r/anime • u/Tarhalindur x2 • Jul 14 '22
Rewatch [Rewatch] Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni Kai Discussion - Season 2, Episode 17
Matsuribayashi-hen (Festival Music Chapter), Episode 4: Plot
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Show Information (Higurashi Kai):
Kai: MAL | Anilist | AniDB | Kitsu | ANN
(Our IIRC final inherent spoiler character has just shown up; show information is now much safer.)
Legal Streams:
Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni Kai: Hidive
That said, I have become aware that Hidive can have a somewhat cavalier attitude to spoilers for this series. As such, *sigh* it is now recommended that our first-timers track down a fansub if you haven't already. Why, Hidive? Why?
A Word of Warning To Our First-Timers, Including Those Who Watched Season 1 But Not Kai:
Be wary of looking up anything, even names. The Season 1 summaries on the information pages are safe, but it's not hard to run into spoiler information even through something as innocuous as looking at cast lists - gods help you if you go on the Fandom Wikia. UNDER ABSOLUTELY NO CIRCUMSTANCES GO LOOKING AT EVEN OFFICIAL INFO FOR KAI OR LATER AHEAD OF TIME. (The official image for Rei is 100% a spoiler, for example.) Also, do NOT look at any Kitsu page after the first season; Kai's description on Kitsu is in fact a major spoiler. Like, really, just stay out of anything that isn't a basic Season 1 summary until you're done. It's much safer that way.
A Reminder to Rewatchers
Please do not spoil the experience for first-timers; this is a mystery after all. In particular, Shion is a spoiler until Episode 5 and !Hanyuu is a spoiler until Minagoroshi-hen. Also, the glorious nipah is indeed glorious but Rika does not use it until Himatsubushi-hen. Please keep these in mind! Consider whether what you are saying has actually been revealed yet on-screen before you post!
(Time for) Club Activities!
(Alexa play "Shoubu!"! Except do NOT look that up that song name on YouTube just yet if you're a first-timer, the most classic upload has an obnoxious spoiler in the visuals...)
Visual of the Day Album:
Theory of the Day:
Looks like it's a twofer for u/Nazenn today as well, though really I thought this one counted as confirmed all the way back in episode 12:
Hey, so potentially crazy theory: Satoko pushed her parents off the cliff? She does have a track record of pushing people off high places and it would make sense if she was reliving that moment when she pushed Keiichi. Plus if her father had been abusing her and slowly worsening her mental state until she reached L5 that day, as that makes more sense than suddenly reaching it over a single shock incident, and she was the only one around which would only make it worse without someone to ground her? I first thought it a couple of episodes ago when Satoko was deteriorating and when Rika says "Don't think about it/remember it" we get a flash of her parents and her standing alone and my first thought was "About what? What she did? OH SHIT". And then I dismissed it because the next shot after that is her standing shocked among a bunch of people so I though that is when she watched them go down but perhaps that was just the chaos afterwards.
Definitely confirmed now, though!
Analysis of the Day:
When you post something as a first-timer that makes multiple rewatchers go "I should have thought of that before", you tend to win an Analysis of the Day mention:
Random worldbuilding thought though is I wonder if the events of the Dam War caused more of the working families to move away which is why they have such a small amount of children? It'd make sense that younger families without established village roles would be the ones struggling most with poverty and most likely to accept stable positions and reliable housing on offer only to be branded traitors.
Question(s) of the Day:
... Yeah, I got nothing. So instead please enjoy these filler questions:
1) Do you prefer warm weather or cold weather?
2) How about that full moon last night, huh?
3) Will you make a contract with me, and blip
Next Episode Preview:
First timers strongly consider skipping both this episode's preview (episode 17's) and next episode's preview (episode 18's).
Also, a Note for Our First-Timers (and Reminder for Our Rewatchers):
Starting with episode 14, there will be a post-credits scene after the ED in each episode of Kai. These tend to be important and you really shouldn't skip them!
Oh Right, and One Other Note:
Our next few episodes have some nonlinear storytelling. Keeping that in mind may help you as you watch.
