Higurashi Episode 3 Discussion / Poll

[kj1980]

Welcome to the discussion thread for Higurashi no Naku Koroni, Episode 3.

Thread Guidelines
No telling or asking for RAWs.
Try to keep spoilers from the Game or Manga out of the anime thread. If you need to in reply to someone with a reference to the Game / Manga, either PM them or use Spoiler tags (see example below).
Discuss your expectations of the episode if not aired.
Be polite to your fellow forum members.
Try to keep the discussion on topic and future episode spoilers out of the thread whenever possible.


Spoiler Tag Usage

Using Spoiler Tags is easy. Using this...

Don't forget to use the spoiler title

....will get you this...

Don't forget to use the spoiler title


ADDITIONAL RULES FOR Higurashi no Naku Koroni
Make sure you read the English wikipedia article for Higurashi no Naku Koroni (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Higurashi_no_Naku_Koro_ni) before you ask questions!!!

Feel free to share your theories and speculations. In fact, I encourage you to do so as this is what makes this series interesting.

I am designating Sushi-Y and Freakman to lead the discussion in the correct path without spoilers as they have played the game in advance. I put confidence in them that they will recognize a member has spilled the beans too far if any other members has begun to play the game.

SPOILERS FAR ADVANCED THAN THE CURRENT AIRED ANIME EPISODE WILL NOT BE TOLERATED. THIS INCLUDES THOSE IN SPOILER TAGS!!!. People tend to peek at spoiler tags; especially when they do not know such tag is meant for the episode, only to find it spilling the beans too far advanced in the game storyline.

[Freakman]

Eh ep 3 was a lot more convincing. Although they did skip some details, it felt less "rushed" than the first two episodes. And honestly, despite having played the game, the
omimai scene was done extremely well. I really felt chills down my spine during Mion's finishing line.
But I thought Keiichi's scream during the hagi scene was a bit over the top... but then I never experienced swallowing a needle.

[Sushi-Y]

Eh ep 3 was a lot more convincing. Although they did skip some details, it felt less "rushed" than the first two episodes. And honestly, despite having played the game, the
omimai scene was done extremely well. I really felt chills down my spine during Mion's finishing line.
But I thought Keiichi's scream during the hagi scene was a bit over the top... but then I never experienced swallowing a needle.

I agree, episode 3 actually felt a lot less rushed compared to the first 2, but maybe that's only because the story is finally beginning to concentrate on the main story instead of flying all over the place with different events.

The ohagi scene was also done quite well, although I still think they could've done a better job with Rena and Mion's oyashirosama-mode (with more visual effects). I'm also not sure why they skipped out the later scene from the game where Keiichi scrummaged through the garbage looking for the needle. (since it was part of the police report in the end)

Satoko and Rika only got like, 1 minute worth of appearance in this episode, but when Keiichi showed them Satoshi's bat,
http://img225.imageshack.us/img225/5638/bscap0027ft.th.jpg (http://img225.imageshack.us/my.php?image=bscap0027ft.jpg)
Satoko... （ ノд`)

Also, Rena's
http://img116.imageshack.us/img116/5503/bscap0033su.th.jpg (http://img116.imageshack.us/my.php?image=bscap0033su.jpg)
「...転校」
For some reason, it totally freaked me out, more than 嘘だっ!! :upset:

So we're up to Rena's visit by the end of episode 3... Next episode will finish up Onikakushi? Kinda... hard to imagine. （´・ω・）

[Eleutheria]

I watched ep 3, but it was a tad too much dialogue for me to digest. Here's what I got out of it:


Kira is told that the Oyashiro's Curse incidents from the past few years seem to be centered around his circle of friends, with their family members all involved one way or another, died or gone missing.

He gets a needle in his bean cake. (It could've happened to anybody)

He starts to carry Satoshi's old metal bat around. Satoshi was doing the same things before he went AWOL.


Please correct me if I'm wrong.

Also, each chapter (hen) features the same characters, right?

and HimeyaShop is out of stock concerning the sound novels. Argh...

[Xellos-_^]

Is anyone bloggin this series?

Kinda suprise neither omi or memento is blogging it.

