I kept being reminded by chat messages that today is the Dragon Boat Festival or 端午节 and so I decided to do something about it.
The ink is still wet. 😅
Saturday, May 31, 2025
May 2025 miscellaneous calligraphy pieces
These are some other calligraphy pieces that I wrote in May 2025.
I focused on basics, such as copying words from 兰亭序.
Some pieces that I wrote to kill time:
大江东去，浪淘尽，千古风流人物
明月几时有 把酒问青天 不知天上宫阙 今夕是何年
Trash taken out in four weeks
(not a lot due to a slower pace of practice)
April 2025 miscellaneous calligraphy pieces
April 2025 miscellaneous calligraphy pieces
May 2025 calligraphy "homework"
The "homework" pieces that I submitted for May 2025.
Hanshi kanji 半紙漢字: 桃花帯雨濃
Single character 一字: 會
Hansetsu kanji 半切漢字: 鶴聴碁
Hanshi kanji 半紙漢字: 桃花帯雨濃
Single character 一字: 會
Hansetsu kanji 半切漢字: 鶴聴碁
Unsubmitted pieces:
Friday, May 30, 2025
Running x86GP2 in Linux via WINE
I found this program called x86GP2 which makes running an old F1 racing game called Grand Prix 2 much easier on Windows 10 and 11. It got me thinking, "Can I run it via WINE?"
After a bit of tinkering around, I managed to get it to run via WINE. 😎
1. Download x86GP2 and extract its contents to a folder.
2. Download Grand Prix 2 from here. You need to download v1.0b English version (non-installer). Unzip to a folder. For me, I placed x86GP2 and Grand Prix 2 in the same folder (/home/user/dosgames/GP2/)
3. Start Lutris.
4. In Lutris, choose to "Add locally installed game" and point it to the file x86GP2_inline.exe from x86GP2. Under Game Options, set the "Wine prefix" as /home/user/.wine (assuming your username is user).
5. In a terminal window, run the following command
ln -s /home/user/dosgames/GP2/ /home/user/.wine/drive_c/GP2
assuming you unzipped Grand Prix 2 in the folder /home/user/dosgames/GP2/
6. Back in Lutris, run x86GP2_inline.exe; a terminal window should appear saying the config file has been created and asking you to press any key to continue.
6. Back in Lutris, run x86GP2_inline.exe; a terminal window should appear saying the config file has been created and asking you to press any key to continue.
7. Press any key, then go to the folder where you extracted the x86GP2 files and open x86GP2.cfg in a text editor.
4. There are many settings here that can be changed, but for now we just need to worry about the first one: GP2_path. Change
4. There are many settings here that can be changed, but for now we just need to worry about the first one: GP2_path. Change
GP2_path "A://"
to
GP2_path "C://GP2/"
5. Save x86GP2.cfg
6. Back in Lutris, run x86GP2_inline.exe again, it will open the game.
6. Back in Lutris, run x86GP2_inline.exe again, it will open the game.
Have fun!
Oh, you can also easily add custom tracks and such. Just unzip them into the relevant folders under the CONTENT folder of x86GP2. For example, CONTENT/tracks for custom tracks. Here's me racing in Singapore.
You can find a forum discussion on this program here.
Sunday, May 18, 2025
Notes from Violet Evergarden: Eternity and the Auto Memory Doll audio commentary
The audio commentary of Violet Evergarden: Eternity and the Auto Memory Doll (ヴァイオレット・エヴァーガーデン 外伝 - 永遠と自動手記人形) featured Ishikawa Yui (Violet's voice actor), Kotobuki Minako (Isabella's voice actor), and Yuki Aoi (Taylor's voice actor) as the commentators.
Ishikawa started by saying that there was guest cast for each episode of the TV series. Similarly, this time, the key characters were Isabella and Taylor. Kotobuki was offered the role, and she said that she and Yuki were the same age and had known each other for 10 years. She had also heard from Tomatsu Haruka (Iris's voice actor) about this series, and was happy to be involved in this series.
Recording for the TV series had already finished by January 2018, and that was when Ishikawa was told that there will be a sequel. This side story was was originally supposed to be shorter and run for only two weeks in theatres but turned out to be 1.5 hours with a script spanning two volumes. The cast talked about how their parents also went to watch the movie. When they did the voice recording, it was done in a single day, and they didn't expect it to become a full-length movie.
They also mentioned that these were the roles that they were good at playing. Ishikawa said that sound director Tsuruoka Yota mentioned that he chose the cast because of the roles that they were good in.
