| “ | In the vast universe, the history of humanity is but a flash of light from a lone star. The life of a single person should be lost in space and time. But among the stars, there is one light that burns brighter than all others. The light of Samus Aran. Her battles extend beyond her life, and etch themselves into history. | „ |
—Metroid Prime intro | ||
Samus Aran (サムス・アラン (Samusu Aran), is the main character and protagonist of the Metroid series.
Orphaned during a Space Pirate raid on her home of K-2L, Samus was adopted by the mysterious Chozo and taken to Zebes where she was infused with their DNA and raised to become a warrior. Once she reached adulthood, Samus joined the Federation Police where she served under the Commanding Officer Adam Malkovich, but she ultimately left to become a bounty hunter, though she was nonetheless recruited by the Galactic Federation on many occasions. Armed in her cybernetic Power Suit, Samus has become famous for her accomplishments on missions others thought impossible. Her most renowned achievements are the destruction of the Space Pirate base on Zebes, her role in ending the Galactic Phazon crisis, her extermination of the Metroid species, and her disobedience of orders at the BSL station where she chose to destroy the deadly X Parasites rather than turn them over to the Galactic Federation.
Samus broke ground early in the gaming world in the 1986 game Metroid, her first appearance. Originally players were under the impression that Samus was a male, as even the instruction booklet confirmed this. However, completing Metroid under an hour revealed Samus to be a young athletic woman.[2] Although Samus wears the Power Suit throughout most of the Metroid series, it has become a tradition to depict her in much more revealing attire at the end of each game, often as a reward for satisfying certain conditions such as completing the game quickly or with a high percentage of the game’s items collected or even both.
Biography
Main article: Biography of Samus Aran
Personality and portrayal
Metroid Fusion's artwork gave various brief insights into Samus's early life.
Samus's personality has never been detailed in-depth within the context of the games, a conscious decision by Nintendo to help the player imagine themselves better as the in-game character, as well as allowing them to imagine Samus's personality and backstory in any way they wish. However, Metroid Fusion, Metroid Prime 3: Corruption, and Metroid: Other M are perhaps the most notable games in the series to give of a glimpse of Samus' personality, as well as other media formats such as comics and manga.
Typically, Samus is depicted as a Byronic hero, who despite her great achievements, is deep down very lonely and brooding, and seeks revenge against the Space Pirates, especially Ridley, who is personally responsible for the death of her parents. Samus is known to have been inspired by Sigourney Weaver's character Ripley from the Alien series. However, unlike Ripley, Samus is never shown to be traumatized by the Metroids she faces on her various missions. She was, however, petrified when she encountered Ridley in the manga, where she is seen to suffer from Posttraumatic Stress Disorder. This affliction surfaced again when she discovered Ridley in Metroid: Other M to the point that she could barely communicate; she could not regain her composure until Anthony Higgs was thought to be killed while trying to defend her. This portrayal, as well as other parts of her personailty revealed in Other M, were criticised by the general fanbase because they portray her as weaker and more unstable or afraid than previous games, creating a persona that is the polar opposite of the general image most fans have of Samus based on her previous appearances and the brief insights into her thoughts and past.
In licensed Metroid material outside of the games, Samus’s personality is largely left up to the writer in question. As a result, her personality has varied considerably between major publications. The 2002 manga depicts her as suffering from childhood trauma and often thinking heavily about her role and the role of the Pirates. In the Captain N: The Game Master comics, Samus is depicted as brash and money-hungry (as just about any bounty hunter would be), though she is willing to compete fairly with Princess Lana for the protagonist Kevin Keene’s feelings. In the Nintendo Comics System series, Samus unusually has a Southern accent, and commonly uses phrases like "pardner." [citation needed] She also seems to like a presumably alcoholic beverage called Comet Grog. In Metroid II, Samus bonds with a Metroid who was born in front of her eyes, and decides to spare it, seeing her three-year-old self during the attack on K-2L. It later sacrifices itself at the end of Super Metroid to save Samus, leaving her heartbroken as shown in Metroid: Other M. Her relationship with the Metroid, called "the Baby" by her, is comparable to Ripley's relationship with a surviving LV-426 colonist named Rebecca "Newt" Jorden. Like the Baby, Newt dies in the sequel, Alien3, and just like Samus, Ripley feels guilt over her death.
