REVIEW: ‘The Apothecary Diaries’ Episode 30 — “The Crystal Pavilion, For The Third Time”

With one of the ladies at the clinic learning about Maomao’s (Aoi Yûki) medicinal skills in the last episode, The Apothecary Diaries Episode 30, “The Crystal Pavilion, For The Third Time,” sees the woman reach out to the apothecary with a request. To ascertain the whereabouts of a missing servant from the Crystal Pavilion who had fallen ill. Given the pavilion’s history of problems, there is plenty of reason for concern.

Wasting no time, this episode opens with Maomao standing before Lady Gyokuyô (Atsumi Tanezaki, Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End). The court lady from the clinic has requested Maomao’s presence. Knowing that the woman is privy to Maomao’s medical work, Gyokuyô is concerned about what the summons could entail but sees no alternative but to send Maomao. Gyokuyô sends Yinghua (Rie Hikisaka, Burn the Witch) with her to oversee Maomao’s meeting.

This opening scene reestablishes the concern over Maomao’s work becoming known while tempering the immediate danger of the court lady knowing. After all, if she wanted to get Maomao in trouble over her transgressions, she would’ve simply informed the authorities. Despite this hopeful sign, Gyokuyô’s continued concern for Maomao brings warmth to the scene, as it’s clear that the concubine cares for Maomao even beyond the usefulness she delivers. This is important as it will come to stand in stark contrast to the tone found in the Crystal Pavilion.

The Apothecary Diaries Episode 30 next follows Maomao and Yinghua as they meet with the court lady at the clinic. With this meeting, Maomao observes a clear shift in the woman’s demeanor. Where she first came across as harsh, the court lady is much more welcoming now. As she lays out the facts of what has happened, Maomao’s concern grows sharply once she learns the missing and likely ill servant is from the Crystal Pavilion.

Maomao is concerned in The Apothecary Diaries Episode 30.

Maomao’s concern springs from the fact that to seek medical attention, the servant would have to get permission. She has no trouble believing Lady Lihua (Yui Ishikawa, NieR: Automata ver1.1a) would grant it, but the servant wouldn’t go to her. She’d have to seek the permission of the chief lady-in-waiting, Lady Shin (Sayaka Kinoshita, My Hero Academia). Lady Shin has already appeared previously this season, displaying a coldness that makes Maomao’s concerns for the sick servant easy to understand. What’s more, a couple of key moments with the character implied she may be up to something sinister.

As Maomao and Yinhua head back to the Jade Pavilion, Yinhua imparts some words of caution to the often reckless apothecary. These hit home, causing Maomao to think about the safest way to approach the coming situation. However, the worries about the future are abruptly interrupted when Maomao spots a small lizard in the grass. Lunging at her prey, Yinhua is mortified at her coworker’s behavior, being driven to pass- out when she’s shown the fruits of Maomao’s hunt.

This brief laugh is effective as a momentary release of the tension The Apothecary Diaries Episode 30 builds. After the laughter passes, the scene shifts to the Crytal Pavilion, where Lady Shin’s character and how she is “dealing” with the sick servant are confirmed.

The stressed look of the pavilion’s staff as Shin walks among them, emanating an air of contempt, perfectly establishes the character. She walks like she is an empress rather than the chief servant. Seeing her lash out at a servant looking to bring supplies to the sick individual drives home the coldness of her personality. The level of cruelty on display heavily implies there is something more going on since there is no possible reason to be this insensitive.

Some trouble for the clinic’s doctor at the Crystal Pavilion.

Shin’s reprimanding of the concerned servant is interrupted by the arrival of the clinic’s doctor, who has come to see Lady Lihua. The doctor is not loved at the Crystal Pavilion due to his failure to save Lihua’s first child. Despite Shin’s attempts to turn him away, he produces an order written by Jinshi, which lends sufficient weight to the doctor’s request.

As the doctor passes through the pavilion, he is accompanied by a mysterious attendant. The camera is careful not to give a good look at the person, but it nevertheless seems obvious who the character is. For her part, Shin seems to vaguely recognize the individual, though she can’t place the face.

This faux attempt to be mysterious creates a playful element to the presentation that helps take the edge off the sequence. It feels like the show knows that revealing Maomao as the mysterious aid is the least shocking reveal ever. However, because of Shin’s nagging thoughts as she ponders the attendant’s identity, anticipation is built regardless. The curiosity to learn how they hid Maomao’s identity enough to keep Shin from recognizing the “sniffer” from a few episodes back is strangely compelling.

Maomao’s sharp eyes and keen mind soon discover where the girl is being kept. Using the revelation of who she is to distract Shin, she buys the doctor time to reach the shed and discover the sick woman. What’s more, Maomao also discovers a cache of perfumes that had been banned from the Rear Palace after discovering the danger they pose to pregnant women.

Shin is brought to face judgment in The Apothecary Diaries Episode 30.

With the facts revealed, Shin is brought before both Lady Lihua and Jinshi to face judgment. Despite being caught red-handed, Shin initially remains indignant, believing a lack of evidence will get her out of her predicament. However, her confidence proves to be her undoing as Maomao manipulates Shin into revealing enough information to effectively count as a confession.

The Apothecary Diaries Episode 30‘s interrogation scene once more sees the wrathful side of Maomao come out. While she doesn’t go as far as she has in the past, Maomao’s contempt for those who would harm the innocent boils to the top again. Despite her diminutive size and low-ranking status, Maomao towers over the others in the scene through sheer force of presence. Yûki delivers the shift in her character perfectly. The edge in Maomao’s voice is terrifying as it leaves all who hear it wondering how far Maomao could go if she knew she could get away with anything.

During this scene, we also get a flashback explaining Shin’s motives. Her jealousy towards Lihua’s station and how Shin sees herself as far more worthy of it brings strong motives to the character’s actions. As Shin is restrained, she screams out her frustrations until Maomao steps in again. Delivering one last revelatory jab, destroying Shin’s arguments, and reducing the servant to silence once and for all.

In the final act of the unfolding drama, Shin is approached directly by Lihua, who slaps her, demanding Shin be exiled from the Rear Palace. This moment of assertiveness is new for the concubine, as she has always been presented as a much more passive personality. Although, discovering that her chief servant/cousin was plotting to endanger the baby she’s carrying is likely to prompt a sudden bout of assertiveness. Perhaps a bit of Maomao’s influence is rubbing off on her, too. Not a bad thing either.

As the episode draws to a close, we see a brief scene between the Emperor (Daichi Endô, The First Slam Dunk) and Lihua. While little about the meeting is shown, we see the Emperor taking a distinct interest in Maomao. There is an ominous tone to the moment as the Emperor looks coldly into the glass of wine in his hand. When she first arrived at the Rear Palace, Maomao wanted nothing but to be ignored. It feels like the series may be about to show why that was such a fervent wish for her.

The Apothecary Diaries Episode 30 brings the dramatic side of the series to the forefront. The emotion is built wonderfully, allowing for just a splash of humor when appropriate to keep things from growing too dark.

The Apothecary Diaries Episode 30 is streaming now on Crunchyroll.