Umineko no Naku Koro ni (うみねこのなく頃に lit. When the Seagulls Cry) is an anime adaptation of the visual novel series of the same name, first announced by 07th Expansion and animated by Studio DEEN. The series originally aired in Japan on Chiba TV from July 2, 2009 to December 24, 2009, and would air on additional stations at later times. It contains 26 episodes, encompassing the Question Arcs.
The anime was licensed in the US by NIS America under the English title Umineko: When They Cry in 2012.
Introduction[]
The affluent Ushiromiya family patriarch, Kinzo, is on his deathbed, and his family has assembled at their private island to discuss the division of his estate. As they bicker over their father's immense inheritance, a typhoon closes in, trapping them on the island. They suddenly receive an eerie word of warning...and then, in the dead of night, the murders begin.
One by one, family members are discovered murdered in bizarre and inhuman ways. Some within the family turn to superstition, blaming it on a witch rumored to inhabit the island. But one of them - the young Battler Ushiromiya - refuses to accept the supernatural and vows to uncover the real killer behind the seemingly impossible slaughters. He soon finds himself confronted by the apparent witch, and enters into a life-or-death battle for the truth.[1]
List of Episodes[]
A total of 13 home video box sets, each containing two episodes, were released between October 23, 2009 and October 22, 2010.
- Main article: List of Umineko home video releases
| Episode | Name | Release Date | Preview Narrator |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | I-I: Opening | July 2, 2009 | Jessica Ushiromiya |
| 2 | I-II: First Move | July 9 | Maria Ushiromiya |
| 3 | I-III: Dubious Move | July 16 | Shannon |
| 4 | I-IV: Blunder | July 23 | George Ushiromiya |
| 5 | I-V: Fool's Mate | July 30 | Beatrice |
| 6 | II-I: Middle Game | August 6 | Kanon |
| 7 | II-II: Early Queen Move | August 13 | Battler Ushiromiya |
| 8 | II-III: Weak Square | August 20 | Maria Ushiromiya |
| 9 | II-IV: Skewer | August 27 | Toshiro Gohda |
| 10 | II-V: Accept | September 3 | Chiyo Kumasawa |
| 11 | II-VI: Back Rank Mate | September 10 | Rosa Ushiromiya |
| 12 | III-I: Castling | September 17 | Krauss Ushiromiya |
| 13 | III-II: Gambit | September 24 | Ronove |
| 14 | III-III: Positional Play | October 1 | Virgilia |
| 15 | III-IV: Isolated Pawn | October 8 | Rudolf Ushiromiya |
| 16 | III-V: Queening Square | October 15 | Eva Ushiromiya |
| 17 | III-VI: Promotion | October 22 | Lambdadelta and Bernkastel |
| 18 | III-VII: Swindles | October 29 | Ange Ushiromiya |
| 19 | IV-I: End Game | November 5 | Seven Stakes of Purgatory |
| 20 | IV-II: Zugzwang | November 12 | Sakutaro |
| 21 | IV-III: Prophylaxis | November 19 | Kinzo Ushiromiya |
| 22 | IV-IV: Problem Child | November 26 | Gaap |
| 23 | IV-V: Breakthrough | December 3 | Chiester Sisters |
| 24 | IV-VI: Adjourn | December 10 | Juuza Amakusa |
| 25 | IV-VII: Forced Move | December 17 | Beatrice |
| 26 | IV-VIII: Sacrifice | December 24 | - |
Staff[]
Key Staff[]
- Original Creator: Ryukishi07
- Director: Chiaki Kon
- Series Composition: Toshifumi Kawase
- Character Design: Youko Kikuchi
- Music: Akiko Shikata, Jimang, -45
Voice Cast[]
- Main article: Voice cast of Umineko
Reception[]
On July 7, 2009, Umineko placed 2nd on Dengeki Online's survey for anticipated summer anime.[2]
According to someanithing.com. the anime made 96.1 million yen (US equivalent: approx. $1,032,000, taking into account 2009 conversion rates) from DVD and Blu-Ray sales on its first release.[3] 62% of its initial sales were DVDs while the rest were BDs.[4]
As of September 13, 2024, the anime sits at a score of 7.03 on MyAnimeList and an average score of 63% on AniList.
