The Hard Boiled Heavies[2] (HBH; ハードボイルドヘビーズ Hādo Boirudo Hebīzu?) are a group that appears in the Sonic the Hedgehog series. They are a team of elite Eggrobos created by Dr. Eggman.[3] After being struck with the power of the Phantom Ruby, however, the Hard Boiled Heavies began displaying power that even Eggman could not have predicted.[2]
Concept and creation[]
Christian Whitehead came up with the Hard Boiled Heavies after imagining Eggman entering a state of depression after Sonic 3 & Knuckles; instead of going after Sonic, he would merely lounge at home in his pajamas and that the abandoned Eggrobos would go "a little mad." After thinking about this concept, the term came into being.[4]
History[]
Sonic Mania[]
The Hard Boiled Heavies prior to being transformed by the Phantom Ruby, from Sonic Mania.
Before their transformation, the Hard Boiled Heavies were a group of five elite Eggrobos tasked with handling the hardest missions that their creator, Dr. Eggman, would have them perform. Upon reading a promising new energy source on Angel Island, the Eggrobos were sent to investigate and retrieve this energy source, the Phantom Ruby.[5] Upon excavating the mysterious gemstone, they were transformed into the Hard Boiled Heavies when the gemstone caused time-space to warp around them.[1] The resulting process fused the personalities of the Animals inside the Hard Boiled Heavies with these robots' AIs, and their appearances were changed to reflect their Animals' individual personalities.[6] As a side effect however, the Hard Boiled Heavies went insane.[1]
Eggman attempting to command the Hard Boiled Heavies, from Sonic Mania.
The Phantom Ruby transported the Hard Boiled Heavies, along with Sonic the Hedgehog, Miles "Tails" Prower, and Knuckles the Echidna, to Green Hill Zone. After making their escape, the Hard Boiled Heavies planned to keep the Phantom Ruby for themselves. However, they soon met up with Eggman, who took the Phantom Ruby from them, leaving the Hard Boiled Heavies to take their leave.
As the three heroes progressed onward, they would each encounter and defeat the different members of the Hard Boiled Heavies in specific areas: the Heavy Gunner in Studiopolis Zone; the Heavy Shinobi in Press Garden Zone; the Heavy Magician in Mirage Saloon Zone; and the Heavy Rider (Sonic and Tails only) and Heavy King (Knuckles only) in Lava Reef Zone. The Heavy King in particular made an attempt to steal the Master Emerald but was stopped by Knuckles.
When Sonic and his gang got to the Titanic Monarch Zone, four of the Hard Boiled Heavies, now modified into Phantom Heavies, returned during the heroes' climatic fight with the Phantom Egg, but were unable to defeat the heroes. Upon reaching the Egg Reverie Zone, the Heavy King, now modified into the Phantom King, tried to steal the Phantom Ruby and use it for himself, prompting Eggman to battle the robot using his Klepto Mobile in an attempt to take the gemstone back. Sonic, having acquired all seven of the Chaos Emeralds, transformed into Super Sonic and defeated both of the power-hungry villains.
Sonic Mania Plus[]
The Heavy Magician giving the Phantom Ruby to the remains of the Hard Boiled Heavies, from Sonic Mania Plus.
In Sonic Mania Plus, after the first Phantom Ruby incident, the Hard Boiled Heavies, with the exception of the Heavy Magician, had been defeated and left for scrap in Angel Island Zone. In an effort to help her brethren, the Heavy Magician stole the Phantom Ruby following it and Sonic's return to Angel Island after the War to Take Back the Planet. She then brought the ruby to the other Hard Boiled Heavies and the Heavy King used its power to revive them, just as Sonic and his companion caught up to them. The group's resurrection also triggered a warp that sent them all to Green Hill Zone. There, the Hard Boiled Heavies fled with the Phantom Ruby in hand. When they regrouped, they thought they could keep the Phantom Ruby to themselves. However, Eggman showed up again and took the ruby when they would not obey him, leaving the Hard Boiled Heavies to scatter.
