Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Kaku: Outbreak

So I watched the first and probably also the last episode and I decided to make this short review for those who are not sure about this OVA.

Basically you can think of it as another world where things went bad but this time you will see how everything continued until the end I guess. Who knows how will it end. We can meditate about it.

The style is similar to the previous Higurashi series but different from OVAs that were more like parodies. Kaku is very serious and you can see again everyone (yeah especially Rena and her insane face) covered in blood. You will meet ... all the already known characters and see the good old Hinamizawa again. Hmm yea, not good at all but you know what I mean... :D

The OVA is about 50 minutes long so it's like two anime episodes in one. I actually didn't believe in the end that it is already over. It really got me so I forgot about time etc. Don't wanna say that it's the best anime OVA ever, some scenes and moments in the plot are a bit childish and naive I would say and could have been done better. (don't wanna spoil much) However, I got caught by this OVA and I am sure that every fan of Higurashi will feel the same way. The plot is very fast (of course, just 50 mins for all the stuff in there) thus it's not boring and it ends in the best. In other words there is no time for boring scenes.

This OVA also helped me a bit to understand more about the whole mysterious plot. Especially Hanyuu and Rika's short dialogue is very interesting. To tell the truth, we never saw any of the paralel world coming that far as this one.

Btw, you know the song called “Dear You” from the Higurashi game? I remember tons of comments on the Internet that this song should be used also in the anime. Well, some dreams that may seem impossible sometimes come true. Thanks Oyashiro-sama.

The result? If you liked previous Higurashi series (and felt that you need more of Hinamizawa), definitely watch this OVA. No more to say. Even if you ignored the rest of the OVAs that were just weird parodies made for fun, this one is different.

I was actually very excited when I heard about a new Higurashi. I have been a die hard Higurashi fan since I watch the first series and have now almost read and watched everything that even sllghtly related to Higurashi.

Considering how disappointed I was with a large proportion of Kira, I was trying my best not to get my hopes up for this OVA but upon seeing the trailer, I found it difficult not to. It looked serious, it looked exciting; Rena had her cleaver and Keiichi is armed with the bat. What's not to instantly get excited about?

In general, it was an interesting ... episode and longer than your typical episodes so that it is about the length of a double episode. It did however have a few flaws that with some careful thought about the plot could have been easily smoothed out.

This may be an obvious point but you should have watch series 1 and 2 before watching this.

Story: In general, the story is interesting. It deals with the 'Outbreak' (unsurprisingly) of the "virus". I will avoid going into too many details but it deals with the action from external groups and more importantly the reaction of the villagers themselves. The plot-line is very reminiscent of the original Higurashi episodes. It is dark, there is plenty of violence and you can see the connection between the club members.

Character: With a couple of exceptions, I felt this is where the episode really fell down. It was without... 'love'. Both Rena and Keiichi in particular seemed to do things that had very little emotion attached to them - unlike in the previous series, their violence seemed a little... like a spree rather than for any particular reason.
Actually Rika, despite her small part in the episode as a whole, gets me applause. Everything from her expressions and her 'Bern-esque' voice got me. I'm pretty sure there may have been some gentle underlying suggestions about the links to Umineko.

Overall: Overall I enjoyed it despite the little character flaws, it made a nice change from Kira and the 'happy-happy-love-love' Higurashi to something just that little bit darker. There seems to be doubt as to whether this is the last episode or whether there will be more. It seemed to me that the episode lent itself to a little more storytelling.

Well, in short, This wasn't what I expected.
The thing I am most disappointed with, is the story. I really loved the whole Higurashi series, and I was very happy, when I heard that Higurashi didn't end yet, and there will be a new OVA soon. I looked forward to watching it. But now, after I finished it, the movie seems to be a trailer for something bigger. It just simply seemed short. I couldn't find the curve of the story. There was no beginning. It jumped right into the middle of the story. There was no problem to develop, because it jumped right into a ... problem that had already developed. And there was no conclusion. No happy ending, no bad ending. There was nothing in the whole movie.
About the art, it was like the rest of the series' : great. Well I have to say one very important thing: there is no lazy 3D animation in it. And that is very important. That describes how high quality it is.
I don't really have anything to say about the sound. Maybe that the OST is pretty good, and sometimes the girls' voices can be annoying, but that is how it is usually in the anime these days.
There were no new characters in the series, or no important new characters. There were the parents of Keiichi, Rena, Satoko, Irie, Rika, Keiichi, Mion and Mion's grandma. Some of my favorite characters were left out of the OVA. For example, I really missed Takano Mio. She was my very favorite in the series. And I also missed Shion, and her bodyguard. Some of the main characters' personalities were screwed up. For example, Irie acted so strange... In a way he would never act.
I definitely did not enjoy this OVA. I was waiting for a good story the whole time. And the fighting scenes were disappointing too. Not even close to the level of the rest of the series.
All in all, do not hope for some good Higurashi quality OVA when you are watching this.

