History Characters / METROID

** [[Characters/MetroidMetroidPrimeAndDarkSamus]]

* [[Characters/MetroidTheMetroids]]

* [[Characters/MetroidMiscellaneous Miscellaneous]]

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* [[Characters/MetroidCreatures Creatures]]

* [[Characters/MetroidOtherAntagonists Other Antagonists]]

* [[Characters/MetroidMiscellaneous Miscellaneous]]

[[foldercontrol]]

[[folder:The Main Two]]
!!Samus Aran
-->''"Protecting the protectors is my duty."''
--->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/JenniferHale (''Metroid Prime'' series), Alesia Glidewell (''Super Smash Bros. Brawl''), Jessica Martin (''Metroid: Other M'' English), Creator/AiKobayashi (''Metroid: Other M'' Japanese)


-->''[[AC:"In The Galactic Federation, only one being in a million hopeful applicants are qualified to join the Federation Police Force. The annals of their history tell of a woman who not only undertook the specialist training but completed the course in record time, graduated first in her class and became the youngest Police Officer ever to be promoted to the Elite Star Tracker Squad!"]]''
--->--''' ''The Coming of a Hero'' -- Nintendo Power Comics System'''

-->''"The Cosmos. In the vast depths of the 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's'' Intro Narration'''
----
Samus Aran created history in 1986 by being the first video game hero (or in her case, heroine) to be a female. Samus Aran is the main protagonist of the series and considered to be an [[LivingLegend icon of strength]] within her own universe. She's regarded as the finest killer alive in a society spanning at least more than one inhabited galaxy under a still as yet unseen umbrella nation. Which is comprised of trillions of individuals and has waged a perpetual war with nomadic inter-stellar brigands and all manner of criminal scum for the near entirety of her long career. As she is [[FamedInStory held in such high regard]] to the degree that [[MysteriousPast he, she, it,]] is often mistaken for an urban legend or patron saint of bounty hunters, though supplemental material reveals her to be [[SamusIsAGirl a woman of humble origins]] [[HiddenDepths and surprising means]]. Although seemingly remorseless and without scruples, she possesses untold benevolence and humanity despite her violent profession and strives to be a force for good, spreading light into the darkest corners of space. Underneath her armored suit, she's also drop dead gorgeous, and regularly recognized as one of the sexiest females in video games.
----
[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/zeta_1847.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:''"Are you not afraid? Those who don't worry about dying in the future won't fight for their lives in the present."'']]

[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/young_in_body_tired_in_soul_6790.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:''"Remember... I can do ''a lot worse'' than send you to ''prison'', boys!"'']]

* ActionGirl: The first major example in all of video games. And arguably the ''definitive'' example.
* AmazonianBeauty: Over six feet tall, defined like Bruce Lee, clad head to toe in armor, and one of Nintendo's biggest [[BadAss bad asses]].
* ArmCannon: Her primary weapon among a veritable arsenal.
* {{Badass}}: Unbelievably so. She's defeated legions, hunted impossibly dangerous quarries and walked over every nightmare that dares cross her path ''and then some.'' She wiped out the Universal threats embodied in the Metroids, Gorea, the X, Phazon and the Ing. Battled an NGOSuperPower for her entire life, reducing them to a bad memory and takes on her family's murderer every other week; eventually wiping him from the face of existence with an EarthShatteringKaboom. And that's what she get's up to in her ''spare'' time.
** BadassCape / CapedMecha / CoatCape: Aran sometimes wears one over her armour. It's [[http://www.metroid-database.com/manga/samus_joey3_en/ch_0013/scaled/sc_SAJ_CH13_054.jpg awesome.]]
** BadassLongcoat: Owns one in the manga, and yes, she can still kick your ass with it. Plus, a [[NiceHat nifty wide brimmed sun hat]] that would make the Queen of England jealous to boot.
** EmpoweredBadassNormal: By way of her Chozo and later Metroid genetics.
** HeartbrokenBadass: So far her family, adoptive family, imprinted Metroid infant, mentor and many close friends have all been horrifically killed, with her often unable to do anything about it.
* BagOfSpilling: In the Prime trilogy: Samus either loses all her previous weapons or is forced to seek out new ones.
* BatmanGambit: She periodically overcomes every counter-tactic the Urtragian Space Pirates throw at her, always through intellectual application and her own warrior instincts. Taken to hilarious heights in the 'Captain N Comics' when she, at one point, caught off-guard by 'Big-time' Brannigan, sabotages her own gun to back-fire, knowing he'll want the DramaticIrony of finishing the best bounty hunter in the guild with her own side-arm. He's promptly maimed and Aran escapes. Another time, she tricks ''Mother Brain'' into handing over a more substantial bounty for turning on her allies, then she promptly betrays her, steals the AppliedPhlebotinum that was the main objective of their mission ''and'' rescues her friends on top of all that! Leaving Mother with nothing! Fittingly, her character is more of an {{Expy}} combination of both Han Solo and Boba Fett.
* BeautyMark: Naturally. Previously hinted at by [[AuthorAppeal Yoshio Sakamoto]] who claimed to be the only one who knew where it was. Its location is finally shown in ''Other M:'' under the left side of her lip.
* BodyHorror: She goes through this fighting the corruption in ''Prime 3.'' When was the last Nintendo game in which you saw the protagonist vomiting up radioactive sludge? Also, if she overloads on Phazon in Hyper-mode, she becomes fully corrupted.
* BoobsOfSteel: From Zero Mission onwards she's been a rather ''well-endowed'' bad-ass, something that [[{{Rule34}} the fan-base has certainly noticed.]]
* BountyHunter: Purportedly her profession, but some overseas developers think Nintendo's refusal to include actual bounty hunting in the games indicates it's a translation screw-up. Despite this, they seemed to have no problem with the manga showing her hunting bounties.
* BioAugmentation: Her DNA is as modular to genetic ''upgrades'' as her armour is to technology, as she was infused with Chozo DNA and later Metroid DNA. How mighty are her genetic gifts do you say? In Metroid Prime, scan data of Zebes reveals it to have both an incredible mass and gravitational pull. As Samus grew up on Zebes, with Chozo DNA to boot, simple math performed by fans reveals this gem: Suitless, Samus can lift ''66.5 TONS'' on Earth.[[note]]That's with her just lifting the equivalent of her own body weight, given that athletes on Earth can lift more than their own weight with training, it's reasonable to assume 66.5 tons isn't even the upper limit of Samus' physical strength[[/note]]
** This, however, hinges on the assumption that the developers knew the actual significance of the immense numbers they put into those scans if they were put into proper calculations - common sense would recognize such insane scaling (which would make Samus over 950 times as strong as a normal human!) as a case of WritersCannotDoMath...
*** Well, the thing is whether or not [[WritersHaveNoSenseOfScale the writers were conscious of what these numbers imply]], it's a moot point because Samus (as far as we know) never visits worlds with gravity comparable to Earth. All of the enemies she's fighting are adapted to the same intense gravity as she is; since she's only compared to similarly strong opponents, there aren't any massive gaps in strength like there would be if she went to Earth and fought something there.
* BuildingSwing: The Grapple Beam in Super and Grapple Lasso in Prime. This becomes less important with the Space Jump/Screw Attack, but Prime 3 gives the lasso more functions to keep it relevant.
* CastingGag: During Samus' younger flashback scenes in ''Other M'', her younger self looks a lot like [[Manga/{{Appleseed}} Deunan Knute]] from the ''Appleseed'' CGI films. Incidentally, Samus is voiced by one of [[Creator/AiKobayashi Deunan's Japanese VAs]].
* TheChosenOne: According to Chozo prophecy and the carvings on Tallon IV.
* CombatPragmatist: Fond of shooting people at point-blank range when getting into physical grapples and applying the most overwhelming amount of force possible to end a fight quickly. In Super Metroid, she defeats Draygon within seconds by conducting electricity through the grapple beam and through ''herself'', flash-frying the monstrous crustacean.
* CoolShip: Her Gunship. With it's own remote controlled auto-piloting functions, industrial grapple beam, missile silos, prisoner containment cells, array of beam weapons and even capable of self-repair and enduring ridiculous levels of combat damage and even the corrosive properties of Phaaze's atmosphere.
* CowboyCop: In the prequel comic, Samus was part of a cowboy cop trio up until she left the force to become a solo bounty hunter on General Adam Malkovich's suggestion.
* CulturedWarrior: Explores uncharted territory, muses on war, peace and her place in the universe, collates zoological databases on a variety of exotic flora and xeno-fauna, is an evaluator of her own and other's morality, translates ancient advanced alien scriptures and seems to practice a form of Instrumentalist Philosophy.
* {{Determinator}}: An absolute given, considering her suit's defences rely on maintaining a zen level of focus during battle, which doubt can cripple. But one particularly impressive display of willpower she displays is in ''Metroid Prime 3''. She staves off Phazon Corruption longer than any of her fellow bounty hunters, in spite of being given the largest dose of radioactive venom by her arch-nemesis. And even retains her mind when at its very origin. With the poison coursing through her veins she descends into the core of the planet Phaaze and wipes the floor with her dark doppelganger, endures the cancer being (unimaginably painfully) purged and ''somehow'' manages to escape back up to the surface before the world blows apart.
* DoomMagnet: Inherited from the Chozo. Person, planet, species, once she gets there, if they haven't already suffered tremendously (and they often have), they will. Not necessarily by her design or intent, mind you, but it inevitably happens anyways.
** Subverted with the Luminoth, as she actually ''does'' help them out with no negative side effects to them in the long run.
** And the Elysian star charts in ''Corruption'' show that the native life on Tallon IV is thriving since Samus ended the Phazon spread.
* TheDreaded: The Space Pirates probably tell their spawn stories of the 'Accursed Hunter' that stalks their kind. They fear and loathe her above all else.
* EarlyInstallmentWeirdness: In the original ''Metroid'', her aspect was unusual at best. Especially outside her suit where she has an almost bare outfit and has [[YouGottaHaveBlueHair green hair]] when wearing the Varia Suit. When you play as her outside her suit, she can use the majority of her suit's abilities including her Morph Ball function.
* ElementalPowers
** AnIcePerson: Her most prominent power in terms of taking on Metroids. Flipped on its head in Fusion, where ''Samus'' fears the Ice Beam.
** PlayingWithFire: The Plasma and Nova beams are depicted as such. While not exactly fire, ''per say'', they essentially act as such in the ''Prime'' series.
** ShockAndAwe: What the Wave Beam is mostly portrayed to be. Though in actuality it can diffuse through materials and hit opponents ''behind cover.''
** LightEmUp: The Light Beam from ''Prime 2.'' An effective solar ray. Or even the [[IncorruptiblePurePureness wandering matter]] of the Luminoth's planetary energy that sustains them.
** CastingAShadow: Also the Dark Beam from ''Echoes.'' This will ruin anyone's day with concentrated ''evilness'' from the Dark Dimension. It hurts a being of pure ''Phazon''.
** PureEnergy: Essentially what her Power Beam is. It ''Vaporizes'' targets in ''Prime 3''.
** MakeMeWannaShout: What the Annihilator beam becomes when charged. It temporarily ''cracks reality''.
** YinYangBomb: What the Annihilator beam, and especially its missile combination the Sonic Boom is, in addition to the above; being a matter-antimatter weapon and all.
* {{Expy}}: Directly stated to be one of [[Franchise/{{Alien}} Ellen Ripley]], another strong female sci-fi protagonist who battles cosmic monstrosities. She's also occasionally considered a DistaffCounterpart of [[Franchise/{{StarWars}} Boba Fett]], another space-faring BountyHunter with a CoolShip, a full suit of armor, and lots of weapons and gadgets.
* FearIsTheAppropriateResponse: What makes Other M slightly easier to swallow is this trope. Samus informs a would be ally that a warrior only fights their hardest when controlling and utilizing their fear of death. Not suppressing or trying to deny it.
* FemmeFatale: As beautiful as she is dangerous. The fandom plays up this aspect of her predatory nature.
* TheFettered: She has a code, it has [[ScrewTheRulesImDoingWhatsRight a lot of leeway.]]
* FlashStep: You can do this in-game as a strafe mechanism but the most memorable one has to be in the supplemental material. it's accompanied with an insane [[BulletCatch bullet catch]] when the hostage's face is ''two feet away'' from the muzzle of the weapon. Sam manages to ''[[UpToEleven shoot the Pirate at the same time.]]''
* FriendToAllLivingThings: Shown to concern herself with the well-being of wildlife she encounters during missions.
* GeniusBruiser: Her handwritten notes in her log book very much implies extensive knowledge in the fields of biology, physics and chemistry. After all, she was brought up and educated by enlightened {{Precursors}}. She also knows a great deal about mechanics and electronics, evidenced by her [[WrenchWench working circuitry in a few games and by designing her own gunships]], doing precision welding jobs, energizing dead systems, hell, just being able to operate that walking death mobile she's clad in has to count -- but the stand-out moment for Aran has to be her constructing a Chozo WMD called a Theronian Bomb out of a floating city's infrastructure, rewiring the engines to float a section of said city over to the Leviathan Seed's shield generator, all the while fending off ''dozens'' of pirate drop ships before leaving in a sabotaged escape pod that she quickly repairs; the munition is dropped and the atmosphere is ignited in nuclear fire.
* GoodIsNotSoft: Quintessential. The first time she spares the life of a child-enslaving pirate overseer; is so she can ''[[ColdBloodedTorture interrogate]]'' him.
* TheGunslinger: The auto-lock ''is not'' technological. Revamped straight over into ImprobableAimingSkills in the manga. When five pirates are about to execute a girl. They all fire simultaneously while encircling her. Aran deflects ''all'' of their shots away with her own beam, With ''four'' inhumanly quick shots of her own.
** Also an accomplished [[QuickDraw quick draw.]] And by accomplished, we mean she can take down multiple opponents and make it look like a single shot. This, ''with'' a weapon that's effectively an artillery piece.
* HairOfGoldHeartOfGold: A gorgeous blonde, and about as kind of a mercenary as you could possibly know. She ''has'' to be an optimist to endure what she's been through.
* HalfHumanHybrid: In the end, she's anywhere from as much as [[ShrugOfGod 95% human to as little as 10%]]. For most of the series, she's a human with Chozo traits that supersede human maximum potential, but then ''Fusion'' brings in the vaccine made from the infant Metroid Queen's stem-cells; which her unique organism adapts much in the same way her suit can adapt modular, alien technologies in order to fight of the infestation. From there, fans debate about whether exposure to absorbed X Parasites when recovering her arsenal has messed up her genes ''further''; Nintendo itself has been silent on the matter. The game shows that the X Parasites were destroyed by her Metroid vaccine. Metroids eat life energy, not solid food, so she's not integrating absorbed X physically into herself, but its implied that the X she gets abilities from had them biologically, rather than mechanically, so fans understandably still argue.
* HappilyAdopted: Her second family foisted her with an unforgettable legacy. Defend the Universe as ''the Entrusted One'', at her request they allowed her to claim their nearly lost arts of destruction in order to avenge her home and birth parents against the forces of chaos. It's quite clear that this orphan received the best break possible after such a rotten start to life, cherished by both her foster-fathers in their dying moments as the supreme exemplar of both humanity ''and'' the Chozo.
* HeroicBSOD: A horrific one in the e-manga. When Ridley forces her to remember that fateful day he brought devastation to K-2L. How his men butchered her childhood friends and how he roasted and ''ate'' her mother! She loses control of the mental link between her armour and goes into a catatonic trance, hyperventilating, eyes rolled into the back of her head and screaming repeatedly to be killed by her own allies as her fear is all-encompassing and overwhelming. Although she later 'overcomes' this breakdown in about the most cathartic way possible she is implied to still suffer PTSD induced nightmares many years after the fact.
* HeroicBuild: Sadly zigzagged. Most apparent at the end of ''Super'' and ''Fusion''.
* HeroicWillpower: As seen in ''Metroid Zero Mission'' and ''Other M'', Samus' Power Suit manifests though inhuman levels of willpower and concentration, and can dissipate if she falters. Yoshio Sakamoto [[ItMakesSenseInContext compared her losing her suit to a salary-man losing his tie in a bullet train]].
* TheHunter: Literally. In Metroid's Universe she'd be the example under the noun in the dictionary.
* HyperspaceArsenal: Her suit can hold over 200 missiles even on the NES game.
* InnocentFanserviceGirl: To an extent, as she was raised by aliens. Non-mammalian aliens, at that. Not to mention that she's not entirely human herself anymore.
** One theory as to why most of her outfits besides the ubiquitous powersuit are so skimpy is because she's uncomfortable wearing too much, rather than a deliberate attempt to look seductive. Because the suit links directly with her nerves it feels like her own skin and thus she's gotten used to feeling naked most of the time.
* TheLadette: [[DownplayedTrope Downplayed]]. While Samus isn't often seen engaging in overly "frat-boy-ish" behavior, she wears a traditionally masculine suit of PoweredArmor and can kick ass with the best of them. Except in ''Other M'', Samus has almost no feminine traits apart from her physical appearance, and can even be seen [[http://img22.photobucket.com/albums/v66/Precita/Samus%20Aran/Samus_bar.gif hanging out at a bar]] in one of the ending scenes of ''Zero Mission''.
* LadyOfWar: On the contrary to the prior point, she cracks skulls and does it with ''obscene'' poise and grace.
* LeParkour: Supremely gifted at navigating treacherous environments at a constant sprint. As well as performing an assortment of jumps, flips and tumbles that would make an Olympian gymnast green with envy. Mei Ling in ''Smash Bros. Brawl'' can only refer to her as a "Super Athlete" and she's damn right.
* LightningBruiser: Can plow through enemies with mach speed shoulder charges, possesses enough razor sharp reflexes to dodge gunfire while stationary and can tether, hook line and sinker, then ''beach'' a gigantic alien beast that can ''swim in lava.'' Even without the suit she can jump about forty feet straight up in the heavier gravity of Zebes. Imagine what she could do to you if she kicked you while on Earth.
* LukeIAmYourFather: In the manga, Grey Voice turns out to be the donor for Aran's infusion of Chozo DNA.
* MadeOfIron: Due to her Chozo heritage and Zebesian upbringing. She can take shots for the team that would cause a lesser hero to crumple in one. She can stand ''multiple'' times after having been hit by Mother Brain's ''[[WaveMotionGun rainbow hyper beam]].'' And she ''will'' fight and win battles with [[BackFromTheBrink a drop in the tank to spare.]]
* MamaBear: Ask Mother Brain. Oh wait, we can't, it [[CurbStompBattle suffered Samus' rage]] after it killed the Super Metroid while protecting its perceived mother figure.
* MikeNelsonDestroyerOfWorlds: Basically, everything she steps on triggers a SelfDestructMechanism.
* MsFanservice: Oh, most definitely. She's undeniably gorgeous and doesn't mind peeling off all that armour and enjoying the breeze. Just don't think she's another pretty face... Or you'd find yourself [[MuggingTheMonster paying for it, dearly]].
* NervesOfSteel: If courage has a name, it must be Samus Aran.
* NeverTrustATrailer: All promotional material for the first game outright lied and said that Samus was a male cyborg. This extended to the game manual itself. Of course, this was to preserve the surprise at the end.
* NonchalantDodge: The fact that she can pull these off, along with her StoneWall levels of health, makes her nearly invincible.
* NotQuiteFlight: The Space Jump in the 2D games lets Samus jump at any time, even in midair; downgraded to a DoubleJump in Prime, but then you get the Screw Attack in those games and she's back to jumping canyons. The Shine Spark also qualifies.
* [[OneManArmy One Woman Army]]: She was called in to Zebes to solve what orbital bombardment could not.
* OnlyTheChosenMayWield: Aran's second Power Suit, attained in the Zero Mission epilogue after her first was destroyed.
* ParentalAbandonment: Certainly not by their own choice. Both Rodney and Virginia Aran go down in ways that make James and Lily from [[HarryPotter the Harry Potter books]] look like pansies. [[SarcasmMode Thanks for that, Ridley]].
* PartialTransformation: In the manga, Samus is capable of manifesting her suit's ArmCannon without the rest of the suit.
* PersonOfMassDestruction: Possesses enough power to level almost anything, man, beast, army, world, ghost or PhysicalGod.
* ThePiratesWhoDontDoAnything: Is a bounty hunter who is yet to be seen doing any actual bounty hunting. Her work in-game would suggest she's more like a mercenary.
** She claimed to be searching for a bounty in Super Metroid, so it could be assumed most of the games we play are special situations where someone contracted her, or she's just sidetracked and she would be hunting bounties if not for it.
** In ''Metroid Prime 2,'' Samus actually ''was'' hired by the Galactic Federation for a search-and-rescue mission for the missing troops that had crash-landed on Aether. Of course, within the first five minutes of the game she learns that they've already been wiped out. Everything after that was of her own volition.
** For ''Metroid Prime 3,'' Retro Studios initially planned for Samus to do some actual bounty hunting. She'd get a list of possible jobs to do, earn rewards, and use the cash to buy upgrades for her equipment. Nintendo didn't like the idea, and after some back-and-forth, Retro realized there was a language issue, and that "bounty hunter" isn't exactly the best description of what Samus is supposed to be. The Retro developers started joking that she was a "pro-bono hunter" instead.
* PoweredArmor: Her Power Suit is one of the most famous examples in all of media. A Chozo-designed cybernetic battle exo-skeleton of quantum-locked, psionically summoned armour that is synchronized with her very being and can adapt to incorporate all known (and some unknown) weaponry. It also provides energy shielding, protection from lethal environments, enhanced strength and uncharted tactical [[AwesomeByAnalysis scanning capabilities]].
** ClothesMakeTheSuperman: Although she is still inhumanly agile and monstrously strong outside the suit, Samus is unable to take down a lowly Space Pirate trooper without its help. [[AvertedTrope Averted]] (possibly even [[InvertedTrope inverted]]) in ''Videogame/SuperSmashBros'' for CompetitiveBalance reasons. That might be because she was basically unarmed (that paralyzer doesn't really count) without it.
** CoolHelmet: Especially in the ''Prime'' series, where it resembles a V-shaped, upside-down bird's wings.
** LifeEnergy: This is apparently how the health and ammo pickups work, according to the first game's manual. The Prime series let you find them from crates too though, suggesting it might just be general matter/energy conversion ([[AntiFrustrationFeatures or that Retro wanted to make things easier]])
--> Even the Space Pirates fear [[SamusIsAGirl his]] space suit, which can absorb any enemy's power.
** This is seemingly how Samus gets the hyper beam and Phazon suit, both involved an almost deceased monster falling on and getting partially absorbed by the suit.
** TronLines: Kelly green for the Varia suit, cerulean for the P.E.D. suit.
* {{Protectorate}}: At least on paper. She trained as a warrior ultimately to defend others from what she had to endure but she is not averse to proactively tracking down evil and ''annihilating it.'' And a girl has to make a living somehow.
* RaisedByNatives: Rescued, nurtured, trained and loved by the last remnants of the Chozo.
* RammingAlwaysWorks: While she's best known for her various beam and missile weapons, the Screw Attack and Shine Spark are some of Samus' most powerful attacks.
* Really700YearsOld: Inferred. Even if she's not this in the timeline that would have you believe she became famed across multiple galaxies within twenty years. Her Chozo genetic properties ensure she won't be dying peacefully in her bed any time soon.
* RedBaron: Of all her prey. Of all her foes, [[MookHorrorShow the Space Pirates deem her as]] the one and only being regarded enough to bear the title of ''TheHunter''. In a universe ''full'' of them!
* RememberWhenYouBlewUpASun: In ''Echoes'', logs left by the troopers mention the two planets full of Space Pirates she's blown up. One of the ones who mentions the story thinks that the act was too much for a single human to accomplish...
** Although it's worth pointing out that, chronologically, she had not yet blown up any planets when that comment was made. As far as we know...
** Then again, it's a possible the trooper meant the events of ''Zero Mission'' and ''VideoGame/MetroidPrime'', where she attacked their bases directly.
* RoaringRampageOfRevenge: Implied that she has a very massive one against [[BigBad Mother Brain]] and [[TheDragon Ridley]].
** In ''Corruption'', the final battle on Phaaze is implied to be this as well, considering Aran's reactions to each of the Hunters' deaths, making it quite clear that by the time the final fight ensues, she's ready to rip the one responsible (Dark Samus) apart.
* RocketJump: Bomb jumps; as bombs float in air, it can be done at least twice in all games, and taken to [[SequenceBreaking ridiculous levels]] in some. Power Bombs can be used for this effect too in the games where they aren't explicit room cleaners. It's implied that the jets on her back sometimes do this as well.
** Being immune to her own explosives is important, as it helps Samus remove {{Personal Space Invader}}s from her suit. (for {{competitive balance}} reasons, Samus can be hurt by the explosions of some of her own weapons in Hunters)
* RollingAttack: The Boost Ball and the shine spark can be used in morph ball mode in Zero Mission.
* SamusIsAGirl: TropeNamer, as the first game used this trope as a bonus for players to find out.
* ScarilyCompetentTracker: All but outright stated. She tracks the Pirates that flee from Zebes to Tallon IV across space. Also, complete the scavenger hunts in each chapter of the ''Prime trilogy'' and you will most definitely feel like one of these.
* ScreamingWarrior: Only once, and in the manga at that, but what a moment it is. After ''[[CurbStompBattle obliterating]]'' Ridley for the first time and avenging her mother, her childhood home and her adoptive father, Samus lets loose over twenty years of pent-up primal fury with a [[SkywardScream roar of vindication and release]]. It. Is. ''Glorious''.
* ShellShockedVeteran: Was suggested to have PTSD in the manga (though not officially diagnosed, as there was another theory), and according to [[http://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/#/wii/metroid-other-m/0/3 an interview with Yoshio Sakamoto and Team Ninja]] Samus is poor at coping with her life's problems as well.
* SherlockScan: Thanks to her Scan Visor, though considering the notes seem to sometimes be written by Sam's own hand -- and that [[FridgeBrilliance time]] [[HyperAwareness pauses]] upon finishing the [[AwesomeByAnalysis evaluation...]]
* ShouldersOfDoom / GiantPoofySleeves: Since ''Metroid II'' on the GameBoy couldn't use color to differentiate between the different suits, the Varia suit was given big honking shoulders to distinguish its sprite from the regular Power Suit. The design has carried over since then to every subsequent game in the series.
* ShroudedInMyth: In the very first game's instruction manual, Metroid's Samus Aran is described as being "shrouded in mystery", supernaturally skilled, and NighInvulnerable thanks to a plethora of cybernetic upgrades, encased in a suit of PoweredArmor that's the terror of every law-breaker in the universe, and with his, her or ''its'' true form known to no one. Of course, when the armor finally comes off at the end of the game, the galaxy's most famous BadAss turns out to be a rather attractive blonde woman.
** The legend also winds up oddly inverted, according to the logs of ''Metroid Prime 2''. Some of the Federation Marines apparently consider the various exploits of Samus Aran, and even her very existence, to be only slightly more credible than bed-time stories:
-->'''PFC Crany:''' Last night at chow, Angseth starts talking about some bounty hunter and how she blew up a planet full of Space Pirates. I told her I didn't believe in fairy tales like that, and she took it personal. I just find it hard to believe that one person took out an entire Space Pirate base, that's all. But if she wants to believe in this Samus, or Bigfoot, or Santa Claus, she can.
** The Space Pirates, not to be outdone, have grown Samus into their cultural mythology as a one-woman demonic grim reaper. Every game in the ''Prime'' series features an ApocalypticLog sequence in which the Space Pirates describe the impending horror of a raid by "[[TheHunter The Hunter.]]" To clarify, the Prime series shows numerous other bounty hunters, and implies that there are many more; that it is Samus alone that they call [[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast the Hunter]] shows how ''terrified'' they are of her.
* SignatureMove: The fabled [[PunnyName Screw-Attack]]... It really needs a title update.
* TheSilentBob: In the ''Prime'' trilogy.
* SphereOfDestruction: Power Bombs in the 3D games. They are ovals in the 2D ones.
* SpiderSense: Prime reveals that the heads up display of her helmet includes indicators of movement and energy sources outside of her field vision, allowing Samus to react to things she cannot immediately see (Prime 2 and 3's cutscenes provide third person demonstrations even if the player never figures it out). Apparently supplementary materials suggest she has Chozo physic senses to fore-warn her of imminent danger and trigger fantastic reaction speed but the only places any thing like this comes close to being demonstrated are in the manga and ''Other M''.
* SpyCatsuit, FormFittingWardrobe, SensualSpandex: The Zero Suit. At its introduction it was the most modest clothing she had worn outside of her Power Suit.
** CombatStilettos: The Zero Suit has them in ''Other M'', which ironically enough were previously [[http://media.tumblr.com/91f44318b45126781a6af76b0bf85a5d/tumblr_inline_mx95epDqug1r5618z.png discouraged]] during ''Zero Mission'''s design process.
* StandardPowerupPose: Does a painful looking variant in Prime 3 when empowered after Leviathan Guardian bosses.
* StatuesqueStunner: [[http://metroid.wikia.com/wiki/Samus_Aran?file=Samus_Aran_Varia_suit_Super_Metroid_Player%27s_Guide_1994.jpg According to the Super Metroid Player's Guide]], she's ''supposed'' to be 6'3 and 198 pounds outside her armor. She's significantly shorter than the average male human in ''Other M'', but in the Prime games, she's just as tall or taller than the Federation personnel and about the same size as most of the bounty hunters (except the three from Prime 3), so it's easier to believe there.
* TheStoic: Until ''Other M'' came along...
* {{Stun Gun|s}}: Her Paralyzer, which she uses for protection when not wearing her armor. ''Brawl'' [[SwissArmyWeapon adds]] a [[WhipItGood whip mode]].
* SuperReflexes: Capable of nullifying hails of gunfire with her own shots.
** One of the coolest and most impressive displays of her [[SuperReflexes reflexes]] and [[SuperSpeed speed]] comes from the ''Samus and Joey'' manga: [[http://www.metroid-database.com/manga/samus_joey_en/ch_0001/scaled/sc_SAJ_Vol1_020.jpg a Space Pirate has his weapon trained on Joey, his hostage, at point-blank range, with his weapon inches away from the boy's head]]. [[http://www.metroid-database.com/manga/samus_joey_en/ch_0001/scaled/sc_SAJ_Vol1_021.jpg Samus tells him to fire, and he does]]. Samus then moves with lightning speed and [[CrowningMomentOfAwesome catches the bullet well before it hits Joey, while simultaneously mortally wounding the Space Pirate with a shot of her own!]]
* SuperSoldier: Sam's pretty much got the complete Super Soldier package, being adopted by the fantastically advanced yet consciously going extinct Chozo, who infused her with Chozo DNA to gain fantastic speed, strength, agility and sensory capacity, trained her as the last Defender (read: legendary universe-saving warrior/judge figure) and equipped her with a modular suit of Powered Armor that's the envy of the galaxy. On top of this, she's largely fueled by a burning desire to get back at the Space Pirates who trashed both of her home-worlds and left her orphaned twice over. If there's a better warrior in the series' galaxy, we haven't seen him, her or it yet.
** Not only that, she later gets infused with Metroid DNA, and has also been exposed to the highly volatile substance Phazon repeatedly. Additionally, her aforementioned Powered Armor can utilize virtually any weapon or technology it comes across, can hack into even the most secure networks just by ''looking'' at it, and can determine the weakness of almost anything, animal or mineral, by the same process.
** For bonus points, the word "metroid" in the Chozo language means "ultimate warrior."
** Also, most planets tend to explode by the time she's done with them
** Let's face it, in her universe she's a combination of Superman, Ironman, Batman, Wolverine and Green Lantern. No wonder most people don't even think she's real anymore. Most of the Federation marines think she's just a myth or propaganda, and the Space Pirates treat Aran as their primary enemy all on her lonesome.
* SuperStrength / SuperToughness: When someone can swan-dive and free-fall off a sheer cliff on Zebes, plummet about fifty metres, unarmoured, while performing several impossible, gravity-defying feats and come to a halt with a [[ThreePointLanding palmed three point landing]] that ''leaves a crater'' then do a happy dance after this; you ''definitely'' qualify for these. For added awesome, when Samus recalls this memory in the manga; she looks to be about ''five''.
** And we must reiterate that, as it said above, this is on a planet with ''950 times'' the Earth's gravity.
* SurvivorGuilt: Notice how she hits all the 'psychologically damaged' tropes?
* TaughtByExperience: She's not the greatest warrior in the universe by dint of her technology alone. The woman has had enough time lived on the battlefield to learn some mad skills.
* ThatMakesMeFeelAngry: Samus in ''Other M'' does this ''more'' than a few times.
* TomboyishPonytail: Sometimes seen with a ponytail when out of armor, especially in later appearances; for obvious practical reasons, she almost always wears this hairstyle under her helmet. It definitely helps reinforce her no-nonsense ActionGirl nature even when she doesn't have her Power Suit on.
* {{Transhuman}}: As of ''Fusion'', parts of Samus' suit are fused to her nervous system, and she's part Metroid and Chozo. Despite that, she still resembles a human.
* WalkDontSwim: How Samus handles water; becomes less of a problem with the gravity suit or gravity boost.
* WalkingArmory: When fully equipped, Aran totes more firepower than all of our world military's combined.
* WallCrawl: The Spider Ball. It is limited to magnetic surfaces in Prime, but since Samus can combine it with the Boost Ball to force herself away from one place and stick to another, it was necessary.
* WallJump: Generally becomes redundant when she gets the space jump and screw attack, except for ''Prime 2'' and ''3'', where the Space Jump and Screw Attack are used in tandem for wall jumping.
* WarriorPoet: Introspective, calculating and arguably spiritual. That one silent scene of Samus surveying the burning, destroyed Chozo Temple at the end of ''Prime'' before closing her eyes with some curious, subdued emotion; cements her ''forever'' as one of these.
* WeaponAcrossTheShoulder: When at rest, or to show confidence. Sam likes to rest her cannon back over one of those big spherical shoulders of hers.
* WorldsBestWarrior: Highly regarded as being so, very few can stand against her and hope to live.
* [[YouKilledMyFather You Killed My Mother]]: And my foster father. And my adoptive alien race.
** Or at least drove the latter into hiding beyond the corporeal world.
* YouDontLookLikeYou: Samus's appearance in the post-game screens from ''Fusion'' looks radically different than the appearance established in ''Zero Mission'' and the ''Prime'' series, with much lighter (and wilder) blond hair, and an almost completely different build.
* YoungerThanTheyLook: According to the first official tie-in manga, Samus is only supposed to be 17 during the events of the first game. But there is an indeterminate TimeSkip in between both volumes and the ''true'' Zero Mission, so a lot of fans call foul. Also, thanks to her Chozo blood, her age is practically impossible to determine.

