Topic: Metroid Other M: Samus is not Samus Aran (A Headcanon by yours truly)

[Lumi Kløvstad]

The Samus Aran we play as in the game is not actually Samus Aran.

She’s a clone of Samus implanted with the original’s memories in an attempt to have a more “controllable” version of the famous Bounty Hunter at the government’s beck and call.

That explains why she freaks out when meeting Ridley for the first time – she has Samus’ original memories, so she knows Ridley is a badass monster, but she also has this nagging feeling like she’s never actually faced him before (because she actually hasn’t), and this disjoint between memory and actual experience causes her to flip shit.

It also makes the other most contentious part of the game make a little more sense. As a custom-designed Samus literally BUILT to be more controllable (and to follow orders), she doesn’t use her high powered weapons that she has available because she’s “trying to impress” jerkface (and no broski, I still don’t “remember you”. ); she’s essentially a Imperial Stormtrooper from Star Wars. Unless a superior officer gives her the order, she physically can’t even think of it, at least at first. She’s just not anywhere near independent enough to have ideas of her own.

Playing the game again with that headcanon in place, a LOT MORE SHIT STARTS MAKING SENSE. Like, almost every inconsistency with what we know of Samus can be accounted for by this, and I think the Metroid universe could easily have that kind of cloning and memory edit tech present in it. A clone with edited memories also makes for a GREAT unreliable narrator, so we have no idea of how much of her accounting of past events is reliable unless we have something from a prior game to compare it to.

So, she doesn’t act like Samus because in the strictest sense, she’s NOT Samus.

They just share a genome.

Mind=Blown

[zangetsu468]

There's some things I like about this theory, namely negating the character de-volution of Samus in Other M.
It does create some issues though i.e. a need for Samus' clone to exist and Adam to be fully aware that she is a clone, or be made to believe that she is the real Samus (the latter being more complex than it needs to be).

This would also mean that Fusion Samus by default would also be the same, or does it? The arc of Metroid involving Adam is limited to 2 games (Other M and Fusion) so it would be a bit strange if it didn't feature the same Samus (Same-us), given the fact that Ridley in Other M and Fusion is apparently the same Ridley, who is not the same Ridley from ZM>>>>SM - as the theorists like to believe.

It could be theorised that if Samus was cloned, the bottle ship was an experiment of sorts and that the whole things with 'Mother' (Brain) and The Metroid Queen was engineered in order to push Clone Samus to her limit while keeping her skills as limited as possible.

The question comes back to why? What happened to the original Samus? I personally can't accept another Nintendo split timeline explanation as they did with the Zelda series. Unless the original Samus died, as the events of Other M happen 50-100 years after SM. Though I have to admit even though I don't want this to be a reality, I am fascinated by the prospect that if Samus never escaped Zebes after destroying Mother Brain in SM, Other M> Fusion happens.

As a theorist I'm more interested in why Samus needs to be cloned. I do believe that if the clone's memories were slowly coming back to her, or compartmentalized, then this could explain her Ridley freak out. Especially given the fact that Ridley is not the same Ridley as SM's. What happened to Samus after SM? If the Chozo were so technologically advanced and had access to cloning technology (which could be the same tech they used to create Metroids) surely they could also prolong Samus' life and stop her ageing with technology, so then this would point to the original Samus' death to me.

[Lumi Kløvstad]

I'm hardly a Metroid lore expert, but I'm generally of a mind that Clone!Samus and OG!Samus could both active at the same time -- they might possibly meet (I sense a very strained "budding into a twin sister relationship" plot on that horizon) as the Clone seeks to find out what it means to be Samus Aran and eventually settles on being someone new. I think everything currently canonical remains so, but the Clone doesn't have perfect memories because [insert plot reason here]. So she remembers things, but certain memories don't line up right, or they don't match up with what actually happened because they've been edited to make her more pliable. So some memories might come across as Deja Vu, others feel like she's watching a video of someone else's life with events and actions not belonging to her, etc. Basically the ultimate in cognitive dissonance. In that way, Nintendo could keep an ability to retcon their own retcons if they wanted by pulling an "unreliable narrator" for literally anything. Frankly, it could wind up being basically the general plot of The Third Birthday, but actually intelligible and GOOD this time around (seriously what the fuck was that game's problem?!).

As for the why she was cloned in the first place, who WOULDN'T want an army of perfectly malleable and loyal superwomen based on the template of one of the finest fighters the Galaxy has ever known? It's like questioning why the Kaminoans in Star Wars tapped Jango Fett to be the template of the Clone Army, or why the Patriots wanted to clone Big Boss in the 1970's -- the simple answer is that Samus Aran is the best at what she does, and for some reason, the government decided that the deciding factor in that badassery was genetic. Solution? Make as many copies of that genome as possible, but make genetic and psychological edits to snip out Samus' "less desireable" tendencies. Clone!Samus would probably be a prototype for that process, which based on her general levels of badassery by the end of Other M would seem to indicate the experiment was more or less entirely successful depending on what exactly they were looking for. After that, you roll out the mass production models, fit them with a reverse engineered and downgraded version (for budget reasons) of the Chozo power armor, and watch as your new army of Venom Snake: Intergalactic Amazon Brigade Edition steamrolls the galaxy.

