The Tails Doll
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 8 ก.พ. 2025
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Finally time to talk about one of the most infamous characters in the Sonic universe.
Thank you to Stevie Cole for once again providing the gorgeous thumbnail art! Check her out at / steviejoycole
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My head-canon is that the reason Tails Doll looks so shoddy, and the reason Eggman doesn't remember creating it, is because it's not created by Eggman, but by Metal Sonic. Metal reasons that Sonic keeps winning because he has the help of his friends, so in a rare moment of autonomy, Metal put together a "friend" to even the odds.
Love this
Damn he got skills
That's adorable though!
Damn
bro created a friend
maybe metal isn’t all evil after all…
As much as the internet played up the whole horror aspect of the Tails Doll, that one image where he's just sitting on a red-and-white checkered floor with a single spotlight on him in an ocean of darkness is genuinely one of the most haunting and unsettling things to be put into a Sonic game. I can see why we had so many fan animations and games that portrayed it as a malevolent entity that steals people's souls.
Indeed, it just has the right amount of cute and weirdness that you think there has to be more and I blame that damn gem.
Edit: this is a reply... why is it getting over 100 likes.
Also, in part of Tails Doll, just being a doll. A lifeless machine. All of the others in the PC port credits are filled with life as most of the cast are established characters.
Yeah that art goes hard, seriously they perfectly sold the idea of him being a demon
I was just thinking this, that is genuinely one of the strangest, most out of place renders I have ever seen in a game.
If it does steal souls if it looks at something then what would happen if it stared at an uno reverse card for too long? Interesting question aye?
Tails is an engineer, a scientist. What could be a better rival than something he can't rationalize? Something that defies the laws of reality?
Damn that makes a lot of sense
If we ever get a tails solo game like what might've been hinted at in frontiers then the tails doll could honestly be a good rival. Tail's metal sonic is something that's so simple. Heck if the tails doll was once tail's plush or smth then that could add for a couple jumpscares and a couple mini horror sections. Just me rambling tho.
That's actually a great concept...
The eeriness of Metal Sonic works on someone who isn't a geek, but Tails is. Tails can see right through the external similarity and stay calm, knowing that aside of its looks, it's just a robot. Business as usual.
But something paranormal is not business as usual.
@lev7509 I just had a thought and now I want a Luigi's Mansion-esque Tails solo adventure. Like ghosts and other paranormal phenomena have clearly been shown to exist in the Sonic world through both the comics and games, it's just that Sonic is the one usually encountering it.
I am immensely disappointed that there isn't an official Tails Doll plush. Think of how many kids it would traumatize!
For a few months I was constantly trying to beg sega for it to happen
Think of the children SEGA!
Well, that, and it'd just be cute. Thing's only creepy in one render, and otherwise it looks more adorably derpy than anything. Plus, shiny crystal.
I'd love for it to have a little input socket on the jewel that you can put audio files into and it comes out a distorted tails voice when you press a paw button. You could make it as cute or sad or creepy as you want.
@@Umbra_Ursustails doll just strikes me as being more on the goober side of things more than anything. sure, it may be able to move by itself, but it can't really spook anybody
I remember being a little kid around the age of 9 and being absolutely OBSESSED with the Tails Doll; at first I was scared of it which had led to me having scary dreams about it. Then, eventually I had a dream where me and it became friends and when I'd have other scary dreams, it would pop up and help me out. It had gotten to the point where I kept trying to summon it in real life thinking maybe it wasn't evil and just wanted friends and maybe it'd take me back to the Sonic world lmao. Needless to say, the Tails Doll was a big part of my childhood
That's a wonderful Redemption take on the character hats off to you for that
@@RikouHogashiDid you mean 'hats'?
Tails doll is just tragically misunderstood
“Hey broly we’re going sonic land”
@ corrected thanks
You have to wonder how can devs create something so eerie and go "eh, just put a still image of it on a pitch black background. It's fine"
A notable element of the Tails Doll Curse I'm familiar with is that the Soul Stealing was triggered by playing as the Tails Doll in the Tag Mode and catching Super Sonic. The idea there being that it used the power of the chaos emeralds to manifest in reality somehow.
And you had to get all the time stones in sonic cd to break the curse.
And it was HARD trying to do that. Literally the slowest character in the game trying to catch the fastest one. I remember how excited and scared i was as a kid when i finally caught him.
What with your pfp?
