Violet Evergarden

Waking up one day and discovering Violet Evergarden getting an anime adaptation by Kyoto Animation should be a blessing. At least that’s what it looked like on the surface. The light novel series earned the grand prize from the Fifth Kyoto Animation in the novel category. Even with two volumes, my expectations going into this anime was high. In particular, the sheer visual quality is a sight to feast on. However, Violet Evergarden isn’t exactly just known for that but does that mean it’s something to be praised?

Written by Kana Akatsuki, the light novel series is a story about Auto Memory Dolls. They are dolls ... are made by Dr. Orland, a scientist who used them to assist his wife in writing novels. However, these dolls were also rented out to others for service. The main plot revolves around an Auto Memory Doll named Violet Evergarden as she tries to discover her purpose in life.

As someone who came into this series half prepared (I have read parts of the light novel), I felt I was ready enough. The first few episodes came in as anime originals and that left me with some mixed reception. However, I will say that the pilot episode was a terrific picture. Beyond the lush quality and the visual magnificence, Violet Evergarden presented a story with heavy emotions. It synchronizes with the drama and melancholy of what I had anticipated. However, the main selling point of the show is titular character Violet Evergarden herself. The story feels like a character study that puts over her above the rest of the cast. Every episode focuses on Violet in some way through her role in the story, her interactions with others, and how she develops as a character. The conflicts she experiences tests her feelings and how she responds to them by trying to understand others. It draws viewers into asking questions about how she can develop as a character and in a lot of ways, I think the show did do that quite well. For instance, Violet displays a lot of human characteristics and tries to understand others. The most prominent scenes features her desperately trying to learn what “love” is and to me, this series chronicles her experience like a life journey of discovery. Unfortunately, I can’t really say that the first few episodes were well thought out in characterizing Violet as a memorable character. Beyond her expressions and role, it seems the show repeats a lot of the same things over and over. The example includes Violet expressing why she is an Auto Memory Doll and it gets tedious fast. It also doesn’t help much that the other side characters seemingly react in similar ways to Violet. My main concern for the first few episodes were mainly how this can keep viewers interested with such a way of storytelling.

Fortunately, the series does get better and puts emphasis in some of the side characters. While the plot feels non-linear at times, some of the other characters do get spotlight through effective background storytelling. For instance, one of the episodes featured a 14 year old princess who gets engaged to a prince and while this seemed like a cheesy love tale at first, it resolved in a very emotional way. It gave me the impression that certain side characters are worth investing time into. In the meantime, the series does eventually step into the light novel adaptation territory as we learn more about Violet’s past and connection with someone very important to her. That person would be Gilbert Bougainvillea, a major in the Leidenschaftlich Army and someone that influenced Violet a lot since she met him. As we look at Violet’s past, we learn how they met and how much he treasure her like a person rather than a doll. It’s also important to note that Violet feels comfort whenever she is around him and not lonely. The anime in the present timeline portrays Violet as a very lonely character and doesn’t have someone to depend on. In doing so, it establishes Violet as a character that has a hard time understanding others. This is especially true for her after she heard Gilbert’s final words. The show dedicates time to explore Violet’s change since the past and how she reflects her experiences in the present. As I mentioned before, the series takes a lot of time into examining Violet as a character and getting viewers to understand her. The side characters play important roles in later episodes to make Violet reflect on her past deeds. To me, it’s effective storytelling as it really made me understand her behavior. The more I understood her, the more compelling her character became. I don’t know if this was the creator’s intention from the start but honestly, it does come together as a well delivered plan.

Now you’re probably thinking of the story contains too much drama for its own good. In some ways, it does but in other ways, it’s also important for the main story. You have to remember that the timeline takes place after a war that Violet was previously involved in. Stories about war often involves pain, tragic memories, and even death. For Violet, she experienced the realities of war. Obviously, there’s going to be a lot of drama and its effect on the storytelling can be received with mixed receptions. I had some mixed feelings in general about Violet’s past as while it can definitely evoke emotions, it doesn’t feel unique enough to be memorable. In other words, I’m more interested in how she develops as a character in the present rather than focusing on her past. Even if it’s significant for her characterization, the drama presented in the background stories doesn’t always feel too impactful. I get it though. Some people will probably point fingers and say that it’s necessary. Others may agree with what I mentioned here. To me, I’m still more interested in Violet’s development in the present than who she is in the past. Otherwise, Violet’s role in the show feels more than just a protagonist. She is the character.

Anyone watching this series will easily recognize the powerful production of the show. This is perhaps one of Kyoto Animation’s best work yet in terms of technical quality. The world setting has natural and lush landscapes with European style architecture detailed with vivid colors. Every camera shot feels impactful and there’s no drop in quality in any episode. Body movements are also timed precisely well to highlight every fine detail such as Violet’s character expressions and role as a doll. Speaking of which, Violet’s character design makes her look very elegant. If you haven’t known about her background story, it’s hard to recognize her as a former soldier. Her signature hand is also a trademark animated with impressive features. It communicates the message to viewers as what she is. Other characters in the show also stand out with their human characteristics. While there’s no fan service in the show, there are characters such as Cattelya that can be very pleasing to the naked eyes. It’s clear to me that Kyoto Animation and the creative team poured a sheer amount of effort into making this series as a whole. The theme songs also highlights a sensitive feeling of melancholy to match the series’ tone while character voice mannerism for the majority of the cast are able to keep up with their momentum. The music and OST also hits the mark to deliver what's intended especially for the emotional drama.

It’s definitely a series that felt different to me compared to some of other Kyoto Animation’s recent works. This one was an emotional storyteller that gave us a reason why we should care about Violet Evergarden; not just the story but Violet’s own journey of discovery. While I can’t say it’s always an effective tearjerker, it’s still a show that’s worth investing time into. Well done, Kyoto Animation. You gave me a better hope for your future.

*I wrote this review a while ago and decided to finally update it to MAL*

Violet Evergarden is a story of love and of lost, how do you cope with losing the person whose life filled your own? The playwright who mourns his daughter, the soldier who never came home, the little girl who lost her beloved mother but at the heart of it all though is the girl who wants to know the meaning of the words the major said to her "I Love You" the girl named Violet Evergarden.

She can be described as someone with a slightly different sensibility to that of the ... normal person. It’s not that she doesn’t have these feelings it’s because she was in a environment where she didn’t learn these lessons in humanity. She possesses these emotions she just doesn’t know how to express them or understand the feelings of others yet but through the people she meets she finds how to improve herself and begins to go through these complex, heavy emotions but the pain she experiences throughout the anime results in her growing as a person and it’s truly beautiful to watch.

"I know we said goodbye, but I didn't know. It was forever." - Violet Evergarden

Violet Evergarden will always hold a very special place in my heart. No anime has truly touched me so deeply and made me cry so many tears but tears of joy, despair, empathy and so much more that this anime expresses. I got so emotionally attached to Violet and her pain in the search of understanding and accepting her feelings and things that can’t be undone/forgotten. Violet Evergarden in my opinion is a truly emotional masterpiece and I am eternally grateful to experience it.

She brings hope and love to people.
She brings hope and love to herself.
How her letters can bring you so much
~love
~hope
~happiness
~sadness
~bad news
Thank you KyoAni for this masterpiece.

Hope you enjoyed this review :)

"As human beings, we all mature physically from childhood to adolescence and then into adulthood, but our emotions lag behind." - Bernard Sumner

This is the most memorable quote that had gone through my mind whenever I watched Violet Evergarden, and led me to ask myself this question: how do you learn an emotion?

Experience? Knowing its definition? Or perhaps... By writing letters for others? Thus is VE's answer.

Story: 7
I liked the novel, so obviously I liked the story. They did make me get worried with those original episodes at the start but later on they managed to adapt most of the best chapters. There are ... quite a few which are standalone: 5,6,7,10,11. The rest involved Violet and her co-workers.

The first half didn't look that promising, but the second half improved a lot. I think it's because they put in a lot of her adventures in the second half, only involving Violet and the customer, which gave a lot more room for growth instead of being surrounded by the other workers. She's the type who learns fast when she's alone, you could say. Watching her change bit by bit a girl from emotionless and to some extent irritating to one who is able to experience emotions was very enjoyable.

The story is not unique in the sense that she's trying to find the meaning of "love", but as it unfolds she learns other feelings as well, and soon enough we don't get the "I want to know the meaning of "I love you"" line.

Pacing has sometimes been a problem, for example episode 6, where I barely got to know about Leon. They could've done more but I guess you have to expect that when you've got less than 20 minutes to cover an adventures. But in most cases they provided us with the right flashbacks and details to get to know the customers well.

The anime did remove parts of the novel which were pretty bad: I'll start with witchcraft, a giant battle axe almost twice the size of Violet. I just couldn't believe that she could maneuver the axe so well, before she even got those robotic arms. Glad they got rid of that. They also made Violet very pacifistic compared to the novel, which helped to emphasize her growth even more, but this was at the cost of making her fighting scenes towards the end of the series ridiculous, since she chose to go head on without weapons at all, but still managed to take them down.

Other reviews have pointed out the technological and cultural inaccuracies in VE, but personally it didn't affect me that much except maybe for those robotic arms which seem to be more advanced than one we have today... Rather, I was more annoyed by the battle scenes: a 14/15 year old girl fighting against trained soldiers, sometimes without weapons... I get that she is OP, but... the way her adventures unfold so conveniently at times was one of the main weaknesses of this show.

