#which are isekai and shojou

[howdoistormspirit]

I need more anime friends who I can casually chat to about my terrible anime tastes

[hisui-cotton]

Hello! Today's Note is about an anime! One that took me by surprise as I had expected...well I'll talk about it down below. But it really made me feel interested in watching some more anime in a time I was feeling not too crazy about doing so anymore. Which is you know sounds like a lot but it's really something that I contemplate whenever a new isekai comes out. I'm mostly kidding...

But this is a real post about what I found made Apothacary Diaries well worth the watch and hope that you check it out too.

As a historical fiction I love that apothecary diaries feels like something more than just a drama-comedy. It feels a lot like a good shojou manga does. There's good humor, there's some tense moments between characters and there's also a bit of really nice overall storytelling. It in some ways reminds me of Ouran. Where there's just this really nice progression introducing you to all the characters and the pacing between humor and drama is really nicely done and flows in a fairly natural progression. It never feels too forced into the next change of atmosphere. My favorite example of this is probably in episode 4, where not even a whole scene away from when we get some funny expressions from Lady Lihua's ladies in waiting, we also get a super dramatic scene of Maomao chastising them. There's this sense of momentum and change that is brought all the time and even when tensions feel high it doesn't deflate just because there is some humor mixed in. I've noticed this kind of slow in the later episodes but a part of that feels like it's as a result of the climax arriving rather than various directorial issues that usually plague most adaptations.

The story is fairly blunt with the darker topics at times and is definitely interested in being able to present those topics without judgement. It's a story literally about an apothecary who works as a lady in waiting to the concubines of the emperor. The way the characters and story don't shy around certain topics reminds me a lot actually of the way a lot of shojou used to have really sad or dark themes for their cheerful characters to explain how they got to how they were. Mao Mao embodies this a little differently than those characters did but still has those aspects. That's probably why I make the Ouran comparison actually, not because the stories are at all similar but because the characters and storytelling feels familiar. Maomao reminds me a lot of Haru, where both are very a matter of fact in the way they talk about stuff and of their situations. There are things they are genuinely interested in and when it comes to those things they work hard to have time or (in haru's case) be able to afford those things.

Now this isn't to say you should just watch Ouran if you want to watch Apothacary. It's a very different story and is much snappier than Ouran even at times. If you like the elements of Ouran's storytelling, and are wanting a strong, but not literally strong, female protagonist, I'd really recommend Apothecary! Honestly I was not planning on watching it. Even when a lot of the stuff going around of it was really good looking, I was worried that the hype for it was over blown. That somehow there was one really good scene like 5 or 6 episodes in, but that the rest of it would be kind of meh. Most people recommend shows being like “just wait till episode X, then it gets really good” but Apothacary got me from the start. It was so good and in many ways, I just want more. I've even considered picking up the light novel over the manga to see how much I can see of the anime in the light novel. I've gotten one other light novel recently and it really reads like an anime. The characters attitudes and reactions feel very anime even without the animations to go with it. So I'm rather curious to see how something so popular feels to read compared to watch. The only reason I don't want to check the manga as well is becuase I've considered that I need to give some written stories another go and light novels feel like they're just similar enough in genre to be that for me.

Now I'm gonna talk about a couple of the finer details like story or animation, so if you don't want spoilers that's all I've got for you. Just know it's great, it's worth the watch and it won't waste your time!

So the thing that sort if hooked me from the start of the story is Maomao. As she says by the end of the episode, her sense of justice is what brings her to act as she does. I think in a lot of ways this makes her both very outspoken but she also knows how to hold back, or more specifically ‘when’. Being as the show is a capturing of her diary, a lot of her thoughts and actions are explained as they happen or as she thought them through. That said there's no like…writing in the diary. I almost forgot that was what the show was about until several episodes in what a date change and the seasons turned. It felt like a noting of small events that happened. It didn't break my feeling of immersion though, rather it felt nice to be invested enough to simply go with the flow that the show naturally established.

