ritchie.marlene - 2014-08-09 04:11:20

Higurashi is another example of anime not just for kids. With murderous characters, deaths and blood and gore beyond watchable and a story that is enjoyable.

monty94 - 2014-08-01 19:59:39

http://quanreviews.blogspot.com/2014/08/anime-review-higurashi-no-naku-koro-ni.html

dare.edd - 2014-07-31 04:02:13

Story
It is very hard to describe the story of Higurashi without spoiling it. One of the main aspects of Higurashi is how it tells it's story. The story is told in arcs and when one arc ends another begins telling a new story featuring the same characters and in the same setting. After the fourth episode you'll come to understand what I mean. The story arc concept is unique and provides for a truly different viewing experience. However, this sort of ruins overall suspense of the series because after something ground breaking happens in one arc, it all starts over in the next arc.  9/10

Animation

The animation in Higurashi was lacking in 2006 and is shows it's flaws even now. It kind of sucks. However, when the characters go mad or get angry their facial expressions are superbly animated. The opening is also well animated. 6/10

Sound

The soundtrack is really creepy and eerie, which makes the scenes that are scary very tense. The opening is very memorable and fits with the series perfectly. The ending theme is sullen and slow, but it is very memorable and it grows on you. The sound would be flawless if it weren't for an atrocious English dub. It is absolutely horrible, the voice actors try to imitate the Japanese voices and in doing so their voice acting is really horrid and they never come even close to doing some of the best scenes correctly. 7/10

Character

Keiichi is the new kid in Hinamizawa, and is the central protagonist for most of the arcs. He is very boring and uninteresting at first but becomes better developed. He is brave, loyal and a general nice guy. Keiichi has five best friends: Rena, Mion, Shion, Rika, and Satoko. All of the characters have interesting back stories and, unfortunately are all better characters than Keiichi. They are just better developed and more interesting that Keiichi can ever dream to be. Along with these six characters, there are also a few side characters including: Takano, Akasaka, Tomitake, Satoshi, and Ooishi. They aren't very interesting at first glance, but it is interesting to see how they're characters play into the progression of the overall plot. 9/10

Enjoyment: 10/10

Overall

Collectively, Higurashi tells an excellent story and provides a perfect set up for the next season which concludes the story. Higurashi may not be as scary as Insidious, but it does provide some excellent suspense, following interesting characters. As of now Higurashi is licensed by Funimation, however they have said that they will not be distributing Higurashi for release, due to the low sales of the previous license. Although it maybe hard to find, and a little expensive, the only legal way to view Higurashi is by finding the old Geneon license copy. So most likely, you'll have to rely on fan subs and fan dubs for viewing. 9/10

aufderhar.erich - 2013-07-17 18:42:08

This anime is completely crazy. By crazy I mean good. If you like Horror, and can handle blood, I suggest you give this series a try. It's a little confusing at first, but if watch it all the way through, you'll be use to it. The plot is about a boy named Keiichi moving to a small town called Hinamizawa. He becomes friends with four girls named Rena, Mion, Rika and Satako. There a certain festival in which somebody dies the night of and another person goes missing. This anime becomes a complete bloody mess quickly and there's plenty of creepy moments in each episode.

The animation is good, the standard animation in most anime. The animation of the blood and other stuff like that is ok, but could be better.

The sound is amazing and the music fits the mood well. The sound effects are great but can sound choppy at times.

The character development is okay, but the show doesn't reveal much of the characters backstory.

This was my first anime I saw, I actually never heard of anime at the time when I watched this, so I thought I was watching a cartoon, but my friend set me straight and told me that it wasn't. This is probably one of the shows that got me into anime all together, so I can say it's one of my favorites.

NOTE: If you are the weak of heart, don't watch this.

