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Higurashi When They Cry Manga Japanese Numbering #2
Higurashi When They Cry: Abducted by Demons Arc, Vol. 2
Up until now, Keiichi's been having the time of his life with his new friends in Hinamizawa. But when their good-natured pranks take a deadly turn, Keiichi grows more and more suspicious about their involvement with the so-called "Oyashiro-sama's Curse." Turning to Ooishi-san for reassurance only confirms Keiichi's worst fears as dark secrets about Rena's past are revealed. Is it just his imagination? Or do his friends really mean to kill him?
242 pages, Paperback
First published June 22, 2006
15 people are currently reading
377 people want to read
About the author
Ryukishi07
299 books321 followersRyukishi07 (竜騎士07, Ryūkishi Zero Nana?, born November 19, 1973) is the pen name of a Japanese man originally from Chiba Prefecture who is well-known as the original creator for the idea of the visual novel series Higurashi no Naku Koro ni and Umineko no Naku Koro ni. He is the representative member of the group 07th Expansion. His pen name originated from the Final Fantasy series, "Ryūkishi" being the Japanese term for "Dragoon", and "07" goroawase for the name "Lenna". His illustration style is recognizable from the large hands he draws on people.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 60 reviews
March 15, 2017
This is one of my favorite series anime-wise, but the manga is fun too. I don't think you really get a sense for the atmosphere shifts while reading it though. I've watched just about every horror anime that's worth watching and this one is in my top 3.
Now to continue on down the rabbit hole that is this story ...
Now to continue on down the rabbit hole that is this story ...
October 18, 2020
When we last left Keiichi, he was feeling a little trapped in his wonderful village, the one with the undercurrent of terror. It isn’t going to get any better, as torment upon torment leads to a shocking act (this series is like a string of shocking acts) and nothing is as clear cut as it seems, but that’s a cursed village for you...
If the first volume traded on dread, this one trades on pure psychological malice. Keiichi’s justified (or is it?) paranoia keeps escalating and escalating until he hits a breaking point (alluded to from the very beginning) that he can’t come back from. It’s exaggerated, but not to the point of being unpalatable or too cartoonish - credit to the book for selling this.
Before that we get one of the nastiest bits of body horror I have ever seen. It’s understated compared to what happens later, but that’s what makes it work. It’s treated as very matter of fact and reminds me of every urban legend about Halloween candy I ever heard growing up.
What is up with this village? Is it the people? The land? A curse? A pair of murderous teenagers? Why does Keiichi end up following the path of the last newcomer to the village school almost to a tee? What happened at that crime scene? You can make a full meal dissecting this one and I love a manga that invites you to think.
Downsides are mostly the same as before, though this one really scales back the cutesy-poo and ups the descent into madness. It offers no easy answers, well, a vaguely unsatisfying one, in favour of a long game that may not be for you (although it certainly is for me).
4 stars, though you really can’t separate this volume from the first as they are a pair moreso than a lot of serialized manga. Most of what I said there applies here. Delightfully spooky reading for the season that has me really looking forward to further story arcs.
If the first volume traded on dread, this one trades on pure psychological malice. Keiichi’s justified (or is it?) paranoia keeps escalating and escalating until he hits a breaking point (alluded to from the very beginning) that he can’t come back from. It’s exaggerated, but not to the point of being unpalatable or too cartoonish - credit to the book for selling this.
Before that we get one of the nastiest bits of body horror I have ever seen. It’s understated compared to what happens later, but that’s what makes it work. It’s treated as very matter of fact and reminds me of every urban legend about Halloween candy I ever heard growing up.
What is up with this village? Is it the people? The land? A curse? A pair of murderous teenagers? Why does Keiichi end up following the path of the last newcomer to the village school almost to a tee? What happened at that crime scene? You can make a full meal dissecting this one and I love a manga that invites you to think.
Downsides are mostly the same as before, though this one really scales back the cutesy-poo and ups the descent into madness. It offers no easy answers, well, a vaguely unsatisfying one, in favour of a long game that may not be for you (although it certainly is for me).
4 stars, though you really can’t separate this volume from the first as they are a pair moreso than a lot of serialized manga. Most of what I said there applies here. Delightfully spooky reading for the season that has me really looking forward to further story arcs.
