The Summer Hikaru Died: Season 1 Episode 2 – Recap and Review
As it becomes clear Hikaru isn’t one of a kind, so comes the question of how much of the entire area is in danger?
Spoiler Alert: This summary and review contains spoilers.
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Episode 2 “Suspicion” Details
- Available On: Netflix
- Public Release Date: July 12, 2025
- Director(s): Mitsuhiro Osako
- Writer(s): Oki Maruyama
Episode 2 “Suspicion” Recap (With Spoilers)
Something In The Mountains: Asako, Hikaru, Yuki, Yoshiki, Yuuta
With the death of Matsuura circulating, and rumors that she died by choking on her own fist, it leads to a level of paranoia. For Yuuta, in particular, he worries about walking home alone through a local forest and convinces Asako, Hikaru, Yuki, and Yoshiki to come with him – just to see if he is being ridiculous.
He wasn’t. There are things in the forest, besides whatever Yoshiki is, and that thing even tried to snatch up Yoshiki when he stared at it too long. Thankfully, Hikaru protected him, but the sound from it all freaked out Asako and certainly made the forest seem more dangerous than ever.
Inside Me: Hikaru, Yoshiki
In a weird homoerotic moment, alone in a closet at school, Yoshiki is invited to see inside Hikaru by putting his actual hand inside Yoshiki. It is weird, intimate, and freaky in ways that might have made Yoshiki regret even asking if he could explore Hikaru’s insides.
A Village In Danger: Tanaka, Yoshiki, Hikaru
Tanaka has arrived, and his investigation reveals many local superstitions and customs. One, including the mountain where the forest is located, having some kind of known impurity, and a push that Hikaru’s family is protected from the mountains, but until they marry someone, partners are subject to a free-for-all.
However, while Hikaru is discussed and Tanaka’s hamster is running, much like a canary in a coal mine, to alert to the presence of danger, Yoshiki is told he’s in danger. It is a random woman, a housewife, who gives her number to Yoshiki. Ultimately, presenting the idea that more people might be aware of what Hikaru is than Hikaru has accounted for.
New Cast and Characters
Asako (Hanamori Yumiri)
- Check out other productions we’ve covered starring this actor: [Link to Actor’s Tag]
- Character Summary: Asako, compared to everyone else, seems a bit more aware of the supernatural forces that are going on and the potential danger she is in. But, like the rest, she wants to believe she is safe and doesn’t have a reason to dwell on her suspicions.
Yuki (Wakayama Shion)
- Check out other productions we’ve covered starring this actor: [Link to Actor’s Tag]
- Character Summary: Yuki is Asako’s friend.
Yuuta (Nakajima Yoshiki)
- Check out other productions we’ve covered starring this actor: [Link to Actor’s Tag]
- Character Summary: Yuuta is part of Hikaru’s friend group, who, like Asako, can feel some sense of awareness that something is out there beyond his understanding. It’s just that he doesn’t know what and wants some confirmation to avoid being seen as crazy.
Links
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Review and Commentary
Highlights
Close Male Friendships [83/100]
What we’re appreciating about the relationship between Yoshiki and Hikaru is that, as weird as it is, there is a sweetness to it. There is this sense of vulnerability, with Hikaru having all these firsts with Yoshiki, even if he is a spirit, a demon, a alien entity, there is a genuine love there which, granted, is blurred in such a way it is hard to tell if the love is romantic or not, but think of how often you get to see that between men with neither outright being queer.
It creates a relationship that has some level of dependency to it, which makes it clear that both have the ability to hurt one another deeply. Which, with Hikaru’s powers, could mean life or death for Yoshiki, but with Yoshiki seemingly loving Hikaru, even with the alterations that come from this foreign being, it really pushes you to understand how deep this connection goes.
The Question Of The Dangers This Small Village May Face [84/100]
It’s easy to assume Hikaru killed Matsuura for trying to expose him. However, we don’t know much about Hikaru to say that for sure. For what we know, he has a hive mind and connects with others like him who, to feed off his experiences, are willing to kill. After all, it seems these beings in the mountains, in the forest, are lonely and want a legitimate human experience to the point of wanting to latch.
But, how many of them are evolved enough, like Hikaru, to know how to latch without killing the source of their affection? How many are there, period, is worth asking, and it’ll be interesting to see, as we meet more, how they either assimilate, integrate, or force themselves onto the local human population.
Overall
Our Overall Rating [83/100]
With Yoshiki nearly attacked, the weird relationship he has with Hikaru becoming more notable, and the general sense that something is seriously off in this town, The Summer Hikaru Died is picking up nicely. Perhaps still needs to really present these threats as deadly, and beyond Hikaru to manage, but going in the right direction.
Check Out Our Past Coverage Of This Series
The Summer Hikaru Died: Season 1 Episode 5 – Recap and Review
As Yoshiki and Hikaru continue to experiment, a supernatural being stalks Yoshiki’s family – maybe in hopes of getting to Hikaru.
The Summer Hikaru Died: Season 1 Episode 4 – Recap and Review
The origin of Hikaru’s body snatcher is developed, alongside the day Hikaru died.
The Summer Hikaru Died: Season 1 Episode 3 – Recap and Review
While Yoshiki is given a wake-up call regarding his relationship with Hikaru, whether or not he may hit snooze is a whole other story.