!!The Metroids
-->''"Metroids! This species of energy draining, unicellular aliens can be frozen, then shattered with a blast from one of my missiles, but when they are in their normal, pulsating state, they can absorb my attack. They're treacherous!"''
--->--'''Samus Aran'''
----
The series' eponymous bio-form, engineered by the Chozo for the sole purpose of combating the most dangerous parasitic organism in the universe. The X. As an energy leeching predator, they hatch from eggs laid by a Queen and evolve through a complicated metamorphosis into beasts capable of untold destruction; and are therefore an object of power to those who would harness their incredible abilities for war and profit. Or else revolutionize energy usage and consumption till the end of time. As of Fusion, there is [[ThereCanBeOnlyOne only one]] Metroid left to the entire universe -- ''Samus Aran''.
----
[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/sv_metroid_sm_2053.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:''"Skreee!"'']]

* AchillesHeel: They're really weak to [[KillItWithIce ice attacks]], but the [=SR388=] and Tallon IV strands outgrow this weakness eventually, trading it for others. The Super Metroid was also ice beam proof but Mother Brain managed to kill it, and that was after she lost the hyper beam.
* AntagonistTitle: Though unusually, not the main antagonists.
* AsteroidsMonster: Fission Metroids split into two Metroids when killed, each of which is only vulnerable to a specific beam weapon.
* AttackAnimal: For the Chozo. The space pirates and Ing, not so much.
* BatmanCanBreatheInSpace: Phazon Metroids, which to be fair, may be because of their ability to leave local spacetime, but Miniroids do it too without that benefit.
* BizarreAlienBiology: They are flying jellyfish with mouths like leeches and weakness to cold and/or missiles.
* BossInMooksClothing: First two games, of the [[WolfPackBoss wolf pack variety]].
* CombatTentacles: Hunter Metroids and Metroid Hatchers.
* DependingOnTheWriter: The Omega Metroid and Queen Metroids of ''Fusion'' and ''Other M'' are nothing like their original counterparts from ''Metroid II'', beyond basic appearance. This can be explained by ''Fusion'' and ''Other M'' having a different director than ''Metroid II''.
* EndangeredSpecies: After ''Metroid 2'', which is after ''Zero Mission'' and the ''Prime Trilogy''.
* EverythingsBetterWithDinosaurs: The Zeta, Omega, and Queen Metroids are basically alien dinosaurs.
* FaceHugger: Well, mostly a Head Hugger.
* GoneHorriblyWrong
** They were created by the Chozo to counteract the X Parasites on SR-388. [[GoneHorriblyRight They did that]] -- and proceeded to devour everything else as well.
** The infant Tallon Metroid, a state that exits the egg less developed than even a larval Metroid. The Space Pirates created this state to be more manageable Metroids, with the idea they would serve as portable batteries, unfortunately Infant Tallon Metroids are mindlessly aggressive, flinging themselves with reckless abandon at all living things and can mature beyond the larval stage within seconds if they make contact with a large enough concentration of phazon (a puddle is enough).
* GroundPound: How Hopper Metroids attack after entering hyper mode.
* HomingProjectile: The Queen Metroid shoots them in ''The Return Of Samus''.
* IBelieveICanFly: Unless explicitly told otherwise, never assume any of them are ground bound, even if they look like it or have spent a large amount of time not in the air.
* InsectoidAliens: Alpha and Gamma Metroids fall into this category.
* IntangibleMan: Phazon Metroids hatched by the Metroid Hatcher that can only be killed with Hypermode.
* JokerImmunity: They are almost as bad as [[Series/DoctorWho the Daleks]] in terms of going extinct and coming back - though the Daleks don't have the on-screen [[JustifiedTrope justification]] of [[TooDumbToLive total idiots trying to clone them]].
* KillItWithIce: Though at first it was just "freeze them [[LiterallyShatteredLives before a shower of missiles]]" - and even then, in the first game they thaw out faster than any other freezable thing in the game. Later games makes them weak to cold (although in ''Metroid II'', only infants and larva take such damage).
* LedgeBats: Fission Metroids in the Impact Crater in ''Prime''. They obscure your visor when they latch on, making jumps even harder, the morph ball tends to roll off slope and they can ''lift'' the morph ball as well as the bouncing bomb explosions to detach them cause.
* LifeEnergy: What they prefer to eat. They can drain all types of energy but they'll get sick if they only eat electricity, for example. The Ing used them for their ability to feed directly off Phazon and not die but had to be careful since Metroids still preferred to eat ''them''.
-->'''Pirate Notes:''' [[AC: Metroid dissection continues to produce more questions than answers. Our research teams have isolated the energy conduits that run from the invasive twin mandibles to the energy core in the creature's quadripartite nucleus, but the manner in which the Metroid actually extracts the life force from its prey remains an utter mystery. The victim does not lose blood or any other vital fluids, and yet the Metroid extracts energy; identifying this energy is our central problem. It takes no physical form, and yet without it, the victim dies.]]
* MaybeMagicMaybeMundane: See LifeForce above. The Metroids drain an unidentified energy from their prey, and what this energy is may have been lost with the Chozo forever.
* LivingBattery: ''Super Metroid'' reveals that Metroids' ability to feed on ambient energy and impossibly efficient metabolisms make them an ideal power source.
* MegaManning: Metroid Prime and the Super Metroid both steal and assimilate weapons used by the Space Pirates.
* MetamorphosisMonster: Their exact lifecycle depends heavily on their environment, with the conditions of their native [=SR388=] producing the most dramatic transformations. [=SR388=] goes Infant-Larva-Alpha-Gamma-Zeta-Omega with some becoming Queens. Tallon IV have even weaker than normal Infant stage before Larva, which becomes Hunter or Fission. In ''Corruption'' we see Mini-Phazon-Hopping-Hatcher and possibly Prime.
* MiracleGroMonster: Instead of metamorphosing, the Super Metroid just kept getting bigger, actually surpassing a queen in size, being able to swallow Samus completely without the morph ball. Metroid Prime was also small at one point in time. Then there are the rapid maturing infant tallon Metroids, the Space Pirates failed attempt at a more manageable Metroid.
* MonsterLord: The Queen Metroids. Mother Brain sorta plays this role in lieu of a Queen (she can effectively control them in the manga but not in the games). The Metroid Prime commanded a few as well.
* NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: Metroid is revealed to be Chozo for "Ultimate Warrior".
* OurMonstersAreWeird: The people in the story itself cannot make much sense out of them
* PaletteSwap: In the first game, red Metroids always seek out Samus, though lazily, while green Metroids are a little more likely lie in wait but charge much faster. Their absence in ''Zero Mission'' indicates CanonDiscontinuity. ''Echoes'' has red variants of Tallon Metroids, however they behave no differently than green Tallon Metroids seen in ''Prime'' before it.
* PersonalSpaceInvader: They were worse in the first game where it took multiple bombs to dislodge them, which might result in you accidentally being blown back into their grip. It only takes one to get them off in Zero Mission.
* PowerupLetDown: The stage between Phazon and Hatcher can't even fly.
* RemovedAchillesHeel: The Space Pirates' long-term goals for the Metroids are to tame them so they'll follow orders and only attack other races, then remove their weakness to sub-zero temperatures, giving their organization an unstoppable army. [[spoiler: In Other M, Adam and Samus find to their horror that the Federation has been thinking along similar lines, only with the utterly-suicidal oversight of having not trained the Metroids first, essentially taking a dreaded wild animal and making it invincible.]]
* ShoddyKnockoff: In-universe, the Mochtroids are this to the genuine article. Sure, they drain Samus's energy, but they can't latch onto her properly, and they are weak against pretty much any weapon, not just ice and missiles. [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking And they don't even have the right number of nuclei]].
* StationaryBoss: The Queen Metroid; if you can't beat it, you can leave and come back with more ammo.
* StarfishAliens: There is not a single thing in their biology that makes any sense by our standards.
* SummonBiggerFish: The basis of their existence.
* SuperSpit: An annoying trait of the [=SR388=] Metroids as they develop.
* VampiricDraining: No puncture wounds though.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Galactic Federation]]
!!General. Adam Malkovich / ADAM AI
-->''"Any objections, Lady?"''
--->'''Voiced by:''' Dave Elvin

[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/adam_malkovich_other_m_7329.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:''"You will report your full name and rank immediately... Or I will take my @#*$ fleet and get the $#&%@ out of here."'']]

[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ie_adam_mf_8338.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:''"One of them will understand. One of them must."'']]

* AuthorityEqualsAsskicking: Is actually seen in battle gear in ''Other M''.
* {{Badass}}: If the ''intergalactic queen of badassery'' respects you, it's a given.
* BrainUploading: Supposedly it is fairly common for military geniuses.
* TheCaptain: In ''Other M''.
* CharacterShilling: Samus puts him on a pedestal and often gushes about him being a genius or a father figure despite him making questionable decisions and treating her with indiference.
* ExpositionFairy: In ''Fusion''.
* FrontlineGeneral: "General" Adam Malkovich leads a group of five men in a special-ops mission. Sometimes he is away in a command room, other times he is personally fighting with them.
* HeroicSacrifice: Though it is questionable if it was even necessary, something the computer in ''Fusion'' even mocks him for.
* IdentityAmnesia: Samus' AI commander in ''Metroid Fusion'' is actually [[BrainUploading a copy of the deceased Adam's mind]] with most of his memories suppressed ''(presumably to increase his loyalty to the Federation)'', picking up on this at some level, Samus mentally nicknames the AI 'Adam;' when she [[FreudianSlip accidentally refers to him as such]], it leads to him regaining his memories.
* IDidWhatIHadToDo: His sacrifice of Ian Malkovich, and himself.
* IHatePastMe: His AI version berates Samus's past commanding officer for sitting in safe command room and ordering her into danger, which is basically precisely what he himself did throughout ''Other M'', including the infamous lava trek with no Varia suit.
* InTheBack: Implied to happen to him via assassin in ''Other M'' but this was apparently a fake out scene. He later shoots Samus in the back and simply avoids the question when she wants to know why.
* JerkWithAHeartOfJerk: Samus Aran repeatedly notes that she views Adam Malkovich as a father figure, but he does very little to ensure her well-being and remains as distant as possible. Initially, it's implied that there's a reason for this, but the story does not establish one when his character is discussed. Even the one selfless act that he does for Samus is immediately preceded by him shooting her in the back without explanation.
* MissionControl: In ''Other M'', not that he is particularly helpful. And ''Fusion'', where he is much more useful.
* MoreExpendableThanYou: His reasoning for going to Sector 0 in Samus's place.
* NervesOfSteel: He ordered a ship to detatch, saving the lives of his crew while sacrificing his brother in the process. He does not break down at all.
* NiceHat: Maybe it is a symbol of his authority, or maybe his authority lets him get away with it?
* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: Only in the manga and ''Videogame/MetroidFusion'''s ending.
* {{Retcon}}
** In the manga, Samus was never an army soldier under Adam's command. She was a police officer and part of an {{inter service rivalry}} with Adam since he was in the military, unlike in Other M where Samus was part of Adam's squad. Also in the manga, Adam encourages Samus to leave service and become a bounty hunter, her first mission working for him is the one he hired her for! In Other M, Samus becoming a bounty hunter was changed to be in defiance of Adam!
** In the first Metroid game, Samus finds all of her suit upgrades. In the manga, Samus gets the bomb and missile upgrades from Adam. Zero Mission retcons it back, Samus finds the bomb and missiles herself again, along with all of her other power ups.
* SomethingOnlyTheyWouldSay: "Any objections, Lady?"
* UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom: In ''Other M'', he is indirectly responsible for the ''entire plot''. [[spoiler:The report he wrote on Metroids arguing against trying to weaponize them was so thorough that a few of the higher-ups were able to use the information in it to ''start'' a Metroid weaponization project.]]
* WhatTheHellHero: Adam gets called out by Samus for shooting her in the back and then letting her linger long enough to almost become food for a possibly invulnerable Metroid. He has no explanation for why he did what he did and just changes the subject.

