Tails is one of the better known characters from the videogame franchise “Sonic the Hedgehog”.
So let’s find out some trivia and facts about this character.
- His name is Miles Prower
- The character is better known by his nickname Tails
- Tails is a fictional character of Sega’s Sonic the Hedgehog series
- Tails also appears in his own spin-off series, comic books, cartoons, and films
- He is the second character to consistently appear by Sonic’s side in the series
- The name “Miles Prower” is a pun on “miles per hour”
- It is a reference to the famed speed of Sonic the Hedgehog
- He is a two-tailed fox, hence the nickname
- Tails is a mechanical genius and skilled pilot
- He can fly by spinning his tails like a helicopter rotor
- He can be seen flying in multiple games and TV shows created by Sega
- He debuted in November 1992 with the release of Sonic the Hedgehog 2
- In the mid-1990s, he was featured as the main character in a number of spinoff games: Tails and the Music Maker for the Sega Pico, and Tails Adventure and Tails’ Skypatrol for the Game Gear
- Tails was rated the third-most-popular character in the franchise in an official poll from Sega in 2009
- He was rated behind Sonic and Shadow
- Yasushi Yamaguchi, originally the main artist and zone designer for Sega’s Sonic Team, designed Tails for an internal competition for a sidekick to the speedy hedgehog
- The character was based on a kitsune
- A creature from Japanese folklore that could over time grow multiple tails
- The character was also meant to hold a “deep admiration for Sonic”
- While Yamaguchi’s entry won, Sega of Japan wanted to name the character “Miles Prower” (the surname being a play on “per hour”)
- Whereas the American subsidiary Sega of America preferred the moniker “Tails”, respectively
- Sega of America crafted a compelling backstory for the character to convince the Japanese parent company and Sonic Team to have him named “Tails”
- Yamaguchi ended up with a compromise, using “Miles Prower” as the character’s real name
- “Tails” would be his nickname
- Giving the character the full name of Miles “Tails” Prower
- The character debuted as Sonic’s tag-along partner in the franchise’s second game and has remained an important character since
- However, the character’s uniqueness was not established until Sonic the Hedgehog 3
- Then players were given the power to control his flying
- Although the AI would make Tails fly when he would get off-screen
- Tails was redesigned (along with all of the other Sonic characters) by Yuji Uekawa for Sonic Adventure
- His fur changed color to a more yellow shade as opposed to the orange in his early appearances, and he gained blue irises
- In the American Sonic comic book, along with the Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog and Sonic the Hedgehog cartoons, he was originally dark brown
- But the comic artists and cartoon artists eventually decided to change this to match his in-game appearance
- Throughout the years, Tails has been voiced by several different voice actors
- In the Japanese dubs, Tails was voiced by Nariko Fujieda from 1994 to 1996, Hekiru Shiina in 1996, Kazuki Hayashi in 1998, Atsuki Murata from 2000 to 2001 and by Ryō Hirohashi since 2003
- In Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog, Tails was originally voiced by Russi Taylor
- In the unaired pilot, Christopher Stephen Welch would later take over and voice the character throughout the entire series
- He was then voiced by Bradley Pierce in Sonic the Hedgehog
- And then by Lainie Frasier in Sonic the Hedgehog: The Movie
- Beginning in 2003 with Sonic X, he was voiced by Amy Palant
- He would later take over the role in the video games, starting with Shadow the Hedgehog in 2005
- Palant was replaced by Kate Higgins in 2010, beginning with Sonic Free Riders
- She continued to voice the character until 2013
- There her final role as Tails was in Mario & Sonic at the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games
- Though she reprised her role in 2021 for the Sonic Colors: Rise of the Wisps miniseries
- Since 2014, Tails has been voiced by Colleen O’Shaughnessey
- Including in the television series Sonic Boom and the two live-action films
- The Character of Tails is portrayed as a very gentle, comforting, and humble fox who, before he met Sonic, was often picked on because of his twin tails
- Sonic, however, saw Tails’ special talents and cheered him on, causing the fox to have some admiration towards the blue hero
- As a longtime friend, he admires Sonic and dreams of being just like him
- Though he lacks much courage, he wants to prove that he can be counted on, and has fought Dr. Eggman and his robots without the aid of Sonic before
- He loves mint candy, tinkering with machines, and flying mechas
- Despite overcoming most of his fears and becoming very bold, Tails remains keraunophobic
- Tails is not intended to be a selfish character and instead, is always ready and willing to help others without asking for anything in return
- Tails has been described as a mechanical prodigy who rivals Dr. Eggman but has not yet realized his full potential
- Coupled with his skills as an airplane pilot, he uses a biplane nicknamed the Tornado to assist Sonic on their adventures
- Additionally, by spinning his two tails like a helicopter rotor, he has the unique ability to push himself through the air to catch up with Sonic
- Ηowever, this tires him quickly, hence his use of planes
- Unlike Sonic, Tails can swim
- Like Sonic, he can transform into Super Tails, but he requires either the Chaos Emeralds (Sonic Mania) or the Super Emeralds (Sonic 3 and Knuckles) to transform
- Also, when in this form (in Sonic 3 and Knuckles only), a swarm of Flickies circle Tails
- This was seen first as what seemed to be a one-time appearance in Sonic the Hedgehog 3 & Knuckles and then again in Sonic Heroes
- Where alongside Team Sonic members Sonic and Knuckles, would transform themselves into their super forms
- He was awarded “Best New Character” in Electronic Gaming Monthly’s 1992 video game awards, stating “not only is he as cute as Sonic, but he actually serves a major purpose in the game”
- IGN editor Lucas M. Thompson listed Tails as one of the Sonic the Hedgehog characters who should be in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, citing his importance in the series and his abilities
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