Samus’s lack of defined personality is largely due to the fact that, aside from opening narrations, she has never had a speaking role except in Metroid: Other M. Prior to Metroid: Other M her voice would be represented by text at the beginning narration, as well as throughout Metroid Fusion. Her character depicted in Metroid Fusion, though mostly well received, did garner some criticism from gamers for its depiction of Samus, who they felt should have been better left to their imagination.[3]
While Samus does not have royal heritage in any of the games, she was depicted as the queen of Garbage World in A King of Shreds and Patches in Captain N, and Anthony Higgs gives her the nickname "Princess" in Metroid: Other M (although in concept artwork James Pierce says "Heey, Princess!" likely referring to Samus [2]). Non-canonically, she is also depicted sitting on the throne in the King Conan Diorama in Corruption. This would seem to indicate that she became an empress to the Reptilicus, although this is never depicted ingame.
The Fusion manual seems to indicate that Samus keeps a journal.
Physical appearance
Samus Aran in the top endings of Metroid, Metroid II, and Super Metroid.
Samus Aran is a Human. She is 6 feet 3 inches tall and weighs 198 pounds (this may or may not include her armor). Her hair color is blond, her eye color is blue and she appears to be Caucasian. Samus wears her hair in a ponytail, except for two locks on either side of her head, a hairstyle that is distinctive to her.
Samus’s appearance has varied between games. In the original Metroid, her hair was brown, though it would turn green once the player acquired the Varia Suit. If Metroid II: Return of Samus was played with a Super Game Boy, Game Boy Player or Game Boy Advance, her hair would be colored red. It wasn’t until Super Metroid that she officially became blond.
Samus’s signature hairstyle first debuted in Metroid Zero Mission, and has been met with both positive and negative critical reception. This hairstyle has been present in every Metroid game released since. The only exception is Metroid Prime Hunters which, though it retained Samus’s ponytail, was missing the two locks of hair on each side of her head. Previously, Samus had been depicted with a ponytail in Metroid Prime and (briefly) at the end of Metroid II and Super Metroid.
Samus Aran as she appears in the Prime series
Samus’s face structure has also varied between games. Metroid II, Super Metroid, and Metroid Fusion gave her a wider face and larger eyes than later incarnations. In Metroid Prime, her jaw was squarer, her eyes were more deep-set, and her lips were more defined. Zero Mission gave her higher cheekbones and a thinner face than previous installments, and that template has been the basis for every game since. Echoes’s incarnation is possibly the most critically panned appearance of Samus, due to the in-game model suffering from the uncanny valley. Prime Hunters, on the other hand, is currently the most positively received incarnation of Samus. This game gave Samus a face that appeared to be a fusion of Zero Mission’s and Prime’s depiction. Samus retained the deep-set eyes, traditional ponytail, and fuller face from Prime, but also had Zero Mission’s higher cheekbones. Corruption’s is closer to that is Zero Mission, with a thinner, more anime styled face. A common misconception is that this is the same game-model used for Super Smash Bros. Brawl. However, the two games were developed separately and the Brawl model of Samus shows many notable differences from Corruption’s model. Samus’s appearance in Brawl appears to be a Zero Mission incarnation. On the other hand, Metroid: Other M is perhaps the largest change Samus has ever had to her appearance since Zero Mission, as she is depicted for the first time with short hair and an Asian appearance. While her adult appearance still gives her a ponytail, the two locks on either side of her head have been heavily reduced in size, her bangs have been altered and her ponytail has been moved to the nape of the neck. She also has the beauty mark that Yoshio Sakamoto alluded to in the Super Metroid developer interview, under the left side of her lip. Before the credits, Samus is briefly depicted with her hair down, the first instance of this in 3-D. With her hair down, she has locks of hair hanging over her shoulders. After Anthony steps in, the lock over her right shoulder is no longer there. She then ties her hair back into her ponytail, mirroring the scenes in Metroid II and Super Metroid where she unties the ponytail.
Powers and abilities
Samus Aran in her Zero Suit, demonstrating her athletic abilities.
| “ | Even without the Power Suit, all that training she did with the Chozo has made her a super athlete. I don't think a normal human could ever keep up. Just look at her. | „ |
—Mei Ling (from Metal Gear Solid), Super Smash Bros. Brawl. | ||
Samus Aran’s infusion with Chozo DNA, as well as her warrior training since her childhood, has turned Samus in a superior athelete. Her training began at the age of 3 and continued up until she was 14 years old. As a result of the Chozo’s influence, Samus is capable of running and jumping heights far past normal human ability, as well as surviving falls that would otherwise kill an ordinary human. Samus is also more adaptive to foreign alien environments that humans cannot survive in. For example, she was able to breathe normally without her Power Suit on Elysia, despite the atmosphere being toxic to humans, though this is due to her alien DNA infusions. While Samus does not exhibit any powers that humans do not naturally have (except for the aforementioned capability of surviving in alien environments), all of the normal human limits have been exceeded to the max.
Samus gains an additional boost of power, in addition to the upgrades it provides, as seen in this Metroid: Other M art.
