Higurashi Chapter One Scared me S***less (A Comprehensive Story Analysis)

[@ImpairedYand3r3]

Finally Higurashi getting the multi hour video essay treatment it deserves. Very good time reexperiencing the story after quite a long time since I last went through this, can’t wait for the next chapter

[@melody.melancholy]

Hey, Higurashi beginners! If the pacing of the vn is a deal breaker, read the manga. I got into the series by reading the manga and then jumping to the vn because I CRAVED MORE.

[@Shuukuriimudaisuki-sama]

45:11 Screw candy, Ooishi offered our boy his ice-cold A/C. Even I would be willing to accept losing a kidney (or worse) for a bit of that sweet, chilly goodness. Plus, I’m pretty sure those seats are super comfy, and he’s probably playing Genesis on his 8-track player.

[@red_cosplay]

The translation of Onikakushi also has that habit of translating "oni" as "ogre", but later it gets changed to "demon". Which is good, because suddenly thinking of Shrek is distracting.

[@justcommoncurt]

Holy hell this made me laugh like crazy 😂

[@mikuenjoyerXD]

I think ogre 👹 is like a Japanese thing folklore

[@Shuukuriimudaisuki-sama]

Rena’s weapon of choice is not strictly an axe, as the English text always calls it, but is a versatile type of tool known as a nata, which can be used as a cleaver or hatchet (there are several shape, size, and style variations).

[@followthewhiterabbit884]

Interesting. I thought the whole time, she held something like a machete.

[@Blarglesnarfe]

I was under the impression it was a BIllhook?

[@Shuukuriimudaisuki-sama]

@@Blarglesnarfe Hmm, you might be thinking of a naginata, which is a spear with a long, sword-like blade, so...that would be kiiiind of similar to a billhook? Nata have short handles, and I have never seen one with that kind of shape, though I suppose there might be a variety like that out there somewhere.

[@Takejiro24]

22:24 - 22:32 Wow. Two pieces of foreshadowing in just 2 lines of dialogue. Clever, clever, Ryu07.

[@historymax5479]

He fixes the slow start issue in Umineko, fortunately. I'm on Chapter 4 now and loving it, though nothing in Umineko that I've encountered yet can compare to the masterpiece that is Higurashi chapter 3.

[@k3salieri]

Chapter 4 of Umineko is my favorite chapter of Umineko so far. (If I ever continue it.) But Umineko doesn't compare to the back to back masterpieces of each Higurashi chapter.

[@Filimaua13]

Hope you continue the Higurashi series. Altho its well known as a fantastic horror and mystery (mostly cos of the anime).. its also at its core, an excellent well written character drama. The more we learn of these characters and see different perspectives with added context to previous chapters, it becomes less scary and more of a dark, sad tragedy and emotional rollercoaster which is something I wasn't expecting when first getting into Higurashi. I didn't expect to get so emotionally affected and even cry from what seemed like a purely simple horror mystery.. but here we are. The author has years of experience as a social worker and you definitely can tell. With the amount of depth and emotional layers to his characters that make them feel more like real people compared to most visual novels. That's what usually makes Higurashi so different from the rest. The psychological horror and character drama aren't too overdramatized and feel very grounded despite also being in a supernatural mystery. You can identify with characters and understand why they come to certain conclusions.. as you see with Keiichi in this first chapter. So many emotions (guilt, hate, self loathing, sadness, angst, betrayal) seen in Keiichi's characterization as his paranoia seeps in the more he starts to feel isolated from his friends and loses trust in them. It all feels so raw and human.. something you just wouldn't be able to pull off easily in writing unless you've had personal experience with that.

[@fawful9992]

36:51 Actually, if you have the voice acting on you might be able to recognize her. When Keiichi goes on the tour of Hinamizawa he actually meets Takano and we hear her voice, although her sprite isn't shown yet.

