Mother Brain

Mother Brain (マザーブレイン, Mazā Burein), is a recurring antagonist and boss in the Metroid series.

Physical Appearance
Mother Brain generally appears as an enormous brain with a single, lidded eye, protruding metal spikes and power cables, which is surrounded by a glass tank, various automated defense systems including Zebetites, and a pool of lava or acid. In Super Metroid, she also had a mouth with sharp teeth. During a cut scene in Metroid Zero Mission she can be seen growing an eye which may mean that she has to grow her own organs. This is supported by several statements in the manga.

Metroid
"Mother Brain lies in the central bast of the fortress planet Zebes, the home of the space pirates. Its aim is to cultivate Metroid to multiply and conquer space. Zeebetite is its energy source. You have to discover Mother Brain's weak point before you can launch a missile attack. When hit, it makes a shrieking noise."

In Metroid, Mother Brain is the final boss in the last room of Tourian. She appears as a large brain within a glass stasis tank, protected by Zebetites and Rinkas. She has two eyes and what appear to be tusks. The brain itself does not attack in any way after the tank is broken, unlike in the remake Metroid: Zero Mission. After Mother Brain's life is gone a self-destruct sequence begins, and Samus is forced to evacuate Zebes immediately. The manual for Metroid states that Mother Brain is the leader of the Space Pirates, which would mean Ridley is under her command, but not necessarily under total control.

Metroid: Zero Mission
In Metroid: Zero Mission, Samus's main objectives are to destroy all Metroid organisms on Zebes and defeat the biological super-computer, Mother Brain. The re-rendered version of Mother Brain shares a slight resemblance to Super Metroid's take. She is located in the lowest area of Tourian and is protected by the classic Zebetites and Rinka. There have been some changes not only on Mother Brain's re-design but on her attacks as well. When her stasis tank is damaged and broken by Samus, Mother Brain gathers energy into her brain and will attack with a bolt of energy fired from her eye; this eye beam could be considered as a precursor/basis to the Hyper Beam the Mother Brain would have in her resurrected Super Metroid form. Strangely, when Samus drops into the lava in the room Mother Brain closes her eye and resumes attack as soon as Samus gets back up. Surprisingly, Mother Brain does not appear as the final boss of the game. After Mother Brain is defeated, Samus takes flight and is ambushed by Space Pirates. There is a turn of events and Samus ends up having to board the Space Pirate Mother Ship in her Zero Suit with a mere stun gun.

Unlike Super Metroid, Mother Brain does not use a mechanical mobile body and is stationary. A revisit to Tourian after acquiring a fully powered suit reveals a hidden chamber underneath the boss's chamber, which was also present in Super Metroid. This may indicate that her body was planned but not fully implemented. The pools of lava have also been replaced by a green-colored acid, the only substance capable of harming Samus while she is wearing the Gravity Suit.

Super Metroid
In Super Metroid, Mother Brain is the final boss, living in the last room of Tourian. The battle against her remains the same. Once Samus defeats her, the actual brain itself falls to the ground and turns pale. After a short wait she starts to rise up and is seen connected to a mechanical body, which is a rebuilt version, being rebuilt by the Space Pirates after her last encounter with Samus.

Mother Brain uses the Hyper Beam against Samus, and when she is about to finish her off, the infant Metroid that she found on SR388 latches itself onto Mother Brain, absorbs her energy, and gives it to Samus, allowing her to use the Hyper Beam against Mother Brain. Mother Brain then kills the infant Metroid, leaving only Samus to battle. Once Samus defeats Mother Brain, a countdown starts, causing Samus to evacuate Zebes once again before it explodes with her on it.

Metroid Manga
In the Metroid Zero Mission Manga Mother Brain begins as an ally of the Chozo. The Chozo use her to keep track of data and reports.

When Samus disarms a number of Iona Faria that had been "corrupted" but doesn't kill them, Mother Brain orders sentry bots to kill them instead, causing Samus to become filled with rage. The manga shows Mother Brain's frustration with the Chozo and with the many raids of the Space Pirates. She also mentions the Metroids as being her and the Chozo's children.