Samus also demonstrates good sharpshooting skills. She is an excellent marksman, with incredible aim, and is tremendously deadly in combat. She exhibits prodigious puzzle-solving and hacking skills. She also possess a limber figure that allows her to crawl through tunnels and gaps that would normally require usage of the Morph Ball. All of these are, of course, augmented further by her Power Suit. If need be, Samus will engage in physical combat, often using kicks and wrestling tactics to weaken her foe for a point-blank shot.
The extent of Samus’ training after she joined the Federation Police is currently unknown, but it is clear that the Federation has made one major augmentation to her abilities: her infusion with Metroid DNA. This infusion was done in a last-ditch attempt to save her life after she was infected with the X Parasite, and thus it was not completely known at the time what the side effects would be. As a result of the infusion, Samus gained immunity to X Parasites, but also inherited the Metroid’s crippling weakness to cold, though this disability is canceled out with a later Varia Suit upgrade. She does not seem to have inherited their ability to float, and still relies on the Space Jump to do so. It is currently unknown whether Samus has inherited the Metroid’s signature ability to leech life energy from other lifeforms, aside from the well-documented X Parasites, though this is likely to be resolved in any sequels taking place after Metroid Fusion.
Equipment
Samus Aran in her signature Varia Suit from Metroid Prime.
Samus’ most notable piece of equipment is, of course, her Power Suit, which has become virtually synonymous with her own identity. This suit was given to her when she first began living with the Chozo, and was built to be fused with her mind, body, and soul. The original Power Suit was destroyed when Samus crash-landed on Zebes after an ambush by Space Pirates, but her duel with the Ruins Test gave her a new, upgraded suit, which is able to absorb dozens of upgrades of alien origin. The Power Suit's main purpose is to protect her from adverse environments and enemy fire. The suit itself can be upgraded to dozens of other forms, each with its own different advantages. While some suits are stronger than others and have different abilities, they all maintain the same basic shape and usage.
Beneath the Power Suit, Samus wears a skin-tight body suit known as the Zero Suit. Because of its negligible weight, this suit allows Samus to perform at top physical performance level, and gives some, albeit weak, protection from enemy fire. She also owns a pistol known as the Paralyzer, which auto-charges to fire stunning shots, though unfortunately, it has no lethal capacity.
For transportation, Samus uses her Gunship, which usually resembles her helmet. She has owned a single Gunship that has been with her since her very first Zero Mission and remained in her possession until its destruction in Metroid Fusion. It is a Hunter-class starship made especially for her by the Galactic Federation on Aliehs III. Two other gunships are also shown in Metroid Prime 3: Corruption and Metroid Fusion.
Behind the Scenes
Concept and Creation
| “ | Samus is an ideal role model not just to me, but for many women to look up to as a powerful game icon. In a video game realm with princesses aplenty, Samus stands out as an atypical Nintendo gal holding the title of one of gaming's strongest symbols of courage, power, and heroism. | „ |
—Michelle Perl | ||
Early concept art of Samus Aran.
Samus Aran first appeared in 1986, as the playable protagonist in the video game Metroid. Originally , Samus was created solely as a alternate identity for the player to put themselves into and was given no separate personality or defining features, characteristic of the creative treatment of many video game characters of the time. Partway through the development process, one member of the team suggested: "Hey, wouldn’t it be cool if the character turned out to be a woman?” A vote was held and Samus was changed into a woman. Since the film series "Alien" was acknowledged as a major influence in the development of Metroid, it is reasonable to assume that the inspiration for making Samus a woman may have very well come from the film's own Ellen Ripley. Indeed, in the Nintendo Power-published Super Metroid comic, her personality was based on a mix of Ripley and Princess Leia from the Star Wars series. Contrary to popular belief, Samus was not created by Metroid producer Gunpei Yokoi. The original game concepts were done by game director Makoto Kanōh and were designed by Hiroji Kiyotake.[4]
Samus's true identity as a woman was a heavily guarded secret, and was obscured by the already simple Power Suit’s androgynous appearance. The game manuals for Metroid in Japan uses pronouns like "it" mainly because the Japanese language only has gender-neutral pronouns like aista. The American manuals instead used male pronouns like "he", but it is unknown if this was a botched attempt to keep Samus’s gender a secret or simply a mistranslation. Only by beating the game in under an hour could the player gain access to a secret ending where Samus would remove her Power Suit and reveal herself to be a woman. It has become a tradition for Samus to do so in every Metroid game since, if the player completes the proper in-game requirements.