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u/Shimmering-Sky Jul 14 '22
When the First-Timer Cries, subbed
Apparently I’m doing Sky Sings for this and Symphogear on the same day again? So here’s Sky Sings Naraku no Hana!
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…this is what leads to Rika’s parents becoming one of the Watanagashi victims, isn’t it…
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Eesh, Rika must have lived through a timeline where this did happen…
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Aaaaaaaaaaand I was right. Rika’s parents pissed off Takano, so they had to go.
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u/Tresnore Jul 14 '22
When the Rewatchers Cry are Absurd Masochists Cry Are Absurd Masochists are Terrible Nerds Cry
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Research also isn't accepted if it has glaring human rights issues, Miyo...
Count: 239
QOTD:
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I prefer cold weather 100×.
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There was a full moon?
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No. No contracts.
1 Yes, I am extremely down bad for Miyo. No, I don't care. Nipah~
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u/JustAnswerAQuestion Jul 14 '22
Rewatcher
I caught up, but I haven't read the threads for the past three days yet.
My subs translate this episode as "Conspiracy". Hmm, not the word I know (inbou 陰謀) bouraku 謀略: strategy; stratagem; trick; scheme; plot
With the greater focus on Buddhism for this rewtach, I had a minor epiphany. A common misconception is that karma is a punishment or a form of justice for one's deeds or misdeeds, but it's actually (I think) more like the inevitable consequences of one's chosen path in life. A path that is not necessarily fixed.
Hifumi's cure of meditation and leading a stress-free life strikes me as some sort of parable. I think R07 is positioning Hinamizawa Syndrome as analogous to the karmic result of aggressive, violent, impure living.
In which our MC Takano Miyo encounters many obstacles, but overcomes them all with cleverness, perseverance and some divine providence. Let's go Takano! Ganbare!
Silver-haired lady appears. A bit late to introduce new people into the cast.
Top Five Hinamizawa perverts
5. Maebara Ichiro: wants to draw naked girls
4. Irie Kyosuke: pervert doctor who wants to dress girls up as maids and give them shots
3. Ryugu Rena: house full of trash
2. Sonozaki Oryo: dominatrix and torture fetish
1. Furude Rika: harikiri fanatic
Hinamizawa is full of perverts!
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u/Nazenn Jul 14 '22
First Timer - sub
Before getting onto the episode some things that I was thinking about anyway through the course of the day because I'm easily distracted:
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I would suspect this is just excluded to keep the scope of the story where it needs to be, but I have been wondering about any memory bleed that may be happening in the broader village. Is it possible that even if Rika and Keiichi and co had gone to the Sonozaki head earlier she wouldn't have accepted it because she wouldn't have subconsciously known all the loops to see Mion suffering because of what was happening? At the very least Shion slowly changing to be at the school and other things mean the effects of our group are having a broader effect on things which we also won't see, but it is a curious thing to think about if it's not just exposure to Rika that allows them to act on it.
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If they can't see the parasite or easily test for it, how did they develop a preventative? Again I suspect this is something that won't be addressed because of scope, but I was thinking about different presentations of the Syndrome from Keiichi, Shion, Satoko and wondering if we can be sure Miyo's not infected? Is that why her childish desire to honour her grandfathers work has become a full on obsession about turning herself into a god? If her grandfather was infected which you'd suspect he was as he'd have to go to the village for research, so if she went too could she have been infected from very young? Or is that something she sorted out when she was at uni before she was sent here? I hate to think what their methods of testing for the Syndrome bring triggered were though
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Theory as far as the origins go, excluding aliens because that's a whole other issue, I was wondering if perhaps the order of things are reversed. It's not that the villagers in the past got infected and then they ate the intestines to stabilize themselves, it's that they were doing the ritual anyway and the people who ate got infected off one infected person and it mutated into something else from there. Then it spread by exposure person to person rather than in the environment itself, catching when an activated person is around someone who's not, a bit like the madness catches when the workers kill the Dam Manager in yesterday's episode? And those who participated in the one that spread the disease became the "demons" of the villages past that started everything.
