Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (manga)

Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (風の 谷のナウシカ, Kaze no Tani no Naushika^?) is a manga created by Hayao Miyazaki in 1982, which served as the basis for a film of the same title, directed by the mentioned director, in 1984.

Miyazaki wrote the manga Nausicaä over the course of 12 years, stopping at intervals while working on Studio Ghibli projects. It was published in Tokuma Shoten's Animage magazine between February 1982 and March 1994. As expected, the story of the manga is much more complex than that of the anime, since it was made when the story was halfway through and It only covers the first two volumes and in a very summarized way. There are significant differences in the plot, although the main theme, the relationship of the human being with Nature, continues to have a prominent role.

Plot

The story told in the manga is a broad version of what can be abstracted in the film version.

The story is set in the future, 1000 years after the "Seven Days of Fire," an event caused by the excessive industrialization of the human being, and the pollution it caused. This fact completely destroyed industrial civilization a millennium after it began to flourish. Although humanity survived, the land received heavy pollution, and the seas are poisonous. Much of the world is covered in Toxic Jungle (腐海, fukai^?, lit sea of putrefaction or of fungi), a cyclopean forest of spore-bearing plants and fungi (possibly radiotrophic, feeding on radioactivity) that increasingly covers more of the free earth. It is protected by a legion of giant insects, among which the Ohmu stand out. Humanity struggles to survive in the free land of the jungle, periodically engaging in armed conflicts over natural resources, which are reducing their number, while the vegetation advances, making the land it occupies uninhabitable.

Manga

Nausicaä is the princess of the Valley of the Wind, a small state on the fringes of a kingdom once known as Eftar, which was swallowed up by the Zone Contaminated 300 years before the narrated events. The leaders of these periphery kingdoms are vassals of the Emperor of Tormekia, and are obliged to send him reinforcements when he decides to attack the neighboring kingdom of Durku. The Tormekians have a powerful traditional army, but the Durkus have developed a genetically modified version of a Contaminated Zone mold to defeat their invaders. When introduced into battle, its multiplication and mutation exceed the Durku's ability to control and it ends up in a "Daikaisho", which is nothing more than a huge wave of insects that invade the earth (in this case to "eat" the mutant fungus). In doing so, the jungle spreads further across the Durku nation, displacing and killing large numbers of civilians and rendering most of the land barren.

However, the use of the mushroom for warfare greatly annoys Nausicaä, whose frequent trips to the forest have taught him that its real purpose is to purify the planet of the pollution of ancient days.. The Forest Town confirms this assumption of the protagonist and Selm shows her a vision of the restored terrain in the center of the forest. Nausicaä travels to the heart of Durku territory to search for those responsible for manipulating the mold, recruiting along the way a Warrior God found deep within the kingdom of Pejite to fight his way through the forces of Tormekia and Durku..

Despite the loss of some of his companions, he eventually reaches Shua, the Holy City of Durku, where he finds out the truth about the Contaminated Zone, the mold, what has happened in the world, and what is yet to come.

Characters and kingdoms

Valley of the Wind

The Valley of the Wind is a small state situated on the fringes of what was once the kingdom of Eftal, which was suddenly overtaken by the Jungle toxic 300 years before history. Like other remaining communities of Eftal, it is a vassal of Tormekia, which allows it to remain autonomous in exchange for aid in war.

• Nausicaä (أعربية, Naushika^?): is the princess of the Wind Valleyand is vaguely based on the Greek princess of the Odyssey that helped Odysseus (Nausícaa), as was shown in the Japanese translation of a small Greek mythology dictionary written by Bernard Evslin. It's also inspired by the Princess who loved insectsa traditional Japanese story of the Heian Age. While a skilled fighter, Nausicaä is also a lover of peace and life. It has a special ability to communicate with giant insects, especially with the Ohmu. It is remarkable for its empathy towards humans, animals and other beings. She's a smart girl, inspired by her mentor. Lord Yupa frequently explores the toxic Jungle and performs experiments aimed at discovering the true function of the forest and the nature of the contaminated world where it lives. It has great ability to pilot your Möwe, which facilitates your jungle explorations.
• King Jhil: father of Nausicaä, the only one of all his children who has not perished.
• Master Yupa: explorer and one of the best swordsmen in the world, widely known in Peripherydear in the Valley and feared by their enemies for their great ability to fight.
• Myth (Axel), Nausicaä's faithful friend.
• Teppa, a wind girl, chosen to replace Nausicaä as the wind rider of the village when she left.
• Gram/MatriarcaA wise woman from the Valley.
• TetoNausicaä squirrel.
• Kai and KuiThe great birds that Lord Yupa uses as mounts. They're a couple.

