#the apothacary's Diary

[peachonified]

I have some anime recommendations.

I have STRUGGLED this year to find things to watch. I don't particularly like romance - it saps the storyline - and I like action/comedy. It's why I've always had a taste for sports anime.

So... this is just a starting point for the lost souls who are just after something, and don't know where to start. This is in no particular order, although prob related to how recently I watched it...

1. The Apothecary Diary

Set in a land in the far east, Maomao is sold to the back palace. From there she solves mysteries.

This is honestly such a great show! Intrigue, engaging characters, and you could absolutely read Maomao as aroace. This was a stand out.

I also love the opening song. Very Shakira-esque.

2. Another stand out was Death Mount, Death Play

I'm not a fan of super violence, so I almost didn't make it past ep 1... but I ADORED this show. The main character is amazing, the shark in the credits is so cute, the story is many faceted, and I seriously adored it! highly reccomend.

3. I wasn't expecting to enjoy God of High School.

Now, it absolutely does feel like it needs a second season, but it ended in a way that felt okay too... it is based on aKorean wrbcomic, but has japanes va's. It's an over powered fighting anime, with mystery powers and a very likable main character. It's got super baddies to hate, and it does edge into too violent for my taste, but still sat down and watched my way through it xD

4. Ah... my beloved sports anime. I'm gonna add Haikyuu! And Kuroko no Basket here. I mean... both are fandoms I write for xD

Haikyuu!! Is great as there are no real bad guys, and lots of growth all round.

Kuroko is basically magical high school boys who play high school basketball, but same thing: lots of character growth, lots of friendship.

One thing I love is how the boys cry? I mean that in a they are disappointed when they lose and aren't told to suck it up. I always appreciate that!

5. It's been hard to avoid isekai animes, and some of them are less than engaging, it is true. But some? Some are delightful!

5a So, I got reincarnated as a slime is one of my faves.

It's just... nice? Satisfying? It doesn't reaaaaally push any boundaries (although I love almost everything about the final arc). There's so many loveable characters, and it's alot of fun. It helps I've always loved slimes, so this overpowered one isno exception.

5b why Raeliana ended up at the dukes mansion is, yes a romance.

But its also fun. Our protagonist is reincarnated into a gane, as a character that they know will die. And they don't want to die! And so... this isthat story.

5c. This lead me down the reincarnated in a game pathway, and I came across My next life as a villainess: all roads lead to doom

You know those really dumb lovable characters? Well, I love Catarina. She is charming with a harem comorised if almost everyone she grew up with, and there's just something so delightful! I laughed outloud as much as i groaned at this one!

Older ones I reccomend:

Natsume's Book of friends

Slice of life about a boy who can see spirits. Definitely leans towards melancholy, but really leans into found family

2. Black Clover

Look. Get past Asta screaming in the first 20 eps and you've got some enjoyable action. The characterisation is

[bethanysac]

PLEEEEASE! 🫠😩💦

[thestalkerbunny]

Oh if I DIDNT just spend a cartload of cash recently on some things.

[hisui-cotton]

Hello! Today's Note is about an anime! One that took me by surprise as I had expected...well I'll talk about it down below. But it really made me feel interested in watching some more anime in a time I was feeling not too crazy about doing so anymore. Which is you know sounds like a lot but it's really something that I contemplate whenever a new isekai comes out. I'm mostly kidding...

But this is a real post about what I found made Apothacary Diaries well worth the watch and hope that you check it out too.

As a historical fiction I love that apothecary diaries feels like something more than just a drama-comedy. It feels a lot like a good shojou manga does. There's good humor, there's some tense moments between characters and there's also a bit of really nice overall storytelling. It in some ways reminds me of Ouran. Where there's just this really nice progression introducing you to all the characters and the pacing between humor and drama is really nicely done and flows in a fairly natural progression. It never feels too forced into the next change of atmosphere. My favorite example of this is probably in episode 4, where not even a whole scene away from when we get some funny expressions from Lady Lihua's ladies in waiting, we also get a super dramatic scene of Maomao chastising them. There's this sense of momentum and change that is brought all the time and even when tensions feel high it doesn't deflate just because there is some humor mixed in. I've noticed this kind of slow in the later episodes but a part of that feels like it's as a result of the climax arriving rather than various directorial issues that usually plague most adaptations.

The story is fairly blunt with the darker topics at times and is definitely interested in being able to present those topics without judgement. It's a story literally about an apothecary who works as a lady in waiting to the concubines of the emperor. The way the characters and story don't shy around certain topics reminds me a lot actually of the way a lot of shojou used to have really sad or dark themes for their cheerful characters to explain how they got to how they were. Mao Mao embodies this a little differently than those characters did but still has those aspects. That's probably why I make the Ouran comparison actually, not because the stories are at all similar but because the characters and storytelling feels familiar. Maomao reminds me a lot of Haru, where both are very a matter of fact in the way they talk about stuff and of their situations. There are things they are genuinely interested in and when it comes to those things they work hard to have time or (in haru's case) be able to afford those things.

