I actually have a genesis throwback with Krista on it, and I think that if SEGA had put more into him and his games, he could've transitioned really well into out modern age, possibly rivaling mario and continuing the companies' clash.
Oh I loved Ristar, you know Ristar was Sega's original mascot, not Sonic, but they couldn't figure out how to build a franchise around Ristar so they came up with Sonic the Hedgehog. Great pic!