Everything is generally told from Maomao's perspective, there are a few times other characters get to be the focus for dramatics but Maomao's thoughts push through a lot of the events that occur and hold the most attention. This also allows us the chance to see some of her memories in a way she'd naturally remember them. Sometimes it's just the quick thought of a time someone told her something, like when the women of the brothel told her about things men enjoy and she shared that with Lihue. The way she remembers it has this hard set incomplete underlighting, and there's this sense of a nice bit of tactile memory of the girls playing with her hair while having the conversation. The show also makes great use of lighting by the way. That scene I mentioned looks like that because of the way the lighting plays off everything compared to the cut just before of her in the well lit pavilion. There are other times where characters are illuminated in a manner that feels dramatic and yet more real for it. The lighting in episode 3, where a concubine catches qualities of sleep walking, is a perfect example of what I mean. There's really great backlighting when Concubine Fuyou is dancing across the wall, when she's leaving and finally when she and her lover are together. There's excellent blues at night that feel cold yet beautiful and then harsh lightings in tense times and soft blowouts of light in others. It’s one of those bits of animation you tend not to notice if it’s not totally outstanding or adding something deeper to the atmosphere.

Out of all 11 episodes out at this time, I’d say this 11th is the only one that felt a little disappointing. It felt story rushed and like we didn’t get to really know Ah-Doh the way we did a lot of the other concubines, even if it was second hand in most cases. She gets a little conversation by the end but is likly not to be seen beyond this (I assume as I haven’t seen the manga nor light novel) so it doesn’t feel as powerful as it could have. The way others talk about her is still impressive, it just hasn’t given the feeling that she got to share herself as much as she could have. By that I mean we hear about Ah-Dou from everyone else and when she gets a chance to talk to Maomao, we learn just enough about to start feeling like we understand why those around her are so in love with her as a person. Certain aspects hinted at make me feel like it’s not the only time we’ll see her again but it’s just as likely, as i said, that she could never be seen again due to the nature of writing and development at times. Sometimes a character can only exist for a portion of the plot in order to introduce the main character to a different aspect of the story and it’s sad that is what Ah-Dou felt like. What they did give her wasn’t bad though and although the episode feels rushed to resolve the plot, it’s still highly emotional.

Those are the few things I really wanted to make significant note of with detail of spoilery parts. I think if you’re thinking it’s just a historical romance, you’re not giving it enough credit. Theres is some really wonderful character writing, humor, and drama wrapped up in Apothacary Diaries and the anime has done a great job making me realize that. So I really wish you the best in starting the show if you do. Sorry I don’t have a way to wrap this up more that saying, “yeah it’s great and pretty check it out” but thats really all I’ve got! It’s a show that seems to speak for itself.

[jecroisenmoi]

Daily Log 6/26/22

So today is another normal, not so special day. But yeah it is a Sunday so Happy Sunday everyone!

So I've read a manga, a shojou manga, which surprisingly I really got into, because I'm a yaoi and isekai kind of girl. It's Sweat and Soap, I just really love the story of the couple, it's fluff and an easy read. For something that can be quite predictable, I read it nonstop. Well it was really beautiful. It got me wondering if I could also get that type of love, you know the marriage kind of live since both are professionals and already independent. Well, maybe independence and being self-sufficient is one of my condition if I ever wanted marriage. I want to be able to stand on my own.

Anyways, I couldn't take it. I want the books. So I finally mustered the courage to ask my share of the prize of the Dancesport competition we joined during the town fiesta. I want it in cash, but u want the book and there is no way I am going out of the four corners of our house just to get the money, plus the fair just go get it, so he just sent me the money via gcash. Well, now I can use it for my online shopping. Though I cannot hold the money physically, which kinda disappoints me—but books first!

So Christal is in Pangasinan now, well we just had our first con, we cannot easily share tea now. I tried calling her but she cannot answer since the internet there is weak and she still haven't connected to the WiFi. But yeah we find ways, just to spill the tea. Well we could always be flexible. Lol.

So while I was typing this, a book is waiting for me, so —gotta go~

P.S. I gotta go to the hospital tomorrow to take my last shot of anti-rabies so gotta wake up early. But I know I'll still sleep late — like always.

XOXO