[@crunter6523]

Interestingly, the huge amount of Slice of Life in the first half of Onikakushi was a reault of playtesting feedback. Ryukishi initially didn't have a solid base of mystery novel readers to show his visual novel to, so the bulk of his testers were visual novel reading otakuish people very deep into Akihabara culture. They kept telling him that they would have preferred more time with the club to deepen the connection with them. Kind of a shame because it feels like 1 less chapter and a more gripping first chapter, would have gone miles to keep people playing the game!

[@MsAnimefan95]

Looking back now, it's pretty wild how much Rena and Mion inadvertently shot themselves in the foot. I'm impressed with the VA for Keiichi, 'cause he actually sounds a decent bit like Grant George, who played Keiichi in the dub of the original anime.

[@Einochii]

Just finished watching the final chapter of this series and oh my god. What a long journey have we gone through, I thank you for making me discover higurashi back in mid 2023, you really opened my eyes in visual novels and how good they are. Wish you luck in your future videos. Kudos!

[@RosieGaga]

Great video! In high school when the anime came out, my friends and i loved it, and we were cosplayers, so we cosplayed as the characters (I was Shion, my friends were Mion, Keichi, Rena, ans Satoko). We walked to a nearby elementary school at night to take pictures "killing each other" (we kept repeating that thinking it was so funny silly), but while playing around and taking pictures, the few lights that were on around the school shut off... so we were left in total darkness!! We shreiked and scrambled to leave the school and ran back home hahahahaha

[@justanotherredheadattheend955]

1:27:48 Man you bet it's us. You did such a good job laying out this story and voicing Mion, when your voice got a little flat a second ago, a corner of my brain reflexively got nervous. Can't wait to go through the rest of these 👏

[@wadejohnston4305]

You and your channel are just fucking great man. The amount of time and work you and your buddies put into these videos has to be astronomical. You're personality also adds that something special that most of the best channels out there have. Thanks for this awesome series!

[@alip9195]

I love hearing people about higurashi VN for me it was the most addictive and immersive visual novel I ever read the music and SFX makes you feel like you you’re part of the story

[@asimplerenafan7695]

9:38 introducing best girl

[@bluevelvxtte]

having known higurashi since i was like,, young, i have always loved the series, whether it be the original or more recent gou/sotsu seasons. seeing people still talking about it and analyzing its story elements, it makes me super happy knowing that the story is still acknowledged

[@FaeLeviathan]

I gotta say, you are a delight to listen to!! Your sytle is so fun and engaging! I also adore a good visual novel analysis. So hype to go through your library of content.

[@fawful9992]

29:20 That is a nata, which is a Japanese tool used for splitting or cutting wood. (Translators have decided to have it be called an axe or a hatchet.)

[@garrettallen7427]

My goodness hedgehog this was increasingly! Please continue to do more of this series! It has me on my toes wondering what’s real and what’s fake and who is behind it! I look forward to more of your amazing analysis of Higurashi!

[@garrettallen7427]

*incredible, damn you auto correct!

[@poodlelova]

I just got into When They Cry and I’m OBSESSED! Thank you for drawing the parallels to Twin Peaks, because this is how I’ve been describing it to my friends, like Twin Peaks mixed with small town Resident Evil and a dash of 80’s slasher! Love your video! Glad I found you! ❤❤❤

[@Rvr221]

Coming from your chapter 5 video and rewatching for the foreshadowing (also I’m so impatient for chapter 6)! Thank you so much for what you do!

[@JordanStar7]

The voice actor for Keiichi is soo good!

[@loaf8506]

im a long time higurashi fan, and onikakushi still gives me the same chills that it did the first time i read it. its too good.