There were some parts of the novel I would've liked them to include, for example Hodgins was supposed to visit Violet quite a few times when she was in the hospital and that helped to develop a parent-child relationship. They kind of tried to fit it in in between the adventures, but I don't think it was sufficient. The other thing is Violet's origins. They didn't go deep enough on that, and made people think that she became emotionless because of her time in the army.

Art: 10
This is probably the best part and what made VE get such high expectations. The face expressions were great, the landscapes were great... If I was to point out the best ones, I'd say the scenes of the starry night (Ep 6), street lamps and the city of Leiden as a whole. I also liked the way they included flowers a lot throughout the series (especially Ep 5, you could see one almost very 5 seconds). The reason I'm mentioning this is because flowers are an important theme here: if you look at the names of most of the characters, they're all related to flowers.

"People’s names always have some sort of meaning." —Akatsuki Kana (author of VE)

If I was to point out a negative... Sometimes, maybe this was just once, they put too much emphasis on scenes which didn't really deserve it. In Episode 4, when Violet was first introduced to the villagers, they suddenly went all out with the animation, including sudden gusts of wind and leaves dancing everywhere. It was amazing, but not really worth it.

Sound: 7
I liked the OP and ED, but that was about it. It didn't make me listen to it over and over again like Aimer's Ref:rain (best ED for me this season). The background music was alright, but they were often hit or miss: they would sometimes repeat it for too long and in other cases the music just didn't match the mood at all. But still enjoyable overall.

Character: 8
From the blind obedience to kill to the development of a conscience which can heal, Violet's growth was truly remarkable, with the difference between her past and present crystal clear. Her blunt and fearless character had often been an obstacle against her success as a doll, but as the series progressed she managed to use them in the right circumstances. Her military salutes, her formal language, her expressionless face... They all changed. This is what the novel couldn't provide, those subtle details that show signs of growth.

Only disappointment is the development of the other characters, especially Hodgins, Cattleya and Benedict. The novel lacked this as well, but I guess it was expected since so much was invested into Violet and her customers.

Enjoyment: 8

Overall: 8
Good, but not a masterpiece.

Would I recommend you to read the novel? Give it a try unless you hated this. But there are going to be differences, both good and bad.

If you can't be bothered reading the novel but still want to know what happens, you can PM me.

Violet Evergarden, the anime that has been hyped for a year, has finally arrived with controversy and concern. Is it the masterpiece that’s deemed from most? Certainly not. That does not mean VE could not deliver. I’m not gonna try to defend the anime just cuz it’s KyoAni and it’s highly placed by many, but I will give credit where credit is due. So let’s get started.

There’s no doubt in my mind that VE is visually appealing and accompanied by a great OST. However, do the characters and plot live up to it? So far, it’s too early to say despite 4 episodes still out. ... But we can kinda take a guess at this point. However, I do find the setting to be quite interesting and how the characters act seem to be somewhat realistic.

There’s many reasons why people can rant on about this series, and no, “It’s KyoAni” and “It’s Overhyped” aren’t some of them despite people using these as reasons regardless. Violet’s introduction left many questioned, many thinking “She’s not interesting.” “She’s Bland” or “She’s 1-Dimensional.” But to be quite honest, the fact that she’s uninteresting and bland means there’s room for growth, and anyone can figure that out considering this has been done quite a lot. The start of the anime really showcases violet and her imperfection. Monotone, Boring, Lacking. Which is all the more reason for me to look forward to the end result of her character after upcoming development. Sure, maybe the way it was executed or presented seems questionable, but what the hell do you expect from a child that's been practically raised in war, got constant blood on her hands, and kills people without batting an eye? Anyways, I believe there’s a bigger picture to this and that this sort of direction has a purpose. Or it could be just bad directing, but I’ll give them the benefit of the doubt.

I see no reason to give lack of growth or undeveloped as reasons to criticize characters so early on. It’s like people expect 14 episodes worth of developed from Violet in the first couple episodes. There’s reasons why developments exist, and it’s to further a character and make them more interesting as people would expect to see. However, it’s how they go about this development that makes me question the series a bit. The direction it’s taking can go either way, so we’ll have to see.

Like I’ve said, there’s so much room to give more proper development on violet’s character and the rest, but if it’s accompanied by mediocre writing, then this development would be half assed. Now the writing isn’t horrible for what it’s worth, but sometimes it’s hard to care about what dialogues these characters decide to use. There’s only a lack of substance since it’s still too early for its full potential to be known. So there’s really no “substance” to rate upon anyway. But that’s why although I’m not fond of the writing so far, I look forward to the conclusion and hopefully they successfully develop the characters enough for us to sympathize or to understand them much better. I think people expected this to be somewhat deep and thought-provoking. But this is somewhat a simple story about a girl trying to find herself. Just that it takes on a more dramatic approach.

Despite the inner contents of the series itself, it definitely does the outer contents right. To the art style, the character design, the colours and background, as well as character movement, which makes them feel more realistic and humane. Sometimes the interactions between characters are fun to watch as well.

I think that VE is one of those shows that needs time and a slower process to really form the bigger picture and its true purpose. Although the pacing seems...awfully slow, I wouldn’t go as for to deem it “boring.” For me, I don’t think that at all. It makes me curious for more and how they decide to execute the given scenarios and how each character grows from it. Sure some of the drama hasn’t been so impactful or meaningful thus far, but it’s been mentioned many times here that with enough time, I believe the drama then will carry more impact and weight than before.

I don’t think people should try place this anime on some sort of pedestal because it’s simply KyoAni or it looks amazing. Violet Evergarden is FAR from perfect, but it’s also not horrible at the same time. It’s been mentioned before, I believe it’s one of those anime that requires time to be able to fully understand VE’s potential. So I recommend lowering your hype level of this series and treat it like any other show this winter, because you'll probably ruin the show for yourself if you don’t. Violet Evergarden doesn’t offer much but great visuals and soundtracks along with it. Look at what type of series it is and see if it interests you. I understand many people feel obligated to watch it because it’s solely KyoAni (Me Included tbh). But see if it truly catches your interest. If it doesn’t, then don’t bother.

I think VE may carry a simpler story than one might think. Not insanely thought-provoking or riveting, but I believe that since this show focuses on Violet’s Character, we’d be able to go more in depth on her past life and her adventures later on. We will see Violet grow as a character as she learns from others’ experiences. That’s her job after all, to deliver letters to people and to fully express their emotions onto a piece of paper.

Overall Violet Evergarden has caught my interest personally and although it’s hanging on the edge, I do hope that the staff finds a way to really bring out the full glory of the series into its full light and shows us a great series with fine narratives and well-developed characters (although sometimes the development is being dragged out a bit too much). Not sure why some of the side characters are original, but I suppose they add a bit to Violet's character.

Thankfully, I’ve learned not to give a damn about MAL scores a long time ago, because those “scores” used to influence me whether to watch something or not. I don’t give a fuck if VE ends up in the 6’s or low 7’s once this is over. If I enjoyed it personally and loved it, then that’s that. But again, my opinion on this can change easily. I’ve only read a couple chapters of the source material so I can’t really determine how well the adapatation is so far. But VE shows promise, it’s up to the staff to live up to the promises and opportunities they’re given. Both the OP and ED were beautiful and the OST's are just great, really not much to talk about there.

Overall (as of Episode 12):

Story - 7
Art - 10
Sound - 9
Character - 8
Enjoyment - 8

Anyways, I truly believe Violet Evergarden can come out as one of the best from Winter, dare I say year, if it’s done right…


If.

I'll start by saying that after watching 9 episodes I was compelled to write my first review for an anime on this site.

It's true certain aspects of a show can appeal more favourably to people depending on what they value. In saying that, I will focus on what this show does so well for me and why I consider it one of the best I've seen.

Story:
The introduction of Violet can understandably come across as odd due to the monotone way in which she addresses other characters. This may be off putting to viewers as I've noticed in some other reviews, but this set ... up is to a soon to be deeper story is just that: a set up. From what seems to be an ordinary show with a simple premise, rises one with humanity and heartfelt emotion. The character Violet is the canvas and each one of her encounters adds another layer of life to her story. I respect the writers for having the capacity to create these memorable moments through subtle recalling of other plot points that makes the show feel tied together. On top of that the dialogue has this poetic nature to it, whereby it doesn't attempt to add unnecessary complexity but simply lays bare the message it wishes to communicate.

Sound:
There is so much I would like to say about the music of this show but I will keep it to a minimum. What music should do well in any show is add to the emotion the story is trying to communicate. VE does this exceedingly well, providing a different variety of sounds depending on the situation. There are those intimate moments where it's often accompanied by one or two instruments, and there are more intense moments accompanied by orchestra. Overall there's a large variety of well written melodious music, and it has to go down as one of the best anime soundtracks I have heard to date.

Art:
You only have to watch the first episode to understand the quality of the visuals, and I would have to put this anime in my number one spot for that department because it is truly beautiful. It's only after watching VE have I realised the full extent in which visuals and sound can make the watching experience better. The colours are vibrant and there is a consistency of detail in every scene which keeps your eyes fixated on the screen in awe. Detailed facial expressions make the heartfelt moments of the show much more impactful. There is also this tendency to cut to exquisite detailed sceneries whether it be the backdrop of a starry sky or a field of flowers. But it doesn't stop there because these moments are scattered across every scene, with the environment, objects and camera perspectives adding unbridled levels of detail. If I didn't like the story, I would still be looking forward to seeing VE because of how aesthetically pleasing it is for the viewer. I applaud the artists of this show for the work they have done, as you can see the amount of love and effort they have put into it. This show is an artistic masterpiece in it's own right and I have no problem making that claim to anyone.

