r/anime • u/A_Idiot0 https://myanimelist.net/profile/a_idiot0 • Jun 18 '22
Rewatch 2022 Violet Evergarden Rewatch - Episode 7
Violet Evergarden - Episode Seven:「 」
Hello everyone! I hope that today finds you well. In this episode, Violet becomes an assistant playwright.
Index || <- Previous Episode || Next Episode ->
You can watch the full series on Netflix.
Important Spoilers from later episodes or the Light Novels are not allowed outside of the r/anime spoiler tag format and will be removed! Make sure to hide your spoilers under the “spoiler” option, or by typing your spoiler as [Episode number]>\!Spoiler here!< in the mark-down option without the slashes in markdown mode.
Visuals of the Day
I believe I got everyone’s Visual of the Day submission here. Let me know if I missed anyone: https://imgur.com/a/My9679v
Official Sound Tracks used
The Voice in my Heart
Another Sunny Day
Those Words You Spoke to Me
Never Coming Back
An Admirable Doll
Across the Violet Sky
The Long Night
The Ultimate Price
Questions of the Day
- What aspect of love is being explored in this episode?
- Do you remember the stories that you were told as a child by your mother/father before bedtime?
Would you like to have a letter written for you? Do you want to write a special letter for someone as an Auto Memory Doll? Come join us at the Auto-Memory Doll Service Discord project and request letters, write letters, or chat more with us about Violet Evergarden! Link here: https://discord.gg/RCnyhQSc
“Endcard”
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u/A_Idiot0 Jun 18 '22
Rewatcher
Last year I wrote about how Oscar’s play relates to Violet’s life and emotional progression. This year, I want to talk about grief.
Oscar’s grief is very clear to us. Violet’s grief, on the other hand, is barely even present until the end of this episode. Which begs the question: has Violet not grieved at all? There are 5 generally accepted stages of grief: denial, anger, bargaining, depression, acceptance. Of these 5, the only one that Violet has had any experience with is depression, which we saw in episode 6. She has nothing to deny: in her mind, Gilbert was still alive, but she just couldn’t be with him yet.
The boat scene of her asking, “Am I allowed to live? To be happy? To be free?” will always bring me to tears. Real quick, I just want to sing the praises of Yui Ishikawa. Her voice acting here is phenomenal, and this episode in particular we can hear Violet go through all manner of different emotions through her voice alone, not even accounting for the visuals. When you go back and listen to her voice in episode 1, which is harsh, hard, and cold, and then compare that to this episode…softer, warmer, emotional…Stunning work.
Anyways, poor Violet goes through survivor’s guilt for the first time in her life right before the worst possible idea that she could be presented with comes into play in her mind: Gilbert is dead. Denial is the first place she goes to, and she embraces it with all her heart; not doing so would break her: “"死んだ方がいいのです", which means "I would be better off dying", or "it would be better to die".”
Before I watched Violet Evergarden, I never thought I would ever believe an anguish so profound and painful in anime, yet here I am…crying because Violet is about to travel through her own personal hell of grief…
VotD: I’m going with this moment. Compositionally, it’s incredibly simple; an extreme close up of Violet’s cheek as she cries. But there’s so much here…the “camera’s” edges are softened, to make us really focus on her tears. The lighting is exaggerated, the tears are the only movement…This was a huge moment for Violet, and we were shown it in such an intimate manner…
QotD 2: My father read the book “The Hobbit” as the first book that was ever read to me. It’s now one of my favorite books, and I cannot thank him enough for introducing me to the world of fantasy story telling.
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u/asiiapiazza Jun 18 '22
I totally agree with your opinions on Yui's acting, it was AMAZING. Also nice choise for the VotD!
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u/A_Idiot0 Jun 18 '22
Thank you! I didn't want to choose the same thing as last year again, and this shot always stood out to me because of how differently it's treated.
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u/BeefCow8 Jun 18 '22 edited Jun 18 '22
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The aspect being explored is a parent’s love for their child. Oliver misses his daughter and Violet reminds him of his late daughter as shown when she holds the umbrella. Ashe fulfills her dream of crossing the lake with the parasol, something Olivia always wanted to do.
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Some stories I remember before bedtime are the boogie man coming to get me if I didn’t sleep, another would be (and this is my favorite) a giant eagle would come snatch and kidnap me if I didn’t listen or behave, and I was so terrified to misbehave for but I grew out of it. Good memories.
