“You’re going to learn a lot of things, but it might be easier to keep living, if you didn’t learn them, if you didn’t know them. You don’t realize your body is on fire and burning up because of the things you did. You’ll understand one day and realize that you have many burns.” – Claudia Hodgins
Violet Evergarden is a slice of life, drama, and fantasy anime. It was originally released in January 2018 by Kyoto Animation with 13 episodes. It does not have any continuing series, but does have two movies and a special.
General Rating: 8.6/10
My Rating: 10/10
Violet Evergarden is an anime I have just seen recently this year after hearing endless praise about it from a close friend of mine, and the anime did not disappoint. Violet Evergarden is an amazing and emotional anime about self-discovery, the meaning of romance, and also how to be human. This anime deals with loss, feelings, and life in general and it is overall a stunning masterpiece that has hit me hard.
The Great War finally came to an end after four long years of conflict and the continent of Telesis slowly began to flourish once again. Violet Evergarden was a young girl raised for the sole purpose of decimating enemy lines during the war and excelled in carrying out the duties given to her. Hospitalized and maimed in a bloody skirmish during the final battle of the War, she was left with only words from the person she held dearest and no understanding of their meaning. After recovering from her wounds and discovering the war was no more, Violet starts a new life working at CH Postal Services as an "Auto Memory Doll," who transcribes people's thoughts and feelings into words on paper. Moved by the notion, Violet begins her work that will take her on an adventure that will reshape the lives of her clients onto the path of her own self-discovery.
Story: Violet Evergarden is an extraordinary emotional masterpiece of an anime. It tells the story of one girl who was raised specifically for the sole purpose of fighting in the war. She never experiences any feelings or joys, except from one man, the Major, who has managed to make the war machine smile. After the war has ended, Violet feels her purpose in the world is lost and struggles to fit into society. Her demeanor is cold and blunt, her dialect and life patterns like a soldier born into war. Although this anime centers around a war, it is not a physical one, but the one Violet is left to fight for herself once the world's war has ended.
Characters: Violet Evergarden has a fairly unique cast of characters, but mainly centers around Violet, and her personal emotional journey. Violet is the only listed main character for the anime, and she is all it needs. The rest of the main supportive characters only support her through this journey and mainly center around the other workers of the Postal Services and her remaining acquaintances from the military.
Soundtrack: As any emotional anime should, Violet Evergarden has a very fitting emotional soundtrack that fully embodies its emotional and slightly dark backround. Everything about it was beautiful.
Art: As expected of a modern 2018 anime, Violet Evergarden has extraordinary art and animation that brings life to this anime. As much as I love the old 2000s art and animation style, I have to admit that the modern animation lends itself perfectly to Violet Evergarden. It's a visually beautiful anime that I immediately have fallen in love with.
I especially reccomend this anime for fans of animes like Mahoutsuki no Yome, Plastic Memories, Kino's Journey, Death Parade, Anohana, Silent Voice, 5 Centimeters Per Second, Hotarubi no Mori E, Kobato, or Gosick. It's a complete masterpiece and those who watch it I believe will be utterly moved.
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