Shadow the Hedgehog (2024)

This article is about the video game character. For other uses, see Shadow the Hedgehog (disambiguation).

Shadow the Hedgehog (シャドウ・ザ・ヘッジホッグ Shadō za Hejjihoggu^?) is a character that appears in the Sonic the Hedgehog series. He is an anthropomorphic hedgehog/Black Arms hybrid who resembles Sonic the Hedgehog in many ways^[7] and serves as his arch-rival and occasional ally. Shadow was created as the "Ultimate Life Form" (究極生命体 Kyūkyoku Seimeitai^?) by Prof. Gerald Robotnik by using the DNA of Black Doom and is the final result of Project Shadow. His purpose was to provide ways to develop a cure for incurable deadly illnesses, more specifically for Gerald's granddaughter Maria Robotnik, who he had a great bond with. However, he was eventually captured following his creation and put into stasis by G.U.N. when he was deemed as a threat to humanity.

Fifty years later, Shadow was released by Dr. Eggman in order to assist him in his plan to conquer the earth. Initially, Shadow worked with him but secretly sought to destroy the planet in order to avenge Maria, who had been killed by the G.U.N. military, but was persuaded to save it from Gerald's doomsday plans. In the process, Shadow lost his memories and as such, sought to uncover the truth of his past, during which he met Black Doom and the Black Arms; in the end, Shadow regained some of his memories, uncovered the truth, and thwarted Black Doom's agenda and saved the world. From there, he decided to move on from the past and be earths protector on his own accord.

Shadow is sharp-witted, always on edge, and has a strong sense of purpose, always willing to accomplish his goals by any means,^[8] and always serious. Essentially a dark version of Sonic, Shadow can match him in both speed and skill, and can use Chaos Control with a Chaos Emerald to warp time and space.^[9][7] While preferring to work alone and not one of his closest friends, he has helped Sonic and his allies when needed.

Quick Answers

What is Shadow the Hedgehog's height and weight?

Shadow the Hedgehog is 100 cm (3' 3") tall and weighs 35 kg (77 lb.)

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What is Shadow the Hedgehog's quill color?

Shadow the Hedgehog has white, black, and crimson quills.

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What color are Shadow the Hedgehog's eyes?

Shadow the Hedgehog has red eyes

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What is Shadow the Hedgehog's alignment?

Shadow the Hedgehog is neutral in alignment

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Concept and creation

After the success of Sonic Adventure, it was hoped that a sequel would be for the Dreamcast what Sonic the Hedgehog 2 was for the Sega Mega Drive/Sega Genesis. In 1999, a portion of the team responsible for the new Sonic Adventure title traveled to work at Sega of America.^[10] It was led by director Takashi Iizuka, while Yuji Naka remained in Japan to work on other properties, including Phantasy Star Online. With the team in place, brainstorming soon began on what form Sonic Adventure 2 would take.

Early on, it was decided that one of the main themes of the game would be the dichotomy between good and evil. To explore this, the creators came up with new characters that would both assist Dr. Eggman and challenge the established cast of heroes: one would become Rouge the Bat, while the other would become Shadow. Takashi Iizuka was the one to first conceive the idea of Shadow, coming up with the idea of a dark, anti-hero figure who resembled Sonic in shape, but not in personality.^[2] His role as a dark hero rather than a rival was inspired by American comic book anti-heroes such as Spawn, which were popular at the time.^[10] While creating Shadow, there was a proposal to create a character that was as cool as or better than Sonic.^[1] Several early designs of Shadow ranged from having long spines with tufts of fur in front of his eyes, to having capes, shades or even a missing eye. Shiro Maekawa was the one who came up with Shadow's final design and considers himself to be Shadow's creator. He has stated that there are times where he feels a stronger bond with Shadow than his real relatives.^[1]

When being designed, the character's original name was "Terios"^{[11][note 1]}, derived from the Old Greek word "τέλειος" (telios) which can be roughly translated as "absolute", "complete", or "making dreams come true".^[12] According to Kazuyuki Hoshino, Shadow's red stripes were inspired by Kabuki makeup.^[13] Shadow appears to also have partially been inspired by the character Vegeta from the Dragon Ball franchise, as an early sheet of concept artwork presented in the Sonic the Hedgehog 25th Anniversary Art Book uses "Vegeta" as a keyword describing Shadow. However, this has since been refuted by Takashi Iizuka,^[14] who insists that while Vegeta eventually reformed his evil ways and became a teammate and friend of the heroes, Shadow is not a friend of Sonic's and will always follow his own path instead.^[15]

Once Sonic Adventure 2 was announced, the identity and nature of Shadow was a heavily guarded secret. The character was first shown to the public in the first game trailer for Sonic Adventure 2; however, his name was not revealed. GameSpot described what little was shown as Anti-Sonic - similar in appearance, but with darker skin, more angled eyes, and a fearsome scowl instead of Sonic's trademark grin.^[16]

When Shadow seemingly died in Sonic Adventure 2, there rose a huge fanbase for Shadow to appear in more games, after being disappointed by his "death." This let Takashi Iizuka input Shadow as a playable character in Sonic Heroes and even star in his own game, Shadow the Hedgehog.^[17] In fact, Takashi Iizuka said that they maintained the mystery around the character of Shadow the Hedgehog and had wanted to feature him in his own game since he was introduced.^[18] For the Shadow the Hedgehog game, after feeling that it would be inappropriate to give Sonic's character a gun as fans had requested in mailings,^[19] Yuji Naka believed that by focusing on Shadow for his own game, they could use his different identity from Sonic to build upon the Sonic brand.^[20]

Appearance

Shadow is a black-furred anthropomorphic hedgehog. He has red eyes, a patch of white fur on his chest, a black nose, a tan muzzle, and small, triangular ears with tan canals. He also has six quills on his head, four of which curve upwards while the other two curve downwards, two spines on his back, and a short, pointy tail. He has red stripes on each of his head quills, around the edges of his eyes, and on his arms and legs.

