Spy×Family

Episode 5

Well, that was a tense five minutes until we found out that Anya managed to get into Eden College. Not that there was ever any doubt – she's wearing the uniform in the ending theme, after all – but watching the whole Forger family go through emotional hell was still quite something. But really, those feelings are nothing compared to the sheer magnitude of embarrassment that Loid experiences when he ends up having to act out an episode of Anya's favorite cartoon in a theme park/castle…in front of every agent his spy network employs. His face reminds me of my dad's when he let my sisters and I sit under the conference table at work and when everyone stood up they all realized that we'd been busy putting chicken mcnuggets in their cuffs.

I do think it's maybe a smidge out of character for Loid, or rather for Twilight, to have used his work resources for something like Anya's dream Bondman experience, but it may also be a marker of how much his two personas are starting to blend together. Twilight may not have called in the cavalry, but Loid very well might, and even though he's clearly mortified by the whole thing, he's also not willing to disappoint Anya. Again, we could interpret this as him being afraid she really will rebel and not attend Eden College, but after what we saw in episode four, it seems more likely that he just doesn't want to deprive her of something she so clearly wants. He's thinking as much like a dad as a spy these days, and that just adds a special something to the way he throws himself into things.

And speaking of throwing, this episode looks good. Every movement of Loid's – as he throws his body, twists, runs, and ducks – looks impressive, and we even get a good idea of how strong Yor is compared to him. He's really having to work to keep her from hurting him worse than she does, and that's when she's drunk; is he not taking her down because he doesn't want to upset Anya's story, or is it because he actually can't? I'm betting more on the former, but that she even lands that one scratch on him and shred his gloves indicates that she's more than a match for him, and if he ever has to go up against her when she's sober, it could be a very close thing. Of course, none of it is a surprise to Anya, the only person who actually knows what's going on, but when Loid has a moment to think about his wife's strength and skills, he may well come to a conclusion that's close to the truth.

Meanwhile, we at least now have the very important knowledge that Twilight wears black underwear. In case you missed it, there's a brief shot of his data file when his mysterious boss is discussing how he has no doubts that Anya will get into Eden College, and the information we can see is very clearly the color of his underwear. Why a spy agency would need to know this I couldn't tell you (unless it's related to that old saw about how you should always wear nice underwear in case you get in an accident?), but it's a particularly funny revelation since the show is repeatedly taking pains not to show Yor's, no matter how many high kicks she does.

Next week Anya embarks on her education at Eden, thus commencing the next phase of Operation Strix. Can Loid keep Anya on track? Can anyone keep wine away from Yor? And can we all agree that “Count Scruffy Scruff” would make a great name for a dog? Since Twilight's mission relies on Anya to befriend Desmond's son, the real challenge may just be getting started.

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Spy×Family is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.