"UHYAAHAHAHAHAHA!!! I'LL BE KILLED!!? EVEN IF I CAN'T WIN AT LEAST I CAN PESTER YOU ENOUGH SO THAT I DON'T JUST HAND YOU THE VICTORY YOU KNOOOOOW!? TRY TO KILL ME, JUST YOU TRY TO KILL MEEE, USHIROMIYA BATTLEEEEER!!!!!!!!" Okay to be honest I only put that quote because the review on top of mine has one and I didn't want to feel left out . I've finished this and I'm feeling slightly disappointed .It's not like I had any serious problems with it .In fact it did its job pretty well as an expo for Ange but as a whole it felt pretty powered-down compared tothe prior episodes .To be honest rating it a 7 and not 8 nags at me but I suppose for fairness' sake I must as other episodes had less disturbances/reasons for me to rate them lower .

Story - 7.999999999999999999999999999999999999999∞

So the story didn't bore me at all .It was actually pretty nice .Philosophical discussions as to the true nature of "truth" as well as the proper entrance (as it's already been hinted at before) of one of the series' most powerful themes ,namely :That if there's no love you can't see anything .I thoroughly enjoyed this aspect and it was a very thought provoking moment for me .Ange's past is also expounded upon and we see how much see suffered due to her family's stigmatization after the Rokkenjima incident .I had some issues with the story at that point too but I'll save those for when I judge the characters .

So why did I drop the score for the story a rank when compared to my other Umineko reviews ?

Well that's because I had a bit of an issue with the mystery aspect .This episode is probably the most fitting to bear this series' 'shounen' tag .Not that I have a problem with shounen but I honestly don't read Umineko to see furniture fighting against each other .There are better action series and I felt like things were side-tracked from the mystery .The arrangement of the storytelling also ticked me off .Starting from the gameboard ,moving on to Ange's POV in the real world and then moving back to the game board as the episode neared its end .Now the issue with this is simply that in the other episodes ,Twilight occurrences and mystery cracking go hand in hand while in this case however ,they were delayed until the end which had me forgetting many of the details of the murders .Many of Battler's counters also felt quite sloppy and unsatisfying .

Even with all that the only reason I'll rate the story a 7 is because it isn't as powerful as in the other episodes .It deserves an 8 in its own right when compared to other manga .

Art - 7
The art here is also an aspect I ranked lower than in the other episodes .Now I didn't have a problem with it at all .Character design quality didn't drop and in fact I can say it improved .

BUT......

The truly outstanding aspect of Umineko's art lies in its panel arrangement and over-the-top trolling expressions .In an episode with much of the focus being on Ange's experiences in the real world however ,that brilliance is mostly lost .The double page drawings that leave you wanting to soak in every detail weren't very apparent here .

Characters - 7
Ah yes .The characters .

Ange's victimization ticked me off .I felt like it was quite unrealistic since bullying over reasons mentioned in the story is not something I'm familiar with .Then again I might be misinformed .A lot of my treasured over-the-topness was lost as well .Of course these aren't negatives but simply lack of positives .

The Ushiromiya Family really is made up of badasses .

My my ,George-kun was spectacular this time around .Jessica impressed me too .If you're a George/Jessica fan then this chapter is for you .

Overall - 7
Still enjoyable and I'll be triggered if anyone badmouths this .Not as powered up as the other episodes but still carrying a gentle theme that I'll probably hold on to for the rest of my life .