Parents

No title available
No title available
Today's Document
One Nice Bug Per Day
Cosimo Galluzzi
d e v o n
KIROKAZE
sheepfilms
DEAR READER
dirt enthusiast
Peter Solarz
art blog(derogatory)
PUT YOUR BEARD IN MY MOUTH

tannertan36
2025 on Tumblr: Trends That Defined the Year

izzy's playlists!

Love Begins
Show & Tell
almost home
I'd rather be in outer space 🛸

seen from United States

seen from Malaysia

seen from United States
seen from United States

seen from Australia

seen from Malaysia

seen from United States

seen from Germany
seen from T1
seen from T1
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from T1

seen from United States

seen from China
seen from Japan
seen from United States
seen from T1
seen from United States
seen from T1
@lladmie
Parents
Maomao is back!
(and Jinshi too I guess)
majimako the hetero ship that's so tragic it feels gay
I recently joined another discussion about the LN5 epilogue, and honestly, I'm not ready for the anime to make it popular.
What frustrates me isn't just the wave of people labeling Jinshi as the Worst™ person ever, but also the opposite — those who reduce the entire scene to just "BDSM". (Suprise, suprise, the world isn't black and white.)
It has become a convenient excuse to strip Jinshi of any real accountability. Jinshi makes mistakes, too. Reacting the way he does when Maomao keeps pretending nothing is happening isn't out of character for him since he is 1) a powerful man, spoiled and childish and 2) young, frustrated and inexperienced.
Neither Jinshi nor Maomao truly understands what love is. They've never seen it, and no one has ever explained it to them. And I challenge you to try to always remain composed while someone keeps feigning ignorance the way Maomao does.
One of Jinshi's greatest qualities is that he listens, and he learns. The reason their dynamic evolves — and the reason Maomao will eventually be able to confront her emotional wall — is precisely because Jinshi never stops learning.
Reducing that scene to "abuse" or "kinky fanservice" completely misses how crucial it is for both Jinshi and Maomao's character arcs.
Sherlock and her Watson
If you don’t understand why it is important for Maomao and Jinshi to end up together, then you don’t fully understand Maomao’s character. Maomao’s character arc is built in such a way that accepting a relationship with Jinshi is a necessity for it to work.
It takes so long for them to be together because a main character’s arc resolution has to happen at the end of the story (which Natsu originally intended to be volume 12).
Maomao starts the story believing in the anti-theme, essentially the opposite of the main theme:
“To be loved, even just for a little while—that’s a wonderful thing. You almost… start to think it means there’s a place you belong.”
—Chue’s line to Maomao
This is what Maomao ultimately needs to understand. Because of her ghost (an often traumatic event that gives a character their main flaw or incorrect worldview) so in her case not receiving love as a baby, Maomao grows up overly reliant on logic and repressing her emotions. This emotional repression is the anti-theme.
A few examples:
She can’t admit to Jinshi that she wants to help Xiaolan because Xiaolan is her friend.
She refers to Luomen as her mentor rather than her father figure in front of Jinshi.
This flaw creates her want, which we see in her goal: to maintain her life exactly as it is. At the beginning of the story, she has no plans to make friends, find a partner, or form new relationships. She is comfortable with the relationships she has always had with her sister and her father because they don’t challenge her emotional repression. And this is why she runs away about any clue related to Jinshi’s real identity, because she doesn’t want their dynamic to change.
For this type of character, who has a maintenance goal rather than an active one, there need to be other forces or characters who drive the plot. That’s why the story begins with her being kidnapped, and why Jinshi takes more plot-changing actions than she does.
However, what a character wants is not necessarily what they need. Jinshi already believes in the theme, which is why his main goal is to be with Maomao. But while his goal is correct, the way he goes about it is flawed. Jinshi needs to learn to be less possessive, which ties into another theme of the story: autonomy.
Jinshi’s possessiveness is rooted in his own ghost, having the toys he loved as a child taken away from him. As a result, he clings too tightly to the things and people he cares about.
This is why Maomao and Jinshi complement each other. Throughout the story, Jinshi challenges Maomao to open up emotionally, while Maomao’s emotional repression forces Jinshi to unlearn his possessive behavior. In other words, if Maomao were like many other girls who are immediately smitten with Jinshi, he would never have learned to let go. And if Jinshi were not so possessive and stubborn in his pursuit of her, Maomao would never truly open up emotionally, something that Joka herself acknowledges.
