Line #63 Fridge/UminekoWhenTheyCry


1	'''Here Be Spoilers:''' This page is full of them. '''You have been warned.'''
2
3	!!!FridgeBrilliance
4	* At first, [=EP1=] looks like a boring family drama with a very slow pacing. If you look at it again after reading some of Chiru, you'll notice that it is actually [[spoiler:describing the problems and qualities of the suspects.]] Similarly, [=EP2=] looks like a magical trainwreck at first, but makes a lot of [[spoiler:metaphorical]] sense later.
5	** In [=EP4,=] Beatrice says that it takes at least two people to create a galaxy. During the [[PowerOfLove duel to get love that will succeed miraculously]] in [=EP6,=] that line is repeated, only now with [[SugarWiki/HeartwarmingMoments a much more metaphorical and introspective meaning.]]
6	** The ages of the witches are said to be metaphorically representative of how long their suffering felt like. Bern's single repeated month of [[spoiler:trying to solve [[VisualNovel/HigurashiWhenTheyCry Featherine and Lambda's abandoned game]] as a self-aware piece]] felt like a hundred years, Beatrice's [[spoiler:six-year wait for Battler to come back]] felt like a thousand, and so on. This turns into HarsherInHindsight mixed with a little FridgeHorror in EP 6--first when [[spoiler:chick!Beato is introduced as a "clean slate" with a completely pure heart, and it's stated that she'd only become like the original Beatrice III if she lived through the same "thousand years"]], then with [[spoiler:Battler in the closed room]], where Kanon wonders how many years it felt like this had gone on.
7	** Beatrice's archaic speech patterns involve use of [[UsefulNotes/JapanesePronouns the first-person pronoun "warawa"]], an obscure term whose kanji literally means "child", but is also used to refer to a man's concubine or mistress. It doesn't need to be said by this point [[TheMistress what]] [[ParentalIncest role]] [[spoiler:two of the]] Beatrice[[spoiler:s]] served to Kinzo.
8	** So why do both Natsuhi and Rosa [[ButtMonkey almost always get wiped out swiftly and horribly]]? Beyond her abuse of Maria, who Beatrice dotes on, [[spoiler:Rosa's accidental involvement in the death of Beatrice II/Sayo's mother was what caused her to be handed to Natsuhi, which she rejected her and later pushed her off that cliff. This led Sayo to injure her sexual organs in such an irreparable way that, years latter, she would have had difficulty establishing her own well-defined identity, with related psychological problems and abused as the servant Yasu in the first place]].
9	* [[spoiler: In game 5, Beatrice is killed by being eaten by goats. If we consider that the goats are representations of the theories people have in the real world, it's a perfect representation of what just happened. Erika created a theory which then became truth, in other words the theories ate the reality. There's actually a better and more direct version of this in episode 2 when Battler is eaten by goats. At that point he had given up on solving the mystery, and was therefore swallowed up by all the possibilities and answers, AKA. Theories.]]
10	* For a good while I wondered that, if [[spoiler:all the episodes beside the first were written by Hachiyo Tohya / Battler, then what are the two clear ''Higurashi'' expies doing in the story. But then, as I re-read the first chapter, I found something amazing: After the first six murders, Battler discusses the suspects with Eva, and then he off-handedly mentions that he read ''Higurashi'' as a mystery-novel beforehand! I don't exactly know how that fits into the timeline, but this suddenly explains the presence of Bernkastel and Lambdadelta as created by Tohya's mind in reference to the corresponding characters in ''Higurashi''.]]
11	* In EP 3, when Beatrice rages against the idea of love, Shannon asks her, "Are those regrets your true nature?" In EP 6, we find out that the answer is a resounding ''yes'' -- [[spoiler:Beatrice was literally born from Yasu's unrequited love for Battler.]]
12	** In the same scene, it seems to hit Beatrice's BerserkButton when Shannon implies that she's found love and lived a fulfilling life even though she's "furniture". In EP 6, we learn [[spoiler:Beatrice was also created as "furniture", possessing an incomplete soul and being incapable of fulfilling her love. EP 7 further suggests that Beatrice herself was the one to invent the term "furniture", specifically referring to her inability to love.]]