[kj1980]

I agree, episode 3 actually felt a lot less rushed compared to the first 2, but maybe that's only because the story is finally beginning to concentrate on the main story instead of flying all over the place with different events.

The ohagi scene was also done quite well, although I still think they could've done a better job with Rena and Mion's oyashirosama-mode (with more visual effects). I'm also not sure why they skipped out the later scene from the game where Keiichi scrummaged through the garbage looking for the needle. (since it was part of the police report in the end)

Satoko and Rika only got like, 1 minute worth of appearance in this episode, but when Keiichi showed them Satoshi's bat,
http://img225.imageshack.us/img225/5638/bscap0027ft.th.jpg (http://img225.imageshack.us/my.php?image=bscap0027ft.jpg)
Satoko... （ ノд`)

Also, Rena's
http://img116.imageshack.us/img116/5503/bscap0033su.th.jpg (http://img116.imageshack.us/my.php?image=bscap0033su.jpg)
「...転校」
For some reason, it totally freaked me out, more than 嘘だっ!! :upset:

So we're up to Rena's visit by the end of episode 3... Next episode will finish up Onikakushi? Kinda... hard to imagine. （´・ω・）

But then you have to consider the state Kei-chan is currently in. They did do an excellent job in portraying the more darker tones of Hinamizawa here.

[kron]

ep 3 looked good. is it just me or do i find it more creepy than the game at some parts. =.=

[Thelastguardian]

I shivered throughout episode 3. Intense.

Keiichi got it coming when he got the needle in the sweets. He should have known better. I was wondering whether the sweets would contain poison when Rena handed him the goods. Come on, get some common sense.

I know it is rural Japan in the 70s and all, but for god's sake, when you suspect someone is trying to kill you, LOCK THE DOORS! Sheesh. What's so hard about that.

And why didn't he tell the cop about all the strange occurances with Rena.

Keiichi needs some major beatings.

I am beginning to suspect if Rena and Mion's psycho mode is some sort of hullucination on Keiichi's part :/ .

[Srin Tuar]

I dont understand why he talks to the cop.

The police officer is to me the most suspicious of all the characters.
He just knows way to much, and shows up at the strangest times.
I would tell that suspicious oyaji NOTHING.

Second, why is he being so circumspect about the needle in the anko.
If Rena did that to me I would outright demand an explanation. Maybe he should
visit her house and ring her doorbell.

And when she says he "transferred", why doesnt he challenge it?
I would immediately ask "Do you mean he's dead?" "Did you kill him?"
"Have you ever killed anyone?". They seem like perfectly resonable questions.
Heck, even "Why did you lie to me".

I get the feeling our main character does not pay attention to his surroundings,
has no ability to sneak around on his own, is very meek, and on top of all that
he is always scared. He's like the perfect victim for a horror show...

And writing notes and taping them to the back of a clock? He's begging to die
almost.

[Srin Tuar]

So those were ohagi.
I somehow missed that :)
(i knew they werent really anko)


Really? Wow, you got guts. If this was in real life, I sure as hell wouldn't run up to the house of someone who I think just tried to kill me. What's stopping her from coming out with an axe and finishing the job?


Hmmm, well she's a girl.
She's alot more dangerous if she sneaks up on you than if you go to face her straight forward.

I'd be really pissed:
"you realize I can never eat anything you cook anymore now?"
I could imagine scolding her in my broken japanese.:heh:
そんなモンもらったってどういう気持でいると思う？ひどいではないか？
おまえの料理食えなくなったではないか？どうしてくれる?
I dont know why but that one scene with the needle is just continuously bothering me.

[Hello]

I'd be really pissed:
"you realize I can never eat anything you cook anymore now?"
I could imagine scolding her in my broken japanese.:heh:
そんなモンもらったってどういう気持でいると思う？ひどいではないか？
おまえの料理食えなくなったではないか？どうしてくれる?
I dont know why but that one scene with the needle is just continuously bothering me.

I am not sure how scolding or confronting her would achieve much at all. She could simply claim that the needle in the ohagi was an accident. If she denied everything, what are you going to do? Unless you are willing to kill her, I doubt one can do anything to improve the situation. The way I see it, provoking a murderer is probably a bad idea and most likely will hasten your death instead.