!!Point Man. Anthony Higgs
-->''"I wanted to give you some cover, but this thing takes ''forever'' to charge. I'll save the next shot for you!"''
--->'''Voiced by:''' Mike [=McGillicuty=]

[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/anthony_without_helmet_5873.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:''"Remember me?"'']]

* BackToBackBadasses: Him and Samus.
* {{Badass}}: Formerly a MemeticBadass before he showed his true colours. See "BigDamnHeroes".
* BaldBlackLeaderGuy: Well, he would be leader of his squad as a breach trooper but a General is around, for some reason, so he's obviously outranked.
* BaldOfAwesome: He's revealed to lack hair at the end of Other M
* BigGuy
* BigDamnHeroes: Saves Samus from Ridley in his undoubted CrowningMomentOfAwesome. In a less awesome but still important one, he puts the brakes on the Bottle Ship, preventing it from [[ColonyDrop smashing into the Federation HQ]] and giving Samus time to finish off the Metroid Queen. Finally, at the end, he interrupted the GovernmentConspiracy and rescued Samus by pulling rank.
* {{BFG}}: The plasma cannon on his back.
* DisneyDeath: Ridiculously averted with this gem.
-->''"Crazy, how something ''good'' can come out of something bad."''
* TheGiant: He's more than a head taller than Samus, who is herself a head taller than the civilians on the Bottle Ship. He also carries around the squad's heavy artillery.
* IShallTauntYou: To Ridley of all people, it's fantastically narmtacular.
-->''"HEY! HEY PUNK! DON'T YOU KNOW HOW TO TREAT A LADY?! You got no style. I better teach you a lesson about [[HypocriticalHumor subtlety]]! COME ON!"''
* RememberTheNewGuy: In the {{E3}} 2009 trailer for ''Metroid: Other M'', a PowerArmor-clad man greets Samus and says "Remember me?", opening his visor. Samus may have, but Metroid fans did not. [[MemeticMutation A meme was born]].
* SomethingOnlyTheyWouldSay: Him calling Samus "Princess".
* TokenMinority: Although he isn't the only one in the team. Also wonderfully [[BlackGuyDiesFirst subverted]] in that the character avoids all the tropes and stereotypes affiliated with the trope.

!!Lyle Smithsonian

->Debut: ''MetroidOtherM''

->"I'm fine, but did it have to be bugs?"

* TriggerHappy
* [[spoiler:WeHardlyKnewYe]]
* [[WhyDidItHaveToBeSnakes Why Did It Have To Be Bugs?]]

!!James Pierce
->Debut: ''MetroidOtherM''

* TheKillerBecomesTheKilled
* TheMole: Strongly implied.
* PornStache

!!Maurice Favreau
->Debut: ''MetroidOtherM''

* TheEngineer
* GadgeteerGenius
* KillItWithIce: A victim.
* MrFixit
* RapidFireTyping
* TheSmartGuy

!!Keiji "K.G." Misawa
->Debut: ''MetroidOtherM''

* NeverFoundTheBody
* TheQuietOne: He doesn't really ''seem'' like the type who doesn't talk much, but nevertheless he only gets about two short lines in the game.
* TranslationConvention: For his name for some reason. In English speaking countries, it was Flanderized to K.G., despite it being Keiji in Japan. Note that the two names are pronounced the same and that there was no reason for it considering that another [[VideoGame/MassEffect2 Keiji was in another game roughly around the same time.]]
* TokenMinority
* WeHardlyKnewYe

!!Fleet Admiral. Castor Dane
-->''"Damn! They're targeting the planetary defense system!"''
--->'''Voiced by:''' Timothy Patrick Miller

[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/l6ega_3749.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:''"Godspeed, Samus."'']]

* AllThereInTheManual: Just look at the concept art portrait. Cybernetics, techno peg-leg and a [[VideoGame/MetalGearSolid4GunsOfThePatriots solid-eye]] before it was cool, hell, even a ''freakin' laser cutlass.'' Dane gets relegated to ordering troops around instead. Not that this diminishes his awesomeness; enhances it really. This is what his voice actor thought of the character.
-->''"As I let my imagination work its magic, very quickly a vision came to me of an updated Viking Warrior Chieftain. He emerges, sailing the raging seas of space and he has dangerous and terrible tasks to struggle with. He makes decisions that cost him the life of friends and comrades in arms. He feels each loss deeply as he fights on against overwhelming odds. He rejoices in each victory. And always he is in command. Foes come at him from every side yet still he has trusted allies and some brilliant young heroes to deploy."''
* AuthorityEqualsAssKicking: An armchair warrior, but no-one in their right mind would bet against him.
* BadAss: That silent nod he gives Aran at the beginning of the game just ''reeks'' of this and being the sole leader of an entire fleet of starships doesn't hurt his awesome cred either.
* BadAssInCharge: The man in complete command of the space forces during the Corruption Crisis and the Horus Rebellions. Where was he in ''Other M'' when you needed him?
* {{Bowdlerisation}}: His PrecisionFStrike of ''"Damn!"'' was replaced with a ''"No!"'' in the ''Metroid Prime Trilogy''.
* ComicallySerious: Doesn't take kindly to irreverent humour directed at an old foe.
-->''"Aurora unit 242 has now been in usage for eighteen years. It was constructed at the same time as the G.F.S Olympus. As the AE of the flagship of the 7th flotilla, 242 can present a considerable career. With his male persona, 242 has a collegial relationship to much of the crew of the Olympus. In the jargon of former crew members, 242 is often called 'Other Brain' -- something that Admiral Dane frowns upon."''
* CoolShip: The G.F.S. Olympus.
* {{Expy}}: The Colonel at the end of ''Other M'' somewhat resembles him. And by somewhat, he is short, old, got a pot belly and wears a beret. While Dane is in his prime, garbed in a ballistic armoured uniform and a hat so ''awesome'' that the best way to describe it is a cross between an armour-plated ushanka and a leather embossed tricorn. Also, that Colonel is a [[{{Jerkass}} unrepentant, corrupt, douche-bag]] while Dane is a [[ReasonableAuthorityFigure paragon of virtue]] in comparison.
* FaceNodAction: Reserved for Samus alone, when the briefing concludes and the other hunters rush out. These two comrades-in-arms have worked together before.
* ImprovisedUmbrella: Admiral Dane uses his [[ItMakesSenseInContext personal flagship as one]] in the Space Pirate Home-world, where the rain is lethally acidic.
* MilitarySalute: To Miss Aran, when she's revealed to have survived the Phazon War. And ''by God'' does she deserve it.
* MissionControl: Sometimes.
* NiceHat: Heck, the hat itself is a MemeticBadass in its own right.
* NotSoDifferent: To our heroine; probably why they mesh so well.
-->''"He is stern and aggressive, and has a strong dislike for the Space Pirates. Rumor has it they orphaned him at an early age, an act he still seeks to avenge."''
--->--'''Samus Aran'''
* TheStoic: As befitting a man of action and command. The only point where his [[NotSoStoic facade falls away for a moment]] is when worrying for the life of his good friend and finest free-lance soldier.
* [[YouKilledMyFather You Killed My Family]]: It is whispered about among his crew.

!!The Federation Military (Infrastructure Specialists / Marine Corps)
-->''[[AC:"Welcome to the GFB Inter-Stellar Network.]]''
-->''[[AC:This state-of-the-art bliptran réseau links to 98% of the Galactic Federation's 140,328 Permanent-Member Systems.]]''
-->''[[AC:From Ardis to Corella 5, you'll have full access to the Federation's entire database."]]''
--->--'''Universal Holo-net'''

[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/fleet_troopers_1834.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:''"Wow! You're Samus Aran? It's an honour to meet you!"'']]

[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/federation_3024.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:334:''"Know that we did our duty and fought well."'']]

* CallForward: Their Stiletto-Class and gunship Samus designs using their technology resemble the ship they later give to Samus in ''Fusion''.
* ChestInsignia: Most troopers in Prime 3 carry the federation symbol moulded in metal.
* CoolGuns: The federation marines have detachable arm mounted guns for both their kinetic and other energy weapons. The army soldiers have more conventional assault rifles.
* DropShip: Aries-class transport vessels.
* EscortMission: You have to keep four of them alive during the final mission of "Prime 3." Lose too many, and it's game over.
* TheEngineer: Fleet mechanics are highly sought after and often overpaid according to the scan visor.
* FreezeRay: The secondary weapon of their army soldiers in ''Other M''.
* GlassCannon: The Demolition Trooper armor has explosives built in it and they are used primarily for busting down barriers. Their armor isn't as good at handling direct attacks as a marine's and they lack P.E.D.s, so they don't last long in straight up fire-fights. Thankfully they know their role and mostly hang back so Samus does not have ''too'' hard a time protecting them in an EscortMission.
* InvisibleAliens: Not so much in the entire series, but in the Galactic Federation specifically. The manual from the first game implied that the Federation was made up predominately by aliens, but we only see humans in every game until ''Prime 3'' and even the small percentage of the regular armed forces that are not human are presumably man made. This is most evident when MB in ''Other M'' announces her intentions to strike the Federation capital in order to punish "the humans" with no mention of any other species.
* KineticWeaponsAreJustBetter: Seems to be their philosophy, but it proves not to be the case when they touch down on Aether. They seem to be using energy weapons in ''Prime 3'', but are back to kinetics by ''Other M''.
** {{Fridge Brilliance}}: They were using energy weapons in ''Prime 3'' that were better than their kinetic weapons, but they were based on Phazon, which Samus obliterated when she killed Dark Samus in ''Metroid Prime 3''. They had to go back to using older technology, whether it was better or not.
* MauveShirt: The GF troopers in ''Corruption''; since they're already dead by the time you get there in ''Echoes'', they don't promote from the RedShirtArmy.
* RedShirt: Fleet Troopers have no protection from attack, besides the fact they work on war ships. If something gets inside, they are kind of helpless without other soldiers or turrets to protect them. They are often ignored, but really are the backbone of the navy.
* ReligiousAndMythologicalThemeNaming: Their individually named space craft mostly follow this, with names from Greek, Norse, and Egyptian mythology showing up as well as EpicOfGilgamesh. There is also a task force named Heracles in ''Echoes'' and mention of a Horus Rebellion in ''Corruption.'' Because the Space Pirates frequently steal from them, much of their junk also follows this motif.
* SpaceFighter: Stiletto-Class ships and presumably other hunter class gun ships
* SpaceMarine: How the organization is divided is unclear. Besides "marines", we've been introduced to the navy and an admiral, then to the army and a former general. The army's soldiers seem to have sleeker combat armor than the marines, but it is not known if this is supposed to indicate whether they are a different type of troop or was just an artistic choice, as we've never seen the army and marines side by side in a single game.
* SuperMode: The P.E.D. Marines had one to match the space pirate's.
* VideoGameCrueltyPunishment: The hydra class turrets that protect non combatants and come in three intensity levels. Don't shoot the fleet troopers.
* TheWorfEffect: They can't get through the Pirates in Zebes and one of their corpses is found by Kraid. Sylux smashes one in the intro to ''Metroid Prime: Hunters''. They are torn apart by Ing-possessed Splinters and then their dead bodies are possessed as well. One of their Olympus-class ships is taken by the pirates to show off how dangerous they are with phazon. You can get points for saving them during the pirate raid at the start of ''Metroid Prime 3'', where they will die if you don't take action.
** Naturally, players were surprised when they later are seen fighting pretty well, even though they are supposed to be the among the best troops in the galaxy. They simply never had the chance to show it up until that point, and even then, there is a blink-and-miss-it scene where two P.E.D. Marines are killed by a Pirate Commander.
* WeWillWearArmorInTheFuture: Most of those placed in personal combat anyway. It is apparently as much for using more potent weapons as it is for protection from enemies.
* WetwareCPU: The Olympus-class ships reduce the crew requirements by using organic super computers to handle most non-combat roles, allowing them to carry more fighter craft and be armed with more weapons. Originally the Aurora Units were made for research purposes, and they are also used in business and government.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Bounty Hunters]]
!!Rundas
-->''"Between the two of us, this should be a breeze."''
--->'''Voiced by:''' Christopher Sabat

[[quoteright:212:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/rundasart_4721.png]]
[[caption-width-right:212:''"That never would have happened if I'd been there."'']]

* {{Badass}}: The scan visor says his threat level matches Aran's.
* BigDamnHeroes: With only ''seconds'' to spare, Rundas [[CatchAFallingStar saves]] Samus from reaching the reactor of an energy shaft after she just dueled Ridley in a free-fall battle. This was his EstablishingCharacterMoment, and part of what made him so endearing to the fandom.
* BondOneLiner: Gives one after shooting down two flying transports.
* BountyHunter: Believes himself to be the best in this field
* BrainwashedAndCrazy: Emphasis on the crazy. You can tell Rundas is really not himself when Samus is sent to see why contact was lost with him.
* DeadlyUpgrade: The P.E.D. makes some of his attacks almost impossible to dodge.
* DestructibleProjectiles: He can stop certain shots with his powers, but given their nature, certain shots can stop his powers.
* DyingAsYourself: When he is beaten, he seems to look around, confused. He almost tries to speak, but is impaled by an ice spike. It is uncertain whether this was him euthanising himself, or possibly Dark Samus killing him. But it makes it even ''more'' [[TearJerker sad.]]
* DemonicPossession: If you look closely when fighting him Dark Samus's image will periodically overlap his and he has some very faint audio clips that may play and they suggest he does not like what he is doing.
* EasterEgg: A few but one in particular, he can be seen watching Samus from afar after she leaves a downed Federation vessel on Bryyo if you look carefully. (as soon as you take any action beyond one step through the door he will take off).
* ElementalArmor: Sometimes encases himself in it, other times uses it to provide cover. Normally Rundas is something of a {{fragile speedster}} without the P.E.D.'s hyper mode but his ice defenses are surprisingly durable. Not unbreakable but the easiest way to get rid of them is trick him into helping you with it.
* EpicFlail: In hyper mode he has a mix between this and a hammer toss. [[spoiler: A missile shot at him while doing this can possibly result in him dropping it on his head, which knocks him straight out of hyper mode]].
* {{Expy}}: He visually resembles Noxus and has ice powers (to Noxus's freeze gun). He fights much differently, however, and is fully on the Federation's side.
* IWorkAlone: According to Federation reports, this was his attitude before he met Samus (who he seems to bond with); it explains some of his actions on Bryyo too.
* AnIcePerson: He can generate ice and control the movement of the ice he creates.
** HandBlast: They have the same sound effect as the Prime ice beam.
* ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice: He kills at least one enemy this way and possibly himself.
* {{Irony}}: When he is attempting to halt the argument, he mentions that they are the good guys, justice will prevail, and all that stuff. Guess what happens to each of the Hunters barring Samus a few weeks to a month later?
* JusticeWillPrevail: He claims this as the hunters are all arguing: ''"Hey, relax. We're the good guys. Justice will prevail and all that stuff... right, Samus?"'' Headers the trope page, as well.
* LiterallyShatteredLives: To any Pirate.
* LittleNo: When his personal armor starts to break. So little you might not even recognize it.
* MegaManning: Samus gets Ice Missiles after slaying him.
* MorphWeapon: He can create a variety of shapes to hit things with.
* NotQuiteFlight: Like old school Iceman, but better at it, as he generally reabsorbs his generated ice rather than leaving behind long slides of it and can travel ''much'' faster.
* PainfullySlowProjectile: He shoots out a whole bunch to track a target and distract it while he zips off elsewhere; his serious shots are much faster.
* [[HesMine She's Mine:]] kills his own men so he can battle Samus by him self.
* SpaceFighter: His "Phrygisian-class gunship".
* SuperMode: After getting the P.E.D. suit and icon helmet.
* TrophyRoom: Is rumored to keep trophies from all his successful hunts.
* TheVoiceless: He dosen't speak at all before and after the boss fight.
* YouOweMe: Guess when he says it.

!!Ghor
-->''[[MemeticMutation "That seems... inefficient."]]''
--->'''Voiced by:''' Edwin Neal

[[quoteright:212:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/bounty_hunters_3597.png]]
[[caption-width-right:212:''"Don't you feel the power? Soon, everything will be corrupted. Including you!"'']]

* ArmCannon[[GunsAkimbo s Akimbo]]: Two in his armor in addition to a ChestBlaster. He simply has a wrist launcher when not armored up.
** BeamSpam: When desperate, he uses his smart bombs, missile salvos and plasma beams all at once
* TheBigGuy: With his suit; outside of it, Rundas is larger than him.
* BladeBelowTheShoulder: Power armor has two.
* BountyHunter: Though is just as likely to be called for tech support
* BrainwashedAndCrazy: He was sent to save the Elysians from this fate but succumbed to it as well.
* CallingYourAttacks: Before trying to decapitate Aran with a plasma lance.
-->''"This turn of events is insignificant. I'll show you what I mean. Observe!"''
* CarFu: He hoists over his head then ''throws'' Samus' ''gunship'' at her.
* CoolShip: His suit ''is'' his ship.
* {{Cyborg}}: Overwhelmingly mechanical
** CyberneticsEatYourSoul: Subverted in that he is a really nice person, but played straight with his murder frenzy in his battle suit.
* DangeroulyGenreSavvy: He knows all too well about the Aurora Unit, and the only weapon to fix the damaged circuits is his own.
* DeadlyUpgrade: Emphasis on deadly; he seems to benefit the least from the P.E.D. Suit.
* DeflectorShields: [[RammingAlwaysWorks He uses them offensively too]].
* GlassCannon: Without his suit. He is not particularly tough or fast but can still do a lot of damage.
** StoneWall: With the suit, which is very durable compared to most suits in these games, very fast and heavily armed. It falls into this trope in that it doubles as Ghor's gunship and falls behind a few of them in maneuverability and firepower.
* GoodCounterpart: Ghor is a Federation fighter who, after being rebuilt, resembles a Space Pirate (at least the ones in ''Prime 3''). Compare to Weavel, a Space Pirate, who after being rebuilt ironically resembles a Federation soldier.
* GrapplingHookGun: Strictly offensive; he doesn't need to building-swing since his suit flies.
* GroundShatteringLanding: {{Invoked|Trope}} in his flying heavy suit.
* MacrossMissileMassacre: From his armour suit's shoulders
* MalevolentMugshot: His level of malevolence is questionable, but his face was temporarily all over Sky Town.
* MegaManning: Samus gets a plasma beam for defeating him.
* NiceGuy: When not in his suit.
* PetTheDog: His scans say that he occasionally works for free or even gives his bounty money to whoever has been harassed by his bounty targets.
* PlasmaCannon: What his main weapon is called. Ghor actually has four. One on his person and three situated in his larger armour.
** PlayingWithFire: Not exactly ''fire'', but the plasma he shoots is hot enough to set some things ablaze and he even uses it to [[HotBlade heat up his blades]] in close quarters combat.
* ShoulderCannon: two in large armor.
* ShoutOut: His backstory, with him having to replace his body with a cybernetic one that alters his personality, seems inspired by [[RevengeOfTheSith General Grievous]], except that Ghor isn't a villain. Not initially, at least.
* TheSmartGuy: Without his suit. Despite bounty hunting being his preferred profession, he's often asked to crack or control computer systems.
* SpinAttack: Both with his "attack claws" and sweeping around with his chest blaster.
* SuperMode: After getting two P.E.D. icons, the second one might be for his larger armour.
* UnskilledButStrong: He logically assesses his situation and strikes with state of the art weaponry, but is still lacking in pure combat skill according to Federation reports on him.
* WeCanRebuildHim: 94 percent of his body got blasted to bits in combat.

!!Gandrayda
-->''"You know, you should never trust strangers, Sammy. This is gonna' be fun!"''
--->'''Voiced by:''' Claire Hamilton

[[quoteright:212:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/samm_5956.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:212:''"Space Pirate grey is definitely not my style."'']]

* BountyHunter: Aspires to be the best
* BrainwashedAndCrazy: Which leads her to try and take Samus's helmet as a grisly trophy.
* DeadlyUpgrade: The P.E.D. greatly enhances her amounts of ShapeShifterBaggage and stealth.
* ElementalPunch: Strikes the ground when she wants space.
* EnergyBeings: It seems the reason Gandrayda is able to shapeshift is because her natural form isn't really physical to begin with.
* FingerSnapLighter: Sparks to electronics rather than flames to a lighter, being the future and all. She is only shown doing this after getting the P.E.D. though and even shows a distaste toward mechanical systems before getting it.
* GetBackHereBoss: The main reason that makes fighting her so frustrating is that she spends 95% of her time jumping around, stopping only to change shapes or when she has managed to latch on to you.
* HiveMind: She is able to take the form of several swarm bots at once thanks to the P.E.D., and this is likely how she controls them all.
* HomingProjectile: Air based blades and a ground based spark.
* TheInfiltration: Is more interested in hunting bounties, but gets these kind of missions because of her abilities.
** TheyLookJustLikeEveryoneElse: Of course, this could be part of her standard hunting procedure anyway.
* MsFanservice:
** InnocentFanserviceGirl: Though, to what extent she is actually ''innocent'' is debatable.
** ShamelessFanserviceGirl: Also a possible personality trait.
* {{Invisibility}}: She has a personal cloaking field.
* LaughingMad: Just prior to fighting Samus, after she nearly shot Samus while her back was turned. And a more insane laughter toward the end of her ShapeShifterSwanSong, too.
* LifeDrain
** Can be reversed for an OverClockingAttack.
** NotWhatItLooksLike: It shouldn't look like anything but assault with intent to kill. Fandom being what it is, however...
* ManChild: According to scans, her psyche has "a high degree of youthfulness."
* MegaManning: :Samus gets the Grapple Voltage after putting her down.
* PartsUnknown: She is compared to Jovian creatures from where the Federation manufactures its steel but seems to surpass them in ability and little to nothing is known about where she really comes from or how her powers work.
* [[GreenSkinnedSpaceBabe Purple Skinned Space Babe]]: Or pink, purple. Whichever you prefer.
* TheRival: She really wanted to prove herself a better bounty hunter than Samus, who in turn [[UnknownRival didn't even know who Gandrayda was]] until ''Metroid Prime 3.''
* SecretAIMoves: When copying Samus, she can uses some abilities much better than the player and some the player never has access to.
* ShapeShifterSwanSong: Including both Rundas and Ghor, and most hauntingly, Samus herself.
* ShockAndAwe: [[MorphicResonance It is her tell]].
* StatuesqueStunner: Her default form is taller than Samus, who is 6'3 in imperial measurements. Combine that with Gandrayda's psychological evaluation and she might not have been fully grown even!
* SuperMode: When she receives a P.E.D. vest.
* VoluntaryShapeshifting: She can fake phazon corruption and even turn into things larger than herself. Conservation of mass what? The other characters in the game don't understand it either.