They then talked about how Violet's growth in the series allowed her to bring Isabella out of her shell. Yuki was there for the entire recording, and knowing the story allowed her to better portray Taylor. Looking at others voice act gave her inspiration for her role.
For the recording of the audio commentary, director Fujita Haruka also wrote down some notes. In her notes, she stated that the girls at the school were from good backgrounds and their behavior was supposed to bring out Isabella's awkwardness, but with time, Isabella's actions also became more refined as she became more ladylike. She had the ballet scene to show Isabella's initial awkwardness. Fujita recorded her own actions and shared them with the animators.
The castle the production staff visited in Germany was also both bright and dark during the day and this was incorporated into the movie. Fujita used the light and dark to portray Isabella's character. Ishikawa mentioned that she also went to Germany with the production staff.
They then talked about the white camellia. Fujita's notes stated that she used only white flowers in the first part of the movie, while the second part had flowers of many different colours. The cast also talked about how the school was located in the kingdom of Drossel where the national flower is the white camellia.
In the scene of running under the trees when Isabella was going to be late for class, Fujita stated that the speed was adjusted to between walking and running to show Violet's consideration for the physically weak Isabella.
The cast also mentioned that Violet was just copying how she was treated by Gilbert as a way of repaying Gilbert's kindness.
Fujita's notes also stated that Violet's pant suit was an idea from Yoshida Reiko (series composition) when they were going through the script. They mentioned how there were all kinds of dress styles during the dance scene, and Ishikawa brought up that, similarly, there were all kinds of cuisine in the TV series.
Recording for the TV series had already finished by January 2018, and that was when Ishikawa was told that there will be a sequel. This side story was was originally supposed to be shorter and run for only two weeks in theatres but turned out to be 1.5 hours with a script spanning two volumes. The cast talked about how their parents also went to watch the movie. When they did the voice recording, it was done in a single day, and they didn't expect it to become a full-length movie.
They also mentioned that these were the roles that they were good at playing. Ishikawa said that sound director Tsuruoka Yota mentioned that he chose the cast because of the roles that they were good in.
They then talked about how Violet's growth in the series allowed her to bring Isabella out of her shell. Yuki was there for the entire recording, and knowing the story allowed her to better portray Taylor. Looking at others voice act gave her inspiration for her role.
For the recording of the audio commentary, director Fujita Haruka also wrote down some notes. In her notes, she stated that the girls at the school were from good backgrounds and their behavior was supposed to bring out Isabella's awkwardness, but with time, Isabella's actions also became more refined as she became more ladylike. She had the ballet scene to show Isabella's initial awkwardness. Fujita recorded her own actions and shared them with the animators.
The castle the production staff visited in Germany was also both bright and dark during the day and this was incorporated into the movie. Fujita used the light and dark to portray Isabella's character. Ishikawa mentioned that she also went to Germany with the production staff.
They then talked about the white camellia. Fujita's notes stated that she used only white flowers in the first part of the movie, while the second part had flowers of many different colours. The cast also talked about how the school was located in the kingdom of Drossel where the national flower is the white camellia.
In the scene of running under the trees when Isabella was going to be late for class, Fujita stated that the speed was adjusted to between walking and running to show Violet's consideration for the physically weak Isabella.
The cast also mentioned that Violet was just copying how she was treated by Gilbert as a way of repaying Gilbert's kindness.
Fujita's notes also stated that Violet's pant suit was an idea from Yoshida Reiko (series composition) when they were going through the script. They mentioned how there were all kinds of dress styles during the dance scene, and Ishikawa brought up that, similarly, there were all kinds of cuisine in the TV series.
The cast also commented that the script did not have a lot of explanation so a lot depended on the cast. Isabella's father looked like a bad person from Amy's perspective but was probably a good person at heart, like how he put Taylor in a good orphanage. they also talked about how Isabella was the first person to call Violet a friend.
When the second part started, they talked about how the production staff used visuals to show the passage of time since the first part. In addition, Taylor looking like a boy but turning out to be a girl is also linked to Amy. They also note that Violet has grown and was now able to ask for favours on behalf of others. Another comment was that Benedict didn't wear a uniform probably because he was very particular about fashion.
Violet's room also had more things, and things were no longer just left on the floor. When Taylor and Violet went to deliver letter, they mentioned that the song Taylor sang was written by Evan, a song for Taylor to remember the alphabet.
They also noted the small changes in the clothes of Iris and Erica. As the characters in the movie talked about the future, Ishikawa hinted that the upcoming movie may be about Violet's future.
Fujita's notes stated that the first and second parts complemented each other. For example, by using the same layout even though the timeline is different.
