Umineko no Naku Koro Ni 01: Dysfunction Junction, what is your Function!
Miken: It’s time for the first Umineko post of the season! Yeah~ We two cool gals from the east coast will fangirl, argue and generally bond over the course of our blogging…hopefully.
Angel: Sounds like this will be a blast! 8D I promise not to bite. Anyways, I am primarily here for the murder since the rest of the summer season is full of “freshmen girls.” Umineko is one hyped series, so I would like to see what it is all about~
Miken: I’m here mostly because of the OP song artist and the thrill of a well-anticipated series. Let’s hope we don’t tear each others hair out before this ends!!
Angel: Now, why would we do that.. I’m totally in agreement with you, which is such a rare sight to behold, considering how stubborn I can be. :3
The OP
Listen to the OP HERE
Miken: Akiko Shikata is probably one of my most favorite songstresses mostly thanks to the Ar Tonelico video game series. Once again, she delivers well with her splendid mix of Italian and Japanese, and Studio DEEN delivers with a beautiful and fitting OP sequence.
Angel: I loved the OP, especially the music. I didn’t know who Akiko Shikata was, but I shall worship her now. She’s simply amazing because this OP gives me chills; the good kind of chills. ^_^
The Victims Characters
Miken: I generally don’t do well with names, no matter how large or small the cast is. I think I’ve managed to catch on to 6-7 of them, which is pretty damn good for me. I can’t say I’m surprised by the types of characters around here though. The plotting family, the pervy guy, the headstrong girl and the omnipotent loli with a few screws loose… At least the interactions so far promise to flesh them out a bit more.
Angel: I don’t do well with an overload of characters.. x__x I barely know any of their names, besides the main ones, specifically, the children. Battler is a perv (which breaks my heart, as I am on a quest to find a non perverted guy ^_^), Maria is a loli, and Jessica is pretty sweet as she beats up her pervy cousin a lot. The adults “blend in” and are hard to distinguish from, but hey, this is only the first episode. I’ll catch on to who’s who~
The Arrival
Ignoring the whole scene with Kinzou yelling to see Beatrice’s smile again before he kicks the bucket in 3 months, we find Young Ushiromiya Battler makes it to Rokken Island, where he promptly tries to grope his cousin, Jessica. Then, a whole slew of the cast is introduced with convenient name tags. Maria also finds a little rose that she likes and she marks it with a ribbon.
Miken: Isn’t there a better place to be when your boat is going over not-so-calm waters? Anyways, nice punch there, Jessica! Otherwise, it’s a normal introduction scene with a “normal” family.
Angel: Ok, so why exactly was Battler on the ship’s deck? I think he’s asking to be killed, lol. I like the punch too. You go, girl! ^_^
Backroom Plots
The less honest of the family goes about trying to split up the family money behind papa’s back. When Natsuhi speaks out about the disgraceful nature of the talk, Auntie Eva berates her as only the mother of the heir of the family, nothing more. Later on, the adults go into greater detail as to how the money from the hidden gold explained in the epitaph will be distributed.
Miken: This collection scenes was far from exciting, but it does put in place some interesting dynamics and gives a good number of the characters present a reason to want to off the rest of them. I have to say, for all her bitchiness, I really like Eva right now. XD;;
Angel: Oooh, a juicy part, but this is just a lot of fluff talk. The verbal cat fight is epic, though. Eva delivered some crushing words to Natsuhi. Basically, “you’re a whore and carrying the next heir,” lolol, smash’d.
The Story
The Ushiromiya has benefited greatly from the aid of the witch, when their grandfather made a contract with the Golden Witch known as Beatrice and recieved 10 tonnes of gold — estimated to be up to 20 billion yen’s worth! While Battler quickly dismisses Beatrice’s existence, Maria’s quick to defend the fact that Beatrice exists. It also seems like Grandmother Ushiromiya has told the children before that Beatrice lives in the forest.
Miken: Contracts with witches again! If this one’s voiced by Yukana, I will kill someone…Still, the contract makes the Ushiromiya’s current situation what it is now, and it gives a nice background on how the family is related to Beatrice.
Angel: ..I’m quite sick of contracts! -_- Well, this witch is beautiful and can give out a lot of money. Beatrice (I’m not fond of the name), you can always take my soul and ditch the grandfather. ;; However, this whole tale seems a bit childish.. Witches in forests, heh.
The Charms
Maria reads off a handy little epitaph from the witch detailing the downfall of those on the island. She then hands Battler and Jessica two charms to defend them against Beatrice once she deems them able to enrage to the witch. She tells them that scorpions protect you from bad magic and misfortune…and then they head back to the garden as the clouds start getting heavier.
Miken: This scene just smells of “plot device”, though I’m quite concerned as to why little Maria is so knowledgeable about Beatrice. I doubt it’s something as simple as Battler being an idiot and not knowing the family history in detail…
Angel: That loli sure does know everything.. I bet she will win this game. :0 Well, I call this a game because one of my favorite books (Yes, I once read for fun.. Now, I never read) is called The Westing Game. Sixteen heirs are summoned to unravel the mystery of Sam Westing’s death and seek to win his multi million dollar estate. Due to my adoration of this novel, I am interested to see if Umineko will satisfy my inner child since mystery, heirs, and a fight for money are implemented here.. And people will die. <3
The Loli and the Flower
Little Maria and her missing flower cause a stir in the garden, leading to Aunt Rosa promptly slapping her a couple times. As everyone files out and forgets about the girl, Maria later gets a visit from a woman. When the others realize that Maria’s missing, they return to the garden and find Maria safe and sound with an umbrella in her hand. Upon further questioning, the umbrella is revealed to have been given by the witch, Beatrice.
