English Dub Review: TSUKIMICHI -Moonlit Fantasy- “Wonderous Medicine Production”

Do you want to know how to easily get my attention with an anime? Start the episode off with a “dude, what the hell did I just see?” moment. Right off the rip, Tsukimichi gives just that, and I’m all for it. Tsukimichi has been very light on those, but I think “Wonderous Medicine Production” was just what we needed to change things up.

Part of what gave us that “what the hell?” moment is seeing who was the trigger, and it was Morris, Rembrandt’s aid. We already know his family is suffering from a curse. We already know he’s getting in an increasingly desperate situation as time goes on. And seeing him start to take extreme measures to try to cure the curse, and buy time until the Ambrosia is crafted, is enough for me to see where this more sadistic side goes.

Getting Hazal to the mansion to make the medicine was funny, as was his interaction with Rembrandt and Morris. However, him creating an Alchemist’s Circle a la Fullmetal Alchemist was weird, and had me just wondering why. It isn’t anything major as of now, just a head tilter of a thing. I’m just glad that we can finally get some sort of background on this curse, and to see what the deal is with this curse. And then we see it first hand with Rembrandt’s wife, and see how well the cure really works. Seems like the cure is worth the ingredients and the time to make it.

As the plot with the curse seems to be at and end for now. Makoto, Tomoe and Mio are attacked by adventurers (or mercenaries, whatever I suppose), and that doesn’t exactly end well for the mercenaries. Especially considering who they’re attacking. And like I was saying, we get more about the curse. I was expecting to continue thinking Tsukimichi was more for comedy and cool fighting scenes. However, after seeing the background of the curse, I’m more interested than I could have been. And seeing the all of the players moving around the board, I can do nothing more than get more and more excited.

I’m intrigued with how the person was used by a mysterious person (who I think was involved in the beginning of the episode), if the flashbacks are correct. But watching Tomoe recruit the mercenary, Lime Latte, to be her personal spy for the land. I’m not entirely sure, but I think that Tomoe may not be as loyal as she says she is. I can’t place my finger on why, so I am going to leave it for now. With the last bit with Rembrandt being very shady at the end of the episode, and Tomoe spying on him, I’m feeling more and more correct as we go on.

I am feeling a lot of good things with “Wonderous Medicine Production”. There is an elevated feeling of intrigue and espionage, especially when it comes to Tomoe. Since her moves have zero context in regards to the inner workings of the team. Also, how does Tomoe’s current actions affect the civilization back on the demiplane? When an episode ends on the viewer asking a lot of questions, and leading the viewer to overthink seemingly minute details, that was a great god damn episode.