Higurashi no Naku Koroni Kai
(When They Cry)

Reviewed by Sean McDonald
March 21, 2007

Director: Chiaki Kon Studio: Studio Deen Distributor: Geneon Entertainment (USA) Inc. Genre: Suspense and Horror Age Rating: Adult (Adult language, nudity, blood, violence) Review Rating: 8 out of 10

On the summer of 1983, Hinamizawa village receives a transfer student named Maebara Keiichi. There, Keiichi joins a small after school club and befriends four girls: Rena, Mion, Rika, and Satoko. As time passes, Keiichi gets to know each of the girls and begins to enjoy his peace peaceful days in Hinamizawa, but all that changes on the night of the Cotton Festival. Suddenly people are found dead and every time Keiichi asks one of his friends about the murders and the history of Hinamizawa village, they act as if they don’t know what he’s talking about. Soon Keiichi starts to feel that his friends are keeping something from him, and as Keiichi digs further into the mystery, his own life starts to get threatened. Could Keiichi’s friends have something to do to with the chain of murders, and if so, are they really his friends or his enemies in disguise?

This anime will catch you off guard. The characters all seem very innocent in their own ways, but you should never judge a book by its cover. The story is broken up into four different chapters. Each chapter seems different from previous one, but toward the end you’ll see that they all tie together… sort of.  The music in this anime is also very good. It brings out the suspense throughout the entire series.

For those who usually complain about how book versions of movies or television series are better, some might want to rethink that about this anime. Although re-edited, the story alone was able to grasp my attention. The artwork of the charters was amazing; I liked how they were able to take fabric patterns or tapestry patterns and outline them as part of the character. The music was kinda dull for the most part, but I guess that is what you would expect from a tragedy.

I gave Higurashi a high Evolution Factor because it’s one of those anime where you can never tell exactly what’s happening and what’s going to happen. The music was perfect for this type of genre, and the character design and artwork weren’t bad either. The series runs for 26 episodes, and the second season is supposed to be coming out in mid-March, so look for it.