[@Shuukuriimudaisuki-sama]

One thing that I could add for an analysis is this episode’s opening. It might not seem super special in the grand scheme of things, but for me, it’s pretty unique as far as the opening pages of a novel go. Everything about the opening portion is just...so damn ominous. It quickly becomes obvious that SOMETHING rather nefarious is taking place here, but no names are given , no time is given (other than the usual “June, 58th year of the Shouwa Era” bit) and we have nothing concrete to stand on...except this vague sense of something having gone horribly, irreparably wrong. Follow that up with the seemingly-meaningless dream sequence on the train, and you have what appears to be a bunch of nonsense, but OH GOD. The foreshadowing. We’re still tasting this vague and ominous dread when the story suddenly shifts into “school harem rom-com” mode and all is forgotten. But then, at the end (and even beyond this chapter) suddenly things come full circle. Even when you see the pieces start to align, it’s still hard to imagine that things will end up quite this way... Honestly, this had me pretty hooked, in spite of how things sort of dragged out when we got to the slice of life moments. For me, I was already pretty invested from early on (like, the first day of school or the shrine picnic scenes)...but two moments after that also stood out. One was Tomitake’s introduction, with the bit about the murder/missing arm. This is when I knew that, not only was I not going to just flat-out drop the game, but I was not even going to be able to put it down easily. The other major point was Rena listening to Keiichi and Ooishi’s conversation and then disappearing from Keiichi’s house. That scene...made it impossible to even sleep that night. For me, it was already like 3am at the time and I had to be up and at work a couple hours, but that moment had me so terrified I couldn’t sleep at all and had to keep the lights on lol... It just goes to show how much power analog horror has, I guess.

[@satosen8722]

My god my god my god this is so amazing thank you

[@2channelfudanshi]

This is just the higurashi content I've been looking for! Thank you ❤

[@scootie_scoot]

it’s great seeing such love and analysis for the original sound novel! I believe this is the best way to consume the series, especially blind. I finally finished chapter 8 and rei this past week and WOW!

[@scootie_scoot]

I will say, I adore the original sprites and ui of the visual novel, the photobash backgrounds mixed with the cute anime characters is so charming to me

[@reddie1705]

hedgehog, please free me, this is rewatch #4 of the series because this shit is SOME POWERFUL CONTENT 🗣️‼️💯

[@hedgehogsnonsense]

Don't worry, I'm editing the last episode right now!! Shouldn't be too much longer!

[@reddie1705]

@@hedgehogsnonsense you could take 3 more months and I'd keep watching this! These amazing VAs, the deep explanations, the humor and quality; I don't know if I'm gonna stop watching these for a while. If you enjoyed any other content even similar to this, I'm hooked for quite the ride.

[@parallax4475]

Great video

[@hysrae6600]

what a great video!! you and your team did such an excellent job with the voice acting; Rena's first outburst of maniacal laughter in particular literally turned my blood to fucking ICE. thank you for all your hard work, you've definitely earned a sub from me!

[@ABthenC]

I'm mad I didn't find this playlist sooner. Wanted to see an analysis of the series for years now, but Crew on the Sofa stopped after season 1 of the anime and Mr Hunteru hasn't updated the series in a year. Having voice acting, good editing, analysis, a nice sense of humor, etc. is above and beyond what I've been looking for

[@hedgehogsnonsense]

So glad to hear! And you’re just in time to catch the finale. It should be out in the next couple of months! I hope…

[@sabulartemmie344]

"get some sleep tonight" ahahaha i dont think i can! why would you do this to me now im excited for the next chapter but horrified to my core thank you

[@TheBasedGreeg]

I can’t believe you don’t have more subs, this is great! I just finished Chapter 1 last night, and found this video because I wanted to see people talk about it haha

[@100lovenana]

About Keiichi's parents actually existing in the story, unlike other anime were parents are conveniently absent... Ryuukishi still applies the "get rid of the parents/authority figures" trope by making Keichii's parents just coveniently leave to Tokyo for two days without a warning. It just screamed "the plot demands it" when it happened.

[@none62092]

34:06 juuuust realized that this was a bit of forshadowing, I realize this now because I needed a piece of information from the 6th chapter of this series to put it into context… ffffuuuuuuuu

[@hedgehogsmom8705]

Great voice work!