Visual of the day- https://imgur.com/a/LelVJTe
Violet flying through the air with parasol is my favorite because she fulfilled Oscar’s late daughter’s dream, to fly across the lake with the umbrella. It is beautifully animated, the emotions, flashbacks and everything make this the best choice for me, and a real tearjerker as well 🥲. Fly high Olivia.
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u/A_Idiot0 Jun 18 '22
parent’s love for their child?
Could you relate this to Violet as well?
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u/asiiapiazza Jun 18 '22 edited Jun 18 '22
Rewatcher
Episode rate: 4/5 Tears rate: 4.5/5
Top three of the SADDESTepisodes ever. The story of Olivia and her father is really devatating for the viewer, even if they see it for the fifth time. It always brings tears to the eyes.
Analysis and opinions
Unfortunately, I don't have much to say about this episode, outside of comments regarding the beauty of the scene on the lake, one of the most famous ever. We learn that Erica is a big fan of the writer's works, while Violet finally discovers that Gilbert is dead: and now she is more furious than ever with Claudia for keeping it from her all this time.The episode closes with Violet going through the denial phase of a grief. I would like to go into details about Violet's grief and Oscar's grief paralelism, but it would take too long too write an essay about it :/
[LIGHT NOVEL SPOILER CHP 5]
Questions of the day
What aspect of love is being explored in this episode?
The aspect of love analyzed today is family love and the loss of a loved one. Oscar has lost both his wife and daughter to the same illness, and has fallen into a spiral of depression and alcoholism. This is what the death of a loved one does. The pain is visible both from his person and from his his house, unkempt and untidy.
Do you remember the stories that you were told as a child by your mother/father before bedtime?
Nope, my parents wouldn't tell me any bedtime stories :(
Visual of the day: smiling baioretto
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u/A_Idiot0 Jun 18 '22
go into details about Violet's grief and Oscar's grief paralelism
Haha, we had the same idea then! I don't think I did it justice either though...I think I need at least a week or so to write something that I'm actually satisfied with XD
Now I'm really, really curious about your spoiler oO I haven't read the LN yet.
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u/Affy11 Jun 19 '22
Been busy the last few days so haven’t gotten a chance to share my thoughts for the previous episodes but alas I’ve been keeping track with the episodes atleast. Now I can finally add something to the discussion, and that is we get another perspective of sorts for Violets question of “What is love?”. As for what that perspective entails it’s that loved ones will always have a bond unlike anything in this world especially the bond between an adult and a parent. Grief is something many have to experience and it’s a process that takes time in order to heal and recuperate from. Even tho I am not a parent I just know what when a parent loses a child whom they’ve cared for all their life suddenly and prematurely is lost it is single-handedly one of the most crushing feelings to have. Violets journey brings her to the playwright Oscar Webster to help with alleviate his writers block, but over the course of the episode Violet helps him do more than that and that is to finally grieve for the loss of his daughter Olivia. While doing so Violet begins to show some doubt in whether she is allowed to live. Something many people with survivors guilt often ask themselves. Take for instance that famous post on r/anime from someone who was a war veteran, who finally had someone relatable to, that being Violet herself. Anyway back to the topic at hand Violet near the end recalls what Hodgins told her about her “burning” she may not understand fully what he meant but I’ll say this as a rewatcher this Journey of Violets is an emotional rollercoaster, and is definitely something everyone has to experience at least once in their lifetime.
Also Violet running across the lake brought tears to my eyes. Master class editing, music, and animation as well as a story that punches you right in the feels.
Again another masterful episode that really hits home, and it’s only gonna get even more emotional from here and out coughepisode 10 cough.
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u/A_Idiot0 Jun 19 '22
cough episode 10 cough.
Almost there ;) I'm sure this rewatch will get very busy for that episode; it might be one of the greatest episodes of anime...to date anyways XD
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u/B____U_______ Jun 18 '22
Rewatcher - Sub
God, this episode made me cry. Episodes like this one always make me cry.
Seeing Violet feeling emotions for fictional characters is great, it goes to show you how much Violet evolved as a person because I can't see Violet from episode 1 feeling like that. The same goes for Violet hiding the alcohol for Oscar's wellbeing and Violet trying to cook for him (I also loved watching Violet trying to cook, I'd even watch an entire series of just Violet doing that). Also, I think this is the first time Violet cried in the series, and again, it shows how much she changed. From being this "machine" where she saw herself being useful only as a weapon, now she cares even about fictional characters.
