Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Gou

Higurashi Gou is a sequel to the og higurashi, that like me, you can watch without knowing anything about the original show. you see, some of the things that would be considerd as the "main mystery", tell you who and what they're suppose to be, because the show is not about them. i understood the general idea of stuff like the curse or the animel-named-groups without the need to see the original show, which gave me more enjoyment, because we didn't focus on those stuff, but instead we focused on the main cast, who were all likable. TL;DR: whether you knew the original show, or you this is your first time hearing the name "higurashi", you will love this show if you like horror/thriller.

I started watching Higurashi from the original, and I could say that Gou is just as good as the original with different touch, and obviously different artstyle that is way more modern and catchy. I think Gou is made for those who enjoys not only Higurashi, but also Umineko no Naku Koro Ni (it has good manga adaptation and the Visual Novel is just god tier, just consider the anime a bonus because it wasn't as great as the manga and the VN). Ryuukishi07 is definitely toying with our feelings and hopes here...... with absolute <certainty>. And a friendly reminder that THIS IS NOT A REMAKE, so YOU HAVE TO WATCH THE ORIGINAL HIGURASHI first, and Umineko next for better experience. Y'know? For example, Like if you start watching Star Wars from Episode 7 to 9 it would make no sense, because you have to watch the original first (Episode 4-6) then continue to the prequel (Episode 1-3).

Before I get to reviewing, I should note that this is not a remake. At this point it should be obvious as MAL finally changed the anime relation but yeah, you shouldn’t be watching this without knowing the original Higurashi plot (I’d recommend either manga or the VN, the DEEN anime didn’t age well that much). In fact, for better enjoyment I would recommend familiarity with the plot of Umineko too. Ruyukishi is a great author. But I can’t decide if he’s a better author, or a better troll. He’s a master of playing with the audience, anticipating their reactions and subverting expectations to create a glorious emotional roller coaster. Subverting expectations not in the destructive way that leaves nobody happy, as some western directors learned to use it (I'm looking at you, Disney Star Wars), but in a good way that is both unexpected and enjoyable. This time this is incorporated even in the marketing itself, as when this “remake” was announced, I don’t think anyone expected an actual sequel. This played into higher mystery and less predictability. Which is a great thing for a mystery genre. Unfortunately it led to some confusion as people not familiar with the franchise watched this not expecting the absolute boogaloo that is about to hit them, but such are sacrifices that have to be made to achieve such trick. The strength of Gou lies in keeping the elements that made the original story great, and adding in elements that explore it in new angles. This allows us to see plot points that we would never expect but still fit with the theme. This allows us to see some characters in completely new light that we would most likely not even consider when experiencing the original. It is a storyline where even seemingly ludicrous fan theories based on the scattered hints might actually come into reality (and they have). Which is another great thing about the writing style – it is not predictable, but if you put in some effort and “investigate” the story, you could come across an actual solution (though to be fair, Umineko is what does this more and better). For a brief comparison with the DEEN version - while I miss some of the terrific derpy faces, the absolute meme material that was the arstyle choice for the DEEN adaptation, overall Passione nailed it. Gou has much better pacing, and is using animation that isn’t pain to look at but still being able to create horror moments that are pain to look at. As this season seems to hint more about the connected universe/multiverse of Ryukishi’s stories, it is something that is targeted to a more “seasoned” part of the fanbase, so definitely not a good starting point for that, and even if you have seen the previous Higurashi anime, I would recommend delving more into authors other works before coming back to this. As a fan of Ryukishi, this was a great experience and one of the most underrated gems on this site. Gou isn't for everyone, but if you happen to be the right target audience, you're in for a ride. And I'm glad that producers took a risk to create something that is not certain to create a big commercial success but rather something tailored to a more niche audience. Did Higurashi *need* a sequel? Not necessarily. Is is good that it got one? Absolutely.