So I'll start by getting to the main point that might help you decide on whether to watch this or not. It was a great addition to the first two original Higurashi seasons. Not a continuation, but it gives you the same vibe.

However, there are key things that need to be pointed out. Just note that some of these points might only apply to the unknown fact of this OVA being the only one to come, or if it will have more episodes following it.

The story moved very fast (if it's a single OVA, then that's more understandable) and the mystery vibe of the Oyashiro's ... curse seems to be non-existent; which I thought was one of Higurashi's greatest elements.

The villagers were also a bit more insane than usual, but they definitely added to the tension.

Above all, the soundtrack was definitely amazing. It was, might I say it, one of the higher ones in many animes. I'm not good with words describing music (that's for someone else whose talent is there to do) so I'll just leave it at: watch it and find out.

To be general, this was interesting to watch, but I personally couldn't say it was that close to the feel of the original two series' episodes.

Another Higurashi OVA. Been waiting for this.

Well, you could say I've been waiting to review it. This OVA has been out for like two years or something.

Set in 1983 (like every other Higurashi) an unknown virus has spread around Hinamizawa, and Keiichi and Rena go kill mother fuckers everywhere to try and escape. That's pretty much the story. But, the funny thing being that while killing people they don't even give a shit. They keep a straight face while doing it. Well, not straight face... Not like that buff parasite in Parasyte -the maxim- who was smiling while killing an entire group of people.

That ... may be a spoiler. But not for this anime. So, I don't know if it matters. Most of you, are probably new to horror anime, well... that's a little far-fetched to say. I'm new to anime myself, I've only watched 9 of them. But, from the ones I've watched included this, I'm going to continue my journey.

Enough of that. The story for this OVA is pretty legit, considering it kind of sounds dumb. It sound really weird, but I was really excited for this OVA back when it came out. Higurashi was the only anime I watched at the time, and in fact, I've watched it ever since 2006. I was very young, I think I was only 7 years old back then, but I liked it. The gore was incredible. I enjoyed all the psychological scenes. I was a fucked up little kid. But, I'm turning 16. So, it doesn't matter. All that is in my past (not really, I still remember it).

The animation is pretty basic. It's pretty much Kira but, with some psychological beating the shit out of everyone scenes. If you've seen Kira or Rei, that's pretty much the animation summed up. But, that's actually a pretty good animation, I think. I can never tell what animation is good or not anymore.

The soundtrack actually... it's incredible. The songs used in this particular OVA are awesome. Especially the ending song, Dear You, the only time I ever listened to the ending credits of an anime. I did listen to the season end credits of SAO, only because it was the end of the season. And, you got to listen to the first opening again, which that opening was fockin' epic.

I intended to spell that wrong.

Characters. Pretty much the exact same from the previous two OVAs. All the good characters, Hanyuu, Rika, Keiichi, Rena... name em' all. But, you never see the parents faces in the anime, rather than the manga. I haven't read much of the manga, which is why I haven't put it in my list. But, on other terms, the characters are really awesome. Which is what you should expect, if you've seen previous Higurashi seasons.

I quite enjoyed this OVA. Didn't think I would, since Kira was actually kind of bad. But, I did enjoy Kira, because I think I rated it 6 or something. But, this was actually quite good to see some psychological shit back in Higurashi. Hopefully, they will deliver more in the near future. Or not. It's their choice.

But, I rate this an 8/10. Only considering the fact that some of the scenes didn't make sense. Blocks shotgun bullets with metal baseball bat. Waht? Anyway, be gone!

~ D.M

Well have you watch Higurashi?
First of all, ignore Kira because its just a Spin-Off.

Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Kaku, or simply said : Kaku,

The story is similar from Hinamizawa, except this is from Outbreak, like virus spreading into the town, like Zombie outbreaks. Story has been forward, like its a story where you understand what is the Parallel World should be, and try to get the ideas how this happens. In short form, how the "virus" effects the person, rampaging and kill anyone. Its like a Speciment A vs Speciment B, killing is common.