The cast commented that just looking at Taylor purifies the soul.
Ishikawa mentioned that she had the chance to play the typewriter at the previous concert and said it took more force to type than she thought. They then talked about the short story given out to movie-goers which depicted Violet and Isabella's time at the school.
Toward the end of the movie, they didn't talk a lot during the letter scene. One comment was that the orphanage staff understood the situation with Isabella and Taylor because Isabella's father also cared about Isabella and shared with them.
Fujita's notes stated that the sky at the end had the clouds look like wings on Isabella.
The cast also talked about how the song "Amy" had the perspective change between the first part of the song and the second part.
Ishikawa then shared Fujita's message that she wanted to make a movie about how people develop their feelings for each other, how those feelings change, and she wanted to depict and give recognition to those feelings. Fujita hoped that this movie would bring viewers a bit of relief in their lives.
The cast ended by commenting that the movie, which originally was scheduled for two weeks in the theatres, had its run extended to three weeks, then longer.
My overall thoughts on Violet Evergarden The Movie
Events:
Translations of short stories:
The Tailor and the Auto-Memories Doll (unofficial translation of 仕立て屋と自動手記人形) Gilbert Bougainvillea and the Fleeting Dream (unofficial translation of "ギルベルト・ブーゲンビリアと儚い夢")
Violet Evergarden short stories: "Logbook entry" and "Diary entry" (unofficial translation)
The Starry Night and the Lonely Two (unofficial translation of 星降りの夜とさみしいふたり)
Diethard Bougainvillea's If (unofficial translation of ディートフリート・ブーゲンビリアIf) Tellsis (Nunkish) translation:
Last line of Violet's final letter to GilbertInsights on the movie:
Audio commentary notes:
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Friday, May 16, 2025
Notes from Violet Evergarden OVA audio commentary
The audio commentary of Violet Evergarden TV series OVA had Ishidate Taichi (director), Fujita Haruka (series direction), Urahata Tatsuhiko (script), and Suzuki Takaaki (world setting) as the commentators.
The OVA was set between episodes 4 and 5. As work on the "Extra Episode" started after episode 13, the animation staff had to go back to episodes 4 and 5 to look at how Violet acted and looked back then.
After the script had been finalised for the TV series, Ishidate was thinking about the story for the OVA. That was when Yoshida Reiko (series composition) suggested asking Urahata to write it. Coincidentally, Urahata received the request just a week after he watched a musical.
The storyboard for this episode was shared by Fujita, who did the first half (later clarified to be until the scene where Irma was approached by Hugo while she was waiting at the train station) and Ishidate who did the second half. Fujita's portion covered the classical musical piece, which was composed by Evan Call and he also sang a demo for it. Fujita praised his singing. The opera portion was sang by TRUE, while the lyrics were written by Evan in a fictional language. This was then used as a setting that the classical language split into northern and modern Tellsis branches.
Urahata brought up that, even in the history of opera, there was the change in language, from Italian to German, German to French, and eventually even English was used.
They said it was nostalgic to see the clumsy writing of Violet. At the same time, Violet now understood that the client was not satisfied with her work.
Urahata came up with many love letters for the lyrics. This OVA only used the soundtrack from the earlier episodes. During production, Fujita asked how to express a sad Violet and Ishidate suggested making Violet stand and look at the corner of the room.
It was music producer Saito Shigeru who suggested an episode on music.
The OVA showed the moment when Erica fell in love, but she still did not realise it.
When writing the stage play in the middle of the OVA, Urahata referenced George Gershwin's "Summertime" for Porgy and Bess as he wanted a modern drama adapted into opera. This was an era that did not have a lot of entertainment so stage plays were important leisure for general public, with no radio, no television. The setting led him to create such an opera. Fujita brought up that even units of measurements were created by Suzuki for the setting but did not have a chance to be used until the OVA.
They talked about the high cost of engaging a doll. In episode 11, soldiers talked about having no way to spend money, which was why they thought of engaging a doll to write letters. Suzuki added that the actual cost was actually touched on in the light novels.
When designing the characters, Ishidate asked for Irma's boyfriend to be made more handsome, so that he stood out from other mob characters.
Suzuki pointed out that Leiden has three train stations. There was one at each end of the city, at the east and west, plus a tram line connecting them and a central station for the tram. This was because, like in European countries, they could not run railway tracks across the built up city centre. Urahata also mentioned how train stations in Europe used to be named for their destinations, such as Finland Station in St Petersburg.
