The Apothecary Diaries Season 2

I enjoyed Season 1 of the Apothecary Diaries. How does Season 2 fare compared to Season 1? It's a mixture of good and bad. In fact, after finishing Season 2, I have given up on the idea that it has an overarching plot. It's possible the author had such a plot in mind, but it was not apparent in Season 2, and I don't think it will be apparent in future seasons until, to use the language nowadays, 'he's had time to cook.'

The technical aspects and visual elements remain impressive as ever. It has good use of colours and shadows, and it conveys how grand the imperial palace is. I won't belabour this point as this should be obvious and other people have written on this far better than I could.

The first cour's opening is great, and the second cour's ending theme hits the right emotions.

My review will focus on the pacing. This season feels like the good stuff is being drip-fed, or perhaps some breadcrumbs are thrown here and there. You don't know why you are being fed this information, but you always suspect that something is up.

This pacing makes the anime feel boring. You know the writing is great in that you are provided clues and seemingly unimportant but crucial details, but you can't help but feel bored. The anime only picks up at the climax of this season.

The boring episodes function as worldbuilding. Māo Māo (猫猫) deduces the relationship of character X to character Y, leading us to a partial picture. The full extent will be revealed in future episodes. A great example of this is how Season 1 hinted at Jinshi's relationship with the emperor. I won't use examples from this season to avoid spoiling it, but suffice it to say that a similar pattern can be observed in this season.

There are other variations of this that Māo Māo does, but the point is that these episodes, as boring as they are, are a necessary setup that leads to the payoff in the final episodes.

The Apothecary Diaries is not an intricately plot-driven story, and if you're looking for one, I suggest Yatagarasu more. Its worldbuilding lies in the progressive revelation of an intricate web of relationships among the people in the Imperial Palace. This is the strength of The Apothecary Diaries.

In Season 1, I was expecting a villain who was secretly pulling the strings, and Lakan, who was revealed to be Māo Māo's father, seemed to fit this expectation, but I was proven wrong. In Season 2, I tried looking for one such villain, but no one appeared to be so. That's why I've given up hope that such a being might exist, though it's still possible he or she may appear in future seasons.

Let's face it. If Season 1 and Season 2 were two different episodes of a 12-episode anime, such an anime would feel episodic. This is why I'm now inclined to think of The Apothecary Diaries as more character-driven than plot-driven. There seems to be a plot in both seasons, but such a plot is limited to the specific season and doesn't follow in the next season. The only constant in both seasons is the budding romance between Māo Māo and Jinshi, and they have great chemistry. Their cat-and-dog dynamic provides the emotional throughline that keeps people engaged, probably the main reason why people keep watching this show.

Anyway, despite my misgivings, there's a good reason why people should watch Season 2. A seemingly minor character that you may have been indifferent to or even felt some antipathy and actively disliked in Season 1 turns out to be a great character, and one can argue that this person is the best character in Season 2. This person gives Māo Māo a run for her money.

I am giving this anime a score of 6 out of 10 and marking it as mixed feelings. I have mixed feelings in that this season did not engage me as much as Season 1. Like I said, the boring parts of Season 2 are a setup and have a great payoff at the end, but the early episodes might discourage viewers from watching further.

A score of 6 out of 10 is still high in my rating system, but it's a steep drop from the 9 out of 10 I gave the first season.

NOTA BENE: A grade of 6 out of 10 [or 60 out of 100 in anilist] means that I find this anime slightly above average and I enjoyed watching it.

A 6 means a decent score and one notch above average. If you're the kind of viewer who treats anything below a 7 as irredeemable, I'd encourage a broader, more nuanced approach to rating.

My enjoyment spectrum lies from 4 to 10. If I have scored an anime below 4, I actively dislike it.