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EP. REVIEW: Violet Evergarden


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kinghumanity



Joined: 03 Nov 2014
Posts: 365
PostPosted: Thu Jan 25, 2018 5:56 pm Reply with quote
I have a major bone to pick with episode 3 of VEG:

What the hell was the purpose of the Doll course?!

We didn't really get to see Violet & co learn anything, and it didn't contribute in moving the story forward. Violet was awarded at the end because of.......a single three-line letter that she wrote. I doubt the doll course will come up again in the show, so I'm left wondering why it even existed in the first place. Luculia could have been Violet's coworker at CH Post office, and their encounter and friendship would probably flow much better. In fact, most of my gripe with this episode would have been solved if the doll course didn't exist. More time would have been given to Luculia's character.

Other than that, I like the episode and I have no complaints about the storytelling.
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meiam



Joined: 23 Jun 2013
Posts: 3442
PostPosted: Thu Jan 25, 2018 7:51 pm Reply with quote
kinghumanity wrote:
I have a major bone to pick with episode 3 of VEG:

What the hell was the purpose of the Doll course?!

We didn't really get to see Violet & co learn anything, and it didn't contribute in moving the story forward. Violet was awarded at the end because of.......a single three-line letter that she wrote. I doubt the doll course will come up again in the show, so I'm left wondering why it even existed in the first place. Luculia could have been Violet's coworker at CH Post office, and their encounter and friendship would probably flow much better. In fact, most of my gripe with this episode would have been solved if the doll course didn't exist. More time would have been given to Luculia's character.

Other than that, I like the episode and I have no complaints about the storytelling.


The doll course was essentially a montage, where the character gain become stronger over a long period of time without actually having to show all the training part... at least that would be the case if the writer were competent. Instead Violent strengths are reinforced and her only weakness is not improved in any way until it's magically fixed.

It'd be like if someone wanted to be a professional basketball player, was really good at dribbling and had good team spirit but was completely incapable of aiming when throwing a ball. So he'd go to basket ball training camp where he'd learn to dribble and how to be a good teammate and no time would be spent on learning how to aim. But after the camp was over he'd be placed in the best possible condition to be able to throw and aim and threw one ball in more or less the area he was aiming at, and he'd instantly receive a certificate for it (after the head coach said he'd have the highest standard possible).

Since it's filler episode I'm not quiet sure if next episode Violet will instantly be good at interpreting context, that remain to be seen.
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Yazu13



Joined: 19 Jul 2017
Posts: 129
PostPosted: Thu Jan 25, 2018 9:07 pm Reply with quote
I find myself very impressed with Episode 3 in particular. The amount of restraint displayed in this episode was beautiful, and gave Violet some crucial development without being phoned in. Her letter that she wrote for Luculia had Violet's trademark succinct and to-the-point nature, yet conveyed lots of emotion that only Luculia and her brother would understand. Like the episode says, it doesn't always take flowery language to make a letter great, so Violet's letter ended up being perfect even though she still lacks a lot of emotional understanding. That's what I mean by the episode having restraint too; Violet still has problems and is very nearly still at square one, but this is like the cracks starting to form in a dam. They could've taken her development further, but I don't feel like it would've been as true to Violet's character. Truly masterful and impressive, giving the audience a heartfelt story in Luculia and letting us warm up to Violet, but not too much. Excellent storytelling discipline, the perfect touch of restraint.
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Blood-
Bargain Hunter



Joined: 07 Mar 2009
Posts: 23667
PostPosted: Thu Jan 25, 2018 9:16 pm Reply with quote
Very well put, Yazu13. Agree completely.
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CatSword



Joined: 01 Jul 2014
Posts: 1489
PostPosted: Thu Jan 25, 2018 9:53 pm Reply with quote
WhIle I enjoyed episode 3, I also have a problem with Violet getting to graduate after writing one decent three-sentence letter. It would’ve been more realistic to have the cold teacher reading the letter, smiling, and saying “Perhaps there’s hope for her to be a Doll after all.”, followed by at least another episode or two with Violet at the school.

As it currently stands, Violet’s graduating was a plot convenience: “We’re out of things for her to do at the school, so she’s going to graduate.”
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DuskyPredator



Joined: 10 Mar 2009
Posts: 15433
Location: Brisbane, Australia
PostPosted: Fri Jan 26, 2018 2:22 am Reply with quote
The subplot with Luculia's brother kind of reminded me of a particular episode of Princess Principal, which also had a story with a drunk that was unsightly, but other feelings involved. I think it might actually work if some more complex stories of people that Violet comes into contact with.

But also, it is like no one is trying to actually teach the things that Violet needs, they just scorn her because she does not understand what other people find easy when really what she needs is someone to talk about emotion with her. Or kind of like that thing where you read literature and then try and explain what it meant. There is not just one way people learn something.
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Gina Szanboti



Joined: 03 Aug 2008
Posts: 11306
PostPosted: Fri Jan 26, 2018 8:11 am Reply with quote
DuskyPredator wrote:
But also, it is like no one is trying to actually teach the things that Violet needs

That was my main complaint about this episode. I don't know how Violet is supposed to know how to write a letter if she's barely read one. What I really wanted was for the teacher to have Luculia (or someone else) write the same letter Violet was tasked with, and let her compare hers to how it should be done, to give her some insight on what she's doing wrong. As it stands now, she knows her letters aren't right, but hasn't a clue what they should be like.

I also agree with the review in that it seems like Violet would be the world's best at taking dictation, so why isn't she typing exactly what people are saying?

