Spy X Family Parts 1/2 Anime Review – 71/100

Tell me if you’ve heard this one before: A spy, an assassin, a telepath and a dog walk into the most prestigious academy Fake East Germany has to offer in an effort to prevent a war. No? Well how about the one involving the Secret Police’s sister? Still no? Not even the one about M. Bison’s kid in a dodgeball tournament? Huh. Well strap in, because you’re about to. Originally created by Tatsuya Endou, directed by Kazuhiro Furuhashi and animated as a joint effort by Wit Studio and CloverWorks, I give to you this seasons Slice of Life darling, SpyXFamily. This review covers both Parts 1 and 2 because they are a split cour single season. I don’t care how MAL and Anilist split them up, that’s what they are. Now buckle up, because we’re going to dive right into this.

Be warned, this review contains minor unmarked spoilers for SpyXFamily. It also contains major spoilers in some sections however these will be heavily marked to avoid accidents.

Production

Starting strong, first up is SpyXFamily’s production. If you weren’t already aware from the introduction, SpyXFamily is a co-production by Wit Studio and CloverWorks. For those curious, allow me to recommend you an incredible article by kVin over at the SakugaBlog. If you don’t want to read a 4,000 word article though, allow me to sum it up: This means that SpyXFamily has 2 teams, generally alternating episodes. That means 2 art directors, Kazuo Nagai and Hisayo Usui, two chief animation directors, Kazuaki Shimada and Kyouji Asano, as well the separate teams behind each. For those that know just how hectic and poorly scheduled animation can be, this no doubt sounds great. Split the work, half the load on each, right? You would think so, though I expect it just took an unreasonable schedule and made it doable. Still, the question remains, did it work for SpyXFamily?

The answer is a resounding yes. SpyXFamily, due to the nature of it’s co-production, and healthier scheduling because of it, is maddeningly consistent. The highs are there of course, when Wit and CloverWorks want to they can knock out scenes with dynamic cameras, incredible character movement and beautiful pacing. The scene above for instance was done by Keisuke Okura, a relatively new key animator as I understand it. He’s been one of the main animators on the series, though of course not the only one. And while this kind of animation doesn’t come out every single episode, it happens often enough to keep the hype rolling. The worst thing I can say about SpyXFamily’s production is that not every episode looks like this, which is hardly a criticism. If anything it shows smart division of resources, as each episode is (for the most part) given what it needs to succeed.

All in all, SpyXFamily is one of the visually stronger and more consistent shows of the year. Whether it be full body character work and dynamic cameras or amusing facial expressions and emotive effects, SpyXFamily always has something to keep you engaged. So long as you don’t mind the occasional down/relaxing episode, both narratively and visually, where nothing really happens, I think you’ll have a good time.

Narrative/Cast

Speaking of the narrative, this is where SpyXFamily starts to falter. The overarching idea is a good one. It’s basically a Cold War era Mr and Mrs Smith with a telepathic child added in for a some levity. Whenever the serious spy/assassin drama gets to be to much we can pivot over to Anya’s cute school day adventures, with some home time antics spread between to shake it up. There’s a lot of potential there, both for Slice of Life and Drama enthusiasts. Sadly however, SpyXFamily barely uses any of that. Instead it seems to lean far more on Anya’s cutesy antics than anything else. Oh the weekly plots are fun enough in and of themselves. School dodgeball, Anya flunking tests, the occasional serious spy story with the fate of the Fake Germany at stake. But it never goes anywhere fast, always traveling at an absolutely glacial pace.

What does that mean? Well the core of SpyXFamily’s story revolves around Loid Forger, AKA Twilight, attempting to get into the inner circle of on Donovan Desmond, the leader of the Nationalist party. Everything he does, the whole point of Anya going to school and faking a relationship with Yor, is to befriend and spy on him. And yet we don’t meet him, don’t even really see him, until episode 26. The driving force behind this story doesn’t show up until the finale. And don’t get me wrong, it’s a good finale. It’s my favorite episode of the show, because for once something actually happens. But for the other 25 episodes? Maybe… 4 are actually plot relevant? The rest are just fun, Slice of Life antics? As someone who typically wants some substance to their media, that was a disappointment.

That said, if Slice of Life is your genre, then SpyXFamily will probably be right up your alley. Almost every week can be split into 2 mini-episodes, each one with it’s own plot and story. Often these plots will be split between the cast, one for Anya at school and the other for Loid or Yor at home. That could be anything from Yor learning how to cook or Anya passing a test to the family getting a new dog. And while many of these are ultimately irrelevant to the plot, I will gladly admit that they are cute fun. Anya’s antics are often the most entertaining part of the show. And while that’s often not my cup of tea, she did grow on me by the end. Basically, so long as you know what you’re in for and don’t expect anything more, SpyXFamily should be a good time.

Moving onto the cast, I will say I found these to be disappointing. The only two “characters” in the entire show worth being called such are Loid and Anya. Loid is, unsurprisingly, the most compelling character SpyXFamily has. His quest to bring about peace for the sake of the next generation, of denying himself a family and slowly coming to love the one he has as he realizes what it is he’s missing out on, is great. Without question, he has some of the most heartfelt scenes of the show. Just thinking about him talking about his mother makes me tear up a bit. And as for Anya? She’s just a gremlin. A cute, 6 (5?) year old gremlin. She acts and talks like a child, leading to some hilarious misunderstandings, and I love her. She isn’t complex, but she’s a 6 (5?) year old. She doesn’t need to be.

