symbolism
peeling back the layers
Symbolism helps further extend the depth of scenarios, characters and situations (plus it's fun to talk about). Magical girl series tend to be full symbolist jazz and Wedding Peach is certainly no exception to this rule. The following symbolic representations are closely associated with Angel Salvia in both the anime and manga. I've tried my best to give a balanced explanation of each with a little opinion thrown in for good measure.
Salvia Coccinea
Each of the four central love angels is represented by an image flower
from which their angelic title is taken. In Salvia's case she is named
after (and represented by) salvia coccina (also known as salvia or scarlet sage, texas sage). Common in the Americas, salvia coccinea is a type of sage plant known for its vibrant
red blossoms. The salvia coccinea plant is a hardy semi-shrub
that only loses its petals during the frosty winter. Herbs (including
sage) were the original contents of a bride's bouquet in European
wedding ceremonies as they were thought to ward off evil spirits.
In Hanakotoba, the Japanese Language of Flowers, red-blossomed salvia means "burning with expectation". Red-blossomed salvia can also mean "passionate love" or "a love which burns" in different versions of the Hanakotoba. Salvia states in her introductory speech that salvia means "a burning heart" in the language of flowers. The salvia coccinea was selected to be Angel Salvia's image flower because, according to Tomita Sukehiro it "invokes a passionate feeling" in those who view it. There can be little arguing with this statement, the bright red flowers are incredibly beautiful to behold and quite befitting of the fourth love angel.
Visually, Angel Salvia is depicted either holding or being surrounded by salvia coccinea flowers in many Wedding Peach illustrations. The blossoms appear regularly during her transformation and attack sequences through out the television series. In her introductory episode Salvia appears in a field of salvia coccinea blossoms by a lake.
Winter
In Wedding Peach DX the four love angels are each visually
depicted as representing a season of the year during the OAV's opening
sequence. In this clip Salvia is illustrated as the angel representing Winter - this is also the season attributed to Salvia on the Wedding Peach Four Seasons Poster which can be found in the Wedding Peach Secret File artbook. The symbolic associations
attributed to winter are fairly obvious; the season is cold, remote,
barren. In the commonly understood cycle of life and the seasons, winter
is a period of death - with trees losing their foliage, smaller flowering
plants dying back and animals hibernating. Winter is an accurate season
to associate with Salvia. Indeed it is painful, cold and lonely - however,
without winter we cannot progress to the warmer months of birth and
rebirth. Winter is a necessary time of suffering in order
for progression to natural renewal.
Salvia has been anguishing alone for many years, toiling through hardship that has left her personality barren and drained. However, winter is a time for introspection, of progression to change, and this is where Scarlet is during Wedding Peach DX. She is still cold and often unaccessible to others but the ice around her is melting, naturally giving way to an optimistic future just as winter becomes spring.
Something New
Each of the four love angels possesses an item from the Saint Something
Four; articles used during the holy wedding ceremony between Etamine
and Pitoril (the wedding service that drove Averse to become Reine Devila).
After the ceremony the items were stored in a shrine to help ensure
the happiness of all but, due to the ongoing conflict with the devil
world, Aphrodite released the talisman to earth in the hope that they
would eventually be reunited and used to save humanity. The Saint
Something Four are obviously derived from the traditional western
wedding custom of brides wearing "something old, something
new, something borrowed, something blue" to their ceremony
as a means to ward off bad luck and bring good spirits to both partners
in their new life together. Even today, many brides ensure they take these
four "somethings" to their service.
Salvia possesses the final item of the Saint Something Four to be discovered; the Saint Something New. Like the other sacred trinkets, Salvia's talisman is an item of jewellery - her tiara. In the manga it is explained that she came into possession of the tiara when she borrowed it from her mother to use in a school play during primary school (this contact awakening memories of her past life). In the anime however, there is no explanation as to how she came across the diadem.
When a bride chooses something new to wear during her ceremony, she will generally pick an item of clothing or jewellery. The purpose of the "new" item is to represent the "new life" or "new journey" in which the bride is partaking with her husband. Salvia states in episode fifty-one that "The Something New is testimony to the courage that surpasses hardships and reaches new things".
The Sword
In the original concept of the Wedding Peach story, each of
the love angels possessed Wedding Swords but this idea was
eventually rejected by both Yazawa and Tomita for the final
product (although Peach does wield a sword during the first chapter
of the manga). In the end, Salvia was the only love angel to bear a sword
as her favoured weapon in both anime and manga. One of the reasons swords were rejected was because of their masculine associations. The
sword is a phallic and militaristic symbol, one which appeared particularly
unsuited and jarring alongside beautiful young girls in wedding dresses. So why does Angel Salvia still bear the Saint Pure Sword?
Swords are considered emblems of strength, power and integrity. In medieval times swords were seen as symbols of chastity, of Christian authority and chivalry. There is an absolute wealth of information regarding the sword as a symbol in both dreams and worldly manifestations available across the globe thanks to libraries, textbooks and the Internet. So while I could probably discuss their Freudian associations or dream-related interpretations, there seems little need to do this. What I will do however, is give a you a brief linking between the sword and Angel Salvia...
Salvia's primary weapon in both versions of the series is the Saint Pure Sword, a rapier-like blade which materialises in a blaze when summoned by the call "Saint Pure Sword!". It is of particular interest that the Saint Pure Sword is associated with flames and passion in the series; a flaming sword can be considered a divine weapon. Angels are strongly associated with flaming swords- in the biblical account of Adam and Eve's banishing from the Garden of Eden, Cherubim bearing "...flaming sword(s) which turned every way" [Genesis 3:24] were asked by God to keep the wayward humans from returning to their former home. God's word is said to be enforced by swords ablaze and angels, as bearers of God's word, are often depicted holding fiery foils in European art.
As an angel, a passionate one with a strong sense of justice and an inherent longing for the divine authorisation of her actions, it seems appropriate that Salvia wields the Saint Pure Sword. Appearing in a jolt of red flames, the weapon bears her divine wrath as a means to demonic purification.