Spy×Family Season 3

Episode 46

If there's any one most important takeaway from the aftermath of the busjacking incident, it's the further insight into the Desmond family structure. We already knew that Damian felt like the unloved afterthought when compared to his perfect older brother, but seeing Melissa Desmond come to pick him up through the lens of Anya's psychic gifts adds a whole new layer. Even if we put aside how utterly depressing it is that Damian didn't believe that either of his parents would show up, it's clear that there are some seriously difficult dynamics within the family. Damian may not be fully aware of what they are – or maybe he is; children are actually quite difficult to fool when it comes to these things – hearing Melissa's thoughts is troubling. She does love her son, that's clear; her first thoughts were how relieved she was to see him safe. But when he mentioned not wanting his dad to know he cried, everything changed. Suddenly, Melissa's head is filled with conflicting thoughts: she loves her son, she hates her son, she wishes he'd died, she's glad he's safe. The only clear thing is that she does not have a good relationship with her husband.

At a guess, I'd say that this is what poisons her relationship with Damian. He's her son, and she loves him, but he's also his father's son, and she hates him…with “him” possibly meaning all the Desmond males. She clearly doesn't live at home (Jeeves the butler mentions that she's “gone back to the villa”), and that also speaks volumes. Given the time period this is meant to take place in, she may not have many rights to her children if her husband is opposed, and it's obvious that he wants to shape them into his own image. Her rage when Damian brings his father up may be in part for what he's taken from her and her younger son – not just a relationship, but Damian's ability to be a child. Compare his tears to Anya's: he's ashamed and sees crying as something terrible, indicating that he's lacking somehow. Anya thinks nothing of crying; it's just a normal reaction after the day she's had when she's faced with the comfort of her mother. She's allowed the emotional release. Damian doesn't feel he is.

I think it's interesting that both Damian and Loid – and maybe even Henderson, to an extent – don't feel comfortable with their emotions. Not only is it very true to mid-20th-century ideals of masculinity, but it also shows how they struggle in ways Yor and Anya don't. Loid did rush to the scene of the busjacking to save Anya, and in the car on the way to school (itself a special treat that shows how worried he was), he realizes that not seeing him there may have hurt Anya emotionally…and if she wasn't psychic, it probably would have. But what's more important is that he has to struggle to put himself in Anya's shoes because he's spent so long not thinking about his own childhood. He pulls it off, but it shows that he's hiding his emotions behind the façade of a superspy in much the same way that Henderson uses elegance as a shield and Damian tries to project what he believes is an image of masculine strength. Yor and Anya are free to show their emotions. Yuri, raised by Yor, feels the same. But he's the exception among the men in the cast, and that feels like another way this series is grounded in its place and time, to say nothing of an important thematic element of the story.

After all of this, the return of Starlight Anya (or Double Starlight Anya) feels like a bit of a letdown. It's fun, and Anya getting in her own way even after she devises B Plan is delightfully silly, but after the tension and emotional work that preceded it, it's a bit harder to appreciate. But there's really no good way to come back from a storyline as intense as the busjacking, and this is all very on-brand for Anya, especially since she's now completely secure in the fact that her parents will come for her if she's in real danger. I wish Damian could say the same.

At least Tatsuya Endō proved that he's done his research by calling the Desmond family butler Jeeves rather than Sebastian. It's the little things that matter.

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Spy×Family Season 3 is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.