#seagullposting

so, there is very little going in that i know about! and i am excited to experience it. :) (assuming i can fight my way through the whole thing) apparently they are all on an island. and someone dies. or something like that. if you are around people who love the game, it is inevitable to know some of the main characters, at least on a surface level. there is obviously beatrice, the woman in the painting, who my (similarily clueless friend) once called "the joker for trans women", which accurately describes her vibes. (i mean this in the most positive way. i am on the edge of my seat) otherwise i really only know battler because of his stupid name (its like hes a shonen protagonist - he has to BATTLE. FIGHT MAN) and the two girls who frequently get drawn alongside each other (the blond and the blue one) that aside, i had the vague mind to ask my friend for specific content warnings i usually look out for and they arent actually in there! even though my friend described the game as "well, in theory, umineko needs a bucket full of content warnings but if i were to list them like an encyclopedia, it would spoiler half of the thing" (great sign)

anyway, so i will write whatever thoughts i have about it. this absolutely will involve spoilers. the version i have is english and has newer sprites. (sort of sad, i actually genuinely think the original round boxxing glove artstyle has an incredible amount of personality to it and despite being wonky, the facial expressions are great)

intro + opening

kinzo in his musty dusty study talks to danjo, his doctor. despite them being friends, their relationship as a doctor and resisting patient is likened to a game of chess. and kinzo is obviously losing. i really like the analogy. his struggle with alcohol and health and his inability to improve his habits are direct moves against his friends medical advise. yet he is also framed as a very wealthy character, a king of sorts. so either way, whether he lives (the doctor convinces him) or dies (he succumbs to alcoholism), the king is lost. is this purposeful? who knows. really paints a picture of him though; there is nothing he wishes to write in his will, he needs no advise, he is actively destroying himself, and he wont leave any inheritance. so adding to his physical health, he really isnt doing well mentally, huh... makes me wonder How Much Of his sickness is related to drinking. it seems like something else is going on, too. him dying to alcoholism would paint a different picture than him being terminally ill and choosing to end his life this way (while still suffering from alcoholism but! you know). maybe then the lost king makes sense - he is lost either way, but he could still choose to make a few last good moves. also he made some sort of contract with beatrice and she has him wrapped around her pinky. well, we shall see.

this line specifically does not seem to bode well. beatrice what are you going to do to those people.

also i didnt watch the opening. my friend told me to watch this one instead :) good music

episode 1, part 1

battler has less dignity to him than i thought. idk what i expected. his name really is that stupid. he is a bit cringe but adorable nonetheless.

Both groups are at the top of my must-kill list. george is voiced by suzumura...

.

free space for those who know about my affliction of being a lavi d.gray-man fan. sometimes i can still hear his voice. his glasses do the scary anime villain thing. for now he is very nice, though i am fully expecting some bait and switch for his personality.

anyhow. some more notes:

does battlers upside down cross zipper mean anything??????? i like to imagine hes just a bit chuuni.

everyone in the family has that silly little emblem on their clothing

jessica is an instant fave for me personally bc of how she speaks

eva and natsuhi have some incredible beef going on in the back. love the toxicity going on here. both of them already seem like there is a lot to them, just from the first expressions

there is also some obvious conflict between the servants and the ushiromiya family and also... just between the servants, which is most visible in kanon

apropos. kanon transgender? eyebrow lift

so grandpa beat his kids and grandkids with his own fists and wooden sword. AND his hobby is dark magic. damn

the family is unwell, it seems

i have to strangle battler with my own two hands

the family introduction is very cute and they seem very lively and real, like an endearing bunch. battlers internal monologue is very on point for an 18yo. so sorry about whatever is going to happen. also are their weird western sounding names and the architectures of the guesthouse related to their patriachs obsession with beatrice? (points at her.... white woman.... i think) i wonder how the flight attendants knew how to pronounce all that. its funny to imagine the staff took little notes on it when they checked in.

knowing battler is a mamas boy is a very interesting little bit of info. "father issues damage you but mother issues rewrite your dna" or however that post goes. i absolutely believe in this. its horrifying. knowing battlers mother died and then he lived with his grandparents AND THEN THOSE DIED TOO. GIVE HIM A BREAK!!!! ..... wait this game is about mysterious murders isnt it. oh god.

we are informed there used to be a torii on the coastline of the island but it got destroyed by a lightning. ominous. maria also reacts to this. kumasawa wants to elaborate further on local myths but jessica stops her. there are also no seagulls (ah.... namedrop) to be seen anywhere. lets put a pin in all that for now. children with promonitions are a common trope after all.

now this is a bit of a personal thing but the fact they have a rose garden in full bloom on october is ridiculous. and youre trying to tell me they smell too, despite obviously being modern crossbreeds? get real.

welp. glass shatters. the clock strikes 12 o'clock. thats where im pausing the notes for now.