An unexpected crossover combines popular manga Spy x Family and the Fast & Furious film franchise in an unexpectedly viral post. For the past decade or so, the Fast & Furious movies have become incredibly popular. The Vin Diesel-led action flicks that focus on fast cars and big explosions have spawned nine films and a spin-off with two more films slated to release over the next two years. However, the series has become home to some of the most hilarious memes on the internet as well. The obvious themes of family and physics-defying stunts have had people joking about how silly the films are online, and it never ceases to be funny. Now, a new post online is having the film family grow a little bigger.
Spy x Family is an action-comedy manga sensation created by Tatsuya Endo, currently enjoying incredible sales. The Shonen Jump publication follows Loid, codename Twilight. He’s a spy for Westalia that’s a master of disguise and will do anything to prevent a war between his country and Ostania, their neighbor. When he’s given a new assignment to spy on Donovan Desmond – the leader of Ostania’s National Unity Party – for information, he’s tasked with doing something he never thought would happen: creating a family. Set to create the perfect family to make getting close to Desmond at his son’s private school easier, he adopts a telepathic girl named Anya as his daughter and marries a woman named Yor who is also an assassin. The series has recently gotten the anime treatment with an ongoing adaptation on television that’s only increased love for the franchise.
Shared by nontann on Twitter, bookstore chain Barnes & Noble has apparently crafted a stand dedicated entirely to Spy x Family featuring multiple volumes available for customers to buy. The sign to draw their attention though is genius. It features Vin Diesel’s character, Dom, from the Fast & Furious movies proclaiming, “It’s about Spy x Family.” Standing next to him is fan-favorite telepath Anya as she strikes a pose worthy of the action-packed franchise. It’s a very funny take on the memes that have stemmed from the films’ strong focus on family, and fits perfectly with this story about spies and family living.
The choice of Anya as the figurehead though is what’s really interesting because she would likely fit with this line of thinking, not just because she’s the true star of the manga. Since she’s been placed in an orphanage multiple times, she’s constantly happy just to be around Loid and Yor. Even when she knows that Loid is a spy after first being adopted by him, she tries to keep her telepathy a secret because she fears he’ll get rid of her if he finds out. Family is important to Anya because of her dark past, actually fitting with the Fast & Furious franchise’s big themes.
Responses to the tweet have been overwhelmingly positive from fans of Spy x Family. One commenter shared their experience of Barnes & Noble promoting the manga with a great review from one of its employees, while user João Neto shared a hilarious image of Dom replacing Loid in an image of the family.
The popularity of Spy x Family has skyrocketed over the past year, and Barnes & Noble’s marketing for the series that went viral is not just hilarious but also a pitch perfect crossover with Fast & Furious.
