The Cute Side of the Apocalypse
Slice-of-life or death, Godzilla returns, and a new UFO book by D.W. Pasulka!
Hello, Explorers!
I wasn’t sure I was going to make it with my deep dive this week, but I powered through yesterday and today to bring you my thoughts on a very special anime called Girls’ Last Tour. I am putting this one in the Unknown Japan column, but it is also a mini deep dive into the “slice-of-life” genre often seen in Japanese manga and anime. I learned a lot while researching it, so I hope it will perhaps introduce some people to the style and enrich your understanding of “comfort anime.”
Oh no! Godzilla’s Back!!!
Speaking of Japan, did you know Godzilla’s 69th birthday was on Friday??? I just learned that, so I watched the original 1954 Godzilla on HBO Max. It is old fashioned, of course, but when looking at it from the perspective of people in Japan just a decade past the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, I found some moments very heartbreaking. Particularly, scenes of citizens facing the destruction of their homes, people injured in hospital beds, and having scientists wave wands over victims of Godzilla’s destruction to test for radiation. It is obvious Godzilla is a symbol for the unimaginable destruction of nuclear weapons in this movie, and it makes the rubber creature feel quite frightening when he appears on screen. (Despite a few chuckles you can’t help here and there.)
Japan has a new version of the original Kaiju in Godzilla: Minus One. It looks truly terrifying, and I can’t wait for it to hopefully reach US theaters. So far, I’ve heard nothing but good things from reviews in Japan.
A New Book and Interview with D.W. Pasulka!
For those interested in UFOs, there was a fantastic interview with Diana Pasulka last week on Ryan Sprague’s podcast, Somewhere In the Skies. In the interview, Pasulka talks about her new book which I have sitting in my to-read stack at the moment. She also covers her work involving UAPs in academia, her relationship with members of the Invisible College, and her recent involvement with the Netflix Series, Encounters, which I reviewed in my last post.
Dr. Pasulka is also a professor of religious studies at my alma mater, UNC Wilmington, so that makes me particularly proud of her work and my university. I actually had some great professors in the religious studies department during my time there who had a big influence on my worldview.
That’s all for this this time. Have a great week, and stay curious!
Sterling
Sterling Martin is a writer, artist, and designer living in Chicago, IL. His background includes drawing, writing, theatre, teaching, improv & sketch comedy, and whatever else he can get his hands on to be creative. You can find him on the internet at:
Instagram: @sterfest.art
Website: sterlingmartin.design
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