How to Fly?

See how the Darling children are flying here?

You know what I've often wondered?  Is that a comfortable way to fly?

I mean, really.  Parallel to the ground so that you have to lift up your head and thus risk a crick in your neck?

Not just your neck, but your upper torso often needs to be bent.  Try it out on the floor and you'll discover... no, it's really not all that comfotable.

And yet, that's the popular way to depict flying.  Not just with Peter Pan and company, but often with other flying characters such as Superman.  Why is that?  Because it looks cool?  Yes, I can see the desire to "look upon the world below" and this way lends itself to that... but wouldn't that position become tiresome?

Don't get me wrong, I'm not knocking it in the sense of  dismissing it as valid.  Likewise, I don't necessarily think that another depiction would be any better or worse.  Just curious is all...

It's also interesting to note that in most stage productions, Pan & company are upright while flying.  Naturally this results from how the flight contraptions are designed, as it wouldn't be feasible to create the 'parallel flight' on (over?) the stage.  And yet... when productions (such as film or animation) are able to produce "flight" without the visible harness and such -- the natural inclination is to do it the 'parallel' way.

What did Barrie write in his novel regarding the "flight habits" of Peter Pan?

In this ‘first’ example there is no description.

“I say, Peter, can you really fly?”

Instead of troubling to answer him Peter flew around the room, taking the mantelpiece on the way.

Later, in the same (Nursery) scene, the Darlings' attempt is put this way:

They were not nearly so elegant as Peter, they could not help kicking a little, but their heads were bobbing against the ceiling, and there is almost nothing so delicious as that.

Bobbing their heads. Hmm. If it’s true that they were parallel to the ceiling, it could be that they bobbed their heads while laying flat. But doesn’t it seem more likely that they were “standing too high” in mid-air?

When Mr. and Mrs. Darling return with Nana, looking up at the window, Barrie says:

...and most heart-gripping sight of all, they could see in shadow on the curtain three little figures in night attire circling round and round, not on the floor but in the air.

Again, no “laying flat” is stated, nor necessarily implied.  Furthermore, one does not normally think of kids circling round and round in any other way but on their feet... and the fact that it remarks that one's image of the scene needs to be "elevated" could indicate that they're upright.

Other than saying they delighted in flying around church spires and whatnot, we get just these passages about “how” they flew -

Regarding Peter:
He could sleep in the air without falling, by merely lying on his back and floating, but this was, partly at least, because he was so light that if you got behind him and blew he went faster.

Okay, sure, in this instance he’d be “parallel” - but then, that goes without saying since that’s a natural relaxed position and he’d not get a crick in his neck to do so.

Wendy says:
"And even though we became good at picking up food, see how we bump against clouds and things if he is not near to give us a hand."
To which the Narrator explains:
Indeed they were constantly bumping. They could now fly strongly, though they still kicked far too much; but if they saw a cloud in front of them, the more they tried to avoid it, the more certainly did they bump into it. If Nana had been with them, she would have had a bandage round Michael’s forehead by this time.

That one sort of implies that their heads are going 'first' but then one can argue that they'd more likely see them before running into them, outside of Barrie's humor, I mean.  However, it can also be supposed that the kicking might mean in the sense of swimming, hence horizontal.

They were now over the fearsome island, flying so low that sometimes a tree grazed their feet.

Grazed their feet? Hmm. Although it is true in the “parallel” way of thinking as well, is it as strong an argument against it? Would not their tummy scrape the trees, then - or are feet only mentioned since toes extend a little beyond?

Can we assume, then, that since Barrie specifically mentions Peter Pan on his back and had been accustomed to seeing “upright” flying in the many times he’d seen his play that Pan and others do not in fact fly ‘parallel to the ground?’

Again, I’m not suggesting that it’s wrong. Just that it could be... and thus, I wonder.  And yes, the 'parallel flying' does "look cool."  Of course, it might actually be one's natural way of doing it, since the only similar experience available is swimming, as stated before.  By the same token, though, we cannot swim forward upright, so it might be more fun to be able to do so.  Or perhaps being horizontal is just plain more exhilarating?

For the record, I did (on account of having seen it before [yes, in Disney] as well as the Superman films as a kid) picture Peter Pan and others flying that way in Peter Pan’s NeverWorld.  However, it’s also true that I envisioned upright flight as well.  Sort of an "as needed/called for" kind of thing.  It's certain, though, that I have always pictured Peter Pan hovering about for no damn good reason other than being able to do it. I even made sure to present this idea in the novel.

Rising into the air for no particular reason other than the fun of it...

Fox’s Peter Pan and the Pirates and Peter Pan no Boken also have the eternal boy “needlessly and charmingly flighty” as well.

So what do you think? How does Peter Pan fly?

What's the Point?