After having just finished Higurashi Sotsu, I feel I can accurately portray my thoughts on its predecessor, Higurashi Gou. As a word of advice, If you want to get into the Higurashi series, don't start here. Go watch the Deen series first (that being Higurashi no Naku Koro ni, Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Kai, and Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Rei (Rei is optional)). I have another word of advice as well: If you have finished the original Deen series, stop where you are, and move on. This new series sucks. Now, before I go further, I need to clarify something. When I say "this new series sucks", I am referring to Gou and Sotsu COMBINED, not Gou on its own. This review will cover my opinion on this season alone, and not my thoughts on the story's conclusion in Sotsu. You can read that review elsewhere. Higurashi Gou, in short is an.... interesting sequel. First of all, I find it strange and somewhat manipulative that this season was advertised as a remake and not a direct sequel to the Deen series. Just a heads up, it is 100% a sequel. Second of all, it's not often that a sequel completely undermines the conclusion of the work that came before it. Third of all, it's weird that Gou completely forgets certain concepts that made the previous conclusion possible. In other words, there are plot holes. All in all, there were some questionable risks taken in this season. The questionable risks taken here aren't only pertaining to the story, though. The whole show has had a drastic style change compared to the original Deen series. All of the characters are more rounded and bubbly, their skin looks strangely shiny, and the whole color palette is extremely saturated. This style change, in addition to how over-the-top the new killing scenes are, really takes away from the bleak tone and horrible events that transpire. In short, this season took a lot of risks and made a lot of interesting ideas, but in the end it came at the cost of a lot of strengths Gou could've otherwise had. The horror is less effective and the mystery is less intriguing. But hey, at least it gave me the motivation to experience the thrill of the original Deen series.

THIS IS NOT A REMAKE! Now that we took that out of the way let's start with the review. I was open minded with the idea of a sequel, I was interested to know what happen to make everything go back, AGAIN, but going through every episode I started slowly to feel that the only point of this season was to bring back the characters, make a lot of gore and deliver a poorly excuse for what is happening, sorry but if you gonna make a sequel for a story that already ended, at least give us a good reason to do so. SPOILER FOR CONTEXT: After the mystery is solve, the town, the people and every character got out of it alive, Rika, finally get her freedom from the loop and can live again like a normal kid, her dream is to leave the town that holds a lot of bad memories to her and she wants Satoko to go with her to a really high class school for girls only. Satoko and Rika study really hard, get in the school, but Satoko can't keep up and she feels how Rika fits better than her in that school living her feeling lonely. Satoko manages to get Rika's powers to get in to loops after visiting the old shrine from their town and tries to use it to repeat everything to make it so Rika doesn't go to that school, but Rika won't change her mind so Satoko looses her grip and starts going into loops to torture Rika until she submits to love the town again to live there forever with her. OPINION: I respect the work done in this anime, you can see an effort in the animation and the art, but I can't deny that in the future I will remember "Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni" for wat it was. In my opinion, this anime it's just fanservice and I don't recommend it.

No spoilers. This anime is for people who have watched the original anime which came out in 2006-2007. Some people think this is a remake but it's not. You'll be pretty confused if you haven't seen the original, not to mention you'll fail to appreciate some very smart twists. So whatever you do, watch the original first, it's still amazing to this day when it comes to mystery-horror anime. I would even recommend watching/playing Umineko no Naku Koro ni as well because it has a connection with Gou as well as the og. The creative team did very well in ''remaking'' a few story arcs first to remind viewers of the stories before jumping in the continuation of the story. It's been 15 years after all for the people who only watched Higurashi once back when it aired. Very smart, but unfortunately it led some people to think this is a remake and judge it as such. I'm a huge fan of the og but honestly I didn't think I'd get so excited watching Gou. I was very pleasantly surprised. First of all they got the vibe exactly right. When the horror stuff went down it was just as awesome as the og. And they even got the same voice actors as the og for EVERY character!! 15 years later! That definitely was a huge bonus that added to my enjoyment of this show. Even the og OST plays at several parts. The art is close to the og but greatly improved. Now for the story. Up till episode 14 this could almost be seen as a remake. They did 3 of the og arcs again, keeping many parts exactly the same but changing some important elements that ended up having a huge effect at the end of these arcs. I definitely enjoyed this and thought the whole anime would go on like this, but after ep 14 we get brand new content and it is clearly a sequel from then on. I will not spoil anything, I loved what they did after ep 14, it kept things very interesting and it was highly unexpected too. I think the fans of the og will enjoy Gou, it's honestly a very good sequel and has many of the elements that we loved in og, plus we dig deeper into certain characters that were not as important in the og. Only reason I gave a 9 and not a 10 was that the first half of the anime was more intense, I would have liked some more tension in the last eps. But this is not the end of course, Sotsu will come out soon. The og Higurashi and Higurashi Kai should be viewed as 1 anime and it's probably the same case with Gou and Sotsu.

