Some thoughts on how “Chip n’ Dale: Rescue Rangers” were able to use Sonic for the movie without breaking some copyright law:
1)Protected by fair use since it’s a parody. It’s still Sonic, but it’s a heavily exaggerated version of the character for comedic effect. That’s how we have movies like “Scary Movie” or how movies like “Wayne’s World’ can include characters from other movies (the T-1000 cameo scene).
2)Akiva Schaffer mentioned that he was able to use non-Disney characters because Disney was able to get approval from the original companies. The caveat was that the movie won’t make fun of the non-Disney characters. Now, yes, the joke is that Ugly Sonic looks terrible. But based on his scenes, Ugly Sonic is more mocking the reaction to him rather than just him being ugly.
What I mean is that Ugly Sonic is aware that he doesn’t look great, but he’s generally upbeat about his life and actually ends up helping Chip and Dale save the day. As some people have put it, the movie “redeemed” Ugly Sonic by making him this chill, lovable guy who feels unfairly ostracized by society. So it’s not punching down on Ugly Sonic, but hitting back at the public that rejected the original design.
Based on that, I can see Paramount and SEGA approving the use of Ugly Sonic.
I wasn’t planning on watching “Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers”, but I’m starting to consider watching based on the reviews I’ve read. I honestly wasn’t expecting this movie to actually be meta-commentary of the animation industry. Just the fact that Chip is drawn in 2D animation and Dale is in 3D CGI animation because he had to get “CGI plastic surgery” to improve his looks is so goddamn clever that I’m surprised no one’s made this joke before.
Also…Ugly Sonic.
I will say though that, even though they didn’t have to, it would’ve been funny if they included some jab at anime. Like Chip and Dale encounter a bunch of generic anime characters and Dale says, “Why do all of you have the same face?” And one of the anime characters says, “Look, the nineties were a LONG time ago.”
The way people react to Ugly Sonic and the way they talk about him in their hate speech.
Why do you people of the 21st century with a high level of tolerance feel so terrible about this version of the blue hedgehog? Shouldn’t you be kind and loyal to beings who are not like others? Who are not socially approved just because they are not beautiful by magazines standards?
Okay okay, we are talking about fictional character, but also about representation? Maybe??
I don’t care what you think about Disney.
But I do care how Disney not only made a cameo of Ugly Sonic, but also made a whole new version of this hedgehog - a character who is self-aware, who is not afraid of self irony (which, by the way, requires a lot of confidence) He even has endless positivity, just like the original one, but with small difference: he is realistic about his life, because he has no special power.
He is just Ugly Sonic.
He do no help or harm.
A neutral guy who simply lives his life.
And if you judge Ugly Sonic for his looks and want “to burn it”… Well then, it says a lot about you, not about him.
My opinion about Ugly Sonic: he is my number one blue hedgehog in Sonic-Verse.
The original design for Sonic the Heddgehog for the 2020 Sonic the Hedgehog movie returned in the Disney+ movie “Chip and Dale: The Rescue Rangers”, sporting a beer belly, red eyes and an even more pronounced snot, the character is named “Ugly Sonic”, with the lore being that Hollywood abandoned him after they hired another better looking actor to replace him.
Alright, I’m callin’ it: Ken Penders is gonna bitch about the Chip n’ Dale movie because Ugly Sonic is wearing a jacket and sunglasses, saying they’re ripping off Anti-Sonic/Scourge.