For attire, Shadow wears white gloves with black cuffs and red tongues, and Air Shoes which, like his gloves, have black cuffs and red tongues. Shadow also wears Limiter Rings, one on each of his wrists and ankles.

Following the Black Arms incident, the red paint on the front of Shadow's Air Shoes has been scratched off, and his eyes have become more red-orange in color.

For a list of Shadow's alternate outfits, see Shadow the Hedgehog/Miscellaneous#Outfits.

History

This is an abbreviated look at Shadow the Hedgehog's history, focusing primarily on his most recent mainline adventures. For a complete history of Shadow, see Shadow the Hedgehog/History and appearances. For his history in the IDW comics and Sonic Prime, see Shadow the Hedgehog/History and appearances (IDW) and Shadow the Hedgehog/History and appearances (Sonic Prime).

Past

Shadow's origin dates back many years ago to "Project Shadow", a secret government-sanctioned project under Professor Gerald Robotnik, Doctor Eggman's grandfather, aboard Space Colony ARK. The project's goal was to create "The Ultimate Lifeform" as a weapon for the United Federation, however Gerald planned to use the project's results to find a cure for his dying granddaughter Maria. The name "Shadow" was coined for two reasons: one being an irony that a shadow cannot be created, that immortality was impossible^[21] and serves as a metaphor of "unreal things";^[22] while the other one came from Maria who said shadows could "teach people the way to the light".^[22]

At some point Gerald made a deal with Black Doom, leader of the Black Arms, whose DNA would be used to create Shadow the Hedgehog in exchange for the seven Chaos Emeralds being delivered to him when the Black Comet returned to Earth in 50 years. Gerald meanwhile created the Eclipse Cannon, a laser which could harness the powers of the Chaos Emeralds to potentially destroy the Black Comet upon it's return.

Upon awakening, Shadow began his life on the ARK and he formed a bond with Maria and helping the researchers. At some point, the details of Project Shadow were leaked to G.U.N.. Fearing Gerald's true involvement with the Black Arms, the government then ordered G.U.N. to raid the ARK and shut down the project.^[21] During the raid, Gerald was captured and all the researchers involved with Project Shadow were killed, as well as Maria, who asked Shadow that he give all the people on Earth a chance to be happy, just before activating Shadow's escape pod where he was helplessly ejected towards Earth. Shadow's pod was recovered by G.U.N, and he was placed in suspended animation on Prison Island, where Gerald was forced to continue his research under government supervision. Gerald began to secretly brainwash Shadow,^[23] modifying his memories so he believed he was meant to destroy humanity. Gerald also secretly kept a diary, in which he encouraged anyone who found it and desired mass destruction to release Shadow. Gerald was soon incarcerated and executed, while Shadow remained in stasis until he was discovered by Doctor Eggman.^[21]

Sonic Adventure 2

Shadow the Hedgehog awakens from Doctor Eggmans invasion of Prison Island, and as gratitude, Shadow helps Eggman in his journey to take over the World, asking him to bring the Chaos Emeralds to the Space Colony ARK. Shadow terrorizes a bank in the federal capital and takes a Chaos Emerald from it. During this, Shadow starts to remember Maria Robotniks last moments, promising to take revenge on humanity.

Shadow then encounters Sonic the Hedgehog, after explaining his motives and having some banter, he uses Chaos Control to escape. Shadow meets back up with Eggman and explains to him the legacy of Doctor Gerald Robotniks and the Space Colony ARK as well as revealing to him the Eclipse Cannon and explaining the weapon to him. Rouge the Bat interrupts their planning questioning the validity of it, proposing a deal that in exchange for borrowing the Emerald radar, she will bring the Chaos Emeralds to the two. In order to convince Eggman, she shows off an Emerald that she had already obtained prior, Eggman and Shadow both agree to it. Sometime shortly after this, Shadow starts to investigate Rouge.^[24]

Eggman, Shadow, and Rouge arrive on Prison Island, Eggman starts to explain the plan to retrieve an Emerald from the island and plant an explosive in the island so the military doesn't chase after them, before he could continue, Shadow gets tackled by Amy Rose who mistakes him for Sonic, forcing Eggman to split off from Shadow. Later on, Shadow gets signaled from Rouge that she got trapped. Shadow at first hesitates to save her as there's only 10 minutes left until the island blows up, but upon remembering Maria, who like Rouge, was another helpless girl, he decides to save her. While making his way to Rouge, Shadow gets interrupted by Sonic, after some banter between the two they start fighting each other. At some point during the battle, Eggman signals to Shadow that the island is about to explode, Sonic is shocked by this information and Shadow uses this as a chance to escape, with only 1 minute left on the clock, Shadow runs to Rouge and uses Chaos Control to teleport off of the island.

On the Space Colony ARK, Shadow starts to remember some of her past conversations with Maria, he shifts his attention to the Eclipse Cannon as Eggman fires it at the Moon and threatens the people of earth to use it again if they don't surrender to him within 24 hours. Shortly after, Shadow tries to negotiate with the government but they don't budge.^[25] Shadow, Eggman, and Rouge meet up again in the Space Colony ARK control room and explain the situation and plan their next move.