But if you know the flow of the story, this not ... follow any of the arc, its a new story and theme.

But enough said, not exploiting the whole story.

Suprisingly the animation and the art is hundred times better than previous Kai episode, and its a major improvement + its less censored content than previous main series. Sound and voice acting still good.

Characters/themes are less introduce since you already get the facts from the previous Higurashi series, and from what I didn`t understand is what Hanyuu short conversation with Rika conversation.

Overall, its for a Die-Hard fans of Higurashi, if you are new who stumbled into this ova, I suggest not to watch this first.

7/10

*This review originally posted at AniList on 2022/03/12*

So, what are the essences of Higurashi?

- Mystery
- Friendship
- Suspense
- Thriller
- Horror
- Lots of gore
... - Psychology

What did producers say while deciding to make Outbreak? "Hey, guys! Let's make a Higurashi story that is filled with action!!!!" probably.

Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Kaku: Outbreak is an apocalypse movie. Somehow an experiment goes wrong, then the Hinamizawa Syndrome happens globally, and, of course, it starts in Hinamizawa first. And we watch how Keichii, Mion, and Rena try to escape from Hinamizawa while saving Satoko from the infected villagers who blame outsiders (Rena and Keichii's families) and Satoko for this virus. Villagers kidnap Satoko for sacrificing her to Oyashiro-sama and try to kill Rena and Keichii's families to stop the virus. How do they do this? Of course, with action!

Rena takes her hatchet, Keichii grabs Satoshii's bat, and they beat the shit out of 20+ villagers for saving Satoko with banger action music in the background! Just kidding, this OVA doesn't have any banger music. And I couldn't know if it had one because you can't hear the music as its volume is too low. Action scenes are boring, and the subpar animations make things even worse.

It's just your Higurashi characters in boring action. There's no mystery, no suspense, no horror, no lots of gore, no lots of gore, no psychological themes, and also no Shion. The only thing this OVA executed right was the friendship between the main cast, and even it's not anything above mediocre. Mion almost sacrifices herself to save Rena, and Keichii & Rena throw themselves into the middle of danger to rescue Satoko. Oh, how can I forget! Also, Rika makes a pseudo-deep speech in front of her friends through the end because Higurashi isn't Higurashi if Rika starts to talk like an adult and her friends don't suspect anything!

I watched every Higurashi title in the anime medium except for Ura☆Higu, and this Outbreak OVA was the worst one out of all, without leaving room to doubt. Yes, it's even worse than Gou and Sotsu. Although having a terrible script, even those two captured the essence of Higurashi until a point. So, if you watched all TV seasons of Higurashi and want more of it, don't watch this OVA—it isn't worth it. I recommend you to watch Nekogoroshi-hen. It's not anything stellar, but at least I can look at it and say, "Yes! This story is Higurashi." But this OVA is just a pile of garbage filled with terrible action. I have no idea why they did something like this back in the 2010s. It could be an understandable project if they were making something like a gacha game about this OVA, but that's not the case, as far as I know. The only thing that comes to my mind is that they wanted to milk Higurashi even more, so someone said, "Let's make a spin-off story!" and Outbreak came to life. However, I can't understand how someone thought a Higurashi story that has nothing to do about Higurashi except for Hinamizawa and the characters would sell. Maybe I'm the stupid one here, and OVA made them a good profit by selling well. The only thing I know is it's awful.

“It was like a can of air refresher after someone took a nasty shit” [Godzillathon #24 “Godzilla 2000” Cinemassacre]

You obviously have to watch the original Higurashi and Higurashi Kai (or play the visual novels) before watching this OVA. Also, there'll be some spoilers for those two seasons in this review.

When I first watched this OVA, I was pleasantly surprised! I had just been watching Rei and Kira, so I was naturally skeptical of anything beyond the first two seasons. Rei and Kira were the "nasty shit" mentioned in the quote above, by the way.

This OVA is an interesting take on Hinamizawa Syndrome. It shows how ... the government would actually respond to such a bug; they send the military in to quarantine the area. It was very fun to watch. I also really enjoyed seeing all Hinamizawa descending into insanity and chaos. I really enjoyed watching Keiichi and Rena take down crazed townsfolk.

Studio Deen really brought their A-game with the visuals. I especially praise the action scenes for their fluidity. Rena slicing through people with her nata has never looked so great!

I definitely praise the music! My favourite piece of Higurashi music ever is the ending music, You –Visionen im Spiegel by Yuzuki. The music during the action scenes is epic too!

