This work "SPY×FAMILY" was made into an anime in 2022 and quickly gained tremendous support through social media and word of mouth from anime fans. Have you watched the first season of the anime? Not only does it feature many attractive characters, including Anya, but it is also set in a time that is a little unfamiliar to modern young people, known as the Cold War, so it can be said that it is a work with many fresh backgrounds and depictions. In this article, I would like to explain the setting of this work, which is one of the charms of this work, in a way that is easy to understand even for readers who are not good at history. By understanding what kind of era the work is set in, you will be able to understand the principles behind the characters' lines and actions. Be sure to check it out to understand this work in more detail!
What kind of era was the era in which spies were active?
First, I would like to introduce the era in which this work is set. The world view feels quite old-fashioned from the modern perspective, and I'm sure many readers will think that it's a story from a long time ago, but what era exactly does it refer to? I would like to make an inference based on the information that appears in the work and introduce it.
Cold War Period
The setting of this work is thought to be the Cold War period, when the United States and the Soviet Union were in conflict after the end of World War II. The Cold War period lasted from the late 1940s to the 1990s, and was a time when society was based on a conflict structure between the capitalist camp led by the United States and the socialist camp led by the Soviet Union.
Nuclear deterrence and intelligence activities
During the Cold War, both the American and Soviet camps possessed nuclear weapons developed during World War II, and if these two countries started a war, a nuclear war would break out, which could cause enormous damage to society. Therefore, the United States and the Soviet Union did not clash directly, but instead kept each other in check through intelligence activities and proxy wars.
Is the original story East and West Germany?
This work depicts such a tense era, but the setting is East and West Germany, which was divided into East and West by World War II and is also known as a symbol of the Cold War, with the West being the capitalist camp and the East being the socialist camp, despite originally being the same country.
Knowing the history makes it even more interesting! Enjoy history from the Spy Family scene!
As you can see, the Cold War period in which "SPY×FAMILY" is set has a very different social structure from today, making it difficult for ordinary anime fans to understand the deeper intentions behind the setting of this work.
Learn more about this work!
Once you look into the history in detail, you will understand each and every setting depicted in this work and be able to understand the work even more deeply, so if you are a fan who wants to know more about this work, please do a deep look into the Cold War period in which this work is set!
A de facto one-party state
In particular, the setting of this work is thought to be East Germany, even among East and West Germany. In the work itself, it is explained that the setting is in the eastern part of a nation that is in conflict with East and West, and East Germany was a socialist state but also a de facto one-party state, which is very consistent with the setting of this work.
Maintaining public order by the State Security Service
In East Germany, where the story is set, the capitalist state of West Germany is located right next door, so it was necessary to suppress spies from the capitalist camp and rebellions by people inspired by capitalism. For this reason, the State Security Service thoroughly monitors people's actions, and suspicious people are immediately interrogated.
Socialist countries and assassinations
West Germany and East Germany were on the brink of war, so assassinations to overthrow the government of the time were a fairly common political scene. In modern times, assassins may have a slightly fantasy image, but during the Cold War, it was an extremely common method, and it also had the advantage of causing less damage than a direct military conflict.
Capitalism vs Socialism
Thus, the Cold War was the first time that humanity was able to avoid large-scale military conflicts through nuclear deterrence, but it was also a time when non-nuclear nations fought proxy wars and used spies and assassins to attack the core of enemy nations. If you have some historical knowledge about this, I think you will enjoy this work even more!
History will tell us what will happen next! ?
Thus, while this is a comedy manga, it is clear that the setting is extremely faithful to past history. Therefore, if we look back at history, we may be able to predict future developments to some extent. From here, I would like to look back at the history of the Cold War and consider the future development of this work.
The conflict between East and West continued for a long time
First of all, when it comes to the Cold War, many people have the image that it ended soon after World War II, but in fact it lasted for half a century. Therefore, it is a bit tricky to ask, "Will the Cold War end so soon while Lloyd, the protagonist of this work, is still young?"
Victory of the capitalist camp
However, since the villain in this work is a powerful figure in a political party that controls an eastern country, it is likely that some kind of resolution will be reached between Lloyd and him.
The historical facts end with the victory of the capitalist camp
In fact, the Cold War ended with the collapse of the socialist countries and the victory of the capitalist countries, so I think there is a good chance that the work will also depict the victory of the capitalist countries.
Anya and the History of Dark Military Research
The setting of this work is the Cold War era, which has many notable points, but when talking about this Cold War era, we cannot ignore the history of military research conducted in both countries. The history of military research is also connected to Anya, the main character of this work, so let's take a look into it.
The Cold War was the period when military research was most active
The Cold War was the period when military research was most active in world history. As I have mentioned before, both sides, unable to wage direct war due to the existence of nuclear weapons, tried to take the lead by developing new weapons.
Some experiments that would be unbelievable today! ?
Among the experiments conducted in secret, there were many that would never be allowed to be conducted today due to human rights reasons. Looking back at the history of war and military research in that area, we can gain a deeper understanding of the brutal past of Anya, a character in this work.
Nuclear weapons are better than psychics
At one time, there was a fierce military development race in various fields, but gradually the experiments shifted from special weapons to research on making nuclear weapons themselves even smaller and on how to fire nuclear weapons even farther and more accurately. This is because it was realized that soldiers with magical combat powers and using nuclear weapons themselves could achieve results far more efficiently than developing weapons.
The heat of research put a strain on the finances of both sides
Also, as a result of both sides being unable to stop increasing the amount of money spent on military expenses, it also caused a great strain on the finances of each country. As a result, not only nuclear weapons research but also various other research was stopped, and data and evidence of what kind of experiments were conducted were gradually lost.
It makes sense that Anya was blending in with the general public at this time.
Anya, who appears in the story, is thought to be one of the results of such lost experiments. In the story, the East and West camps are depicted as being tired of military expansion and reconciling with each other, so it makes sense that this was the time when the budget for military research began to be reduced.
The end of the military development race and the subsequent research
As a result of the attempt to achieve some degree of reconciliation between the East and West camps, the setting of this work can be considered to be the end of the Cold War. With the end of this military development race, capitalist societies, centered on the United States, became more active in the economy and restored their finances, but socialist countries lost their momentum due to the loss of huge public works projects.
A cornered rat bites a cat?
Therefore, I think the Eastern camp will be cornered in this work as well, but basically, dictators come up with outrageous plans when they are under a lot of pressure, so as we move into the second half, the Eastern camp may try to carry out some outrageous plans to overcome the unfavorable current situation.
Summary
What did you think? This time, I gave a slightly maniacal introduction to the original source of the setting of this work. The Cold War period has fewer battle scenes than World War II and World War I, so it tends to be difficult to depict in novels, anime, and manga. However, as told in this work "SPY×FAMILY", there must have been many heroes who have not been recorded in history. One way to enjoy this work is to research the history of the Cold War in detail and enjoy imagining what kind of historical dramas took place in the past.