13	** In EP 3, Beatrice tells Ronove that even furniture can become a witch and treat demons as butlers. In EP 6, [[spoiler:it is revealed she was in fact talking about her own origins as furniture]].
14	** In EP 1, Kinzo says that he can't die until he sees Beatrice's smile one more time. In EP 7, [[spoiler: Kinzo dies right after finally seeing Yasu/Beatrice again.]]
15	** In EP 7, it is revealed that Beatrice's real name is [[spoiler:"Yasu". So, that means... "[[BigBadFriend Yasu is the culprit!]]"]]
16	*** Well, [[spoiler:it's more that he/she is called like this by everyone.]]
17	** The part in EP 5 where Natsuhi recieves a HarassingPhoneCall from the Man From 19 Years Ago can lead to some major fridge brilliance. At the end of the game, Battler makes the argument that he is the Man From 19 Years Ago, but Episode 7 reveals that the person is actually [[spoiler:Yasu (Shannon/Kanon)]]. However, in accordance with Knox 8, this is actually deductible from clues within EP 5. Specifically, when he proves his identity to Natsuhi by directing her to a card saying her favorite season is Fall. The obvious assumption is that he simply hid 4 cards in the room, one for each season, and directed Natsuhi to the appropriate one once she told him. However -- [[spoiler:Natsuhi declares in the Red Truth that the only person she ever told about liking Fall was Shannon. Natsuhi told the Man From 19 Years Ago about liking Fall during the card trick. Therefore, she must have been talking to Shannon.]]
18	*** Additionally [[spoiler: Kanon's personality]] threatening Natsuhi over the phone makes a lot of sense when you realize that [[spoiler: Kanon]] is always the first one to talk behind her back after Natsuhi is out of hearing range.
19	* At the end of the series, it's somewhat implied that Beatrice, or rather Sayo Yasuda's true sex [[spoiler: is male, or at least born male.]] There are multiple acknowledgements or hints about it, such as [[spoiler: the existence of Lion who doesn't confirm either way, Zepar and Furfur representing Sayo's inner turmoil about her body, and part of Sayo's comments that her body looks boyish rather than feminine]]. It deserves to be mentioned though that there is one decisive clue, and that's in EP 5. During Natsuhi's phone call, [[spoiler: Natsuhi picks up on the fact that "it's a '''man''' from 19 years ago", who calls her mother and greatly hates her. Who from 19 years ago would hate Natsuhi for something she did to him? Well, Natsuhi pushed the maid carrying baby Sayo off the edge of a cliff. A baby that, by all means, Natsuhi would definitely know the sex of.]]
20	* In EP 4, Maria talks about how Rosa's refusal to acknowledge her and Sakutaro means that neither of them will ever be able to be "fixed". In EP 6, [[spoiler:Erika needs acknowledgment from Bernkastel to recover from being defeated by Beatrice, and Bern doesn't give it, meaning Erika's wounds will be fatal]].
21	* Way back in EP 2, George and Shannon introduce the concept that a married couple's eternal happiness is completed the instant they marry, so it doesn't matter if they die right afterward. [[spoiler:This may be a comfort to those playing through EP 7 and seeing Beatrice's "funeral".]]
22	** Though this becomes FridgeHorror when you realize that [[spoiler: the engagement and George's comment of them already being married, was the event in Ep 2 that finally drove Yasu to commit the murders.]] Discussed [[http://goatsreadingseacats.tumblr.com/post/42883592567/ep2-wedding-ring here]]
23	* All the [[ChessMotifs chess analogies, metaphors and things of the like]] at first seem to be there purely for symbolism and help set the atmosphere. After you solve the 'Who-dunnit', it is clear that they were foreshadowing [[spoiler:the true number of people on the island. After all, there are only 16 pieces on each side of a chessboard.]]
24	* If you believe a certain theory about Episode 6, it makes perfect sense that [[spoiler: Battler does many things that are not to his advantage: he is betting everything on Beatrice regaining her memories. Right down to making the love duel a metaphor on Yasu's inner conflict, acting like Kinzo and getting himself trapped in a logic error, he was doing the best he could to fool Bern and Lambdadelta. Hell, he was so effective he fooled the reader!]]
