I really enjoyed this first volume! I thought the characters were fun and lovable and the story is fast paced and adventure packed. Excited to see where this series goes!

Taiyo Asano has lost his whole family. His only friend is Mutsumi Yozakura, but that is a problem since her older brother is extremely protective. If fact the only way the two can keep seeing each other is if the two are married. A bit extreme, but as Taiyo finds out Mutsumi's family is special and so is she! A fun romp in a crazy underworld of spies, gangsters, and very strange families. I look forward to the next installment!

Thanks Netgalley for the opportunity to read this title!

I received an eARC of this title through NetGalley in return for an honest review.

I thought this was an extremely cute manga. It had action, romance, and comedy. Taiyo is orphaned at a young age and doesn't interact with most people for very long before passing out. However, his best friend Mutsumi stands by his side no matter what. But when Mutsumi's brother becomes too overprotective of his sister, Taiyo is forced to do something he never thought of to protect his best and only friend, marry her. By doing this, Mutsumi is plunged in to the world of spies, as Mutsumi's family is one of the top spy families in the world.

I think this manga gives off really cute vibes similar to those of Spy x Family. The difference is that this one focuses on Taiyo who needs to learn to be a spy to protect his, now, wife Mutsumi from all types of assassins. There's comedy and action alike involved which makes for a good mix. I also read there is an anime adaptation in the works.

If you are looking for a manga with action and comedy, I would give this one a try! Worth the read for sure.

This feels a little like a copy of Spy x Family, but they are different enough that it doesn't feel like a total copy - just the idea in general. It also goes to say if you are a fan of Spy x Family you would probably like this as well. The story is interesting, this one leaves off in a place that really makes you want to read more.

Thanks #netgalley for a copy of this graphic novel.

High schoolers Taiyo Asano and Mutsumi Yozakura have been friends since childhood. She's an aloof girl with few friends, but she was supportive of Asano through the loss of his family in a tragic accient. But, Mutsumi has a pretty over-protective family, and when her older brother notices them getting too close for his comfort, he tries to eliminate Asano. Other family members save him and bring him to the Yozakura family home, where they reveal Mutsumi is actually the head of a secret spy family, where everyone but she has supernatural powers and a knack for killing. The family uses their powers to keep Mutsumi safe from other spy families, and they have an important question of Asano - in or out? Asano decides to build his skill and fight to keep Mutsumi safe, but to do so, he has to marry her!
This story starts off with a pretty ridiculous premise and a jump into a marriage that is hard to believe. The beginning feels very much like Gondaira really needed to shoe-horn Asano into Mutsumi's life and couldn't think of another way to do it. But, if readers suspend disbelief for about forty pages, then the action and story get a little better. Asano starts to train with the Yozakura family members, and he steadily progresses in his skills of observation, speed, cunning, and strength. His journey is difficult, though, because he doesn't have a special ability like the rest of the Yozakura family, so he isn't as perfect as them at executing missions. Hopefully, the storyline progresses away from just keeping Mutsumi safe, or this premise could get pretty stale pretty quickly.

There is some violence, with a few characters bleeding on the page, and frequent fight scenes with guns. Otherwise, there's nothing that would make this inappropriate for teen readers.
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Sara's Rating: 7/10
Suitability Level: Grades 9-12

A great series for people who love the action, adventure, and quirkiness of manga such as Naruto, One Piece, and Spy X Family.

I was hoping for Spy x Family meets 'Umbrella Academy' style vibes, but this...wasn't that. This is partially on me, as I didn't realize there would be the 'sibling is obsessed with their sister, to a very troubling extent' trope, as it squicks me out to no end, so there wasn't really any way I'd have enjoyed this.

Okaaaay this gave me Spy Family vibes in a way, I can’t lie but I’m still not entirely sure how I felt about it?

The art style was decent, but not one I favour but that’s a minor detail. This volume is definitely different and perhaps a little bit ridiculous at times with some OTT action and fight scenes but I still found it entertaining!

There’s a marriage of convenience? I guess? Or fake marriage? With childhood friends that could develop into a romance as we go on and I found the two of them really sweet as well as his dedication to protecting her. It was also nice to see him come out of his shell a bit as the volume went on!

The family are slightly crazy but they’re definitely an intriguing bunch, though the eldest brother is just creepy tbh with his obsession.