[Xellos-_^]

Just because of the fact that I am pervert :p :heh: but did anyone else notice what the waitress was wearing in the cafe where Kei and the detective was meeting? It looks kinda cosplayish. Was that something Japanese cafe waitress wear in the 70s :eyebrow: :D

[Shiroth]

Being able to see a bit of Rena's crazy side's making this show my fav' so far this season.

[Manatsu]

The mood of the show is so unsettling, smiles are not smiles anymore and everyone seems to have some dark secrets related to the murders. Rena's cold stares and tone continue to chill my bone and Mion freaked me out with that peek-a-boo scene. I wonder when Satoko and Rika will start going into Oyashiro-mode too.
There is closure. Too bad the anime won't get to the chapter where they explain everything. But doing so ruins the fun of the mystery, so it's a double-edged sword. The interesting part about this title was that as it was confidently touted: "less than 1% can figure out the entireity of this story."

So is it confirmed that Minagoroshi (points to early discussions in this thread) will be left out or are you refering to the unreleased 8th answer chapter. IMO while figuring out the mystery is fun, you said it that the story is full of twists and <1% gets it. Without all the answers and I heard Minogoroshi has lots of them, the anime-only foreign fans will be left in the cold unless we pick up the game or a kind gamer posts a summary when all of it ends. Well if they really do leave out Minagoroshi in the TV run, I hope it's because they are planning an OVA together with the final chapter or something.

[Paracelsus]

Ok. I've watched the raw of episode 3, and I'm officially scared ._.

:EDIT: baseball bat ftw <.<;

[darkchibi07]

Ok. I've watched the raw of episode 3, and I'm officially scared ._.

:EDIT: baseball bat ftw <.<;

Baseball bat ftw?!! Don't tell me Li' Slugger from Paranoia Agent is there also! :twitch:

[Sushi-Y]

This is only for the people who have at least finished Onikakushi-hen (game):

http://img175.imageshack.us/img175/7417/memo00005nh.th.jpg (http://img175.imageshack.us/my.php?image=memo00005nh.jpg)
Take a close look.

Kei-chan... it's not nice to write ahead of the script...

[kj1980]

The constant apologizing scene from the prologue completely eludes me. Was he dreaming...?

You'll definitely love it as you progress through more chapters. Even after two years, reading that first scene sends chills down my spine.

[Freakman]

About point 1 :

This comes from what I told you. Ooishi knows Keiichi hasn't been in the village long, and thus probably doesn't know/ doesn't care about Oyashirosama's curse, just like Ooishi says at the end ("I need the help of someone that doesn't believe in the curse")

Point 2 :

As you learn in episode 3, Takano was a nurse at Hinamizawa local hospital.
As such, from what I told in my previous post, it's no wonder she knows about Keiichi.

[USCPharmacist]

I just realize something, remember the doctor in episode 3? I always thought his voice sounded familiar. So I check the VA name and lo and behold, the doctor is........................THE OBSIDIAN LORD....OMGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Endymion]

Hmm, just watched the subbed version of episode 3.

It seems too obvious so I doubt it's right, but it appears that the doctor and that little clinic have something to do with what's going on. The doctor gave Keiichi a shot for his "cold", which is rather suspicious since a cold is a virus and giving you a shot wouldn't really do anything for it. The doctor's case is not helped by the fact that according to a previous poster he is voiced by the same guy who did the Obsidian Lord in Mai Hime ;)

It was also after that shot that Keiichi found the needle in the food, became paranoid that the girls were trying to kill him, was almost run down by a car, and basically had his sanity start to break down. I think the shot was some sort of hallucinogenic that started inducing paranoid delusions and that neither the needle not the hit and run incident were actually real.

I'm still unsure as to whether psycho Rena and Mion were real or just delusions. They could be real, since they were involved in some strange incidents in the past and there's no reason to believe they aren't also under the influence of some drug. However, Mion's connection to the serial killings seemed tenuous at best (so she argued with the head of the dam construction, I'm betting a lot of people did) and Rena wasn't there for most of the murders. So at the moment I'm leaning towards the psycho versions of the girls just being delusions. This is reinforced by some of the events in episode 4 (at least from what I got from watching the raw).