Now, I gave this show a 10 overall because I did not just watch the anime in the past but I as well played the visual novel and for me, it is indeed a masterpiece because Higurashi in general gives the audience that kind of ride with excitement and thrill that you will beg to have more when it is ended. The story is unique and excellent because it has that mystery vibe and combined with gore and a bit of a touch of horror just makes it excellent. The characters are also good and unique and have its big role in each arc. The art, well the old Higurashi anime might not have the best art but it is still a must-watch if you are trying to get into the Higurashi series because if you start from here in Gou, you will probably be confused so much so I suggest watching the OG first, though about this season it has good art though I would really prefer it if studio deen continued the Higurashi series because, to be honest, I like their art style for the show, Studio Passion also did a good delivery of the art, that I can say. For the story, enjoyment, and overall. For me, it is indeed 10/10 for I believe it is a masterpiece, and also I want people to notice this series as well because it is such a waste for people to miss out on this series.

Don’t even think about leaving Hinamizawa. Just caught up to this Winter 2021 anime. I watched the first two original seasons of Higurashi, and I wasn’t too impressed with the horror aspect of it. The first two episodes tricked me into thinking that the new version was just a retelling of the original anime, but with better animation. However, when shit hit the fan, I was in for a gory and brutal horror sequel to the first two seasons. I saw people reacting to each episode and there were certain gore scenes that they had to skip because of how horrific the gore was. For me, I actually enjoyed the gore, although a bit disgusted. The original version had gores, but they were nowhere near this sequel. This aspect made me liked the anime more. Another great aspect was the story. It elaborated more on the arcs in the original version, and then diverged to a new direction that I enjoyed a lot. Overall, after watching this new season I’m a fan of the Higurashi anime now. Can’t wait for the next season in July that continued the arc. 8.5/10

People leaving bad reviews haven't read or appreciated Umineko - I definitely recommend reading Umineko (because the anime doesn't cover the whole story) in manga or novel form before watching this series. If you love Higurashi and Ryukushi's writing in general, this is a must-watch. The story's style will be familiar to fans of Ryukushi07. I admit I was very disappointed in the story for the first half of this show, but knowing him, I held out hope that it would improve with a twist later - that hope was fulfilled and then some by the end. If you know your Umineko lore, this series becomes incredibly interesting to dissect (as with most of his works). It adds depth to both the main characters, in providing us with interesting new facets of them that connect them to Umineko's lore. Also, Ryukushi07's style of writing has always been to use later works to analyze the characters and morals in his previous ones - Umineko is in many ways a criticism and analysis of Higurashi's characters, just like his next work, Higanbana, was an analysis of Umineko's. I see the way that this series re-addresses the events of Higurashi as an extension of this, and personally, rather than undermining the message, I felt it added depth and interest to an already very deep and interesting universe. I will admit that I'm not the most critical fan when it comes to analyzing plotholes and continuity errors, and maybe this series does add some complication to Umineko lore, but it's so interesting and excitingly presented that I can't really bring myself to care. Really, the prospect of seeing a certain witch at the end of next season has me on the edge of my seat.

