Ridley (Metroid)
Ridley appears a few times in the "" comics from 1990. In these comics, he looks almost exactly as he appears in the NES version manual and is depicted as an individual of a full-fledged species of identical creatures, an attribute he employs to impersonate a judge of the same species as him. "Nintendo Power" featured two "Metroid" adaptations. The "Super Metroid" comic follows the plot of the video game of the same name over the course of sixty pages, while the "Metroid Prime" comic does the same across eighteen pages. In the "Metroid" e-manga created by Yoshio Sakamoto, Samus first meets Ridley as a child as he leads the attack on her home colony of K-2L. As Ridley observes the destruction of the colony, Samus approaches him. Her young mind overwhelmed by the carnage but having recently been taught by the Chozo elder Old Bird that even unsightly creatures can be decent, she tries to befriend him, desperate for assurance that everything will be all right. Ridley appears to display a moment's pity toward her before abruptly revealing his true nature by preparing to annihilate her, out of either bloodlust or mercy. Samus' mother Virginia, however, arrives in the nick of time amidst the confusion of the Pirate raid and pushes her daughter out of the way of Ridley's fiery breath, dying instantly in the process. This memory scars Samus for life, and she summarily vows to avenge her parents and destroy Ridley and all the Space Pirates.
Mother Brain
The Boston Phoenix editors Ryan Stewart and Mitch Krpata named Mother Brain the fourth greatest boss in video game history, stating that while she had triumphant roles in "Metroid" and "Captain N", she didn't come into her own until "Super Metroid". They cited the overall quality of the ending for why she was so notable in this role. GameDaily listed Mother Brain as the 12th best evil mastermind in video games. GamesRadar editor David Houghton listed Mother Brain as one gaming's most hideous mums, describing her as looking like a "turd on a stick jammed into the top of a long-dead chicken." In explaining why "Metroid" was among gaming's greatest games, GameSpot editor Avery Score cited the battles with Mother Brain and Kraid, describing the battles as epic. Fellow GameSpot editor Giancarlo Varanini described Mother Brain as "appropriately disgusting". GamePro listed Mother Brain as the sixth most diabolical video game villain, describing the battle with her as one of the most notorious and epic assaults in gaming history. UGO.com listed Mother Brain as one of the runners-up for the "Miss Entertainment", commenting that she has sadly diminished in her attempts to thwart Samus, though they hope that she returns. Mother Brain is also featured in the ongoing GameSpot's All-time greatest game villain. In 2011, "Complex" ranked her as sixth on the list of "most diabolical video game she-villains".