Shadow the Hedgehog

"I am the ultimate life form, Shadow the Hedgehog. I will crush anyone who stands in my way!"

- Shadow the Hedgehog

Shadow the Hedgehog is a fictional character from the Sonic the Hedgehog series. He is an anthropomorphic black and red hedgehog or Black Arm hybrid and the arch-rival of Sonic the Hedgehog and possesses skills and abilities which rival him. Shadow was created as the "Ultimate Life Form" by Gerald Robotnik, using the DNA of Black Doom, and is the final result of Project Shadow. His purpose was to provide ways of developing cures for deadly illnesses that had no cures, namely for Gerald's 12-year old granddaughter, Dr. Eggman and Eggman Nega's 12-year old cousin, Maria Robotnik, but he was captured and put into stasis by the military when he was deemed a threat to humanity.

He was released by Dr. Eggman to help him conquer the world. Initially, Shadow sought to destroy Earth to avenge Maria, who had been killed by the military, but was persuaded by Amy Rose to help save it from Gerald's doomsday device. In the process, Shadow lost his memories and he sought to uncover his past, which brought him into contact with the Black Arms. Ultimately, Shadow thwarted Black Doom and saved the world. From there, Shadow continued his mission to protect humanity by becoming a special agent of G.U.N. units.

Shadow is dark, smug, arrogant, sharp-witted, always on edge and has a strong sense of purpose, willing to accomplish his goals by any means necessary. Essentially a dark version of Sonic, Shadow can match him in both speed and skill, and possesses the ability to warp time and space by using Chaos Control with a Chaos Emerald. While preferring to work alone, he will still help Sonic and friends when necessary.

According to an official poll, Shadow is the second most popular character in the entire series, as a whole thus far behind only Sonic himself.

Physical Appearance
Shadow is an over 50-year old hedgehog who doesn't age. According to official sources, he is 3'3" (100 cm) in height and rather slender. He is black with red outlines on his quills and limbs, has red eyes, and wears white, black, red, and yellow hover shoes, white gloves with black and red-tongued cuffs and Inhibitor Rings.

Portrait

 * Name: Shadow the Hedgehog
 * Nicknames/Aliases: Shadow, Ultimate Life Form, Agent Shadow, Faker (by Sonic)
 * Real Name: N/A
 * Gender: Male
 * Age: 50+ (physically ageless)
 * Alignment: Neutral, good (sometimes)
 * Birthday: Over 50 years ago
 * Family: Black Doom (biological father), All Black Arms, Gerald Robotnik (creator)
 * Friends: Rouge the Bat, E-123 Omega, Maria Robotnik.
 * Allies: Dr. Eggman (sometimes), Sonic the Hedgehog (sometimes) , Miles "Tails" Prower, Knuckles the Echidna, Amy Rose, Cream the Rabbit, Team Chaotix, Blaze the Cat, Silver the Hedgehog, G.U.N. Soldiers
 * Rivals: Sonic the Hedgehog (arch-rival), Knuckles the Echidna (sometimes) , Silver the Hedgehog (sometimes)
 * Enemies: Black Doom (arch-enemy), Dr. Eggman (sometimes) , Biolizard/Final Hazard, Mephiles the Dark, Infinite

Official media

 * David Humphrey (2001-2004)
 * Jason Griffith (2005-2010)
 * Kirk Thornton (2010-present)

Fanon projects

 * Dante Basco (Sonic: Rebirth series)
 * Jake Gyllenhaal (film series, Coolot and DonaldoC1997's version)
 * Christopher Daniel Barnes (Justice League: Rings of the Force)
 * Ben Affleck (James Cameron's Sonic, voice and motion capture)
 * Adam Baldwin (Sonic Mania: The Animated Series and Sonic and the Tomb Raider)
 * Jason Marsden (Sonic the Hedgehog: The Next Generation)

Movies
Shadow also appears in James Cameron's Sonic Cinematic Universe, played by Ben Affleck through voice and motion capture. His role in the franchise is the same as in his current video game appearances, on which he is an officer and agent-later-commander of G.U.N. (Guardian Units of Nations) and a rival-turned-ally to Sonic. His origin story (revealed in Shadow and Rouge) is the same as in Sonic Adventure 2 and the 2005 video game.

TV Shows

 * Shadow appears as one of the protagonists in Justice League: Rings of the Force, voiced by Christopher Daniel Barnes.
 * Shadow appears in Sonic Mania: The Animated Series, voiced by Adam Baldwin.
 * Shadow appears as a supporting character in Sonic and the Tomb Raider, voiced by Adam Baldwin.
 * Shadow appears in the Disney+ animated crossover miniseries Marvel's All-Star Multiverse, voiced by Adam Baldwin. He first makes a silent appearance in "The Sky's the Limit", on which he and his fellow G.U.N. soldiers watch Princess Athena's public presentation of the Skycruiser Commandos. He makes his official appearance in "Ultimates", where he is assigned by the G.U.N. Commander and S.H.I.E.L.D. Director Nick Fury to organize and lead a task force team to hunt down and apprehend the Power Broker (revealed in the end as Taneleer Tivan the Collector), and stop the assassins and bounty hunters hired by the crime-lord against the head members of Babylon-6.

Comics

 * Shadow also appears in Comic Con Incorporated as one of the managers in the titular fictional hotel. He works as the night shift security guard.
 * Shadow appears in Sonic Presents... Chao in Space: Behind the Scenes, a comic book tie-in/prequel to Sonic Presents... Chao in Space. Serving as a member of Sonic's filming crew for the titular fictional movie, he and Blaze the Cat were the screenwritters. He is also the one who suggests the core concept of the Galactic Chao Alliance (which he describes as a Chao-owned variant of G.U.N. forces) and the Dark Emerald Empire (which he describes as a family-friendly amalgam of the Eggman Empire and the "dark and gritty" Black Arms) in the movie. Later, during the movie's premiere release night, Shadow is shown in the Red Carpet wearing a militaristic tuxedo with a G.U.N. medal of honor in it.

Video games

 * Shadow is also a DLC playable character in Injustice 2.

Video Games
He appears as one of the Playable DLC Guests for Tekken 7, with Kirk Thornton voicing him again (similar to his fellow Sonic the Hedgehog Multiverse Guests such as Sally and Blaze, all of his dialogues would be spoken in English, even though Blaze, Sally and Shadow came from different places).

Similarly, he would be a playable Guest for the sequel to PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale in place of Sonic, much like how Akuma is playable in Tekken 7.

Joint Ideas

 * Shadow appears in the Sonic: Rebirth series, being voiced by Dante Basco.
 * Shadow is a DLC playable character in DC vs. Sega voiced again by Kirk Thornton. His melee attacks consist of punches, kicks and his Samurai Sword from the 2005 video game. His special moves include the use of his Shadow Rifle (also from the 2005 video game) and the Chaos Attack (from the 2006 Sonic the Hedgehog game). In his Arcade Ending, Shadow wonders if his victory against Blackseid would be enough for him to please his deceased friend Maria. He finds comfort over his grief with Raven, as they recognize each other as kindred souls.
 * Shadow appears in the game's comic book sequel DC vs. Sega: Aftermath.
 * Shadow also appears in Sonic and the Power Rangers.

Trivia

 * He is 3 feet and 3 inches.
 * He is the third rival character while the first, being Sonic, the second, being Knuckles, and the fourth, being Silver.
 * His serial number is SRN-000003.
 * He is the son or creation of Gerald Robotnik.
 * He is the biological son of Black Doom.