After some mishaps, Shadow and Eggman meet back in the control room, Eggman explains to Shadow that if something were to happen to him then he leaves the rest of the mission to him. 38 minutes later, Eggman manages to trap Sonic and blow him up, Shadow sees the explosion and thinks that he was just an ordinary hedgehog after all.

A few moments later, Shadow catches Rouge attempting to steal the Emeralds and he starts to interrogate her, he reveals to Rouge that he knows that she is the special agent of the Federal Government President. Rouge shrugs this off deciding that her work is done, but she reveals to Shadow that she has been researching Project Shadow, and questions if Shadow is the real ultimate lifeform, Eggman signals to Shadow that Sonic is heading to the Eclipse Cannon Barrel. Shadow threatens Rouge to stop her from taking the Emeralds, Rouge ignores this and questions if Shadow is the real Shadow, and if all of his memories are fake, Shadow responds by stating that it doesn't matter if his memories are fake, it's real to him, and that he simply wants to carry out Maria's wish.

Shadow encounters Sonic the Hedgehog yet again, surprised by how he survived the blast, Shadow feels that Sonic is similar to him in more than just his appearance and questions who Sonic truly is, Sonic states that he's just a guy that loves adventure, Shadow banters with him and the two battle.

After the battle, it is revealed to everyone Gerald's true plan to destroy the planet using the Eclipse Cannon. Amy then walks around the Space Colony ARK pleads Shadow to help everyone save the planet, Shadow detests this as the planets destruction is all that he wanted. Amy explains to Shadow that while there is a lot of ignorance, and selfish humans out there, they're all trying their best to live their lives and be happier, Amy's pleading reminds Shadow of Maria, and this causes the tampering that Gerald inflicted onto Shadows memories finally snap, Shadow remembers Maria's true wish to save the people of earth, to grant their wishes, and sheds a tear. Shadow vows to make Amy and everyone else's wishes come true, and runs off to help.

Shadow finds Sonic and Knuckles the Echidna, both of them about to fight the Ultimate Life Form Prototype, the Biolizard, Shadow decides that he'll fight it himself. The Biolizard disappears during the fight, seemingly from Chaos Control, it starts to move the Colony itself and becomes one with it, trying to crash into earth. Both Shadow and Sonic harness the powers of the Chaos Emeralds and turn into Super Shadow and Super Sonic. Both of them fight the Biolizard, during the fight Shadow comes to a realization that Sonic is the true ultimate lifeform. As the Space Colony ARK starts to head toward earth, the two of them aim their power at the Eclipse Cannon. Shadow remembers Marias wish once again and both Sonic and Shadow use Chaos Control, Shadow using the very last of his energy, sacrificing himself and starting to plummet down to earth, dying with the knowledge that he had fulfilled Maria's promise.

Sonic Heroes

Rouge the Bat awakens Shadow from a capsule stored in a base from Doctor Eggman. E-123 Omega starts to attack Rouge but Shadow saves her and just before Shadow attacks Omega, Rouge tells the two to stop fighting. Omega and Shadow explain their situations to Rouge, with Shadow explaining that he lost all of his memories, the three decide to team up and look for Eggman.

The newly formed Team Dark chase after Eggman and destroy a lot of his army, throughout the way they encounter and banter with Team Chaotix, Team Sonic, and Team Rose. During one of the encounters with Eggman, when Shadow asks Eggman what his memories are, he mentions that Shadow shouldn't have any memories to get back. At some point, Shadow encounters what seems to be a destroyed copy of him, this causes Shadow to ponder but he proceeds with chasing after Eggman, while chasing after him, Shadow questions who he really is.

Later on, Team Dark gets onboard the Egg Fleet. Shadow decides that even if he's a fake, he still is the true ultimate lifeform. After finally finding Doctor Eggman and defeating him, Rouge the Bat finds hundreds of Shadow Androids, or copies of him, Omega decides that he'll destroy the place. Shadow and Rouge walk away as they start to converse with one another.

Later on, Neo Metal Sonic is revealed to have been impersonating Eggman this entire time and has been copying the data of all 4 teams, the real Eggman explains the situation to the 4 teams. The 4 teams fight off Neo Metal Sonic and after defeating him, Shadow goes his separate way.

Shadow the Hedgehog

Shadow ponders his lack of memories, all he knows is his name and a vague memory of Maria Robotnik getting shot. The Black Arms then start to invade Earth. Shadow pays no attention to it but before he walks away Black Doom appears before him and tells him that gathering the 7 Chaos Emeralds and leaves before Shadow can question him further, Shadow mentions how the Emeralds are said to create miracles when collected, and decides that collecting the Emeralds would be in his best interest.

Sometime during his journey to find the 7 Chaos Emeralds, Black Doom gives Shadow visions where he learns that he had died earlier fighting with Super Sonic, he also learned about who Gerald Robotnik is and that Maria Robotnik died from humans, as well as Maria's wish. After gathering all 7 Chaos Emeralds, Black Doom applauds Shadow and asks him for the Emeralds. But, Sonic the Hedgehog, Knuckles the Echidna, Amy Rose, Miles "Tails" Prower, and Doctor Eggman arrive to him. Sonic asks for the Emeralds, Rouge the Bat also arrives claiming that the Black Arms are demons attempting to destroy the planet.

Black Doom responds that he’s actually here to save humanity instead of destroying it. Black Doom elaborates by explaining that human ignorance and depict will end the species, and that the Black Arms are trying to stop the humans continued foolishness by creating an era of order by supplying their lives to the Black Arms as an energy source. Shadow is shocked by Black Dooms plan. Black Doom uses Chaos Control to warp the Black Comet to Earth's ground.

