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#i love the goof but it's hard to forget he can actually be quite... gruesome. then again... these are sand villagers we're talking about.
ya-know-nothing-yet · 2 years
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It fell on him, the obligation to continue the creation of destructive yet, obedient creatures. The ends justified the means, and if the means meant falling apart at the seams, then so be it. And so, his father’s puppets regularly fell apart without ever owning a dream. And he wondered, how could his father ever control their strings, when he too, had no control of his own? The boy’s heart never hardened while observing his father work but then... Then he saw his uncle go. He saw him go, he saw him go, he saw him go, and the boy's gentle heart went cold.
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kyoswimm · 4 years
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Kyo talks about character design: Ridley
Ah, Ridley... where do I go with him?
Creepy, violent, sadistic, cruel, cunning, immortal.. so many adjectives for him. Even his clone’s clone still rocks peoples’ socks off with his design. Let’s start with the beginning; his original design from Metroid.
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Look at this utter goof! Funky spade on the end of his tail, the ring-shaped mouth, the multiple dot eyes- he seems less threatening and more cuddly! His sprite itself is much more draconic, as is other artwork, but I can’t ignore this little fella. I’d like to see this design cameo someday. Moving on to his next appearance; Super Metroid.
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Super Metroid cements Ridley’s status as a spindly, spited dragon of extraterrestrial origin. This design is very important, as it’s the main template for every Ridley design past this! I still have my own problems with it, of course; the neck joints to the chest in an odd fashion, and his legs are always folded up as he’s crouching. Obviously done since it would be harder to joint his legs for when he’s flying all over the place, but it’s odd that his legs are so static.
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And here’s one of my favorite looks, Neo-Ridley! The constant movement, the way he moves his claws in a groping pattern, like it’s rehearsing for when it grabs you... I like it so much because it strays slightly from the Ridley formula, while still retaining that gruesome identity. Its head is far more rounded at the end instead of a pterodactyl-like spike. Those small.. orifices? Are they holes, or are they smaller, vegetal wings?... the red stuff just behind his second spike. Neo-Ridley’s chest is covered in spikes, while his limbs are very smooth and rubbery, contrasting how Ridley is just completely covered in hard surfaces. Its legs actually move and writhes as it attacks Aran, which is appreciated. The beak is more angled, something we’ll be seeing more of later... Neo-Ridley aims for Ridley’s more eery, creepy nature, an overall tone of Fusion.
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Metroid: Zero Mission replaces the original game in canon, and it brings us one another smooth Ridley! While I do like the look of his design from Zero Mission, it’s far too smooth for my liking. Zero Mission also brings up another question I have; was Ridley green before his first disintegration? I used to think yes, but then there was the Metroid manga. Was he green there? Or was he purple? I don’t know. Not much to say here; his legs don’t move as much as Neo-Ridley’s, which is my major gripe with it.
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META RIDLEY... GOOD. Turning Ridley into a cyborg had to be one of the best ideas the series has had. The neon orange energy wings, the small, lower jay replacement, those frankensteined arms and robotic lower body- Ridley has been though hell and back, and he wears the scars proudly. A shame being a cyborg is both a blessing and a curse for him- pesky weak points make everything bad.
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Prime 1 Meta Ridley? Good. Prime 3? BETTER. Meta Ridley gets a visual overhaul in the third of the trilogy, and I adore it. It’s so refined compared to his last iteration! An updated body! It’s much more sleek and organic looking, and you can actually see the energy field ripple on his wings. It’s also slightly blue, which hints at his Phazon corruption...
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Like Neo-Ridley and the Prime 3 Meta ridley proceeding him, Omega Ridley is far more cobbled together. Much more of his flesh has regenerated thanks to the Phazon, and his wings have become singed and tattered. It’s a rather menacing design, if a bit busy on the eyes- what love about Prime 3 Meta Ridley, but mixed with exposed flesh and wire.
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Proteus Ridley is another one of my favorite designs since it bridges the gap of Meta and normal flesh. He’s much more flesh than Omega Ridley, with his tail, left arm, and right leg being the only fully mechanical parts of him left. The use of neon yellow is a cool highlight concept. We don’t see that color often, with good reason, but using it here is just delicious on the eyes. The piece of metal covering his hunchback and the metal neck brace are some of my favorite elements. He’s healing, but not quite fully.
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... this is the one design for Ridley i’m not a fan of, honestly. It’s just so.. odd, to me. His proportions are just way off; too thick, too much muscle. The tail is also really weird to me- it just looks like a sword taped on the end, guard and everything? His chest is way too beefy, his beak is way too thin and flat, wings seem too long, and his neck is STRAIGHT. STRAIGHT? Who on god’s earth thought it would be a good idea to give him a straight neck?! Ridley doesn’t do straight, beefy neck. And green eyes? Not a bad choice of color, but where’s the yellow??
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And finally, we get to it; the Smash design, one of my favorites. The cracked, dry, armor-like skin with the weak flesh showing in between? A ridged, indented body like some sort of living skeleton? And covered in spikes?? A proper beak?! This, my friends, is quintessential Ridley. It SCREAMS dangerous and aggressive, and is spindly, yet sturdy looking. The massive amounts of spikes on his body is the one good thing Other M supplied. He’s just a walking pile of knives and death! Pretty much exactly what he is.
Who can forget Mecha Ridley, though? Because I sure can’t.
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Mecha Ridley, the final boss of Zero Mission, is an incomplete robot made by Ridley in his own image, and tells us exactly what Ridley thinks of himself; the perfect killing machine. Sure, it isn’t quite perfect, as he never finishes it. The way it fights is a result of that, too, relying more on its missile silo than a proper Ridley-like battle. Oh, what could have been! It may or may not being the inspiration for Meta Ridley’s cybernetics aside, robots are always cool to look at. Especially silver, neon green ones this no lower body.
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