Cheap Nadia, Secret of Blue Water - The Adventure Begins (Vol. 1) (Video) (Hideaki Anno, Shinji Higuchi) Price

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Customer Reviews of Nadia, Secret of Blue Water - The Adventure Begins (Vol. 1)

Neglected Nadia--and a Harbinger of Things to Come
This series, which I saw in its entirety on fansubs, might very well be the best TV series adventure drama for younger audiences produced in anime--but I'm not so familiar with anime aimed at younger audiences, so that's not something I say with total confidence. There are still numerous flaws in the storytelling, especially in the middle episodes that were made after Director Anno Hideaki handed over production to his assitant, but on the whole, "Nadia: The Secret of Blue Water" is an age-appropriate series that doesn't fail to include compelling characters, a twisting, consistently interesting plot, and a grand finale that's logical and actually worthy of everything that came before it. Anno didn't even manage to pull something like that in "Evangelion," no matter what the greater strengths of that later show were.

What's actually rather amazing in seeing this series is how many parallels the storyline and even the characters of Nadia, Captain Nemo, Electra, and the Neo-Atlantean organization were carried over into "Evangelion." Suffice to say that in the second tape, the middle episodes before the infamous "Island" sequence, and in the final five episodes--the echoes are undeniable. (Biblical references abound, for example.) Situations, lines, and themes turn out to be similar, and occasionally they even rival the brutality that "Evangelion" portrayed so vividly--though of course, this show was made for children and thus Anno had to pull his punches. Reportedly, he was unhappy about this fact; I suppose "Evangelion" made up for that!

The colors are bright and sharp, if a bit 80s-ish and slightly dated by today's anime standards. The character design is also much more "round" and "cartoonish," with the eerie exception of Nadia herself--a dead ringer for Shinji, if I ever saw one. (Of course both "Eva" and "Nadia" shared the same character designer, so it's no surprise.)

What I liked about this show is that while the above-mentioned brutality and plot twists are definitely present, the strong sense of faith and vitality is never lost in the characters--especially in Jean, who never loses hope, even when the moody, introspective Nadia does. Jean's optimism is believable, not contrived, and it is his devotion and energy that drives this show, even as many of the characters around him start to fall apart in remarkably similar ways that the "Eva" characters did. I think this ultimately was the secret of this anime's true success in Japan and in the early US anime fan community, besides the humor and impressively detailed mechanical devices and plot twists.

I look forward to completing this series on DVD, hopefully with the valuable, revealing, and necessary omake/extra bits released as well.

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Neglected Nadia--and a Harbinger of Things to Come
This neglected series, which I saw in its entirety on fansubs, might very well be the best TV series adventure drama for younger audiences produced in anime--but I'm not so familiar with anime aimed at younger audiences, so that's not something I say with total confidence. There are still numerous flaws in the storytelling, especially in the middle episodes that were made after Director Hideaki Anno handed over production to his assitant Shinji Higuchi and the animation was farmed out to cheaper, overseas animation studios. (I guess he came back for the final episodes, which are pure Anno indeed.) On the whole, "Nadia: The Secret of Blue Water" is an age-appropriate series that doesn't fail to include compelling characters, a twisting, consistently interesting plot, and a grand finale that's logical and actually worthy of everything that came before it. Anno didn't even manage to pull something like that in "Evangelion," no matter what the greater strengths of that later show were.

What's actually rather amazing in seeing this series is how many parallels the storyline and even the characters of Nadia, Captain Nemo, Electra, and the Neo-Atlantean organization were carried over into "Evangelion." Suffice to say that in the second tape, the middle episodes before the infamous "Island" sequence, and in the final five episodes--the echoes are undeniable. (Biblical references abound, for example.) Situations, lines, and themes turn out to be similar, and occasionally they even rival the brutality that "Evangelion" portrayed so vividly--though of course, this show was made for children and thus Anno had to pull his punches. Reportedly, he was unhappy about this fact; I suppose "Evangelion" made up for that! Even the infamous close-up montages of still objects that would be a hallmark of Anno's later work shows up from time to time in this show.

