In which a big fan watches the highly anticipated anime adaption of a manga they love.
Sounds pretty normal, right?
Warning: probably a lot of screaming, squeeing and swearing because of being a big fan.
Imagine, one day, a woman is just looking randomly at reddit for anime recs when, on the section that shows recent posts, it showed a post featuring this key art:
She had heard of this manga's title before, mostly because of having heard of Mission: Yozakura Family. The visual intrigued her. On one side, we got a badass looking family, on the other a bumbling. So, having been in the mood for some fluff and feeling pretty confident she'd get it from this manga, she decided to read at least the first chapter or two.
She binged all 50 and so chapters in one day.
That woman is me.
Spy x Family is a manga by Tatsuya Endo, published on the Shueisha's site, Shounen Jump+ since March 25, 2019, that is released bi-weekly. It's about a spy who gets a wife and daughter to make up a fake family all for the sake of his mission: infiltrate a school and eventually gather intel on his target. But it's so much more than just that premise.
The comedy from all the situations all three get into with and without each other, including but not limited to keeping their respective secret identities, well, secret from each other, them dealing with the idiosyncracies of each other and the rest of the cast, and trying to convince others that they are truly a loving family, not realizing they slowly becoming a real loving family, is just amazing.
The heartwarming feels from the fact that, despite them being together for various respective ulterior motives, they are slowly but surely becoming an actual close knit family is just, well, absolutely heartwarming, with everyone in the family trying to be there for each other, even if they sometimes fail here and there, whether be from their secret identities or their own faults.
Though it's not action heavy, whenever action does come, it comes it two flavors: absolutely hilarious or absolutely awesome.
And the three main characters, Loid Forger, Yor Forger, and Anya Forger, are pretty much some of the best characters I've had the grace of knowing. All three of them having their moments of awesomeness, silliness, fluffiness and more.
And I could go on and on, but I'm gonna stop myself there before I do, otherwise I'll never stop talking and just spoil everything.
Anyways, my favorite manga ever has just gotten an anime, being done by both CloverWorks (of several works, including My Dress-Up Darling, fame) and Wit Studio (of Attack on Titan fame), and is available on several streaming services, msost notably Chrunchyroll and, for those who want to watch it legally and free, on the Youtube channel, Muse Asia, a channel by Taiwan based company Muse Communications. The latter, though will only have the episodes online for a limited time in some regions in Southeast Asia. My country, luckily, is not one of them. More importantly...
With that advent of the anime, I, being the big fan that I am of the series, decided to do a "Let's Watch" of it for three reasons:
One: for fun
Two: to sort my thoughts of the episodes
And three: basically "advertising" Spy x Family.
Before we begin though, there's some things I want to establish first.
This is my first time doing this, and I haven't really read much of the other "let's watch" threads on SV. I did skim some for inspiration and to give me an idea on what I "should" be doing, but I kinda don't wanna go as detailed as those or, if I can help it, put screenshots for my own sake. So what I have in mind is different from the threads I have seen. Mainly in that it won't be a detailed retelling of the episode with commentary. I'd best describe it as an equivalent to a reaction post. This is mostly because that is what I feel comfortable in doing, and also because it'd be quicker to do.
As such, I have structured my posts about each episode into several parts.
Initial Reaction, which will be put in a spoiler in part due to likely having manga spoilers even though I'll do my best to keep them to a minimum, and in part because I am writing it under the assumption that you have already seen the episode, but I won't assume everyone seeing this thread has already seen it. Also because of that assumption, I won't be putting any screenshots from said episode, mostly for my sake than anything. As the name says, this is basically my thoughts while watching it, not too dissimilar to reaction videos on Youtube and such. This is where most of my commentary on the episode itself will be, after describing the scene I'm seeing in whatever way I feel is appropriate and/or illustrates what led to my commentary for said scene. Said commentary will vary from being analyzing various things in-depth about the scene to just being "aw", "oh" or "cool!" depending on, well, what I think of at that moment while watching the episode.
Final Thoughts without Manga Spoilers, exactly as it says on the tin give my thoughts on it/review of it. I will make manga comparisons, especially for certain scenes that I really hope the studios haven't messed up, but I won't spoil anything that the anime hasn't covered.
And, should I feel the need to, Thoughts with Manga Spoilers, which is where I will hopefully put any and all thoughts and commentary about the episode in and in a spoiler window. I did this should there be any "anime-only" readers in this thread.
Each reaction should come out on the day each episode is available in my timezone or within three days of its release.
Hopefully.
And I hope I don't have to make up any rules beyond "put manga spoilers in spoilers" for people seeing the anime only.
EDIT: Turns out I do. Kinda. Nothing major and actually I was the one who started it. XD
Please put any kind of media, be it pictures, Tweets, videos or what have you, in spoilers, for my sake. It'll mean I don't have to worry about loading the page and being unable to load for one reason or another.
TL;DR of this introduction post.
I love Spy x Family.
Spy x Family is THE BEST.
