Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Gou

This is a review of both Gou and Sotsu THIS IS A SEQUEL, NOT A REMAKE! WATCH THE ORIGINAL FIRST! OHHHHHHHH MYYYYYY GOOOOO- you know the rest. So ya, this may be a bit of a shock, but Higurashi has been in my Top 10 favorite anime series ever since I saw the original back in high school. I had NO idea what to expect from this new series and was really worried it might've just been another whatever after story like Rei and Kira were. But HOOOOOOO BOY, NOPE! THEY HAD A PLAN WITH THIS ONE! As soon as I started, I got completely locked back into this world. I remembered how much I missed these characters. I remembered how brilliant this story was and how it was executed. This may sound crazy (especially coming from me) but I was actually questioning if they were holding back on showing too much violence on screen because we're in a new era and its a new demographic watching, so maybe they wanted to be a bit more abstract with what was shown to us.... NOPE! DON'T WORRY! ITS BLOODIER AND GOREYER THAN EVER BEFORE! I'm completely in the dark on what lies within the visual novel/manga of this series. Was this anime plot completely new? Because I really wanna know what the pitch was for this series. Did the original creator always intend to take the story in this direction and at this time? Or was this a new idea that came later on after the original series had long since wrapped up? I can see people not being happy with where the story in this one went, and I'm still a bit mixed on it, myself. But one thing's for certain; Higurashi did its job in making me feel as scared and uncomfortable as humanly possible. Not just with the violence, but in all the fear paranoia that came with unearthing the truth and being mortified by what I found.... I don't know how else it could've ended, and the ending in general for something like this feels SUPER difficult to nail perfectly. I'm not 100% satisfied with it, but I can't think of a different ending without uprooting the entire story they were trying to tell. So I guess I'll try my best to make peace with it. Higurashi is NOT for everyone and I completely get it. But its truly and sincerely some of the most fun I've ever had in any story I've ever experienced. It was a brilliant execution of adapting a multi-route visual novel, and done in a way that hasn't really been done before or since. Its writing remains brilliant all throughout and the acting is some of the best and most haunting I've ever heard. Also THANK GOD the entire original voice cast returns for this new show! At least in the Japanese version. That's a huge plus for me. If you need something spooky to sink your teeth into this Halloween season, I can't give you a higher recommendation than this series. There's truly nothing else like it. 10/10

tl;dr: A very different but solid Higurashi experience. Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Gou is a sequel to the anime from over a decade ago. It’s done by a completely different animation studio who have a completely different art style and was also somewhat marketed as a reboot. But make no mistake, it is absolutely essential that one be familiar with the main story of Higurashi before watching Higurashi Gou, whether that be through the anime, VNs, or manga. As such, while this review will not have spoilers for Higurashi Gou it will have major spoilers for all that comes before it. I will also note that Higurashi Gou has connections to the other titles in the When They Cry franchise, Umineko and Ciconia. It isn’t strictly necessary to be familiar with them to understand the key points of what’s happening in Higurashi Gou, but you will be missing out on some smaller details. As the synopsis of this anime describes, this anime starts off with Rika once again being thrown back into the eternally looping Hinamizawa of June 1983. She’s already managed to survive it once, so she’s much more optimistic about getting through it and intends to be much more proactive about guiding things to a happy future. However, things are proceeding very differently from how they were previously which makes things far more difficult than she expected, resulting in her having to go through multiple loops. While this is what’s important in terms of the overarching plot, what’s far more interesting during these portions is what actually happens during these loops. They are all incredibly similar to arcs in the original Higurashi, but with key differences that ultimately lead to a very different ending. As such, to a degree these might feel a bit like playing a game of find the differences. This might feel like somewhat of a slog at times, but it ultimately felt pretty worthwhile to pay attention. The reason for that is that unlike when going through Higurashi the first time, you should already know all the rules of the game. You know what Hinamizawa Syndrome is and how it works. You know about how everything rumored regarding Ooshiro-sama’s curse is nonsense, but that there really is a major conspiracy. And thus unlike with the Question Arcs in the original Higurashi, I feel that it’s actually possible to solve the core mystery of each arc while going through it. Thus, these are much more interesting if you’re actually watching them as mysteries that you’re doing your best to solve as you watch. Unfortunately, this does come at a cost, in that because things are much easier to follow the psychological horror aspect doesn’t work nearly as well. But on the flip side, Gou spends more time on the slice of life aspect and ultimately handled it much better than the original did. Overall, it’s an incredibly different experience from the original Higurashi, and overall I’d have to say a weaker one, but one that’s still pretty good. However, arcs like that aren’t all that Gou is composed of. Following these arcs, it switches to an arc that’s really focused on putting Rika through the wringer. I really didn’t like this arc. It felt like it was abandoning it’s psychological horror aspect and just delving into torture porn relying entirely on blood and gore. Ultimately, why it was handled in such a manner does become clear: it needed to go through a lot of suffering incredibly quickly so psychological horror wouldn’t really work. However, in that case I feel like each instance dragged on too long and it would have been better off just being a montage or something. Still, however much I dislike it, it does serve it’s narrative purpose. Following this, it reveals who the true antagonist is and then leads into an extended flashback where it explains why they came to be an antagonist and how they’re doing what they’re doing. This should also pretty much completely fill in any blanks left in solving the mysteries in earlier arcs. I feel opinions on this flashback arc will vary tremendously depending on how much you can relate to the antagonist, but I felt it was very well written. The antagonist is a mess and a complete monster, but I can empathize. The smartest thing would probably have been to just walk away when given the chance, but I can see how hard that would have been as well. Throw in that absolute power power corrupts absolutely, and it’s pretty clear how things progressed the way they did. Higurashi Gou ultimately ends by closing the loop on the flashback, but not progressing any further. Thus, there isn’t anywhere near a proper end to the overarching story yet. Still, it ends at a solid enough point and there’s another season so the ending is fine for what it is. The art and animation I felt were really good and overall I like the new art style better than the old, though I’m a big fan of Passione for whatever that’s worth. The horror aspect doesn’t work as well in the new art style, but the horror was much less of a focus from a narrative point of view regardless of the art style so it doesn’t matter as much. On the other hand the art style works much better for the slice of life which was more focused on, so I think overall while it wouldn’t fit all that well to the original Higurash it’s a much better fit for Gou. There definitely were some areas that I think could have been better handled though, for example some of the character designs look really weird, such as Tomitake and Ooishi. The OP and ED had pretty good songs and visuals that fit well. There’s only one OP despite there being two cours, but visually it changes somewhat to reflect the progression in the narrative so I was fine with it. I also liked how they used an OP song from the original Higurashi at times. The soundtrack didn’t really pop out much which I feel is pretty disappointing for Higurashi but on the whole it was fine. Also, the arc names were pretty clever for the modified repeat arcs.