Time for another look at a common misconception about Peter Pan.
Ever see him depicted with pointed ears? Sure you have…Disney, for one.
But does Pan in fact have this fairy-like trait?

As with the flying pirate ship and living shadow, the idea is rather charming. But as usual, I’m concerned whether the charm can hold up against what is actually written.

Peter Pan is a special boy, no question. But he is a boy, no question. In other words, he is a human child. A human child that had once been a bird, sure. But according to Barrie’s work, we all began that way. What makes Peter special is sincerely forgetting he’d become a boy, then flying back to Kensington Gardens. Once there, he’s told by Solomon Caw that he’s a Betwixt-and-Between. Neither boy nor bird.

Birds don’t have pointed ears. (In fact, birds don’t have readily visible ears.) So it cannot be his avian nature which produces the trait. And little boys don’t, normally. Hence they do not exist within Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens.

As for the text of Peter and Wendy, aside from insisting that Peter Pan is prone to putting his hand up to his ear to listen more intently, Barrie says nothing about his ears.

The story of Peter Pan and Wendy began on stage. But, the original batch of stage productions did not present Pan with elvish ears either.

Thus, it seems Disney is the first appearance.

Also note that neither TV series Fox’s Peter Pan & the Pirates nor Peter Pan no Bōken make him elfin.
Fox’s no Bōken

Of course, it is entirely arguable that since Peter spent so much time amid magic and the fairies that he acquired the trait. But for me, this answer seems like grasping to retcon.

Given Barrie’s other somewhat cryptic details about Pan, it stands to reason that he’d have mentioned something as noticeable as elvish auditory appendages.

Peter Pan no Bōken - Not Entirely Broken!

I finished the Peter Pan no Bōken series.
The other two posts regarding it are here and here.
Springing off the previous commentary, I must report that the appearance of Don Quixote remained inexplicable from the story arc perspective. What’s curious is that there are 41 episodes. Why not 40 and skip the gratuitous use of Cervantes amid Barrie?





The return of Captain Hook and the pirates eventually did intertwine its way into the plot. It’s true that without them the adventure would not have worked as well. His past rivalry with Peter Pan added weight and sense to his shenanigans. Their interference with Darkness (the evil queen) allows for a display of her power as well as extra trouble/adventure for Peter Pan and friends. Still though, I’d prefer that once Hook left the picture, he remained out of it.

The rest of the series delighted just as much as the first half. Such imaginative additions, from the White and Black Mirrors to the stone city that rises up and crumbles around them. But it is not without flaws. The magical queen’s need to destroy the Neverland stemmed from little if anything more than “I am evil.” The stealing of dreams seems to be nothing more than just blotting them out. And at the end, Wendy abruptly announces that perhaps they should leave. It’s not prompted by a fear of forgetting their previous lives or realizing that Peter is never going to be what is desired of him. Here it’s just that the Neverland is at peace again and her sudden decision.

As before, the characters remained true to their novel/play counterparts. And Rascal the raccoon even became more important. I enjoyed the new characters of

Luna, her Grandmother Darkness and henchmen.
But at the same time they seemed a bit more “standard” fantasy and not as Barrie-like as they might have been. Fox’s Peter Pan & the Pirates, in my opinion, had new characters more in tune with Barrie’s style.

Overall, an enjoyable series. And a terrific portrayal of Peter Pan, with both his sweet and rude sides flipping like a coin as per needed. If only he didn’t look the way he did. I mean, seriously...what’s going on with his nose?

But, I’ve already said I don’t like the character design.
Though I did like the Darlings and Tinker Bell, to be honest.

A very fun, highly inventive take on Barrie's classic.

...return to Japan's version of the Neverland

I managed to find the rest of Peter Pan no Boken (Adventures of Peter Pan) that I wrote about here. I'm just a few episodes beyond where I left off. On the whole, it's still very good. They've created a compelling set of characters and circumstances. Peter Pan and company have befriended Luna, who is a princess and grandaughter to the Black Magician. Children's dreams are being destroyed in some capacity, but the how and why does not yet seem entirely clear. And it seems I'm not either, so I will wait until I have seen more and can focus my thoughts.

Two parts seemed rather jarring though. Although I adored the location of it (a graveyard of pirate ships floating haphazardly in dingy, foggy space) I didn't see the point of bringing Captain Hook back. Perhaps there is a good reason. I have yet to see. As of now, it seems unnecessary when they could focus on the wonderful characters they created instead. And he didn't do much but sneer and grumble a lot.

The other part is the inclusion of Don Quixote. What? Right. I don't know either. The character of Miguel Cervantes shows up in an episode which, other than a lesson in courage vs. cowardice, has no real value. Not to be cruel, but it steered away from the story arc just to have Don Quixote appear. I imagine the writers had an affinity for the knight errant and paid him homage this way. I just didn't get it.