25	** Also if you think about this as a chess game it might be even clearer, because in episode 5 Beatrice was mentioned to be similar to the queen in chess. and such we can probably guess that when Battler [[spoiler: revives her in episode 5 she is a pawn piece instead of a queen. So why does he do these ilogical things? He is sacrificing pieces and tricking the enemy so they won't notice that a pawn is moving to the other side of the board so that the pawn Beatrice can turn into a queen piece again]].
26	* Why did Battler not [[spoiler:start using the red truth randomly in order to figure it out by process of elimination when he figured out you can't use the red truth to lie without choking? Because at the end of episode four, Beatrice has given in and is giving into his blue stakes anyway, and during episode five he's on her side and trying to figure it out from her perspective, rather than just understand the truth.]]
27	** Beatrice also granted him the ability to use the red truth temporarily, which generally only witches can do. He was probably a bit distracted by [[spoiler:everything he knew growing up turning out to be a lie]] to use it to his advantage.
28	* For [=EP8=]: [[spoiler:The purple truth.]] Remind us what [[spoiler:red and blue]] make again?
29	* In general, the odd European sounding names the Ushiromiya siblings have. One you know about [[spoiler:Beatrice Castiglioni, aka Beatrice I]] they make sense.
30	** Not really. Krauss and Eva, and probably Rudolf, were born in the 30s.
31	*** Though that could stem from Kinzo's love of Western literature, which he had before he met [[spoiler:Beatrice Castiglioni]].
32	*** In fact, that could have been a form of foreshadowing in-universe: when a culturally Japanese man gives his kids western names, it becomes pathetically obvious that the minute he meets a western-looking woman he is going to be gaga over her.
33	* Eva's vehement refusal to accept George and Shannon's relationship makes a hell of a lot more sense when you consider the ''ie'' system: her main ambition is to become head of the Ushiromiya family household (aka the ''ie''). The primary goal of people within the ''ie'' is to keep the ''ie'' in existence for as long as possible. Eva's spent the entirety of her life and [[MyBelovedSmother her son's life]] trying to prove to Kinzo that the existence of the Ushiromiya ''ie'' will be far safer in her and her decedents' hands than in Krauss's, and thus that the best plan is take a slightly less ideal route of succession to ensure the ''ie's'' preservation. The only problem? George. By marrying Shannon out of love instead of a more "suitable" woman out of duty, he's demonstrating to the rest of the family that he doesn't have the ''ie'''s best interest in mind, probably ''won't'' be terribly concerned with keeping the ''ie'' in existence, and thus showing that succession through Eva is ''not'' the best option for ''ie's'' succession. Say bye-bye to any chance at headship, Eva. In short: Eva's pissed at the relationship because ''decades of planning just went down the drain.''
34	** And also, though neither Eva nor, presumably, George, know it, [[spoiler: Shannon (Yasu) is implied to be unable to have children. Yasu may not even be female. Even if Eva was still able to get the headship after George married an unsuitable bride, that line would go extinct after George died.]]
35	** [[spoiler: There's also the fact that, while still unknown by both them, if Shannon is indeed Yasu and indeed female, George would be marrying his ''aunt/cousin''.]]
36	** Another possibility has to be considered: [[spoiler:even if they had no proof, Kinzo's children had long suspected their father had a mistress, and by that logic, they may have also suspected that Fukuin House wasn't some charitable endeavor by Kinzo (in fact, at the end of the series it's revealed that after the 1986 tragedy it was closed down, and was reopened decades later thanks to Ange), but a way to hide some illegitimate child. In a word, they already suspected one of the young servants to be Kinzo's lovechild, even more because they were allowed to bear the family crest. Eva's disapproval was also due to what would have meant if her suspicions were true (and ''they were'')]].