!!Sylux
-->''[[AC:"A skilled marksman and bounty hunter experienced in espionage skills such as scouting and tracking. While much of their background remains a mystery, including age, race or even gender. It is clear that this individual nurses a particular loathing for the Galactic Federation and her subsidiaries. Sylux uses the Shock Coil, a banned state-secret Federation-made pulse cannon that continually drains energy from enemies and refills the shooter's own. Highly classified intelligence notes that research into high-density neutrino stream manipulation similar in fact to Metroid predation led to its construction. Known for successfully shadowing the top ranked Hunter in the cosmos. Samus Aran."]]''
--->--'''Guild Data'''

[[quoteright:188:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Sylux_3529.jpg]]

* AmbiguousGender: Sylux is never referred to by gender-specific pronouns, leading to the common [[EpilepticTrees fan theory]] that Sylux [[SamusIsAGirl is female]].
* TheBlank: Like Weavel, Sylux's armor gives no indication of any sort of face. ''Possession'' of said face probably won't be known until fans get a peek under that suit.
* BountyHunter: A notorious one specifically opposed to the Federation and Samus Aran by extension since they frequently hire her.
* ColorCodedForYourConvenience: The hunter, the shock coil, and the doors it opens are all blue.
* CoolShip: The Delano 7.
* DeathFromAbove: In the intro cutscene, delivered to an unsuspecting Federation trooper.
* TheEndOrIsIt: The apparent appearance of the Delano 7 at the end of ''Prime 3'' may count.
* LightningGun: The Shock Coil: its stream jumps to the nearest target, so little aiming is required, but it is sort of short ranged. Sylux can recover health when using it.
** {{Irony}}: Sylux has a reputation for being a sharp shot despite primarily using weapon that requires very little aiming.
* RoarBeforeBeating: In the intro, though Sylux had already beaten someone, presumably the fighting wasn't over.
* RocketJump: So far the only example to rival, possibly even surpass Samus, taking this trope to NotQuiteFlight levels. The jumps you can make are impressive, and in low gravity, you really can fly in Sylux's alternate form, the Lockjaw.
* SequelHook: Again, the possible Delano 7 appearance, which fits in line with the Sequel Hooks from the first two games.
* SequentialBoss: Your first fight with Sylux which culminates with the Delano 7 being called on you.
* TrapMaster: Sylux's altform uses bombs like Samus's Morph Ball, but rather than detonating after a few seconds, they connect in pairs to form tripwires which wrap around any non Sylux figure large enough to set them off and then explode. Laying three causes them simultaneously detonate, so they are known as tri bombs.
* TronLines: Both on Sylux's armor and ship.
* VoluntaryShapeshifting: The lockjaw compresses Sylux into a smaller form which hovers above the ground, moving at great speeds but having inertial issues.

!!Weavel
-->''[[AC:"Formerly a loyal soldier of the Space Pirates and a trooper in a special-forces unit. Weavel was severely wounded and left for dead in a pitched fight with Veteran Hunter, Samus Aran. Some suspect perhaps even on the surface of Zebes during the famed Emergency Order M510. What has now come to be known as the 'Zero Mission'. Like the other hunters, he also seeks the Ultimate Power. His weapon of choice is the rapid-fire, heavy-duty Battle hammer; a nuclear repeater. Weavel can transform into the Half-turret, where his upper and lower body split and can attack separately. Proof of the severity of his injuries, it's safe to say he bears a simmering grudge against the Raging Devil."]]''
--->--'''Guild Data'''

[[quoteright:188:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Weavel_2341.jpg]]

* AscendedExtra: He would have to be one of the pirates from the ''Zero Mission'' remake for his story to make any sense with the information we know. It is possible another game could occur during the time period though, as Metroid has been skipping around since Prime.
* TheBlank: Possibly. It's not entirely clear if that yellow section of his head where his face would be is a cybernetic face or just a visor. A fan theory is that he's a Ki-Hunter, which would make that yellow part his actual face if true.
* BountyHunter: What he has been reduced to. It is unknown whether he retains any loyalty to the space pirates or has simply decided to work for his own benefit.
* ColorMotif: Weavel's suit has a mild green tint and the battle hammer is green.
* CoolShip: Though it's not as prominent as the Delano 7, it can be seen in the intro movie, where Weavel is using it to evade the GF Police. It's also briefly seen on [[spoiler:the Oubliette]].
* {{Cyborg}}: The only part of his body that Samus didn't shred beyond repair was his brain and spinal cord.
* DetachmentCombat: He can be significantly weakened if one of his halves is disabled though he can also pick up power ups in this state and end up with a larger health bar than any other hunter can have until he recombines.
* PartsUnknown: Said in the game's intro.
* MarkOfShame: His new cybernetic body is a constant reminder of Weavel being completely wasted by Samus. In fact, it's the reason why he is no longer a high-ranking Pirate.
* RememberTheNewGuy: Apparently, Weavel lost his body while fighting Samus on Zebes in the first game. In Brinstar. Which never contained any Pirates at this point in the chronology, neither in the first game nor in ''Zero Mission''.
* SpacePirate: Though technically, he is no longer officially affiliated with them.
* SwissArmyAppendage: He has the trademark Space Pirate scythe, which he only uses in his alt-form during game play. This one is actually a rather mild example as far as Pirates go, because while Weavel's scythe is merely ''attached'' to his arm, Pirates tend to ''replace'' their arms with such scythes.
* SplashDamage: The battle hammer has a bigger blast radius when used by him.
* TheTurretMaster: He can split his body in half and the lower half will become a turret.
* WeCanRebuildHim: He was originally just a high-ranked space pirate (probably a Commando or Trooper) until he was completely blown to smithereens by Samus and rebuilt as a cyborg.

!!Noxus
-->''[[AC:"Subject is a member of the Vhozon, a highly esteemed monastic race on the Outer Rim of the galaxy. Noxus' sole reason for trying his hand at bounty hunting is to stop crime and protect the Universe from losing the balance between good and evil. As did many of the other bounty hunters, Noxus received word of an opportunity to receive an extremely powerful weapon from the Alimbic Cluster, which he frantically goes to search for in hopes he can use it to bring peace to the Galaxy, or at the very least stop it from falling into unworthy hands. His personal firearm is the Judicator. A ricocheting blunderbuss powered by cold-fusion synthesis. It fires supercooled plasma at temperatures approaching absolute zero."]]''
--->--'''Guild Data'''

[[quoteright:188:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Noxus_4264.jpg]]

* BountyHunter: Though most of the industrial world considers bounty hunting to be a criminal activity, Noxus became a bounty hunter specifically to fight criminals and other forms of "evil". Guess times have really changed in the space age.
* ColorCodedForYourConvenience: From the hunter himself, to his ice weapon, to the doors that can be opened once Samus gets his weapon, his main color is purple.
* EverythingsBetterWithSpinning: His alt. form has him curl up and spin like a top.
* ExtraEyes: He has four eyes.
* HeroAntagonist: The only reason he even ends up fighting against Samus is because his goal is to keep the Ultimate Power out of the wrong hands. Presumably, Samus and the Galactic Federation would fall under "the wrong hands."
* IHaveTheHighGround: In the game's intro.
* AnIcePerson: By way of his WeaponOfChoice, the Judicator. He can release a vapor wall that freezes enemies in place when he charges a shot.
* KnightErrant: He left his home world to go on a crusade against all evil in the universe.
* NaturalWeapon: The Vhoscythe.
* SpinAttack: In his alternate form.

!!Kanden
-->''[[AC:"A science project gone awry, an experiment to create a so-called super-soldier that was practically invincible. However, Kanden's mind was still no more than a mere Enoema's, and therefore his brain could not withstand the complicated neural combat encoding sequences. This completely transformed his mind, leaving him as a ferocious, unbelievably powerful and dangerously unpredictable monster. Kanden escaped the research lab, killing the scientists that created him, and destroyed their laboratory. Kanden then took great advantage of his strength, durability, and near-immortality by trying his hand at becoming a bounty hunter. Built with programming to hunt, fight and destroy, he could be the ultimate template of that same project. Fittingly, he boasts an equally terrifying and experimental tool of his trade. the Volt Driver draws energy from the planetary electromagnetic field the wielder is situated on and converts it into five-figure terawatt bursts of High amplitude ball lightning."]]''
--->--'''Guild Data'''

[[quoteright:188:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/mph-kanden1_3682.jpg]]

* BewareMyStingerTail: His alternate form shoots explosive stingers.
* BountyHunter: Though, he does it less for the "bounty" part and more for the "hunter" part.
* TheBrute: He is one of if not the largest bounty hunters if it is not Spire and has one of the least sympathetic goals, so this is his role when they eventually team up.
* ColorCodedForYourConvenience: Though the hunter himself is green, his weapon, the Volt Driver, is yellow, as are the doors that Samus can open once she gets this weapon.
* ExtraEyes: He has four eyes in biped form and lots of markings that superficially look like eyes. The stinglarva appears to have seven eyes in official art, or rather six with one of those markings as a big eye spot.
* ForTheEvulz: The main reason he became a bounty hunter, and the reason why he is searching for the Ultimate Power of the Alimbics, is because it gives him a chance to fulfill his killing potential.
* GoneHorriblyWrong: He was originally a lab experiment to create a super-soldier, but he escaped. He wouldn't have the mental stability to serve as a soldier anyway.
* HumanoidAbomination: This is what you get when you combine an unnaturally augmented scientific experiment with a mind that is just barely holding onto its sanity.
* InterfaceScrew: His special weapon, the Volt Driver, can distort a target's vision when they are hit by charged shots. It homes in on the target when he fully charges it.
* NightmareFace: Let's just say that his face is rather unnerving.
* PsychoPrototype: And because of it, we may never get to see the finished product
** PsychoElectro: His weapon of choice is the volt driver, which is sort of like a combination between Samus's power beam and electro lob. Charging a shot causes them to home in on targets when he uses it.
* RocketJump: How his Stinglarva form jumps, though not as good at it as the Morph Ball or Lockjaw.
* StuffBlowingUp: In his intro, a building blows up behind him; possibly the facility he came from, but who knows.
* SuperSoldier: The reason the scientists made him in the first place, though their final product would not be no good for it. [[GoneHorriblyWrong They at least succeeded at making a killer]].
* TronLines: Well, more like Tron ''Circles''.
* VoluntaryShapeshifting: The stinglarva he compresses into makes use of biological material from several predatory insectoid aliens

!!Spire
-->''[[AC:"Spire is the last of his kind, a race known as the Diamonts. They are extremely strong, composed of silicon-based organic rock and hail from the planet Mondreus. Not much is known about him except that he wearily searches for the fate and location of the rest of his people, if any are to be found. When Spire hears of a source of Ultimate Power in the Alimbic System, he is drawn by the possibility of discovering clues to the whereabouts of his lost race. on hunts, he wields an ancestral mortar called the Magmaul, powered by a hyper-static hydrogen core, it belches cohesive projectiles of ultra-compressed magma.""]]''
--->--'''Guild Data'''

[[quoteright:188:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Spire_9269.jpg]]

* TheBigGuy: He has a sympathetic goal, making him one of the more heroic bounty hunters when they eventually team up.
* BeTheBall: When he becomes the Dialanche
* BountyHunter: To support his search for his kind or answers as to what happened to them
* CollisionDamage: The Dialanche, as seen in the intro. It has to be right when he transforms or at full speed, though, so you're better off using the attack button instead.
* ColorMotif: From the hunter himself, to his magma weapon, to the doors that can be opened once Samus gets his weapon, his main color is orange.
* CreatorInJoke: Retro Studios based his design off a creature from one of their canceled projects. Nintendo Software Technologies wrote his back story with that in mind.
* LastOfHisKind: Indeed, the reason why he is seeking the Ultimate Power in the Alimbic system is because it may provide him with an opportunity to find out what happened to the rest of his species.
* MagmaMan: In fact, according to his scans, his body contains "molten ferrous compounds normally found only in ''a planet's core''." His weapon of choice shoots lava grenades, and charged shots light things on fire, doing more damage when he uses it. He can also move through lava without taking damage (though the lava from his own weapon is too hot for even him to withstand, or maybe it's just {{competitive balance}}?)
* RollingAttack: Seen the Hunters intro movie
* ShoutOut: Spire seems very similar to [[Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda Gorons]], in that both are rock-based creatures that roll up into boulder-like balls.
* SiliconBasedLife: Which probably explains why he is at home in molten environments, one theory is that such creatures would have to live in incredibly hot environments or else move extremely slow.
* WallCrawl: his Alternate form can do this.

!!Trace
-->''[[AC:"A feared bounty hunter and a subject of the Kriken Empire, Trace is a remorseless individual. At a certain age, Kriken youths are exiled by their clans and sent to distant planets as a rite of passage to find suitable territory for their empire to invade. Trace is currently taking his rite of passage and has become a bounty hunter to travel the Galaxy in search of technology and land that may increase his standing. Trace sees the so-called Ultimate Power as his chance; if he succeeds in obtaining it, then he will be considered a hero among his people. With a brittle exoskeleton that cannot compete with the durability of his rivals. Trace uses his tactical preference for sniping to compensate for this vulnerability. And with his weapon of choice being an Imperialist sniper rifle, (a long-range quantum cascade laser with a precision scope) He more than lives up to his bloody reputation."]]''
--->--'''Guild Data'''

[[quoteright:188:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Trace_4450.jpg]]

* AlwaysChaoticEvil: His race, the Kriken, thrives off of being this, almost to the extent of putting the SpacePirates to shame.
* BioAugmentation: The Triskelion is the result of this.
* BountyHunter: He entered this field of work in hopes he would find suitable worlds for his kin to conquer, which makes you wonder how he ever gets work. That or technology that would revolutionize his empire.
* ColdSniper: His weapon, the Imperialist, is a red laser that actually has a sniping scope of sorts. As such, it has the longest range of any of the hunters' weapons.
* ColorCodedForYourConvenience: From the hunter himself, to his sniper weapon, to the doors that can be opened once Samus gets his weapon, his main color is red.
* GlassCannon: Samus, or at least the scan visor, suspect him of being one of these, relying on stealth rather than toughness for defense.
* GlorySeeker: To advance in Kriken society, he has to be.
* HumanLadder: He stands atop a mount of what can be presumed to be other Kriken in the intro.
* {{Invisibility}}: What happens when he fires his weapon while standing still. His alternate form has invisibility when standing still as well.
* RaymanianLimbs: Well, his head has no connection to his body.
* RiteOfPassage: His involvement in the story has him seeking the Octoliths as part of this. He fails, of course, but then again, [[spoiler:the "Ultimate Power" he was looking for didn't really exist in the first place]].
* SecretAIMoves: In the strictly one-player mode, he can rapid-fire the Imperialist. We repeat -- he is rapid-firing ''a sniper rifle''. Only during his very first appearance, though, and only if you provoke him into doing it. (you're "supposed" to fight Noxus and hide away as Trace tries to snipe you but if you're skilled and stubborn enough, you can defeat Trace first. He flees on his own after you beat Noxus, meaning beating Trace is pure bragging rights reward)
* ShoutOut: Kriken society is a pastiche of the [[WesternAnimation/InvaderZim Irken]]'s.
* VoluntaryShapeshifting: He can become a [[TripodTerror three legged]] triskelion, which does not run especially fast but can move very quickly by jumping/lunging, giving him a different problem with inertia to Sylux's.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Space Pirates]]
!!Ridley
-->''[[ForTheEvulz "Kill as much as you want! Have fun!"]]''