Concept art for Samus in Metroid:Zero Mission
Super Metroid marked the first time Samus ever spoke in a game, narrating the events directly after Metroid II: Return of Samus. Her speaking role was expanded in Metroid Fusion, where she spoke in more narrative monologues, and also conversations with her computer. Though Fusion was well praised, there was some controversy over Samus’s speaking role and as a result, aside from an opening narration in Zero Mission, she did not speak again until Metroid: Other M, the first Metroid game to give Samus voiced dialogue.
Yoshio Sakamoto based the image of Samus Aran for Super Metroid on actress Kim Bassinger. She was also briefly nude when she died in this game with a voice by Minako Hamano, but these elements were reconsidered because of American sensitivity to nudity and the voice sounding "too sexual", so Tomomi Yamane added the bathing suit to her and the voice acting was removed. Sakamoto claimed in a Super Metroid interview that he has "a special version of the ROM" with the original death sequence. Sakamoto also claimed in this interview to be the only person to know "where Samus's beauty mark is," which later turned up in Metroid: Other M under the left side of her lip and was marked in concept art for Metroid Prime, but was not added to the model.[3] Despite the absence of Hamano's voice in the final game, there is some sound that comes from Samus. When panting on the ground after being weakened by Mother Brain, she begins breathing heavily after the baby leaves, but stops when it comes back to heal her.
Samus first received a voice actor in the game Metroid Prime, where she was voiced by Jennifer Hale. Samus has no in-game dialogue, however, and speaks only in various grunts and yells when damaged, a scream when killed, and rarely, breathing. Hale has remained her voice actress throughout the entire Prime series and it is unknown if she will return to reprise the role in future games. Her second voice actress was Alesia Glidewell in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. Glidewell also voices Knuckle Joe and Krystal in the same game. Most surprising about Glidewell’s depiction of her is that Samus is given a voice-over with speaking lines for the first time. While she is in her Zero Suit, she speaks for all three of her taunts, and one victory cutscene. Her lines are:
- "Is that all?"
- "Try me."
- "You’re mine."
- "Be still."
Metroid: Other M features Samus speaking again, voiced by Jessica Martin. In the Japanese version, she is voiced by Ai Kobayashi.
In the Japanese commercial for Metroid: Zero Mission, Samus is portrayed by Chisato Morishita.
The name Samus is the female variant of the name Seamus, which is Celtic for James, which means: "He who supplants". Her last name of Aran may refer to the Aran Islands on the west coast of Ireland. Combining the two gives the meaning: "She who supplants an island" or "She who conquers an isolated area by force."[5] Pronunciation of the name over the years has varied from either SAMUHS A-RUHN (as in the verb "run"), A-RAHN (using the "CAT" vowel for the first two As and the verb form of "ran"), but it wasn’t until the release of Metroid Prime 3: Corruption that pronunciation of her name was finally cemented as SAMUHS ERR-EN, and it is likely to remain this way since.
Role in other media
Being one of Nintendo’s flagship franchises, Metroid, and Samus with it, have been featured in a variety of other media, as cameos, or in promotional material, as well as being mentioned or spoofed in other games or on television.
Super Smash Bros. series
Samus is one of the original eight characters in the Super Smash Bros. series and has appeared in all three games to date. The wide array of weapons she can use include Missiles, Super Missiles, the Charge Beam, the Grapple Beam, the Screw Attack, and Bombs, as well as a flamethrower. Her Gunship from Metroid II: Return of Samus appears as a trophy in Super Smash Bros. Melee and returns once more in Brawl.
In Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Samus is given access to a powerful new weapon as her Final Smash: the Zero Laser. It allows her to fire a gigantic laser of incredible strength, but consumes so much energy that Samus’s Power Suit falls apart, leaving her in her Zero Suit. While she is in that form, she becomes far faster and gains access to her Paralyzer, which she can use as an energy whip and to fire stunning shots.
Adventure Mode: The Subspace Emissary
Samus Aran as she appears in The Subspace Emissary.
Samus also plays a role in Brawl's Adventure mode: The Subspace Emissary. In it, she first appears in her Zero Suit, breaking into the base of the Subspace Army on the Island of the Ancients. Soon she comes across a Pikachu being drained of its electrical power. Samus uses her whip to break the container the Pikachu is being held in, summoning a security force of R.O.B.s. The two join forces to retrieve Samus’s Power Suit, but are confronted by two Shadow Bug clones mimicking it.
After reacquiring her Power Suit, Samus and Pikachu come across Ridley. He grabs Samus and starts to drag her against the wall, until Pikachu returns Samus's favor and uses Thunder on Ridley, causing him to drop Samus. An infuriated Ridley attacks. Once they defeat him, the duo exits the base and come across a cave where R.O.B.s are exiting with newly manufactured Subspace Bombs.