Miken: Just throwing it out there that I don’t mind Maria’s voice that much even though there have been complaints. I mean, there’s no loli voice nearly as annoying as when Tomoko Kaneda voiced Corundum [now THAT, I cringed at]…but I’m getting off topic here. I have to say Rosa’s response to her crying over the lost rose was a bit too violent for the supposedly kind mother she comes off as at first, though it’s really tame in terms of the series we’re looking at. Plus, it set us up for a nice chilling shot of Maria being approached by Beatrice.
Angel: Maria’s “uuuuu” sound makes my heart bleed. x_x I feel bad for Maria when her mom punishes her but it all seems to make sense.. Maria’s been bullied. Besides, Rosa is probably pissed off from the meeting with the adults so she isn’t in the mood for crap. Rosa’s actions are not as extreme as what you see in today’s society. 
The ED
Miken: I can’t say I like the song, but it helps with the chilling mood of the series. The animation also fits well with both the song and the series…I love the maniacal laugh in there too~
Angel: Well, the chessboard is yummy, but the song is creepy.. I don’t think I sat through all of the ED. XD;
Conclusions and Ratings
Miken: Mmmm…just like Angel said before I started watching the episode, this really only feels like an “opening” to the series. Not much has happened, but what has been done is pretty solid in terms of setting up the cast, their motives and their quirks. I can’t wait till the next episode, Beatrice really has me anticipating her true entrance into the series~
Angel: Yeah, this is just an introduction. However, I’ve heard that in the next episode some people will die, ekeke. Also, I’ve heard of complaints that this episode is “too fast” but honestly, it is kind of slow. I expected someone to die in the first episode, so I’m not satisfied. 8D Damn, I have issues. ^_^; I haven’t read the novels, but the mystery surrounding the family and Beatrice is enticing, so we’ll keep blogging this~
Miken’s Enjoyment Level: 8/10
Miken’s Anticipation Level: 10/10
Angel’s Enjoyment Level: 7/10
Angel’s Anticipation Level: 9/10
Next time: First Move
Tags: umineko no naku koro ni
July 3rd, 2009 at 11:45 pm
The episode was too fast for me, since it was much slower in the manga, and I feel the manga was better this time. It practically covers all 4(?) chapters I’ve read so far, and they were long chapters.
There are a lot of things cut out which would have developed the adults more, but I guess that’s going to be done later. Also, according to the manga, Battler and the rest were told of the witch’s tale when they were kids, it’s probably just that he ignored/forgot most of it while Maria didn’t.
Other than that, great review, you two.
July 4th, 2009 at 3:06 am
Actually she’s voiced by http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sayaka_Ohara
Who voices a different witch altogether :p
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_xxxHolic_characters#Y.C5.ABko_Ichihara
July 4th, 2009 at 5:30 am
Honestly, Maria’s “uuuuu” made me want to beat her so bad! …Thankfully her mother did that for me. Yaaaay! I know, it’s horrible, but ugh… Drove me insane. I was kinda hoping she’d die when she was left alone, but of course the little girl has to live.
Right now I am feeling that there is no way I am going to remember so many characters. They were all introduced so fast–too fast, I feel. I will be counting on the reviews by you girls to help me study up on who is who.
July 4th, 2009 at 6:20 am
I hope Maria is not just another Furude Rika where he goes yandere-ish and somehow gets possessed. Anyway, I just can’t wait these greedy people, except for the youngsters, to get killed… I mean, I just can’t pity people like those, especially that Eva.
July 4th, 2009 at 7:37 am
@Taan: I haven’t had any contact with the manga or the visual novel, so I wouldn’t know what was cut out or the significance of it…I don’t think Angel has either. Thanks for the details, though~
@moridin84: Ah, but I can stand Yuuko much more than C.C., thank goodness!
@Katt: I don’t get most of the cast either…Thankfully, Angel made that chart. XD;;
@Foomafoo: I’ll get back to you on that Rika thing after I get to that part in Higurashi. ^-^;;
Still, I’d like to see most of the adults go too…
July 4th, 2009 at 10:39 am
Taan: Yeah, those are the general complaints I’ve heard. ^^; However, as we both are not familiar with the written series, we don’t know what to expect. Imo, it would be better for Battler to “forget” so we can be told about the legend.
Thanks, and I’d love to review Pandora Hearts too but I’m at my older brother’s house for the holiday. -_-
Moridin84: Awesome, but I wanted C.C.’s VA. <33
Katt: OMG, I wanted the loli to die in the rain too! XD Thanks for staying tuned. <33
Foomafoo: Lol, the greedy people should go first.. I’m unsure of who Rika is, but I hope that this series is fresh and not cliche.
December 31st, 2009 at 4:22 am
[...] and who I’m not (right now I only care about Battler and Jessica). From what I’ve read from some others is that several scenes from the VN have been cut out, which led to the rushed pacing and [...]
January 12th, 2010 at 9:01 pm
Wooooweee this is brilliant man, cool