Protagonist Shirayuki, a herbalist, is in many ways just an ordinary person but her bright red hair sets her apart from everybody else in the Kingdom of Tanbarun. Her hair attracts the attention of the lecherous Prince Raji who demands that she becomes one of his concubines. She cuts her hair and flees to the neighbouring Kingdom of Clarines. Here she meets Prince Zen and after he eats a poisoned apple that was meant for her she cures him. She then continues the capital and starts working as a herbalist there. She frequently visits her new friend the prince in the castle leading to some opposition from those who believe that Prince Zen shouldn't be consorting with a commoner. They try to block her access to the castle but when she is accepted as a trainee court pharmacist she moves to the castle. As the series progresses she uses her skills and helps various people; she still isn't fully accepted though and hair makes it hard for her to pass unnoticed. She still sees Zen regularly and their relationship gradually develops to the point where it is obvious that they have feelings for each other that are greater than just friendship.
This may be a shoujo series but that doesn't mean that only girls are likely to enjoy it. Shirayuki is a likable central character and her red hair does make her stand out from the rest of the cast. She isn't the only good character though; Prince Zen is a good male lead and the secondary characters that surround him are rather fun. There are also some good villainous characters who threaten the relationship between Shirayuki and Zen; these are mainly fairly pantomime villains rather than anything really scary; we know that such villains will never succeed. The story is enjoyable with a good mix of drama and fairly chaste romance since the series is primarily aimed at a female audience there is no fan service or innuendo to speak of which makes a refreshing change. Overall I found this to be a charming series and look forward to the second season, which is apparently due out next year.
These comments are based on watching the series in Japanese with English subtitles.
This may be a shoujo series but that doesn't mean that only girls are likely to enjoy it. Shirayuki is a likable central character and her red hair does make her stand out from the rest of the cast. She isn't the only good character though; Prince Zen is a good male lead and the secondary characters that surround him are rather fun. There are also some good villainous characters who threaten the relationship between Shirayuki and Zen; these are mainly fairly pantomime villains rather than anything really scary; we know that such villains will never succeed. The story is enjoyable with a good mix of drama and fairly chaste romance since the series is primarily aimed at a female audience there is no fan service or innuendo to speak of which makes a refreshing change. Overall I found this to be a charming series and look forward to the second season, which is apparently due out next year.
These comments are based on watching the series in Japanese with English subtitles.