Backlog Dialogues

Another arc, another godcast! This week we look at Ryukishi's impassioned plea to those struggling to reach out, go over the Manga and Anime adaptations, and once more go over what we learned. And for those who have seen all things, in the spoiler section of the Godcast, we discuss the impact of this work on Ryukishi's future writing.

And I face you now tonight, And we'll fight this more than ever And if you only play this right, We'll be playing here forever And we'll only be making us win, Because neither of us will lose Together we can face off at the top of this roof Your hand is right in front of me offering the truth I don't know what to do, and I'm still in this dark, But were standing on this building top and GIVING OFF...

Ninety-nine City PD Ninety-nine Yakuza Meet To worry, worry, super-scurry Call the cops out in a hurry These books are what we've waited for This is it, boys, this is war The Sonozakis on the line As ninety-nine Kyuteballoons go by (Filk of 99 Red Balloons, by Nena) This week on Backlog Dialogues, we reveal the 'truth.'

I went to a nurse Who thought that I was cursed She said it's parasites that are getting me down I went to my friend On who I do depend He said he'd listen to what's getting me down Sometimes that van gives me the creeps Sometimes those gardeners play tricks on me It all keeps adding up The whole world's cracking up Surely I'm not paranoid Oh no no no Grasping to control So I better hold on This w...

Somewhere in this little town. Someone's feeling way more down. Wish that made my heart feel sound. Wish I didn't hide a frown. The world's kyutest violin really needs an audience. So if I do not find somebody soon. I'll cut my problems into bits And try to find a spot that fits While hiding in my secret place To keep a smile on my face I know ive tried my very best to once more find my happiness...

No one knows what it's like To be the bad girl To be the sad girl Behind Kyute Eyes And no one knows what it's like To be hated To be fated to hearing only lies But my dreams they aren't as icky As my heart seems to be I have hours only lonely My love is kyuteness That's never free... (Filk of Behind Blue Eyes, by the who) This week on Backlog Dialogues, we get to learn about Rena.

This week brings another Minilog, with the sci fi kung fu multiverse flick, Everything Everywhere All At Once! We discuss the struggles of laundromat proprietress Evelyn Wang as she tries to file her taxes properly but keeps getting distracted by things such as her daughter coming out as a lesbian, her husband seemingly seeking a divorce, and the entire multiverse deciding that she needs to fight...

All Cast Review Sessions may be done, but Ryukishi07 has some things to say to launch us into our first postgame discussion of an Answer Arc! We discuss all that we have learned, and John continues his exploration of the adaptations. From the excellent manga adaptation that elevates the work almost as well as Tatarigoroshi did and an almost good anime adaptation that has a good run for the first f...

How did everything go so wrong for Shion? As victory over the three families approaches, she finds herself constantly thwarted. By Rika, strangely acting violent. By Satoko, refusing to give in to her torture. By Keiichi, who never gives up on her, even as she claims a demon has taken hold. And by her sister Mion, who reveals the terrifying truth that the three families have nothing to do with the...

The year advances to 1983 and things start to get a little more familiar, as we experience some of the events of Watanagashi through Shion Sonozaki's eyes. It's still different in some places, but eerily similar in others, but with Shion's perspective we get to see her hearing mind Satoshi and getting closer and closer to the truth, guided by her intricate behind the scenes knowledge... and her st...

Things take a turn for the worse for Shion, as Satoshi comes under the scrutiny of the law after killing his aunt and she reveals her true identity to cover for him, bringing the wrath of the wicked matriarch of the Sonozakis upon her. Fingernails are removed and old wounds start to open, and she becomes increasingly suspicious of all the murders that have been happening in town while the Sonozaki...

Shion has a problem. The hot guy she likes is not doing well. He's skipping baseball practice and acting real strange. What's a girl to do? Why, pose as her sister to cause severe damage to her social life, of course! She encounters the peculiar Rena Ryuugu, who proselytizes for Oyashiro-sama as a way to show how much trouble she knows Satoshi is in, and then takes Mion's place at school to solve...

