"It's a really weird place that the logical chain of thinking can get you to arrive at, isn't it? We called it logical insanity in the shows that we did on this evolution of things like strategic bomb but this is a lot bigger than that. This goes to the human experience on so many levels," he says. "We must keep reminding ourselves what it really means in practice to speak the words fire storm or heroshima."
When do spirit, tenacity, resilience and bravery cross into madness? When cities are incinerated? When suicide attacks become the norm? When atomic weapons are used? Japan's leaders test the limits of national endurance in the war's last year.