The Sorrow of Haruhi Suzumiya

The third installment of the Haruhi Suzumiya series is here, gathering four stories. In “The Sorrow of Haruhi Suzumiya,” the SOS Brigade enters a baseball competition. As Haruhi faces defeat, her temper flares. To preserve the proper order of the world, Nagato activates her ability to control information at a critical moment, allowing the brigade to score eleven points in a single inning. Haruhi is overjoyed, but Kyon would rather lose the game than win it. Yet who would dare defy Haruhi’s wishes? How does the match ultimately end? In “Rhapsody on Bamboo Leaves,” Haruhi calls on every brigade member to make a wish to the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl for the Tanabata festival. Her wish forces Kyon and Asahina to travel back three years with Nagato’s help. Under the pseudonym “John Smith,” Kyon assists a young girl in drawing the alien message “I am here” on the school playground. Then, with Asahina, he asks Nagato to send them back to the present day. In “Mysterious Signal,” the brigade, which has spent the year on lunch breaks, finds a new objective: locating the suddenly missing president of the Computer Research Club. But when they find the president’s room empty, Nagato frowns deeply. Koizumi grows curious, and soon a giant cricket from another space startles everyone. In “Island Syndrome,” a bizarre murder occurs in a villa on an isolated island during a stormy, thunder-filled night. Who is the killer? Why does a relaxing island trip turn so suddenly grim? What is really happening?