Higurashi Q & A

[Thewanderer]

Originally Posted by Meowshi

How do the chapters relate time-wise to the first?

I mean like, how does the second 'chapter' (epi 5-?) relate timewise from 1-4

And I didn't really understand it before (the way you guys stated it..butterfly effect?) but these are alternate universes right?

How do these relate to the game, if the game is a choice game- Is this only one of the many set paths, or in the game, do the paths all lead up to this with different hints and clues, etc.?

I'm pretty sure they're "What if" scenarios that take place in the same universe, but when one starts, the last one is erased from existance or something. I can't be sure tho yet, so meh...

[Sushi-Y]

Originally Posted by Meowshi

How do the chapters relate time-wise to the first?

I mean like, how does the second 'chapter' (epi 5-?) relate timewise from 1-4

And I didn't really understand it before (the way you guys stated it..butterfly effect?) but these are alternate universes right?

How do these relate to the game, if the game is a choice game- Is this only one of the many set paths, or in the game, do the paths all lead up to this with different hints and clues, etc.?

Ok, I'm going to put this thing down once and for all.

Higurashi no Naku Koroni is a sound novel, there are no selection points within the story, no choices to be made by the player, no interactions whatsoever: you click, read, click, read, click, read, and continue until a chapter is over (well, actually, in the past 7 chapters, there has been a couple of selections, but they were all gimmicks, they don't mean or do anything).

The game is split into 8 chapters (scenarios, if you would), the first half (1 - 4) consists of what we call the "question" chapters (Onikakushi-hen, Watanagashi-hen, Tatarigoroshi-hen, Himatsubushi-hen), while the second half (5 - 8) are considered to be the "answer" chapters (Meakashi-hen, Tsumihoroboshi-hen, Minagoroshi-hen, and the yet-to-be-released Matsuribayashi-hen). Although we call them "chapters" in this forum, each scenario are completely stand-alone: they each contain their own stories, development, and ending, and are not related to any other chapters directly.

Now, as for the relationship between these parallel scenarios. Like I mentioned in another post, for the sake of defining it as something, you should consider the scenarios (chapters) to be different stories occuring in parallel worlds (although Minagoroshi-hen revealed that this isn't quite the case either).

The important thing here is to realize that all characters and settings remain exactly the same throughout all scenarios, the only things that are different between the scenarios are the circumstances and happenings. The primary function these parallel worlds is to provide a multi-faceted view for the reader (you) to analyze. For Keiichi and the others, the world within each scenario is their only world. But you, the reader, an outsider, can watch from the sidelines, blessed with the ability to make comparisons, deductions, and determinations based on information gathered from across all the worlds.

Timeline wise, it might not be exact, but yes, all the chapters take place at roughly around the same time period, early summer in Hinamizawa (although there are a few exceptions, but you will know them when they come).

The anime, then, is basically doing the same thing: showing one scenario, then moving on to the next after the current scenario ends, etc.

[JanthraX^]

what kind of blade/knife does Rena 'use'? It looks a lot like a chibi uruk-hai sword.

[kj1980]

Originally Posted by JanthraX^

what kind of blade/knife does Rena 'use'? It looks a lot like a chibi uruk-hai sword.

It's a hatchet with a pointy tip protuding out sideways. Seriously, that is the best way to explain it as it doesn't exist in that size. Although, there are similar ones such as the Echizen hatchet and the Haku hatchet, which are smaller and with a much rounded protuding tip. But, one guy went to the lengths of having it specially made just for the heck of it:

Spoiler:

[kinshin]

Hi, I'm glad I read the forums else I'll be watching the show in a totally DIFFERENT direction!!!

I have some doubts which I hope some kind soul will help to clarify cos I am really confused now.

Initally, I thought that the purpose of the different arcs was to explain what happened in the first arcs\ but it seems like the arcs actually portray different realities in a parallel world at the same time?

