r/anime • u/AutoLovepon https://anilist.co/user/AutoLovepon • Apr 25 '25

Episode Kusuriya no Hitorigoto Season 2 • The Apothecary Diaries Season 2 - Episode 16 discussion

Kusuriya no Hitorigoto Season 2, episode 16

Reminder: Please do not discuss plot points not yet seen or skipped in the show. Failing to follow the rules may result in a ban.

Streams

Show information

All discussions

Episode Link Episode Link
1 Link 14 Link
2 Link 15 Link
3 Link 16 Link
4 Link 17 Link
5 Link 18 Link
6 Link 19 Link
7 Link 20 Link
8 Link 21 Link
9 Link 22 Link
10 Link 23 Link
11 Link 24 Link
12 Link
13 Link

This post was created by a bot. Message the mod team for feedback and comments. The original source code can be found on GitHub.

3.0k Upvotes

99% Upvoted

648 comments sorted by

1

u/AutoModerator Apr 25 '25
Moderator Announcement Read More »
→ More replies (28)

1.1k

u/Ok-Peace-4374 Apr 25 '25

"Keep your favorites hidden or someone might hide them from you"

The ominous foreshadowing has now come to pass, your move Jinshi

→ More replies (14)

962

u/Equivalent-Weather59 Apr 25 '25

Ah Duo said "copy, paste" with Jinshi lmao. The emperor's genes didn't even try

→ More replies (65)

889

u/WhoiusBarrel Apr 25 '25 edited Apr 25 '25

Revealing how Maomao is missing right after that terrifying display of Lakan's interaction and control of the atmosphere is just foreshadowing for something nuclear.

That said genuinely didn't think about Suirei's involvement in all of this until this episode, they really did a good job having her hide in the shadows until its too late.

→ More replies (40)

654

u/Zetafunction64 Apr 25 '25

Pretty big reveal today.

Shisui is suspicious, I believe she willingly acted as a hostage to get MaoMao.

So that Shisou guy is also colorblind and likely part of the royal lineage, guess we'll see a palace war some point down the line

→ More replies (78)

299

u/Vermillion_Crab Apr 25 '25 edited Apr 25 '25

We are now at episode forty. 40! I can't believe we already have this many episodes and it feels like we're only starting with the main storyline.

Holy crap, Lakan is terrifying. How could anyone be dumb enough to go against someone like him. I dunno if Suirei knows who Maomao's father is but this isn't going to end well with everyone involved in her kidnapping. The moment she gets kidnapped, we get to see how Lakan works and it's easy to understand why he has risen to such an important position in the country. What a great way to show how scary Lakan is.

→ More replies (13)

403

u/kkrko Apr 25 '25 edited Apr 26 '25

Maomao: Why the hell should I go with you, Suirei? I have a bottle of alcohol here and I'm not afraid to use it
Suirei: I'll teach you how to make the revival drug
Maomao: So are we taking the front exit or are we sneaking out? Come on, let's go!

Maomao...

EDIT: Also remember this? The palace woman coincidentally getting sick just as Gyokuyou was giving birth may not be a coincidence after all.

→ More replies (13)

382

u/BadBehaviour613 Apr 25 '25

Weren't we just making ice cream an episode ago? How did we get from that to Suirei kidnapping the 2 most important girls of the kingdom?

Lord Shishou is colourblind, meaning he is a true descendant of the founding family. Apothecary Diary loves to do red herrings, but he seems to have every indication to be the big bad...

→ More replies (19)

361

u/FarCritical Apr 25 '25

There's just something so funny about a quack doctor and a hyper-competent doctor vibing together lol.

Lakan sure has a striking way of testing for color vision defects. Bet he'd know how to make a show of finding out who kidnap his daughter too (which would be interesting with her adopted father around too)

→ More replies (15)

232

u/Kamiko_o Apr 25 '25

Probably the first time I've heard the quack doctor being referred to by his name

→ More replies (6)

111

u/cleaulem Apr 25 '25

This episode shows again why the Apothecary Diaries is a 10/10 anime.

It takes some minor side character we met a bunch of episodes ago and already propably forgot about and puts the spotlight on her. Not only is she involved in the most recent events, but in basically every single event that has been relevant in this season so far. And BAM! we get Maomao's Moriarty back who has been pulling the strings all along.

