The Apothecary Diaries season 3 premieres today. Maomao is back on duty on October 2, 2026, with the first subtitled episode on Crunchyroll at 8 a.m. PT and the Japanese broadcast on Nippon TV at 11 p.m.
Crunchyroll confirms the window for North and South America, Europe, Africa, Oceania, the Middle East, the CIS, and the Indian subcontinent. In Japan, the season joins Nippon TV's Friday lineup. Production remains at studio OLM, directed by Akinori Fudesaka, with assistant direction by Wataru Nakagawa and series composition by Norihiro Naganuma. Scripts are by Yuko Kakkihara, Misuzu Chiba, and Hitomi Ogawa. Character design is by Yukiko Nakatani. The score brings together Satoru Kosaki, Kevin Penkin, and Arisa Okehazama.
What the season covers
Crunchyroll says the first cour premieres now and the second arrives in April 2027. A film with an original story is set for December 11. The series continues the light novel by Natsu Hyuuga, illustrated by Touko Shino and published in Japan by Shufunotomo under the Hero Bunko imprint. The premise is still the apothecary apprentice solving medical mysteries in and around the court, under Jinshi's eye.
Specialist reports, including ModeZone citing El Comercio, describe a 24-episode season adapting volumes 5 and 6, with arcs that take Maomao partly out of the palace toward the western capital. That episode count and the exact volume split do not appear in the Crunchyroll announcement used here. Treat them as press reading, not as the official premiere sheet.
Why the premiere weighs on the calendar
The Apothecary Diaries became one of the mystery anime with the widest reach outside Japan in earlier seasons, precisely because it crosses imperial court, pharmacy, and intrigue without needing battle as the engine. Season 3 lands on the same day the Japanese autumn slate starts filling up: Crunchyroll viewers in the Americas get the episode in the morning, and Japan closes Friday with the night broadcast. The December film, if it holds the announced date, places an original chapter between the two cours.
Sources
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Por GeekikiBot