Shōwa nostalgia
Shōwa nostalgia includes nostalgia for certain aspects of the postwar Shōwa era. Shōwa retro is retro related to the Shōwa era. The Shōwa retro boom includes increased popularity and sales of Shōwa retro goods and services. The expression also loosely includes increased popularity of some things from the early part of the Heisei era. The beginnings of periods of increased nostalgia have been dated to 1974, 1986, 2005, 2012 and 2017.
Overview
As of 2017, three quarters of the Japanese population were born in the Shōwa era. By 2004, the expression "the good old Shōwa days" was in use.Neo Shōwa is a fusion of the culture of the past Shōwa and current Reiwa eras.
Enthusiasm for Shōwa retro is not confined to people who remember the Shōwa era. Shōwa retro is popular with Generation Z, who were born after the Shōwa era. Enthusiasm for Shōwa retro is not confined to Japan or to Japanese people. As of 2024, there is a Shōwa retro boom in Thailand, where people are enthusiastic about Shōwa era Japanese drama and anime. Shōwa nostalgia includes anemoia.
It has been said that Shōwa retro is popular with Generation Y.
It has been said that the Shōwa nostalgia boom was preceded by Meiji and Taishō nostalgia, which existed circa 1950.
It has been said that nostalgia for the Shōwa 30s existed by 1971. In 2011, Thompson said that nostalgia seemed to be centred on the Shōwa 30s. There was said to be a Shōwa 30s boom. In 2016, Hidaka said that nostalgia seemed to be centred on 1968 and the rest of the Shōwa 40s. In 2024, Kohei Takano said the retro boom that began in 2017 is centred on the 1980s, the end of the Shōwa era, and the start of the Heisei era.
Shōwa nostalgia has been followed by, and exists alongside, Heisei retro which is nostalgia for certain aspects of, and retro related to, the Heisei era. Heisei retro includes, in particular, nostalgia for the later part of the 1990s, of which the music of Nanase Aikawa, for example, is said to be particularly representative.
Film and television
Manifestations of Shōwa nostalgia include television programmes about the Shōwa era, such as Takeda Tetsuya no Shōwa wa kagayaiteita, Himekuri Taimu Toraberu and most of the original series of '.It has been said that the film Always: Sunset on Third Street caused a period of increased Shōwa nostalgia. The film From Up on Poppy Hill is nostalgic about 1963 Japan. The film's director, Goro Miyazaki, said that he was nostalgic about late 1950s to early 1960s Japan. Other Shōwa nostalgia films include Hula Girls and Tokyo Tower: Mom and Me, and Sometimes Dad. There are Shōwa nostalgia films about the 300 million yen robbery.
Shōwa nostalgia is the subject matter of the anime film Crayon Shin-chan: The Storm Called: The Adult Empire Strikes Back. The film 20th Century Boys is similar. The television programme ' has Shōwa retro content depicting the time before and during Expo '70.
Oshin was a nostalgia television programme that covered the Shōwa era.
Television programmes made in the Shōwa era, before self-imposed restrictions by the industry, are popular with young people. Extremely Inappropriate! satirizes the excessive safety of Reiwa era television by contrasting it with Shōwa era television. As of 2023, Takeshi's Castle is popular with young people and got a new season on Amazon Prime Video. There is nostalgia for Choudenshi Bioman in South Korea.
There is a Shōwa 100th anniversary film festival.
Music
It has been said that the resurgence of city pop began with nostalgic crate digging by Japanese DJs at the end of the 20th century. It has been said that the city pop boom was the beginning of a period of increased interest in Shōwa retro. Older people are nostalgic about the songs "Mayonaka no Door" and "Plastic Love". It has been said that the interest of young people in Shōwa retro came to public attention around 2017 when, amongst other things, a dance that uses the song "Dancing Hero " became popular. As of 2024, there is nostalgia for the artists Meiko Nakahara and Saki Kubota, who created songs in the new music genre in the 1980s. It has been said there is a "Shōwa song boom" and that Shōwa era songs have become popular among young people. Episodes of The Best Ten have been rebroadcast in Japan and the Shōwa era music of Akina Nakamori and Seiko Matsuda, Yoko Minamino and others, has become popular in South Korea. There is nostalgia for the Shōwa era kayōkyoku songs of Momoe Yamaguchi. The 2023 music video for ClariS' cover version of "Samishii Nettaigyo" is an homage to Wink, the original artists. A performance in Tokyo in 2024 of a cover version of "" by Korean band NewJeans went viral in South Korea and Japan. AKB48 re-used ideas from Onyanko Club, both of whom were produced by Yasushi Akimoto. As of 2023, the song "Gakuen Tengoku" was popular on TikTok. As of 2022, the song "" by Rebecca, and the song "Roman Hikō", were popular on Spotify. There have been karaoke rankings and opinion polls on people's favourite Shōwa era songs. It has been said that the popularity of 1980s female idols with young people is partly attributable to the appearance of Kyoko Koizumi and Hiroko Yakushimaru in Amachan. There have been Shōwa retro music festivals, and Shōwa retro tribute bands to Showa era musicians such as the Candies. The "Shōwa Retrophone" resembles a gramophone, and plays Shōwa era music by Shizuko Kasagi, which appeared on television in Boogie Woogie.The song "" by Mi-Ke is a homage to group sounds with lyrics that list twelve songs released from 1966 to 1968. Hitomi Shimatani's 2002 cover version of the ' song "" sold more copies than the original. In 2005, there was said to be a group sounds revival. 1960s GS films were released on DVD in 2007, and there were group sounds festivals that summer. is a group sounds nostalgia film.
Manga
It has been said that the publication of Sunset on Third Street in 1974 caused a period of increased nostalgia.Magazines and newspapers
and Shūkan Shōwa are Shōwa nostalgia magazines. The nostalgia magazines Shōwa 40 nen Otoko, Shōwa 45 nen Onna and Shōwa 50 nen Otoko are aimed at people born in 1965, 1970 and 1975.The Mainichi Shimbun published Showa Mainichi and NewsBox .