Character:
I can't say too much without giving away plot points but the focus of the show is almost entirely on Violet, with additional characterisation given to those that appear from episode to episode. I have invested in this journey Violet is on, as I can see how her character grows each week as she experiences more of a beautiful world she has never seen. I believe that everyone who watches the show will relate to Violet in some way as we have all seen the world through the lens of beauty or wonder at some point, and we are all on a similar path of discovery. Episode 7 is a particularly memorable episode and is a contained story featuring just Violet and two other characters. Minimal characters and concise well-written stories allow this show to shine and provide something that many anime's take several episodes to build up towards. It is a bold attempt at providing viewers a sense of fulfilment in just over 20 minutes, and I can say that it has given me that almost every week. When I began VE I thought of it as something that was 'pretty' and had potential, but now I look forward every week to see where it will go next.

Overall:
The scores I am giving are based on what I have seen to date. If I was to review the first 3 or 4 episodes, certain scores would have been lower. Story for example, picks up significantly from about episode 6 and is now consistently outstanding in my opinion.

Overall Scores:
Story: 10/10
Art: 10/10
Sound: 10/10
Character: 10/10
Enjoyment: 10/10
Overall: 10/10

“I want to know what love is” with this line Violet’s journey has started.

It’s a journey of words, words that hold the power to influence the future of a person and change their perspective about the world. Finding the right words for the dear ones isn’t easy and Violet learns that through her encounters with different people who have a story to tell.

The story is made with words, words on a piece of paper that can save a dear brother from despair, can show the love and carrying of a mother for her child even after she is gone, can make the parents understand ... what their child wants to do with his future, can connect two distant hearts that yearn for each other, can bring news of happiness or sadness to someone dear and finally can make people come to a mutual understanding.

The letters that contain those words are the key to unlock the locket on people’s heart and break the iron shackles that put a restrain on their emotions. Each letter needs to be delivered to its destination because each written word represent the genuine feelings of its senders for the dear ones.Violet having a past filled only with cold words slowly starts to experience new words during her journey as a Auto Memory Doll, warmth words filled with compassion, affection, and love. Those words melt the ice around Violet’s heart and contribute to her growth as a human being.

During her journey the world is filled with bitter words too not only happy ones but that doesn’t discourage her despite bringing back sorrow memories, in fact she comes to accept those words as part of her and grows stronger. She does her best every time to understand the meaning behind those words and give the right words to the persons in need of them. A sweet girl that lost the dear person to her on the battlefield, she stands up, raises her head from the ground, takes the first step and moves on in life despite the pain that weights a lot on her shoulders. I love you Violet!

The pace is slow fitting for our characters and Violet’s growth, because life isn’t meant to be hurried, each happy moment needs to be savored and each hardship needs to be overcome, life is a battlefield were each of us has its own fight, it’s all part of being alive. The emotional atmosphere combined with the subtle visuals and gorgeous ost created around the character’s stories draw forth the raw emotions of its viewers and tears will be spend as an exchange.

Violet Evergarden is a letter of love addressed to life, a lesson about the hardships and happy moments in life, it’s about getting up and moving on despite the obstacles that await for you and it gets better after each episode like the taste of a wine as it gets better with age. Thematically rich, visually breathtaking with alluring ost Violet Evergarden is a gem that may be hated by many viewers or hold a special place in the hearts of its audience, can bring peace of mind and sooth your hearth, it’s a show that needs to be savored for its special flavor called LIFE.

As any journey that comes to an end it’s time to say farewell to our main heroine Violet who has reached her final destination but her fight with life will continue as long as she doesn’t give up, so my review of this enchanting show has come to an end. I wanna thank all of those who allocated a little of their time to read the words that I put on paper to create something that I hope will make a little change and give this show a try.

I was surprised when I saw the top 3 reviews for this anime were all negative because quite frankly I have nothing negative to say about VE and I'm on episode 10. If I'm being honest I think most of the people trashing VE are doing so because they want to be contrary and "cool" for not liking a popular anime. You know, the same old pretentious anime fans we all love (if you can't sense the sarcasm, you've misunderstood).

Story - 9/10

Violet is about a young woman who was used as a war machine having to learn how to live a "normal" life after the ... war ends. The series is episodic with the main overarching focus being on how Violet grows as a person. Maybe the only negative I can say about VE is that, yes, some episodes are predictable but I don't necessarily see that as a bad thing.

Each episode introduces a new character and their struggles, and ends with how those struggles get fixed or dealt with, typically with Violet helping to the best of her abilities despite struggling herself.

I'm not a big crier but I'll admit episode 10 made me tear up. VE has a wonderful way of making you care about characters and a story in just one episode. Kyoani always has pretty decent anime, but they really show their talent in VE.

Art - 9/10

As per usual Kyoani delivers amazing visuals. Absolutely nothing worth complaining about here.

Sound - 8/10

Usually I don't pay much attention to music in anime honestly, but I will admit VE has a way of putting the perfect music to make sad scenes even sadder.

Character - 8/10

For one, I love Violet. The more the series go on and the more she grows, the more I want to protect her like she's my own child. The other characters could do with more development, but on the other hand since the series is episodic and has to spend time making you care each episode for a new story it's understandable our mains don't get much time themselves, but they all have wondrous potential.

Enjoyment - 10/10

This is easily becoming one of my favorite anime of all time. That's all I have to say. Please don't listen to the negative reviews and watch VE for yourself. You will understand why I feel so passionately about this series.

Overall - 10/10

Again the only anime to ever get a 10 out of 10 from me and it's not even finished yet.

"Violet Evergarden doesn't talk much, but she has the power to restore people."

This quote perfectly sums up Violet Evergarden and what the show is trying to get across. After reading the synopsis of the show I was intrigued to see just how they are going to portray this type of character. In my opinion, they've done it almost perfectly. Knowing nothing but war, pain and suffering. Showing us how she finds meaning in these new emotions and how she experiences them for the first time.

Story:
Starting off with the story. We follow the journey of a girl named Violet Evergarden. Who has been in the army ... as "the weapon" from a very young age. Knowing nothing apart from how to follow orders. The story starts in a hospital where we discover she was greatly injured in the war costing her both arms. When she wakes up we find out the 4-year war has ended and this girl who missed pretty much all her childhood now needs to discover emotions for the first time and so her journey begins to discover the meaning of these emotions. Although you might think the story seems pretty simple it's actually the exact opposite. With flashbacks to show what happened to her in the war as well as meeting new characters and dealing with new emotions with every person. This actually turns into a pretty complex storyline.

Although the first few episodes may suggest this is a generic anime with stunning visuals I can pretty much guarantee that it's not. The story might also seem very basic to people but the way its executed is honestly astounding. You can really sense what the author is trying to get across in every scene. The studio really outdid themselves when trying to make every scene perfect. Each scene has something to be learned from... not just Violet but even the viewers can take away these emotions. You can find yourself emotionally sucked into the story within the first few episodes. Even if you don't like how the story develops you still want to know how she turns out in the end. Which just proves how excellent the story writing is for the show.

Art:
I don't believe there is a word to describe the visuals in this show apart from mind-blowing. It's stuff you would expect from a movie budget. I'm definitely glad they focused on the art in the show. It's needed to flush out some of the emotions the character is trying to develop. One example is in one scene she looks out on the city during a sunset. Now that scene wouldn't have worked at all without amazing art. It just wouldn't show why the character appreciates it. Now it's not just the environment that has amazing art the characters also have amazing detail even just people in the background. The show does an excellent job of capturing facial expressions since is especially needed when trying to convey new emotions across. The fact this show has 14 episodes and keeps this type of art up is honestly astonishing to me. I would honestly recommend the show just for the art. Best I've seen for the budget of a show.

Sound:
This part is definitely the weakest of the show. Don't get me wrong it's still good but compared with the writing and art it just doesn't compare. The show does still deliver excellent soundtracks and the voice actors fit perfectly for the roles for both dub and sub versions of the show. They perfectly express the emotions the characters are feeling. However, I feel like the soundtracks are more just background music rather than dramatic music helping to convey emotions. Although it's still better than must it just isn't as good compared to other shows.

Character:
The story is focused solely on the development of one character and that being Violet Evergarden. At least that's what you would expect. However, that's not the case. Violet has this tendency to change the way characters think and feel showing us great character development throughout every episode. With new characters being introduced for a short time and some long-term character which we can see progressively change throughout the entire show. One of my favourite things about Violet Evergarden. Now I don't know if it was done on purpose or just how I perceived it but she was given the personality of a machine. Knowing nothing but how to follow instruction and orders similar to computers. Then we find out both her arms are mechanical which for me was a massive nod towards her being a machine emotionally. This was amazing character design if it was intended. Her full character is based on being this good soldier knowing only how to follow orders and getting things done according to what was specified. Which is shown a lot in the show like typing at a certain speed when doing a letter. Then we begin to see her develop new emotions and rekindle ones she didn't know she had like love which is a major development in 14 episodes especially when she started with pretty much nothing just a blank canvas if you will.

Enjoyment:
This show definitely gives me amazing enjoyment looking forward to every episode each week knowing its going to be better than what I expected. Each episode brings old and new characters into the mix allowing for new storytelling and new emotions to be developed and sitting watching her develop these emotions is honestly so entertaining. I couldn't praise it more it keeps me coming back every week wanting to know what will she discover this week.

Negatives:
Now there are a few things people may dislike about the show which will ruin there experience so here are the main problems people are having with it. The first major problem is the story feels dull and slow which can ruin some peoples experience so try to keep in mind this isn't a fast show. It likes to go slow and let the characters built up progressively rather than being rushed.