Now this isn't to say you should just watch Ouran if you want to watch Apothacary. It's a very different story and is much snappier than Ouran even at times. If you like the elements of Ouran's storytelling, and are wanting a strong, but not literally strong, female protagonist, I'd really recommend Apothecary! Honestly I was not planning on watching it. Even when a lot of the stuff going around of it was really good looking, I was worried that the hype for it was over blown. That somehow there was one really good scene like 5 or 6 episodes in, but that the rest of it would be kind of meh. Most people recommend shows being like “just wait till episode X, then it gets really good” but Apothacary got me from the start. It was so good and in many ways, I just want more. I've even considered picking up the light novel over the manga to see how much I can see of the anime in the light novel. I've gotten one other light novel recently and it really reads like an anime. The characters attitudes and reactions feel very anime even without the animations to go with it. So I'm rather curious to see how something so popular feels to read compared to watch. The only reason I don't want to check the manga as well is becuase I've considered that I need to give some written stories another go and light novels feel like they're just similar enough in genre to be that for me.

Now I'm gonna talk about a couple of the finer details like story or animation, so if you don't want spoilers that's all I've got for you. Just know it's great, it's worth the watch and it won't waste your time!

So the thing that sort if hooked me from the start of the story is Maomao. As she says by the end of the episode, her sense of justice is what brings her to act as she does. I think in a lot of ways this makes her both very outspoken but she also knows how to hold back, or more specifically ‘when’. Being as the show is a capturing of her diary, a lot of her thoughts and actions are explained as they happen or as she thought them through. That said there's no like…writing in the diary. I almost forgot that was what the show was about until several episodes in what a date change and the seasons turned. It felt like a noting of small events that happened. It didn't break my feeling of immersion though, rather it felt nice to be invested enough to simply go with the flow that the show naturally established.

Everything is generally told from Maomao's perspective, there are a few times other characters get to be the focus for dramatics but Maomao's thoughts push through a lot of the events that occur and hold the most attention. This also allows us the chance to see some of her memories in a way she'd naturally remember them. Sometimes it's just the quick thought of a time someone told her something, like when the women of the brothel told her about things men enjoy and she shared that with Lihue. The way she remembers it has this hard set incomplete underlighting, and there's this sense of a nice bit of tactile memory of the girls playing with her hair while having the conversation. The show also makes great use of lighting by the way. That scene I mentioned looks like that because of the way the lighting plays off everything compared to the cut just before of her in the well lit pavilion. There are other times where characters are illuminated in a manner that feels dramatic and yet more real for it. The lighting in episode 3, where a concubine catches qualities of sleep walking, is a perfect example of what I mean. There's really great backlighting when Concubine Fuyou is dancing across the wall, when she's leaving and finally when she and her lover are together. There's excellent blues at night that feel cold yet beautiful and then harsh lightings in tense times and soft blowouts of light in others. It’s one of those bits of animation you tend not to notice if it’s not totally outstanding or adding something deeper to the atmosphere.

Out of all 11 episodes out at this time, I’d say this 11th is the only one that felt a little disappointing. It felt story rushed and like we didn’t get to really know Ah-Doh the way we did a lot of the other concubines, even if it was second hand in most cases. She gets a little conversation by the end but is likly not to be seen beyond this (I assume as I haven’t seen the manga nor light novel) so it doesn’t feel as powerful as it could have. The way others talk about her is still impressive, it just hasn’t given the feeling that she got to share herself as much as she could have. By that I mean we hear about Ah-Dou from everyone else and when she gets a chance to talk to Maomao, we learn just enough about to start feeling like we understand why those around her are so in love with her as a person. Certain aspects hinted at make me feel like it’s not the only time we’ll see her again but it’s just as likely, as i said, that she could never be seen again due to the nature of writing and development at times. Sometimes a character can only exist for a portion of the plot in order to introduce the main character to a different aspect of the story and it’s sad that is what Ah-Dou felt like. What they did give her wasn’t bad though and although the episode feels rushed to resolve the plot, it’s still highly emotional.

Those are the few things I really wanted to make significant note of with detail of spoilery parts. I think if you’re thinking it’s just a historical romance, you’re not giving it enough credit. Theres is some really wonderful character writing, humor, and drama wrapped up in Apothacary Diaries and the anime has done a great job making me realize that. So I really wish you the best in starting the show if you do. Sorry I don’t have a way to wrap this up more that saying, “yeah it’s great and pretty check it out” but thats really all I’ve got! It’s a show that seems to speak for itself.

