Kusuriya no Hitorigoto – Episode 43 Review

「祭り」 (Matsuri)
“Festival”

It was a hard 2 week wait for Kusuriya, so boy was I glad to see it back on screen, although, as is the wont with this series, it breadcrumbed the answers like Hansel and Gretel. Which isn’t really a bad thing per say- it keeps me wanting more, and is better than the alternative (exposition dump).

We have the late summer/early autumn festival, worshipping an Inari-like deity- fox harvest god. I love mythology and traditions like the festival here, so I was totally in my element. Like all myths, the traditions date back to earlier times, where the local history becomes cemented in story. The history here is that of a Western tribe that tries to move in, accepted by only a few villages. In return for a place to live, the Westerners share their farming knowledge, which becomes honored and memorialized as the fox god. I enjoyed the detail of how the Western tribe assimilating into the Chinese village was represented by painting the white fox mask.

Intriguingly, Shisui painted her fox mask green instead of the usual red, which Mao Mao is quick to spot. At first, I thought it had something to do with how the “Sui” in Shisui and Suirei is the kanji for jade green, but then we get another clue, that it’s mostly men who have the green masks. After which, Mao Mao pieces together that the Western tribe that arrived in that village must be the same tribe as the kingdom’s founding mother who carried the color blindness trait. Which means Shisui is a descendant, but must not realize it- otherwise the emperor would have taken her with him on his colored door trial, and passed. While Shisui or the emperor may not realize it, somebody else does, and has no doubt been using Shisui as a tool in grabbing the throne. That somebody- Shenmei, but more on that later.

I’d have to agree with Mao Mao that something is odd about this hostage situation. Why kidnap Mao Mao, then let her move freely- no ropes, gags or anything. In fact, she’s free to go to the festival. I will admit, books are probably a more effective restraining order than chains- if you’re given all the books you could possibly want to read, why leave? I certainly wouldn’t leave for hours. And especially given that this a certain experiment obsessed apothecary we’re talking about here. Despite being in a weird hostage situation, the girl can’t help but explode in excitement at getting the revival formula.

Mao Mao seems to be more aware of Jinshi- I feel like the her of a year ago would have gladly swapped Jinshi’s kanzashi for some cool herbs, but now she knows better, and blatantly refuses Shisui’s offer, knowing Jinshi will be pissed as hell if she gave it away. I’m kind of wondering what role the kanzashi will play- because it obviously has to from the way it’s practically being waved in our faces.

It’s hard to get a read on Shisui’s personality. She’s involved in this big, elaborate plot and abandoned her position in the rear palace, so in one sense, I pegged her as devious. But then, the way she combs Mao Mao’s hair and dresses her, I got a big sister vibe from her. She seemed almost tender towards Mao Mao. I kind of got some ominous foreboding when Shisui leaves at the end. Her giving Mao Mao her kanzashi almost seemed to hint that Shisui might not be coming back and is giving Mao Mao a memento.

Things get a little dark when Shisui remarks that she learned how to be good at massaging and hair-making because her mother would abuse her if she didn’t do those jobs fast enough. Which, given her true identity, makes me wonder if she was groomed from birth by Shenmei (or at least, that’s who I assume is behind it) to play a double agent- concubine and maid-spy. Why else would you beat a maid’s duties into your child who is going to be sold off as a concubine? If so, then this plot has been a hell of a long time in planning. If that’s the case, realistically, I don’t see how it could be unraveled in the nick of time by Jinshi and Lakan. On the other hand, they are two very smart men, and we also have the matter of plot convenience which frequently visits this series. But, maybe the series will surprise me, and it won’t have such a neatly wrapped conclusion- but would this be Kusuriya if it didn’t?

Is Mao Mao just the bait here- the worm on the fishing hook- has she already completed her role, simply just by being there? Otherwise, why else give the insatiably curious girl free rein. Which Mao Mao uses to sneak out of the palace with the help of the “little shit” to investigate the poorly growing rice. Which leads to breaking into a reportedly unused storeroom (though we all know that’s 100% going to be a mere rumor). Which, as expected turns out to be Suirei’s little lab. It all seems like the pretty standard backroom lab stuff- until Mao Mao pulls the curtains back to find a feifa workshop. And it all comes together (as we knew it would). I didn’t realize that it was Suirei (well maybe not just her, but people associated with her) who was actually making the feifas- I assumed they were buying premade ones from the Western embassy- it certainly explains the increase in metal purchases that Lakan’s adopted son found.

We get quite the nail-biter at the end when Shenmei (Fukami Rika) and the Western embassy walk in at the worst possible moment, discovering Mao Mao and the kid. Which I guess means the driving force behind all of this is Shenmei. Will Jinshi’s faction get there in enough time? Or will Shisui save the day? Judging from her hard-edged appearance and the boy’s fear of her, she’s definitely not someone Mao Mao should mess with.

Preview