I did that shit _twice!_
@@Eternatus00ong
I really like the idea that even Eggman doesn’t *exactly* recall when he made Tails Doll. Idk if I ever want to see it return in Modern stories, but if it does, I’d update the little rag doll by making the little red crystal be a Phantom Ruby fragment. Let it sneak into bases and unleash all sorts of hardlight/holographic horrors on people mwahahaha
Kinda like in the Archie comics, how Tails Doll was a robotic spy, tampering stuff in the background. The gem on its antenna could shoot lasers, melt metal and (from what I remember?) could assimilate metal. Hell, it was also a virus that could override any tech.
@@purplybnuuyI love his official story in those comics.
That's actually a really cool idea! I gotta put that into my headcanons ASAP
i like to think the doll just showed up one day and Eggy just accepted it thinking it was something he forgot he made.
Oh it did stuff like that in the comics, it actually ended up turning into a Eldredge metal monster and it was freaky
To be fair, I think that Tails Doll actually makes the most sense, lore-wise.
At this point in the series, Tails (in Eggman's eyes) was nothing more than just "that 2-tailed fox thing that follows Sonic around and flies".
It actually makes perfect sense that when Eggman is creating his own versions of the trio, he created Metal Sonic and Metal Knuckles to be formidable competition for his enemies; but when creating a counter for Tails... "Well, he's no real threat - he just flies around". Eggman creates a small floating robot and zips it up inside the head of a doll that looks vaguely like "that annoying fox-thing".
I actually think that a Metal Tails at this point in the Sonic Timeline would be unfaithful to how Eggman sees Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles; but a Tails Doll... It perfectly fits the amount of effort that Eggman would put into something that he doesn't see as a threat (but seems to be OCD about completing the set of 3).
Yeah that's my thought to. Tails has always been the "brains" of the trio but Eggman himself is the brain of his empire, and Eggman respecting Tails' intellect is something that only started fairly recently. So to classic Eggman Tails is just some weird little freak of nature that can fly and follows Sonic around.
My favorite interpretation of Tails Dolls was this comic on Deviantart where Tails straight up asks Eggman what the deal with it is and Eggman says he thought he could fund is evil scheme with theme parks where dolls of the adorable Tails as prizes. Tails has half a mind to sue Eggman for his cut only for the doctor to tell him the dolls were a bust, families thought they were too creepy and rumors of a curse started to spread. Tails says it serves him right then Eggman asks if he wants to buy the one he has one as he still has a warehouse full of the things he can't get rid of.
Now that is something I have to see.
Oh the wonderful timing. Earlier tonight I had fun scaring trick-or-treaters with a Tails Doll.
An RC car, some fishing line, a modified Tails plushie, and I had a "Tails Doll" I could raise and lower in the air remotely through a camera. I was surprised how many people it freaked out.
DUDE, post footage of that somewhere, I want to see _that._
@@lizflowersg603Seconded
PLEASE LET US SEE IT OP!!
If you have footage, please post
GIVE US FOOTAGE!!!
Honestly I think Tails Doll as a physical spy and digital monster is the most fitting, especially if it worked as a weird creepy foil to Tails usual investiveness/hacking stuff
It's both in the new official comics.
I like the idea that it's just a floppy plushie tied to a drone that happens to like racing
A drone with tendril like arms with cameras on the ends of them (where the eyes are on the doll) desgined for silent flight perfect for spying and information gathering. . . But who made it?
I remember liking it in the Archie comics when Cream the Rabbit ended up with the doll, and being disappointed when it ended up essentially being just another bad guy to fight. I'd love if it was canonically a piece of technology that Eggman doesn't fully understand, maybe even a Tchekov's Gun to help the Freedom Fighters in the bug final fight. Gems in the Sonic universe are chaotic, using them to power your spy and having it go rogue because of some mysterious ancient power is such an awesome plotline that i don't mind if it's a retread of Chaos' story.
I like to imagine Metal Sonic treats Tails Doll like his stuffed teddy bear.
I mean in idw robotnik does
Yes! And it's so heartwarming!
Emotional Support Doll for when he loses to Sonic
His doll is more powerful than him in my headcannon
This mf was the first creppypasta I ever discovered, can't forget those long nights where I couldn't sleep thinking it was the scariest thing ever
My favorite fan art of Tails Doll was actually a Frankenstein's Monster created from many different versions of Miles Prower from over the years. More a tragic figure, since aside from the gem and poor stitching, he was basically just Tails, unable to return to his own Sonic's side, and forced to stay with another version of himself who was, in turn, more than a little creeped out at the "living" reminder of his own mortality.
You have a link to it?
I also would like a link to this, this seems really cool!
Link required.
Link?
I think I know that one, wasn’t he called “Taxidermy Tails”?
I learned this from another fan on a forum. The Tails Doll in Superstars is actually the Golden Badnik for Pinball Carnival Act 2 so if you smash it and complete the level without dying, an icon of the badnik will appear on the level page when you can select it. So in this case, you get a little Tails Doll image that appears on the bottom right.