[kavehater]

WAITTATTAATTTTTTT

WAIT

. . . HE SOUNDED LIKE HIM TOO ? I think I’m just deaf and projecting actually ; BUT HE SOUNDS LIKE HOWL

edit : oh nope he doesn’t sound like kaveh BUT HE 100000% SOUNDS LIKE HOWL

Nah cause I just KNOW that the apothecary diaries will literally be the end of my aroace career

[puddimilk]

Even Withered, A rose is still beautiful

I can't wait for season 2 of Apothacary Diaries!!! I'll have this print at Anime North this year! Patreon | Shop

[merrikiwi]

Next person to comment on the apothacary diaries video that theyre a guy and they liked it is getting called a faggot

[such-justice-wow]

The funniest part of Teh Apothacary Diaries is that Maomao is canonically not a trans ally

[offbrandtoaster]

Does the mystery aspect of Apothacary Diaries pick up? I love a good mystery, but so far the first 3 episodes have been the kind where you basically can't solve them because some pertinent information is withheld, or she solves it in literally 2 seconds so you have no time to process the mystery lol.

[sweet-chimera]

𝐓𝐀𝐆 𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐄 𝐏𝐄𝐎𝐏𝐋𝐄 𝐘𝐎𝐔'𝐃 𝐋𝐈𝐊𝐄 𝐓𝐎 𝐊𝐍𝐎𝐖 𝐁𝐄𝐓𝐓𝐄𝐑!

𝐅𝐀𝐕𝐎𝐑𝐈𝐓𝐄 𝐂𝐎𝐋𝐎𝐑(𝐒): THAT NONNBINARY MINT COLOR AND YELLOW

𝐅𝐀𝐕𝐎𝐑𝐈𝐓𝐄 𝐅𝐋𝐀𝐕𝐎𝐑(𝐒): Chef boyardee canned spghettii

𝐅𝐀𝐕𝐎𝐑𝐈𝐓𝐄 𝐌𝐔𝐒𝐈𝐂: Punk rock, fall out boy, ajr, and crane wives folk

𝐅𝐀𝐕𝐎𝐑𝐈𝐓𝐄 𝐌𝐎𝐕𝐈𝐄(𝐒): The book of life

𝐅𝐀𝐕𝐎𝐑𝐈𝐓𝐄 𝐒𝐄𝐑𝐈𝐄𝐒: Kipo, She-ra, centaur world-- i don't really watch or like tv even though i work and animation and what i do watch is usually animated

𝐋𝐀𝐒𝐓 𝐒𝐎𝐍𝐆: body talks by the struts ft kesha

𝐋𝐀𝐒𝐓 𝐒𝐄𝐑𝐈𝐄𝐒: the apothacary diaries

𝐋𝐀𝐒𝐓 𝐌𝐎𝐕𝐈𝐄: Princess monoke

𝐂𝐔𝐑𝐑𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐋𝐘 𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐃𝐈𝐍𝐆: Various villain x reader fanfictions.

𝐂𝐔𝐑𝐑𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐋𝐘 𝐖𝐀𝐓𝐂𝐇𝐈𝐍𝐆: Soul eater

𝐂𝐔𝐑𝐑𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐋𝐘 𝐖𝐎𝐑𝐊𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐎𝐍: AN ANIMATION. ITS ALMOST DONE. IM ANIMATING THE LAST SHOT AS WE SPEAK RIGHT NOW

Tagged by:@muppeteyes1001 Tagging: Ngl-- idk people here like that, so i usually cop out and say steal it, but @kingdom-of-mxginica @kingrexgraves @stormcried @crystals-empire @autarchi0s @valiant-au-save-slot-a @splinter-sister @as-above-rp @ira-sturm @paleobird and @risingshine @cxffeeshxp

[bethanysac]

APOTHECARY DIARIES GIRLIES WE UP!!!!!

[peachonified]

Love the opening song to The Apothacary's Diary

[petalpetal]

THE APOTHACARY DIARIES IS GETTING AN ANIME TIME TO GO OUTSIDE AND SCREAM OUT OF HAPPYNESS

[melon-dot-com]

The chaos of thoughts are below. Have fun ig. I definitely did. I'm free. Whose gonna be bothered. Whose gonna stop me. My city now.

[Contextual info: Watching something new]

So I'm watching The Apothacary Diaries. It seems to be pretty new with only 3 eps so far. Unless the site I'm using is just behind. It's also in dub which will make it not as caught up. I really like it so far and I'll be honest I was very close to not watching it. I saw it on the website I use and was hesitant. Not for any specific reason, I just have trouble starting new things. But I kept getting this nagging feeling I should give it a try.

