This episode was honestly just a giant Maria appreciation episode, and I'm completely okay with that.

So Renato's plan from Episode 1 seems to be working out surprisingly well. He's still somehow the crown prince despite trying to throw the position away, but it looks like Aida and Placido are getting along just fine anyways. Meanwhile, Renato skipped several steps and went straight to proposing to Maria. Dude is moving FAST.

A big part of the episode revolves around Maria preparing to become the future crown princess. Naturally, that means etiquette lessons and learning how to interact with nobles. The funny thing is that Maria barely seems to need help with the latter. She has this incredible ability to walk into a room, be herself for five minutes, and immediately win everyone over.

Seriously, she somehow manages to befriend what looked like a villainess-type noble girl without even trying. Then she meets the king and queen and somehow wins them over too. My favorite part was easily the queen. She starts off looking strict and intimidating, only to completely drop the act and start talking about how cool Maria is. That got a genuine laugh out of me.

What I continue to love about this show is that Maria isn't some genius mastermind accidentally winning people over. Half the time she just seems to be operating on pure good vibes and sincerity, and somehow it's working. It's impossible not to root for her.

The only thing she seems completely incapable of handling is Renato. Every time the guy gets close to her, she immediately short-circuits. I'm honestly not sure whether Renato is secretly superhuman or just powered entirely by love at this point, because Maria cannot escape this man's embrace no matter how hard she tries.

The romance is progressing surprisingly quickly, but it doesn't feel forced because the chemistry between the two is genuinely fun to watch. Renato has also become way more likable than I expected after Episode 1, which helps a lot.

Final Verdict: This show continues to be way more charming than I expected. Maria remains an absolute joy to watch, Renato is turning into a surprisingly solid male lead, and every new character seems to end up joining the Maria Fan Club within minutes of meeting her.