So now the question becomes: how fucking Metal Gear Solid is this plot going to become? How much of Other M was staged to cause Clone!Samus to develop along the desired path? Some? All? None? Did she even fight an actual Ridley at all? Was it a construct meant to challenge her? Depending on federal resources, meticulousness, and callousness, it COULD be all. Every asset killed in the game was probably deemed "expendable" by higher ups no matter what, so that's a short jump to make. The real issue that needs answering is "was any of Other M even real at all, or a massive and fatal version of the Truman Show?"

If they go with the latter, I would give ALL THE PROPS to having the ringleader be voiced by Ed Harris.

[zangetsu468]

If Nintendo was smart they'd actually start the next Metroid game (being based chronologically after Other M) with Samus taking off her "simulation helmet"... (drum roll) It was all a mental training expedition.

[X]

If Nintendo was smart they would not have made Other M's story as they did. Up until after Super Metroid we all knew who Samus Aran was. *She was not a skinny Japanese-esque character with Daddy issues who would be ordered around like a child. She was a take charge, though-as-nails, no-holds-barred, 6 foot 3, amazonian woman with the look of a body-builder (not to the extreme of course, but enough to show real muscle definition), who would not even let a military grunt like Adam push her around without paying for it. But now we have Other M which states the complete opposite of the Samus we knew for someone who's almost a complete stranger--in everything but name. At this point the damage maybe far too ingrained to simply explain it away with a clone. It's possible, but the clone herself would have to have lived a completely different life then her original counterpart. And the look of the clone herself would indicate that it is not a perfect copy either *see reasons above. And I would not even consider the clone to be a super soldier as she doesn't match up to the original in any real way.

[Lumi Kløvstad]

And I would not even consider the clone to be a super soldier as she doesn't match up to the original in any real way.

Were I a stuffy budgety Army clerk charged with overseeing the benefits of the prototype clone soldier, I would absolutely consider it a qualified success. Maybe she doesn't match up to Samus Aran, but she comes close enough to justify further spending on the project. They don't need 100% after all, not if you plan to field an army.

What's better from that line of thinking? A single 100 percent replication that would easily disobey you at every turn or fifty thousand perfectly obedient 75 and 80 percents? I can completely assure you any government would be THRILLED with the latter and very reticent about the first.

She never needed to match up to the original. She just needed to get 'close enough'. And boy howdy did she manage that.

[zangetsu468]

If Nintendo was smart they would not have made Other M's story as they did. Up until after Super Metroid we all knew who Samus Aran was. *She was not a skinny Japanese-esque character with Daddy issues who would be ordered around like a child. She was a take charge, though-as-nails, no-holds-barred, 6 foot 3, amazonian woman with the look of a body-builder (not to the extreme of course, but enough to show real muscle definition), who would not even let a military grunt like Adam push her around without paying for it. But now we have Other M which states the complete opposite of the Samus we knew for someone who's almost a complete stranger--in everything but name. At this point the damage maybe far too ingrained to simply explain it away with a clone. It's possible, but the clone herself would have to have lived a completely different life then her original counterpart. And the look of the clone herself would indicate that it is not a perfect copy either *see reasons above. And I would not even consider the clone to be a super soldier as she doesn't match up to the original in any real way.

The thing with Adam is, he was her mentor. If anyone here has actually had a mentor they will realise that listening to them is a respect thing. You can have the strongest and most dominant personality type, yet if your mentor advises you of something it's like a trust-fall or leap of faith that individuals adhere blindly to. I don't believe that this is so odd, as it benefits the disciple and over time they listen to their mentor, which is not the same as following authority.

However, It's not Samus following Adam's every command that didn't make sense to me in Other M, it's the context: that Samus' life was actually at risk and Adam would be stupid enough to put her at risk if it wasn't an extensive training expedition. Nintendo have always predominantly been a "gameplay first, reasons later" style of developer, however, there was some form of narrative which just didn't translate across in Other M.

I think the whole muscular amazonian woman vs Japanese beauty is an ongoing thing in more than one gamins franchise. Cammy from Street Fighter in SFV has undergone certain cosmetic changes also, she's similar enough in appearance to Samus. It was only when Zero suit started becoming a thing that we've seen Samus change. That Sarah Connor T2 look of the mid 90's is no longer a thing anymore, no it's about being a strong, feminine, woman. Samus has simply been moulded by her environment which also contains traces of the Japanese term/ characterisation of the "shojo".

[Super Waffle]

What gets me about Other M is that it SO OBVIOUSLY wants to be a prequel to all the other games. Why the didn't they just write it as a prequel, aside from the lame reason that Super Metroid is the most popular game and they just have to shoehorn Super Metroid into the plot to sell more copies?

Samus freaks out with her PTSD moment because it's literally her first time confronting Ridley since he ate her parents.

YOU NEED AUTHORIZATION TO DO THAT because this story takes place when Samus is on her first real mission in the Varia Suit and she's barely more than a cadet who's still completely buried in army regulations. The authorization thing is SUPPOSED to piss you off; this is the story of Samus getting fed up with dumb military bureaucracy and showing you why she becomes a solo bounty hunter after this.