Pejite

This kingdom, in which the embryo of the Warrior God was unearthed, was later devastated by the Ohmu:

• AsbelPrince of Pejite, boy who knows Nausicaä when he saves him from dying for the insects, after that proves to him that he has confidence and a certain affection for her. In the end you can show some loving interest.
• Lastelle (Rastel), princess of Pejite And sister of Asbel.

Tormekia

Tormekia is a strong kingdom with a powerful army, the main antagonist in the anime story. It is a militaristic state run by an Imperial family and an aristocracy, whose capital is Tolas ("Tras" in the manga).

• Lady Kushana, princess of Tormekia. In the sleeve begins to behave as in the anime (egoist, antipathic, serious...), but when he knows Nausicaä better, he begins to change personality, being more friendly, understanding and worried about his soldiers and friends.
• Kurotowa or "Krotoa": he holds the position of senior officer. On the sleeve is a spy of King Vu Tormekiawith the priority mission of killing Kushana and recovering the stone that will reactivate the warrior god, but by being discovered and threatened with death by Kushana, he passes to his side and serves him faithfully.
• King Vu: he is the king of Tormekia"the most poisonous snake of all" according to the Buffet (boy? sweet?) that accompanies Vu everywhere. He is the father of Kushana and his three brothers, although it is suspected that Kushana has a mother other than that of the princes.
• The three princes of Tormekia.
• Senei: first officer of the Kushana army.

Durku

Dorok or "Durku" it is a theocratic empire led by a Holy Emperor and a council of priests; it is made up of a loose assemblage of 51 tribal principalities. The capital is Shuwa, where the Crypt is located. The scientists within her have given Dorok much lost technology, such as the manipulation of life or the creation of gods of war.

• Charuka Or "Triarch." Monk warrior and army commander Durku. Although initially it is the enemy of NausicaäThen they become allies.
• Namulith or Namulis, the Durku Emperor. The eldest of two brothers is charismatic and warrior, but he lacks the psychic powers of his brother. He's about a hundred years old, and he's survived by periodically transplanting his brain to cloned bodies. Namulith capture Kushanahoping to marry her to unite the two kingdoms. However, during the wedding, and accidentally the last of the warrior gods is awakened a biomechanical weapon with which Durkhu intended to end the war definitively. The one trying to defend himself shoots a series of lethal rays reaching one of them to Namulith. Herido de muerte este a comede a solicitar ayuda a su Bride, Kushana, la cual sin miramiento alguna zarandea el maltrecho cuerpo de Namulith desmembrándole. Finally, from Namulith there is only his head, which, despite being amputated of the body, remains conscious and capable of communicating, since in practice his body towards years that was not human (as much as the tremendous pain that he experienced at that time if he was human to supplicate Kushana to kill him). Finally his head falls into the void from one of the bridal ships. The Emperor dies without fear or repentance.
• Miralupa, younger brother of Emperor. Regent next to Namuliththeir connections to the ruling theocracy DurkuAnd his psychic powers give him an important role in history. Although he is the minor of the two, he seems much older than his brother because he still lives in his original body, which remains active through painful treatments to lengthen his life. This is because he saw his father die horribly because of a failed body transplant, causing him to fear using these techniques in himself. After a setback in the fate of both brothers, Miralupa He's murdered by Namulith. His spirit is redeemed by Nausicaäwhich he had tried to destroy many times.
• Oldalso known as "Your Holiness", of the Mani tribe.
• KetchaA girl from the Mani tribe. He can speak the language of Eftal and Tormekia.
• Chiku, a child whom Nausicaä finds by chance in an old pagoda (sacred time), and who also has psychic powers. It is called "Luwa Chikuku Kulubaluka", the name of the old king of "Dorok" (or "Durku"), which was overthrown by the father of Namulith and Miralupa.