The colors are bright and sharp, if a bit 80s-ish and slightly dated by today's anime standards. The character design is also much more "round" and "cartoonish," with the eerie exception of Nadia herself--a dead ringer for Shinji, if I ever saw one. (Of course both "Eva" and "Nadia" shared the same character designer, so it's no surprise.) Special note must be made about the delightfully Jules Vernes-ish mechanical devices--the Gratan, for example, or the intricately designed Nautilus, which has throwbacks to the spaceships in Anno's debut OAV, "Gunbuster." As a previous reviewer has noted, the influence of Miyazaki, especially "Laputa: Castle in the Sky," is significant, though they're not specifically the flying machines that Miyazaki has a special affection for. The alternate late 19th Century portrayed in this series is quite charming and intricate, in a Jules Verne-ish way again.

What I liked about this show is that while the above-mentioned brutality and plot twists are definitely present, the strong sense of faith and vitality is never lost in the characters--especially in Jean, who never loses hope, even when the moody, introspective Nadia does. Jean's optimism is believable, not contrived, and it is his devotion and energy that drives this show, even as many of the characters around him start to fall apart in remarkably similar ways that the "Eva" characters did. I think this ultimately was the secret of this anime's true success in Japan and in the early US anime fan community, besides the humor and impressively detailed mechanical devices and plot twists.

I look forward to completing this series on DVD, hopefully with the valuable, revealing, and necessary omake/extra bits released as well.

---

Good start!
Before EVANGELION, the anime for which Gainax was best-known was probably FUSHIGI NO UMI NO NADIA ("Nadia of the Seas of Wonder"), a TV series which aired on NHK during 1990-91. The series was a huge hit in Japan at the time, but has since been overshadowed by the more well-known EVA, which is a shame since NADIA is a better example of all-around entertainment than EVA. Streamline Pictures made the first attempt at an English release of the series in the mid-1990s, but for some reason they didn't finish it, and so A.D. Vision - the U.S. distributors of EVANGELION - tackled the job of translating the series anew in 2000. And I think it turned out great - I've only seen the first four episodes, which I rented from my public library, but they've left me hungry for more.
I've seen a lot of complaints about the dub here. Yes, Nathan Parsons needs work with his French accent as Jean, and Meg Bauman's Nadia sounds a bit green in parts too (albeit very good overall), but keep in mind they were still kids when they recorded these parts - no one expects a 14-year-old to be a Shakespeare-caliber actor, and personally I think it was innovative of A.D. to cast actual kids as Nadia and Jean, rather than adults pretending to be kids. I don't believe that their performance makes the show "unwatchable" at all - I think it makes the characters seem more believable. But the best voice talent among the whole bunch is Sarah Richardson, the voice of Grandis Granva. Grandis is definitely my favorite character - even if she is supposedly a "villain," you can't help but love her. I also love Shawn Sides' purrs and growls as King, who is one of the most adorable anime characters I've ever seen.
The show itself might be a bit too intense for very young children, but audiences 10 and older might get a kick out of it. This definitely isn't your typical sugary, syrupy-sweet kids' show. It deals with a lot of issues you wouldn't ever see in, say, "Rugrats," particularly in the personality of Nadia, who is a strict vegetarian and a strong believer in animal rights. (In episode three where the ship is being attacked by a supposed sea monster, Nadia is concerned mainly for the safety of the sea monster.) There are also a few situations adults and those old enough to understand will get a chuckle out of, including a shower scene in which Nadia smacks Jean for trying to peep into her stall.
As for the production values, they're great. The animation has aged very well and doesn't look at all dated, and like his work on Gainax's later hits EVANGELION and KARE KANO, Shiro Sagisu's music is superb. The theme song is relentlessly catchy and has that late '80s/early '90s "feel" to it - it sounds a bit Paula Abdul or Madonna-ish - and the pseudo-English lyric "Don't forget to try in mind" always makes me crack a smile.
All in all, a very enjoyable series thus far. It's a children's series, but it's sophisticated enough that adults can enjoy it too. Recommended.