„Maomao, you’re very fortunate. This person is clearly very persistent, extremely stubborn, doesn’t know when to quit—”
„Gee, he sounds like a real catch,” Pairin interjected, but Joka ignored her.
“—and is good enough that even you were willing to let him win.”
In volume 12, Maomao is willing to give up her want: to maintain her life the way it is, for her need: to be with Jinshi, even though he is still the Moon Prince and, as she strongly suspects and later confirms in volume 13, the Emperor’s son. In other words, choosing Jinshi means abandoning the emotional safety of maintaining her old, controlled life and accepting love, belonging, and the complications that come with them.
In volume 15, Jinshi is willing to give up his want: to be with Maomao, for his need: learning to let go by prioritizing Maomao’s autonomy over his own desire.
Maomao moves toward connection by surrendering control while Jinshi moves toward healthy love by surrendering control.
Because someone expanded on Jinshi’s childhood trauma in the reblogs, I think it’s only fair to do the same for Maomao.
The reason Maomao’s biggest emotional blockage must be resolved through her love interest is not because the story prioritizes romantic love over platonic or familial love, but because Maomao’s core emotional barrier is specifically romantic and sexual in nature.
She is the product of a love that ended tragically and grew up in an environment where intimacy is treated as a loveless commodity, used by courtesans to survive and, hopefully, escape the brothel, and by men to take pleasure while exploiting a misogynistic system to their advantage through abuse.
One of Maomao’s earliest mysteries back home is also among the darkest and most tragic: a wealthy man repeatedly gives courtesans false promises of freedom, only to discard them once they are no longer useful to him. This ultimately leads to at least one courtesan taking her own life.
Maomao herself is also a victim of multiple attempted sexual assaults and was forced by the woman who breastfed her, and whom she considers a sister, to learn how to kiss.
Jinshi, meanwhile, grew up in a strikingly similar environment. He became the manager of the Rear Palace at just thirteen and was involved in his brother’s love life from a young age: learning his tastes in women, preparing bedchambers, and being used to identify unfaithful consorts. He, too, was nearly sexually assaulted multiple times and learned early on to weaponize his beauty to manipulate others.
“She was finally back in the red-light district for which she had pined all those months in the rear palace, but deep down they were the same place. Both were gardens and cages. Everyone in them was trapped, being poisoned by the atmosphere.”
— Volume 1
Both Maomao and Jinshi were raised in deeply misogynistic, highly sexualized environments, which ultimately led them to reject that world. Maomao does not want to become a courtesan like her sister, and Jinshi does not want to have a harem like his “brother.”
As a result, Maomao grew up believing that love and sexual relationships only benefit men:
“The courtesans had a saying: once you know it, it’s hell.
But the men, too, had a saying: to know it was exactly why they went there.
That word—that simple four-letter word with its o and its e—was sometimes called vulgar, sometimes treated as nothing more than a game. But some people said it was impossible to live without it.”
— Volume 5
i dont want to be in a fandom that critisizes the choices of fictional characters like they are human beings. i want to see THEORY and ANALYSIS and STORY STRUCTURE and CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT!! I WANT PARALLELS AND MOTIFS AND VISUAL CUES!!! They're not REAL they are TOOLS so stop acting like they are people who made bad choices and should be punished. of course they made bad choices!!! that shit is funny and cool to watch!!
jinshi becoming the emperor is a popular ending that some fans want. however, while i do see the appeal, i'm still actively against it, and the reasons most fans give for why he shouldn't become emperor feel a bit lacking.
it's always:
he's insecure
he's horrible at delegating tasks
he's too kind, and the emperor's role would force him to act against his morals, and the weight of it all would eventually kill him emotionally, mentally, spiritually, and physically.
BUT i have yet to see anyone else bring up jinshi's line in LN 13, where he explicitly states that the reason he is not interested in the throne is because he does not want to be in a position where NO ONE CAN STAND BESIDE HIM—not even the empress.
while most of the listed reasons are correct, i feel this one holds the most importance. not just because it came directly from jinshi himself, but because it speaks to who he is as a character and person. it's not solely because he dislikes the heavy responsibility that comes with ruling a nation, or he feels like he's lacking in many areas, but because he has a bleeding heart that longs for nothing more than a real, genuine connection with people all his life.