The contents of the letters in the warehouse were created after the lyrics were developed. Suzuki had gotten used to translating by then, though he bought a new 32-inch monitor to use with his existing 26-inch monitor for better workflow. Ishidate also said that he was in charge of Hodgins's handwriting in episode 13, while Fujita was in charge of Violet's handwriting such as when she tried to write letters in episode 1.
The lyrics for "Letter" were written by TRUE. The song itself was more colloquial compared to the more classical opera-style. Suzuki mentioned that the poppy flower is the flower of remembrance in England. When the song was being played, Urahata commented that Violet wrote the lyrics but, at this point in the story, still did not fully understand its meaning.
As the OVA came to a conclusion, Ishidate said that he was fortunate to be able to bring Violet to everyone and looked forward to being able to do so again.
Urahata brought up that, even in the history of opera, there was the change in language, from Italian to German, German to French, and eventually even English was used.
They said it was nostalgic to see the clumsy writing of Violet. At the same time, Violet now understood that the client was not satisfied with her work.
Urahata came up with many love letters for the lyrics. This OVA only used the soundtrack from the earlier episodes. During production, Fujita asked how to express a sad Violet and Ishidate suggested making Violet stand and look at the corner of the room.
It was music producer Saito Shigeru who suggested an episode on music.
The OVA showed the moment when Erica fell in love, but she still did not realise it.
When writing the stage play in the middle of the OVA, Urahata referenced George Gershwin's "Summertime" for Porgy and Bess as he wanted a modern drama adapted into opera. This was an era that did not have a lot of entertainment so stage plays were important leisure for general public, with no radio, no television. The setting led him to create such an opera. Fujita brought up that even units of measurements were created by Suzuki for the setting but did not have a chance to be used until the OVA.
They talked about the high cost of engaging a doll. In episode 11, soldiers talked about having no way to spend money, which was why they thought of engaging a doll to write letters. Suzuki added that the actual cost was actually touched on in the light novels.
When designing the characters, Ishidate asked for Irma's boyfriend to be made more handsome, so that he stood out from other mob characters.
Suzuki pointed out that Leiden has three train stations. There was one at each end of the city, at the east and west, plus a tram line connecting them and a central station for the tram. This was because, like in European countries, they could not run railway tracks across the built up city centre. Urahata also mentioned how train stations in Europe used to be named for their destinations, such as Finland Station in St Petersburg.
The contents of the letters in the warehouse were created after the lyrics were developed. Suzuki had gotten used to translating by then, though he bought a new 32-inch monitor to use with his existing 26-inch monitor for better workflow. Ishidate also said that he was in charge of Hodgins's handwriting in episode 13, while Fujita was in charge of Violet's handwriting such as when she tried to write letters in episode 1.
The lyrics for "Letter" were written by TRUE. The song itself was more colloquial compared to the more classical opera-style. Suzuki mentioned that the poppy flower is the flower of remembrance in England. When the song was being played, Urahata commented that Violet wrote the lyrics but, at this point in the story, still did not fully understand its meaning.
As the OVA came to a conclusion, Ishidate said that he was fortunate to be able to bring Violet to everyone and looked forward to being able to do so again.
My overall thoughts on Violet Evergarden The Movie
Events:
Translations of short stories:
The Tailor and the Auto-Memories Doll (unofficial translation of 仕立て屋と自動手記人形) Gilbert Bougainvillea and the Fleeting Dream (unofficial translation of "ギルベルト・ブーゲンビリアと儚い夢")
Violet Evergarden short stories: "Logbook entry" and "Diary entry" (unofficial translation)
The Starry Night and the Lonely Two (unofficial translation of 星降りの夜とさみしいふたり)
Diethard Bougainvillea's If (unofficial translation of ディートフリート・ブーゲンビリアIf) Tellsis (Nunkish) translation:
Last line of Violet's final letter to GilbertInsights on the movie:
Audio commentary notes:
Notes from Violet Evergarden episode 13 audio commentary
Once again, for the audio commentary of episode 13 of Violet Evergarden TV series, the commentators were Ishidate Taichi (director), Fujita Haruka (series direction), Urahata Tatsuhiko (script), and Suzuki Takaaki (world setting).
Ishidate started by asking everyone about their thoughts on episode 13. Urahata commented that Yoshida Reiko (series composition) picked up from what Suzuki wrote for episode 12. The train story until the disposing of the bomb was supposed to be in episode 12, but it was too long and could not fit in. Ishidate and Fujita added that the Blu-ray version is actually different from the TV broadcast version, with a bit from the end of episode 12 removed and added to the start of episode 13.
