Say It In Red | Episode 02: Higurashi Chapter 1: Onikakushi

This week, Sara and Runa embark on a long trip to Hinamizawa and discuss Higurashi no naku koro ni, Chapter 1: Onikakushi (2002). In this first episode of our full dive into all 8 volumes of Higurashi, we talk about the harrowing stakes of afterschool card games, the existential significance of Air Conditioning, and the startling correlation between holding a metal bat and having a Real Bad Time.Higurashi no naku koro ni is a lengthy story spread out over 8 Kinetic Novels and we'll be covering each game in its own episode over the next few months. Higurashi was originally released in 2002 but didn't receive an official worldwide release in 2009, and now thankfully it's not too difficult to buy an official release of all 8 volumes in English (and a lot of other languages too). It's part of the When They Cry series by 07th Expansion and creator Ryukishi07, and we'll be covering Umineko further in the future.Higurashi chapter 1: Onikakushi follows the story of Keiichi Maebara, a teenage boy whose family has just moved into the relatively rural Japanese town of Hinamizawa and quickly settles into a delightful daily routine alongside his new friends, Rena, Mion, Rika, and Satoko. As he spends time with these girls playing board games and pranks, he learns that there may have been a grotesque murder in the town just a few years ago. When he asks his friends, however, they act as if nothing like that could have ever happened. After the photographer who first told Keiichi about the murder turns up dead, and under extremely suspicious circumstances, Keiichi begins to suspect that there may be something terrible about Hinamizawa. Has a curse been claiming the lives of residents and enemies of the town each year? Is there a town-wide conspiracy bent on silencing anyone who threatened the peace and order of Hinamizawa? Are the residents of this town really descended from demons? Keiichi digs deeper and deeper into the mystery surrounding his new home and as he does, his friends start to act more and more terrifying and things become more and more uncanny... Right? All of that really happens, right?Or, maybe...Content Warnings for this episode:Broadly, we talk about Death, Murder, Violence, and some unreality themes throughout.00:22:00: Mention of a Needle hidden in food00:23:55: Mention of Battery/Violence00:25:04: Needles/Syringes00:25:30: Mention of Battery/Violence00:40:18 to 00:40:58: Details of a murder including self-inflicted neck injury and fingernail trauma. 00:52:08 to 00:53:45: More mention of needles in food01:17:53 and 01:18:45: Finger/Hand injury01:44:45: Another mention of self-inflicted neck injury and fingernail trauma. 02:01:15 to 02:03:06: further discussion of self-inflicted neck injury and fingernail injury