"Fushigi no umi no Nadia" (1990) TV series

Seasons:

1

Release Date:

13 April 1990 (Japan)

Genre:

Animation | Adventure | Drama | Family | Fantasy | Romance | Sci-Fi | War

Plot:

Nadia is a teenaged circus acrobat, an orphan searching for her father at the turn of the 20th century...

Plot Keywords:

Sea | Acrobat | Jewel | Jules Verne | Orphan

Cast

Noriko Hidaka	...	Jean (39 episodes, 1990-1991)
Carl Domaski	...	Additional Voices / ... (39 episodes, 1990-1991)
Judson L. Jones	...	Additional Voices / ... (39 episodes, 1990-1991)
Craig Kanne	...	Red Noah (39 episodes, 1990-1991)
Talbot McKitt	...	New Nautilus Radio (39 episodes, 1990-1991)
Nathan Parsons	...	Jean (39 episodes, 1990-1991)
Nanker Phelge	...	Additional Voices / ... (39 episodes, 1990-1991)
Guy Roberts	...	Additional Voices / ... (39 episodes, 1990-1991)
Douglas Taylor	...	Gargoyle's Cabinet / ... (39 episodes, 1990-1991)
James Arnold Taylor	...	Additional Voices / ... (39 episodes, 1990-1991)
Clay Towery	...	Gargoyle's Cabinet / ... (39 episodes, 1990-1991)
Meg Bauman	...	Nadia (38 episodes, 1990-1991)
Toshiharu Sakurai	...	King / ... (37 episodes, 1990-1991)
Shawn Sides	...	King (37 episodes, 1990-1991)
Yoshino Takamori	...	Nadia (36 episodes, 1990-1991)
Karen Kuykendall	...	Narrator (35 episodes, 1990-1991)
Kumiko Takizawa	...	Grandis (33 episodes, 1990-1991)
Martin Blacker	...	Sanson (33 episodes, 1990-1991)
Margaret Cassidy	...	Marie (33 episodes, 1990-1991)
Corey Gagne	...	Hanson (33 episodes, 1990-1991)
Sarah Richardson	...	Grandis (33 episodes, 1990-1991)
Ken'yû Horiuchi	...	Sanson (32 episodes, 1990-1991)
Yûko Mizutani	...	Marie (31 episodes, 1990-1991)
Ev Lunning	...	Captain Nemo (25 episodes, 1990-1991)
Akio Ôtsuka	...	Captain Nemo (23 episodes, 1990-1991)
Jennifer Stuart	...	Electra (23 episodes, 1990-1991)
Kikuko Inoue	...	Electra (22 episodes, 1990-1991)
Billy F. Harden	...	Nautilus Chief Engineer (21 episodes, 1990-1991)
Richard Smith	...	Nautilus Co-Pilot / ... (21 episodes, 1990-1991)
Greg Gondek	...	Nautilus Sonar Officer (20 episodes, 1990-1991)
Don Bisbee	...	Nautilus Pilot / ... (17 episodes, 1990)

Series Directed by
Hideaki Anno		(27 episodes, 1990-1991)
Shinji Higuchi		(17 episodes, 1990-1991)

Series Writing credits
L.B. Bartholomee		(39 episodes, 1990-1991)
Hisao Ohkawa		(39 episodes, 1990-1991)
Jules Verne		(39 episodes, 1990-1991)
Hideaki Anno		(29 episodes, 1990-1991)
Kaoru Umeno		(24 episodes, 1990-1991)

Series Produced by
Hiroshi Kubota	....	producer (1 episode, 1990)

Series Original Music by
Shirô Sagisu		(unknown episodes)

Series Film Editing by
Akio Satsukawa		(unknown episodes)

Series Art Direction by
Masanori Kikuchi		(unknown episodes)
Hiromasa Ogura		(unknown episodes)
Hiroshi Sasaki		(unknown episodes)

Series Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Shunji Suzuki	....	second unit director (unknown episodes)

