Previously on Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog, Robotnik's attempt to secure the Chaos Emerald of invincibility in a twisted version of Camelot went awry and he and his robots were sent back to Ancient Rome, but before they could give some poor lion serious indigestion, they make for the time machine and take off. Botsy isn't done yet, as he sets his sights on the third emerald which possesses immortality. You may think this is just going to be a rinse and repeat of the last two time travel episodes, but this time, it's going to hit Sonic a little close to home. Dr. Robotnik is actually going to put time travel and family lineage to good, er, I mean bad use, which Sonic will discover when once again, he's at the beach, and once again, he's trying to woo a hot babe, and once again, he gets cockblocked by Professor Caninestein, who informs the hedgehog that his family tree is slowly disappearing, one member at a time, and unless he does something about it, he'll be next. The professor provides him with a time-warp boogie board that he can use to zip around the world and set the clock back, so off he and Tails go for a third trip through time. Destination: Ancient Egypt... I mean, Ancient Mobigypt. Again, this is an alternate reality version of Earth, so just go with it. Meanwhile, the doc, Scratch, and Grounder have already arrived, and put Phase 1 of their plan into action. Robotnik plans to disrupt the meeting of a local bricklayer, Masonic the Hedgehog, and his future wife, Penelope, thus unraveling their entire family tree up to Sonic, so he will never have been born. So, we're taking a page from Back to the Future here. Interesting. However, their attempt to kidnap Masonic is foiled when his great x20 grandson Sonic shows up. After scrapping Grounder and Scratch and giving Robotnik a wild carpet ride, Sonic and Tails head to the nearest chili dog stand where Penelope works. Okay, let's set the record straight here as I actually did look this up: chili dogs were invented in 1918, which means they didn't have them in Medieval times and they didn't have them in Ancient Egypt, so if they wanted them, they would have to wait a very long time. Speaking of waiting, Penelope is very slow at preparing those sumptuous dogs. Well, do you want it done quick or do you want it done right? Masonic is just as impatient as his descendant and walks away, and then, uh oh, Sonic vanishes! Ha, see what being impatient will cost you? Looks like Robotnik will win. Sonic has been erased and he will get the immortality emerald. All is lost. But wait, Tails still has that boogie board. He could just go back in time a few minutes and undo the hedgehogs' screw-up. No, instead, he uses the board to fly after Masonic and brings him back to the chili dog stand for another go at Penelope, though after experiencing how rude this guy is, she probably wouldn't give him the time of day. I know I wouldn't. But they finally meet, then Sonic magically reappears. Crisis averted.
Robotnik tries to force the Pharaoh to tell him where the Chaos Emerald of immortality is buried, but he refuses. Just like King Arfer's palace, this place must be very light on guards if Robotnik can just waltz in and manhandle royalty. When threats and tickle torture produce no results, Robotnik simply steals his headpiece and names himself Pharaoh. Much like King Arfer. Why are these ancient rulers such pushovers? I guess it's so the writers don't have to develop their characters. So, what is the new king's brilliant plan? Force his subjects to build pyramids until someone coughs up the location of the emerald. You mean, making them do what they're already doing? Plus, what makes him think any of the Pharaoh's subjects would know where the emerald was? He really didn't think this whole plan out, did he? However, good fortune shines when Sonic and Tails arrive to try and thwart him, only Robotnik has them arrested and commissioned to build pyramids. Sonic can't do anything, because his feet are shackled together. Oh no, what to do now? While he, Tails, and Masonic slave away, Robotnik and his robots study hieroglyphics which may tell the emerald's whereabouts, and all the while, Penelope is spying on them for no reason. When they discover that which they seek is buried in the tomb of Botsy's ancestor, Robotnikhotep I, Penelope relays this information to our heroes. But how will they get out of their current fix? Simple, Sonic etches a picture of himself in bondage on a stone, and then, like a deus ex machina in the wind, a hacksaw appears. Oh jeez, this is the same cheat they used in Blackbot the Pirate. Does Sonic think Professor Caninestein is monitoring his every movement in the past? How does he know he'll find that stone? This is ridiculous. Come on, Jeffrey Scott, you have a brain; use it. Anyway, Sonic frees himself, Tails, and Masonic, then all four of them hop in a chariot and head off, chasing after Robotnik and Scratch, who were using Grounder to pull their own chariot. Botsy attempts to cheat by slashing the good guys' wheels, but Sonic does one better and slices his ride clean in half, making them crash into the pyramid. This place was laden with boobytraps, but since Masonic's grandfather built it, he knew how to avoid them, unlike Robotnik, who let Scratch and Grounder take the beatings from rising floor spikes and falling stone weights. Oh, and get a load of the burial chamber: you have to collect enough rings before you reach the bottom or the door won't open and you'll hit a floor of spikes and die. Ah, a nice reference to Sonic 2 where in a special zone, you have to collect enough rings in order to win the emerald. With Scratch and Grounder literally taking the fall and collecting enough rings, they access the chamber, where Robotnik finds his mummified ancestor, just as Sonic and company show up, and here is where we learn that the rivalry between Sonic and Robotnik is actually a long running family feud, as even Robotnikhotep was battling a Sonic ancestor, as he's somehow still alive too. So Robotnik steals the immortal emerald, and Masonic's grandfather gives Sonic a blue shield power-up and they engage in battle, with Sonic of course emerging the victor, taking back the emerald. He then sends Robotnik, Scratch and Grounder back to... a World War I dogfight, I guess, and they get shot down by the Kaiser. Why not just bring everyone back to the present and destroy the time machine? Because we still have one more part to this story, to answer my own question. Masonic and Penelope get married, and before Sonic and Tails leave, they remove Robotnik's face from the Sphinx (like in the episode High Stakes Sonic), only this time, he etches in Tails' head too. Our Sonic Says is about skateboard safety, which are very good lessons that I have nothing to say about.