I will discuss spoilers in this review. I'm going to preface this review with one thing. I believe this show was made more for people who read both Umineko and Higurashi, and enjoyed both, rather than those who watched the original Higurashi anime. And I respect that people will not and do not like many things this anime chose to do. Very likely, this will be a polarizing entry as it challenges many of the ideals that made the original Higurashi so appealing to a wide variety of people. That being said. I loved this so much more than I expected I would at the start. It even brought me back to the original Higurashi anime, which I'd begun to dislike after the sound novel and the manga, and made me appreciate it again. As someone who loves both Higurashi and Umineko, this series /really was/ more than I could have expected or hoped for. I will admit that parts of this do drag. I feel that is a marker of the fact that this was written with Ryukishi07 rather than adapting from a sound novel as the previous show had been. It is also difficult to navigate similar arcs without the patience for what it may draw out. This isn't interested in the same kind of large world story that the original series was - Gou is much more personal and much more intimate than that, which I understand can take away from some of the appeal of the original. Where the original spent so much time on its many characters, delving into them and their individual struggles, Gou has decided - that's not what it is doing. This is the story of Rika and Satoko after Hinamizawa. This is the story of two of the most traumatized of the original club clinging to each other as everything changes around them, for better and for worse. This is the story of how they inadvertently and purposefully tear each other down on the way to escape the shadows of their own traumas and fears. That's a bit of a fanciful way to describe it, I will admit, but that is why I like it so very much. What I enjoy so much about this is that it shows that the sense of fellowship and community that they obtained in 1983 isn't easy to hold onto. I know people are disappointed that it feels like Gou is going against the bedrock of the original show - but I would argue it is only challenging what came before. Those who have read Umineko, I'm sure, are familiar with how dark the series could be, and also how it also challenges and interrogates many of the themes presented by Higurashi. In some ways, I feel this has allowed the writer to continue establishing the difficult road of survival and recovery after the immediate threat has passed. When I was younger, I loved the story of Higurashi and Rika fighting fate in Hinamizawa because it resonated with me, and many others. Now that I am an adult, and now that the team behind the original is older too, we're all seeking something more. More meaning. More answers, because as we move forward, things only become harder, not easier, than the individual moment that trapped us so. The art is unappealing, often, and there are tone issues that baffle me when looking back at the original anime. I wish I had both more time and less time in this setting, because I always wanted to know more about Rika, and more about Satoko. The meat of it. People may become bored of the show's final arc, as it stands as a perfunctory Answer Arc for the 'deceiving arcs' that came before it, but I did find it both illuminating and enjoyable. The act of watching Satoko throw away her humanity with each time she kills herself, and how she compares to Rika, in their complicated emotional struggle. Satoko has Fucked Around and will probably Find Out, but I appreciate that Rika is a flawed person, who has inadvertently hurt someone she never meant to hurt. I enjoy the links between this and Umineko, and I love how much it reminds me of Battler and Beatrice's relationship in Umineko - that following thread of promises broken. I find it funny that Lambda Delta is being linked with Satoko, and I understand why some may find it distasteful, but goddamn. You guys. I loved the evil witch gays in Umineko. I can't lie. I'm excited for more, and I am excited, always, for more messy terrible problems in Hinamizawa.

Higurashi No Naku Koro Ni Gou is the fourth season of the Higurashi (not counting spinoffs) disguising itself as a remake upon its release to catch old fans off guard we were introduced to an entirely new story following the same characters we've known since Kai so sorry new fans but this is not a good starting point for the series. The first thing most people will notice is the overhauled art style which goes of this glossy, almost plasticly character aesthetic which made characters appear even cuter than past seasons to contrast to the dark and gruesome scenes to come later. Overall I think the art style was a massive improvement on the original and Kais art but not perfect. Mainly the dark scenes are not as chilling thanks to the new art direction. I still would say Higurashi Kira had the best art direction for the series and wish we could've saw it in the core series. While many people believe the When They Cry series is at its core a horror anime it is actually more of a mystery anime and this season delivers on the mystery however the pacing does not. If you are a fan of the old series you'll most likely be asking yourself "This is boring, when is it going to change?" This is due to the new form or story archs called the "Deceiving" archs which are archs from the old series with new endings. While the endings were great I was often bored with most of these archs since most of it is the same as before. Thankfully about halfway through the season we get brand new archs which drastically improve the overall pace of the story. If you have not read Umineko you'll be a little confused but hopefully things will be explained later on in the next season Sotsu. The twist this time was around was great and didn't feel cheap thanks to the subtle hints laid throughout the season which definitely warrants a rewatch once you're finished. Unfortunately most characters take a backseat this season even more than Kai the only time most get to shine is from the archs we saw in season 1 which treated every character well so this might disappoint certain fans. Unlike the ending of season 1, Kai, and Rei. Gou's ending is a lot more open ended which is most likely due to the fact they're jumping straight into another season this summer. The music in this season is at its best yet combining the old with the new. The opening and ending songs are fantastic as well as the music throughout the actual show playing well with the current atmosphere. Here's hoping Ayane also performs the vocals for Sotsu! This season was an emotional rollercoaster from start to end and I had a lot of fun. While Kai still stands as the best season, Gou is great for fans of the mystery of Higurashi and even Uminkeo this time around! 8/10