Series Art Department
Hideaki Anno	....	storyboard artist (2 episodes, 1990)
Shôichi Masuo	....	storyboard artist (unknown episodes)

Series Sound Department
Deb Adair	....	sound re-recording mixer (unknown episodes)
Katsunori Shimizo	....	sound director (unknown episodes)

Series Animation Department
Tsukasa Abe	....	animation director (unknown episodes)
Tadashi Abiru	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Hideaki Anno	....	animation director (unknown episodes)
Nam-Ryeol Baek	....	animation director (unknown episodes)
Yasushi Date	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Hiroshi Dobashi	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Masaru Fukumoto	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Hiroaki Gôda	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Keiji Gotoh	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Masahiro Hamamori	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Hiromasa Hanawa	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Tadashi Hiramatsu	....	animation director / animator (unknown episodes)
Tomohiro Hirata	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Takeshi Honda	....	animation director / animator (unknown episodes)
Isamu Imakake	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Suguru Itô	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Yoshiaki Iwasaki	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Takayuki Kanauchi	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Hiroyuki Kanbe	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Masakuni Kaneko	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Masahiro Kase	....	animation director (unknown episodes)
Toshihiro Kawakami	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Toshihiro Kawamoto	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Kumiko Kawana	....	animation director / animator (unknown episodes)
Kumiko Kikuchi	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Se-Chang Kim	....	animation director (unknown episodes)
Kazuchika Kise	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Takahiro Kishida	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Noboru Koizumi	....	animation director / animator (unknown episodes)
Toshiyuki Kubooka	....	animation director (unknown episodes)
Hiroshi Kugimiya	....	animation director (unknown episodes)
Kazuya Kuroda	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Yûko Kusumoto	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Masayuki	....	animation director / animator (unknown episodes)
Shôichi Masuo	....	animator / mechanical designer (unknown episodes)
Hidenori Matsubara	....	animation director / animator (unknown episodes)
Shin Matsuo	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Takenori Mihara	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Nagisa Miyazaki	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Katsuhito Mukai	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Takanobu Murakami	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Hisao Muramatsu	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Shuko Murase	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Mitsuyuki Mutsuzaki	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Nobuaki Nagano	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Masaki Nakao	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Takehiro Nakayama	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Kazuto Nakazawa	....	animation director (unknown episodes)
Katsuhiko Nishijima	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Hiroyuki Nishimura	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Hiroki Noguchi	....	animation director / animator (unknown episodes)
Akihiko Nomura	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Yoshio Ôhashi	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Minoru Okamoto	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Haruo Ôkawara	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Hiroyuki Okuno	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Takahiro Omori	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Gazô Ôta	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Tokihiko Ôta	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Yoshiyuki Sadamoto	....	animation director / character designer (unknown episodes)
Takuya Saitô	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Tetsuhito Saitô	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Masakatsu Sasaki	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Keiko Shimizu	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Mackie F. Steinbeck	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Hiroki Sugano	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Eiji Suganuma	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Kôji Sugiura	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Shunji Suzuki	....	animation director / animator / ... (unknown episodes)
Kôichi Takada	....	animation director (unknown episodes)
Hiroki Takagi	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Yuji Takahashi	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Akira Takeuchi	....	animation director (unknown episodes)
Atsushi Takeuchi	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Katsumi Terahigashi	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Tadashi Tsubokawa	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Kazuya Tsurumaki	....	animation director / animator (unknown episodes)
Toshiyuki Tsuru	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Akira Watanabe	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Hiroshi Watanabe	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Naoko Yamamoto	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Tetsuya Yamamoto	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Akihiko Yamashita	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Yoshiaki Yanagida	....	animation director (unknown episodes)
Makoto Yoshida	....	animator (unknown episodes)
Mie Yukutake	....	animator (unknown episodes)

Production Companies

• Gainax
• NHK
• Sogovision
• Toho Company

Distributors

• Club Super 3 (1999) (Spain) (TV)
• Orion Home Video (USA)
• Telecinco (199?) (Spain) (TV)

Also Known As:

