INVESTIGATIVE MULTIMEDIA NETWORK

gone with the wind

Gone With The Wind is a sweeping piece of historical fiction focusing on the life of a feisty Georgian woman named Scarlett O'Hara as she learns and loves during the American Civil War period. Written by Margaret Mitchell and originally published in 1936, the Pulitzer Prize-winning text was later adapted into a feature film (1939) starring Clark Cable and Vivien Leigh. It is quite simply one of the most powerful and vivid pieces of American literature ever published, a title which still influences culture today. Nowhere is this more apparent than in Ai Tenshi Densetsu Wedding Peach and its portrayal of the passionate angelic rebel, Angel Salvia.

Gone With The Wind Feature Poster Wedding Peach DX Promotional Image

It is important first to express that yes, as one may have guessed, Ohara Scarlet (Angel Salvia) is named after Scarlett O'Hara, the heroine from Margaret Mitchell's aforementioned novel. According to Yazawa Nao;

"...in the beginning Tomita-san (co-creator, anime script writer) was keen on the name "Salvia" for this name had such a passionate feeling, but we didn't have any ideas for her human name. Though we (the editor and I) suggested other names to him, for example “Violet” (Japanese-human-name would be "Sumire"), he didn't agree. And you know what happened after that, don't you?"

There was no plan originally to have Scarlet mirroring Scarlett in her title however, after various names were suggested it was unanimously decided that "Scarlet" had the same passionate sentiment to it as "Salvia", making it the only name truly befitting of the fourth love angel. It is well known that Tomita Sukehiro enjoys employing puns and word-plays when naming characters/items/places, so it seems only appropriate that in the end "Scarlet" became Ohara Scarlet. Yazawa explains the naming process for Scarlet as follows;

Salvia > scarlet sage > scarlet > Scarlett O'Hara > Ohara scarlet

After it was decided that the character's name would be Ohara Scarlet, various other elements about her persona would come to be inspired by Gone With The Wind. Salvia's family in the angel world, although never mentioned in the series, all had names based on characters and actors associated with Mitchell's text according to ideas planned by the series staff.

Salvia's father was named butler after the character of Rhett Butler, Scarlett O'Hara's sardonic love interest and eventual third husband.

Salvia's mother was named vivien after actress Vivien Leigh, who portrayed Scarlett O'Hara in the 1939 feature adaptation of Mitchell's book.

Salvia's brother was named lee also after the actress Vivien Leigh.

These characters were never portrayed in the canonical text however, other aspects inspired by Gone With The Wind were. Both of Salvia's love interests (in the Wedding Peach DX OAV and the manga serial) had their names derived from the text, similarly to the above.

Clark Oasisclark oasis was named after Clark Gable, the debonair actor who portrayed Rhett Butler in the film adaptation of Gone With The Wind. He is Salvia's love interest in the second episode of Wedding Peach DX and is physically modeled on Clark Gable's appearance as Rhett Butler.

Dean Butlerdean butler was named after Rhett Butler, Scarlett O'Hara's love interest from Gone With The Wind. Yazawa Nao notes that he was originally to be called Rhett Butler but "...in Japanese, "Retto (Rhett)" and "Sucaaretto (Scarlet)" have the same sound, "retto". So his given name was changed".

Vivien LeighJust as Clark Oasis resembles Rhett Butler's physical appearance, so does Salvia with regard to Scarlett. Aside from the fact that both women have blazing red hair of similar style and length, Salvia is often depicted in outfits and poses fitting of Scarlett. This is particularly noticeable in the second episode of Wedding Peach DX with Salvia wearing an elaborate gown and even taking up a mourning outfit just as Scarlett does after the death of her first husband. They both hold themselves with a similar posture and an air of haughtiness. Salvia's hair frames her face in the shape of a heart too, reflecting the much-famed appearance of Vivien Leigh's strong facial outline.

Angel SalviaSalvia and Scarlett are also quite similar in their personas. Scarlett is a fiercely independent woman, resourceful and with an unwavering streak of optimism. Salvia is a loner who is quick-witted and endowed with incredible emotional fortitude. Both characters share a thirst for independence, a longing for affection and a painfully selfish streak which hinders them in their pursuits. They are both outspoken and at times crass, with each having a certain bitter dislike for the actions of other racial groups (Scarlett and the freed slaves, Salvia and the devils). Their personal strengths see them through hardships. regardless of their (rather obvious) slew of flaws. In both texts, the women must deal with their positions in a changing world after wartime conflict and each must come to terms with what is truly important to them.

Scarlett and Rhett Scarlet and Clark

Salvia's link to Scarlett is undoubtedly a type of textual exploration born from love, respect and good-natured humour. Fans of Gone With The Wind can look at Salvia and enjoy the contrasts in her representation of various elements inspired by Mitchell's novel, while those unfamiliar with the original text can find themselves interested in Gone With The Wind after enjoying Salvia's exploits. As Yazawa herself stated, "..."Gone with the Wind" is very popular in Japan- of course we love it." and this is charmingly apparent in Wedding Peach.

 

{ backward | index | Forward }