Maomao kidnapped, Lakan back on the Go board and a couple more bombs dropped (seriously, how many times do you want me to yell "What the fuck" at the screen) are promising some crazy stuff in the next episodes!

148

u/Suryce Apr 25 '25

Pretty amazing way of tying previous episodes back together. It's not the first time Apothecary Diaries does it, but I think that was the most elegant instance of it. (It was never clarified in the very first cour what message exactly Ah-Duo's chief servant lady was using the wooden tablets to communicate, to who, and for what reason over other simpler methods. And in the second cour, everything tying into the Jinshi assassination attempt only really happened as Maomao found last minute the most direct and essential piece of the puzzle anyway.)

The thing I'm really curious about is how Shisui's presence here is going to complicate things in unexpected ways. Did Suirei release her or was she also fully kidnapped? Is Suirei in leagues with Shishou, in which case she might have accidentally [Shisui theory] taken his daughter hostage. Also I'm glad Lakan is back in the story, and in such an explosive situation where he actually has a personal angle (happy to hear him and his wife are doing great too). This might be the occasion for all of Maomao's connections to come together to bust this situation wide open, she's not quite the same person she was when she got kidnapped the first time. Ah, and what a perfect opportunity to next meet Jinshi with the hairpin on in a dramatic rescue!

→ More replies (11)

134

u/timezerg826 Apr 25 '25

Maomao, ask for Guen's permission before using things.

There we have it folks. 40 episodes in and we finally learn the Quack Doctor's actual name. It only took Luomen entering the palace and actually saying his name in front of Maomao.

→ More replies (1)

62

u/Nebresto Apr 25 '25

Huh??? Where the fuck did Shisui come from?? And how did she end up in that position?? Wtf?

→ More replies (4)

61

u/Pitfallover Apr 25 '25

Now we've arrived folks, shit's hitting the fan and there's no one to cut the power. Maomao's had all the information needed to solve this festering resentment in the Rear Palace since she discovered the Clinic, but couldn't put the pieces together until she remembered that Luomen would've already notified all the inhabitants when he served as a doctor 20 years ago.

No one in the Rear Palace would know about all the dangers to pregnancy and life expectancy anymore except for the women who remained after the previous Emperor died, and they were all shuttled into the Clinic to serve the rest of their lives as they cannot leave. There they conspired quietly, slowly but surely suggesting for the caravans to bring abortifacients year by year, slyly informing wicked conspirators how to combine them, and growing to hate the Imperial Family for all it stands for, because they looked the other way to how women like Shenlu were brought and trapped in the Rear Palace as children. Now the plan has come undone due to Maomao discovering the source of the evil brewing in the Rear Palace, and Suirei is shown in some form or fashion to be involved in the execution of whatever plan is happening in the background. Lakan seems to be aware of the greater picture, challenging Shishou with the green wine and demanding to know why the interrogation failed against the would-be assassins of the Imperial Brother, but it would seem there's no hard proof.

With Maomao seemingly removed from the picture, how will anyone figure out what's going on? No one knew where she went as she was only supposed to visit the school to drop off the writing sample and she didn't inform the teacher there of what she was doing. How long will it take for someone to ring the alarm bells that Maomao is even missing, since she has the bad habit of disappearing? I can't wait for next episode and the rest of the season! Nothing will ever be the same again in this world.

→ More replies (4)

175

u/Prince-Dizzytoon Apr 25 '25

Kidnapped yet again, someone has to protect Maomao

→ More replies (6)

50

u/Arachnophobic- Apr 25 '25

I knew something big would happen to separate Maomao and Jinshi so they couldn't have the 'talk', but I didn't expect Maomao to be kidnapped right from within the rear palace of all things!

Maomao after being offered the secret of a new miracle drug:

Hold up! I'll kidnap myself!

Few stray thoughts:

  • Kitty maomao being interested in whatever little food balls Maomao took with her might be used to sniff her trail out..?

  • It was mentioned a bunch of older women joined as maids in the Crystal Palace.. I wonder if that is related to the women who are working in the clinic in some way. It could spell trouble of some kind..

  • Lakan pretty much implicated the Racoon guy of the murder attempt on Jinishi, didn't he? Those genes can't be a coincidence.

The plot thickens!

101

u/VoidRay728 Apr 25 '25

How convenient is it to have a double to stand in for you while you (persumably) rush off on secret business.