The answer arcs begin with our new Protagonist, Shion Sonozaki! This demon of a twin sister breaks out of catholic school to seek freedom in Okinomiya, no matter what her mafia boss grandma has to say about it! But this tough teenager has a weakness - cute boys with sad puppy faces that like to say 'mmph!' Can she navigate the politics of the Sonozaki Crime Family to get familiar with the hot stud...

We dive back in to Manga discussions for today's minilog, reviewing Tatsuki Fujimoto's Grindhouse-esque Shounen character study, Chainsaw Man! Continuing the theme of 'protagonists that kinda suck', we are covering the character growth of Denji, Id-driven loon and chainsaw monster. As we look over the Public Safety arc, we dig in to just why he works as an anti-hero, as well as which devils give u...

The final godcast of the question arcs marks a turning point. For the last time, we go through an all cast review, as Shion stages a rebellion, which can only be countered by the dumbest antics imaginable. John goes through the interesting choices of adaptation made by the manga (including some rather unfortunate ones) and even has praise for the anime for once. And as always, for those who have s...

We reach the climax of Himatsubushi. Akasaka, fresh off his fight with the kidnappers, is prevented from contacting his wife by Rika, acting even stranger than before. She tells him a vision of the already decided future, and looks to him to see what he might say. How will Akasaka respond? What secrets still remain in Hinamizawa? What should have happened differently? The Question Arcs conclude, w...

It's time for an action packed week in Higurashi, as Akasaka shows off his manga protagonist level skills at Mahjong and teams up with Ooishi to take the fight to some kidnappers! We discuss cops, protest tactics, the existence of a tiny Mion acting as a Capo, and figure out exactly why Ooishi is so hung up on the serial murder case in the future. Also, we call in Pete again to investigate another...

Let's start the shortest arc by stretching things out! Lots of stuff is different this time. We follow Public Safety Officer Akasaka Mamoru as he investigates a kidnapping undercover out in the sticks and meets a mysterious girl with a penchant for cute noises and not so cute personality shifts. Can Akasaka find the truth when an entire village is against him?

This time, we cover the 2001 Playstation 2 classic horror game, Silent Hill 2! Our inner demons haunt us as we discuss a game that we didn't even have an occasion to play until this podcast. We discuss James Sunderland as he takes multiple possible paths through spooky maybe hell dimension Silent Hill, dig in to themes of guilt and self punishment, and jump in to more than a few holes as we play t...

The all cast review sessions are starting to get silly, as the discussions about what's going on gives way to silliness and the promise of a new protagonist going forward! Thank goodness, it was almost getting to be too unbearable to be Keiichi anymore. Then, John gushes over his favorite manga adaptation and unleashes an incredible amount of rage upon the hack job the anime does with this materia...

Reality is coming undone and weird things are happening. Did Keiichi murder someone last night, or did he spend the festival with his friends like they say he did? Has he somehow gained the ability to kill others with his brain? Can he save Satoko from her cruel fate once and for all? Or is it all for nothing? Once more, the tragedy comes to its head, and this time, the curse spreads farther than...

Keiichi tells us in great detail how smart he is as he plans the perfect murder. His descent to being a creature of the night progresses, and he begins to cross paths with other demons... Bang Bang Keiichi's silver hammer came down upon his head Bang Bang Keiichi's silver hammer made sure that he was dead...

The extent of Satoko's situation is laid bare: her abusive uncle has returned, and the club is powerless to do anything. But that's not going to keep Keiichi from trying, as he shouts at his friends, begins to make terrible kidnapping plans, talks to Miyo about her interests, implies that his friend is behind all the murders in the village, and shows us just how far out his galaxy brain can go.

Rena gets philosophical and Ooishi gets terrifying this week, as Keiichi learns more about his new 'sister', Satoko. Things are starting to get gloomy faster this time, as Satoko fails to come to school and the question of Satoshi is way more forward, with Shion pushing Keiichi on what he's learned about the missing boy.

It's Satoko's turn in the spotlight as we go back and start over to have a good old fashioned lunch box battle! Keiichi begins to develop brotherly feelings for the precocious brat (affectionate), and his skill for bullshit hinted at in the previous arc is now given a name in one of the most hilarious (and horrifying) scenes we've ever done on this pod! Listener discretion advised, we do not condo...