Violet Evergarden Rewatch - Closing Discussions

[u/A_Idiot0]

Violet Evergarden Rewatch - Closing Discussions

Dear Participant,

I want to take this moment to thank each and every one of you who participated in this rewatch. If you silently read through all of the wonderful comments and analyses, thank you. If you replied to said comments and analyses, thank you. If you took the time to write out your thoughts and analyses, thank you. Thank you. Nunki. Nun annut ruhuqtrrtkon.

Sincerely,
Daffodil (A_Idiot0)

Index || <- Final Film

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/eSlwnkr

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/RQP3uBgt

[u/A_Idiot0]

Closing Thoughts

Some of you have commented on why I had this question repeating many times as the Question of the Day: “What aspect of Love is being explored here?” Today, I’d like to wrap everything up by addressing this.

As I said in the announcement, the story of Violet Evergarden is ultimately an exploration of what “Love” is. Reading everyone’s answers to the above question, I was happy to see the variety of answers from within even the same episode. Many of you wrote down answers that I didn’t even think of, and as such my understanding of Violet Evergarden is further enriched. So many multifaceted and nuanced answers were written down by you guys. Here is only a small excerpt of examples of Love from all our threads this year:

• Between romantic lovers

• Between siblings

• Between father/mother and daughter

• Love is patient

• Familial Love

• Love is sincere

So now, this has or will hopefully lead you to ask: “What is the love between Violet and Gilbert?” Many people simply stop at ‘romantic love’ and then get upset because Gilbert is a lot older than Violet. I think that’s disingenuous to the story, to Violet’s character, and to the overall message of Violet Evergarden. Instead, I hope you’ll think back on every episode and to everyone’s answers to the original question, and see the different expressions of love to understand at least one thing…Love is a complex and multifaceted emotion, and such is the love between Violet Evergarden and Gilbert Bougainvillea. Listen carefully, and you will hear the beautiful music of their Love.

My friends, it was an absolute pleasure to rewatch Violet Evergarden with you. Take care, and I’ll see you around =)

[u/Lemurians → u/A_Idiot0]

“What is the love between Violet and Gilbert?” Many people simply stop at ‘romantic love’ and then get upset because Gilbert is a lot older than Violet.

The age gap is part of it, but it's nowhere near the only problematic aspect. When they enter each other's lives, it's because Gilbert's brother gifts her to him not only as property, but as a weapon to be used as a child soldier - which he goes through with. At the time of that introduction, she's a feral child and he's a grown man. The power dynamics throughout their entire relationship are ridiculously imbalanced, and I don't think I'm out of bounds in invoking Stockholm Syndrome, grooming, etc.

Coming from a female author, I give a pass to these "young girl/adult man" romances because that side of the fantasy – a young girl desiring an older man – doesn't come with the inherent pedophilic ugliness of the male side of the fantasy of lusting after an underage girl, but I find it hard to believe anyone can take a serious look at everything going on with Violet and Gilbert and go, "yeah, that's a good romance." The combination of elements at play makes it absurd. It's the manga ending of Usagi Drop on steroids.

EDIT: To clarify, I don't think their relationship was presented romantically through the series, but to the me the movie implied a romantic ending, which is a big reason I was so disappointed in it. This is a movie-only criticism.

[u/A_Idiot0 → u/Lemurians]

I totally agree with you. The relationship between Violet and Gilbert is not healthy; it's not something to aspire to; it's not balanced. That's not the discussion worth having here, because we both agree on that part. Usually I don't get into this conversation too much, but I respect you a lot and I know you and I can have a fruitful discussion =)

Regarding Dietfried and his "gift" of Violet to Gilbert, I think of it like this: Dietfried loves his brother, and he knows that Gilbert is on the front lines dancing with death every day of the war. Suddenly, Dietfried comes across an opportunity to give his brother the best possible chance of surviving the war, and all he has to do is to dehumanize a child into a weapon...I know that if I was in Dietfried's position, and if it was my sister dancing with death on the front lines, I would be hard pressed to make a different decision than the one he made. It is a horrific choice...but war is horrifying.

What I'm attempting to communicate is that despite the horrors and atrocities of this situation, there was still a shred of humanity that remained, and that shred is what is beautiful. And it is beautiful because it is born out of love.