Keiichi slammed psycho Rena's hand in the door hard enough to make it bleed and probably broke bones, but the next day normal Rena's hand is uninjured and and appears just fine. Also, as people have said, a 90 lb girl is not going to be able to hold down a guy so he can be given an injection against his will. So it seems that these things were just hallucinations. Mion injecting him might have actually been his unconcious trying to tell him that the injection was what was causing all this, though that's a bit of a stretch.

Satoko and Rika actually seem like the ones most involved in the murders since their families were the ones killed. Obviously Rena and Mion fit in there somewhere as well, but I'm not sure where yet.

Anyway, this is mostly wrong I'm sure, but it's still fun speculating.

Edit: Added spoiler tags for Episode 3, didn't think they were needed originally since the sub was out.

[Seiryuu]

Got ep 3. wow.
I watched back over things, and I think not enough credit is being given to the producers. They didn't make the entire show third person. If you watch carefully, just about every bizarre occurence, from demon eyes to threats and attempts on his life, are shown from through Keiichi's line of sight. The evil eyes are shown always looking at him, the strange statements others make are shown from his point of view. Even the truck driver is shown in the mirror as Keiichi would have seen him. It can be confusing, since they will jump back and forth, showing Keiichi's face and his reactions or replies, but all the stuff people are questioning IS shown as Keiichi sees it, regardless of the accuracy of his sight, making it easier, imho, to speculate about just what is real.
That said, I'm still not sure if whatever the girls are really saying and doing is the result of a serious psychosis or the inevitable outcome of their having lived in terror for years without knowing who, or what, they're afraid of. It makes me wonder: what would be worse for the mind, looking for a killer who could be anywhere while surrounded by apparent psychos, or trying to hide from a killer you know is near when no one looks like they'd hurt a fly.

[SpaceDrake]

Hmm. Been following this for a bout a week. Haven't seen episode 4 yet, but I couldn't help but look at a few of the spoilers after seeing ep3. ;p Normally I can restrain myself, but damn. So good.

But now, just so I understand, we're basically going to be looking at the same events over and over for like six or seven chapters, right? If so that cools my enthusiasm a bit... doesn't seem like there's much more to add.

As a last bit, the game has no translation yet, correct? Even the shareware demo version?

[Morgri]

Okay, I just saw episode three, and i'm wondering if the main character is gonna go crazy, cuase it seems like that's happening. Care to comment?

[Jellyfish Marine]

Hello, I'm rather new to this thread and would like to join the game as well. Please take care of me >w<


The following speculations are based on what I've seen through EP 1-3 and spoilers of EP4, plus the TIP given by kj1980-san

1. Regards to Keiichi's life threatening/shocking events such as Rena's "USODA!",the needle in the rice ball, hit and run, door bell event, Mion's attempt to inject him with something and such,
a.) All of them did happen.
b.) None of them actually happened, they were just Keiichi's hallucination.
c.) Some of them did happen while some didn't.

I would like to go with c.) here
It seems to me like every/most of events in the early part of story were real until a 'certain point', when Keiichi was driven to his severe paranoia state, that the 'reality; we observed (almost fromK1's perspective) began to fused with the hallucination.

2. Regards to that 'certain point'.
2.1) As hinted in the TIP, it was suggested that K1 might be suffered from some damages made on his cranial area--a factor driven him(who might already suffered from bipolar disorder) to his paranoia state.
If I remember correctly, these are the events which might had introduce the damages to him
a.) Club activites -- They do poke, hit, tortured him quite a lot. Those events were intended for comedy though.
b.) When K1 saw Rena with a big, big knife in her hand, he fell backward and made a loud THUD. -- Well, it does sound silly, but considering he just did a shocking discovery somewhat like 1-2 mins ago...
c.) The Hit and Run event - Although not succesful in hitting him directly, K1 did fell into the rice field and I don't think that was a factor. However, I believe the truck tried to hit him for real. Is it because the driver wanted to injure him in his cranial?
d.) EP4 event 2 - <<added>> Somebody mentioned that K1 was knocked out by the Green Man e.) EP4 event 2 - I haven't see this EP myself. Some says that Mion tried to inject something into K1 and he struggled agaisnt it. Maybe K1 was hit during his attempt to do so.

