Samus-Adam Relationship

The relationship between Samus Aran and Commander Adam Malkovich is a key element to the plots of Metroid: Other M and Metroid Fusion.

Nature
The exact nature of the relationship has varied. In Fusion, Samus reflects on Adam rather fondly and hints on a romantic spark. She names her new AI Commanding Officer after Adam, but quickly grows to revile it for lacking his compassion, especially after it chastises her for destroying the Restricted Laboratory. Late in the game, when the computer informs Samus the Galactic Federation is coming to capture the SA-X, Samus calls it Adam. Having not disclosed her private nickname to the computer, it becomes confused for a minute. After a brief argument, the computer regains control of itself and reveals it actually contains the consciousness of the real Adam.

In Other M, Samus confesses in her monologues that she viewed Adam as her "best friend" and a father figure. She at one point finds herself concerned with Adam's view of her, knowing that he, a staunch opponent of bioweapons, would have strongly condemned her final act from the SR388 Metroid extermination, of sparing the baby and providing it for scientific study.

Anthony Higgs seems to take note of Samus' chemistry with Adam, as he asks her at one point how she feels about him.

Metroid: Other M
Other M, Fusion's prequel features Adam prominently in the story. Samus reunites with him aboard the Bottle Ship for the first time since she became a Bounty Hunter. Adam is bitter with her and calls her an "outsider" (a word that, Samus says, "pierced my heart"), and though he does not authorize Samus to stay, she decides to do so for the sake of his 07th Platoon. Out of respect for Adam, she deactivates all of her upgrades. After assisting the Platoon in defeating a Brug Mass, Adam welcomes her onto the team on the condition that she follow his commands.

In a flashback, the circumstances of Samus' departure from the Federation are revealed - the VIXIV was supervising Ian Malkovich, who was working to repair the destabilizing drive unit of the civilian aircraft Lusitania. The drive unit went critical, and Adam made the hard decision to order the ejection of the machine, though it would kill his brother. Samus protested, believing there was enough time and that she could save Ian, but Adam did not cease the order. Samus later felt guilt for "questioning authority and making things more difficult", causing her to become an independent Bounty Hunter. In the present day, Samus reflects on the incident and says "If something like that happened again, I would hold fast to that glimmer of hope and try for redemption. That's who I am."

Samus grows increasingly aware that Adam knows more about what occurred on the Bottle Ship than he is telling her. She encounters a survivor who shows her a Metroid military program report that Adam wrote concerning the feasibility of Metroids as bioweapons, which were cloned and placed in an area of the Ship called Sector Zero. As she is about to kill a Baby Metroid that surprises her outside of the entrance to this Sector, Adam shoots Samus from behind and kills the Metroid. Adam explains that the Metroids in the Sector were made to be unfreezable, and that his report effectively shut down the idea of Metroids as bioweapons but a corrupt faction of the Federation went ahead with the project anyway. Adam then reveals that Sector Zero will detach and detonate from the Bottle Ship if significant damage is caused to it, something he plans to do without Samus' help.

Samus protests, echoing the incident in which Ian died. Adam explains that Samus is more powerful than him and needs to be alive, saying he can save her but he could never defeat Ridley. He then walks off to his death, locking doors behind him to prevent Samus from following him. She bangs on the doors crying out his name. Finally, Adam turns to her and asks if she has any objections. Bitterly, Samus replies no (see below), and Adam disappears. Samus sheds a tear.

Aftermath
Escaping Sector Zero, Samus swears to finish the mission and rescues Dr. Madeline Bergman, a survivor Adam had told her about. Madeline kills MB and departs with Samus and Anthony in Samus' Gunship. As they return to Galactic Federation Headquarters, Samus questions Adam's choice and says that "the cost was far too great". However, she later realizes that he had made the right decision, as he had years ago. She swears not to grieve his death and finds comfort in that someone else understands her now, just as well as Adam did: Anthony.

Days later, Samus returns to the Bottle Ship as it is scheduled to be destroyed, looking for an object she describes as irreplaceable: Adam's helmet. Disabling her Power Suit, she has a tender moment with the helmet and embraces it, seemingly breaking her vow not to grieve. The Countdown then activates, and Samus escapes suitless from the Bottle Ship with the helmet before it is destroyed. Onboard her ship, she talks to the helmet: "Sorry for keeping you waiting, Adam. Let's go home." What becomes of the helmet is unknown.

Thumbs-up/down sign


Samus met Adam when she joined the Galactic Federation Army. Adam joked with her after his briefings by asking "Any objections, Lady?" as she was the only female under his command. To signal that one understood the mission orders of their commander, a soldier would give a thumbs up sign. Samus developed a reputation for giving a thumbs-down, which told Adam that while she understood the mission orders, she would not be derided by him calling her a lady. In Fusion, she said the phrase was a way of denoting their trust.

As Adam leaves for Sector Zero, he turns and asks a weakened Samus, "No objections, right Lady?" She responds with a bitter thumbs-down. Following the death of MB, at Galactic Federation Headquarters she gives him a thumbs-up for the first time, "just in case he was watching over me." Anthony appears, giving a thumbs-down at her.

Trivia

 * Critics of Other M stated that though Samus describes Adam as a father figure, her actions and thoughts suggests she has romantic feelings for him, thereby creating a warped Electra complex (where a girl is sexually attracted to her father).