What ? What ? What's happening ? Something new about Nadia ? No ; only oldies. I am going to tell you what this wonderful series was like BEFORE it became an anime, that is when it was only a project of Gainax among many others. These are the fist steps of a future goddess ...

The temporary title of Fushigi no umi no Nadia was at first Ni man mairu, that is Twenty Thousand Miles, it's related to the novel from Jules Verne, Kaitei ni man mairu or 20.000 miles under the seas of course.

The number of episodes was set to 39 from the beginning, but the screenplay was different: thus were cancelled the episodes that took place at the African village, the adventures of Grandis in the Nautilus (episodes #11 and #17), and moreover we are granted a nice party organized for Sanson (Caius)'s birthday in the sixteenth episode. The name of 'Lincoln' is not given to the island where Jean and Nadia land at the beginning of the second part, but merely to the Purple Noah. Finally, the last episodes have more detailled screenplays.

The biggest differences can be found in the very last episode: Jean say the the people from Atlas (that is to say Nadia's ancestors who remain on their planet) will come to Earth in year 1999. He doesn't know what the planet will become: will it be destroyed by those invaders ? will they live together ? Our hero is here asking the question of the potential destruction of mankind by a huge cataclysm which was planned by Nostradamus and so many others... I guess that the reason why the othors removed this part is that it was proved that some of those 'propheties' were only poems describing the Nature around...

[Note from the author, three years after this article was written: Isn't it strange ? After reading that article again, I realize that this idea is the main subject of the series after Nadia, which is Evangelion ! Could there be a link here ??]

Ah, I had almost forgotten. Hanson and Sanson decide to enter the University together with Jean ! 'We will do our best to succeed in our studies'. Sanson wants to start acting and he even goes to an audition to play in one of Shakespeare's play...

May 8th, 1945. In Jean's house at Le Havre, the radio is playing La Marseillaise. Jean, now older, is talking with his wife, Nadia... 'We have to keep the faith... Yes... As long as there will be dreams and hopes for Man...' - 'Yes ? What's happening ?

Then Jean inaugurates with his puzzled wife, the 'Nautilus IV', his brand new rocket. 'May I ask you to enter, princess of Atlaantis'

What do you think of that version ? I do think that many of these ideas should have been included into the final version ... Too bad !

PS: Another funny thing for the Sunrise fans : Kazuchika Kisé (animator on Yoroiden Samurai Troopers, Patlabor 2 and Arslân Legend) participated for the episode #5. Also, more surprisingly, Shûkô Murase, who also drew the OAVs of Samurai Troopers, the 28th episode of that very series, the movie of Street Fighter 2 and the series Gundam Wing, was part of the people animating the episodes 5 (when Nadia meets Marie) and 11, where Grandis cooks some fish for the captain. Yoisho !

Cyber Namida was created and designed by René-Gilles Deberdt. All rights reserved.