2.2) His personallity changed after receiving 'an injection'.
a.) The injection given by a doctor.
b.) The injection given by Mion (Which some speculated that it was merely a dream of K1)

From 2.1, d.) is going to be a crucial key for the final answer even though it weren't the one driven K1 to this state . About the injection, I think a.) sounds more plausible. Still, I'm going for 2.1.d)

3. What did Rena and Mion really try to do?
a.) Nothing, as every freakin events were rather K1's hallucination
b.) They tried to expose of Keiichi
c.) They were actually tried to helped him.
d.) They were trying to helped him but they/one of them changed their/her mind and pursued to kill him instead.

I would go for c.) and d.)
While watching, I had a feeling that Rena and Mion just tried to prevent K1 from becoming the second "Satoshi". The injection given by Mion might be a cure to what the doctor gave him. HOWEVER, I'm not saying none of them were responsible for the barabara murder. It's just...they/she didn't really want to kill K1 unless a situation kicks in.

4. Was Rena really a murderer?
a.) Yes.
b.) No
c.) We don't know for sure ^o^



Umm...I'm so sleepy now -O-~*

[xris]

Welcome to the discussion thread for Higurashi no Naku Koroni, Episode 3.

Thread Guidelines
No telling or asking for RAWs.
Try to keep spoilers from the Game or Manga out of the anime thread. If you need to in reply to someone with a reference to the Game / Manga, either PM them or use Spoiler tags (see example below).
Discuss your expectations of the episode if not aired.
Be polite to your fellow forum members.
Try to keep the discussion on topic and future episode spoilers out of the thread whenever possible.


Spoiler Tag Usage

Using Spoiler Tags is easy. Using this...

Don't forget to use the spoiler title

....will get you this...

Don't forget to use the spoiler title

[Azn_GooWakJai]

Hello, I'm rather new to this thread and would like to join the game as well. Please take care of me >w<


The following speculations are based on what I've seen through EP 1-3 and spoilers of EP4, plus the TIP given by kj1980-san

1. Regards to Keiichi's life threatening/shocking events such as Rena's "USODA!",the needle in the rice ball, hit and run, door bell event, Mion's attempt to inject him with something and such,
a.) All of them did happen.
b.) None of them actually happened, they were just Keiichi's hallucination.
c.) Some of them did happen while some didn't.

I would like to go with c.) here
It seems to me like every/most of events in the early part of story were real until a 'certain point', when Keiichi was driven to his severe paranoia state, that the 'reality; we observed (almost fromK1's perspective) began to fused with the hallucination.

2. Regards to that 'certain point'.
2.1) As hinted in the TIP, it was suggested that K1 might be suffered from some damages made on his cranial area--a factor driven him(who might already suffered from bipolar disorder) to his paranoia state.
If I remember correctly, these are the events which might had introduce the damages to him
a.) Club activites -- They do poke, hit, tortured him quite a lot. Those events were intended for comedy though.
b.) When K1 saw Rena with a big, big knife in her hand, he fell backward and made a loud THUD. -- Well, it does sound silly, but considering he just did a shocking discovery somewhat like 1-2 mins ago...
c.) The Hit and Run event - Although not succesful in hitting him directly, K1 did fell into the rice field and I don't think that was a factor. However, I believe the truck tried to hit him for real. Is it because the driver wanted to injure him in his cranial?
d.) EP4 event 2 - <<added>> Somebody mentioned that K1 was knocked out by the Green Man e.) EP4 event 2 - I haven't see this EP myself. Some says that Mion tried to inject something into K1 and he struggled agaisnt it. Maybe K1 was hit during his attempt to do so.

2.2) His personallity changed after receiving 'an injection'.
a.) The injection given by a doctor.
b.) The injection given by Mion (Which some speculated that it was merely a dream of K1)

From 2.1, d.) is going to be a crucial key for the final answer even though it weren't the one driven K1 to this state . About the injection, I think a.) sounds more plausible. Still, I'm going for 2.1.d)

3. What did Rena and Mion really try to do?
a.) Nothing, as every freakin events were rather K1's hallucination
b.) They tried to expose of Keiichi
c.) They were actually tried to helped him.
d.) They were trying to helped him but they/one of them changed their/her mind and pursued to kill him instead.

