[naikou]

Alright, I'm gonna have to play the Umineko apologist here. Bear with me please.

I thought that EP7 answered nearly everything. I'm really not even sure what questions you all seem to be left with. So the fact that EP8 provides no more answers is irrelevant. EP7 closed everything up nicely, except for the Lion/Will situation, of course.

Originally Posted by Chron

Like the nature of the Island isn't explained in any more detail than we got in Lost, that's what we're being treated to by Ryuukishi.

Oh please. There is no magic smoke monster or psuedo-scientific bullshit in Rokkenjima. Don't let's be dramatic.

What exactly about the island did you want to know? There is nothing special about it, other than it is filled with explosives. And has a sizable lump of gold, and a secret mansion.

Originally Posted by Chron

But, BeatoYasuShkannonion is the only true depth in the story. All the other characters lack true depth, or are fictions within fictions, or fantasized ideals of departed individuals, or are just plain angsty. Angst is not depth.

Maria, angsty? No, no, she's unrealistically bubbly and happy, except when she's pretending to be a witch. Don't know where you got angst from. Children throwing temper tantrums is not angst either, don't pretend that it is.

But besides that, there are plenty of characters with multi-faceted personalities. Natsuhi for instance, is very interesting. She's motivated by her love for her family, her respect for Kinzo, her sense of duty. But she also feels out of place, lonely, and overwhelmed with responsibility because of her lackluster husband.

What more depth can you ask than that? I agree that there are many shallow characters in Umineko (Hideyoshi is fat and smokes, that's about all there is to him), but don't downplay the rest of the cast!

You say that Eva is "tortured" and dismiss her as if that sums up her entire character. I might as easily say "Holden Caufield is 'confused'", that is not depth. "Kurtz is 'mad'", that is not depth. "Atticus Finch is 'noble'", that is not depth.

I will agree with you that the lack of Dr. Fell is a glaring flaw, possibly the biggest flaw in all of Umineko.

Originally Posted by Renall

I still can't get over the nagging impression as the series winds down that the first two episodes of Chiru were literal filler.

EP5 and EP6 were intended to be hints! Naturally, if you had already figured out the answer, those episodes seemed unnecessary. Although they were damned entertaining in my opinion, necessary or not.