Super Smash Bros. Fighters – Metroid series – 02 Zero Suit Samus 

Debut

In the Metroid series

Technical debut: Metroid (1986)
In the Zero Suit: Metroid: Zero Mission (2004)

In the Super Smash Bros. series: Super Smash Bros. Brawl (2008)

Boxing Ring Title: The Warrior Within

Theme Song: Ending (Metroid)

Samus Aran is the main protagonist of the Metroid series. She’s an Intergalactic Bounty Hunter, and the Galactic Federation consider her their best agent. When all else fails, they send her in to deal with the situation. Almost everyone knows about Samus, though some are shown to doubt her exploits, seeing her as nothing more than some “legend.”

Back when Samus was a very young girl, she lived peacefully on Planet K-2L alongside her parents, Rodney Aran and Virginia Aran. One day, a group of Chozo – a race of bird-like people – visited the planet, hoping that the workers there will spare them a large amount of “Afloraltite”, a powerful but unstable fuel source.

During the negotiations, Samus befriended an elder Chozo named “Old Bird“, who taught her that befriending and understanding others can be used to solve problems, which allowed Samus to befriend a creature called a rabbilis, which she names Pyonchi. Samus’s father, Rodney, refuses the Chozo’s request, and the Chozo leave empty handed.

It was only a couple of minutes later that the Space Pirates arrived, wanting to obtain the Afloraltite for themselves. Samus, who was in the nearby forest playing with Pyonchi, rushed over to see what was happening upon seeing an explosion. There, amongst the chaos, she happened to come face-to-face with the feared Space Pirate Commander, Ridley. Despite her fears, she recalled Old Bird’s words of wisdom and attempted to befriend the Space Dragon, only for Ridley to respond by trying to kill her right then and there.

Samus’s mother, Virginia, manages to arrive and push her daughter out of the way in time, taking the full blast of Ridley’s Plasma Breath. Elsewhere aboard the Space Pirate’s ship, her father, Rodney, sacrifices himself to stop the Space Pirates by blasting the unstable Afloraltite, causing a massive explosion from within.

The Chozo, having received K-2L’s distress signal, quickly fly back to the planet, where they find two survivors: Samus and Pyonchi. Taking the two with them back to their home on Planet Zebes, a Chozo named Gray Voice would donate some of his DNA to Samus after Mother Brain – an intelligent AI that the Chozo created – noted that she wouldn’t last long in the harsh living conditions of the planet. Following this, the Chozo would raise her like their own.

Once Samus became 14, she was given a Power Suit and trained in the Ancient Art of Chozo Combat by Gray Voice, who began to view her as his daughter, though he wouldn't admit it. During Samus's conversation with Old Bird, he suggest that she should head off on her own to become "the True Protector of the Galaxy."

Heeding his words, she heads off to enroll in the Galactic Federation Police, where she makes some friends - Kreatz and Mauk - and begins to establish a name for herself. During her recon mission at Planet Jigrad, she disobeys her orders and rushes off to save a young girl named Damara, who was to be executed by the Space Pirates with the excuse that she was "too small to work." With some help from her friends, Samus would defeat all of the Space Pirates there before arresting the Space Pirate's leader, taking him in to Galactic HQ for questioning.

Learning that the Space Pirate's raid on Planet Jigrad was a distraction and that their real plan was to invade Planet Zebes, Samus and her two friends rush off to Samus's home planet to rescue the Chozo, with her CO Adam Malkovich giving them 48 hours to do so before the Galactic Fleet arrives to start blasting at the planet to stop the Space Pirates. Upon arriving, Samus comes across a recording from Old Bird, who left it to explain that the Chozo'z secret project to create the ultimate warrior, "Metroid" has turned rogue, and that now it's up to Samus to achieve world peace.

Learning that there are still survivors, Samus decides would make her way to Tourian to try and find Mother Brain in an attempt to regain control of the planet back, while Kreatz and Mauk try to find and rescue the prisoners. Once she makes it to the depths of Tourian she learns that not only has Mother Brain betrayed the Chozo and sided with the Space Pirates, so has her mentor/father figure, Gray Voice. Mother Brain would try to convince Samus into joining them, but Samus refuses.

And then Ridley shows up. Upon seeing him, Samus falls into shock and loses her Power Suit. Ridley then recognizes her as that “little girl” from long ago, and taunts her with the possibility that he may have eaten her mother’s corpse to survive. Samus then gets dragged off by Ridley to the prisoner’s room, where she witnesses Ridley preparing to execute the other captured Chozo. However, some explosions go off nearby - which were made by Samus's friends - causing Ridley to halt his execution to go off and investigate.

Once Ridley left, the other nearby Chozo would comfort Samus in this stressful situation. Thanks to their reassurance and compassion, Samus slowly regains her composure and helps get the Chozo to safety. Elsewhere, Gray Voice reveals to Mother Brain that he only joined her side to destroy her and begins blasting away at her, only for Ridley to arrive and quickly turn the tables on him.

