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I haven't watched all of it yet, but it seems as if Nausicaä isn't wearing
underpants in the anime version. Either that, or she's wearing tight-fitting
slacks that are of a colour close to skin tone. Is she wearing underpants?

If she isn't wearing underpants, what is the outside-universe reason for not
doing so? Within-universe, it seems to make sense: a lot of the clothing worn
is very simple clothing, as if it were hand-made. However, while other Ghibli
works I've come across seem moderately relaxed with regards to clothing (you
can briefly see totally innocent underwear in Kiki's delivery service, and
there's a joking suggestion of nude portraiture) it seems a little surprising.
Is a bias against prudishness a shared theme of Ghibli, along with a love of
flying and a love of nature?

This [FAQ](http://www.nausicaa.net/miyazaki/nausicaa/faq.html#bottom) (cited
by
[Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nausica%C3%A4_\(Nausica%C3%A4_of_the_Valley_of_the_Wind\)#cite_ref-56))
denies that any scenes were cut because of nudity, and states that the
impression she doesn't wear underpants were because of poor quality videotape
fansubs, saying that watching the DVD would clear it up - but I was watching
the DVD to start off with. It also has some cover art from a manga version
(not the anime) with white-coloured slacks.


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studio-ghibli nausicaa-of-the-valley-of-the-wind
Does Nausicaä wear underpants, and if not, what outside-universe reason is there?


We don't actually know if Nausicaa wears underwear, but no, I do not believe
we're staring at her naked bottom throughout the entire movie.

In the manga covers, you can see pretty clearly that she's wearing white pants
under her skirt:

[![enter image description
here](https://i.stack.imgur.com/n7yR2l.jpg)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/n7yR2l.jpg)
[![enter image description
here](https://i.stack.imgur.com/lGOw2l.jpg)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/lGOw2l.jpg)

Not only is the manga the original work that the movie was based on, it was
written and drawn by Hayao Miyazaki himself. (It's right there on the
cover—story and art by Hayao Miyazaki.
[Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nausica%C3%A4_of_the_Valley_of_the_Wind_\(manga\))
also confirms.) I don't know why he would have changed that between the manga
release and the anime.

However, I won't deny that her pants in the anime are cream-colored and seem
to be tighter fitting, which definitely makes it look like she's not wearing
anything under her skirt:

[![enter image description
here](https://i.stack.imgur.com/IEfUQ.png)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/IEfUQ.png)

I have seen the DVD release and can also attest that this is the same in the
DVD. According to [this review](http://from-the-
sidelines.blogspot.com/2013/04/nausicaa-of-valley-of-wind-1984.html), it's
actually the Blu-ray release that cleans up the colors:

> Having never acquired the DVD release of Nausicaä due to it being a low
> priority. The faded quality of the version I first saw years ago probably
> had a lot to do with it. In 2011, Disney released the Blu-ray and last year
> I decided to fill a gap in my collection. That turned out to be a great
> decision.
>
> Disney’s first Studio Ghibli Blu-ray release includes the movie on DVD and
> is of the digitally restored version. Suffice it to say this is the best the
> movie has ever looked in the States. The movie is presented in anamorphic
> widescreen in 1.85:1 ratio for both discs while the Blu-ray is in 1080p High
> Definition.
>
> It is absolutely gorgeous with the colors finally being faithful. This is
> important due to prior releases making it look like Nausicaä wasn’t wearing
> any pants or underwear! The color of her pants were too close to the skin
> tone used and got lost in the mastering before this release.

[Here](https://web.archive.org/web/20160314014605/http://www.asianblurayguide.com/capture/1707/nausicaa_of_the_valley_of_the_wind_anime_japan/)
is a gallery of images from the Blu-ray release. We can see that, while the
pants are still not as white as in the manga, they are definitely a different
shade from her face:

[![enter image description
here](https://i.stack.imgur.com/sKOfr.jpg)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/sKOfr.jpg)

* * *

I wouldn't say that Ghibli films have "a bias against prudishness". They'll
show underwear or a bath scene if it makes sense to show it, but by anime
standards, they're quite sparing with nudity and sexual themes. Miyazaki
himself is usually considered a feminist;
[here](https://bitchmedia.org/post/feminism-miyazaki-and-spirited-away-movie-
princess-mononoke) is one of many articles I found praising the feminist
themes in his work. Even without all the other evidence, it just doesn't feel
in character for Miyazaki to draw a heroine with no pants and no underwear
running around exposing her naked rear end through an entire movie. So even if
all we had was the DVD release and didn't have the Blu-ray or manga to suggest
it to us, my vote would still go to "no, she's wearing pants".


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I watched it for the first time a few days ago and it never occurred to me
that she wouldn't be wearing anything. It's rather clear that she's wearing
either pants or leggings. As Torisuda says above, the colors just don't match,
especially during night scenes, and there are obvious places where the fabric
bunches up and shows creases.

[![enter image description
here](https://i.stack.imgur.com/xDBQz.jpg)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/xDBQz.jpg)
[![enter image description
here](https://i.stack.imgur.com/1EpMA.jpg)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/1EpMA.jpg)
[![enter image description
here](https://i.stack.imgur.com/4cXpb.jpg)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/4cXpb.jpg)


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She's wearing something.

[![enter image description
here](https://i.stack.imgur.com/VNJpJ.jpg)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/VNJpJ.jpg)

But you just know that the animators had some fun with it.

[![enter image description
here](https://i.stack.imgur.com/mFfTu.jpg)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/mFfTu.jpg)

[![enter image description
here](https://i.stack.imgur.com/G3xh5.jpg)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/G3xh5.jpg)


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