Another major point would be the character development which goes hand in hand with the story. It feels slow and underwhelming. Making people dislike the show straight from the first few episodes. So if you aren't a fan of slow shows I would suggest staying clear of this show or a least give the first 3 episodes a try.

Now my last negative point isn't too much about the show itself it's more for other people's comments on it. A lot of people were really hyped about this show and feel let down by its performance so far. I would suggest just giving the show a try regardless of what they say. Usually, if something is hyped up too much it just can't reach what people are expecting. So try to go into the show with an open mind and if you don't like it by the end of episodes 3 then its probably not for you.

Overall:
This show is a much watch for any person looking to get emotionally invested in a show for a complex storyline. With amazing visuals and stunning character development. There are few negatives I can give this show apart from the pacing feeling off in some early episodes. However, this is soon fixed after a couple of episodes and we are left to completely get sucked into her world and what she will discover. If anybody is thinking about watching the show but not sure. Highly recommend watching until the end of episode 3. I think by that point you should have a clear direction for what type of story the show is trying to get across. This definitely has the potential to be the best anime this winter. That now concludes my review of the show. Feel free to add me if you want to comment on my review or discuss anything.Thanks for reading.

Overall Scores:
Story: 8/10 (Very Good)
Art: 10/10 (Outstanding)
Sound: 7/10 (Good)
Character: 8/10 (Very Good)
Enjoyment: 9/10 (Great)
Overall: 8.4/10 (Very Good)

No Spoilers

Although I understand the sentiment of this anime being quite boring for the first 4 episodes (as all the top reviews have listed), this anime is a masterpiece by KyoAni, and although it doesn't necessarily live up to all the hype it received, does that really matter when enjoying a delightful anime?

Story: 10

Although the first few episodes are seemingly pointless, they do a great job at developing the idea that Violet really struggles to understand emotions. Although many side characters seem quite flat, they really help boost the story in one of the best climaxes of a coming-of-age emotional anime I have ever seen ... (if you are wondering, it's episode 9). Major Gilbert and Claudia really develop as characters, gaining dimension in episodes 6-9, and it is just a joy to see Violet grow and learn how to express emotions.

Art: 10

KyoAni. Do I have to say anymore?
But in all seriousness, have you seen the graphics? They are STUNNING, and boost the show in so many ways.

Sound: 9

The soundtrack is very wonderful, and the orchestral music is very moving. I just think that some of the music is lackluster compared to others. AMAZING ending song, though. Michishirube is so beautiful and emotional, and fits the show so well.

Character: 8

I can see where some may be turned off. Violet is flat and uninteresting in the first few episodes, but if you can take this as Violet just being inexperienced with emotions, all the flat main and side characters really develop. But I can understand why some may give bad ratings for this show having only watched 3-4 episodes.

Enjoyment: 10

This show is just such a joy, and I look forward to each Thursday when I can watch the next episode. Violet's maturing is so heartwarming, and the side characters slowly becoming accustomed to Violet gives this show so much charm. I really recommend this anime for its enjoyable nature, if not for anything else.

Overall: 10

If you can accept that Violet is just mot emotionally mature at first, this show becomes a feels trip and a beautiful, heart-melting anime that is worth every episode. Looking back on the first episodes, having watched later ones (especially episode 9), there is a feeling of satisfaction and happiness just seeing how cold and unemotional she was before, and seeing how well she grew. I absolutely recommend this anime to anyone looking for great music, visuals, and a charming story that will surely make you cry.

RANT WARNING: Too many anime fans, apparently, have become accustomed to having things spelled out for them via some combination of long narration and excessively expository dialogue between characters.

Along comes Violet Evergarden, a show that dares not to hold its viewers' hands, and suddenly there's a backlash mob complaining about how the "dialogue doesn't tell us enough" and how supposedly that's an indicator of weak story.

It's laughably stupid, because the opposite is true. A great film/show is one that you can mute and still understand. A trash show is one where you could drape a blanket over the screen and still understand it.

Violet ... Evergarden, even the haters will admit, is beautifully animated. Thank Kyoto for that. But what the haters seem to miss is that the animation itself is telling the story, which is HOW IT SHOULD BE. And it would be the norm if so many studios weren't sadly forced to operate on a tight budget that incentivizes them to give us boring stills while characters explain things for us.

All I can say is WATCH WHAT'S HAPPENING. Watch the subtle facial expressions, the changing scenery, the moods that the different color schemes convey. Stop expecting walls of text to spell everything out for you, and you'll find there's a beautiful, tear-jerking story here.

Violet Evergarden tells the story of a broken, scarred soldier who needs to find her place in the world.

She spent most of her life as a pawn who just took orders and wreaked havoc. She spends the course of the show learning how to express and get in touch with her own emotions.

Of course, Violet's lack of emotions in the beginning can be a turn off for viewers. She is somewhat difficult to empathize with at the start. But that, it turns out, is the point, as this problem is remedied in a truly beautiful way. Starting around episode 3, Violet (and we the viewers) begins hearing the stories of more ordinary people. These stories are easier to understand, and when Violet herself is able to draw a connection between an emotion one of her clients is feeling to an emotion she herself felt at a certain time, it allows us to start "getting" who Violet is.

And that's when the freaking water works start. Bring tissues if you're like me. Starting with episode 4, almost every episode that followed brought me to tears at some point. It's a good, ugly cry that they get out of you. Kyoto doing Kyoto things.

This is among the greatest things I've ever watched. You may not like it if you're used to easily digestable shows that tell you what to think/feel and have characters constantly spoonfeeding you exposition. You probably won't like it if you're only into giant robot battles. But if you're ready for a show that will make you feel, there is no better show to watch.

Every time I watch an episode, the first thing that comes to mind is "hard to watch, but in the best way possible." As a disclaimer, I am not in any way an emotional person, I am blunt and prefer fact to fiction. I do not like people who think with their emotions, but something about this show gets to me. I can't relate to the experiences of the characters, as I've never fought in a war or anything like that. Despite that, I am drawn in by everything that goes on in every episode. I believe everyone who has written a review claiming that ... the story and characters are shallow fails to see what this anime is about and why it exists. Violet Evergarden is not a show that will keep you on your toes or enthrall you in a typical sense as there are several subtle themes throughout. This is an anime for those who wish to observe and feel something. Despite what I said earlier about feelings, this show is made by how the characters portray different feelings. I truly feel sorry for those who cannot see that. Rarely do I believe that writing a review for an anime is worth the effort, but I felt as thought for this anime, Violet Evergarden, it is necessary.

Sincere. If I were to describe Violet Evergarden with a single word, it would be just that, sincere. It is a slow burn slice of life that makes up for its lack of narrative complexity with earnest, empathetic drama.

A child soldier for the past four years, Violet Evergarden begins her journey with no place in a world without war. Upon awakening after the war's final battle with extensive injuries and no sign of her commanding officer Gilbert, she is truly in a world where she does not belong. Growing up as a soldier has not prepared her for everyday life. Unable to speak without ... a militant vocabulary and a solute, it became clear that a civilian's daily life is not suited to someone with her inclination. She gets taken in by former Lt. Colonel Hodgins, Gilbert's friend, who now runs a private postal service. Upon her arrival at the office, she becomes intrigued by the Auto Memory Dolls branch.

Comprised of young women similar in appearance to Violet, the Auto Memory Dolls transcribe their client's feelings into letters. These women may look identical to Violet in their opulent Victorian attire; however, their capacity to comprehend emotion far exceeds our heroine. Violet is coded as a person with a disability. In this anime's time-period, the Victorian era or World War 1, people with PTSD got treated as crazy. Instead of treating Violet's mental illness as a sign of weakness, this anime portrays it respectfully. The show asks us to empathize with her just as she empathizes with the people she writes letters for.

This understanding and Violet's metal arms divide them, a blunt metaphor for her robotic personality. The career of transcribing letters is entirely unfitting for someone who cannot express emotion. However, what Violet lacks in an expression she makes up for in audacity. With the desire to understand the words "I love you," said to her by Gilbert before they lost connection, she undertakes the endeavor of becoming an Auto Memory Doll.

Violet's struggle is frustrating at first, but intentionally so. Affected by an undiagnosed mental disability, merely learning how to transcribe a single letter becomes her first great challenge. Her abrasively blunt personality leaves clients dumbfounded at best but furious at worst, occasionally creating understated comedic situations and displaying how she can barely function in society. The fluid setting reminds us that this could be anyone's story from any time. Mental disabilities are undiscovered during this era. That's why those around her misunderstand her. As the viewers, we also mistook her personality as a quirk, angered by her robotic demeanor. Not only is she isolated from the world, she inhabits, but also from those of us who observe her story. This perspective on her character is what made me invested in her arc right away. Her visible turmoil motivated me to be patient with her, to give her the chance to grow at her own pace rather than one designated by us as unsympathetic onlookers. At any chance he gets, the director reminds us we must follow at Violet's pace. We get drawn into her mindset with the dense atmosphere and an abundance of metaphors not to feel put off from the initial slow starting speed.

The most potent example of visual metaphors in the early episodes is the vast negative spaces Violet gets framed in, extenuating her loneliness even more. Complimented further by the atmosphere; brought to life through the excellent use of lighting, shadows, and layered colors giving the world a painterly appearance. At first, this dejected tone is what caused people to become alienated from the series.

