Metroid Database.com

Samus and the Metroid series are celebrating 30 years of games this year, but could she have been fighting dangerous alien creatures before 1986? Long time reader Pete Rawbone has been doing some reading, and found an interesting precursor to Samus.

Dating back to 1937, science fiction writer Arthur K. Barnes wowed readers with stories of the interplanetary hunter Gerry Carlyle. Much like Samus, Gerry faced hordes of horrific creatues, with only her true identity known to her comrades.

Illustrator Ron Miller even created this striking image of Carlyle for his 1994 card series, Ron Miller's Firebrands: Heroines of Science Fiction and Fantasy. Doesn't she resemble a certain bounty hunter?

If you want to learn more about Gerry Carlyle, Amazon is offering a collection of stories for free on their Kindle app. Our thanks to Pete for bringing this interesting bit of science fiction history to our attention!

--James Pierce