These last 2 episodes have been a doozy.
Last episode, Hanyuu "dies" and Rika becomes aware of her past loops and proclaims that she will kill herself for real if she can't escape in 5 loops.
In this episode, Rika loses 4/5 lives dying during different days. It was literally a death montage where it goes from wholesome music with Akasaka and Rika to hard cut and she's fucking dead. A common trope among all of the killers is that they all are L5 which makes me think that somebody (probably another looper) is intentionally injecting them with something.
The fact that Keiichi has survived each loop or hasn't gone crazy in each loop is down the toilet, unfortunately, but my Satoko culprit theory is still green. They don't show Satoko's face in any of the scenes where people go L5 at all and it makes me think that she may have more to do with these murders than what meets the eye. They also confirm that Rika did go to St. Lucia 5 years after the original Higurashi. My theory is that Satoko was left in Hinamizawa all on her own and got lonely after 5 years of isolation. She did something and suddenly Rika was back in 1983 and now Satoko is trying her damndest to keep Rika in the time loop. I'm also still curious about Tomitake and Takano but maybe I'm just overthinking things.
I am confused as to what they're going to do for Sotsu or the 2nd season. Is it going to take place after Rika kills herself with the shard? Is it going to take place in the 5 years after the original Higurashi? Is it going to explain how Rika even got back in the loop? Is it just going to be her last life where she tries her hardest to survive and it's just Matsuribayashi but without Hanyuu and stretched out for a whole cour? God I hope not.
At least we got to see what Keropoyo from Ciconia looks like in animated form. How cute.