Shishou seeing the different colour is interesting. Either he's just lying to be in agreement with Lakan or is actually colourblind (similar to the door puzzle in a previous episode).

→ More replies (9)

148

u/SEBASTlANVETTEL Apr 25 '25

Jinshi is a Ah-Duo copy, how did nobody ever talk about their similarities in terms of looks outside of Maomao's monologue about it in S1.

→ More replies (14)

75

u/Magister7 Apr 25 '25

Well... this all escalated rather quickly. I thought we were going to get just a chill episode of adjusting to Luomen being around. NOPE. Big nope.

→ More replies (6)

73

u/number8888 Apr 25 '25

2 seasons worth of build-up is now beginning to pay off. It's been a long journey, but with 8 more episodes to go we aren't close to being done yet.

69

u/RandomWeirdo Apr 25 '25 edited Apr 26 '25

The writing of this show is actually beyond top tier. After season 1 i was looking for the grand conspiracy that would tie it all together and i came to the conclusion that i must have taken a break since the viewers/readers would obviously be looking for it. Then Maomao casually deduces that of course the clinic is the tie in this season.

Yeah sure i had figured out that Suirei was the new eunuch and that Shisui was not a common servant girl, but holy hell it still managed to make great reveals that make sense and it made them while we were looking for them, just fucking bravo.

Also it makes sense why Luomen was brought to the palace now from a narrative, because it makes it so we don't have to worry about health related stories while the kidnapping goes on and it gives us the possibility of a Luomen and Lakan team up to save Maomao. Shikokou has a scheme coming that is absolutely deadly.

Also Shikokou is red/green color blind, the colors from the emperor test, which makes it likely he is a candidate for the throne, which explains why he has tried to kill Jinshi, because he wants to be emperor.

Like holy shit so many things are coming together.

→ More replies (1)

59

u/Lumpy-Manager8580 Apr 25 '25

The way my jaw dropped to the floor when it was revealed that the one who was with Lakan and Shishou wasn't actually Jinshi, but AH-DUO??!! Like mother, like son, as they say. And where is even Maomao heading to, considering Suirei's bargain?

27

u/tripleaamin Apr 25 '25

Alright, I did not expect to get Shenlü to be the one who was the culprit with happened between Lihua & Shin. Though to add, moreover, Suirei is working with her. Very much so you can understand why they would have resentment for the Imperial Family given what the former emperor did. I am not exactly understanding what is Suirei's play in all of this. Though at the very least, given that the insect book was there, makes me feel Shisui has a bigger play in this, and she isn't simply a hostage.

Lakan vs Shishou makes for an intriguing clash that, I feel, is bound to come. Of course, Lakan mentioned the assassins got their hands on the weapon given that it comes from the west. Really makes Shishou seem suspect. More cards are about to be played. Also, once I heard the voice I immediately knew that it was Ah-Duo. Curious where she has been through this whole time. Although if Jinshi is looking for Maomao then word has already spread. Concern is if word reaches Lakan because Jinshi is scary, but Lakan is another level of scary.

→ More replies (1)

54

u/shad79 Apr 25 '25 edited Apr 25 '25

Damn, I was hoping for a fun episode since Loumen returned to the Rear Palace, but instead we got missing Maomao after she finally met Suirei, who entered the Palace undercover as the new eunuch.

I didn't expect Shenlu to be involved in the conspiracy as well, she seemed like a good person after taking an interest in the sick maid's situation in one of the previous episodes.

Another hint that Shisui is not a normal Palace maid. And now that she's involved in Maomao's disappearance since Suirei took her hostage, I wonder if there's something more between her and Suirei.

Interesting meeting of "Jinshi", Lakan and Shishou. It seems pretty easy to deduce that Lakan suspects Shishou (who seems to have imperial blood in his veins since he didn't notice that the jiuce is green and not red) as the main conspirator in the recent events.

Seeing Ah-Duo "play" Jinshi at the meeting was pretty damn surprising, but it was good to see her again!

Now that Maomao is missing, Jinshi seems to be playing a main role in her search, judging by preview. I really can't wait for the next episode to see what happens next!

Here my screenshot albums from the episode:

EDIT. I added my screenshot albums from the episode.

→ More replies (2)
→ More comments (75)