Even the more recent New Century Evangelion, which he sees primarily as a metaphor for teenage confusion, is set in a world devastated by attacks from a mysterious alien force.

CNN: The War Mangas

The film stars octogenarian French acting greats Emmanuelle Riva and Jean-Louis Trintignant as a loving Parisian couple whose world is devastated by the wife's serious illness.

NPR: Academy Shows Love For 'Amour' With 5 Oscar Nods

Once the poster child for urban despair, New Orleans may develop a blueprint for turning a devastated region into a role model not only for other American cities but for struggling urban regions around the world.

FORBES: The Katrina Effect: Renaissance On The Mississippi

The world-renowned conductor Valery Gergiev, himself an Ossetian, gave a concert in the devastated South Ossetian capital Tskhinvali with his home orchestra, the Mariinsky of St Petersburg.

BBC: Russians halt Nato co-operation