-->''[[AC:"The reconstruction of geoform 187, code-named Ridley, was recently completed. After his defeat on Zebes, Command ordered a number of meta-genetic improvements for him. Though aggressive, we were able to implement these changes in a cycle. The metamorphosis was painful, but quite successful in the end. Early tests indicate a drastic increase in strength, mobility, and offensive capability. Cybernetic modules and armor plating have been added as well. We believe our creation, now called Meta Ridley, will become the mainstay of our security force, a job he will certainly relish."]]''
--->--'''Project Orpheon'''
[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/vovon_1328.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:''"Time for you -- [[SuddenlyShouting TO DISAPPEAR!!!]]"'']]
----
Attack Dog of High Command, General of the Mother Brain. ''Lord'' Ridley is the unabashed, sociopathic, recurring arch-nemesis to the main protagonist; Samus Aran. Responsible for the razing, pillaging and mass-murder of innumerable innocent settlements in his crusade against the Galactic Federation and the forces of order; Ridley ''lives'' for carnage and his sadism is only matched by his [[HiddenDepths deceptive cunning]]. Of an unknown but fearsome race, the cruel Space Dragon inadvertently creates one who will ensure he harms no other.
----
* {{Archenemy}}: To Samus.
* AscendedExtra: In ''Metroid 1'' he was just a one-note mini-boss who guarded one of the lock mechanisms to Mother Brain's hideout. Contrast that with the unending praise he's had heaped on him since then.
* AsskickingEqualsAuthority: There's a reason he's so high up the Space Pirate chain of command.
* BackFromTheDead: See JokerImmunity.
* {{Badass}}: It's heavily implied that the only person in the entire galaxy who is a threat to him is Samus. Let's see what he (chronologically) accomplishes:
** Prior to the series, he single-handedly annihilates ''dozens'' of space colonies (including the one Samus lived in, [[NiceJobFixingItVillain whoops]]) and occupied Zebes, wiping out the remnants of the Chozo civilization. He also survives his flagship crashing down on top of him thanks to Samus' father detonating the Afloraltite on board. He claims this ''seared the flesh from his bones'' and he still managed to survive without medical aid.
** He fights Samus one-on-one in ''{{Metroid}}'' and, while losing, manages to not only survive his injuries but escape the endgame explosion, ''and'' lives through his injuries long enough for the pirates to save his life by making him a cyborg.
** In ''Prime'', the newly roboticized Meta Ridley is more or less the only Space Pirate to live through the destruction of their frigate, and later survives not only a thrashing by Samus but also being blasted by the statue guardians of the Artifact Temple; falling into a canyon, then ''blowing up''.
** In ''Corruption'', he lays waste to a whole Federation outpost before dragging Samus into a freefall battle. He not only survives, he takes in so much [[ToxicPhlebotinum Phazon]] he becomes a full-blown Leviathan guardian. And, unlike other powerful beings of Phazon, he ''lives through'' Phaaze's destruction at the end of the game.
** In ''VideoGame/SuperMetroid'', he attacks a science facility, steals the baby Metroid from right under Samus's nose, and fights her again. He finally dies in this game, and it takes the ''fifth'' canonical beat down by his archnemesis coupled with being caught in an '''exploding planet''' to kill him.
** His clone in ''Videogame/MetroidOtherM'' wreaks havoc in the station and slaughters scientists and even some soldiers while still an ''infant''. The frequency of his voice is driving the other beings in the Bottle Ship into a frenzy, meaning that even when he's not around to directly make things worse, he's still making things worse. Killing the clone requires no less a being than a friggin' Queen Metroid, and this is ''after'' he's worn out in another battle with Samus. Adam Malkovich considers the clone such a threat that he chooses to make HeroicSacrifice rather than face it, considering Samus the only person reliably able to battle Ridley.
** Even in ''Fusion'', the worn-out, dead, frozen husk of his ''clone'' is suitable for X parasite cloning. Yes, a clone of a clone, and he's still an endgame boss.
* BatmanCanBreatheInSpace: And fly, and survive re-entry without issue. His species is known as "the ''Space'' Dragons", suggesting they have adapted to vacuum environments.
* BewareMyStingerTail: His tail is pointed and barbed, and is first used as a weapon in ''Super Metroid''. It's also one of the few things that can damage Samus when she's using the Screw Attack. Omega Ridley can shoot short ranged beams out of his tail.
* BigBad: Of the two main plots in the first ''Videogame/MetroidPrime'', he's the BigBad of one of them and is the cause of the entire game.
* BigEater: In ''Other M'', he eats constantly as "Little Birdy" in order to hasten his metamorphosis.
* BloodKnight: Ridley enjoys nothing more than ripping things apart.
* BreathWeapon: What did you expect from a dragon? Ridley can spit plasma hot enough to melt through spaceship hull.
* BrownNote: In ''Other M'', it's revealed that the frequency of Ridley's voice drives Space Pirates and some other creatures into a murderous battle frenzy, essentially making Ridley a perfect military commander. It also may have had something to do with Samus's mental breakdown.
* CreateYourOwnVillain: Inverted. He killed Samus’ mother in attempting to kill Samus, thus Ridley had succeeded in creating his greatest enemy.
* CreepyChild: In ''Other M''. Somehow ironic how Ridley seems to be creepier when he's a cute newborn chicken thing.
* DarkLordOnLifeSupport: After his defeat on Zebes in ''Metroid'' the Space Pirates recovered his body, put him on life support in the Frigate Orpheon, and reconstructed him using cybernetic implants, turning him into Meta Ridley.
* DeaderThanDead: Let's see, as of ''Fusion'', his clone was reduced to ash, and then the station it was on was sent to a planet that then ''exploded''. On the other hand, he's already been cloned once, and since Samus is an outlaw at the end of ''Fusion'', it's not impossible that he won't be revived in some fashion, given that Ridley is the natural choice to hunt down Samus.
* DependingOnTheArtist: His size, color scheme, and even appearance have all wavered throughout the series. The only thing that's been consistent since ''Super Metroid'' is that he's [[EvilIsBigger larger than Samus]], but just how large depends on the situation. See YourSizeMayVary below.
* DisproportionateRetribution: As a child, Samus attempted to befriend Ridley, embarrassing him in front of his fellow Pirates. What does he try to do in order to save face? KILL HER.
* TheDragon: To Mother Brain in the original[=/=]''Zero Mission'' and ''Super'', and to Dark Samus in ''Prime 3''. He may have been the supreme leader of the Pirates before Mother Brain took over, and is clearly in command in ''Prime 1'' in Mother Brain's absence.
* TheDreaded: Let's put it this way: Adam Malkovich expressly considers Ridley to be just as much of a threat as a station full of ''invincible Metroids''. He is probably the only thing in the universe that can ''scare Samus stiff'' (though that has been attributed to Post Traumatic Stress Disorder). That is how dangerous this guy is.
* EarlyInstallmentWeirdness: The American art for the first ''Metroid'' game showed Ridley as a weird dragonfly thing instead of the more familiar space dragon. This might have been due to the art being based on his in-game sprite, which admittedly was rather vague on his appearance beyond "winged monster."
** Him being the same size as Samus.
* EvenEvilHasStandards: Subverted in the manga. Ridley at first seems to avoid trying to kill Samus, but was instead lowering her guard. [[KickTheDog She's 3 years old]] [[UpToEleven at the time.]]
* EvilCounterpart: Perhaps this is AlternateCharacterInterpretation, but he and Samus tend to parallel one another, with being extremely powerful and intelligent. They are also presented with the same option of killing or sparing each other as a child with opposite results. Additionally, Ridley and Samus are just as unkillable; Samus as a player character can "continue" if killed, and Ridley "continues" every time he dies.
* EyeBeams: Mecha-Ridley after his protector is broken.
* GeneticMemory: His clone in ''Other M'' seems to know EXACTLY who Samus is.
** The 'clone' may remember [[BackFromTheDead a lot more than that.]]
* FauxAffablyEvil: Not so apparent in the games but shines through in the manga, especially when he meets Samus for the first time.
* ForTheEvulz: It's implied that the only reason he's with the Space Pirates is that he enjoys killing people.
* GeniusBruiser: It's AllThereInTheManual. Finally somewhat shown in ''Other M''.
* GroundShatteringLanding: Meta Ridley and Omega Ridley.
* HealingFactor: He can eat organic matter in order to regenerate lost mass. He taunts Samus by saying he did this ''[[KickTheDog to her mother]]''. However, this ability seems to occur a lot slower than most other examples.
** His healing ability can be seen somewhat in ''Corruption'', presumably sped up by Phazon enhancement. The first time you fight him, as Meta-Ridley, most of his body is plated with or replaced by metal. When you face him a month or so later as Omega Ridley, he's healed enough that he's shed off a lot of his metal parts and what isn't removed is starting to get pushed apart by regrowing flesh anyway. Certainly justifies why he goes back to being regular Ridley in Super Metroid.
* HomingProjectile: Mecha-Ridley's missiles.
* ImprovisedArmor: Omega Ridley whips some up after you tear open his original armor plates.
* InformedAttribute: The intelligence that he exhibits in the manga, and which pretty much all supplementary material talks about, is never really touched upon in-game. Then again, we rarely see him when he's not fighting Samus, so who knows. Though it does get shown a bit by his clone in ''Other M''.
** Note that in the ''Other M'' example, Ridley brutally attacks the team of mercs and uses the terrain to his advantage. Then he noticed the extremely deadly Plasma Beam aimed right as his face and takes off. He doesn't just run either, he leaps and twists to make himself a harder target to hit. You know a weapon's powerful when Ridley turns tail and bolts.
** It's also exhibited during his attack on Norion in ''Corruption'', as he tries multiple times to attack Samus while she is in Morph Ball mode, incapable of really fighting back. After this fails, he drags her into a freefall battle; considering Samus can't fly, even if he lost the fight, she'd still fall to her death. [[SpannerInTheWorks And then Rundas shows up to save Samus, ruining all the fun.]]
* JokerImmunity: Officially averted in ''Super Metroid,'' where he canonically died. The ones in ''Fusion'' and ''Other M'' are a clone that was killed by a Metroid Queen and resurrected by an X Parasite. However, considering he's Samus's greatest nemesis and one of the iconic villains of the series, it's a sure thing that Ridley or a clone of him will continue to pop up.
* KilledOffForReal: In ''Super Metroid'' the entire planet of Zebes is blown up with his body on it. His clone is sucked dry in ''Other M'' and finally killed by the X in ''Fusion''.
* LackOfEmpathy: He cruelly mocks Samus for her PTSD-enduced memories of her mother being killed by him, as well as that he absorbed a bit of her cells.
* LeanAndMean: Except the ''Other M'' clone, which was bulky
* {{Leitmotif}}: [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VTYf06h-Si4 The most memorable one]] in the series.
* LightningBruiser: Able to tear around the screen at an amazing speed given his size, as well as deal out considerable damage to Samus.
* MightMakesRight: In the manga: ''"In battle, nature sides with the strong! You shall realize just how worthless your ideals and such are -- AH HA HA HA HA HA!"''
* NinjaPirateZombieRobot: Hilariously, he is a [[RecycledINSPACE space]] [[OurDragonsAreDifferent dragon]] who is the leader of the Space Pirates and often comes back from the dead, sometimes as a cyborg. If you count that he is capable of [[HeWasRightThereAllAlong "invisibility"]] in Super Metroid, he is a literal Ninja Pirate Zombie Robot. As of ''Metroid Prime 3'', he's a [[ILoveNuclearPower Radioactive]] NinjaPirateZombieRobot [[AppliedPhlebotinum Mutant]] [[RecycledInSpace Space]] [[InstantAwesomeJustAddDragons Dragon]].
* OurDragonsAreDifferent: They are anorexic and can fly in space here.
** InstantAwesomeJustAddDragons: Well, the main character does wear armor...
* PowerPalms: On occasion as Omega Ridley. Subverted in that you can shoot them dim.
* PsychoForHire: The manga and some of the Data Logs in ''MetroidPrime'' imply that his reason for being with the Space Pirates boils down to a sadistic love of killing other beings, which is his forte.
* RazorWings: Averted, the designers went out of their way to make sure players would not have to worry about his wings in the 2D games. He does use a couple wing attacks in ''Super Smash Bros Brawl'', however.
* RecurringBoss: The only enemies/bosses to appear in more games than him are the Metroids themselves.
* RobotMe: Mecha-Ridley in ''Zero Mission.''
* SuddenlyVoiced: His appearances in spin-off material give him the ability to speak. He never speaks in-game.
* TakingYouWithMe: His first boss fight in "Prime 3," which has you on a time limit that ends with Samus crashing into Norion's core.
* ThrowDownTheBomblet: The first Meta Ridley fight sees him do this. The second sees him throw them ''upwards''.
* UnexplainedRecovery: ''Metroid Prime'' was the first game to even make mention of his recovery and the explanation for it was not very detailed.
* WeCanRebuildHim: Meta-Ridley and later Omega Ridley.
* WipeTheFloorWithYou: In ''Other M'' he the walls of the Geothermal Power Plant if you let him grab Samus, which he previously did in his Boss cutscene from ''Super Smash Bros. Brawl''. No Pikachu to save Samus in Other M but you can just shoot Ridley in the face to make him let go.
* WouldHurtAChild: Almost killed Samus when she was three years old.
* YouAreNumberSix: Ridley is his codename. His real identification is Geoform 187.
* YourSizeMayVary: This led to discussions about whether he wasn't a playable character in ''SuperSmashBros Brawl'' because he was [[MemeticMutation "too big."]]
** A truly excellent example of this happens in ''Metroid Prime 3'', where in the beginning he was large enough to have Samus fit into his mouth just barely as they fell down the tunnel. Later on in the Pirate Homeworld, after becoming infused with Phazon to become Omega Ridley, you would think he would be just as large as before, right? Nope! He's suddenly sized down to the point that Samus could only fit her arm cannon into his mouth. Justified, if you look at it as being a classic duel between two arch-enemies on even foot.

!!Mother Brain
-->''"Did you finally realize you are nothing but a beast as well? ... No, more accurately - that you're just a bird that can't even fly."''
--->'''Voiced by:''' Levi Stubbs (TV Iteration)

-->''"Lying doesn't become you, nor does jealousy. Your jealousy of 'life' and 'the future!' And of Samus!!"''
--->--'''Gray Voice'''

[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/all_gone_wrong_5306.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:''"Defective product... Me...?!! A 'defective product'... You ''dare'' claim that I am defective...!!"'']]
----
The Mechanical Life Vein of Planet Zebes, progenitor of the Aurora Unit Biological Super Computer Complex, the self-proclaimed 'Mother' of the multiplied Metroid hordes and the ''true'' leader of the Zebesian Space Pirates. Once a benevolent AI system that assisted the last of the Chozo, she devolved into rampant insanity as a result of being surpassed by their last child, leaving her legacy in the dust. Jealous and spiteful of 'lesser' life-forms. Mother betrayed her caretakers and allowed the Space Pirates to invade Zebes; upon which she seized control of their armies with powerful telepathy. A deluded Darwinist, Mother seeks nothing more and nothing less than the subjugation of every living thing.
----
* ArchEnemy: While not quite as personal as Ridley, Mother Brain is still one of the most recurring villains of the series, and earns Samus's ire in various ways, most notably killing the baby Metroid. It's somewhat more prominent in the manga, where she played a part in raising Samus, before becoming one of her adversaries, unlike in Zero Mission where Samus says she grew up on Zebes long before Mother Brain was there.
* AIIsACrapshoot: Retconned in the ''Prime'' series as an organic machine built by the Chozo, instead of the Space Pirate leader. This is in the manga too. The manga reconciles these roles (she takes the pirates over), but ''Other M'' openly deems the ''Prime'' series CanonDiscontinuity and disregards a bit of the manga (saying that the pirates can't function without her).
* [[ArchnemesisDad Archnemesis Mom]]: With Samus in the manga.
* BigBad: More often than not. Could be considered the most prominent BigBad of the main series.
* BrainInAJar: And you get to break it out.
* {{Cyclops}}: Not originally though
* DarkLordOnLifeSupport: Extreme inversion: Mother Brain is a giant brain in a highly impact resistant glass casing. After breaking through the shield you still have to fire multiple missiles(regular beams do nothing) directly at her bare grey matter in order to finish her off proving that the transparent casing is clearly for protective reasons only.
** That said, the Zebetite barriers were said to be crucial power sources that kept her alive in the first game's manual. The manga changed this to Zebetite merely being there for her protection, which in a rare case of it closing a {{plot hole}} rather than creating more, explains why Samus did not simply walk away after destroying all the Zebetite.
* DeathByIrony: Almost manages to kill Samus in ''Super Metroid'', but is suddenly attacked by the fully-grown [[spoiler:baby Metroid she stole]], which chomps her head in retaliation. Ha!
* EarlyInstallmentWeirdness: In the first game she had two eyes, a nose, tusks, and did not attack directly. In Super Metroid, she only had one eye and was more active. The first game's remake retconned Mother Brain to have only one eye and to actively defend herself.
* EvilCounterpart: Like Samus, she's heavily associated with maternal themes, and in the manga was also created by the Chozo to be their ultimate creation of sorts, mirroring Samus's own upbringing as a great warrior. Yet while Samus is heroic and rebellious, Mother Brain enforces order and hierarchy.
* EyeBeams: She is the only boss from the first game to be made more difficult in Zero Mission. She doesn't shoot them normally though, being in a jar and all.
* InformedAbility: The psychic powers she is said to have in the manga are never made use of in the games (unless you count her eye beams and Hyper Beam, which could just as easily have mechanical sources). The events of ''Zero Mission'' are the strongest evidence against them, as the space pirates in her lair still fail to control the metroids, which can be contrasted with Metroid Prime 3, where Dark Samus ''does'' prove capable of getting Metroids to temporarily work along side other creatures against Samus. Also, ''Other M'''s suggestion that the pirates would fall apart without her is contradicted by the manga, where they were pirating before she came around, and the prior games, where they stayed together after she, Ridley and Kraid where all blown up by Samus.
* LegacyCharacter: The Aurora Units in ''Prime 3'' were derived from her and it is implied the Mother Brain seen in ''Super Metroid'' was an Aurora Unit herself. Melissa Bergman in ''Other M'' is an android created to replicate Moter Brain's AI.
* OneBadMother: Everyone just calls her Mother in the manga. This gets referenced in ''Other M''.
* OneWingedAngel: After Samus seemingly kills her in ''Super Metroid'' she interfaces with a massive robotic body.
* ScareChord: The melody for her battle music in ''Super Metroid'' consists of these.
* SassyBlackWoman: In the non-canon ''WesternAnimation/CaptainNTheGameMaster'' show.
* SpikesOfVillainy: They serve no practical purpose other than looking scary.
* StationaryBoss: Most of the time.
** CoresAndTurretsBoss: Destroy the Zebetite barriers, avoid the turret shots and rinkas. Break the glass then shoot the brain. Also, watch out for the occasional pit of lava. Zero Mission adds the additional defense of an eye lid, which will deflect your attacks while it charges her eye beams. Unfortunately for her, she has to release the charge eventually, leaving her eye vulnerable in the cool down period.
* SympathyForTheDevil: In ''Other M'' in the form of Melissa Bergman.
* TurnedAgainstTheirMasters: Depending on which source you are looking at, she either let the space pirates into Zebes to kill the Chozo or took over the Space Pirate when they came into Zebes then had them kill the Chozo.
* VillainousBreakdown: A huge one in the manga. Gray Voice betrays her, knowing her intentions to rule the universe. He'd have killed her too if not for Ridley's timely arrival.
* WellIntentionedExtremist: In the manga, it's explained that her true goal is to bring order into the galaxy.

!!Kraid
-->''"Ah, Ridley's comrade. His skin is on par with an anti-optical shield. Your weapons are useless against him."''
-->--'''Mother Brain'''

[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/kraid__lord_of_brinstar_by_methuselah3000-d58xq3x_1836.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:''' ''"ROAAARRRRGGHHH!!!!!"'' ''']]
----
Along with his co-captain, Ridley. Kraid is a gargantuan mainstay of the Space Pirate forces and one of the guardians of Tourian. Immense and corpulent, his regenerating organic projectile weapons and sheer girth make him a force to be reckoned with. Thankfully, he's [[DumbMuscle not too bright]].
----
* AchillesHeel: The wave beam in the first game. Stand on the block in front of him, shoot, dodge occasionally and he goes down.
* AttackOfThe50FootWhatever: Not in the first game though
* BizarreAlienBiology: A giant dinosaur with the standard claws and teeth? Pretty normal as far as video game monsters go. Three eyes? That's only slightly pushing the envelope. Spikes that shoot out of its belly that Samus can jump on? Alright, now ''that's'' not exactly normal.
* TheBrute: With Ridley and Mother Brain in the first game.
* CoDragons: He's the brawn, Ridley is the brains... and a lot of the firepower as well.
* ColossusClimb: Kraid, although you jump on improvised platforms instead of climbing.
* DiscOneFinalBoss: In ''Nintendo Land'''s {{theme park version}} of Metroid.
* EarlyInstallmentWeirdness: Kraid was actually really tiny in the original ''Metroid''. ''Zero Mission'' {{retcon}}ned this out when it made him gigantic as well.
** Also, the green on his body that is portrayed as scales in all later games is portrayed as ''fur'' in the original's American artwork.
* FakeUltimateMook: There is an enemy that looks exactly like him in the first game, but dies in one hit and doesn't open the way to Tourain. "Fake Kraid" in ''Super Metroid'' was actually in the same room as Kraid in the original. This was to add dramatic effect once the player entered the next room and saw just how gigantic the real deal was.
* LoweredMonsterDifficulty: He was the most difficult boss in the first game! Ridley and Mother Brain proceeded to get harder in most of the other titles they appeared in while he became easier in both ''Super Metroid'' and the first game's remake.
* NoSell: His skin is as tough as specialized armor and shielding. All attacks against his body simply bounce off.
* RedEyesTakeWarning: His eyes are usually glowing red, though he had white eyes in ''Super Smash Bros Melee''
** ThirdEye: Shoot it to get him to open his mouth!
* SpikeShooter: In Metroid and Super Metroid he fires spikes from his belly.
* TacticalSuicideBoss: He would be invincible if he never opened his mouth or shot spikes out of his belly.
** Opening his mouth is justifiable as he's probably roaring in pain. ([[GoForTheEye You are shooting his eyes to make it open, after all]]).

!!The Space Pirates
-->''"The feared and mysterious Space Pirates. In truth they are... a subordinate species that naturally follows the orders of a strong master. It is just like how the worker bees follow the queen bee, their hierarchical programming is decided at the genetic level."''
--->--'''Mother Brain'''

-->''[[AC:"Science Team believes the Metroids can be trained. After several cycles of trying, I believe [[MemeticMutation Science Team has vapor for brains.]] I've lost two assistants to the wretched little things."]]''
--->--'''Scan Lore'''

[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/urtragian01_167.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:''"Death before dishonor."'']]
----
An inter-stellar cabal, comprised of numerous species that have rejected the Galactic Federation's democratic rule in favour of a life of thievery. As brigands, the Pirates steal any technology which will improve their cause and they subvert science to ensure the supposed superiority of their biological traits. Opportunists to the core, they care only for their own advancement as a race. And they will trample over anyone and everything to achieve that fact.
----
* {{Always| Chaotic Evil}} LawfulEvil: The Space Pirates. It's claimed any space pirates who question "The Way Things Are" are executed, sometimes on the spot. Any space pirate who expressed non-evil thoughts wouldn't have a very long life expectancy.
** According to some scans in the ''Prime'' series and some out-of-game info, not all of them are very happy with evil being the law, and certain [=POWs=] were incredibly easy to interrogate. Other scans seem to paint them more as LawfulStupid, with common troops not being nearly as malicious or cunning as Science Team. [[MemeticMutation Of course, that's not saying much.]]
** In ''Echoes'', the Ing love Pirate [[DemonicPossession hosts]] because their lawfulness makes them easier to control. In the manga and ''Other M'', Pirates are depicted as [[WeakWilled easily commanded]] by beings with minor PsychicPowers like Ridley and Mother Brain.
* ArmoredCoffins: Their boarding pods.
* BeastOfBattle: While all their attempts to use Metroids for anything useful have spectacularly failed, Pirate Kussars have managed to tame the mighty Korakk Beast. They also are able to make use of the Bombus, Preeds, and later Puffers to a limited extent.
* BewareTheSillyOnes: While the Space Pirates constantly fall victim or play second fiddle to the bigger threats in the series, it is worth noting that the majority of these threats are some degree of EldritchAbomination. It's easy to forget that they're one of the most versatile, violent and feared alien races this side of the galaxy.
* ButtMonkey: In ''Echoes'', especially. "Surely, we are cursed."
* ComedicSociopathy: The Data logs provides a humorous side to their antics. "They were promptly shot." Followed by "They too were shot."
* CreativeSterility: Almost all of their tech is stolen or reverse-engineered.
** But also {{Subverted| Trope}}; while they steal a good deal of their technology, they are also extremely active in researching and improving their home-grown tech. The Hazard Shield (which is required for them to put up with the acid rain on their base world) is a good example.
* {{Cult}} They form one around Dark Samus in ''Corruption''.
* DeadpanSnarker: Part of what makes many of the logs so hilarious.
* DependingOnTheArtist: Space Pirates tend to look different in every game. The manga depicts them as having numerous subspecies.
* {{EMP}}: They have grenades that produce them, which is strange since they don't work very well against their sworn enemy, Samus.
* EternalEngine: Their homeworld is like this, complete with a perpetual shower of acid rain.
* EliteMook: Omega Pirate, an early specimen of Phazon experiments.
* EvilKnockoff: Their attempts to reverse-engineer Samus's technology.
** According to logs taken from the original ''Prime'', the pirates did some poking around into the Morph Ball technology, only to have their results ''break every bone in the test subjects bodies.'' Needless to say, that venture took them nowhere.
* ForScience: Even though they think that their Science Team has [[MemeticMutation vapor for brains]].
* GenreBlind: Any pirate who does not engage Aran on sight risks being tried for treason, which basically {{enforce|d trope}}s AttackAttackAttack
* IneffectualSympatheticVillain: In ''Echoes'' only, due to being caught in a three-way.
* InNameOnly: They are frequently referred to as Zebesians, but Samus is more of a Zebesian than them, having been raised there. These guys are just brigands who set up some laboratories and hidey holes, then started raiding the ruins. Yoshio Sakamoto has compared them to how most "Americans" are actually descended from Europeans.
* InstantAwesomeJustAddNinja: The two space pirates that guard Ridley's lair in ''Super Metroid'' have been called "Ninja Pirates" due to their characteristic fighting style.
* {{Mooks}}
** AirborneMook: Pirate aerotroopers, [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin flying pirates]], aero mines, preeds...
** AquaticMook: Aqua pirates use technology similar to the gravity suit and Aquadrones are built to patrol the depths.
** EliteMooks: Pirate commandos, dedicated to hunting the hunter. [[KingMook They are lead by Pirate Commanders]], one of whom serves as a boss.
** GiantMook: Elite Pirates. Omega Pirate is a [[KingMook Giant Giant Mook.]] Also Berserker Knights, of which the Berserker Lord is the boss version.
** HeavilyArmoredMook: Armored Pirates Troopers and Armoured Militia. Advanced and assault troopers count too.
** KungFuProofMook: Advanced pirate troopers are resistant to most beams, assault troopers can't be targeted by missiles and only the hyper missiles bother them, the beam troopers are immune to most weaponry besides the beam they are imitating...
** MechaMooks: Aeromines, Crawlmines, Crawltanks and various drones.
** MookChivalry: In their logs, science team claims the Elite Pirates' weaknesses do not matter because they will be used in coordination with other soldiers, a clear violation of mook chivalry.
** MookMobile: Both their skiffs and their armored tactical carriers.
** MookPromotion: Weavel, though to him it was probably a downgrade
** NocturnalMooks: What the Shadow Pirates are supposed to be, but some are too stupid to stay in the shadows.
** PatrollingMook: Those in Ridley's ship during Zero Mission as well as Chozodia.
** ShieldBearingMook: Elite Pirates in Prime, Pirate Commandos in Prime 2, several troopers in Prime 3.
** SlaveMooks: Pirate Militia are made up of criminals forced into service and captured slaves. Disobedient militia supposedly become rations for the real troops.
** SuperpoweredMooks: After they discover hypermode.
* OnlySaneMan: Any pirate writing the log entries about how dumb Science Team and High Command are.
* PetTheDog: Apparently some Space Pirates do keep normal pets, as the ones working in the Phazon Mines had to be warned to give them up due to risk of the animals contracting Phazon Madness.
* PowerPincers: They often have chelae on their forearms that house plasma cannons.
* ProfessorGuineaPig: The entire species is one of these.
* SinisterScythe: Combined with {{Laser Blade}} or {{Hot Blade}} depending on the game and type of pirate. The Space Pirates in the {{Metroid Prime}} games are especially fond of these. In the first game, the blades seem to be made of energy as many of the pirate character models do not include a physical blade, yet they can still slash you with one as their melee attack. In the later games most of the pirates have physical blades, but they glow and leave an energy trail when they attack with them.
* SwissMessenger: Their presence on Aether at first seems trivial, but then you learn that it was from the pirates that Ing picked up their technology thieving ways. This leads to the Ing possessing every machine on light Aether, nearly destroying the planet with the energy transfer module ''and'' stealing most of Samus's power ups!
* TooDumbToLive: The Space Pirates as a whole don't seem to have much care for personal safety. Their Science Teams seem positively suicidal; but then they have [[RunningGag vapor for brains]].
** They even have to warn personnel not to use ''Metroids'' as target practice.
** Hell, they have to keep reminding personnel not to keep them as ''pets''.
* VisibleInvisibility: Shadow pirates are pretty much invisible by unaided human eyes in the dark; naturally, some will attack in broad daylight, where they are only slightly obscured.
* WallCrawl: Varies from game to game whether the current crop Samus is up against can do this.
* WeakWilled: According to the manga, Space Pirates are conditioned to follow a strong leader. Beings with even minor PsychicPowers find it surprisingly easy to take command of them.

