Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Rei: Saikoroshi-hen 2

Part 3 of the Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni: Rei OVA series, and this continues from the previous episode of Rika being lost in an instance of Hinamizawa that had no Dam War, and no Maebara Keiichi.  The rather straightforward and plodding nature of the episode takes away from what’s supposed to be a chilling ending, but it’s still a good watch.

Then again, I may be another Higurashi fan just itching for more.  See what you think after the jump.

Summary:

With Rika coming to the realization that this is a very different Hinamizawa than usual, she immediately sets off to find Hanyuu.  However, her ghostly friend doesn’t respond to her calls until she enters the shrine.  There, Hanyuu’s faint voice is heard from one of the family relics, a jewel that acts as a ‘tranceiver’ between the world shards.  Hanyuu explains Rika’s rather grisly end in the other world, and also that she cannot enter Rika’s current world because something is rejecting her.  Rika decides to go look for whatever is keeping Hanyuu away; a new caveat is that without Hanyuu, if Rika is killed in this world, it’s all over.

Back at school, Satoko continues to confront Rika, making life for her miserable.  Making things even worse, Hanyuu tells Rika that whatever is holding her back may be in a person – and a most unfortunate end would meet them.  Praying otherwise, Rika continues her search, beginning with her mother.  Thankfully, she feels nothing, and continues on.  However, frustrated with Satoko’s antics at taking away some old documents of hers, Rika ends up beating the annoying Houjou child with a chair, earning both of them a principal’s time out.  In the clinic, Rika decides to talk to Yamamoto about her situation, and the good doctor is seemingly understanding of her predicament and offers to help in any way he can…after hearing Hanyuu’s voice in the marble, at least.

Rika returns to the classroom and the day ends without event.  As people begin to go home, Satoshi, Mion and Rena pull Rika aside and try to convince her to join their group of friends so everybody can get along.  Mion isn’t terribly thrilled with Rika, but is willing to put up with her in order to promote peace in the classroom.  Through their conversation, Rika finds that her counterpart from her current world was much more secretive and manipulative than her ‘normal’ self, and suddenly understands why she’s at odds with everybody else.  With Satoshi trying to convince Satoko to join, Rika promises to think about it and departs.

Back at home, Rika is torn about living with her family or trying to return to the world that had been freed from the curse of Hinamizawa.  Rika’s mother, however, finds out that Rika told Yamamoto about being the reincarnation of Oyashiro-sama.  Rika denies any validity, claiming she was just messing with the doctor; however, Rika’s mother reveals that, through the pattern of the Furude lineage, she is the true incarnation of Oyashiro-sama.  Pulled close, Rika suddenly realizes there’s a strange aura about her, and her worst fears have come true..

Impressions:

• You didn’t honestly one of the regular characters to carry this ‘rejecting force’, did you?  Obviously it was one of the new characters.  The chances of it being Satoshi would be slim at best, since his involvement in the OVA so far has been minimal.  Ditto to the Furude priest, aka Rika’s father, who has yet to have a line in the OVA.  That leaves…well, Yamamoto and Rika’s mother.  The fact that they went to her first kind of tripped my alarm that it would be her.  Also…it just seems so RIGHT in the Higurashi world, doesn’t it?
• Speaking of which, Rika’s mother is beautiful.
• Was never a big fan of Satoko, but this is just ridiculous.  Is this how she was before, when her brother was around?  No wonder she got abused by everybody.  She’s incredibly annoying when she has her pride.  Rika must be insanely weak if she trashed Satoko with a chair and she walked away with a scratch, though.
• So?  Would you give up and live with your family and build your relationship with your friends all over again, or would you go back to the world you worked so hard to liberate from the curse?  Very tough call.  I’d expect the latter in this series, but you could definitely make arguments either way.

Preview:

Rika faces some tough decisions.