Whoa… I knew that this arc was going to be unique, with no Keiichi as main character, but I never thought it would be this unique. I absolutely loved it. You see, this arc plays four years before the other three arcs. Keiichi’s gone, Rena’s gone and Rika’s even cuter than she was before. With a bit of luck, we’ll also see a flash of Satoko and Satoshi in the next episode. This arc will probably explain the first of all the murders. I wish I could be able to remember who the victim was, though I’m ashamed to say that I forgot. And the great thing is that nobody seems to have written it down. -_-
In any case, this probably is the first time since episode one that this murder gets mentioned. All of the other arcs kept silent about it, for some strange reason. The mysterious victim was cut in six pieces by a pickaxe (ouch), with one of the murderers still roaming free. It’s only now that I realize that Rika was the murderer. She was the one who murdered for the first time. It’s also very interesting that she didn’t commit this murder alone, though she was the only one who managed to not get caught. I wonder who the other murderers might’ve been…
In any case, the previous arcs showed us a very bloody or gory scene right before they started. This arc just shows about the same guys we saw in the third episode, trying to run Keiichi over with their mini-van, kidnapping a little boy. Meanwhile, the radio tells about three people who were arrested because of violent acts against the Hinamizawa Dam Project. Things were a bit bloody, judging by the newsreader. The boy who gets kidnapped is the son of Cabinet Minister Inukai, by the way. The dam was probably his father’s idea.
The OP rolls, and the real episode begins. We then see our main character for this arc: Akasaka Mamoru. He really looks like an old version of Keiichi with black hair, though thankfully, his personality is different. He’s been sent out to investigate whether Hinamizawa’s got something to do with the son of the Cabinet Minister who’s been kidnapped. It isn’t very likely, so he’s sent out alone, as every possibility needs to be investigated.
Akasaka also has a wife, who’s highly pregnant. She’ll probably have her baby when he’s in Hinamizawa. Once inside Hinamizawa, he heads for the local police station. There he hears the first rumours about the dangers of the Onigafuchi Last Defence Alliance, or the group who opposes the dam construction. Then Oishi shows up, and he gives him a bit of a tour around Hinamizawa. He also tells Akasaka about the three main families, and the Sonozaki-family.
Oishi then shows a bit of interest in the investigations Akasaka is conducting. I guess that he’s of course interested in what he can find out, so he can use it in his own research. Oishi’s willing to introduce Akasaka to a Mole in the Sonozaki-family as well. After Oishi left, Akasaka decided to go undercover, and have a local villager guide him around. He’s planning to pretend to be a leisure photographer, who wants to see a bit of the neighbourhood.
When he reaches the meeting point with the guy, he runs into a four-year younger version of Rika. (So cute ^^;) Then the guy arrives, and Rika decides to tag along with the two of them. When she hears that Akasaka’s planning to take photos, she compares him to Tomitake. It’s very interesting to see that Tomitake’s been visiting Hinamizawa for over 4 years now. I guess that that gives him enough time to meet up with Takano. Still, Rika did give him a good nickname. After all, we all know what happens to Tomitake in the end (*wink wink, nudge nudge*).
Then, while Akasaka keeps taking photos and Rika asks a few questions, Akasaka says the most stupid thing you can ever imagine. He tells about his wife, who’s having a baby right at that moment. What idiot abandons his wife for a leisure-trip at a time like that!? Rika also noticed this (you can see that in her expression. Smart girl, especially considering that she’s so incredibly young. And cute. ^^;)
The guide then offers to take Akasaka to the place with the best scenery around: the Furude Shrine, Rika’s home. Only then it becomes clear that Rika also is a member of one of the three big families in Hinamizawa. When the threesome arrives at the Furude Shrine, a very touching scene follows. The Furude Shrine also appears to be the centre of the anti-dam movement. The guide automatically thinks that Akasaka’s an activist as well, though the latter corrects the former. Akasaka then comes with an incredibly politically correct speech, in which he thinks that it’s better to get yourself involved in politics if you want something, instead of just fighting back. Rika then totally smashes this statement in the ground, when she asks him how he would solve an issue like that. She indeed managed to see the flaw in modern-day politics. ^^
Rika then takes him to the place with the beautiful scenery, after which we also get signs that Rika’s infected with the disease as well. She then warns Akasaka to go away. She’s also certain that the dam project will soon be gone, no matter what. It’s already been decided.
That evening, Akasaka meets up with the mole, right after a meeting of the three big families. Mion and Rika also were present. Mion was paying attention, though she never said anything, while Rika was busy drawing a picture of her along with Akasaka. ^^ We also got to see Mion’s mother. She’s also one of the characters whose hair has unnatural colours. (That’s one of the major flaws in anime. The main characters seem to be the only ones with obscene hair colours). We also get to see Mion’s grandmother, the current ruler over Hinamizawa. (Was she still alive in the previous arcs?)
The end of the meeting, it became clear that Akasaka’s mission had been discovered and the Sonozaki Family indeed was the one to kidnap the Cabinet Minister’s son. Akasaka doesn’t really like the things he hears. The next morning, Oishi gives him a call. It seems that the Minister’s wallet has been found at a certain place called Takatsudo, a fairly deserted area, not mentioned in the previous arcs. Oishi’s willing to bring Akasaka there, though he does put on a knife-proof vest as precaution. The episode ends with Oishi offering one to Akasaka as well.
This arc will probably end with the first murder. Still, that does leave one murder and one disappearance without any attention: Rika’s parents. Before I saw this arc, I was expecting that it would cover the death of Rika’s parents, how her mother committed suicide and her father died of the mysterious illness, but as this arc plays long before the two of them die, we’ll probably get left in the dark about this. One of the answer-arcs will probably solve it.
I still have no clue about the nature of the disease. This arc clearly shows that the disease can go to sleep after it’s been active. It indeed seems that heavy emotions are the trigger for the disease to get active, but in that case, why didn’t Rika kill herself when her parents died? Or did Satoko manage to save her just in time before she freaked out? In any case, Rika getting under the control of the disease really happened. It was not in Keiichi’s mind, as he was totally somewhere else at that moment. I also don’t see Akasaka for being caught with the disease as well.
We also finally get to see the same mini-van as in the third episode. At that time, it tried to hit Keiichi, when the driver saw he failed, he ran off. I think it appeared again during the end of the fourth episode, though I’m not sure. In any case, it does suggest some sort of link between the Sonozaki-family and Irie (as the minivan seems to be under the control of the Sonozaki-family). What kind of connection might that be? Before I can really speculate about this, I need to know whether Mion’s grandmother was still alive, and the leader of Hinamizawa and if she was, Mion’s influence on this.
Differences with previous arcs:
– The previous arcs Keiichi as main character, one of the girls as opposing character (Rena, Mion and Satoko), and one of the side-characters who played a major role (Oishi, Shion and Irie). This arc had Akasaka as main character, Rika as opposing character, and Oishi again as the side-character with the important role.
– This arc plays during the dam-opposition (does that mean that everything that happens here, happened with the previous arcs as well?)
– Rika’s gotten even cuter.
– This is the first arc in which we see nothing about Keiichi and Rena, possibly Satoko as well.
– In the first arc, Oishi was concerned. In the second arc, Oishi was cheerful and more business-like. In the third arc, Oishi was evil. In the fourth arc, I’d describe him as helpful. Eager to learn valuable information from Akasaka.
Overall, I loved this different episode. Rika was omega-kawaii, and it really is great to see an episode without Keiichi. I can’t wait to see the next episode. ^_^
Memorable Moment: Rika calling Akasaka Tomitake #2 (You think she was trying to give him a subtle message? ^^)