The story is very much self-contained. However, I personally believe that this OVA is something you MUST watch after finishing the first two seasons of Higurashi. Rei and Kira can go eff of in a corner.

I give this a 9/10. For a worst recommendation (I can't think of any horror OVA's that are better than Outbreak), I suggest the Corpse Party OVA's- ACTUALLY, NO! Pick up the game from Steam or whatever. The Corpse Party OVA's sucked!

This OVA is a sort of take on the whole end of the world scenario in the setting of Higurashi. It's set in a parallel Hinamizawa where things took a turn for the worst.

I think this OVA hits home more the vibe of the first Higurashi season the n the second, because of the the fact that Kai didn't hit home with me as being horror the way the first season did. Also we see Rena in her creepy mode again.

A pleasant surprise for me, that I didn't notice before was the length of the OVA. The fact that it's twice as long as a ... typical episode lessens the con that this is, as of writing this review, the only episode in the Kaku OVAs. Furthermore, the pacing of the story is very fast, covering story that would normally fit into 4-5 standard episodes.

As a conclusion I want to say, that this is a very good OVA and I recommend it to everyone that enjoyed Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni, especially the first season.

Read the other reviews if you want a more thorough explanation of everything, I'll just keep this short and sweet.

Story:
This OVA sets up a really cool apocalypse type setting. The characters do make some pretty reckless/insane choices, but it's entertaining and kinda needed for the story, so I guess that's okay. The story was good, but it really needs to continue on longer. If they make more after this OVA, then everything about it will be more awesome, but right now it gets you excited and wanting more, and then it stops.

Art/Sound:
The art and sound were fine, and stayed familiar to most of the rest ... of Higurashi stuff.

Characters:
They are the same characters that you like/love. Sometimes Keiichi and Rena do act unrealistically reckless and commit some pretty emotionless violence toward other people, but it's fun to watch and you'll still probably like it.

Overall Enjoyment:
It's definitely worth watching if you've seen and liked other Higurashi. They better make more because the ending of this sets it up to be able to have so much more!

In short : Higurashi fans, run away !!!

I've been a fan of this fiction for a long time : anime, manga, visual novels.... I love them all and am probably biased toward them, but I don't care. Little did I expect to one day come across something related to it that would be this horrifying. Because under this pretty design mimicking the Anime, this is very far away from the original material, in an awfully negative way.


Story :

Did you ever come across an original fiction that seemed like a fanfiction to you ? I did : The Knights of Emerald, Akame ga Kill, Zenbu ... Choudai, The Witcher (novels), Fire Tripper (OVA), etc. Oh, I stop you there, just because something is "fanfictionish" doesn't make it remotely bad, Knights of Emerald for example remained entertaining despite that. After all, some fanfictions are really well done. When it comes to this OVA, though, we're among the bad fanfictions.

To me, it looks like the product of a fan : he/she took his favourite elements of the show/manga/visual novels and tried to bring to life some of his/her phantasms. Even if it doesn't fit the Higurashi universe.

Do we have the implication of the virus ? Yes, right from the start it's thrown into our face without any type of introduction, which, I would have accepted if there had been a counterpart for making it right retroactively, but, nope, cross that. This OVA may be long, but it didn't have the time for that, instead, it took plenty of time showing us how absurdly epic Keiichi and Rena are. The others you ask ? Who cares !? Let's find an excuse to have them as little as possible on-screen. Show the build-up insanity from the villagers ? (because this time around it's their turn to become mad) Who cares ? Keiichi's parents are present....even if they aren't really important in the end, considering the lack of care Keiichi shows overall of their....disappearance.... Er....what happened during that ellipse ? (oh and they are very, very understanding parents, or incredbily irresponsible...I hesitate....) which matches Rena's reaction perfectly when it comes to her own loss.

I could rant and piss about this story for ages, make a fuss about close to every elements, but I should cool down a bit, so I won't. Let's just say it focuses on everything that matters the least and avoids sharing with us, viewers, the most important information ON-SCREEN. It could also pull the various elements in better ways. All in all, even though the story is easily understandable, it has many pieces missing to bring a decent continuity to the plot, you just have various fragments brought together with poorly done transitions.

I would like to add a word about the end however.... Is it me....or is it suggesting Mion, Keiichi, Rena and Satoko (and Rika) are the only surviving beings ? Or are living in a post-apocalyptic world with "zombies" killing each other and only them as "normal" humans ? .....Well, Adam will have three wives this time, how lucky !

