User Reviews

Check this out "Higurashi When They Cry" anime series , It's like they had big inspiration of it, at least in the world of anime they created.

Higurashi no Naku Koro ni When They Cry 2006

Synopsis

"Keiichi Maebara has just moved to the quiet little village of Hinamizawa in the summer of 1983, and quickly becomes inseparable friends with schoolmates Rena Ryuuguu, Mion Sonozaki, Satoko Houjou, and Rika Furude. However, darkness lurks underneath the seemingly idyllic life they lead.

As the village prepares for its annual festival, Keiichi learns about the local legends surrounding it. To his horror, he discovers that there have been several murders and disappearances in the village in the recent years, and that they all seem to be connected to the festival and the village's patron god, Oyashiro. Keiichi tries to ask his new friends about these incidents, but they are suspiciously silent and refuse to give him the answers he needs. As more and more bizarre events occur, he wonders just what else his friends might be keeping from him, and if he can even trust them at all."

I've heard many excellent things about Summer Time Rendering and decided to finally take the plunge. Having no concrete idea of what this show is really all about, I wasn't sure what to expect from its opening episode. But it certainly wasn't this.

'Goodbye, Summer Days' starts with an odd scene at the very beginning that may or may not prove indicative of the entire show. It certainly is enigmatic enough to count as the first -- and certainly not the last -- mystery that pops up within this one episode.

What follows afterwards seems slice of life: a young man returning home for the funeral of his childhood friend, reconnecting with his friends and family. There are uncountable novels and series and movies with a similar premise, typically with a heavy undertone of nostalgia, perhaps some developing romance. I prepared myself for a philosphical and emotional series. But then, the story shifts gears towards a murder mystery, and then it switches genres again, and -- at the very end -- once more.

I'm left with no idea of what's going on but the certainty that I need to find out. I'm not sure if I've ever seen an opening episode as compelling as this one; nothing comes to mind. And I'm not even talking about anime. If the rest of the series holds up what the opening promises, I wouldn't be surprised by this being adapted as a Hollywood script (though most likely in a horribly americanised version).

Besides the fantastic storyboard, the production value is also fantastic. The visuals are crisp, the soundtrack subtle until it isn't, the direction odd but not unpleasently so.

Even if the rest of series disappointed, this one episode would be one of the best things I've watched in quite a while. I have high hopes for the rest of the show!