They didn't have to do that, but they did and it was cool.
Honestly your creepy story is very better than any of the haunted game stuff. I always prefer these sort of dark stories be set in universe.
* honk*
It's a legit good writing hook, I can see a talented writer running with this... but that's kind of the crux here, a talented writer can make good of anything, and it's not like the Creepypasta horror scene is known for it's quality, being a relatively young subniche of the already mainly amateur driven fanfic genre. This is not to say anything against those writers, it's just in the nature of the niche that the good writers that do intersect with an interest in this field are more likely to move on to create their own IPs as soon as they gain the skills to excel.
Less is more in doll form. Having it more in the spotlight would render it less mysterious with every appearance.
As you said, this is the perfect amount.
i love the implication that Eggman saw Tails as such a non-Menace but still annoying that he just grabbed a training dummy & put a Badnik on it
and yeah i love that the scary factor of Tails Doll is just the fact that is a VERY unsettling Doll that just... stands there... doing nothing... looking at you with vacant eyes... JUST DO A SPOOK ALREADY!!
For me personally, i think that Tails Doll IS the perfect foil for our two tailed genius. Especially if you go down the route of mythical being inside a plush dummy, since Miles is a genius mechanic and scientist, his double being a creature that does not abide by logic or reason, something that decided to possess a doll that looks like him and never communicates with anyone, it just looks at you with those dead eyes.
I would love it if it wasjust a doll with a camera, but then it started moving despite Eggman never putting in any other mechaical functions or even an AI. Even Eggman is unsure as to why it started floating.
I love this!
Tails Doll was always an interesting character for me. He was one of the characters that made me realize that I was interested in learning about creepypastas, and I always loved looking into deep-dives about the origins of this character, and the creepypasta surrounding it. Super cool that you're talking about this weird, creepy, probably moth-ridden plush on the channel :P
Personally I think Scrapnik Island would have been a great place to introduce Tails Doll in the IDW comics. Just think about it we already have Mecha Sonic and Mecha Knuckles. AND the whole thing already has a sorta horror aesthetic. Tails doll would fit right in hah.
I'd probably characterise him as a "weird kid" among the Scrapniks. Even when Tails makes the communicator Tails Doll stays silent. Just staring vacantly... Probably creeping both Sonic and Tails out hah.
But also at the end, when everybody is saving Mecha, I just imagine Tails Doll joining in, just pulling with his limp plush hands, his head tilted back slightly. Not actually helping but it's the thought that counts.
And what happens to the Tails Doll after that?
y'know, even when the tails doll was the big scary thing among the children in the sonic fandom, i always considered metal knuckles to be the creepiest. something about him just screams "terminator" to me.
"Eggman Industries Model 101"
Just a note about the "Tails Doll Curse", you kind of covered it in the video, but it's not just a single story made up by one person, it's multiple stories made by many, many people. Unlike the black-and-red eye Sonic, there's no traceable first story with a known writer, but not unlike that one, it was open to reinterpretation by a community at large.
For me the biggest and most consistent visit when looking for Tails Doll stuff was an old site called "Tails From The Crypt", it was a subpage of a webcomic site called Quacker and Bowen, and the idea was that it was a huge archive for these stories. It was very basic in presentation and the stories varied in quality, but the site went down some time ago, I'm not sure how full the Wayback archive is and I think the webcomic actually became lost media.
A few of the other details were the rituals to summon the doll: the first actually involves the game and is to complete Sonic R and then do Tag Mode in Resort Island as Tails Doll. Some stories had the order matter less and some had a specific order, but you were always supposed to tag Super Sonic last, and now you just unleashed hell on earth.
The second is much easier for anyone to do but is a bit more generic: play either Can You Feel the Sunshine or Livin in the City in reverse in total darkness, and you have also unleashed hell on earth.
I miss reading Tails from the Crypt. Those were fun times. New stories kept being added and I even submitted a few myself. There was a lot of conflicting stuff within the stories, but that's what happens when you have a whole community submitting stuff. I do remember the tag order though! It was Metal Knuckles > Metal Sonic > Egg Robo > Super Sonic. I don't think an explanation was ever given as to why.
I can't actually remember anything about the Quacker and Bowen comic even though I read some of it. I just remember that they were two completely separate things that had nothing to do with each other.
12:49 Translation: "A stuffed animal-like robot (?) of Tails made by Dr. Eggman. Floats lightly through the air like it's being remote controlled, and runs through the course with a blank expression"
My headcanon is that it's a small eldritch entity that just wants attention and influenced Eggman to make it a physical form. Now it just wanders, sometimes being used by eggman to spy or do whatever, but personally just wants to be appreciated. Something conceptually scary, but cute in reality.