To say a word about the dialogues....they mainly sound off or forced, like they weren't put in appropriately.


Characters :

Aside from the story, the characters are also very fanfictionish.... They look like the one of Higurashi, they share traits with the one of Higurashi, but everything feels off or incomplete.

Irie kills himself ? Ok, why not ? But you have to develop it, not throw it into our face.

Keiichi and Rena are perfectly ok from a second to another to kill people and have thorough FUN with it. Isn't there some middle path first ? Usually, between point A and point B there's something to develop. Oh and also, they are....ninjas ? Don't know, but they are really good at killing many opponents on their own, and yes, they tend to show these types of qualities in the "every day" life, but in case you didn't notice, these absurdly awesome moments are purposefully restricted to the "fun days", while the more psychologically hard moments make them more human....again for a reason. Something this OVA seems to have completely forgotten.

Mion ? Useless....with her weak self being specifically worked out so you're sure to get she won't be of any (real) use.

Satoko ? Damsel in distress, we know close to nothing about her, because telling us how this virus is behind every religions and everywhere in the world is much more important.

Hanyu ? She turned evil. Because it was decided so !

And to come back to Keiichi's parents, for once that they had a minimum of role to play, I do not understand the choice of avoiding to show us their face, it just increases the lack of empathy for them.

The only one I could praise, to some extent, is Rika, even if during the last part of it, she was also of.

All in all, none of them react as they would normally, even their "insane" self. There are in-betweens missing to justify said attitudes.


Art & Sound :

They are the best part of the show. Well, the soundtrack is mainly what we had already, but it still nice to hear them again. Nothing to say about those two elements all in all. The seiyuus did a good job, overall, but there was some lack of...."soul" ? "Heart", "implication", however you want to put that.


Overall :

....Wait ? I've just been told it was based on a short story written by Ryukishi07 ? ...................Without further information about it, it may be wiser to turn yourself toward that version, at worst, it'll be as bad as the anime, at best, it'll be better............................
Now I shall go back into my horrified corner again.

I'm gonna warn everyone: this isn't a story about the curse of Oyamiro-sama. The story is about the villahe of Himazawa being in quarentee by the goverment and the villagers go crazy. Keiichi and their friends has to manage to survive and escape. The story is good, and i was glad it was different. And don't worry, you're gonna see Rena kill some people.

Throughout Higurashi Outbreak's lean 50 minute runtime, one thought kept coming to mind.

This... this is stupid, right? It's stupid. I'm pretty sure it's stupid.

So like, this gets praise because it's an edgy and dark OVA unlike the other Higu spinoffs which leaned more towards comedic sexy moe shenanigans. I say no, this is neither dark nor edgy. If anything it's the most sanitized and dull Higurashi has ever been. It's all haha violence go brrrr with none of the suspense and intrigue the series is known for.

Putting aside random developments like the idea of humanity's different cultures being a product of different strains of a ... brain parasite (????? this is brought up out of nowhere and is never elaborated on) none of the characters seem to know what story they're in. This is supposedly like an apocalypse scenario AU but everyone is acting like it's Monday at a boring desk job. For example, early on one of the main teenage characters very flatly states that their family was just moments ago lynched by a crazed mob. No one reacts to it and it's never brought up again. It's not even treated as a mild inconvenience, it's more like "well that happened, anyway let's move on". For a series so prone to high melodrama as Higurashi it's very jarring to see characters shrug off what should be major traumatic events.

Keiichi and Rena are reimagined here as hypercompetent action heroes who fire off quips and talk about the virtues of friendship while gleefully murdering several armed men like it's nothing. An actual CHILD is kidnapped and is about to be offered as a human sacrifice to appease the gods and she's just like cool with it. No biggie, happens all the time. Even Keiichi's parents barely blink an eye at a bloodsoaked Rena hacking away at a bunch of dudes right outside their door while Keiichi seems to be real casual about murder in this timeline. Everyone kind of is.

This tone of bizarre emotional disconnect continues onto the ending, which ends not on a dark nor hopeful note but one of total indifference. I just can't understand this approach. It's baffling. I felt gaslit by this OVA.

Ahhhh, the last of the Higurashi stuff (at least until the 2020 Remake comes out, but Corona screwed over a TON of anime including Evangelion 4.0 so...yeah, who knows when we'll get to see those shows.) What an...interesting note to end on.