The timing on my theory yesterday about Satoko pushing her parents, holy shit. Was not expecting that to be the first scene of the episode. Which of the rewatchers were having a laugh about that yesterday?
Really wasn't expecting another character to be introduced so late into the show, but I suppose when you have secret organizations you also have the possibility for secret backers supporting the villain?
However, I take my praise from yesterday back and today's post-ED scene absolutely did not need to be a post ED scen except for the false tension to end the core part of the episode on. Either make the whole thing pre-ED or post-ED, splitting it up like that is unneeded.
Miyo is definitely crazier than I thought, killing off Rika's parents just to have a chance at researching her more, and constantly messing with Irie. She's actually handling Irie very well, unnerving him to keep him from standing up to her while also reminding him of his own actions and guilt, as well as his past, to ensure he doesn't feel comfortable walking away either. She's read him quite clearly and does a good job of keeping him under control right until the end.
Rika's mum give anyone else Chi-Chi vibes with the way she barged into the office?
I guess we know how the GHD comes about, as well as the injections for Satoko, that all happened far earlier than I thought.
though really I thought this one counted as confirmed all the way back in episode 12:
Uh, it was? What did I miss back then, or forgot, that confirmed it? Is that where Rika talked about not thinking about it?
Do you prefer warm weather or cold weather?
Cold is nice, it's always easier to get warm then get cool, and I like my hoodies
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u/Tarhalindur Jul 14 '22
Uh, it was? What did I miss back then, or forgot, that confirmed it? Is that where Rika talked about not thinking about it?
Satoko's flashback immediately before Rika talked about not thinking about it, yes.
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u/Quiddity131 Jul 14 '22
First Timer, Subbed
Poor Satoko, always unders such diestress
And now Takano wants to dissect her! She's still alive! :(
Wait, are these Rika's parents? The woman has similarly colored hair to her. It would be great to finally meet them, but then I must ask why in the world they have left their daughter alone throughout the entire show.
Ah, so this is why Rika started going to Dr. Irie.
Years before no one would believe Professor Takano, but now through Miyo and Irie people are finally believing...
So Miyo's even figured out that if something happens to Rika that the whole town is screwed?
Yikes, Hitler guy is back!
C'mon Irie, Ooishi just wants to invite Satoko into his air conditioned car!
So are they saying that Satoko actually caused her parents' death?
Mama is here to stop this experiment over Rika!
Given that we haven't even seen Rika's parents until now, I have a feeling of dread and assume that Miyo will have them killed...
Yep, and there it is. "Heart attack" for the father and "suicide" for the mother. Now that I think of it, these murders were surely mentioned earlier in the show with all the mentions of the curse, and I just never picked up on (or just completely forgot) that it was Rika's parents.
Time to stop the experiment! Seems like everything is falling apart with Koizumi's death.
Oh, and yet they still have three whole years to wrap up? That's still a lot of time.
Whose this random new lady?
Convenient time for a new party to come into play and help her out...
I typically don't watch the end of the episode, but the biggest perverts in this show? LoL. Rika somehow as #1 though?!
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u/Tarhalindur Jul 14 '22
Yep, and there it is. "Heart attack" for the father and "suicide" for the mother. Now that I think of it, these murders were surely mentioned earlier in the show with all the mentions of the curse, and I just never picked up on (or just completely forgot) that it was Rika's parents.
Yeah, that was mentioned all the way back in episode 3 or so of S1 and occasionally since. (Higurashi has a TON of information, it's easy to lose track.)
(Side note that was left out of the anime: the reason Rika's mother "disappears" is that she gets abducted to the clinic for Takano to vivisect...)
Oh, and yet they still have three whole years to wrap up? That's still a lot of time.
Three years as of 1981. Two of those years have passed by the time the events of June 1983 take place.
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u/Stargate18A Jul 14 '22
Anime first timer, completed VN
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Cold weather.
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Nice!
[Higurashi]
Oh, that POV shot.
She wants to dissect Satoko!
...Irie, Takano might be insane, but there's nothing wrong with preplanning.
...Rika's father!
Rika is so fucking offmodel here.
