What If Metroid Was A Girl? (A Trans Reading of Samus Aran) 

the "e" on samus' e tanks do not stand for energy, they stand for estrogen.

I came here from a jan Misali video fully expecting a ‘meh’ video at best; no, this is really, REALLY good. I enjoyed this a lot!

Metoid Fusion is my absolute favorite in the series. As a 29yo cis-man I really like your analysis, though I'm only about 36mins in so far. I may update once finished. Fusion is one of the BEST metroid games EVER (IMHO). The gameplay alone, including the masterful revamp of the classic metrovania formula obviously. The horror elements while fleeing from the SA-X imposter. The way you fight and absorb creatures who are using your own lost abilities. It's just a true gem in every way. Thank for the articles about POC-athletes, those alone will be EXTREMELY useful in debating with my mother about her opinions on "trans athletes in sports".

Oof. That "A Bridge Too Far" bit hits hard

1:21:36 It's a bit murky to say the least, but the theory I've heard is that the X absorbed Quiet Robe's ability to control Metroids as a Thoha when it possessed him, and then passed that ability onto Samus by getting absorbed, allowing her to control her own abilities and thus revert to a 'normal' appearance. I'm sure you could take this as an allegory of some sort if you wanted to, but given how vague it is, I don't really want to speculate too much?

badass video

This is so damn good, and now I know a lot more about Metroid Lore than I used to, so thank you. Trans Rights babyyyyy!

Well I certainly didn't expect such a massive project.

This is required watching for any Metroid fan

hell naw dog im not watching these super metroid spoilers

i loved this. what a thoroughly enjoyable and thorough reading. you touched on so many more aspects of samus than i considered going in, and the deep cut of the dreams analysis section of that players' guide blew me away! i think this video is going to become a staple "rewatch every so often" essay for me. by the way. the juxtaposition at 1:13:20 between Dread and the sudden SMB2 title music made me cackle so loudly i had to pause so i could let it pass and actually be able to process what you were saying next. brilliantly executed

There's true love for the Metroid series in this video. I'd love to see you talk about the Prime franchise specifically :)

i’m gonna delete my comment thread bc i don’t really feel like having it out there at the moment, but thank you again for making this video. it’s really good, and i really like it edit: so, sorry/my b if you wanted to read the thread again, but i did save it at least. take it easy, and keep up the good work!

11:59 "Super metroid's - on this series' Influence?

The fact that the analogy hits harder for trans girls than cis girls shows significant cultural progress. Even the philaphobia is more about pregnancy than sex, so your best gay rep are the bird dads.

this video was literally lifechanging and immensely good. thank you for this. it was exactly what i needed

yet another reason to add to the pile as to why this series is one of if not my favorite in all of gaming

this video rules

You should look into Celeste!

Wow, this was an excellent take on one of the longest-standing media characters in my mental space. New headcannon accepted! As someone who has a very weak sense of gender as it applies to myself (I identify as agender), this reading of Samus would never have occurred to me, but I absolutely love it. I keep on feeling like there's more I'd like to say, but most of it is just my thoughts on the various games from a gameplay perspective and thus not really relevant to the main point of your video, so I'll leave all that be. Again, excellent work. Also, thank you for the clear articulation of why I detest the depiction of the Chozo as seen in Dread.

Question. Should a people not be allowed to aquire resources? I fail to see how the Thoha mining SR-388 is colonialism in the historical sense. Literally, sure, but the problem with historical colonialism was in the cost in lives and eradication of societies. As for the metroids being created as genocidal superweapons, i challenge that as well, and shows why you should have played Samus Returns as part of the research process. Unlockable images show the Metroids being created as a direct response to the horrors of the X parasite. They show the initial form of the metroid is relatively docile under both Thoha raising and with Samus and the baby. Also shown is that x infected creatures, when fed upon by metroids, are able to return to their environment unharmed. It is only later, presumably after successive generations of feeding upon the X, that the metroids break free of Thoha control and turn on them. My interpretation is that metroids integrated some of the X's shapefshifting ability and that's why they start evolving into higher versions, ultimately turning into omegas and even queens. After the Thoha escape the depths of SR-388, they call upon the Mawkin for aid. Again, presumably, after seeing the threat the newest generations of metroids pose, they call the warrior clan/caste/organization of their society to help them contain/correct the mistake they made with the metroids. I fail to see how they did anything wrong intentionally. Sure, Mother Brain can be viewed as AI run amok, the Mawkin as the dangers of military power unchecked, and the Metroids as science gone awry. Please dont discount an entire people over their mistakes. They rescued an orphaned girl and raised her to be capable beyond any means typical of her species. They formed a federation that lasted beyond their demise. Ultimately, remember that nintendo always has gameplay first in their design philosophy. All lore and story beats are retconned and retlayered onto the franchise as games are added and technology develops. Yes, there will be plot holes, and there will be attitudes and takes that are a reflection of their time, but i think the writers at nintendo have proven that they are at least trying to make their worlds inclusive and fun for all ages, as well as working towards promoting 'goodness' across the board. Back to whether the Toha were justified in mining SR-388. I know the prime games arent canon and werent part of your research for this, but they offer the deepest look into chozo society we get anywhere, and formed the basis of my understanding of them growing up, so i hope youll forgive me for referencing them here. The chozo of Tallon IV went to great pains to integrate their society with nature, weaving their structures into the flora and leaving space for the fauna to thrive. This coupled with the prey of metroids initially walking away from the experience 'cured' of x infection leads me to believe that Nintendo at least somewhat agrees with this interpretation. So i believe that whatever form it would have taken had the Mawkin not turned on them, the Thoha miners on SR-388 would have done similarly and integrated their civilisation into the nature of SR-388, not supplant it as modern human society does. I hope this was informative and provided an alternative positive interpretation of Chozo as a whole.

Technically isn't she already TRANSHUMAN by now? Yes I am very clever I know.

👨🏿☁️⚡️

1:09:10 I genuinely laughed these whole 20 seconds, thanks. 😂

I think this was the most important metroid video I have ever seen. Thank you so much! 💜🤍🖤 What set it for me was the dream analysis, I'm not even a fan of that kind of thing but holy fuck did those dreams age like wine. I need to know more about this fortune teller and how to find one like that IRL LOL