As for the rest of the cast though… They just aren’t really characters. Yor is easily the best, most egregious example of this. We are initially sold on her as a badass woman assassin. A bit of a clutz, sure. An airhead, unfamiliar with regular life just like Loid, allowing their relationship to work without either one figuring it out. But she never moves beyond that really. Unlike Loid and Anya, Yor gets maybe 1 episode really centered on her? And even that sort of gets walked back? She simply doesn’t have a very meaningful character, existing more as a seasonal waifu than anything else. And that’s a real shame, because she has the potential to be just as engaging as Loid. And we see snippets of that throughout the season. But SpyXFamily never really capitalizes on it, preferring to keep her the ditzy hot housewife.

And that’s the case for a lot of the cast. They have an assigned role and don’t really move outside of it. I could see an argument for Damian perhaps, he’s interesting. But his entire character revolves around his father, who like I said we don’t even meet until the finale. Basically, SpyXFamily’s character, and narrative, problem is that it’s filled with potential but it never really uses any of it. Again, if you just want a cutesy fun Slice of Life, this won’t bother you. Slice of Life don’t really care for that sort of stuff. But if you want a serious spy drama, in any way whatsoever, you will most likely be disappointed.

OST

Finally we come to the OST, the last true section of this review. Composed in what I believe is a joint effort by Makoto Miyazaki and Shuuhei Mutsuki, both members of the unit (K)NoW_NAME. I’ll be honest, when I first started SpyXFamily, I wasn’t expecting much. I didn’t recognize these names and I wasn’t sure what kind of musical identity they could create for what I saw as a Slice of Life spy show. So you can imagine my surprise when not only were they able to find a fitting identity, they managed to execute it almost flawlessly. From rolling drums and blaring brass of “STRIX“, sounding right at home in a Pink Panther film, to the high end clubhouse sounds of “Gorgeous Step“. It’s even able to recreate these styles in a childlike way with tracks like “Plan B“, perfect for the child-focused Anya segments.

And SpyXFamily’s audio excellence doesn’t stop there! Not restricting themselves purely to the jazzy sounds of an 80’s spy movie, they also branch out into the classier and elegant Bond films even some weird shit. Tracks like “Jealousy” remind of a ballet, while “Very Elegant” is exactly as the name implies, high class and purposeful. Meanwhile the brass and drums of “Liar” and the strange discordance of “Strange Marriage” do just enough to set themselves apart. The only real criticism I have of SpyXFamily’s OST is that in creating so many tracks (~65 or so), it’s inevitable that some would be just… bad. I’m talking about “Elusive Man“, “Delusion” and “Twilight” to name a few. All of them sound generically ominous, with little instrumentation behind them, really only able to be meh background music. Still, those are few and far between. By and large, SpyXFamily has a fantastic OST.

The Curse of Expectation

With that we come to my favorite part of my reviews, the “Personal Section”. This is where the reviewer hat comes off, I relax, let my hair down and generally try to give you, the reader, a window into my experience with a show. To talk with you so you can get to know me a bit and to understand why I criticize what I do. If that’s not your style, or you haven’t watched the show and don’t want to read massive spoilers, the feel free to skip. Otherwise, lets dive into my experience with SpyXFamily. And remember, massive spoilers inside.

So, if the visuals and the OST are so praise worthy, if the narrative is generally acceptable, dare I say good for those who like Slice of Life, then what’s my issue with it? Well the answer is simple. As the title of this section implies, it’s all about expectation. SpyXFamily sets itself up as both a cute weekly Slice of Life and a marginally serious spy drama. The first is pretty obvious, what with the antics between Anya, Loid and Yor, as well as the premise of adopting a child for a mission. It’s cute! It’s fun! The problems don’t start to arise until the SpyXFamily starts to bring up the why. Preventing a war between East and West Fake Germany? Working as a spy after growing up in a war-torn country to prevent that from happening to other children? The effects of war on families? That’s serious stuff!

That’s the kind of premise that wouldn’t be out of place in a full on legitimate spy thriller. Combine that with constant allusions to it, from moments in Loid’s head about protecting the future and sacrificing his own happiness to the more serious arcs such as a literal terrorist bomb thread, and you’re priming your audience for something a bit more serious than what SpyXFamily actually gives. Now yes, occasionally it does have more serious episodes. They tended to be some of my favorites, with the season finale especially taking that slot. But these tend to be few and far between. And often when they do show up, they are still laced with large amounts of Slice of Life comedy. Because while SpyXFamily introduces both of these themes, it commits to one far far more than the other.

Suffice to say, if you go into SpyXFamily with the wrong expectations, you will be burned. Personally, I went into it expecting a mix of cute antics and serious spy drama. Something where Loid and Yor have an engaging back and forth while Anya served as light hearted levity, making it clear both our leads were good people. Instead what I got was 2 and a half comedic characters where the jokes take precedence over the actual narrative. As someone who isn’t really a fan of Slice of Life, I’m sure you can understand what a shame that was. Yes, I had fun. It’s cute, it’s well animated, a lot of the jokes are solid and I enjoy Anya. SpyXFamily is a good show. But it’s not a great show. Not with how it handles it’s more serious elements, or fails to in this sense.

Conclusion

So yeah, all in all SpyXFamily was a good time. It isn’t perfect, but it’s well worth enjoying. And if you like Slice of Life more than I do, I expect you’ll get even more mileage out of it. As for how long it took to get this out, that I apologize for. I was unsure of what to write in a few places, plus the holidays and other reviews took a fair amount of my time. Still, it came out eventually, and that’s what matters!