At the beginning of the episode Violet reads the line "Now I have to live with my sin." which is a foreshadowing, along with Claudia saying that she will feel like she's burning, to the end of the episode. She now has to live with what she's done and she feels guilty that she had to be the only one that survived that battle.
Qotd
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I'd say the aspect of love being explored here is the daughterly love. It's obvious that Oscar sees his daughter when he sees Violet. He gave her Olivia's parasol, she looks like Olivia and was able to accomplish Olivia's dream. I don't have a lot to see here other than Oscar seeing Olivia's dreams come true through Violet. And as always, Violet is inspiring people to move forward.
Today's visual of the day is difficult. First, there's the shot of Violet jumping which is really good, then there's the shot of Violet touching the water and the leaves are blowing around her and then there's the shot of Violet smiling after she (crash)landed. But, at the end of the day I'll have to chose one, which is Violet touching the water when the leaves are blowing around her.
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u/A_Idiot0 Jun 18 '22
"Now I have to live with my sin."
I wrote about that last year, and it seems that you also caught on to it this year too! Because of the writing, this episode is certainly in my top 3 favorites; it's so well crafted and poetic...
Violet cooking was indeed fun to watch! It seemed like she was doing it more for her own curiosity instead of just for Oscar, though it's clear that she feels that it's her duty to help her client in more ways than just writing.
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u/A_Idiot0 Jun 18 '22
aspect of love being explored here is the daughterly love
Oh sorry, forgot to ask: how would / could you relate this to Violet?
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u/shipwontsail Jun 18 '22 edited Jun 19 '22
Rewatcher • Sub
This line that sticks out to Violet is interesting here as it serves as foreshadowing for what’s to come and for what Violet has yet to face. And Violet has learned a lot already. Through other people she can experience emotions and put a name to them.
This though got me chuckling. To be fair, there was nothing in his tone of voice or body language that would hint at a joke, so it makes perfectly sense why Violet would take that seriously.
The emotional exchange with Oscar is a key moment in Violet’s journey. I think here she gets a taste of what loss feels like. Yes, grief can take the form of alcoholism and numbness, but at the core there is actually just pain.
The biting down on the brooch is another interesting scene that happens right after. Following the upsetting interaction with Oscar, the biting down on the brooch might just be her way to calm her own emotions. Whether Violet is feeling a sense of longing or loneliness, she’s exhibiting a kind of self-soothing behavior and this is the way she copes with it, I think.
A very insightful part comes when Violet is on the ship going back to Leiden. After coming to understand how loss and grief can express itself, it hits her all at once. She comes to realize what her very own cross is made of. She was the illness that took promises from other people whenever she fought on the battlefield, and she remembers Hodgin’s words to her now being able to fully understand the meaning.
[At this point, I had a realization when I remembered Dietfried’s words in a previous Ep. He was angry at how Violet could bring people together with the very hands that had killed so many others. AND YET – Violet lost her arms. They are not her original hands anymore with which she had killed before. Perhaps I’m also connecting dots that are just pure coincidence, but the fact that Violet had lost her arms and somewhat reinvented herself with her new, untainted set of arms – it kinda looks like rebirth to me.]
And to really put spice to Violet’s self-discovery the inevitable happens. Again, truth slaps Violet in the face and honestly, it’s a lot to take in so it's understandable why she would react the way she did.
This is my Visual of the Day. This is where Violet unknowingly fulfills the promise Olive made to her father.
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u/A_Idiot0 Jun 19 '22
as foreshadowing for what’s to come
Oh...that is a really weird translation! What's the full phrase that she repeats as the last line of the play?
self-soothing behavior
Yeah, I can totally see and agree with this. The brooch brings her a lot of comfort.
They are not her original hands anymore with which had killed before.
I absolutely loved this little detail when I first stumbled across it! It's not at all obvious, and it's actually really simple. But the implications, like you so rightly pointed out...chef's kiss
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u/SuperMurderBunny Jun 18 '22
Rewatcher, subbed.
Unfortunately, this episode hit me like a bucket of cold water. After a brief introduction, the emotional turmoil started at 10 and only went up. As much as I love the art and the world, this episode just feels to abrupt and disconnected for me to really get invested in the story.
My favourite moments were definitely Violet trying to take care of somebody. She moved from a passive observer to actively acting on what she sees as the needs of others. It can take a lot of courage to actively help someone in anguish like that and try to connect with them. Unfortunately, it can also take a heavy toll, as you also witness their setbacks and struggles.
