English Dub Review: Higurashi – When They Cry: Sotsu “Cotton-Revealing Chapter, Part 3”

OVERVIEW (SPOILERS)

In her berserk state, Mion ends up killing Oryou and Kimiyoshi while trying to interrogate them about the vast conspiracy she thinks that the Three Great Families have put together to make people who go against their traditions disappear. But when she finally targets and kills Rika, Satoko gets concerned she might have gone into hiding. It’s only once she knows for sure that Rika is dead that she kills Mion and then herself, resetting the timeline once again.

OUR TAKE

Another Higurashi arc in the books and not a moment too soon. I don’t really know what else there is to say about this arc in particular that I haven’t said already or to harp on the misguided nature of this season revisiting arcs from last season when they offer no new meaningful information. People who know the first two seasons (because if you don’t, why would you even be watching this one?) know that normally this scenario focuses on Shion seeking vengeance and searching for truth in part due to her love for Satoko’s brother Satoshi and repressed feelings for Keiichi, leading her to think that the Sonozakis are actually the cause of the yearly disappearances that happen to people in the village. That was compelling at the time because the truth about what was going on was not yet known, namely that the Sonozakis, while holding clout and influence, had nothing to do with what was happening, so it was both interesting and tragic to see Shion take increasingly dark steps towards her goal, all for it to end up meaning nothing.

But now that should be common knowledge to those watching the series at this point, so watching Mion do the same without even a mention of Satoshi (no explanation given for why no one will bring him up, by the way), has no purpose. It doesn’t make this feel like the well meaning but ultimately tragic tale of a woman in love who tried to uncover the truth but was consumed by her hidden dark side, it’s just showing Mion being forced to do things that Shion did by both Satoko and the writers in order to drum up nostalgia for a better season and ultimately just waste time. It actually, probably unintentionally, shows how little Satoko thought this through given that she had to look into why Rika suddenly disappeared because she died without her knowledge. So overall, I think we can safely say that the last six episodes, over two hours of runtime, were pretty much pointless. But we’re not done with this yet, as we’re going back to the Curse Deceiving Chapter starting next time with five full episodes. At least this time we might have a shot at some important information since it will be from Satako’s viewpoint, but I’m not holding my breath. I’m starting to think people were right that we might be getting another season after this, though lord knows what purpose that serves. I can only hope my suffering will end quickly, unlike the poor souls trapped here.