Commander (Sonic the Hedgehog)

The Commander is the secondary antagonist of the 2005 game Shadow the Hedgehog. 
He is a human military leader and the G.U.N. federation's currently highest-ranking commander, as well one of the most respected. During his childhood, his family was aboard the Space Colony ARK, he befriended Maria Robotnik and witnessed the creation of Shadow the Hedgehog. After the ARK was invaded by G.U.N., the Commander blamed Shadow for his family's death and carried a grudge against him for fifty years until he discovered the truth about Shadow and Gerald Robotnik, the latter of which he had considered insane. He now leads G.U.N. in homage to Professor Gerald and even tried to make amends with Shadow.
==History==
===Early life===
The Commander grew up with his family on the Space Colony ARK, and was a good friend of Maria Robotnik. One day while playing with her, the Commander saw Shadow being created by Black Doom and Gerald Robotnik. He was terrified at the sight of Shadow. His family and Maria were later killed in the G.U.N. military's attack.
===Shadow the Hedgehog===
During Shadow the Hedgehog (game) in one of the cutscenes that appears in every story, the Commander follows the events of the Black Arms attack on Earth from GUN Fortress. After being informed of how bad Westopolis has been attacked and that rumors say Shadow is involved, he will order his troops to be deployed and hunt down the Black Arms and Shadow, informing the messenger that Shadow is designated as the enemy and shall be captured, dead or alive.
====Possible Events====
There are various events that happen in Shadow the Hedgehog due to the story going whichever way the player chooses. Almost all the Commander's scenes seem to link together when put in the right order.
If the player chooses to go to Death Ruins, a cutscene will appear beforehand of the Commander being informed of Shadow and the Black Arms being forced into the forest in the level. He will authorize use of all tactical weapons in Sector B once he learns of Shadow and the Black Arms all being in the one place, saying that he wants both dead and failure is not an option. He then says to himself that the hedgehog will be exposed for the evil he is.
Should the player then complete the level The ARK whether by the normal or dark mission, they will go against Blue Falcon and the Commander will be heard responding to the pilot and ordering him to take Shadow out. After Blue Falcon is defeated, the Commander will hear the rants of Black Doom declaring humans pathetic and say the line "Damn you!" from his station.
Should the player choose to play the Air Fleet level, the Commander will arrive at the White House to escort the President to his ship. While the President sees himself as a failure for not protecting his nation, the Commander tries to motivate him, saying they will continue to fight the aliens, rally to restore themselves and that the President must keep his people united. While thinking on the Commander's words, the President looks at a photograph of Sonic and Shadow. The Commander urges him to go to his transport with the G.U.N soldiers, and when he leaves, the Commander looks at the picture and declares, "The black creatures will feel their own bloody hell!" before following him.
If the player goes to GUN Fortress, the Commander will support the President and put him in his own chair, asking if he's alright. The President will ask about what happened to the residents of Central City and the Commander will inform him everyone has been evacuated to the safe zone due to orders being issued yesterday. The alarm then goes off and a G.U,N captain that serves as the Commander's messenger will then come in and inform him that over a thousand aliens are heading for the base after breaking their outer perimeter, and that Shadow had been spotted with the Black Arms. Enraged, the Commander takes control of the situation and orders everyone to prepare for battle and mobilize Diablon, despite the captain's protests that it was incomplete. The Commander then grabs his pistol and says that after fifty years, justice will finally be served. He and Sonic will then go against Shadow if the dark mission on GUN Fortress is taken, declaring Shadow the one who destroyed the ARK and killed everyone on it. Despite his best efforts, the Commander will be defeated.
Should the player go to the level Cosmic Fall, as Shadow thinks over all he has learned in the game, the Commander approaches him with a pistol, declaring him the one responsible for killing his family and Maria. He explains that Maria was like a sister to him and the only family he knew, and that Shadow was responsible for her death. He goes on further to explain that he witnessed Gerald and Black Doom create Shadow, dubbing the Ultimate Life-form a horrifying evil creature. Due to Shadow's amnesia, he doesn't remember any of this, and the Commander believes it to be a trick. He says that because of Shadow, everyone he knew and loved was killed when the ARK was destroyed. He declares justice to be served and fires on Shadow. Shadow uses his speed to avoid the bullet and tells the commander if what he says is true, he will accept his fate. At this point the commander believes that Shadow has truly lost his memory and lets him go, falling to his knees in guilt as the hedgehog leaves the room.
