Spy x Family Vol. 2 Review – Life at the Academy

After a strong first volume, Spy x Family was poised to become my new favorite series running under the Shonen Jump imprint. It isn’t unusual, however, for series to have an incredibly strong first couple of chapters and then drop off completely before they can even get fully going.

With my hopes high, I jumped into Spy x Family’s second volume, unsure if I would walk away loving the series more or deciding to drop it altogether. Luckily, mangaka Tatsuya Endo cements Spy x Family as a series to watch in volume 2.

Spy x Family volume 2 picks up right where volume one left off. The Forger family just flubbed their way through the Eden Academy entrance interview, leaving the family in low spirits. After some help from the school’s headmaster and some good old fashion luck, however, Anya is admitted to the Academy. With phase one of Twilight’s mission completed, the family enters phase two: get Anya into the Academy’s elite honors program at all costs!

I honestly cannot begin to tell you how much I love Spy x Family. The series has the perfect combination of action, comedy, and wholesome character moments. Endo does a fantastic job taking preconceived stereotypes of spies, assassins, psychics, and families and throwing them on their heads, making every character in Spy x Family feel full of life.

One of my favorite things about Spy x Family volume one was the way Endo drew Anya, the young orphaned telepath adopted by Twilight. She is one of the cutest characters in all of fiction, continually delivering hilarious lines paired with absurd facial expressions. Volume two brings these back in droves, leading to some laugh out loud moments that rival the first volume.

Unfortunately, Spy x Family volume 2 doesn’t meet the near-perfection of the first volume. While I don’t have many complaints, the first few pages of the volume feel entirely pointless. Chapter six begins with the cast finding out that Anya hasn’t actually been accepted to Eden Academy, but has instead been put on the waitlist.

The suspense of whether or not she’ll be accepted, however, completely disappears within just a few pages, making me wonder why Endo decided to waste readers’ time with this red herring of a plot point. This only lasts for a few pages at the beginning of volume 2, however, so it didn’t bring down the volume very much as a whole.

Spy x Family volume 2 formally introduces a character that was hinted at in the first volume, but never really explored: Yuri, the loving younger brother of fake wife and assassin, Yor. Though he has only been referred to in passing as Yor’s adorable brother, it is revealed right before the volume wraps up that he also has a secret life, adding another piece of intrigue to the main story.

Outside of chapters 6-11, Spy x Family volume 2 also includes a special bonus chapter that serves as a one-off adventure. While it isn’t anything too crazy, it does feature the family visiting an aquarium full of penguins, so I can’t complain.

With the second volume culminating in a confrontation between Twilight, Yor, and Yuri, I can’t wait to see where the third volume goes. Though volume 2 doesn’t hit the same heights that the first volume did, it is still an excellent continuation of the Forger family’s story that all fans of comedy, action, and spy adventures owe it to themselves to read.