Violet Evergarden has a purpose beyond the detailed environments and impressive lighting; there is more to it than one may initially ascertain. Stemming from the core theme of emotions are vignettes, a single story for each episode after the first two introducing the setting and Violet's life circumstance. The first of this episodic structure follows Violet taking classes to become a qualified Auto Memory Doll. Beyond her trained talent at calculated work, she falls short of her class's rest in expression. Violet's teacher does not accommodate her mental disability, forcing a friend to step in and help her to pass school with an unusual teaching method. A reminder to us, the viewers, that it's hard for some people to communicate their emotions; not everyone can conform to the typical education system.

A gripping realization that the world does not make it easy for us to communicate exactly how we feel. From this story of learning onward, we would come to see Violet gain more understanding of connection. Through the many clients she writes for, she grows gradually from robotic to self-aware. Through helping others, and in turn herself, she becomes a character embodying purely peace rather than the horrors that formed her life. Seeing Violet's life through the perspective of a young woman isolated, misunderstood, and struggling to conform to a society with no place for her, forms a visible arc throughout the entire series.

Through merely observing different connections like familial love, romance, friendships, and more, the puzzle pieces of human emotion fall into place in her mind. This enlightenment comes quietly and gradually, but one of the most satisfying character arcs I have witnessed. In the beginning, she is a tool for the army taught to slaughter their foes mercilessly. In the end, she becomes a bringer of love with her letters. Like how the flower grows from bud into full bloom, she grows to be suited to the name Violet. Though simplistic, the artists often use flowers to symbolize her gradual humanization.

The clients she writes for have drastically more emotional lives than her, highlighting how lacking Violet is. Over time, her demeanor rises to approach those of her clients in emotion. A change is most visible in how she speaks bluntly, never mincing words at the start and becoming subtler, and understanding how others feel by the end. A series so drama-focused as this got inevitably accused of being melodramatic, which is a fair criticism. Suppose you are only absorbing drama instead of analyzing the rich subtext; your experience may become tiresome. For me, this was never a hurdle to overcome. I loved following the trail laid out for us while devouring the drama at its most impactful moments.

None of this would be possible without compelling characters, but thankfully there are plenty in this series. Each with an intricate, freely moving character design, being in varying stages of life, and of course, a problem in need of Violet's elegant emotion transcribing. The many different characters are woven together in the same quilt, each with a dramatic life experience forming their personality. A personality that is satisfyingly deconstructed when Violet enters their lives. Seeing the various side characters have their inner turmoils put on display, then examined by Violet's blunt manner of speaking is incredibly cathartic. Her specific criticisms or encouragements of her client's personalities, unfiltered by concern for their reaction, create many satisfying moments of self-realization. Of the many characters, the protagonist receives the most development. Her inner turmoil is enrapturing. She was grappling with her bloodstained past and peaceful present, switching between gory flashback and elegant transcribing within the span of a single episode. Once we finally understand what experiences crafted her robotic persona, it is supremely satisfying after all of the misunderstandings she has endured. Viewing the series week by week only enhanced this more; the hate fired at Violet finally turning into understanding added more impact to these final episodes of realization.

These episodes wrought the most cathartic moments sheerly through the long period it takes to build up. Her new peaceful life feels haunted by the horrific deeds she committed in the past, shown with flashbacks, without knowing how cruel she was until becoming an emotionally comprehensive Auto Memory Doll. Throughout the series, she questions if she truly deserves to be writing letters of love rather than killing, even considering suicide in one of the series's most heartwrenching scenes. In the end, her self-doubt takes the shape of a full episode flashback, and others dispersed near the climax. The flashbacks showcase the base version of Violet, a pure killing machine who only takes orders. Booming explosions resound, overpowering any spoken words, pure chaos of fire and blood a perfect metaphor for the silencing of understanding the war causes. At the center of the cacophony lies Violet, like an angel dragged from heaven onto the hellish battlefield, wielded for evil by the morally bankrupt military.

Through these difficult moments, we learn who she was at the very lowest point of her arc, emboldening the journey she has taken by now. This understanding we and Violet gain gradually is brought into the letter-writing vignettes, making them even more emotional. Most notably, the tenth episode's story is compelling for its placement in the story and creating a powerful display of emotion that anyone could relate to. It presents the audience with the routine vignette set up, a person suffering from an unclear turmoil needs Violet's work, but this story is more effective thanks to its placement at an advanced stage in her arc. The narrative presented is admittedly predictable and straightforward, but what mattered was Violet's new minor mannerisms that cued us in on the fact that she understood her client's situation much more. She could use subtlety with them, and we could pick up on how, but most rewardingly, we could pinpoint where she gained those little mannerisms in her arc. In the tenth episode, rather than being unable to express much emotion, she visibly buries her feelings for the tragic scenario she had to assist with, only gaining reprieve when the job is over. And I'll admit, I wept just as she did.

Many viewers will not have such a wonderful experience, primarily because of slow pacing and reliance on visual storytelling. For a narrative as ethereal as Violet Evergarden's, you may find yourself tying it down with criticisms of shallow writing—this is simply the atmosphere of the show. Unafraid of the slow pace necessary to convey its lead's quiet emotions, accompanied by soft orchestral music, perfectly parallel to the story's direction. Every moment in this series is with purpose; nothing lacks meaning, but of course, whether you appreciate this meaning is up to you. The story highlights only moments necessary for conveying an emotional connection. Forming a vision of a character, typically archetypal seeing as they're typically only present for an episode, then crafting a vague image of their circumstance to which warrants a letter, then the execution.

Following the recipient reading the letter, Violet transcribed a deeply resonant display of emotion in many of the episodes. The impact only increases as Violet expands her abilities from her initial one-sentence letter to the inevitably most elaborate expression of emotion in the finale. The music rises to ensure the moment hits with as much impact as possible—with an equally melancholic ending theme to carry the feeling through the credits, sung with a subdued voice similar to Violet's voice.

Violet Evergarden has some of the best visuals in an anime series to date. Moreover, it deserves praise for is the power it has to convey empathy. Not merely a surface-level emotion, striking a connection with the audience. Always it conveys a universally applicable message: The key to a happy life is being understood and understanding others.

I will admit I was on the fucking hype train on this anime, like full force going Crunchyroll's "Anime of the Year" when it wasn't even released yet. Now after a solid year of waiting, I was giddy as a 5 year old to see a story that was full of nail-biting moments and action. But no, what I got was a simple story of a young woman trying to understand the society she was denied by the war as a child and a quest to find love.

It may sound like a cheezy overused plot point, even more so in a high budget anime like ... this, but it's not. This is a character-driven anime. At first glance, Violet may seem like a boring MC, emotionless, robotic and stale, but in my opinion, watching her develop slowly into a more understanding person is so interesting. In this case, the blandness contributes so well to the other characters all in a way where they are helping her find the truth she deserves, about love.

The art style and soundtrack of this anime are just beyond words, KyoAni's best work by far imo. Character-wise, they do not really have amazing traits that stand out, all in the fact that it contributes to the show's simplicity. But the main personality is Violet's. she has to put this show on her back as it progresses, watching her grow while she handles tough situations is gonna be one hell of a ride.

I can't think of a reason why you shouldn't watch this show, even if you are not a fan of simplistic shows, just stay for the visuals, you won't be disappointed.

Violet Evergarden is an anime series adaptation of the novel light with the same title from Kyoto Animation.
Source material of this series is the winner of the Kyoto Animation Award 2014 in the novel category. Given that status, this series became the most awaited anime by the community for the winter of 2018. Compared to other series of the season, this series can be said to have the best animation, something that is expected of the anime from Kyoto Animation. With the premise offered is the post-war recovery of the main character, this series becomes one of the drama series that is able to fill ... us all with feelings

STORY : 8/10
I never read the source material of this series so I judged the storyline of what was shown in the anime. The premise offered is actually interesting. Self-rehabilitation of Violet who was created only as a weapon of war without having the slightest feeling and desire. But since the Major gave the last sentence, she began to look for what the meaning behind that sentence by becoming an Auto Memory Doll. Walking to one place to another meets the client's request. The journey unknowingly begins to make herself understand the feelings of a human being. The problem of each client who wants to pour into a letter is that slowly build the character Violet for the better. Until finally he understood the loss of someone and began to understand what it means to love. From a soldier who moves only if given the command to a human being who can shed tears. An interesting premise for a drama series derived from the light that lately is mostly filled by isekai genre

DIRECTION : 6/10
This series begins its story from Violet's condition after the war and what she will do to find the meaning of the last sentence of Major. Then entering Episode 2-7 the direction of this series turns into episodic. Violet goes somewhere to answer client's request. Each episode is actually presented with the client's first point of view instead of Violet as main character. Every client has their own problems and from this problem Violet's character grows more human. With the direction of this story. Not everyone will understand how Violet character develops every episode. In fact, we will focus more on the client's problem. For example when most of us cry at the end of episode 10, but maybe many of us are not aware of the Violet character changes at that time. Episode 8-9 direction changes back to focus on the major plot. The transition from episodic episode clients to major episodes that has linear progress is poorly executed. I'm sure not everyone can understand how the story of this series if not paying attention to every sentence and scene with care. That was disturbing me in enjoying this series.

CHARACTER : 9/10
Violet Evergarden is a character with the greatest development among all the characters that exist in this season. Starting from a soldier who even just to eat should be given orders by Hodgins to be a human being who is even determined not to lose the life of someone as she once did. The thing that I love about Violet's character is that she develops not because she is being advised by others, but she learns by listening to the client's problem. she began to understand a feeling precisely after knowing what problems hers client was experiencing. So after knowing facts that "facts". She understands the meaning of losing someone. The scene in episode 11 when Violet performs the "last request" of the soldier also shows how she began to understand the meaning of affection. Perhaps what she's been doing lately is naive. But it shows that Violet has changed from a heartless weapon into a human who understands the sense of losing someone.

