This show took my heart out and sawed it to pieces with a rusty screw driver. 70% of the episodes had me crying There is a category of things that automatically evoke empathy and that is children, old people, cute animals, this show takes all of that and then subject them to such heart wrenching hardships. There's a sense of realism in the struggles that the characters go through, like a peek into the hardships of the period they life in. There were weak points in terms of editing. Music choices that took me out of the experience. Moments that should have sat longer but insteadwere too fast and villains that are some of the most boring annoying archetypes. Some parts just felt like tragedy for the sake of tragedy and I feel like this show would have done better if there was some breathing room spent building the bond with the characters. The final part with the goose chase was just so unnecessary and annoying for no reason

I really like the exploration of compassion and friendship. A common theme in a lot of media is " the power of friendship" wins at the end of the day . I love that this show really put some weight behind the sacrifices that the characters make in order to care for their friends. The characters after subjected to so much hardship and pain and seeing the chance for them to free themselves ,yet choosing the choice to stay with the person they love. (spoiler->)Like when remy has a chance to get adopted to a noble family yet she chooses to stay with vitalis because she knows how much he cares for her and is lonely without her. Or how vitalis chooses to leave her at the noble house because he knows that the better choice for her. How remy could've left again to join the 2nd entertainment troupe but she stays with the children or how mattias could've left the orphans to pursue music education. I don't think you need a character development for the main character if what their impact is causes character development around the MC. Seeing the orphan kids slowly stand up to the villain was so sweet. Seeing them slowly become a family and rely of each other for everything was so heart warming.

overall: hidden gem . Ive seen aloooooot of tear-jerker animes, and am an easy crier .I do not say this lightly. This show is easily top 3 of anything that has made me cry. It has it's peak and it has it lows, but the peaks are unforgettable.