'Knuckles' Review: On the Edge of Forever Annoying

Idris Elba and Adam Pally star, with Stockard Channing and Cary Elwes batting clean-up in the Paramount Plus live-action/animation hybrid series.

Now Streaming: Teetering on the edge of unwatchability for adults, Knuckles redeems itself with moments that rescue the series from the 'entirely disposable' bin. 

The six-episode series springs from the big-screen video game adaptation Sonic the Hedgehog, a 'pleasant diversion that made for a generally entertaining family film,' as I wrote elsewhere  in February 2020. Set in Montana, James Marsden starred as a small-town sheriff; Adam Pally had a small role in support as Wade, which I failed to mention in my review. 

The film's success led to a sequel, Sonic the Hedgehog 2, which I found much less charming: "Halfway through the movie, I nodded off." I couldn't even muster up the enthusiasm to write a review, so let's just say I was not eager to return to the Sonic universe when Knuckles debuted on April 26. 

By that point, I'd canceled my ad-free Paramount Plus With Showtime subscription for budgetary reasons. An alluring offer for an ad-supported subscription to Paramount Plus came my way, however, so I signed back up -- $3.99 / month, who could refuse? -- and found the first episode of Knuckles to be better than I had anticipated. 

In large part, that's because Idris Elba returns to voice the titular character, Knuckles, a former opponent of Sonic the Hedgehog who became his ally in Sonic the Hedgehog 2. As the new series begins, Knuckles is struggling to settle into life in small-town Montana. He is a warrior through and through, and thus accustomed to battle daily; he needs a purpose, an adversary, a worthy opponent, which soon comes his way. 

Adam Pally's career has stretched back more than 15 years, most of that as a supporting actor in comedies and a voice-over actor in animated comedies. In Knuckles, his character, Wade Whipple, has been elevated to the lead human role, which makes sense in the history of TV shows that have been spun-off from movies: elevate supporting characters into the lead roles and hope for the best from the actors. 

Elba, first of all, is a top-notch actor, even though we just hear his voice. He captures the comedy of a mighty warrior who is searching for the meaning of his existence on a strange planet with strange customs, all through his marvelously flexible vocal performance. 

Pally steps up to the leading role with aplomb, adroitly reacting to the cartoonish antics that surround him -- sometimes literally, of course, in that clever CGI-animated style -- and is perfectly willing to play the fool writ large. Yet he is also able to convey the character with a touch of pathos; he has been relegated to a supporting performance with his family, too, and he has trouble fully establishing himself as an individual with his own unique identity. 

That brings us to Episode 3, when Wade (and Knuckles) finds himself knocking on the door of his mother seeking refuge. His mother is played by Stockard Channing, who elevates the role of a stereotypical Jewish mother with nuanced flavor. And when she talks about domestic issues with her son and daughter, she grounds the show with a piercing reality that is very touching.  

Later in the series, Cary Elwes shows up as Wade's father, a famous bowler, and he too has a speech that is well-written, grounding in reality, and absolutely beautifully delivered, with an arrow to the heart. 

Granted, these gem-like performances are surrounded by so much silliness that is directly aimed at younger children that it may set the teeth on edge for any adult. Stockard Channing's performance, though, transcends the surroundings, standing out and glistening like a pearl. [Paramount Plus]