!!Ki-Hunters
[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/m3_kihunter_mf_424.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Why did it have to be bugs?]]
------------------
An insectoid off-shoot of the Space Pirate races, they hail from another galaxy and entered Federation Space in order to help rebuild High Command's operations on Zebes.
------------------
* AirborneMook: Their wings can be shot off, but they are still dangerous when grounded.
* BeePeople: Exactly how their social structure runs is not clear but they are bee-like and they have a "king".
* BewareMyStingerTail: and claws too.
* BugBuzz: Learn to hate and fear it in Fusion
* EyelessFace: Their larval stage, until Other M decided to give them eyes.
* InsectoidAliens: Unlike the "Zebesians" up there, who are more like reptiles in insectoid armor.
* KingMook: Other M introduces a king Ki-Hunter, who is strangely a FlunkyBoss.
* NaturalWeapon: The main difference between them and the other Pirate foot soldiers is that they never seem to brandish any weapons besides those they were born with.
* TakingYouWithMe: In Other M, they try to latch onto you and explode if they take heavy damage. Thankfully only in Other M so far.
** PersonalSpaceInvader: "Super" Ki-Hunters latch on to enemies as a matter of course but thankfully do not explode.
* SuperSpit: The gunk they spit after losing their wings.
* ThirdEye: A large one in the center of their head.
* WallCrawl: As zeros, their larval stage.

!!Thardus
-->''[[AC:"East Quarantine Cave has been secured. Specimen remains in the Quarantine area. All experiments have been suspended pending pacification of area. Quarantine specimen exhibits highly aggressive behavior. Its body structure, composed of Phazon ore, appears nearly invulnerable. This has rendered our efforts to train and discipline subject useless as security breaches resulting in massive casualties have occurred. Access is strictly prohibited until further notice."]]''
--->--'''Project Titan'''

[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/thardus_crop_5473.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:The least of your problems on Tallon IV...]]
----
A truly stunning example of the Pirate's never-quenching desire to subvert science.
----
* AttackItsWeakPoint: You must use the thermal visor to locate Phazon nodes vulnerable to missile attacks.
* {{Golem}}[=/=]{{Snowlem}}: It's also a Phazonlem. This results in...
** ElementalPowers: DishingOutDirt and AnIcePerson, all in one.
* GoneHorriblyWrong: Subverted. The Pirates realized it was too difficult to control, and in a rare flash of [[GenreSavvy Genre Savviness]] quarantined it and left it dormant rather than attempt to control it or completely scrap the experiment, making occasional tests on it and waiting until a way to control it becomes more accessible. Too bad Samus found it before they finished...
* MegaManning: You absorb the spider ball from his defeated rubble pile. Because... magnets?
* RockMonster: Thardus, the boss of the Phendrana Drifts, which is an entity of living ice and rock.
* PsychoPrototype: An early attempt at Phazon animation of inanimate material. It backfired spectacularly.
* RollingAttack: have fun trying to avoid that one.
* ShockAndAwe: Can generate moderate electric attacks as well.
* TheWormThatWalks: It is not just one singular lump of rock, ice, and Phazon ore. It's a collection of floating rocks in a roughly humanoid shape.

!!Omega Pirate
-->''[[AC:"Elite Pirate Upsilon's propensity for Phazon has enabled our research team to infuse it far beyond our safety restrictions, and the results have been extremely encouraging. Its constant Phazon diet has increased its mass exponentially, but it has retained all mental faculties and shows dexterity with all Elite weaponry, including Plasma incendiary launchers and the chameleon manta issued for cloaking purposes. Elite Pirate Upsilon exhibits miraculous healing abilities; when injured, it seeks out Phazon deposits and coats itself in the substance, which instantly mends the creature's wounds. The subject, which we are code-naming Omega Pirate based on these developments, shows potential to be a new standard for our armies. Our only concern at this point is its potential over-dependence on Phazon."]]''
--->--'''Log 11.232.8'''

[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ins_omegapirate_mp_5258.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:''"Finish Her!"'']]
----
A living testament to the lengths High Command will go to twist and mutate their own kind.
----
* AttackOfTheFiftyFootWhatever: Considering how normal Space Pirates are approximately human-sized, it's quite jarring.
* BornWinner: The only reason he's so huge and powerful compared to the other Elite Pirates is because he was just naturally born with a superhigh Phazon tolerance, so the scientists were able to pump nearly limitless amounts of Phazon into him beyond what would kill most. However...
* CastFromLifespan: Science team's research suggests that though he's had literally no adverse effects to the Phazon yet, his lifespan may be short.
* CodeName: Was originally just 'Space Pirate Upsilon', before being dubbed the Omega Pirate by the research teams.
* EvilLaugh: He gives a very creepy one while he's cloaked, which is also the cue that he's about to appear in a Phazon puddle and start rebuilding his armor.
* FlunkyBoss: And God help you if it summons [[DemonicSpiders Wave Troopers]].
* HealingFactor: Can absorb raw Phazon to grow back damaged flesh and exoskeleton tissue.
* InvisibilityCloak: Turns one on when his armor is damaged to protect his health bar till it is fixed.
* KingMook: A king giant mook
* PhlebotinumDependence: It will retreat to Phazon puddles to restore its damaged armor. This is also the only performance concern that has been noted by Science Team.
* ShoulderCannon: DualWielding them, no less.
* SuperSoldier: The largest and most powerful of them.
* UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom: It's certainly trying to doom Samus, but as a result of the conditions of its death ''Dark Samus'' is essentially born from its remains.

!!Draygon
-->''"To think I called this place home once, in peaceful times, long before monsters moved in the caverns below..."''
--->--'''Samus Aran'''

[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/draygon_by_phobos_romulus-d58l9n8_8775.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Watch where you wander...]]
----
A mutant abomination that guards the grottoes of Maridia from deep within her watery lair. Supposedly a cross-species experiment between Zebesian Evir's and Urtragian lizard analogues to create a Space Pirate General capable of guarding Tourian to the same extent as her fellow captains: Ridley and Kraid. Possesses semi-sentience and full asexual reproduction of future generations.
----
* BewareMyStingerTail: It can do ''massive'' damage. If she manages to grab Aran with those creepy claws of hers.
* BodyHorror: It's a giant crayfish with distorted features and a pustule fat overhang. Also, ''both'' of its death animations.
* DueToTheDead; Her children bury her beneath the sand after her demise. Possibly averted as some fans think they are going to ''eat her.''
* EldritchAbomination: An animalistic, gluttonous leviathan that shrieks like a MUTO from Godzilla.
* GutPunch: Quite literal, Aran must ''burst'' its soft under-belly with a barrage of super missiles.
* MamaBear: To her Evir twin-breed offspring. Samus getting near them is her cue to attack.
* MoreTeethThanTheOsmondFamily: In a gaping circular orifice just to increase the squick factor.
* NightmareFace: Horribly twisted ''skulls'' are ''growing'' through her bulbous brain and she has a nasty leech-like sucker mouth with white, mad glassy eyes that make a Great White's look like a puppy's.
* SeaMonster: Most definitely.
* WeakSauceWeakness: ''Electricity''. Consider that she must be filtering water through her shell, gills and body to move so quickly while submerged and her death becomes even more horrific.

!!Phantoon
-->''"The cold silence serves to punctuate the feeling of death that emanates from this virtually lifeless place... Only one thing is alive and well here... Evil."''
--->--'''Samus Aran'''

[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/phantoon_reborn_by_metaakumu_9046.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:''Unknowable. Unkillable.'']]
----
An ethereal, supernatural, genderless specter that is both intangible and / or invulnerable to any form of attack, except for its single nebulous eye. It is this eye that, when opened, serves as its connection to the material world and can be torn asunder. It feeds on negative emotions and is drawn to the desolate, derelict wrecks of space-vessels; gorging itself on pain, fear and misery to create spirit thralls known as Coverns. Some suspect it to be merely ''part'' of a malevolent entity from the different dimension; others, the psychic harmonics of Mother Brain given manifestation once more. Whatever the case: it haunts Samus Aran like a ghost and will ''never'' give up its vendetta.
----
* BiggerBad: It's possible he helped in taking over the Bottle Ship and assumes full control of it in the post-game sequence.
* BerserkButton: In ''Super'', if you hit him with a super missile, he goes apeshit and bombards you with a fireball attack that's very difficult to dodge.
* BulletHell: Phantoon does this using fire.
* TheBusCameBack: ''Other M'' finally gives him a return appearance.
* DisneyDeath: Perhaps unintentionally set up in ''Super Metroid'', he returns in ''Other M'' as the True Final Boss if you're not playing Hard, in which case the game doesn't let you fight him.
* EasyModeMockery: ''Inverted.'' Phantoon, along with the entire Playable Epilogue, is missing in Hard Mode.
* EldritchAbomination: The biggest in Metroid's lore... So far...
* EverythingsSquishierWithCephalopods: it's best to think of him this way... Any other and you won't be able to sleep...
* GiantSpaceFleaFromNowhere: His appearence in ''Other M.''
* LoadBearingBoss: Gameplay-wise in ''Other M.''
* TheNecromancer: The Coverns (three-headed ghosts)? His doing. They used to be the ships crew.
* OurGhostsAreDifferent: He can be driven away, but he'll always come back.
* TookALevelInBadass: In ''Other M'', he is huge and is given a promotion to TrueFinalBoss status.
* TrueFinalBoss: In ''Other M'', appearing as a GiantSpaceFleaFromNowhere. Provided you don't play on Hard, in which case you can't access the post-game and, consequently, Phantoon.
* WalkingSpoiler: He has far more tropes in ''Other M''.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Non-Affiliated Bosses]]
!!Flaahgra

[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/flah11tugd_8280.jpg]]

* AttackOfTheFiftyFootWhatever: It is huge, though fire makes it shrivel and shrink.
* BreathWeapon: Can shoot energy balls from its mouth
* CombatTentacles: It has turned the plant's roots and tendrils into tentacles
* GreenThumb: It can spawn thorny growths in attempts to impede Samus's movements and create tiny short lived plants.
* NightmareFace: Its floral features have been twisted to resemble a drooling arthropod like face.
* PlantAliens: It was a more like a minimally moving not savagely slice you apart while killing the local ecosystem plant turned into what we see by phazon. Flaahgra is really just a hostile cancerous outgrowth though, once it is burned away the flower it sprouted from will remain alive and harmless.
* {{Planimal}}: It has a central nervous system [[spoiler: until you burn it out]]
* PoisonousPerson: In addition to utilizing its own toxins in battle against Samus, it passively leaks out poison into the Chozo Temple's water system, contaminating the whole temple.
* PowerOfTheSun: Needs constant sunlight or it will quickly weaken
* PuzzleBoss: You have to make it retract its roots to damage its sensitive areas at its base, attacks to its body are almost pointless so long as it is bathed in sunlight.
* RedHerring: You'll have the chance to read scans about a great poison before encountering it. [[spoiler: While Flaahgra is the source of the poisonous water int the Chozo Temple (which disappears once it's defeated), it is ''not'' the great poison referenced in these scans.]].
* SuperSpit: Spews poisonous fluid that spawn acidic plants
* SinisterScythe: It has these as hands.
* WakeUpCallBoss: For anyone who neglected to find the charge beam before approaching it or does not think to use it.
* YouWillNotEvadeMe: The first thing it does is seal off the exit with vines.

!!Amorbis

[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/amorbis_by_razputin93-d7886ac_1300.jpg]]

* AttackAnimal: The Ing were said to breed and raise worms for various tasks; these were, if not their guard dogs, then at least something they left in the general area to ensure nobody got the dark suit or stolen planetary energy.
* CallForward: The destruction of the dark sphere looks just like that of Zebes.
* CastingAShadow: Not on their own, but once attached to the dark sphere, they will be capable of flinging safe zone-neutralizing shots of darkness or channel thick purple energy beams. The dark attacks seem to take on a different characteristic around the dark sphere, which prevents you from clearing away beacons the way you normally do.
** PivotalBoss: While using dark attacks.
* FeedItABomb: The only way to damage them is to let them inhale you and then lay a bomb in their mouths. Rather than really letting them inhale you, you're hitting them hard enough to make them fall over and gasp for air... at which point you give them a metal ball laying bombs. Damage to their hides will only slow them down till you directly hit the internal organs it seems.
* SandWorm: While not to ''Franchise/{{Dune}}'' levels, they are close. Very large sand worms Amorbis are.
* SuicidalOverconfidence: Averted for your benefit. Kill one and the others will flee and never bother Samus again. The battle would have been much tougher if they had merely waited until two were dead, much less fighting down to the last worm
* ThirdEye: That makes nine between them
* WolfPackBoss: What's that? You've beaten giant worms before, not too long ago in this very game you say? Fine, here's three of them bigger than any we threw at you before!
* {{Wormsign}}: The sand above where they're about to emerge will begin to flow outward as if being pushed up from below. If the sand you're directly standing on is doing this, '''MOVE'''.

!!Chykka

[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/chykka_by_rundash-d52w20x_4982.jpg]]

* BarrierChangeBoss: While any weapons will damage it, during the second phase it switches between being weak to light and dark.
* BigCreepyCrawlies: A dragon flyish alien
* EnemyMine: Some ing-possessed creatures may show up while you fight it; naturally, they focus on you, not the giant bug that provoked them.
* EyelessFace: The larva form.
* GiantFlyer: Once an adult.
* GrimyWater: Lives in and shoots it at you.
* {{Hermaphrodite}}: Self-impregnating, no less.
* MakingASplash: In all forms really but in the most literal way during the larva sequence. That's when you shoot it.
* MarathonBoss: One of the longest boss battles in the series.
** DeaderThanDead: You can scan Chykka's corpse after the battle is over (nearly every other boss either fades away or explodes), which basically goes to assure you, in no uncertain terms, that the creature is finally dead:
-->"''Bioscan complete. Target Chykka has been terminated. Lifesigns are at flatline. No regenerative ability in effect. No evidence of symbiotic corpse possession. [[DepartmentOfRedundancyDepartment Resurrection does not appear likely.]]''"
* RapidAging: It started out as an egg.
* SequentialBoss: The first phase is against its larval form, which for all intents and purposes behaves like a fish in the dark waters. After being defeated, it retreats and rapidly metamorphs into its adult stage, which is a massive wasp-like insect that alternates between light and dark forms.
* SuperSpit: Its larval form spits digestive juices on you

!!Quadraxis

[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/one_woman_war_machine_9786.jpg]]

* AttackOfTheFiftyFootWhatever: ''Nintendo Power'' had an article on this boss with a side by side comparison of its model with Samus's, asking if that was a fair fight.
** HumongousMecha: And possibly THE largest boss in Metroid history. The Command Module is nearly the size of Samus's ship.
* DemonicPossession: Presumably, it had joined the war against all living things before the Ing took it over.
* EverythingsBetterWithSpinning: Sometimes, during its first phase. Subverted, since getting sucked into a top-like mech to be battered is anything but better.
* FinishingStomp: There is a good chance you won't be finished, but you deserve to be if you let the robot step on you.
** Getting hit by its ShockwaveStomp is more understandable.
* ImprovisedPlatform: You use its mangled defeated body as one.
* KingMook: It is essentially a gargantuan Quad robot. [[spoiler:Even down to the Command Module and Main Body being able to fight separately.]]
* MightyGlacier: It is fast enough to keep you in its sights but will not be winning the 100 meter dash in its current state. Luckily for it there are walls that prevent Samus from simply running away.
* MoreDakka: It also has missiles and bullets to spam.
* RedEyesTakeWarning: Subverted; when the Ing start using it, its eyes go from red to blue. When they start to turn red again, it means you are winning.
* SomeKindOfForceField: You need the Echo Visor to turn it off.
* ThirdEye: For whatever reason
* YinYangBomb: Its Annihilator Beam.
** HomingProjectile: Somehow it not only shoots energy given off from an annihilation reaction but makes it home in on you. With one of these under their control is it any wonder U-mos predicted the Ing's ascension to an interplanetary threat?

!!Mogenar

[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/mogenar_by_kevin42135-d1d2c6h_2620.jpg]]

* AttackItsWeakPoint: The four sockets it places spheres into. You have to break the sphere first and then attack the exposed socket before it can load a new sphere in, otherwise it'll heal itself.
* BullfightBoss: Once you break three of its sockets, it tends to use its charge attack a lot more frequently. [[TacticalSuicideBoss And since it's most likely that the last socket to destroy is the one on its back]]...
* {{Foreshadowing}}: You see many inactive "Mogenar-class" war golems throughout Bryyo, though none of them resemble this Mogenar. A golem strongly resembling Mogenar can be seen etched into a lore portrait, however.
* {{Expy}}: Hey there, Kraid. You're looking [[BlingOfWar pretty fancy in all that gold and decoration]]. Even his theme sounds similar to Kraid's ''Super Metroid'' and ''Zero Mission' theme.
* {{Golem}}: A cheapened example, as it is already formed from a living substance, albeit, not a motile creature.
** RockMonster: Specifically, living stone grows on Bryyo but it still sits around like stone until the Reptilicus get it moving, as with their war golems.
* {{Magitek}}[=\=]PostModernMagic: It is hard to tell which one it qualifies for; [[MagicFromTechnology it could be purely technological, too]], but we do know the Reptilicus did have genuine magic.
* SequentialBoss: Constantly changes its tactics as you frustrate it.
** DamageSpongeBoss: Put the two together and you have an unpopular encounter.
* ShockwaveStomp: [[spoiler: Good luck bombing off its shoes!]]

!!Helios

[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/maxresdefault_6882.jpg]]

* AIIsACrapshoot: Not of his own programming. He has been corrupted by Phazon.
* AmbiguousGender: One would assume he would have none at all, being a robot but the scan visor says that Helios is male.
* BeamSpam: One of the shapes it may take with its swarm is diving them up into rings of six, and having each ring fire a powerful beam at you.
* ChainsawGood: Though Helios primarily relies on his Swarmbots for attack and defense, he is not completely defenseless on his own.
** DualWielding" Wielding dual chainsaws two years before ''Videogame/{{Madworld}}''
* DeadlyDisc: One of the shapes he may take with his Swarmbots.
* HiveMind: It controls thousands of Swarmbots through wireless communication.
* KillerRobot: Helios's original function, much like the swarm bots, is unknown but phazon has turned them into killers
* MeaningfulName: The Swarmbots all revolve around Helios, both figuratively and literally in many cases.
* MultiarmedAndDangerous: The robot has four arms
* RollingAttack: Another of his forms.
* SpinAttack: One form he may take is to lay himself on the ground and have his swarmbots form a tornado-like swirling shape above it, and proceed to slide across the ground.
* SynchronizedSwarming: He likes five formations in particular
* TheWormThatWalks: One shape it takes is to have the Swarmbots form into four limbs for a vaguely human-like appearance.

!!Nightmare

[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/it__s_theh_nightmareh_by_blackrachel_9530.jpg]]

* BodyHorror: As if its organic components weren't horrific enough already, as it takes damage in ''Fusion'', its face begins to melt off.
* CollisionDamage: Loves to collide with you, almost more than shoot you.
* {{Cyborg}}: Inverted. It's a machine with organic components installed. Those organic components are what let the X infect it, much like its fellow machine-with-organic-parts, the B.O.X. security droid.
* GravityMaster: It can slow Samus down, stop her ability to space jump and cause her missiles to prematurely crash before hitting it. It can not unload its full arsenal while doing this however.
* KnightOfCerebus: Everything goes from bad to worse in ''Fusion'' when he shows up, [[spoiler:because in order to escape Sector 5 after destroying him, Samus must take a lengthy detour off the map, setting her on an inevitable course to TheReveal]].
* LarynxDissonance: In Other M, without the reverb of its mask and the drone of its gravity field, its voice sounds less like a looming bioweapon and more like a crying baby. In Fusion, it sounds like wind through a forest canopy, which is a bit more dignified but still not quite as low pitched as you'd expect for something of its size.
* LoweredMonsterDifficulty: {{Inverted| trope}} thanks to the series continuity but he is much more difficult in Fusion than in Other M, ''especially'' if you fight him with the gravity suit in Other M.
* MeaningfulName: You guessed it, it's ThatOneBoss. ''Fusion'' telegraphs the hell out of the impending DifficultySpike, with the computer unable to track its position and Sector 5 having been laid to waste by the time you show up.
* NightmareFace: Six horrid little yellow eyes and saggy, snot-green skin. In ''Fusion'' the face starts to ''melt'' as you shoot it!
* PsychoPrototype: Even before it was infected by the X, Nightmare had attacked Samus on the [=BOTTLE SHIP=] and caused damage to Sector 5 on the [=B.S.L=].
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Others]]
!!The Chozo
-->''"The Chozo... Over millennia, this bird-like race of creatures made incredible technological and scientific leaps. Traveling at will through space, they built many marvels across the Universe. Technological wonders of unfathomable complexity and cities unmatched in beauty. They shared their knowledge freely with more primitive cultures and learned to respect and care for life in all its forms. Even as their society reached its technological peak, the Chozo felt their spirituality wane. Their culture was steeped in prophecy and lore, and they foresaw the decline of the Chozo coinciding with the rise of evil. Horrified by the increasing violence in the universe, they began to withdraw into themselves, forgoing technology in favor of simplicity. Tallon IV was one of the several refuges they built - a colony bereft of technology, built of natural materials and wedded to the land and its creatures."''
--->--'''Metroid Prime Manual'''

-->''"The statues are our sentinels: blind but ever watchful, they are and have always been, repositories for our most precious secrets and strongest powers. The crafting of each is a long and sacred process, performed only by those Chozo who have lifetimes of experience in such things. We have left these relics on planets across the solar system. Some are merely reminders: silent emblems of the Chozo that serve as icons of peace in lands that know only war. Others wield subtle strength, exerting their influence in ways beyond the understanding of mortal creatures. Still others are guardians of our secret ways, and these can be as terrible as they are beautiful. Those who respect and honor these relics will know the friendship of the Chozo. Those who deface or destroy them will know our wrath, unfettered and raw."''
--->--'''Tallon IV, Hieroglyphic Engravings'''

[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/nnqn6_9853.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:''"We shall do all that we can to aid her, for she bears our legacy as she bears the ancient armour and weapons of our people."'']]