37	* At the beginning of Battler and Beatrice's fight in [=EP 4=]'s Tea Party, the narration briefly mentions that they are in a rose garden, and wonders whether or not this is proof or protest of the [[color:red: red]], but follows it up with stating that in the language of flowers roses mean passion (of which this Tea Party has a lot), and that the flower that means truth is the forget-me-not (which happens to be [[color:blue: blue]]). This is a clear metaphor of how Beatrice utilizes Red truth and Battler utilizes Blue, but those knowledgeable enough ([[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Language_of_flowers or with access to Wikipedia]]) will realize that, [[UnreliableNarrator as would be expected]], forget-me-nots' real meaning is 'True Love', and as as we learn by the time [=EP=] 7 rolls around, [[spoiler:that is most likely the kind of love Battler and Beatrice have, at least in the Meta-World. On a more tragic note, Battler ''did'' forget about Beatrice and his promise to her. 'True Love' is the 'truth', the Why-dunnit of this mystery.]]
38	* Despite having a general hatred of, well, ''everyone'', [[spoiler: Bernkastel]] regards Beatrice in particular with considerable contempt. It is later noted that [[spoiler: a witch's age is metaphorical, and refers to how long the time they've suffered ''felt'' to them… However, 'Beatrice' only lived through what would actually be six years of longing and general disrespect, whereas Bernkastel lived through what is implied to have ''actually'' been more than a century (in the very least, it is heavily implied to have been at least a few decades) of the people precious to her being horrifically murdered by the ''other people precious to her'', through no fault of their own, culminating invariably in her own gruesome murder by the people she believed to be protecting her. Furthermore, she never managed to find happiness, even after all of this — the Rika identity/identities that succeeded in preventing the murders ''never integrated into Bernkastel'', leaving her with the memories and combined identity of what is to be implied to be ''thousands'' of the Rikas who failed. In comparison, Beatrice's self-proclaimed "thousand years" seem incomprehensibly insignificant]].
39	* Another thing regarding the witches' ages: [[spoiler: Since'' Higurashi'' and ''Umineko'' are in the same universe, it makes a lot of sense when the witches claim to be over a thousand years if you think about the crap that their ''Higurashi'' "doppelgangers" went through. Bernkastel is all of the Rikas who never made it to July 1983 and it felt like a thousand years to her, which is why she claims to be that age. Lambdadelta has Satoko's prankster personality and looks identical to young Takano Miyo. Satoko was ostracized by the village for what her parents did, lost her parents, was abused by her aunt and uncle, and her brother disappeared, where Takano's whole life was one huge TraumaCongaLine. No wonder she's in a high ranking of witches. Featherine looks like Hanyuu and talks like Hanyuu in God Mode and Hanyuu was sacrificed and watched over and over as the villagers went mad and tore each other apart and could do nothing about it. "Witch of Theatregoing", I see. And then when you see what Beatrice, Maria and Ange-Beatrice went through, it's almost as if the number one requisite for becoming a witch is to have a horrible life.]]
40	** As Maria, Ange, and Bernkastel express multiple times, the original purpose of magic is to bring happiness. But, even more, magic is dependent upon the belief in it. Hence those who can freely and visibly use magic (i.e. a witch) must necessarily be at an emotional point where their desire for happiness is not only a consistent desire of theirs but also vastly greater than everyone else's disbelief. In short, [[Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagica who else would obtain this vast power and, in doing so, abandon their human life other than one who believes they have nothing to lose and everything to gain by doing so?]]
41	* Bernkastel's game piece in ''Alliance of the Golden Witch'' is Ange. In ''End of the Golden Witch'' we're introduced to her new game piece Erika, who's hair is done up the same as Ange's except that her hair is longer and blue: just like her master's.
42	* Through out the series, Beatrice makes multiple claims that [[color:red: Battler Ushiromiya is incompetent]] at his many attempts to solve the the series. [[spoiler: When at the end it's revealed that the entirety of the Umineko series is Battler Prime's attempts to figure out what happened on Rokkenjima Prime years after the Rokkenjima Massacre (due to his amnesia regarding those events), one can see that he really is incompetent at solving what happened because he's yet to solve all the various scenarios he wrote up IE the individual episodes. However, this could also be taken further as him saying that he is himself incompetent for not solving his own scenarios; a form of self-deprecation.]]
43	* When it comes to truth battles, Beatrice usually wields red, and Battler wields blue. However, Beatrice's servants (Ronove, the goatheads, and the Seven Sisters) use blue magic when fighting, while Shannon and Kanon (who are against Beatrice) use red. [[spoiler: It's foreshadowing that, not only are Beatrice and Battler [[AntiVillain technically on]] the same side, but Shannon and Kanon are [[SplitPersonality more closely related]] to Beatrice than we thought.]]