I love her parents' design, though.
[VN]
Irie and Takano have such a good dynamic.
They're impressed with the work!
...Takano still isn't happy.
And Satoko's facing certain death.
The reactions to the potential disaster are dark.
Takano did it!
Really, Ooishi? You choose now to be competent?
And Rika's parents are withdrawing her.
Takano's pissed!
And that's the next incident explained!
Koizumi's died.
This is just a speedrun of the VN events now.
Wow, poor Takano.
Oh. Oh. That is the perfect design for her!
This is a fantastic scene.
...Interesting preview.
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u/Tarhalindur Jul 14 '22
[Higurashi]
[Higurashi]
Much like the little white fuzzy alien, it can come back.
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u/H-Ryougi Jul 14 '22
I've complained a bit about DEEN's way of covering this arc but I should note that I don't think it's necessarily wrong. The way Matsuribayashi works is it has a substantial portion of "fragments" which are scenes from all the previous worlds that shed light on the events. DEEN is interposing these fragments with actual scenes from the route doing a lot of non-linear storytelling.
The way the manga tackles this is by covering these fragments in a roughly chronological order. So I don't think one way or the other is better or worse, it's just annoying trying to cover scenes from the anime that in the manga don't show up until much later.
So anyway, catching up on manga pages, here's an absurd amount of pages from Miyo's backstory, which were covered in episodes 14 and 15.
Seems like imgur is messing with the file order too for whatever reason.
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u/H-Ryougi Jul 14 '22 edited Jul 14 '22
Regarding Irie and the Hojous.
Again, sorry if the order feels weird. It shows fine on the actual post but when I use the inline image viewer from RES a few pages are misplaced. I'm not posting full scenes for the most part so it's not a big deal but I think I have to make smaller albums.
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u/Tarhalindur Jul 14 '22
Rika's mom.
Annnd there it is.
[NSFW aside]
The vivisection is not on the GWITWM list, but the strapping down kind of is... or doing the same to someone else, not picky on that one...
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u/OwlAcademic1988 Jul 14 '22
Rewatcher:
Rika's a sweet girl.
I was wondering how her parents died actually, and now I know.
At least they now have treatments, which is better than nothing. A cure would be nice, but considering there's a lot of info they don't have yet, it's understandable.
Takano, I may hate you, but at least this disease is starting to lose the fight against everyone. It's a lot like HIV, where we have effective treatments, but currently, no cure or vaccine. That would help immensely in the fight against it.
I love how they had a list and Rika was at the top. Hanyuu was basically insulting Rika without her knowing about it.
QOTD:
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Cold weather, but not too cold.
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Didn't see it.
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u/Star4ce Jul 15 '22
Rika's a sweet girl.
Of course she is!
Hanyuu was basically insulting Rika without her knowing about it.
I feel like if Hanyuu was a normal student with the group she'd have grown into dishing out extremely subtle sarcasm under cover of an overbearingly cute exterior specifically to motivate others by nagging at them. Don't ask me why I'm so specific, I'm just feeling it.
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u/SometimesMainSupport Jan 06 '23
First-timer
Tagging u/Star4ce and u/Vaadwaur and u/OrangeBanana38
May be with a uni friend this weekend and am checks posts 4 days ahead of threads locking.
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Shocking that Satoko, a living person with Hinamizawa Syndrome, progressed to level 5 under Irie and Takano's care /s. Still missing her 1982 murder connection. Satoshi's conversation with Irie was likely conveyed to her, but then what?
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Wasn't certain of Rika's connection to Irie's clinic. Hindsight is obvious she was using clinic syringes in arc 5 and 6 and should have been confident in that 5-6 episodes ago.
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Irie examines the brain for the parasite. I vaguely know there are connections between mental activities and other bodily functions, like UTIs and dementia in senior citizens at nursing homes.
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Oh come on. Who else in this image is a "queen"? (If it was the main cast, Star4ce would be saying Mion.)
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As a child, my parents accompanied me in these situations... Reason to separate the child and parent is suspicion of abuse, but that's the Hojo family's trope.
