The Apothecary Diaries deftly blends palace mysteries with heartfelt drama

destructoid.com:

Life is not easy for Maomao, the central character of The Apothecary Diaries. The young apothecary lives a quiet life servicing the red-light district, until she’s one day kidnapped into servitude at the royal palace.

Here, she could have simply worked away the days until she made enough wages for freedom. But an illness falls over two of the emperor’s favorite concubines and their children, drawing Maomao’s curiosity. And from there, events spiral out to bring Maomao further into the viper’s nest of rear palace politics.

The Apothecary Diaries is certainly an interesting premise for an anime. If you’re newer to these stories, you might think of battle arcs and isekai series with bizarrely long names, with a few surprises and lowlights. This year has surprised me with its vibes few times over, though; first with Frieren, a brilliantly melancholic series, and now again with the pseudo-historical light novel adaptation The Apothecary Diaries.

I say pseudo-historical because, while The Apothecary Diaries series has yet to define its world in any concrete terms, its fictional world certainly draws obvious parallels to ancient China. Its status as period piece alone, especially without any fantasy or unrealistic twist (yet), would already set it apart. But the court drama aspect adds an extra twist, making it much more interesting for anyone looking for something a little different.

Maomao finds herself trapped in the rear palace, an area inhabited by those from three distinct walks of life: the emperor’s concubines, their all-female servants, and the eunuchs who assist them. Aside from a few other appearances, these three classes—each with their own shifting hierarchies—are the structure the show is built on.

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