44	* Bernkastel's cat tail at first appears to be just a case of CatsAreMean, but then you realize her plan is to open the Rokkenjima ''catbox''.
45	* In episode 8, [[spoiler: the goats symbolize peoples' theories about the culprit. [[StealthPun They're scapegoating the characters.]]]]
46	* In EP 1, when Maria is interrogated by Battler in the kitchen, Maria claims of Beatrice, "She's here right now!" At the time, Battler thinks that she's looking at a spot behind him, but [[spoiler:who was in the kitchen at the time? Kumasawa, Genji, and... Kanon]]. Yes, Beatrice truly was in the room then.
47	* Also, early on in EP 1, when Battler and the cousins are on the boat heading to Rokkenjima, after Battler freaks out over the boat going fast, he says, "I want to die on land, not in the ocean or sky!" At the end of EP 8, [[spoiler: Battler (along with Beatrice) drown in the ocean.]]
48	* Early in EP 1, there's a moment that doesn't fully pay off until EP 7. When Battler tries to grope Shannon's breasts upon seeing her for the first time in six years, she stands there silently and blushes furiously, but doesn't do anything to stop him. At first, it seems like she's only doing this because she is an ExtremeDoormat and ShrinkingViolet, though his being her boss's grandson probably doesn't hurt. Only in EP 7 do we learn explicitly that [[spoiler:she's been waiting ''a thousand years'' - or, if you insist, six years - for Battler to make good on the hint of sexual interest he showed when he promised to take her away from Rokkenjima on a white horse]]. Had it not been for Jessica's interference, she probably would've [[spoiler:gone into full-on Beatrice mode and]] jumped his bones right there on the beach. (Also, the manga posits that she was desperately hoping for someone to stop her from committing murder, and if Battler was able to go through with the groping, he might have exposed her true identity then and there.)
49	* [=EP 1=]'s Tea Party has all of the people who survived the Episode gathered together. Those present are [[spoiler:Battler, George, Jessica, and Maria]]. With special guests[[spoiler:Shannon, Kanon, and Beatrice]]. EP 7 fully explains why those two are here too, despite not being survivors. After all, [[spoiler:Beatrice made it to the end of EP 1, did she not?]]
50	** While Beatrice's weakness to Spiderwebs is explained [[spoiler: as the legend of Beatrice mixing with the legends of the evil spirits that haunted Rokenjima]], her weakness to mirrors is never explained directly. However, [[spoiler: when you realize that Beatrice is Yasu, it makes perfect sense. A mirror shows Yasu that she is not really a witch, by forcing her to see her true self, her "Beatrice" persona is weakened.]]
51	** Lambadelta's GravityMaster's powers make perfect sense for her. After all, there's nothing more ''certain'' then being drawn into a black hole.
52	* Tsumihoroboshi-hen (''Higurashi''): "Demons in Hell, I bet you are just waiting for an amusing end to happen while eating some popcorn." And then I realised whose piece Umineko's popcorn-lover was in ''Higurashi''.
53	* In EP 8 right before [[spoiler: Lambda tries to attack Featherine they talk about how attacking a miko is just like attacking the master and Featherine asks if Lambda even has a miko and she responds with saying "I've got a ton of them already...!!!30 or 40, I think. Maybe even more!" At first sounds like more bluffing and stalling for time. Then you realize counting up every character besides herself, featherine, bern, evatrice, and erika (who were technically all against her at this point) comes up to around 40! Everyone that Lambda stuck her neck out for just so they could have a chance at a happier ending]]
54	** She says that she may have even more than that. In other words, more than how many pieces there is on the board. So, who could she be talking about, especially given what she says right afterward? All of the readers, us, of course.
55	* In EP 8 near the end, it is stated that [[spoiler: the Ushiromiya eagle was unable to fly into the future due to it missing a wing. This is eliminated due to Ange's Witch of Ressurection powers activating. It then hit me that the Ushiromiya crest represented Ange. She was a Broken Bird that had only one wing. Any references in any song about a One Winged Bird may in fact refer to Ange.]] However, how would a One Winged Eagle fly? In circles! This is indicative of the [[spoiler: Groundhog Day Loop]] that was going on in the story.
