Princess Nausicaä has left the Valley of the Wind to join Princess Kushana's forces. However, Nausicaä gets separated from the Torumekian fleet and finds herself face to face with the mysterious Ohmu, who open their hearts to her. But will Nausicaä be able to interpret their urgent warning about the southern forest? And what of the war which rages all around her?
Hayao Miyazaki (Japanese: 宮崎 駿) is a celebrated Japanese animator, filmmaker, screenwriter, and manga artist, widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of animation. He is the co-founder of Studio Ghibli, the animation studio responsible for producing many of Japan’s most beloved and internationally acclaimed animated films. Over the course of a career spanning decades, Miyazaki has developed a reputation for creating visually rich, emotionally resonant stories that often explore themes such as nature, pacifism, flight, childhood, and the human condition. Miyazaki was born in Tokyo and developed an early interest in drawing and animation. His father’s work in the aviation industry had a significant influence on him, particularly in fostering his fascination with aircraft and flight, motifs that would become prominent throughout his later works. After studying political science and economics at university, Miyazaki began his professional career in animation when he joined Toei Animation. There, he worked under the mentorship of directors like Isao Takahata, with whom he would later form a lifelong creative partnership. In his early years at Toei and other studios, Miyazaki contributed to several television series and animated films. He worked as a key animator and storyboard artist, gradually gaining recognition for his storytelling abilities and attention to detail. Among his early projects were contributions to series such as Heidi, Girl of the Alps and Future Boy Conan. His directorial debut in feature films came with The Castle of Cagliostro, a film adaptation of the Lupin III manga series, which already showed signs of his distinctive style and sensibilities. Miyazaki's breakthrough came with the film Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind, based on his own manga. The success of that film prompted the establishment of Studio Ghibli, which he co-founded with Takahata and producer Toshio Suzuki. From that point forward, Miyazaki directed and wrote many of Ghibli’s most iconic works, including My Neighbor Totoro, Kiki’s Delivery Service, Porco Rosso, Princess Mononoke, and Howl’s Moving Castle. His films are known for their hand-drawn animation, strong character development, and philosophical underpinnings. In 2001, Miyazaki directed Spirited Away, which became one of the most critically and commercially successful animated films of all time. The film received numerous awards and international recognition, including an Academy Award for Best Animated Feature. It also became the highest-grossing film in Japanese history at the time of its release. The film’s success further solidified Miyazaki’s reputation as a master storyteller and a visionary in global cinema. Despite announcing his retirement several times, Miyazaki repeatedly returned to filmmaking. His later works, such as Ponyo and The Wind Rises, continued to showcase his evolving themes and storytelling maturity. His most recent project, The Boy and the Heron, marked a highly anticipated return to the director’s chair and once again captivated audiences with its dreamlike visuals and emotional depth. Miyazaki’s films are often distinguished by their complex female protagonists, environmental messages, and moral ambiguity. Rather than presenting clear-cut villains and heroes, his stories explore the nuances of human behavior and often focus on characters finding their place in the world. Throughout his career, he has received numerous accolades and honors for his contributions to the arts, including lifetime achievement awards recognizing his impact on both Japanese and international cinema. His legacy continues to influence generations of animators and filmmakers worldwide, and Studio Ghibli remains one of the most respected names in animation.
It's almost impossible for a two part work to be so magnificent, and yet Nausicaa manages to be just that.
I usually just, to quote a friend, ingest graphic novels, and the reason I was able to finish my 2017 reading goal so quickly was largely because of them. Nausicaa has been a challenge because in order to appreciate this book the reader is forced to slow down and observe the detail that is packed into every frame of this incredible book. Miyazaki manages to fill his world with people, creatures, and botany that never ceases to demonstrate his attention to detail nor his unrelenting ability to amaze. Nausicaa creates an entirely separate world that one could spend a lifetime exploring and trying to understand.