One thing i can say is that,despite the art changes and whatnot, this show does feel like i'm watching Higurashi all over again,it has some fluffy moments that don't take up too much time and there is always some form of uncertainty looming in the background There are some very tense moments that come from just how unexpected and unpredictable everything was.And to be honest, I had no idea just what would come next after each episode and that did make me look forward to it every week.And ohhhh yea, this season does have its insane gore,and moments in the second half that are complete nightmare fuel.And it felt like a really bad fever dream.The main mystery of Higurashi was explained very well and made the tension pay off more,even if the whole mystery wasn’t explained, it still did a good enough job to explain it to someone who probably hasn’t watched Higurashi before. STORY And the way things started to connect together at the end felt a bit gratifying. But i still feel like watching the original series would bring a bit more context to certain minor characters and other rules set up. Also, what really made the story stand out was how the characters played into it.The way the story connected to the characters made me relate and empathize with them alot and I was super invested in the show. And one episode in particular almost made me tear up, Yea i said it. I almost cried watching an anime. But to be honest, that moment in particular was this shows writing at its best. But when it comes to the not so good things, most of that is in the first half. The first half is a super slow burn, it still has tension, and the story is told in multiple arcs ,but some of the arcs in the first half felt a bit aimless, also the conclusion of some arcs feel underwhelming, especially the one at the very middle of the show with the whole child care stuff. That arc not only felt aimless, but it dragged out for so long. I feel like some of the character introductions do have just a little bit of context missing, and i feel like this is where the original ties in, but then again, a second season just got announced so maybe we will get more context later on i suppose.I barely remember any of Higurashi when i first saw it, but i do remember some arcs, and this show does skim over some of those arcs which was a shame since those arcs felt like Higurashi at its best .But then again, the story of Higurashi is super complex so i don't really blame them for leaving some things out.If anything, the first half wasn't bad, but the ending of the first cour was pretty weak compared to the original Higurashi, and i really hoped that the second half would pick up, and at that moment, it felt like the creators heard my voice because the second half on this show was fuking amazing. It was engaging, thrilling,and felt very neatly tied together with the rest of the show. It almost becomes a whole new show entirely but it manages to still pull off being Higurashi by having the characters you know in love contribute so well to the plot.I just wish the first half was a bit better paced. ART/ANIMATION I was a bit worried about the animation because studio Passione is a studio that only works on trash ecchi ,cute girl stuff, and Rokka no Yuusha. But the animation is not that bad.Its not mesmerizing but it does its job.Even if the art is very bright and highkey, i appreciate the charm and neatness of it. I also like how they don’t have the wacky ass Deen faces from the original. One thing i should point out, is that some of the art direction and background art was really really really gorgeous at times. And the visuals for the ending sequence-the second one in particular that only appears in like 3 episodes-are pretty impressive. In the second ed it uses this really freaky and surreal 360 degree camera view that I haven't seen that much in anime honestly. SOUND The voice acting for the show was top notch, probably because of the range that the characters have.This is the case with almost everyone but most prevalent with Rikka’s VA,Yukari Tamura.She can go from cute and cheery to very cold and desolate at the drop of a hat and I just loved how she pulls it off.And the opening and ending songs.I dont even want to compare them to higurashi’s original ones because they sound and feel so different.I do think that Higurashi’s op and ed are better,but being better at higurashi is not that easy.I do think the songs are really good though.They have a bit of a more theatrical and modernized techno approach to them, sure they arent as tense and foreboding as “why or why not”,but they are so damn catchy and nice to listen to. CHARACTERS As much as I praised the characters, I think the main two that steal the show areSatoko and Rikka. Their role in the story is absolutely brilliant. I related to both Sakoto and Rikka’s situation on a relationship level,and since the harshness of both those things created such a huge conflict in the second half, I completely fell in love with the story at that point.. Everyone else is kinda background noise.They do have their moments,but since the show resets their characters after each arc, I forget more and more about them.And in the second half, the show just stops focusing on Keiichi ,Rena,and Mion/Shion almost entirely.I might be in luck because the next season might deal more with them though.I think a case where a minor character shines, is the second to last episode.AKA the episode that almost made me cry.I don't know if it's just me being a human and having emotions, or how well written the story was at that point. But Higurashi came out of nowhere after experience so much gore and crying and death,and then just gut punches me so hard emotionally faster than I can say “Banana Fish”.At that point in the story it felt like everything just hit me on how fucked up this town and people were. ENJOYMENT It may be me who knows, I have some pretty questionable tastes i know.But i enjoyed this show so much.It wasn't a constant enjoyment,some episodes where hits and others were duds for sure.And also i think people will still be turned off about where this story takes place in the timeline.Since everyone thought it was a remake and then an interview confirmed it...wasnt that.. But there are adapted moments in this show that feels like it is a rema-its confusing.I think some of the marketing should have been a bit more clear on what the hell this anime is.And telling by the score on MAL it has right now,i can tell its a bit divisive.But hell, i had fun.I anticipated each episode,and always wanted more.It sucks that the first half was a bit dragged out, because the second half was just awesome.And it makes me want to almost go back to the original and rewatch those. Overall-7 If you are wondering if this is a sequel or not,don't,because i watched the original a long time ago, and...uh I still can't determine if its a sequel or remake.There are scenes in this show that are similar to the original but there are also different plot lines entirely.I think the best thing is to just fuck it and go in blind.And if you feel like youre missing some context ,go watch the original. Hopefully season 2 adds more context though.

