Spy x Family Season 2 First Impressions

“Anya and Mister Dog are gonna solve this on our own and save the day! And then… I’ll be Starlight Anya again!”

I enjoyed season 1 of Spy x Family well enough, but wasn’t as infatuated with it as some people were. It had a collection of flaws that limited its appeal to me, so while I thought it was a great show, it didn’t click with me as an instant classic. The prior season, which aired this spring, also didn’t properly cap off its story, leading to it ending on an awkward note. Perhaps as a result of that milquetoast ending, this new season (or is it the second half of the first season?) didn’t have me overly excited. I was looking forward to it, sure, but it wasn’t the first thing that came to mind when I thought about the fall lineup. It’s so good. Whereas the first season had to contend with the process of gradually introducing the characters and the wacky world they inhabit, the second season gets to kick off with the internal dynamics of our central family already established, so they largely get to do what they do best. Spy x Family has rejoined the seasonal fray and, after a season free of strong comedies, it is a welcome return.

The episode kicks off by following up on the promise made to Anya in the penultimate episode from the prior season. As a reward for her achievements, Lloyd promised to get her a dog, so Lloyd, Yor, and Anya begin another family “ooting.” Right from the get-go, the comedy is on point as Lloyd attempts to get Anya a tactically-trained dog from a shop tied to his agency, but that goes over as well as one might expect. However, before they can check out another venue, his services as a spy are requested by his handler. This leads to Yor and Anya heading out on their own to visit a shelter that’s hosting an adoption event. Meanwhile, Lloyd endeavors to get to the heart of a conspiracy to assassinate a visiting diplomat. I’m not going to spoil anything beyond that, but my favorite parts of Spy x Family are when the insanity of the leads clash with the more mundane elements of family life. When everything is insane, the comedy tends to get buried, but this episode managed its characters perfectly. It found the ideal balance by juxtaposing the off the wall terrorism plot with the otherwise straightforward goal of purchasing a pet.

Cloverworks and Wit Studio continue to knock it out of the park with this show. The comedic timing is excellent, and the visual comedy remains one of the biggest joys of watching the show. I’d actually go so far as to say that the opening and ending are superior to the first season. The previous opening sought to highlight the duality of each of the characters, but this new one instead focuses more directly on the family relationship of the leads, which is arguably the show’s primary strength. The same is true of this new ending, which employs a fun device where the camera moves around the Forger’s apartment, presenting their interactions both with others and among themselves. I can’t quite make up my mind as to how I feel about the dog’s bark. On one hand, the sound of it is hilarious, but on the other, I sometimes find ridiculous animal onomatopoeia performed by humans to be distracting. I guess time will tell on that front.

Before I wrap up, a few Notes and Nitpicks:

• I’ve seen this cour referred to as both the second part of Spy x Family’s first season and as its second season. I don’t necessarily object to anime emulating the western trend of splitting up seasons, but it works best when the show finds a good way to cap off the story.
• It seems to me that episodes 11 and 12 of the previous season probably should have been swapped. I don’t know how the progression worked in the manga, but the reveal of the Forger’s dog in the final moments of episode 11 would have worked as a decent cliffhanger, and would lead directly into the events of this episode.
• Lloyd’s subplot is easily the least engaging element of this episode. It isn’t bad, but the method of breaking the prisoner was predictable, and it didn’t have the laughs of Anya and Yor’s plot. Its key purpose was to inject some exposition, and I suppose it succeeded on that front, but it was otherwise forgettable.