English Dub Review: Spy X Family “Berlint in Love; Nightfall’s Daily Life”

OVERVIEW (SPOILERS)

Anya’s friend Becky forcibly comes over to play, partly to try and seduce Loid…despite her being a grade schooler. Anya actually gets won over by this since she’s kinda dumb, but Loid tries getting info on her rich dad, and things only get more chaotic when Yor gets home. Later, during the time the Forgers were away on the cruise, Fiona takes over on all of Loid’s jobs, mainly because she’s in love with him, and is overjoyed when he gives her a souvenir when he comes back.

OUR TAKE

This week’s unintended theme is “weirdos who love Loid”! Yes, yes, it’s basically obligatory to have a series with a main couple have numerous other suitors who are gunning for the affections of either member of that couple. For Loid, it’s this six year old and his assassin coworker he taught a whole lot to, neither of whom he really gives much more than professional politeness. He probably does care about Fiona to an extent, but hardly to the extent that he would even consider her more than a coworker even for a second. Except this series just seems to have one person act that way for Yor and…it’s her little brother. Not the first anime to take the sibling love a little far, not even close to the only contemporary one either, but that’s how it is. Anyway, you didn’t come here for a diatribe about unsettling sibling or age gap relations in anime, though I could definitely churn out a whole dissertation about it if need be. Heck, Fiona’s one-sided affection seems normal and wholesome by comparison, even if it’ll never be anything more than what it is. She’s not Loid’s sibling or a child, and she’s well within his age range.

Thankfully not a lot of Yuri this episode, and even the potential grossness of Becky’s innocuous crush is handled playfully. It actually escalates in how funny it is not just because of Becky’s antics, but also because Anya suddenly gets convinced that her friend’s mad delusions will actually be a nice perk! And then Loid comes in trying to both be a polite host while also trying to get key mission information and seeing befriending Becky to advantageous for his own goals, not that she’s much help on that, naturally. THEN, when Yor gets home, Becky takes things all wrong and thinks that it’s Yor’s strength that Loid loves, which leads her to exhaust herself trying to show Loid she has the same monster power that Yor does. It’s basically a just a continued ramp of antics and shenanigans in a total farce that uses everyone’s comedic chops in great ways, and as a result I have a great time with that. With that, we’ve only got one episode left in the season, and it’ll be bittersweet to get to the end. But maybe I’ll actually check out season one? Yeah I know I keep saying that, but I might mean it!