When going through the script for this episode, they wanted to give Benedict a chance to do more and make use of him being a character that wore high heels, such as being able to climb a slope because he was wearing heels. In the end, they decided that they could not use so much time for Benedict and there was also no real chance to make use of his past in the military.
Ishidate didn't expect Roland to play such a big role in the story, since he originally appeared as the person who ate yakisoba noodles with Benedict. He didn't expect that Roland would be a key character for helping Violet get back up.
Fujita felt disappointed that the arms at the end of the series were different from the start. She thought the arms were irreplaceable and that it would have been something special to have the same arms throughout. The arms after the train story are the same as the ones in the first commercial for the light novels.
The first commercial for the light novels closer to the light novels, including having the battleaxe, but the second commercial was approaching the anime as they have already started working on the anime by then. Another reason was the second commercial was supposed to show that this is the kind of anime that was going to be made. This was also why the trolley bag became a suitcase, as the world setting was in an era of suitcases.
For episode 13, Ishidate, Fujita, and Ogawa Taichi split the work as episode directors. Fujita consulted Ishidate many times on how to express Gilbert. Urahata felt that Gilbert was a difficult character to portray because he only appeared in flashbacks. There was also a need to focus on his good parts to show why he mattered so much to Violet. Suzuki mentioned that he found it difficult to understand Gilbert's characters just from the first volume of the light novels, so he also asked author Akatsuki Kana what kind of person Gilbert was when they went to Hokkaido.
Ishidate felt that the scene where Gilbert's mother said that he lived in their hearts was the peak of the series. The scene where Violet said she did not need an order was an explicit way to show her growth. Fujita clarified that the replaced left arm was a wooden prosthetic and does not move. Ishidate said they originally wanted to express that by showing Violet removing her gloves, but it turned out to look quite painful to viewers so they skipped that.
Ishidate felt that the scene where Gilbert's mother said that he lived in their hearts was the peak of the series. The scene where Violet said she did not need an order was an explicit way to show her growth. Fujita clarified that the replaced left arm was a wooden prosthetic and does not move. Ishidate said they originally wanted to express that by showing Violet removing her gloves, but it turned out to look quite painful to viewers so they skipped that.
In the end, Luculia turned out to be Violet's only friend whom she treated on an equal level, as a peer.
Ishidate and Fujita felt relieved that they finally managed to insert "Violet Snow" into the anime.
Urahata said that this was a very difficult series. For example, what is a good letter? What is true love? They needed to create letters fitting the image of a good letter and in line with the growth of Violet.
Ishidate commented jokingly that Fujita does not go around apologising to staff like he does.
Suzuki said that the letter at the end of the episode became a hint for decoding. Ishidate questioned why such a short phrase became so long. Suzuki recalled a weekly flow of requests for translation, with email after email, even for the signs. Ishidate recommended that those who want to should try to read the letters as they are properly written. Suzuki also mentioned that there was a need to change the writing style for episode 6 due to the text being classical text.
Ishidate and Fujita felt relieved that they finally managed to insert "Violet Snow" into the anime.
Urahata said that this was a very difficult series. For example, what is a good letter? What is true love? They needed to create letters fitting the image of a good letter and in line with the growth of Violet.
Ishidate commented jokingly that Fujita does not go around apologising to staff like he does.
Suzuki said that the letter at the end of the episode became a hint for decoding. Ishidate questioned why such a short phrase became so long. Suzuki recalled a weekly flow of requests for translation, with email after email, even for the signs. Ishidate recommended that those who want to should try to read the letters as they are properly written. Suzuki also mentioned that there was a need to change the writing style for episode 6 due to the text being classical text.
My overall thoughts on Violet Evergarden The Movie
Events:
Translations of short stories:
The Tailor and the Auto-Memories Doll (unofficial translation of 仕立て屋と自動手記人形) Gilbert Bougainvillea and the Fleeting Dream (unofficial translation of "ギルベルト・ブーゲンビリアと儚い夢")
Violet Evergarden short stories: "Logbook entry" and "Diary entry" (unofficial translation)
The Starry Night and the Lonely Two (unofficial translation of 星降りの夜とさみしいふたり)
Diethard Bougainvillea's If (unofficial translation of ディートフリート・ブーゲンビリアIf) Tellsis (Nunkish) translation:
Last line of Violet's final letter to GilbertInsights on the movie:
Audio commentary notes:
Notes from Violet Evergarden episode 12 audio commentary
The audio commentary of episode 12 of Violet Evergarden TV series again saw Ishidate Taichi (director), Fujita Haruka (series direction), Urahata Tatsuhiko (script), and Suzuki Takaaki (world setting) as the commentators.
