Spy x Family Ch. 98 / Mission 98: Henry x Martha Pt. 2 [Review]

Spy x Family Ch. 98 (aka. Mission 98) continues the romantic tale of Hender Henderson and Martha Marriott. At a point where they reunite after some years to boot. Alas, this chapter also reveals that something got in the way of that romance. Something very big, and destructive. After all, how much more big and destructive can you get than a war?

Spy x Family Ch. 98 / Mission 98: Details

Spy x Family Ch. 98 (known officially as Mission 98) is the latest chapter (as of this writing) of the action spy comedy manga by Tatsuya Endo (Blade of the Moon Princess, TISTA). In fact, this chapter actually continues the story of the previous chapter, and is Pt. 2 of this story arc.

Casey Loe returns as the translator for Spy x Family Ch. 98, 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. 98 made its online debut on May 12, 2024. You can read this chapter entirely for free on Shonen Jump on Viz Media. Ch. 98 will remain free for two chapter releases after it. Upon the release of the third chapter after it, Ch. 98 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. 98 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. 98 / Mission 98: Plot Summary

Spy x Family Ch. 98 picks up directly from where we last left off in the previous chapter. Henry had just come back from university with his teaching degree, and a half-year early at that. It seems that there’s a shortage of teachers, so the university cut the degree program short. Regardless though, Martha (now an Imperial Scholar) is happy that Henry is back so that they can continue their tea parties…and hopefully their romance too.

Alas, the ongoing war between Ostania and Westalis interrupts that hard. First, it’s the Eden Academy getting bombed. Then, the ballet company that Martha dreamt of joining was suddenly unexisted by that very air raid, along with 17 of its ballerinas. The disbanding of that ballet company is the final straw for Martha, resulting in her signing up as an auxiliary in the local women’s defense group. All because she fears losing the people she loves, and so she wants to fight to protect them. This is something Henry is vehemently opposed to, resulting in quite a bit of tension between them.

What changes this tension is Martha overhearing Henry mention that his cousin was killed in the war…oh, and his parents are pushing marriage prospects onto him. Those two combined are what convinces Martha to ask Henry out to the school dance (a dance Henry performs horribly in, hilariously enough), and even confess her love to him. Alas, that confession is interrupted midway by an air raid. What will happen in this air raid? Well, that’s what we’ll hopefully find out in the next chapter of Spy x Family.

Spy x Family Ch. 98 / Mission 98: The Good

Just as it was in previous missions, the story of Spy x Family Ch. 98 is the best part about it. Especially since this is another lengthy story arc featuring a very dark storyline. Much darker than the usual Spy x Family fare. Tatsuya Endo once again proves that he’s not only great at writing and drawing fluff, but his command over the dark stories is just as great. Which does actually make sense since his earlier manga were indeed quite dark. Perhaps a little too dark for the average reader. That’s what makes Spy x Family so great though. It’s that darkness mixed with the light-hearted fluff and comedy that makes it the dark chocolate of stories. Just the right amount of bitterness to balance out the sweetness.

Even the art of this current chapter reflects this. It’s full of not only Tatsuya Endo’s signature silly faces, but also the devastated faces he pulls out for these darker story arcs. It’s just more evidence that Endo-sensei is a master of storytelling. Not just in his words, but in his art as well.

Spy x Family Ch. 98 / Mission 98: The Bad

Do you not like comedy, drama, and especially war drama? On the level of This War of Mine, no less? Well, then I’m not sure what to say. Note, even though this is a war drama, there’s no action in this chapter. Only tragedy. If you want action, then you might prefer Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Solo Leveling, or Kaiju No. 8.

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