The Japanese taking the lore over was the best thing that happened to the series. SA1 was mind-numbing: I was there, I saw it all. When I finally had contact with the Japanese lore I was impressed. "This is so much fun, so much more interesting, the characters are so likable..." There was no reason to divide the lore in first place. But it is over already. The Mobius shit is so bad, the games themselves have LOTS of references to the real world. People only like the USA lore because of nostalgia - and I'm not a nostalgic person.
And I kinda like Colors story, to tell the truth - some parts of it reminds me a bit of Sonic CD. My problem is not with lighter stories, my problem is making Sonic stupid and unlikable, and changing the world.
SA1&2 had the correct tone of light and dark. SHeroes was a simpler story with a cool plot twist. And to tell the truth, I think the less characters you have, the better. SA2 was the best in this regard, no one there is superflous, unlike Big in SA1.
And yeah, Sonic was thought for a worldwide audience - what confused Sonic Team a lot when they saw all the changes SEGA of America did. They really didn't liked it, and I see SA1 as their comeback. "Try to change it now, assholes!"
Shadow was never going to die - Iizuka said it himself. He was always supposed to reappear.
And the " humorous approach" SEGA of America tried just helped to damage the brand even more, in a time things were pretty bad.
"Oh you take this shit too seriously!" Yeah, I do. I like it. The development of the games are fascinating. Especially SA1. Sorry. I really like SA1&2, they were the first games that made me think, not just consume.