i once read in a reddit thread where someone made a distinction between the current emperor and jinshi. they said, ‘one is the son of heaven and the other is just a man.’ that sentence has stuck with me ever since.
jinshi is someone who has longed to be seen all his life. not as a celestial nymph or a heavenly being, but just a man—a human being who can be scarred, wounded, bruised, brought low, and show weakness. an emperor's position does not—cannot—allow any of that.
he works well when he's actively involved with the people he wants to help; he thrives when he sees his beloved apothecary getting to do what she loves, and he has no issues getting mocked and insulted if it means helping people in any way he can.
i just feel like jinshi has so much love to give. let him walk with the people he cares for deeply! let him be imperfect like everyone else! don't place him somewhere so high up, not even the love of his life can reach him.
i hope the author knows how to conclude his character, given how deliberately she's been writing him. jinshi is undoubtedly a great leader, but i don't think he will ever become a great emperor.
i bought the fma perfect guidebook today and this part of the cover is so cute i had to redraw it
Okay, okay, I have to give my two cents on the choking scene in LN5 because I’ve seen way too many different interpretations online.
I don’t believe it was a “kinky make-out” as many assumed from the Japanese translation, nor do I think he did it purely out of rage — even less out of jealousy.
Jinshi was trying to make a point.
At the banquet, Maomao wore his hairpin, and despite feigning ignorance, she was 100% aware of what she was doing. She was basically screaming to everyone there that she was “the prince’s favorite,” probably even implying that she was the one he had already chosen to be his wife. But then, she danced with Rikuson, making Jinshi look like a clown, and when Jinshi approached her, she denied everything all over again.
Jinshi was tired and running out of time, since the Emperor kept throwing women at him, women he didn’t want. He was nervous. Through her actions, Maomao was confirming her feelings for him — something Jinshi had always suspected, since he was perfectly aware of her emotional walls. And then what happened? She wounded him with her words, denying any possible interest and even suggesting he marry someone else. Jinshi wanted to break through her apathy by making her feel the pain he himself was feeling, and then kiss her, to finally make her realize her own emotions (which is why he felt like he had “won” right after the choking and the kiss).
But in the end, even though he managed to pull a reaction out of her, what he saw on her face wasn’t what he was hoping for. He even started to believe that she hadn’t enjoyed his kisses — or hadn’t liked them — and in fact, he never tried to kiss her again until volume 12! (And Maomao kind of had to ask him to kiss her properly, since he was still scared!)
The scene wasn't about truly chocking her in blind rage imo, but he definitely wanted to make her feel pain. The kiss was forced. Yet these dialogues aren't causal either:
“Sometimes, I want to hit you.” [...] “Not the face, please. Somewhere where it can’t be seen.” “I won’t actually hit you.” “I know.” Jinshi was not the type to lay a hand on women or children.
“It hurts, sir.” “Oh, it hurts?”
“Don’t pretend you didn’t realize that you were one of the candidates. I can tell you’re trying to feign ignorance.”
I also read a lot of Maomao’s descriptions and especially the second kiss as very biased, since she was struggling with her own thoughts and fears about what a relationship with him would mean.
For instance, he wasn’t really crushing her against the bench, he was just being passionate. But for Maomao — who still wasn’t ready to accept his passionate love — that felt as suffocating as if he actually were.
Let’s just hope season 3 will manage to convey all of this clearly on screen.
by 虚芜__ Sin node
I love Jinshi as much as the next person, he's a good character, well written and I think his and Maomao's romance taking so much time and care to develop is fun and good. But the way some people fawn and worship him, putting him on this pedestal and hoisting him up above the other characters...talking about them like they're somehow inferior to Jinshi and his story? That's just weird and honestly a bit uncomfortable. Especially considering how Apothecary Diaries does its best to focus on its strong, diverse cast of women and how they navigate their situations at this point in history where the story is based. In my opinion, Apothecary Diaries is clearly supposed to be a story that is meant to let its female cast shine and show their intelligence at a point in history where women were seen as inferior, unintelligent; objects to be traded and used. So for