Knuckles TV show is finally bringing the titular echidna back on course where he belongs.
Paramount+ has finally released the highly anticipated Knuckles TV show, with the Sonic the Hedgehog spinoff giving a much greater focus to the red warrior Knuckles the Echidna (played by Idris Elba). The series picks up where Sonic the Hedgehog 2 ended, with Knuckles the Echidna going on a journey with Green Hills deputy sheriff Wade Whipple in order to train him to be the ultimate warrior. Although the Knuckles TV show’s use of bowling, musical numbers, and bounty hunting may seem odd for the franchise, its characterization of Knuckles actually perfectly adheres to the source material.
Knuckles the Echidna was first introduced to the live-action Sonic the Hedgehog movie series in Sonic the Hedgehog 2, with Dr. Robotnik recruiting him and using him as a tool against Sonic and Tails. In the movie series, Knuckles is portrayed as an ultra-serious warrior who is wholly dedicated to his mission of locating the Master Emerald, with his dedication to traits like honor and victory defining his characterization. Idris Elba’s Knuckles is the perfect adaptation of how the character was when he first appeared in the Sonic the Hedgehog games, which is why he is so great.
Luckily, the Knuckles TV show continues Sonic the Hedgehog 2‘s perfect Knuckles characterization, with it doubling down on many of the aspects that make the character great. Knuckles spends a lot of time in the TV show talking about the legacy of the Echidna Tribe, making the lore of Sonic the Hedgehog a major part of his arc. Knuckles’ obsession with training Wade to be a warrior also fits Knuckles’ video game persona, with him believing in self-improvement and that might makes right. Knuckles is pitch-perfect in the TV show, pivoting away from some other recent Knuckles adaptations.
The live-action Sonic the Hedgehog movie series feels like a return to form for Knuckles, as previous Sonic the Hedgehog games and adaptations have failed Knuckles. Starting with 2010’s Sonic Colors, the franchise took Knuckles down a goofier path, with him becoming a meat-headed comic relief character rather than an ultra-serious warrior. Some games managed to lean into Knuckles’ Echidna Tribe mentality, such as Sonic Forces, but this cartoonish version of Knuckles kept popping up in various Sonic the Hedgehog games.
This version of Knuckles was especially prevalent in the Sonic Boom TV show, which had Knuckles be nothing more than a dumb jock. This strays far away from what Knuckles had been in the franchise, but the character’s Sonic Boom iteration helped to solidify this new direction. Many long-time Sonic the Hedgehog fans weren’t too fond of this new version of Knuckles, hoping that he would go back to normal soon. Luckily, Idris Elba’s Knuckles iteration seems to be fulfilling this wish.
Idris Elba has brought the more serious tone back to Knuckles, and this is what the character should always be like. The humor of Knuckles should come from him being a fish out of water, breaking radios because his warrior training has caused him to not understand music like “Can I Kick It?” by A Tribe Called Quest. Simply having Knuckles be dumb is a cheap way to reach this type of humor, but the Sonic the Hedgehog movies and Knuckles TV show manage to avoid this fatal flaw.
On top of that, Idris Elba’s Knuckles is now the most mainstream version of the character, meaning that Knuckles needs to stay this way. The Sonic the Hedgehog movie version of Knuckles will be what many mainstream audience members think of Knuckles as, with the Sonic the Hedgehog movies defining the character in their heads. Thus, Idris Elba’s characterization needs to keep getting the echidna right, and the Knuckles TV show is a promising sign for the character going forward.