The Apothecary Diaries isn’t your 90s meet-cute story. No, rather, it deals with cliches and tropes in its unique ways. We have Maomao, who is the embodiment of the Ice Queen; she is cold, detached, and aloof.
On the other hand, we have Jinshi, who is a complete heartthrob. He is goofy, playful, and someone who constantly pines for the Apothecary. Natsu Hyuga truly deserves a hat off for this unmatchable feat.
She blends tropes and cliches, but not in the usual way. They enhance the comedy in the series and make it richer. This is one of the reasons that makes the anime all the more appealing. How so? Well, let’s unpack this.
The Apothecary Diaries’ unusual sense of humor
Who thought frogs could be used as an innuendo, right? It surely makes the story all the more ribbiting, or should we say riveting. Jokes aside, there are several instances in the anime that would have most fans in stitches.
The Apothecary Diaries is adept at blending medicine, mystery, and drama. By now, we all know how Maomao is an expert investigator. But her witty nature fused with her social awkwardness makes it downright hilarious.
The thing is, it all feels organic and authentic mainly because it balances out the seriousness. Yes, suspense and thrill are important after all. But a little comedy here and there didn’t hurt anybody.
Maomao’s affinity to poison and the chibi humor is what hooks most viewers to the show. Then we have Jinshi’s childish antics that are rendered brilliantly by Toho and OLM. This scene, however, tops it all:
this classic pic.twitter.com/pw5bpULWws https://t.co/9wOoL9a3xH
— daily apothecary diaries (@dailykusuriya) June 10, 2025
Classic 🤣🤣🤣
— Slumber 🦈 (@Slumbershark) June 11, 2025
— Yume (@kunoichi101) June 11, 2025
‘a night of blissful dreams – I worked hard so I’m pleased with myself’
Jinshi: 😵😵😵— Rock B. (@teQuilaProject) June 11, 2025
Honestly, Jinshi’s dumbfoundedness never fails to crack us all up. To make it better, Maomao cleans up the broken pieces, making it funnier. Gyokuyou’s laughter and Hongniang smacking the apothecary are the cherry on the cake!
There’s one thing, however, that most fans often miss out on. That is, the comical elements often mesh well with the cliches. No, not in the way you’d think. Instead, they enrich the plot in the best way possible, and here’s how.
Comedy meets cliche in the best way possible
Comedy is the essence of life, and The Apothecary Diaries does it better with clichés. The trope of him falling first and harder sits well within the storyline. We have a heroine oblivious of this guy’s advances, and it is spot-on!
This is one of the reasons why so many people love Natsu Hyuga’s series. Because it doesn’t succumb to conventional tropes. It transgresses the boundaries of storytelling through its characters.
The use of conventional tropes is done so smartly that it makes it a wholesome experience. There are innuendos, of course, but also gross miscommunication as we saw in the case of Maomao setting up Lihaku with Pairin.
Additionally, Jinshi’s wanting to claim Maomao stems from his childish antics. That’s when Gaoshun gives us a glimpse of his childhood. It’s a classic trope of the woman not exchanging advances, but here’s the thing.
The slow-burn romance paired with inappropriate humor makes it refreshing. The golden retriever meets black cat trope never gets old. That’s exactly why this works well. It makes the most of the wittiness, cliches, and turns the inappropriateness into something more enthralling!
The Apothecary Diaries is currently available for streaming on Crunchyroll.
This post belongs to FandomWire and first appeared on FandomWire
