Dragons

Dragons are large, serpent-like legendary creatures that appear in the folklore of many cultures around the world. They are mainly featured in the films Spirited Away and Tales from Earthsea.

Abilities and Characteristics

 * Flight
 * Transformation
 * Controlling waters (Spirited Away)
 * Regeneration (Tales from Earthsea)
 * Fire Breath (Tales from Earthsea)
 * Molten Blood (Tales from Earthsea)
 * Magic (as Haku)
 * Superhuman speed (as Haku)

Tales from Earthsea
Dragons of Earthsea heavily resemble dragons in Western culture. They are winged, horned, four-legged, and capable of breathing fire. They can be controlled by dragon lords and other methods.

Dragons are both feared and beloved by the people. They have never attacked a village, but are feared because of their big stature. Cob on the other hand, tend to worship them because of their beauty and long lifespan.

Spirited Away
Dragons in Eastern cultures are usually depicted as wingless, four-legged, serpentine creatures with above-average intelligence. Because of their low-sung, elongated and slender bodies, they are worshipped in Asia.

The Chinese see themselves as the children of dragons. Dragons with five claws symbolized China's emperor (Long). Dragons with four claws symbolized China or Korea (Long or Yong). Dragons with three claws symbolized Japan (Ryū).

Dragons are somewhat prominent in the Spirit Realm of the film. The only named one is Haku. To a lesser extent is the River Spirit that was initially believed to be a Stink Spirit.

Pom Poko
An Asian dragon, as a transformation of tanukis, briefly appeared as a part of the "Operation Specter". It also transformed into a flying locomotive.

The Tale of the Princess Kaguya
To grant the wish of Kaguya, Great Counselor Otomo and his servants sailed off Tsukushi Province to search the Dragon Orb.

During the storm, they were largely troubled by the weather and waves, and Otomo witnessed a dragon, either a hallucination or a real entity, and he was frightened by the dragon. After the storm, he gave up his quest.

Castle in the Sky
The city of Laputa, until the heroes reach it, is surrounded by stormy-looking clouds, called the "Dragon's Nest"; and when Pazu and Sheeta enter, the lightning in the clouds takes the form of dragons, who escort the children to the city. In the end-credits, a dragon made of mist can be seen orbiting the remnants of Laputa.

Ghibli Films

 * River Spirit
 * Haku
 * Kalessin
 * Tehanu

Non-Ghibli Films

 * Taro's Mother (Taro the Dragon Boy)
 * White Serpent (Taro the Dragon Boy)
 * Yamata no Orochi (The Little Prince and the Eight-Headed Dragon)
 * Benefactor (Dragons & Princesses and Tales of the Night)
 * Other Dragons and Serpents (Dragons & Princesses)

Drachen