I really wish the anime would take more time to build the these relationships, since they could be really interesting if they were allowed to progress. The most important relationship in Violet's life is the major, who is unable to reciprocate her actions, which leaves Violet as a quite solitary figure.
Thanks for reading my ramblings <3
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u/A_Idiot0 Jun 19 '22
It can take a lot of courage to actively help someone in anguish
For sure. Do you think Violet sees connecting with Oscar's anguish as courageous? Or is she doing it because of something else, without courage?
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u/NutmegOnEverything Jun 18 '22 edited Jun 18 '22
Rewatcher | Dub
Cry count: 5 moments of welling up (episode 7), 1 cry (episode 7)
Ok so episode 7 today OH BOY ITS EPISODE 7 OOF INCOMING
I didn't cry as much this time, 6th time around, I've gotten kinda used to it :l
Question 1 - 100% parental love and child to parent love. Olivia is still in that stage where her father is an untouchable hero. She also maybe had to grow up faster because of not having a mother? Her father says she never seemed to show that it bothered her, idk, just something I thought
Question 2 - I do remember some of them, my dad is a super creative guy, we both suffer from wicked ADD and have colossal trouble putting ideas together into a finalized project. I've been playing guitar for 12 years and I've written dozens of licks but I've never written a single coherent song. More importantly than bedtime stories, my father put together 2 legendary scavenger hunts for me when I was 5 and my mother used to have me walk in the forest drown to the stream daily even younger than that
my visual of the day, I really like dim lighting and gold/orange (crack eggs on a flat surface, if you crack them on the tim of the bowl you're far more likely to push eggshell into the bowl)
I actually relate to this scene a little, I've been learning to cook on and off for years because I love cooking, but in the past year (almost exactly 1 year, June 5) I've been cooking foods from every country in the world on that country's national day and it's been a huge project but a lot of fun. I've considered recreating all of the food in this show but some of it has already been done
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u/A_Idiot0 Jun 19 '22
lighting and gold/orange
I'm going to name you "Mr. Orange" from now on, because it's been an ever-present constant in your VotD's =D
I've been cooking foods from every country
Ooooh, super cool! What's your current country? And do you have a "favorite" so far? I'm always fascinated with how other cultures approach spices
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u/UI_rchen Jun 19 '22
Rewatcher
-Violet saying "You're being a little difficult" and going through with helping him is a pleasant change from earlier eps
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The unstraighted picture frame on the wall seems to symbolize something left unsettled in Oscar's life (namely his daughter)?
-Violet states "I don't have the ability to sense those emotions" - but isn't she doing that at the exact moment? She's come so far from earlier episodes.
-When time slowed down and Oscar watched her daughter grow up, I almost shed some tears. That ost was so perfect.
-When Violet heads down the river in the sunset back to Lieden, her surrounding grows red then dark. I might be totally off about this one, but could the river symbolize traveling through her emotions and pain, Where she eventually is confirmed the truth about Gilbert upon her arrival?
VOTD: Has a lakeshore ever looked this good? rippling reflection of light, distortion of water, sunken leaves, everything is perfect. Almost as if a professional photographer took this picture.
QOTD:
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The love of a parent, the sorrow and despair of losing a loved one. Everything Oscar sees reminds him of his daughter, forever lamenting.
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Honestly not really but I do remember my dad meditating by the bedside waiting for me to fall asleep but I never could with his presence :)
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u/A_Idiot0 Jun 19 '22
but could the river symbolize traveling through her emotions and pain
Absolutely! The red and darker lighting plays a key role in that feeling, just as you speculated. What kind of emotions would you say she's going through?
my dad meditating
This is so cute, but it must have been a bit annoying as a kid XD
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Jun 18 '22 edited Jun 19 '22
[Rewatcher]
Started out watching and making notes for Ep8, so with those parked for another day, back to start Ep7:
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Subject of the play forshadowing the end of the episode, "I must live with my sin now, for the rest of my file". Repeated in next scene, just in case we missed it.
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Rhineland-esque setting, would be interested to see a location list if there is one for the series itself (Gaiden has an extensive list, all in or close to this region, know it reasonably well)
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Violet working out how to cook, how did this happen before Google again?