I even had to make myself watch the next ep becuase part of me was like well I'm not quite investeddd. What if I just did something elseee. Almost distracting myself with non-commital entertainment like usual. Like playing casual games or watching youtube. But then I got that feeling again, that I should stick with it and that it'd be worth it.

[General info: Maomao]

Maomao is the main character- AKA the cute determined chibi here. When she is giddy and happy they show her with blushy cheeks, cat mouth, and cat ears. Often wiggling the cat ears and body swaying. She is very animated. Sometimes it's just that; a little cute and exaggerated features. But sometimes it's like here where it's full blown baby chibi moment. And it's so adorable… if I think abt it too hard it's likely I will perish.

[Maomao: Main passion and expertise]

She loves well. Apothacary related things. It's not just her specialty but she loves doing it and always wants to learn more. Personality wise she is relatively calm, a bit disgruntled, secretive, and independent, until the opportunity for remedy creation and other related things come up. Which brings about a joy she is hardly able to contain.

Honestly she is pretty relatable but my area is more like psychology and analytics. Physics and crafting. Grief and how we approach death/s… I find her passion yet seriousness about being an apothacary to be refreshing and relatable. I have a love for knowing and understanding of strange things as well! And just things that don't get much attention otherwise.

She especially likes testing out poison and venoms on her arm. And she, presumably, uses this to gather information on how to create an antidote or remedy for them. She does it on the same arm every time, which while I suppose makes sense as to not mess up other body parts… I can't see it being as effective on scarred skin. Though for all I know that's the point and doesn't actually effect the observing process. It's not like I'd actually know.

Also she does address at some point that she isn't as sensitive to poisons since she did it for so long. I'm just not sure about skin related irritations.

[The testing scars]

She wears a strip of guaze or guaze-like material around the arm she kept testing on to hide it's scars. Probably to not alarm people or to seem unsightly when she is working. I don't think she cares that much about it herself though or is even self conscious outside of maybe being fired for it. It's the result of her passion and hardwork after all. If someone judged her for it I doubt she'd change her mind about it. The women that showed concern for her when she was younger didn't seem to phase them from continuing.

[TW: About the testing itself]

Honestly TW for the flashbacks of her doing the poison and venom testing. It's brief but her arm is real messed up. Particularly if you have cluster related phobias or trypophobia. Which I find those tend to go hand in hand. I might go back to try and timestamp the moments so others are aware… Even though I get kind of itchy just thinking about it. Ugh.

[Dynamic with other main character]

So there's this important guy- uhhh. Emperor's son. Don't know if that has a name. He may also be a set of multiple sons. I don't normally watch things in this setting I know nothing. Clearly. sdjfsjd

As you can see I forgot his name but he subtly.. well not so subtly, tries to get Maomao's attention. In his own words he said he thinks he'll try at seducing a bit. It sounded more in the context of getting her enamored wth him rather than full on seduction. AKA no actual motive to get with them or in bed with them. At least it sure seems that way for now with how nonchalant and carefree he is about it.

[General info: other main character]

He is your usual fancy boy with a sort of graceful arrogance. He looks pretty but truthfully does not awe me like the women in the show. They are SO so pretty and cute. One of the high class ladies is of course especially dressed up. She seems a bit playful and cheery in a teasing way and has lovely pink hair in an updo with accessories. And I'm like… ahh my heart…

Fancy boi (I am lazy and will get his name later sorry fancy boy :( ) doesn't lack attention but he does find it a bit odd that Maomao doesn't seem flustered by his presence and even off put by him. At some point he finally makes a quiet comment about "Why don't you react'' (Something like that)

[That one scene from the gifset: fancy boy is into it]

I think afterward- my memory gets mixed up so maybe it was before the above. He talks to his… main guardsman? iirc. They talk a bit about some current problems they are facing and then fancy boy says that he is intrigued by how she doesn't react the same as the others. And then gets all chibi-happy about it like ahh I've never been treated that way before <3 all blushy and content. Then his guardsman, as if he just heard about a private side of him, goes alright well I'll take my leave now-- and slides out of view.

[Circling back their dynamic]

I got sidetracked but wayy in the beginning of Maomao and his encounters. She notices his directed glances, obvious casual posing, and getting a little too close in personal space. She is, reasonably, disgusted and disturbed about it. Probably the right reaction to a person in power clearly focused on you.

There has already been a moment though, where she was little grumpy and weirded out by him getting close behind her. But not outright disgusted like I saw before.

That said, she probably thought about maybe not reacting negatively toward one of the people she works for. Or just upper class people in general for that matter. Idk if the creator/s thought about that though and it might just be showing the viewer that she's a little more familiar with his weirdness now. _ End / 11/12/23 / 22:16

[azapofinspiration]

So I’m caught up on Dungeon Meshi…