10 Second Anime - Violet Evergarden - Episode 3

Violet trains to become an Auto Memoranda Doll and a classmate proves to be a great help to her.

Episode 3 - "May you become an exemplary Auto Memoranda Doll."

Hmm.

There were two themes threading their way through this week's episode, one major and one minor, but both of them were necessary to complete the transition of the overall narrative structure from one of prologue and origin to the rest of the season following Violet's shared experiences with her ghostwriting clients. Having an actual opening and ending credits sequence with theme songs marks that transition too, but let's talk about how the story justified including them here instead of next episode.

The major theme, seen from the very first episode, is war wounds. We know Violet is a combat veteran, has prosthetic arms and hands, and has psychologically never left the war. She still salutes, addresses people as if they were in other parts of her military, writes war reports instead offering personal touches to messages. Her classmate Luculia has a war veteran brother named Spencer. He shows all the classic signs of PTSD, requires a crutch because of a badly mangled leg, and has become a pathetic drunk.

The one hopeful thing that marks a battle scar for a veteran is that they are actually around to receive its painful reminder of what they went through. They are alive. They came back from war when so many others didn't. There are so many parts of this story's world which tell us they are still rebuilding from this terrible war and how brutal the cost of it was. It's a great symbol to make that Violet's first ever recognized letter was to a fellow combat veteran and it could have easily been written to her. "I'm happy you are alive. Thank you," is all Luculia needed to say to her big brother.

This emotion is vital to Violet's personal mission in trying to understand Gilbert's final words to her, "I love you." Just as vital were the words that came before it, "I need you to live." One has to be alive, know herself, and love herself before she can understand what it means to love another and to receive love. That first step of empathizing with another's feeling of gratefulness that someone else is alive is part of Violet's mission too.

The minor theme of the episode was siblings, specifically brothers and sisters. In Luculia and Spencer's case, that meant they were the only family they had left from the war. Mirroring that sibling sense was the makeshift family at Hodgins' business. Benedict and Cattleya bicker all day long, but they still have their quiet moments. Just like real brothers and sisters. I liked the scene at the end where they had to be reminded that they were mad at each other. That's a real family and sibling dynamic right there.

So, the major theme of war wounds helped graduate Violet into her role as an Auto Memoranda Doll. The minor theme marked another transition from being alone to finding family. Violet is going to need both for the overall story to support her episodic trips to visit clients and write letters on their behalf. It's going to be a bittersweet journey as she comes to realize how much Gilbert loved her and how much she loved him but that it's all too late. Or is it? We'll have to see where Violet's journey takes us.

Heh.

Leiden has palm trees around that bell tower? I guess it happens at a port town.

That severe looking girl flinches at the severe looking teacher. Is there supposed to be a story there?

Cute! Redheaded girl with freckles sitting next to Violet. We know how these classroom narratives work in anime.

This training school is supposed to be elite. These little brooches are big deals.

Finally. An opening song and credit sequence. I can see what the title logo is supposed to look like and... oh, for crying out loud. Who the hell can read that?

Wow. KyoAni is just showing off here. Look at the light reflecting off the metal hand.

Luculia is going to be Violet's best friend.

Hah! "I've returned from my mission." Translation - "I've come back from school." Erica doesn't even hesitate in asking how school was.

Both Erica and Cattleya are happy that Violet is doing well, but Iris is disappointed.

Benedict and Cattleya are doing a lot of childish bickering. Did they grow up together? Or did they become "close enough to fight?"

"This concludes my report." Yeah, that's what Claudia would want to read at the end of a heartfelt letter...

Big Clue! Luculia loves her big brother!

Okay, that version of what Luculia said to Violet sounds like Violet has made no progress since last week's episode of messing up the beautiful lady's playing-hard-to-get letter.

The top of this tower is going to be very important to Luculia.

Ooh, that's bad. Luculia's brother is a disable war veteran and a drunk.

I can't tell at all what country this is supposed to be if someone named "Luculia" has a last name like "Marlborough." I also keep trying to decode the alphabet based on the letters in the names of people, but there are just too many u's all over the place. Maybe it's not English, but Dutch?

Aw well, that had to happen. Violet may get top marks for typing speed and grammar and vocabulary, but if she can't read emotions, she can't graduate as a ghostwriter. She's still a glorified dictation machine. Luculia graduated and so did that flinching girl at the beginning. What was the point of showing her flinching if we never came back to it? Just to show that the Ms. Rhodanthe the teacher looks like a hardass, but isn't?

So, now what? Why is Violet going back to that classroom if there are no classes? And why did Luculia know she would be there? This isn't adding up, but it gets us to the scene where they try to write letters for each other for real.

Violet still has no idea what to write to Major Gilbert. She needs to feel something first.

Luculia told her sad family history, but the Violet got the important point - Luculia is glad and grateful her big brother came back from the war.

Everyone has war wounds; some are just more visible than others.

Violet nailed that letter. "I'm happy you're alive. Thank you."

Informal graduation! Ms. Hardass is a big old softie.

Aw yiss. Luculia did the KyoAni jump and hug.

Heh. Benedict and Cattleya stopped fighting just as soon as Luculia and Spencer had a nice moment.

Hmm. I noticed that Luculia was the narrator of this episode. Is that how the rest of the episodes will be told?

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There's a proper end sequence and song too. Violet just keeps on walking.