That doesn't mean I didn't like the episode, but that was bugging me a lot. Smile
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青白



Joined: 30 May 2012
Posts: 184
PostPosted: Fri Jan 26, 2018 10:23 am Reply with quote
All the problems mentioned so far in the comments and the review about episode 3 made it impossible for me to enjoy episode 3. Who the hell wrote this episode?
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Cave



Joined: 02 Sep 2005
Posts: 80
PostPosted: Fri Jan 26, 2018 1:56 pm Reply with quote
People asking about why she was able to graduate after writing only one letter... It's because that letter would have initially been IMPOSSIBLE for her to write. There is so much deeper meaning in those three lines that she wrote then what she was writing before. This was NOT supposed to be a "suddenly she's a professional" type of situation. No, this is her first step in overcoming this hurdle. The teacher recognized this and allowed the graduation.

I don't think the requirements for graduation are supposed to be everyone is a seasoned professional. The students have been prepared for entry level at this point.

Learn to read between the lines a bit and don't take everything at face value.

This episode was absolutely fantastic, especially the relationship between Luculia and her brother. Even if we don't see the characters again, they were unforgettable. I hope we do see them again though later.
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meiam



Joined: 23 Jun 2013
Posts: 3442
PostPosted: Fri Jan 26, 2018 4:15 pm Reply with quote
Cave wrote:
People asking about why she was able to graduate after writing only one letter... It's because that letter would have initially been IMPOSSIBLE for her to write. There is so much deeper meaning in those three lines that she wrote then what she was writing before. This was NOT supposed to be a "suddenly she's a professional" type of situation. No, this is her first step in overcoming this hurdle. The teacher recognized this and allowed the graduation.

I don't think the requirements for graduation are supposed to be everyone is a seasoned professional. The students have been prepared for entry level at this point.

Learn to read between the lines a bit and don't take everything at face value.

This episode was absolutely fantastic, especially the relationship between Luculia and her brother. Even if we don't see the characters again, they were unforgettable. I hope we do see them again though later.


Well that's not how any school work, at all. You're progress is irrelevant, the important point is that when you have a certificate/diploma (in this case a brooch) you have a certain level in all important skill. You'll have multiple component/class and need to pass every single one to show to prospective employee that you can do the job at least at a basic level (you can be a straight A+ in everything else, if you fail the most important part of a program you're never graduating). Part of the point is to teach those skills to the student. Violet didn't get taught anything, she wrote one letter, for someone she knew for days (weeks?), that letter had 2 sentences. That's not a basic for anything at all.

The teacher started by saying that she'd have high standard and half the class didn't even graduate. Yet Violet graduate with such a low level? How low is the level of all the other student for that to happen? See that's the in between the line that tell you it's shoddily written.
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青白



Joined: 30 May 2012
Posts: 184
PostPosted: Thu Feb 01, 2018 7:11 am Reply with quote
VEG, it turned out, is not an interesting show as people have hyped it out to be. Episode 4, while not a disaster as 3, felt very boring trying to follow around a character that nobody cares about with a bland plot. If they keep this up I am gonna have to unfollow the show. Good thing I didn’t pay Netflix for this.
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Angel M Cazares



Joined: 23 Sep 2010
Posts: 5406
Location: Iscandar
PostPosted: Thu Feb 01, 2018 12:27 pm Reply with quote
Episode 4

This was another nicely put together episode. Iris is a very cliche character, but I thank the show for going to the country side. Violet keeps making progress with human interactions and emotions. That being said, this is the first time in the show that I have wondered if the story is going somewhere. Violet and her past remain very intriguing for me, but I am afraid that alone is not going to be enough to elevate Violet Evergarden from a good to a great anime.

The good news is that there are 10 episodes left to improve and return to, and perhaps surpass, the very high quality of the first 2 episodes. It is way to early to give up on this show.
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Dian Z





PostPosted: Thu Feb 01, 2018 12:55 pm Reply with quote
I have to say that VEG has disappointed me too.
Now they've definitely gone the episodic route with each episode telling a self-contained story from a certain character's pov, with Violet somehow involved as a side character while getting her developed as a human being. The problem with this formula, for me, is that each story is forced into ending in an episode, thus lacking some strong foundation for the story and likely rushed and oversimplified resolution. I enjoyed the first three episode, but beginning from this fourth episode, just made me realize that I think at least since eps 3, the writings have been pretty weak and got nothing new, and especially the characters being overtly 'emotional' even Violet. I don't know whether to question the way the show handled the characters' emotion, but as they show too much of their emotion, I relate less to them, as if being told than shown.

Happened in Beyond the Boundary too, so I guess it's Ishidate's style. Because everyone, regardless of personality, is capable of that melancholic look with knitted eyebrows. Violet too, will soon.

(Right, I'd say I'm just not fond of the melodrama or soap-ish storytelling, welp, been trying to avoid mentioning the word but there I said it.)
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Gucchan



Joined: 22 Jan 2018
Posts: 4
PostPosted: Thu Feb 01, 2018 12:58 pm Reply with quote
I'm not sure what it is about Violet Evergarden, but this anime really isn't grabbing me. At first I thought it might be because I'm not a huge fan of SoL anime, but A Place Further Than the Universe is easily one of my favorite animes this season, so I don't think that's it. I just can't seem to connect with or bring myself to care about these characters at all. I don't really think it's bad, just... average. Also, is every episode going to include a scene where Violet removes her gloves and the people around her stare at her arms in shock and surprise? It's getting old fast.
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Lemonchest



Joined: 18 Mar 2015
Posts: 1771
PostPosted: Thu Feb 01, 2018 2:15 pm Reply with quote
Have they announced plans for a film of VE? I ask because atm the reliance on rather uninspired original episodes is kind of sounding like Haruhi season2, where the producers decided after production started to turn the Disappearance into a film, leaving almost nothing new to be adapted. Then again, there's only two volumes of the books, so maybe they just overestimated the number of episodes they'd be able to get out of it.
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