Review of Mission: Yozakura Family

Mission: Yozakura Family - A more serious, but also fun family dynamic that's a take on the Spy × Family formula, being same-same, but different. Ever since the invent of Weekly Shonen Jump, authors have been trying to make big of their series, since it's known to many as one of the key aspects of success, but also the added pressure of them trying to keep up with Shueisha's (and other publishing companies) rigorous release for the weekly magazines themselves in Japan, because authors have a story to sell, and business can only be made if quality is ensured, mostly from the authors themselves. It's thesame reason why series like Yuki Tabata's Black Clover suffered in the long run when he had a physical breakdown that resulted in him not being able to pump the series fast enough, which necessitated the manga's serialisation to the same publishing company's other magazine, Jump Giga, just to make ends meet for a "work-life balance" compromise.

On the other hand, you have ongoing series that has/had/have anime adaptations, like Yoshifumi Tozuka's Undead Unluck during last Fall to this Winter; last season's Nige Jouzu no Wakagimi a.k.a The Elusive Samurai from Ansatsu Kyoushitsu a.k.a Assassination Classroom's mangaka Yusei Matsui; and even the one that's just starting to get all of the buzz this season: Kouji Miura's Ao no Hako a.k.a Blue Box. Together with the upcoming anime adaptations of hits like Sket Dance mangaka Kenta Shinohara's Witch Watch and Yuto Suzuki's Sakamoto Days, these are series that absolutely thrive eating off the Shonen Jump formula for the simplicity of its own content that there's no trouble writing and drawing weekly serialisations for the magazine to keep those series relevant in the long run. And what I deem to be one of anime's most ambitious works within the past few years, is mangaka Hitsuji Gondaira's Yozakura-san Chi no Daisakusen a.k.a Mission: Yozakura Family, despite coming out in the same year as Tatsuya Endo's Spy × Family and separated by 6 months (with the latter starting in March and the former starting in August), it still manages to carve out its own niche and take on the spy formula by having its own rom-com moments that's sprinkled in with the stereotypical action thriller that most spy series have acclimated themselves to within the past few years or so. So, is the Disney+/Hulu locked exclusive anime worth your time to watch? Let's I Spy things from here.

In terms of the story/plot, amongst all Shonen Jump works, I would rank Hitsuji Gondaira's story to be very lacking, because on the one hand, you could argue the basis of bringing an outsider into a family's that so chaotic and something that the MC would not expect to be involved in, much less have his ties (both literally and figuratively) be bonded to such a thriller of an action-heavy spy plot, but on the other, support that this is the idea of creating a character-focused series that would help amplify its key themes as its strength, which undoubtedly is the factor that set the manga for the long-run success that it has, with (as of this review) 26 volumes and counting. That's the key idea of MC Taiyo Asano, an ordinary boy who's had his parents lost in a freak accident, leaving the lone child all alone with only his childhood friend to take care of. Until that said childhood friend being in the same school that he is, the latter gets entangled to fate once again that his childhood friend is the target of many groups of assassins, not to mention that the school they're in, its principal is also linked to her in a way that truly embodies just how frenetic their lives are always, being on the constant watch for any sort of evil that comes their way.

This is how Taiyo would eventually come to know his childhood friend of Mutsumi as being part of the big spy family that is the Yozakura Family, and how he grows from just a typical childhood friend of hers, to a force that even the Yozakura Family admits that no one has been this passionate for their livelihood. Despite the one rule that would allow him to be accepted into the family that siblings should not have infighting against each other, that was the loophole that got both him and Mutsumi into their fated marriage, but it's also because of the one subterfuge that also almost cost him his life (that will be discussed later). More importantly, Taiyo's life is not just one ordinary fest, as his hidden past ties back to the present of why he's involved with the spy family to begin with, so much so as to undergo their training to become a superhuman that's ordained with the Family's signature ability, something that should only be embodied by its descendants: Blooming.

