Good points Solo, I hadn’t really considered that angle. I would still say that there are important differences between Nausicaa and Lundi, mainly because Nausicaa’s character is developed so much more in the manga than Lundi’s can be in the game, but now that you’ve mentioned them they seem like noticeable similarities. Lundi definitely seemed like the “least aggressive” dragon rider, from what we knew of him.
Anyway, my thoughts on your earlier list:
*** Yep, spoilers ***
As you’ve probably gathered, I agree with these more or less entirely:
Gargantuan Industrial Society = The Ancients
The Seven Days of Fire = The Downfall of the Ancients
The Sea of Corruption = The Towers
The Crypt of Shuwa = Sestren (the place)
The Master of the Crypt = Sestren (the being)
The Insects = The Monsters
Torumekian Empire = The Empire
I’d also say that the Dorok Principalities paralleled the PD Empire too, as it was them who resurrected the really dangerous ancient technologies (such as bio-engineering). And as I mentioned earlier, I get the impression that Mehve and the God Warrior were condensed into the dragon(s) of the PD world, but Lagi had a different role too (he guided the rider, whereas Nausicaa guided the God Warrior).
However, while the whole background story and setting of the two stories are extremely similar, I’d be very wary about drawing links between PD and Nausicaa characters. This was another area where I thought the two works differed considerably; I really thought that most of the character similarities only existed on the surface, and that the characters in PD and Nausicaa didn’t have a great deal in common when you examined them in detail. Here’s some views:
“Princess Kushana = Lord Craymen”
This one certainly struck me while I was reading, too. Kushana and Craymen had several things in common, but on reflection I would say there were an equal amount of differences between them. On the “similar” side, they were both imperial commanders who had an extremely loyal group of troops under them, and they both went renegade. However, they seemed to be very different characters at heart, and they went renegade for quite different reasons; Kushana’s betrayal of the Torumekian Empire was by and large a “good thing”, and it was a defensive act - she was being betrayed by her father. On the other hand, Craymen seemed much more aggressive in his rebellion, and very misguided in his plan to reactivate the Tower.
Similarly, Kushana had an almost motherly care for her loyal troops, whereas Craymen didn’t seem like the caring type. In the end Kushana seems to becomes a noble / just person who rules wisely over Torumekia, whereas Craymen pursues his fairly insane plan and gets killed in the process.
“Torumekian Emperor = The Seventh Emperor”
This is also pretty close in a lot of respects (for obvious reasons - they’re both greedy and ruthless emperors), but again I’d say there are significant differences between the two. The Seventh Emperor was a really stereotypically evil and corrupt ruler, and while the Torumekian Emperor was depicted in the same way for much of the story, he was somewhat redeemed by his final act in the Crypt; he saw the sense in Nausicaa’s words (when she acknowledged the value of life and freedom), and he sacrificed himself so that she could survive.
Perhaps there was a greater similarity between the Seventh Emperor and Namulith? Namulith seemed crazy right up to the end, and he was also killed by the ancient force he had revived - the God Warrior - as the Seventh Emperor was killed by the Tower.
“Kurotowa = Zastava”
This is a link I’d be very cautious about; while Kurotowa and Zastava occupied the same superficial roles in the story (they were both “the traitor’s” henchman), their characters were extremely different in my opinion. Zastava was pretty psychotic and murderous, whereas Kurotowa seemed in many ways to be a balanced, believably human character who people could often sympathise with. (With his background as a common soldier, Kurotowa could probably be seen as the voice of “the normal man” amongst all the noble and religious leaders - Nausicaa, Kushana, Charuka, Chikuku, Miralupa, Namulith, the Torumekian Emperor, and so on.)
“Master Yupa = Edge’s Captain”
Another link I might be wary of; while they’re both mentor characters, I’d say that Yupa plays a considerably different role to Edge’s captain in PDS. Edge’s captain seemed like quite a powerless, almost pitiable and very human figure, but Yupa is an extremely adept and independent man on a quest of his own.
I suspect that there might be echoes of Yupa in Gash, actually; they’re both searching for the truth regarding their existence, and they both seem very experienced in the ways of the world. Plus, the scene where Edge meets the Coolia-riding Gash and saves him from the Arachnoth is more than a little like the start of Nausicaa; she saves Yupa, who is riding a Horseclaw, from an enraged Ohmu. But yeah, there would still be many differences between Yupa and Gash, too.
“Ohmu = Desert Worms”
Now upon seeing an Ohmu, those desert worms from PD1 are the first thing that sprung to my mind; the look of their eyes and mandibles was extremely similar, and I’d say the Ohmu were very probably an inspiration for their design. Of course, they do play very different roles in the storyline, though; the Ohmu are seen to be a great and noble race of creatures, whereas those sandworms in PD1 are just generic huge monsters that you have to blow up. Design-wise though, I’d agree that there’s a parallel there.
“The Forest People = The Wormriders”
Looking at their place in the story, I actually thought that the Forest People had a greater similarity with the Seekers in PD; the Seekers despised the technology of the past, and in a vaguely similar way, the Forest People had abandoned a technological existence in order to dwell in the natural world of the forest. (Like the Seekers, they also “know the secret of the world” to some extent.) There are still a bunch of differences between the two cultures, though.
I’d suspect that the stronger parallel for the Wormriders in Nausicaa would be the Wormhandlers; in both stories they’re described as “disgusting savages” by the imperials (literally), and they both have a similar weird-people-living-as-a-primitive-culture sort of role.
As with characters in general though, I’m not sure that the cultures of Nausicaa’s world had any really direct parallels with cultures in the PD world, except for the roles that the empires play. It’s probably worth noting the similarity between the Periphery in Nausicaa and the PD world’s Frontier, though - they’re both independent lands beyond the empire, the main character’s place of origin, and the place where the story begins.