February 22, 2025
Generalnie Onikakushi to nie jest mój ulubiony question arc, ale jest naprawdę solidnym wprowadzeniem do serii, więc generalnie (prawie) każda jego adaptacja sobie radzi. Jedyną decyzją artystyczną, która cokolwiek dodaje, jest przeplatanie treści listu Keiichiego z niemymi scenkami, jak pozostałe postaci radzą sobie po finale - i ten foreshadowing dla Riki!
September 25, 2025
my uglies
October 2, 2020
And so ends the first ARC in the Higurashi series with a gruesome conclusion! As I read the book I started to know where this one is going, my memories are coming back. And I was hyped, but also a bit creeped out as I knew that once Keiichi walks this path.. there is no way back. I loved how well the paranoia and the insanity was written. How Keiichi totally went south, but with him also Rena and Mion. We see how those two constantly know all about Keiichi and what he does, and most importantly that he speaks and consults with someone he should definitely not talk. Not at all. With each passing page, each passing day, things got more and more crazy and I knew it wasn't long before the bloodshed would start. I felt sorry for Keiichi as he was having such a good time in this town, and then he finds out all those things. He just wanted to be with his friends. To feel safe and happy. I felt sorry for his parents who had no idea.
The ending, holy hell. I knew what was coming but it still comes to a shock to me each time (and with that I also mean the anime). For answers we will have to wait until the Answer arcs start. We only get snippets and hints.
I am still unsure about the art, I have to say at times it was at least better than the first volume. The creepy eyes are still very unsettling, but again also a bit silly.
I cannot wait to start the next arc in this series. Cotton drifting.
The ending, holy hell. I knew what was coming but it still comes to a shock to me each time (and with that I also mean the anime). For answers we will have to wait until the Answer arcs start. We only get snippets and hints.
I am still unsure about the art, I have to say at times it was at least better than the first volume. The creepy eyes are still very unsettling, but again also a bit silly.
I cannot wait to start the next arc in this series. Cotton drifting.
April 24, 2022
This was a solid improvement to the first volume of this arc. The pacing was much better and the action rose really early on in the volume!
We got a little piece of the iceberg for some characters which peeked my interest even more for the upcoming arc. Can’t wait to learn more about those characters and where the story is going.
I overall enjoyed this one a lot more than the first volume!
We got a little piece of the iceberg for some characters which peeked my interest even more for the upcoming arc. Can’t wait to learn more about those characters and where the story is going.
I overall enjoyed this one a lot more than the first volume!
January 17, 2021
BITCH WTF WAS THAT ENDING
May 21, 2021
Damn.
January 14, 2011
I'd first heard about this series through a documentary about Japan's geek culture. Well, to be more exact, I'd heard about the games. Mesmerized by the brief glimpse I'd seen, I tracked the series down... and discovered that it wasn't available in the US. Luckily for me, I did discover that it was going to be released in both manga & anime formats eventually. One book later, I'm hooked.
The beginning of the manga is deceptively peaceful. Keiichi Maebara has come to the small town of Hinamizawa, made friends & slowly gotten used to the easy life there. He spends his days in a small school that makes up the elementary, middle & high school classes, then passes the afternoons playing games with his new friends. It isn't until the night of the Cotton Drifing Festival that Keiichi begins to wonder what his friends could be hiding & why they're so quiet about the series of murder/disappearances that have occurred each year on the night of the festival.
The tone of this series is so freaky- I have to say that I love this series. There's a good mystery in this series & without reading the wikipedia entry for the series, I'd never have guessed what the whole secret of the town is. (Technically cheating, but I'd read the wiki entry before the series was brought over.) The tone is pretty adult though, so I wouldn't recommend this for extremely young readers or for those who don't like intense or semi-violent manga. The violence is all done mostly "off screen", although there are a few bits that will probably scare some readers. This manga is pretty much the whole package- it's got amazing art, GREAT storylines & you can really feel for the characters & their interaction with each other. I really do love this series!
The beginning of the manga is deceptively peaceful. Keiichi Maebara has come to the small town of Hinamizawa, made friends & slowly gotten used to the easy life there. He spends his days in a small school that makes up the elementary, middle & high school classes, then passes the afternoons playing games with his new friends. It isn't until the night of the Cotton Drifing Festival that Keiichi begins to wonder what his friends could be hiding & why they're so quiet about the series of murder/disappearances that have occurred each year on the night of the festival.