It’s an action packed volume with many different people after them for a reason that’s slightly shaky but okay! And all in all I’m definitely intrigued to see how this progresses!

I wasn't sure how much I'd enjoy this one, but I actually found that I really loved it and instantly got into the story! Mission: Yozakura Family is one part Spy x Family, one part My Hero, one part comedy, and a whole lot of action. A really fun read for all ages!

This is filed solidly in my "well, THAT was different" category. I liked it, except for the creepy, over-attached older brother, though I CAN understand how he got that way. The violence was OTT, but somewhat campy and played for laughs, though I didn't find it overly amusing. I don't find violence of any kind funny, not a fan of the Three Stooges, etc.

I did like the dedication the MC H had for the MC h, that was sweet. I also like how he was determined to get stronger, not just to save his behind, but to protect the MC h. She also protected him, as best as she could, with the abilities and knowledge that she had. It wasn't just the MC H protecting the "damsel in distress".

I did like the storyline and wouldn't mind reading the next volume to see where it goes. The violence isn't my fav, but it is a huge part of the plot, so it's not just violence for it's own sake.

3, I am curious for the next one, stars.

My thanks to Viz Media LLC and NetGalley for an eARC copy of this book to read and review.

Mission: Yozakura Family Volume One introduces the reader to a family of spies and the young man who ends up being drawn into this family.

Mission: Yozakura Family Volume One
Written by: Hitsuji Gondaira
Publisher: Shueisha Inc.
English Publisher: VIZ Media
Release Date: October 18, 2022

The main character of the series is Taiyo Asano, a boy who keeps his distance from most people. The only exception to this is Mutsumi Yokazura, his childhood friend. After losing his family in a car accident, Taiyo has a hard time getting close to people because he doesn’t want to form attachments. However, Mutsumi is the exception because the two of them were already friends at the time his family was killed. Mutsumi’s older brother, Kyoichiro, is the vice principal at the school, and he seems to have an unhealthy obsession with his younger sister.

It turns out that Mutsumi comes from a family of spies, and she is the head of the family. Kyoichiro became vice principal of the school in order to keep an eye on Mutsumi, because he feels guilty that she got hurt while he was trying to protect her. Even though I understand that the guy feels guilty about what happened, the extremes he goes to in regards to Mutsumi are still on the disturbing side, especially when he threatens to kill Taiyo because he feels he’s getting too close to his sister.

Taiyo learns from one of Mutsumi’s siblings that if he marries Mutsumi, Kyoichiro would have to leave him alone because their family has a policy of not killing family members. Taiyo is against this idea, and Mutsumi understands that it’s because he’s too afraid to get close to people after losing his parents. However, after an encounter with Kyoichiro, Taiyo decides to “marry” Mutsumi. The “marriage” happens when Mutsumi gives Taiyo part of her ring.

Most of the volume focuses on Taiyo learning the ways of not only the Yokazura household, but how to become a spy to protect Mutsumi as well. By the end of the volume, Mutsumi is kidnapped, and Taiyo and the rest of the Yozakura family have to work together to try to rescue her.

When I finished this volume, I felt like I was reading a mish-mash of various manga tropes. Just off the top of my head, there’s the older brother with an unhealthy obsession with his younger sister, the protagonist and the younger sister are childhood friends, the childhood friends are forced into a relationship, and Taiyo goes through intensive training to start learning how to become a spy. I also felt that some of the character designs also rely too much on tropes as well. Taiyo looks like a typical shonen hero, Mutsumi looks like the typical female friend (with the exception of the streak of white-silver hair that she has), and one of Mutsumi’s sisters looks like a stereotypical cute little European girl with very curly pigtails.

I won’t say that Mission: Yozakura Family is a bad manga, but I felt this volume relied too much on tropes and didn’t truly bring much of anything new to table for its storytelling. Even though I may not have been blown away by this first volume, I feel confident that there are readers of shonen manga out there that will better appreciate what the first volume of this series has to offer.

Even though I may not have been grabbed by this volume, I’m still willing to give a second volume of Mission: Yozakura Family a chance if VIZ Media makes a digital review copy available. I’m at least willing to read another volume in order to find out if Gondaira can progress the series past the “been there, done that” feeling. I’m hoping that since this first volume spent its time establishing the series, the characters, and the world that these characters inhabit, the tropes were being relied on in order to get the story going.

