Soneggman

"Ah, Sonic the Hedgehog! Snooping as usual, I see?"

- Doctor Eggman, "Return of the Buddy Buddy Temple of Doom", Sonic Boom

Soneggman is the slash ship between Sonic and Eggman from the Sonic the Hedgehog fandom.

Games
Eggman has many enemies throughout the series, but his arch-nemesis is none other than Sonic. The hedgehog always thwarts the doctor's evil plans for world domination. Despite this, Dr. Eggman has teamed up with Sonic at times mostly whenever the planet is in danger by a greater force, showing that they can somehow go beyond their hatred and get along if the situation calls for it. Two examples being in Sonic Adventure 2 when he helps to stop the Space Colony ARK from crashing into Earth, and in Sonic the Hedgehog where he aided the other heroes in locating the Chaos Emeralds. In addition, shortly after Sonic tells Shadow to give him the Chaos Emeralds instead in the Last Story of Shadow the Hedgehog, Eggman says "Don’t give them to Black Doom!", implying that he at that moment was even willing to let Shadow potentially supply the Emeralds to Sonic if it ensured that they did not go to Black Doom instead. They also form temporary alliances in Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood and Sonic Lost World. This could be because somehow, deep in his heart, he may have a certain fondness for the hedgehog's determination that was as fierce as his own over the years, and gained a certain respect for his constant adversary. In Sonic Adventure 2, when he appeared to have killed Sonic, he refers to the latter as "[Eggman’s] admirable adversary." In the Master System version of Sonic the Hedgehog 2, Eggman managed to save Sonic from a deep fall into a lava pit and pitted him against a (relatively) less lethal trap. It should be noted that this was mostly out of pragmatism since he needed Sonic alive so the latter could retrieve the Chaos Emeralds for him (as he had earlier abducted Tails in an attempt to force Sonic to locate them), something he could not accomplish if Sonic died either before he could find all of them or, worse, if he died while holding onto one of them.

Sonic seems to tease Eggman a lot. It is thought that Sonic might have given him the nickname "Eggman", due to his body shape being an obvious target for criticism. While Sonic usually treats Eggman with playful disregard, Eggman generally views his enemy as either an annoyance or a threat. It is rare that he will ever taunt Sonic back, unless he holds the proverbial cards. It is an obvious fact that Eggman holds a grudge on Sonic most of the time, but in the Sonic Simulator Missions of Sonic Riders: Zero Gravity, Eggman says, "Now that’s the Sonic I know! They don’t call you the fastest in the land for nothing." Akin to this, Sonic can, at times, show that while he does not like Eggman, He does not desire for him to be seriously hurt or killed. An example of this can be taken towards the end of Sonic Lost World, where, upon Eggman’s apparent sacrifice of his own life to save Sonic from a deadly fall into lava, Sonic seemed to be both shocked and even somewhat disheartened by Eggman’s apparent death. However, when the Doctor made his return and claimed he planned on conquering the world as he had always planned, Sonic immediately taunted him and attacked him.

Eggman, ever prideful, maintains a facade that his concern is only for world domination and not Sonic’s death, although there are times when he will directly challenge him. As players approach the end of the games, Eggman refers to Sonic in increasingly threatening ways and places greater priority on stopping him. Eggman has made eliminating Sonic his second goal under world domination. It is also implied that his attempts and failures to defeat Sonic may have driven him somewhat insane, as after revealing his plan to use the Time Eater to rewrite history to ensure he came out on top, the present Eggman proceeded to laugh maniacally and excessively, causing his past counterpart to become disturbed that he may eventually become as crazy as his present self. However, when trapped in the void after both Super Sonics defeated them and the Time Eater, they ultimately admitted they will never be able to defeat Sonic. By the time of Sonic Forces, however, his hatred of Sonic grew to the extent that he created an invincible weapon of destruction to deal back all the defeats Sonic inflicted on him. Nonetheless, he did retain at least some grudging respect for his adversary, as shortly after Infinite’s defeat, he admitted his surprise and impressiveness that Sonic was able to defeat his creation, although he nonetheless makes it very clear that he is impressed solely in the sense that it would make his defeating Sonic more satisfying.