Following that, each member of the Hard Boiled Heavies could come across Sonic and his group of friends in the same locations as before. In each encounter however, they were defeated by the heroic group. The Heavy King in particular made an attempt to steal the Master Emerald again, but was stopped by Sonic and his friends. When the heroes came to the Titanic Monarch Zone, four of the Hard Boiled Heavies, now modified into Phantom Heavies again, returned during the heroes' climatic fight with the Phantom Egg, but were unable to defeat the heroes like before. Following the destruction of the Titanic Monarch, it appeared that at the very least the Heavy King was able to escape intact, as he would afterward surprise Sonic and friends with a giant sundae at an ice cream parlor in Mirage Saloon Zone.
In other media[]
Books and comics[]
IDW Publishing[]
The Hard Boiled Heavies in a meeting with Dr. Eggman, from Sonic the Hedgehog 30th Anniversary Special.
Seasons of Chaos[]
While keeping tabs on his minions from his base, Heavy King eventually got all seven Chaos Emeralds. When Sonic the Hedgehog, Dr. Eggman, and their allies later came to his base in Winter Caverns Zone, Heavy King tried to kill them with the power of the Chaos Emeralds. Despite this, Heavy King was ultimately defeated. Afterward, Eggman accepted a conceding Heavy King back into his service, although not without the promise of uploading a software patch that would keep him from rebelling again.[7]
Dr. Eggman's Birthday[]
In an attempt to give Dr. Eggman a gift he would appreciate on his birthday, the Hard Boiled Heavies (consisting of Heavy King, Heavy Shinobi, Heavy Magician, and Heavy Rider) took Eggman's Badniks out to destroy Sonic the Hedgehog. Before the Hard Boiled Heavies could commence their attack, however, Eggman swooped in and made them return to his base. There, the guilty Hard Boiled Heavies were scolded by Eggman, although they got him to soften up a little after voicing their good-hearted intentions for the attack. Afterward, they presented Eggman with his birthday cake.[8]
Fang the Hunter miniseries[]
The Hard Boiled Heavies were tasked by Eggman to test fly the Heavy Wing, but after finding the Warp Topaz, they went by their own agenda. Once Heavy King discovered Fang’s Gang had come to stop them, he ordered the others to chase them down, leaving himself to fight Bark. Heavy Shinobi would fight Fang and would be defeated due to the Marvelous Queen, while Heavy Magician and Heavy Gunner were blown up by Bean the Dynamite. Right before Heavy King lands the finishing blow on Bark, Fang and Bean stop him while Sonic and Tails crash the ship into the water, leaving the Hard-Boiled Heavies stranded.[9][10]
Trivia[]
- The name "Hard-Boiled Heavies" is derivative of a hard-boiled egg, which is a reference to Eggman.
- The Heavy Gunner is the only member of the Hard Boiled Heavies that serves as an Act 1 boss; all other members appear as Act 2 bosses.
- The Heavy Gunner is also the only member of the Hard Boiled Heavies that is never hit in the boss fight; instead, the player destroys his accompanying Egg-Robos and helicopter.
- The Heavy King is the only member of the Hard Boiled Heavies who does not use "Hi-Spec Robo Go!" as his boss theme like the others, instead sharing "Havoc Prognosis" with the Weather Globe in Studiopolis Zone and Gachapandora in Metallic Madness Zone.
Gallery[]
Development images[]
Promotional[]
Screenshots[]
Miscellaneous[]
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Sonic Mania English instruction booklet, "Characters".
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Sonic Mania official website (Japanese). Characters. Sega. Retrieved on 31 May 2017.
- ↑ Sonic SXSW Panel 2017! (Sonic Forces & Sonic Mania!). YouTube. Tails' Channel (16 March 2017). Retrieved on 17 March 2017.
- ↑ Servebot42 on Twitter. Twitter (22 July 2017). Retrieved on 23 July 2017.
- ↑ Sonic Mania English instruction manual, "Prologue"
- ↑ Christian Whitehead confirms Hard Boiled Heavies backstory Sonic Lore. YouTube (26 February 2022). Retrieved on 3 March 2022.
- ↑ Sonic the Hedgehog 30th Anniversary Special, "Seasons of Chaos"
- ↑ Sonic the Hedgehog 30th Anniversary Special, "Dr. Eggman's Birthday"
- ↑ Sonic the Hedgehog: Fang the Hunter Issue 3
- ↑ Sonic the Hedgehog: Fang the Hunter Issue 4
