Warriors of the Wind was the "anime" that boosted my interest beyond imports like
Speed Racer,
Battle of the Planets, and
Star Blazers. In trying to learn more about this "Hayao Miyazaki" guy, I discovered what a travesty
WotW was and that he was something big in the genre.
Thus, despite that
WotW shouldn't be seen -- and Miyazaki's Studio Ghibli denies it like a disowned child -- it was still the gateway drug that steered me to
Lupin III,
Totoro, the genuine
Nausicaa and elsewhere anime.
Will it do the same to you? Now's your chance to find out; watch
Nausicaa on
io9.