[@FloodOfAnime]

Finally an interesting add

[@historymax5479]

This is giving me flashbacks to Raging Loop...the buildup and the steadily rising horror are just brilliant.

[@technorave555]

Thank goodness I can finally get at least some context as to what's going on lmao

[@technorave555]

Also #humblebrag

[@lonelyblood-cell6818]

just wanted to say good job on the vid its literally what i searched for and more, thank you so mush

[@succo928]

you should've played in the original graphics, for some reason the cute scenes are cuter and the eerie scenes are eerier

[@Ningen8023]

I can't stand how boring the PS2 version looks, the original is rough but have a lot of personality to it, you look at it and immediately know it's Higurashi, it's also much more expressive than the PS2 version. Like you said, it's a artstyle that can be creepy and cute depending on what the situation needs, while the PS2 version just looks like a random anime with no real flavor to it. the "USO DA" Rena from chapter 1 has a disturbing aura to it that can be scary even to someone who looks at the sprite without knowing where it comes from, the PS2 version just can't.

[@lolyoutoobe]

Thank you for making this series, i am not gonna read the vn but wanted to know more about the when they cry series.

[@aceonlyone1800]

Rena's voice in your video fits so well (i am thru my second watch of your series after reading the thing for myself uwu)

[@GunplaDan]

I really like your video essays. I hope you do more based on visual novels. You also have a good radio voice!

[@hedgehogsnonsense]

Thank you kindly! Yep, my plan is for visual novels to be the bread and butter of this channel haha. Currently working on chapter 5 of higurashi, probably just about a month now before it releases

[@moombeam4130]

here after chapter 6 X3

[@sonofalich1825]

rewatching because I'm stuck in a time loop! 😐

[@thebamboozler3339]

I appreciate this. I got up to chapter 5 and then stopped playing for a while so this will help me get back into it.

[@casdy1773]

narration so seamless i assumed it was AI at first ?? this is ur calling

[@AllergyPuppy]

Reading a novel on a ps2 on a crt-tv is one of the most bonkers way I can think of reading something like this. Thoughts and prayers for the eye strain this probably caused.

[@VansLiger]

"I'm not Mion! I'm her twin sister, Shion!"

[@hedgehogsnonsense]

Congrats! You're the first person to find it!!

[@yokoelfvganime8112]

1:06:40 Ooishi jumpscare

[@Flashchocobo]

This was a fun listen for October 😜 Excellent job on this. I can't wait for the other parts. Onikakushi is such a fantastic first chapter and stand alone story. I felt like I read it for the first time again.

[@deltafall4776]

Wow super amazing video! I love watching your interest and view and can’t wait for more!

[@unknown95140]

Wow wonderful work you're the only one who did this on youtube, thank you (+ I agree with the fact that slice of life moments in this chapter are so boring and not really necessary too lol unlike persona 5 for example..)

[@jardejay8804]

This was the show that got me properly into anime. Yeah I watched ones on the TV casually, but higa was the one I searched out and bought the manga for.

[@bluesomxs]

Good God even after knowing the full story it still unnerving and scary

[@red_cosplay]

29:20 As it was pointed out, it's actually a machete-like thing called a nata. It's also sort of exaggerated in size, especially in the anime (you know, like other animes do with boobs n stuff). Reasonably sized, it would look like this: kzbin.info/www/bejne/fnjOe2eth7yFoNE

[@MrWhiteSuit17]

I would love to see a Doki Doki Literature Club breakdown from you. I think you could really do it justice if you also enjoy that game.

[@hedgehogsnonsense]

It is absolutely on my list of things to do! Though it will be incredibly salty haha.

[@saucefreakystyle]

Thank you for this meal

[@Videosyncrasy]

Awesome work, here. Instantly subscribed.

[@chill4059]

Bit late to this vid but only started higurashi visual novel a few months back and already at chapter six!, I don't comment often but love the analysis and I do hope you get round to umineko after higu, also btw love your radio voice!