dina90 - 2013-07-15 11:44:30

Higurashi No Naku Koro Ni is the first season of the famous Higurashi (When They Cry) series. The main story is about- Actually no, what is special about Higurashi is that the main story is revealed in the second season.People start watching Higurashi only knowing about a guy, Maebara Keiichi, who moves to Hinamizawa and creepy stuff is supposed to happen next. So until you get to the 2nd season I would totally suggest you not to pay very much attention in the show, but enjoy it instead. It will be gore, lots of blood and numerous crime scenes. That's what Higurashi is all about. If you're into that, just go for it without second thought. But if you're not a fan of animes which include violence and deaths, you're definitely in the wrong path.Also, another feature Higurashi has, is to make you totally confused. One of its specials, actually. But don't worry, if you do as I said and just enjoy the show up to the last episodes, then Higurashi No Naku Koro Ni Kaku (2nd season) is going to answer to all your questions.So now i shall continue to my rating.-Story: 9-Multiple ways of deaths, a lot of creepy behaviours, sources of mystery and of course gore. All that, while at the same time the viewer trys to find out what's going on. Sounds pretty cool, right? :P-Art: 9- -Sound: 9-I found the expressions of the characters the most creepy part of the show. Seriously, when I first checked Higurashi out, I thought: "Some friends/classmates spending time together and having fun, what's wrong with that?"When I decided to try it out, even from the first minute (especially when I got to the opening, which is an AMAZING song) my mind was blown out.Who could imagine that such ordinary faces for an anime would be actually the most creepy and violent ones I've ever seen. Big eyes. Loud laughter. Powerful voice. They all look and behave like that when they turn into their 'creepy side'. That was the most decent about the show which was accompanied with excellent backround music, which I gave it a 9. Epic success.-Character: 8-I mentioned above what I liked about the characters, still not all of them acted like that, not all of them turned into 'mad' ones. Some of them were very week, not understandable to even childish at times. That is according to my opinion, 'cause at the same time someone may relate to a character I didn't even like, so that depends on tastes most. But all of them had a story behind them, a past. Well, I might learned some things from that. And not only me, but every viewer. Trying to overcome your fears, yourself, your mistakes. Trying harder and harder in order to please or thank someone, fighting for someone or even dying for someone. The creators sure would have liked the characters to pass those messages about life to the viewers, and there are many messages like that, referring to family, love, relatioships between people, and many more as well. All I have to say is that they definitely managed to do it.-Enjoyment: 9-I really enjoyed Higurashi and I'm definitely watching it again in the future. It's a really unique anime while it can cause you a mindblown but in a really decent way. I don't know how it does it, but what i know for sure is, that makes me enjoy it and consider it as one of the best animes I have ever watched.-Overall: 9-Well, the truth is that this anime is worth a 10 BUT. I dont think the perfect anime exists and I also believe that each every one has it's own beauty, its own "perfection". So, I will bring my review to its end by saying that Higurashi is an amazing, creepy, gore, mystery and psychological (and horror/thriller as well) anime, giving you the chills by its characters (the most of them), but relaxing you by its art and making you puzzled by its twists and special plot. You should totally give it a chance.*Note 1: Do not drop it if it scares you, you'll miss the whole action and *advice* watch it on day*Note 2: Same goes for if you get confused. You'll never manage to find out the main story of the anime, even if you go to the 2nd season you won't understand anythingIt's a really good anime, so if you intend to start it, please don't drop it for any reason!I am sure you are going to enjoy it, as I did!

kayleigh.nicolas - 2013-06-30 06:13:14

Higurashi season one sure was interesting. A anime like no other. Very confusing at first but that confusion is what gave me the drive to continue on with this anime. It's the mystery that surrounds each and every character's arc that made me as the viewer, wanting more.With all that being said, I was actually very disappointed with the ending. A battle between a girl with a machete and a guy with a bat was really stupid but I guess it had its meanings. He was given many opportunities to overpower her and take the machete but I guess that would defeat the "happy ending", which I dislike. Sadly in reality, that crap would never happen and would drag to the point where she just lets him go. A happy ending for this season is truly something that should have not happen, but I guess that was the purpose of it. To satisfy the viewer, so they don't end up like one of the characters during the season.The only good point about the season finale was how at the very end, I was left guessing that another "arc" popped up again and that is why Rena is all happy back at school and Rika was next on the interviewed list. Thus repeating the cycle of the "never ending June".As for characters, they all had their mental illness and their obsessions, which in return brought the viewer interests. Unfortunately, there was one character I hated with a passion. That character was Keiichi, the male protagonist. I probably dislike him because of his reactions to the certain situations he was in and how they were the opposite of what I would do, but I can't know for certain unless I was put in the same position. However, I can say that he was weak, pathetic and how all that "lovey-dovey" personality is what saved him in the ending is utterly bullshit.Overall, I found the way how the producers divided the anime into different arcs and slowly connected them into a some what big mystery to be very effective. I didn't enjoy how it ended and Keiichi's personality, like how I stated previously but I guess they were essential towards the pacing of the story. So in the end, a 8.6/10 for me and since I can't give that decimal number, it'll be rounded up to a 9/10 stars.

schiller.omari - 2013-06-23 13:20:42

Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni was my favorite anime a long time ago. While not even being in my top 5 anymore, Higurashi is still a good show that I think everyone should check out.