Granted it doesn't fix everything wrong with that game (the Furby Ridley nonsense, the "let's turn Mother Brain into a waifu" nonsense, the hokey "everything is babbies" forced symbolism, the pretentious Adam "HUH I'm such a macho badass army hero because I shoot people on my own side for no reason and I can't figure out how to quarantine a small narrow portion of the ship without blowing myself up and I'm an amazing role model for everyone" Malkovich bullshit), but you could still fix a LOT of this stuff just by changing when the game takes place.

Holy fuck, hire me Nintendo.

[Lumi Kløvstad]

Holy fuck, hire me Nintendo.

They're unfortunately not that smart.

[zangetsu468]

Furby Ridley can actually be explained. In Metroid Prime 3 when Samus destroys the bosses, they explode into a powdercake of Phazon, which Samus then absorbs. All aside from Meta Ridley. Ridley recedes into a shadow form and escapes. Whatever happens to him after this is unknown, however, he is shown to have sentience. He could have therefore regenerated or retreated back to a previous 'larvae' form which is why he's a baby in Other M.

I agree that Other M should have been a prequel.

[X]

He could have therefore regenerated or retreated back to a previous 'larvae' form which is why he's a baby in Other M.

Possibly, however you'll note that all three Prime games take place between Metroid and Metroid II. Super Metroid Happens right after Metroid II. Exactly right after, and you fight the original ridley for the last time in that game. It is fairly obvious in Other M that it's not the original Ridley as that one died on Zebes which went nova. And this clone could never come back as is because it's life force (all of it) was "devoured" by the Metroid Queen. But we do see a mangled Ridley kept on ice in the BAS research facility. Still dead, until a lone X parasite gets a hold of it.

What gets me about Other M is that it SO OBVIOUSLY wants to be a prequel to all the other games. Why the didn't they just write it as a prequel, aside from the lame reason that Super Metroid is the most popular game and they just have to shoehorn Super Metroid into the plot to sell more copies?

Samus freaks out with her PTSD moment because it's literally her first time confronting Ridley since he ate her parents.

YOU NEED AUTHORIZATION TO DO THAT because this story takes place when Samus is on her first real mission in the Varia Suit and she's barely more than a cadet who's still completely buried in army regulations. The authorization thing is SUPPOSED to piss you off; this is the story of Samus getting fed up with dumb military bureaucracy and showing you why she becomes a solo bounty hunter after this.

Granted it doesn't fix everything wrong with that game (the Furby Ridley nonsense, the "let's turn Mother Brain into a waifu" nonsense, the hokey "everything is babbies" forced symbolism, the pretentious Adam "HUH I'm such a macho badass army hero because I shoot people on my own side for no reason and I can't figure out how to quarantine a small narrow portion of the ship without blowing myself up and I'm an amazing role model for everyone" Malkovich bullshit), but you could still fix a LOT of this stuff just by changing when the game takes place.

Holy fuck, hire me Nintendo.

This. This is what was wrong with Other M. So much wrong.

[zangetsu468]

Possibly, however you'll note that all three Prime games take place between Metroid and Metroid II. Super Metroid Happens right after Metroid II. Exactly right after, and you fight the original ridley for the last time in that game. It is fairly obvious in Other M that it's not the original Ridley as that one died on Zebes which went nova.

Point taken I've gotten the timeline slightly off.
It still means that ZM>MP>MP2>MP3>SM = OG Ridley

Whatever that was on the Bottleship has to have been cloned from the original Ridley, because it seems to follow Samus the whole damn game like it knows her. #otherstemcells

But we do see a mangled Ridley kept on ice in the BAS research facility. Still dead, until a lone X parasite gets a hold of it.

After the fight with Ridley in Other M, he escapes. One would assume he wound up frozen solid in Fusion, possibly he was captured and put into a cryogenic state.

[X]

After the fight with Ridley in Other M, he escapes. One would assume he wound up frozen solid in Fusion, possibly he was captured and put into a cryogenic state.

That's pretty much it. No doubt after Samus and company left the bottleship, the GF Co and his men salvaged whatever was still viable and laying around, including the corps of Ridley's clone. Samus didn't return to the bottleship till much later (probably a few days later) in order to collect Adam's helmet.

[Inccubus]

I like the idea of Other M featuring a clone, but ... it seems familiar to me.
And I don't mean Alien Resurrection familiar either.
Now, I might be wrong, but that new uber hack of the original Metroid that is coming out on the 14th, Metroid: Rogue Dawn, features a character by the name of Dawn Aran. Now I don't think the team said anything other than that she is a long lost twin of Samus, but I got it in my head somehow that Dawn is a clone that was created by the Space Pirates.

Either way, Lone C in Other M definitely salvages that game for me story wise and I will accept it as my new reality.

[zangetsu468]

Lone C in Other M

I 'C' what you did there.. 

What's really mind blowing, here's a riddle: if you literally put a 'CLone in MOther', do you yourself become a clone???