Apocalyptic Science Fiction in 1980s Japan

Abstract

As we saw in Chapter Two, 1970 is viewed as a turning point in Japanese cultural trends. Ōsawa terms the period from that year to 1995 the fictional age, when Japanese culture gradually shifted from struggling for change through political movements to seeking ideals in fictional settings. This shift is particularly evident in major apocalyptic science fiction narratives from the 1980s and 1990s, especially those with prequels or sequels. An influential literary example from the 1980s is Sekai no owari to hādo boirudo wandācrando (Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World, 1985) by Murakami Haruki (b. 1949), and its precursor Machi to sono futashikana kabe (The Town and its Uncertain Wall, 1980). In popular culture, the apocalyptic animation film Kaze no tani no Naushika (Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind, 1984) by Miyazaki Hayao (b. 1941) was serialized as a manga until 1994, and the manga narrative differs from that of the animation. Another internationally renowned apocalyptic animation, AKIRA (1988) by Ōtomo Katsuhiro (b. 1954), was also serialized as a manga until 1990, and the manga version of this story also has a different message from the film version.