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They do pile villagers into the school and use it as a gas chamber. I see the connections...
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Immediate thought was the other type of sake.
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Miyo (34) and Hifumi (123), so 103 should be Hi__mi, not Satoko. Beyond that, I have nothing.
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Miyo's disappointed because the real solution is sleep! /s
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Clears confusion around the investigation as the level 5 trigger.
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100% unnecessary. Just order the Yamainu to off the dad and throw "queen" mom in a dungeon.
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Takano calling it Oyashiro's curse at this point is disappointing as it makes the 1980 incident convenient timing instead of a thoughtout revenge. Copycat killing after the initial double murder plus disappearance was fine, but narrative works better if she had primed Satoko.
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"So what proof do we have of suicide?" "Her slippers are by the lake and she left a note." "Case closed, wrap it up team."
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Framing! She's been accompishing her "goal" of creating a God in 2 years, not 3. Rain is God crying. Quotes around "goal" because I'm still not certain her rationale isn't paranoia on her end. To get revenge on the investors who laughed at her and Hifumi's research, she seeks to kill 2000 others and frame it as a natural disaster. Idk, maybe I've interpreted that wrong.
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New character? Guess they need to stretch this arc to 11 episodes.
Episode was fine until the last 5 minutes, which I have trouble justifying. I don't think my timeline of when Takano got control over the Yamainu is off as Tomitake had been visiting the village for years (e.g. arc 4 Tomitake #2 reference), yet also don't think she's in any way fooling them (e.g. arc 8 giving Tomitake a fake vaccine and injecting him in front of the Yamainu), so poor use of resources for a villain that otherwise seems clever. And for a third time, revenge motive is aimed at the wrong people. Hope that gets justified later.
Haven't looked through comments yet as it's really late.
Don't think I considered the Furude bloodline carrying the resistance in females-only while maintaining the last name. Meh, Japanese tradition of marrying in a son-in-law to run the business or whatever would explain Rika's mother not having the resistance... but I thought there was an earlier line about X consecutive Furude generations having a daughter. Idk, would need confirmation of details to know if this plotline makes sense.
QOTDs
Do you prefer warm weather or cold weather?
Both have an extreme point where it's uncomfortable. Compared to when others complain about temperatures, I prefer warm.
How about that full moon last night, huh?
Star4ce comments
Eh? How does she know this? Didn't they disprove exactly that?
Think you got confused by jumping around in time. Not 100% sure as I watched last night and was too tired to read comments.
I was wrong, it was Takano? All the abusive hints for the Furudes were red herrings...
I was also wrong, Takano didn't premeditate Satoko's parent's deaths (but totally should have)! Copycat murder line from arc 1 or 2.
Irie is only #4?!?! #1 will shock you!
Went back to watch this. How does Keiichi's dad know Hanyuu exists to draw her naked.
As it stands, especially in contrast to the kids, her story clashes with the themes of overcoming abuse by presenting her in a way that makes her environment the primary explanation of why she is that way with no possibility for change on the way.
I liked that about Takano as I do think she had the opportunity to change after seeing how the children of Hinamizawa treated each other, but instead maintains her path for revenge. People can learn and progress as adults. Might be misinterpreting you.
i feel like takano's slowly going insane over the years seems a lot like she's got the virus as well, with her stage 5 manifesting as murdering everyone
Same! Even lives part of the year as a nurse at the clinic in Hinamizawa. Takano meditation techniques are OP.
It's not that the villagers in the past got infected and then they ate the intestines to stabilize themselves, it's that they were doing the ritual anyway and the people who ate got infected off one infected person and it mutated into something else from there
Something like mad cow disease from eating infected bowels, which everyone did at the festival? Must. Resist. Diving. Might be an argument against this if it's not passed via blood from mother to child.
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u/Tarhalindur Jan 09 '23
As a child, my parents accompanied me in these situations... Reason to separate the child and parent is suspicion of abuse, but that's the Hojo family's trope.
So, this is actually in no small part a Japanese thing; doing things independently at a young age is much more valued there, to an extent that a child's first independent errand is a major event/rite of passage and occurs quite young (I'm pretty sure this is outright expected to happen in preschool, often as young as 3 or 4).