Spy x Family can be seen on various streaming services including Chrunchyroll and the Youtube channel Muse Asia, though only for a limited time for some Southeast Asia countries.
I did this for fun and to advertise it and the anime.
This is basically a reaction thread followed by a review without manga spoilers.
The reaction itself will likely have manga spoilers but I'll do my best to keep them to a minimum.
Any manga readers here please don't spoil anything from the manga in case anime only watchers are here.
Any media in a post should be put in spoilers so that I don't have to worry about loading this thread and/or being unable to load it.
Each episode reaction/review should be on the day or within three days of release, but schedule could change.
A 19-something's car going down a highway talking about an embassy and stuff.
Oh hey so they are gonna start it off just like in the manga. Nice. The car's brakes don't work and it crashes. Cut to WISE discussing the incident and thus the funky jazz starts to play.
Oh yeah! There it is. The OST I heard from the trailer. -starts vibing- Continues vibing as WISE talks about that the car crash was an assassination by an extremist Ostania group then thinking of sending their best agent, Twilight, to deal with all that's been happening. At last, the man himself appears on screen.
There he is! Although non-manga readers and/or non-trailer watchers might not know that. Unless they're real observant on how they talked about Twilight only to cut to a shot about two men talking to each other and realize that one of them should be Twilight since they had just spoken about him in the previous scene. Said scene plays out as remembered. Random spy dude hands who the goods to who he thinks is his client only to realize it isn't, the trumpets playing as Twilight rips off his mask to reveal such to the viewers.
Aw yeah, the trumpets are so good! Ha ha! Yes! Always nice to see Twilight rip off his masks like Lupin III does. Narrator starts, well, narrating a bit of exposition about the state of Westalis and Ostania and Twilight himself. Unfortunately, the trumpets stop as the scene changes to Twilight in his other disguise, his "girlfriend" talking to him.
Aw... Then it continues as remembered as Twilight dumps her rather hilariously. After he does though, he internally apologizes about that before saying the line (well paraphrased) "I gave up conventional happiness when I became a spy".
Oh. Might wanna read the original chapter again 'cause I don't remember if he had that internal apology. If it did, nice. Might be just me but I like to think him apologizing is a subtle hint in how he's much kinder than he seems. We now cut to a train station with a sign for the Berlint destination.
And there's that place again. Aaaaand here it comes... Twilight sits down and exchanges papers with someone who leaves with a "nyah~". Twilight: Must be Cipher C.
Oh my gosh--THAT'S WHY THE OTHER SPY MEOWED. IT'S CALLED CIPHER C AS IN FOR CAT. Music picks up again, and thus vibing again, as Twilight gets his new mission. His mission? Get married and have a child. Twilight: -spit take- NANI?!
Heh heh. There it is. Not as side splitting as the manga but that might be just because I already knew. Narration continues of course, poor newspaper, as it gives more details about Twilight's mission and his target, Donovan Desmond.
And then Twilight rips the paper and shouts.
OH MY GOSH TWILIGHT. Okay that wasn't in the manga...but with that we're already seeing the little cracks in his spy persona (heh persona...) that will slowly become bigger. The mission briefing ends with emphasizing the importance of this mission and them thanking Twilight, or perhaps more accurately spies in general, for their thankless work in the shadows. That calms Twilight down as he reminds himself of why he became a spy: for the sake of a better world.
We then cut to Twilight so very obviously checking his new apartment bugs. Snorts in amusement. The real estate dealer notices but Twilight reassures him things are fine in a softer voice than before.
Oh yeah. Voice changes that might be subtle for some. Twlight's identity as Loid Forger is established. Real estate dealer is happy to hear a family is moving in.
Dealer: Do you have have a boy or a girl? Loid: Ah...I'll be deciding on that later. Dealer: Eh?
Ha ha ha ha. XD Never gets old. Now we at the orphanage, a shady one so that Loid can easily "forge" (sorry not sorry) papers on the child. And we get to see a brief cut of Anya flinching while trying to pick up her chimera doll.
Dang it. Can't quite hear if it's sparks or just a dramatic timed sound. Scene continues as Twilight thinks about whether or not he'll get Anya while the girl keeps doing and saying things to get him to adopt her.
Okay no spark sounds but I can see the effects. And since they kept those effects...it seems there might be more reason to believe the theories behind the little horn-like things she's wearing.
Though knowing Endo (he outright said "er no i don't have special meaning for yor's looks...but i'll make up one next time"), there's an equal chance it might not. XD Twilight adopts her once she solves the crossword puzzle. But first... Loid: Are you okay with this? Anya: nods (A spy...mission... Waku waku!)
One: Aw, more soft Loid (as I've seen manga fans call it) showing by making sure Anya is fine despite him already saying he wanted her. Two: Ey! There's the "waku waku"! And I'm sure it won't be the last. Narrator now gives a bit of exposition of Subject 007, Anya.