1) If so, how could some of the events which happened in the second arc explain some of the events in the first arc?
For eg. some people said that the reason that Mion knew K1 was talking Oishi (in the first arc) was because she actually disguised as Shion and happened to be in the same restaurant that K1 and Oishi went to for lunch. (second arc)
-> But if the second arc does not happen in the same world as the first arc, how could the above arguement be held true?

2) Also what is the role of us viewers when we view thru the different arcs. Eg. intially I thought that the different arcs happen in the same world and we are supposed to piece the story of different timeframe to get the full story (similar to boogiepop phantom anime), but if the different arc portarys different reality, how should we go about watching it?

I know this questions are really fundamental but I do hope someone could give me a clearer explanation so that I am able to view this anime in the right direction =)

This anime rockS! Thanks!

[FubaredByAnime]

Originally Posted by kinshin

Hi, I'm glad I read the forums else I'll be watching the show in a totally DIFFERENT direction!!!

I have some doubts which I hope some kind soul will help to clarify cos I am really confused now.

Initally, I thought that the purpose of the different arcs was to explain what happened in the first arcs\ but it seems like the arcs actually portray different realities in a parallel world at the same time?

In a way, yes

1) If so, how could some of the events which happened in the second arc explain some of the events in the first arc?
For eg. some people said that the reason that Mion knew K1 was talking Oishi (in the first arc) was because she actually disguised as Shion and happened to be in the same restaurant that K1 and Oishi went to for lunch. (second arc)
-> But if the second arc does not happen in the same world as the first arc, how could the above arguement be held true?

From my understanding of what's going on, the events that lead up to the start of each arc are the same. Then outside circumstances unique to each situation causes the stories to become different to each other. This leads to more clues provided in each situation to help figure out what's going on.

2) Also what is the role of us viewers when we view thru the different arcs. Eg. intially I thought that the different arcs happen in the same world and we are supposed to piece the story of different timeframe to get the full story (similar to boogiepop phantom anime), but if the different arc portarys different reality, how should we go about watching it?

I would just approach it as a mystery, except instead of the story providing the sleuth, we are the sleuths. And until the ending is provided for us, we're put in the situation to figure out what's going on based on the events given to us. Just remember, like all detectives, we have to figure out what's true from what's not true. That's the fun part.

I know this questions are really fundamental but I do hope someone could give me a clearer explanation so that I am able to view this anime in the right direction =)

This anime rockS! Thanks!

I hope I helped.

[Sushi-Y]

Originally Posted by kinshin

1) If so, how could some of the events which happened in the second arc explain some of the events in the first arc?
For eg. some people said that the reason that Mion knew K1 was talking Oishi (in the first arc) was because she actually disguised as Shion and happened to be in the same restaurant that K1 and Oishi went to for lunch. (second arc)
-> But if the second arc does not happen in the same world as the first arc, how could the above arguement be held true?

2) Also what is the role of us viewers when we view thru the different arcs. Eg. intially I thought that the different arcs happen in the same world and we are supposed to piece the story of different timeframe to get the full story (similar to boogiepop phantom anime), but if the different arc portarys different reality, how should we go about watching it?

First of all, read my post here if you haven't already:
http://forums.animesuki.com/showpost...0&postcount=33


I'm going to be careful in answering this one:

Spoiler:

1) The reason why I didn't just call these scenario outright "parallel universes" is because of this. When people think of "parallel universes", they tend to imagine worlds that are completely different from each other. This is not the case for Higurashi. Like I mentioned in the post linked above, "the characters and settings remain exactly the same thoughout all the scenarios". In other words, the "world" itself remains the same. The difference are the events that occured within each world.

However, just because an event wasn't shown in a scenario doesn't mean it didn't happen. For example, in Onikakushi, a mystery would be "how did Mion find out about the conversation between Keiichi and Oishi?":

"Keiichi+Oishi conversation" → ? → "Mion finds out"

Now, we learned the fact that "Shion/Mion worked in Angel Mort" in Watanagashi-hen. With that, we can "equip" that knowledge onto Onikakushi-hen and finally fill in the missing blanks:

"Keiichi+Oishi conversation" → "Shion worked in Angel Mort" → "Shion told Mion about it" → "Mion finds out"

or (depending on your theory)

"Keiichi+Oishi conversation" → "Mion worked in Angel Mort" → "Mion finds out"

Even though the conversation that took place between Oishi and Keiichi in Angel Mort happened in Onikakushi-hen, concrete "facts" (not events) can be applied throughout all scenarios.

