Higurashi no Naku Koro ni / Kai

[Zero Sora]

Just wanted to know if anyone else out there has seen the first season, Higurashi no Naku Koro ni or the second season Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Kai. It's a pretty dark and confusing adult anime, it's got a lot to do with death and murder, friends killing each other and all that. It's not well known outside of Japan, so it's not really surprising if most of you haven't seen or heard of it.

Higurashi no Naku Koro ni started out as a sound novel. A sound novel is similar to a visual novel in that the gameplay requires relatively little player interaction as most of the game is composed of text dialogues. While a visual novel's basis would be the visual aspect, as the name suggests, a sound novel's basis takes more care in producing an atmosphere via the music, sound effects, and the story itself. Eventually it was adapted into a manga and an anime. The manga is set to be released in english sometime this month.

Summary about the series:
Higurashi no Naku Koro ni takes place during June 1983, at a fictional rural village called Hinamizawa which has a population of approximately 2000. The main characterm Maebara Keichii, moves to Hinamizawa and befriends his new classmates Ryuugu Rena, Sonozaki Mion, Furude Rika, and Hojo Satoko. Hinamizawa appears to be a normal, peaceful, rural village to Keiichi. However, the tranquility abruptly ends after the annual Watanagashi Festival, a celebration to commemorate and give thanks to the local god, Oyashiro-sama. Keiichi learns that every year for the past four years, one person has been murdered and another has gone missing on the day of the Watanagashi Festival. Keiichi himself soon becomes drawn into the strange events surrounding the Watanagashi Festival and Oyashiro-sama. In each story arc, he or one of his friends become paranoid, and a crime is committed. Usually, the crime involves the murder of one of their own friends. As the arcs pass on, the truth about the murders, disappearances, Oyashiro-Sama and the Watanagashi Festival are revealed.

I highly suggested watching this Anime. A bit graphic, violent and confusing at times. But still has a pretty good story to it.

 

[~Gunther~]

Stuff is amazing. <3 The story just sucks you in, especially at those moments that make you cringe a little bit (slitting your throat with your fingernails until you cut a blood vessel and die from loosing too much blood? Creepy).

I've watched most of the first season. Still haven't bothered to watch the rest of the series, so I probably haven't seen some of the best parts yet. >o>

 

[Smile]

Oh gods yes.

Never ever watch the first four episodes past midnight. That's one baaaaaad idea. @w@;;;

 

[Wehrmacht]

We've had numerous threads about this in the past, and that seems to be an indication that a thread about it deserves to be stickied.

Or if not, well, fuck that, I feel like doing it anyway. From this day onward, all Higurashi related threads will be merged here.

In any case

Spoiler Show

Shion is the ultimate yandere

 

[Smile]

What's yandere? o:

 

[Zero Sora]

I'm glad there are a few people out there that have heard of and seen Higurashi. I didn't think this would get stickied though, that was quite a surprise =D It's never a good idea to watch the entire series (well, as much as you can) whlie depriving yourself of sleep. Seriously, it'll mess with your head. I learned the hard way...

My dear SA, having trouble using Google are we? =P
Yandere: is a Japanese term for a personality that is initially extremely loving and gentle, then at one point becomes deranged or psychotic, often brutally so.

 

[Smile]

It's never a good idea to watch the entire series (wel,l as much as you can) whlie depriving yourself of sleep. Seriously, it'll mess with your head. I learned the hard way...

I wasn't talking about sleep deprivation. I was talking about watching it when it's dark outside and everyone asleep and it's quiet.

My dear SA, having trouble using Google are we? =P

it's called being lazy.

Yandere: is a Japanese term for a personality that is initially extremely loving and gentle, then at one point becomes deranged or psychotic, often brutally so.

Ah, the opposite of Tsundere o:

 

[Zero Sora]

I wasn't talking about sleep deprivation. I was talking about watching it when it's dark outside and everyone asleep and it's quiet.

I was talking about watching it in general. With no sleep. While only drinking energy drinks. It screwed with my head for a bit. I fear I lost some of my sanity that morning, which isn't coming back =(

 

[Smile]

Watching Higurashi at all = losing sanity.

 

[~Gunther~]

Oh yes. Higurashi messed with my head a little. I kept thinking my friends and family would go psycho on me an murder me in my sleep for a few weeks. XD

 

[stephaknee]

Higurashi started off pretty good but then got really fucking retarded.

 

[Smile]

Well, it got repetitive somewhat, I agree. Also moved mostly to gore instead of the initial mind-fuck. I still liked it overall though, especially the plot that *gasp* was there in the second season.

 

[Zero Sora]

Agreed.
First season = Was basically repetitive
Second season = Actual plot

I still quite enjoy Higurashi. Plus showing it to my friends for the first time always leaves them speechless and full of mixed emotions. Disgusted, interested and confused.

 

[alykins]

Finished it today. :3
<3<3<3
I may be the only person who didn't really get bored with the first season.

Akasaka is amayzing. Much ♥ for him. And Irie too. PEDO BEA-- I MEAN DOCTER FTW

 

[Vandread]

Finished it today. :3
<3<3<3
I may be the only person who didn't really get bored with the first season.

Akasaka is amayzing. Much ♥ for him. And Irie too. PEDO BEA-- I MEAN DOCTER FTW

I wrapped up the series last night myself; I marathoned the first half last weekend and watched the final arc last night. Akasaka is my fucking hero right now, as my contacts on MSN likely know by now. If my WMP didn't suck so much, I'd have made a gif of his heroic rescue by now >:

I really did enjoy the series, second season moreso than the first, but I felt that the ending was really weak. Maybe it's just me, but I was just really let down. I expected something better from the conclusion, or rather the whole final arc, especially after the Massacre Arc, which, despite the very BAD END, I thought was pretty amazing.

Also, it would have been nice if they explained Fredrika's existance rather than make us think that was a grown up Rika.

 

[Smile]

Wait, Fredrika? That explains some stuff. guess I better look up the games, huh?

And I want to meet the person who dislikes Akasaka.
Preferably in a dark alley.
When I'm wielding Rena's hatchet.

 

[Vandread]

Wait, Fredrika? That explains some stuff. guess I better look up the games, huh?

I probably should have done so before picking up the anime :/

Also, Fredrika, I'm assuming, was explained more in the visual novels or some other material, as her scene in the end of the series seemed to be more like a treat for the fans of the VNs.

Frederica is an omni-present being surrounding the Higurashi universe. Frederica is the writer of the poem about Rika's struggle to escape the fate of June 1983, giving hints about each arc. She likes playing with time and events, as seen in puzzle piece #52 and the end of the second season of the anime, entering an alternate world and stopping Miyoko's parents from dying. She even has an intention of making a world where Rika's or Satoko's parents did not die, or pairing Keiichi with various girls. Although she claims that she is not Rika, it's implied that she is the collective mentality of the several thousand reincarnations of Rika. The pronunciation of "Frederica" roughly resembles Rika's name in eastern order, and Bernkastel is well known for its wine. She is hinted to be one of the witches in Umineko no Naku Koro ni.

I should probably find out Umineko is any good, though I doubt it's been translated.

 

[Smile]

Well, I certainly have a new appreciation for that ending. Finally that 'wtf' moment was solved. Thanks, KHV <3

 

[Vandread]

No problem. Looking on Wiki, it seems that there were a few other things that didn't get mentioned in the anime, such as Mion actually being born as "Shion" and vice versa, but they got stuck with each others names during a mix up at birth when they sent Shion away. There is also the fact that Satoshi and Satoko are both probably colorblind (hence the "Which is green" question that bitch Miyo asked Satoko near the end of the Massacre Arc) and that in the visual novels, it was suggested that Satoshi actually didn't kill his aunt, but merely witnessed the act. Akasaka's random mastery of the martial arts was actually inherited from a prior world in which he took it up as a hobby to help ease his mind after being unable to prevent the death of his wife and Rika.

Also, here's a bit of info regarding the part of the last arc where Miyo tries to shoot Hanyuu and somehow misses:

When the reinforcements arrived, most of the Yamainu were arrested, but Takano still did not want to admit her defeat. Takano decided that she would at least have her revenge against Rika's group before she met her end. Later, when Takano tried to shoot Mion, Hanyū stepped up to protect her. Right before the bullet could reach Hanyū, Rika used her power to freeze time; the bullet stopped right in front of Hanyū's chest. In contrast to Minagoroshi-hen, where the bullet passed through Keiichi after time unfroze, this time Rika created a miracle and snatched the bullet away while time stood still. After time unfroze, everyone else just assumed that Takano missed her target, but there is a scene where Rika shows Hanyū the bullet in her hand.

I'm just going to assume I was right in thinking that Hanyuu somehow redirected the bullet a bit since it ended up hitting a tree.

But yeah, go look up this stuff on Wiki. There is a bunch of interesting little facts there about different non-anime arcs.

 

[Smile]

I just like to think

Spoiler Show

that Hanyuu is Oyashiro sama

and that's how it all happened.
It ties in with Rena saying someone kept apologizing to her - it ties in with her character.