56	* In EP 4 when Ange [[spoiler: reveals herself to Battler she is turned into a pile of red meat, how did she die in 1998? Jumped off a building and went splat on the pavement. She's just returning to her real world state]]
57	** This is probably unintentional but: It's widely accepted that the series becomes much better once EP 3 starts, once you've finished EP 8 it's apparent why [[spoiler: Hachijo Toya wrote EP 3 through 6, so they all jumped up in quality]]
58	* Bernkastel's permanent lifeless expression on two counts. 1. Serves as a massive "red flag" regarding her "true colors". 2. Serves as a clue to her origin story.
59	* This isn't my idea, just a comment on youtube I found that was too good to not put here. All credits of this goes to kidkidkid12345. [[spoiler: ''The entire plot of EP6 is an allegory for the original Kinzo/Beatrice relationship. (Bice // Trolltrice) dies and a new one is born (Kuwadorian Beatrice // Moetrice), but she's not the same. (Kinzo // Battler) locks himself in (his study // a closed room), leaving behind a mad riddle (the epitaph // logic error) for Beatrice to solve. (Sayo // the resurrected Beato) solves it and they are reunited. Even Erika, by marrying Battler, plays a role in this allegory as the stand in for Kinzo's wife.'']]
60	* In Episode 4, Battler manages to say in red that Ange is his little sister. The reader just assumes that it means he considers her as a real sister, despite their mother being different. In Episode 8 we learn that [[spoiler:it's actually true in the literal sense, since Battler is Kyrie's child.]]
61	* Why does Ronove seem to be AmbiguouslyGay? Simple, [[spoiler: Yasu]] has never seen Genji interested in women and only serving Kinzo. It's no wonder [[spoiler: Yasu]] began to think that Genji was gay. Also if [[spoiler: Yasu]] originally was a man this might be him trying to create a distance against his sexuality and his love towards [[spoiler: Battler]] with him trying to fool himself by thinking: "Since I don't act like that I can't be gay".
62	* It always bothered me that mostly have work with assumptions that its a fair play, which abids to Knox Commandments. But the ??? part of [=EP5=] confirms that this is so. Namely, Dlanor Knox red texts are just the number of the commandment and the description what it is, yet she can effectively counter Battler's Blue Text, going so far to seal away Red Text in his theories because its a supernatural aid. If this was not following Knox Commandments, that move would have been completely ineffective and Battler could have easily broken it by using Red Text.
63	* Whether this is fair play or not is yet another Devil's Proof. Since TheSummation doesn't include TheReveal, the reader is left to solve the mysteries even after the story is over. A reader who solves it proves that sufficient clues have been given for a solution, but a reader who fails to solve it can't disprove that the necessary clues are in the story.
64	* It's not noticeable in the usual front view, but Dlanor has a set of PrincessCurls down her back that match the front. Seen together, her entire hairstyle strongly resembles a traditional judge's wig.
65	* '''B'''anquet, '''A'''lliance, '''T'''urn, '''T'''wilight, '''L'''egend, '''E'''nd, '''R'''equiem. BATTLER.
66	* There actually ''is'' a logical answer to who killed Nanjo in EP 3, with a bit of hindsight. Eva-Beatrice goes out of her way to confirm in red the names of the fifteen dead characters, that Battler was watching Eva, that Jessica was blinded, and that the three of them had nothing to do with the murder. Who is the killer then? [[spoiler: Yasu! Though Shannon and Kanon were the same person, their deaths didn't need to be literal; indeed, Yasu could have shed them permanently, and killed Nanjo themself.]] Looking at the way the scene is set up and the way Beato looks to Battler, it was obvious that she was hoping for him to realize this.
67	** Furthermore, why does Beato tell Battler to cover his ears when she uses the red truth to destroy Eva-Beatrice, by exposing the truth of witches? Simple: [[spoiler: she didn't. She was in control of the entire situation, and had Battler been able to hear at that moment, not a single word of that red truth would have crossed his ears.]]