Nadia of the Seas of Mystery (Japan) (literal English title)
Nadia: The Secret of Blue Water (USA)
The Secret of Blue Water (Japan: English title)

Runtime:

25 min (39 episodes)

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Company:

Gainax

Trivia:

Shortly after the show completed its first broadcast in Japan, Streamline Pictures purchased the license in the hopes of bringing the show to U.S. television. But because of financial difficulties, Carl Macek's company could only dub the first eight episodes. In 1996, Streamline's rights for the show expired. Later, ADV Films purchased the rights, and commissioned a new dub to be recorded at their Austin-based Monster Island studios. This dub cast actual children in the roles of Nadia, Jean, and Marie: Meg Bauman (who also plays several roles in "Steam Detectives", "Samurai X: Reflection", and "The Devil Lady"), Nathan Parsons (who also plays a cameo role in "The Devil Lady"), and Margaret Cassidy (several roles in "Getter Robo: Armageddon").

Quotes:

[at the beginning, we see a plaque with foreign writing]
Opening Voice: Do you seek adventure beyond the treacherous waterfalls? Do you seek the mythical being the dwells in this unreachable place? If you do, then you must first find me.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Troldspejlet: (#34.11)" (2005)

Soundtrack:

Burû Wôtâ

Guyver was my first anime love, but Secret of Blue Water always loved me back

Possible spoilers ahead.

I don't know what I can possibly say about this phenomenal series that hasn't been said already, but I'm here to try anyway. From the moment I saw a review of this series in Gamefan magazine (rest in peace), I fell in love. I had to see it. I dashed out to the mall and grabbed the first copy I saw. And it grabbed me right back, and would not let me go.

The series uses 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (and to a lesser extent the sequel Mysterious Island) as a jumping point for its own story. It takes place in 1889, and revolves around two teens, Jean, a French boy who wants to change the world with inventions and is the biggest weenie who's ever been the hero of an anime, and Nadia, a circus dancer and animal trainer who has a magical crystal, the Blue Water, and no clue about where she comes from. During the course of things they embark on an adventure to get to the bottom of Nadia's past, meet Captain Nemo and help to stop a group of people from Atlantis from taking over the world. And I loved every minute of it.

I mean for crying out loud, what kind of mad genius does it take to make episodes on end of adjusting to life on a submarine entertaining? Whatever kind it is, the guys at Gainax had it. Their smarts in storytelling show in other areas too, mainly the finely tuned characters, like the obligatory kid, Marie, who manages to be anything but the obnoxious brat the kid in an anime series almost always is. Nadia's the only short-tempered anime girl I've ever actually liked. The Grandis Gang go from the comically inept antagonists to helpful and resourceful back-up for the other characters once the real menacing villains show up. In the two really big battles of the series it's arguably them who ultimately save the day.

But a warning flag has to go up at some point, and I'll tell you what it is for this series. Secret of Blue Water is widely touted as being from the same team as Neon Genesis Evangelion, but if you're expecting thrill-a-minute action and non-stop battles between fantastic foes like in Eva, you are in for a big disappointment. There is a fair amount of action in Secret of Blue Water, and it's spectacular stuff when it happens, but a good 70% of the time the show devotes itself to developing the relationships between its characters instead. But never have I met a cast of characters I cared about more, so believe me, I was okay with that. And there's the "island" mini-arc which just lasts too long...

If you're an anime fan, want to watch a series with people in it you'll care about, and don't mind being expected to root for a dork like Jean, please do yourself a favor and pick this up. Oh, and do yourself another favor and watch it with the subtitles on. I'm sure Nathan Parsons is a wonderful human being who'd give me the shirt off his back, but a friend of mine actually started laughing out loud at how dumb Jean's voice sounded when we watched it with the English voices.

And before I go, I want affirm what everyone else is saying, that the sequel movie is terrible and should be avoided by fans of the series at all costs. Unless you want to see how badly a story can undermine itself (pretty much every suspense issue is defeated by watching the series epilogue and twenty five minutes straight of the movie is series flashbacks). Otherwise, stay away. You'll thank me.