Samus Aran

**Samus Aran** is an intergalactic bounty hunter and the main protagonist of *Metroid* series. She was hired by the Galactic Federation to defeat a race of criminals known as the Space Pirates.

## Appearance

* Samus in her Varia Suit (Artwork from *Metroid: Samus Returns*)
* Samus in her Zero Suit (Artwork from *Metroid: Other M*)
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Samus is a human who is about 6 feet 3 inches tall (roughly 190 cm) and weighs 198 pounds (roughly 90 kilograms). Her hair color is blonde, her eye color is blue with a green tinge, and she usually appears to be Caucasian. However, as her facial traits vary from game to game; she sometimes appears Asian. Samus typically wears her blond hair in a modified ponytail with a red headband, with a lock on either side. The exact hairstyle, however, can vary from game to game.

Samus's appearance varied widely in the early games. In the original *Metroid*, her hair was miscolored 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 miscolored red. It wasn't until *Super Metroid* that she officially became blond, although the non-canon comic colored her hair purple. In addition, the gamebook *Metroid: Zebes Invasion Order* depicted her hair color as largely being black.

Samus's signature hairstyle debuted in *Metroid: Zero Mission and* has been present in every *Metroid* game released since. The only exception is *Metroid Prime Hunters* which, though it retained Samus's ponytail, lacked 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*.

## Personality

Samus' 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' 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 Post-Traumatic 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 personality displayed in *Other M*, were strongly criticized 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. However, by the time of the events of *Metroid Fusion*, these "weak" characteristics are no longer present, suggesting that she has since overcome the weaknesses she displayed in the previous game, and that they were merely a result of the depression she temporarily sank into after the Baby's death.

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 Kevin Keene’s feelings, suggesting her behavior is something of a "tough-guy" act.

In *Metroid II*, Samus bonds with a Metroid who was born in front of her eyes, and decides to spare it, recalling 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, *Alien 3*, 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 *Other M* her voice would be represented by text at the beginning narration, as well as throughout *Metroid Fusion*. Her character depicted in *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.

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). 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 in-game.

The *Fusion* manual seems to indicate that Samus keeps a journal.

Samus' age has also never been revealed, with the Japanese Prime site even stating that her age is unknown. *Other M* concept art reveals that in her early years of around the time of the K-2L attack, that she is "4-6 years old", contradicting early media saying it happened when she was three, and in her Federation military period, she is "15-17 years old".

## External links

* Samus Aran
* Samus Aran on Wikipedia