Yes please.
I like to think Robotnik came across Tails Doll and just assumed he made it after a rough battle with Sonic and was too angry to remember when he did it. This helps Tails Doll's cover as it wasn't made by Robotnik and has simply infiltrated his ranks/tools. Perhaps it's some sort of cyber ghost sealed in its gem (mostly going off of how it's used in Archie and IDW comics). Robotnik may think he made it as a decoy or a spy, but only the doll knows why its there >w>
That's kinda funny in my eyes
@@ViroVeteruscy or Metal Sonic made it because he thinks that as a Sonic he needs a sidekick.
I kind of love the fact that Archie Sonic just accepted the full creepy pasta thing about the Tails Doll and had it turn into an eldritch abomination. That isn't even really off brand for Eggman, since he HAS messed around with ancient magical bullshit several times, like with Chaos or Dark Gaia. So maybe he did create Tails Doll by making a bargain with the Old Ones or something, like the gem on the doll contains the soul of an ancient god whose true form would drive a mortal mind to madness just to look directly at it.
In all honestly, the Tails Doll was probably one of my favorite internet creepypastas when I was a kid, there would be times when I would listen to several different stories made about the tails doll and it was really fun, and even seeing people trying to perform the so called “curses” like the mirror ritual or the tag team ritual. It’s always something I fondly look back on whenever I see the tails doll, one of my first introductions into internet horror
THAT TAILS DOLL THEORY OH MY GOD
"What else is living in this city?"
I dunno, man. But you know you have to survive.
You have to keep the dream alive.
Where everything is free, can't you see?
I’m so glad you brought up the creepypasta. I grew up with it and that’s my first exposure to the doll. Also random horrified Nick art is always appreciated. Best 3am video I’ve seen lol
honestly, the tails doll having cameras in its eyes is a brilliant move to me because over controlling people (parents, bnb owners, etc) will literally install cameras into the eyes of what look like unassuming decor plushes. It highlights the kind of thing that can make dolls scary when all they're doing is just sitting in a corner.
NOW THIS IS A HALLOWEEN SPECIAL BAYBE, Thank you Nick for never disappointing!
Imagining Sage just hugging Tails Doll melts my heart
Tails doll used to genuinely give me nightmares as a child. I remember I used to absolutely wrap myself in my blanket at night and stare at the wall in case it was behind me
I like how some of the background music is Mephiles’ theme.
Also thanks! Now i’ve been inspired to make a tails doll art.
I love it when you upload. Thanks
I want to see a Post-Frontiers Tails spinoff. I have an idea for the Doll showing up.
Throughout different stages the doll is lying around, sometimes in strategic spying positions, sometimes not.
Then, a few bosses later, Tails enters an arena; the Tails Doll lying in the center. The gem glows and levitates, dragging the doll with it. The gem grows even brighter and the earth shakes. Thin red rays of light emerge from the gem and pick up pieces of the arena. Tails Doll is the puppet master, and the stage its marionette, while Tails has to weave through the moving platforms and obstacles to get a clear shot.
One boss battle later, Tails' glory is stolen by Silver taking the doll down(cause similar powers and to effect Tails' character arc). Silver explains he just saw the battle and thought to help, no bad future to avert, and Tails is understandably bummed out.
A few zones later, the Tails Dolls from Adventure are seen. Near the zone's boss, Tails passes by the Tails Doll, its gem absent.
Tails reaches the boss arena, where he finds Eggman. The doctor gloats and jabs at Tails' self esteem before revealing an almost complete Metal Tails. He reveals the Gem and places it into the slot on Metal Tails' head, and cue boss battle.
On a side note, I don't like how almost every time Tails is playable or has action scenes, he's using some gadget that only appears there and never again. He deserves something more consistent.
I imagine this spinoff would play like a mix between Tails from Adventure and Tails from Adventure 2. Tails would be personally equipped with the Jet Anklet and new piece of tech I'd like to see become his consistent gear, the Cyclone to Eggman's Egg Walker, the Tails gadget to Eggman's glock; a pair of orange orbitars(those floating weapons from Kid Icarus Uprising. Similar things appear during certain boss fights in Kingdom Hearts, mainly Marluxia's flower sentries and Xemnas' laser circles)
8:07 I think that might be a sewing pin, considering the voodoo doll look. The trope often involves the stabbing of pins into the doll to cause concentrated pain to the original.