* AFateWorseThanDeath: The Chozo on Tallon IV were pulled from their Higher Plane of Existence by Phazon. They managed to deal with it and return, except for the many that were twisted into insane ghosts by it while sealing the bulk of the stuff away. They had to be left behind. They are the turned.
* AscendToAHigherPlaneOfExistence: It's stated in ''Metroid Prime'' that at least some of them have done this.
* BewareTheNiceOnes: Samus and the Metroids are proof enough that you do '''not''' want the Chozo mad at you.
* CanonImmigrant: Old Bird, one of Samus's Chozo mentors/adoptive parents, appears in the [[RegionalBonus Japanese version only]] endings of ''Metroid Fusion'' (which you can [[OldSaveBonus thankfully unlock]] in any version of ''Zero Mission''), and makes a blink-and-you'll-miss-it cameo appearance in ''Metroid Zero Mission'' in one of Samus's flashbacks. Old Bird first appeared in the Nintendo Power Super Metroid comic and was later imported to the manga (along with Chairman Keaton and Chief Hardy). Some speculate that the second Chozo in the engraving at the end of the game may be Aran's other Chozo mentor, Gray Voice.
* DoAndroidsDream: Elysians installed the ability to "dream" in themselves so that they could be alerted to happenings while they "hibernated". They claim to have seen forms of their builders in between their operational sessions, but given the Talon IV Colony's established abilities, there may have been more to that incident [[OrWasItADream than what the installed dreams were supposed to cover]].
* DoomMagnet: Whatever they touch, be it planet, species, or individual, is universally ill-fated in some way. Planetary destruction and being driven to the brink of extinction happen a ''lot'' where they've been.
* EndangeredSpecies: In the manga, it is implied that the only remaining Chozo are the handful on Zebes and they are basically trying to finish their work on "Metroid" before they go extinct. The games are more vague but make it clear the Zebes Chozo were just one small group of a nomadic civilization, that may be endangered, extinct or simply out of reach.
* FriendToAllLivingThings: The only creatures they ever had to take action against were the X. Every other species was fine to them, as shown by the wildlife on Zebes and Tallon IV.
* GoneHorriblyWrong: Both the Metroids and Mother Brain were created by the Chozo to make SR-388 and Zebes nicer places to live. In both cases, the Chozo got a ''lot'' more than they bargained for.
* IdiotBall: This is what [[AllThereInTheManual the manga says]] brought down their civilization. When their technology had advanced to the point they could live for hundreds to thousands of years with near perfect health, they started to really get caught up in their own desires (at this point, they were still warriors), but despite the fact they could live long, they started feeling the effects of old age and had to give that up. It was only then that they realized that their entire civilization had squandered their youth and [[OhCrap forgot to reproduce while it was possible.]] As a result, they became the peaceful scientists who helped form the Galactic Federation as a measure of immortality for their species as they started a near millenia of watching their own civilization die.
* MistakenForGranite: The first Chozo Statue in ''Super Metroid'' seems inanimate until you take the powerup it holds and try to leave, at which point the exit seals and it attacks you.
* OrganicTechnology: One possible explanation for the X parasites being able to duplicate Samus's suit and one of their statues, as well as how the Elysians were corrupted by Phazon. Whether or not that's really the case, it's interesting that their solution to the X Parasite was to create a X-immune life form which could hunt it, rather than some non biological method of containment.
* OurGhostsAreDifferent: Some left their bodies and the game's dimension behind; later, they returned to the game's dimension, still without those bodies. The ones that got stuck in the game's dimension because of phazon madness are what the other creatures call ghosts. The Chozo call them the [[FaceHeelTurn turned]].
* PerfectPacifistPeople: The Chozo have evolved to a point in which they live in harmony with nature, shunning violence and destructive technology. Of course, they ''were'' warriors once, and were able to create the advanced armor that Samus uses.
** Taken UpToEleven in the manga, where the present Chozo race has a mental block against violence -- harming sentient beings for any purpose causes a Chozo to experience immense pain or even death. [[LoopholeAbuse Training Samus to do it is fine, though.]]
* {{Precursors}}: They seem to zigzag all the precursors tropes. Their neglectfulness is mentioned below, their AbusivePrecursors status is established by the fact they made the Metroids, then subverted into BenevolentPrecursors both by the below mentioned upgrades, and the fact they originally made the Metroids to stop something worse.
** AbusivePrecursors: The Turned! It is not their fault though, as phazon has an even stronger effect on them in their ascended state and the other Chozo advise shooting them if encountered, as an act of mercy!
** BenevolentPrecursors: While it is true that they weren't able to do much in their own lifetimes, they actively worked to put in place a system for Samus to redeem them by seeding various worlds with power suit upgrades for her to collect.
** NeglectfulPrecursors: Zigzagged. Not even ''they'', with all their technical and spiritual skill, have what it takes to take care of the doom that follows them around like a puppy they fed, leaving it all for Samus to clean up. On the other hand, they have limited ability to make prophecies, and make a point of preparing for each one they find feasible. The Tallon IV colony stocked up their ruins with power suit upgrades specifically to help Samus save the day in the future, and it's implied that the Chozo on other worlds did the same.
* ProudWarriorRaceGuy: What they used to be. Prime shows they consider Samus's weapons to be ancient, but whether that has to do with being primitive to them at this point or simply because no one's bothered to choose the warrior's path for so long is up for debate.
* PsychicPowers: Of the subtle variety.
* {{Seers}}: Those on Tallon IV had visions of the future, but they were not perfect visions.
* SpaceElves: In their warrior phase they were essentially Space ''{{Tengu}}''.
* SteamPunk: They have done some dabbling in this, as seen by the observatory they left on Elysia.
* SufficientlyAdvancedAliens: A major reason why Samus's suit has such [[ClarkesThirdLaw impossibly advanced technology]] is because these guys didn't have to worry much about regular physics.
* TechnicalPacifist: For a race sworn not to hurt other living creatures, it seems odd that they'd train the galaxy's greatest Badass (and create its worst {{living weapon}}s...)
* WeHaveBecomeComplacent: The Tallon IV colony had decided to give up all but the most basic technology and live in harmony with nature. This unfortunately made dealing with invaders and star born plagues more difficult but they did discover some new tricks, such as prophecy and managed to {{Mac Gyver|ing}} enough things till Samus came, like their visions foretold. Still some of the machines found on Tallon V are mere first and second generation equivalent drones, from a society with multiple ''millennia'' of continuity.

!!The Metroid Hatchling
-->''"I next fought the Metroids on their home-world of [=SR388=]. I completely eradicated them except for a larva, which after hatching, followed me like a confused child..."''
--->--'''Samus Aran'''

[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/flat550x550075f_6179.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:The Last Metroid]]

* AndroclesLion: A major plot element in the series. In Metroid II, Samus is tasked with exterminating the Metroid species, but stops at killing a newborn showing no hostility toward her. In Super Metroid, the baby is kidnapped, and Samus goes to get it back. Samus is eventually reunited with the Metroid, who is now gigantic after being nursed by the Space Pirates. It starts to swallow her, but recognizes her as its surrogate mother, and lets her pass. At the final fight with Mother Brain, the baby sacrifices itself to heal Samus and give her the hyper beam. This episode is the major thematic introduction for ''Metroid: Other M''. Later in Metroid: Fusion, in a posthumous example. After Samus is infected by the X parasite, a cell sample of the same baby Metroid is used as part of the cure that destroys the parasites inside her and saves her life.
* BigDamnHeroes: During the final boss fight of ''Super''.
* TheCavalry: And sort of continues to be posthumously.
* ChekhovsGunman: In ''Super Metroid'' you could get the brief impression Samus was going to drop it off and do something else but the whole game turns out to be about it, especially the end of it.
* HeelRealization: Just as it's about to finish Samus off, it recognizes her as its "mother" and chirps apolgetically.
* HeroicSacrifice: One of the most iconic examples of the medium.
* ImplacableMan: None of Samus's weapons can so much as slow down the Super Metroid, not power bombs, not the ice beam, not beam combos. Mother Brain had weapons able to damage it though and the hyper beam was ''not'' one of them in the original take as she killed it after it was stolen. (in Other M, Mother Brain uses the Hyper Beam to kill it, which begs the question of how exactly Samus got it? Maybe she's just remembering the events wrong?)
* InsectQueen: Since ''Other M'''s Metroid Queen is cloned straight from the baby and only special infants have the genetic coding to become queens, it would appear that the hatchling was indeed an infant Queen. (Note to the Chozo, [[DidntThinkThisThrough there is a reason real hive species don't work this way!]])
* LastOfHisKind: At least until it is later cloned by the Federation, which still does not bode well for Metroids in the long run, if they are all descended from one individual.
* WhatMeasureIsANonCute: Subverted as far as [[MamaBear Samus]] is concerned.
* YourSizeMayVary: In ''Super Metroid'' [[MeaningfulName they were not kidding]]. It had grown gigantic, covers Samus completely as opposed to they way Metroids usually just latch onto her head and was half the size of Mother Brain. The ''Other M'' version is significantly smaller, half the size of Samus at best.

!!The X
-->''"The creature took on the host's memories, appearance, abilities, everything. It sucks everything dry. Utterly terrifying. Can you not see that if a mimic such as this were to infiltrate a population, it could replicate almost indefinitely! With evil taking the form of an ally, the galaxy could be overthrown. It is truly the worst kind of evil... it has no name, but... we call it X."''
--->--'''Old Bird'''

[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/79d77c7c2e56ee1baacdca190a0ea0e3_2162.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Man, is the warmest place to hide.]]

* AquaticMook: They create some mermaid pirates if you stick around to see it.
* ArtificialBrilliance: Mid-way through the game you'll encounter some blue X that are very cold. This is at a point in the game where you ''are very vulnerable to cold'' and will have to avoid them like the literal plague they are in a nasty inversion of [[PowerUp Power-Ups]]. Once you collect a power-up that allows to absorb them safely though, the blue X will flee on sight after seeing that their tactic no longer works. This is the first hint that the X may be more sentient than first thought.
* ArtificialStupidity: Despite the fact that the SA-X is the most powerful enemy in all of ''Fusion'', and despite the X's ability to copy any organic body part, [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M98esMR3Q-g it]] [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6JL03zssV5o apparently]] [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1QnBpf88pRI lacks]] a brain.
* BackFromTheDead: Done to the SpacePirates as well as Nightmare and Ridley by mimicking them.
* BigBad: The SA-X.
* BodyHorror: Through the process of infecting hosts, the X either take over or mimic the body, typically while mutating the original form into something much worse. Samus doesn't have even have to be fully infected for this trope to come into play for her.
* CosmicHorrorStory: They'd fit right in one just as well as any eldritch creature, which is why Metroids were made.
* TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt: This is more or less what happened when the X made a comeback on SR-388. It's also what would have happened elsewhere had the Galactic Federation gone through with their plans to capture the SA-X.
* EnemyMine: [[spoiler:The SA-X decides to assist Samus in destroying an escaped Omega Metroid, apparently considering it to be the greater threat.]]
* {{Expy}}: Of Film/{{The Thing|1982}}
* GameplayAndStoryIntegration: The X being all your pick ups.
* GeneticMemory: They retain the intelligence and memories of what they transform into.
* GeoEffects: They are smart enough to make use of them, particularly their use of cold areas to ward off Metroids. This could only go so far, though, since Metroids outgrow their ice weakness anyway.
* HeartbeatSoundtrack: [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D40RHPimrKk Heard when the SA-X is near]], but when not in "Chasing you down and trying to kill you violently"-mode. This is basically its {{Leitmotif}}.
* HumanoidAbomination: Aside from the SA-X, their efforts to mimic humans end up failing, as it results in them becoming gelatinous humanoid blobs wearing lab coats instead. They end up refining the process eventually, to the point where a Core-X perfectly mimics a scientist in order to set Sector 3 on the fritz.
* ImplacableMan: The SA-X; in fact, don't even think about fighting it until the game says you can. Just run, run or hide.
* InformedAttribute: While the manga did illustrate that the native life on [=SR388=] fled from X on instinct and were still getting wiped out despite this adaption, it failed to demonstrate how they were "evil" or how anyone could conceivably use them as a tool for infiltrating the Federation (the game makes it clear their only drives are eat, reproduce and eliminate any perceived threats. It then stated anyone who thought they could be controlled was kidding themselves).
* IntangibleMan: Yes, they can go intangible and ignore most physical barriers. However, it is implied by the powerbomb that large enough explosions can still affect them, and it'd stated by Adam that [[EarthShatteringKaboom big enough ones]] can kill them.
* ItCanThink: At first, they seem like a mindless species of parasites running purely on instinct. Over the course of the game, you begin to learn that they're ruthless, intelligent, and capable of [[SuicideAttack acting against instinct]] for their own ends.
* LegoGenetics: Not only can they mimic the DNA of their prey, but they can combine, mutate, and alter that DNA as they see fit to produce ever more dangerous forms.
* LetXBeTheUnknown: Real creative, Federation (Chozo in the manga)
* OneWingedAngel: SA-X, though it later turns into [[ClippedWingAngel a gigantic hulking monster that can be defeated with three charged shots]]. [[GlassCannon Just don't let it hit you.]]
* PowerUp: Interestingly, while they're the main threat of ''Fusion'' they're also your main source of energy.
* SpikesOfVillainy: They seem to add them to a lot of the things they mimic and the Core Xs are loaded with them.
* StealthPun: The X infect a machine with the acronym B.O.X. So, it's the X-Box. Core X come in two varieties, referred to as Fast and Hard. Fast X and Hardcore.
* TheSoulless: Never had one to begin with.
* TheVirus: Though not literally viruses, you do fight both infected victims and mimics made by the X using their hosts' DNA.
* YouWillBeAssimilated: They even retain the host's knowledge and memories.

!!The Luminoth
-->''"It is told that the Luminoth were not born of Aether, but of the stars. In the early days, we roamed the greatness of the void, bathing in the glorious light of a thousand stars. We met a vast number of enlightened minds... the N'kren, the Ylla, and the Chozo among them. Each of them, we found, had claimed a homeworld and formed a deep bond with it. In time, we decided to do the same. Our search for a home took us through the cosmos. For many a great cycle we roamed, yet a place to call our home eluded us. In time, we began to despair, feeling the search was in vain. We considered remaining among the stars until a scout returned with news of a world unlike any other. When we first beheld Aether for the first time, so great was her beauty that we forsook the stars forever to live upon her surface. From that day forth, the Luminoth were of Aether, our blessed paradise."''
--->--'''Lore of Light'''

[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ghft_2353.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:''"Through vigilance and strength, we create peace."'']]

* AlwaysLawfulGood: Though we really only learn about their species wide interactions, founders, heroes and the desperate actions they take in the face of any enemy bent on their annihilation, so anyone could come off like that.
* {{Antimatter}}: The light of Aether and the atmosphere of Dark Aether have given them away to contain antimatter and weaponize the energy let off by annihilation.
* AstonishinglyAppropriateAppearance: They are basically humanoid moths. So, it's natural that they would have a deep attraction to light.
* BilingualBonus[=/=]PunnyName: Their species name is basically a combination of the Latin "lumen" for light and "moth."
* BadassPreacher: The Luminoth usually speak about peace and all that, through strength and if neccessary war, and come off as a race that would rather not fight. But as soon as the Ing invade, they wasted little time in preparing for war, and while they failed, they still did a pretty good job. Added to the fact that if you scan the bodies of some of the dead ones, you'll see that the grand majority went down fighting, or at least holding their post; a notable example of the latter would be one female Luminoth that held her post even though she was ''starving to death''. The Luminoth are pretty hardcore.
** Special mention should go to J-Stl and A-Kul. J-Stl killed at least 100 Ing in ''his last stand'', and who knows how many he killed in total. A-Kul: went into Dark Aether, a terrible dimension filled to the brink with Ing that would kill her the second they got a chance and whose very air was deadly, found one of the ten keys to the temple that had all been hidden by the Ing, fought her way to the Sky Temple, and managed to place it there AND leave clues to the other keys before dying.
** The Sentinels of the Temples are perhaps the epitome of this, especially since they probably really are preachers. Scans reveal every one of them went down fighting. The one in Agon died while fending off innumerable Ing hordes, finally succumbing to superior numbers. The one in Torvus was possessed numerous times, and fought off ''each of them''. The Ing finally realized that they couldn't break his will and killed him. And the one in the Sanctuary Fortress was so badass, the Ing had to turn his own weapons of war against him, unable to defeat him themselves.
* ComputerVirus: For once, the technology level and earlier compatibility patches pretty much justify the Rezbit's hacking and virus uploading abilities. The question here is why the Luminoth would [[DemonicSpiders make the little thing so good at delivering them in the first place]].
* CyberPunk: Their Sanctuary Fortress's design seems at least partly inspired by it, especially compared to their stone temples and hive like dwellings.
* GoingToGiveItMoreEnergy: This is why the Luminoth first designed the Dark Beam in ''Echoes''. It didn't work. They then designed the Light Beam, which was much more effective.
* HigherTechSpecies: They developed their unique technology through a combination of contact with the Chozo and their own experimentation on Aether. In fact, they might very well have gotten the chance to join the Chozo as SufficientlyAdvancedAliens had they not gotten embroiled with the Ing.
* InsectoidAliens: They're basically giant moths.
* KneelBeforeFrodo: What they do after Samus destroys the Ing for good.
* LightIsGood: Sort of. The light of Aether is supposedly part of what makes their technology possible and it is what kept the Ing from immediately overrunning them, but from Federation data, it can be implied it is also what makes Aether "dimensionally unstable", which is what allowed Dark Aether to form in the first place.
* MagneticWeapons: Mekenobites use magnets to walk on the walls and ceilings of Sanctuary Fortress and to propel projectiles at enemies.
* MostWritersAreHuman: The fact that Samus is fighting to help a species of ''humanoid'' moths against a species of very definitely ''non''-humanoid creatures is significant.
* HopelessWar: Both against the Ing and their own machines. The machines as a whole aren't able to combat the Ing well either and are not priority targets for them beyond extra weapons systems. This means whether possessed or free, most of them are against the Luminoth.
* [[HumanPopsicle Moth Popsicle]]: All but U-Mos are in stasis until the crisis is over. In the final scene, they all get out and bow down before Samus in gratitude.
* PsychicPowers: More than one of them had these, at least, but it is not clear how many.
* RobotWar: The machines they created for war, and even those for peace, decided that [[CrushKillDestroy all living things must die]] while the Luminoth were already in the middle of the Ing war. Only the most basic maintenance bots remained loyal, though they weren't of much help, having no combat ability.
* SpaceElves: Of the "Enlightened Mystic" variety, thankfully.
* StarfishLanguage: They have a three dimensional writing system, for starters. Samus's scan visor cannot even break through much of it at first.
* WeatherControlMachine: One of the marvels they made use of.

!!The Ing
-->''"It was the end of peace on Aether, for a new race was born that day on the dark world...one filled with hate and terrible power. They are the Ing."''
--->--'''U-Mos'''

[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ing_warrior_1736.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:'Ing' means ''terror'']]

* AlwaysChaoticEvil: Their society promotes the hunting, killing and enslaving of everything that is not an Ing.
* ArtificialBrilliance: The Ing have no problem with bumrushing you out of a safe zone if they have lots of health left, and the ones that don't will snipe you with energy beams. Also, if you kill enough Ing with a supercharged safe zone (by using the Light Beam on it), they'll just stop approaching them entirely and ''always'' fire the beams.
* AuthorityEqualsAsskicking: The Emperor Ing is described as the most powerful of them by U-Mos. It is also the only Ing who can survive exposure to Phazon without using a Metroid host.
* BackFromTheBrink: All that time between Samus making planetfall and getting the Energy Transfer Module? She could very well have gotten possessed by an Ing had she not been extremely lucky.
** Not only that, but they would've succeeded in killing the few remaining Luminoth and stealing the last of the Light of Aether had Samus arrived at the Great Temple any later than when she did. The light world would've been destroyed as theirs became the default one, and they would've likely expanded beyond Aether, as warned by U-Mos. The only two known species that they probably wouldn't completely screw over are the Phazon beings, which they descend from, and the X, both of which possess similar qualities to the Ing.
* BarrierChangeBoss: The Emperor Ing after metamorphosis.
* BeamSpam: Warrior Ing can channel energy from other dimensions through portals. They primarily use this tactic to push targets out of safe zones.
* BeePeople: They behave like them.
* BigBad: Emperor Ing in ''Echoes.''
* BornWinner: Like the Omega Pirate in the first ''Prime'', the Emperor Ing has a super-high Phazon tolerance and thus gains a lot of power from it. And also like the Omega Pirate, this comes at a price: it loses its mind.
* CastingAShadow: The species as a whole can do this, to an extent, being amorphous blobs of what is essentially darkness.
** LightEmUp: The Emperor Ing is unusual for an Ing in that it is not particularly weak to the Light Beam (It's considered "neutral", like the Chykka's first form), and in fact is capable of ''using'' [[YinYangBomb light-based attacks right alongside the standard Ing dark-based ones.]] This is probably because it has ingested the last portion of the Light of Aether.
* DarkIsEvil: Not every species on Dark Aether is ''necessarily'' evil but these guys are by far the dominant force on the planet and are very evil.
* DemonicPossession: What they're good at.
* DemonicInvaders: They are aliens, but read the lore that describes how they were discovered; it reeks of the trope.
* EliteMooks: Hunter Ing and Ing Storms, both capable of flight.
* EndangeredSpecies: The only Ing still alive are the ones who managed to possess another creature, as they can't live on Aether by themselves. The space pirates have a darkling Metroid on display at one of their bases, as revealed in a Prime 3 scan.
* TheHeartless: ''"The Ing are creatures of shadow and darkness, knowing nothing of peace or mercy."''
* HumanoidAbomination: They possess the deceased Galactic Federation troopers on Aether to use against Samus, but have trouble achieving full parasitic fusion with dead bodies; the furthest they ever got was increased stamina with the Missile Trooper, though all have very low agility and response time.
* IntangibleMan: Hunter Ing; they still can't handle the light of Aether, but Samus's light beam is trivial to them.
* {{Invisibility}}: Some Ing have methods of this, to the point they can hide from ''echolocation and sonar''. Mostly notoriously their flying caches.
* MiniMook: [[HarmlessVillain Ing Larva]] and [[InvincibleMinorMinion Ingstorms]].
* MookCarryover: They make a point to possess Pirate Troopers, as [[WeakWilled they are already used to following orders]].
* NightOfTheLivingMooks: When they use the dead marines to attack Samus.
* RiteOfPassage: Ing are forced to fend for themselves as larva, then fight dangerous opponents after maturing. The idea is to make the young ones rely on each other and hate all other lifeforms, and it seems to work.
* StarfishAliens: Unfriendly ones at that.
* StealthPun: In ''Echoes'', the Sub-Guardians are Ing-possessed creatures with a "Boost Guardian, Grapple Guardian, etc" naming convention. Boost Ing, Grapple Ing...
* TheSwarm: Some areas in the Sky Temple Grounds and Ing Hive have clouds of tiny Ing called Ingstorms. Stepping into them without the Light Suit will kill you in mere ''seconds''. Don't do it.
* TakingYouWithMe: After their world begins to die, several Warrior Ing attempt to prevent Samus's escape from Dark Aether so she'll die with them, but she just jumps over them and continues going.
* WallCrawl: All of them that are mobile but don't fly can seemingly do this.
* WallMaster: Darkling Tentacles
* YouWillBeAssimilated: They seem to take a page from the X Parasites, in that both mutate other creatures into new forms. The Ing possess live hosts, however; their attempts to bring back dead bodies were pretty pathetic (though freaky). All X need is DNA; they eat the prey first, then start making copies. [[ScyllaAndCharybdis Before you write the Ing off as less dangerous]], know that they can possess Metroids, which X cannot work with at all.