They continued to talk about the world setting, and as the episode started with a map, talked about how they made maps based on inputs from author Akatsuki Kana. After creating the continent's map, they worked on establishing the climate for each region, and then the types of buildings found there based on the climate. Tellsis was quite a big continent at first, around the size of Eurasia, but Suzuki cut it down to about half the size after taking into consideration time and space. There were about 10 countries with names, and they also worked on laying out the route of the transcontinental railway. Ishidate also pointed out that Yoshida Reiko (series composition) said that she was not very knowledgeable about war and not good at creating world settings in detail, which was why Suzuki was engaged to help.
They also said that the train story in the light novels was also quite complicated and took up two chapters. This story was somehow weaved together into episodes 11, 12, and 13. They also thought about what to do with Diethard's character, and arrived at him being a tsundere who loves his brother.
When working on the world setting, they even looked at things such as why the war started. Ishidate said that Takahashi Hiroyuki (accessory setting) also liked trains so he did quite a bit of research. One issue was that there weren't many trains from that time period left for use as reference.
When working on the world setting , Ishidate didn't want to be too caught up in actual history, which would then limit the anime story. It would be too restrictive and dark to base on England, so something more tropical was chosen. He saw it as something like a period drama.
The staff went location hunting in Hokkaido and Kyoto for the TV series. When Ishidate went to Germany for the advanced screening, he found that Europe was different from the colonial style he saw in Hokkaido. Suzuki brought up that, due to the lack of earthquakes in Europe, brick buildings continue to be used for many many years, and buildings damaged by fire or war are rebuilt as per the original.
For the background, Ishidate wanted more weathered looks for buildings and things, and therefore asked a lot from the background artists. He said that they did not have smiles on their faces while working on this series. There was also the issue that they had to use black and white photographs as reference and thus did not know how they would look in colour.
Suzuki commented that he ate bamboo shoots when he went to Kyoto for one of the work meetings. Ishidate quickly came in to say that he was born in a place known for bamboo shoots so he is quite picky about them.
While WW1 was used as reference for the world setting, there were no machine guns in the world of Violet Evergarden. It was established at the start that this was a world with low steel production, and so even cannons were not common, and most of them had the power of cannons from around 50 to 100 years before WW1. This was intentional; they changed the world setting so as to bring out Violet's wartime role, since it would be difficult for Violet to play a significant role if there were devastating machine guns and cannons.
My overall thoughts on Violet Evergarden The Movie
Events:
Translations of short stories:
The Tailor and the Auto-Memories Doll (unofficial translation of 仕立て屋と自動手記人形) Gilbert Bougainvillea and the Fleeting Dream (unofficial translation of "ギルベルト・ブーゲンビリアと儚い夢")
Violet Evergarden short stories: "Logbook entry" and "Diary entry" (unofficial translation)
The Starry Night and the Lonely Two (unofficial translation of 星降りの夜とさみしいふたり)
Diethard Bougainvillea's If (unofficial translation of ディートフリート・ブーゲンビリアIf) Tellsis (Nunkish) translation:
Last line of Violet's final letter to GilbertInsights on the movie:
Audio commentary notes:
Thursday, May 15, 2025
Notes from Violet Evergarden episode 11 audio commentary
The audio commentary of episode 11 of Violet Evergarden TV series had Ishidate Taichi (director), Fujita Haruka (series direction), Urahata Tatsuhiko (script), and Suzuki Takaaki (world setting) as the commentators.
They went right in and talked about the Tellsis language. Suzuki immediately brought up that, just around the airing of episode 13, someone had decoded the language. Ishidate said that this series is about letters, but it is not set in Japan so it would be somewhat disappointing if (Japanese) viewers cannot read the letters. So, he decided to just make the letters unreadable by everyone. However, he still wanted them to be decipherable. All words used were sent to Suzuki to be translated, after which they were rendered in the anime using the font created by Kyoani. Names were left as they are to serve as a hint for decoding. Ishidate said that the words shown in the opening song were all the words that Gilbert said to Violet (I will need to decode them...) He also mentioned that it would have been easier to have legible letters. Instead, no one knows what is on them unless a characters reads it out, but having such limitations makes one work harder. Suzuki added that, when creating the Tellsis language, he needed an independent language since something close to English would be easy to decode.