Guess the reference. Rando Old Lady Neighbor: Aw what a nice family. Loid: We're the Forgers, we just moved in today. Anya: i i've been papa's child for a very long time. Loid: (you didn't have to say it like that...)
HA HA HA. Never gets old. XD They get in the house, Anya turns on the TV and shows why she wanted to be with Loid: she loves a show called Spy Wars. And new, but familiar, music starts playing.
OH MY GOSH IS THIS OST FROM THE TRAILER THE SPY WARS THEME?! Anya as she's watching: (waku waku!)
Ey, there's another one. Should I do a "waku waku" count? -thinks for a second- Nope. Loid wants to go out and get stuff. Anya wants to come. Loid concedes. Unfortunately, his thoughts about the various disadvantages of this mission keep bothering Anya to do things he finds odd until one of them makes her cry. The one where he wonders if he should bring her back to the orphanage. And that ruins the image of a perfect family he needs for the mission. So he quickly calms her with peanuts (which she mentioned liking a bit earlier). With appropriate music. Very appropriate music.
OH MY GOSH THE CIRCUS-LIKE MUSIC I CAN'T THIS JUST MAKES IT THAT MUCH MORE HILARIOUS. A dedraggled Loid carrying a tired Anya and her peanuts: (This isn't working... I just don't understand...this irrational behavior)
Don't worry Loid. That's just kids in general. You'll get there. Proceeds to get a butt ton of child rearing books. One basically says "help their self-esteem so that they can be independent and confident in the future". Loid pauses and "reaffirms" the extent of their relationship.
Uh huh. Yeah sure. Also, might me just because of manga reading letting me pause however long I think it's appropriate, but his hesitation seemed shorter than I thought it'd be. But it's fine. He hesitated, and thus more soft Loid, and that's fine with me. Aaaaand Anya starts shouting about not wanting to study. Proceeds to the ever repeating scene from the third/main trailer of Loid shouting "Soko! Soko! Soko!" with appropriate music. Very appropriate music. Also ending with Loid going: HAHAHAHAHA. TRY GETTING OUT OF THAT YOU GREMLIN.
OH MY GOSH THIS IS EVEN BETTER THAN THE MANGA. THE VOICE ACTING I can't. XD First appearance of Franky.
Franky: She changes names just as much as you. You're perfect for each other!
Loid: -_-
Franky: It's just a joke.
We aaaallll know it's not a joke, Franky. Also hearing Franky's voice in full is interesting. Higher pitched than expected but still nice. Cut back to a bored Anya and beginning of her many, many, MANY, meme faces. Unfortunately she is so bored she gets in trouble. With the guy from the beginning of the episode.
Oh wait. Are they not going to show the imagine spot of Loid getting rid of Anya? Proceeds to show imagine spot.
Oh okay never mind. Now we have Loid arriving at apartment, noticing that someone moved the blockade, and our first action scene with appropriately awesome and spy-like music. Loid also seemingly gets knocked out.
One: I just realized how strong Loid must be to move that giant container in front of his door. Two: Aw yeah more awesome music! Three: oh I liked the framing and animation for when Loid gets "knocked out". Now cut to Anya with the guy from the beginning of the episode. Proceeds to kill henchmen who defies him.
Pfffft. I know it's not supposed to be funny, but the way that he's there one moment then gone the next just amuses me anyway. The henchmen supposedly bring Twilight. But nope, Twilight duped them again. As he's running out with Anya, he once again complains when she starts crying in relief...only to realize why he hates it. Because he was once that kid: crying for someone to reach out to him.
But nobody came.
-tears up- gosh dang it the music and the newest chapter (at this time) is making this hit WAY harder than when i first read it in the manga... Luckily for me, we get to see Loid being a big cool liar, then a badass spy as he renews his resolve of why he became a spy: to make a world where kids don't have to cry like he did.
Not so luckily for me, as awesome as him pointing a gun at the guy from the beginning...
Aw man. Doesn't feel as awesome as that one panel of Twlight shadowed in smoke. But with that, it's done. And then we have Loid walking out...and Anya still there, wanting to go home with him. Once again, he asks if she's really okay with that, even softer than the first time he asked her, and she says she'll cry if he leaves her. And so, he gives in.
Meanwhile, I'm crying because of the music enhacing the scene. Damn it... -sniff- And the last scene for the episode is Anya taking the test, panicking for a sec because of everyone's thoughts not being helpful, but remembering her father's steady hand. And thus, we see her pass...and Loid nearly pass out from exhaustion and relief. And then, at last...
-piano plays-
OH YEAH. THE ENDING THEME! proceeds to vibe and "sing" to whole thing even though she's listened to it many many times from the trailer already Shows Loid died in middle of it.
OH OH OH. ARE THEY ARE THEY...?! Shows adorb scene of sleepy Loid hugging and a happy Anya. Doesn't last long though as he wakes up and then read the letter...that both parentd must be in the interview for the school. Anya: But mama doesn't exist.
Yup. Shows preview.
YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEESSSSSSSSSS YOR WILL BE IN THE NEXT EPISOOOOOOOOOODE.