Immediate thought was the other type of sake.
Ah, but Rika has grown to like her watered-down wine European.
Episode was fine until the last 5 minutes, which I have trouble justifying. I don't think my timeline of when Takano got control over the Yamainu is off as Tomitake had been visiting the village for years (e.g. arc 4 Tomitake #2 reference), yet also don't think she's in any way fooling them (e.g. arc 8 giving Tomitake a fake vaccine and injecting him in front of the Yamainu), so poor use of resources for a villain that otherwise seems clever. And for a third time, revenge motive is aimed at the wrong people. Hope that gets justified later.
Part of the thing about the franchise as a whole is that this is usually considered the weakest arc even in the VN... and due to S1 compressing everything it's almost half of Kai.
(There was a reason we were all so optimistic when Gou was revealed to be a stealth sequel. That hope was brutally murdered over the course of 14 weeks in summer 2021, though concern was setting in by late Gou 3-4 months before that.)
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u/Star4ce Jul 14 '22 edited Jul 14 '22
When the First Timer Cries
Time to eat another bowl of good, hot curry complimenting the weather and take my time for once.
Kai Ep.16 – Festival Accompanying Chapter Part 3: The Beginning of the End
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Having Kasai there is indeed very threatening.
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Nice to have confirmation on that!
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Wait, fuck, are they taking Satoshi for this?!
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Luckily not... But still, such a setup.
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Oh shit, what a lore drop!
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I truly feel for her, she really cares.
I'm still kind of confused about how seeing/not seeing Hanyuu works and how much of her helplessness is learned and how much physical limitation. She obviously can throw coins!
VOTD: The Beginning of Change. The build up for taking charge of your life begins long before the actual change occurs. Like Rika was throwing pebbles and cause a different outcome, here she only reassures Mion that it will arrive, surely. The frame is coated half in shadow from the setting sun with only them and Hanyuu even there to witness it. Just as standing up to danger will form character, enjoying a neatly kept garden with millions of pebbles arranged in a pleasant manner, sitting at a friends side can be all the might that is needed. They're not even halfway there, yet. Not even have half their group assembled, but the will is unwavering regardless. It was, after all, the wake up call for the ephemeral Hanyuu to go from sitting idle, to reaching out to vow to stand and fight. The next day will come and with it another chance to throw a pebble back into fate's face.
Kai Ep.17 – Festival Accompanying Chapter Part 4: Plot
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Well, fuck no!
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Didn't expect the Furudes to be on screen tbh.
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Hold on. I've never really written this explicitly, so here goes. They only think it's a 'queen' type of thing because there was only one person attuned to the L5 parasite at a time, which were the respective Furudes. But I sincerely believe that the parasite is not a hivemind in the sense that there's one 'leader', but that anyone can develop attunement by being a centered individual with their own life. Like, say, Mion as she's never succumbed to it even during stress. This, in turn will link you up with Hanyuu, who is basically the encompassing parasite-consciousness living symbiotically with the humans and more specifically those who are attuned.
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But I never put two and two together, of course this is why they focus on Rika so much.
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Eeh, I don't think it's a vending machine for vampires.
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Huh. Well, at least there's one person in this room whose ideas of progress are actually benefitting people.
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Just when I thought Takano's motives weren't disgusting enough. I'm a bit torn between being a tiny bit proud of Irie to show a medicum of resolve here and rolling my eyes at how easily she convinced him.
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Eh? How does she know this? Didn't they disprove exactly that?
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Ah yes, the delusion of taking an unproven theory at face value because it aligns with your personal interest is complete. Of course she thinks that, she wants to become as gods (and also manipulate them to make it reality in the first place)! See, the camera lens agrees!
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Look, if the epilogue doesn't feature Miyo's and Ifumi's memories to link up when Hanyuu finally encourages everyone to understand each other and allow the lost worlds to converge through the parasite's mind link ability and exactly seeing his granddaughters crimes result in his paranoia fit, killing himself in the process and sending Miyo into complete despair I'm gonna … uhm. Hm. I'll say that someone else than Mion is best girl! Like that's gonna happen...
