Title: Spy x Family Vol. 14
Author: Tatsuya Endo
Publisher: Viz Media
Language: English
Format: Physical
Pages: 200
Genre: Action, Comedy, Shonen
Publication Date: August 5, 2025
The Story
We have arrived at the results of Anya’s test score, and while she didn’t do great, she did much better than last time, receiving a huge jump in rank; however, to the shock of everyone (and me), she came in second place for classical language, earning her a second Stella Star! To celebrate, the family that’s not really a family takes a ski trip; however, a blizzard ends their plans of getting home. While staying at a cabin with some, ehrm, uniquely-named people, a murder mystery breaks out… too bad Anya is an Esper and solved it before it ever began!
This brings us to Eden’s school festival, but not the type one would find in your typical high school manga. This one is filled with ELEGANCE… namely, a dance. Of course, Anya wants to dance with her favorite Sy-on Boy, but he flat out rejects her. Plus, we learn that there is a class rearrangement coming up, so this entire soiree is to get the students used to other students at the school since they may end up as classmates in the near future. Damien, who absolutely refuses to dance, gets roped into it when his henchmen hold a competition to determine who gets his hand!
I’ll give you three guesses who won (with a little help from a well-disguised Twilight).
Then, the manga takes a bit of an unexpected turn as we get the complete backstory of our favorite elegant headmaster, Hendry Henderson, along with the woman we are introduced to, Martha Marriott!
Characters
Well, while there was some development with our main characters, how about that Henry x Martha backstory? For a supporting character and one that was introduced in this volume, I didn’t expect three full chapters’ worth of content, but here we are. We saw them when they were young, how Martha was attending Eden and ended up in the same hall as Henry, then what happened when the war broke out, and all points in between. I didn’t expect them to go this in-depth, but it was quite the story… one that made just a simple dance “for old time’s sake” feel like such a bigger, monumental moment in their lives. I have to applaud Tatsuya Endo on this one… well done!
That also brings us to Anya x Damien. Of course, the little banter between them hasn’t changed, but Damien’s inner thoughts sure have. He still outwardly rejects Anya, but he’s becoming more and more interested in her on the inside. When he ends up dancing with her, things turn pretty sweet; however, as one would expect, that didn’t last long, and their dance ended up more like a struggle. Still, as the manga noted, their friendship ended up getting a +100 stat boost, which can only mean good things for Operation Strix.
Final Thoughts
Hmm.. I can’t truly pinpoint if this was a filler volume or not. The ski trip was definitely a filler side story, but the school dance and gaining Damien’s favor aligned with the main goal of Twilight’s mission, so there is some progression there, but the detour into Henry and Martha’s backstory was definitely filler, but also character development at the same time. One thing is for certain: Twilight wasn’t pulled away on another mission (at least, not an official one), so to stave off the need to do another in favor of reminding us that Operation Strix is the main reason why this series exists is always a good decision.
Before we go any further… I know it was a filler side story, but what in the heck was up with the names of those people at the cabin? We have Max Slacker, Adrahma Queen, Shorton Kreditz, Needa Jobsoon, Rodger Hostman, Spoussa Hostman, Porter Partheimer, Guy Luvstaski, and everyone’s favorite tabloid writer, Hack Scriver. I spent way too much time staring at those names and laughing. Good job, Endo-sensei… you broke me.
Again, that backstory with Henry and Martha was unexpected (well, I kind of expected something to be said, but not that much), but it was also very delightful. It took you on a rollercoaster that made you appreciate Henry as a character even more. A dance for old times’ sake? Nah, it was a self-indulgence with an old flame masquerading as a “one more time” experience… and there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that. Dare I say, his story was just so ELEGANT.
It’s also where we left off. Whether or not we get a little more or shift to something else next time remains to be seen. Still, a different, yet enjoyable volume.
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