Versailles no Bara

I rarely ever rate anything a true masterpiece, but this anime has earned it. Everything was beautifully written and wrapped up, from start to finish.

Plot: the plot is simple enough. The main character, a woman named Oscar, was chosen to be Marie Antoinette's personal bodyguard. The problem is that Marie Antoinette and her husband are poorly suited for the job of ruling, and they're spending the people's tax money like crazy. So a revolution is starting to happen. This is the story of the revolution from Oscar's point of view.

The characters are very well written. Even if I didn't ... like certain character (Madame Polignac, Marie Antoinette, Marie's husband, Fersen), I can admit that they were well written. Madame Polignac, Madame Du Barry, and Jeanne are very well written villains. They were intelligent villains that kept you on the edge of your seat. I also find it fascinating how Madame Polignac and Jeanne basically do a switch at the end. Madame Polignac starts off as a woman with some sort of morals, and she even seems to feel remorse for her actions. Though towards the end, she becomes more and more power and money hungry. She's there to show how power and money can corrupt you. Even going as far as to laugh with... You know what, I don't want any spoilers in the review! The point is, she starts off sympathetic, but she becomes more and more unlikable and a monster. Jeanne starts off as someone who's in poverty, and she wants to get in the noble circles. She even goes as far as leaving her family behind, and other atrocious actions. Though towards the end, she actually starts to feel remorse for her actions. Jeanne's romance was a hot mess, but it was also heartwarming. I found her romance cute! In a very toxic way, but still cute!

Oscar's character is written brilliantly. Her father was tired of having daughters, so he pretends that Oscar is a man. Though he feels remorse for that, and starts to allow her to identify as a woman. This brings up interesting gender dynamics because the women all fawn over her, two women have a crush on her, though she has a crush on a man. When her heart gets broken, she wrongly assumes that it's because she's a woman. She starts to want to identify as a man and do traditionally masculine things. Though her best friend, Andre, rightfully tells her that no matter what she identifies as, she'll always be the same person. Falling in love with a man isn't a thing that only women can do. Several women fall for other women, and men can fall in love with men. Just because one isn't overly girly, doesn't mean they aren't a woman. That's just her character on the gender side. Where she also gets complex is her relationship with Marie Antoinette conflicting with her empathy for the people. She serves as a bodyguard for Marie Antoinette, and she is a genuine friend to her. Though she also has empathy for the people. The main conflict of her character is juggling her friendship with the queen, but also her moral code for the people. The characters are very realistic, with some being complex as well. It makes this anime that much stronger, and that much better.

This anime has a lot of action, historical accuracy (but also some inaccuracies for the sake of entertainment, but we don't mind that!), romance, and character development. The fights actually get brutal with people being gunned down and killed in the streets, and the eventual Revolution that takes place. This anime basically has everything that satisfy everyone. The romance is very good, the action is good, the characters are complex and have depth, and it's based around an actual historical event! It's a masterpiece, and I highly recommend it to anyone!

Ah.. I just watching this kinda old-school anime. Actually i don't like 70's anime; idk why, most of them are not interesting for me (im not talking about the graphic). BUT, after watching this anime, i gotta huge enjoyment.

Im not a good reviewer, but i need to use my rights to contribute this anime rating lol.

The story is quite melodramatic. Of course dude; this anime (and its manga) is considered as shoujo. as anime lover, you won't be surprised about this fact. Besides, the intrics and drama was directed well. I didn't very like the first-twenty eps drama of this anime; but after passing them, ... the drama turns into the most interesting part. it's begin to talk about more serious problems (i mean, the 'revolution'), not just a 'childish' drama anymore.

Even though melodramatic, for 70's drama-anime show, the pace of this story is quite normal. The story gives me 'enjoyment-stagnacy'; i mean, my desires is survived, and it forced me for keep watching this anime until the end.

Ah ok; fortunately i don't get any regret watching this 40eps anime til the end.

Includes spoilers!

Versailles no Bara is my first ever "old school" anime in my eleven years with this medium. Since I'm of a younger generation, I was mostly drawn to more contemporary anime up until now, but got interested in Versailles no Bara because I heard that they had a 40th Anniversary Exhibit last year. A quick glance at its premise and art got me intrigued, and before I knew it, forty episodes were consumed in a flash.

I like to think I've watched a lot of anime across the years, and because of that, I believe this series is truly like no other. It has a ... boldness at its core that many other anime at present fail to even come close to, with its strong female lead and its backdrop of society before the French Revolution. The anime transports you to a different time, place, and culture that is so starkly similar to that of Les Miserables (if you love Les Mis, you will surely love this series). Everything from the costumes, to the characters' manner of speaking, to the music ties coherently altogether to provide the audience a blast from the past. The audience also gets invested in the issues of the time that are still very much relevant today: the huge gap between the rich and poor, corruption, the search for identity and love, and coping with loss. The entire series was a huge "mood," so to speak -- an unforgettable one, at that.

