Look, I wasn't going to write an entire article about a single leaked image, especially after I explicitly said that I was going to wait to see the full context of said image before judging it... but there's been so much discourse over that one image that I felt it was worth writing about. (Also, the Summer Games Fest doesn't start until, like, 5 PM, and I prefer to get my articles out as soon as possible.)

So if you haven't been living under a rock, you may be aware of certain leaks from one Arsène Lupin that seem to be promotional material for Sonic X Shadow Generations (a name that I will never not read as the title of a ship fic). While there's a bit more to unpack than just the one image (including the inclusion of Chao in one image that some have interpreted as a possible hint to the Chao Garden finally, finally, FINALLY returning -- but don't get your hopes up), the image my autistic brain has chosen to hyperfixate on is one of Shadow the Hedgehog sprouting enormous alien tentacle wings:

First of all, speaking as a longtime Pokemon addict... those are Giratina wings. Right there. The general shape is clearly similar to those of Giratina's altered form, but their composure of long tendrils is visibly reminiscent of Giratina's origin form. I won't pretend to know whether this was in any way intentional, but I can't unsee it and now you can't either. You're welcome.

Naturally, Shadow getting a new 2edgy4me transformation without context has caused quite a bit of consternation within the fandom. For one thing, there's the question of, if Shadow had this secret transformation the entire time, why the heck did we get the ending of Sonic Adventure 2? And the answer, given by forum user Diogenes, is deceptively simple: wings don't work in the vacuum of space. Huh. I guess that makes sense.

That being said, I'm fairly certain there will be some explanation as to why Shadow suddenly gets this new secret wing transformation, and somehow I don't think it'll be from a Gracidea flower. Given Sega's spotty track record in making all the lore bits fit in with each other, it's entirely possible that we'll get a plot hole or two in the explanation department, but I'm willing to wait and see what the actual story is behind Shadow's wings before passing my final judgment, because you never know, they could surprise us. Whether they surprise us in a good way or a bad way is entirely up in the air as of now, but like I said, you never know.

So now it's time to address the elephant in the room: is it actually a good idea to give Shadow alien demon wings? Well... in my personal opinion, that depends on how well Sega handles it, and in most people's personal opinions, Sega has just as much of a spotty track record in terms of gameplay as they do with lore. 2edgy4me aesthetics aside (seriously, there's a reason Cosmos Rogue made a post parodying Shadow as one of those cringy fan characters), we don't actually know what significance these wings have to the game mechanics or how they'll play. Are they similar to a Super transformation, or one of the emerald powers in Superstars, or are they restricted to the final boss, or what? I would say that we simply don't have enough information yet, but let's be frank -- we don't have ANY information outside of one absolutely epic piece of promotional art, and that alone is not enough to go on. Not by a long shot.

Not that I think my article will actually discourage anyone from forming strong opinions on the subject and sharing them with absolutely anybody who doesn't ask. You do that, well, power to ya. I'm just going to sit here waiting for more information while the entire fanbase loses their minds.