I was one of the kids that grew up during the whole creepypasta phase of the internet and, as a Sonic fan, I was easily drawn towards creepypastas like Sonic.exe and the Tails Doll Curse. While these stories scared the shit out of 7-year-old me in the early 2010's, the Tails Doll in particular was the creepypasta and character that I think stuck with me the most. I think a particular point of interest for me was the fact that this character was an actual OFFICIAL Sonic character unlike the other creepypasta characters I was familiar with. The Tails Doll and Sonic R immediately became one of my favorite pieces of the Sonic series, so much so that I remember wanting a Sega Saturn and a copy of the game at the time, not knowing the Sonic Gems Collection existed. I am not one to tell you that I think Sonic R is a great Sonic game but I honestly couldn't think of a Sonic game I wanted to play more than Sonic R for a long period of time. I found the game incredibly fascinating and intriguing and I loved everything about it from the low-poly graphics to the cheesy yet incredibly catchy OST, but I found it extremely saddening that I couldn't play the game myself. It was until I finally found out about Sonic Gems Collection that I realized there was a much easier way I could get my hands on the game. It was sometime after 2015 now, I think around 2018 where I finally got my hands on the game on Christmas day and I think I was the first kid in a long time to be this excited to play Sonic R of all games. The controls took some getting used to but I was so happy to finally play it and fully complete it. Much like your status of the game in regards to a list of favorites from the franchise, Sonic R is gonna be noticeably high for me. I often replay Sonic R even to this day, doing the same 100% run over and over again. I've played the other modes a countless number of times and even took it upon myself to see if I could beat all the tracks as Tails Doll against Super Sonic alongside the other unlockable characters. As unrealistic as it sounds, believe it or not I actually pulled it off lol. Even if the game is objectively bad or weird, I honestly couldn't care less. It grew me closer to Sonic and is part of the reason I still obsess over the franchise today. I have such a bizarre yet strong personal connection with this game and it's all thanks to this creepy yet also cute little doll.
Can YOU feel the sunshine?
Next Halloween, I hope we see the Sonic CD piracy image. That thing still freaks me out despite knowing what it is.
Also, your Tails Doll story was creepy a fuck. It was so based in reality and just the thought of something like that in a kids game is terrifying!
Piracy image?? You mean the sonic with the human face that is only scary because the american ost has a devilish af boss theme compared to the funky beats of the japanese ost?????
@@SantinoAintHere Yes. that image, it's supposed to be a anti-piracy measure. It's also the fact that Sonic's face looks creepy as hell, that on top of the Japanese text that roughly translates to, "Fun is infinite with Sega Enterprises - Majin" and even with the Japanese music it's a little freaky. Also, Majin roughly translates to The Devil and I wanna know more about what Sega was thinking.
@@marbenmin5878 It's not an anti piracy thing like at all, it's supossed to be a secret image you put in the sound test like that batman sonic image or the "see you next game" image with tails.
Plus, MAZIN with a Z is just a childhood nickname of the developer who made the image, the poor guy just hid a funny image of if i recall correctly is his face or the face of some other guy on top of sonic with a message saying that fun is infinite with sega 'cause back in the day it seemed like sega was gonna win the console wars. It was not meant to be creepy, it's not an anti piracy thing and it's not signed by the devil.
@@SantinoAintHere Tails Doll wasn't meant to be creepy, and yet here we are.
@@marbenmin5878While I agree something being scary or not is subjective, it genuinely has nothing to do with piracy. Claiming it does is just factually incorrect. In fact, I think the only Sonic game with any anti-piracy measures (besides DRM like denuvo) is Sonic 3D Blast, and they're really not very interesting
Edit: I was misremembering about Sonic 3D Blast, if anyone cares. It has no anti-piracy I am aware of.
I love this creepy doll. I really hope SEGA gives it some more time in the spotlight after Superstars. Would love to see it show up in another Sonic racing game or as a boss in a mainline game
I actually really love the comparison of Mimikyu. I've always felt like the artificial copies should make up a "Metal Council", with Metal Sonic as the mastermind who is inhibited by Robotnik's programming, Mecha Knuckles as a battle commander, and Tails Doll just being super chill, maybe even friendly towards the main heroes, maybe a bit of a goofball.
Also, I also called him "Teddy Tails" back in the day. I always called him "Robo Sonic", as well.
You just unlocked a dormant memory. I forgot all about my Raphael doll that you showed. I loved that thing.
I think it's more fascinating that no other character in the series aside from Amy received their own creepy doll variant. The popularity of the Tails Doll you think would've spawned a line of these guys based on other characters akin to the metal variants, yet it hasn't been fully explored aside from the one instance with the Amy Dolls in Sonic Mania.