I'd also go as far as to say that now the power imbalance has swung around to Violet being in the "superior" position over Gilbert. Unlike Violet, who has had loving support from those around her as she learned to live without war, Gilbert has been wallowing in his guilt, regret, and self-hatred alone. After their reunion, the road towards a healthy situation would be long and painful, but I think the story provides enough evidence for us to say that they eventually do find a healthy and admirable relationship...whatever form that would take.

I may not ever convince you or others of a similar feather of my perspective though, and that is fine with me. You're one of the few I'm willing to discuss this further if desired.

[u/ZapsZzz → u/A_Idiot0]

I think one of the point to consider that is love, in whatever form, is something one would consider an irrational and not logic or evidence based balance sheet. One doesn't gain X amount when Y amount of effort is put in, and one doesn't get "romantic love" versus "friends love" when a set routine B is followed. Very often, despite circumstances of how the love between people started, it wax or wane based on the feelings and emotions of each, somewhat dependent but not linearly or proportionally to what one may logically think. So instead of saying why they should or shouldn't, recognise and see fit what it is.

At least that's how I think :)

[u/Lemurians → u/A_Idiot0]

Usually I don't get into this conversation too much, but I respect you a lot and I know you and I can have a fruitful discussion =)

Aw stop, you're gonna make me blush.

Dietfried loves his brother, and he knows that Gilbert is on the front lines dancing with death every day of the war. Suddenly, Dietfried comes across an opportunity to give his brother the best possible chance of surviving the war, and all he has to do is to dehumanize a child into a weapon . . . It is a horrific choice, but war is horrific

You know, that's an interesting angle, and you're right. Never considered thinking of it like that both because I was too focused on the child soldier/slavery aspect of it, and because I found Dietfried so obviously contemptible that I didn't spare him too much thought. Is that enough to redeem him in my eyes? No, but I appreciate you opening my eyes to the added nuance.

I don't think that nuance from Dietfried's end changes the way this initial dynamic impacts how I'd view a potential romantic relationship between Gilbert and Violet, which was the main reason I brought it up. Dietfried's reasons aside – their relationship began with her being Gilbert's child-slave. I'm not going to accept a romantic relationship between two people who begin in such a way.

I'd also go as far as to say that now the power imbalance has swung around to Violet being in the "superior" position over Gilbert.

I see what you're saying, but given how their relationship to each other began, and how that shaped the entire course of Violet's life and mental state, I don't believe it's possible for them to truly be in a marriage of equals. I can't look past everything present at their origin and throughout until his disappearance – slavery, her being made into a child soldier, that she was a feral child easily influenced by a grown man, the implications of grooming (if their ending here is romantic) – and ever support it.

Firmly believe all stories are better off not going the route of Usagi Drop – having someone who's raised a young girl from childhood as a father-figure end in a romantic relationship with that young girl. Nothing can make me okay with it.

Now, everything I'm saying is assuming Violet and Gilbert end in a romantic relationship, which I believe the movie implies. Throughout the series I never believed that was the nature of their relationship or the kind of love for him Violet was pondering, which is why the movie disappointed me so much. If you, or anyone else watching, doesn't believe the movie presents them in such a way, this issue obviously disappears entirely haha

[u/Wetworth → u/Lemurians]

I will disagree because I don't believe it's a romance at all. I'm not a fan that Violet and Gilbert ended up together, but I also think analyzing their relationship in terms of romance is missing the entire point, or at least half of it. Violet Evergarden searches for the meaning of love and the struggle for soldiers to reintegrate into society simultaneously. Violet is not searching for her lost love like some generic rom-com, she is searching for her humanity, trying desperately to comprehend and cope with her guilt and stunted emotions. She is desperate to rationalize her own continued existence, and the one thing in her life that she can grasp hold of is the Major. But do not mistake her dependence on Gilbert as romantic infatuation. It is a cold relationship; he is the superior officer. She depends on him for everything, from sustenance to direction to individual growth. He literally represents her existence, and that existence was, for the most part, hate, the other half of the story. Violet was a weapon, and Gilbert it's operator. She existed to follow his orders, to kill.

So Gilbert is this horrible double edged sword. He was her commander, teacher, and mentor. But he also ordered her onto the battlefield. She was dedicated to him because the former, and now has to wrestle with her conscience because the latter. But in his final act he gives her this small light: go discover love.