Gallery[]
DVD Bonuses[]
The Collector's Edition DVDs each contained episode audio commentaries by voice actors, a series of discussions called Special Talk in Rokkenjima (スペシャルトーク in 六軒島) between Ryukishi07 and voice actors, and Uraneko shorts.
| DVD Set | Episode Commentary and VAs | Special Talk VAs | Uraneko Episodes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Note 01 | Episode 1 (Daisuke Ono and Marina Inoue) | Special Talk in Rokkenjima Part 1 (Daisuke Ono and Marina Inoue) | 1, 2 |
| Note 02 | Episode 3 (Daisuke Ono and Marina Inoue) | Special Talk in Rokkenjima Part 2 (Daisuke Ono and Marina Inoue) | 3, 4 |
| Note 03 | Episode 5 (Kenichi Suzumura and Yui Horie) | Special Talk in Rokkenjima II Part 1 (Kenichi Suzumura and Yuu Kobayashi) | 5, 6 |
| Note 04 | Episode 7 (Kenichi Suzumura and Yui Horie) | Special Talk in Rokkenjima II Part 2 (Kenichi Suzumura and Yuu Kobayashi) | 7, 8 |
| Note 05 | Episode 10 (Ami Koshimizu and Hitoshi Bifu) | Special Talk in Rokkenjima III Part 1 (Ami Koshimizu and Hitoshi Bifu) | 9, 10 |
| Note 06 | Episode 11 (Ami Koshimizu and Hitoshi Bifu) | Special Talk in Rokkenjima III Part 2 (Ami Koshimizu and Hitoshi Bifu) | 11, 12 |
| Note 07 | Episode 14 (Kikuko Inoue and Tomokazu Sugita) | Special Talk in Rokkenjima EX. (Rie Kugimiya and Yuu Kobayashi) | 13, 14 |
| Note 08 | Episode 16 (Kikuko Inoue and Tomokazu Sugita) | Special Talk in Rokkenjima IV Part 1 (Miki Itou and Emi Shinohara) | 15, 16 |
| Note 09 | Episode 18 (Yuka Saitou, Madoka Yonezawa, Seiko Yoshida, Yuri Yamaoka) | Special Talk in Rokkenjima IV Part 2 (Miki Itou and Emi Shinohara) | 17, 18 |
| Note 10 | Episode 19 (Rina Satou and Kouji Yusa) | Special Event "The Banquet of the Golden Witches" in Rokkenjima Part 1 (Sayaka Ohara, Rina Satou, Yuka Saitou, Madoka Yonezawa) | 19, 20 |
| Note 11 | Episode 21 (Rina Satou and Kouji Yusa) | Special Event "The Banquet of the Golden Witches" in Rokkenjima Part 2 (Sayaka Ohara, Rina Satou, Yuka Saitou, Madoka Yonezawa) | 21, 22 |
| Note 12 | Episode 24 (Sayaka Ohara and Rina Satou) | Special Talk in Rokkenjima V Part 1 (Sayaka Ohara and Rina Satou) | 23, 24 |
| Note 13 | Episode 26 (Daisuke Ono and Sayaka Ohara) | Special Talk in Rokkenjima V Part 2 (Sayaka Ohara and Rina Satou) | 25, 26 |
Uraneko[]
Uraneko (Kakkokari) (うらねこ （仮）) lit. Back-cat In-brackets Tentative is a parody series that consists of 26 episodes included only in the exclusive Collector's Edition of the home video releases of the anime. It contains dubbing by the original Japanese cast over the footage of anime episodes. Each episode only lasts a minute or less.
The title means nothing in particular, with the Umi (海) part of the series' name being replaced with Ura (裏) meaning "Behind, Backside". The kanji 仮 in the title means "Tentative, temprorary" and it's pronounced together with the brackets as "Kakkokari".
It is slightly different in comparison with Ura☆Higu, a similar skit series for Higurashi, since the footage in Uraneko is composed almost entirely of raw footage from the anime, with no visual edits or modifications done to the scenes whatsoever, unlike in Ura☆Higu where new characters debuted, heavy scene changes were present, etc. The only visual modifications that were done in Uraneko was changing the contents of the book in #12 and changing the contents of the letter in #24.
As of now, no official English translation or release of this mini bonus series has been made.
