Laced with the perfect blend of nostalgia and excitement, The Apothecary Diaries Season 2 is off to an excellent start. For the most part of episode 1, it was all about comfortably reintroducing us to the cast and setting while serving the most eye-catching visuals and soothing music. While being wholesome, funny, and nostalgic, the premiere succeeds in fulfilling its purpose – gently affirming our hopes that this is going to be an awesome season.
I honestly couldn’t be any happier. I mean it! The Apothecary Diaries had an amazing run last year with two consecutive cours. And since its momentous finale back in March 2024, the second season has been one of the things I’ve been looking forward to (my reason for living, if I may so). It was voted as one of the most anticipated shows this 2025 and for good reason.
The anime puts together a strong and compelling protagonist with a series of medical mysteries, an interesting and dramatic political setting, and a frustratingly good slow-burn romance – creating a well-woven tapestry rich in storytelling and character development. Put simply, in fangirl terms, it’s really, really, really good.
That said, I immensely enjoyed watching The Apothecary Diaries Season 2 episode 1. I could go on and on about so many things in this episode (my notes are crazier, I’m seriously holding back a lot while writing this), but I think I can speak for everyone when I say that Maomao the Apothecary and Maomao the Cat easily took the spotlight in this episode. They’re so cute! I also loved the way all the side characters had a decent amount of screen time. From Princess Lingli to Xiaolan, and to the Emperor – it’s heartwarming to see everyone back together. I didn’t expect to see Gaoshun and the Quack to be so giddy about a cat too.
It’s not all happy-go-lucky things though: the episode manages to productively slide in Jinshi’s plans for improving the reading and writing comprehension inside the rear palace (funny how it started from Maomao’s other plans). And then there’s the unnamed girl we met, as well as the two mysterious foreigners arriving with the caravan.
As I said, The Apothecary Diaries Season 2 episode 1 makes for an amazingly cohesive teaser/recap-ish episode, and putting aside the role of setting up future mysteries, the absolute cherry on top is the shy romance between our favorite duo. I was laughing my heart out while Maomao explained a cat’s qualities and Jinshi slowly connected the dots for his fondness for the Apothecary. He hugs the cat and admits he understands. Oh Jinshi, you’re hopelessly in love!
All in all, what makes The Apothecary Diaries work so well is that it stays consistent with two things: a strong pairing and interesting mysteries. This is off to an excellent start and I can’t wait to spend another season with Maomao and Jinshi. I also have to mention how the opening and ending themes suit The Apothecary Diaries so well. The art is so pretty and the light novel fan in me squealed with all the foreshadowing. Anyway, if you’re like me and enjoyed the visually pleasing sequence, then we have storyboard artist and director Nakata Ayaka to thank for.
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The Apothecary Diaries Season 2 is streaming on Netflix and Crunchyroll.
© Natsu Hyuga/Imagika Foss/”The Apothecary Diaries” Production Committee
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