Shadow is stunned by the deception Black Doom gave, Black Doom explains that to make contact with the planet he needs to amplify space-time by Chaos Control, and that Gerald Robotnik agreed to this. Black Doom explains to Shadow how he was created with Black Doom lifeforce, Shadow is stunned to hear of this.

Shadow breaks out of the nerve gas that the Black Comet is emitting and declares that he no longer cares about his past, and won’t listen to anyone or adhere to anyone, he’ll eliminate Black Doom and be the protector of Earth out of his own accord rather than doing it just because of Marias wish.

Black Doom controls Shadows brain to make him collapse. Screens surround the room with pre-recorded messages from Gerald Robotnik, Gerald reveals that his body can resist Black Dooms powers and that the Eclipse was created to destroy the Black Comet. Shadow declares to fulfill the professors wish and say goodbye to his past afterwards, he then attacks Black Doom but he uses Chaos Control to escape.

Shadow uses the Chaos Emeralds and turns into Super Shadow. After defeating Black Doom, Shadow uses Chaos Control to teleport the Black Comet in front of the Eclipse Cannon, the Eclipse Cannon blasts the Comet, finally destroying it.

Shadow stands on the Space Colony ARK, taking one final visit to it, he looks at a picture of Maria Robotnik, and Gerald Robotnik, and says goodbye to his past life, and throws away the picture, along with his past.

Team Sonic Racing

During the Dodon Pa incident Shadow and his team joined Dodon Pa's Grand Prix alongside Dr. Eggman and his team. However, Team Dark's true intentions for joining the Grand Prix was to investigate Dr. Eggman.^[26] As Eggman began gaining the lead, Shadow's team decided to work with the other teams to keep Eggman from winning the race. After passing the finish line ahead of Eggman alongside Sonic, the two hedgehogs had a rematch.^[27]

When Sonic asked Shadow if he was working with Dr. Eggman, Shadow replied that he joined the Grand Prix in order to stop any evil schemes Eggman had planned. After another race, they agreed that they had to watch out for both Dodon Pa, whose motivations for hosting the Grand Prix were unknown, and Eggman. Soon after, Shadow learned that Eggman and Dodon Pa were seemingly working together. Later, Eggman sent hundreds of Eggpawns after the racers. Shadow eventually learned that Dodon Pa was using the Grand Prix to gather information for his corporation's top secret Ultimate Energy Engine, to use for philanthropic purposes. Soon after, Eggman kidnapped Dodon Pa and brought him to the Final Fortress, incorporating the engine into his Death Egg. Shadow and co. successfully rescued Dodon Pa and destroyed the unstable engine, defeating Eggman.

Personality

Being Sonic's polar opposite personality-wise,^[5] Shadow is, bluntly put, a brooding loner. He usually acts with a cool and businesslike indifference, only occasionally showing his vulnerable side. He is rarely seen with others for an extended period of time and usually distances himself from essentially everyone. He is usually blunt and does not speak much, but he always knows exactly what to say in combat. However, Shadow never bluffs; if he makes a threat, he has every intention of carrying it out. Tying into this attitude, the Japanese script has his self-pronoun be the more humble "boku", with his pronoun for others switching between either "kimi" or "omae" depending on his mood.

As the most violent and merciless character in the series at times,^[5] Shadow's ruthlessness and aggression leads to enemies never treating him lightly. Alongside his dark and violent demeanor, Shadow can be smug and stubborn. He usually treats others in a very callous manner, throwing in his opinion no matter how cold-hearted it is and not caring for whatever the response is. Shadow is also shown to have a sharp wit; during the Space Colony ARK incident, after being called a faker by Sonic, he replied that the latter was not worth being considered his fake.^[28]

Just like how Shadow's motivations are never simple to understand, he spends as much time grappling with his own inner demons as he does with his rival, Sonic.^[5] In the past, Shadow has had a degree of mental instability, in particular post-traumatic stress disorder. This was demonstrated by his instances of post-traumatic flashbacks to Maria's face prior to and during the events of the Black Arms incident, though it could be argued that the instances of the latter game were simply an effect of his amnesia. On one occasion, at the time of the Space Colony ARK incident, seeing police sirens flashing caused him to intensely flash back to the massacre aboard Space Colony ARK and in particular Maria's death. Shadow was soon able to overcome this in the Black Arms and the Emerl incidents, during which he chose to move on from the past yet keep Maria in his heart. In fact, his personal journey since being awoken by Eggman has had him confront the shackles of his past, such as ties, fate, and memories. Since then, it appears as though he is reaching a point where he can "do as his heart desires" in his own way.^[29]

Shadow originally had disdain for humanity, being a misanthrope, but rarely attacked them outright, merely looking at them as a distant observer. During the events of the Space Colony ARK incident, Shadow was planning to destroy the planet both ordered by Gerald Robotnik through brainwashing, and as revenge for the death of his only friend, Maria Robotnik. Shadow eventually moves past his hatred for humanity by remembering his promise to Maria. Later on, Shadow decided to protect humanity and those on earth to honor Maria's dying wish despite their original misgivings. Now, Shadow has moved on from the past and decided to protect humanity on his own accord

During the many incidents that Shadow takes part in, he pursues his foes with a relentless, unwavering determination. He will usually go to any length to accomplish something he desires or feels should be a certain way, no matter what the cost. Before the War to Take Back the Planet, it is heavily implied that Shadow ruthlessly massacred an entire mercenary band known as the Jackal Squad not only in an extremely dismissive, nonchalant manner (as he did not even remember the incident a few months later), but also seemed slightly proud, mocking the mercenary defense squad by saying they themselves needed a defense squad. He also demonstrated rather coarse language during the Black Arms incident.