Samus and Pikachu make their way through the Subspace Bomb Factory and find the Ancient Minister with the R.O.B. Squad. They prepare to fight, but then realize that he looks very sad. At that moment, Captain Falcon, Olimar, Diddy and DK burst in. A hologram of Ganondorf appears and orders the R.O.B. Squad to activate the remaining bombs. The Ancient Minister tries to stop them, but is set on fire when Ganondorf orders them to retaliate. After the Ancient Minister is revealed to be a R.O.B. himself, Samus and the other characters all rush out to escape the Island before it is engulfed, but are confronted by Meta Ridley and duel him aboard the Falcon Flyer.
Samus groups up with the other fighters to lead an assault on the Subspace Gunship, during which she uses her own gunship as a distraction to buy enough time for Kirby to arrive on the Dragoon. She and the other fighters head into the Subspace Realm, but she is defeated by Tabuu and turned into a trophy when Tabuu arrives and uses his Off Waves to defeat all who are attacking him. King Dedede later comes to save her and she continues with the others to lead the final attack on Tabuu.
Cameos in other Nintendo titles
- Famicom Wars (1988, Famicom) (Unreleased outside Japan; The Red Star commander on Donut Island is called Samasuun, and her face on the result screen is Samus's helmet.)[6]
- Tetris (1989, NES) (Cameo, appears playing the upright bass after the player wins a B-type game of level at least 9 and height at least 2.)[6]
- F-1 Race (1990, Game Boy) (Cameo, appears cheering for the player with four other women before Course 7)[6]
- Galactic Pinball (Virtual Boy) (Cameo, her ship appears in a minigame where the player must shoot oncoming Metroid enemies, similar to Space Invaders)
- Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (1996, SNES) (Cameo, after Mario's party defeats Yaridovich and until Mario travels to Land's End, he may find her sleeping in the Mushroom Kingdom Castle. Also, a Samus figurine appears in the toy box of Booster's Room.)
- Kirby Super Star (1996, SNES) (Cameo, when Kirby uses his stone ability he can become a Samus statue. Also, the Screw Attack icon (called the Screwball) is a treasure in the Great Cave Offense segment of the game.)[7]
- Kirby’s Dream Land 3 (1997, SNES) (Cameo, appears after level 5-2, which also contains six Metroids. If Kirby defeats them all using an Ice power, Samus will remove her helmet.)[7]
- Super Smash Bros. (1999, N64) (Playable character)
- Super Smash Bros. Melee (2001, Nintendo GameCube]) (Playable character)
- Animal Crossing (Nintendo GameCube) (An e-Reader card called "Samus's Suit" gives the player a Power Suit to wear in the game. This is coded on the card, and not the game, however.)
- The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time Master Quest (2003, Nintendo GameCube) (Includes a trailer for Metroid Prime.)
- WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Microgame$! (2003, Game Boy Advance) (Contains a microgame based on NES Metroid called Metroid (microgame), with Samus firing missiles at the Mother Brain. Though she cannot move, the Morph Ball is functional.)
- Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga (2003, Game Boy Advance) (Samus was intended to appear at Starbeans Cafe, among other Nintendo characters, during a scripted event. Dialog remains in the game's code- "Cashier: Whoa! A power outage? Yikes! Samus Aran! I see you're rocking and rolling as usual! ...Looks like your energy tanks are empty! Sorry, but can't you give your Hoolumbian to Samus? Oh! Feeling better?" She would then give the player an Energy Tank in exchange for the drink. Ultimately, most of the items were replaced with similar ones in the final game, though the Energy Tank became a Power Grip accessory.)
- WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Party Game$! (2004, Nintendo GameCube) (Contains Metroid (microgame) from WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Microgame$!)
- WarioWare: Touched! (2005, Nintendo DS) (Contains a microgame based on Metroid)
- WarioWare: Twisted! (2005, Game Boy Advance) (Contains two microgames based on Metroid and another full game called "Mewtroid" starring a rolling cat with an Arm Cannon and Brinstar music.)
- Animal Crossing: Wild World (2005, Nintendo DS) (Gulliver, the seagull, references Samus saying "Tell me, have you ever heard of the bounty hunter that can turn into a ball?" Also you can get a 1x1 item that is a Metroid in a case. When you touch it, it glows and plays a small clip of Metroid music.)
- Geist (2005, Nintendo GameCube) (Samus’s helmet and red clothing are seen in a locker within the women’s locker room at Volks Corporation.)[6]
- Tetris DS (2006, Nintendo DS) (Metroid-based course, Catch Mode; in the title screen, Samus shoots some tetrominoes; A difficulty level on Marathon Mode is Metroid Themed, with Samus to the right, and clips of the original Metroid playing on the top screen, but with a more realistic background.)
