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I've always actually found Sonic to be a compelling character, because he is so under-developed. We have no idea how he became who he is, we have no idea what it is that really motivates him, all we know is that he shows up in the nick of time and saves the day. The other characters are (slightly) more developed in comparison, and this makes some of them compelling for their own reasons (I particularly like Knuckles). However, Shadow is over-developed, and has been since the very beginning. I think this was originally Sonic Team's idea of poking fun at typical anime/game characterizations, but then when the character became so popular with anime/game fans, they started taking Shadow seriously, which only (unintentionally) stressed the point further.

The reason I bring Shadow into this is because Shadow is the anti-Sonic in a lot of ways. The single best example of why I like Sonic as a character is in this dialogue with Shadow from Sonic Adventure 2:

Shadow: It wasn't a Chaos Emerald, was it? But, there's no way you could have activated the Chaos Control using an emerald that's fake! So, there's more to you than just looking like me... What are you, anyway?

Sonic: What you see is what you get! Just a guy that loves adventure! I'm Sonic the Hedgehog!

What Sonic says has to rub you the wrong way, because you know there's more to it than that. There just has to be. Shadow can do Chaos Control because he was genetically created to do things like that. How can Sonic possibly be able do it, too? And with a fake emerald, no less? The answer, of course, is that he's able to do it because he's Sonic. What exactly that means, we'll never be sure, but that's what he is. And there's something captivating about that.

In fact, I think Sonic becomes far less compelling as a character when you give him a childhood, introduce us to his parents, and explore why he does what he does. I like SatAM and Archie all right, but by delving too deep into the character something important is lost. One of the reasons I loved Sonic X was because it showed a version of Sonic that seemed always to be lost in thought, but we never, ever, ever had any idea of just what it was that he was thinking or why he behaved the way he did, except for what the other characters said about him.

Are Sonic and friends dynamic, three-dimensional characters? No, not really. They are very simple and can usually be summed up in a sentence or two. But I think that if they're used well, then that can make for a compelling story.

I resent that. My parents are Catholic and there are only four of us. *Also shot*