Review of Higurashi: When They Cry – Kai
If you have not watched the first season (Higurashi no naku koro ni), this anime is practically useless and the same goes for this review. Wow! Higurashi no naku koro ni Kai was a great addition to an already very good season one. As I found season one rather interesting and enjoyable, Kai was a must watch for me, in the hope that it would be just as great. With many questions left unanswered, Kai primarily focuses on answering questions and revealing to us the "true" truth. There are a lot less gore and horror elements compared to the first season, as Rika becomes the mainpoint of view. The introduction of a new character called Hanyuu was certainly an interesting add into the plot. Her introduction into the story was done smoothly but it is likely that you'll ask "Where on earth did she come from?" at first.
As Kai is a continuation of the first series, the chain of mysterious deaths continues on from Rika's point of view. The first episode of this season kinda acts as a recap and a look into at the aftermath of season one's last arc. It then moves into another arc, raising some questions but answering many, and by the end of the first arc, I'd say it's almost impossible to not continue watching the rest of Kai. The other two arcs finally give us answers to those questions that remained. The telling of a certain character's past in the beginning of the the third arc really unraveled the mystery and told us the cause and effect. It's what makes Higurashi a great story, how the answers are not force fed to you, but instead rather open for interpretation; whether the judgments the characters make are truly right or wrong. How some of the little things can make huge differences, and change the outcome of the future.
A stellar performance by Tamura Yukari playing Furude Rika! The voice acting by her was just amazing (I just love Rika's scream in episode 8!) and should be highly commended, along with all the other seiyuus! Rena's voice is more consistent this time, and Horie Yui's performance of Hanyuu was cute! I have absolutely no objections to the wonderful musical score by Kawaii Kenji, along with another great opening theme by Shimamiya Eiko, and the closing theme which all were very fitting in both lyrics and music. HUGE improvement in the animation! The faces and characters are not as exaggerated or contorted as the first season. It is much more consistent, detailed and kinda makes the characters a little more prettier...
I do believe that the introduction of Hanyuu was certainly necessary, although whether she had to be that "moe" is a little questionable to me. There were large developments in some of the supporting characters such as Akasaka, Dr. Irie, Takano, Tomitake and Satoshi which were vital to the storyline. The only thing is, the concentration on the development of these characters kinda left the mains Rena, Mion and Shion out for a while...
Higurashi just had to go to my favourites list! To me it was such a great story with amazing music and voice acting and very interesting and complex character personalities and relationships, with touches of humour here and there. Although the ending is a little lame, well for me at least, it still deserves an overall 9.5 out of 10. Definitely enjoyable and an interesting ending scene. I'd certainly recommend this to anyone! I wait in anticipation for Higurashi no naku koro ni Rei and Umineko no naku koro ni in the hopes that the creators can continue to make such amazing stories!