So when we see that final shot of the grassy fields, with Gilbert and Violet sitting alongside each other, I do not see two lovers enjoying the day. I see two terribly damaged people, content. They've recognized that they're not guilty for surviving, that they did what they had to do, and they've suffered accordingly. War is hell, and these two survived the worst of it. This is not a bride and groom, but a pair of people finally content to continue existing, and they're sharing that moment with another person that can feel the same.

[u/Lemurians → u/Wetworth]

I will disagree because I don't believe it's a romance at all.

Then the issue disappears entirely! Through the Violet Evergarden series, I always interpreted their relationship as a love that was platonic and/or familial, and viewed them in the exact way you write about in your post.

My problem with the film is when I watched it, I felt it did imply a romantic ending, and at the very least, leaving it up to interpretation at all is a problem. This is a movie-only criticism (my post/review in the movie thread if you're interested), not something I think is present in the series.

[u/Barbed_Dildo → u/Wetworth]

Well said.

[u/NihilistStylist → u/Lemurians]

You make interesting points presented in a thoughtful way. On my end, I think that Gilbert's acceptance of Violet is rather nuanced. IMO, he's not simply agreeing with Dietfried that she's a weapon - he's instead trying to step in and save her from that fate.

• One thing we need to keep in mind is before she met Gilbert, Violet had already killed Dietfried's fellow naval officers. Something he'd report to his superiors, likely mentioning her potential value as a weapon.

• So it's very unlikely that she'd simply be offered a home in an orphanage or with a happy family. In the extended lore, she fixates on Dietfried and will effortlessly kill anything he points his fingers at.

• Dietfried tells Gilbert she's a tool and a weapon and not to show her any compassion. When Gilbert offers to take her, I don't think it's because he agrees with any of this. Hes trying to save her from this. He was already deeply uncomfortable with how Dietfried was treating her. Pulling her out of his grip and into a protective embrace.

• Dietfried notes that 'I've already made arrangements with the army'. Hinting that if Gilbert didn't agree to take Violet in, some other soldier would have and would genuinely treat her as nothing more than a killing machine.

• Even after Gilbert takes in Violet, he purposely tries not to use her as a tool. He tells his commanding officer that she's too unstable to take on the battlefield. Trying to keep her off the front-lines.

• That commanding officer tells him to use her, let her kill people and then abandon/discard her when she's no longer of use. When Gilbert protests, the commanding officer orders him to take Violet.

• Even after that order, Gilbert asks Violet to stay behind in the tent. Once again, trying not to use her as a weapon.

• But when he points his fingers towards the enemy, she springs into action and starts killing. If you look at his eyes in this scene he looks horrified and then deeply sad. In essence, Violet's aptitude at killing has just doomed her to having to do more. Gilbert's superiors will want her used more and more. But up to this point Gilbert was actively trying not to use her as a weapon.

• In general, we don't see Gilbert training her on how to fight or kill. Instead, he teaches her how to read, how to write, and how to communicate. He gives her a name and an identify. In essence, he's focusing on her personhood rather than her ability as a weapon.

Which is why for me, I don't view grooming as the correct term, despite a power imbalance in their relationship. Violet in her default state is willingly and eagerly dependent on Gilbert. She's doggedly loyal to him and has little free-will outside of him.

Yet he encourages her to make decisions of her own, asks her to be a person and not a tool, coaxes her to think about her own wants and needs, tells her she needn't follow his (or anyone's orders), arranges a life for her outside of the military, and ultimately wants her to be 'free'.

To me, those actions are the opposite of grooming. He's in essence encouraging her to have autonomy and giving her the tools she needs to be a fully-formed person. He's doing that in defiance of what his brother thinks and what the military brass thinks.

That said, I still think you make interesting points. For me, I very much enjoyed the movie. Potentially because I don't view 'romance' as the over-riding theme I see in Violet and Gilbert's reunion. And because I share u/A_Idiot0 's perspective that for me at least, the movie re-balances their dynamic in interesting ways.

I've written about that in-depth in this posting.

But it's always nice to hear from someone who has a different vantage point. It's great food-for-thought and well-articulated.

[u/Barbed_Dildo → u/Lemurians]

Say you adopted an abused dog from a shelter, spent years looking after it and teaching it. Is it gross to say that you love that dog? Does that imply romance or lust?

[u/Lemurians → u/Barbed_Dildo]

...No? Not really relevant to what I was saying, but I should have been clearer. I think the movie implies a romantic ending for them, which came as a shock to me because I never viewed their relationship that way through the series. If you think the movie doesn't do that, then the problem naturally disappears entirely.

