Spy x Family episode 21 – The Phony Family

First the Forgers, now the Phonys, do you think anyone is ever going to get intrigued by these family names? I was going to say that at least Forger seems like a real name but I decided to look it up first. I used LinkedIn and there are a ton of Forgers on there, it’s definitely a name that exists. But you know what, there are more than a few credible Phonys as well… So I guess that exists too!

Seeing the world through Nightfalls eyes is quite an experience. I do love how she first leans into the expected trope, calling Twilight weaker because of his Loid identity and vowing to bring him back to his glory days, and then immediately subverts it by gushing over how adorable a soft Twilight is.

Basically, Twilight can do no wrong in her eyes. That’s kind of sweet.

For the viewers that were getting a little impatient by the seemingly filler one-off episodes that didn’t really lead to anything bigger, this week should have been a welcomed return to the main plot. Spy x Family has actually been setting up this storyline slowly over the past two weeks. By first introducing us to Nightfall and then to her feelings.

However now, we are clearly back on track to advance operation Strix with a good old undercover heist. Twilight and Nightfall are teaming up to get their hands on a priceless painting that may be hiding some secrets potentially damaging to the fragile peace.

The only problem is that this painting is part of the private collection of a very rich and morally dubious man.

And the solution is of course: Tennis! What else could it be?

For some reason, dirty underground tennis matches are even more hilarious to me than mafia golf was in Birdie Wing. I have no clue what I’m basing all these sports prejudices on. I should really keep a more open mind.

It might have been tempting to agree with Nightfall that Twilight has lost his edge. So the episode made sure to show us that an hour or so in the park playing around with a racket and Anya, was enough for Twilight to become a bonafide tennis pro. No, even better than a pro.

Between Nightfall’s delusions and the Pnoys’ spectacular performances, I found the matches really fun to watch.

Of course, we can’t just have simple tennis games between very good players. And real sports anime fan will tell you that anime athletes are borderline superhuman. Some of them are actually superhuman. I mean if you just want to watch a tennis pro get defeated, all you have to do is watch Wimbledon. But where else are you going to see a pair of abominable muscle monsters play tennis?

Meanwhile, we’re seeing Yor continue to fret about a potential threat to her marriage. And she’s not quite jealous exactly. At least not the type of jealousy we’re used to seeing on screen. She’s not angry… I guess the tennis ball might beg to differ. For the most part, though, she’s more inclined t worry than lash out over this.

Yor’s insecurity has always been a part of her character. It balances out her badass nature. She’s a ruthless and very proficient assassin but also a delicate flower largely innocent to the ways of the world. Its gap moe designed to be appealing to the audience. And such obvious fanservice shouldn’t work on me (or so I like to think) but it does. I wanted to tell Yor not to worry all through this scene.

Just like Anya though, I couldn’t quite find how. In the end, this is something Yor is going to have to figure out for herself. And maybe, she’ll figure out that she doesn’t like other women encroaching on her fake husband. And then she’ll have to figure out why that is…

When the tennis hulks were introduced, I left you with a leading question about where else we could see these guys play. I worded it so the implication was that we could see them in this episode and nowhere else. But that was a trick! Cause we didn’t see them play at all. They irritated Nightfall and let’s face it, that’s just not a good idea! So goodnight tennis muscle mutants.

You know, the ladies in this show really hold their own. Between Yor, Nightfall, and Handler, any one of them is liable to wipe the floor with someone who tries to push them around. And the other recurring ladies are Anya and Becky. I’m not sure if we can count them since they should really be in the children’s category but you know what, I,m not sure about Becky, However, Anya is a force to be reckoned with in her own right. I wouldn’t want to go up against her.

The final match of the week is where I feel that Spy x Family truly descended into wacky Sports! anime territory. And I love it. They even ended the episode on a cliffhanger in the middle of a deciding match. Someone has read the playbook!

Recovering the painting, if they can that is, is obviously going to lead to more adventures. You have to see if the information really was inside it and then secure it, destroy it or use it in some way. All three perhaps. I figure we have a couple more episode before we see where this is going.

Previous Posts

• Spy x Family episode 1 – Family Man
• Spy x Family episode 2 – Found Family
• Spy x Family episode 3 – Family Ooting
• Spy x Family episode 4 – The Elegant Family
• Spy x Family episode 5 – Meet the Loidman Family
• Spy x Family episode 6 – Like Mother, Like Daughter
• Spy x Family episode 7 – Extended Family
• Spy x Family episode 8 – Family-In-Law
• Spy x Family episode 9 – Briar Family Issues
• Spy x Family episode 10 – Dodgeball Lessons with Mom
• Spy x Family episode 11 – Family Pride
• Spy x Family episode 12 – Family Finale
• Spy x Family episode 13 – Family Pet
• Spy x Family episode 14 – Future Family
• Spy x Family episode 15 – Family Reunion
• Spy x Family episode 16 – Family Dinner
• Spy x Family episode 17 – Daddy Issues
• Spy x Family episode 18 – Scholarly Family
• Spy x Family episode 19 – The Glooman Family Business
• Spy x Family episode 20 – Family Doctor
• Spy x Family episode 21 – The Spy Who Wuvved Me