I have an absolute weakness for little incorporial nature spirits*, like the Will-'o-Wisps in Brave and Princess Mononoke's Kodama's. The way they move, the sounds they make... It gets me every time. IKEA has these little bed light called Spöka that look like these guys and I have two of them just to cuddle with.

IKEA's Spöka's 

Something about these animated nature spirits bring out the kid in me. They are pure nature magic. Like Merida in Brave, I want to follow them wherever they may lead which, in Brave, is rumored to lead you to your destiny. Unfortunately, the Will-'o-Wisps of folklore aren't so well-inclined. Will-'o-Wisps tend to lead weary travelers to an early grave in a bog or snake infested pit out of hatred and/or spite. 

I tend not to think about that when looking at this (to remain pretty much spoiler free but still see the Wisps, fast-forward to the 30-second mark):


I think I fell in love (and a little bit of fear) with these creatures when I watched the So Weird episode on Will-'o-Wisps when I was a kid. Princess Mononoke (and many others) came after and now every time I see something resembling a tiny nature spirit on my T.V., I melt. It's a little pathetic, really, but I can't stop the love.


In Princess Mononoke, the Kodama's don't lead anyone to their doom. They are the manifestation of a healthy forrest inhabited by a God. Seeing them is a good sign. I think it's the only representation I know of them which is solely good. In Brave, they apparently do lead people to their doom on occasion, and lord knows I died horribly many, many times at the hands of Will-'o-Wisps and Wisp Mothers during my Elder Scrolls adventures. I will admit to finding them considerably less cute then. 

Now, I'm well aware that the folklore about Wisps is heavily exaggerate. Will-'o-Wisps appear when swamp and bog gas seep up through the earth and interact with the natural resources. They are not spirited and they are not magick. But they sure feel like they are and I greatly approve of their use in movies and series.


* These aren't nature spirits as the ancients Hellens them saw, of course, for those, see my previous post on Nymphs, Naiads and other nature spirits.