[@ItsTheCLaUD]

Thanks for letting me help with this btw! It was a great opportunity! Can’t wait to work together again some time!!

[@anmanarrative]

This is awesome! Recently finished Higurashi Rei and was curious to see if anyone had done any analysis on the series (especially the original visual novels, most of the results I got when first searching were on the anime) so I was delighted to find this. Everyone did such a good job with the voice acting and your discussions on story structure is really interesting, if that is a specialty of yours I'll definitely have to check out your other work. Excellent job, it's an instant sub for me and I can't wait to watch the next instalment. Side note, this is my first time seeing this art for Higurashi (playstation version did you say?) And I'm not sure how I feel about it. The sprites are nice, the more traditional visual novel layout is fine, and it is cool getting some full screen art for some scenes, but the backgrounds feel off. Something about having actual art backgrounds rather than the edited photo look doesn't feel right. The original backgrounds made Hinamizawa balance right on the edge of the uncanny valley, real enough to get attached to but easy to become uncomfortable in. Maybe it's just subconscious bias because the steam version was how I experienced this series, it certainly doesn't take away from this amazing video and the art itself is still really nice.

[@hedgehogsnonsense]

Thank you so much!! These are the only really "comprehensive" bits of analysis on the channel right now, but there's plenty of other lil tidbits and I'm currently gathering footage for the third chapter, so obviously more to come! As for the backgrounds, I can totally see that, haha. They do look significantly more generic than the originals. I'm willing to deal with it to look at the much better sprite are haha.

[@mar21863]

could you please make a Playlist with all the videos about higurashi? These are so much fun to watch! I watched your most recent first and now I can't wait for more 😅😅😅😅😅

[@hedgehogsnonsense]

There is one, friend: kzbin.info/aero/PLvogGAYY_GF2yoTvO7m8B0_yC4CbSZVck

[@marc13bautista]

The the higu higu rashi. 👀👀👀

[@Omeet888]

I like the long video format

[@mildlyupsetgerbil]

It's here at last!

[@OcyTaviAh]

I clicked on this video because I had a vague memory of watching this anime… I was surprised to see it was a visual novel and did a quick google search to realise that it’s actually a pretty extensive franchise. I’m fascinated.

[@JBWOfficial125]

It’s crazy how they foreshadow stuff. The fact is that they remember this in the Kai arcs is crazy.

[@j.tgrooms]

Let the deep dive commence

[@Corbellations]

Just found your channel but this looks like the perfect series to get me through my overnights 🎉 I love higurashi, but have only experienced the anime

[@Everyonewastakenwastaken]

why did i watched this at 2am...

[@Fuzz82]

Kyute mode is real. My ex had these moments too. Much like Rena, this meant preparing for some awkward moments. Including her wanting to take pets or even kids home. Thankfully, she was smart enough not to.

[@lovkarts]

I hope you'll also read the other entries to the When They Cry franchise, there's also Umineko no naku koro ni and Ciconia no naku koro ni, they're all great :v

[@Nick_Morningstar]

Amazing video! i still dont understand why you have less then 1k subs,

[@hedgehogsnonsense]

This channel's still pretty new, not a whole ton on here yet. That's probably why :)

[@johnsmith8906]

How on Earth did I miss this until now?

[@floatingPredrifts]

video starts at 2:30

[@MexicanShirouEmiya]

I love Higurashi. The horror is amazing

[@JerryListener]

If you don't have a physical reaction when reading the manga or even watching the anime of this story, you are a monster. This is a rare case of both being equally excellent.

[@HexManiacHana]

To answer your question about Rena's axe, it's a billhook cleaver.

[@Milty2001]

I remember watching anime series and it was pretty good, i remember getting sorta disturbed by how rena tried to open keiichi's front door telling him that she brought food but when he tells her that he already made food, she snapped and yelled at him

[@kingmalak321]

Holy Shit this is good!