Shadow possesses a strong sense of identity; after falsely being told by Rouge that he was not the Ultimate Lifeform due to a lab report, he stated to her that, even if his memories were fake, he was still Shadow the Hedgehog.^[30] These qualities make him rarely susceptible to being manipulated by others.

In Shadow's own words, he is not interested in peace, nor does he care about what happens to others. In truth, he simply does not like it when foolish people do whatever they please. While this may make it seem like Shadow stands firmly in opposition to villainy, he is actually very indiscriminate about who he faces, as he chooses to stand against anyone who he condemns for being "foolish", be they villains like Dr. Eggman or heroes like Sonic. He similarly does not want thanks for the help he provides when he does something heroic, believing that showing gratitude is a waste of time.^[29] However, the grim and uncaring disposition he puts on is not entirely accurate considering the lengths he goes to save others including even sacrificing his own life. In contrast to his words, Shadow acts in a way that ultimately protects others. Deep down he cares about those around him, only hiding his more caring side to keep himself shielded and distant. Despite his apathetic nature, he does feel sympathy for others, and since reforming himself at the end of the Space Colony ARK incident, he has fought for the greater good, most noticeably to prevent letting other people experience past tragedies, specially the ones that he has been through.^[31] Due to being given a "soul" identical to Maria's, he is afraid of his power and has never used it recklessly or to cause suffering.^[32] Once, he also saw himself as a weapon since he was created as one, thus causing him to believe that he and other weapons would eventually have to be destroyed to achieve world peace.^[33]

Shadow wass often depressed about the loss of Maria, which is why he keeps to himself, but his relationship with her is obvious as he goes to great lengths to protect the planet and keep her dream of peace and prosperity alive. He also maintains a strong bond with his teammates, Rouge and Omega, proving that while his attitude makes him seem like a careless person, he does have compassion, more than he otherwise lets on. Still, Shadow brushes off most kindness or sympathy that is sent his way; during the Neo Metal Sonic incident, when Rouge showed concern for Shadow when he saw a broken android of himself, suspecting Team Dark's Shadow might be an android too, Shadow curtly brushed her concern away. During the Black Arms incident, after Sonic suggested some "friendly competition", Shadow bluntly rejected his offer.^[34] At times, however, Shadow is shown to appreciate genuine care; at the climax of the Space Colony ARK incident, after Amy Rose made him remember his promise to Maria, Shadow openly decided to keep his promise to protect the planet both to Maria and her. Another instance is during the aborted Solaris incident, when Rouge told him that she would always be by his side, he acknowledged her.

Despite the fact that Shadow often fights for the greater good, he is considered an anti-hero for the most part due to his morality and means to his desired end goals. He does whatever is necessary to get what he wants or feels is right, though this enthusiasm causes him to take risks and jump into situations without fully thinking them through.^[35] While not necessarily evil, Shadow's cold-hearted, determined personality has sometimes entailed the dangerous purity of turning himself into an enemy of Sonic.^[29] Alongside Rouge, he has also taken prize money and jewels upon winning in the second EX World Grand Prix, and the two disregarded the opening and closing ceremonies for the event, showing up late without a third teammate and, at the end of the EX World Grand Prix, walking off right away with what turned out to be dummy versions of the prize money and gems.^[36] Regardless, Shadow does have his moments of selflessness and heroism; he nearly sacrificed his life at the end of the Space Colony ARK to save the earth, and helped Silver uncover the truth of the Solaris Project after saving Sonic from him in an aborted timeline.

In spite of Shadow's serious and no-nonsense attitude he is occasionally willing to spend time doing leisurely activities or social events like celebrating Amy's birthday at a murder mystery party on the Mirage Express. He even got Amy a present along with participating in the murder mystery event. Shadow has also competed in a variety of racing and sports competitions, having a strong competitive spirit.

IDW Publishing

Best described as a grim anti-hero, Shadow has a strong sense of purpose and pursues his goals by any means necessary. He possesses a willingness to do whatever it takes to achieve these goals once he has set his sights on them, including using lethal force. This natural vehemence, however, tends to blind him with anger and make him prone to reckless decisions.^[37][38] It can also cause him to hold grudges, to the point where, if the object of his grudge is in sight, he is blinded to everything else; after being bested by Starline at the White Park Grand Chateau, Shadow decided to chase after him while ignoring not only Rouge and Tails being captured, but also an avalanche that would have injured or even killed everyone else. However, Shadow ultimately worked with Sonic to try to stop the avalanche.^[39] He also does not tend to take others into consideration, and sometimes his desire for revenge overwhelms his own sense of safety. Being an anti-social lone wolf, Shadow is generally not in favor of team-ups either; although he may occasionally cooperate with others, it is typically for his own reasons and does not guarantee that he is willing to follow orders.^[37][40] He also often leaves without saying goodbye or thanks.^[41][42]

Shadow is sharp-witted, brooding, arrogant, and always seems to be on edge. He usually acts with a cool and business-like indifference, preferring to stay quiet and only speak when it is necessary to achieving his goals without opening up to anyone while staying focused on his intended target. When push comes to shove, however, Shadow can quickly become enormously aggressive and extensively ruthless. He also does not tend to hold back against anyone, especially against those who get in his way.^[38] Additionally, he is stubborn and prideful to the point of foolhardiness and never runs away from a fight; while he and Sonic were defending Sunset City from a horde of Zombots, Sonic ran off to burn his Metal Virus infection into remission while advising Shadow to do the same should he get infected, only for Shadow, who considered running to be a coward's tactic (and believed himself to be wholly immune to the Metal Virus), to continue fighting, which sealed his fate upon being infected by the virus.^[43]

