At least a few other dopers know about the Anime/Manga Escaflowne.
And I’ve got a geeky question about it. Which is…is there a map of the planet “Gaea,” as featured on the series, available anywhere?
I haven’t had any luck finding one. But maybe someone else has.
So…help, please?
Ranchoth
Hm. This sounds like a question I’d ask over on the animeondvd.com message boards.
I’m not an anime nerd, but I have seen a few. Was this the one with the fledgling space program, while the nation running it was fighting a border war? Or is my memory playing tricks on me again?
I think you’re thinking of Wings of Honnemaise, Chronos. (Which is excellent).
Escaflowne was a TV series and later a movie, about a Japanese school girl (check) who’s suddenly transported to a magic world (check) of high fantasy (check) where she falls in love (check) with a young prince (check) who pilots a giant robot (check) called Escaflowne, while dealing with the jealousy (check) of a cat-girl (check) who dotes on the young prince (check).
It sounds like it’s just all anime cliches, but the weird thing is that it works. I’m not sure why it wasn’t more popular – it manages to be really girly and soap opera, with some kick-ass battle sequences and airships and giant robots as well. Plus, the music is by Yoko Kanno, which should be guaranteed success.
As for the OP, I dunno. I’m skeptical that there’d be a “real” map released, since I’ve heard in several interviews that the creators deliberately kept the details of Gaea vague, to emphasize that it is a girl’s fantasy world and not a real place. (Hence, little details like the CD appearing out of nowhere in a market bazaar.)
I know there is a map floating around out there, from one of the Esca artbooks (sadly not the one I have, though), but it’s not a political map. That is, it shows the landmasses and oceans of Gaea, but not where Fanelia or Asturia or Zaibach or anything is located.
As far as I’m aware, that’s the only official map that exists.
It was popular enough in Japan to spin off the movie and TWO manga (one for boys, one for girls, each playing up the storyline aspects more important in their genres). This is just the official spinoffs, not the dojinshi and other fanworks.
Hey, what do you ya know…a friend of mine had the map scanned in!
I was a little wrong in my earlier post, it DOES show the locations of the countries on Gaea. Just place names, though, no borders.
Here you go:
http://www.outcastgaming.com/yuu/gaia_map.jpg (the original)
http://www.outcastgaming.com/yuu/gaia_map_translated.jpg (with translated place names)
Oh, COOL! Thank you so much, Pogo! And thanks to your friend, too!
Yes! 
