
a review by KaalBron

a review by KaalBron
SPY x FAMILY is a comedy slice-of-life show that follows a newly formed pretend-to-be family. In this family, everyone has their secrets and motivations for why they'd want these new relationships to succeed. The father, working under the alias Loid Forger, is a top-class spy sent by a foreign government to track down a politician by the name of Donovan Desmond with the goal going towards ensuring peace between two nations. The said politician has disappeared from the public eye and can only be seen attending social gatherings at the school his sons go to. The only way to gain access to the social gatherings in this prestigious school is to have a child attending it, which is why our protagonist also going by the codename "Twilight" is given a mission to acquire a wife and a daughter so he could infiltrate the said gatherings. This plot point, albeit convenient works really well for setting up the plot for the story. 
This very unconventional mission leads him to an orphanage in which he was hoping to find the most intelligent kid out of the ones available, as for entering the very prestigious school Donovan's children go to you need to pass an entrance exam among other things. This leads us to our next main character, Anya. who just so happens to be an esper - a mind reader. She then proceeds to trick Loid by copying the answers floating around in his head to convince him that she is very much advanced for her age. This leads to him adopting her immediately and finding them an apartment to stay in. Only later does Loid realize that a wife is required as well since, for them to pass the entrance interview in the school, both parents have to be present. This is once again a very convenient plot point, but again it works really well. When visiting a tailor shop for Anya's school uniform, they meet Yor who just so happens to be shopping there at that time. She also has a secret of her own, a darker one than the others, she's an assassin. And it just so happens that she's also looking for someone to play the role of her significant other to not alert suspicion as to why she still isn't married at her age. As she has both a day and a dangerous night job, she doesn't have time for dating. And so they agree to be a pretend couple, for both of their sakes and without knowing the true reasons and nature of this arrangement. Naturally, this is wonderful news for Anya as she now has parents that will care for her instead of rotting in the orphanage. And with that, we have our plot very well set up two episodes in. 
Without touching the spoilers for the rest of the show, it succeeds for not only having a very original idea for the plot but also for the great execution. The main characters are very likable and work very well off of each other. Loid is a serious, well-calculated individual that cares about the well-being of the world which is why he executes all his missions with perfection no matter how many of them he gets burdened with and no matter how hard or impossible some may seem. But he also has a very soft side, he cares about Anya's happiness and well-being and goes a step further than the mission might require. Yor might be a dangerous assassin, but you would never notice that without knowing, apart than her occasional bursts of strength. She also cares deeply about Anya, and while she's pretty useless in a household environment she does her best and plays the role of a loving mother with top grades. Anya is the star of the show, everything revolves around her. She can be selfish, but also considerate. She would do everything to make this fake marriage work and tries to help Loid in his mission to the best of her ability. Her very animated expressions and reactions really add to the comedy of the whole thing.
My personal favorite episode is the fourth one, in which the family is invited to the mentioned school interview. It shows the best of the absolutely absurd situations they find themselves in, also introducing one of the best side characters in Anya's future homeroom teacher who strives for and gets a bit too excited about elegance. It also deepens the character bonds between one another and showcases the depth of their emotions.
After the fourth episode, the show starts to stagnate a little bit with some filler episodes being just okay and Anya's school life being less interesting, absurd, or funny than the family life and mission assignments. It also ends pretty suddenly, which is I guess fine since the second season is right around the corner. But usually, I'd like for a season to close some plot point or a chapter of something for me to see it as a season, and I don't think that is the case here. Still, the show has a lot of variety, it can be hilarious when it wants to and it can be wholesome when it wants to. It oozes with charm and I cannot wait for the second season to hopefully not only show more of the same but also elevate it to the next level. Until then, I'd give it an 8/10 and would gladly rewatch it in the future.43 out of 46 users liked this review