Reviews with content warning for Classism - SPY×FAMILY 1

It's cute. It's funny; I laughed out loud multiple times. It's also very cartoony; the worldbuilding is barely sketched in, most of the characters are clearly defined types, and the situations are highly exaggerated. There are a lot of scenes where one of the leads inadvertently does something extremely suspicious, but manages to smooth things over with a flimsy excuse. (It's frankly a miracle that neither Loid nor Yor had sussed the other's secret out by the end of their first date, let alone by the end of the volume, and it continues to be a miracle that both are still regarded as normal and unsuspicious by the people around them.)
What won me over is that the emotional moments, when they happen, land well. Wacky shenanigans aside, it's a story about three people who are each, in their own ways, isolated from the world and yearning for a human connection that they've found in each other, and by the end of the volume I cared enough about them to want to see what happened next. (I don't know if I'm going to stick out the whole series, though; I suspect my tolerance for the wacky shenanigans may have its limits.)

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risten's review against another edition

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adventurous funny fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

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spooderman's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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notthatlibrarian's review against another edition

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adventurous funny lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

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maeverose's review against another edition

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funny lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Loveable characters? Yes

3.5

I’m already attached to the characters so that’s a good sign. I love the reluctant found family and marriage of convenience tropes so I’m excited to see where this goes. Not too many thoughts yet.

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cady_sass's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark funny sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

My first ever manga! Definitely takes some getting used to in reading backwards but very enjoyable. A little chaotic and VERY over the top, the level of believability is next to nothing, but it’s fun and the artwork is stunning! I think I’ll enjoy the next few even more than this one now that the story is set up. Loid, I can take him or leave him (so far), but I’m extremely excited to see where Yor & Anya’s stories go.

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wolfiegrrrl's review against another edition

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adventurous funny lighthearted relaxing fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This series has it all - fake relationship, found family, comedy, delightfully over the top spy action, assassination plots, and political intrigue all wrapped up in a little Anya-shaped sci-fi bow!

This first volume does an excellent job of introducing the main players in this story. Loid, Yor, and Anya forge themselves into the aptly named Forger family and begin their journey of precariously balancing work/school life with the unexpected personal bonds they've already started to form with each other.

Although we get to see Yor's and Anya's motivations for needing this family, these first five chapters largely focus on Loid's internal struggle to reconcile the fact that his job has always demanded a "trust no one but yourself" mindset with the reality that he has now been assigned his most important mission yet, which entirely depends on him retraining himself to trust other people to help pull it off.

The developing "will they, won't they" between Loid and Yor is already taking off without a hitch in the suitably chaotic way you might expect from a spy/assassin hook up! Between them lies the groundwork for a solid relationship built on mutual understanding and it appears that the seeds of genuine feelings have already started to sprout. Of course, it helps that Anya is the cutest child they could have possibly found (or who could have possibly found them in this case), as she makes every page she's on a pure delight with her attempts to help their plans succeed.

Together, they truly are a beautiful found family that has already started pulling at the heartstrings. Their secrets are carefully kept from each other to keep each other safe from the dangers of their work, but their hearts clearly crave the normalcy their identities deny them. Even Anya has a dark past she can't tell anyone about lest it tear their family apart.

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