Knuckles the Echidna is a character in the Sonic the Hedgehog series of video games, television shows and comics. His nicknames are Rad Red, Red Storm, Knux, and Knucklehead.

He is a red echidna (although in his first appearance, he had a decidedly pinker tone) whose quills look like dreadlocks. According to the Sega Megadrive/Sega Genesis games, Knuckles is 15 years old. However, in the Sonic Adventure games, he and Sonic had their ages switched, making him 16. His name came from the fact that two of the knuckles on each of his hands are actually sharp spikes. Knuckles is very strong. Objects like strong walls and large rocks are nothing to his two fists. This is why he's the power member of Team Sonic. He also has the ability to glide by trapping air under his dreadlocks.

Storyline

Knuckles lives on Angel Island, also known as the Floating Island, which hovers in the sky thanks to the power of the Master Emerald, which he is charged with guarding. Knuckles is the last surviving member of the Echidna people who once inhabited the island. Due to his rather remote location and the fact that he rarely strays far from his duty, Knuckles is often alone, and as thus can be quite antisocial and distrusting, but on the other side, he is often quite gullible. One example of this gullibility is the belief that he held throughout Sonic the Hedgehog 3: that Sonic and Tails were attempting to steal the Master Emerald and that the infamous mad scientist Dr. Eggman (Dr. Robotnik in The Americas and Europe) was trying to protect them.

Knuckles in Hydrocity, Sonic 3, Megadrive\Genesis

Dr. Eggman, of course, had lied to Knuckles, and was planning on using the emerald to power his space station, the Death Egg. In the Hidden Palace Zone of Sonic & Knuckles, Eggman's betrayal was revealed to him very bluntly, in the form of electrocution. Knuckles then joined Sonic and Tails in their quest to stop Eggman.

Knuckles getting easily tricked into believing Sonic is the bad guy would become a recurring theme in the Sonic universe. Also, in the Sonic X anime, aside from his gullibility, another running joke seems to be that despite his headstrong and stubborn attitude, Knuckles will very easily crumble under peer pressure; as soon as he says 'no' to something, the rest of the cast will gang up on him and question his abilities until he agrees to do what they wish him to do.

Knuckles has been a (sometimes reluctant) friend to Sonic and Tails since then, sharing many of their adventures, getting tricked by Eggman, and catching the thieving eye (as well as the heart) of a certain white bat named Rouge, who tries to steal the Master Emerald for herself (Sonic Adventure 2). Besides them, Knuckles had made friends with Chaotix, a group of misfits who do the same thing as Sonic and friends ( saving the day from evil villains ), only they are primarily motivated by money.

Like Sonic, Knuckles is able to use the Chaos Emeralds to go Super, changing into Super Knuckles.

Knuckles has appeared in the following games:

• Sonic the Hedgehog 3
• Sonic & Knuckles (and therefore the lock-ons Blue Sphere, Knuckles the Echidna in Sonic the Hedgehog 2, and Sonic 3 & Knuckles)
• Sonic Triple Trouble (Sonic and Tails 2)
• Sonic Drift 2
• Sonic Championship (Sonic the Fighters)
• Knuckles' Chaotix
• Tails Adventure (as an item)
• Sonic 3D Blast (as a transport to the special stage)
• Sonic Adventure
• Sonic Adventure 2
• Sonic Adventure DX: Director's Cut
• Sonic Adventure 2: Battle
• Sonic Mega Collection
• Sonic Advance
• Sonic Advance 2
• Sonic Pinball Party (Cameo)
• Sonic Heroes
• Sonic Battle
• Sonic Advance 3
• Sonic Mega Collection Plus

He also appeared in Sonic Underground (voiced by Ian James Corlett ), Sonic the Hedgehog: The Movie(Sonic Anime) (voiced by Bill Wise ), and Sonic X (voiced by Dan Green ).

Since Knuckles in Sonic X was portrayed as a loner, was tricked by Eggman two times, and was mean to Amy Rose, some Sonic X viewers might get the impression that he is a bad character.

He is an important character in Archie's Sonic comics and Sonic the Comic (Fleetway) as well.