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Crunchyroll to Stream The Apothecary Diaries Anime's 2nd Season

ANN's coverage of Anime Expo 2024 sponsored by Yen Press and Ize Press!

Crunchyroll announced during its panel at Anime Expo on Saturday that it will stream the second season for the anime of Natsu Hyūga and Touko Shino's The Apothecary Diaries (Kusuriya no Hitorigoto) light novel series in North America, Central America, South America, Europe, Africa, Oceania, the Middle East, and the Commonwealth of Independent States. The company streamed a special audio drama video featuring a Tanabata festival visual.

The first season premiered last October with the first three episodes, and aired for two cours (quarters of a year). Crunchyroll is streaming the anime as it airs in Japan and is also streaming an English dub.

The second cours (quarter of a year) of the first season debuted on January 6. Uru performed the new opening theme song "Ambivalent," and wacci performed the new ending theme song "Ai wa Kusuri" (Love is Medicine).-->

Norihiro Naganuma (The Ancient Magus' Bride season 1) directed the first season at TOHO animation and OLM, and Naganuma also supervised the scripts. Akinori Fudesaka was the assistant director. Yukiko Nakatani (Go! Princess Precure, Tropical-Rouge! Precure) designed the characters. Shōji Hata was the sound director. Satoru Kousaki (Vivy -Fluorite Eye's Song-), Kevin Penkin (Made in Abyss), and Arisa Okehazama (ONIMAI: I'm Now Your Sister!) were all composing music for the anime.

J-Novel Club publishes the novel series digitally, and it describes the story:

In the East is a land ruled by an emperor, whose consorts and serving women live in a sprawling complex known as the hougong, the rear palace. Maomao, an unassuming girl raised in an unassuming town by her apothecary father, never imagined the rear palace would have anything to do with her—until she was kidnapped and sold into service there.

Though she looks ordinary, Maomao has a quick wit, a sharp mind, and an extensive knowledge of medicine. That's her secret, until she encounters a resident of the palace at least as perceptive as she is: the head eunuch, Jinshi. He sees through Maomao's façade and makes her a lady-in-waiting to none other than the Emperor's favorite consort... so she can taste the lady's food for poison!

Hyūga began serializing the story on the "Shōsetsuka ni Narō" (Let's Become Novelists) website in October 2011. Shufunotomo began publishing the novels in print volume with illustrations by Shino in August 2014. Nekokurage launched an ongoing manga adaptation in Square Enix's Monthly Big Gangan magazine in May 2017. Square Enix Manga & Books is releasing the manga adaptation in English. The company will also publish the novels in print starting in May 2024.

Source: Crunchyroll panel at Anime Expo (Alex Mateo)