Viola

"Time for bed... Now sleep forever. "

— Viola

Viola (ヴィオラ, Viora) is a character in the Soul series. She is a fortune teller making her debut appearance in Soulcalibur V. It has been said she is travelling with Z.W.E.I. Viola suffers from amnesia and does not remember her origin or past life.

She uses a floating magic orb as her weapon.

In a TGS 2011 interview, Hisaharu Tago has revealed that Viola will play an important role in the story.

Appearance

In her debut appearance, Viola is a young woman with red eyes and white curled hair. The purple dress she is wearing has a similar silhouette to Amy's dress in Soulcalibur IV and also seems to be gothic lolita inspired, however the influence isn't as obvious. Viola's laced stockings seem to have a moth trapped in a cobweb pattern. Over her body, she is wearing an aubergine-colored hooded cape and roses are a recurring motif in her costume. Overall, her outfit is a fairly generic rendition of the typical Red Riding Hood costume in a different color scheme. She wears elongated, claw-like armor rings on four fingers of her right hand as an accessory. Viola is a fortune teller and this can be clearly seen in her clothing style and general appearance.

History

Soulcalibur V

In the heart of a bustling city, Viola quietly plied her trade. She wouldn't stay there long—she didn't stay anywhere long; fortune-telling can be a dangerous occupation when you actually tell the truth.

By peering into her crystal ball, Viola could see deep within a person's soul. But of herself, she knew nothing at all.

"Why am I here? What is my purpose?"

The harsh truths of Viola's predictions always led to hatred and resentment, so she lived as a nomad, traveling from one city to the next. She refused to follow custom and simply tell her patrons what she knew they wanted to hear. Her own memories were so barren that she couldn't empathize with other people—they didn't even feel real to her.

The one exception was Z.W.E.I. They were kindred spirits, he said, both of them blessed and burdened with inhuman powers that forced them to journey through life alone.

As traveling companions, they made for an odd pair: a werewolf and a fortune-teller, both with pasts shrouded in mystery. Their journey would continue for some time, until Viola's lost memories returned...

Personality

Viola is portrayed as a cold, indifferent woman. Her demeanor is both dark and ominous and she doesn't seem to care about anything or anyone. She seems to have a grim outlook on life, as seen in her quotes. She is able to see glimpses of the future, hence some of her lines (i.e. "As I thought", "I failed to see this!" on Ring out).

Fighting Style

Viola is able to use her orb in a passive or an active way. She can place the orb around the stage and call it back to her in a way that the orb hits the opponent, sometimes coming from underneath and tripping the opponent. The orb's placement is also important for her Critical Edge, as the attack will take place wherever the orb is.

Weapons

Quattour Orbis

Critical Edge

This attack connects only if the orb is near the opponent. Viola will say "Time for bed... Now sleep forever", cast a spell and a magic mark will appear behind her. The orb will start to glow and pull Viola's opponent near it in a stun-like manner. The attack itself does not deal substantial damage and is most likely intended as a beginning to a combo.

Stages

Unknown Forest (SCV)

Theme Music

Soulcalibur V

"Wandering Seer"

Quotes

Soulcalibur V

Flee before you destroy yourself.
The moon is red... red like wine.
Do we have to fight? - spoken when engaging in a battle with Z.W.E.I.
Go.
Come.
You want it?
Dammit!
No!
Tremble.
Pierce... through!
The stars... will shine.
Careless.
Obvious.
I'm tired of this.
Spin.
Don't move.
What's going on? - during Guard Burst.
Time for bed... Now sleep forever. — Spoken during "Critical Edge"
Dance for me.
Dance.
How's this?
Not yet!
As I thought.
Fear!
It's all... pointless!
Begone.
Brace yourself.
Perish.
Now you know the meaning of pain.
I don't care whether you live or die.
You possess great strength, but nothing else.
I am empty, but you are emptier, still.
I failed to see this! — Spoken during Ring Out
In the moon, I see everything.

Trivia

It is speculated that Viola's true identity is Amy because of her rather similar facial features, eye color, hair style, and overall costume style (including the rose theme of her outfit), she also has very similar English voice to Amy. Viola also seems to share some of Amy's moves, but this could be just a coincidence. However, in an interview the producers and staff strongly emphasize that Viola will be an entirely new character in the franchise (though they might mean this strictly gameplay-wise).
Oddly, Viola resembles Dampierre's imaginary daughter as well.
The beads on her forehead and chest as well as the back of her cape make several A's. Whether this is coincidental or intentional is unknown.
As of the 8th of October 2011, Viola remains the only new character (excluding Leixia) whose Japanese voice actress has not yet been revealed. The reason for this is unknown.[1]
Viola, wearing a hooded cape, and Z.W.E.I. being associated with werewolves might be a reference to The Little Red Riding Hood.
Viola seems to have a moth-inspired animal theme due to her split cape resembling wings and moth stocking pattern.
Viola's choker has a red crystal attached to it, similar to that which Raphael has attached to his bat ornament in Soulcalibur IV, though it seems much smaller. This crystal is red only in her 3D model, in the official artwork it's pink.
Viola bears heavy similarities to Tekken's Zafina. Not only some of their moves and their idle stances are very much alike, but they also share an ominous attitude and have similar quotes (for example, Zafina's Leave now if you value your life corresponds to Viola's Flee before you destroy yourself). Zafina is also an astrologist which is very similar to the fortune teller Viola is portrayed to be.
Viola seems to have some similarities to Rose of the Street Fighter series. The two fight with a large magical orb and have magical abilities. Their names are also taken from a type of flower and their costumes resemble fortune teller outfits.
Viola's fighting style is also reminiscent of Amakusa from the Samurai Showdown/Spirits series as he also fights with a large magical orb and his willing portraits sometimes emphasize long fingernails, similar to Viola's weapon.
Viola's powers are similar to the powers of Carrie Fernandez, a protagonist in Castlevania Legacy of Darkness, who is able to use magical orbs similar to Viola.
Viola uses her orb in an almost identical way as League of Legends' champion Orianna uses her Ball. Even her Critical Edge looks similar to Orianna's Ultimate.
Viola wears a Claw, similar to that of Freddy Krueger from the Nightmare on Elm Street series, or Lady Deathstrike from the X-Men series.
It is possible that Viola is an albino or has lost pigmentation due to continued use of magic.
Viola has many noticeable discrepancies between her artwork and 3D model. Namely, like Natsu, she has lengthy fake nails which don't appear in-game. Her outfit in the 3D model is much more brighter and desaturated and her dress seems to be longer than in the artwork. Lastly, her breasts are much larger in the artwork than in-game.
In the Character Creation trailer a character using Viola's style is equipped only with the orb and isn't wearing anything on her hands. It wasn't yet disclosed if the claws are a weapon or a simple accessory. Similar clawed gloves can be added to a created character (Scissor Claws), however they do not serve as a weapon and can be worn by characters of all styles.
The rose accessories (around her cloak) that Viola wears appears to be smaller in gameplay and her high render picture.
One of her weapons happens to be a crystal skull.
Viola's tights, baring the pattern of a moth trapped in a web, has been said to be a reference to the fact that she appears to have the image of moth displayed throughout her character, and that she may have been "entangled in something difficult", that she shouldn't be involved in, and hasn't been able to free herself.