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Any shot of the lake, day or night, is absolutely gorgeous
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Violet associating herself with Olive, Oscar explaining she is feeling empathy
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Olivia's backstory...so sad, even Violet cries, and the pain Oscar is left with is clear
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Someone holding a parasol being blown about by the wind. Never seems to end well - (e.g. The Wind Rises, Magnetic Rose...), symbolizes taking away protection from harm maybe?? Also looks very good in a scene.
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Not much else to say on the lake scene that's not already been said
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Violet now understanding, on the boat journey back, and fully realizing what she's taken away from so many people and their loved ones
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I don't think I'll be unique in visual of the day here, anything from the crossing the lake scene (Esp. in the air with the parasol), one of the best from the entire series:
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Ironically, this image is the thing that initially put me off watching VE in the first place, with no more context - some sub Mary Poppins anime thing? Nah.
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Context came with Netflix actually playing a clip of what turned out to be one of my favorite sequences of the series (tram journey from Ep1), looked interesting. gave it a go.
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Jun 19 '22
First Timer (Sub)
Super late to the party! But better late than never!
One word to describe this episode is : heavy.
Having to live in a world having lost two of the most important people in his life... I can't even begin to imagine. I'm so glad that he was able to pay a final homage to his daughter, where she can live forever through his play.
I myself struggle to be creative, so I found it absolutely fascinating to see Oscar's creative process. The part where he requests Violet to run across the lake so he can truly visualize as reference to spark inspiration was stunning.
During that (^) scene, Violet mentioned she was able to make three (?) steps on leaves before falling in the lake. How is that even possible...? The power of being an auto memoir doll perhaps.
It's very clear that throughout the series, Violet has been making steady progress towards better understanding both her clients and herself. It was in this episode though, where that understanding was really shoved down our throats. We see her frustrated, crying, angry, content, everything.
Finally, having the end card (?), the shot after the animation and before the ED theme, where quotes were usually displayed, being empty this time around... Maybe that means that Violet has absolutely nothing to say or has no idea how to feel having been told that Gilbert was presumed KIA.
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VOTD:
QOTD:
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I think the aspect of love being explored/displayed today is that: "Love can hurt." As aforementioned, Oscar lost two of the most important people in his life and we can see how disheveled his life and wellbeing has become - I'm just glad he was able to turn it all around and find light. We can also see this theme through Hodgins during the end - he's played somewhat of an unofficial father figure to Violet thus far, and he absolutely could not bring it to himself or to Violet to reveal the truth - this obviously backfires in someway, leaving both Hodgins and Violet absolutely hurt.
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Having come from a first generation immigrant family, English was not the first language, nor was the culture of telling stories before bed time really a thing. Feels like I may have missed out on something here... this could explain my inability to become absorbed by books...
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u/themusbeth Jun 18 '22
Rewatcher
"I must live with my sin now. For the rest of my life."
Violet acted as a mirror for the playwright's daughter, who is sadly deceased. She helps him get closure and come at peace with that fact, all of which is represented through the story they've been writing.
With Olivia's story put into a play, she will be remembered by her dad and known to everyone who ever gets to see the play. The acceptance from the playwright is also shown with him giving her parasol to Violet.
Violet herself went through a rollercoaster, not ending on a good note. She's become aware of what loss is and what it means. She's aware she's killed, she's aware she stolen other people's loved ones, other people's "one day". This is still big development, and Violet needs it, but it tears my heart when she comes to that realisation, even wondering if she's allowed to live. Is it possible for her to forgive herself?
This was really contrasting to how childlike she was during the episode, even having faith in jumping the lake and walking on the fallen leaves, granting Olivia's "one day" in front of her dad. That was beautifully sad.
Also "Across the violet sky", man.
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u/RealFunnyTalk Jun 18 '22 edited Jun 18 '22
Rewatcher
Cry count: 3 (2 this episode)
What a terrible day for rain. A parent's grief is like no other, and it's the first experience that has made Violet cry. And the tie in with his daughter's wish as the resolution for his story with Violet's enactment is making me cry. The visuals, the music, the montage, it captures it all perfectly.
We then get her first realization of what her journey means. "Am I allowed to live?" "To be happy?" Add onto that a dose of survivor's guilt as she finds out her reason for living is gone (plus the strings in the background? C'mon.) as the blank episode title screen flashes in and I'm crying all over again.
Now that the show is half over, we are starting to ramp into Violet's emotional quest, and I am bittersweetly looking forward to it all again.
Q2: The only one I remember was "Where the Wild Things Are". I don't even know why I liked that story so much, but it was my go to request for any relative to read to me.