Otalku Cafe - The Apothecary Diaries

The next winter anime I have to review is another banger that started in fall 2023 and carried over into winter, and that is The Apothecary Diaries.

The show is set in old China and follows a junior apothecary named Maomao. She is abducted one day and sold off to be a slave to the palace, where a series of events leads her to become in a higher position than her original slave title. Those series of events lead to many more as she climbs higher in regard to several high profile members of the palace. 

The show is more of a mystery anime than anything else, as there is always a 1-3 episode mystery that unfolds through the weeks. Maomao is an excellent discerner of circumstance and plays vital and often times life saving roles in solving the many mysteries of the palace. She knows her role, how to manipulate in and around those circumstances, and builds trust and reliability with our co MC, the mysterious but supremely handsome high official, Jinshi, and the results are wonderful stories that are paid off every week and a bigger overarching story that both pays off in the end, yet leaves much room for more! 

The animation is next level and is among the best you’ll find in an anime, and the musical composition is remarkable, fitting in with the time period flawlessly and lending itself to each moment in the show, no matter the emotional range. This is another show I easily gave a 5/5 stars to and with season 2 confirmed in production after the finale, I CANNOT wait for more. The show is available on Crunchyroll and I implore everyone to pick this one up as well!!!