So even though people say its a reboot, it is kind of a sequel to the original series by kind of i mean its technically necessary to see the original series to fully understand but not really. its a lot of fun and takes a nice twist, but its a lot more mellow than the original in the plotlines overall, i really recommend for you higurashi fans, but not for first time watchers who want to start off from the reboot. start from the original series. trust me, its so much better and will give context. and yes, i do recommend seeing it after you finish the original, as i said, i see it as a sequel.

I initially gave Higurashi Gou a below-average rating of 3. After the last episode I still had some naive hope that they might somehow salvage the nonsensical story with the second season, but it turns out that Higurashi Sotsu is even worse, so I had no choice but to come back and drop my rating of the first season to 1 for wasting my time. Even as a long-time fanatic of the Higurashi series who had been looking forward to this new project, I found very little to enjoy here. I honestly find it hard to believe that Ryukishi07, the author behind the original Higurashi and Umineko visual novels (Umineko being my absolute favorite visual novel of all time), had anything to do with this train wreck of a story. Let me blunt; I absolutely despise this anime. And this is coming from someone who actually somewhat enjoys such controversially awful shows as School Days. Let that sink in. The guy who actually likes School Days hates the new Higurashi. Yes, it is that bad. Higurashi Gou expects the audience to be familiar with the original Studio Deen adaptation (or the visual novel), because the first few story arcs are basically recaps of those same story arcs, but with a twist ending. However, this causes more frustration than intrigue for existing fans. The people who are familiar with the original series know that the characters here make all the right choices to avoid tragedy, yet things go south anyway. Remember how the themes of the original series were trusting your friends and working together to overcome impossible odds? Well, those themes are thrown right out of the window because of the forced "uh oh, you did the right thing, but something bad happened anyway" twists that get very predictable and obnoxious after a while. Let me ask a question; how is it entertaining to watch characters you've grown to love make all the right decisions yet get horribly killed anyway? Answer: it is not. This series feels sadistic, and not in a good way that a horror series is supposed to. First of all, I wouldn't even categorize Higurashi Gou as horror, because unlike the original series, which had plenty of atmosphere and build-up to the creepy moments, here we get a completely bipolar series that assumes that characters being the closest friends in one scene and then randomly starting to murder each other in the next is somehow scary. It's not scary because those twists just come out of nowhere without any proper build-up. Your reaction is, "what? Seriously?" instead of "oh my God!" Even the animation can't pull off those crazy twisted Deen faces that actually scared the hell out of me in the original series. The character animations look rather stiff and the series overcompensates with completely unrealistic amounts of blood, which just makes the "scary" moments laughably try-hard. Anyway, I would have been fine with the repetitive "ooh, you thought everything was going fine, but then something bad happened" storytelling if it was actually leading to something interesting. Unfortunately what we get is the single dumbest plot-twist I have ever seen in an anime. Turns out that the bad guy all along was (SPOILERS btw)... *drum roll Satoko. Yes, that's right. The character whose parents died, was mercilessly abused by her uncle, and even lost her brother... we are supposed to hate her now. Why? Because she wants Rika to stay in Hinamizawa instead of going to a prestigious school. Yes really, that is the great big twist that is somehow supposed to justify seeing your favorite characters tortured over and over again. It probably goes without saying why this twist is so incomprehensibly dumb, but it's even more dumb the more you think about it. After all, it completely destroys the point that the first series was making. In the first series, the villain was Takano. She was an outside threat that our heroes had to outsmart despite her vast influence, cunning and determination. Only when Keiichi, Rika and the others began fully trusting one another and joined forces were they able to defeat Takano. But now this new dumb series is telling us that trusting your friends is bad, because they might be a bad guy who'll trap you in a timeloop until you do exactly what they want. And speaking of timelooping, giving Satoko that power makes her such an unfairly overpowered villain that it's not even fun trying to see how Rika gets out of it. Takano was a normal human with normal human resources and she was still a hundred times more interesting as an antagonist (not to mention her motivation actually made sense). If you want more details about how badly this anime sucks, check out my review of Higurashi Sotsu. Avoid this series like the plague. It is an absolute disgrace that directly insults the original series and its devoted fans. Ryukishi07, someone I respect immensely, must have lost his damn marbles if he really did have anything to do with this train-wreck.