[@fawful9992]

55:20 *Housewife's nephew.

[@red_cosplay]

38:08 Metal Gear, huh?

[@meg2249]

The photographer is a bit too muscly armed, or am I the only one who thinks that?

[@fawful9992]

Hello, I just figured that I should give you some information on how Higurashi was initially released. Ryukishi 07 and a small group of his friends/relatives got together to create Onikakushi and brought it to Comiket which is a Doujinshi convention in Tokyo. Afterwards Ryukishi and his group (07th Expansion) would go on to release a new chapter of Higurashi during every subsequent Comiket until it was finished. (Although one year Ryukishi wasn't going to finish on time, so he created a completely new arc which extended Higurashi by 2 arcs, so he could have the arcs end in a round number 8 instead of 7.)

[@LavaCreeperPeople]

Ok

[@tsujack]

SKIP TO 7:24 TO SAVE SOME OF YOUR LIFESPAN.

[@mx338]

Please do not experience higurashi the first time through a KZbin video, watch the anime or read the VN, it is too good, to not be enjoyed directly as intended. This video is here because we all can't get enough of Higurashi.

[@ana-mariaungureanu4660]

It was wild Japan already had cordless phones in the 80's... although in the anime they were cordful.

[@Zanyotaku]

I think it’s funny you think doki doki literature club kept its ruse too long, the game was super super short and showed its hand so quickly, but then again I was pretty well entrenched into the vn scene back in like 2012. If you think Higurashi has a slow first chapter Lord, Umineko chapter 1 was tough first time around. In hindsight on a re-read it’s full to the BRIM of tongue in cheek foreshadowing but you’re likely to miss 90% of it first time round and just go “why… are you telling me this random detail?” If you liked doki doki and have the patience, YOU and ME and HER: A love Story might be worth a peek. Definitely an interesting game. Higurashi is my all time favorite though, buying the original English release on mangagamer got me into the vn community as a teenager. It’s never been a more rewarding time to be a fan finally getting to hear the voice acting and have the updated art and translation

[@Ariande796]

If you like flexing your story structure muscles then hopefully you get to the sequel.

[@Lunarrbase]

koikatsu talk sprites my beloved

[@k.g.7591]

This video is great, though the guys’ audio is a little quiet

[@EmerathLizanEndilix]

Thinking back at the end, and contextualizing it in just the first chapter, I find it very interesting that Keiichi didn’t actually mention the drug or syringe to Ooishi. Don’t get me wrong, he was dying and hysterical, and also it’s more of a clue for the viewer solving the mystery. But Keiichi having the wherewithal to mention the actual existence of the drug could have been the key clue for the actual living characters to make headway, and it died with Keiichi.

[@vampirekingdarkness9076]

Bit late to the vid (whatup!) but i gotta ask, ive watched the show (through season 1 because ✨i dont watch subbed✨) and read up through the eye opening arc of the manga, i plan on watching a few of these until either A) i get a pc, or B) catch up to the manga (most likely one here) just wonderin how far i should go in these videos before putting the watch on pause and come back later

[@hedgehogsnonsense]

I mean, I designed the videos with someone who doesn't know the story in mind. I tried to replicate the feeling of playing the game as best I could through my pacing and narration, so I think it is a decent way to first experience the story if you wanna take it all the way. Of course, it'll never be a true replacement for the original, and I would totally recommend playing the game before anything else.

[@vampirekingdarkness9076]

Thank you😊 just finished this one, fantastic job replicating the feeling, im excited to continue through the series, this is making me more excited to get a basic laptop just to get the games and fill out any missing blanks from the experience that i might be missing from the manga

[@MrWhiteSuit17]

More please

[@hedgehogsnonsense]

I'm almost done with the next script, so your should see it hopefully in about a month!

[@k3salieri]

Personally I like the Steam/Mangagamer sprites more than the others. They're so much more expressive and detailed than the console counterparts. I think the best example is comparing the "Broken" Satoko sprites.