I think any way you slice it Higurashi no Naku Koro ni – SOTSU has been way too long.  We’re now three eps away (theoretically) from the finish, and apart from a few minutes here and there (including this week) we’ve really gotten what’s basically a season-long recap episode.  I get that more eps means more discs to sell, and that’s still financially relevant for this sort of show.  But the truth of the matter is this all could have been wrapped up by the time Gou finished its run and I think the final product would have been a much more taut, consistent series.

The few minutes that mattered were the Hanyuu stuff – less her interaction with Rika (which I’m pretty sure we’ve heard before word-for-word) than her monologue (I think calling Rika her “daughter” was new, if metaphorical) and the end with Eua.  Apart from that it was a lot of recycled guro, pretty much,  A few points that may actually be relevant…

• Am I wrong or does it not make sense in the arc order for the sword to have been missing when Rika went to look for it the first time, if Satou only finds out and removes it here?
• Have they totally given up trying to explain how the 10 year-old ninja keeps injecting people (Akasaka-san in this case) without their knowing it?
• Satoko doesn’t notice that big honking piece of the sword (Onigari, though “Onigiri” would have been more fun) missing?

Hanyuu tracking down Eua obviously seems to be the precursor to some sort of important plot development – I hope so.  Unfortunately I believe next week’s episode will cover the endless torture porn segment with Satoko and RIka, and if they choose to recycle that whole sequence I can assure you both my viewing experience and my write-up will be very brief.