Peter Pan no Boken - Not Entirely Broken

Japan's Boy Who Never Grew Up

Peter Pan no Bōken (Adventures of Peter Pan) is a Japanese cartoon series based on…well, you know. I have long known about this TV show (which ran in Japan over the course of the year 1989) but being able to see it proved a bit difficult. Then the magic of the internet came along. Which means I caught glimpses of it on YouTube and other sites. I resisted delving into it. Somehow I did not fully trust it to be a worthwhile adaptation. The skeptical side of me always won out. Until now. I recently came across a site harboring half of this 41 episode series, with English subtitles. I will not link to where, for it’s probably not “right” that they are online.

I must say that I am not a fan of the character design. I’m sure there are many traditions being drawn upon here. But it is just not to my tastes. [Though the Captain’s hook is on the correct hand!] I just don’t like the way the characters look. But I did not let that stop me from watching the show.

As it turns out, it is very much a forerunner to Fox’s Peter Pan & the Pirates. (I wouldn’t be surprised if Fox procured the idea.) Fox’s show I enjoy very much. More on that series some other time. But no Bōken proved to be just as appealing, despite the character design. However, it does veer from the original story in many ways. Normally that would bother me greatly. But on this front I am not entirely an ogre. After all, they are changing the medium of the tale. When that happens, rearrangements are often necessary. Among other alterations, they subtracted some Lost Boys, gave them a house amid a tree (calling to mind the Wendy house in the treetops at the end of Barrie's, of course, although they are supposed to live underground for the main text) and added a lot of extra story. In fact, it doesn’t even begin in quite the same way. Sure, Wendy is hoping that Pan will show up at her window. But here she and her brothers are dreaming about him, researching him in a book store, eating breakfast with the family and such. Later on, the final battle with Hook is a grand adventure through a booby trapped mountain (which is much better than it sounds).


The entire premise for the show revolves around the fact that the Darling children had many adventures in the Neverland that did not make it to the page. Adventures, of course, as we shall see, were of daily occurrence... To describe them all would require a book as large as an English-Latin, Latin-English Dictionary, and the most we can do is to give one as a specimen of an average hour on the island. Thus, creative folk have plenty of room for imagining other escapades. What struck me, though, is the time devoted to showing everyday life in the household. Besides being used as petty, cute filler until the adventure begins, whole sections give us the amazement of the Lost Boys at seeing Wendy-Mother making breakfast, washing dishes, sewing, etc. In short, it drives home the very notion of Home. It truly accentuates the irony that for these castaway boys surrounded by countless fun, the true curiosity and hold is what would have been mundane had they stayed on the mainland.

I loved how Peter Pan himself behaved. Not just his personality which they hit spot on, but his movements. Here you will find a Peter who stands on a ship’s mast and appear to fall only to quickly zip-curve around behind you. A Pan who sits crosslegged in midair. A Peter who jumps down and falls fast, then slow, then throws out his arms and legs and darts off another way. From his wayward flight paths to his subtle floats, his lovable obnoxious demeanor is beautifully translated by the writers, animators and voice actor. I should mention that this kind of attention to his, well, flighty motions happen in Peter Pan & the Pirates, too. And I adored them in it. But I noted that the Japanese did it first, and better. For those of you who will say that Disney’s Pan did this even before no Bōken, I say: Yes, true. But for me, not in quite the same way. I think no Bōken and Fox’s depiction of the controlled recklessness is far superior.

One aspect I found curious is the inability of anyone to fly in the Neverland except Peter Pan (and Tinker Bell, of course). A reason is given: Because in the Neverland there are too many other fun things to do than be able to fly. A trumped up reason, if you ask me. But I went along with it on the grounds that it proved a wonderful way to create tension and adventure. For instance, one cannot just fly across a raging river…one must brave jumping along the stones poking out of the water. But then, by the same token, Fox’s had them all flying and managed to create danger and excitement. However, no flying worked for this version.

I enjoyed their other interpretations as well, like the Neverland being an island in the sky. It’s easier to show you a picture:

It’s not correct, of course, but again, it’s a new way for a cartoon adaptation.
Rascal the Raccoon: another fun addition. Others exist, to be sure, but I won’t list them all.

I found myself loving this series. I truly wish to see the second half, especially since they introduce more characters, like an evil sorceress as a villain once Hook is gone. For those of you know me well, a pleasing Peter Pan is something of a rarity. Amazingly I like it even better than Fox’s. It does have foibles, but on the whole it captivated me. But I think Peter Pan no Bōken captures Barrie even more.

If you can find it, do give it whirl. I recommend it.
If we could combine the two shows into one? Dare to dream.

Disney's Boy Who Never Grew Up
P.J. Hogan's Boy Who Never Grew Up
The Silent Boy Who Never Grew Up
Fox's Boy Who Never Grew Up
...return to Japan's version of the Neverland
Peter Pan no Bōken - Not Entirely Broken