First, the obvious: this is a sequel. There is no part of this show that is a remake, and if you haven't read or watched the entirety of the original Higurashi before getting to Gou, you're gonna have a bad time. Get outta here now and go do that. *THIS REVIEW HAS SPOILERS FOR THE ORIGINAL HIGURASHI SERIES SO REALLY, WATCH OUT.* If you're a Higurashi fan and you're wondering if Gou will ruin your fond memories of the original because of it's low score, know that that score is in large part due to confused first-timers or chumps criticizing it for diverging from the OG. That isn't to say that there aren't also plenty of valid reasons to criticize Gou. In fact, let's start with those. For starters, the show takes an entire cour to get its wheels turning. The first twelve episodes are spent retreading routes 1,2, and 7 of the original Higruashi. These episodes are sprinkled with minor changes and all have different endings than the originals, so while it was fun playing 'spot the differences,' after 3 months that got a little old. The show could have easily started at its own halfway point and given up its prolonged fake-out stunt in exchange for much better pacing. In addition to these pacing issues, Gou looks pretty awful by modern anime standards. The directing is generally uninspired, with flat panning character shots taking up most of its screen time. There are a number of hideous CG objects, including the iconic Hinamizawa waterwheel that now haunts my nightmares, and Oishii's car, which doesn't so much drive as it does get dragged around the screen by an invisible cursor. Asides from Rika's ritual dance there are basically no animation highlights, and while the character designs are alright, they're often misdrawn in unfortunate ways. If you've come to Gou looking for a visual treat, you're out of luck. This show isn't pretty. However, it is pretty good. I subscribe to an old school of thought that says that aesthetics aren't everything, and while it is preferred to be immersed by the deliberate directing of a confident piece of animation, a good story can make up for all that and more. What Gou does right is that it understands what a sequel should be. Too many modern stories use sequels to retread familiar territory with a small twist, keeping the world familiar, the characters relatively static, and more importantly, the original ending more or less intact. For me, these kinds of sequels are closer to fanfiction, indulgent expansions for the fans that play it safe to avoid making anyone unhappy. They're also incredibly pointless and boring. If you're going to add to a story, have a reason. And boy oh boy, does Gou have a reason. In Gou, Ryukishi blows the original route 8 ending of Higruashi wide open, shattering the tied-with-a-bow conclusion and sticking a knife point at his original theme of trusting your friends at all costs. This was a flaw that was alluded to in the original, as some great minds on Twitter have pointed out. The original Higurashi points out that the so-called 'trust and unity' of the original ending was only made possible by uniting the main cast around a singular threat, the classic move of bringing people together by providing them a common enemy. For Keichii's club, everything was gravy. But what about Takano, their common enemy? How different was her delusional rampage from Shion's or Rena's? The message of the story was to try to understand the people around you better, to reach out to them when you notice something wrong, but at the end of Higurashi this was only achieved by making someone outside the club who was going through a similar experience into a scapegoat. What was more, Rika treated escaping June of 1983 as a singular point to wiggle out of, not as a solution earned through personal growth. The way she saw it, if she could survive 1983 then she would be happy with her friends, no questions asked. She never bothered to stop and think about how so many of the lingering issues her friends faced would continue to persist regardless of whether or not Takano was trying to kill her. Satoko was still overcoming her abuse and abandonment issues. Rena was still struggling with anxiety and depression. And the Hinamizawa virus, the metaphor for paranoia and distrust in small Japanese communities, was still around. These are the weaknesses of the original Higurashi ending that Gou challenges to the extend of its abilities. At its beginning, Rika finds herself sent back to 1983 Hinamizawa for an unknown reason. Convinced that she's already figured out the solution to the problem, she proceeds with confidence, only to discover that 1983 has changed. Takano is no longer a threat, but all of Hinamizawa's other swirling problems have been amplified. Rika, who we learn has been away at boarding school, resorts to her old methods, assuming that her hard-acquired glut of knowledge will get her out easily, but what she learns instead is that the town she was so eager to escape from is not so eager to let her go. What's more, the friends she treated more as trophies from her victory are more complicated--and have more agency--than she gave them credit for. And so Higurashi is put to the test by its own creator. There are a lot of people who were angered by the choices that this story made and the direction it took some of the story's original characters, but I never felt like this show was anything more than a hard-pressing interrogation of the the easy answers given by the original. The twists arose naturally from the loose ends of the first ending, emerging from Rika's failures and breaking open the naive notion that a cohesive, trusting community can be created simply by banding together to stop one bad actor. For the reasons I started off listing, this show is far from perfect. However, it is purposeful, inspired, and bold. It strikes hard at the core of its own original thesis, and it does so using ideas that Ryukishi has clearly been carefully planning for a long time. In my many long years of watching anime I've never been as excited for each new episode of an airing show, and I've never spent so long debriefing every piece with my friends. For capturing my attention and obsession for twenty-four straight weeks and still leaving me hyped as fuck for Sotsu in the summer, I give Higurashi Gou an unironic, uninflated 9/10 and recommend it to everyone who has an ounce of love for the original Higurashi series.

This review contain spoilers! Higurashi is one of my favourite series. I discovered it through anime 6 years ago and some years later I read visual novel. What originally made me interested in series was mystery and suspense. But then it turned out to be something more. It became story about group of people, that had to deal with their personal issues. That made me really like Higurashi, a story about group of friends trapped in repeating spiral of tragedies, some caused by themselves. This resulted in lots of emotional moments. It was good to see these characters growth wich later arcs and realizing their mistakes. I was rooting for Rika and her friends to finally win and it happened after lots of hardships and suffering. It was well deserved miracle. With Higurashi Gou, Rika was thrown again into the loop. I was very interested what the story has to show and in what direction it will go. I took liking in art style. Voice actors were gladly the same. Opening and ending were very good and they set the atmosphere and expectations. First disappointment hit with episode 4. After 3 episodes with very much the same content as original, it finally showed something new and interesting, only to end it quickly and move to the next arc. The same happened with next two arcs. This is clearly a sequel. Then why first 13 episodes looked like reused versions of older arcs? It just looks like creator did not have any idea how to write new arcs around new mystery, so he copied from original, add minor differences and too little new scenes, which for most parts looked like last minute plot twists to shock the audience. From my perspective, there was barely new content to keep me interested. And it's not even the only problem. Rika already know the culprit and she said, that she's gonna get back her happy ending. Then why very little was done by her in first 3 loops? Patting Tomitake's head and giving Keiichi some advice can't be called an attempts to fight with looming tragedy. In matsuribayashi arc from Higurashi Kai, she asked Irie, Tomitake and Akasaka for help. Then she talked with her friends and Ooishi to prepare a plan to fight with Takano and mountain dogs. Only with this she finally defeat the fate. And somehow in Higurashi Gou she forgot how to fight and ask for help. Dumbing down a character to make plot move forward is not a good way of storytelling. Introducing Hanyuu in episode 2 and then not showing her for next 12 episodes was such a waste. And when she finally showed up, not even 5 minutes have passed and she disappeared again. She was very important character in prequel, but here she barely existed. All this damashi arcs would be a bit better to swallow, if only she at least appeared after every chapter to discuss events with Rika. This would also provide some great context to Rika's hopeless situation presented in ep 14. Mystery aspect was lacking. It became very obvious who was working behind the scenes since ep 8. Even another looper theory was formed during that time. Problem is the plot, which followed original for the most part and gave too few new scenes. Thus it was easy to work out theories that were later confirmed in second half. Horror aspects were hit or miss. I liked scenes with Rena coming upstairs or banging on the door in Keiichi's house, but disliked USODA and Mion ladder scene. Some of them had great atmosphere and looked creepy and others clearly lacked execution or build up. Soundtrack was unfortunately disappointing. Nothing really stands out. There were few new tracks, but most of them were lazily copied from the old anime. And for most scenes I had a feeling that music was too quiet. Too bad ost from visual novel weren't included, because it's great. That's my rating for first 3 arcs: Onidamashi 6/10 Watadamashi 5/10 Tataridamashi 4/10 Let's move to Nekodamashi arc. Episode 14 showed something new and interesting. Finally Rika's perspective has been shown and her despair after earlier tragedies. It gave me high hopes, that second cour will redeem this show. And how I was wrong by episode 15. It was pointless episode with unnecessary gore. These scenes were supposed to make me feel bad for Rika, but instead it made me angry at creators for wasting what could be very good 4 or 5 loops, especially the Akasaka one. They just decided to speed run Rika's deaths. I would rather watch full versions of these arcs instead of previous three. And even though the rest of the arc was good, I was still bitter about what was wasted in single episode. But on the good note, it was also the arc, where most of my theories find confirmation and some clarifications have been made to what was actually going on. Satoko reveal as a looper was cool. Takano apologizing to Rika was something I always wanted to see. Some more club activity was a welcome. My score for Nekodamashi is 6/10. Could be better if not for ep 15 Moving to the next one. I really liked Satokowashi chapter when it started. It felt like a propel sequel. It was nice to see older characters and their life outside of June 1983. Ep 19 insert song sounded sweet and at the same time melancholic. And life of two close friends in Saint Lucia was what I expected, Rika quickly adapted to environment, but Satoko on the other hand felt like she didn't belong. It really was Satoko's time to shine. Getting her perspective was nice change. I actually understood her pain of feeling left behind. I only wished that a little more of her life in school was shown. Her becoming a looper was a good twist. I also liked slower pace, except for ep 22. Teppei having change of heart was very suprising and in a good way. Also good to finally known what's up with Takano. It could be 8/10 arc, BUT Episode 22 happened. Satoko looper is really interesting concept. Obviously it painted her in a bad way, but I though 'It's Ryoukishi story, so there's something more going on than just Satoko messing with timeloops'. And the twist was... there was no twist, just awful execution. Satoko became crazy and obsessed about keeping Rika forever in Hinamizawa. And transition was unbelievable. In the same episode, she went from 'trying to convience Rika' to 'I will make Rika surrender'. Where was even the though process, which resulted in that decision? It just felt unnatural and forced. She did't even comment on Rika's 100 years of suffering and she felt no sympathy for her. Considering her actions in damashi arcs, she just became irredeemable. I absolutely hate the direction with Satoko's character. I can understand that she was a victim of abuse and there's always a possibility of her doing the same to the closest persons in the future. But that? The leaps in logic, or rather it's absence in creating this crazy looping girl was so over the top. Satoko just gone from point 3 or 4 to 34 and that huge gap wasn't even connected. That is not how character development should look like. Satoko in full 'Lambdadelta mode' looked like somebody wanted to write Umineko fan fiction about lesbian witches in the world of Higurashi and it's not a good sign. I don't care about origin story of witches, if it means destroying characters and themes of the original. Therefore I will lower my score by 2 and give Satokowashi 6/10 Overall 5/10 Higurashi Gou is anime, which obviously tried to please both newcomers and old watchers, but it failed on both fronts. Newbies got confused by revelations in later half and old fans were bored with first half of anime. But at least for the second group, it was a bit more enjoyable, because they could easily spot the differences and make theories. Show has multiple good concepts, but some of them were badly executed due to poor writing or direction. There were lots of things I liked, but also a lot of things I disliked. As of now, Higurashi Gou does not live up the original visual novel and anime. It destroyed the theme of friendship and shallowed Rika's 100 years of suffering for th…

