Hello folks of Sonic Retro! I have finished writing up my third article on Sonic now. This time it is a deep dive on the animations of Sonic CD. https://zedm256.wordpress.com/2023/11/12/sonic-cd-anim/ Special thanks to @Vertekins who provided translations when I needed them Here are just some of the things you will learn from this article: -Who Hisashi Eguchi is and what other series he was involved with -Take a look at the reference sheets Eguchi drew. -See many different animation cels along with the places and people they ended up with. -A rundown of the many tweets Eguchi has made revealing info on the production. He mentions that it took four months to make and with low pay as well. -Find out how Toei weren’t the ones who necessarily did the animations but rather the lesser known Studio Junio. -A hidden signature within the Sega CD version of the opening revealed to belong to one of the developers. The Sega CD version of the animations were redrawn pixel by pixel. -Learn how some people who did their own AI upscales of the opening ended up working on the official upscales that would appear in Sonic Origins. -The legacy of the animations and how Tyson Hesse carried on the design. If you enjoyed this article then check out my previous two other articles if you would like to read them as well https://forums.sonicretro.org/index.php?threads/the-modern-sonic-evolution-satoshi-okano-his-influence-to-the-series.41046/ https://forums.sonicretro.org/index.php?threads/the-fervor-of-original-characters-fat-the-kookaburra-a-collaborative-oc-from-the-mania-team.41884/
This article is so incredibly detailed that I'm not sure when I'll finish going through it. Thanks for gathering all of this up into one place - the Sonic CD animations and the OVA remain my all-time favorite pieces of Sonic animation ever!
This is all fantastic information! But I was devastated to learn how little money he made off of this. Also, the man's a legend!
Not sure if I missed it, but from this tweet it seems that Euguchi came up with the peel out and it was liked by the devs and put in the game.
Was that your first time ever seeing that smoking Sonic artwork? It certainly is one of the coolest pieces of Sonic art ever made and it was just done as a joke for fun. Thanks for these responses! I am glad to know that people are reading through my articles. I always get so eager to share my research with others especially since I think most of what I share is rather obscure information that not that many people would know about. It's great to get more obscure info widespread! Eguchi certainly is a legend. I was surprised to learn what series he has participated in such as Naruto, Evangelion, and Cowboy Bebop when I was doing my research. I was also devastated when I learned that he got paid so little for the animations that became iconic for the Sonic series. It’s unfortunate but the Japanese animation industry still underpays and overworks their animators. Here are just some articles I found which highlight these problems: 1. https://web.archive.org/web/2014050...rwork-in-suicide-of-a-1-pictures-staff-member 2. https://web.archive.org/web/2012051...ractor-studio-easter-sued-for-unpaid-overtime 3. https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/24/business/japan-anime.html https://archive.li/Fl3Gh I remember seeing a clip of the Gintama anime where they joked about this issue given that it’s an anime that is rather comedic: (I’ve never actually seen a full episode of Gintama. I have only ever seen clips of it) I also watched a video where they talk about how animators are underpaid and they mention that apparently before animators are hired they are asked if they have other means of savings in order to support themselves which just reminds me of Eguchi’s post saying that he had to use his savings in order to pay his rent at the time. The low wage problem in the anime industry. by "Animator Dormitory Channel" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3TLLZfeF8WU https://twitter.com/eguchi_1203/status/1266365698923614215 https://archive.ph/oaH3S In the video they also mention that the majority of animators quit after 3 years which also reminds me of Eguchi mentioning that Ichiro Furuichi quit being an animator in the post where he credits Furuichi for the Stardust Speedway segment. https://web.archive.org/web/20180905222148/https:/twitter.com/eguchi_1203/status/1036998214648356865 (I'm not so sure how true that statement is but given the working conditions of animators I can really believe that amount quit after just 3 years) Eguchi has actually made another post bringing up about being underpaid for the animations. That post in particular has actually gained a lot of attention. More people are going to learn about how he didn’t get paid well. https://twitter.com/eguchi_1203/status/1725016189116830107 https://archive.ph/1rSkB Yeah I’ve seen that too. I had always wondered if the figure eight peel out came from the game and then Eguchi drew it or if it was an idea from Eguchi so I’m glad to have confirmation that he was the one who came up with it. I’ve added that information into the article. I will keep this article updated, along with my other articles, whenever any other new info could come out. https://twitter.com/eguchi_1203/status/1725063809847402814 https://archive.ph/zjqW7 I do recall Eguchi previously commented under a post showing the “Trio of Trouble” animation that the figure eight peel out was his idea. https://twitter.com/catsuka/status/1704781833689305207 https://archive.ph/1VVI3 https://twitter.com/eguchi_1203/status/1704990311670571386 https://archive.ph/PRcsI
