 Japanese title card · “Dr. Eggman Joins the War!” | |
| Series | Sonic X (ソニックX), TMS Entertainment |
| Season | Season 3 (2005–2006) |
| Episode | Season 3, episode 4 · no. 56 of 78 |
| English title | “An Enemy in Need” (4Kids) |
| Japanese title | Ｄｒ．エッグマン参戦！ (Dokutā Egguman Sansen!, “Dr. Eggman Joins the War!”) |
| Japan | Not shown on Japanese TV until 31 March 2020 (Kids Station) |
| First aired (US) | 1 October 2005 · 4Kids TV (Fox) |
| Directed by | Takuo Suzuki |
| Written by | Hiro Masaki |
| Storyboard | Masanori Mizuhara |
| Previous episode | H2 Whoa (S03E03) |
| Next episode | A Chilling Discovery (S03E05) |
Metarex SagaEggman in space
An Enemy in Need is episode 4 of Season 3 of Sonic X and the 56th of the anime’s 78 episodes. In Japan it is called “Dr. Eggman Joins the War!” (Ｄｒ．エッグマン参戦！). It premiered in English: 4Kids aired it on 4Kids TV (Fox) on 1 October 2005, after a French TV debut on 14 March 2005, while Japanese TV only showed it on 31 March 2020. It was directed by Takuo Suzuki and written by Hiro Masaki.
Synopsis
With the Metarex driven off Hydo, the planet’s grateful people throw a feast for Sonic and his friends. Watching the celebration from a distance is Dr. Eggman, who has followed the Blue Typhoon into space aboard his own ship and is already planning his next move.
He finds Knuckles alone and turns on the charm: he doesn’t want to be a villain any more, he says, he just needs a Chaos Emerald to leave the planet. Knuckles believes every word. When the others refuse to hand over the Emerald they have just found, he and Sonic come to blows while a distraught Cosmo begs them to stop.
Then Bocoe and Decoe’s giant robot grabs Cosmo, and Eggman offers a trade: the girl for the gem. Rouge spots a chance to steal it, but a frog-shaped Metarex bursts out of the ground and gets there first. Sonic, fired from the Sonic Driver with help from Chris, brings it down, and a sheepish Knuckles apologises for being fooled again.
Key Moments
- Eggman joins the space race in his own ship.
- Knuckles falls for Eggman’s act.
- A frog Metarex swallows a Chaos Emerald.
Trivia
- The Japanese title, “Dr. Eggman Joins the War!”, is blunter than 4Kids’ “An Enemy in Need”.
- On home video: the The Complete 5th Season DVD set (2006); and Discotek’s Sonic X Collection 2 (2016) and complete-series Blu-rays.
Watch the Episode
The full 4Kids English episode, uploaded by TMS Entertainment’s official “Anime! on TMS” YouTube channel (checked 6 November 2026).
Part of our Sonic X Season 3 guide. See the Sonic X series page for the cast, theme songs and home video.
Sources: titles, credits and air dates from Wikipedia’s list of Sonic X episodes and Sonic Wiki Zone, cross-checked with each other and with Luke’s original Sonic Scene episode table; synopsis written for Sonic Scene from the episode, Wikipedia’s summary and Sonic Wiki Zone’s plot notes; title card and screenshots via Sonic Wiki Zone, copied to our media library.