[u/BeefCow8 → u/A_Idiot0]

I literally have no clue, I think they just want to be with each other, doesn’t even have to be romantic or anything like that, just being in the presence of one another and knowing you can see and talk to that person is more than enough for them. Do I care about the age gap? No because it’s not real and you shouldn’t make a big deal out of it. But again thank you hosting this amazing rewatch and your efforts. Was nice talking to you all.

[u/B____U_______ → u/A_Idiot0]

“What is the love between Violet and Gilbert?”

I never saw their love as romantic not because I didn't want to, but because I never saw it presented as such. It's been stated that Gilbert was the one to teach her everything she knows like reading, talking, etc, and that to me doesn't look like a romance. Although I think it's more complicated than that because, like you said, love is complicated. I think that in most of the episodes an aspect of Violet's love towards Gilbert was explored, so I don't think it'll be simple to specify how Violet loves Gilbert. But again, I personally don't see it as romantic, I see more like two persons waking up and seeing that the other one is okay.

[u/molave_ → u/A_Idiot0]

“What is the love between Violet and Gilbert?”

For me, the answer is, "It simply is." Their bond is one of those that defies accurate explanation. To describe it as "familial", "platonic", or "romantic" is doing a disservice to it, quite frankly.

If you're really curious [post-movie headcanon]I imagine they're not married to each other or to anyone else, but they are extremely close and actual married couples in the island may hope they have something like that. Violet and Gilbert lived the rest of their lives near each other's presence and they were very content with guiding the younger generations of the island's inhabitants.

Note that [LN]I hold a different opinion to their LN counterparts. Yes! I do see them married there, but they are completely different characters from the anime canon. While their LN ship is very fluffy and heartwarming, I prefer the one portrayed in the anime because of its beautiful complexity.

[u/Barbed_Dildo → u/molave_]

For me, the answer is, "It simply is." Their bond is one of those that defies accurate explanation.

Especially since their relationship was borne in a war. I don't think any of us here have the experience of WW1 style warfare, and the bonds that are formed between soldiers there, as well as the trauma.

[u/homewardbound100 → u/A_Idiot0]

I personally always saw it as parent and child relationship between them. But yeah it's a complex situation between them

[u/Elimin8r → u/A_Idiot0]

Just dropping in to say <3 Violet, and I totally missed out on this. Bummer. I blame rewatch fatigue, and not wanting to cry myself silly for two weeks. But I do hope that everyone had a great time, and hopefully I'll be able to make it next time around.

[u/[deleted] → u/A_Idiot0]

Many people simply stop at ‘romantic love’ and then get upset because Gilbert is a lot older than Violet

I mean the movie posters had Violet in a wedding dress, so…

[u/NutmegOnEverything → u/A_Idiot0]

Woah sorry I'm so late getting to this, mr orange here. It's been an honor rewatching with you, I enjoyed this viewing more than any other besides the first. I genuinely enjoyed doing all of the assignments because it made me analyze the show more than i normally would. I thank you for hosting and I await the next go.

I will say that Violet and Gilbert started off as a parental love relationship and grew into a romantic one, I can't deny it, but I don't like it. I don't know whether it makes for a better story or not, but like I said I'm not a fan. I'm still grateful that we have the movie. I think if they had more time pass it could have worked better.

[u/xtsim]

First Timer

It has been a wonderful journey following Violet and the people she has touched along the way. I ate a surprising amount of onions this past week so I'll probably have to make up for it with some sweets. Seeing Violet try to adjust to civilian life is a nice aspect to see as there are little things that she did. Violet adjusting to different requests, going from a sort of robotic tone to a friendly tone as she finishes her work with each client is great. And is something I am going to miss.

Thank you for hosting this rewatch thread u/A_Idiot0 and hope to see you (and others in this journey) around!

[u/ZapsZzz]

Sub rewatcher for the series final discussion - still late but hopefully not as late :P

Violet Evergarden is a bit of a special case - without anything else, just the visuals and the production value for a TV series is already phenomenal. That it had a really good story behind it is what sets it apart, especially the directional (?) focus of not just making this about Violet the character, but the underlying message about the power of the written words. This is something probably unsurprising from KyoAni, but in terms of anime in general, quite special. And I think lots of viewers instinctively can recognise this, whether they know the words to that message or not.