FINAL THOUGHTS WITHOUT MANGA SPOILERS
Welp. As a manga reader. I'm pretty satisfied. Just only one "complaint" and that's really just a nitpick since the scene it came from was a panel I really liked. Everything else was just great. They didn't do any reordering or removing of scenes that ended up not being helpful, the music and voice acting enhanced so many of the scenes that were there, and they used all of chapter 1, which I had thought was a very good first chapter. Not only that, thanks to it all being animated, I got a better sense of where everything was placed, particularly when Loid fought the thugs in his house (which had real smooth animation btw) and when Anya got kidnapped. Speaking of chapter 1 though, a part of me had been worried they would split chapter 1 into two episodes because of how long the chapter is (about the length of two average Shounen Jump chapters) but nope. They used everything. Why had I been worried? Oh that's simple. BECAUSE THAT MEANT WAITING LONGER FOR THE MOM TO SHOW UP. But no. She's gonna show up in episode 2 just as I hoped. And I can't wait for it.
So yeah, loved the ep. I really, really, REALLY can't wait for the next one, for a royal flower comes to join the family.
Also I just realized the opening wasn't shown yet. Dang it... But that's fine. I had expected that.
THOUGHTS WITH MANGA SPOILERS
GOD DAMN IT I WAS CRYING WHEN LOID WAS TALKING ABOUT HIS PAST BECAUSE WE JUST SAW SOME OF IT IN CHAPTER 62 AAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH
I CAN'T WAIT FOR THE NEXT EP TO SEE YOR IN ACTION AND JUST YOR BEING YOR
I bet Endo also did named her that so people won't feel bad about Loid dumping her.
Also I have already watched the episode a second time (and probably will continue to rewatch it until the episode two comes out ). And I've noticed a couple of things on rewatch.
One: some scenes I didn't laugh at first (like the spit take), I ended up laughing. So I guess sometimes the fact I have to write a reaction might be dampening some of my feelings.
Or it could just be because of when I woke up. Who knows?
And two: I saw the little yellow sparks around the people whose minds Anya is reading. Don't know if that's important but I'm keeping that filed away anyway.
If you look carefully, there are little yellow dots blinking in and out around Anya and usually people whose minds she reads whenever she' reading a mind. I just call them "sparks" because in the manga the sound effect when that happens is "kzzt".
If you look carefully, there are little yellow dots blinking in and out around Anya and usually people whose minds she reads whenever she' reading a mind. I just call them "sparks" because in the manga the sound effect when that happens is "kzzt".
Indeed she does!
And that's not even one of her best faces!
Also, I have just reread the first chapter of Spy x Family again and actually yeah, him ripping the newspaper was actually in the manga.
How I did not remember that, I have no idea.
Probably because I loved the panelling for the spit-take so much.
So, is this more or less the "official" SxF thread?
Been a fan of the manga since day 1 (big surprise I guess, me liking something with a cute/funny 4-5 totally 6 year old ) and been very much enjoying the anime as well so far. Quite amazing animation for "just" a little show, great soundtrack, (mostly) great VAs so far, very faithful to the source.
That is one thing I certainly notices as well, jokes are definitely affected a bit by the change of medium, especially for the reaction gags. In the manga, it's an instant cut to a panel, in anime, well, it's animated, so by the very nature taking a bit longer (even if they have some great looking slow-mo at times. As such Anya actually feels a bit less meme-y, but more somehow even more cute in exchange (when she looks for cover under the sign, for example - in manga, it's just quick cut to her cowering under a stall(?), in the anime, she's actively looking for something first. ed: Gotta correct myself, she does so in the manga as well, but it's still just two quick panels total there, clearly going more for gag format).
Since it's been ages for me, I also had to check the chapter again because I was sure they added stuff, but no, it was indeed quite faithful.
Most prominently for me was Anya's backstory and even seeing bits of it. I don't remember that ever having come up again (so far), in my mind she had simply been born a telepath. Does make me wonder if it's eventually been brought back, perhaps even as endgame (someone from that "organization" recognizing her in school, bringing something in motion that reveals her powers to Loid & Yor? Just fantazising a bit...)
Ed: Also side note, as ("old") German, next to the obvious references, it was funny to see the 10 "Pent" Anya was trying to pay with being quite clearly a 10 Pfennig coin. (during my lookback, I did see the manga also did it in chapter 2, but still not quite as obvious)
I must admit, I'm not really feeling Yor's voice acting so far, unfortunately. The actress is fine, but Yor feels a bit too timid, even when being in badass assassin mode. Sure, she's a bit naive and easily flustered, but she's also actively getting into the action when prompted and quite self-assured when doing so. So this didn't feel quite fitting to me so far. :/
Otherwise still great, looking forward to the next one and the almost whole family working together.
