Alternative titles: Akagami no Shirayuki-hime
Manga Adaptation by Bones
Streaming on Funimation, Mondays 12:00 pm EST

Premise

Shirayuki is an herbalist whose rare apple-red hair catches the unwelcome attention of the kingdom’s prince. Running away to a neighboring kingdom, she becomes friends with another prince, Zen, and his two aides. After Zen is poisoned by an apple meant for her, Shirayuki successfully obtains the antidote and decides to accompany the trio to the palace, where she trains to become a court pharmacist.

Artemis’ verdict: A Solid Shoujo

This was a surprisingly easygoing and enjoyable watch – I was expecting something along more melodramatic lines, but I’m glad to see that this show doesn’t have a problem with poking a bit of fun at itself. From the laughably narcissistic first prince to the occasionally ridiculous writing (“I’ve been building up an immunity to poisons slowly in case I ever get poisoned”… uh huh), Snow White with the Red Hair is obviously not too worried about plausibility. And you know what, I’m pretty okay with that; I like an anime that doesn’t feel the need to take itself too seriously.

Moreover, while one of the most common complaints about shoujo titles seems to be that the pacing is too slow for many viewers, Snow White wastes absolutely no time in cutting to the chase. One episode in and we’ve already been introduced to all but one of our main characters (although there looks to be a whole host of upcoming secondary characters, which should prevent boredom from setting in), and it breezed through a complete story in an amusing and satisfying manner. It’s a little too soon for me to start making any real judgments about the characters themselves yet, but I certainly have no objection to Shirayuki, who comes across as smart, spunky, and perfectly capable despite her end-of-episode ‘rescue.’ Nor do I have any complaints about the character designs – in true shoujo fashion, they’re pretty and involve plenty of sparkling, but the artwork is simple, clean, and bright.

I don’t know whether Snow White will continue to remain largely episodic or if there’s going to be a larger story at play throughout most of the show, but either way, I’ll probably be happy. BONES means the quality is likely to be consistent, and while this won’t be the most unique or ambitious title of the summer season, it’s entertaining enough on its own for me to label it a keeper.

Iro’s verdict: Is there an herb that cures cliché?

Not to say that Shirayuki is cliché, of course; in fact, the core concept of our shoujo heroine becoming a court physician with herbalist training is quite novel. The problem is that I could see the clear romantic plot between Shirayuki and Zen taking center stage, causing the show to devolve into the typical anime romance trappings. Hopefully this won’t happen, and their relationship will run concurrently with plots about being a physician-in-training and the more mundane aspects of everyday life in such a profession. At the very least, I’m willing to check out a few more episodes.

Marlin’s verdict: Who is the Most Bishoujo of Them All?

There’s an odd, almost Ghibli-esque quality to the way this first episode was paced. BONES seems to be doing its best to make this feel like a genuine fairy tale, and it really works out for them. Shirayuki is an easily endearing character, and while her prince seems to be the most typical sparkly pretty boy in the entire Kingdom, they seem to be showing he’ll have more to his character than his looks. Just like Soredemo Sekai before it, I’d love nothing more than to watch an enjoyable romp about two strong willed people bringing out the best in each other. It seems like she is basically getting hired chief physician in Kingdom Corp. considering she has a name badge in the ending for some reason, so it’d be interesting to see how conducting her job might conflict with how Zen goes about running his kingdom.