I grew up in the 90’s when parents had no idea what anime was. I would walk down the Blockbuster aisle admiring the colorful video cases of shows like Akira, Princess Mononoke, Sailor Moon, and Project A-Ko. Because they were so unknown back then, most videos were Unrated meaning parents had no idea the video with the cartoon cover had some adult themes with fan service tropes common in most shows.
That being said, now that I’m a parent, I’m making sure to be careful with whatever my daughter watches. Anime is so much more popular and available now than when I was a kid, and while I’m still cautious, it’s also been fun to bond with my daughter over it. Her favorite anime so far has been Spy x Family, so as soon as my daughter heard the new Spy x Family CODE: White was coming to theaters, she had to go. These are my thoughts, starting with the series itself.
Spy x Family follows an international super spy, Lloyd Forger, who is trying to go under cover to reach a powerful diplomat and prevent war between the East and West, but to do so he needs to infiltrate his inner circle of a prestigious school. This would require having a family which results in him taking on Yor as his fake wife. It may sound harsh but Yor has a secret as well. She’s actually a skilled assassin and “marrying” LLoyd helps her stay under the radar to complete her goals. Finally, the young and adorable Anya comes into the picture to complete the family, and of course, she has her own secret as well. She’s a telepath which helps her along the way to complete her goal- to have a real family- with often hilarious results.
That being said, the overall message of the show is about family unity with heart warming moments that over shadow the occasional fight scenes. It plays the part of both a wholesome family anime and intense spy show with the occasional curse worse, fighting scenes, and blood stain on the wall (usually caused by Yor). As for the movie, I will say, the very first scene of the movie had me a little nervous because it contained a flirtatious opening scene that literally showed a bit of ankle but thankfully changed directions fast.
I’ll admit, most anime movies have their glaring flares with plot and I think we overlook them because we just love them for what they are, but I felt CODE: White was able to incorporate a lot of subplots well to make the story exciting, hilarious, and still keep everyone’s secret in tact to continue the series without a hitch. My daughter could not stop laughing out loud at Anya’s antics and you could tell the animators had fun exaggerating her childish imagination during her “crappy” situation.
Also, there is something nostalgic about playing claw machines at movie theaters. Just something magical about seeing a movie with a parents followed by a new stuffed toy.
That Nerdy Mom 