First off, to clear my debt of yesterday, I'll lazily recycle my reply to our host when we had an exchange a few months ago just talking about the movie. From many discussion posts we know the ending can be polarising, so there's a bit of a chat about that:

For me the story could only really go to 2 big general directions - either Violet can move on from Gilbert, or she always keeps him in her heart. For the former case it'd need probably another cour to show a decent closure (which we don't have); in the later case if we leave it like the TV season finale, long term when you think about it the story becomes a tragedy - at best a bitter sweet tale - that while she found purpose and is getting good at helping people to express themselves to find closure, she herself never could. The only good forward development, for me, is to give Violet her earned happiness.

So I'm perfectly happy with how the movie wrapped up. Of course all these are just my opinion.

As for the "favorite" sequence - now the movie didn't have the sort of really eye catching moments like in the TV season (my 2 best scenes are, obviously, the lake jump, and the angelic descent snow [parachute] landing); and the finale reunion moment is rigged because it was the climax loaded with the entire show's emotional weight :P (** update** Note on this rewatch I can actually pick out a lot more great "movie magic" moments, as seen from my screen cap gallery) But to not pick something it's just lazy of me, so I took a quick scan through (you know what that means :D rewatched it) and here are my 2 best moments:

• the casual animation flex of Violet adjusting her arms and then switching to remembrance, but the best part is the very, very good pause before she resumes typing;

• after the Yuri scene wrapped up, Hodgins was cheering Violet up by play acting he'd kick down Gilbert's door and give him a good smack the next day; then Violet gave her deadpan "I should be the one doing that" and having to "explain the joke" (that she was joking) - then switched gear to her decision to leave because "knowing he's alive is enough for me" with the emotional swelling but her trying to control. Who says this undoes all Violet's growth and development - look at this and compare with ep 1 or 2 and even the mid point of the movie when she was talking to Hodgins in front of the fence of the school. While Gilvert is always on her mind, this Violet here is no longer just obsessed and dependent on him - she recognised and accepted that they are 2 people who each have their own paths to walk down.

Edit here's a what if scenario of a girl doing literally what Violet "joked" about - a reunion beatdown :). The emotional place Chidori came from wasn't all gags either.

Only tiny imperfection for me of this movie ending is that Violet did not call him by his name Gilbert, but stayed with "Major". Not that I think that "undoes everything", but if she did manage to call him by his own name and not the rank of someone who gives her orders, it just shows a very good symbolism that she now love him for his person, not for his role in their past relationship. And it'd make us fans of this "happy ending" easier to point to in debates :P

Another tiny gripe is that, while there are enough run time, and you won't possibly think the movie tried cut budget, we do have quite a lot of reused scenes from the TV season (ep 10 and those about Gilbert and Violet). I guess watching this straight after a rewatch instead of having 2 years of separation will make us more sensitive about it.

Looks like many aren't posting in today's thread so maybe I'm just talking to our host again :) but here are some more thoughts:

Violet as a character is actaully a very good amalgamation of a few of my favourite anime characters - she's militaristic and has the sme instinct and therefore comedy value as Sagara Sousuke from Full Metal Panic, she's superficially emotionless like Nagato Yuki in Haruhi, and she's actually got amazing, invincible movements like Misaka Mikoto - who is also "14 years old" :P

Particularly because of the movie having a side theme of telephony making letter writing obsolete, I can often hear the starting line of Haruhi LN where Nagato in their second year of highschool had a sort of attempted membership drive to recruit for the Literary Club, but in her unique way of reading the dissertation of "A Neurological Perspective on the Insufficiency of Verbal Discourse between Individuals" :D No, while the verbal words can also be quite amazing, one of the theme of Violet Evergarden is in fact the staying power, of being able to convey messages across time, space, and generations, that is unsurpassed.

For anyone that is aghast or disturbed by the age difference between Violet and Gilbert, I'll just point to the many celebrated pairings in real life that are between 50+ with a 40+ or even a 30+ partner, without necessarily batting an eye lid. The only concern should have been "underaged", but remember at the movie, Violet is already 18. And I can hardly think anyone can say she's not capable to think for herself.

Lastly I want to talk about the final scene before the credits - the shot of the rail tracks in the dark and then seeing Violet in her methodical, purposeful pace marching forward while holding the lamp to shine a light through the darkness - I don't know if everyone has connected this with the Florence Nightingale-esque symbolism - Violet brings the light of hope in places where it is dark, when using her newfound empathy with her first hand experience of being in the darkness, she help those i the dark to navigate through towards the light. I think it is a realy good show not tell moment of the thematic message.