The tone of this series is so freaky- I have to say that I love this series. There's a good mystery in this series & without reading the wikipedia entry for the series, I'd never have guessed what the whole secret of the town is. (Technically cheating, but I'd read the wiki entry before the series was brought over.) The tone is pretty adult though, so I wouldn't recommend this for extremely young readers or for those who don't like intense or semi-violent manga. The violence is all done mostly "off screen", although there are a few bits that will probably scare some readers. This manga is pretty much the whole package- it's got amazing art, GREAT storylines & you can really feel for the characters & their interaction with each other. I really do love this series!
January 18, 2011
***This is my review for volumes 1 and 2 both***
Summary: Keiichi loves his new town and school. His classmates are extra-friendly, incredibly adorable girls who dote on him. However, he quickly learns that his town has a violent past and that his friends are not as sweet as they seem.
Verdict: Awesome! But, uh, maybe don't read it at bedtime like I did.
Yay!: This series is seriously scary. It starts off exactly like a typical harem manga, complete with fan service, but the tension begins to build almost immediately. Volume 1 is mostly clues and setup, but a big creepy reveal at the end of it will hook the reader. Volume 2 keeps the chills coming by closely following the main character's descent into panic as his possessed friends torment him. While Volume 1 spends most of its time getting into the reader's head, Volume 2 is quite the little gore fest.
Nay!: Volume 1 is a slow starter, and the happy shojo vibes might put off the impatient reader.
Summary: Keiichi loves his new town and school. His classmates are extra-friendly, incredibly adorable girls who dote on him. However, he quickly learns that his town has a violent past and that his friends are not as sweet as they seem.
Verdict: Awesome! But, uh, maybe don't read it at bedtime like I did.
Yay!: This series is seriously scary. It starts off exactly like a typical harem manga, complete with fan service, but the tension begins to build almost immediately. Volume 1 is mostly clues and setup, but a big creepy reveal at the end of it will hook the reader. Volume 2 keeps the chills coming by closely following the main character's descent into panic as his possessed friends torment him. While Volume 1 spends most of its time getting into the reader's head, Volume 2 is quite the little gore fest.
Nay!: Volume 1 is a slow starter, and the happy shojo vibes might put off the impatient reader.
August 25, 2016
Well that was a downer wasn’t it? I mean throughout, I was like, why am I reading this at night again? How does anything good come from that? Yeah I like the creepy factor but at times it got a bit silly. Then I’m like no, I don’t like them creepy eyes, not funny at all.
So like I said, I’m guessing here that with some of the volumes will be an arc. Not sure how many but you get the idea. The suspense was good. As for the creepy factor, yeah it did its job alright. Thanks for that.
So like I said, I’m guessing here that with some of the volumes will be an arc. Not sure how many but you get the idea. The suspense was good. As for the creepy factor, yeah it did its job alright. Thanks for that.
June 7, 2022
This volume has the gore expected with this series as paranoia begins to take over Keiichi’s mind. Overall an interesting volume to this series and a good opening arc to the overall plot and mystery.
July 30, 2024
As I mentioned for vol. 1, I have watched the anime years ago and loved it. I was never able to finish it after a certain arc, I can’t remember if it was up to the end of season 1 or 2. I just couldn’t find the rest of the episodes, so I kind of gave up on the anime. Instead, I ended up buying some of the manga volumes when I saw learned that this series also has a manga adaptation from seeing some of the volumes at my local library. I don’t know why I didn’t get to it until now. Maybe it’s because I wags waiting to be in the right mood or maybe I was hoping that I would forget what’s really going on so that I can experience the shock of it all again. Unfortunately, I still remember some of it. Fortunately, since I never got to finish the anime, there are still some answers that were not revealed, like what’s going on with Rika?
My rating for this volume and for the last one are probably biased because I love the anime so much, but I don’t care, there’s no rule that says I can’t be. Reading this book made me want to rewatch those episodes, which I probably will after finishing this series or at least after finishing The Curse Killing Arc volumes.
Blog: nazreads.ca
Twitter: Naz_readsanime
Instagram: nazreads01, nazcosplay, nradesigns, charmedanimegirl01
My rating for this volume and for the last one are probably biased because I love the anime so much, but I don’t care, there’s no rule that says I can’t be. Reading this book made me want to rewatch those episodes, which I probably will after finishing this series or at least after finishing The Curse Killing Arc volumes.
Blog: nazreads.ca
Twitter: Naz_readsanime
Instagram: nazreads01, nazcosplay, nradesigns, charmedanimegirl01
August 7, 2025
That was pretty disappointing. I think you have to read the whole Higurashi series and only then do you actually understand the "what and why" of the deaths/murders/disappearances.