Later on, she takes it upon herself to "dispose" of many of the Chozo, calculating that by taking command of the Space Pirates, she could bring true order to the galaxy. She designated herself, a Chozo named Grey Voice, Ridley, and Samus Aran as Space Pirate commanders, though Samus refuses to cooperate.

Mother Brain also stated that she was the one who created Samus's Power Suit.

Metroid Prime 3: Corruption
In Metroid Prime 3: Corruption, it is revealed that the Galactic Federation invented organic super computers known as Aurora Units. The Mother Brain was built by the Chozo, though the manga indicates that the Federation had some part in this as well, as she was built to link the Federation and Chozo information databases, similar to the function of the Auroras. Also, the Metroid Prime 3: Corruption trailer for Aurora Units shows a "future Aurora complex" which bears a strong resemblance to the Mother Brain's room in Super Metroid.

Leadership Debate
Mother Brain's role in the Metroid series is vague. There is a debate as to whether she or Ridley is the leader of the Space Pirates (this question being more confused with the inclusion of High Command from the "Metroid Prime" games).

According to Super Metroid ' s manual, Metroid: Zero Mission's manual, and the official manga, Ridley is the general of the Space Pirates while Mother Brain is the biological computer which controls Zebes' defenses. However, Metroid ' s manual, Metroid Fusion ' s manual, Metroid: Zero Mission 's game box, the Super Metroid Nintendo Power comic, and Super Metroid ' s in-game introduction refer to Mother Brain as the leader of the Space Pirates, with Metroid ' s manual saying that Ridley is controlled by Mother Brain. The manga later retcons this to rectify any confusion by stating that Mother Brain took over as one of the pirates' leaders, while keeping Ridley in his former position.

The Space Pirate Data in Metroid Prime refers to a High Command that commands the Space Pirates, which included ordering Ridley to be reconstructed. Whether or not Ridley is part of High Command is unclear. He may be the Pirate general, answering to High Command and/or Mother Brain. Also in the scans of the Pirate Commander on the Pirate Homeworld, it says 'Each of these pirates has ascended to the ruling caste on the Pirate Homeworld.' The High Command may actually be a group of Space Pirates with high authority over all others, as opposed to one being controlling the Pirates. Also in Echoes's Pirate Lore scans, one trooper wrote, The command to mass produce Metroids is obscene. and High Command will not be happy when they are sharing a bunk with hungry Metroid infants. This suggests also that High Command is a group and not one being; this also implies that there may be more than one High Command, and that the different games are referring to separate High Commands, one group per planet.

Mother Brain battle from Super Metroid
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Other appearances

 * In the TV show Captain N: The Game Master, Mother Brain is portrayed as a female supervillain with a human-like face. This depiction was also used in the Valiant-published comic book based on the series, and in an obscure German comic with larger, more grotesque lips. Mother Brain's voice in the Captain N cartoon was provided by the late Levi Stubbs of the The Four Tops, who also played the voice of Audrey II in the 1986 version of Little Shop of Horrors. Like Audrey II, Mother Brain in Captain N had a feisty and flamboyant personality. She was very power-hungry but also incompetent and easily frustrated by her slow-witted assistants, King Hippo and the Eggplant Wizard.


 * Mother Brain also appeared as the leader of the antagonists in the lesser-known Captain N comic book series.


 * Mother Brain has appeared in WarioWare, Inc. series. The first game of the series, WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Microgame$, has a microgame that re-enacts the fight between Samus and Mother Brain from Metroid.

Trivia

 * In a PC World article, Mother Brain was voted as #6 of the top 47 "most diabolical videogame villains of all time."


 * As the Metroid series was inspired by the Alien movies and borrowed a few elements from it, Mother Brain may have had her name derived from the main computer of the Nostromo, "Mother". The self-destruct sequence is finalized by this main computer against Ellen Ripley's wishes just before the ship's destruction, and is seen as a sort of antagonist throughout the movie.