Powers and abilities

Said to be Sonic's equal in almost every ability,^[44][45][46] Shadow can easily rival the blue hedgehog's various physical skills.^[47][48][49] His abilities and skills in combat are an extremely powerful force to be reckoned with, and he is a match for even the most powerful foes in the series. He similarly never willingly holds back his immense strength, making him a brutal fighter. On his own, Shadow has been able to take down G.U.N.'s various combat mechs, Dr. Eggman's battle robots, Black Doom and his empowered state, and even deities. To best put his skills into perspective, Shadow was capable of defeating even Sonic while he had Diablon for support, as seen in some of the scenarios during the Black Arms incident. He even managed to best Emerl in combat after the latter had acquired all seven Chaos Emeralds as a power source^[50] (although Emerl quickly surpassed him afterward).

Like many of his associates, Shadow is able to move at super speed. Said to possess "ultimate speed,"^[51] Shadow is able to match the speeds reached by Sonic,^{[47][48][49][52]} who is able to reach light speed. Although Shadow's Air Shoes have been credited as the source of his speed,^[53][54] his powerful body allows him to easily rival Sonic's world class speed as well.^[55] Due to such speed, he can scale vertical surfaces and ceilings, out-speed bullets, and attack faster than the eye can see.^[56] Even then, Shadow can take his speed further; by enveloping himself in an orange energy field, he can accelerate beyond the sound barrier on both the ground and in midair for a short time, allowing him to not only smash straight through enemies and obstacles like a living projectile, but also fly immense distances through midair. Using certain techniques, he can even achieve light-speed momentarily. While there are some inconsistencies about how fast Shadow is compared to Sonic, it is usually stated that they are complete equals.^[44][48] Shadow has demonstrated complete mastery of his speed in any environment. Not only can he run at maximum tilt in straight lines, but also in full tight circles and through sharp turns with full control over his momentum. As far as stamina goes, Shadow's is seemingly limitless as he is never winded from running. His speed also allows him to perform several impressive feats, like spinning in circles or rotating his extremities at super speed to create winds strong enough to attack or blow away/suck in opponents, similar to aerokinesis.

An experienced athlete^[57] that shares Sonic's agility,^[48] Shadow has outstanding acrobatic skills and nimbleness, along with incredible reflexes that let him avoid any incoming obstacles with precise and delicate movements within split-seconds, grind expertly on Grind Rails, dodge bullets,^[56] and perform various strafe movements. When launched into the air, he can also pull off several tricks before landing. Using the Light Speed Dash, he is able to dash across a trail of rings at super speed, further strengthening his maneuverability. Shadow also has superhuman strength, enough to match Sonic in power;^[47] with effort,^[58] he can overturn objects many times his weight and size such as trucks, buses and large slabs of concrete with one hand. In addition, Shadow possesses astounding kineticism, precision and has reaction time to match his speed. Shadow also has an incredible resilience to damage as he can take lots of major punishment before he goes down for the count. Notably, he is completely bulletproof^[59] and even withstood atmospheric entry at the end of the Space Colony ARK incident (the latter which only left him with amnesia^[60]). Even when he takes damage though, he is able to recover rather fast.^[61]

Owning to his "ultimate life form" physiology, Shadow possesses an immortal body, meaning he does not age and cannot be killed.^[49][62][63] Being created as a cure, Shadow has a natural resistance to disease and was able to maintain contact with the Zombot virus for an extended period of time before getting infected. Furthermore, as seen during the Black Arms incident, due to being partly Black Arms, Shadow has a connection to the Black Arms' hive-mind, allowing him to sense his kind's presence and be immune to the Black Arms' body-paralyzing nerve gas.^[64]

Shadow also possesses an indomitable will and determination. His absolute refusal to give up in any situation and resolve to see his goals through to the end allows him to keep on persevering even in seemingly impossible situations. His enormous will even let him psychologically resist mind control powers; notably, Shadow was able to regain control of his body from Black Doom despite him being part Black Arms and therefore susceptible to Black Doom's mind control.^[65]

Shadow is naturally able to tap into the arcane powers of nearby Chaos Emeralds, either through physical contact or from a distance,^[66][67] to empower himself and access different chaos powers. According to Shadow himself, he is the only one who knows how to use the Chaos Emeralds' true power.^[68] His trademark ability in the field of chaos powers is Chaos Control, a technique achieved with the Chaos Emeralds that lets him warp time and space for various effects.^[49][69] With this technique giving him control over time and space,^[70] Shadow is able to warp himself and those close by across space instantaneously^[71] over a range further than an island-annihilating explosion or between dimensions, slow down or freeze time entirely,^[71][72] and create areas of distorted space.^[73] Shadow is noticeably adept in using Chaos Control for anything between large-scale usages to small-scaled and delicate chaos powers inside and outside of combat. He can for example use it to either freeze or slow down opponents in time to give himself the speed advantage,^[70] launch surprise attacks by suddenly warping up in front or behind opponents,^[59] distort space around his fists for strikes that can blow opponents away, hide himself away in distorted space, attack foes with spots of distorted space, and even power his own healing abilities and guarding skills. However, Shadow cannot perform Chaos Control if he does not have any Chaos Emeralds to draw power from.^[74]

Beside Chaos Control, Shadow is able to use a number of additional chaos powers. One of these chaos powers include his Chaos Spear technique, in which he throws up to several bolts of Chaos Emerald energy at his opponent that can either paralyze or injure an opponent, depending on its power level. Shadow's most powerful technique, however, is the Chaos Blast, a chaos power where he releases a discharge of Chaos Emerald energy in a massive explosion that eliminates everything within a range of 10-20 yards.^[72]

One of Shadow's main offensive maneuvers is the Spin Attack, a technique where he curls into a concussive ball or cutting disk and directs himself at his targets. With it, Shadow can shred or burrow through just about any substance given enough speed. Highly adept in its usage, Shadow can utilize several variants of the Spin Attack for both grounded and aerial maneuvers, including the Spin Dash, Spin Jump, Double Jump, Homing Attack, Air Dash, Somersault, Dark Spin Dash and the Light Speed Attack, which attacks at the speed of light.