This story is told in arcs that last for 4 episodes each and when you first start this series, everything seems normal. It looks as though nothing could possibly go wrong, yet if you don't know what's coming, you'll find yourself surprised by how quickly things take a turn for the worst.

Part of this surprise is thanks to the art style. The animation may seem too cute for some, but I think it suits the show rather well since the show itself has a tendency to go from cute to horrifying. In fact, I'd say part of Higurashi's charm is its ability to quickly go from being a cute slice-of-life to a horrifying mystery and the art does a great job of expressing this.

Like with most shows, the soundtrack is very hit and miss with me. But I can safely say it has a good soundtrack that most people will enjoy. My favorite song is actually Naraku no Hana from the second season, but there are some good songs in the first season as well.

Overall I give this show a 9/10 and I recommend it to anyone that likes horror, mystery, or a combination of the two. If you give it a try though, I suggest watching at least 4 episodes before deciding to drop it.

ernie71 - 2013-05-24 19:30:18

My first review.I didn't plan to watch it in first place, but so many people have recommend it to me, so i gave it a chance. Here is what I thinking about it.Story: 8First of all the story is simple, but it's good. In my opinion it has a great potential, however it wasn't exploited all of it. The mysteries wasn't so deep and dark as I have expected.Art: 6The art is general good, the characters were ok and the background pretty. As a matter of fact is don't fits here, the colors are way too bright and all of the characters looks for me funny because of the genre of it.Sound: 10Simply amazing. The music were beautiful and the voice actors were great too. Characters: 4All characters were so... boring. I didn't even started to like them a bit. For me they were only a decoration. Enjoyment: 5Consequently for what i have written about the characters, I wasn't able to enjoy it so much. Therefore there were so scenes who I have really enjoyed the show.Overall: 6To putt it in a nutshell, it wasn't great show, but it was fine. I was a little annoyed of the art and the characters, but it wasn't so bad.

pgrimes - 2013-05-16 22:31:31

I'm caught between giving this series a 7 or an 8. I'm leaning towards 7 and I'll tell you why. At the time of writing I've only watched this season, not ni kai, ni rei, etc. Some background the structure for this show. The story is told through short arcs, each arc focuses on a main character, and each arc is a retelling of the story from that characters point of view, albeit the plot changes through each. Each arc has its focus character go insane and tells what would happen from there.The show starts out in Keiichi POV, as he meets the characters and they are introduced. After a few episodes the plot starts showing up. The story is told very well with each arc, or better referred to as iteration of the story, developing it further. After 2 or so arcs the stories begin to intertwine. This is the point that starts subtracting from its points. The arcs are very short, ranging from 6 or so episodes at the most and 3 at the least. Some characters arcs like Satako's and Rena's feel rushed, while others like Rika and Keiichi's feel dragged out. Satako's also seems to end rather abruptly.The story would have a lower score would it not be for Shion/Mion's arc, which is probably the longest arc. It takes care two characters, Mion and her twin sister Shion. It does a great job telling the backstory of both and has alot of twists to make thing interesting. The torture scenes in it are not just there to add more blood. Alot of story is told there and by far is the most entertaining arc. They try to throw in a cheesy love plot between shion and another protaganist's brother, but its rushed and just glue to hold the episodes together.The Art is well drawn and the gore is also, whats shown anyway. Part of the creepiness of the game (inspirational for the show) was that it would just play grotesque sounds and your mind would do all the work imagining what was happening. The Anime stays true to this by just showing a character stab at something off screen and play impact sounds of flesh opening and bones splintering. Other than that the art isn't anything ground breaking and typical of any medium-high production value anime. That wraps up both art and sound. In short the story is good, if a bit rushed, and the end doesn't give a satisfactory explanation, but that for later seasons to do. The art is not anything special and the sound is creepy as we've come to expect. Characters are well developed and its worth watching if just to please the sadistic part of every person. Also for those of you wondering, the dub is very well done and worth checking out.

houston.hettinger - 2013-04-25 22:18:23

I don't quite know what to say about Higurashi'?The series kicks off with a very odd begining, yet then morphs into a sweet series featuring a group of friends enjoying eachothers company. Not for long however, certian characters harbour dark secrets, negitivity rubs off on all!Set in the 80s, Higurashi no naku koro ni (I just call it Higurashi) features a range of interesting characters, each with their own odd personality quirks that fit into the story perfectly.Higurashi' is a tale of; mystery and suggestion, with referances to demons, sacrafices and douplegangers which are never confirmed, leaving you in susspence and a state of confusion?Higurashi' is a truely gripping, well thought out series. I myself am still watching and wondering... "What's going on?"Must watch, must read.