#higurashi no naku koro ni spoilers

[coolstuffiseverywhere]

I have a kinda batshit insane theory that might make sense?

So, I like Tohya and Ikuko’s existence, but Ikuko always felt off to me. We don’t have enough to really grab onto to start building much of a character from her writing unlike Tohya, despite her writing more of it. I know Sayo=Ikuko is a common theory, and I think it works by the logic I’m about to suggest. This is another alternative that I find interesting though.

Ikuko is Rika. Hear me out. Tohya isn’t Battler, in other words, he isn’t the detective. The closest we have to a detective of the future is Ange, who can still see magic. Meaning we don’t actually get an objective viewpoint of the future ever.

This works based more off Featherine, but let me explain how it works in reality: Sometime after breaking the loops, Hanyuu leaves, etc(ignore Gou I’ll get to that) she decides to leave Hinamizawa, setting up a remote place to live with some servants. As heir to the furude family, she has the funds. This doesn’t actually have to be 1986, as finding Tohya and bringing him back immediately aren’t necessarily true and are also a little lucky. My guess would be she finds Tohya while on the way to look for an estate, brings him to the hospital, and they later live together. Together, they lie about her age upon finding him, as she often uses makeup to appear older(and by the time Ange or anyone meets them she’s old enough for it to not matter), to feel more her age after the loops.

Now, my actual reasoning: Featherine on the meta level always seemed weirdly divorced from Hanyuu. I can see some connections of course, it’s all the parts of Hanyuu that got buried in Matsuribayashi. But I never really could get what all their lines about master/servant meant, considering some lines Lambda said and some implications that don’t seem true in Higurashi. Thus, I suggest: Featherine is a mix of their author persona and a witch for Rika to deal with Hanyuu leaving despite being there for her entire life.

This explains Featherine being more of a recorder(although you could also read this as Ikuko’s influence, recording both Ange’s thoughts and Tohya’s story) and watcher then a writer despite also writing. It explains what Bernkastel means by “you taught me”, as she’d be quite literally talking to a manifestation of Hanyuu and Rika, the second of which presumably making Bernkastel as a way to deal with the looping and her trauma, as well as to personify her depression. Hanyuu ofc did teach actual Rika, but Featherine was always not actually Hanyuu, and a lot of the commentary was always more about Featherine anyway. The broken horn thing may make more sense as well: it’s a combination or the Hanyuu inspiration and talking about Rika’s loops.

It also explains the higurashi as a book references: they probably did also write those, Sayo might of read them!

In this scenario, Lambda would be written to be her way of dealing with Takano and her not really getting consequences, as well as her separated friendship with Satoko. Which, on that note:

Gou! I think this would be Ikuko and Satoko, but mostly Satoko, writing it! For the same reasons as the show. And I think it works better as an actual book. She’s trying to use loop’s mechanics more to understand Rika’s experience better, and also they’re both trying to process their friendship ending. I think in this scenario either Rika left before they started high school, or they just went through all of Saint Lucia’s without a loop. Regardless, I think Satoko tried to go to Rika’s school, which was likely fancier. This was just their way of trying to see how that’d actually go for them, and better process that their past relationship was unhealthy.

I think she may of also helped write some of the Lamba parts of Umineko, but that’s mostly conjecture.

This was a bit of a mess, and I’m sure more contradictions and evidence is around, but I don’t think I’ve seen anyone else suggest that some of the last book’s non-Ange future scenes are fantasy scenes. So I hope that at least helps.

[bluejewel5535]

On Higurashi ch2 watanagashi rn and I think it's interesting that Keichi's stradegy for winning in a lot of these club games is convincing other people to be on his side.

With the board game on this chapter, telling his opponents that if he wins he'll use the club members special penalty for Sakato and Rika to go on 'dates' with the opposition.

In zombie tag weaponizing Satokos usage of other players to his advantage (this does backfire). And in Cluedo where he gets Rena to share their cards together but that plan goes awry when Ooishi appears and destabilizes his trust.

(Even in the introductory card game Old Bachelor they play Mion's tactic at the end was for Keichi to overthink her actions and trust that she would make a complicated play)

When the story derives it's conflict from the idea of outsiders vs established community it's interesting seeing the MC functioning with the community until it is ruined by the uncomfortable reality of what has happened in the past.

(I'm barely into the story so I'm not yet ready to make generalizations on the games overarching narrative but it feels like to me that if Ooishi didn't tell Keichii what was happening then he would properly acclimate to the town and not be spirited away by next year. But admittedly Keichi was already sleuthing what happened with the dam lynching so maybe that's an overoptimistic perspective)

(In fact it occurs to me now that, Tomitake had been coming to Hinamizawa for a few years now but only died after telling Keichi what the curse was.)

[rogueandmage]

It's her

girl who has given up 100,000,000,000 times

[confirmation-roll]

[simikae]

MION SONOZAKI IS THE BEST FRIEND I COULD EVER HAVE

[clubpenguinkiller]

nurse takano's fun fact!

[nymdraws]

a smile you would do anything to protect

[oobi-oobi]

Quick sprite redraw of a girl who has never done anything wrong ever actually

To whoever reads this,

Your creations matter. Everything you do adds value to the world. Keep going, even when it gets tough. You are important, and the world needs what you have to offer. Keep creating!

[coolstuffiseverywhere]

I was looking for the other versions, but google apparently wants me to use Umineko, so, Rika every time anyone talks about Oyashiro-sama’s curse:

(She, obviously, I didn’t make this)

higurashi has the best fucking religion-based plot twist because they spend like 3 arcs making you understand that the god curse is nonsense and that it's all because of a cult and that god isn't real just to introduce her and she's actually a shy little girls. like it's not like god isnt real and thats why the curse isnt real god is real but she wouldnt fucking do that.

[coolstuffiseverywhere]

My unhinged Higurashi theory is that Hinamizawa Syndrome doesn’t exist, Irei and Takano are just desperate to find anything, and ended up making a psychotic drug. Rika’s brain is different from Hanyuu & the loops and Satoko’s brain is different because of abuse+trauma.

All the effects of Hinamizawa Syndrome are from stress+existing issues/conditions+Hanyuu being around those who are being affected. I think you could even argue she is actively revealing herself, either to comfort someone or make them go crazy so Rika gets less progress in the loops and has more obstacles. See: Beginning of Onikakushi

After all, Hanyuu was actively trying to get Rika to just give up hope but also keep looping.

Hanyuu is arguably the logic error of Higurashi itself. How could Rika win if a god doesn’t want her to.

[ryo-yamada]

we stan a girl who can take constructive criticism

[herisnae]

Takano Miyo

My finished piece for ''Fragments of 1983'' Higurashi Zine I did back then in 2021.

[coolstuffiseverywhere]

WHY ISN’T RIKA WINNING! She’s also an alcoholic! And she’s died and seen her loved ones die hundreds of times!

PROPAGANDA UNDER THE CUT: [SPOILERS AHEAD]

OBITUARY WRITER:

RIKA FURUDE:

[confirmation-roll]

[lightprkdraws]

If only my finished drawings looked as good as my WIPs (in terms of lighting & colours)

[deformed666doll]

Higurashi When They Cry