ART : 10/10
This series is a series with the best animated quality in winter of 2018. My favorite scene of course when Violet tried to pass the lake using an umbrella. The scene really shows the high quality animation presented by Kyoto Animation. The character design and color selection in this series reminds me of the Koe no Katachi film which is also made by KyoAni. Even for a television series, Violet Evergarden has the same quality as Koe no Katachi. Each frame is well drawn so the animation runs smoothly. Details on the character design also shows the hard work of key animators in making this series. Every female character feels so beautiful and every male character feels so manly through the way key animator draws each character. The selection of colors taken fits perfectly with the theme of this series which is thought to be similar to the period after the second world war in time and technology. Plus the quality of backgrounds such as clouds and water are so beautiful to the eye. Overall, this is one of the best quality anime other than Kimi no Na Wa and Koe no Katachi

SOUND : 8/10
Maybe what makes us sad and cry when watching this series is not because of Violet's personal problems, but the client's problem. But still this series still able to make us shed tears. The existence of the soundtrack in every sad moment in this anime really strengthens the atmosphere. Without proper selection and soundtrack composition, sad moments are not necessarily can make us shed tears. It also should be appreciated is the sound effect. Especially when the scene is related to the war. The sound of weapons, bombs, airplanes or even the sound of a soldier dropped from a shot. My favorite part in terms of sound effects is when an army is shot. Everything feels so fast that we do not realize that someone has been shot.

Overall, this series provides best animated quality and also provides an interesting story premise. But direction in this series can make us confused in following Violet's journey to find his true self. So not everyone will judge the story in this anime executed properly or not. But for a drama series. This is an anime with good character development. Violet is the character with most massive development among all the characters in the winter of 2018.

This is my first time ever writing a review. what made me write one? yes Violet Evergarden. From the first episode and ongoing every episode i fall in love more and more.If you are into romantic calming types this is the one for you. The story is outstanding I mean the concept of meaning of love and what difference feelings make. Characters are amazing each and every one of them. Theme of the anime is 90's type which is less now a days. Animation is outstanding. sound track is amazingly soothing, and the music just makes the atmosphere so real. The last anime I watched ... like this was your lie in April. the rating is underrated I think

To Mrs. Sa——, Leiden.
Leidenschaftlich, Dec. 11th, 17––.



You will rejoice to hear that the war has officially ended. Your brother is truly relieved to finally be able to breathe freely again; my fellow citizens, too, let out a collective sigh of relief. The alleys are filled with a comfortable bustle like they used to be; people’s faces don’t display a worrisome gloom anymore. Businesses are booming throughout the whole town and your brother, too, has found a place of employment in a mail and ghostwriting company. There, it is my job to deliver the letters ghostwritten by our so-called Auto Memory Dolls—women who listen to one’s ... inquiries and needs for a written letter and put one’s feelings to paper.

During my time working here, I have come into contact with many of the aforementioned dolls; and one of these women in particular piqued my interest: with her elegant, golden hair and doll-like demeanor, she fits the job perfectly, and she used to act the part just as well. However, what interested me about her the most wasn’t her looks but rather the fact that she had many stories to tell, be it from house calls or other, similar events.

To be honest, the stories themselves weren’t all too intriguing. It may be because I’ve lived through several years of war, but many of them felt like something I had heard before, had seen before. While the fates of these people are definitely cruel and while I really wish they had met a better fate, I can’t help but think of the many who have fallen in war. Thus, the stories of these people whom I’ve never met don’t leave as much of an impression on me as they might have used to; while hearing this beautiful woman describe equally beautiful sights and sceneries brings with it a certain feeling of tranquility, they aren’t what makes these stories interesting.

What does make these stories interesting aren’t the stories themselves, but how they affect the one experiencing and—later—telling them. She used to be a child soldier unable of speaking, reading or human emotion. Trained as nothing more than a weapon of war, her doll-like demeanor stems not from indifference, but her time as a soldier. Due to her unusual character, she ran into trouble trying to extract the emotions out of the client’s words, but over time she learned how to understand these feelings and, most importantly, how to feel, herself.

Sometimes, upon reciting what had happened just a few days prior, her feelings slowly welled up inside, to then finally overflow. Suddenly, she learned how to smile, laugh and cry; she learned of emotion and empathy. These unadulterated feelings coming from someone formerly unable to feel moved me to my very core every time; it was during these everyday epiphanies of hers that I felt like I was really watching something grow, giving shape to a human rather than a husk.

However, newfound feelings are both a blessing and a curse. They may make life more interesting and worth living, but at the same time they can accumulate and overwhelm a person—even more so someone hitherto engaged in the cruelty of war as she was. After realizing what she had done, she slowly gave in to sadness and sorrow. Her cold, metallic hands that killed so many, her blood-stained self burdened with guilt—they started a fire, engulfing her. Her state of mind turned into a complete chaos; she decided to strangle herself with her abhorrent hands and end it all, but she failed.

What saved her was a mere letter, this one sole letter I slipped through under her door. Filled with the feelings of her colleagues who missed her dearly, this letter saved her from her sorrow and herself. It let her reflect on what she had done: both her misdeeds in war and her profession, which brought together and still connects so many. Her actions might be irrevocable—but that isn’t a bad thing. Her burn marks may never heal, but really, they don’t need to. After realizing this simple truth, she learned to accept herself and finally became a complete person.

Looking at her now, I can’t help but feel a somber sadness. Her metallic hands that killed so many and her brooch which reminds of the loved one she lost in war—they make me feel melancholy. Just like the eponymous flower, Violet Evergarden is beautiful. While the stories she tells might not be as impactful as intended, her own very much makes up for it. Once you come visit me, I shall relay it to you whole.



Yours, Roland.

(Score: 65)

“Letters are among the most significant memorial a person can leave behind them.” ―Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
“A letter always seemed to me like immortality because it is the mind alone without corporeal friend.” ― Emily Dickinson

You must be thinking, what the hell is wrong with this guy? Whats with all the "letter" quotes?

That's right!!! This anime actually gives you a perfect definition of letters, you must have heard of people in other reviews mentioning War, love story, Auto memoirs doll etc., Or at least got the feeling it would be one judging from 1st 2 episodes, but I would warn you guys ... this isn’t what you think it is, in fact, there isn’t a straight story at all.

This is rather a story or rather a slice of life(SOL) of a girl (named Violet Evergarden) who is a weapon in war, trying to adjust in society post-war by writing the letters for people and understanding the feelings of the sender and receiver.
So why does she want to write the letters? That’s because she wants to know the meaning of “I love you”……….You must be thinking….wtf???? Yeah, that’s true, this must have been the dumbest reason for anyone to learn writing letters (even the lieutenant Hodgins says that in the series), but you will understand that in the long run it kinda makes sense :P

So then there is no story and lots of negative reasons stated above (most importantly who would want to know about “letters”?), then…… why is there a damn 8 in the rating????

Well, even though there are lots of negative factors, at the end of the day it is able to deliver what we need in an anime, i.e the enjoyment, the emotional connection with the scene and mainly the importance of letters, i.e from a ‘small sentence’ to uniting couples with ‘long letters’, the letter has the power to move people's heart, that's the power of letters, which is really depicted well here.

Alright cutting everything short, It is a collection of short stories with Violet in each episode is interacting with different people and changing their lives and also herself knowing what it is to be a human, what it feels like to lose a human and even you might get motivated from Violet as she tries hard learning to understand what human feelings are.

The main beauty of this anime is the ART, the animation, and camera view. All characters are so beautiful that everyone looks like a doll. You wouldn't even know for half of the series whether Violet is actually a doll or a human.
The setting is historic, most probably during world war I (The robotic arms of Violet seem too much advanced for that time or even present). The background, the colors, the time lapse, the sky, the flowers, the stars and even wine, every detail is so beautiful and so colorful that it gives you realistic appeal and makes you feel as if you were at that place.

The SOUNDTRACKS are another awesome tool for making this anime nostalgic. The classic orchestral music and emotional soundtracks are really awesome which resonate perfectly and sync with the situation bringing out the emotions out of you.
The opening song is also used differently and is introduced in 3rd episode (seems this style is called progressive) is a great song and matches perfectly with the situation. While the ending is also good which is introduced in the 2nd episode.

OVERALL:
Well coming to the final opinion, which matters the most!!! This show definitely has lot of flaws from dodging bullets like Flash(Superhero), executing a person with sword while having a gun at hand, to writing public love letters and many dramatic scenes which I wouldn’t want to spoil you, which are made to make you emotional but when you think later logically, it might seem kinda dumb but still at the time of watching it makes you forget the flaws and makes you immerse in those lies, that's the beauty of this anime, making you connect with characters without much development just like Mushishi or kino no tabi. Therefore stating all various reasons,even though the anime Violet Evergarden is not suited for the likes of many, but still, it is definitely worth watching, at least once :P

For some, it would be "that most hyped series" or for others it might be "that hyped series which lived to its reputation", well, either way, it is going to be remembered lol.

And my advice for you is, at least watch 5 episodes before you drop ( If you feel like dropping) and Don’t binge watch it, because either your heart will melt or it might harden into a stone basing on your response.