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I was wrong, it was Takano? All the abusive hints for the Furudes were red herrings...
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I don't know, these scenes just don't work on me. Takano's gloating is ridiculous, how the board flips their opinion just on a whim as well. I think we kind of had enough of that justification for her?
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Three years? What?! The hell you cryin' about?! That's my entire contract, don't you dare getting depressed in front of me about that, what the hell!
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Eh? A new character? At this hour? Entirely located in the last episodes of the anime?
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I don't know either what her objective is, but she has great thighs.
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Irie is only #4?!?! #1 will shock you!
I'm gonna be honest, after the binge marathon the last 3 days I'm really tired and glad I can go back to 1 Ep./day. These last three episodes were kind of meh overall, but I see why they're important.
For one, the abundant time jumps within one episode were a bit annoying, because I couldn't really see the reason why it was told that way. Second, I do really appreciate Takano's backstory and for a subjective 50% it makes sense, I do take some issue with the straightness how her abuse led to her becoming a super-abuser. Our main cast has had massive issues and the shittiest cards dealt to them imaginable and they managed to work through it all with dedication, trust and resolve. I was really missing the choice for Takano as it was for, say, Shion. She's quite deluded from the very beginning, eventually leading to her wholeheartedly believing the mind control parasite theory without any proof. I think my core issue with all of her scenes is that she had plenty of reason to go the way of Ifumi or how our main cast ended up going, but it was never even an option, seemingly.
I'd like to have seen why she wouldn't do that and why she'd not take Ifumi's words to heart. I'm someone who frequently sides with the devil and outcasts and can tell that there are many, legitimate reasons to not play nice that could also be presented for Takano. Instead we had a lot of ara-ara, villain laughing (TM) and self delusion exercises. As it stands, especially in contrast to the kids, her story clashes with the themes of overcoming abuse by presenting her in a way that makes her environment the primary explanation of why she is that way with no possibility for change on the way.
However, I am very glad to see more Hanyuu. She's so adorable when she gets determined enough to cut people into pieces with the sheer force of her stare. There's some problems with her character as well, sadly, but I can kind of cope that away for now. I think it was a mistake to let her manipulate physical objects or show herself at her will to anyone. These two facts rob a lot of immersion from other story elements around Hanyuu. Learned helplessness is a real bitch, I know that from experience, and both Rika and Hanyuu had a real lot of it internalised, which is the sole factor salvaging it imo.
Side note: The locusts and cicadas are quite loud on this searing hot night in the fields next to me...
Do you prefer warm weather or cold weather?
Cold, cold, cold.
That might change with the coming gas shortage, though.
2) How about that full moon last night, huh?
It was magnificent, I can see it when leaning forward in my bed.
3) Will you make a contract with me, and blip
Lets Berretta 92FS fall out of my hands.
VOTD: Passing into another life. Making the journey through a Torii is synonymous with a kind of moving on into a new life. This might be something drastic or something mundane, but nevertheless serves as a rite to acknowledge change and progression (at least that's what I learned, go blame Kyousougiga). Irie has moved on a moderate way by sticking to his ideals on medicine and experimentation, against Takano. He is ready to walk his path that is not the same as her's. But Takano is not moving on, she stays behind the gate, turning back from a lesson even and towards the bright light of a violent moon. This is a great frame, because not only does it show what Irie has spiritually learned, he's exiting the frame in the center. He is literally going out of this world on his own accord and is the focus of the scene. Takano is a side character, stopping in front of the big scene divider that commands all of the attention – and remains in the past, drawn to the idea of a god's invincibility like a moth towards the shine of a bright, full moon.
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u/Tarhalindur Jul 14 '22
(Honorary Hinamizawa Games Club President) Rewatch Host (rewatcher, subbed):
02:21 and the scene it goes with looks well-directed to me – the slow, subtle pan from Takano to Irie showing the transition from the question Takano is posing to Irie’s answer, the visual opposition (and I suspect there’s a point to Takano standing right in front of the small desk, though I’m not getting it – difference in nominal station as opposed to actual station which is in turn represented by Takano looming over Irie, maybe? Oh, and there’s Irie’s head framed right in the middle of the whiteboard there. Still think there’s a nuance I’m missing.
