Spy x Family episode 19 – The Glooman Family Business

Posted on by Irina

The second cour of Spy Family is much more Slice of Life in structure, isn’t it? I guess I should have seen it coming, the manga is as well. We’re going to get back to the main plot soon though and there’s a long-form side adventure coming up that I’m very fond of.

I guess I didn’t notice the change in structure as much in the manga. Personally, I love these episodic adventures. They always brighten up my weekend. I hope the rest of the audience is with me on that.

I guess it only makes sense to discuss this episode in two parts. So let’s start with what made up most of episode 19: the sad saga of gloomy George Glooman. I can’t lie, I always loved this short story. It’s so relatable in a way. I’m sure we’ve all misunderstood something or jumped to conclusions when we were kids. And the more take charge sort would probably act on those conclusions. I can easily see the scenario that played out in the episode happening in real life. It was a bit heightened of course but honestly, it’s all very easy to imagine.

And it was darling to watch, wasn’t it? All these rich kids realizing that they were seeing real human suffering and softening up. Earnestly trying to help someone else out. That singing scene was ridiculous and I had to laugh but I also teared up a bit at the same time. I was all like, the kids are gonna be ok!

Well everyone except Anya. Now as far as George was concerned, he was telling the truth. He really did think he’s family was broke or soon-to-be and that his life would be nothing but hardship from now on. As such, even if Any is a telepath, she had no way of knowing the truth. So her lack of sympathy was based on the same information that everyone else had. But unlike these other kids, Anya knows a thing or two about real hardship. She knows that a boy with a loving family is already one step ahead of the game. And she knows that Westalia isn’t a bad place.

At the end of the day, having to leave the super expensive rich kid school where you can order caviar on rice for lunch (I can’t explain it but it actually looked pretty good and I’m thinking of seeing if there are any vegetarian versions out there) isn’t the worst thing that can happen to a person, and Anya knows that. But to the others, it’s a real tragedy.

However, when the truth came out the next day, she was the only one that was sympathetic to him. I mean having made a complete idiot out of yourself at school and alienating all the friends you had finally managed to make, now that is a real tragedy. I just loved the bit of this story. And I loved that we got some background into what Daylight was doing there, last episode!

The second half of the episode was called Mama Becomes the Wind. We haven’t had a Yor-centric story in a while so it was a nice interlude. don’t think it advanced the plot much but then again, neither did George’s story.

But it was fun right. We got to see the animals from the fourth episode when the Forgers were attending the school admission interviews. That’s a cool little bit of continuity. I’ve lost track of time a little bit, I’m not sure how long ago that actually was: 3 months? maybe 6. Either way, it made me happy to see that Yor remember it all and most importantly, kiss cow did!

And of course, Anya didn’t actually need her gym clothes. I say of course but it would have been totally like her to forget them. It’s just that the way the story was going, with all the effort Yor put in, something like that was bound to happen. Or that it was her spare gym clothes and her man ones are with her. Something like that.

It’s also totally like Yor to assume the worse and desperately try to fix it. Yor has been a pretty nervous mother. I guess it’s t be expected. Even though she more or less raised Yuri, Anya is her first real kid. And Anya is a lot more prone to getting herself in trouble. I would also be nervous if I was her mom. I did like how the teacher in the first half referred to Anya as bad news and Yor imagined her as a delinquent. It created a bit of a throughline between both short stories.

And it was also just like Loid to swoop in at the last minute and soften the blow. By now I think he’s just randomly deciding on what’s needed for the mission just based n what he wants to do. Sure, Yor being down would be bad for the mission and that’s why you have to buy her lunch. I totally belive that. I tease but it was a very sweet moment.

And even though it didn’t have any practical purpose, it was a nice little story to further solidify the character of the main cast, right? I ask this because I checked and this little story is an anime original. I went through three volumes of the manga and it’s not in there. I looked it up because I remembered Glooman’s story in detail but had zero recollection of Yor’S story. turns out there was a reason.

But like, if hadn’t read the manga, I wouldn’t have been able to tell at all. It fits in perfectly in tone and characterization with the rest. It could easily have been an extra chapter. I think that’s always a good sign. When the anime adaptation can add on material and it’s completely seamless. I don’t know, maybe some of you disagree and thought it was jarring but I liked it. Or maybe, it’s in an early volume of the manga or something… in which case, forget what I said.

Previous Posts

5 thoughts on “Spy x Family episode 19 – The Glooman Family Business”

  1. Pingback: SPY x FAMILY Cour 2 Episode 19 Review - Best In Show - Crow's World of Anime

  3. I’m enjoying these episodes. They’re fun. But they don’t give me much to talk about, really. If I had to review the show weekly, I just wouldn’t know what to say.

    The one thing about Yor episodes is that they never center about her job, and pretty much always are about the family. Compared to Loid, that’s an imbalance in the story telling, and also in how the worldbuilding is presented to us.

    Reply

Leave me a comment and make my day!

%d bloggers like this: