[Anime] Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni

Seeing that the other thread was locked up by Blah, here's my attempt at promoting this series for great justice.



The story opens off with a really bizarre scene where someone is bludgeoning/chopping someone up and provides a very intriguing start and lays the foundation for the events that will transpire in Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni.

After the flashy, kaleidoscope introduction finishes, you're introduced to the main character: Keiichi Maehara (left), a kid who has just moved into the village of Hinamizawa and his next door neighbor: Rena Ryuguu (right).



Other characters in this series who quickly becomes friends with Keiichi include an upperclassman, Mion Sonozaki (left), and two underclassmen (right), Satoko (blonde hair) and Rena (blue hair)



Hinamizawa is located in a rural area, and looks like your run-of-the-mill quiet country village. Like most run-of-the-millcountry villages in horror/mystery flicks, Hinamizawa harbors a chilling secret. We get some signs of this when Keiichi meets with Tomitake, a freelance photographer who seems affable enough. However, when Keiichi makes a joke, Tomitake turns serious and he comments which hints that things may not be as they seem in Hinamizawa... something that occurred when the government tried to build a dam in the village.

When Keiichi brings the subject up with Mion, Mion denies that anything happened in the village aside from the townsfolk successfully preventing the construction of the dam which would have destroyed their homes. But there's a pause in her speech... suspicions are raised and the plot slowly thickens...

Aside from the serious plot moments, the first episode contains a lot of comic relief, shown in the scenes at school between Rena, Keiichi, and Mion. There's also the luncheon at the Furude Shrine, later on in the episode, but nothing hits the comedy home as much as the scene where Keiichi, Mion, Rena, Satoko, and Rika play a game of Jijinuki where the person who places first can do something to the person in last place. It's pretty easy to tell just how screwed Keiichi is going to be:



Thoughts after Episode 1: The animation and art style definitely aren't what I was expecting from a series described by ANN as a horror/mystery flick since everything seems so cute and chibi-ish. Despite the quality of the animation/artwork, the premise to the story is most excellent and one that I hope can sustain itself through its entire run-time. The story, combined with a soundtrack by Kenji Kawai makes this series extremely promising, and one that must be watched. Besides, I haven't had a good horror series to watch in quite some time so this should suffice that thirst.

Right now, I'm watching Triad's subs and they're pretty reliable as far as subbing goes. I'll probably make more comments as I see more beyond just the first episode.

Torrent Links
Episode 1
Episode 2
Episode 3

Jam it back in, in the dark.

As far as I know, the story will take it from different angles and reveal clues slowly. The differences will primarily be the backdrop which will then lead up to the events that will transpire at the festival and subsequently to some sort of tragedy like what happened at the end of episode 4. Think of it as like a video game where you start over and over and because of some decision you make, it leads to a totally different outcome.

It's a fun mystery to be sure and that alone has kept me hooked to the series. The creepout factor is also very nicely done.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

HOLY SHIT!!! Did anyone watch episode 8 of this series yet? That's some of the most messed up scenes I've seen in quite some time. I don't think I could've asked for a better finale.

Spoiler:

The confession scene where Mion goes and admits everything was pretty well done. However, the highlight was definitely the torture room scene where you see:

1) Shion (could it actually be Mion?) locked up in the cell, her nerves just completely shot and you see that she's lost her mind and going nuts.
2) Keiichi straped to a board with Mion standing over him and basically declaring flat-out that she's going to hammer 15 nails in each of his hands; his fingers and joints.

Craziness and mental instability have never been better-presented with a good dose of creepiness and suspense thrown in, especially when she pops back in at the end to deliver the final blow.

Now a whole bunch of mysteries are in store. The whole deal with the nurse being dead before the day of the Watanagashi festival is making me wonder who exactly went into the storeroom. Was the burnt-up corpse a fake or is it the real thing?

Secondly, what's the deal with Mion popping up in an attempt to kill Keiichi? Is she actually dead like Oisshi said she was and her body just possessed by the demon or is Keiichi hallucinating again? I doubt the hallucination theory because Keiichi actually seems in full control of his mind this time around.

On another note, Rena's my new favorite character in that series. Thoughtful, and observant as all hell. I really like the way she analyzes clues and reasons everything out.

Looking forwards to the next story arc.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

WinD is the furthest along with its subs. They're pretty good in terms of accuracy (with only one problematic area which they fixed in their second release of the episode; the NO BLOOD for those who know what I'm talking about) and speed at which they get their stuff out. Of course, with their translator gone, this will slow down, but hopefully the replacement is just as good as who they had before.

In any case, I do recommend watching WinD's subs.

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

I'd say that episode 8 ruled the day simply because of the sheer amount of suspense that it tacks on with Shion and what was in store for Keiichi. The series has been very gruesome all in all and I love it for all the mystery it's putting forth for the audience to tackle.

As for some of the more recent episodes, a lot of it is beginning to make more sense now. My thoughts on it are as follows:

Spoiler:

Some of the disappearances/murders are caused by the villagers early on, but there is a supernatural element at work here. I say that because Rika claims that she is able to hear Oyashiro's voice on certain occasions, and that in the story arc involving the detective, she systematically named every single character who was going to be killed as the years went by, including herself. To my knowledge, there isn't a hitlist or anything that could allow her prior knowledge to who would be killed/spirited away. Furthermore, even Shion admits to feeling a presence that's hovering around her. Could be Oyashiro, but may not be.

Also, Keiichi seems to have some weird powers of his own. I think I can safely conclude that Keiichi is overly paranoid and subject to hallucinations. He also seems to have the ability to kill people simply by naming them and demanding that the curse fall upon them.

Also, I really felt bad for Rika in episode 20 during the school scene and what happened afterwards More so in light of the episode when she said:

Spoiler:

that she'd forgive the "kittens" that accidentally wandered into the shrine when she and Keiichi were talking in the second story arc. During the course of that conversation, Rika said she'd try to protect the "kitten." ;_;

How ya doing, buddy?

Yes! After watching episode 21, this series has become more awesome than I could possibly imagine.

Spoiler:

I kinda knew what was already going to happen to Satoko, but I had no idea it'd be that graphic. That scene was really over the top, but totally in line with how psychotic Shion has become.

This answers a lot of the questions I had from the second arc. If I had to venture a guess as to how Keiichi actually dies in the second arc, I'm guessing that Shion appearing at the end of episode 8 was him hallucinating (remember, he does have a history of this).

Also, with the whole Oyashiro deal, there's a lot of good evidence out there to support a supernatural explanation. However, after watching episode 21, my feeling is drifting back towards a human cause. Oyashiro does probably exist, but he doesn't actually carry out any of these crimes. Humans are completely to blame

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

Yeah, I couldn't show the blood splatter. That would've given things away waaay too fast .

Spoiler:

As far as that last image is concerned, I'm guessing it to be a mercy kill. Rena is infected with the maggots and may be growing much more berserk. I wouldn't be surprised if she wanted someone to put her out of her misery.

FELIPE NO

I don't know. It thought ep. 25 was a nice change of pace with a lot of heartfelt moments in it. I especially like the scenes where

Spoiler:

Keiichi talks to his friends about his past,

Keiichi dreams up events from the first arc and is shocked and horrified about it all,

and of course, when he gives Real Shion a hug.

Through these acts, Keiichi's pretty much been able to redeem himself of his psychopathic ways. I can only hope that he'll be able to prevent the tragedy and bring Rena back down to earth.

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

Well, to be fair, there are a few "Answer Arcs" that haven't been released (two of them to be exact). The last two story arcs reveal everything that's been going on and put a face upon the murderer. The last story arc, of course, will be the one that non-game players will be looking for as the happy ending.

I do hope that these will get released as an OVA or something. The series was satisfying all the way through and I had a blast coming up with theories and comparing them with others. There's also a lot of joy in rewatching episodes over and over to scrounge for details that I may have missed on the first watchthrough.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

Yeah... this thread seriously needs to be revived...

Watching the first episode of this show just made me realize how much I missed Higurashi and how awesome that show was to begin with. The first episode sent shivers down my back. Not shivers of suspense or horror, mind you, but the shivers of excitement and anticipation.

Budget seems to have gotten a bigger boost this time around and I hope to see fewer deformed faces than what we saw during the first season, mostly because it was shocking the first time, but then stopped being scary. Even though the first episode was a recap of the events, it did do a good job of setting the atmosphere. I'm expecting an awesome conclusion to come about through these Answer arcs.

Also,



seeing Rena thirty years later is <3

There's nowhere I can't reach.