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Mission 2: The Scene I, and Loid's Japanese VA, Have Been Looking Forward To
VERY familiar piano and guitar notes play
YES YES YES I'M FINALLY GETTING TO SEE THE OPENING FOR THE SHOW sings and vibes as the visuals play. Said visuals being: an awesome cool car chase/crash in ultra cool art style reminiscent of old anime and just pulpy spy style(? if that's a thing...don't know the name of it okay?)—
Oh wow that makes me think of Lupin III. Then switches to a simple and colorful art style reminiscent of children'a paintings and some children's books' art as Anya walks to the left.
OH MY GOSH IT'S SO CUUUUUUUUTE AWWWWWWWWWWW First we see Loid and then the mom cover her from rain.
And then three faces that are familiar to me in between each bookcase pass in the library.
Hey! Oh cool! [NAMES REDACTED] are there! Then we see Franky at his stand.
Then comics with "grown up" Anya 007,
I think the people working on the show since I remember seeing their names on the credits in the trailer,
a Spy Wars comic,
And then another familiar face.
Oooooh I'm loving this SOOOO MUUUUUUUUUUCH. And then yet another familiar face popping in and out from behind the building in the background.
OH MY GOSH IT'S HILARIOUS SEEING [NAME REDACTED] ACTING LIKE THAT. XD Then we see a bunch of imagery involving family fun times with anya, loid and mom, including but not limited to an aquarium, the port of an island with a lighthouse and boarding the train
And then the chorus kicks in and the art style changes again.
OH MY GOSH I WASN'T EXPECTING THIS THIS IS SO COOOOOOOOOOOOOOOL Shows off Loid and the mom doing their secret life and being awesome.
Before switching to their "home selves" with anya being "confused"(?) and a bunch of "TOP SECRET" labels and variations of it on the screen
And then a familiar face pops up with another art style change and their hair billows and ends up becoming a smoke cloud
Followed by montage of the mom
Then Loid reminscing
And for some reason him by a train
Them the mom on a railing
And then back to the family as it pans around the family at the table in a pose that's very familiar to me as the drums finish off the OP.
...i LOVE it. Ok. Now time for the episode. Starting with "mom disguise" Franky.
LOL While Franky unfortunately gets burned and Anya tries to put out the flames with peanuts, Loid recaps things.
Then we go to Berlint City Hall to three women talking about a recent burglary at the place on files of women. The second woman talks and I tilt my head.
...why does she sound familiar? I gotta see if I can find credits for her later... The conversation eventually is directed at...Yor.
At last! The queen of the show is here! Yor: Do boogers somehow make it taste better?
Ah yes...there it is... While they comment about her comment, Sharon, the third woman, calls the second woman by name: Millie.
Oh there you go. Now we got a name for the one whose voice feels familiar. And then basically set up the reason why Yor will end up with Loid: She needs a partner or else she'll get arrested for being suspected of being a spy.
With that, we cut to her apartment as she takes a call.
OOH OOH OOH. WHAT'S [NAME REDATCTED]'S VOICE GONNA SOUND LIKE? Yuri's voice sounds soft spoken and friendly as he talks with his big sister.
Pffft. Okay this is funny because the voice reminds me of Akechi's Japanese VA (don't think it's him but we'll see) and I had seen one person think of Akechi because of what Yuri was wearing. And now Yuri is also getting on Yor's case about being single but only because he cares. Yor, in her ever infinite wisdom, decides to lie about having a boyfriend. "OH YOU HAVE BOYFRIEND? I WILL MAKE SURE HE EXISTS AND IS NICE." Appropriate music plays. Very appropriate music.
okay this is just as funny, if not more so, thanks to the music. Yor panics about what to do. And then she gets another call.
OH MY GOSH I FORGOT WE'D GET A VOICE FOR THAT CHARACTER TOO. ...so...does this confirm they're a guy? ...you know what never mind I'mma keep calling them a them until confirmation even though I'll admit to assuming they're male. But with that, now we get a request for Yor's "side job"...as the Thorn Princess. The music picks up again as she starts killing at the Royal Hotel.
Oooooh...is that a harpsicord I hear? niiiiiice...I hope this is the "Thorn Princess" theme. Thorn Princess kills them in short order. But when she's done, Yor laments about herself as well as her ripped dress that tooootally isn't setup before we cut to...Franky bringing the copied files on women in Berlint.
Eh? Wait what? Then how'd City Hall know about it? ...never mind, I'll find out from a rewatch later. Just some talk about Franky quesntioning why can't Loid just use a female spy (in-universe: shortstaffed and no appropriate match for the remaining ones; out-universe: BECAUSE THE AUTHOR SAYS SO) finding someone to be a wife, and then Loid going to a boutique to make Anya look a bit more fancy as befitting of Eden Academy.
And then, at last...Yor appears! Completely avoiding Loid's detection until she speaks. Appropriate music plays.
Aaawwww yeah! Oooh, nice music. Can't tell if it's been used before or not. Loid goes full spy mode and analyzing her until she points out he's been staring, to his surprise.