The world is the same, but the developments are different. The cause for this deviance is based on a pretty simple principle. So far I have avoided the usage of that critical word, but hopefully you guys will notice it yourselves.

2) See the points raised in my post here:
http://forums.animesuki.com/showpost...&postcount=173

Like I said above, these scenarios are independent, but they are all related. The purpose for these different scenarios is to give you a view of the "overall story" from multiple different angles (multi-faceted view, like I mentioned in the other post). With only one "view" (scenario), you can only see one side of an object (world), but with multiple views from different angles, you can then try to build a 3D image of the object in your mind. The object (world) itself remains constant, but your recognition of it will change over time as you learn more about it.

[Beyond the Shave]

Do Keiichi's parents and Chie-sensei (I think that's her name?) serve any real important purpose to the plot, or should we not be paying much attention to them? They don't seem to be getting much screentime, leading me to believe that they don't have much of an impact on the storyline, but for some reason I still find them suspicious.

[Amaranthine]

I have a what I thought was a simple, very quick question, but I've realised it's a little more complex. :/ I don't think it's been answered anywhere.

It's about the TIPS, and how far they can be trusted. First of all, I'm assuming that the information in them can be taken as it's presented; there's nothing twisted by a character's point of view/mental state, like there was in Onikakushi-hen. Is that correct?

Secondly, I'm also assuming that in the ones that are conservations between characters, what the characters say could be lies or misinformation. I'm unsure as to whether the TIPS are supposed to provide concrete facts or whether they're just like everything else, and open to interpretation.

Sorry if it's a stupid question, but I'm feeling a little confused. x_x;

[AzureFlux]

Originally Posted by Amaranthine

It's about the TIPS, and how far they can be trusted. First of all, I'm assuming that the information in them can be taken as it's presented; there's nothing twisted by a character's point of view/mental state, like there was in Onikakushi-hen. Is that correct?

Secondly, I'm also assuming that in the ones that are conservations between characters, what the characters say could be lies or misinformation. I'm unsure as to whether the TIPS are supposed to provide concrete facts or whether they're just like everything else, and open to interpretation.

The TIPs provide "factual information" in the sense that they show what actually took place. For example, if a TIP contained information about what a character is thinking, then you can be sure that the thought process did take place. However, the contents of his/her thought would naturally be subjected to the person's state of mind. As for conversations, the above rule still applies. A person may lie if he/she chooses to.

With that said, the TIPs are there to help you solve the mystery behind everything (if that's even possible) and not to mislead the readers.

[kj1980]

Originally Posted by AzureFlux

The TIPs provide "factual information" in the sense that they show what actually took place. For example, if a TIP contained information about what a character is thinking, then you can be sure that the thought process did take place. However, the contents of his/her thought would naturally be subjected to the person's state of mind. As for conversations, the above rule still applies. A person may lie if he/she chooses to.

With that said, the TIPs are there to help you solve the mystery behind everything (if that's even possible) and not to mislead the readers.

Let me clarify about the TIPS:

What's written in the TIPS are evidences, fact, clues, and hints.

If the coroner's report says it's a woman, it is a woman Although you don't see the report, what good will Oishi and his partner have in lying at that scene about the coroner's report being a woman? They are talking to their fellow police officers - they can check them out if they want to; and that's what Oishi and Kuma tells them to do. That's how you connect the dots for the TIPS.

If the newspaper report says that so-and-so occurred, it occurred. If a character thought that way, that's what he/she thought (psychological state of mind aside). If you see an episode where Rika refers to a call that Satoko made when she was young, there's a record of it that you can read. It's interesting. And, that actual record is factual evidence.