Cartoons
Although part of a different continuity, the early Sonic canon shows Sonic and Robotnik as once being good friends, a side of them that is never seen in the games.

Sonic X
Eggman’s relationship with Sonic is very complex, often running the gamut between mortal enmity and a light-hearted friendly rivalry. One example is in an episode where Eggman manages to collect six Chaos Emeralds, Sonic tries to fight the Emerald-powered Eggsterminator losing terribly. Eggman asks Sonic to surrender because he cannot bear to watch and even asks his robot to give the guy a break. Another example is from episode 53 when he willingly saves an unconscious Sonic at the beach.

Sonic Boom
As enemies, Eggman acts very hostile towards Sonic whenever they fight, all while being very vocal about his sense of superiority towards the hedgehog and his intent to destroy him. Outside their fights, however, they are much more relaxed, allowing themselves to be near the other without conflict. Sometimes, they will even hang out together. At times, whenever he finds himself in situations over his head, Eggman is also not above asking (or begging) for Sonic’s help. He also often lets himself fall for Sonic’s taunts and sarcasm, which frustrates him to no end. For all his annoyance at Sonic, however, Eggman is well aware of how to successfully use his ego against him.

The two of them have hated each other since they first laid eyes on one another and many of Eggman’s schemes center around ensuring Sonic’s destruction. However, their relationship is very complex, with Eggman always being in an internal struggle between his hatred for Sonic (which he has liken to the "fury of a thousand suns") and his never-ending thirst for Sonic’s attention to fill out his emotional void. In fact, Eggman has such an unhealthy obsession with Sonic that he keeps a doll of him around, and he feels just as provoked into attacking Sonic when he feels ignored by him as when Sonic is intentionally taunting him.

Due to his desire for Sonic’s attention, Eggman has shown a certain fondness of him and has displayed an interest in becoming his friend, even calling themselves "bros" while camping with him. In truth, one of Eggman’s reasons for spying on Sonic so often (besides in hopes of finding a way to destroy him) is to get a sense of involvement in Sonic’s life. In Eggman’s own opinion, just because they are sworn enemies, it does not mean they cannot be friends. Their frequent encounters have left Eggman with a profound knowledge of Sonic’s character and his preferences, enough to get them to the finals of Bro-Down Showdown. Eggman also possesses intricate knowledge of Sonic’s abilities and has constructed many traps that can counter them. Also, when dealing with a common threat or problem, they are willing to put aside their differences and work together, even at times showing a sense of good-spirited comradery and well-oiled teamwork. However, they both agree that they can never really be friends since they are arch-enemies. More often than not, though, Eggman only uses his attempts to befriend Sonic as a mean to further his plans.

For all their opposing ways, Eggman and Sonic are ultimately co-dependent and need each other in their lives. Although Eggman often carries out his evil schemes for his own selfish purposes, he tends to feel disappointed and unfulfilled if Sonic does not show up to stop him. Similarly, without Eggman to fight, Sonic becomes too bored, and without Sonic to challenge him, Eggman has no motivation to be a villain and will sink into a slump of self-pity. For better or worse, their never-ending conflict is what drives them and keeps their lives balanced.

Fanon
A feminine YouTuber known as Peachkid’s World Gaming, a Gacha Club AI, fell in love with images of Sonic and Eggman and finds the both of them cute together. Peachkid loves shipping Sonic with taller and older men with mustaches or deeper voices or neither, like Knuckles, Vector, Shadow, Espio, and Dr. Eggman. She’s a huge fan of it. In fact, she’s supported other Soneggman shippers by their fanarts and thinks Sonic is better than Dr. Eggman, even though she loves it when he’s around Sonic.

Fandom
FAN FICTION

DEVIANTART