First Influence: Challenge: Yozakura Circle of relatives
Taiyo Asano’s life has been very challenging. He refuses to interact with others and lives a life of self-imposed seclusion after losing every member of his family in a catastrophic vehicle accident. He only lets his boyhood pal Mutsumi Yozakura into his inner group. The vice principal of the school asks to visit Taiyo after school one day when the two are having lunch. It turns out that Kyoichiro, the vice president, is Mutsumi’s elder brother. After a particularly horrific catastrophe, he and his sister have become very close—perhaps too close. Ever then, he’s harassed Taiyo and anybody else who attempts to get near to Mutsumi because he is so protective of her. Before he can strike, Taiyo is taken by an enigmatic white girl to the Yozakura residence, where Mutsumi informs him that she is a member of a family of spies on the go. Every member of the family, including Kyoichiro, the well-liked ladies’ man spy, has a unique talent. But since he is so devoted to his little sister, Kyoichiro will do everything it takes to get rid of Taiyo and everyone else who comes near. But there is one method to keep Great Value James Bond at bay: if Taiyo enters the family by exchanging rings with Mutsumi, he will become subject to Kyoichiro’s untouchability policy and the prohibition on murdering inside the family. Before Taiyo gets an opportunity to consider this, however, Kyoichiro shows in and declares his intention to exact revenge on Taiyo. (Don’t worry, there won’t be any blood eaten; this isn’t a vampire dormitory.)
Guys, this one seems like it will be a lot of fun! To be completely honest, even though both series explore the nuances of working in the clandestine intelligence-gathering industry, I’m like this one more than I did when I first saw Spy X Family. I like that our protagonist is thrust into this environment and isn’t afraid to get his hands filthy in order to forward the cause. It’s clear from watching this that he would give Mutsumi his rings in order to protect her, but it was still amusing to see how we got from point A to point B. Even while you can see where Kyoichiro’s passion is coming from, there’s something unsettling about the extent he would go to in order to keep Mutsumi “safe.” Kyoichiro is deliciously spooky. I like the other family members as well, and the notion that they are all endowed with unique talents suggests that this supporting group won’t be one that disappears into the background. This one seems to be well-produced. Though sometimes it seems like they neglected to color in Futaba, the all-white girl who carries Taiyo off, I like how each character has a distinct hue.
What does it mean for Mission: Yozakura Family, then? Yes, I will definitely be following this. I’m excited to see what happens after this final exciting battle since this program seems like a hilarious caper series! How on earth is Kyoichiro going to get along with his new brother-in-law? How is Taiyo going to fit in with this new family? And what is this family’s backstory? How did each of them end up becoming a spy? I am eager to get responses to each of these inquiries!
Mission: Yozakura Family is available for streaming on Hulu in the US and Disney Plus in the UK.