the fandom to latch onto the one man who's explicitly supposed to be supporting cast to Maomao just really rubs me the wrong way. I also recall the creator of Apothecary Diaries herself saying that she dislikes when fans talk to her about the series because most of the time everyone just wants to talk about Jinshi. Like the man by all means, nothing is wrong with him being your favorite character. But dear god do not throw the women of the series under the bus and undervalue their contributions so you can put your pretty boy on the top of the first place stand. And a minor addition to this as well, shipping Maomao with anyone other than Jinshi is NOT an insult to his character or his 'reverence' for her, nor does it have anything to do with media literacy?? Wildest comments I've ever seen in a fandom. We need to stop throwing the phrase 'media literacy' around when it comes to shipping interpretations. People are allowed to have fun and have their own interpretations of relationships. Funny how I only tend to see this take with same sex ships.
OP, I'm going to push back on this just a little. Not because I think you're wrong in your main argument which (correct me if I'm wrong) seems to be that Jinshi is one of many supporting characters for Maomao's story and the other relationships with different characters shouldn't be shunted aside in favor of the main romantic subplot. But I do think that a lack of media literacy is a fair criticism when it comes to people who are outright attacking the romantic subplot (and those who are enjoying it).
Now, I assume you have the Shisui/Maomao shippers in mind with this post (and if not, I apologize). While I reserve the right of anyone to ship whoever and whatever they please, so long as they think it's fun, I also think this is a major misinterpretation of Shisui's character.
Shisui's primary symbolism is insects (in particular the bell cricket), but the anime has been leaning into butterflies, which I think is also appropriate. Shisui is a character who spends the end of LN 4/end of Season 2 in a state of metamorphosis. We see her change from the obedient, almost blank-eyed doll that her parents, the Emperor and even Jinshi believed her to be, to reveal herself as a woman with nerves of steel. She single-handedly saves the children of the Shi Clan, her sister, and her father's reputation (if only to Jinshi) from the purge that her parents' actions had initiated. She also leaves Jinshi with a critical warning that will take another six books to finish playing out.
So, if that fortress is acting as Shisui's chrysalis, then that dance on top of the wall as the guns go off around her represent the butterfly emerging as that metamorphosis is complete.
And, as the anime only's are going to find out tomorrow, when Shisui is transformed, she finally gains her freedom. But what did she sacrifice to obtain it? Love.
Love of her parents (even if only in the form of filial duty), love of her sister, love of the clan, love of the Shi children, and, critically from a shipping perspective, love of her friends, including Maomao. Shisui explicitly abandons love in favor of freedom.
Meanwhile, Jinshi does the opposite. One of Jinshi's main motifs is the cage (usually depicted as either the pillars of the palace surrounding him or as him being surrounded by admiring women). His whole reason for playing the part of 'Jinshi the Eunuch,' was to obtain his freedom. He has sacrificed the respect of the court, a good deal of power that he could have been building in the last six years, and (by design) the throne. Freedom has been Jinshi's goal, LONG before he ever met Maomao.
But when Maomao is kidnapped and endangered, Jinshi sacrifices his hard-won freedom to take up the mantle of the Moon Prince, in order to save her. He chooses love over freedom.
Shisui and Jinshi's values are opposed, essentially exchanging Maomao as a token of what the other has discarded.
It's a masterful bit of mirroring between the two that drives home the themes of both characters, as well as being a worthy and hopeful sendoff for Shisui, who does take the time to put a message in a bottle (or a hairpin) in the hope that it'll somehow make it's way back to Maomao, just as Maomao hoped it might, bearing the news that Maomao's prayer for Shisui's safety was granted.
But I can understand why Jinmao shippers are having their asses chapped by people who want to take all of that symbolism and characterization and say, "That's nice!"
Frankly, as a fan of Shisui's character and Maomao's friendship with her, I'm annoyed as well. I think media literacy is a very valid criticism of people who can't seem to be bothered to appreciate the beautiful motifs, themes and story structure in front of them, simply because they don't care for the established romantic subplot.
And especially not when a lot of their criticisms of Jinshi end up being internalized misogyny in a queer hat. But that's a different rant altogether.
Maomao and Loulan by @ Par_Sato
Remembrance