However, these first two volumes are 'complete' with a 'key' that you're supposed to take into the next arc. The key seems to be
I enjoyed how Keiichi's motivation shifted from 'I'm going to keep myself alive' to 'well, if I'm going to die, I want to know why!' But he was still a bland character overall. (I want some ginger pork ramen. Sounds tasty.)
Not sure if this is worth diving into the next arc. I'll have to do a little more research on how the series works. 2/5
However, these first two volumes are 'complete' with a 'key' that you're supposed to take into the next arc. The key seems to be
I enjoyed how Keiichi's motivation shifted from 'I'm going to keep myself alive' to 'well, if I'm going to die, I want to know why!' But he was still a bland character overall. (I want some ginger pork ramen. Sounds tasty.)
Not sure if this is worth diving into the next arc. I'll have to do a little more research on how the series works. 2/5
April 25, 2017
The ending of the Abducted by Demons Arc was well made! Right when you thought it ended happily as just a dream it turns out that Keiichi was just hallucinating and actually killed his friends. The art when he was scratching out his own throat looked really good too! All in all I think that the manga is a little better than the anime (I just wish they translated the text better into a more normal dialog than sometimes awkward to read quotes but I ignore it and just pretend it was changed a little bit to sound better than the original).
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 4, 2018
My comments on this volume hew pretty closely to my comments on the prior volume. A very nice touch at the end was the inclusion of Satoko and Rika mourning their friends' deaths. Because of the way that Higurashi is structured, sometimes it's very easy to forget an important aspect of the tragedy: the worlds with bad ends still have futures that follow those bad ends. They do not stop existing when the main character dies. Even if it was only a couple panels, including them is a really important reminder of that.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 3, 2024
Easily enraptures the reader to a point of absoloutely wanting to read more. I do feel fully visual adaptations of what was previously more described does lessen the impact of some scenes, and especially in retrospect knowing the whole story, makes it a lot harder to dismiss graphic detailed drawings of certain items.
July 30, 2025
7.5/10
”Oyashiro-sama has arrived”
Better than the first volume. I think I’ve read this a few times before too since I’ve had it in my collection for a while. Most notably the art is much nicer in this volume and the tension is just constant. Great stuff and would like to read the following arcs too
”Oyashiro-sama has arrived”
Better than the first volume. I think I’ve read this a few times before too since I’ve had it in my collection for a while. Most notably the art is much nicer in this volume and the tension is just constant. Great stuff and would like to read the following arcs too
August 25, 2020
Adoro esta serie de mangas. Desde el primer momento te mantienen en vilo y lo más importante son los pequeños detalles. Keiichi desde luego ha sido un personaje que levanta la trama, sin embargo, Rena es el principal personaje que hace falta para mantener ese misterio que rodea a la historia.
March 1, 2023
This manga is based off the Visual Novel Higurashi no Naku Koro ni. The manga is filled with mystery and suspense. Don't be fooled by the cutesy look as the manga can be quite dark. An enjoyable and confusing experience I highly recommend the read!
November 14, 2023
Pretty wild story! Shocking, disturbing, and surprising. The ending was the biggest surprise, but upon reflecting is was inevitable. I do with the smiling detective had been killed, although there was an indication that his time alive was nearing it's end. He was my least favorite character.
September 19, 2024
Okay so now I think I’m more confused than I was at the end of the last book! But this was really gripping, I read it so quickly and it was actually really good horror/ mystery. I liked the unsettling tone and the illustrations were horrifying which was really good.
A 3.75 stars for me.
A 3.75 stars for me.
May 19, 2018
Well that ending was unexpected... I'm really loving this mystery and I can't wait to get on to the next Arc!
October 20, 2018
Interesting manga so far, Pretty sweeet Psychological so far! Awesome art 👌😁😻💕
November 30, 2018
I enjoyed - the creepiness and curse aspect reminded me of The Ring
August 6, 2019
Way more fast paced than the first act, really good read.
August 29, 2019
3.5 this was a good conclusion, but I felt it dragged a bit?
September 27, 2019
:D ok. This was way more fun than the first volume.
I will look through some of my stuff first before buying the next volumes, though. Cant wait.
I will look through some of my stuff first before buying the next volumes, though. Cant wait.
March 3, 2020
Hovering between 4 and 5. I love how this series starts out so innocently.
Read
April 6, 2020I have no idea.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 60 reviews