[04.01.23]

[facethestrange]

Challenge #2 - In your own space, write a promo, manifesto or primer for your fave character, ship or fandom.

I find primers and manifestos overwhelming to write because I want to include everything and for my brain 'everything' often means literally everyFRAKKINGthing, so I go

and give up, lmao.

But you still get one! :D Sort of.

Higurashi No Naku Koro Ni: the checklist (and a brief explanation how the canon works) (no actual spoilers)

You might want to watch Higurashi No Naku Koro Ni if you love/like/are interested in/don't mind:
☑ time loops
☑ time loopers who are so DONE
☑ adorable af ancient gods
☑ blood, gore, slasher horror
☑ "madness" horror
☑ conspiracy
☑ science used for good and evil
☑ curses and ritual murders
☑ hope, friendship and community
☑ cuteness and silliness
☑ complex characters
☑ complex relationships (especially between siblings)
☑ identity crisis after trauma, chosen names
☑ non-linear narrative
☑ unreliable narrators/POV characters
☑ NI-PAAAAAA really though:

But please remember that this is a bloody, gory, scary show full of graphic triggers, ok. It's easy to forget it when you watch this cute af video. xD

This post is about the original installments of the anime that started airing in 2006. I haven't consumed any of the other media types (I know they're pretty similar though), and I haven't finished watching the last two installments of the anime that came out in 2020. (I'm watching them as we speak - I took a while for me to start them because I loved the ending of the original show SO MUCH. *still no spoilers*)

The show is otherwise known as When They Cry and its canon installments are:
Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni (the first season)
Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni Kai (the second season)
Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni Rei (epilogue - the 3 middle episodes are canon)
Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni Gou (remake/sequel)
Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni Sotsu (sequel)

The second season and the epilogue are a whole lot softer and warmer than the first season (still gory, though).

[I have also watched all the non-canon installments and specials, and I'll just say that I personally adored the last episode of Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Kira, but I really, really do NOT recommend the first episode (they're stand-alones). But again, Kira is not canon.]


[not my meme] [not the ending of the canon]

If it sounds like your thing, awesome! If it doesn't, also awesome. :D

Comments

[aquietjune]

That worked for me too, the characterization of Rika (the whole framing of it, really, with the slow reveal of her reality that is so different to Keiichi's, for example), her depressive states after centuries of looping, and the horror about her demise. I think that since Gou managed to finally animate some stuff from the VNs that was lost in the first adaptation, it also helps convey Rika's very particular character, her daily mask vs. her real self. (And the same is apparent for the other characters. Gou/Sotsu have many problems but some parts are really great.)

Again, Higurashi has tons of spin-offs and tons of... different realities. For obvious reasons. I think they can coexist in our minds. The main story is the main story, and then there are endless possibilities :)

This youtube channel has great videos about Higurashi, including an almost complete guide to all Higu spin-offs, I recommend it: https://www.youtube.com/@bess3023

I always want to get to the VNs but since it's a commitment for now I've only read the manga (which is more faithful to the VNs than the anime, which had to cut a lot of stuff) and some random things on the side. But I want to get to the VNs. Ryukishi07 is very verbose but he's really able to convey the characters through their dialogues and inner monologues, and I appreciate that a lot.

And yes, the original opening remains the most beautiful and haunting, visuals included. <3

[facethestrange]

"her daily mask vs. her real self"
This, THIS right here both completely fucks me up and is my absolutely favorite thing. ♡

Thank you for the youtube rec, I'm especially excited to see some character-analysis stuff there! ♡

"Ryukishi07 is very verbose but he's really able to convey the characters through their dialogues and inner monologues, and I appreciate that a lot."
That sounds amazing, and for me verbose is not a "but", just another thing that sounds amazing, haha. :D As I said in my other comment, Higurashi will most likely be my first VN ever when I get to actually downloading one! ♡

ETA: Wow, Bess's video about Mion was as if it was personally tailored to me - only knowing the anime, I also felt like Mion was the one character who didn't really exist, and this video gave me a whole new perspective! Thank you for sharing it with me! :) ♡

[aquietjune]

I'm glad that you liked the rec! She's really my go-to resource for Higurashi meta. (And other recs on her channel are also very good, I watched Shiki--a very anomalous vampire anime, very horrific and dark in the deepest sense--because of one of her videos and loved it.)

[facethestrange]

Oh, Shiki sounds fantastic! Bookmarking it to watch at some point in the future. :D