When They Die - Higurashi horror

[Njr Scrawl]

For those people who have watched Geneon's 3 volumes +/- the rest from other regions etc. which, in descending order are the killings &/or death scenes that affected you most on a :puke:, :sdsmiley:, :nosebleed: or :cry: scale? Or any combination. :keroro:

Please use spoilers generously!

[Fencedude]

Honestly, the worst scene in the entire series is Shion's "distinction". None of the deaths affected me as much as that. It hurts just THINKING about it now.

[Sly05]

Rika's suicide where she proped her knife against a wall and then started ramming her neck into it made me wince. For brutality, even if the victim probably deserved it, Rena's murder of her stepmother. I was surprised the animators added the extra touch of having Rena's stepmother wet herself during her death.

[JINROH]

Rika's did a bit for sure,the rest were all unsettling,but hers the most.

[UEHacker]

I disagree, Shion Repeatedly stabbing Satoko while yelling and Mion apologizing over and over was by far the worst.

[Nork22]

Shion's distinction is the worst thing to witness. Especially the 2nd attempt

Then there's that bit in season 2.... Broccoli or Cauliflower, which one is green? So much hate after that.

[DarkSun_3_16]

Shion's distinction is the worst thing to witness. Especially the 2nd attempt

Then there's that bit in season 2.... Broccoli or Cauliflower, which one is green? So much hate after that.
Oddly enough, the distinction only makes me really wince if I actually think about how much that would hurt. All the other events I automatically react to, not sure why the difference here.

Both of K1's club-to-death events disturb me the most.

Rena wins for sheer brutality and aggression in cleaving Rina's skull in half in the later part of season 1. And yeah, wetting the pants there was a nice touch.

The most cold-blooded by far, I agree, is the event you reference from season 2.

[Sweeped]

They were all pretty funny, but I guess the one that took the cake was Keiichi and Staokos uncle

[pianocello]

The one that disturbed me the most was the very opening scene of episode 1.
The one that was most memorable and poignant for me was around ep 13 or so of season 2. By this point I had gotten numb to all the killings but with everyone dying, for the first time I actually felt sad because they were so close to achieving their goal.

[Buster Blader 126]

Honestly, the worst scene in the entire series is Shion's "distinction". None of the deaths affected me as much as that. It hurts just THINKING about it now.

By distinction, do you mean the ripping of her fingernails in the first answer arc?

It's been quite some time since I've watched Season 1, so some of the murders and disturbing scenes are quite fuzzy, and I don't remember some of them too well. So pardon me if that wasn't the one you were referring to.

As for the scenes:

In terms of shock value, the first scene of the beginning of it all definitely
ranks pretty high up there, as I didn't expect to see an act of violence so suddenly.

Also, the above scene that's hidden really made me wince, as did Rika's suicide via stabbing herself with the knife.

*shudders*

[Splitter]

5. Keiichi practicing baseball with Teppei's skull
There is no 4
3. Rika's suicide
2. Rena's junkyard ambush on Rina and Teppei
1. "Say "I'm sorry" 1,000 times and I'll let her go."

Special mention for terrifying moments where no one died

3. Rena grabbing the lock chain
2. Shion's crying turning to laughing over the phone with Keiichi, and then the line goes dead
1. Shion's "distinction"

[Njr Scrawl]

By "2nd season" do you all mean "Koroni Kai"? I'm puzzled by ANN. If characters died in the 1st season "Koroni" i.e When They Cry, how can they be back for another?

[Fencedude]

By "2nd season" do you all mean "Koroni Kai"? I'm puzzled by ANN. If characters died in the 1st season "Koroni" i.e When They Cry, how can they be back for another?

Call them "Higurashi" and "Higurashi Kai", please.

...and if you watched the first 3 volumes of Higurashi I'm wondering why you would be asking such a question. Season 1 does not finish the story, it contains six of the original 8 arcs, each being its own "continuity", while Season 2 finishes up wiht an anime original arc to fill in some details, and then the concluding "Minagoroshi" and "Matsuribayashi" arcs.

Edit: *rereads OP post* Wait, you haven't actually watched the show at all?

...In that case I'll try to get an explanation of how the show works posted later.

