Palace intrigue. Pharmaceutical mysteries. And…a green cat?
Written by Hyuganatsu, The Apothecary Diaries is a period drama that stars Maomao, a apothecary with a cat-like disposition who is kidnapped and forced to work as a food taster in the Li Kingdom’s imperial court – a fictional world heavily inspired by the Forbidden City of imperial Chinese history. Think TVB period drama meets exaggerated anime.
Riding high on its success of its anime adaptation, INCUBASE Arena Malaysia recently announced an Apothecary Diaries exhibition at Fahrenheit88 for April 2026. After a shock delay that dragged on into May, I finally had a chance to check it out.
So, as a casual fan who has only watched the anime, will this exhibition be my untimely demise? Or will it be just what the good doctor ordered? Let’s find out!
Appetizers
Starting from the entrance, you immediately notice it – the smaller venue.
Unlike the Ryoko Kui x Delicious in Dungeon exhibition – which took place at the main INCUBASE venue – the Apothecary Diaries exhibition is relegated to the smaller annex hall.
In fact, it was so unassuming I overlooked the tiny main entrance and stumbled into the gift shop.
At the counter, ticket holders can draw one of six character cards. I duly drew mine – Jinshi, Maomao’s superior and love interest. I was hoping for Maomao herself or Loulan, but that’s life.
After that, I followed Maomao into the world of Apothecary Diaries.
Main Course
First up, you are greeted by a huge wall of interviews with the anime staff. Insights into anime storyboarding, the challenges of designing Jinshi’s pretty boy design for anime and the anime staff’s dedication to perfecting character expressions. It’s all anime here.
And I really mean “anime”. The entire exhibition is hyper focused on the 2023 anime adaptation, and only the first season at that. The second season, light novel, manga adaptation or even a word from Hyuganatsu are strangely absent from the exhibition.
Moving on, you’ll find the first of several photo-op spots throughout the exhibition. They draw from the anime’s highlights like the garden party, Lakan’s weiqi chessboard and the nighttime dance finale.
Accompanying them are props like hairpins – a favourite plot device – alongside Maomao’s and Jinshi’s robes. They’re a bit simple, but cosplayers will get a kick out of posing next to these.
At the second interview wall, the anime staff delve a bit deeper into the use of colours to set moods, the staggering amount of background art made and the blending of 3D backgrounds with 2D characters.
Beyond these intriguing insights however, most of the other written sections or wall-sized art were just bland synopses or tired quotes from the show.
On the plus side, there’s tons of production materials plastered all over, including character design sheets, raw storyboards, and coloured keyframes. Artists and animators looking for inspiration or hardcore fans will find a treasure trove for sure.
Just Desserts
But just as I started to immerse myself in the exhibition, it ends!
Some barebones posters teasing the upcoming third season and movie, a simple standee area and a wall of plaques filled with signatures and art (all unmarked or uncredited) and…you’re in the gift shop.
Speaking of which, the gift shop has a decent if overpriced collection of merch. There’s no exclusives here and you’ll find the same for cheaper elsewhere. (As of writing, INCUBASE has announced preorders for “Malaysia Exclusive Merchandise.)
So, is the INCUBASE Arena exhibition worth it? I think my thoughts are obvious.
Dungeons and Palaces
In short, the Apothecary Diaries exhibition was a short, poor and disappointing experience.
And this is my own personal speculation, but almost all of the above flaws can be traced to what I mentioned earlier – the smaller exhibition space.
In the previous Ryoko Kui x Delicious in Dungeon exhibition I attended, INCUBASE dedicated the entire main hall to the anime’s TWO seasons, which allowed large set pieces and massive exhibits (an entire dragon head!) connected by airy, relaxing rooms. Not only that, the small annex hall (where the current exhibition is held) even had a themed Delicious in Dungeon café with exclusive drinks.
In contrast, Apothecary Diaries gives you painfully few exhibits that ignore the second season, set pieces that begged for more space (see the Maomao dance finale) and a series of cramped, narrow corridors. I can only imagine how crowded and unpleasant the first day must have been.
And remember the café? Despite initial promises, the Apothecary Diaries café was scraped not even a week before launch day.
Also, the entire exhibition had remarkably poor soundproofing and volume control. All throughout, I could hear Maomao’s yells from screens bleeding through the walls, mashed together with the noise of an unrelated concert outside. Although Delicious in Dungeon had similar issues, their larger space, better soundproofing and use of music montages helped tremendously.
Regardless of whether it was schedule conflicts, soaring logistics costs or issues with the Japanese rights holders, Apothecary Diaries deserved better.
Postmortem
In the end, my final prescription is a reluctant no.
With a painful RM60 entry fee, your money is better spent elsewhere.
Sure, you could get the cheaper RM50 buddy ticket (total RM100). Or you could’ve booked an early bird buddy ticket at RM40 like I did (total RM80). But it’s still a big ask, especially in this economy!
I hate to bring this up again, but Delicious in Dungeon’s standard Adult ticket cost RM50. That extra RM10 is simply not justified.
What makes it even more baffling is that INCUBASE’s Hong Kong launch seems to have featured more rooms, exhibits, an alternate reality (ARG) game with a free gift and even a sticker photo booth! Surely throwing the Malaysian fans a bone or two couldn’t have hurt?
Overall, I felt that INCUBASE Arena’s Apothecary Diaries exhibition was a failed dish that poisoned the hopes of both diehard fans and potential newcomers. Give this a pass.
Oh well, on the bright side, fans can still look forward to the movie and third season!
Or if you’re a real diehard anime fan, why not fly on over to the otaku capitals of Akihabara and Ikebukuro to pick up some merch or join in some Apothecary Diaries collab events?
The Apothecary Diaries Exhibition @ INCUBASE Arena
23 May – 12 July 2026INCUBASE Arena Malaysia, Level 2, Fahrenheit88
179, Jln Bukit Bintang, Bukit Bintang, 55100 Kuala Lumpur
Book Tickets: Ticket2U
