‘Knuckles’ Is the Show Jews Need Right Now—Seriously
Knuckles is one of the most surprising new shows of the year—yes, really. I know what you’re thinking: How could a spinoff of the incredibly popular Sonic the Hedgehog movies starring one of the franchise’s most popular characters be “surprising?” In fact, Knuckles is something of a Trojan Horse. While it presents itself as an action-packed show about Knuckles (voiced by Idris Elba), the no-nonsense red echidna, it’s really about his friendship with a goofy human, Wade Whipple (Adam Pally). More than that, over the course of the six-episode Paramount+ series, Knuckles mentors Wade as he competes in a major bowling tournament—see, I told you it’s surprising!
It’s not totally absent from the typical Sonic the Hedgehog hijinks, of course. Along the way, they run into dastardly foes determined to kidnap Knuckles. But in response, Wade decides to take his new bestie somewhere the bad guys would never think to look: his mother’s house. That leads to what is this series’ most special installment: a glorious, emotional, and poignant episode about a Shabbat dinner. Yes, I’m serious—the third episode (titled “The Shabbat Dinner”) of what is seemingly a big-budget action series about Knuckles from Sonic the Hedgehog is all about the weekly Jewish tradition of Shabbat.
For those unfamiliar with Shabbat, Wade’s mother, Wendy (played by Stockard Channing, instantly entering the pantheon of great Jewish TV moms), explains it perfectly to Knuckles: “Shabbat is the day of rest. It’s about home.” Basically, according to Judaism, God created the world in six days, so on the seventh, he rested. For modern Jews, like myself, Shabbat is an opportunity to connect with family and spend time together without distraction. It’s one of those family things that you can’t stand doing as a kid, but the older you get, the more special and valuable it feels.