And I'm kinda glad that it hasn't fully gone that way....yet. With the introduction of the Amy Doll, the gateway for multiple Sonic characters having raggedy duplicates with gems on their heads has been opened slightly, and I feel that any moment another character is gonna get one which, while at first might seem cool and more of a nod to the Tails Doll, it will gradually harm the alluring mystery surrounding the character that made it so popular in the first place.
IDK maybe if more characters do get doll variants they might still remain as popular and creepy as Tail Doll was when it was just a standalone entity.
Also, your story about Tails Doll being the spirit of Tails' unborn twin is going to be my new headcanon.
It explains his mutation, and gives the doll an extra edge of creep, while not really being too dark
25:16 I'd like to add that they should've made his eyes black. Not just really dark grey. It adds some emphasis on his creepy factor.
As someone who is just a casual Sonic R fan and thought Tails Doll was kind of cute, I never knew the internet turned him into a creepypasta 😅
I think what creeped me out most about the Tails Doll stuff back in the day was the backwards playing song. It sounds like the words "he's listening" during parts of the song.
The fact that they went to the effort to model the Tails Doll in Superstars makes me hopeful. Like, SEGA clearly knows there's interest in this character. I'm holding out for an official plush
I never understood the Tails Doll horror fascination. He was always my favorite in Sonic R because he was basically flying all the time.
I'm surprised you didn't mention metal tails from the sonic superstars multiplayer mode. Sure, it's not really the doll, but I'd say it's it's spiritual successor. Eggman finally got around to moving on from giving tails a crappy doll to a full on metal counterpart. Especially since I that retro zone I don't remember the name of, eggman uses your battle mode character as the boss fight, so it even gives us a metal tails fight after all these years (kinda)
That and the little Amy dolls from that capsule machine fight in Mania
20:22 Thank you for the mild jumpscare... 😂
i remember getting sonic R around 97-98 from a book fair for the PC and oooh yes- the tails doll was definitely a spooky anomaly for the game - ill always love sonic R and genuinely wish we'd get another on-foot race/exploration game in its same vein !
I mean they technically did with the Tails portion of Sonic Adventure and the VS mode in Adventure 2 (Battle).
@@blaacksugar7714 yeah thats true! Though i was kinda hoping for like a full sequel to R- remember when the new sonic rqcing game used the R logo as a teaser? I genuinely lost my shit thinking thats what we were getting xD
I love the way tails doll became saga's cryptid he just shows up from time to time in the background. I would kill for a physical plush though
Your theory about tails extra tail was awesome. I would really love to see a full-fledged story about that.
really captured the childhood horror in this video. goosebumps! As a twin the phantom twin theory kind of gets under my skin, I love that too. Great late halloween video!
That was a very good question when you asked "would sonic exe be as popular without Tails Doll?" Very interesting thought.
I don't think the question about fnaf's popularity is as good, however. I really don't see much of a connection between the two. Perhaps it contributed a little to its very early popularity, but that game was gonna explode no matter what.
I absolutely hated and feared the Tails Doll for the longest time, and while I still get creeped out sometimes, I can't help but feel a sort of...Stockholm syndrome about it. It's gotten to the point where I've been making my own headcanon of how Tails Doll could be handled in a future story. I have two interpretations; one post-Forces and, most recently, another involving Cyber Space.
1) Although the original Phantom Ruby was destroyed, there are fragmented copies of it from past experiments scattered to the winds. These fragments are far from the overpowered level of the original, but they possess just enough power to greatly affect whoever may hold one. One of these ominous fragments would find itself stuck in an abandoned Eggman scrapyard, specifically in a pile that contains a buried, tattered, and gem-less Tails Doll. The Ruby fragment, seemingly sensing the Doll in distress, gravitated towards it and planted itself upon the vacant control antenna. Immediately, the Doll sprung to life in a way that it never did before, busting through the scrap that it had been buried under for decades. The Doll didn't control this newfound power, however; the power seemed to control it, manifesting as a ghastly puppeteer-a Phantom of the Ruby, if you will. The only influence the Doll had over this power was through emotion. Its feeling of sadness and wrongful neglect was warped into a transforming nightmarish force that will stop at nothing-especially not Sonic and company-until "mean old" Dr. Eggman is confronted.
2) Seemingly anything and everything can manifest in Cyber Space, especially that which is connected to the memories of those who enter its domain. The Tails Doll is one of the more obscure memories shared between Sonic and Dr. Eggman, but both nevertheless recall the Doll as something...a LITTLE creepy. However, in Cyber Space, the Tails Doll would manifest as something much more than "a LITTLE creepy". At first glance, it appears as ordinary as they remember, but when they least expect it, it morphs and contorts to haunt and attack anything that comes near it. The Doll's digital contortions are nothing short of nightmares, taking monstrous forms of randomly generated-yet deadly-proportions. How Sonic, Eggman, or anyone else is meant to defeat it is a persistent and vexing problem...
