*sad nipah noises*
What They Say:
After another cycle ends in failure, Rika descends into a pit of despair. Hanyuu leaves her with a parting gift – her memories and a way out of this miserable loop. Both are a double-edged sword – how will Rika decide to use them?
The Review
Content (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
Following the Curse-Deceiving arc’s harrowing conclusion, I thought Rena’s secondhand assessment of the killing spree felt a bit lackluster. Well, Ryukishi07 must have heard my disappointment, because episode 14’s opening scene made me eat my words. Just as Rena had described, Oishi shows up to the Watanagashi festival with bloodlust in his eyes. His target – Rika Furude. Oishi proceeds to take Rika hostage, gunning down anyone in his way, including Mion and Shion. He rambles about Rika knowing the secret to the mysterious deaths and their ties to Hinamizawa. Rika accepts her fate and Oishi proceeds to beat her head in with a familiar baseball bat. Oyashiro-sama’s curse was in full effect.
But we don’t simply cut to the next timeline. Rika once again lands in the mysterious space between time, where she has her final meeting with Hanyuu. The century-long puzzle of Hinamizawa’s curse has taken its toll on Rika. Even after breaking free of the village in a previous timeline, she was eventually whisked back to the treacherous cycle. How can she have any hope that she isn’t stuck here forever? And just to kick her while she’s down, the final remnants of Hanyuu’s power have been drained. Before she disappears, Hanyuu leaves Rika with some valuable tools. First is the power to remember her previous timelines. With this, Rika should be able to recall her killer and plan accordingly for the next loop. The other tool is a sacred sword. Hanyuu explains that this sword can kill a “looper”. With those parting gifts, Hanyuu vanishes forever, leaving Rika by herself in this timeless struggle.
Rika wakes up on June 12th, 1983. Usually, she can hide behind a happy façade, with a smile and hearty “nipah” to quell anyone’s worries. But this time, Rika is completely drained of hope. No amount of “nipah’s” could hide the sadness on her face. The club members try to cheer Rika up by letting her pick the game for the day’s activity. Rika chooses hide-and-seek, where she is the only one hiding and the rest must search for her. Of course, Rika had not intended for her friends to find her in time. She heads for the Shrine’s ritual tool shed. Inside the Oyahsiro-sama statue is a fragment of the sacred sword mentioned by Hanyuu. Just as Rika is about to take her own life and put an end to this traumatic roundabout, she hears her friends calling out to her. Despite all the years of failure, Rika is reminded that her friends will never give up on her. When each cycle begins anew, she knows that Keiichi and the others will be there, through even the most haunting moments. With the ability gifted to her by Hanyuu, Rika decides to give it a few more tries. Will she finally be able to break the curse?
The most important part of this episode was Hanyuu’s departure. I’d like to focus on her parting gifts for a moment. The first one is pretty significant – Rika should now be able to recall her previous timelines. This provides valuable information for every future time loop, but also comes at a cost. Not only does it add more mental baggage for Rika to endure, but it also has the possibility of skewing her perception. As we’ve seen in Gou alone, the person affected by Oyashiro-sama’s curse has been different in each timeline. While keeping her memories intact allows her to prepare accordingly, it doesn’t necessarily guarantee success. The second parting gift, Hanyuu’s sacred sword, is a not-so-subtle hint at a much larger story element. Hanyuu specifically states that the sword, “can kill one who lives in loops.” While Hanyuu could have assumed Rika might turn the blade on herself, I don’t think that was her intended message. Her wording gives the impression that there are likely more people experiencing the time loops. Figuring out who that is will put Rika much closing to solving the mystery.
Just as an aside, did you notice one of the big hints to a previous timeline? Rika says she couldn’t recall who killed her in the timeline where she was found in the septic tank. As we see during the hide-and-seek segment, Mion has the keys to the septic tank and specifically goes to look for Rika there. Just an interesting detail I thought I’d point out. One of Higurashi’s best qualities is its replayability, I’m sure there’s plenty to find hidden between each episode!
In Summary:
Just like in the real world, the cycle begins anew and not much has changed – suffering still peeks over the horizon. At the very least, Rika has some important weapons in her arsenal now. I feel like a broken record when I say it, but will this be the moment that changes the course of Higurashi‘s twisted fate? We’ll have to wait and see.
Grade: B
Source: Funimation