Okay on one hand he wasn't as obviously staring like how it seemed to me in the manga and thus give "reason" for a "normal person" like her to call him out. On the other hand her noticing even though Loid wasn't that obvious about it hammers the point she has unusually high perception/senses so that evens out I guess. When Loid makes the excuse of her being pretty, Yor's about to pounce on the chance...until Anya shows up. Anya, of course, quickly finds out she's an assassin. And quickly decides to "ship" them just 'cause they're cool. Appropriate music starts playing. Very approrpiate music.
I WILL NOT STOP APPRECIATING HOW THE MUSIC MAKES THESE SCENES HILARIOUS. XD Aaaand then both start thinking thoughts that prevent that. Anya is aghast! But fear not! She quickly remedies it!
AH HA HA HA OH THE ACTING AND MUSIC I CAN'T. Yor thus now takes the chance and the plan is all set! Loid will be with Yor at Saturday's party! Except, after a ribbit and an F cipher, there's also a mission on Saturday.
And now I know why the cashier croaked. Anyways now we got Loid and Franky doing the mission so that he can finish it as soon as possible. Yor: Loid is awfully late. I hope he isn't in some terrible accident. Cue explosion.
Of course. XD Cue conveyor belt of mooks as they get defeated by Loid quickly so he isn't late. Unfortunately, there are reincforcements. Fortunately, Franky has the goods in the car. Unfortunately, they got a car crash from those reinforcements. Then we see Yor saddened by his lateness.
Aw poor Yor...wait...notces the moon art under the clock...OH MY GOSH I THINK THEY JUST SNUCK IN ENDO'S AVATAR INTO THE SHOW. ...probably not. But still. She still goes to the party to make sure things are fine. But it just makes her coworkers more sus of her and Yor more down. Eventually, she decides to leave when—Loid: I'm terribly sorry for being late. I'm Yor's husband, Loid Forger.
'Eeeyyyy! There he is! Also nice detail that his eyes are jittery...and yeesh, the blood. Everyone is shocked, Loid quickly and easily makes excuses and Camilla, one of Yor's coworkers, is absolutely mad..and decides to try to embarrass Yor.
Oh boy. I wonder how many people are gonna hate her. She fails SPECTACULARLY as Yor just picks it up with her foot.
Oh wow with a couple of taps before that too. And with that, at last, we're at one of the many scenes I've been waiting for: Loid basically turning around an insult aimed at Yor to why he admires her...and probably genuinely as well.
Again: music make scene great. Also, for the more eagle eyed, you might have noticed Loid may or may not have slipped there. Depends on whether we're shown that Yor herself had told him about the fact her parents died before this moment. They leave and then I noticed the credits going across the screen and the timestamp.
-fear rises- No. No. Nononononononono please no! The enemies from Loid's mission earlier catch up with him and Yor.
Okay okay. Calm down. There's four minutes left. We still got time... U]Loid does "concussive therapy" on them as they try to make a break for it. Note from the show: This is FICTION.[/U]
One: okay maybe they'll use what I'm hoping for as the way to end the episode...
Two: LOL that never gets old. Loid kicks ass but nearly gets done in...if it weren't for Yor kicking ass. Poor feller rolls then smacks into the wall. Loid thanks her for that and Yor giggles over it.
OH MY GOSH THE VOICE ACTING MADE THAT HILARIOUS. Also cute TwiYor moment. The two continue to kick ass when Yor says "Why don't we get married?" Loid: -SPLAT-
OH MY GOSH HIS ART STYLE EVEN CHANGED FOR A SECOND IN SHOCK. Loid accepts. And the music picks up as they hide behind a crate from gunfire.
YES. But not before he grabs a grenade... YES. ...and the ever epitomical proposal scene happens in all its glory. YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEES
FINAL THOUGHTS WITHOUT MANGA SPOILERS
Once again, another splendid episode, adapting the second chapter which introduced Yor, the mom, so well. Though there were a bit of nitpicks again, that's all they really were, as they're due to medium changes. But boy do the other things due to the change are great. Voice acting is great. I love all the voices. And again, the music is just...PERFECT. It fits the scene when they're used as well as the aesthetics and so on of the series, if not enhance the scene, most notably (for me) the famous proposal scene. I can't wait to try and get some of the OST when I can. Speaking of perfect...THE OPENING OH MY GOSH. It's just great. The visuals were great. Symbolism, sneak peaks to some characters, and matching to the awesome opening song (that has been playing constantly for me btw)...-chef's kiss-...just perfect. One of my favorite parts was when we see the Forger family cycle through various typical scenes of family fun times...just as the lyrics talk about "template happiness". So yeah. No ending song for this episode, but that's fine, as the proposal scene DEFINITELY should take up all that space. Can't wait for the next ep. It's time for the family to be all together for the first time!
