REVIEW: ‘The Apothecary Diaries’ Episode 11 — “Reducing Two To One”

With the information gained in the last episode, the long-running mystery of who sought to poison Lady Lihua (Yui Ishikawa) is revealed. Maomao (Aoi Yûki) confronts Fengming (Noriko Hidaka) about the incident in The Apothecary Diaries Episode 11, “Reducing Two to One.” The start of the episode goes into the details of Fengming’s motives to poison Lady Lihua. As she spells out everything that led up to the attempted poisoning to Maomao, the audience is brought along through a series of flashbacks as they are caught up on everything the apothecary has deduced.

While the eventual final moments of this discussion deliver another emotional moment for the series, getting there can be a little tiring. As Maomao lays everything out in her factual and level style of speech, the viewer can quickly get weighed down by all the details being presented to them. There is little back and forth between the characters, leaving Maomao to drone on.

What helps enliven the scene to some extent is the strong visuals. Key moments from the past that drove Fengming to do what she did are delivered with emotion and skill. From Lady Ah-duo’s struggles with her pregnancy to her warm friendship with Lady Lihua, the central moment in The Apothecary Diaries Episode 11 is helped greatly by the animation’s presentation helps give context to the characters motive.

When the whole of the incident has been laid out, it’s clear what fate awaits Fengming. While there is nothing that Maomao can do to change the end that is coming for the older woman, she offers to alter the tale just a little to allow Fengming to save face, even as she moves towards an untimely end. This small moment of compassion is not unprecedented for our protagonist but it stands out in stark contrast to the dispassionate way she has just laid out all that she has deduced about Fengming’s actions. Acknowledging that Fengming was motivated by fear and desperation rather than more reprehensible alternatives, Maomao extends kindness to the woman, however small it may be.

Once the grand reveal and the immediate aftermath are concluded, The Apothecary Diaries Episode 11 sees Maomao meeting with Master Jinshi (Takeo Otsuka) as she learns that Fengming has turned herself in. Maomao feigns ignorance about why Fengming has suddenly handed herself over, removing herself from the final moment of the incident.

This allows her to keep her promise to Fengming concerning her motives around the poisoning, as well as prevent herself from garnering any further acclaim around the palace, something she’s been determined to avoid. Despite Jinshi’s clear disbelief that she had nothing to do with Fengming’s decision, the character shows a surprising amount of consideration for her wishes and doesn’t press the matter.

From here, the episode jumps to the next night, where we join Maomao as she struggles to get some sleep. Rather than continuing to toss and turn, she decides that perhaps a walk in the night air will help her, and sets out into the dark. Her aimless wandering leads her to the outer wall where the servant threw herself into the moat a few episodes back.

Upon scaling the wall, Maomao runs into Lady Ah-duo who is saying farewell to the Rear Palace, for tomorrow she is leaving the place, and all the sad memories it holds for her behind. After sharing a drink with Maomao, the lady delivers a soft, yet emotional, moonlit monologue. It’s bittersweet and well executed, accentuated by the gorgeous animation of the cold, star-filled sky.

As Maomao climbs down from the wall, she slips and falls, only to be caught by a drunken Jinshi who happens to be passing by. Once in the man’s arms, Maomao finds herself trapped, though her resistance to the uncomfortable situation fades quickly when she realizes that Jinshi is crying. While the reasons for his tears are not fully revealed here, they seem connected to Lady Ah-duo’s imminent departure. The delivers another nice moment of compassion for Maomao, as she accepts the other’s sadness and tries to provide some measure of comfort for him. The tenderness of the scene makes it one of the better moments between the two.

The episode closes with Ah-duo’s departure the next day. As Maomao watches Jinshi formally acknowledge the lady’s withdrawal from the Rear Palace, she makes a startling observation about the pair, as she realizes just how alike they appear. Whether or not the theory Maomao concocts to explain if this is true may be a mystery we will never get answer to.

This final scene is brought to a touching close with the sudden appearance of Lady Lihua. Beside herself at Ah-duo’s departure, as the two had once been close, Lihua races after her friend in tears and calls out to her. This unabashed moment of raw emotion is striking. While it would always be noteworthy in any setting, within the walls of the reserved Rear Palace where everyone seems terrified to express how they truly feel, Lihua’s breaking of all protocol to express her anguish over her only friend’s soon-to-be absence hits extra hard.

The Apothecary Diaries Episode 11 delivers a conclusive wrap-up to the mystery of the Garden Party poisoning. While there are moments in the opening that drag on a bit, the episode manages to move past its shortcomings with the strengths of its animation and strong central character to deliver a solid conclusion to the long-running narrative.

The Apothecary Diaries Season 1 is streaming now on Crunchyroll.