68	* The fact that Bernkastel's personality has a meaning: [[spoiler: she personifies the Umineko's readers that don't care about the hearth of the story, only in the truth, tricks and mystery. Basically, if you don't care about Yasu's love, you are as cold-hearthed, merciless and pitifull as her.]]
69	* In episode 3, there's a portion where Ronove gives Battler a handful of red truths in Beatrice's stead. At first it seems like the only reason Ronove is giving them instead of Beatrice is to give Ronove a bit more characterization, since even Ronove himself admits that if he hadn't made those red statements then Beatrice would have made them herself when she returned. [[spoiler: Except one of those red truths is "A conversation like this happened between Kinzo and Beatrice-Sama at this place." If Beatrice were forced to make this statement herself, she would have to say "A conversation between Kinzo and ''I'' " -- except she ''can't'', because the person the truth referred to was a ''different Beatrice!'' By having Ronove tell Battler that particular red truth instead of telling him herself, she's concealing the fact that the Beatrice killed by Rosa was a different person!]]
70	* The chess analogies go even further. Some people say that there are an infinite number of possible games of chess, but this is not the case. There is a specific number of possible games. This is called, wait for it, Shannon's Number. As Shannon's Number limits the number of possible games of chess, [[spoiler: the fact that Shannon/Yasu is the killer]] limits the possibilities of the endless games on the Game Board, because [[spoiler: Shannon/Yasu must always be the killer]].
71	* One awesome bit of Fridge Brilliance, coming from [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BQIqf4vx02c this]] pseudo-parody of Umineko. ''Major spoilers for the series of videos by the way.'' [[spoiler: Why do we never see or hear anything of Yasu, and only recieve hints on them through Shannon and Kanon? Nor from Beatrice, who masterminds the games and is effectively Yasu covering the truth with illusions? Simple: [[ArcWords "Without Love It Cannot Be Seen".]] Because Yasu doesn't love themself, they don't reveal their presence as a person at all. They rely on other people to care enough to find out who they are and why they're carrying out the murders.]]
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73	!!!FridgeHorror
74	* The "Sweet World Of Witches" sequence of EP 4, when Maria kills Rosa over and over again, is horrifying in its own right. But buried under the obvious horror is a second, more subtle layer of horror. From an anti-fantasy standpoint, what Maria is doing is venting her feelings of hatred against her mother by repeatedly killing her in her imagination. This is driven home in another scene where Battler teases Maria. When he asks for her forgiveness, she gives her 'Kihihihi...' laugh, and seems to be counting the 'hi's, as though imaginining something brutal happening to Battler each time...
75	* An odd one. In EP 3- the visual novel at least- Eva-Beatrice does seem a bit down after [[spoiler:killing Hideyoshi]], but the next time we see her she's back to normal and [[spoiler:when she kills George, we see none of that.]] Considering that she's basically an extra personality of [[spoiler:their wife/mother, that means she got over Hideyoshi easily enough that ''she killed their son rather happily.'']]
76	** We're told that Dlanor killed her father (Ronald Knox) after he broke his own rules, and got her status as a HangingJudge afterward. Now, the SSVD is a large group whose members (or at least the highest-ranked ones) appear to gain the last name Wright when they're appointed, as it's mentioned Will did, and the reason Will's quitting is because they seem to be completely made up of [[HangingJudge Hanging Judges]]. Then what happened to the original Van Dine...?
77	*** He...retired. The original Van Dine was probably Will's predecessor, and since the Wright name is passed as a tradition, it's presumed he just went on to live a regular life. But again, since Will is named after the original Van Dine, maybe the tradition started with Will, which would mean he made the SSVD.
78	* In [=EP6=], Battler seems to really hate how the resurrected Beatrice keeps calling him "father". While at first you can just assume that he doesn't like it because it reminds him of how different this Beatrice is from the old one, [[spoiler:in [=EP7=], we find out the truth behind Beatrice's origins, and [[ParentalIncest how disturbing the implications behind the word "father" really are]].]]