What makes the second volume of this book so amazing is that while the first book made it's focus the biology of the world in this post-apocalyptic planet, the second book manages to focus more of the impact of war and the philosophy of humanity itself. What is life and death and what is makind's relationship to both. Does humanity hurt or help the world. And what exactly are human beings willing and able to do to survive. These questions are put forth in such a way that, as the reader follows Nausicaa and her friends, they are able to muse on these questions while also following a beautiful story.
This book left me in tears, and not just for the characters that I had fallen in love with. Even the embodiment of death manages to evoke emotion and there in itself is proof of Miyazaki's ability. This book stretches out becoming a kind of epic and by the reader should be instilled with a sense of wonder over what they have just read and experienced.
Un segundo volumen que parece cerrar la introducción de la historia. Personajes, escenario y premisa parecen ya estar marcados. También es aquí donde manga y película comienzan caminos separados. En el manga, con el mismo nivel de dibujo y detallismo, se atisba un mundo más asombroso, elaborado y repleto de criaturas por descubrir.
Esta segunda entrega está más enfocada en el impacto de la guerra misma y en lo que estamos dispuestos hacer por sobrevivir. El diseño y dibujo sigue con la misma calidad, asombrando por doquier con los miles de detalles que hacen reducir la velocidad de lectura y disfrutar todo lo que plasma Miyazaki al 100%.
Es verdad a que a veces resulta algo confuso, sobre todo en algún momento de batalla entre Durku y Tormekia, pero tengo muchas ganas de ver donde me lleva el tercer volumen.
Hayao, giá negli anni 80, cercava di sensibilizzare le persone, sui temi ambientali, attraverso le sue opere. Sei il mio preferito.
Interessantissimo questo secondo volume dove iniziano ad esserci degli elementi in più rispetto al film. Non vedo l'ora di andare avanti coi volumi per vedere, cosa fino ad ora, il film mi aveva celato🖤
This is where you see a clear distinction between the movie and the manga and you realize that the movie, as good as it is, is only a tiny fraction of the amazing world Miyazaki has created. This series is absolutely brilliant.
This is quite different from the movie. The politics of the world are represented more, so it is a more complex world that is depicted here. The art is amazing as well.
L'ofensiva de la princesa Kushana no surt com ella pensava. Les capacitats sensibles de la Nausicaä que li permeten comunicar-se amb els ohms van en augment. En Yupa descobreix una cosnspiració.
Miyazaki continua desplegant aquesta obra com autor complet. La història, plena d'aventures, misteris i intrigues polítiques, és alhora violenta i tendra, divertida i profunda. Tracta temes com l'amistat, la lleialtat o la justícia; l'estima per la pàtria i pels nostres, alhora que per la humanitat i la naturalesa. També gaudim del dibuix personalíssim de l'autor: detallista, creant formes mecàniques i orgàniques, i donant als als seus personatges una gran capacitat d'expressió d'emocions, de vegades un poc naïf, però sempre molt efectiva. Molt recomanable. Imprescindible per als fans del manga clàssic.
Sigo enamorada de la obra de Miyazaki y solo me han entrado más ganas de leer el próximo volumen. El diseño, claramente, sigue con la misma calidad. El único pero que tiene este cómic es que, al menos para mi, a veces es un poco confuso. No sé cuando son los Durku y cuando son los de Tormekia o qué avión está atacando o qué personaje es el nuestro. Un poco confuso pero se puede leer perfectamente, y se debe leer! Tengo muchas ganas de terminar esta historia y de ver la adaptación de Ghibli.
Art is still amazing. Story is still confusing. There seems to be a story here somewhere. It's not clear to me if it the story has been lost in translation. Or maybe it's supposed to be that confusing. Maybe it gets clearer later.
I just don't think this series is for me. It's mostly warfare action. The majority of sentences have an exclamation point at the end, which I find a bit distracting...
