ひぐらしのなく頃に 業 1

An Interesting Start to a New Higuarshi Story

First of all, ひぐらしのなく頃に業 is a sequel series to the original eight episodes of ひぐらしのなく頃に. If you would like to read Higurashi in manga form please start here, https://learnnatively.com/book/577fdb07ae/, and read in release order. Or start with the original sound novel which is available on Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/310360/?snr=1_5_9__205. This version can be played in both English or Japanese. ひぐらしのなく頃に業 relies on readers being familiar with the characters and plot of the original work so please read the original first for the best experience! This manga will be a confusing and unsatisfying read if you are not familiar with the original work.

This is a solid first volume and arc of ひぐらしのなく頃に業. Several interesting mysteries have been established using the characters’ previous experiences and development from the original making me keen to keep reading. I especially liked the subtle changes to scenes we had seen before, hinting at a different plot unfolding. I do hope the corresponding ‘answer’ arc in the ひぐらしのなく頃に 巡 manga can follow up on this arc well.

The art, by 赤瀬 とまと, captures the personality of each of the characters really well so the slice of life scenes where the club members are just hanging out are a joy to read. It’s clear that 赤瀬 とまと has a deep understanding of these characters and can depict them well. I do wish we could have gotten a few more scenes with the whole club before Keiichi meets Ooishi and starts to become paranoid. ひぐらしのなく頃に業 assumes the reader understands the deep bond between these characters so I understand why the story was told this way but I do feel the arc could have been improved with some more original slice of life scenes. The growth each character had experienced in the original could have been highlighted more in them playing together or just talking to one another. This would have given the ending a bit more weight as we would have seen that even after all they have been through, they cannot quite beat the tragedy of this new fragment.

Rena, who is the focus of this arc, really stood out. Rena’s classic 「噓だ」scene looked awesome, really capturing the shock and unease Keiichi was feeling. 赤瀬 とまと creates a really striking contrast between Rena’s cute and cheerful expressions and her more unsettling scenes throughout the volume. This contrast effectively communicates Keiichi’s growing paranoia and isolation creating an oppressive atmosphere as the story progresses.

With regards to language learning, if you are familiar with Higurashi I think this manga is a good choice for practicing reading in Japanese. I would not recommend it as a first read but if you have a few manga under your belt this manga should be a good reading experience. There is full furigana which helps with unfamiliar vocabulary, which I found quite a bit of in this volume. In particular, the descriptions of the previous deaths which had occurred in Hinamizawa were a bit tricky due to the use of words relating to the weapons used and the method of the murders. Aside from this case the vocabulary includes standard school and daily life sort of words. The grammar used should be understandable if you have studied the grammar covered both volumes of the Genki textbook.

Overall ひぐらしのなく頃に業 is a fun read which appears to be setting up a new and interesting mystery. I recommend fans of Higurashi give this one a try as I do feel that the spirit of the original work is here.