Spoiler-free review At first, I was somewhat happy to hear of this remake (sequel) but as said I was also scared of this from the experience of the first anime it looked too bright and from having a low studio but boy I was wrong this remake wasn't a remake at all It had an everlasting impression on me just like Kai did and after my problem with the first on, this one finally solved the flaws. Story: 8/10 The unraveling story was given to us by the same person who created the when they cry series that took everyone by out everyone by surprise adding this story with its outstanding storyline and solving some minor plot holes from the first anime was made up for the people who don't have the time or don't want to read the visual novel or manga version. Art: 10/10 It finally gave us something that wasn't meant to stand out from its name but from the hard work and effort given by Studio Passione with some references to Umineko fans. It also has almost perfected character designs following the pace of the original visual novel with better character designs and flawless outlines. Sound: 9/10 The Music for both Op's and Ed's very well suit the animation and gives us minor clues without noticing it even if you try to find some, the sounds they use for every situation really suit it most well and also stand out with making it very noticeable picking up the pace of a certain situation making the mood perfect. Characters: 8/10 Together back with its lovable and unforgettable cast, one of this season's flaws is the lack of the other characters and their roles in the story in the 2nd half of the story which lost the sole purpose of Higurashi Kai. Enjoyment: 10/10 Watching this had me with a lot of feelings, some episodes were relaxing and fun and some also had scenes that kept you on the edge of your seat which made it very enjoyable as the show paces towards its climax Overall: 9/10 Despite having a few flaws in terms of characters and plot differences this was still very admirable and enjoyable in a lot of aspects with its outwitting pacing that was certainly unforeseeable with the clues given piece by piece in each chapter, the masterful story, mystery unraveling, and outstanding voice acting skills were outstanding added to scenes that kept you at the edge of your seat.

This is not a horror anime. This is not a thriller anime. There is very little suspense. There is rarely any build up to anything terrible that happens. It's missing all the essential elements that make up a horror anime. This is a slice of life anime where once every few episodes someone's face gets smashed with a baseball bat out of the blue. So it's slice of life mixed with gore happening to children. Granted this is Higurashi, I expected terrible things to happen to children. And I am happy to hear more of the story after the original first two seasons, but this was poorly executed. Only watch if you've watched the first two seasons, and need to know what happens afterwards. Edit: The last arc of this series is actually really good, and sets everything nicely for the next season. It's unfortunate the rest of it was pretty much wasted potential. I have bumped my overall up to a 7 to account for this.

