Sonic the Hedgehog (2020): Sonic (ESTP)

Sooo, we know this is very unexpected, but we watched Sonic the Hedgehog in the theaters this past weekend (which you can checkout on Amazon if you click that link), and had it fresh enough in our minds to write the type analysis articles for Sonic and Dr. Robotnik that evening. Obviously, you may run across spoilers so be sure to check out the movie first if that bothers you. We hope you enjoy!

Se:

“So why am I, an incredibly handsome boy in blue, being chased by a creep in a Civil War moustache? Well, let’s say I’ve been running all my life. Am I going too fast? It’s what I do. Let’s go back!”

“The World’s Largest Rubber Band Ball? We gotta see it! …Eh, you were right. It was lame. Gift shop was cool, though.”

Sonic’s Se nature is very prevalent all throughout the film. He can barely sit still or keep himself from indulging in any kind of sensory experience. Naturally, this leads to him getting into all sorts of trouble. As a young child, he can’t keep himself from going and exploring even though he is supposed to be keeping himself hidden. This, of course, leads those hunting him straight to where he is staying and he is forced to flee. Even when hiding on Earth, he can’t keep himself away from the different interesting things that are going on. So, while he stays out of sight, he still is lurking closely around the different people and happenings going on in the town of Green Hills.

Specific examples of his Se in action would be when he watches the baseball game and later returns to try out baseball for himself. Later, when on the run, he witnesses a biker bar across the street from the gas station, and literally has to try to talk himself out of going in. You can see a clear physical struggle, one which he inevitably loses, resulting in him ending up right in the middle of the action, much to Tom’s dismay. Later, we see Sonic’s bucket list, and it is filled to the brim with Se geared sensory experiences. One that specifically stood out to us was his desire to start a bar fight. Again, later on once they reach a motel room for the night, Sonic proclaims he is going to stay up all night because it’s his last night on earth and wants to experience as much as he can. Being confined to the room, he goes around at super speed doing any sensory experience he can think of in the space, creating a giant chaotic mess in the process.

Ti:

“Because you talk to donuts and then eat them if they get out of line.” – response to Tom in regards to Donut Lord nickname

“Totally defenseless? Probably gonna get blown up?” – flippant response to Tom and Maddie’s predicament

Sonic demonstrated a general lack of internal values or self-image, and displayed the relative logic of Ti. While Sonic is highly self-confident, he never really makes image-driven statements. He never really puffs himself up in front of others or makes claims to power. You don’t see him declaring certain things to be right or certain things to be wrong. There is a general lack of clear-cut standards. Although, note that most people would associate that with crossing lines or being amoral, which clearly Sonic is not. He just doesn’t make value defining statements, like an Fi would. A good example of this would be his “last words” when prompted by Eggman. He didn’t come up with any kind of accusatory or “I’ll get you back for this” statements. He simply said “guac” with an added statement about how he liked the way the word sounded.

His Ti logic can be shown in the way he rationalizes his actions or redefines terms. Tom suggests that Sonic is a stalker, to which Sonic rebuts with a somewhat drawn out explanation about how they were merely participating in a group activity without anyone being aware of his presence. He also renames or nicknames Tom to “Donut Lord”, and explains to Tom how he made that association. (This could actually be a Ti-Ni blend). You also see him rebuking himself for saying things that don’t make sense after he’s already suggested them, like wanting to pack the bean bag in his backpack.

Emotionally, Sonic is shown to be somewhat in turmoil due to loneliness, which is something no type is immune to, whether thinker or feeler. We have to keep that in mind while watching the movie. However, it’s worth noting that he keeps his loneliness hidden, and feels immediately awkward when Tom shoots down his suggestion of being “besties”.

Fe:

“This is my power, and I’m not running away any more! I’m using it to protect my friends!”

Sonic uses “we” terminology very heavily. During their adventures, him and Tom survive a lot of incidents. Whenever Tom compliments him for an achievement, Sonic is quick to say something along the lines of “No, we did it!” He is also shown at the beginning of the movie, after having clearly broken a bunch of rules, trying to pacify the owl (or excuse his actions) by presenting a gift. Note that he never really tried to validate his actions, but rather attempted to dismiss them from the owl’s mind. Throughout the movie, Sonic is looking for a degree of external validation, but mostly due to his loneliness. He tries to proclaim himself to be Tom’s best friend. When shot down, he quickly amends it to best animal friend. After the second failed attempt at validation, he makes a quick quip about things getting embarrassing and quickly changes the subject to Tom’s bucket list.

Lastly, there is only really one time when Sonic makes a clear cut value statement. It happens at the end after having almost died. Sonic doesn’t find the will to get back up until after he hears Tom defending him and finally proclaiming that Sonic is his friend. At this point, Eggman begins threatening his friends, which angers Sonic. In that moment, he faces Eggman head on and declares that he must protect his friends. For Sonic, this is very clearly coming from a place of Fe.

Ni:

“Uhhh… meow?”

Sonic’s Ni is the very mirror opposite of his dominant Se. For every time, you see his in-the-moment nature, you also see his lack of foresight as well. One such instance of this is when he shoves Tom and his wife off the top of a skyscraper to save them from Eggman’s robots. While, yes, this did remove them from the immediate danger of bullets and missiles, it also put them in a perilous position, falling to their death. All the while, Sonic is fumbling for a ring to open a portal so they can fall into safety rather than splatter on the ground.

Another instance of his low Ni would be his desire to keep stopping for different experiences as they are running away from Eggman. He convinces Tom to let him stay at the biker bar and complete some of his bucket list items, rather than getting to his lost bag of rings so he can escape to safety.