The following contains spoilers for Episode 25 of Spy X Family, “First Contact,” now streaming onCrunchyrollandHulu.
The long awaited final episode ofSpy X Familyhas arrived. Operation Strix has been leading up to this moment - making contact with Donovan Desmond, chairman of the National Unity Party of Ostania. While the show is a heart-warming comedy about a family of misfits most of the time, the season’s finale takes on a much more somber and serious tone for the most part. This time there’s no overblown self-inflicted threat to the Forger family, no displays of superhuman feats by Loid or Yor, and no untimely shenanigans derailing a carefully laid out plan.
Despite all of Loid’s meticulous studying and profiling of Donovan, he is unable to gain a firm grasp on the chairman’s personality. All that can be said for sure is that Donovan is an incredibly paranoid man that guards his true thoughts and plans carefully. Failure here will most likely arouse suspicion in Donovan and risk him withdrawing completely from the public eye. Doing so would put WISE in a situation where gathering intel on Donovan’s plans would be nigh impossible, drastically increasing thechances of the Cold Warbetween Ostania and Westalis reigniting. But luck favors the prepared, and no one else is quite as prepared as Loid Forger.
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A Rare but Risky Opportunity
The episode opens immediately with the reveal that the semi-annual gathering between the Imperial Scholar students and their parents is about to begin. While Anya has yet to become an Imperial Scholar, Loid would be remiss to pass up the chance to observe and study the security details surrounding the event. However, it quickly becomes evident that security is taking no chances with the event due to the sheer number of VIPs and celebrities attending. Loid surmises that while physically infiltrating the event would be doable, doing so in a manner that would allow him to mingle with Donovan would not work out. Only by attending legitimately as a parent of an Imperial Scholar will allow Loid to speak at length with Donovan.
Of course, Loid is painfully aware of how abysmal Anya’s grades and her chances of becoming an Imperial Scholar are. At the moment, he can only place his hopes in Anya befriending Damian, Donovan’s younger son, and arranging a play meeting of sorts to meet Donovan. Unfortunately, Anya is…struggling to make friendswith Damian. With no other choice, Loid can only tail Damian while disguised in the hopes that Damian is planning on meeting his father. Luckily, Damian had already arranged for said meeting the night before and planned to meet his father in the courtyard, outside the event venue. Overhearing Damian and his friends discussing the meeting allows Loid to solidify his plan to crash the father-son meeting and speak to Donovan.
Go, Go Operation Friendship!
However, Damian is overwhelmed by the sheer contrast in importance between himself and his father. Getting cold feet, Damian announces that he plans on canceling the meeting to Loid’s dismay, but we finally get to see the budding friendship between Anya and Damian come into play. While Anya is mostly just interested in helping her father succeed at his mission, she decides to inspire Damian in her own unique and (somewhat) reassuring way. Of course, that way is calling out Damian’s fear of disappointing his father and smugly pointing out Damian’s low score on his language test.
While Damian thinks Anya is mocking him at first, she quickly reveals that she relates to his fear of not having the love of their respective father. But because she loves her dad, she’s willing to meet him head-on and showcase her terrible grades… which isn’t quite the same main reason Damian is hesitant, but it’sthe thought that counts. Oddly reassured and embarrassed by Anya’s incoherent speech, Damian resolves to continue on to the meeting with his father, to Loid’s elation.
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Anya is even willing to follow along to see Donovan (the ‘head bad guy’ in her own words)… but then she falls asleep while waiting. Thankfully, Becky is there and (being the good friend that she is) has her bodyguard deliver Anya back home. Though Anya is completely unaware of it, her presence has given Loid the perfect excuse to tactically drop a replica of Anya’s beloved keychain near Damian’s meeting location. By feigning a search for it, Loid will have a justification for being in the area when Donovan arrives.
Dichotomy of Fatherhood
Just as Loid planned, he arrives moments before Donovan appears and strikes up a conversation with Damian, hoping to make amends for Anya decking him on the first day of school. As Donovan approaches, Loid swiftly and smoothly transitions into offering his apologizes to Donovan, as parent-to-parent. However, both Loid and Damian are taken aback by the casual dismissal of Anya’s assault. Carefully prodding for Donovan’s reaction, Loid insists on apologizing, while Damian grows increasingly flustered by the lack of concern on his father’s part.
At this point, we witness first-hand the strained relationship between Damian and Donovan, as the latter looks on in exasperation and disdain at the young boy. However, Loid is able to disperse the tension by relatingthe struggles of parenthoodand how complex child-rearing is. To Loid, he understands that Anya is her own independent person and shouldn’t be held perfectly to his own standards and expectations. Though Donovan agrees, the nature lying behind his stance couldn’t be further from Loid’s views.
To Donovan, people cannot understand one another and are unable to ever reach a mutual understanding. This extends even to his own son Damian, who he views as a stranger bound only by blood. Such a viewpoint is a complete antithesis to Loid’s very way of life. Both Loid’s fake and real job (psychiatrist and spy) require him to understand the hearts of minds of others - to know how they think and act. While Donovan’s words devastate Damian, they confirm to Loid one thing about Donovan - that if he cannot understand others, he must dominate them with force.
Loid’s response to Donovan’s statements once again juxtaposes the dichotomy in their philosophies. Though both men agree that it’s a naive notion to believe that people can fully understand one another by talking, unlike Donovan, Loid believes that it’s still worth the effort to try. The two’s approach to raising their children reflect this. Loid may find Anya’s thinking and actions to be baffling most of the time, but he’ll always be there for her to try and understand. So genuine is the resolve in Loid’s voice that it piques Donovan’s interest and gives hope to Damian.
Seizing the moment, Loid surprises Donovan with a confession that he was unsure about thechairman’s policies and beliefsbut changed his mind after hearing of Damian’s report on Donovan. Impressed by Loid’s boldness and seeming interest in the National Unity Party, Donovan makes note of Loid’s name before leaving - a decisive success for the master spy in getting closer to the chairman. As the two adults bid goodbyes, Damian is able to muster the resolve to update his father on his academic successes and failures. Though still rather cold and distant, Donovan does acknowledge his son in his own way before departing.
As Loid observes the farewell between father and son from a distance, he makes note that improving the two’s relationship might help Operation Friendship progress in the future. Loid returns home and observes a still-sleeping Anya mumbling nonsensical words (at least to him). He whimsically reflects on how he still doesn’t fully understand her, as the season comes to a close and ends this chapter of the Forger family.
For those of you mourning the end of the show, rejoice! The next season has already been announced as well as a brand-new movie, directed and created by the original creator Tatsuya Endo! But until then, you’ll have to fill the lonely void left behind bySpy X Family. We strongly suggest checking out the manga if you just can’t wait though!