Even without his Spin Attack, Shadow is a powerful hand-to-hand combatant. In line with his nature and potent abilities, Shadow uses a fighting style where he utilizes strong blows, such as powerful chops, flying kicks, sideways kicks, high spin kicks, reverse spin kicks, downward dive kicks, or just barrages of punches and kicks. In addition, many of Shadow's stronger hand-to-hand combat moves revolves heavily around his usage of Chaos Control for space distortion effects to knock opponents away and his Air Shoes' exhaust for burning opponents.

Shadow is an effective combat strategist, able to make split second calculations or adjustments to succeed in battle. His strategies can range from creative uses of his environment, manipulating his opponent's shortcomings, and outmaneuvering enemies.

As shown during the second EX World Grand Prix, Shadow is talented with an his Extreme Gear (Darkness and Black Shot). During the tournament, he was able to put up quite a fight and even defeat some of the world's best Extreme Gear riders. When riding on an Extreme Gear, Shadow is skillful enough to ride on Grind Rails, execute complex tricks while in midair, and perform chaos powers and combat moves with ease.

Shadow also has extraordinary skill when it comes to driving or piloting all forms of vehicles. Not only is he one of the best race car drivers in the universe with the Dark Reaper, but he is also able to perfectly operate weaponized buggies, armed motorcycles, modified gliders, hover crafts with machine guns, bipedal mechs and alien devices. Shadow is as well an expert gunner, capable of using weaponry like the G.U.N. Lifts and G.U.N. turrets with perfect accuracy. Also, whereas Sonic dismisses firearms, Shadow is not above using such weaponry, and has demonstrates proficient skills in a very wide range of weapons during the Black Arms incident, such as close combat weapons, guns, cannons, lock-on weapons and lasers. Shadow may also have some knowledge about machinery, having once been able to fiddle with a deactivated Omega and deduce he was in standby mode.^[75] A miscellaneous ability Shadow has demonstrated as well is telekinesis, which is potent enough to let him move an Extreme Gear around with his mind with ease.^[76]

As powerful as he is, Shadow is able to make himself stronger up tapping into an even greater power within himself. This power is so potent that should he remove his Limiter Rings, he becomes a walking dynamo of raw power. Eggman compares the overall output of the resulting energy from the rings' removal to that of a raging furnace in his log.^[77] When unleashing this power, he releases such tremendous amounts of energy that it forms an impenetrable barrier around himself.^[78] While in this state, Shadow gains increased strength and speed,^[79] enough to overpower hundreds of clones of Mephiles the Dark at once.^[78] However, using his full power tires him out more quickly.^[79]

IDW Publishing

Shadow is an extremely powerful individual and combatant, capable of going toe-to-toe with and sometimes even overwhelming Sonic in fierce combat. He boasts superb agility and reflexes to match his rocket skate-induced speed, allowing him to act accordingly to even Sonic's split-second movements. Like Sonic, he can perform the Spin Attack, a technique where he curls into a concussive ball or cutting disk and directs himself at his targets. With it, Shadow can shred or burrow through just about any substance given enough speed.^[80] Likewise, although he can only keep up with Sonic's level of super speed using his rocket skates, he is still faster than the average person, enough to chase after a speeding truck.^[81]

In addition, Shadow commands a number of Chaos Powers. He can warp space and time with Chaos Control, which allows him to teleport himself and, with the help of a Chaos Emeralds, he can teleport others instantaneously over wide distances at will. Chaos Control can alternatively be used to stop time temporarily. Shadow can also form spears out of green energy called Chaos Spears that he can either throw at opponents or wield as a solid melee weapon.^{[82][83][80][84]} When Shadow attacked Eggperial City, he was able to manipulate the Giant Fake Chaos Emeralds to create a tower of them and to trap Eggman's central tower.^[85] Shadow has impressive hand-to-hand combat skills as well, being able to utilize a mix of brutal punches and kicks, as he was able to beat up even Neo Metal Sonic, albeit with a surprise attack.^[82]

Equipment

Shadow wears a pair of specialized shoes called Air Shoes. These footwear are the primary source of Shadow's speed,^[53] producing small jet streams that let him hover-skate at speeds supposedly even surpassing Sonic's speed.^[86] Alternatively, Shadow can use his Air Shoes' exhausts to attack opponents with fire, empower his jumps, or achieve midair hovering.

Shadow wears four Limiter Rings, one on each of his wrists and ankles, that limit the amount of power he uses during combat and other situations. By removing them, Shadow is able to utilize his full power.

During the Black Arms incident, Shadow made use of a vast selection of weaponry. This included anything from close combat weapons like Survival Knives and Black Swords; guns like Pistols and Sub-Machine Guns; cannons like Bazookas and Grenade Launchers; lock-ons like 8-Shot RPGs and Worm Shooters; to lasers like Laser Rifles and Refractors.