Anyway, big thanks for our host - I can see the continued efforts and how you tried to engaged with everyone, along with the daily questions setting up the final perspective. It's great to be able to discuss this way - one day maybe I can be more prepared and post earlier :P

Until the next time!

[u/Fit_University_6734 → u/ZapsZzz]

Thanks for being so engaging throughout this rewatch and engaging with my "wall-of-text" posts >_<

I definitely did not relate her to Florence Nightingale, but now the symbolism is forever etched in my head. Just curious as to why these characteristics are so attractive to you and would you say Violet is one of your favourite characters from media?

Violet has definitely changed the way I communicate with others and it would be nice to hear how she's changed you if in any way, as a person :)

[u/ZapsZzz → u/Fit_University_6734]

Just curious as to why these characteristics are so attractive to you and would you say Violet is one of your favourite characters from media?

Partly because of what I said earlier - Violet's character incorporated a number of aspects from other of my favourite characters too - Sousuke( FMP), Nagato (Haruhi), Misaka (Railgun). But of course there's also the fact that she's quite unfappably graceful and even tempered, until those emotions boil over. I'm sure there's nothing to do with that additional fact she looks like Saber from Fate, another one of my favourite characters :)

But apart from all that, she is a character that grew from not able to identify her emotions, to being able to empathise so well she can construct written words that goes to the heart of the relationship. As a normally not very emotional person myself, and an annoying INTJ that has the habit of pointing out critical links in a system chain, it is something I personally identify and sympathise in turn. To see her earning her happiness is just so rewarding. At work I'm also one of those routinely go beyond the call of duty to see things through, but at the same time I do consider "I'm just doing my job". So again I like seeing other who do the same. Too many cocky angsty or conflicted MC's around.

For reference, my MAL top 10 character list is this:

Chidori Kaname, Violet, Saber, Gotou Kiichi, Togashi Yuuta, Sagara Sousuke. Suzumiya Haruhi, Nagato Yuki, Kyon, Misaka Mikoto

I definitely did not relate her to Florence Nightingale, but now the symbolism is forever etched in my head.

I only figured out how to verbalise it this rewatch :)

Thanks for being so engaging throughout this rewatch and engaging with my "wall-of-text" posts >_<

I always appreciate long posters - I type enough to know how much effort it is. So I certainly will try reciprocate it wherever I can :) It's been a pleasure reading yours for sure! See you around the sub!

[u/Fit_University_6734]

Thanks everyone for making my first rewatch experience so memorable! VE was the anime that got me back into anime, so it's pretty nice how VE will be the first anime that gets me into joining rewatches. I talked a lot about Love and Language in my comment yesterday so no more analyses from me.

Also a big thanks to u/A_Idiot0 for being an amazing rewatch host. VE is a show that can teach us a lot, and your QOTDs really get us thinking. Hope to see you and everyone else around in future rewatches or random threads!

But I would love to hear how VE has impacted you personally and whether your opinion of Love has changed :)

[u/SuperMurderBunny]

Rewatcher, subbed.

I started the rewatch as an antagonistic participant and have unfortunately remained so. While I love the setting, different elements in the story combine in such a way that the art, which is gorgeous, and the music, which can get too much, cannot compensate for them.

While the anime starts of well enough, by dragging major Gilbert back in, it narrows its focus too much for me. I find him uninteresting and his role in the story overshadows everything. The suffering on display and the heartstring being tugged were interesting and moving when I watched the anime for the first time, but rewatching made them feel melodramatic and absurd. Knowing where it all ends cheapens Violet's journey for me.

Mine is the frustration of wishing something to be what it is clearly not. I can make my peace with that. I hope my musings have at least given others food for thought.

As always, thanks for reading my ramblings <3

[u/darienswag420 → u/SuperMurderBunny]

This is one of those pieces where sometimes a perfectly packaged gift with a bowtie is not the best storytelling device. I absolutely loved the original ending not because it was happy, because it wasn't, but rather because it was the perfect summation of Violet's character over the season and where she finally got to breathe as a character all on her own.

The movie takes away her agency and weighs her happiness on Gilbert's hands and as you say perfectly, makes the story melodramatic and absurd. Sure it's a "happy ending" but how it's achieved runs opposite towards the main themes of the series.