Summary
- The Grimm Variations offers a dark twist on classic fairytales, portraying Cinderella as a manipulative psycho with split personalities.
- Cinderella's step-sisters are painted as sympathetic victims, manipulated by Cinderella's disturbing games and twisted sense of control.
- The anime sets up potential for revenge and chaos in a sequel, blurring the lines between heroes and villains in a harrowing narrative.
The following contains spoilers for The Grimm Variations, now streaming on Netflix.
As Netflix's The Grimm Variations unfolds, this Japanese original net animation (ONA) places a unique spin on the Brothers Grimm fairytales. These stories have been adored worldwide, beginning in Europe in the early 1800s. The German brothers churned out intriguing collections of folklore stories. Since then, they have blossomed into iconic pop culture tales that many studios love adapting -- both in live-action and the animated format.
Here, Wit Studio, known for Attack on Titan, tries its hand at subverting a few tales. The opening episode "Cinderella" dissects the iconic story of the titular young lady mistreated by her step-mother and step-sisters. However, the Netflix anime series changes things in a drastic manner. In the process, The Grimm Variations tweaks the idea of the hero in this adventure. It goes on to create a true psycho, adding a most macabre slant to the narrative.
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Unfortunately, the servants don't like the new girls, thinking they are unworthy and that their family comprises gold-diggers. The step-sisters are not hostile like the source material, as they don't brazenly bully Kiyoko. They are willing to give it a shot, but weird occurrences keep painting them as villains. It doesn't help that they react with entitlement and privilege as they try to stick up for themselves. Sadly, Tsuroko and the Viscount verbally berate them, too. They think these girls are trying to complicate life, while blaming the little, naïve Kiyoko.
A major incident occurs when Kiyoko flees in an argument and makes it seem like they pushed her down the stairs. Later, Kiyoko bombards them with generosity, leaving the sisters wondering what is going on in the household. They don't understand this polarized Kiyoko at all. They want out, painting them as sympathetic victims in a home where something sinister is lurking. And where no one -- not even their own flesh and blood — has their back in this dark anime.
The Grimm Variations Turns Cinderella Into a Psycho
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Kiyoko, however, wants to stay and tend to her step-mother. She hasn't let anyone interact with Tsuroko, under the pretense the mother will spread her contagious illness to everyone. Shockingly, Kiyoko admits this is all a game. She has been poisoning Tsuroko. She ends up strangling her after she coughs up some more blood. This paints Kiyoko in the light of villains seen in slasher movies or psychological thrillers such as Psycho. Kiyoko eventually dons a fancy dress, hits the ball and continues to manipulate her sisters.
Kiyoko makes it seem like they barred her from the gala and that they have been abusive towards her. Masataka saves her from a violent clash after the sisters become frustrated with all the lies. Flashbacks end up showing Kiyoko had sociopathic tendencies since she was a child. It's why she kept playing with her doll, coming off like Gollum from The Lord of the Rings. Kiyoko has a split personality — a dark side and a light side. Her dark side may well have killed her mother.
It is confirmed that she messed with the brakes on her father's car, causing him to crash and die. She didn't like that he planned to send her sisters, aka her "toys," abroad to a foreign school. It says a lot that she showed no remorse for the man who protected her all her life and gave her everything she ever wanted, including a second family.
She then engineered the demented rivalry with the servants and Tsuruko's daughters. Isolating the mother and controlling her was another twisted game. Then, came the ball! Kiyoko flees once her sisters lash out, telling Masataka she can't ever see him again. Obviously, after leaving a hairpin instead of her glass slipper, she dropped breadcrumbs for him to track. It's another game that she has orchestrated with consummate ease.
The Grimm Variations Frees the 'Wicked' Step-Sisters
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Sadly, they had to stay because they still had love, compassion and empathy for their ill mother. That plan backfired, but with the woman dead, they can finally be free. They head off to start a new life, away from the psychopathic behavior in what will surely be one of the scariest anime episodes ever. This is quite a creepy twist, with the Cinderella of the story transformed into a sadistic puppet master who thinks humans are pawns. She is good at gaslighting and mentally conditioning people, which is why she has seen immense success in her various ploys.
The totem for all this is the doll, creating the energy of a horror anime. All episode long, Kiyoko keeps talking to her doll, letting her know what's next. The ironic thing is, this doll looks like Charlotte -- the Grimm sister. The episode opens with the Brothers Grimm, Jacob and Wilhelm, giving their sister the manuscript for the story and promising a happy ending. Well, Charlotte (in the real world) and as the manifestation of this doll, experiences something drastically different. Cinderella is no hero; she is a megalomanic, while the step-sisters are the ones who need saving.