79	* Bernkastel has some personal FridgeHorror once you realize the depths of her origins. [[spoiler:[[VisualNovel/HigurashiWhenTheyCry Rika has finally won her fight against fate and can live in a peaceful world with her friends]], but fate throws her one final curve ball in Saikoroshi-hen where she has to come to terms with her past. In succeeding she gets to go back to her own world, but purging herself of the past eventually gave rise to Bernkastel... who is more than implied to have all of the original Rika's memories. In a way, Bern fought for Hinamizawa as well... [[ShootTheShaggyDog but doesn't get to live in the peaceful world she was a part of and fought for]].]] It's not hard to understand why she's so bitter.
80	** And it doesn't end there either; Featherine Augustus Aurora might have her own hands in this mess. Given what we know about Bernkastel, there are several implications that [[spoiler:''Higurashi'' was a game Lambdadelta and Featherine, with Bern as Featherine's piece - as in ''the piece that Featherine abandoned''. When Rika won the game and later purged herself Bernkastel, it was Featherine who found her and recruited her as her miko. Either it's a case of simple negligence and getting lucky enough to find Bernkastel and piece her together later... or she '''knew and planned right from the start''' for her to come into existence.]] Given Featherine's nature this is alarmingly possible and, if true, would arguably make her the BigBad of the ''entire Franchise/WhenTheyCry series'' so far.
81	*** HilariousInHindsight: [[spoiler:Since Featherine is Ryukishi07's AuthorAvatar, [[RefugeInAudacity this would make him the main villain of his own franchise.]]]]
82	* Whenever Dlanor says her famous "DIE THE DEATH!" catchphrase, she says it in ''red text''. Y'know, the color used to denote ''undeniable truth''? Yeah, she's not telling them to die, she's saying that ''they'll die no matter what''.
83	** [[spoiler:FridgeBrilliance: This actually holds true in [=EP5=]; Beatrice does eventually die in that episode. To anyone who's been paying attention, it's a brilliant cliffhanger, leaving them wondering just when it will happen.]]
84	** Alternatively: THE GREAT EQUALIZER IS THE DEATH. That is - everyone dies in the end.
85	* For Erika to have developed the way she did, Bernkastel didn't just select her and wind her up the way she did Ange. She had to have cultivated her to become the piece she did. Can you imagine what a horrifying ordeal that must have been? St. Lucia would be a comfort in comparison.
86	** Considering Bernkastel was [[spoiler:[[RetiredMonster Featherine's]] miko]], [[FridgeHorror her upbringing was probably quite similar...]]
87	* Battler's initial insistence on attempting to avoid having anyone he knows be guilty of the murders becomes particularly horrifying once you know who was actually responsible for most of the killings in reality.
88	* As stated above, Battler hates chick!Beatrice calling him father. [[spoiler:In EP 7, the full implications of this are revealed.]] However, there's an additional layer behind this. Battler became Game Master at the end of episode 5, confirming that he figured out the truth about the Rokkenjima Murders. So why did he hate it when chick!Beatrice calling him father? Because ''he had already learned the truth about [[spoiler:[[ParentalIncest Beatrice's]] ancestry.'']] This subtly implies that becoming Game Master also means ''knowing every character from the inside out, including their personal history.'' He probably knew about Maria's imagined killing of Rosa too!
89	** EP 8 Battler's stoic demeanor when questioning people like Gohda and Kumasawa about finding the bodies becomes jarring and disgustingly frightening when you learn that [[spoiler:he was an accomplice of the true murderers, Kyrie and Rudolf.]] ''The acting was perfect.'' What guarantee is there that Battler ''wasn't'' acting in the earlier games?!
90	*** Red: Ushiromiya Battler cannot be the culprit. Taken literally, the murders simply will not happen. If Battler were a despicable person who could kill his family and loved ones so easily, then Yasu would have never fallen in love. No love for Battler, no bomb, no opportunity for Rudolf and Kyrie to take advantage of the situation and instigate the murders. The game in [=EP8=] was specifically a false game made by Bern to ‘entertain’ Battler and Beato...while traumatizing Ange with the sight of her family being bloodthirsty killers. Bern herself even admits that ‘Rudolf and Kyrie are the killers’ is only a possibility, though Eva’s diary implies it might be true, she admits the possibility isn’t 100%.

Context Fridge / UminekoWhenTheyCry