The article mainly illustrated the aftereffects of the World War II on Japanese media. It mentioned that the Japanese cities were often depicted as doomed and apocalyptic due to some monster or tangible enemy, such that citizens could seek relief by watching this symbolic villain being beaten under the unity and harmony of the Japanese. Growth and change were highly valued in these films, even though the idea of utopia was out of focus.
This types of disaster movies reminded me of a Japanese war anime the Grave of the Fireflies. Instead of building a fantasy non-existent world where a monster could be defeated through joint efforts of a city, the movie edges on a small portion of the harsh reality by plotting its storyline around two war children who lost their parents due to the atomic bombs. Interestingly enough, this world of reality was associated with a studio that largely produced films for children. Released in 1988, this movie perhaps signifies another change in the Japanese film industry, where acceptance of the collective trauma has settled in after almost 40 years of its happening. It signifies a stabilization in the Japanese’s attitude towards the incident, and their determination to let this part of their history be remembered, thus explains why it was rendered as an animated film even though the original semi-autobiographical short story was written in a much darker manner.