I would go for c.) and d.)
While watching, I had a feeling that Rena and Mion just tried to prevent K1 from becoming the second "Satoshi". The injection given by Mion might be a cure to what the doctor gave him. HOWEVER, I'm not saying none of them were responsible for the barabara murder. It's just...they/she didn't really want to kill K1 unless a situation kicks in.

4. Was Rena really a murderer?
a.) Yes.
b.) No
c.) We don't know for sure ^o^



Umm...I'm so sleepy now -O-~*

AH u also forgot bout the cop! See now don't u think the cause of all this was cuz the cop and that talk w/ K1 in the car that instigated this whole damn thing and making him go nuts (Stage 1 craziness) the rest of the stage u mentioned alrdy. Now in ep 4, Mion said "that damn cop, Imma kill him" see from my point of view of just that scene and based on wat u said was that becuz Mion and Rena wanted to help K1, they try to hide everything from K1 from hearing the story of Satoshi. Now because of Oishi's appearance (cop) he began to mess with K1's mind (which I dont think he intended to, or did he?) NOW this point have caught Mion's and Rena's eye. So my point is, in order to prevent K1 from becoming the next Satoshi, Mion and Rena is doing wat they can to keep K1 from knowning the story/truth of Satoshi. And for those who have watched ep 4 alrdy, this is freakin me out cuz of K1's unexpected death. What really happend? Why did this happen? What connection are there between K1's death and the photographer's death? (Note their death were similar except for the drugs)

[mp3chan]

Now, I'm quite sure (after rewatching) that the hit-and-run scene is only in K1 mind. The scene is a bit strange. First, the car stopped and waited for K1 to walk further, suddenly the car turned over to hit him. I don't think it's possible to turn the car over easily on that narrow road. After failed hitting K1, the car seemed to be going to the opposite direction again (this even looks more imposible given the short time).

I think it's really K1's hallucination or maybe error in the animation?

[Cats]

+ Baseball bat
+ Creepy look
+ Scary feel
+ Cliff hanger heaven

- Somehow the "I smash windows in school and kill few people" just didn't seem right...

Ep Rating : Excellent

@ Xris

Hmm...
Xris is internal AS program... and the above is an error :rolleyes:
:joke: Just kidding... :heh:

[dzer]

Did anyone figure out the food puzzle(with A B C D E letters on them)?

Edit:Also struct me...there are 5 food balls...but only 4 members beside him...making 1 ball extra.

[kj1980]

Did anyone figure out the food puzzle(with A B C D E letters on them)?

Edit:Also struct me...there are 5 food balls...but only 4 members beside him...making 1 ball extra.

Mion's grandmother, Mion and Rena made those five ohagi. The puzzle was to find which two out of those five was made by Mion and Rena respectively.

[dzer]

Mion's grandmother, Mion and Rena made those five ohagi. The puzzle was to find which two out of those five was made by Mion and Rena respectively.
Ok then, anyone figured that puzzle out?

[kj1980]

Ok then, anyone figured that puzzle out?

The puzzle itself is not that important.

Helpful hint: Focus on the other details that seem or hear wrong in you.

[Cyz]

talk about creepy. that mion scene (that's her right? the green haired girl?) where she closed the door then she opens it again and says "i don't want you be out of school tomorrow" or something that goes along those lines.

[physics223]

This shit is so fucking scary that I lost my stomachache for a few minutes ... and that stomachache was extremely intense ...

[Shion's Sanity]

I was rewatching this for my site, when I noticed something. Maybe it's nothing, and don't tell me if it is, but when Keiichi goes to the clinic, he gets a shot from Dr. Irie.O_O

[kitedragon]

Yes, a doctor gives a patient a shot for a simple cold. Plus, the patient was faking it. And if I remember correctly, Dr. Irie mentioned something about following up, maybe another checkup or meds? I don't remember clearly, as I last saw it a week ago.