Kaze no Tani no Nausicaä
Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind

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Nausicaä Of The Valley Of The Wind is one of those manga/films duos where, like Akira, I recommend watching the film first and then reading the manga. Get a glimpse of all the cool stuff in the world of the story, and then read the true tale that wants to be told.

Our little princess who loves bugs still exists, she still deals with the Torumekians, there’s still a forest of corruption and a god warrior… but a lot changes. In the books, the war between the Dorok and Torumekian empire for more land takes center stage. Nausicaä sides with the Torumekian princess not because they ... force the Valley of the Wind, but because her kingdom must respect old alliances. Kushana is no longer the main villain, thank god, and she ends up being a parallel to Nausicaä instead: very loyal to her men, very against all the bloodshed in her family, yet she knows she will “always walk the bloody path”. A much better character for sure, and she’s not the only one changed for the better.

We barely see anything about the Valley itself because Nausicaä does go to war and becomes entangled in all the mess of the Dorok imperial family and Torumekian royal family. Interestingly, the story focuses a lot on biological warfare, the horrors of war (not in a gorefest kind of way, but paying attention to all the suffering nonetheless: things like the Wormhandlers pointing out the Dorok villages weren’t prepared for the man-made miasma and died, but the families put their babies in ovens in the hope someone would come rescue them), the different religions, cultural differences, whether Nihilism is a good choice or not, and the power of believing a better future you know won’t happen.

There’s also like actual telepathic powers and some basic forms of magic in this world, which help things make more sense and explain why Nausicaä can talk to the bugs and animals as well as reach people’s hearts so well.

The art is quite detailed, especially the backgrounds, and it is a feast for the eyes. There's also a lot of small details that add to the believability like the characters covering their ships with plants to hide them. These aren't things that are ever mentioned or pointed out, but you can see them nonetheless.

This is not a happy story about a girl saving her village from enraged ohmu with the power of love, but a powerful tale of how a prophecy came true and a legend walked amidst the suffering on the earth as two empires fell and humans inched ever closer to extinction.

I wasn't aware that Mr Miyazki himself had made a manga, but I guess it's not too surprising. The new Hardcover bookset is absolutely gorgeous and far and away the best way too experience the story (and is really the only reason I bought it). I wish more manga would follow suit, there is something satisfying about having 2 huge solid books versus like 8 small softcover books that will yellow and fall apart much faster.

Nausicaa of The Valley Of the Wind has a slightly sluggish start, but eventually picks up as the war begins and we get to see the plot start to ... take shape. Nausicaa has the same Ghibli style we are all familiar with, with some of that same whimsicalness and charm in the art and character interactions, but I think it is actually pretty exciting compared to some of the other big Ghibli films (Howls Moving Castle, Spirited Away, etc.) with a lot of war combat and ship flying that I didn't really expect to see in a Miyazaki book (although to be fair I'm not like a Ghibli expert or anything). Nausicaa also has really awesome worldbuilding, there is so much care put into explaining how these new environments and ecosystems behave, along with the creatures that inhabit them; and The Doroks and Torumekians stark differences in culture and traditions make them feel like very convincing people groups (and the wormhandlers designs are so cool.) I am usually not too crazy about how much is left to the imagination in some of Miyazaki's films, too many unanswered questions and loose ends is very unsatisfying to me. I think here Miyazaki strikes a balance I find more acceptable, although the book still does have that air of ambiguity, it's more reasonable with how vast and detailed the world is; and alot of the mysteries that drive the story are addressed. I think this is the advantage of having read Nausicaa Of The Valley of Wind before watching it as a film. There is naturally more time to explore and interact with a story's world and characters in a book; I'm sure the film will still be enjoyable whenever I watch it, but there is no way to fit 7 volumes worth of material into 2 hours without losing that depth.

As far as characters go, Nausicaa is pleasant protagonist, very driven and determined but gentle. I like that as the princess to The Valley of The Wind she is a badass, she has to protect her people and be prepared to eventually lead them as the chieftan, but still has the nature loving hippy side that defines her character. I do think sometimes the story leans a bit too much into that side of her character, like she's not Jesus guys she just likes insects, but for the most part it works. Kushana is essentially Nausicaa's opposite, as she is far more violent and aggressive as a war general, with her princess-like qualities being way more understated. I'm sure this was intentional as a whole "two sides of the same coin" type thing but I'm not getting into all that. There are of course other great characters like Master Yupa and Mito but once again I'm not getting into all that.

Overall I think this was a very nice read. The story definitely does have it's lulls, but with worldbuilding this good it's a minor fault in what I think is a really refreshingly different manga in the abundance of Elves and Goblins and Guilds that we see today. Master Yupa is a real cool dude that's for sure. An underrated classic from Miyazaki himself I don't know how this flies under the radar when so many people worship the Ghibli films, but yea good book I recommend.

Solid post-apocalyptic fantasy manga by a as-yet-undiscovered Miyazaki. The main character Nausicaa is everything a hero should be; strong, humble pure-hearted and incredibly sacrificial. I have no doubt she served as the basis for which all strong female leads would eventually come.
In true Miyazaki fashion we have deep philosophy on war, differing culture and the human spirit and I would argue we've never seen it done better then here. The unfolding story refuses to let you think the bad guys are bad guys for too long as perspectives and motives change on a dime, making you realize how interchangeable good and evil are.
This ... beautiful work also goes together well with the masterclass movie it inspired.