Higurashi no naku - What to watch first?

[Ragger]

Salutations dear forum, I am confused.

Searching for a Higurashi no naku anime, I stumbeled across miles worth of series, including GOU,Rei,Sotsu etc.

What do these mean?

Which one to watch first? 

Is finishing the manga first required? How to start the manga then?

 

 

[Ohayotaku]

While I’m by no means an expert on the franchise & have not read the manga I will offer some input 

Season 1 of the main series is Higurashi no Naku Koro ni (aka When They Cry).

This is followed by Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Kai

Next comes Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Gou  At first it may seem like a retelling of the original series with some changes, but as it goes along it will become clear that is not the case & it’s actually a sequel series.

This is concluded in Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Sotsu

 

Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Rei & all the stand alone eps are just some bonus eps that aren’t essential to the story, in fact some are parodies that are just there for humor or fanservice

One thing about Gou & Sotsu is they tease some characters from a separate series/storyline called Umineko no Naku Koro ni but I’m not familiar with it.

Edited December 6, 2023 by Ohayotaku