- Marvel: Ultimate Alliance (Wii) for the Wii was intended to include Samus and Link, but Nintendo did not allow Activision to include them. A video shows her using many of her attacks from the series, which would have been motion-activated.)
- WarioWare: Smooth Moves (2007, Wii) (Contains a microgame based on Metroid Prime 2: Echoes. Samus also occasionally appears in two other games, with a Super Metroid cartridge in one and Samus playing an upright bass again (as she had in Tetris) in another.)
- Super Smash Bros. Brawl (2007, Wii) (Playable character, Zero Suit Samus is also a playable character. Mainly partnered with Pikachu, she plays a large role in the game's story, The Subspace Emissary.)
- Fatal Frame IV: Mask of the Lunar Eclipse (Japan 2008, Wii) (Zero Suit is one of two unlockable Nintendo costumes.)
- Kirby Super Star Ultra (2008, Nintendo DS) (Samus statue and Screw Attack, now correctly named, appear in this SNES remake.)
- Animal Crossing: City Folk (2008, Wii) (Samus Helmet, Metroid, and Varia Suit available in game.)
- Phantasy Star Ø (Japan 2008, Nintendo DS) (Samus's Arm Cannon is one of two available Nintendo weapons.)
- Dead or Alive: Dimensions (2011, Nintendo 3DS) (Samus makes an appearance towards the end of every match on the Geothermal Power Plant to kill Ridley with her Power Bomb. A recent interview confirmed her unlockability. [4])
In other media
- Samus was also a semi-regular character in the Captain N: The Game Master comic books, published as part of the Nintendo Comics System. In these stories, Samus has romantic feelings for Kevin Keene, the main character, despite his own affections for another woman, Princess Lana. However, as she states in the story "Breakout", Samus prefers to win Kevin’s affections fairly. Samus's gunship also makes an appearance, though in a very different form than in the games. Interestingly, the ship's class in the comic was "Hunter IV", suggesting that the ship's canonical designation ("Hunter Class") may have been derived from the comic.
- In the Captain N: The Game Master cartoon, Samus did not appear, even though Mother Brain was the show's primary villain. Jeffrey Scott claimed in an interview that he didn’t feature Samus in the cartoon because he "never heard of her".[8]
- Samus also starred in her own Nintendo Comics System stories, apparently set in the same continuity, titled Deceít Du Jour; it was the only ten-page story to have the Metroid umbrella title. In this story, Samus duels with another Bounty Hunter, 'Big Time' Brannigan, whom Mother Brain has hired to capture her, and who claims to be just as efficient as Samus. In the end, Samus proves her superiority by sabotaging her own gun (after he damages her Arm Cannon) before handing it over to Big Time. When Big Time attempts to kill her with it later on, it explodes, covering Samus's escape.
Topps waxpack
- In the 1989 movie The Wizard, Metroid can be seen briefly (in a full-screen shot) on a PlayChoice-10.
- A super deformed doll in Samus's likeness that Princess Peach desired drove the humorous plot for a Mario VS Wario comic that was published one month prior to the Super Metroid comic.
- Samus also starred in two comic adaptations featured in Nintendo Power: a 60-page one for Super Metroid[9] and a 24-page one for Metroid Prime.
- Samus also appeared in the Samus and Joey series of manga, where she meets a boy named Joey and adventures with him.
- Samus once appeared in a Kool-Aid commercial that advertised Metroid II: Return of Samus. An animated version of her is seen in the back of a bus with two children.
- In the episode of the show "Code Monkeys" called "Valley of the Silicon Dolls", Larrity searches for bounty hunters to kill the robotic teddy bear that Dave, Jarry, and Black Steve reprogrammed. Towards the end of the episode, a warped version of Samus's ship rises up and Samus jumps out and kills the teddy bear. She then removes her helmet and reveals that she is actually Marry. She then morphs into a ball and rolls away. This version of Samus has the arm cannon on her left arm instead of her right, probably due to copyright issues with Nintendo.
- Samus can be seen on Nintendo Monopoly representing New York Avenue for $200, and is featured prominently on the box based on Metroid Prime 2: Echoes artwork.
- Samus is shown on pages 26 and 27 in How to Draw Nintendo Greatest Heroes & Villains.
- In the FOX drama series, [M.D.] the title character, Gregory House, is often seen playing Metroid Zero Mission.
Official data
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Super Smash Bros.
"Samus Aran is the toughest bounty hunter in the galaxy. Using a special suit powered by the technology of the bird people which allows her to execute daring acrobatic feats, Samus pursues the airborne life form, Metroid, throughout the universe."