HIGURASHI GOU POP QUIZ TIME! Q: IS THIS A REMAKE? A: You thought it was a remake, but it was I, a sequel! Higurashi Gou starts with the first 3 story arcs of the original material, BUT each has a twist and a different ending. From episode 14 onward it's completely new material, so if you're an old fan and don't want to sift through old stuff, watch from then on. You will lose some clues related to the new villain however. Q: SHOULD I WATCH THIS, AS A NEWCOMER? A: Yesn't. The creators wanted to make this newcomer-friendly, BUT as a newcomer, you'll lose a lot of hints along the way. Besides its slice of life and horror elements, Higurashi is first and foremost a puzzle MYSTERY. The mystery in Gou is a new one, compared to the one in the old anime/manga/visual novel. For it to work, it spoils some major plot twists of the original material ever since episode 2 (who the real main character is and why the plot keeps happening). In short: if you want the original Higurashi experience, then enjoy the old stuff. If you don't feel like going through 8 story arcs of the visual novel/manga or watching ~50 episodes of the old anime, no matter how good they are, then try Gou. BUT keep in mind that if you like Gou and want to enjoy more Higurashi, you will definitely go into the old material already spoiled and experience less fun. Q: SHOULD I WATCH THIS, AS AN OLD FAN? A: Absolutely, BUT only if you're ready to accept it for what it is: a completely new storyline. The old Higurashi dealt a lot with themes of hope and overcoming fate. Higurashi Gou is, simply put, a villain origin story, dealing with themes like growing apart, learning to let go, and the obsession that comes when you don't. If you don't feel like experiencing that, then maybe Gou isn't for you. Q: A LOT OF THIS DOESN'T MAKE SENSE, DO WE EVER GET ANY ANSWERS? A: Higurashi (and the When They Cry franchise in general) has always been organized into question arcs and answer arcs. Whenever something seems off, like murders not making sense, or characters acting weird out of the blue, it's a deliberate part of the mystery. By figuring out the reasons behind these contradictions, you'll get closer to uncovering the answers. A lot of the fun in the When They Cry series comes from wrecking your brain to figure stuff out, either on your own, or through discussing theories online. If that's not your thing, then the franchise is probably not for you. If it is, hop online to Reddit, YouTube theories or something similar and get lost making sense of the puzzle. The first three story arcs get an answer in the latter part of Gou, BUT the entire season works more like a huge question arc in itself that will get an answer in season 2, Sotsu. (Hence why so many people are hating on this, because they're only seeing the question half of the riddle.) Q: IS THIS CANON? A: Yes, Ryukishi07 (the brain behind the original Higurashi visual novel) wrote the script. There are a couple of interviews on the Funimation YouTube channel about his vision for the series. Q: IS THIS RELATED TO THE OTHER WHEN THEY CRY SERIES, UMINEKO AND CICONIA? A: Yes, but in a meta/Easter Egg kind of way, rather than a crossover kind of way. You'll definitely enjoy Gou more if you know those Easter Eggs, but they're not crucial for understanding the series. That being said, if you are curious about the other WTC titles, Ciconia only exists as a visual novel right now and Umineko has a masterpiece of a visual novel and manga, and a shitty mediocre anime. Don't watch the anime. Try the VN (there are tons of YouTube let's play videos if you don't feel like buying it on Steam) or the manga. Q: IS THE ART ANY GOOD? A: It's either hit or miss. I enjoyed it greatly as it was very close to the visual novel with all the cutesy character designs and saturated colors, but your mileage may vary. Q: IS THE AUDIO ANY GOOD? A: Hell yes it is. The old voice actors reprissed their roles, they used Kawai Kenji's soundtrack from the old anime, and the new OP and EDs are god-tier imo. The first ending in particular has gorgeous art attached to a melancholic tune that will tug at your heartstrings. Q: ARE THE CHARACTERS ANY GOOD? A: The first half of the anime occasionally sacrifices characters for plot, but you still get a sense of depth to most of them. The second half gets into the meat of the story and fleshes out the two main characters in a wonderfully intricate way. The new villain in particular is hella fun to watch descend to darkness. BUT if you are an old fan who doesn't like their old characters getting an unexpected negative development, then you won't enjoy it. However, if you decide to play along, you're in for a hell of a delicious dynamic between these two. Q: WHAT'S THE PACING LIKE? A: I'll be honest, because Higurashi is made of self-contained arcs, if you watch one episode at a time, it might seem like it leads to nowhere. It's the reason I decided to wait after finishing the first 2 arcs while they aired, and binged everything from the start in 2 days. Seeing one arc at a time however and stopping to reassess the info you know and discuss it with others works really well, and so does just watching it all at once and then hopping onto theorizing. Q: IS THE STORY ANY GOOD? A: If you're in for one heck of a mystery where you're going to have to work your way around the puzzle pieces, as opposed to being spoonfed the answers, then yes. If you have a more passive approach, and only want to kill some time, it won't work for you. That being said, for me, the story was hella entertaining and I finished the season absolutely stoked for the sequel. Q: HOW DOES IT COMPARE TO THE OLD HIGURASHI? A: They're like apples and oranges, both amazing series that accomplish different things. If you want the same story with the same tone, just by a different studio, you will hate Gou. Gou is, like I mentioned, not a story of hope BUT a villain origin story that takes a dark turn from the midpoint onward. As an old When They Cry fan, I found it about as dangerously delicious as binge eating an entire jar of Nutella, and then having a brainstorming session to figure out what led me to do it in the first place. As a newcomer, you will be left confused at times, but might still get a kick. Q: WILL WE EVER GET A PROPER UMINEKO ANIME? A: Sotsu will certainly lead to that miracle.

Higurashi Kai has a really completed ending that explains everything and doesn't need any continuation (except spin-offs, like Rei). Although I thought that, Gou could blow my mind with some of his twists and even really good characters development. Art: 7/10 The art isn't what I and most of people expected to see in "remake" with its slight style, but still I regard it's better than shit-animation from Deen. Actually, the animation makes a great contrast in cruel scenes and it's looking really good especially uncensored. Some people can say it's disgusting but that is the point of Higurashi Gou for me. Story: 8/10 I don't get it when people are talking that the plot is illogical and stupid. I consider it has very much compability with with the original Higurashi. For example, I am still feeling warmth in characters like it was in original series. It has some differences but it is what Higurashi Gou about. It even has an episode which kind of tells us that Higurashi never won't be the same. It's a really good writing for story, I suppose. However, it has flaws in first half of this season. It's basically mashed up arcs from Questions arcs and Answers arcs with some little differences in them. But those differences are really small, therefore it'll good, if you see it not a long time ago neither immediately after Higurashi Kai. So, as you understand, it's quite complicated, and in the beginning Higurashi Gou didn't quite understand for whom it wants to be watched. Even though this part might be quite boring, the second part of Higurashi Gou is what makes this show must watch for Higurashi fans and just for people that appreciate Higurashi series. It has plot blowing your mind or, even if it didn't do that (and you're an umineko fan, hah), it would be satisfied to watch how your beloved characters struggle, manipulate, have fun, change in Higurashi Gou. Characters: 8/10 Actually, the main basis of all characters was in original, so only two characters has a real development. However, It's still satysfying to watch other characters that you have already loved. For these two characters you would have a very contradictory opinion and that's what makes these characters awesome. I would say that is a really good chemistry between them. Even though one of them might annoy you, it doesn't make their plotline badly written. Enjoyment: 8/10 I would say I enjoyed the story of this season. I've even enjoyed first arcs, that was old arcs with cuts and small differences from original. The show goes slowly with attention to details. I liked how even bad characters changes and I sympathized them. Overall opinion: Higurashi Gou has its flaws, because of its direction, but I suppose this is must watch for anybody who likes first two seasons, manga or visual novel of Higurashi No Naku Koro Ni. In spite of this, don't watch it if you just can't accept any continuation or differences from the original atmosphere, storytelling and etc. Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Gou isn't just a third season of Higurashi, it's something totally new and different from others Ryukishi's works, so you might deny it. I will wait for Higurashi Sotsu and I think it would be even better than the first.