Others

• SelmA Forest Man.
• CeraineSelm's sister.
• σmaA warrior god.
• Master of the Garden, Hydra over 1000 years old who takes care of the garden. This garden is a kind of time capsule, where humanity saved ancient knowledge ranging from science to art, and even animal and plant species. To pass unnoticed this garden is camouflaged being at first sight a series of ruins. You can change outwardly at will to deceive your fortuitous visitors. Thanks to its ability to adopt multiple forms and its telepathic powers it is able to enter into the depths of the soul of its victims, taking shape as loved ones. Through these deceptions he offers his visitors the possibility of living the rest of his life in that paradisiac garden as servants, breathing authentic pure air and with access to the many ancient knowledge disappeared in the outside world hundreds of years ago. Despite the temptation of Nausicaä, the will of this and the help of the forest man Selm allows him to escape from this prison. 2 of the Sons of King Vu, who decide to stay inside the garden until the day of their death, are not so lucky.

There is another known case in which a human being managed to escape from the garden, the father of Miralupa and Namulith, formerly the first emperor of Durku who managed to overthrow the tyrant Kubabaulka.

• Kest, assistant Master of the Garden. A great and beautiful antilope.
• Wormdogs: a tribe of hunters living on the margins of the toxic Jungle. They are dedicated to the dome of worms-babosa, which use as tasty trackers, renting themselves as mercenaries. Them Sleepers are rejected by many others, as if their way of life and their contact with insects made them "untouchable."
• Forest men: a small group of nomads who have abandoned fire, metal and ceramics. They live completely within the toxic Jungle, and are in peace with the creatures in it. They are greatly esteemed for Wormdogs, and both cultures seem to have common roots (the mother and the grandparents of Selm were doomers).
• Master of the Basilica , Entity of organic/mechanical nature created by the scientists of the ancient world, and governed by the Sancta Sanctorum of the Basilica of Shua. He lives in the basilica, accompanied by his elect, human beings who know longevity techniques in order to serve the master and to learn from him. Its primary function was to exercise guardianship of the embryos of new human beings, perfect beings, empathetic and wise in an innate way that would emerge from the basilica once purified and cleaned the contaminated earth and extinguished all traces of previous humanity.
• Servants of the master Formerly human beings the servants of the master are a series of small-sized creatures responsible for caring for and above all translating the instructions provided to them by the master of the basilica. During every winter and summer solstice, the basilica master reveals a word in ancient and unknown languages that these servants try to translate. These knowledge translates into important scientific and technological innovations that they share with the Durkhu Council with which they have a kind of collaboration. Although historically, they have worked for such an empire once dissolved and destroyed by the King of Tormekia, these servants swear to collaborate with the new king so their inclination is rather neutral. Like Namaluiz, their bodies have been treated with biological techniques, so in practice they are almost immortal, being more Hidras than humans.
• The Devouring Nothing of the Soulanother ancient god who torments Nausicaä with the idea that the human race will become extinct by disappearing the Contaminated Zone. It's kind of a Parca.

Creatures

• Grills-zorro: small animals and felines considered impossible to domesticate. Nausicaä, however, gets Teto to feel comfortable with her, and becomes a faithful companion along the journey.
• Hydras: are powerful warriors obtained by genetic engineering (possibly with mechanical additions) before the Seven Days of Fire. Although they are not able to cause as much destruction as the warrior gods, they are much more numerous and easy to maintain. The Hydras They are very strong and practically impossible to kill. Master Yupa knows these beings and knows that their weak point is their superior eye. They can be destroyed by destroying their central nervous system, located behind that eye. Namulith possessed a body of Hidra, though, as he said before he died, "I have the same body as the Hydras, I was transplanted by the basilica, but I feel pain as a human, it is unfair."

Through the master of the Garden we know that the first person to use Hydras for military purposes was the father of Namaluiz and Miraulpa. He got them in the Garden of the Hydras and we assume that with them he managed to overthrow the former tyrant who held power. Once this objective was achieved, he locked up the hydras in the so-called & # 34; Cellar of the Hydras " sealing it and creating a taboo that was only broken during the coup with which Namaluiz seized power from Miralulpa.

• Ohmu: giant insects living in the Contaminated Zone. They are the "guardians" of the forest, in charge of their defense.
• Gusanos-babosa: slugs of the size of small dogs, suitable for trace odors. Them Wormdogs They adopt their name of their common life with these animals. Despite seeming harmless, many consider them impure.
• Tubular worms: simple worms that weave their nests in the branches of the trees of the Contaminated Zone. The Forest Men feed on their eggs, but with the extreme care not to damage the larvae.
• Insects of the Dragon species: flying insects with elongated shape, with large jaws and a spur at the end of your body. They are very fierce in protecting the Contaminated Zone or attacking the ships that assault them.