Higurashi - Gou feels like two shows spliced together. The first 16 or so episodes are mostly a remake of the first season of Higurashi, with a few important pieces that only make sense if the viewer has seen the first two seasons of the series. For the remaining episodes, Gou takes a hard turn into original content. Because two parts of the show substantially differ in quality, it's especially hard to evaluate the show as a whole. The first 16 episodes of Gou are slightly different retellings of the arcs from Higurashi's first season, but rely enough on the first two seasons of Higurashi that a newcomer to the franchise would likely be confused. These episodes hit the terrible sweet spot where there are enough changes for a returning Higurashi viewer to have to watch them to understand the last eight episodes, but there's not nearly enough new content to justify spending 5+ hours watching them. Watching replays of previous story arcs for almost four months was so boring as to be borderline torturous. The final eight episodes are completely new content and are far more interesting than the first part of the series. Without going into spoilers, the story takes a large twist at the end of Episode 17, and the series gets a much-needed breath of new life. For dyed-in-the-wool Higurashi fans, these episodes are a must-watch. That said, it's hard to say if they justify the first two-thirds of Gou for the casually interested. Art and Sound: Part of the appeal of the original Higurashi was how its plain mid-2000s aesthetic clashed with the series's horror and gore. Gou gives the animation a much-needed update, but it's nothing particularly spectacular. The OP and ED2 are fairly strong, but aren't iconic like the original Higurashi's OP. Otherwise, the animation and music were fairly nondescript and inoffensive. Characters: The original two seasons of Higurashi were mostly Keiichi-centric, while Gou is almost entirely focused on Rika and Satoko, at the expense of its other characters. While focusing on Rika's psychological deterioration does have its merits, it hurts to not have further development of the full cast after over a decade since the last full season, Higurashi - Kai. I've seen preliminary reviews particularly criticize the one-dimensionality of Rena, which is entirely warranted. Hopefully, the coming sequel does a better job of including the rest of the cast into the plot, or at least gives them some meaningful moments. Overall: Usually, mixed-bag shows start strong and spectacularly combust as they conclude (see Darling in the Franxx). Higurashi - Gou upends this standard by having eight great episodes at the end of a mediocre 24-episode run. It's definitely not worth it to watch all of Gou, but with a sequel season on the way soon, true Higurashi fans will probably be forced to. A far better single-cour series exists somewhere in Gou, but it's sadly up to viewers to splice that series together for themselves.

The Gou/Sotsu duology, for me, is in this really precarious position where I can't decide if I enjoy or outright hate it. Why? Because it feels as if struggles deciding between rehashing old material or providing (supposedly) meaningful developments meant to expand on its series lore. I think my issue with Gou especially, is its insistence on utilising shock value for its reveals that don't feel like they provide anything meaningful for the story overall. At least with the original *Higurashi*, every murder & tragedy was justified because it told you just a LITTLE MORE about Hinamizawa with each abnormal development. Sure, when this pre-established lore is thrown off during major events in Gou, it does shake things up, but it feels cheaply done & flaked off at the last-minute just to provide SOME sort of change from an otherwise 1-to-1 story arc. Yet I DON'T want to hate on it entirely, because I think there's something interesting to be said regarding its exploration of Rika & Satoko's characters. Satoko, especially, is in this really strange position where I can neither decide if they outright butchered her character or expanded upon on it in a meaningful way. The girls' post-canon developments (from the original show) come in VERY LATE in Gou, but serve as Gou's most compelling reason to stick to it following Sotsu. I think one could argue that Satoko's characterisation is incredibly difficult to watch, considering she has a hard time setting boundaries with Rika that leads to her drastic actions towards the show's climax. That said, I've also read arguments that a lot of Satoko's behaviors can be justified as someone who's still meaningfully recovering from abuse, following the original series' canon. I think I can appreciate what Gou does in trying to expand the both of them, but it leaves this unsanitary taste in my mouth where it gives me more reasons to dislike the both of them. This is especially the case when comparing their likeliness' from the original series, where it was abundantly clear they were both victims of their relative situations, which helped in justifying their otherwise troubled behaviors in the past. Here, Rika & Satoko doom themselves through their own innately selfish actions - and while on-paper, it's a seemingly compelling dynamic to explore - in actuality, like series doesn't justify their motivations enough through the writing to make you root for either of them. That said, do I personally hate Gou? Not really, but I'm glad I read the manga first (which trimmed a LOT of the fat from the anime while providing much more needed clarity to the original story). While I think Gou serves as an interesting supplementary piece to the overall *Higurashi* pipeline, I wouldn't find myself ever recommending it in the necessary watch order for a newcomer wanting to get into the franchise.