This review does not contain spoler: I'm a bit dissappointed with this anime; bare in mind i only have seen this remake and never the original works but i think the story is just not followable and enjoyable without prior knowledge. It's just a mess and in 24 episode didn't manage to give a sense of progression it came off as cryptic for it's own sake, and the owrst thing is that the story is indeed very intriguing in the beginning but then there's no resolution, no explanation and the major arc concludes in what i believe is the original anime from 2006? Anything else like art, sound , etc. is not remarkable but not bad by any mean; gore is good tho.

FOR ANYONE WANTING TO START WATCHING THIS: This is not a remake of the original Higurashi no Naku Koro ni. This is the third season. I don't know why the creators did not make this clear, but whatever. If you want to watch everything you need to know before starting this, I recommend: 1. Higurashi no Naku Koro ni 2. Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Kai 3. (optional but I recommend) Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Rei ~ extra: you can also play Umineko. I haven't actually finished yet, but I know there are a lot of connections you can make. This is definitely not needed, as I hadn't played the game before watching these. Just something I recommend to do before or after watching this because you get more info and its just a really good game :) Now for the review!: NO SPOILERS (keep in mind I have not played the Higurashi games) For a while, I was a casual watcher of Higurashi, thinking it was a fine horror/thriller anime, but nothing more than that. After watching this season though; my whole mindset on the franchise has changed. This season, although not technically canon according to the games, makes the Higurashi universe so much more fun. Even if you weren't a huge fan of the first two seasons, try this one and I bet you will fall in love with the universe just as I have. For some, I can see how this would ruin the "perfect" ending of Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Kai, but honestly, I think it expands on so much explored in that season. I think we get to see even more sides to the characters than before. Also, I am really interested in if they explain some of the nods and characters that appear from Umineko. Although I have not gotten to that point in the game, I already know that Umineko has a lot of lore that already fits into the original Higurashi series, but it is even more connected with this new season. I wasn't a huge fan of the art style. Yeah, the early 2000's art style was stellar either, but everything looked strangely round and plastic. That being said, this did not ruin the show for me at all. If anything, it added to the gory/creepy scenes; showing the characters doing disgusting things while still being animated like a light-hearted shoujo. Great thinking on the creator's part. In all, as I have said before, I loved this season. I can't wait for Sotsu!!!! The only thing I would warn to others is if you are sensitive to gore. I don't think of myself as someone who is, as while I was watching even the worse parts of the prior seasons, I didn't flinch. But, in this season there are some particularly gory scenes that made even me sick. specifically episode 16, so if you are watching, please be warned and maybe skip through some of those parts. But, other than that, amazing work creators!! I can't wait to see how they finish this story up!

[DISCLAIMER: In order to fully appreciate Higurashi Gou, you have had to finish reading the Higurashi VN (anime is a decent substitute), the Umineko VN (the anime is incomplete and is NOT a substitute), and the Ciconia VN (only 1 part has been released so far). Basically a full knowledge of the main storyline of every When They Cry VN.] In recent times, Higurashi Gou has quite possibly the highest barrier of entry for an anime series. Not only do you have to be familiar with the original Higurashi's plot, but you also have had to invest anywhere between 100 to 200 hours for the greater When They Cry series as well. It's really a show only for the most dedicated and hardcore of fans, with almost no solace or respite for anyone in between in spite of the deceptive interviews by the anime staff and (especially) R07 himself. And I absolutely love Gou for this. Most of the animosity you see here, or even other parts of the web are understandable, given how this was initially marketed as a remake with "SUBTLE DIFFERENCES" only for R07 to pull the rug at Episode 2 for newcomers to the franchise and twice more at Episode 20 for people who didn't read Umineko and at Episode 21 for people who didn't read Ciconia. If you are at all interested in watching Gou, going through the original Higurashi story, as well as Umineko and whatever exists of Ciconia is mandatory. Otherwise, join me as I spend the rest of this review lavishly praising Gou. To the best of my abilities, I will refrain from spoiling too much, but certain plot elements are hard to talk about given how radical a change Gou takes at the midway point. Rest assured I will remove as much context from the scenes as possible to preserve the surprise. For me, Higurashi has never been a particularly effective horror anime. As someone who started the series with the DEEN anime (which naturally had a negative effect upon reading the VNs), the horror scenes are campy as they are schlocky, which isn't a bad thing since I ended up appreciating other aspects of the series more in different ways. I've said before how the series blends multiple genres together in a blender to create something truly spectacular and wild without over-relying on a certain genre convention. Gou carries that torch effortlessly. As a canonical sequel to the original series, it is as wild and campy and schlocky as the original DEEN anime. Throughout most of the show, I had a dopey grin permanently plastered onto my face as events transpired onscreen. R07's wild ride knows no bounds, and I do not mean that lightly. That disclaimer in the beginning was not a joke, and once you get to the midpoint, every episode is just a maddening rush that makes you feel like you're a Theatergoing Witch. The comedy is superb, both intentional and unintentional moments. The Gilligan Cut in Episode 15 nearly broke me, and the show is easily the funniest of the Winter 2021 season. When I say Unintentional Comedy, I don't mean it as a negative dig on the show. I meant that in the most earnest way possible, as when a scene the staff clearly poured effort into making as serious as possible came out in the worst possible way yet wrapping around to becoming incredibly charming, which still holds incredible value to me (such as the infamous prison scene which came out of a miscommunication between R07 and the anime staff). It's fascinating on so many levels. Many moments in Gou easily hold a candle to or even exceed those from the DEEN anime in terms of memorability and impact. While DEEN's rendition of the "USODA!" scene can't be topped, the Chandelier scene will no doubt go down as the one of the Reiwa Era's most memorable anime scenes. It is that combination of pure-hearted intention and schlocky execution that makes these scenes so memorable as they are. In terms of plot progression, the first half is incredibly boring after about Episode 4. In a move not too dissimilar to Muv Luv Alternative, there is a rehash of the first 3 arcs from the original Higurashi albeit with subtle differences here and there. This is easily the most boring part of the whole series but it isn't without merit. Seeing familiar scenes rendered 15 years later by a different studio with a vastly improved art direction does makes things soothing to the eye. As well as seeing scenes not originally adapted by DEEN (such as the Tsubamegaeshi scene from Minagoroshi-hen) is a welcome addition. Moreover, it's fun to speculate what do the minor differences constitute in terms of foreshadowing, and how the plot will progress from here on out. The second half of Gou is magical. Many things you wouldn't expect to happen transpire in the latter 2 arcs, even certain plot contrivances and plot holes are discussed with an intention to be rectified in the future. If you are in any way a WTC fan who hasn't watched Gou yet for thinking it's just a remake, once you reach the second half of Gou, you will be in for a real treat. Satoko went from my least favourite character in the series to becoming my absolute favourite. While some may view the characterizations of the cast to be contentious, I find these changes to be a natural progression of their characters. Moreso than Saikoroshi-hen, Gou provides an intriguing outlook on what happens after the Happy End of Matsuribayashi-hen, and how it ties together with the greater WTC series. For this point alone Gou (and the upcoming Sotsu) does not and cannot stand on its own, given how reliant it is on one's knowledge of its sister/parent series. However, it is the glue that ties everything together. Whether that becomes a mess remains to be seen, but with the quality of Gou, I am confident it'll work out in both the best and worst possible ways, and that prospect is exciting. At the time of this writing, Gou has ended inconclusively with Sotsu announced to be released 4 months later. Therefore, with great confidence I fully expect R07 to deliver on a spectacular conclusion on the level of his other works with this sequel series. For now, we still have this wonderful series to look upon. The first 13 episodes may be looked back as a necessary evil to get the plot to going where it goes, and I am strapped on for R07's wild ride to wherever it takes me.