Suzuki and Urahata commented that the plane in episode 11 was supposed to be a Nightjar in the light novel but they changed the plane to something that looked like something from immediately after WW1. They added that planes are a common theme through episodes 11 to 13. The world setting was something similar to continental Europe post WW1. Post WW1 is a setting widely used in Europe but not the United States, while Japan usually strays to the Taisho romance period. To the West, WW2 is the conclusion to WW1 but in Japan, they are seen as separate wars. It would be the year of the 100th anniversary of the air force in the United Kingdom, and they would be able to see many stuff from around this period if they travel there, which might be helpful to gather information since a sequel has been announced. Meanwhile, they also said that the uniforms were based on Russian uniforms but not fully Russian.
Urahata and Suzuki were both introduced by Yoshida Reiko (series composition). Yoshida asked Suzuki to recommend another writer, so he recommended Urahata. Yoshida contacted Suzuki in the first place because she wanted to properly establish the world setting. They even went to Hokkaido to talk to author Akatsuki Kana. Being from Hokkaido, Suzuki guided the production staff around, and the buildings in Hokkaido served as reference for the colonial-style buildings in the anime.
Urahata never worked with Kyoani before; it was also Suzuki's first time working with Kyoani. There were meetings every two weeks alternating between Kyoto and Tokyo. They mentioned that episode 11 is quite close to the light novel, unlike episodes 12 and 13 which were loosely based on the light novels but very different.
Ishidate said that the light novels' timeline was quite vague, but for a weekly anime, a vague timeline would be difficult for viewers to grasp so it felt better to have some kind of progression. However, time shifts were used almost every episode, with a lot of it done by asking for help from the photography staff. He added that, even after the anime's production was done, he continued to go around Kyoani, apologising to his coworkers for all the hard work he made them do.
My overall thoughts on Violet Evergarden The Movie
Events:
Translations of short stories:
The Tailor and the Auto-Memories Doll (unofficial translation of 仕立て屋と自動手記人形) Gilbert Bougainvillea and the Fleeting Dream (unofficial translation of "ギルベルト・ブーゲンビリアと儚い夢")
Violet Evergarden short stories: "Logbook entry" and "Diary entry" (unofficial translation)
The Starry Night and the Lonely Two (unofficial translation of 星降りの夜とさみしいふたり)
Diethard Bougainvillea's If (unofficial translation of ディートフリート・ブーゲンビリアIf) Tellsis (Nunkish) translation:
Last line of Violet's final letter to GilbertInsights on the movie:
Audio commentary notes:
Notes from Violet Evergarden episode 10 audio commentary
Once again, the audio commentary of episode 10 of Violet Evergarden TV series had Ishidate Taichi (director), Tsuruoka Yota (sound director), and Evan Call (composer) as the commentators.
Ishidate commented that there was music that was only used for episode 10. When Tsuruoka came up with the "menu", he already had a different approach to episode 10 from the start. This was a story about a mother and a daughter. Tsuruoka felt that there was no way the girl cannot find happiness. Evan used boys' soprano for the music here because of the innocent image, as girls usually have a high voice, but boys singing high notes makes it sound more young and innocent. Also, he felt that with an all-female cast in this episode, using girls' soprano may clash so he went with boys' soprano. They had three meetings to discuss the music, of which Ishidate was not at the second one. The first meeting more or less for episode 1, and after the meeting, Ishidate already fully trusted Evan and felt he could leave things to Tsuruoka and Evan. However, he felt the need to be there for the first meeting as the person in charge.
Ishidate then talked about a previous commentary when Ishikawa Yui (Violet's voice actor) felt uncertain about her performance. Tsuruoka recalled that quite some time passed between the recordings for episodes 1 and 2, so the recording for episode 2 was like a fresh start. He made Ishikawa voice Violet in as inorganic a way as possible, and subsequently, it was about slowly letting go of that "limit". Tsuruoka also pointed out that Ishidate did voice his approval after each recording session; it was not like Ishidate had no feedback at all. They both felt that they were working with a cast that they trusted, so it a matter of telling the cast at the start about the direction and then leaving it to the cast for subsequent recordings. Evan mentioned that he likes Koyasu Takehito's (Hodgins' voice actor) voice. Ishidate replied that Evan also has a nice voice. They went on to praise Koyasu, noting his exceptional voice acting in episode 9. They also mentioned that it was Tsuruoka who told Namikawa to just "be a prince" when voicing Gilbert.
Ishidate felt that they did not do anything wrong with the cast and did exceptionally well in selecting the guest cast. Evan liked the change in key during "Letters from Heaven". Ishidate felt that Ann and Violet were both lovely, with Ann being innocent due to age, while Violet is also innocent. He has children around Ann's age, and felt that even when children lie, there is nothing malicious.
