Not only because Higurashi is one of my first anime ever but also because it was the first to really make me feel a "void" ( this is when a certain piece of art transports you to its universe so effectively that you become addicted to it, dependent and more likely intrigued and willing to watch all the episodes in one hit, like a marathon and when you finished watching you feel like you want more of it).
And it is not like I am biased or something because the first time I watched it...
:/ I wasn't too impressed by it.
I was a stupid 11 years old brat who would think that the show was crap. And now,
I hate myself for having thought that :(
Let's get to the objective part of the review and the less nostalgic part.
*Story-Themes*
One of the reasons why I really like Higurashi is because of how the story was presented and how the story looks simple at the beginning but then it spices things up by adding varied themes from fear, paranoia and conspiration.
And if that wasn't awesome enough the show is a supernatural mystery which makes up the major twist of the show, which is presented after episode 4.
Which I am not gonna spoil because it is truly awesome.
Personally, I am a fan of story revolving around supernatural happenings and the mystery around them.
Because they allow to make some interesting character development. One of my most obvious examples are the Monogatari franchise and the Kara no Kyoukai series
What i like in this show is how the supernatural twist made a more intriguing adventure for the characters to live and for the audience to witness.
*Characters*
This story is an adaption of a visual novel which is evident when you think that a lot of time is spent in development in characters which is divided in different story arcs.
The characters are varied and adds to the story's themes an feelings overall with their different motivations.
The characters save the show from being one dimensional as the protagonist gets to learn about these characters and their backstories, in their different arcs, giving depth to the world offered by the show. Even adults characters are interesting and they have a decent amount of development. What I vastly enjoyed was how character motivations cause the conflict to happen in the first place and the series makes the conflict more intriguing by adding deaths and despair to the minds of the characters until making their souls is then consumed in madness until characters decide to cooperate to save what they want to protect
*Art*
This is the part where people are mostly divided so I am not going to debate for whether or not.
I am not gonna say that everything looks awesome because I would be lying to you.
However, I agree on the fact that it adds contrast with the dark tone of the show.
And I think that no other design for the character would have been adequate for the show and anyway the people responsible are the designers of the dojin game it is based on.
Overall, I think that some scenes may not look gorgeous but it is at least well executed and Studio DEEN were animating fate stay night at the same time so in my opinion they handed well animation even with another show being released at the same time o that's a plus.
*Sound*
My favorite part. Kenji Kawaii is amazing previously work on Ghost in the shell, Fate/stay night and Patlabor. His music for the show was perfectly executed and if you are not sure about that listen to the Main Theme of the show and the track Oshin
God bless him
*Overall*
There is nothing more mind-bending is that there was a lot of shows that I used to love and put them in some crappy top 10 lists but now i see them and i don't find the spice while watching them all except one and it was Higurashi.
Because no matter how much time i rewatch it ,i still enjoy it a lot.
This is show is an alien in my opinion. I have yet to find an anime that could at these point make me feel so hooked while watching.
I am not going to say that this show is a undoubtable masterpiece like let's say Akira, Ghost in the shell and Ghibli films.
But it is rather a show that uses simplicity and it's enigmatically powerful execution to create an anime that would make you feel intrigued with its:
-solid storytelling capacity, deep character development and masterful pacing.