THOUGHTS WITH MANGA SPOILERS
I love that the characters we haven't seen yet but pop up in the opening (Becky, Damian, ELEGANT Henry Henderson, Yuri, and Handler Sylvia Sherwood) are mostly in an art style that makes them more abstract, probably making it "harder" to make the connection whenever they pop up on screen, and are too quick for most people to notice...unless you're like me. I didn't seem to spot Fiona in the OP though, but that's fine. Another thing about the OP is that in my commentary, I mentioned "aquarium", "island" and "train" from the "happiness template" montage, because one is a location of a bonus chapter, two is the location of the "epilogue" of the "Ooting Arc", and three...well is for Rule of Three but one that is likely to have happened at least once seeing as they later go to a castle that I'm hoping is the one I spotted in ep 1.
When Franky was disguised, it made me remember when Loid was helping him practice lines to one of the women he liked and dressed up as a girl to do it. One: makes me wonder, again, if they'll adapt the bonus chapters into the main series or as OVAs. And two: I wanna reread that chapter again to see if Loid pulled off the look well.
When Loid was explaining why he didn't just use a female spy for a wife and mentioned there being "no appropriate match", it made me remember that he showed/mentioned that didn't think Fiona was a good match for a mother. One: I liked that 'cause TwiYor shipper. And two: just proves the point that, yes, there are plenty of female spies but Loid took into account their temperament and thus how well they would deal with Anya, which I like since that means he's keeping Anya's well-being in mind.
And lastly Camilla. I suspect plenty of people are gonna hate her. I don't really hate her nor "like" her, but I only mention this because I wonder what people will think when she decides to help Yor later with teaching her how to cook. I expect people to still hate her.
Been a fan of the manga since day 1 (big surprise I guess, me liking something with a cute/funny 4-5 totally 6 year old ) and been very much enjoying the anime as well so far. Quite amazing animation for "just" a little show, great soundtrack, (mostly) great VAs so far, very faithful to the source.
Oh really? NICE. Though in hindsight that makes sense. XP
But of course the animation is great! Wit Studio is working on it!
I was about to ask about which VA you talkin' 'bout...then I found out, so it's fine.
That is one thing I certainly notices as well, jokes are definitely affected a bit by the change of medium, especially for the reaction gags. In the manga, it's an instant cut to a panel, in anime, well, it's animated, so by the very nature taking a bit longer (even if they have some great looking slow-mo at times. As such Anya actually feels a bit less meme-y, but more somehow even more cute in exchange (when she looks for cover under the sign, for example - in manga, it's just quick cut to her cowering under a stall(?), in the anime, she's actively looking for something first. ed: Gotta correct myself, she does so in the manga as well, but it's still just two quick panels total there, clearly going more for gag format).
I do agree on that, as there was this scene in My Hero Academia I found hilarious in the manga but got disappointed that the anime adapatation wasn't nearly as funny. Though I just wanna repeat that, in the case of Spy x Family's anime, some of the scenes seem to be "less funny" while I'm writing my reactions to it as when I rewatched Ep 1, I was laughing at the scenes I hadn't before.
Since it's been ages for me, I also had to check the chapter again because I was sure they added stuff, but no, it was indeed quite faithful.
Most prominently for me was Anya's backstory and even seeing bits of it. I don't remember that ever having come up again (so far), in my mind she had simply been born a telepath. Does make me wonder if it's eventually been brought back, perhaps even as endgame (someone from that "organization" recognizing her in school, bringing something in motion that reveals her powers to Loid & Yor? Just fantazising a bit...)
Best we got in terms of seeing Anya's backstory again is when Bond's flashback scenes pop up and it seems the people experimenting on him are the same ones that spoke to Anya in her flashback in Ep/Ch 1. As for your fantasy though...that'd be so cool. But I feel like any guesses won't come close to what actually will happen. Or at least, any guesses done right now.
I must admit, I'm not really feeling Yor's voice acting so far, unfortunately. The actress is fine, but Yor feels a bit too timid, even when being in badass assassin mode. Sure, she's a bit naive and easily flustered, but she's also actively getting into the action when prompted and quite self-assured when doing so. So this didn't feel quite fitting to me so far. :/
Otherwise still great, looking forward to the next one and the almost whole family working together.
Oh okay. You make good points...but, idk, I think it's fine. Her not sounding that badass even though she's doing somehting bass during her first assassination scene could be because of doubts creeping in and/or how she doesn't really care that much about her job as much anymore since Yuri's grown up, which could tie well to whenever they get around to the "Ooting Arc".
But that could also be me rationalizing why I'm fine with her VA so who knows?
I will admit to hoping she'll sound more lively later on at least the more she opens up and loves her family.
THAT I feel less bad about missing.
But now that I know that, it makes PERFECT sense. XD now we just gotta figure out yor...besides being alliterate with yuri
OH MY GOSH I FORGOT WE'D GET A VOICE FOR THAT CHARACTER TOO. ...so...does this confirm they're a guy? ...you know what never mind I'mma keep calling them a them until confirmation even though I'll admit to assuming they're male.
Oh okay. You make good points...but, idk, I think it's fine. Her not sounding that badass even though she's doing somehting bass during her first assassination scene could be because of doubts creeping in and/or how she doesn't really care that much about her job as much anymore since Yuri's grown up, which could tie well to whenever they get around to the "Ooting Arc".