Terms

Toxic Jungle

The Toxic Jungle (腐海, fukai^?, lit.sea of putrefaction or of fungi) or Contaminated Zone is a large expanse of jungle with large trees based on spore reproduction and many types of fungi and other similar plants. The proportions of the forest, despite the fact that its trees are only a millennium old, allow the existence of a wide variety of insects of enormous sizes, among which the Ohmu stand out, along with others with the ability to fly, a mix between beetles and dragonflies, of diverse and exotic aspects. In the Spanish version some of them were called fábanos.

The interior of the jungle hides more than what the naked eye would expect. The subsoil of it is free of trees, leaving the roots of the trees hidden from view in large cavities where the air is pure and the water is clean.

In the manga, the Forest People shows Nausicaä that in its center, the forest has given way to a land free of it and the pollution that a once left it useless, and that this is the true purpose of the forest, to repair the damage done in ancient times. All this would have been prepared by scientists before the Seven Days of Fire.

Ohmu

The Ohmu (Gorgonas in the old Spanish version that was later corrected) are giant insects with 14 eyes and a segmented body, with 14 pairs of legs under their body in the form of a worm. When moving, the segments of its body fold slightly on each other as in some invertebrates. The color of his eyes is related to his emotional state, red being the color of anger, deep blue that of tranquility, pale blue that of sadness, and gray that of sleep. They are the most intelligent non-human creatures in the jungle, which is no small thing.

Though they are normally calm, if attacked they quickly turn red. Also, if someone tries to destroy the forest they live in, or if they harm one of them (even the smallest hatchling) they become enraged all at once, charging in like a dark tide with glowing eyes. Pejite takes advantage of this to launch the Ohmu against their enemies, kidnapping a baby that he moves with a flying machine as bait to attract the others.

The Ohmu shed their shell by shedding their top layer. This can be used by humans as a source of raw material due to its great resistance. The parts that cover the eyes are often used as windows due to their domed shape and strength.

Möwe

The Möwe (メーヴェ, Mēve^?, Mehwe or (incorrectly translated as) Cloud Rider) is a single-seat glider. Möwe is the German word for seagull, and refers to both the shape and color of the craft, as well as the proximity of the Valley of the Wind to the sea.

It is unarmed, though the pilot can drop flashbangs to disorient pursuers. You can store a rifle and a sword between the fuselage. Offers no rider protection from the elements.

Although its specifications are unknown, it does not reach great speed, since the pilot can hold on with only his hands without falling. It has the ability to take off almost vertically, with its own engine. In addition to the upper handles, it has two landing skids in the form of handles on the bottom, which allow it to be grabbed by hanging from it. As seen in the manga, the wings are foldable for easy storage.

The möwe has a wingspan of approximately 5.8 meters (a 1/20 scale model measured 29cm), and weighs only 12kg according to design notes. In 2004, the OpenSky Aircraft Project, an initiative originating Japanese, he began his studies to build a möwe with real ability to fly.

Warrior Gods

They are beings of biomechanical origin considered responsible for the Seven Days of Fire. The metal and ceramic skeletons of these creatures are a common sight on the landscape, and they are believed to be extinct. They have the ability to fly bending space and can fire highly destructive energy beams. These abilities are sustained by atomic energy, and contact with them has been known to cause radiation poisoning. Characters in the manga refer to this radiation as Poisonous Light.

Speculation

Several Blizzard gamers point to the inspiration for the Starcraft video game in the Ohmu: in the Protoss ground unit called Reaver. The video game was released years after the film Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind). Also the mushroom forest or "Sea of Putrefaction" inspires a location within the 1st expansion (called "The Burning Crusade") of the acclaimed game "World of Warcraft", called Zangarmarsh.

As inspiration from the "sea of putrefaction" Miyazaki could well have been based on the famous science fiction short story "Planet of the Parasites" from the famous science fiction writer Stanley G. Weinbaum published in 1935 and which has a fungal environment very similar to what can be seen in the sea of putrefaction, the characters having to be protected with diving suits since otherwise their lungs would they would rot in a matter of minutes from the spores.