[Fencedude]

Higurashi no Naku Koro ni 101: Summer fun in Hinamizawa, or How to Win Friends and Lose Your Mind

As I mentioned in my previous post, Higurashi no Naku Koro ni is made up of a series of "Arcs" or "Chapters", the original games had eight, divided into 4 "Question" Chapters and 4 "Answer" Chapters. The anime added an additional chapter before the final two, and there were several sidestory chapters later added to the games (both the rerelease of the PC game and the PS2 version) as well as some exclusively for the manga adaption. I will only directly address the main 8 chapters and the one added for the anime.

The first season, Higurashi no Naku Koro ni (When the Cicadas Cry), consists of 6 chapters across 26 episodes, all four Question Chapters and the first two "Answer" chapters. Each chapter (except one, see below) takes place in June of 1983 in the small town of Hinamizawa, and each chapter is its own "continuity", "Universe", "reality" or however you want to imagine it. The chapters show different ways events can unfold, due to the choices the characters make, and even random chance. However there are some things that are consistent. Everything that happens before June of 1983 is considered to be the same in all chapters, thus if you find out backstory for a character in Chapter 2, it still applies in chapter 4, or 6 or whatever, even if things have played out completely differently, with one exception to be mentioned below. Secondly, there are several overarching patterns that emerge, some events preclude the occurance of others, while other events are consistent throughout all chapters (for example the Watanagashi festival and a certain event during it will always happen, though the significance won't be clear till the end).

The second season, Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Kai (When the Cicadas Cry Solution), consists of three Chapters across 24 episodes. The first is the anime only arc, while the last two are the final two Answer chapters.

The chapters in the anime are as follows:

Question Chapters

Onikakushi-hen (Spirited Away By Demons Chapter)

Watanagashi-hen (Cotton Drifting Chapter)

Tatarigoroshi-hen (Curse Killing Chapter)

Himatsubushi-hen (Time Wasting Chapter) - As a note, this is the only chapter to not take place during June of 1983, instead taking place years before and then years after Tatarigoroshi-hen. A certain event in the past portion of this chapter varies from chapter to chapter, though its only important here and in the final two answer chapters)

Answer Chapters

Meakashi-hen (Eye Opening Chapter) - This is the Answer to Watanagashi-hen, and consists of largely the same events, but told from the perspective of a different character.

Tsumihoroboshi-hen (Atonement Chapter) - Answer to Onikakushi-hen, unlike Meakashi-hen, the events of this chapter are very different from those of its "question", but the way things unfold will make clear what happened in that chapter.

Minagoroshi-hen (Massacre Chapter) - Answer to Tatarigoroshi-hen, as well as most of the overlying mysteries of the series, however various things prevent this from being the "end"

Matsuribayashi-hen (Festival Accompanying Chapter) - Solution to the entire series, everything up to now has led to this, and now those involved must fight for their "miracle"

Anime Original Chapter

Yakusumashi-hen (Disaster Awakening Chapter) - The inclusion of this chapter was requested by Ryukishi07, the original Author, as a way of including scenes that the anime missed from the first six Chapters.

And there you go, a short (relatively) and amazingly spoiler-free intro to how Higurashi no Naku Koro ni works.

[Njr Scrawl]

Many thanks Fencedude. :) Makes Haruhi seem simple!

Are viewers meant to watch the Question>Answer right through for each continuity, or to watch them differently, as on the DVDs?

I hope a license rescue & the 2nd series + OVAs licenses comes soon.

[The Alaskan Assassin]

I can't remember all details off hand (and i want to go to sleep soon being 2ish and all) so i'll just comment on the thing that horrified me the most from first season.

What bother me the most are some of the torture scenes roughly in the middle of the season. I can't remember the arc in question but i think it was an answer one. There was this one torture (It may have been Shion having to prove loyalty to her family) involving fingernails. I could never do well with nails...

[HitokiriShadow]

Are viewers meant to watch the Question>Answer right through for each continuity, or to watch them differently, as on the DVDs?


You are supposed to watch it in the order it was aired and the order they are on the discs. So you watch all of the question arcs first and then the answer arcs. While it has a unique narrative structure, there are no complications for how it should be viewed (as opposed to Haruhi). Just watch it the way its on the DVDs, or how the episodes are numbered.

[Nork22]

It is possible to watch the Question arcs in different order, but the Answers must to be in order. But in saying that though, for simplicity sakes just watch it in the order that was on the DVD/broadcast.