As Samus, her friends, and the Chozo escape, she manages to feel Gray Voice’s final moments, which is implied to be because she has his DNA. She also receives a final telepathic message from him, stating that she had grown strong and he’s proud of her, hoping that she’ll use her newfound strength to protect others. Some point after this, Samus would leave the Galactic Federation to go solo as an independent Bounty Hunter for hire.

A few years later, Samus would return to Earth to attend Keaton getting elected as the new Chairman of the Galactic Federation. During the trip, she comes across Damara again, who's now grown a bit older. Samus congratulates her and her two friends for getting accepted into the Federation Academy before heading off.

At the ceremony, Samus saves Chairman Keaton, who was going to be assassinated by a Mimicuria that had disguised itself as a bouquet of flowers that Damara was going to give to Keaton as thanks for allowing the people from her planet to attend the Federation Academy. Damara was unaware of this, and her female friend began to desperately apologize to Chairman Keaton for what they could've unknowingly done to him. Samus assures Damara that what happened wasn't her fault, and Keaton is simply thankful that Samus managed to save everyone in time.

Later, Samus attends a conference being held by Keaton, Adam Malkovich, and Chief Hardy. Samus learns that The Galactic Federation has discovered a mysterious life-form called Metroid on Planet SR388. They managed to snag one of the mysterious creatures and were planning to escort it back to their research team to learn more about it, but the shipment was interrupted by the Space Pirates, who stole the Metroid. The Space Pirates have learned how dangerous the Metroids can be, and have learned how to clonw them from a single specimen. With an army of Metroids, they'd be unstoppable!

Initially, they tried to deal with the situation themselves, but to no avail. Thus, they decided it might be a good idea to assign Samus Aran to deal with it, due to the reputation she built. She accepts it, and prepares to head for Zebes.

Before she heads off, she takes a small glance at Damara and her friend playing with her pet, Pyonchi. Content that Damara is growing into a strong girl, as well as the fact that Pyonchi has someone to look after him, Samus heads off to deal with what she refers to as her "Zero Mission."

In "Metroid," if you beat the game in under three hours, Samus would appear in the ending without her Power Suit. Additionally, in the American version, you could then replay the game as Samus without her Power Suit. This was mostly a cosmetic look, as there are no differences between them. You could also insert the famous password "JUSTIN BAILEY" to play as Power Suitless Samus.

While Samus has been seen out of her Power Suit in "Metroid," "Metroid II: Return of Samus," "Super Metroid," and "Metroid: Fusion" - specifically at the end of the game - it wouldn't be until "Metroid: Zero Mission" that her iconic Zero Suit would make its debut.

In "Metroid: Zero Mission". after defeating Mother Brain and escaping her lair, Samus would hop into her Gunship, fly off Planet Zebes, and then remove her Power Suit. Just as she's about to relax on the return trip home, the Space Pirates spot her Gunship and pursue her, shooting her out of the sky and near their Mother Ship. With both her Power Suit and her Gunship destroyed and faced with no other feasible options, Samus decides to sneak through the Space Pirate Mother Ship to get to the nearby Chozo temple: Chozodia.

As Zero Suit Samus, Samus has a - as she puts it - "rather useless emergency pistol" she can use to paralyze her enemies for a few seconds. Whether or not the enemy gets stunned or not depends on whether on whether or not her pistol is fully charged or not.

Upon reaching Chozodia, Samus battles the Ruins Test to prove herself. Upon doing so, she is granted the Legendary Power Suit, after which she then blasts through the entirety of the Space Pirate Mother Ship, defeats the Mecha Ridley Robot, then snatches one of their Escape Ships so she can head back to the Galactic Federation.

"Metroid: Other M" would also include a brief segment near the end of the game where you play as Zero Suit Samus. After obtaining Adam Malkovich's helmet, the space colony Samus is on - the Bottle Ship - is set to blow, so she decides to quickly hightail it out of there. She controls much like she does in her Power Suit, albeit without many of her upgrades. Once again, her "rather useless emergency pistol" can only stun enemies, though it can also cause some closing gates to open back up if she either shoots them enough times, or fires a charge shot at them.

Personality-wise, Samus is mostly defined by her courage. This has allowed her to face and overcome various odds that many considered impossible. One such example is near the end of "Metroid Prime 3: Corruption." The main antagonist, Dark Samus, decides to hide out on the toxic planet Phaaze, and it's more-or-less a death sentence to go there since no one can handle the toxic levels Phaase is emitting. Despite that, Samus chooses to go there anyway to stop Dark Samus's plans, fully knowing she won't be able to retreat afterwards upon arriving since the toxic Phazon on the planet corrupts her to such an extent that her spaceship can't recognize her.

Samus can also be rather wistful when talking or thinking about her past, as shown in "Metroid: Fusion" and the "Metroid Manga." In the latter, she reveals that sometimes she wishes she lived a normal life instead of the one she currently leads.

Samus holds a massive grudge against Ridley, who caused the death of her parents, and their hatred for each other is mutual. Although she has triumphed over him a multitude of times, there have been occasions that suggest a part of her still fears him a bit. Samus would finally defeat him for good during "Super Metroid," but Ridley would inevitably come back through cloning, thanks to the corrupt side of the Galactic Federation unknowingly doing that.

