Mom, dad, two kids, nice house, nice suburb, good income — you just know this story is about to go smash.
There's something about the 1970s and '80s that inspires nostalgia. They were to Japan what the 1950s were to the West — bland but comfortable, steady, stable. You knew where you stood, where you were going and how to get there. Society itself propelled you upward. Your income rose. Your children would do better still. All you had to do was play along. If the requisite conformity was a bit stifling, it seemed an acceptable price to pay.
Sex, drugs, rock 'n' roll and the Vietnam War ended the '50s. The '80s flickered out less dramatically but no less finally. The bubble burst, the economy tottered and Japan entered a painful new phase, one it's still in.
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