I have put out all the negative things about anime for you so that you might not be surprised and drop it out in middle. Did it give negative thoughts to fans?? I don't think so, because they will like it even if there are many flaws besides this.

well, that's the end of the review, you could stop here or read below for FAQs and more detailed Analyses of the series and character development, of course, it is spoiler-free. :D

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Dub or sub? : Personally, I feel that sub is a lot better because, at the actual point of creating an emotional moment, in the dub, the words are uttered as if they were read from Google translate. While the sub has better words which suit the dialogue. But in rest of the situations, the dub is also good.

Analysis of Story:
One thing is good in this anime, It keeps you guessing what this anime might be turn out to be ? just when you are thinking of being fed-up or you made up your mind what this anime is gonna be? , that's when the story changes because, at present, you might observe that the genre of this anime is listed as SOL but it wasn’t the case when this series was airing, everyone used to talk how the series might turn out to be(Forums). In detail, first 2 episodes are like a slight introduction to the current state Violet is, with focus given more to the surrounding places, the anime setting, the camera views etc, for example, The starting scene is just like the scene from Assassin's creed where the eagle flies and the camera shifts with respect to it while here a paper or perhaps the letter flies in its place.

Then slowly from episode 3, the slice of life starts and by the end of episode 7 just when you are thinking this series is full of it, writing letters blah blah, the flashback or Violet’s past kicks into play, and you get to see it for about for 2 episodes making you think, well we might get to watch a war anime perhaps, but it stops there and again the SOL begins, So by the time you reach episode 11 it makes sense that this anime is all about letters and its significance but its not really about violet's past, well that’s where you are wrong again, just watch the series and know what it is :)

Difference between Light novel and anime?
Personally, I didn’t read the novel but from the opinion of others, few other characters were introduced, Violet is more humane and less aggressive here and most of the unrealistic parts were removed like Violet with a battle axe. But the only fault is the 12th episode which gave a negative response from Novel fans by mentioning novel version was better and had more realistic feeling for that part.

Difference of experience between new and old watchers of this series:
For anyone new to Violet Evergarden, as I mentioned earlier you can observe that the genre is SOL, drama. you can have that premeditated feeling of watching a SOL. There is both negative and positive effect of it, the positive part is that you know that you are going to watch a SOL so you are mentally prepared not expecting much of a story but the negative part is that you wouldn’t have that suspense what this series may turn out to be?

Coming to Characters:
We all know that Slice of life means character development or vice versa but this isn’t the case here, as violet meets new people in every episode, so there isn’t much possibility for character development. That being said, I'll talk about few prominent characters which need to be noticed:

Violet: People might either hate her due to her PTSD traits, inexpressive nature, and a bad example of Saber ( Fate series) 'OR' love her as innocent, fragile and she strives to be a better person and also fans of Saber might like her. This show is basically about Violet so you need to watch the show and understand about her, leaving here coming to another major character,

Major Gilbert: There are huge amount of novel fans who might love him, but his character is just developed for about 2 episodes in anime and you can observe his and Violet’s relationship to be similar to like that of father and daughter, He is the main cause of Violet’s change of behaviour or character due to the fatherly love is shown by him. Many people(novel readers) say that he loved her like a partner but I didn’t feel the same. His role is very less, then there is his friend:

Lieutenant-Colonel Hodgins: I felt him to another good guy, he is more developed then Gilbert lol, he also plays a major role in supporting Violet, by getting her a job, taking care of her and even give the right amount of comfort to her as per Gilbert’s request but he doesn’t feel burdened.

The only controversial person who seemed out of character every-time in new episode is Gilbert’s brother Dietfried. In one episode he seems harsh on Violet (Ep 5), in other episode he thinks her to have changed (Ep 8) and again in 12th episode it is shown that he still doesn’t believe in Violet still but takes her advice or saves her and many more weird multiple unstable traits are exhibited by him,
other than that rest all characters are developed for an episode or two and left, For example, characters like Benedict ( postman), Luculia, Iris, Erica (Dolls)etc are used just for the sake of story’s progress in latter small and significant parts which might make many people angry for not developing them or using them properly, since we are mainly focused on Violet’s point of view I think its better to ignore the rest.

I hope you like this kind of writing style in which I seem like interacting with you and I hope this review motivated you to watch it ✌

I hope I didn't bore you with all the praises, I did want to criticize and write a review like a critic, but every time I re-watched the series, I kept falling in love with it and most probably you are gonna too :)

Okay, I've seen so much criticism befall this anime so I'm going to try and be as thorough as possible with this review. I won't include spoilers, however, and will try not to mention any major events which happen through the anime so bear with me if I sound a little vague.

Story
Pardon me, but this anime is a bitch. It basically aims in any way possible to trigger those tears of yours. It's probably one of the few anime which made me cry this much that I can only think of another one. Just prepare your tissues and be ready because there is a high ... probability that the onion ninjas will be paying you a visit.

Now to the criticism I've mentioned earlier. There has been so much hate going around over this anime and from what I've seen I think most of it for the story being "too linear" . Yes, it's not like the usual anime you'd see most of the time, but it's all a matter of perspective really. I'll advice you beforehand; try and view it as a play and not an anime and you'll find yourself being immersed into it.

One thing to note though is that the beginning of the story is nothing like what's yet to come. The first three episodes, especially, are a prelude to the anime itself and emphasize on Violet's character and describing the setting in an orderly manner. Perhaps too orderly that you'd feel quite bored at times. Because of that, I thought that all this anime was is just some quality art and breathtaking scenery, but trust me that this is far too presumptuous so at least give it five episodes before you decide to continue with it or not.

The setting of the story looks like England in the 80s, but the names of the countries, cities and even the language are all fictional to my knowledge. Since there is plenty of focus on the state of war the countries have gone through and what those wars have caused, the creators might have chosen not to mention anything that would bring up hard feelings into the story which is a wise decision if you ask me.

Okay, so now that pretty much sums up the subtle details of the story and its general idea. Now for the story itself, Violet Evergarden is a girl of about 14 *cough*underage*cough*. Back in her childhood with no parents, name or feelings she was viewed by almost everyone around her as a killing tool or a loli weapon of mass destruction who knew nothing except how to kill. She didn't even know how to speak, but all of this changed once Gilbert took her in as a gift from his brother. From that point on she was intended to be Gilbert's weapon to be utilized in army as a weapon as usual. However, Gilbert disagrees greatly with this and chooses to treat her as a proper human being. He raised her, taught her, took care of her and eventually loved her. (゜ロ゜)
What happens is that Violet is currently trying to understand emotions; love to be specific. As the major in his last breaths' confesses his love to her, but Violet couldn't understand what his words meant. Thus, begins Violet's beautiful journey to pursue pure emotions and convey them to people as she starts to understand them herself as well.
Let me tell you this, she's going to be exploring emotions alright and you'll be exploring emotions just as much so don't forget those tissues of yours. You have been warned!

Art
HoHoHo do I even need mention a thing here? The reason of all the hype before this anime came out is because of its art style. An artist's wet dream would be an understatement to its beauty. Just watch the trailer to get a solid idea of what I mean.

The scenery are extra bright and the characters are very well-polished from tip to toe. Just look at their beautiful eyes when they're not full of tears! The usage of the art style varies by episode. There are some where you'll be awestruck by the beauty and others where you won't be as much. The characters' style isn't the main beauty of this anime, but they surely look beautiful and original and I think the latter is what matters the most.
The scenery, however, will have you drooling waterfalls, which is another good reason for the tissues by the way, so unless you don't like those bright colors and overly detailed scenery, you won't be disappointed.

Character Development
I think most of what I'd say here would be redundant. Violet is probably the only character who has significant amount of development while the others don't even have that much screen time to begin with. The anime is split into two arcs, the main one where Violet faces her traumatizing history and all that she's been through and the secondary arc which is episodic to the characters Violet encounters through her journey. The secondary arc is a thousandfold more emotional than the main one and has plenty more of character development included, but that's to characters who'll only last for one episode so I'm not sure you can really call that "development". Nonetheless, their characters undergo drastic self-speculation which overflow with emotions so, if you ask me, I find it impressive how much they managed to fit into a single episode.

Sound
This is such a vital part of this anime and I don't think it I could have appreciated the beauty of it without this beautiful soundtrack. Think of it as the adhesive which connects everything into the big picture. It's almost entirely on the classical side, which I'm fond of, so you might not like it if you hate classical music, but honestly, who does?
The characters' voices are pretty good as well. I liked some more than others, but everyone fit his character and played it well. You can clearly tell the VAs were immersed in their roles and paid very close attention to the details. My favorite one was introduced in the last episode though, so I can't really say who she is without spoiling too much. If you do choose to view this anime as a play and let yourself immerse into it you'll certainly know who she is, though.

Entertainment
Despite the shed tears, spilled blood and fatal wounds, I can with all honesty tell you that this anime was indeed enjoyable. You'll probably need some light series to recover after you're done with it, but you won't regret a single moment and are sure to appreciate its beauty. It's certainly a piece of art you'll enjoy watching and an experience you'll cherish.

Watch this if: You have high tolerance to onions, You're looking for breathtaking animation, You like Slice of Life, You want an anime presented in a new perspective.
Don't watch this if: You're not into drama(VERY DRAMATIC), You don't like slow-paced story lines, You're looking for action(Really mild here), You don't have tissues.

