Spy x Family Ch. 96.2 / Short Mission 13: Bond’s Midlife Crisis [Review]

Spy x Family Ch. 96.2 (aka. Short Mission 13) is a rather unique short chapter of the manga in many ways. Mostly because it’s one of the few chapters that stars Bond the family dog as the main character. However, the other “main character” of this short chapter is one fans of the manga would be familiar with. After all, this is the one character Bond wronged more than anyone else. So much so that he’s developing a midlife crisis over it in this short chapter.

Spy x Family Ch. 96.2 / Short Mission 13: Details

Spy x Family Ch. 96.2 (officially known as Short Mission 13) is the 13th and latest short chapter of the action spy comedy manga by Tatsuya Endo (Blade of the Moon Princess, TISTA). Alas, this chapter does not continue the story of the previous chapter. In fact, it actually continues a plotline that began all the way back in Short Mission 3.

Casey Loe returns as the translator for Spy x Family Ch. 96.2, with Rina Mapa returning as the letterer. Shueisha originally published this manga in Japan under their Jump Comics+ imprint in the magazine Shōnen Jump+. Viz Media is the company publishing this manga in English in the NA region.

When and Where to Read

Spy x Family Ch. 96.2 made its online debut on April 14, 2024. You can read this chapter entirely for free on Shonen Jump on Viz Media. Ch. 96.2 will remain free for two chapter releases after it. Upon the release of the third chapter after it, Ch. 96.2 will go into the Shonen Jump vault. Once there, you will have to pay a subscription fee to read it and all previous chapters. Admittedly, the fee is only $2.99 per month, so it’s not that big a hit to your wallet. All the same, if you’re short on cash, then you might want to hurry up and read Ch. 96.2 for free before you can’t anymore.

Anime Adaptation Details

As a side note: Spy x Family now has an anime adaptation that premiered on April 9, 2022. In fact, season 2 just recently premiered on October 7, 2023, and even more recently ended on December 23, 2023. There was even an anime film spinoff called Spy x Family Code: White that premiered in Japan December 22, 2023; and will finally make its NA debut on April 19, 2024. You can watch all episodes on either Crunchyroll or Hulu. Note, though, that only Crunchyroll has any of the dubs. So if you like watching the English dub for some reason, then you have to watch the anime on Crunchyroll. If you want to purchase tickets for that Spy x Family Code: White anime film though, then you can do so from its official website.

Spy x Family Ch. 96.2 / Short Mission 13: Plot Summary

Spy x Family Ch. 96.2 / Short Mission 13 starts us off with the Forger family going on an outing…minus the fluffy member of their family. Thus, Bond Forger has the duty of watching the house while they’re gone…which gets boring very quickly. Fortunately, he does drive off a vicious intruder (the mailman) and attempts to make dinner for his family when they get back…which utterly fails because he’s naught but a dog. He only ends up breaking a wineglass, which prompts him to dive under the covers in Anya’s bed, hoping to escape the consequences of his actions.

Alas, that just brings him into conflict with an old foe: Agent Penguinman. Due to mishearing a conversation from outside, Bond comes to believe that Penguinman has not forgiven him for his previous treachery. Thus, Bond attempts to appease Penguinman with offers of a pair of fish (some sort of trout, from the looks of them). Interestingly, in doing so, it brings back to Bond memories of being abused and seeing the abuse of fellow dogs back during his time in Project Apple. Overcome with guilt, Bond finally feels remorse for his past actions, and also at last enjoys the true forgiveness of Penguinman.

Of course, the Forgers have no fish for fish meunière and Anya’s room will smell of fish for days afterwards. Those are but minor issues in this tale of dog and penguin though. It will be interesting to find out what Tatsuya Endo has for us on this storyline in future short missions of Spy x Family.

Spy x Family Ch. 96.2 / Short Mission 13: The Good

Despite its short length, the best part of Spy x Family Ch. 96.2 / Short Mission 13 is still the story. Not least of which is because it’s one of the few chapters or short chapters to put Bond in the starring role. It’s always fun to get the story from a precognitive dog’s perspective, and Bond is quite the amusing vehicle for that. All the moreso because this short mission finally seals the peace treaty between him and Agent Penguinman back in Short Mission 3. The fact that much of the events were all things Bond entirely imagined in his head only makes it better, in my opinion. I have to give kudos to Tatsuya Endo for being able to fit such an emotional story into so few pages. I honestly can’t wait to see how the anime eventually animates this.

I also have to give kudos to Tatsuya Endo for that special illustration at the beginning. You can see it in the very first image of this review. There’s just something

Spy x Family Ch. 96.2 / Short Mission 13: The Bad

Honestly, my only complaint about Spy x Family Ch. 96.2 / Short Mission 13 is the fact that it is so short. Even if you count the special illustration at the beginning, it’s only seven pages long. It’s an especially short mission even by the standards of short missions. As much as wish for more, again, I have to compliment Tatsuya Endo for being to fit so much story into this few pages. It’s that level of manga-making skill that makes me eagerly await each chapter’s biweekly release.