Soldiers of PLA march in formation past the Tian'anmen Square before a military parade to mark the 70th anniversary of the end of World War Two in Beijing. [Photo/Agencies]

While the beauty of the season's colors inspired wonderment at Mother Nature's palette and elicited sighs over the transience of such beauty, Thursday's Victory Day commemorations in Beijing provoked dramatically different sentiments.

In the standard Western portrayals, it was China flexing its newly gained military muscles.

To some across the Pacific, as well as immediately next-door, it was proof of China's "increasing assertiveness"; even an attempt to intimidate.

That was why some present-day leaders of the Allied countries in World War II chose to be absent, and why Japan as a country was unrepresented.

Unlike Germany whose leaders attended V-Day events in France repeatedly, Japan even went out of its way to admonish the United Nations secretary-general for attending the commemorations in Beijing, urging him to remain "neutral".

To the host country and its people, however, it was nothing but an occasion to reflect on the past and reiterate their commitment to peace.

The victory parade was no doubt the visual highlight of the commemorations. And that was unpleasant to some eyes.