During her youth, the Metroid Manga reveals that Samus was a cheerful child before the K-2L Incident happened. When she became 14, Samus is shown as a bit of a hothead, becoming easily frustrated that she couldn't master the Power Suit's abilities as well as Gray Voice and Mother Brain expected her to.

In Super Smash Bros, using her athleticism, Zero Suit Samus can utilize various hit-and-run tactics, and use her gun, the Paralyzer, to stun foes and set them up for some punishment! Don’t underestimate her just because she isn’t wearing her iconic Power Suit!

Special Moves 

Neutral Special: Paralyzer

Zero Suit Samus fires a shot from her Paralyzer. If you just tap the Special Button, Zero Suit Samus fires a weak blast that stuns opponents for only a second. If you hold it, she’ll fire a slightly stronger version that will stun the opponent a bit longer at the cost of taking a second to fire the fully charged blast.

Inspired by her only weapon in "Metroid: Zero Mission." Samus could use it to stun the Space Pirates for a few seconds. Charging it allows her to stun her them for a little bit longer. Amusingly, the pistol was unnamed until “Super Smash Bros. Brawl”, with “Metroid: Other M” being the first to adopt the name as official. 

Side Special: Plasma Whip

Zero Suit Samus uses the whip mode of her pistol and fires a yellow beam in front of her. Foes who are close to Zero Suit Samus as she unleashes her whip will get flung towards the very tip of her whip, where they will get flung away from her.

Zero Suit Samus can also use it to grab ledges.

Inspired by the Grapple Beam ability that debuted in "Super Metroid." While the Grapple Beam is pretty weak and can't damage stronger foes, it can allow Samus to swing on certain blocks. Zero Suit Samus has never been shown using a move like this with her pistol, though. 

Up Special: Boost Kick

Using the boosters in her high-heels, Zero Suit Samus flings herself upward, dragging anyone up with her before kicking them away.

This move is original to Super Smash Bros. 

Down Special: Flip Jump

Zero Suit Samus does a flip into the air. She’s briefly invincible to any attack thrown at her at the beginning of the move.

If Zero Suit Samus lands on top of her opponent while they're on the floor, she’ll bury them in the ground. (How long they staay stuck in the ground depends on how damaged they are.) Perfect time for a followup!

If Zero Suit Samus lands on top of her opponent while they're up in the air, she’ll send them flying downwards.

Alternatively, pressing the Attack or Special Button after Zero Suit Samus reaches the apex of her jump will have her deliver a powerful kick instead. Depending on the direction you’re holding will determine where she kicks.

If Zero Suit Samus Flip Jumps into a wall, pressing the Jump Button will have her perform another Flip Jump off of it, allowing her to gain some extra height. This can be done a total of four times, after which she’ll need to either grab a ledge or land on a platform to do so again.

This move is original to Super Smash Bros. 

Final Smash: Zero Laser

Zero Suit Samus equips her Power Suit and summons her Gunship. She then jumps on top of it and fires a powerful beam at the target reticle. You can move the reticle during this to have her aim her beam there. Any opponent caught will get dragged in, making it difficult to escape. Afterwards, Zero Suit Samus will fire one last strong blast, sending any opponents that get hit flying, before removing her Power Suit and returning to the stage.

May to be inspired by the Hypermode State from “Metroid Prime,” as it is quite similar to the Zero Laser, though the Hypermode State consists of two intertwined beams of Phazon Energy instead of one massive beam. Gandrayda uses something similar when she’s mimicking Samus in “Metroid Prime 3,” though that might be more of a coincidence then anything.

Alternatively, the move could be inspired by the Hyper Beam from “Super Metroid,” though beyond being a powerful attack, it has nothing much else in common with it.

Samus's Gunship made its debut in "Metroid II: Return of Samus," and it frequently shows up near the beginning and end of her adventures. In various games, Samus can enter it to rest for a bit, recovering her health, her ammo, and allowing the palyer to save the game. “Metroid Prime 3: Corruption” would allow the player to control Samus’s Gunship during certain segments. In Super Smash Bros. Samus’s Gunship is mostly based on its design in “Metroid: Other M.”

Additional Notes 

When using her grab in the air, Samus will fire an energy whip stream from her Paralyzer. It’s not very strong compared to her Plasma Whip attack, but it can possibly throw opponents off. She can also use it to grab the ledge of a stage as well.

Two notable alternate costumes for Zero Suit Samus include her casual orange outfit in "Metroid: Zero Mission" and her casual blue outfit in "Metroid: Fusions."

Samus and Zero Suit Samus used to share the same character slot back in “Super Smash Bros. Brawl.” Zero Suit Samus could only transform into Samus by using her original Final Smash, Power Suit Samus. On the flipside, Samus could turn into Zero Suit Samus through by using her Final Smash "Zero Laser," holding the Shield Button when starting a match, or if you quickly press the Up and Down Taunt Buttons during battle. They were separated and given their own character slots starting in “Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS & Wii U” because the Nintendo 3DS version couldn’t handle transforming characters very well.