Of course, you can't talk about Versailles no Bara without talking about Oscar Francois de Jarjeyes herself. Although her premise raised some confusion from me at first (would a woman at the time really be allowed to join the military?), her internal struggle of being brought up as a man, while still having a female's heart and body, spoke volumes to me. I can't empathize with that level of identity crisis, but her valor in upholding her values in the midst of a failing French society and her own problems won over me completely! She is already one of my favorite female leads in anime. Her charisma, elegance, and kindheartedness are just on another level, and I'm 100% sure she would've been my idol if I had watched this show as a kid.

Actually, the other thing I love the most about this show is its soundtrack. Yes, it's rather old, but I loved it so much for some reason. Maybe it's because I'm a huge fan of Les Miserables, but I found the music for all the epic and heartwrenching scenes just so very fitting. I can still hear those songs in my mind (complete with French horns and violins). And how can you forget the catchy opening theme song! ("Bara wa, Bara wa!!!!") I love how even its lyrics straightforwardly talk about the overall metaphor of the series: about a blooming rose trapped by countless thorns.

My favorite episode would have to be "Andre, the Green Lemon." There were so many beautiful metaphors and themes that blended wonderfully together, making it such a memorable episode for me. I love how Andre's blindness also signified his change of perspective towards the nobility, how his love for Oscar overflowed because of his fear of never seeing her living as a woman, and how Oscar was so torn because of all of these foreign feelings. "Lemon" is an archaic term for a faulty car, alluding to Andre's handicap, and he is "green" with envy as Oscar was in love with Fersen at the time. In addition, I just loved the line, "A rose is always a rose, whether or not it is red or white; it can never become a lily," and how it related to the white rose in the conclusion of the series -- symbolizing how Andre loved Oscar for how she truly was, manly woman and all.

For all its glory, however, Versailles no Bara is not without flaws. Granted, I understand how difficult it is to create a historical fiction that balances both the facts and artistic deviation, so I am cutting it a lot of slack in terms of pacing. Still, one of my major complaints is that they could have cemented Oscar's loyalty to Antoinette in the beginning of the series using a much more compelling and believable reason. All we got for Oscar to swear her unquestionable loyalty to her was that she was awed by how Antoinette dealt with duBarry. I feel like this could've been emphasized more, or there could've been an even better reason as to why Oscar chose to be a "dog" of the Royal Family. For example, they could have chosen to highlight how Oscar and Antoinette were girls of the same age, yet subject to such different fates due to their places in society, and make this the foundation for their unbreakable friendship. This would have been a better explanation as for why Oscar didn't take action for majority of the series, despite already being exposed to the traumas and problems of the commoners. It was an annoyance of mine that she wouldn't really try to express her opinions to Antoinette, when others such as Polignac often would.

Rosalie's arc, while commendable, ended on quite a flat note to me. She was whisked away to Polignac, only to suddenly pop up randomly in Paris. She escaped way too easily in my opinion, and her being there was just way too convenient. It was more of an "okay, I accept" type of thing for the audience.

Another complaint of mine is its conclusion, particularly that of Fersen. He was such a goodhearted character that it was hard to believe he eventually became just as inhuman as the French nobility. They should have thought of a more satisfying ending for him that made more sense for his anime character, since his end wasn't historically accurate anyway.

Overall, however, the series is a solid 9/10. My complaints were simply bumps across the grand picture that is Versailles no Bara -- a beautiful, timeless, elegant painting of French 18th century, one that explains the meaning of true dignity.

If you like Berserk then you should definitely watch Rose of Versailles!

Oscar is born into nobility and is the 5th daughter of General de Jarjeyes who always desired a son who can take him over as Commander. So the General decides to raise Oscar as a boy and fully train her into a royal guard. Meanwhile Austrian Princess, Marie Antoinette, comes to France to marry Prince Louis. Lady Antoinette is a young princess who doesn't really know how nor does she desires to act like a Queen and ends up making lots of selfish choices which cause lots of frustration and rebellion amongst the ... French people.

The art is dated by todays standards, the characters have this cutesy big eyes and pointy chins and some of the characters look too similar to each other but it's far from bad. The animation is top tier quality for a series from the 70's none of the frames are looped or recycled. The voiceacting is superb! The music is mostly the same tracks used in every episode but it's not annoying and it fits the era the show is based on and with a memorable opening theme song.

There are so many well written characters to talk about in this show but to keep it short, the main characters are Oscar, Andre and Antoinette. Lady Oscar is a very unique individual, she's born a female but raised as a male and has to keep up with her duties as guard of the French royalty. She is not insecure about her gender and is not afraid to speak up her mind when she has to. Despite being a noble, she shows compassion towards common people and tries to understand their struggles while trying to keep the future Queen Antoinette in the right path which becomes increasingly more difficult as Antoinette gets easily manipulated by nobles with bad intentions. One thing i don't like is how almost everybody Oscar meets gets so "charmed" by her mere presence and looks. I get that Oscar is really beautiful but it gets kind of annoying after a while.