Each sibling of the Yozakura Family has its own Blooming that tells much of who they are and their traits as a whole:
- The Black signature of eldest sibling Kyoichiro, who has an overprotective sis-con energy towards Mutsumi because she's just that valuable of a family member, even as Taiyo struggles to get his approval of the relationship he has with Mutsumi, ending up relying on the hard-and-fast infighting rule of the Yozakura Family to secure his life and be with her. His Steel Spider thread cuts through most of his enemies, depicted from his operative will, and is an ironfist of a weapon that makes him one of (if not) the strongest Yozakura sibling.
- The White signature of second sibling Futaba, she is like the siblings' pseudo mother character who is both violent and strict, but also caring and motherly at the same time, always looking out for her fellow younger siblings, as well as keeping Kyoichiro in check if he ever attempts to kill Taiyo out of his sis-con jealousy. Her specialist in martial arts (mainly aikido and jujitsu) also gives her the edge in physical combat.
- The Green signature of third sibling Shinzo, he's the family's weapon specialist who's able to utilise any weapon he gets his hands on, despite being the embarrassed, pure-hearted man that he is.
- The Magenta signature of fourth siblings Shion, she's the technological brains of the family, being a hacking specialist, and someone who can create video game-like programs for all purposes, despite her nonchalant, but aggressive and competitive personality.
- The Yellow signature of fifth sibling Kengo, he's the clone brawn who does not let the actions of the family get to him, being a free spirit and all. He's best known for being the family's joker, who's able to disguise and mimic just about anyone, which makes him a rather capable specialist in the area of espionage.
- The Blue signature of sixth sibling Mutsumi, the current head of the Yozakura Family's 10th generation, and the only one who is the ordinary sibling when compared to the others. Yet, she is the most important key pillar of the family because she's the only one who has Someinine, the Yozakura signature substance that allows her to produce the next generation of Yozakura spies with their Blooming ability.
- The Turquoise signature of seventh sibling Nanao, he's the youngest, but also most caring of all the siblings. Nanao is the Yozakura Family's brains and brawns character with his creation of drugs, alongside his once-mutant experimentation that allows him to shapeshift into many appearances, aside from the human who wears a bin on his head being the shyest of the siblings.

Alongside their guard dog Goliath, the Yozakura Family is not one to mess around with being an all-rounded spy espionage family that has a rich history to back them up, but also of the legacy of their name that holds a steadfast rule in the spy world, being the envy of all assassins, alongside the long-run rivalry that they would get with frenemies the likes of Hinagiku, and actual antagonists of a similar size with the opposing faction of Tanpopo, which is the Yozakura Family but developed deep in evil. If anything, I would say that Hitsuji Gondaira certainly knows what he wants to do with this larger-than-life story by harnessing his characters, and whatever he's doing with the series, it's clearly working out for the best, despite it feeling almost like an episodic series that has no end to it, even though the larger spectrum of the story has a lot of potential to be expanded upon. I respect that hustle, especially with the likes of Weekly Shonen Jump standards to keep pace and relevancy.

Silver Link has been a studio of ups and downs, most especially coming off one of their busiest years of 2023 with sequels (Bofuri, Maou Gakuin no Futekigosha a.k.a Misfit of Demon King Academy and Masamune-kun's Revenge) that didn't measure up to what their prequel seasons did, and new shows (Lvl 1 Maou to One Room Yuusha a.k.a Level 1 Demon Lord and One Room Hero, Ragna Crimson, and Tearmoon Empire) that were decent to OK. This year of 2024 however, in-house director Mirai Minato has been chosen to uphold the adaptation in an unprecedented 27 episodes (1 less than Frieren) and given the standards of most 2-Cour consecutive shows, I thought that the studio would've given up at the mid-way point. And yes, for sure, the low-key moments were saved on budgetary costs, but the action moments are where the studio truly delivers one of their most impressive works to date, showing that they have what it takes to not just respect, but amplify the source material with the anime medium, which is not an easy thing to do. The hustle truly paid off (in the sacrifice of others *cough* KimiSen Season 2 *cough*), and this is a standout work of Silver Link thus far.

The OST is also quite the spy thriller composition that it is, aside from the usual rom-com moments of the central duo, which serves its purpose to good effect. I would say that there's a parallel between the 2-cours of theme songs we're given that showcases just how much difference in tonality was given, and they're surprisingly good. With the 1st Cour, Ikimonogakari's OP and Chico's ED gives you the idea of how the Yozakura Family operates in its family traits (with both songs being great and catchy), aside from the rom-com aspect of Taiyo and Mutsumi's marriage, which is highlighted more in ASOBI Doumei's 2nd Cour ED that is all the livelier. The serious tone of fripSide's 2nd Cour OP that joins former 2nd gen lead singer Yoshino Nanjo with the new 3rd generation, is definitely a big contrast of change, it's the only one song that I thought was OK.

Even with a simple premise of a family tied to its spy espionage traits, it's easy to see how mangaka Hitsuji Gondaira made the simple formula work, which garnered him the moderate success that keeps the spot in Weekly Shonen Jump, and one that keeps going on and on without the end in sight. The anime itself, while just a decent to good adaptation itself, it's the characters that would sell its namesake series of a Man With A Mission, joining the prestigious family that would bond him close as a sibling to not just redeem his revenge-fueled hatred, but also to call another family his home of which was once lost, but found again.

The manga is extraneously long with 200+ chapters at this point, but give the anime a try if you're thinking of giving the series a watch, which is well worth it if you ask me. It won't blow you away, but its familial aspect will definitely strike a chord within your heart.