It really seems like a missed opportunity to show Spy X Family CODE: White in theaters now. By the title alone, I already suspected this was supposed to be a Christmas movie. Couple that with the fact, the movie was shown in Japanese movie houses in December and there is a literal Christmas village scene during the film, it really feels weird to have seen Spy X Family CODE: White in the middle of March, which is the start of the summer season here in the Philippines.

Whatever. I’ll take it. I do love the Spy X Family anime series a bunch so I don’t really mind the timing issue. But is the movie any good? Well, read on to find out!

Before I do go through my review proper, I do have to mention a couple of things up front. First, I watched the English subtitled version of Spy X Family CODE: White in the cinema. I’m actually thankful for this because I watched the series in the original Japanese dialog so it would’ve been weird if this was my first experience with the English dub. Second, this will be a SPOILER FREE review. CODE: White hasn’t been officially released in a lot of territories yet, which explains why there are still very few reviews for it. So, yeah, this will be a SPOILER FREE review so as I won’t be ruining the experience for those who have yet to see it.

Spy X Family CODE: White has the Forger family, consisting of Loid, an undercover spy, Yor, a black ops assassin, Anya, a five-year old telepath, and Bond, a dog that can foresee the future, travelling to the town of Frigis. This is all in order for Anya to learn how to make the region’s local dessert in the hopes of obtaining a Stella Star for a baking contest. However, during the journey, Anya’s curiosity and thirst for excitement puts her in the middle of a conspiracy of a rogue general who would do anything to bring their two countries to war.

If I’m being very vague about the plot, that’s intentional because the trailer doesn’t really tell much about the plot. Then again, there’s nothing really much to the CODE: White’s central story. It’s just a macguffin wrapped in another macguffin so that you can see Loid, Yor, Anya and Bond do their things. And, honestly, I’m fine with that. The characters have developed their own personalities and characteristics enough so it’s just fun to watch them deal with these kind of situations in their own way.

Spy X Family CODE: White doesn’t really feel come off like a theatrical outing in a sense because of the central plot. In fact, it comes off as more like a mini-arc from the anime as it could have been three or four separate anime episodes stitched together to form one 110-minute long film. The first half of the film is rather slow as it focuses on the “family” aspect of Spy X Family. Things really pick up during the latter half, which is wholly devoted to the “spy” side of Spy X Family. As I do like how well done both sides are, I enjoyed the movie but I wouldn’t be surprised if some viewers didn’t enjoy one half or the other.

The animation here is gorgeous. Wit Studio and Clover Works, the main studios for the series, also did the animation for CODE: White but with a few new tricks which probably came with the higher budget and the higher expectations. This up in production can be seen in the latter “action-y” part of the film, with some rotating camera angles and really fast paced fights. There’s also a rather surreal moment that happens in Anya’s imagination, which is incredibly animated. Once again, SPOILER FREE review but you’ll know it when you see it.

Still, while the action and the animation is gorgeous, the main draw of Spy X Family CODE: White is still the characters and how they manage to keep their individual charades up. Loid’s stoicism mixed with his almost superhuman agility and intelligence is still a joy to watch when he uses it to overcome everyday mundane tasks. Yor’s bubbly and naive attitude is still a good counterpoint to how much of a deadly assassin she really is under that kind demeanor. Anya’s mischievous but kindhearted actions is also great to watch here. Even Bond gets a chance to show what a good future-seeing dog he is in CODE: White.

However, if you also want to see the secondary characters from the show, prepare to be disappointed as they aren’t really in the movie for all that much. The only ones who do get some significant screen time is Handler, Loid’s boss and Nightfall, Loid’s co-spy. But, in the grand scheme of things, they feel more like glorified cameos than anything else. I also have to say the big bad here is as generic as they come. He’s a bad guy who wants war to break out. Why? Because he’s a bad guy! What else do you need to know?

So, is Spy X Family CODE: White a good movie? Well, I liked it because I’m a fan of the show and I’m guessing fans will enjoy the Forger’s vacation in the snowy land of Frigis just fine. However, I cannot recommend this for anyone who thinks this will be a good introduction to the show. Oh, they tried to give a brief introduction to the Forger’s unique family situation but it doesn’t really do a good job as it’s just recapping what viewers should already know. With that being said, though, I do think animation lovers will, at the very least, appreciate the second half of the film as that’s where all the action is.

Spy X Family CODE: White is a great watch if you’re a fan and if you just like cool animated action scenes. If not, I say just watch the first few episodes of the show and you’ll get the general idea… and then go watch CODE: White. After all, Spy X Family is a good show.

Have you seen Spy X Family CODE: White? What did you think of it? Let me know in the comments section below!