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Violet Evergarden
Episode 12

by Kim Morrissy,

How would you rate episode 12 of
Violet Evergarden ?
Community score: 3.6

So we've finally reached the climax of the story, that inevitable moment when Violet is once again confronted with her soldier past. I can't say I was actually looking forward to this moment, however. If anything, this episode affirms that Violet Evergarden doesn't work as a gritty war story.

There are numerous moments in this episode that stick out to me as blatantly hamfisted writing. The same villainous soldiers who appeared in the previous episode and in the flashback arc reappear again in this episode as the unambiguous bad guys. When they finally explain what motivates them to derail the signing of the peace treaty, their reasons are just what I expected; they dislike the idea of peace itself after being soldiers for so long. The narrative seems to be positioning them as foils to Violet's former soldier persona, but the comparison doesn't hold up at all. Even in her past, Violet never came across as someone who actively sought violence, only a child who lacked agency.

Diethard's character works a little better as an example of Violet's past coming back to haunt her. His anger toward Violet seems to come from a place of self-hatred and bitterness more than anything. He accuses Violet of being a “tool” multiple times in this episode; then when he saves her from the enemy soldiers, he blames her for not being the perfect soldier. Which way does he want it? His confused feelings appear to stem from grief over Gilbert's death and his need to blame someone for it. Just like their first encounter, Violet doesn't have any answers for him. The best she can say is that Gilbert ordered her to live, so she can't take responsibility for his death by dying herself. This conflict works well because there's no single villain to blame for Gilbert's death, but Violet can't help but take the blame anyway.

On the other hand, Cattleya and Benedict's presence in this episode felt rather unnecessary. They defend Violet against Diethard's insults and talk about what a good friend Violet is to them, but over twelve episodes we've never seen them interact much with Violet. Most of the episodes in this series have involved Violet going off on missions alone, so their talk of friendship at this stage feels somewhat hollow, as if their feelings are being narrated instead of shown.

The standout scene this episode was the battle on the train, although the battle choreography didn't always flow naturally. The characters moved around exactly the same way they would on stationary ground, with little regard for how to operate their weapons effectively. Although this scene does succeed in conveying how skillful Violet is at hand-to-hand combat even with a handicap, the enemy soldiers come in too close to make good use of their bayonets, making the flow of the scene somewhat illogical. Like all the other action scenes involving Violet, it's structured primarily as a cool spectacle rather than a way to depict the brutality of war.

It also doesn't help that this is the weakest Violet Evergarden has ever been production-wise. The compositing in particular struck me as weak this episode, with layers not moving well in sync at times. “Bad” by Violet Evergarden standards is still “great” by the standard of most shows though, especially this late in a TV anime production, so I shouldn't be too hard on it. Still, it felt as if the execution of some key scenes lacked the extra oomph they might have had if given more time. In particular, the first half of the episode felt somewhat stilted and flat.

I did quite enjoy the final scenes of the episode, at least. That moment when Diethard appears to save Violet was an interesting bait and switch. For a moment there, Violet was really convinced that Gilbert had come to save her. Narratively speaking, it would have been the most convenient moment for Gilbert to appear, considering that Violet had just been distraught about losing the brooch he had given her. In the end, however, it makes more sense for Diethard to appear, because he's the living reminder of the ghost from Violet's past.

I also liked the episode's final shot, when Violet blocks a bullet with her mechanical hand. Once again, this moment seems symbolic in an understated yet powerful way. Although Violet failed to save the soldier from last episode, she has finally managed to save somebody with those hands Aidan called beautiful. The war physically tore Violet apart, but even a war veteran like her can save somebody.

Overall, this episode had its ups and downs. The narrative is too black-and-white to be compelling as a war story, but the anime is polished enough to be interesting even in its weaker moments. I'm at least invested enough to wonder where all of this is going, now that most of the rebels have been defeated. Of course, the fighting was never really the point of this storyline. The real question is what it will take for Diethard to forgive Violet, and for Violet to forgive herself.

As a final note, this episode adapted part of the final chapter of volume 2. There were some significant changes in the anime adaptation, but since the story hasn't been fully covered yet, I'll leave comparisons for the next episode.

Rating: B

Violet Evergarden is currently streaming on Netflix in select territories.


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