This one is, quite simply, just okay. I think it is a promising series opener, but there are just better spy manga out there in the world.

For Libraries: Teen appropriate.

Action-packed plot ✔
A rag-tag family full of spies ✔
A life where every day is a top-secret mission ✔

If all three of those elements pique your interest, then you may want to add Mission Yozakura Family to your reading list. The story follows Taiyo our main character who tries his best to navigate daily life at school all while coping with grief (his backstory is explained in this volume). Though he is friendly enough Taiyo is incredibly shy and struggles to make friends and find a place when belonging. But when he gets tangles up in the life of his childhood friend Mutsumi, it may just be the new start he needs in his life.

Mutsumi’s family is colorful and each member has their own special skill set that makes them top-notch spies. Though highly dangerous they are a tight-knit bunch who truly cares for each other and without much resistance welcome Taiyo with open arms (except for the eldest brother). Taiyo does his best to adapt to this new life of his one day at a time. Throughout Volume One readers slowly see him gain his confidence and start to open up to others, but we still know his journey is a long way to go.

Volume One is very fast-paced and most of it is spent setting up the world-building while giving a bit of background to its characters. Many of the scenes are heavily action-packed with few quiet moments, but at times it was so fast-moving that it jumped around in parts. I’m hoping the pacing will slow down in Volume Two as I felt a lot was thrown at me in the first installment. The artwork is incredible, and I love the special attention to each action scene. It felt throws the readers in the midst of the chaos and ramps up the overall entertainment aspects of the story. It’s an engaging story that will have you hooked from the first couple of pages.
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It may not be <i>Spy x Family</i>, but <i>Mission: Yozakura Family</i> is still an awfully good time. Mostly this is in its absurdity - from spies who can't stop tweeting ("I'm burning now!" "Guess I'm gonna die!") to a sibling who spends all his time playing Oscar the Grouch in a garbage can to one the best crazy dog designs I've seen, this is just <i>fun</i>. It also has a solid emotional underpinning in the form of protagonist Taiyo's loss; he's the sole survivor of a terrible car wreck, and that's shaped his entire personality from that point onward. The story does a good job of showing us who he was before he was orphaned, and if the book was more willing to lean into that, it would balance out the goofiness is a very effective way. But it's still pretty fun as-is, and as long as you recognize that it isn't that other shounen spy series, it's worth picking up.

Mission: Yozakura Family is a fun series that delivers all the usual shonen fare. If you like wacky romcom situations and high energy action sequences, you'll probably enjoy this book. Although it isn't one of my favorite titles from VIZ's Shonen Jump imprint, it's still a solid addition to the lineup, and I hope it paves the way for other similar titles in the future.

Story and Art by Hitsuji Gondaira
Translation and Lettering: Pinkie-Chan
Retouch Letterer: John Hunt
Design: Jimmy Presler
Editor: Rae First

At first, I was prepared for this to be a repeat of some of the other spy/assassin manga already on the market (SpyxFamily). What a pleasant surprise to find that this series stands on it's own, at least so far in volume one.

Taiyo lost his family in a tragic accident and since then, his classmate Mutsumi is the only one he can talk to. When it seems like they might be getting a little too close, Taiyo finds himself facing off against Mutsumi's overprotective older brother, who is intent on removing any obstacles between him and his sister. The only way to stop Mutsumi's brother from trying to end his life, is for Taiyo to marry her. It turns out Taiyo has married into a family of spies and assassins trained to protector Mutsumi as the family head. Now Taiyo will have to train to become an elite protector, all to keep his new wife and himself alive.

Great comedic timing, plenty of action sequences, and quirky characters. I'm invested and waiting for volume two.

This is a fairly average action title with a dash of spy flavor. You've got two childhood friends, both carry some past family baggage with them. One of the two is the head of a super spy family and a constant target for danger, what's the other to do? Marry her and integrate into the family, obviously! I might have rolled my eyes at that point, but our main couple does have a nice, easy chemistry that I did enjoy as I read through. Now, if only the eldest brother could tone it down some. Spy X Family it is not, but this one does have some charms of it's own that I'd like to see it grow into.