Works: Metroid (NES), Metroid II: Return of Samus (GB), Super Metroid (SNES)
Super Smash Bros. Melee
"This intergalactic bounty hunter's full name is Samus Aran. Clad in a Power Suit made by the Chozo race and infused with their enhanced blood, she cleared the planet Zebes of a Metroid infestation. Samus is an orphan, the sole survivor of a Space Pirate raid that destroyed an Earth colony named K-2L."
Metroid, 08/89
"Samus has an abundance of projectile weapons, making her a long- distance attack specialist. The most powerful weapon in her arsenal is the Charge Beam, but be warned: It can be reflected. Her missiles have homing capabilities, but when fired as Smash Attacks, they fly on a straight trajectory and have boosted power."
[B: Charge Shot] [Smash B: Missile]
"While Samus's arsenal missile weapons is indeed formidable, her enemies are in for a rude awakening if they guard against nothing else. Her grappling beam captures foes and latches on to walls, and the Screw Attack drags foes upward in a series of spins that doubles as a recovery move. Samus can also use her Bombs to perform Bomb Jumps."
[Up & B: Screw Attack] [Down & B: Bomb]
Metroid Prime website
"The bounty hunter Samus Aran was hired by the Galactic Federation to exterminate the Space Pirate army on Planet Zebes. Samus was successful in not only defeating the Space Pirate army, but in neutralizing the Metroid threat as well. Performance and professionalism were very impressive.
With her Chozo-built Power Suit, Samus prefers hi-tech weaponry to deal with enemy threats, although the bounty hunter also undoubtedly also possesses excellent melee combat skills."
Metroid Prime Pirate Data: "The Hunter"
Template:Infobox Logbook
Metroid Prime Hunters
Metroid.com
"Samus Aran is well known throughout the galaxy as an efficient and experienced bounty hunter. Few other hunters can compete with Samus's long history of successful missions, most of which are carried out against seemingly insurmountable odds."
Manual
"One of the best bounty hunters in the galaxy. Her Power Suit has the ability to transform her into a Morph Ball."
Metroid Prime 3: Corruption
Unused Logbook entries
Template:Infobox Multiple LogbooksCite error: Invalid <ref> tag; invalid names, e.g. too many
Super Smash Bros. Brawl
"The intergalactic bounty hunter named Samus Aran. Orphaned at an early age, she was taken in and raised by the alien race known as the Chozo. The Power Suit she wears is a product of their technology. Her unique combat skills combined with her athleticism and Arm Cannon have seen her through countless missions."
Metroid (1987)
Super Metroid (1994)
Stickers
Samus is also featured on several stickers.
- Dark Suit Samus Metroid Prime 2: Echoes - [Throwing] Attack +16 (All)
- Gravity Suit Samus Metroid: Zero Mission - [Weapon] Attack +11 (Samus, Zero Suit Samus)
- Running Zero Suit Samus Metroid: Zero Mission - [Weapon] Attack +25 (All)
- Samus Metroid Fusion - [Electric] Resistance +16 (Samus, Zero Suit Samus)
- Samus Metroid Prime 2: Echoes - [Explosive] Attack +18 (All)
- Samus Metroid - [Specials: Indirect] Attack +15 (Samus, Zero Suit Samus)
- Zero Suit Samus Metroid: Zero Mission - [Leg] Attack + 9 (Samus, Zero Suit Samus)
Metroid Prime Trilogy
Manual
"'One of the most skilled bounty hunters in the galaxy."
Art booklet
"Samus lived with her parents on the planet K-2L, a human colony in the Galactic Federation domain. When Samus was three years old, K-2L was attacked by a band of Space Pirates lead by the brutal ruffian Ridley. When the Space Pirates left and the smoke cleared, a single figure remained standing. It was Samus Aran, the sole survivor of the attack on K-2L.
Samus was rescued from the charred ruins of K-2L by the Chozo, a race of beings who resemble giant birds. They had received the colony's distress signal during the attack and came to assist. The Chozo took Samus back to their homeworld, Zebes.
Being a highly technologically advanced race, the Chozo crafted a power suit for Samus that gave her incredible strength. They trained her to become a fearsome warrior. Once her training was complete, Samus parted ways with the Chozo and became an intergalactic bounty hunter.
Samus carried out countless missions. Many that other bounty hunters deemed impossible. She became the most famed and capable bounty hunter in the universe, yet she was not fulfilled. Samus didn't become a bounty hunter to achieve fortune or fame. Her purpose was to avenge the death of her parents by slaying Ridley and the rest of the Space Pirates.
Before long, the opportunity to fulfill her purpose would arise."
Metroid: Other M
Interactive Web Ad: "See the other side of a hero"
Samus Aran (Young Samus displayed)
"A Galactic Federation soldier. Always with something to prove."
