Small Screen Scream! is a complete Tails story which appeared in Issue 268 of Sonic the Comic Online.

Staff

• Story: L. T. Fletcher
• Art: TheFatPanda and Tom Campbell
• Letters: Michael Corker

Story

Tails is in attendance at a press conference called to announce the second series of Marine the Raccoon's TV series, Marine: Badnik Hunter. Marine plays footage from the upcoming series to an ecstatic audience and Tails can't help be impressed. Less than impressed, however, is Doctor Robotnik, who has sent a gigantic Gator Badnik (with a large TV screen bearing Robotnik's image) to destroy the press conference. Marine is hurt in the attack and Tails flies her to safety high up in a coconut tree's branches.

Marine reveals a secret that has left her guilty: she is no great Badnik hunter after all. The series is a sham and she only appeared to destroy Badniks through editing and computer trickery. Marine tells Tails the show was her producer's idea and that it was created with the hope of showing the people of Mobius that anyone- no matter how small- can stand up to a bully like Robotnik. Instead of being angry, Tails shows sympathy to Marine and tells her that lying is wrong but acting can be okay if it gives people hope.

Flying back into the fray, Tails is immediately snatched up in the Gator Badnik's jaws! As Robotnik commands the Badnik to crush the life out of Tails, Marine realises she has to do something. Leaping down from the tree with a coconut in hand, Marine whallops the Badnik at full force, severing a connection and putting the Badnik out of commission. Tails thanks Marine and, for the sake of her fans, keeps up the façade that Marine is a genuine Badnik hunter, even joining her on set as a special guest a few weeks later as she records her show!

Trivia

• This is the official debut of Marine in STC's pages, though she previously had a small cameo in The Bat Who Spied Me, with her television programme appearing on Robotnik's surveillance.
• Marine's television series is a reference to the late Steve Irwin's series, The Crocodile Hunter, though Irwin was not a hunter in the literal sense and never harmed any animal he tracked by contrast to Marine literally hunting down and destroying Badniks. This character direction was taken due to Marine having an Australian accent, as in the Sonic video games, and Irwin being one of the most famous and renowned Australians.
• Gator was a Badnik removed from the final version of Sonic the Hedgehog 2. His use here is a further reference to The Crocodile Hunter.
• By sheer coincidence, this is the second story this issue that sees the threat despatched by hitting it on the neck, the other being Amy vs. Tekno the Cybernik.

Timeline

The previous and next Tails story is The War Machine. It is a multi-part story that started in previous issues and concluded in later one.