Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind

Last week, one of my tennifriends, Mechafetish highly recommended that I check out Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind. I reminded myself that I always wanted to see the movie with all the raves that I’ve heard about so I thought of downloading it or maybe borrowing a copy (Quiapo utterly failed me in this). That is until I saw 7 volumes of Nausicaä graphic novels in front of me courtesy of said tennifriend. At the back of my mind, I could almost feel Kashima, Klein and Clark (2007) glaring at me and telling me that I should read them first.

Several id-superego bargaining and five days later, I have met and journeyed with Nausicaä and gained another perspective of what strong, women protagonists could be. I’m not exactly sure how one is suppose to feel after knowing the story but for some reason, I felt that there were some basic premises in the plot that were relatively simple, to mention some: Let’s try not to kill each other. Actions yield to certain consequences. I am by no means saying that the essence of Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind is reduced to something rudimentary. I actually feel that its essence is embedded in this incredibly well thought of make-believe world that one just can’t dismiss it as something mediocre, or childish for that matter, but could even be interpreted in a higher level that could cater to anyone. It just rubbed off to me as uniquely simple and it is why I appreciated it more. As I’ve said—it’s genius.

Now, let’s talk about the lead, Nausicaä. I really like her. I’ve always liked strong woman characters and it’s so refreshing to see a different side of the type of characters I’m much in favor of. Despite the skillfulness as a warrior and the mystical ability to bond with non-human creatures, what moved me were the glimpses of her frailties and vulnerabilities—that the situation can get to her. Nevertheless, she goes back to warrior mode, not gung-ho and all but responsibly calm and collected. I don’t know but for me, that just makes her all the more human and I guess that makes her character more believable, relatable even.

It’s unfortunate that I would end this piece with dissonance, that despite how I find Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind to be really good, it can’t seem to top Spirited Away in my book. Maybe because the latter was a movie and the visual and aural cues added to the excitement. This is not to say, though, that I don’t recommend this piece—I do. Read it; appreciate it, for it’s a lot more than just flying insects and good versus evil.


EDIT: *Two hours later thanks to Quicksilverscreen* I just saw the movie and I want a copy. Even if there are clear differences between the anime and the manga, I think they complement each other and both deserve the praise from their fans. Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind is officially on my fave anime list.