Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Rei: Saikoroshi-hen 1

Saikoroshi-hen, a.k.a. ‘Dice-Killing Chapter’.  In the more serious OVA installment of one of my favorite series of all time, this episode continues with the events of Matsuribayashi-hen, with Keiichi and company breaking the cycle in Hinamizawa.  Of course, Rika had to go and screw things up.

Oddly enough, I wasn’t TOO thrilled by this installment, but I think I can explain it away as them laying ‘groundwork’ for the future.  There’s a lot to talk about before anything big can happen, so for the moment, it seems best to just sit back, and wait for the continuation of the story…

Tales of the Abyss Ep. 23 + 24

Getting close to the final battle, and somehow this series just isn’t doing it for me that well.  As it reaches some climatic point, shouldn’t it be building the hype, or at least building on the energy it had managed to create before?  No, this just continues to slog on through the story set by the video game.  The emotion and energy seems to go through highs and lows, as 24 seemed just so incredibly slow compared to its immediate predecessor.  I can’t help but think that, with a little more planning and better execution, this could’ve been so much better.  Hopefully, though, things can end on a solid note.