OP: “Hyakkaryouran” (百花繚乱; Splendid Bounty) by Lilas Ikuta
(Note: as per standard LiA practice, I’m following the series’ official naming convention in terms of episode count.) Fresh of becoming the first LN adaptation to crack the LiA Top 10 list since 2012, Kusuriya no Hitorigoto makes its triumphant return to the airwaves. It does so as one of the two breakout hits of 2024, trailing only very slightly behind Sousou no Frieren as a commercial powerhouse. There have been a few hiccups along the way – like the mangaka in charge of that version being arrested for tax evasion. But on the whole, The Apothecary Diaries has has one hell of a great year.
I’ll say this much – Kusuriya wasn’t the one to break that 12-year drought by coincidence (or charity). This series is damn good, plain and simple. Airing as it does in premiere week, it’s easy to see that this show stands on a different level that most of the schedule. The production itself is superb (the OP and ED are again rock solid, among other things). The writing is sharp, the patter of the dialogue in perfect rhythm. The cast is on-point, with Yuuki Aoi once again reminding us that she’s one of the best this business has seen in a long time. Especially given that this looks to be a distinctly underwhelming anime season, it’s great to have The Apothecary Diaries back.
It didn’t feature my favorite non-Maomao cast member (her father, Lakan). But apart from that this premiere pretty much checked all the boxes. No beats were missed or steps lost – the mojo is still working. It’s mostly a slice of life episode, with no mystery. But that’s fine, as the mysteries were rarely up to the same standard as the rest of the writing. Lingli, daughter of Gyoukuyou, is the biggest new presence (two-legged presence, anyway) in this premiere. Lingli is now a toddler whose wanderlust has outstripped the confines of her quarters, and her mother wants her to branch out into the world (the tiny, cloistered portion in which these people live, anyway).
In other news, Maomao has imported some sex-ed textbooks – finely printed and beautifully illustrated. Ostensibly to prepare the concubines for potential evenings with the Emperor, but really to make some money on the side (and for the pleasure house granny too). Jinshi is intrigued by this, as is Gaushun. But not for the reasons one might imagine (and no, one doesn’t believe for a minute that Jinshi at least isn’t fully functional that way). The workmanship of the printing gives Jinshi an idea to further his ambition of making the court ladies more literate. He gets a popular novel printed, to be gifted to the consorts by the emperor, to stoke the ladies’ interest in being able to follow the story.
Jinshi certainly didn’t start off on the right foot (fingers) with me, but he has improved over time. He’s no fool, that’s for sure, and formidable enough to be a good foil for Maomao even if he is smitten with her. He’s quite integral to the next incident, which finds Lingli discovering a kitten on her walk (with Maomao supervising). This is an oddity, as pets are rare in the Inner Palace, must be castrated, and cannot be kept without a license. But the little princess is smitten, so it falls to Maomao to take care of the foundling. She takes it back to the climic, where it turns out Guen is quite the nekozuki.
It’s nice to see Maomao and Guen interact a little more. He’s obviously nowhere close to her intellectual level but overall a decent sort, and seems to have grown quite fond of Xiaomao even if she often horrifies him. As it turns out Gaoshun is a nekozuki too, though Jinshi is not. Or claims not to be, anyway. Which takes us to the best scene in the episode by far, as Maomao tries to explain the nature of being a cat person to Jinshi, who hilariously vibes with it for an entirely different reason. And so another nekozuki is born – and the cat getting the name “Maomao” is the icing on the cake.
There are a few other moments of foreshadowing here. A young girl (Seto Asami) who helps Maomao catch Maomao is clearly going to have some significant role to play. There’s talk of a caravan arriving, which obviously suggests the entrance of another important power player (perhaos another consort). And of course the mysteries will return, and no doubt some of them will be better than others. But on the whole continuity is the takeaway for Kusuriya no Hitorigoto with this premiere, and given how much I liked the first season that’s a good thing.
ED: “Shiawase no Reshipi” (幸せのレシピ; Recipe for Happiness) by Dai Hirai
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