Oh, Violet Evergarden. Like a royal princess, your arrival was highly anticipated by the community. And just like a royal princess, many speculated over how beautiful and amazing you would be before you even saw the light of day, and others just waited to see you to be born and fail. And then when you were born and grow up, many still claimed you to be the most beautiful and fascinating princess ever born, some were disappointed that you didn´t manage to live up to their expectations, and some disliked you instantly because you were you. Where ever which category you belong to, one can ... say for certain that Violet Evergarden took her place in the spotlight this past season. Usually I’m not a royalist, but in my eyes Violet Evergarden (VE) were a fine princess, and definitely lived up to my expectations and more, both visually and substantively. So, let´s talk about the winter 2018´s most anticipated show, and why I thought it so good as I did.

Slow paced dramas are not usually what I go for, they often bore me to death before going anywhere, but I got a positive feeling as soon as I read the synopsis and saw the PV for VE. And I was not disappointed, quite the opposite.

VE takes place in a post-war, 1920´s Europe like continent, where the north and south just reached a fragile peace. It´s a time of healing and rebuilding, which leaves the young teenager Violet Evergarden at a loss. Probably orphaned or abounded at a very young age, Violet were brought up as a child soldier. On the battle field under Major Gilbert Bougainvillea´s command, Violet became infamous for her brutal and cold efficiency by taking countless lives without batting an eyelash. Now with the war ended, and no more orders to for fill, Violet´s hardest test begins. The very last battle left Violet without arms, which was replaced with some crafty automail. That´s not really the issue though, but rather the acclimatization to be a normal person, with a normal life. All her life Violet had just known violence and orders, so to say that she´s socially awkward doesn’t even begin to cover it. The main theme of the show is Violet´s journey to understand her own and other´s emotions, especially what “I love you” means. She learns from others by working as an Auto-Memory Doll, which composes letters for others in their stead. It´s not like Violet doesn´t have feelings and emotions, she´s just very disconnected from them, and doesn´t know what they mean when she does feel them. I thought her journey was beautiful to watch, as she slowly experiences what it means to have different feelings, and how to express them. I think they tie up Violet´s past and future very smoothly throughout the show. The main part of the show is of an episodic nature, each in which Violet takes on requests at writing a letter for someone, and both Violet and that someone have an emotional exchange, often of the teary type. And just when you think that its all you are going to get, the show does something different towards the end, which in my eyes popped up the score one more notch.

Is Violet Evergarden the most fascinating character ever made? Probably not, but I liked her a lot. Her blank persona, her robotic way of speaking is nothing ground breaking, but I liked how they slowly developed her without taking away that personality. Violet do look like the most beautiful doll, which together with that personality can be over the top and annoy people. I personally think it worked with the setting and all over story development, since the profession as dolls take a centre part. Violet´s inability to understand people´s emotions in the beginning forces her clients and colleagues to really explain their feelings and why they feel them, which forces them to grow as much as Violet at each encounter. I think that worked as a great red thread for the story, and made it more than just one-sided, which could easily happen when a story focuses so much on just one character. As for the other characters, they vary in importance and appeal, but overall, they fill out the story good. Some are more entertaining or interesting than others, such as Hodgins and the Bougainvillea brothers. They heavily influence Violet, as well as being interesting on their own. I can fully understand the ones who complain about the side characters, because VE is a one woman show, which is noticeable. So, if you´re not into Violet´s character, VE is probably not going to be an enjoyable experience for you.

No one in their right mind can say that VE looks nothing but stunning. And if some do say so, they just say that out of spite. Wherever you liked the story and characters or not, the visuals are colourful, detailed and beautiful from the beginning to the end. Kyoto Animation and Netflix has hold nothing back and shows how anime can look 2018. Everything from a bird´s view of a green hilled landscape, bathing in the orange light from the afternoon sun, to a view of a still autumn lake, sparkling with the sun´s rays and brown and yellow leaves, looked absolutely breath-taking. If you want to, you can positively drown in the characters eyes, as well made and pronounced as they are. In the rare occasions action do occur, its well-choregraphed, animated and left me with wishing for more. Could probably write a book about how good everything looks but let’s just stop here. So, to summon up the art and animations part up - Top score, overly pleased, I want to bath in those colours.

The soundtrack is well composed and harmonic, with beautiful instruments which creates a calm and emotional atmosphere. Which in my opinion runs very well with the storyline and Violet´s journey. The VA´s (Japanese) do an amazing job of portraying their characters, big as small roles. Yui Ishikawa voices Violet and does a brilliant job of conveying Violet´s damaged character. Sound effects is spot on, from the klicks of tangents, the gust of wind, to the sound of an air plane closing in in the sky. Once again, bravo.

I definitely understand that VE isn´t for everyone, but it is certainly for most. Like all princesses, VE can´t be loved by everyone, but boy does she shine like star. I enjoyed this show far more than I expected, teared up multiple times, and were fully invested in Violet´s emotional journey. I liked that they didn´t just displayed the positive side of feeling emotions, but what pain that can cause also. The shift in direction towards the end was a brilliant move and leaving me with the want for more. So, thank you Violet Evergarden, for showing me both such inner and outer beauty.

Leiden, Leidenschaftlich
April 4th, 2018

Dear Reader,

I hope this letter finds you well. Much time has passed since our last correspondence and I humbly apologize for going silent this long. However, rest assured your patience has not been wasted. I am now able to relay to you, in full, my truest insights and reflections of Violet’s journey as I have experienced it. And in doing so, I believe you will be swayed enough to bear witness, yourself.

Visually, first impressions of Violet were quite favorable. She sported a slender face, flowing blonde hair, azure eyes, and a quiet disposition. Many would compare her to ... an idealized version of a dress-up doll. But as you know, first impressions can be deceiving. Upon listening to her speak, I and those around her quickly realized the doll analogy was even more appropriate. Despite her fair outer appearance, she was a shell of a person: cold and unexpressive. Her emotional development up until this point had been terribly suppressed from years of brutality and armed conflict as a weapon. Allowing herself to feel was a sign of weakness and that left her potentially vulnerable during the war.

But in these newfound times of peace, with no battlefield to return to, Violet became a lost puppy desperately seeking out new orders from her Major, Gilbert Bougainvillea, to validate her existence. Thankfully, Colonel Hodgins was there to pick up the pieces and guide her towards a brighter future. Without him as a guardian, I daresay, she may have been caged emotionally for the rest of her life. Under the employ of his CH Postal Company, it is from here that Violet embarks on an emotional odyssey, the likes of which were an absolute pleasure to observe.

Working as an Auto Memoir Doll, Violet struggled, in the beginning, to transcribe her clients' feelings onto paper. Her letters more akin to combat reports, consisting of direct and machinelike replies. While she was quick to acquire mechanical typing skills, her ability to sympathize and be sincere were lacking. Realizing an ineptness to do her job, she goes to her senior colleagues, Erica and Iris, for help. They too had trouble finding ways to relate to Violet at first. Nonetheless, as time passed and they shared their issues in becoming dependable Dolls themselves, the two become friends with Violet and gradually she opens up to them about her pursuit to learn what the Major meant when he told her “I love you.” At this juncture, she does not possess the emotional shelving necessary to support a feeling as significant and complex as love.

Further along, Violet begins to build a foundation for understanding the different forms love can take and improving her skills as a Doll. Sibling love, a mother’s love, a father’s love, a friend’s love, fated love, first love, unrequited love, blind love. With each new client interaction, Violet explores these feelings of love and unlocks another part of her emotions she previously kept sealed away. A few of these vignettes were awfully heart wrenching. In particular, the stories of Oscar, the playwright, who loses his only daughter, and Anne, a bluntly honest child whose mother is bedridden, had a profound emotional impact on me. I was reduced to a sobbing mess, even. Seeing Violet smile and cry for her clients, it is impossible not to empathize with their situations.

As her travels wind down, Violet gets to a point where she is able to recognize what her emotional state means as it connects to a more abstract understanding of what it means to feel. When Hodgins eventually reveals Major Gilbert’s fate, she feels genuine anger and betrayal. In shattering her belief that the Major would one day return, a large part of her identity is lost. The scars of her past come back to burn her up inside now that she can contextualize her role in the war. Survivor’s guilt, self-loathing, and grief plague her conscience to the point where she regrets ever having regained emotions.

Violet’s pain and suffering cause her to believe it’s wrong for her to continue living. This leads to a climax where she speaks with Hodgins who forces her to confront the fact that just like the lives she has destroyed, the lives she has enriched cannot be undone. A difficult truth for anyone to face but it allows her to finally accept the reality. Despite still not fully grasping the Major’s love for her, she understands his intent and finds the will to carry out his final orders to live for herself. Ghostwriting as an Auto Memoir Doll becomes her purpose and though the Major may not be alive, he lives on in her heart.

Presently, Violet is one of the top Dolls in Leiden. There are constant requests for her to ghostwrite letters from people all over the country. While physical beauty does not beget an inner beauty, I can assure you that her emotional maturity has outshined any outward charm she possessed at the outset. She has become a wonderful, caring, young lady and I personally cannot wait to see what her future holds in store.

Best Regards,


Activelee,
Your Comrade-in-arms

In appreciation of KyoAni’s uniquely beautiful and detailed series, I chose to write this review in the style of a letter to prospective audiences. I wanted to have some fun and to give this a slight tinge of realism. I chose to focus solely on Violet and her character growth because a letter discussing sound and animation felt disjointed. Don’t get me wrong, the art and music are both deserving of extreme praise. I feel they’re best experienced for yourself, though. The show was not without its flaws but my gripes with the slow pacing, undeveloped side characters, and awkward action sequences didn't fit the letter either. Finally, it’s important to note that this is all from the perspective of someone with no prior knowledge of the light novel series or its plot. Nevertheless, I hope you enjoyed reading this. :)