FIF#49-Violet Evergarden

Violet Evergarden was once one of the fiercest weapons in battle.  During a long war, she was the ultimate tool of destruction.  But when the war ended, Violet was left without her arms, without her commanding officer, without purpose or orders.  Following her recovery, Violet is left in the care of an old friend of her beloved superior and comes to work at a postal service.  She joins the newest popular branch, the Auto Memory Dolls, and begins to transcribe letters for people who cannot properly write down their feelings.  It’s an odd job for a former soldier who has known nothing but combat her whole life.  But for Violet Evergarden, this job might be the only way she can come to understand the last order her Commander bestowed upon her…

This title came recommended through the comments of a friend on Twitter and I had been wondering just what the heck Violet Evergarden was outside of the quick trailer.  So I decided to add it to the FIF list and see what all the fuss was about.  My initial thoughts: Well…for some reason I couldn’t stop thinking about Downton Abbey…weird. 

There’s definitely a powerful and sad story to be found here through Violet alone.  Child soldier, unable to properly convey simple human emotion, unable to do anything without it being an order.  She’s such a beautifully drawn character but is so damaged beyond the loss of her hands.  Violet’s lack of people skills did provide a couple of laughs when she was correcting grammar errors or pointing out the flaws in certain peoples logic.  But she never came off as annoying and I only felt sad and sorry for her most of the time.  And just how is Violet going to react when she finds out her precious “Major” is probably dead?  The sight of her trying to drag him out of danger, with just her teeth, was one of the most powerful ive ever seen in an Anime.

The character designs of Violet Evergarden looked instantly familiar and after a quick Google search I found that Kyoto Animation was behind this baby (hence why Hodgins looks like a fusion of Mako and Rin from Free).  Their creation of a beautiful English countryside is beyond compare and, much like everything else they do, Kyoto Ani injects a lot of reality, making this world feel so freaking real, like looking right into history.  I guess that’s kind of why this show reminded me of Downton Abbey so much, that and the music.  Lots of Piano’s and violins here, so much so I expected the Downton Theme Song to suddenly appear suddenly.

This isn’t a show I would normally watch on my own.  But there have been instances in the past where the good word of a friend has been enough to get me invested.  Violet Evergarden is short enough I could check it out in a good afternoon but will I?  I do want to see that other shoe drop once we learn what’s really happened to Violet’s Major.  But im actually more curious to see if Violet can succeed at ghost writing for patrons and finding the meaning behind those three little words everyone wants to hear from that special someone.  This could be worth the watch.  I’ll let you know how it goes.