Man, my first introduction to this thing was in a fan game: Eggman Hates Furries. In that, it appeared with little explanation, and had creepy movements all originating in the gem, and attacks that used the body as a weapon (the gem was the weak point). I was properly spooked. I love that it's not just from the fangame.
I was so terrified of this thing when i was little, yet I made an entire fan comic about him haunting sonic and his friends. I was terrified, and het endeared in the same way
This thing was in my top 3 childhood fears. I remember watching an animation that pushed my fear of this thing over the edge where tails doll took over the world. I spent a lot of long nights awake in fear of this thing
Sonic R is a lot like Sonic Riders in my opinion. They both aren’t you’re traditional racing games, which usually had you in karts or cars. And they had their own unique gameplay mechanics. And although I love them both, my big problem has always been the lack in content. I’m guessing it wouldn’t have been possible for Saturn to have anymore 3D stages then the five in R, but if R did have 20 tracks that were a bit bigger than the maps we had in the official game, then it would be a lot better in my opinion
Glad to see Nick covering more Sonic Saturn games
how did bro type all of this
I wish we got more off model duplicates of characters, they provide such a fun and unique spin on what is to be expected :)
I do find it funny to hear how many people were/are spooked by this little guy, as an adult I can see and understand why of course :b
I suppose I would technically be a part of that younger generation you described.
From my perspective, I initially just thought he was some werid creepy pasta, no different than the others. Perhaps even inspired by Sonic.exe.
When I learned the mf was actually CANON (to an extent), I was shocked, to say the least. And the only thought I had was "why?"
What is his purpose? Why is he so creepy? Was Sega high at the time?
Tails is my favorite character, and so I see this as an opportunity for him to be more relevant (although they basically never use the doll in any meaningful ways)
Actually it was Tails Doll pasta that appeared first and then the Sonic.exe was inspired heavily by one specific imagine of Tails Doll
The song itself is a statement of the dread that Tails dolls brings forth and your current objective:
Living in the city, you know you have to survive
13:47 you missed out on talking about that episode where they had the robots that dressed up as tails's family that look way more like the tails Doll but like in an adult form and that's where my mind immediately went the first time I saw the tails doll
As a kid growing up in the creepypasta era, Sonic.exe never scared me. That was the job of Tails doll. I legit had nightmares about that thing and I'm glad that people had nightmares about it before me. We all agree this thing is cursed! It was more haunting than some of the bloodier ones, even if the creepypasta tossed in some blood for good measure. I think if that thing just showed up in my house perfectly clean it would be worse.
LIVING IN THE CITY, YOU KNOW YOU HAVE TO
survive.
the day sega finally makes official plushies of tails doll is the day I can die happy
This genuinely gave me nightmares when I was younger
I like how this doll is tied to the ACID Remix of the sunshine song
I should’ve commented when this was around 2-3k views but I can see why he’s associated with horror like with majin sonic, his uncanny eyes, the environment of the original image, and the song associated just changes your view when seeing the image. Also, honestly your fantastic TH-camr! A 3 hour video with good and editing and lore? And it’s also sonic related, great work!✨
Congratulations on 151k subscribers Nick and happy Halloween to you too 😊
When it comes to horror, less is more. The _idea_ of The Thing is more unsettling than seeing a mass of fleshy tentacles flailing around. Michael Meyers pale, fleshy mask is at once familiar, but alien enough to be disturbing, without having to throw a bunch of grunge and stitches on it. And the uncanny nature of the Tails Doll is what sells the horror of seeing something that is just… wrong, without having blood or cosmic horrors sprouting from it.
Usually when I think about Tails Doll I think about the golden age of video game creepypastas (mostly the early 2010s), so I always remember him alongside the likes of Sonic.exe, Ben Drowned, the multiple Pokémon creepypastas out there (I'm not a fan of the franchise, but these creepypastas were the peak of my engagement with it), and many, many more. It's hard for me to separate him from that whole creepypasta "multiverse" so to speak.
This thing scared the shit out of me and single-handedly made me fear the color red as a kid. Cool video!
As a pre-teen during the time of the creepypasta Tails Doll infamy, I quite enjoyed the Internet's take on it... but not because I thought it was scary, but rather I liked the edginess factor of it.
I like when SEGA gets experimental with Sonic (The Murder of Sonic the Hedgehog is a great example). I'd like to see a SEGA-backed Sonic-themed horror game, with the Tails Doll being a prominent antagonist. Sonic has some roots in horror, from the Robotnik theme to that one sound test secret where Sonic is wearing "Mario's" face. To say nothing of Sonic. exe and all the horror games that spawned. They could make it work if they outsource it to the right people.
