Spring has come to pseudo-medieval China. We check in briefly with a bunch of established characters, and get some goofy interactions between our favorite eccentric apothecary, Maomao, and our favorite court eunuch, Jinshi. The latter undertakes an effort to promote literacy in the rear palace by distributing copies of a popular novel, and sure enough, Maomao’s friend Xiaolan asks to learn how to read and write. When Consort Gyokuyou asks Maomao to accompany young Princess Lingli on a walk and teach her about plants, they encounter a stray kitten and a new character appears, though we learn nothing about her. Maomao cleans up the kitten and nurses it back to health. When Jinshi stops by and wonders about the appeal of cats, Maomao, despite not being a cat lover, tries to explain…and ends up describing cats in terms that also perfectly apply to herself. Perhaps not coincidentally, they proceed to name the kitten Maomao.
This was a pretty chill opening episode. If you’re not familiar with the series, would it help to say Maomao is sort of like Sherlock Holmes, if the great detective were a young woman in medieval China? While this episode was focused on lighthearted matters, there were several hints of mystery and intrigue, and I fully expect that we’ll have full-blown major crimes any minute now. This episode also has the likable, quirky characters we came to love in the show’s first season, Maomao and Jinshi most especially. Part of what appeals to me about the cast is that Maomao isn’t the only smart one; other characters like Jinshi and Gyokuyou can be sharp cookies too. Anyway, my recommendation here is the usual for non-first anime seasons: if you haven’t seen the first season, go watch it! This series is a lot of fun, and I heartily recommend both it and the light novels.
The Apothecary Diaries is streaming on Crunchyroll.
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