Some context is needed before we start. The 2006 Higurashi No Naku Koro Ni adaptation and it’s sequel Higurashi Kai remains my favourite anime of all time. It made me love the horror genre and was the anime that got me properly invested into anime. Sure I was watching anime beforehand but Higurashi was the show that really got me into anime. It managed to tell an intriguing and well structured story with likeable but flawed characters and an ost that set the mood and tone while also being an unnerving horror experience. So naturally, hearing back at the beginning of 2020 that Higurashi was getting a new anime adaptation, you could’ve imagined I was ecstatic to hear it was coming back; with signs pointing it to be a remake which I would’ve welcomed because while I would recommend that you go watch the 2006 Higurashi, the animation has not held up all that well. Then we find out while it started airing that this is not a remake but rather a remake/sequel hybrid with emphasis on sequel. While that intrigued me, it also worried me as the OVAs proved, Higurashi’s story is wrapped up, it’s done. There wasn’t really anything to go on from there. But it’s approach to it was interesting. But then it was that line that series creator, Ryukishi07, said after episode two aired that this would be a series that would satisfy old fans of the series but also be a jumping on point for new fans to enjoy. Which I say, bulls**t. A lot of it does require context to the original Higurashi and it straight up spoils the mystery of the original so you won’t have the same experience if you decide to go back and watch the original after watching this. So I will say this: IF YOU PLAN TO WATCH THIS SEASON FIRST, FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, DON’T. WATCH OR PLAY OR READ THE ORIGINAL FIRST, THEN COME BACK TO THIS SEASON IF YOU LIKED IT. Okay with that cleared up, let’s talk about this new season of Higurashi and if I found to have lived up to the hype and my expectations. Sit back, relax and I hope you still have some laughing gas left to breathe manically with as I present to you the anime review for Higurashi No Naku Koro Ni Gou. Let’s begin shall we? Also, some spoilers if you have not seen or played the original Higurashi or Higurashi Kai. Story: 3.5/10 Set in June 1983 in a small Japanese village of Hinamizawa, Keiichi Maebara has just moved into this village and is already enjoying his life here with his friends being Rena Ryuuguu, Mion SonozakI, Satoko Hojou and Rika Furude. They go to school, hang out and play games with each another. All is well until Keiichi finds out about a series of murders and disappearances that occurred every night of the Watanagashi festival. With it happening again and his friends keeping secrets from him, he soon learns that there is more going on in this villagethan he realises. MEANWHILE… Rika finds herself awakening in one of the fragments between worlds without knowing how or why she is here. Only for Hanyuu to tell her that she is being sent back to June 1983. Annoyed but determined, Rika vows to get out the loop that is June 1983 and find out why she is sent back there in the first place. So like I said earlier, this is a sort of remake/sequel hybrid. So while it does take place after the events of Higurashi, Higurashi Kai and Higurashi Rei, it’s set in the same time period as the original with the similar arcs to previous entries, but with some subtle and not so subtle differences. And much like previous entries it is divided up into question arcs and answer arcs with question arcs laying out clues and mysteries only to be explained in the answer arcs. So the groundwork is laid out, the problem is in it’s execution. One of the dynamics to the original’s mystery was what the character’s see and what they believe to be true or not. Is it real or is it merely a figment of their imagination. Gou doesn’t use this to it’s advantage to screw with the viewer and throw them off the trail. Most of the time, it’s mainly used for shock value and have little meaning outside of the big picture and even then, it wasn’t really effective. I imagine it’s to try and not confuse viewers since two mysteries are going on. The mystery of the curse of Oryshiro-sama and how Rika got sent back to June 1983 and how to get out of the loop again. But the original mystery kind of gets thrown under the bus because while there are clues to the mystery of Oryshiro-sama, the full on execution of that mystery is done p**s poor here. It’s neglected and straight up spoils the reveal without the build-up or knowing how we got into this position to solve it, undermining it entirely despite its significance to the overarching story of Higurashi. No, the real focus is on this new mystery and how Rika ended up back in June 1983. This is where the changes in each arc happen with how the characters act and how scenes and events change due to those character actions, it does make things unexpected since we don’t what these subtle actions and changes will do the narrative. So when this new mystery does open up more and you get this feeling that multiple people are pulling the strings here. People who have watched or played the original would probably pick up on these (some obviously quicker than others) and it does make for a nice brain tickler to pick out these differences and what do they mean. But here lies my problem, while people with previous knowledge of Higurashi would understand it. But here lies a problem with this being a jumping on point for new viewers because the show is more focused on the new mystery, the Oryshiro-sama’s curse mystery is a complete mess that doesn’t properly get explained for a new viewer to understand. This is why I say you should start from the beginning with the original because on top of the half baked mystery from the original not executed nowhere near as well as the original and a new mystery that kind of needs knowledge of previous seasons for some much needed context. Yeah sure, the original obviously left clues and mysteries that puzzled viewers, but it was never in your face about it and again, this is a sequel that is also meat to be a jumping on point for new viewers. The narrative just fails and being a jumping on point for new viewers who haven’t seen, haven’t played or even read the original because of that poor execution. As for the arcs themselves, they serve their purpose but the pacing of these arcs is quite rough. This is because of the gradual descent from slice of life to psychological horror isn’t as well paced compared to previous arcs of the series. What made the horror work in previous seasons was that gradual descent into madness as things started to escalate until we reached that arc’s climatic point. Here, it kind of happens all at once and rushes through it, rather than it slowly escalating as the situation gets worse and worse. The mindf**kery isn’t nearly as effective as it doesn’t give it time to breathe and process what has happened? What is real? And what is merely a figment of the characters imagination? There isn’t that tension or that sense of uneasiness as our characters find more and more about what’s going on. It ain’t all bad though. Gou’s fifth arc, “Satokowashi-hen,” is easily the best arc of the season and captures what makes Higurashi great. Being this season’s prominent answer arc, It greatly captures the horror and tension while slowly revealing some answers to this new mystery at a great pace. I love it but I wish the other arcs were executed just as well for the other arcs of Higurashi Gou. Characters: 8.5/10 Honestly, there isn’t much to complain here about the characters of Higurashi Gou. They are all pretty much how we remember them with their quirks and flaws that make them great characters. Well I say that, it is there but not as effective as previous seasons. Rika still is still the clear, over-arcing protagonist despite three of the arcs are from Keiichi’s perspective. Rika d…

