Tsutsui discusses multiple perspectives about how the regular destruction and reconstruction have marked Japanese films, series, and animation. Besides merely being influenced by the history of experiencing atomic annihilation, economic recession, and natural disasters, Tsutsui outlines a strand of optimism that reflects through “happy endings” in movies (e.g., Godzilla), or a sense of escapism and transcendence of the past (e.g., symbol of motorcycle chases in Akira and what ‘Akira’ means in Japanese: wishes of better future). It works as a psychological function that distracts people from horrors and emphasizes how the trustworthy institution and the unification of Japanese could repeatedly create miracles. However, there are also pessimistic views. I always found the same controversies arise in interpreting animations (e.g., Attack on Titan); some believe anime could investigate darker and more sensitive issues like unresolved tension, society’s inability, and fear of vulnerability generated by war, while others criticize pop culture has created historical amnesia that people reimagine the distorted history and discuss significant issues in a cynical trivialization way, averting their eyes from reality.
Well-written summary and reflection. How do you mediate between the two different views of apocalyptic movies?