!!Phazon
-->''"Darkness... coming..."''
--->--'''Aurora Unit 313'''

[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/phazon_9554.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:The Great Poison]]

* AppliedPhlebotinum: It's a mutagenic substance that the Space Pirates exploit for a power-up.
* ArtisticLicenseNuclearPhysics: Phazon, a highly radioactive, nearly uncontrollable substance that may possibly be alive, [[GeniusLoci originating from a supposedly sentient planet]], is attempting to spread everywhere and it's supposedly stable.
* BigEater: It usually kills most organisms then absorbs it, turning the corpse into Phazon. Fitting, considering it's status as TheCorruption.
** Cradle's interpretation...
-->"It eats relentlessly, worming out life wherever it blooms and corrupting what it cannot kill."
* BiggerBad: In the ''Prime'' trilogy. It is the source of all the conflict, but other beings -- Metroid Prime and Ridley in the first game, Emperor Ing in the second game, Dark Samus in the third -- serve as individual {{Big Bad}}s in their own games.
* TheCorruption: Phazon usually prefers to kill and absorb weaker beings, but if the victim is strong enough, it is instead mutated and becomes an agent of Phazon.
* EldritchAbomination: Revealed in ''Prime 3'' to be basically a huge transdimensional being with a heart the size of a planet. The Chozo's whole ascending to a "higher" dimension thing? That actually ''reduced'' their ability to fight it.
* FungusHumongous: There are some giant mushrooms that seem very heavily saturated with Phazon.
* GeniusLoci: Its core is Phaaze, a huge sentient planet.
* GreenRocks: Phazon has quite a diverse range of uses: mutating plants and wildlife, being weaponized, driving creatures and several major characters insane, etc.
* LawOfChromaticSuperiority: Though most Phazon encountered in the game is blue, there are strains of "Red Phazon" found occasionally, stated to be far more potent and dangerous than the blue stuff. It serves as a hazard in the Impact Crater in the first game, and in the third game the Pirate Commander is outfitted in Red Phazite armor, which proves much more durable than the standard blue Phazite.
* NonstandardGameOver: When Samus spends too much time in Hypermode, the Phazon will corrupt her and turn her into a replica of Dark Samus.
* PsychoSerum: Phazon tends to drive its infectees insane if it does not kill them.
* SceneryGorn[=/=]SceneryPorn: In the midst of Phazon twisting environments into strange forms, it ''does'' make things very pleasant to look at.
* SentientPhlebotinum: It seems to be more self aware than grass, but does not seem to be particularly intelligent.
* TheVirus: Long term exposure that does not result in death changes organisms for the worst. It becomes even more so when space pirates start using an actual virus to infuse a strand of it into creature's DNA. Ironically the literal viral phazon has a much lower fatality rate.
** Leviathans act almost like real viruses. Once Phaaze produces a mature Leviathan, it travels towards a suitable planet to infect, then it starts to spread Phazon until the planet is essentially another Phaaze.
* ToxicPhlebotinum: Everything it doesn't kill, it turns into a violent killing machine, usually with a shortened lifespan. The space pirates discovered a strain that could be integrated into an organism's DNA and give it a higher tolerance to the substance, but it still only worked in one case. Three if you count Samus and Metroid Prime.
** If you break canisters of Phazon around Ing, they die. The Ing and the toxic alternate dimension they live in could arguably be made out of literal pure evil, and are in fact a ''byproduct'' of Phazon hitting the original planet, and they '''still''' can't take it! The only being on all of Aether that ''does'' survive it is the Emperor Ing, who proceeds to hoard it, but still ends up losing its mind. It's possible this is why the Ing are so violent.
* UniquenessDecay: Phazon is a new substance in the first two games, with the Space Pirates going to great lengths to secure sources; in the third game, you can't walk two feet without bumping into phazon or something that runs on phazon (and that's not even counting yourself), just as planned.

!!Metroid Prime / Dark Samus
-->''[[AC:"Investigations into a possible ingress point for the impact crater continue to meet with failure. The shield of strange energy that protects it is impermeable, and all attempts to tunnel past it have proved fruitless. Our continued futility in this matter is made all the more significant in light of recent life form readings we've discovered emanating from deep within the crater. Analysis of the readings indicates that a massive creature is gestating in there, absorbing enormous amounts or Phazon from the Phazon core at the heart of the impact crater. This discovery makes accessing the crater doubly important - not only will it open the door to the vast deposits of Phazon within, but it will also lead us to this creature, whatever it may be..."]]''
--->--'''Log 11.156.9'''

-->''"Our scanners have detected the remains of Dark Samus, who has revived herself within our Phazon storage. Surely, we are cursed. The fiendish shrew consumed all of the Phazon, then wiped out a third of the crew in a matter of minutes. Now she moves at will through the halls of Colossus, using her witchery to beguile the minds of the crew. We are unable to call for aid, and only a few of us remain to stand against her. All is lost."''
--->--'''Captain's Log'''

[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/the_true_essence_by_chrysaetos_pteron_3254.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:The Core Essence]]
[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/need____more____phazon____by_larosenoire1989-d4d3lrx_5965.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:The Black Demon]]
* AGodAmI: She takes over the Space Pirates in ''Corruption'' and forces them to worship her.
* AxCrazy: Dark Samus during the events of ''Metroid Prime 2: Echoes'' was certainly depicted as being completely insane, namely due to being imbalanced at a molecular level, almost to [[VideoGame/FinalFantasyVI Kefka Palazzo]] levels.
* {{Badass}}: Let's see: She manages to fight Samus multiple times and survive, something only Ridley accomplished prior, she manages to survive a destablizing dimension, gets revived in ''Corrruption'' and manages to take control of a whole planet of Space Pirates, including '''RIDLEY''', [[CurbStompBattle curb-stomps]] and corrupts all four Hunters and manages to turn three of them against Samus. Put simply: Ridley might be Samus's nemesis, but Dark Samus is arguably her most powerful opponent yet.
* BagOfSpilling: Just as much as the real Samus, it seems.
* BarrierChangeBoss: And it is foreshadowed in some Pirate data, too.
* BigBad: Of the ''Metroid Prime Trilogy''.
* BreathWeapon: As Metroid Prime she can spit an ultra-frigid breath from a "mouth" on the underside of the armor stolen from the Space Pirates.
* BrokenBridge: {{Invoked| Trope}} and subverted in that Samus is able to cross the gap despite her efforts.
* TheChessmaster: In ''Corruption'' she taints the bounty hunters with Phazon.
* CombatTentacles: Can project these from her armor. In fact, these are how Dark Samus was made!
* CurbstompBattle: Her skirmishes with the space pirates on Aether all see her quickly cut through them. Then she applies it to the Hunters from ''Prime 3'', in case anyone had doubts about her threat level already.
* DarkActionGirl: Sadistic and violent, Dark Samus is the antithesis of Samus Aran.
* DeflectorShields: Has them at a couple points.
* DemonicPossession: Tries her hand at it in the third game.
* {{Determinator}}: No matter how many times she is put down in Echoes, she keeps on coming back to manipulate the Aether situation to siphon as much Phazon as possible.
* DopplegangerAttack: In ''Corruption'', and it calls back to ''Echoes'' despite not being present there.
* EarlyBirdBoss: Some of her abilities are things Samus could duplicate or at least counter if the [[CallForward power-ups were present in the Prime series]]. She also uses super missiles long before the player can get them.
* EvilMakesYouUgly: The FinalBoss battle in ''Echoes'' has Dark Samus visibly disfigured by Phazon overload (and the SkullForAHead [[http://img2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20100401140135/metroid/images/thumb/d/d5/Final_Dark_Samus_Profile.png/640px-Final_Dark_Samus_Profile.png even brings]] a CallBack to the original Metroid Prime)
* EvilCounterpart: Dark Samus is an obvious one, but even the original Metroid Prime had similarities to Samus. Both wore mechanical suits with similar abilities (the beam weapons, missiles, the tractor beam attack similar to the grapple beam) and a blue 'true form' under it (the Essence for Metroid Prime and the Zero Suit for Samus).
* EvilKnockoff: Though unlike the SA-X from ''Fusion'', Dark Samus isn't quite as much of a carbon copy, seeing as it used to be a Metroid and has several distinct abilities.
** {{Expy}}: Of SA-X. Although Retro declared more influence from the [[http://metroid.wikia.com/wiki/Ruins_Test "mirror boss battle"]] in ''Zero Mission''. That said, ''Fusion'' was in development before ''Prime'', and they were handled by different teams, so it's a bit nebulous which is the {{Expy}} of which.
* EvilerThanThou: Even though she initially helps the Warrior Ing attack Samus, some of the space pirates she is seen fighting with over some Phazon were Ing possessed, suggesting one of them went back on any possible deals that could have been made. Since Ing don't make much use of the phazon they already have, it can be assumed they were simply trying to halter Dark Samus. She then takes control of the source of Phazon in ''Corruption''!
* EyesDoNotBelongThere: If one pays attention, they will notice her final form in ''Echoes'' has eyes on the back of her hands!
* {{Flight}}: A consistent ability she keeps after developing that Samus doesn't really have, though at points she can only hover over the ground.
* FromASingleCell: Or single Phazon particle... It takes destroying ''every bit of phazon in the universe'' to ''finally'' kill her.
* FromNobodyToNightmare: As Metroid Prime she had some major significance, yes; but in the grand scheme of things she was the byproduct of just a random Leviathan. And then Dark Samus would go on devising a way to become the very mind of Phaaze itself...
* GalacticConqueror: She tries her best in ''Corruption.''
* HeroKiller: Not only does she terrify the prophetic Chozo, tear through the pirates, casually dispatch Ing, break Luminoth technology and take over two planets but she also takes down four named characters in ''Corruption''.
* HoistByHerOwnPetard: {{Subverted| trope}} all three times. She can't necessarily ''help'' being majorly ''composed'' of the thing to defeat her with, can she?
* HomingProjectile: The particle wave generator, stolen from the pirates, makes these. Also the core form in Prime Pinball could shoot some from her tentacles.
* HumanoidAbomination: She started out as a [[StarfishAlien Metroid]] heavily mutated by prolonged exposure to Phazon before being destabilized and exploding. Absorbing Samus' Phazon Suit enabled her to reform as a black, biomechanical doppelgänger of Samus bent on spreading Phazon throughout the universe and even other dimensions, and she was unkillable as long as Phazon existed.
* [[ImplacableMan Implacable Woman]]: Best displayed after beating her at the end of ''Metroid Prime 2'', where she uses the last of her strength to crawl and attempt to grab Samus one last time. Similar to another [[Franchise/{{Terminator}} Implacable Man]]. Then she returns in ''Metroid Prime 3'' more dangerous than ever.
* {{Invisibility}}: She tries a few different forms of it, the counter Samus's constantly updating methods of tracking.
* JokerImmunity: She can reform herself from phazon particles. You destroy her for good in ''Prime 3'', though.
* LaserCutter: Her version of the charge beam. Rather than draw energy for a larger blast, she shoots a continuous blast and sweeps with it.
* LaughingMad: Dark Samus often laughs rather maniacally in some of her appearances in ''Metroid Prime 2 Echoes''. For a "woman" her voice is pretty deep.
** By ''Prime 3'', it's ascended to one of her main forms of "battle dialogue".
* LoadBearingBoss: In the first and third games. As Metroid Prime, her defeat made the Impact Crater presumably cave in on herself. In ''Corruption'', her death makes Phaaze die because she merged with the device she was using to control it, [[{{Handwave}} one assumes.]] Averted in ''Echoes'', because the Load-Bearing Boss had already been killed.
* MadeOfPhlebotinum: Dark Samus made of Phazon.
** Though that depends on to what extent you consider Phazon to be sentient/separate beings or just a substance.
** And, somewhat more literally than the trope above it suggests, as the Chozo once referred to her only as "The Worm."
* MegaManning: First some space pirate armor and weapons, then the phazon suit, and finally she acquires the abilities of other Hunters besides Samus during the events of ''Metroid Prime 3 Corruption''.
* MindControl: Does a whole lot of it later.
* MookMaker: As the Metroid Prime she was a Metroid maker.
* PetTheDog: Despite her psychopathic nature, she actually shows some degree of compassion towards Metroids held captive by the Space Pirates in the second game. This makes sense because she ''is'' a Metroid. It's also implied that she was responsible for bringing Metroids to Phaaze, where the creatures seem to thrive judging by the absurd number of them.
* PhlebotinumDependence \ PhlebotinumMuncher: Her very introduction in ''Echoes'' involves eating some Phazon. Then the addiction gets bigger the more she eats.
* PistolWhipping: It is not entirely clear if her cannon makes contact, but she has a striking move she'll use on players who don't keep their distance as well as to stop their missiles, forcing them to wait for an opening if they are determined to hit her with them.
* PoisonousPerson: Heavily infused with phazon but beyond that, she used to have missiles that left behind damaging green clouds. Green being a video game shorthand for "poison".
* PoweredArmor: As Metroid Prime she was covered in an exoskeleton of assimilated Space Pirate tech[[note]]This was limited to the North American translation, however. The Japanese and PAL versions state the Space Pirates are only aware that there is a phazon-consuming entity of some kind contained in the cradle. The Metroid Prime Trilogy retcons the North American translation to match the Japanese and PAL versions.[[/note]] As Dark Samus she was clad in a biomechanical version of Samus' armor.
* RecurringBoss: Throughout the trilogy
* RedBaron: She is referred to by the Space Pirates as the Dark Hunter. After she took over, they take to calling her the Dark One, and the Black Demon. [[note]]These come from bonus material called ''Another Side Story''.[[/note]]
* SanitySlippage: Inverted: She starts out as being completely insane in Metroid Prime 2 Echoes. By the time of Metroid Prime 3 Corruption, however, she has become sane enough to make complex plans that ensure that she succeeds, although she does retain a high degree of instabilitiy.
* ShadowArchetype: To Samus, obviously, but given the series continuity, this is partly retroactive. In ''Fusion'', Samus talks about how the SA-X must be stopped before it ever realizes its potential and becomes a threat to the galaxy, which is exactly what we see Dark Samus do. The kicker is that by becoming part Metroid, she is even more like Dark Samus, despite having an opposite motivation, and is fighting what functionally might as well be her old self, since it has most of her old abilities.
* ShortRangeShotGun: Cruelly averted, she has a scatter shot version of the power beam fans call the "shrapnel beam". It's about as easy to dodge as it sounds (not at all without cover).
* WaveMotionGun: The armored form of Metroid Prime has one whose color depends on the current barrier, and both forms of Metroid Prime in ''Metroid Prime Pinball'' regularly let off powerful shots that can quickly kill you.
* WrongGenreSavvy: Despite her name and her comfort in its atmosphere, Dark Samus is not from Dark Aether, nor is she a Darkling. Meaning the Light Beam is worthless against her, but the Dark Beam is devastating.
* YouWillNotEvadeMe: Formerly, with a "snare beam".

!!Gorea
-->''[[AC:"Without warning, our doom fell from the sky. From whence it came we do not know. The horror shrieked its name: GOREA. Gorea is power beyond reckoning and evil unrelenting. The universe has not known terror such as this. At first we thought Gorea was a comet. It crashed upon our planet and emerged as a vapour, it mimicked our cellular structure and replicated itself in solid form. We have seen Gorea alter its atomic structure between polarizing states. Our scientists believe it may also possess other SHAPE-CHANGING abilities. We deployed our deadliest weapons to defeat the beast. To our horror, every weapon was somehow used against us. The war only lasted a few standard galactic months. Even with the galaxy's most powerful technology at our disposal, we fell like dry grass beneath the blade. For Gorea was immune to even our most sophisticated weaponry, while we were defenseless against its relentless attacks. It devoured our people's life energy and grew even more powerful from such sustenance. Death swept across our worlds, and we despaired. We feared not only for the extinction of our race and our galaxy, but the possibility that the evil would sweep across the entire universe, annihilating all in its path. We gave our lives to confine the foul monstrosity known as Gorea. Do not seek this creature unless you have the means to DESTROY it."]]''
--->--'''The Alimbic Order of Elders'''

[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/gorea_by_donchan_2727.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:''"THE SECRET TO ULTIMATE POWER RESIDES IN THE ALIMBIC CLUSTER."'']]

* AlienGeometries: It can throw rocks through walls and through ''floors'' while leaving them intact.
* BarrierChangeBoss: For most of the first phase.
* BatmanGambit: It sent the distress signal to all of the Hunters in the galaxy so that they would find the Octoliths and set it free. It even managed to get Hunters with weapons equivalent to the now gone Alimbics, to make assimilating them that much easier.
* BigBad: Of ''Hunters''.
* CombatTentacles: Either this or a TractorBeam, depending on how you interpret it. Either way, Gorea can drain LifeEnergy with them and assimilate weapon systems this way. Can't get Samus's power beam, which unfortunately won't do any meaningful damage anyway.
* CurbstompBattle: The fight between it and the other antagonists of the game sees Gorea win pretty easily, the other antagonists being all six of the other hunters at once.
* DespairEventHorizon: The survivors of its initial assault were said to seem lifeless, even if they weren't injured.
* DishingOutDirt: Its second phase does this.
* EldritchAbomination[=/=]HumanoidAbomination: Was originally the former, but became the latter after stealing that form from the Alimbics. It degenerates a little as you fight it, though.
* GetBackHereBoss: The only way to defeat its final phase is to let it run, track it down and then repeat the process. It will immediately appear when you can't hurt it but as soon as you can it will vanish before any damage can be done, forcing you to find it the hard way.
* GuideDangIt: How to unlock its final phase. More specifically, you have to shoot a number of colored panels on the walls of its arena in a certain order with the proper weapons corresponding to the color of the panel. This is actually hinted at in several of the logbook scans, but it's so vague that most people needed a guide to figure it out anyway.
* ImprovisedWeapon: It likes throwing the frozen colonies of cyanobacteria that float around in its prison.
* MegaManning: Its first phase sees it steal and use weaponry. Oh, and most of the weapons it employs are much more dangerous when in Gorea's possession, except possibly the shock coil. Also, it ends up using the seal sphere meant to seal off its powers as a battery to siphon energy off of and continue on with.
* OnlyAFleshWound: Blowing off its arms doesn't bother it much in fact, the limbs are the only thing Samus's weapons can damage. The final stage is against a flying torso! If you're not quick, it will grow its arms back too.
** CognizantLimbs While Hunters has no lock-on feature, Gorea's arms have their own health bars. As does the seal sphere.
* RaymanianLimbs: Its head, much like Trace
* SealedEvilInACan: Apparently no one thought to gag it though, since it can still talk or otherwise send messages.
** SealedGoodInACan: One of these acts as its RestrainingBolt.
** {{Oubliette}}: Tailor-made cans.
* SoiledCityOnAHill: The Alimbics got invaded by aliens. They built a lot of weapons, chased out the aliens, declared themselves invincible, and told everyone to stay away. Gorea then came and wrecked everything.
* StarfishAlien: Don't let that picture fool you.
* SuicidalOverconfidence: Not really, which makes it more annoying once it truly realizes something can hurt it.
* {{Telepathy}}: How it communicates.
* VerbalTicName: The Alimbics call it the first thing it said.
* VillainTeleportation: Once you unlock its final stage.
[[/folder]]

[[caption-width-right:350:''"You will report your full name and rank immediately... Or I will take my @#*$ing fleet and get the @#*$ out of here."'']]

* WallCrawl: The Spider Ball. It is limited to magnetic surfaces in Prime, but since Samus can combine it with the Boost Ball to force herself away from one place and stick to another, it was necessary.

* AllThereInTheManual: Just look at the concept art portrait. Cybernetics, techno peg-leg and a [[MetalGearSolid4GunsOfThePatriots solid-eye]] before it was cool, hell, even a ''freakin' laser cutlass.'' Dane gets relegated to ordering troops around instead. Not that this diminishes his awesomeness; enhances it really. This is what his voice actor thought of the character.

** BadassBookworm: Samus has a strong engineering background and her handwritten notes in her log book very much implies extensive knowledge in the fields of biology, physics and chemistry. After all, she was brought up and educated by enlightened {{Precursors}}.

* GeniusBruiser: She knows a great deal about mechanics and electronics, evidenced by her [[WrenchWench working circuitry in a few games and by designing her own gunships]], doing precision welding jobs, energizing dead systems, hell, just being able to operate that walking death mobile she's clad in has to count -- but the stand-out moment for Aran has to be her constructing a Chozo WMD called a Theronian Bomb out of a floating city's infrastructure, rewiring the engines to float a section of said city over to the Leviathan Seed's shield generator, all the while fending off ''dozens'' of pirate drop ships before leaving in a sabotaged escape pod that she quickly repairs; the munition is dropped and the atmosphere is ignited in nuclear fire.

* PetTheDog: Despite her psychopathic nature, she actually shows some degree of compassion towards Metroids held captive by the Space Pirates in the second game. This makes sense because she ''is'' a Metroid.

* NinjaPirateZombieRobot: Hilariously, he is a [[RecycledINSPACE space]] [[OurDragonsAreDifferent dragon]] who is the leader of the Space Pirates and often comes back from the dead, sometimes as a cyborg. If you count that he is capable of [[HeWasRightThereAllAlong "invisibility"]] in Super Metroid, he is a literal Ninja Pirate Zombie Robot.
** As of ''Metroid Prime 3'', he's a [[ILoveNuclearPower Radioactive]] NinjaPirateZombieRobot [[AppliedPhlebotinum Mutant]] [[RecycledInSpace Space]] [[InstantAwesomeJustAddDragons Dragon]]. All he needs is a sword and a gun and he'd be a [[NinjaPirateZombieRobot Radioactive Ninja Pirate Zombie Robot Mutant Samurai Cowboy Space Dragon]], Awesomeness Incarnate.

* AIIsACrapshoot: Retconned in the ''Prime'' series as an organic machine built by the Chozo, instead of the Space Pirate leader. This is in the manga too. The manga reconciles these roles (she takes the pirates over), but ''Other M'' seems to disregard both the ''Prime'' series and a bit of the manga (saying that the pirates can't function without her).

* VillainousBreakdown: A huge one in the manga. Gray Voice betrays her, knowing her intentions to rule the universe. He'd have killed her two if not for Ridley's timely arrival.

* LegacyCharacter: The Aurora Units in ''Prime 3'' were derived from her and it is implied the Mother Brain seen in ''Super Metroid was an Aurora Unit herself. Melissa Bergman in ''Other M'' is an android created to replicate Moter Brain's AI.
* OneBadMother: Everyone just calls her Mother in the manga. This gets referenced in Other M.