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Underground > Comic Books >

Myazaki's Nausicaa?

09:37 / 12.07.06

Many regard it as the best manga evvaah etc, and after reading it im finding it difficult to disagree.

10:22 / 12.07.06

well, "best manga" ever is pretty exaggerated (i think), but it definitely is a classic and a highlight, not only in manga history but definitely ranking among the top comics of the world.

i think there should be a definitive translated edition. too many publishers had their shot at nausicaa.

12:39 / 12.07.06

I've never heard anything about this. Can you please elaborate? Why is it the best manga evar!!1!? Compared to what? C'mon, if you think it's so good, write about it!

Solitaire Rose as Tom Servo

07:47 / 14.07.06

I read the VIZ version in the early 90's, and had little experience with Manga. The art is amazing, rich in detail, but simple in how it tells the story. It helps to create a feeling that you are watching a movie on the page instead of reading a comic. The story is rich and actually FEELS like a novel, whereas a lot of manga feel more like a TV series or a series of short stories strung together.

Best ever? I'd still lay that at the feet of "Lone Wolf and Cub" IMHO, but this one is well worth reading, even if you don't care for manga.

08:24 / 14.07.06

Not being particularly great on manga so not sure whether its "the best manga evah", wasa maybe being a bit dramatic a.

Its very influential tho and had a huge impact on Japanese pop culture (evagelion almost ripped it off wholesale in many ways only with ladles of male adolecent angst etc, Oh and FF7). and it did make myazaki (sp?) a bit of an institution. Im not sure that means its the "best ever" but maybe its certainly an important manga in terms of its ideas and their effect on the wider culture.

The later chapters do very much feel like a storyboard rather than a comic, and as such occasionally loses the sense of dynamic movement that was in the first chapter, and the level of detail and planning that has gone into it does differentiate it from most manga. The first chapter of Nausicaa was a massive success and allowed Studio Ghibli to be founded, which I assume gave Myazaki more artistic leeway and financial independence which most manga artists definatly dont have so maybe thats why the world it inhabits is so developed.

It is occasionally a bit patronizing though, the amount of panels where a character will be thinking about how profoundly great nausicaa is just to hammer the point home does grate a bit, but I suppose it was written with for younguns primarily.

15:48 / 17.07.06

I'm not a great fan of Manga but i really loved this. Miyazaki's illustration style is beautiful, he captures the feeling of movement of the characters with swift and expressive grace and his droughtmanship is exemplarly, making his detailed renditions of highly complex locations and costumes seem annoyingly effortless. I heard somewhere that he just plows into the drawing with pen and ink without penciling it first, can anyone confirm that?

I also really like the plotting and narrative in this work, it acts as a kind of fairytale analogy for modern life, similar to alot of the ghibli stuff (most notably Princess Mononoke). I also find that Miyazaki manages to create characters and dramatic situations which really engage my emotions as a reader and i always find myself on the edge of my seat.

My main critisim is as you've put it above, that Miyazaki sometimes really hammers home his point where it is really not necessary and belabours his story telling sometimes, which detracts from the flow of the narrative.

07:25 / 18.07.06

@ Hester: it's something of an urban legend that miyazaki doesn't pencil his drawings first. comes probably from his earliest days as cartoonist for various japanese publications where he sometimes had to skip the pencils and go straight to ink because of very tight deadlines.

i think it's quite fascinating how nausicaa has become a blueprint for all things ghibli, in all respects. princess mononoke is probably the most obvious quote of nausicaa. miyazaki footnoting himself.

about his storytelling techinques: you must not forget that while we read the story in trade paperback collections, they were originally released serialized in manga monthlies or sometimes even bi-monthlies! you get that with a lot of manga that were initially serialized and then later collected for translated editions. some artists, not only miyazaki, obviously felt that they had reiterate main points for either new audiences or for the forgettable types.

actually you only need to take a look at miyazaki's movies where he is more easy going on the exposition and elaboration and morale home-driving.

15:26 / 18.07.06

some artists, not only miyazaki, obviously felt that they had reiterate main points for either new audiences or for the forgettable types.

ahh that makes more sense actually, thanks for the info. However, i also thought the belabouring was present in Princess Mononoke as well, with all those "oh forest spirits, i beseech thee" moments.

15:39 / 18.07.06

That's kinda how you talk to those type of spirits though. Miyazaki's always been excellent at portraying how important etiquette and honest bargaining are in fairy stories and shamanic work. Paying due respect to the Old Gods is a powerful recurring theme of his, and once you've set it up you can't have a character who has previously minded his manners talking to the spirits as though they're old friends (well, with the arguable exception of Chihiro addressing Yubaba as Granny).

16:18 / 18.07.06

fair point. I love the way the fairytale ettiquette and diplomacy are handled, its more the frequency of the beseeching within the formiddable length of the movie that gives rise to my slight critisism.

13:42 / 24.07.06

i agree. it can get quite irritating.
then again, that is something very distinctly myazakian and probably is quite a big part of the appeal of ghibli movies, don't you think?