Rejoice! Sonic with teeth lives on

It’s a Christmas miracle! Ugly Sonic is back! Well, kinda.

In anticipation of Sonic the Hedgehog 3, Paramount Pictures ran a very speedy (ba dum tss) 12 Hours of Sonic Giveaway starting the night of Dec. 11. And one of the prizes was an ugly sweater featuring none other than Ugly Sonic (with teeth). Unfortunately, the giveaway is now over, but the fact that Paramount acknowledged and even made an official piece of merch with Ugly Sonic is pretty wild.

The first trailer for Sonic the Hedgehog debuted in 2019 to much scorn. The iconic blue hedgehog’s initial design just looked off. The original movie Sonic looked nothing like his video game counterpart. His eyes were small and beady and, most disturbingly, he had a row of pearly white teeth. People immediately tore apart the design, to the point where Paramount pulled the trailer from the internet. Director Jeff Fowler announced that the movie was going back into production and that Sonic’s design would be tweaked.

And thank goodness for that. The final movie version of Sonic looks like his game designs — just elevated for the screen with some extra fluffy texture. He’s adorable now! A far cry from his terrifying uncanny valley origins.

Still, the specter of Ugly Sonic lingers, even if Paramount hasn’t really acknowledged its big fumble in five years. 2022’s Chip ’n Dale: Rescue Rangers featured Ugly Sonic in a hilarious cameo. Now that the Sonic movies are certified bangers, though, Paramount can look back and laugh at what could’ve been a massive mistake.

Even though the giveaway is over, the Sonic Christmas celebration doesn’t stop. Paramount released an adorable Sonic Christmas short, in the style of the classic Rankin/Bass stop motion cartoons, where Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles team up to help Santa.

Sonic the Hedgehog 3 races into theaters on Dec. 20.