Ridley

Ridley
File:Ridley2.jpg
Full name	Ridley
Species	Dragon
First appearance	Metroid (1986)
Latest appearance	Super Smash Bros. Brawl (as a boss and a Trophy)

File:Ridley.jpg

Ridley, fighting Samus Aran in the opening cinema of Super Smash Bros. Melee.

Ridley is a dragon-like alien that is one of the main villains in the Metroid series of video games. He is responsible for the murder of Samus Aran's parents. In Super Smash Bros., Ridley can occasionally be seen flying in the background of the Planet Zebes arena.

Ridley also makes a brief appearance in the opening cinematic of Super Smash Bros. Melee, where he can be seen battling his archenemy, Samus Aran. A trophy of Ridley can also be obtained in Super Smash Bros. Melee.

Remixes of Ridley's theme music from various Metroid games can be optionally played in the Frigate Orpheon stage in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. He is also a boss fought four times in the Subspace Emissary. The last two times are in The Great Maze.

Role in the Subspace Emissary

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

File:Ssbbridleyhighquality.png

Ridley fighting Samus.

In Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Ridley is fought four times in the Subspace Emissary. The first time, he is fought in his normal form by Samus and Pikachu. As the two reach the exit to the facility that contained Samus's Power Suit, Ridley appears without warning and snatches up Samus. Roaring, he slams her into a wall and drags her along it. Pikachu comes to Samus's rescue, hitting the space dragon with a well-placed Thunder attack. The battle begins after this. Ridley fights similarly to Master Hand, using many brutal physical attacks. When he is defeated, he falls off the arena.

File:Meta Ridley2.jpg

Meta Ridley's artwork.

File:Meta Ridley.jpg

Meta Ridley fighting Diddy Kong.

Later on, Ridley reappears in a cybernetically enhanced form known as Meta Ridley, fought as Samus and Pikachu once again, but now with the additions of Captain Falcon, Captain Olimar, R.O.B., Diddy Kong, and Donkey Kong. This time, he is fought atop Captain Falcon's ship, the Falcon Flyer, as it speeds through a tunnel while trying to escape the floating island before it is engulfed in Subspace. Also, this boss battle features a timer, in which the player must defeat Meta Ridley before it runs out; this is similar to the Meta Ridley battle in Metroid Prime 3: Corruption. This time, Ridley attacks using various fireball-based moves, along with affecting the arena by doing things such as dragging it off-screen.

Soon after Ridley is defeated, the Falcon Flyer escapes, and the floating island is engulfed in Subspace, bringing Ridley with it. In the final level, Ridley and Meta Ridley, along with all the other characters and bosses in the game, must be defeated once more.

Trophies

Melee

Name	Image	Game	Description
Ridley	File:Trophy232.PNG	Metroid 8/89	The head of the Space Pirates on Zebes, Ridley soars through space on wicked wings. Ridley may look like a mindless monster, but he's actually quite intelligent. After the SR-388 incident, where Samus captured the infant Metroid, Ridley took the Space Academy by storm, annihilating the complex and taking the Metroid back.

Brawl

Name	Image	Game	Description
Ridley	File:Ridley Trophy.jpg	NES Metroid	The leader of the Space Pirates. He looks like a pterosaur but has high intelligence and a brutal nature. He plans to steal the baby Metroid from Samus for his own use. Ridley utilizes wings for a full range of flight and attacks with fireballs from his mouth and whips of his tail. As the culprit behind the murder of Samus's parents, the connections with Samus run deep.
Meta Ridley	File:MetaRidley Trophy.jpg	GCN Metroid Prime	The meta form of Ridley, revived using the Space Pirates' genetic engineering and cybernetic technologies. His thin chest plate--and weak point--is protected by a highly resistant membrane. Meta Ridley is highly mobile and features a multimissile system, a bomb launcher, and powerful wings. Ice attacks are particularly effective in dealing damage to him.

Trivia

• Ridley appeared in Nintendo Monopoly, where he took the place of Tennessee Avenue.
• Many fans believed Ridley would appear as a playable character in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, but Sakurai in an interview with Nintendo Power stated that he never considered him a playable character at all when designing the game.
  • Incidentally, Ridley ranked second in the Japanese Character Poll for Brawl, losing only to King Dedede. He was tied with Diddy Kong, Ike, and Geno, however.