Apothecary Diaries 1x3 Reaction Extended (YT link below)
Added 2025-07-30 01:00:04 +0000 UTCIn Apothecary Diaries 1x3, The Unsettling Matter of the Spirit, do not act out your clumsy anime girl trope around the emperor. ------------
In Apothecary Diaries 1x3, The Unsettling Matter of the Spirit, do not act out your clumsy anime girl trope around the emperor.
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You could also look at the Emperor from a more positive angle and think he's fully aware that not all the women in his harem are there willingly. Fuyou demonstrated her...lack of intention to take advantage of the situation by tripping at their first meeting. She didn't try to impress him, make excuses, act cute when she fell over, or whatever. It was enough to make it clear he shouldn't impose on her when he has so many others to focus on. Some of them provide political connections but it seems Fuyou didn't, or not enough for him to care about, so - she's not gorgeous, she's not ambitious, she doesn't seem to like him at all (maybe even is afraid of him), and doesn't have the family connections that would pressure him to show more interest in her. Gyokuyo is the princess of a foreign country, and all her ladies-in-waiting came with her from there (that's why she trusts them). Her home county is receiving the benefits of her status as one of the Emperor's favorites, so she is not only (mostly) enjoying her place here but improving (through trade concessions, it seems) the bond between the nations.
Serralinda
2025-08-13 06:11:22 +0000 UTCI did wonder about that but it's hard to differentiate with the uniforms
Alex G
2025-07-31 07:03:23 +0000 UTCSo you might not have noticed Goodwin, but the Military Officer that Fuyou got married to is the same officer in Episode 2 that stopped the soldiers from executing the villagers when some of the soldiers were poisoned. It's implied that him preventing the needless loss of a village got him this promotion (which might have been prompted by the fact that Mao Mao explicitly says that they were lucky not to lose the village because of the officer.) Just a neat fact in how the show will sneak these little details in without explicitly pointing them out.
BirthdayParty
2025-07-31 06:35:42 +0000 UTCPoints for consistency
Alex G
2025-07-30 04:30:57 +0000 UTCHaving seen episode 4 one of the biggest shocks for me is how fast some of this is happening. I can imagine a parallel show where the Emperor showing up is the cliffhanger to end season 1.
Alex G
2025-07-30 04:28:35 +0000 UTCI, for one, look exactly as disheveled and uncoordinated dancing on a palace wall as I do sitting on my couch
FreedObject
2025-07-30 04:24:13 +0000 UTCEpisode 3, the episode where we learn that not all is as it initially seems and that the intelligence of those not named Maomao aren't to be underestimated. Small aside, Xiaolan is getting a Manga. It's the same story of The Apothecary Diaries, but from Xiaolan's perspective of the events. It's a recent thing, so there's not even an official English release yet. Xiaolan and Maomao at pretty close, so chances are you'll see them spending time together from time to time, despite their different positions in the Rear Palace. Now, back to Maomao. The way she draws and reaches conclusions in solving mysteries seems to stem from 2 main factors. 1. Maomao's applied life experience in being around the brothels growing up. 2. Maomao's ingrained medical experience as an Apothecary from her father. In this episode, we leaned more heavily into her applied experiences growing up around brothels and courtesans. Back in episode 1, it's shown that Maomao is quite close to the 3 Princesses of the Verdigris House, so she's likely exposed to a lot of that lifestyle and understands it better than anybody in the palace would. But yeah, Maomao wanting to just lay low and just wait her term out just doesn't seem to be happening. Especially now that the Emperor himself has a request for her. This can truly only lead to good things like her early release from the rear palace and going back home to dad, right? Episode 3, btw.
TrueAuraGuardian
2025-07-30 04:04:40 +0000 UTCTo look at it in reverse, in many cases deep obsession or infatuation might just be a perception of having very limited options.
Alex G
2025-07-30 03:06:01 +0000 UTCI mean you see this kind of eccentric whims and ego in many a ruler or wealthy individual throughout history. When you have everything (by the standards of the time) such as over a hundred concubines in the Emperor's case or being able to choose any woman he wants across the empire, it becomes kind of tedious finding something better each time that will hold his interest and break up the monotony. While not anywhere near the suffering of the economically poorer classes, I've often see being excessively rich or well off in various medias comes with it's own set of unique consequences. In this case though it certainly works to Fuyou and her lovers benefit (minus him literally putting his life on the line to win her hand) 😅
KrimzonHawka
2025-07-30 02:45:17 +0000 UTCGreat reaction, im especially excited for ep4 as its one of my favorites. I think maomao's line "if love makes a woman beautiful, what kind of medecine would it make" my first thought that maybe she was talking about herself in a sense as she doesnt view herself as being pretty but i doubt that actually. I think she is jus wondering if a medecine that makes a women more beautiful would be benifical or detremental because at the moment she probably views love as a waste of time, so her wondering what the effects of a medecine like that would make could be what she meant. But tbh idk, im not an expert in anime poetry xD
Snor
2025-07-30 01:59:58 +0000 UTCIt's early on but I get that distinct sense
Alex G
2025-07-30 01:53:38 +0000 UTCwhat you said about little details being important is absolutely true - it may take one episode or twenty but almost nothing goes unused.
sleepy sheepy
2025-07-30 01:41:43 +0000 UTCWhat’s really great about this show is the rich backstory you get from a lot of the supporting cast. You mentioned how it seems like Gaoshun was interesting and there’s a bunch to learn about him and the others. The writing is top tier imo.
bl0odm1st
2025-07-30 01:35:28 +0000 UTC
