Anime Profile: Barefoot Gen

In the summer of 1945, Gen Nakaoka was just trying to get along in a world of rationing in WWII-era Japan. However, he was just your average kid, getting into mischief and enjoying life, mostly because his hometown - Hiroshima - was spared the near-constant bombings that plagued the rest of the islands.

However, everything changed on August 6, when Hiroshima was obliterated in the very first atomic bomb attack. Now with only his pregnant mother and brother with him, Gen has to find the strength and confidence to survive this new age which threatens his and his remaining family's existence.

These two movies were based on the manga by Kenji Nakazawa, which is a microcosm of what he had endured in the wake of the atomic bombings in Japan.

Barefoot Gen takes place near the end of World War II, when the U.S. and Japan are currently at odds. During the Summer of 1945, three years have passed since the war between the two countries began.

The story is about a 6-year old boy named Gen who lives in Hiroshima. Living in poverty, Gen's family is suffering from malnutrition. His father and pregnant mother struggle to make ends meet. However, history is about to make things much much worse for Gen's family. And their lives will change dramatically with the dropping of a bomb....