Has anyone else noticed that Mononokehime has a lot of similarities to an older Miyazaki film, Nausicaa? Both movies involve humans trying to kill creatures by destroying their forest with fire. You have the insects and the Forest Swamp in Nausicaa and you have the animal gods and the forest in Mononokehime. Both movies have a main character who tries to understand both sides of the battle and bring peace between the warring sides. You have Nausicaa in Nausicaa and Ashitaka in Mononokehime. Both movies involve a giant being that the humans try to control for their own purpose but is a threat to not only the creatures but the humans as well. You have the Giant Warrior (or whatever it was called) in Nausicaa and then you have the Great Forest Spirit in Mononokehime. There were other similarites I noticed too, like Eboshi was similar to that lady who ruled one of the countries in Nausicaa (I can't remember her name at the moment, but both of them even lost their arm, although you actually get to see Eboshi losing her arm), but I'm too lazy to remember all the similarities. ^^;;