As a fan of the original visual novel, Higurashi GOU probably would have disappointed me if I didn’t already know that people thought it was bad. The first half of the show made me ask, "why does this exist?” It seemed like the same stuff from the original Higurashi but with different deaths. This was kinda boring to me especially since they teased in the first episode that Rika has all her memories from the original Higurashi. I think it would have been more interesting to make her the protagonist to show her perspective on mostly the same events. Instead, we follow Keichi like normal so it’s mostly the same up until the point where people die. That’s why the show made me ask “why does this exist?” since it seems mostly like a reboot but at the same time it’s very clearly a sequel. Around the halfway point it did start changing and it gave a reason why almost everything has been the same. It wasn’t a very satisfying answer, nor did it really excuse the show from just reusing content in my opinion. We did not need 3 arcs of almost the same thing to get to that conclusion. Now for the second half which is all mostly new content is where the whole thing starts falling apart a bit. It’s basically just Rika finding out who the villain is. Then is just switched to the entire backstory of why the villain is doing what they’re doing. It tries to get you to sympathize with the villain but their actions just come across as semi-stupid and really selfish. I really don’t like the motivations of the villain and I don’t think that character would do that. It never really got me invested in the actual plot and the mystery aspect is barely there. The villain also uses loops(return by death) way too casually in my opinion. I think the villain's treatment of loops(return by death) is really bad and is definitely their stupidest decision. If I had to rate the show just purely based on the mystery aspect I would give it a 4/10. My final score for this show is a 5/10 though just because I really enjoyed seeing these characters again, especially in the slice-of-life scenes.

I doubt anyone filters to recent reviews but i'm writing this just in case. I know MAL and it's marketing makes it SEEM like a reboot to the Higurashi anime but to keep this short THIS IS NOT A REBOOT. It is a continuation of the higurashi Visual Novel and some post content from there and also a prequel to the Umineko visual novel that comes after Higurashi in the When They Cry series. So in short do NOT watch SotsuGou if you have not completed the Higurashi visual novel and imo if you have not read the Umineko visual novel as that helps with understanding these shows.

June 1983 Youtube Rewind. THIS IS NOT A REMAKE. DO NOT GO IN BLIND. Watch at least the first two seasons of the original 2006 series made by Studio Deen. You have been warned and have no excuse. No complaining about not understanding what's happening. Now that that's out of the way... I couldn't quite believe that in the year of our virus overlord, we'd be blessed with a new Higurashi anime. The original is one of my favourite psychological horror anime/pieces of media so to have it be revived with a sequel was heartwarming and terrifying. At first, the show comes across as a remake. We're thrown back into the village Hinamizawa, the first arc of the original series and we're are reintroduced to our favourite harem protagonist Keiichi Maebara who is more entourage. However, by the end of the very first episode, you'll start to see slight differences in the story's variables. Soon you'll be asking yourself what dark secrets and tragedies will befall our cast this time and when/how. The first half of the season is a slow burn. I didn't mind retreading old arcs with minor changes leading to different results, but leads to the first half of the season feeling slow and somewhat boring until you get to those moments which luckily are pulled off incredibly well. It's better to binge-watch than watch weekly. It's not until the end of the third story arc that the curtain is pulled back and the show chops you into pieces with a machete. The pacing escalates and leads to one of the best, most disturbing horror scenes I've seen in a long time (I'll never look at gardening hoes the same way again). The story continues at this excellent pace and only escalates further later leading to one of the best episode endings (involving a chandelier) and ed reveals I've seen in a while. I think I'm okay with the rather jarring art style change now. I don't think Studio Deen is a very good animation studio, but there's an odd charm to their original art style which lends itself well to horror anime. Passione's bubblegum art style didn't have the same existential dread sown into it and I hate the character's weird cat mouths they all seem to have. Keiichi suffers the most from the art change. He just... doesn't look quite right. I can't put my finger on it. However, I was soon proven wrong as the horror elements started happening and the art and animation started to twist with some gorgeous sakuga moments to emphasise the horror. Having the original Japanese voice actors back to perform their characters helped me adjust to change and expressive character faces and movements made the teen maiming much more bloody and brutal than I imagined. Though, sometimes episodes didn't know whether or not it wanted to censor some of the more gruesome moments in this TEEN SLASHER HORROR anime which ruined some of the best scenes... It's hard to talk about this series without spoilers. I want to go into more of the story and explore why it works and what doesn't work quite as well. I especially want to talk about the main villain. There have been many critics voicing their opinions on this season. Some are understandable, some ignore situational/psychological context and some are just plain stupid. Series writer Ryukishi07 is a mad genius when it comes to his world of writing. His understanding of his characters and their psychological profiles is why they're so engaging to watch and why I personally really love them. It's why the big twist has gotten so many people raging. Even with its supernatural elements and neck-scratching parasites, Higurashi has always been a psychological series which always asks "Considering *blanks* background what would this character think/feel/do when put in this situation?" and that coupled with the main story hook is why it's such a captivating series. 8/10 Great.

