u/columnal

Damn. Its basically over now.

I really had a lot of fun reading Higurashi WTC, it was my first visual novel and introduction to Higurashi.
Personally, the novels mean so much to me as they remind me of my own childhood and just growing up in general and having a group of friends (without all the murder of course). All the slice of life moments were really a highlight to me, and I was not expecting to like them but yeah the novel's amazing OST like Afternoon in Paris and Boy in the Windmill really made these moments feel weirdly nostalgic in a way.

I respect Ryukishi07 for sticking the landing in terms of just carrying out what he wanted to do with the ending of Matsuribayashi. I disagree with how quite a few things unfolded and some creative decisions but overall Ryukishi07 atleast wrote Higurashi as feeling thematically pretty concise.

Overall the writing was pretty decent in Matsuribayashi, the connecting fragments and Takano's backstory were probably some of the best writing in the series so far and I feel like thats pretty universally agreed upon so I wont expand on it that much.

My main issue was really just how it all unfolded for them to takedown Takano. Okonogi vs Mion is probably one of the worst and most cringe things I've had to sit through whilst reading this novel.

Honestly all the hand to hand action in this and Satokos traps were pretty cringeworthy and took me out of the emotion of the story. I would've much preferred something like End of Evangelion where Seele is destroying Nerv HQ, I think if Higurashi's action/stakes were similar to that it would be a lot more digestible and feel a lot more mature and fitting.

Also, it was a little predictable that nobody would die in this chapter. Whilst I dont have a problem with that, it made me care a little less for scenes such as when its presumed Kasai and Shion are shot dead by the mountain dogs, I just struggled to feel emotion in any of these scenes I should be feeling emotion.

Also the scene with Tomitake and Takano at the end, whilst their relationship was very well written in this chapter and honestly one of the highlights, the actual conclusion to it, I just really didnt feel anything or emotional at all.
And conceptually whilst I like Mion volunteering to take the bullet, again, the way it was actually written in the scene just felt a little out of nowhere and a bit cheesy. So i just didnt feel the emotion I probably should have.

Also Satoshi being revealed to be in the basement of the clinic? Again I have no problem with this conceptually but the way it is revealed is just done so weirdly and feels really bolted on and sudden. Again, I feel it could've been made way more emotional.

Also the club members (and I understand why from a thematic perspective) just kind of get over the whole thing very easily. And whilst I like the imagery of them celebrating the Watanagashi and just moving on, and the last CG of them doing the cotton drifting ritual is pretty iconic/beautiful... it felt a little bit like an anti climax.

Last thing I'll say, the epilogue didnt do it for me either. I'm so confused. Mion is doing entrance exams? I thought they were already in High School so is she doing entrance exams for senior high school or university? because I thought her character was supposed to be like 14/15.
Rena and Keiichi and Satoko also didn't get a great followup and was mostly just straightforward and expected things, like yeah obviously Keiichi will be class president but none of these things felt very conclusive to their characters and it just felt pretty unsatisfying for the club members.
I liked Irie and Tomitake/Takano's conclusions though. Shion and Satoshi still feels a little creepy and not emotional at all despite the potential it had for that, but it was okay.
Honestly I just wish we got see more of what happened to the club members in like 10 years or something.

overall Im glad I read Higurashi. I like CH8 for the most part. Its ending wasnt bad despite its flaws and i think it for the most part managed to make it emotional knowing this is the last proper canon send off for these characters (yeah saikoroshi exists but it mostly focuses on rika and hanyuu from what ive heard). Man I feel a little empty and emotional after reading through such a long novel but it was worth it still, I imagine I'll feel worse after finishing Saikoroshi.

if you've bothered reading this lol, then my only question is if I should play Miotsukishi next as a proper alternative send off, and then read Saikoroshi as my final piece of Higurashi Media, or if I should read Saikorishi straight after CH8 (as from what i know saikoroshi doesnt connect to miotsukishi) and then read Miotsukishi after saikoroshi

Having played through all Chapters now, I'm still pretty confused about the first chapter despite most of my questions having been answered... I understand CH6 was supposed to serve as an answer arc to ch1 and although It did clarify most of what happened in that chapter im still confused on quite a few things.

To clarify, im not trying to suggest rena was secretly evil or involved somehow im just confused by a lot of what happens

>!- Does Rena actually just watch Keiichi for like an hour or however long it was, standing silently, whilst Keiichi is talking to Oishi on the phone? I don't see how this is conveniently explained, like maybe I missed something but I dont think Keiichi's dad was lying in that scene about having seen Rena. But even if it did happen, I dont know what that really suggests. !<

>!- How much of what Rena does is actually just Keiichi hallucinating or being paranoid due to Hinamizawa syndrome? For example, when she mentions in the "chase" scene near the end about Satoshi having transferred, I dont really get what she's trying to imply with this or why from Keiichi's perspective it looks like shes laughing/taunting him? I guess the real version of the scene is that Keiich is just imagining Rena's callous/taunting reactions, and that Renas just trying to calmly explain to him what is happening? Its still confusing !<

>!- Im confused about the door slamming scene, does Rena just put her fingers between the door because she doesnt want keiichi to close it? If she wanted to confront keiichi more directly then why doesn't she do it in a way that reaches him, when shes demonstrated in other chapters she perfectly capable of this? it just seems really odd!<

>!- why do mion and rena shrug off keiichis questions about the curse like they do? i mainly ask because its implied in other chapters that theyre fine telling him about it even though nothing has really changed. does this imply that the club members subconciously remember things from the previous chapters like keiichi and rena and shion do later on, thus causing them to tell keiichi about the murders to avoid his suspicion? or maybe im overthinking it.!<

>!- do mion and rena actually care about keiichi talking to oishi, do they actually question him somewhat about who he was talking to? !<

please dont downvote 🥺🥺

Reasoning:

Keiichi - I mean hes the protagonist. He gets probably the most character development. Hes the only protagonist in a (borderline) harem game where I can see why he'd get so much attention. He's written in a very likeable and charismatic way so obvious S tier.

