Shounen Jump’s new golden child received its anime adaptation today as Spy x Family Episode 1 aired, and the world watched. Was the first impression a good one? Let’s find out in this review!
Spy x Family Episode 1 Overview
Spy x Family, sometimes stylised as SpyxFamily, is an action and comedy anime based on a manga written by Tatsuya Endou and serialised in Shounen Jump+. The manga quickly became among the magazine’s most popular ongoing properties, and thus, an anime adaptation was inevitable. The anime adaptation is being tackled by Studios Wit and CloverWorks, and it would be an insult to your intelligence as anime fans to tell you the shows these two studios have made. You are already well aware.
The anime is being directed by Kazuhiro Furuhashi, who has previously served the same position in shows such as Dororo, HunterxHunter (1999), and Rurouni Kenshin. This episode of the show is also referred to as SpyxFamily Episode 1.
– SpyxFamily Episode 1 Review does not contain spoilers –
Spy x Family Episode 1 Review- A Familiar Twist
Hype is a funny thing. One would be forgiven if they thought that it is always a force for good since all it seems to do is get people excited for something that deserves it or something that is interesting enough to drum up all this hype. However, in some cases, hype can be a deterrent to what a piece of media could have naturally achieved since it tends to make people expect more from something that just wanted a happy little niche for itself. Sometimes, a lot of hype is a terrible thing.
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While terrible would be a huge overstatement, it can’t be argued that this show had an uphill battle to climb if it were to fulfil the huge expectations set upon it. It could have very easily crashed and burned like a lot of other popular manga adaptations tend to do, looking at you, Berserk (2016), but it did its best to make a funny, entertaining, sweet anime that everybody could watch when they feel like they need a break from the world, and it succeeded in that. Who cares if it wasn’t as special as it should have been according to our arbitrary expectations?
The show has a pretty simple premise, one that we have seen done similarly in some other shows as well. It revolves around the best spy in the world adopting a little girl for the sake of his mission. Just with that sentence, it should have reminded you of several other media properties, and the most prominent of them for me was Despicable Me. This usually leads to the kid and gruff parent bonding by the end of the show and leads to some cute bonding sessions, which usually form the crux of the series.
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If you’re expecting me to go “but this was different in this way” here, I’m sorry to say that I’ll have to disappoint you. There is not much else that separates this show from the rest. Well, except for one thing, relating to the kid that our Spy, Twilight, adopts. She is special in a way that is sure to lead to many shenanigans in the future, and she seems to be the McGuffin that will drive the show’s plot forward. She is a sweet character who appears to be self-aware enough to survive the pitfalls child characters usually fall into, but only time will tell if that’s the case.
Spy x Family Episode 1 was just fine. There were some sweet moments, some generic setup, and some by the number action scenes that didn’t stand out that much. The music sounds solid, but the animation isn’t all that special. As of episode 1, this show looks like your perfectly fine and engaging slice of life show. It has a lot of time to showcase why it’s so highly regarded and popular in the later episodes, but it was just a neat episode for now.
Verdict
Spy x Family Episode 1 was a neat little starter that set up a funny and engaging, if a little generic, world for all of its future stories. Let’s hope it is able to justify its fandom and popularity!
Click here to read the review of the next episode!