But that could also be me rationalizing why I'm fine with her VA so who knows?
I will admit to hoping she'll sound more lively later on at least the more she opens up and loves her family.
Yeah, that's why I went with "for now". But at the moment, she's certainly not sounding as I "heard" her in my head when reading. Which is unfortunate, since they nailed pretty much everyone else so far, which of course especially for Anya could have gone wrong very easily.
The whole 'Thorn Princess' moniker gives Yor a bit of an almost dainty vibe, which fits with how unnervingly soft her voice is. I imagine as she gets more connected with Anya, she'll start sounding more lively.
One other thing the anime did pretty well is cement how much of a 'low trust' society Ostania is (what with Yor's co-workers gossiping behind her back and scheming about getting her in trouble because of how 'awkwardly single' she is), which is only reasonable if you live in a place where 'getting picked up by state security in broad daylight and whisked away, never to be seen again' is an expected part of life.
Yeah, that's why I went with "for now". But at the moment, she's certainly not sounding as I "heard" her in my head when reading. Which is unfortunate, since they nailed pretty much everyone else so far, which of course especially for Anya could have gone wrong very easily.
Lol. Could be. But 'cause it didn't sound "filtered", I don't really think that...but that could be the point.
Huh. Honestly Yor's voice is close enough to one I had for her.
Wait.
I just realized.
Did you see the trailers for the anime? Because I did and I heard a couple of her lines being more lively and intense than most of her lines in Ep 2, one of which I'm sure will be in Ep 3, and the other might be in Ep 3 if I' remembering the scene right...but probably am not.
I figured it wasn't him. XD The last time I heard his Japanese voice in another anime, I went "OH MY GOSH NO ALL I HERE IS AKECHI" and had to take pauses almost every time he spoke because I kept laughing at myself for only hearing it as Akechi's JP voice.
-checks his other voice credits-
Oh cool. He voiced Larcade and is also a voice in Triangle Strategy. Nice.
Yor is voiced by Saori Hayami, who can do "soft breathy gentle voice" and "low no-nonsense hardass", both in various registers, so she sounds suitable for a character who's kind of ditzy in general but has a hidden layer of steel, and that's just for Yor's public persona.
And lastly Camilla. I suspect plenty of people are gonna hate her. I don't really hate her nor "like" her, but I only mention this because I wonder what people will think when she decides to help Yor later with teaching her how to cook. I expect people to still hate her.
I've not read the manga (but don't care about spoilers anyway), and thus far Camilla is portrayed as fairly shallow. However, given the obvious care for her character design and her outsized role in this episode, I was already guessing that there's more to her than the obvious.
My original guess was that Camilla was supposed to represent the current state of society in the context of "old-fashioned" prejudices and biases, and how otherwise decent (not perhaps good, but not outright malicious) people can be submerged in that toxic soup without realizing. So she probably has good parts to her, but they're all filtered through her own prejudices, shaped by the society she's in.
Yor is voiced by Saori Hayami, who can do "soft breathy gentle voice" and "low no-nonsense hardass", both in various registers, so she sounds suitable for a character who's kind of ditzy in general but has a hidden layer of steel, and that's just for Yor's public persona.
One: I mainly heard her being mentioned as the voice of the FL from OreGairu...but looking at her voice credits now, the ones I'm familiar with are Kagura (Fairy Tail), Shirayuki (Snow White with the Red Hair), Ruby (RWBY JP dub) and Yamato (One Piece)...yeah I can see that.
Two: Er...public persona? As in how she acts in public but that's still her just as much as how she's like at home? Idk I think I'm taking what you're saying "she's faking it" because I've seen a few people think, at first, her ditziness (is that even a word?) is an act even though I have a feeling that's not what you mean.
I've not read the manga (but don't care about spoilers anyway), and thus far Camilla is portrayed as fairly shallow. However, given the obvious care for her character design and her outsized role in this episode, I was already guessing that there's more to her than the obvious.
My original guess was that Camilla was supposed to represent the current state of society in the context of "old-fashioned" prejudices and biases, and how otherwise decent (not perhaps good, but not outright malicious) people can be submerged in that toxic soup without realizing. So she probably has good parts to her, but they're all filtered through her own prejudices, shaped by the society she's in.
Well, since you said you don't care about manga spoilers...I'mma freely talk about it to ya.
I'll admit that she's only appeared once more since her introduction in chapter 2, and that is in the chapter I mentioned (ch 24) where Yor wants to learn how to cook from Camilla. From what it seems in that chapter, she's a tsundere who's most honest with her boyfriend, Dominic. She was well...treating Yor pretty normally, save for getting mad when she messed things up hilariously...or when she was being tsundere. So as far as I'm concerned, she's just easily swayed by her emotions, both good and bad. Don't know if it's just me though.
But really I do like your interpretation on what Camilla could represent though.