Well, the story isn't BAD, but it's nothing great. Basically, it's a zombie apocalypse in the Higurashi universe, kind of reminds me of Resident Evil 4 weirdly with the evil villagers and parasites and all that. It's ok for what it is...I guess, but they could've done SO MUCH more with it.

The art looks nice, a bit of a step up from the last ... stuff we saw ('Rei' & 'Kira'). But it still looks familiar enough to be too weird. Also love the fact the insane versions of characters like Keiichi and Rena come back in terms of the looks.

The songs themselves are okay. I liked the end credits theme, though I believe once again the same songs from the series' soundtrack are used, but as usual they're used appropriately and non-excessively.

Overall, not a great OVA, but not the worst. It's passable. I kinda just feel like at this point they just wanted to get something Higurashi-related out there so they could renew some interest in the fanbase. Hopefully when the 2020 (maybe now 2021 or later) Higurashi remake comes out, we'll have new fans come into the franchise and there can be some new, better OVAs, who knows.

Good for Higurashi fans (maybe), otherwise, it's not really worth watching. It just kind of...exists.

Warning possible Spoilers

The final piece of the When They Cry is a nice throwback to the usual situations we knew and loved or terrified of from the first two series and what I really liked about this 1 hour OVA is that it could make way for a new story in the future.

The story is set in another one of Rika's worlds where she is trying to break the cycle except this time the village has been quarantined and our group of characters must find a way to escape the village.
I really liked the way this OVA went because it felt like the usual situations ... that happened in the first two series probably more season 1 than 2 and it definitely went back to being more of a horror thriller than a mystery thriller because you definitely see our main characters killing people again luckily it was all in self defence this time.
It was fairly action heavy and despite the main characters killing the village occupants it still showed the teamwork they could pull of together and it was pretty tense with some moments that happened like Keiichi almost getting shot by someone with a rifle so if you're looking for some intense action then you've come to the right place.
What I also like about this OVA is the way it ended as our main characters do survive yet Rika had to stay behind because of her connection to the village and along with the fact that the whole country has pretty much turned into hell like a new apocalypse has begun which makes me think this could lead to a new story for the franchise and it would be pretty cool seeing our main characters trying to survive in a destroyed world.

Now at this point we pretty much know what the characters are like, but this OVA does continue to show the teamwork they pull off together, but the difference is that in season 2 during the final battle they weren't killing the soldiers whereas in this they are which is kinda surprising since they don't go crazy or at least don't go crazy on each other, plus it was strange how Shion was nowhere to be seen in this OVA which begs the question what is she doing during all this?

The artstyle was definitely good at making this look pretty gorey since some of the attacks Rena on the village occupants looked nasty as hell I'm pretty sure she almost sliced a dude's head in half at some point which was pretty sick, but that seems to be the only that stands out with something different in the artstyle which is just new ways for When They Cry to look even more gorey than usual.

This OVA definitely concentrates on action because we get to see Keiichi and Rena kick some ass during the second half, but it still has that mystery element like why the Government has arrived to quarantine the village which gives the impression that they have discovered the virus that inhabits the village so they have cut if off from the rest of the world, it also continues to show the psychological aspect to great effect because when the situation gets pretty drastic in the village we see everyone going insane and picking sides as they lose trust in each other whereas the main characters continue to trust each other much like they do in the final battle from season 2.

Overall I thought this was a very tense, action packed and interesting OVA because from the way things end it feels like there'll be a sequel to this someday though that may never happen I still hope they might make a series for an aftermath of this which could be very interesting seeing how the characters adapt to a dead world.

I just want to say that, watching this while actually being on 2020, is a whole other level of immersion.

I know, maybe this isnt the scary Higurashi we know, but I think this doesnt make this one any less good. But I have to admit that it felt more like an action anime more than a thriller one...

So...my recommendation. If you really like Higurashi as a horror anime and only for the tension it brings in the original.... then dont watch this one. But if you watch Higurashi because you are a "friendship power" b*tch like I am, then , check it out. And the ... song at the end was soooo goood. I have been listening to that song from so long ago, and I didnt know it came from here. It was a nice surprise

In case you are wondering whether or not you should watch the OVA: Go for it!

It has the same basic "vibe" as the original two seasons - the only difference being that the secret behind it all is already known to the watcher.

However, I don't think that's too bad of a thing: It's the Hinamizawa we all know and love, just going down a different path leading to its inevitable destruction.

Also, we get to see a blood-sprinkled Rena in action with her cleaver knife, Keeichi-Kun using Satoshi's bat, and overall just a whole lot of insanity.