Even though I agree that Higurashi ended in Higurashi Kai, and there was no need for a sequel, Higurashi Gou is actually not that bad. Story : The story just continues Rika Furude's journey after breaking the Looping curse in June 1983, so Rika is still tormented in Gou/Sotsu Art : I think the art is more gore here if you watch the BD version, because the TV version will have a lot of really bad black censorship. Character: I'm happy to see the 5 Hinamizawa Legend Characters back, especially Rika she's so cute I enjoy it so far, The story continues even though it's quite strange with the red eyes, because I prefer Deen's version.

Really loved this continuation to the series. WARNING this is a SEQUEL not a REMAKE. You need to at least watch the original Higurashi anime from 2006/07 to understand it. Watching this serie first and then going back to the old ones will SPOIL and RUIN everything. You can also watch the Kira or Rei OVA's or the Kaku movie for more lore. And you should also read the Umineko manga to understand some new characters, references and situations. I partially understand why the low rating on this site because of all the confused people who dropped the anime. The Higurashi series is a mix of various genres, but primary is on the MYSTERY genre as well as Umineko. People can get confused because it adds to the mix some horror, comedy, slice of life and at times some sci-fi, sobrenatural or magical stuff. It really is a mix of everything so I understand why people can get confused at first but you need to understand all the episodes leaves you with questions and you will be solving the puzzle and mystery if you really pay attention. At the end all mysteries are solved but you need to be patient.

To begin the review, I'm going to start off by saying that I will not be providing any spoilers and will be writing this from the perspective of a new watcher of the Higurashi series. From many of the reviews I have read, it came from the perspective of already watching some of the past animes, but I was under the perspective that this anime was a recreation of the older ones to give it a new style and design. As a new watcher of the series, the story was very interesting, but also extremely hard to follow. The order of the episodes from a new watcher's perspective is a bit confusing and there is little to no help from the actual anime in helping you understand what is going on. The anime was formatted in a way where it felt like it was reaching for the goal of "things don't make sense now but they will later", but it didn't feel like it achieved that for me. When I reached later episodes of the anime, I understood more what was going on, but I felt confused because of how jumbled up the episodes were previously. After finishing the anime, I felt that I would need to go back and watch the episodes again in a different order to fully understand the events that transpired in the anime. In addition, there were many characters that received a large amount of story and connection with the viewer, but other characters seemed to have a large role but did not have nearly the amount of support. The characters within the anime made it clear that these characters were important but the storytelling did not treat the characters as such, which created a large amount of disconnect. I felt this anime was reaching for something great and it possibly could have reached it, but the overall confusing nature of the anime left me disappointed when compared to other animes of the same genre.

Oh, goodness. I usually don't write reviews on here but I'm kind of incensed. Okay, my experience with Higurashi Gou, as a long-time fan of the franchise: it starts out wobbly but generally competent. It really hits its stride in the middle, with some really effective horror. I was loving it at that point. I would probably have accepted it if this season was presented as, say, a look into some of the loops never seen in the original or something like that. Like, it wouldn't really be a sequel that could add anything, but at the same time, it wouldn't have as much scope to do something stupid. And in my opinion, the way the last ~25% of Higurashi Gou plays out is pretty stupid. I don't think this sequel can justify its existence as a meaningful addition to the series, although to be honest that's par for the course with this franchise-- Rei, Kira and Kaku were all various shades from 'appalling' to 'meh'. I guess I put too much trust in Gou because it wasn't an OVA. That's on me. The thing that really grinds my gears is the characterisation, I guess. Avoiding spoilers as far as I can, I guess I'll just say one of the major characters does some pretty bad stuff, and the 'excuse' is a lot weaker than you usually see in the franchise. I don't think it meshes well with the image of the character presented in previous volumes, and I don't think this volume puts in enough legwork for it to be a legitimate development of their character. It felt more like a cheap 'wouldn't that be messed up' twist than a justified continuation of the story, adding no value and actually taking away from the whole. But, you know, that's all about the last arc. To be fair, I really enjoyed it up until then. It's got some pretty good scares, and even a few really clever moments. Even the parts that aren't spectacular are at least, like, fine. Sound is fine; nothing remarkable. Art is alright too, though a little too plastic for my taste, and sometimes it looks really off, but not often enough to be glaring. I also sort of liked some of the last arc before it all went off the rails way too fast to have the intended emotional impact. I'm sure there will be people who liked it, and that's fine, but it's absolutely not for me.

Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Gou A word of advice to anyone planning to watch this season: have at least already watched the DEEN seasons of Higurashi prior, if you have not read the visual novel. Simply for your own sake. If not, prepare to be mighty confused, especially later on down the line. I am sure you can watch it with no knowledge of the series whatsoever, but because this is not a simple Remake, it is not as easy to just start with Gou. On to the anime, I liked it a lot. Passione held nothing back in terms of gore, and obviously have knowledge on the series. It does start to get a wee bit confusing around the middle, which is where things are much easier if you have already seen DEENs versions. This is not a full Higurashi story, it is like a weird kind of sequel, that has ties to Ryushiki07s following series. Overall, I love the eeriness and feel of this season, the studio did a wonderful job. I am excited to see where Ryushiki07 and Passione take this story starting in the summer. Higurashi Gou gets 9 stab wounds out of 10 from me.

This is my first review ever so I won’t be able to go into much depth with this. This review will contain a little spoilers! At first I didn’t really enjoy this new season. Half of it was things I had already seen in the previous seasons, but just slightly warped. It felt like a rushed through recap of the original and its sequel even though this season is completely new. But about halfway through it really picked up for me. The completely new scenes were absolutely amazing as well as the fantastic tragedies that happen at unexpected moments! It was great! It really felt like the masterpiece that is the original! And the ending was an amazing set up for the next season! I can’t wait! But because of the expected first half it didn’t have that big of an impact until later. But it’s still really good! I give it a 8/10!