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STRANGER THAN HEAVEN unfolds across five cities and five eras of modern Japan, each a distinct chapter in Makoto Daito's fifty-year journey. The story begins earlier still, in San Francisco in 1915, before Makoto departs for Japan.
The Eras
Year | City | Setting |
|---|---|---|
1915 | Kokura | An industrial town in Fukuoka |
1929 | Kure | A naval shipbuilding port in Hiroshima |
1943 | Minami, Osaka | A wartime entertainment district |
1951 | Atami | A postwar seaside resort in Shizuoka |
1965 | Shinjuku, Tokyo | A bright pleasure district, and the saga's finale |
A Changing Japan
Each era reflects its moment in history, from industry and wartime to postwar recovery. The 1951 Atami chapter in particular highlights the American cultural influence sweeping postwar Japan. As the decades pass, the world and its characters change around Makoto.
Beginnings in San Francisco
The opening in 1915 San Francisco establishes Makoto's origins and the prejudice that sets him on the path to Japan. It serves as the starting point of the story rather than one of the five main Japanese chapters.