All in all, it's something like a short version of ... Higurashi that lets you reconnect with everything important.

After two seasons of the complete Higurashi story, we got nothing but short OVAs filled with silly comedy and shameless fanservice, and only one interesting yet pointless sequel; Dice Killing Chapter, we finally got the fifth anime instalment of the Higurashi franchise. Surprisingly, it is a serious side story that takes place in the second season, though the exact timeline was not specified. It's not a pointless sequel like Dice Killing Chapter, because it has little plot exposition like any other alternate world in the two seasons, but the new information you get is very little and trivial for someone who has already seen Kai.

It's ... an alternate timeline where you see an outbreak in action and the mystery surrounding Hinamizawa is revealed internationally in the news, but the OVA failed to focus on the media frenzy and instead focused on the violent outbreak within Hinamizawa; because who cares about political conspiracies or diplomatic relations caused by the outbreak in Higurashi? Who cares about the mystery and inter-organizational conflict within the 'Tokyo' organisation? Allocate the majority of the screentime to depicting the violent outbreak in action and people being brutally murdered, and that's more like it. Wrong.

Animation
Despite the fact that the OVA was released in 2013, it was never released on Bluray, so we are stuck with the crappy 480p DVD resolution. However, it's definitely better than the shoddy early BDs of the first two seasons, if you truly care about the visual quality and details, get the SD Blu-ray discs for seasons 1 and 2.

The animation is slightly improved in terms of fluidity; this is Studio Deen's final Higurashi title, and they clearly put their best effort for the series in terms of animation here, and I believe it deserves this treatment for an action gore heavy OVA episode. I also like the fact that they kept the same old artstyle and character designs from 2006, which was good and suitable for the genre and setting, and I am sure nostalgia fans will enjoy it.

Sound
While there was no animated opening or ending, which was unnecessary, the credit song (You: Visionen im Spiegel) was really beautifully done for a big good-bye of the Higurashi anime series; yes, a good-bye because this is the last watchable Higurashi title up to now; I dropped the series after only a few episodes of Gou, and I recommend you do the same after this OVA. All of the other soundtracks are the same as in previous titles, so it will feel like you're watching a missing episode of Kai; the music was fitting for the atmosphere, which is a big plus.

Story
The premise itself was intriguing, because, unlike most other chapters which had similar structure, Outbreak plays out a 'what if' scenario in which almost everyone in Hinamizawa goes insane, and the reason for the villagers' violent actions was justified by the unethical lockdown, not just the spread of a virus. However, there is no plot progression because the events are crammed into a prequel, and it doesn't work as a flashback because it's just another usual time reset, there is no theme exploration, nor was there any retrospectively interesting information, it would have been better to experience this chapter before Kai, but it was meant to be watched after Kai because it spoils some of it. So, to those who have already seen Kai, it appears to be nothing more than a storyless mindless action OVA with an excuse plot that adds nothing to the overall story.

'My father was murdered not long ago; let us murder those bastards for harming my friends.'

While there is death on-screen for gore and shock purpose, the script fails to create impact for characters who are supposed to be important to the protagonist; Higurashi was appealing because of its mystery rather than its action, which is why the fight scene in the final episode of the first season was embarrassing to watch, and now we have this OVA, which feels more like a low-budget B film action survival horror than a psychological horror mystery. The action itself was hilariously bad and unbelievable, akin to a battle between two school kids wielding a bat and cleaver murdering a hundred adult hunters wielding firearms. What is this, a battle shonen?

Character
There is no character development and no introduction of new characters. I was hoping to learn more about the 'big bad,' Nomura. They could have shown or hinted at how she intended to spread the virus and profit from it, or why she had personal conflict with Tokyo members like Koizumi, and where the hell is Takano, and what happened to Satoshi? Rather than showing me Rena murdering villagers, educate me on the Tokyo organisation. Instead of using Satoko as a damsel in distress plot device for mindless action, show me how Nomura started the outbreak without killing Rika.

Value
While Higurashi is not an action-heavy series in general, nor does it focus on gore, some fans enjoyed it for its violent scenes and eccentricity. For those who enjoyed the aforementioned elements, this OVA could serve as blood fanservice. It's also a good thing that Studio Deen didn't leave viewers with a bad taste in their mouths with their awful Kira instalment. This work also balances the bad comedy and ecchi that occurred after Kai; even though it has ridiculous action scenes and a bad plot, this OVA has zero comedy and ecchi; the story includes serious elements such as murder, abduction, hazardous virus lockdown, and crazy brutal religion sacrifice rituals, so this OVA reminds you that Higurashi can become serious when it wishes to.