Mion - Best personality out of the club members. Character design is iconic. Her dynamics with Keiichi and Shion are very interesting and well written. Shes also just really dumb and her country girl persona is pretty endearing I guess. Also green hair. Best Higurashi Girl.

Oishi - His drive to solve the murders is pretty admirable considering nobody else really takes the initiative until Keiichi arrives in Hinamizawa and >!Rika decides to stop fucking around.!< Hes pretty well intentioned, hes pretty chill and his animosity towards the villagers is deserved and understandable 99% of the time. The only reason he doesn't solve the mystery is literally because hes fated to not do so and theres information that is borderline impossible for him to obtain, so its admirable he got as far as he did in most of the chapters. Also hes just pretty charismatic and its refreshing to see a character not suck up and tolerate bullshit.

Rena - Would be S tier but her personality can be pretty passive aggressive sometimes and I find that side of her pretty annoying to be honest. Shes pretty funny from how autistic her antics are. Also her backstory is incredibly sad and the stuff with the >!maggots in ch6 and her breaking down!< is one of the saddest and most emotional / well acted scenes in Higurashi. I relate to her the most out of the club members but she just has a few annoying scenes.

Kasai - I don't see any flaws. Okay hes a little creepy in his dynamic towards shion, but he doesn't do anything weird and hes ordered to be her bodyguard anyway. He's just pretty chill and likeable for a Yakuza member. Although I guess its implied with the >!Rina murder!< that hes pretty despicable, although she had it coming.

Rika - Not gonna lie I don't find her as cute or endearing as most of the fanbase, which I guess is a hot take. She can also just be really cringe when >!she is in her Bernkastel mode!<. The writing does make me feel some sympathy for her in CH7 especially though, and I do like her dynamic with Hanyuu. Her dynamic with Satoko never really interested me much though same with >!Tokyo!<.

Satoko - Satoko's character and her backstory and what she goes through often feels like it does more for the other characters in the club rather than herself. It's all well written, I enjoyed it thoroughly. I found her dynamic with Satoshi very sad obviously, but something about it just never stuck with me as with all the other club members. It all feels very distant and something I can't really relate to. Also the whole trap's stuff and satoshi stuff got a little tiring after a while compared to some of the other character motifs.

Tomitake - i might be wrong but hes literally >!a fascist?!< still hes pretty likeable although i guess some of his earlier interactions can be interpreted in a >!pretty self centered, weird manipulative way?!< still I like him

Irie - okay I dont think hes a pedo I think he just has a weird but honestly funny sense of humour. >!however hes also very fucking unethical and yeah yeah i know judging him on being a lobotomist is a bit harsh but hes pretty complicit in some pretty fucked up shit.!<
Also I'll give him props for being a baseball coach.

Oryou - ok my hot take is i dont think shes even that bad. she's a total hag to shion I guess, mainly oryou >!redeems herself in ch7 with forgiving satoko!<, and her confrontation with keiichi is pretty funny in retrospect. also she doesnt seem like that bad of a person in general i mean she makes ohagi for everyone.

satoshi - hes just kinda there. again it feels like his worth comes from his relations with other characters, like shion and satoko. his personality is just pretty bland and sad. his backstory is pretty cool and interesting though and he introduces a good amount of mystery into the plot.

shion - i dont like how she increasingly became a member of the club, she always worked better as a character in ch2 and ch5 when she was outside of it. >!her actions in ch5 are pretty fucked and although understandable to a degree they go way beyond any other person with hinamizawa syndromes actions.!< also in the later chapters she can just be pretty cringe. also her fucking with keiichi and mion in ch2/ch5 is just manipulative. also her romance with satoshi is completely one sided

akasaka - i dont fw his sprite and i dont like mahjong

akane sonozaki - limited screentime, but shes pretty funny ig. also i dont fw her sprite either really.

chie - she smells of curry. thats all i can think of when i see her. it kind of repulses me. she's just very neutral. well intentioned i guess.

kimiyoshi - again, i never got a full moral picture of this guy. he seems likeable enough i guess.

hanyuu - only as high as she is because of that one gif of her stomping which is really cute.
shes kind of annoying and i dont really like her. doesn't belong in the club. i guess shes not evil though. also her interactions with rika are pretty funny.

kumagi - irrelevant, is his only point to be a twin peaks reference with his sprite?

kameda - ugly + fucking weird. but hes pretty funny sometimes. wish keiichi wouldve spent more time with him because literally he has no male friends his age. i like his dynamic with keiichi in ch7 and when theyre not at angel mort

takano miyo - >!literally worse than hitler. she is insufferable. shes a genocidal nazi with a god complex. she manipulates mentally ill teenagers and children all because shes a fucking orphan with a god complex. even hitler cared about germany or some shit takano is just fucking evil.!< ok shes kind of hot i guess and a little funny sometimes. >!all of that is lost by ch7 and shes just insufferable at that point.!< shes also more of a pedo than irie ever was.

rina - do i even need to explain

teppei - whilst he is fucking terrible, i do find his motivations and backstory atleast a little interesting. still the worst.