Once I found this book, I literally got the funds organized and had it purchased in a matter of minutes. Having been a big fan of the anime and manga series, I am glad that they finally released the english version to us Aussies, at least in certain manga stores. This manga relates to the first arc of the first season of the anime which introduces the characters and sets the scene for Keiichi’s first mystery, leaving people with a clean slate on what is occurring. Anyway, review is after the jump!
Artwork
The artwork of this volume is done by Karin Suzuragi, who is not a name I recall ever hearing of before, however I was fairly impressed with her work in this volume. It wasn’t, the best I have viewed, however the character designs and emotions were loyal to the anime and kept all the features that I would expect such as Rena’s kawaii mode and Mion’s gigantic bust which she teases Keiichi with. Now lets talk about a peeve of mine with most mangas…. the dreaded white background. Unlike every other manga I usually read, there was actually very little white background in the whole volume with most settings having at least a bit of a school classroom or a bit of a forest, with some scenes being very good such as the festival which had a very high level of detail done to the background. In between each chapter are Omake artwork which include pretty well designed character art. Also, the few colour pages were very appropriately used.
Overall, it might not be the best, but it definately has some redeeming features which I cannot say for most other manga.
Storyline
Life couldn’t be better for Keiichi Maebara. Sure, he’s moved to a sleepy, little town where nothing happens and high school consists of a one-room schoolhouse. But his new friends and fellow students are all cute girls! When he happens upn a story about a grisly local murder, however, his contentment turns to uneasiness as he finds himself drawn into a web of silent intrigue that involves his newfound friends…. and threatens his very existance.
Not much I can really comment on the storyline since I have summarised it in my review for the anime version of this arc, however this volume is very well paced for a two volume arc with this one ranging from the time Keiichi arrives back at the town after attending a funeral at Tokyo to him finding out that Rena was standing behind him during a conversation with Detective Ooishi. No filler chapters, just pure Higurashi brilliance.
Characters
Same as storyline, I cannot really comment on anything new, however for this arc, Satoko and Rika have nothing to do with it, so if you want to find out about them, try another arc. This arc involves Keiichi, Mion and Rena ad focuses from the viewpoint of Keiichi. The development for these three are decent, however for the reason of the mystery there is a big brick wall preventing the reader from finding anything more than the basics in this arc. I have felt in all adaptations that maybe too much detail was left out in this chapter however.
Extras
- Lots of cute and/or chibi artwork
- Omake art involving the characters
- Two bonus chapters, the first being “It’s study time” and the second being “Maid in Heaven”.
- Message from Ryukishi07
- Message from Karin Suzuragi
Personal Opinion
I fully endorse people buying this manga as long as you can handle a decent murder mystery with just a hint of blood within it. However, it is not as goreish as Elfen Lied, so if you could handle that, you could definately handle When They Cry.
Total
Artwork: 9/10
Storyline: 14/15
Characters: 7.5/10
Extras: 5/5
Personal Opinion: 10/10
Overall: 45.5/50 (91%)
Related posts:
