Created by Ryukishi07 in 2002 as a Doujin sound novel, Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni, localized as When They Cry, is quite the phenomenon. Though the series’ popularity has waned over the years, you can consider it to be pretty iconic. With various anime, manga, light novel and live-action adaptations to go alongside the games and their numerous re-releases, there are plenty of ways to experience Higurashi.
Set in the small rural village of Hinamizawa, Higurashi focuses on a group of friends and their connection to a string of mysterious events and deaths. With Halloween just around the corner, this psychological horror story might be just what you’re looking for. But be warned, the series isn’t shy to kill off its characters, and often does so in some petty insane and messed-up ways. Don’t let the Moe art style fool you, this series is filled with frightening scenes and scary moments that will put you on edge and have you question everything you thought was going on. These are the 10 scariest scenes in the anime, ranked.
SPOILER WARNING: There's a good amount of spoilers in here, so tread carefully.
10 The Great Hinamizawa Disaster
The Great Hinamizawa Disaster is a recurring event in When They Cry and is completely dependent on the way that Rika inevitably dies in the story. In order for this event to occur, Rika must die at the hands of Takano Miyo.
When it does occur, the disaster wipes out all of Hinamizawa and its residents. Though it’s passed off as a natural disaster, Takano is the real perpetrator. The residents are poisoned with a toxic gas, and the aftermath doesn’t look pretty – as you can see. It’s certainly not the best way to go.
9 Crazy Shion
This isn’t so much a particular scene as it is a collection of them. Shion is one of When They Cry’s most well known and recognized leads. The reason being that she’s insane, at least in a good chunk of the question and answer arcs she appears in.
Be it her piercing laugh, twisted smile or terrible acts, Shinon can be a pretty horrifying character. There are certain arcs where she just completely goes off the wall and is responsible for some of the most twisted and hard to watch scenes in the series. More on that in later entries.
8 Nail Cutter
Try and watch this without cringing. It just can’t be done. We just finished going off on how crazy a character Shion can be but, when you look at her family situation, the pieces sort of fall into place.
Due to going against her family’s orders, Shion is forced to rip out her own fingernails with a weird medieval-looking torture device in a scene that has stuck with many fans of the series because of just how brutal it is. What makes it all the more worse is that Shion herself has to apply the pressure that rips off each nail. A great performance by Shion’s voice actress only makes this whole ordeal that much harder to watch. It’s definitely not anyone’s favorite part of the anime.
7 Rika’s Dismemberment
Higurashi isn’t afraid to throw a bunch of gore your way, and it does so on numerous occasions. It does a pretty good job of creating an air of mystery, suspense, tension and then topping all of that off with some gruesome, twisted, stuff.
Like most of the cast, Rika is no stranger to death throughout the story – though the circumstances and outcomes for her are fairly different compared to her friends. One of the worst fates she can suffer is a ritualistic dismemberment – an event that ultimately sets off the terrible Great Hinamizawa Disaster which leads to even more horrors. Seeing such an upbeat an innocent character end up like that is just too much for some viewers.
6 Rika’s Death
If there’s one thing to take away from watching Higurashi it’s that none of the characters have it easy, but Rika especially has to go through some pretty messed up deaths. In a turn of events that connects to Shion’s bout of insanity, Rika is forced to undergo one of the most unsettling demises in the series.
During the Cotton Drifting-arc, Rika confronts Shion and attempts to sedate her with a drug meant to alleviate her of her insane state. While she appears to have the upper hand at first, Shion turns the tables on her and injects Rika with the drug herself. Though beneficial to Shion, the drug has disastrous effects on Rika. Knowing this, Rika grabs a nearby knife and decides to speed up the process. It isn’t fun to watch.
5 Let Me In
This next scene comes from the series’ first arc; the Demoned Away-arc, which gives fans their initial look into the world of Hinamizawa. The arc focuses on Keiichi’s relationship with his new friends in the village, particularly Rena. Though things start off normally, various events cause Keiichi to question what is going on around him.
Rena’s behavior, in particular, is very disturbing as she’s shown as being obsessive and prone to violent bursts. This scene is a great example of the former, as Keiichi struggles to keep her out of his home while she claws at his door's chain lock.
4 Poor Satoko
Satoko is a pretty important character in the When They Cry series. Aside from being part of the main cast, the revelation of her brother Satoshi’s disappearance often serves as the catalyst for certain characters' behavior to escalate out of control in various arcs.
Satoko suffers one of the series' most well known, and brutal, deaths at the hands of Shion after the latter completely goes off the deep end and starts eliminating everyone she blames for Satoshi’s disappearance – including his own little sister.
3 LIAR!
Another Rena scene from the Demoned Away-arc, this is one of the scariest scenes in the series just because of how much tension it causes and creates later on. The scene itself is more unnerving than frightening, but it’s probably one of the first scenes in the series that catches you off guard.
Keiichi accuses Rena and their friends of lying to him, particularly regarding Satoshi’s disappearance and the recent mysteries surrounding Hinamizawa. This causes Rena to go on the offensive and hint that she knows about Keiichi looking into the village’s mysteries despite various warnings not to. Her character does a complete 180 at this point, and gives off a much more sinister and dangerous vibe.
2 Shion & Mion
Not only is this one of the most disturbing sequences in the anime, but it’s also one of the hardest to understand, despite being better explained in the Eye Opening-answer arc. This is yet another scene that hinges on Shion’s insanity but this time it’s her sister, Mion, who has to deal with it.
After going on her aforementioned rampage, we discover that Shion has kidnapped her sister and left her in the Sonozaki torture chamber (yes, you read that right). Mion’s interactions with her sister suggest that she’s been through some pretty terrible stuff, as her usual confident and charismatic demeanor is completely gone. After initially setting her sister free, Shion betrays Mion and makes her fall down a well – which Shion then uses to assume Mion’s identity and evade police capture shortly afterward.
1 Creepy Rena
The Demoned Away-arc has some really memorable and unsettling moments due to it being the first arc in the series (and the viewer not really knowing what’s going on). The same can be said for Keiichi, as his mounting suspicions of his friends, and Hinamizawa as a whole, really make for some tense moments.
A great example of this is the progression of Rena’s character throughout the arc. Though initially cheerful and friendly at the beginning, Rena appears to be more and more unhinged and obsessive as the arc progresses. The best example of this happens when Keiichi realizes that Rena spied on him while he was in his room, and the camera cuts to her with this trademark and unnerving expression.