IDW Publishing

Shadow wears a pair of specialized shoes. These footwear are the primary source of Shadow's speed, producing small jet streams that lets him hover-skate at speeds rivaling Sonic's supersonic running speed.^[87][88] Alternatively, Shadow can use his rocket skates to produce fire to attack opponents with or achieve midair hovering.^[89][90]

Transformations

Main article: Shadow the Hedgehog/Miscellaneous#Transformations

Super Shadow

Main article: Super Shadow

By harnessing the power of the seven Chaos Emeralds, Shadow can enter a Super State, transforming him into Super Shadow. In this state, all of Shadow's abilities far surpass his normal ones and his chaos powers are increased to their full limit. He is also able to fly and is nearly invulnerable. Initially, Shadow found it difficult to stay in this state due to inexperience,^[91][92] but he has since mastered it. In addition, this transformation consumes a lot of energy, meaning it cannot be maintained for long.

Hero Shadow/Dark Shadow

Main article: Hero Shadow & Dark Shadow

When his mind is fueled by thoughts of justice, Shadow is able to attain an enhanced state known as Hero Shadow.^[93][94] In this state, Shadow is temporarily invincible and can perform a large-scale use of Chaos Control. However, this state only lasts for a short period of time.

When his mind is fueled by thoughts of evil, Shadow is able to attain an enhanced state known as Dark Shadow.^[93][94] In this state, Shadow is temporarily invincible and can perform a large scale-use of Chaos Blast. However, this state only lasts for a short period of time.

Weaknesses

Shadow takes extreme measures to achieve his goals.^[4]

During the time he had amnesia, Shadow was initially a somewhat easy target for manipulation due to his confusion about who he was and his eagerness to learn anything more about his past. Dr. Eggman could deceive him with lies about his past and Black Doom could subtly manipulate him using visions. However, after learning of his true purpose, Shadow is no longer as easily deceived.

Being part of the Black Arms, Shadow is partially an extension of Black Doom, making him vulnerable to mind control exerted by Black Doom himself. However, Shadow can fight this influence through sheer resolve and willpower.

Despite his immortality, Shadow can be knocked down if taken off-guard. Most noticeably, this will leave him unable to walk and speak immediately after the attack.^[95] Though he can still fight later on, this will risk his life if he pushes himself too far,^[96] and it takes him several days to fully recover.

Shadow when his Limiter Rings are taken off, if he uses all his energy, it can lead in into him over-exerting himself allowing him to be defeated easily from exhausting him.^[77]

IDW Publishing

While Shadow has no known physical weaknesses, his rash and headstrong nature has caused him to fall to dire situations before; even though Sonic had told him he could similarly counter his infection with his speed, Shadow, misinterpreting it as meaning to retreat, refused to break away from fighting the Zombots. Also, despite the fact that his immune system is indeed more powerful than many others and cannot leave him sick from any known diseases, it is not immune to everything as he still got infected by the Metal Virus, albeit in a more delayed response compared to other people.^[97]

Relationships

Main article: Shadow the Hedgehog/Relationships

In other media

Main article: Shadow the Hedgehog/Miscellaneous#In other media

Sonic Prime

Main article: Shadow the Hedgehog/History and appearances (Sonic Prime)

Shadow is a focused, serious and powerful hedgehog known as the Ultimate Life Form. While trying to join in the fight against Eggman, he ends up trapped inside the Void of the Shatterverse, not allowed to visit other worlds. Shadow must try to find a way to help Sonic, but first, he must learn to trust the hedgehog once again.

Paramount

Main article: Shadow the Hedgehog (Paramount)

In the Sonic the Hedgehog film series produced by Paramount Pictures and its spin-offs, Shadow is an anthropomorphic hedgehog associated with a secret experiment called Project Shadow that took place over fifty years prior to Dr. Robotnik's return from the Mushroom Planet.

IDW Publishing

Main article: Shadow the Hedgehog/History and appearances (IDW)

In the Sonic the Hedgehog comic series and its spin-offs published by IDW Publishing, Shadow's past is virtually identical to his game counterpart's, up until after the events of Sonic Forces. After the Eggman War, Shadow focused on finding Dr. Eggman and eliminating him. He eventually found him in Windmill Village, where Sonic defended Eggman, claiming he had lost his memory and was now harmless. After some persuasion, Shadow decided to leave Eggman be. He later took part in the battle for Angel Island and the fight against Neo Metal Sonic. Afterward, during the Metal Virus outbreak, Shadow, along with Team Dark, helped evacuate Sunset City. However, Shadow ended up getting infected with the Metal Virus and turned into a Zombot. Eventually, however, he was restored to normal on Angel Island, where he immediately began pursuing Eggman, but was foiled by Metal Sonic. He later followed a lead on Eggman to White Park Zone, where he got attacked by Dr. Starline. Soon after, Shadow helped Sonic save the White Park Grand Chateau from an avalanche caused by Starline.

Reception

Shadow was ranked as the second favorite Sonic character, beaten only by Sonic the Hedgehog himself, in the official Sonic character poll.^[98] However, many game reviewers, such as GameSpot, have called Shadow a "clone" of Sonic.^[99] Game Revolution described his character as a "quintessential anti-Sonic."^[100] In a 1UP.com feature about "How Sega Can Save Sonic the Hedgehog," Jeremy Parish wrote that of the "tagalongs" that the series must ditch, Shadow's character was the most in need of it.^[101]

Quotes

Main article: Shadow the Hedgehog/Miscellaneous#Quotes

Trivia

Main article: Shadow the Hedgehog/Miscellaneous#Trivia

Gallery

Main article: Shadow the Hedgehog/Gallery

Notes

References

External links

• Shadow the Hedgehog's profile on Sonic Channel
• Shadow the Hedgehog at Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
• Shadow the Hedgehog on Sonic Retro