When They Cry

海猫鸣泣之时 - Umineko no Naku Koro ni

It's EPIC.

Ever since I watched this series, I've been having the urge to blog about it, because it's awesome!! It's from the 'When They Cry' series, though I didn't watch Higurashi Naku no Koro ni since I can't stand the character design... But this one is different!! The designs are gorgeous, which is exactly what I'm looking for in an anime!!

The opening was so breath-taking that I don't mind watching it everytime I watch a new episode. I've rewatched the OP twice for the 1st episode~~ xD The music itself isn't the kind that I'd listen to before I sleep.

Flashing some ominous tone here...

It's extremely suitable for the series and OP, overall it's pleasant and lovely, but to highlight the mystery theme, there are some parts which are opera-ish and some 'going-to-the-battlefield-feeling-ish'.

The music and OP animation complement each other. The animations fit the music perfectly starting with the portrait of the Golden Witch Beatrice (pronounced as Beh-Ah-Tri-Chi by the Japanese *sighs*) flashing in the flames. Visuals and audio can really create a powerful impact together.

This is the 1st OP image, the similar image above is used after the battle between Logic vs Magic begun...

How do I put the rest?

The lines are soft and clear, the characters look consistent, the colour and tone are soft and harmonious, and the special effects are nicely done.

The plot moves at a fair pace, which gives us the momentum to continue watching and yet not too fast to make us dizzy. The animation, by Studio Deen, isn't the same as 07 GHOST which has all the gorgeous backgrounds. But generally it was really good as everything fits like a puzzle.

The Golden Wicth Beatrice's portrait in the anime.

Some scenes from the OP...

Here we have a maid and a butler, to satisfy the fans.

Cute on the outside, she's actually a creepy loli who goes 'hihihihiiiii~' or 'giiheheheheee...', when she laughs. Not as innocent as you think she is...

The protagonist, Battler. Lol The name says it all. Battler, the fighter, warrior, hero...

Every episode is left with a total cliff hanger that leaves me breathless at the story. Logic versus Magic!! lol I tried reading the trick used in Wikipedia and got totally bewildered by the logic of the theory... Nvm, I'll just let the anime explain itself...

The ED scene. OMG They look so cool!!!

The ED animations are as good as the OP, sadly, they had an old geezer to sing the ED song... I don't suppose I mind listening to an old man singing, as long as he's not singing like he's out of breath and sounds pervert and creepy...

The down side about the anime is, well, the gory scenes of the dead. Victims were killed brutally in the first arc (at least Shanon didn't look too bad back then... but the rest looked mind-breaking). In the second arc Studio Deen mosaic the killing wound so it didn't look that bad, but the mosaic seem to emphasis on the wound...

It's not that bad since the slightly gore scenes highlight the mystery tone of the anime... Mystery!! I love mystery! Which is what made me to read Sherlock Holmes, Tantei Gakuen Q, Kindaichi, Detective Conan (dropped d, since it's too long, the tricks are absurd, and I felt really left out by the story the way Aoyama narrates the story...)

I just hope that Battler can explain all the mysteries... I don't wanna be disappointed!!

ps: This post was actually post before the previous one, but I love this so much that I moved it up... xD