How you use the TIPS is another matter. Scrapbooks for instance - it's written down, but it's mainly a theory. How far can you trust that source?

It's just a matter of sorting through the evidence just like an investigator - what is reliable and what maybe questionable. If it's between a coroner's medical autopsy report versus some person's theory written in a scrapbook....which one do you trust? How much can you trust? Then again, if you negate the coroner's report becaus he might be "in on it," what do you trust? On the other hand, what are the chances of the coroner misidentifying a corpse as a woman than a man? The body is rather intact, it's not charred up like Takano's corpse from the previous arcs. So, what do you think?

Are the TIPS misleading? Perhaps. But these are presented to you directly. Even if they some might seem to take you off-track, you then have to think - what was the purpose of that TIPS to make you go off track? That's where more thinking kicks in.

So, write down to yourself notes on which TIPS give you reliable facts, versus some that are highly questionable. You are your own detective - see if you can best Oishi or even Rena!

[Amaranthine]

Thanks for that, both of you. It helped a lot... especially since kj1980 seems to have read my mind by using the coroner's report as an example. Sadly I don't think I'm going to be besting Rena or Ooishi any time soon, but this will definitely help my attempt.

[Nork22]

Watch the latest CM for the DVD release. Apparently the 1st pressing DVD will have the TIPS as part of the package. Anyone can clarify this?

[Varion]

Originally Posted by Nork22

Watch the latest CM for the DVD release. Apparently the 1st pressing DVD will have the TIPS as part of the package. Anyone can clarify this?

Yep, it's confirmed by the official website and CDJapan. I made a post about it here with a link to the site.

[Varion]

Originally Posted by dopelfish

2. Mekashi-hen is going to have only 2 episodes? Only 2 are listed on wikipedia and anidb.

Only two episode titles have been confirmed for Meakashi, that's why I doubt that, as an answer chapter, it'll be that short - you'll be able to work out how many episodes it has when an episode title for Tsumihoroboshi shows up. Himatsubushi, on the other hand, is only 2.

[Guido]

What was the inspiration for Higurashi no Naku Koroni?

Explaining, if the idea of placing the plot in a rural village came from the experiences that one or many members of Ryukishi07 had in their childhood growing up in similar villages in the Japanese countryside.

[Nork22]

Originally Posted by Guido

What was the inspiration for Higurashi no Naku Koroni?

Explaining, if the idea of placing the plot in a rural village came from the experiences that one or many members of Ryukishi07 had in their childhood growing up in similar villages in the Japanese countryside.

I'm guessing quite a bit of Twin Peaks, infused with local folklore and traditions of rural villages.

[Sushi-Y]

(Looks like kj tossed my post into the game thread for the game-related contents ^^; , so I'll cut and paste this part back here)

Originally Posted by Guido

What was the inspiration for Higurashi no Naku Koroni?

Explaining, if the idea of placing the plot in a rural village came from the experiences that one or many members of Ryukishi07 had in their childhood growing up in similar villages in the Japanese countryside.

I believe it was a time when he was into mini theatrical plays, and out of interest, he wrote some play scripts. Among them was a script called "Hinamizawa Bus Stop", which is a story that took place entirely at a bus stop. Coincidentally, Yatazakura-san (the programmer, Ryukishi07-san's brother) began studying Nscripter as well at this time, so the idea to clean up the "Hinamizawa Bus Stop" script and rewrite it in a novel style came up...

The script itself can be said to be Higurashi's essence: all the most important plot devices came from this play script. But it took a lot of planning and organizing for the story to become what we see in the games today.

[Sunabouzu]

i understand that the arcs are the same world but with differant happenings to give you answers so that you can solve the mystery.
But is the first arc something like a main-arc? And you have to see the other ones to fill the holes of this „main-arc“ ? because i think there have to be at least some kind of main story...
----
well english is not my mother-tongue so forgive me for mistakes and maybe i have read something wrong...in that case just delete this post :P

[LostBlue]

In short, no.
I would work backwards. Upto this pt I think majority of the clues are given to you.