Then they got to the letters and Ishidate that suggested maybe they should stop talking and watch this part. On the topic of the letters for 50 years, Ishidate speculated that it could be because of Ann's mother's wish that Ann live at least 50 years, to have a long life. Tsuruoka noted that these letters were messages that transcend time, like science fiction. Ishidate said that episode 10 also showed Violet's growth. He mentioned that Ogawa Taichi, who was both episode director and storyboard for episode 10, said this was his first time working on an episode where someone died, but Ishidate felt Ogawa did a good job.
All posts related to Violet Evergarden.
Then they got to the letters and Ishidate that suggested maybe they should stop talking and watch this part. On the topic of the letters for 50 years, Ishidate speculated that it could be because of Ann's mother's wish that Ann live at least 50 years, to have a long life. Tsuruoka noted that these letters were messages that transcend time, like science fiction. Ishidate said that episode 10 also showed Violet's growth. He mentioned that Ogawa Taichi, who was both episode director and storyboard for episode 10, said this was his first time working on an episode where someone died, but Ishidate felt Ogawa did a good job.
My overall thoughts on Violet Evergarden The Movie
Events:
Translations of short stories:
The Tailor and the Auto-Memories Doll (unofficial translation of 仕立て屋と自動手記人形) Gilbert Bougainvillea and the Fleeting Dream (unofficial translation of "ギルベルト・ブーゲンビリアと儚い夢")
Violet Evergarden short stories: "Logbook entry" and "Diary entry" (unofficial translation)
The Starry Night and the Lonely Two (unofficial translation of 星降りの夜とさみしいふたり)
Diethard Bougainvillea's If (unofficial translation of ディートフリート・ブーゲンビリアIf) Tellsis (Nunkish) translation:
Last line of Violet's final letter to GilbertInsights on the movie:
Audio commentary notes:
Notes from Violet Evergarden episode 9 audio commentary
The audio commentary of episode 9 of Violet Evergarden TV series again saw Ishidate Taichi (director), Tsuruoka Yota (sound director), and Evan Call (composer) as the commentators.
Tsuruoka said that the episodes did not follow any fixed format in terms of whether there was an opening and ending song and such, changing with each episode. Ishidate said the producers gave him permission to adopt a more free format as long as they kept within the time. For the Blu-ray, they edited the episodes very very slightly, such as lengthening certain scenes by seconds, which may be hard to notice. Ishidate wanted to create something that people will enjoy even in the future. He saw the Blu-ray version as the director's cut, but he did not want to make too many changes because it would make people who watched on TV feel that they watched something that was not finished properly.
Ishidate wanted to bring back these commentaries and let the staff at Kyoani hear because knowing their external partners' thoughts about Violet Evergarden can motivate everyone to produce better work. Evan added that quality drops when motivation drops, so there is a need to find motivation from time to time. He mentioned that listening to advice from experts in each instrument was helpful and led to his own growth as a composer.
When Evan and Tsuruoka first met, he was fine with normal conversation but work discussions were a different thing, especially the terms used in the "menu" which were difficult to understand even when explained to him due to his lack of experience in such work. But he has now gotten more familiar with the work. Ishidate said one should not start to get too used to things because then, you would not put more effort into trying to interpret and understand. Evan agreed that when you grow too familiar and then complacent, it would limit imagination.
The audio for the first two episodes were edited for cinema screening due to the advanced screenings, and subsequently, the other episodes were also edited for cinema screenings as cinematic versions. Ishidate wanted to go for these screening but they were in Tokyo while he lived in Kyoto. The commentary was recorded on the day before episode 13 was aired on TV, and Ishidate urged Evan (who did not manage to catch the first three parts) to watch part 4 of the cinematic version when it screens in Tokyo.
As the episode comes to an end, Ishidate said that while the series is an omnibus of stories, Violet grows from episode to episode so watching them together makes it more interesting.
My overall thoughts on Violet Evergarden The Movie
Events:
Translations of short stories:
The Tailor and the Auto-Memories Doll (unofficial translation of 仕立て屋と自動手記人形) Gilbert Bougainvillea and the Fleeting Dream (unofficial translation of "ギルベルト・ブーゲンビリアと儚い夢")
Violet Evergarden short stories: "Logbook entry" and "Diary entry" (unofficial translation)
The Starry Night and the Lonely Two (unofficial translation of 星降りの夜とさみしいふたり)
Diethard Bougainvillea's If (unofficial translation of ディートフリート・ブーゲンビリアIf) Tellsis (Nunkish) translation:
Last line of Violet's final letter to GilbertInsights on the movie:
Audio commentary notes:
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