As a big fan of the original first two seasons, I don't fully understand the purpose of Gou. The first season was an exploration into horror, as well as a story about friendship and community in an idyllic setting. The second season was more about offering closure and a happy ending to the horror show, not necessarily a good anime on its own but exactly what I wanted to see after watching the first season. Gou seems to be meant as a story about growing up. However, the justification offered for the renewed horror seems so trivial and childish that I find the entire premise to be ridiculous. [[[SPOILER: I think it would've been much more interesting if Satoko and Rika had grown to be adults and had some kind of falling out, rather than when they're basically still children. Something truly serious with real consequences might've had a much more powerful and meaningful impact on the characters and thereby justify their actions. As it happened in the show, it just feels ridiculous to me.]]] I'm also not sure how I feel about the new art style. I think it's meant to emulate something more like the original PS2 graphics, but frankly those sprites were kinda shit. I will say, it's very nice to see best girl Rena again.

[SPOILER] At first, it was all just a story from moderate to bad: clichéd and shallow characters. Bad, dull comedy. Moments of unsalted and unimportant relaxed that if cut would not affect anything in the story. However, a heavy and mysterious climate was building and I decided to continue, no one as much as I suffered. Then I realized that everything was not in vain, it was worth it. The few moments of terror that the series brings are well worth it because they are completely unique and complex. People die and come back as if nothing had happened, that's something to investigate. Then out of nowhere the protagonist disappears and Rika takes his place, the anime changed for the better for sure, it seemed like he had taken on a new season, but seriously it just proved how irrelevant the male protagonist was. With no personality, he was only fit to own the harem. Rika is more human than he is, and it was interesting to follow how she became mature and bored and by God trapped in that hell. It was interesting. The anime was 8in its prime with much turn around until it threw its full potential away into the school arc. Like, the anime was supposed to be over when Rika broke the curse, it wasn't supposed to go on. I didn't understand why it was continued, it looked like a new lolis school anime. But it's okay, behold, suddenly, I repeat, suddenly even, Satoko becomes the villain. That took all the seriousness out of the story. For me it all ended there, the anime lost credibility and became a teen horror of the American series. I really do not understand why they decided to withdraw all love from the friendship of girls and turn into envy, jealousy, for reasons few justifiable.. And again, by God, those who in their right mind would be returning in time of their own free will, granting themselves the suffering of living the same thing for several years just because of some teenage conflicts. Like, that was really serious. The sweet and gentle Satoko turning yandere and killing the schoolgirl because of ended it all. Higurashi is a story with a good base, an interesting and essentially original climate. You don't find a story like that, she's going to mark me for a long time, so I didn't get the note too low. But its ending is cruel, its characters do not make any sense, except Rika, which is much more or less. Overall, it had several hits, but much more mistakes.... I think the other seasons should be better.

Fuck Satoko. It was a fantastic continuation of the story, gives us more mystery, destroys our happy ending and leaves us itching our necks for more. I hope sotsu delivers. Brand new art style, picks up right at the end of Kai/Kira and brings us brand new arcs. potential tie ins to other WTC titles and just sets up for a more expansive WTC universe. Answers some unfinished questions by giving you 100 more questions for whats going on now DO NOT WATCH THIS IF YOU HAVE NOT SEEN THE ORIGINAL, IT IS NOT A REMAKE, IT IS A SEQUAL. And it's fucking great. except it made me hate satoko more than i did from the og.