| Episode | Japanese Name | Romaji Name | English fan-translated Name |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 乙女とイモときひひひひ（仮） | Otome to Imo to Kihihihi Kakkokari | A maiden, a potato, and Kihihihihi (Tentative) |
| 2 | おっぱいソムリエと少女の約束（仮） | Oppai somurie to Shojou no Yakusoku Kakkokari | The Promise of a Boobs Sommelier and a Girl (Tentative) |
| 3 | 青ダヌキの預言っぽいもの（仮） | Aodanuki no yogen-poi Mono Kakkokari | Something like an Prophecy from a Blue Tanuki (Tentative) |
| 4 | なかよし四兄弟（仮） | Nakayoshi shi Kyoudai Kakkokari | My Four Friendly Siblings (Tentative) |
| 5 | いま流行のゲームです。（仮） | Ima ryuukou no Geemu desu. Kakkokari | A Game that is Trending right now. (Tentative) |
| 6 | 流行りのゲーム・その２（仮） | Hayari no Geemu - Sono Ni Kakkokari | The Trending Game - Part Two (Tentative) |
| 7 | 入ってます♪（仮） | Haittemasu♪ Kakkokari | It's occupied! ♪ (Tentative) |
| 8 | ファンでした！（仮） | Fan deshita! Kakkokari | You're my fan! (Tentative) |
| 9 | 右代宮一族 ～関西風味～（仮） | Ushiromiya ichizoku ~Kansai-fumi~ Kakkokari | The Ushiromiya Family ~In Kansai Style~ (Tentative) |
| 10 | のんびりベアトさん・その１（仮） | Nonbiri Beato-san - Sono Ichi Kakkokari | A relaxed Beato - Part One (Tentative) |
| 11 | 嘉音さーん！（仮） | Kanon-saan! Kakkokari | Kanoon! (Tentative) |
| 12 | 探さないで下さい…（仮） | Sagasanaide kudasai... Kakkokari | Don't search for me, please... (Tentative) |
| 13 | 男は狼なーのよー♪（仮） | Otoko wa Ookami naanoyoo♪ Kakkokari | Men are just wooolves♪ (Tentative) |
| 14 | のんびりベアトさん・その２（仮） | Nonbiri Beato-san - Sono Ni Kakkokari | A relaxed Beato - Part Two (Tentative) |
| 15 | 「東西人妻対決」 その１・おでんちゃん（仮） | "Touzaihito Dzuma Taiketsu" Sono Ichi - Oden-chan Kakkokari | "Battle between the Eastern and Western Wife" Part One - The Oden (Tentative) |
| 16 | 「東西人妻対決」 その２・スピーディー（仮） | "Touzaihito Dzuma Taiketsu" Sono Ni - Supiidii Kakkokari | "Battle between the Eastern and Western Wife" Part Two - Speedy (Tentative) |
| 17 | 「神田の夜の帝王」（仮） | "Kanda no Yoru no Teiou" Kakkokari | "Kanda, The Emperor of the Night" (Tentative) |
| 18 | 「成長期(胸的な意味で)」（仮） | "Seichou Ki (Mune-teki na Imi de)" Kakkokari | "The Growing Phase (as in, the Boobs)" (Tentative) |
| 19 | 「あなたがバナナでわたしがワニで」（仮） | "Anata ga Banana de Watashi ga Wani de" Kakkokari | "You'll be the Banana and I the Alligator" (Tentative) |
| 20 | 「はろ苦デビュー」（仮） | "Haroku Debyuu" Kakkokari | "Bittersweet Debut" (Tentative) |
| 21 | 「ベスト・オブ・かわいこちゃん」（仮） | "Besuto Obu kawai Ko-chan" Kakkokari | "Best of Cuties" (Tentative) |
| 22 | 「バスト・オブ・かわいこちゃん」（仮） | "Basuto Obu kawai Ko-chan" Kakkokari | "Bust of Cuties" (Tentative) |
| 23 | 「どっちがおじいちゃん？」（仮） | "Docchi ga Ojii-chan?" Kakkokari | "Who's the Grandpa?" (Tentative) |
| 24 | 「今日のロノウェさん」（仮） | "Kyou no Ronove-san" Kakkokari | "Today's Ronove" (Tentative) |
| 25 | 「ザ・ラスト・オブ・おっぱいネタ」（仮） | "Za Rasuto Obu Oppai Neta" Kakkokari | "The Last Of Boob Jokes" (Tentative) |
| 26 | 「ばればれベアトさん」（仮） | "Barebare Beato-san" Kakkokari | "Too obvious, Beato" (Tentative) |
See Also[]
- Case File 01 and 02, art and information booklets that released with the English Blu-Ray collections of the series.
- Umineko Anime Second Season Surprise Production Committee!, a short story referencing the anime's rebroadcast marathon on September 4, 2016.[5]
Trivia[]
- All of the episodes are named after moves in chess.
External Links[]
References[]
- ↑ Official page on NIS America
- ↑ https://dengekionline.com/elem/000/000/175/175882/index-2.html
- ↑ https://www.someanithing.com/series-data-quick-view
- ↑ https://www.someanithing.com/139
- ↑ "TV Anime "Umineko: When They Cry" will be broadcasted from 1L00 PM on September 4: https://dengekionline.com/elem/000/001/353/1353284/
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