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SPY x FAMILY Cour 2 Episode 14 Review – Best In Show

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SPY x FAMILY Cour 2 Episode 14 – Quick Summary

In SPY x FAMILY Cour 2 Episode 14, “DISARM THE BOMB,” the dog that had been her steed in the previous episode showed Anya three terrifying images: a view of Anya, Loid, and Yor welcoming the dog into their home, another of a clock-tower and a terrible explosion, and a third of just distraught Anya and Yor. The message was clear. Yet, how could Anya tell Yor without also disclosing that Anya was a telepath – an act she equated with the destruction of her family? What will Anya decide to do? How can the dog help? And what’s this about an eggplant drawn in ketchup?

Note: This post may include spoilers, so be cautious.

Favorite Quote from SPY x FAMILY Cour 2 Episode 14

Loid’s friend seemed surprised that the drawing was not a fruit. Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.

This show is a rare case: it can mix jovial humor with gripping drama. It’s hard to do with without one lessening the other. It’s even harder to do with both enriching the other. This show pulls it off consistently and makes it look easy.

Loid and his support agents arrived at Keith “The Pompous Jerk” Kepler’s hideout. Just inside the door, Keith had left a bomb with its trigger tied to the door knob. Anyone trying to enter would set off an explosion. Anya had used ketchup to write a huge “NO” on the door and an arrow pointing to what she had intended to be a drawing of a bomb.

I thought it was hilarious how Loid, with his demonstrated cooking skills, recognized the scent of ketchup when the other agent thought it might be blood. That other agent also thought the bomb drawing might actually be a fruit.

That other agent almost opened the door. After a few very tense moments, we discovered that Loid stopped him. Loid used a mirror to look in through the vent and showed the other agent that there was a bomb in there.

Seeming surprised, the other agent indicated the ketchup drawing and said (17:43), “So this was a bomb, not an eggplant?”

I’m glad Anya wasn’t around to hear his critique of her artwork!

Best in Show Moment for SPY x FAMILY Cour 2 Episode 14

Sylvia got her point across. Clearly. Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.

Setup: Balance and Depth

There was so much peak Yor in this episode! The blush after she said that (00:24) “Even I just got married this year!”; the expression and growl that scared the attack dog into running for its life (02:24); and her trying to explain to the police how she just happened to walk by and find a tied-up kidnapper.

I mentioned earlier how I admired this show’s ability to mix humor and drama. At least in the context of this series, I find the humor clears the emotional palette so the more grim moments can strike, and strike hard. That was the case in my favorite moment from this episode.

I remember back to the first Gulf War. I was a young man in my late twenties. Having invested a lot of time reading news and researching sources, I thought I had a handle on the situation in Iraq. I believed the public interpretation of the intelligence reports that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction (WMDs). I can’t say I cheered when we attacked. But I felt justified. I felt like it was something we should do.

Have you ever noticed that those who scream loudest for war are, generally speaking, among those least likely to face personal danger? Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.

I don’t remember when, but after that, I learned a lot more. Did you know that the UK and US decided to overthrow the democratically-elected government of Iran in 1953? That the whole mess in the Middle East is, quite literally, our fault?

War sucks. And yet, we enter into it so lightly. I distrust any leader who is gung-ho to either initiate a conflict or cheer others on when they do so. Some people I grew up with are even now trying to justify Russia’s disgusting aggression against Ukraine. Those people should know better. I knew their parents. That’s not how their parents raised them.

That realization of the nature of war, and of the understanding of the impact those who have not experienced war have on the decision to wage it, have made me profoundly intolerant of any depiction of war as glorious, honorable, or anything other than a scourge. It came as no surprise that SPY x FAMILY seems to agree, at both a narrative level and from the perspective of the characters I care most about.

Delivery: Sylvania Has Seen Some Stuff

Remember Handler/Sylvia Sherwood confronting the captured student/terrorists? As soon as she began to speak, the hairs on the back of my neck went up. Yuuko Kaida spoke in the same tone I’ve heard others use – others who have seen things. Very dark, very terrible things. 

The students heard it, too, though they tried to maintain their bravado. They still spouted their ritualistic catch-phrases. They tried to act defiant. But they did not have bravery. To them, this was just a theoretical exercise.

Knowing that, Sylvia decided to teach them a lesson. First, she punched her stiletto through the front teeth of the most vocal student (damn!). Then, in the voice of someone still haunted by memories not only of what she had seen, but what she had done, she spoke to them. I found it so moving that I want to reproduce it here (08:25):

Did you notice the precision with which she manipulated that pistol? Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.

“Have you actually killed a person before? Have you ever been killed by anyone?… Have you ever lost a limb in an attack? Have you ever heard bones being smashed? Have you ever smelled festering flesh?… Have you ever seen your parents or siblings crushed in a crumbling building, right before your eyes? Have you ever seen a piece of your lover’s flesh stuck to a wall? Have you ever been so hungry that you tried to bite into a tree? Have you ever stewed human flesh in a pot? Have you ever had someone close to you deny your enemy’s humanity, so they could continue the killing, only to become so mentally broken after the conflict is over, that they weep with regret and shame, vomit, and then eventually… take their own life?

“Apparently, you’ve learned nothing of war at your university, you utter children.”

At points designed to drive home her questions, she pulled out a pistol, checked the magazine, and chambered a round. The more she spoke, the quieter the student became. By phrasing her words as questions, she invited them into that world and made the horrors more real. She had only given them a tiny, tiny glimpse. By the end, they were silent.

This happened in the same episode where I laughed at Anya’s attempts to tell time. And it worked perfectly.

Speaking of which, what did you think of Anya’s struggles with telling time? What were your favorite moments? Feel free to share in the comments!

SPY x FAMILY Cour 2 Episode 14: Other Posts

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One thought on “SPY x FAMILY Cour 2 Episode 14 Review – Best In Show

  1. Yes! When Yor growled at the attack dog and scared it away, I burst into laughter! It was so awesome! Definitely my favorite part of the episode. You’re right, this anime consistently balances comedy with thrilling drama perfectly. There’s a good reason it’s so popular.

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