Spy x Family #05 — Takeshi’s Castle

May 7th, 2022

 

Let's all get drunk.

Impressions:

I feel like I've made it pretty clear that I don't really care much for the jokey, 'elegant' screaming side of the show, nor it treating the espionage stuff like Lupin where they disappear offscreen for three seconds, which is enough time to set up a giant inflatable Rube Goldberg contraption that would take a team of engineers four months, so here's an episode that is nothing but that. Looney Tunes silliness from start to finish for the sake of Looney Tunes. One call and a literal army of spies materializes out of thin air to set up an impromptu American Gladiators gauntlet/banquet in a castle for the entertainment of a child. It feels like it would have been so much easier to play things closer to the vest and hide that it was all a dumb stunt, or have them try to appease her but a castle and mass kidnapping is unreasonable, thus she learns a valuable lesson along the way about… I don't know, the limitations of mortality, but I'm likely screaming into the void at this point.

The worst part is that they put a crapton of effort into the production, insert song, great animation, the works. For what is essentially a filler episode. Where's this animation and action choreography usually? Can we donate a few frames to some of the other 'action' shows this season? Because they desperately need them. Aside from the animation, Yor spending the whole thing drunk was probably the high point for me. More characters should spend filler weeks just being drunk and checked out. Now that is something I can absolutely empathize with.

Next Episode:

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Posted in Spy x Family | 2 Comments »

2 Shouts From the Peanut Gallery

  • Kitsu says:
    May 8, 2022 at 8:51 am

    I honestly do not understand the enormous popularity of this anime, it does not present interesting concepts, it does not have fanservice, it is not as original as they think, the comedy is bad as always, the characters are not interesting either

  • DP says:
    May 8, 2022 at 6:17 pm

    The anime has good animation and the family/action dynamic is enjoyable. This episode, however, I did not like as much.

    They’ve set up a situation where the spies are engaged in an existential struggle and Forger is a dedicated agent; the comedy comes from the situations and interactions that result.

    However, in this episode Forger diverts all agents from presumably important tasks in this struggle to amuse his daughter’s whim and reward her. Sure, motivating her is part of the mission, but going all out like this wasn’t vital. It just broke character for Forger. Something like “okay, we need bodies for the play? Look up what spy team is engaged in tactical training, and send them here for a special “training” mission would have achieved the same result without seeming to undercut the show’s core premise.

    On the other hand, drunk Yor was fun.