"Akira" begins with a giant flash of light, signaling an explosion that decimates 1980s Tokyo and starts World War III. The film then jumps forward to 2019, a year in which the metropolis has rebuilt itself as Neo-Tokyo and is preparing to host the Olympics (sound familiar?).
Back in the real world, "Akira" set off an explosion of another kind. The movie, which hit domestic cinemas 30 years ago this month, inspired a generation of creators in Japan and helped jump-start an appreciation of anime in the West. Much like its porous antagonist Tetsuo, "Akira" has seeped into every pop culture crack imaginable: from dance music to top streetwear brands to the Steven Spielberg film "Ready Player One."
At the same time, "Akira" can probably best be described as a singular, unrepeatable phenomenon that was made at a time when ambition and budgets in the Japanese animation industry were at an unprecedented high.