Since the mid-19th century, when China and Japan faced naval aggression (Japan) or outright invasion (China), popular anxiety about foreign intrusion has fostered the creation and nurturing of media tropes, often in the form of martial arts (Huo Yuanjia (霍元甲, 1868–1910) in China, Rikidōzan (力道山, 1924–1963) in Japan) or, as we see on mainland TV today, pitched clashes between the Chinese military and the Imperial Japanese Army.

These media expressions are not only often highly similar, but (as the TV example shows) sometimes inter-related. Join RAS friends for a lively historical and current look – with plenty of pictures and videos.