Central Unit

The Central Unit, also known as CUThe letters "CU" (seemingly an abbreviation of "Central Unit") are printed in Chozo writing on the side of the Central Unit's resting module., is an AI serving as the control unit of the reprogrammed E.M.M.I. in Metroid Dread. It is a large blue organic brain with a single eye, completely encased in plates of black armor. Central Units are recurring mini-bosses, as each E.M.M.I. Zone on ZDR features one, holding unique energy that Samus Aran uses to temporarily obtain the Omega Cannon and destroy the unit's resident E.M.M.I.
==Encounters==
Shortly after arriving on ZDR, Samus encounters a damaged and inactive Central Unit in Artaria. When she touches the exposed brain, its unique energy temporarily transforms her Arm Cannon into the powerful Omega Cannon, allowing her to temporarily use the Omega Blaster ability to defeat the damaged E.M.M.I.-01P.
From there, Samus is tasked with tracking down the Central Units of five more E.M.M.I. Zones. These units are active, and she is forced into a miniboss battle with each one. The unit itself floats in the center of the room, and does not attack directly (although it can deal damage on contact), instead relying on ceiling- and wall-mounted Central Unit Cannons and Rinkas, the latter of which can be destroyed for energy and Missile Ammo. Samus must attack the Central Unit with Missiles and Charge Shots until its armor breaks, exposing the brain; if she can hit the CU with a Shinespark, she will instantly shatter the armor plating.Looygi Bros. "13 Cool Details in Metroid Dread (Part 5)". YouTube. December 28, 2021. Retrieved January 19, 2022. The unarmored unit's defenses will begin to attack more frequently, but the vulnerable brain takes damage from uncharged beams and can be killed instantly by a Shinespark or Screw Attack.Looygi Bros. "11 Cool Details in Metroid Dread (Part 6)". YouTube. January 16, 2022. Retrieved January 18, 2022. Once a CU dies, Samus can absorb its unique energy and regain the Omega Cannon, and then is able to leave the room and hunt down the E.M.M.I.; the unit's death prompts lockdown in its zone and permanently places the E.M.M.I. in pursuit mode until its destruction.
When Samus is confronting the final E.M.M.I., 07PB, she destroys its corresponding Central Unit remotely by siphoning the E.M.M.I.'s energy with her Metroid powers.
An explanation is never given for why the very first Central Unit is already defeated when Samus comes across it. However one of the images in the Chozo Archives features E.M.M.I-01P heavily damaged by Raven Beak within this CU's room; it is possible that the E.M.M.I., while still under Galactic Federation orders, battled the CU and the Chozo warrior where it defeated the former but lost to the latter. Afterwards, Quiet Robe used the damaged E.M.M.I.-01P to reprogram the rest of the E.M.M.I (as implied by another image in the Archives) and linked them with a Central Unit each.
==Official data==
===Metroid.nintendo.com===
"These brain-like organic supercomputers hold the key to wielding the Omega Cannon—a weapon strong enough to take down an E.M.M.I."
;Decommission
:"Survive the Central Unit’s defenses and destroy it. Recover its energy to temporarily wield the Omega Cannon."
==Similarities to Mother Brain==
A tweet from Nintendo of America says there is "something familiar" about the Central Unit, followed by a brain emoji.Nintendo of America (NintendoAmerica). "This Central Unit looks a bit familiar... 🧠 🤔 #MetroidDread #NintendoTreehouseLive https://nintendo.com/e3/" 15 June 2021 1:06 p.m. Tweet. https://twitter.com/NintendoAmerica/status/1404847759639732224 The brain-like single-eyed nature of the Central Unit and its use of Rinkas and cannons strongly suggest it was modeled after Mother Brain. The scene where its eye looks around upon entering E.M.M.I.-02SM's Zone is similar to the scene upon descending the elevator to Norfair in Metroid: Zero Mission, in which Mother Brain observes Samus from afar.
Additionally, a less explicit reference to Mother Brain is Samus acquiring a temporary and powerful beam weapon from each Central Unit by absorbing their energy through her Metroid powers. This parallels the Pirate leader's final moments in Super Metroid when her energy is drained by the last Metroid and transferred to Samus, granting the temporary Hyper Beam to the latter.
Consequently, Central Units share similarities with the brain-like Aurora Units which have an unknown connection to Mother Brain as well. Both CUs and AUs have the same naming convention, and they are both encased in metal plating which protects the vulnerable brain tissue underneath. The Master Brain is yet another brain-like organism that appears in the Metroid Prime series that is possibly connected to Mother Brain and the CUs.
When a Central Unit's eye is initially encased in armor, it bears a striking resemblance to Mother Brain's flying monitor from the prequel manga. 
==Trivia==
*If E.M.M.I. 02SM is not activated, its corresponding Central Unit will remain idle, firing neither the Central Unit Cannons nor the Rinkas. Defeating it in this state will not trigger the cutscene where Samus gains the Omega Cannon and therefore she cannot use it. This is not the case for other E.M.M.I.TorvusBolt. "Artaria Central Unit bug via magus skip". YouTube. June 25, 2024. Retrieved June 25, 2024. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3mmtVlZoMHk
*The Artaria and Ferenia Central Units are fought as the third and twelfth bosses in Boss Rush. They are fought out of order from the story's sequence, as the Artaria unit is fought after Kraid and the Ferenia unit after the Elite Chozo Soldier, whereas in the story they are fought in the opposite order.
==Gallery==
Central Unit damaged.png|Samus discovers E.M.M.I.-01P's damaged Central Unit in Artaria
Samus touches Central Unit.png|Samus touches E.M.M.I.-01P's Central Unit.
MD Possible Rinka.png|Samus battles an active Central Unit.
Central Unit exposed.png|A Central Unit with its brain exposed.
Central Unit exposed and dead.png|Samus touches a destroyed Central Unit.
CU Flip out!.gif|E.M.M.I.-07PB's Central Unit getting its energy absorbed.
CU shuts down!.gif|E.M.M.I.-07PB's Central Unit dies.
Metroid Dread Purchase-bg.jpg|Background image from the official Dread website.
Dread NSO icons.jpg|Nintendo Switch Online icon.
==References==
Category:Bosses
Category:Artificial Intelligence
Category:ZDR
Category:Artaria
Category:Cataris
Category:Dairon
Category:Ferenia
Category:Ghavoran
Category:Hanubia
Category:E.M.M.I.
Category:Bio/Mechanical
Category:Mawkin