8/10 This is growing on me. Phantasy settings are not my favourite, but this manga is really promising. In this volume, Miyazaki weaves a credible world-building...and war-building! Different factions - all depicted with a certain variety of social norms, habits and faiths - develop their petty political and military intrigues, while a catastrophe worst than war seems to appear on the horizon. Nausicaä is this telepathic saint super warrior and a child of prophecy. The latter is a literary trope that should be punishable with a week of jail. Anyhow, the protagonist remains quite lovable, so I can stand her. She truly is the main driving force of the narration. I do not need to comment on how impressive Miyazaki's artistic and storytelling abilities are. A lot of great dogfight scenes. (By the way, why are plane fights called dogfights in English? How do dogs fit into the equation?) We should also be out of scenes used in the 1984 movie, so from now on my feeling of dejà-vu should go away.
(I have updated to the box set, rather than searching the out of print single volumes, hence spare a ton of money. But I must say, the seppia inking of the single volumes actually added more fascination to the book.)
I watched all of Studio Ghibli and Miyazaki's movies and Nausicaä always had an interesting look.
The visuals were great and the story interesting - people surviving in an era of pollution and giant insects, all sprinkled with that Ghibli magic, with fantasy creatures and warm human faces.
My next stop was Miyazaki's manga he did for the movie. I always liked a deluxe, hardcover edition so my boyfriend surprised me with a gift :). From then on I couldn't put it down.
I was surprised on how the story is differently told in manga and how little of it the movie covered. Bloody scenes of war and death are gruesome at times and theme is serious. Something I definitely wouldn't expect from Miyazaki so I was intrigued :)
Scenes can swell with emotion, written not only in words but on character faces so it is impossible not to think of each of those unique characters after setting down the book. A recommendation to all Ghibli and book lovers, in search of a satisfying journey through a book.
Tuulen laakson Nausicaän toinen osa on täynnä sotaa, petturuutta, syitä ja seurauksia. Valtavia oomurivistöjä, mielikuvituksellisia lentokoneita ja julmuutta. Ihmisen kamppailua luontoa vastaan, luonnon kanssa ja luontoa hyväksi käyttäen.
Miyazakin kynän jälki on upeaa. Kerronta on paikoitellen hieman epäselvää ja joitain sivuja piti lukea useampaan kertaa ja hieman selata alkuunkin päin, jotta pysyi kartalla.
Mustavalkoisessa albumissa on myös ensimmäisen osan tapaan hieno kolmitaitoksinen väriliite, joka ei tällä kertaa ollut informatiivinen edellisen kartan tapaan, mutta hieno lisä silti.
Tässä Miyazakin luomassa maailmassa on jotain perin kiehtovaa ja erilaista. Ja se on kuvitettu niin upealla tavalla, että varasin samantien kirjastosta loputkin osat.
The atrocities of war are so well done, while not being so horrible to be unable to read. It is heartbreaking and disgusting what is done in the name of conquest or "peace". The world was once destroyed by nuclear means, and is now on its way to its second destruction. Only Nausicaä can stop it it seems.
The environment too is heavily focused on. Abusing it for the use of war is common place, and despite the evidence of destruction that this has caused in the past, the environment is continually being used to fight one another.
There's the idea of sacrificing oneself for what is right too... but I wonder how that idea will evolve through the next 5 books.
While I don't normally read manga because it's easier to skim through, you can't do that with Nausicaa. There is so much - to the plot, to the art, to the characters - and you have to thoroughly read this in order to fully understand everything that is going on.
The film is based off of the first two, so I am excited to see what comes next.
Zoals ik al zei: geen bespreking bij elk volume, maar hier wil ik gewoon wel even melden dat dit het deel is waarin de film stopt... en de manga dus nog een hele weg gaat afleggen. We komen in onbekend terrein - ik ben benieuwd!
Even though there were moments where I had trouble following the story, and the art style still isn't my favorite, I enjoyed this a lot more than Volume 1! The worldbuilding is so unique, and the storyline is starting to reel me in.
Tarina jatkuu. Ei ollut ihan minun juttuni tämä mutta ei tämän ihan huonokaan ollut. Mustavalkoiset sarjakuvat ovat minulle aina vähän haasteellisia, sillä ne tekevät kuvista kovin sekavia eli tässäkin se ongelma oli. Sota-asiat itsessään ei oikein uppoa. Plussaa kuitenkin naispääosasta.