Umineko no Naku Koro Ni: First Impressions
Posted by FoFo on July 16, 2009
When I sat down to do my Summer Season preview, I was pretty sure that I wasn’t going to take the time to watch Umineko. But a friend sapped me the OP and I’m a sucker for an epic chorus so I decided to give the series a chance. Now, Umineko falls into the category of series that should give reviewers headaches, namely, long mysteries. These shows can be great, but they are rooted in the principle of the plot twist. A mid-series twist can completely change the direction of a show, so preliminary reviews and comparisons have to be taken with a grain of salt. Flaws that I point out now could very well become redeeming graces.
Umineko started as a visual novel by 07th Expansion, known for their other major series, Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni. For those of you who don’t speak the language, the title roughly translates to When the Seagulls Cry, with Cry carrying the double meaning of weeping and calling out. The story centers on the heirs to a rich and powerful family, the Ushiromiya family, all of whom have gathered on a remote island to discuss the impending death of their patriarch. A typhoon cuts the island off from the mainland and a series of strange events start to tear the family apart.
The critical point of the series, after the second episode, seems to be the existence of a Witch, Beatrice, who gave the family a large sum of gold to get them started after a previous crisis. Now, the impending death of Kinzo has prompted the conclusion of the contract which entails the repossession of the gold and, apparently, the execution of the remaining family members. The only way to avert this is for a member of the family to find the lost fortune before everyone dies.
Now, as far as hooks go, this isn’t a bad one. My current problem is with the characters. Battler, who has been set up by the OP and the 1st person narrative in the first episode, is abysmally simple. He actually lusts after his cousins. And his response to the first mass killing is depressingly banal. I don’t know if it is his voice actor that has disconnected me from his character of if he’s supposed to be that stupid, but of the rest of the cast, Battler is clearly the least relatable. The most comic, but he currently has no redeeming qualities.
Stories like Umineko revolve less around their protagonists than say, serial mysteries like the Sherlock Holms stories, but do generally require a level of relationship between the main character and his or her supporting cast. In this case, I can’t see Battler being able to take charge of his generation, let alone the rest of the family.
Moving on to more tangible qualities, the OP should be at least listened to by everyone. Epic themes that are well done both visually and acoustically are rare. The Italian background chorus complements the music well, and the whole thing just oozes delicious epic. The rest of the music so far has been very good at setting the eerie tone of the series. The art and character design are decent, not major studio quality, but substantial improvements on the original character design I’ve seen in a few screenshots.
At the very least, the anime is a visual improvement on the original, and the story is interesting enough. I’m not in love with the series, but it has captured my interest enough to keep watching. The oversub hilarity is also a factor. I’m shallow that way.
Veldril said
Battler would start to shine in the episode 3. He’s a great protagonist (in the game, he can be really awesome). But someone who would lead the cousins generation would me George, not Battler, since he’s the most mature one.