Weird double feature anime rec but I recommend watching Vinland Saga followed by The Apothecary Diaries
- Vinland Saga is all about the tragedy of the male side of history. It deplores violence, which is unusual for the shounen genre. It doesn’t shy away from the ugliness of warfare, slavery, and death in the Viking Era but it always holds in it this hope for a brighter future where violence is no longer necessary. It is atypical for the genre because of the grief and sensitivity it brings to these traditionally masculine themes and how it refuses to idolize the butchers of history even as it depicts them.
- The Apothecary Diaries (as far as I’ve seen halfway through S1) is about the female side of history, but it is also an atypical story of a woman who is an apothecary but essentially a doctor and a detective within the walled gardens of the Emperor’s harem. After the blood and dirt of Vinland Saga, it’s a a breath of fresh air to see the perfumed paradises of the Song Dynasty which is ironically happening at the same time on the opposite side of the world. The show has a bit more of a YA feel at first but promises deeper intricacy as we delve into the human dramas and intrigue playing out behind the scenes of this gilded cage of the harem.
- Both Vinland and Apothecary Diaries are deeply concerned with the importance of everyday people even as they cross paths with kings and emperors who could end their lives in an instant, a fact that both stories are deeply aware of. Both series stress how important these everyday lives are, their inherent dignity, and their right to a better life even as they live in an era that could dispose of them without a thought.
It can be hard to watch another show after watching a masterpiece like Vinland Saga but I have to say, once I adjusted to the lighter tone, Apothecary Diaries has been a worthy and fulfilling successor.
