(THE CONVERSATION) At the end of Katsuhiro Otomo’s dystopian Japanese anime film “Akira,” a throbbing, white mass begins to envelop Neo-Tokyo. Eventually, its swirling winds engulf the ...

Traditional hydrogen bombs work through nuclear fusion, a process where atomic nuclei combine under intense pressure to release energy. However, China’s device does not rely on nuclear fusion.

The finale of “Akira” is only one example of apocalyptic imagery in the anime and manga canon; a number of anime films and comics are rife with atomic bomb references, which appear in any number of ...