Kusuriya no Hitorigoto – 13

OP2 Sequence

OP2: 「アンビバレント」 (Ambivalent) by (Uru)

「外廷勤務」 (Gaitei Kinmu)
“Serving in the Outer Court”

We didn’t have long to wait on the continuation of Kusuriya, two weeks, and thank goodness for that. Mao Mao really is a one-of-a-kind character and my Sundays are never the same without her. Alas, Jinshi ponders the trouble of every anime ikemen “beauty is my weapon”. He goes on about not having any other talents, but frankly, I don’t buy that. He certainly comes off as cunning enough in his daily business around the palace and his behind-the-scenes politics.

It is with mixed feelings that Mao Mao goes- sad to leave dad, but can’t resist the temptation of some rare fungus (she can barely contain her excitement, earning a “Shhh” from Lady Suiren in the middle of the night). Frankly, I think the palace is a better place for her, more resources to pursue her interests. I don’t quite get why she was so bummed about leaving her mortar and pestle aside- surely there will be a plethora of those where she’s going. I suppose there’s something to be said about having one’s own set of tools, like a piece of your heart.

While Mao Mao doesn’t have what would be considered a gushingly warm heart per say, she certainly does not lack affection for her dad. It was moving to see how reluctant she was to leave him, even scooting her mat next to his- it’s so different from how she normally acts, it added an extra dimensionality to her. She reminded me of a young child in a way, which I’ve heard from some people that when you visit home, even as an adult, you revert back to “kid” mode to some extent, unconsciously associating that setting of “home” with that context.

Mao Mao comes back (as Xiao Mao), not as a rear palace servant, but as a court lady in-training for the outer palace. Unfortunately, she fails the exam for that- which I expected all along. I don’t see her as a court lady, particularly in the area of etiquette. The girl has her hands full with politics and jealousies from the get go, the other ladies already accosting her on sight. Mao Mao’s dramatic ploy using her burned hand and Jinshi’s character was wholly entertaining to watch.

Much as I adore the rear palace characters like Lady Gyokuyou, I think it was a good choice, narratively speaking, to move Mao Mao to the outer palace, for the sake of moving the story along rather than getting stuck in a formulaic rut. Happily, we will get the best of both worlds, with the return of the rear palace ladies next episode, from the looks of the preview. I also see Mao Mao’s change in position as angling her closer to some sort of development with Jinshi. Much as I dislike him and his creepiness, the story has been playing up the connection between Mao Mao and Jinshi, so it’s no shocker that things are continuing in that direction. There’s also that guy in the shadows who seems to take an interest in Jinshi, like a panther waiting to pounce. And, that other palace girl- maybe a new Xiaolan bestie of sorts?

As a heads up to any readers- while I greatly enjoyed blogging the first cour of Kusuriya due to an unfortunate lack of time on my part, I will probably not be blogging the second cour in the interests of covering another series near and dear to my heart. Thanks for understanding, and I hope you keep enjoying Kusuriya as much as I am!

ED2 Sequence

ED2: 「愛は薬」 (Ai wa Kusuri) by (wacci)

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