If the player completes the dark mission of Black Comet, they will face off against Sonic and Diablon, the Commander declaring Shadow the one who destroyed the ARK and killed everyone on it. He will inevitably be defeated.
If the player completes the dark mission of Final Haunt, the Commander will fight alongside Sonic using Diablon, but will say nothing during the opening cutscene. He will inevitably be defeated.
====True Ending====
In the final story, Shadow confronts Black Doom on the Black Comet and after learning part of the truth about himself thinks back upon all he'd learned, the Commander's vows of vengeance echoing in his head among other things.
Then the Commander and the President see a message of Professor Gerald to Shadow being broadcast to G.U.N. and the Black Comet by Team Chaotix on the ARK. The message was recorded before G.U.N.'s raid and Gerald explained how everything was his fault for making contact with the comet. Gerald revealed Shadow's past and that he and the Eclipse Cannon were made to put a stop to the Black Arms attempts to destroy the planet by decimating the Black Comet. After Shadow defeats Devil Doom and destroys the Black Comet, the President states how ironic it was that people treated Gerald like he was evil, and he ended up saving them all in the end. The Commander and the President realize they were wrong about Gerald's intentions and that he was truly a good hearted person. The President declared they would pay homage to Gerald by working for a brighter future, and the Commander thought it an excellent idea.
In the Expert Mode of Space Gadget, it is revealed that the Commander had become a grandfather one week earlier and invited Shadow over as part of his apology to the hedgehog. It is assumed that this was when Shadow became an agent of G.U.N.
===Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood===
The Commander made another appearance in Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood with a new design. He has a short role and only briefly appears in the first two chapters. After G.U.N. had spent much time tracking the Marauders and their exploits, Rouge provided the means for Tails to meet with the Commander in Central City under her escort and Tails brought along Sonic and Amy Rose, though while the Commander was glad to see Sonic, he did not pay much attention to Amy, telling her to have a glass of milk and sit down while she was in the middle of speaking.
Assuming they were already briefed, the Commander got straight to it. He informed them though they didn't know why the Marauders wanted the Chaos Emeralds and that now they had all seven they were likely to go after the Master Emerald next. With G.U.N. troops guarding Angel Island, Tails' mission was to take his friends to find the person with the greatest intel in the Marauders: Knuckles the Echidna. With the information he knew, they could very well stop the Marauders. The Commander then got them started on where to start searching by providing them with the locations of four of Dr. Eggman's old hideouts in Green Hill Zone and Central City found by Team Chaotix and G.U.N.'s own satellites. These bases were currently being occupied by the Marauders and were likely where Knuckles was being held, so the Commander ordered the trio and Rouge (as their G.U.N. contact) to investigate the four hideouts and find Knuckles. The Commander wished them good luck and ordered them to go.
==Comics==
===Archie===
=== IDW ===
The Commander's role is the same as in the games since the IDW Sonic the Hedgehog comic series is set in the same continuity. However, it is unknown if he will make a physical appearance in the comic due to mandates put in place by SEGA.
==Personality==
The Commander is described as having a "heart of stone", an unshakable resolve, complete confidence and an iron will. This is something of a misnomer, as he is in fact passionate, though it has mainly been shown through his want for vengeance at those he cared for being killed. During Shadow the Hedgehog he is determined and willing to sacrifice anything to stop Shadow and the Black Arms, but mainly the former.
In Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood, the Commander shows another side of personality, presumably due to the different situation. Here, he shows himself as a basic military leader, stoic, wanting to get straight to the mission, dealing only with facts and ordering civilians around like soldiers. He does seem to show appreciation for those who do good work and confidence in those with a good reputation.
==Relationships==
===Friends/Allies===
*Shadow the Hedgehog
*GUN
*Sonic the Hedgehog
*Miles "Tails" Prower
*Maria Robotnik (surrogate sister figure)
*Rouge the Bat
*The President
*Amy Rose
===Enemies===
*Black Arms
**Black Doom
*Eggman Empire
**Dr. Eggman
*Shadow the Hedgehog (formerly)
==Quotes==
==Trivia==
*In the Sonic the Hedgehog film series, the Commander has a live-action counterpart named Commander Walters. In the films, Walters is also the Commander of G.U.N and is identical to his game counterpart, but he is portrayed considerably more comedically.
**It's shown in the mid-credits scene for Sonic the Hedgehog 2 that like in the games the Commander is shown to be familiar with Shadow the Hedgehog and may even fear him as he said his name in dread.
==Navigation==
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