Samus Aran (Zero Suit Samus displayed)
"The woman within the suit. Haunted by her past."
Samus Aran (Varia Suit displayed)
"Intergalactic bounty hunter. Feared by enemies."
Metroid.com
Samus Aran "Strong-willed and fiercely independent, this accomplished bounty hunter has saved the galaxy on multiple occasions from maladies as menacing as Metroids-and beyond. Echoes of her complicated past with the Galactic Federation are about to resurface, following a mysterious distress call."
- Story
- "Samus Aran is a bounty hunter with a long and complex history-fraught with danger, trauma, and triumph. For the first time, she will have to confront her mysterious past, as well as the Galactic Federation, the military force she left to become a bounty hunter...
Having traveled to planet SR388 to destroy the powerful and menacing alien species known as Metroids, Samus battled the ferocious Queen Metroid and rid the galaxy of their threat. One last baby Metroid remained, which Samus took with her, seeing peaceful scientific applications of Metroid biology. Before those experiments could come to fruition the science station was attacked, and the baby fell into the hands of the Space Pirates, led by Mother Brain.
Samus infiltrated Mother Brain's stronghold on planet Zebes to rescue the baby Metroid. Taken down in battle by Mother Brain's power, Samus was unexpectedly restored to health by the baby Metroid. Furious, Mother Brain destroyed the baby, only to be defeated by a newly vigorous Samus-with extraordinary powers given by the Metroid. At last, Mother Brain, the Space Pirates, and the Metroid species were obliterated once and for all... along with the entire planet of Zebes.
As time passed, so did the memory of Metroids and Space Pirates from the collective consciousness. Samus resumed something of a normal bounty hunter's life, when a mysterious SOS signal suddenly reached her ship. the signal, code named "Baby's Cry," seemed to be calling out specifically to her..."
Metroid: Other M Art Folio
Young Samus at Galactic Federation Headquarters
"My time as a member of the Galactic Federation Army was bound to end - though I was a soldier, I was also a child with a chip on my shoulder. And I was angry. I felt that if I let my guard down I would easily be broken. So, after a certain incident, I left Adam Malkovich's command and set out on my path as a solitary Bounty Hunter."
Young Samus in Military Dress
"I always had something to prove while enlisted in the Galactic Federation Army - at the time, I felt surrounded by people who treated me like a child, or used kid gloves because I was a woman. In the face of the well-meaning behavior of the other soldiers, my response was to become increasingly bitter."
Gallery
For additional art, see Samus Aran's Gallery.
Samus Aran
Power Suit
References
- ^ a b (1991) Metroid II: Return of Samus Instruction Booklet. Nintendo.
- ^ One Girl vs. The Galaxy. 1UP.com (2006-08-07).
- ^ http://www.1up.com/do/feature?pager.offset=2&cId=3152658
- ^ El Origen de Metroid (Spanish). N-retro.
- ^ Samus Aran: The Woman Behind the Visor. Metroid Database. Retrieved on 2010-03-14.
- ^ a b c d Metroid and Samus cameos. Samus.co.uk.
- ^ a b Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedMDBcameos - ^ Interview with Jeffrey Scott, The Unofficial Captain N Homepage
- ^ Super Metroid: Comics, Metroid Database
| Bounty Hunters | |
|---|---|
| Metroid series | Samus Aran |
| Comics | 'Big Time' Brannigan • Armstrong Houston • Zegan Doh |
| Metroid Prime Hunters | Sylux • Weavel • Kanden • Spire • Noxus • Trace |
| Metroid Prime 3: Corruption | Rundas • Ghor • Gandrayda |
| Other | Georgia McHenry |
| Beams | |
|---|---|
| Armaments | Arm Cannon • Paralyzer |
| Weapons | Power Beam • Wave Beam • Ice Beam • Plasma Beam • Grapple Beam Hyper Beam: (MD/MP3/SM) • Phazon Beam • Dark Beam • Light Beam Annihilator Beam • Nova Beam • Zero Laser |
| Enhancements | Beam Burst • Charge Beam • Diffusion Beam • Long Beam • Phazon bullets • Spazer Beam • Tractor beam • Wide Beam • Omega Cannon (Dread) |
| Affinity Weapons | Volt Driver • Battlehammer • Magmaul • Shock Coil • Judicator • Imperialist • Omega Cannon (Hunters) • Electro Lob |
| Preceded by: I-Sha |
Guardian of Agon Temple |
Succeeded by: Incumbent
|
| Preceded by: A-Voq |
Guardian of Torvus Temple |
Succeeded by: Incumbent
|
| Preceded by: C-Pul |
Guardian of Sanctuary Temple |
Succeeded by: Incumbent
|