Enjoyment
Again, the premise of the outbreak and the lockdown was interesting; I liked the military elements and the opening scene in which helicopters, military trucks, and armed soldiers roam Hinamizawa. You also get to see the heroes' dark side, not because of a virus, but because they have to make life decisions that result in the deaths of many people. Unlike the implausible Kai conclusion, which shows that no damage or death occurs despite the outbreak of a lethal firearms war, this one demonstrates that it is impossible to save everyone in war.

'Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Kaku: Outbreak' is definitely something a little different, if you are already familiar with the series as a whole. It does not offer much in the manner of psychological thriller, but it does expand on the greater lore of the setting and throws at you a scenario widely different from the others: one involving the military, a strange virus, and how that leads the village as a whole to fall into a violent paranoia rather than just the main cast.

Because the scope is a lot more expanded, less focus is placed on the intra-personal conflicts of the main characters so ... they can have a place in that greater scope.

I think I enjoyed my time with this movie, even if it went to places that I thought maybe deviated a bit from the core of what I believe Higurashi is, and I would recommend watching it.

tl;dr: A pretty great introduction that just kind of leaves you hanging.

Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Kaku: Outbreak is an OVA that lasts about an hour. It differs tremendously from the previous OVA series, Rei and Kira, in that instead of being light hearted and comedy focused, tone wise this OVA is much closer to the original two seasons in that the focus is on the serious portions. The central plot goes back to being centered around people being effected by the parasite. However it’s still a pretty major departure from the main seasons because unlike the main seasons where the parasite only effected a ... select individual from the main cast per arc here the parasites essentially break free and begin effecting everyone. In the main seasons the infected individual would fall under paranoia and begin attacking the other main cast members. Here it seems that while everyone else in the village falls into paranoia, the main cast seem to be effected to a lesser extent and stay united against the common foe of pretty much everyone else. though they still do seem to be infected in that they become as violent as they were arcs where they were affected by the parasite.

As such, it’s a very different dynamic compared to the main seasons. It’s much less psychological horror as it is just straight up action horror. There is still some level of psychological horror I suppose in that the village all target members of the main cast due to rumors and grudges, which is somewhat like the oppression Satoko faced jacked up to maximum, but the atmosphere is very different from how it was in the main seasons. Instead of there being a few murders of key individuals that are heavily focused on or dealing with enemies through careful and meticulous planning here it’s much more straight forward in just straight up fighting and killing enemies in order to reach objectives. There is some basic strategy to things, but it takes a back seat to the physical violence aspect. This feels somewhat inconsistent on some points, wherein while Rena was shown even in the main series to be blatantly overpowered as a fighter for some reason, Keiichi being at that level feels kind of off, even taking into account how the first season ended. Still, while it is very different, it is a pretty enjoyable thrill ride and seeing the cast in their violent forms was quite a refreshing change after all the comedic slice of life in the previous OVAs.

The biggest issue with this though is that it basically felt like a pilot episode for a series that at this point it is clear will never happen. It shows a dramatically different direction the narrative of Higurashi could go while still staying true to the overall themes and shows how the cast would fit into such a story. It also sets up a few plot lines in the background that could be fleshed out later in an interesting manner, with the plot line developed at the absolute end of the episode feeling like it would be the core of the overarching plot going forward. It’s a string of interesting concepts that if carried forward for a full season that delivered on the checks it was writing could be pretty amazing. However, none of that will come to pass and thus an and of itself it’s far less impressive, especially considering the visual novel that continues this story hasn’t been translated into English and probably never will be.

While the art style and designs are the same as all the previous entries in the franchise and it should be clear where you stand on them, the art quality and animation actually felt like somewhat of a step back compared to the previous OVAs and more so at the level of the two main seasons. I suppose that indicates that what I attributed to a quality enhancement in the OVAs may instead have been a change in stylistic choice that is being reverted in this due to going overall back to the style of the main seasons, though I’m not completely sure. The soundtrack fit well enough but wasn’t overall particularly memorable. The ED is like the ED for a film in terms of visuals in that it’s just text on a black screen mostly. The song is also very soft and somewhat bittersweetly hopeful. Even after spending some time thinking about it, I can’t tell if either of these, visuals or audio, fit incredibly well or didn’t fit at all, so I’m going to give them points for doing something interesting at least.