Tails Doll in 2023?
Lez goooo
25:06 -- LMAO
Thanks for making a video on this topic! I appreciate it!
There was a flash game back in the day called "Tails' Nightmare". And that pretty much taught me all I needed to know about this freaky f*ck.
Dang, if they really called it Teddy Tails then I feel like all the Tails Doll creepypastas would've been avoided and possibly, could've resulted in a far different internet horror landscape. Crazy to think about that.
People who want tails doll in the generations remake
I was 7~8 when I played Sonic R, and I loved the Doll, but even as an easily scarred kid, it never creeped me out.
First vid of Robotober? Wait, today’s the last day of October… oh well. Nonetheless, I’m hyped.
What better way to celebrate today with one of the mysterious and slightly creepy character! Your theory gave me chills, not gonna lie. Hope you all have a happy Halloween!
As a huge Tails Doll fan, i have been waiting for this ONE VIDEO for a long time. *And it didn't disappoint*
I actually own the Archie comic where the Tails doll transforms into that giant monster with the objective of destroying Team Freedom, and that was my very first introduction to the doll. Needless to say, I did find it creepy as heck. Its blank, wide-eyed stare made me feel uncomfortable whenever I saw it, and the way it was shoddily put together just seemed... wrong, in a way. While it did freak me out as a kid, I find it fascinating and pretty cool nowadays.
Tails Doll was actually one of my go-to racers in Sonic R. I was never creeped out by the doll. In fact, I love the little one and am happy to see him around, even if it’s just because others just love him for the horror they’ve associated him with. 🥰
Maybe it’s because I listened to Lavender Town to sleep as a kid or because I have a genuine love for the creepy as well as the cute, but whatever it is, Tails Doll will always be my buddy in my eyes. 🧸
People always saw a red jewel on the tails doll head.
Pretty sure it was originally envisioned to be a red sewing pin.
Back in 1997 the west didn't know Tails was a mechanic?
AoStH and the Archie comic, as well as Sonic 2, 3, and Tails Adventure would like words with you. Even in the west, Tails was thoroughly established as the tech genius.
I remember as a kid being terrified of the Doll, and the rumor if you tag all the characters in a match, leaving Super Sonic last, Tails Doll would get you. I actually tried doing it and found it impossible to tag Super Sonic so I gave up, still kinda scared but also frustrated lol.
I never realized until now how Tails Doll works as a copy. Metal Sonic is both a bastardization of Sonic, as well as an opposite. Sonic's design has an aura of cool to him, and his attitude and personality is all about freedom. Meta Sonic spikes are designed in a way to look cold and frightening. He's emotionless and obeys orders without question (or tries to force everything under his rule.) He is on the side of tyrannical order.
Tails is a charatcer who is a cute sidekick, but also a mechanica genius. The Doll takes that cuteness and transforms it into something that is uncanny. And the fact that it's just a drone undermines Tails's genius. One of the best mechanics in the franchise has a clone that looks like it was built in five minutes.
I really like this creepypasta. It clearly kept all it's charm !
It's not a creepypasta
I like to think tails doll is some form of extraterrestrial similar to chaos or the devil from shadow game, that saw sonic the hedgehog and his friends, and wanted to join them. So it made a doll like exterior to hide its spindly form in its disguise so it can join Sonic's crew on their adventures (put simply, a mimmiku situation)
Ah yes, the thing that seemed like just a wonky plush of tails in sonic r, now its a creepy pasta that wasn’t meant to be but it is still great.
tails doll in sonic r: murder
tails doll in sonic superstars: whee im spooky
One thing that often gets missed about the Tails Doll Curse mythos was that he didn't actually outright steal your soul when you completed the curse and summoned him. Upon summoning he'd always offer you the chance to be his minion first, and its only if you declined to become his underling that he proceeded to kill you and take your soul. This was probally inspired by Slenderman's proxies due to the popularity the slenderman mythos had in the same era, but unlike slenderman's proxies the Tails Doll's minions where never really detailed or ever given proper spotlight....you didn't have any standout Tails Doll minions like you did standout Slenderman proxies (I.E. Ticcy Toby, the Observer etc...) and as a result, the fact the Tails Doll had his own "proxies/proxy-like minions" in the overall mythos surrounding him often sometimes gets lost in the shuffle.
The Tails Doll Curse became popular somewhere between 2006-2007
Slenderman only became a thing in 2009, so it couldn't have been the inspiration.
With that said, I always liked the idea of tails doll servants. It made for a lot more interesting stories and helped expand the lore a bunch.