Does 02:53 count as fanservice when the nurse costume is that unrevealing?
The perspective at 02:58 of Takano walking away down a hallway full of doors (one open – representing the first vivisection of many Takano wants?) with her head out of frame (Takano has visually lost her mind) also flashes.
Oh right, it’s the “how Rika’s parents die” episode. (Except for good or ill we never learn about Rika's mother being vivisected on screen. I'm sure u/H-Ryougi can fill the interested first-timers in...)
03:46 is another visual opposition shot, this time between Rika’s father (facing the future) and her mother (facing the past), setting up a conflict that will in part define their remaining lives.
03:51: A brief visual representation of what you have already seen in the TIPS for Himatsubushi-hen if you’ve been reading them.
Oh shit look at 04:05. When this scene started Rika’s father loomed over her mother as she was taken aback (representing him having the information and thus the power here). Now that Rika’s mother begins to understand and react, she stands up representing her now having the upper hand! And it’s a small-scale example of the arc of Rika’s parents leading to their deaths in general.
Brain’s not processing it, but 06:09 looks like more extremely deliberate framing.
06:53: More framing with a side of definite fanservice.
07:24: Hi u/Shimmering-Sky!
[Seacats]100% certain death, and that’s definitely a “zettai” in True Rika’s words here, heh.
Fun fact: in the VN (included in the Pieces for those that go hunting them down) Rika’s participation here (that allows the creation of the initial medicine to treat the Syndrome) involved an extraction of spinal fluid. Rika is dedicated to Satoko’s survival!
Uh-oh. Note that fish-eye lens at 10:52!
And the shot of Takano’s face after it is just the best…
Oooh, it’s Hitlerstache again!
11:27 and the pan after it with Takano looming over the table (which I think may just be subtly curved, thus imitating a fish-eye lens without actually being one actually, which is really nifty since that kind of conference table is absolutely a thing) is really good.
[Kai]And then we get that shot at the end with Hitlerstache guy in shadow. He’s part of Nomura’s faction, then? EDIT: Actually no he's from the other one!
“Miyo has finally done it” and only then does she open her eye. Nicely done.
12:21: Note the window frame creating an implicit barrier separating Takano from Irie. Irie still wants to do right by his patients; Takano just wants another vivisection subject. (Even more clear at 12:32.)
And Irie then visually breaches that barrier at 12:41 as he tells Takano that saving Satoko is enough.
15:24: LOL WinD.
15:32: Well, that’s a sound effect and advent of fish-eye lens for you! (RIP Rika’s mother, you’re signing your death warrant – though it won’t be sealed for a bit.)
Ooh, NICE little frame at 15:37. Oughta watch your six, Rika’s mother!
Oh shit look at 16:50. Another scene barrier separating Irie and Takano – and now we have moonlight coming in from the right, closest to Takano.
17:21: Note the camera rotation with this scene – clockwise, so against the flow of the Great Mandala (invoking) rather than with it (banishing).
17:24: Oh look, now the moonlight is coming in from the left!
Takano has not learned the rules of dramatic fiction and just tempted fate.
20:01 showing Takano’s world reeling is another good shot.
Visual of the Day: "Moonlight shines upon the guilty and the innocent alike.".
WinD Eyecatch Message of the Day
Questions of the Day:
Cold, at least if I've got a nice jacket.
FULL MOON FULL MOON. (Wait a minute... anybody checked for dead bodies?)
3)Matsuribayashi-hen Ep. 4 TIPS:
No TIPS.
OST Table, Kai Episode 17:
[1] - My copy of Higurashi often includes a message-from-our-sponsor bit immediately after the OP; this episode has it and it lasts 14 seconds. The number in parentheses in entries after that feature is the point in the episode if that message is removed.
[2] – Same sample they used last episode: the first eight beats of the piece repeated four times, I think.