Princess Antoinette is actually a real life historical person which shows how serious this show takes the history of France and it's notable people. She was supposed to be the protaganist of the manga which is why the early episodes are mostly about her and it might turn some people off. Antoinette is spoiled, self centered, naive and just not as interesting as Oscar. What makes her arcs so good are the rivalries she forms during her new life in France. She's not a bad person perse just young and misguided which is why she ends up making lots of bad choices.

Andre is the servant of the de Jarjeyes family manor and is commanded by the General to protect and serve Lady Oscar with his life. He enjoys his job as he gets to be close to Oscar whom he secretly admires but tries to ignore his own feeligns because Oscar doesn't want to be viewed as a woman. Andre doesn't have any personal goals other than to protect Oscar, he might seem like the least interesting of the cast but the dynamic relationship he has with Oscar and the people they meet along the way is what makes him so likeable. This is where the similarities between Oscar and Andre and Griffith and Guts show a lot. It's not just these two characters either, many events in this short anime are what mostly likely inspired Berserk the Golden Age Arc.

There is so much to talk about this anime but in short, Rose of Versailles was way ahead of it's time in terms of storytelling, direction and aiming manga/anime towards adolescent audiences and it all worked out really well. The love triangles, the tragedy the drama and historical events it's all so tightly written. The show is filler-free and while the early episodes are a bit slow its gets better with each episode. It's a shame Rose of Versailles is niche, kind of forgotten because it didn't take off in the west and released way before the 80's anime boom. Still this is one of the very best anime i've ever seen i can't recommend it enough!!

Deservingly a masterpiece of animation in general with an interesting storyline, there are only two gripes I personally have with this series: the first one has to do with the second half of the anime, well directed but with some elements in the character behaviour that are not convincing enough, while the second concerns the massive amount of love and praise the character of Oscar De Jarjayes seems to enjoy by public at large. Why I have problems? because her whole arc (especially the copious amount of Yuri innuendos) seem completely tackled on with no reason to be there in the first place, while the ... real protagonist and the one who is presented in the most feminist way - gasp, gulp, call the trolls! - is Marie Antoinette, who the one who fights against the patriarcal rules of the Versailles court while giving all she can to the people she loves, the one who is the victim of sexist prejudices and the one who, while not shedding one drop of blood, does not comprimise until the very end with what men want to impose on her, those being the nobles or the peasants. So, Marie Antoinette should be intended as the real Rose of Versailles, not Oscar, Marie Antoinette which love life strikingly reminds of the protagonist of the indian movie Charulata. Other than that, there are no complaints in any way. Of course, watch the original japanese version with amazing OST and Seiyuu performance and, if you like me love from the very deep the feminist masterpiece Kanashimi No Belladonna (from which the intro is a direct reference), enjoy it even more.

Ah, a 1979 Shojo anime? I have to admit, I was skeptical, but I ended up enjoying this one a lot.

Story: 10/10
The story is set in the final days of the French Monarchy, and it tells of political drama, interpersonal drama and petty drama that, as every person even vaguely familiar with the fate of the historical Bourbon Kingdom of France, ends up culminating in a way rather unfavorable for the ruling class. Focusing on how contemporary society changed, and how the main characters interacted with it and each other, it's a masterpiece of storytelling.

Art: 9/10
This anime is very pretty, even despite it being made ... in the 1970s and an adaptation of a somewhat artistically bare-bones manga. Despite that, it was very enjoyable to watch and had an undeniable charm to it.

Sound: 9/10
It's from 1979. The music is very good and evokes the feel of late feudal France. The Opening and Ending themes are classics that you most likely will enjoy regardless of musical taste. iirc there's a couple of disco inspired songs in the soundtrack, which make the late 70s charm of this anime even greater.

Characters: 9/10
This series has so many iconic characters that you will love and love to hate, starting from the main characters. Sadly, a scene late in the anime brutally murders one of the characters, who until then was one of my favorites. Unfortunate, and really the only reason why this anime isn't on my Favorites' list.

Enjoyment: 10/10
This anime is a masterpiece. I loved every second of it (except for one scene late in the anime), and was left yearning for more by the time the last episode ended. The music is great, the art is great, the characters are great and without the before-mentioned scene, which ruined the enjoyment of a plot element for me, it would have without a doubt have been my personal favorite anime of all time.

Overall: 9/10
Even if you don't watch old anime, watch the Rose of Versailles. You won't regret it.
Maybe check out the content warnings, as the anime can get heavy at times. And if a scene late in the anime will make you feel empty inside, keep watching. It maintains a consistently extremely high quality despite that.

A very rare shojo anime that blew me away. A very deep story based on historical facts, real characters, with the addition of fictitious characters and the connections between all of them perfectly depicts the period of France at the end of the 18th century and the people who lived at that time. The characters are perfectly done, even the supporting ones, everyone has their own story, and everyone is present in the anime for a reason. A combination of historical facts, the complexity of the characters, how each of them copes with problems, both of a personal nature and those caused by the state ... of the country at that time. Plus, it's a rare anime where the female characters are treated so well and deeply, not only Lady Oscar, but also the supporting ones. This is an anime that evokes emotions, both happy and sad. The art and music are also excellent, they remind me of a fairy tale.