Robotnik's Pyramid Scheme is actually better than the last two time travel episodes, in my opinion. The animation isn't quite so sloppy, the story and gags are decent, and there were a few clever ideas and genuine moments of suspense. Though it had me asking a lot of questions, like if Robotnikhotep was immortal, why was he buried in a tomb? Why was Sonic's ancestor also alive? Was that part of the curse Masonic talked about? A lot of things don't make sense, but this is a fun episode so you can let a few of those slide. So after this one, they all go back to pre-historic times where Botsy will try for the Emerald of Life. By my count, that's one emerald he has, and two he lost. If he still has the invisibility emerald, why doesn't he use it? I'm pretty sure he does have it, and it could come in handy. Maybe we'll find out in the next episode. In closing, I do recommend Robotnik's Pyramid Scheme, as it is the best time travel episode so far. Just try not to ask too many logical questions and take what comes, and you'll do fine.
Robotnik tries to force the Pharaoh to tell him where the Chaos Emerald of immortality is buried, but he refuses. Just like King Arfer's palace, this place must be very light on guards if Robotnik can just waltz in and manhandle royalty. When threats and tickle torture produce no results, Robotnik simply steals his headpiece and names himself Pharaoh. Much like King Arfer. Why are these ancient rulers such pushovers? I guess it's so the writers don't have to develop their characters. So, what is the new king's brilliant plan? Force his subjects to build pyramids until someone coughs up the location of the emerald. You mean, making them do what they're already doing? Plus, what makes him think any of the Pharaoh's subjects would know where the emerald was? He really didn't think this whole plan out, did he? However, good fortune shines when Sonic and Tails arrive to try and thwart him, only Robotnik has them arrested and commissioned to build pyramids. Sonic can't do anything, because his feet are shackled together. Oh no, what to do now? While he, Tails, and Masonic slave away, Robotnik and his robots study hieroglyphics which may tell the emerald's whereabouts, and all the while, Penelope is spying on them for no reason. When they discover that which they seek is buried in the tomb of Botsy's ancestor, Robotnikhotep I, Penelope relays this information to our heroes. But how will they get out of their current fix? Simple, Sonic etches a picture of himself in bondage on a stone, and then, like a deus ex machina in the wind, a hacksaw appears. Oh jeez, this is the same cheat they used in Blackbot the Pirate. Does Sonic think Professor Caninestein is monitoring his every movement in the past? How does he know he'll find that stone? This is ridiculous. Come on, Jeffrey Scott, you have a brain; use it. Anyway, Sonic frees himself, Tails, and Masonic, then all four of them hop in a chariot and head off, chasing after Robotnik and Scratch, who were using Grounder to pull their own chariot. Botsy attempts to cheat by slashing the good guys' wheels, but Sonic does one better and slices his ride clean in half, making them crash into the pyramid. This place was laden with boobytraps, but since Masonic's grandfather built it, he knew how to avoid them, unlike Robotnik, who let Scratch and Grounder take the beatings from rising floor spikes and falling stone weights. Oh, and get a load of the burial chamber: you have to collect enough rings before you reach the bottom or the door won't open and you'll hit a floor of spikes and die. Ah, a nice reference to Sonic 2 where in a special zone, you have to collect enough rings in order to win the emerald. With Scratch and Grounder literally taking the fall and collecting enough rings, they access the chamber, where Robotnik finds his mummified ancestor, just as Sonic and company show up, and here is where we learn that the rivalry between Sonic and Robotnik is actually a long running family feud, as even Robotnikhotep was battling a Sonic ancestor, as he's somehow still alive too. So Robotnik steals the immortal emerald, and Masonic's grandfather gives Sonic a blue shield power-up and they engage in battle, with Sonic of course emerging the victor, taking back the emerald. He then sends Robotnik, Scratch and Grounder back to... a World War I dogfight, I guess, and they get shot down by the Kaiser. Why not just bring everyone back to the present and destroy the time machine? Because we still have one more part to this story, to answer my own question. Masonic and Penelope get married, and before Sonic and Tails leave, they remove Robotnik's face from the Sphinx (like in the episode High Stakes Sonic), only this time, he etches in Tails' head too. Our Sonic Says is about skateboard safety, which are very good lessons that I have nothing to say about.
Robotnik's Pyramid Scheme is actually better than the last two time travel episodes, in my opinion. The animation isn't quite so sloppy, the story and gags are decent, and there were a few clever ideas and genuine moments of suspense. Though it had me asking a lot of questions, like if Robotnikhotep was immortal, why was he buried in a tomb? Why was Sonic's ancestor also alive? Was that part of the curse Masonic talked about? A lot of things don't make sense, but this is a fun episode so you can let a few of those slide. So after this one, they all go back to pre-historic times where Botsy will try for the Emerald of Life. By my count, that's one emerald he has, and two he lost. If he still has the invisibility emerald, why doesn't he use it? I'm pretty sure he does have it, and it could come in handy. Maybe we'll find out in the next episode. In closing, I do recommend Robotnik's Pyramid Scheme, as it is the best time travel episode so far. Just try not to ask too many logical questions and take what comes, and you'll do fine.