Kara Dennison
April 18, 2022 
SPY x FAMILY is taking the world by storm — first as a manga, now as an anime. The series introduces us to the Forgers: a fake family created by an undercover spy to execute a mission. But his new wife, daughter, and dog all have their own secrets. That’s nothing new for anime, though. They’re joining a long, proud history of anime families with weird secrets.
Here are a few of our favorite families who keep their own powers and talents under wraps… sometimes from the world, and sometimes from each other.
The Matsunaga Twins
There have long been tales of “twin telepathy.” And while there’s no incontrovertible proof of actual psychic links between identical twins, it’s not hard to see where the assumption comes from. But in the case of the Matsunaga sisters of Miracle Girls, the rumors are completely true. Like Anya of SPY x FAMILY, they have psychic powers. Unlike her, though, it’s not the moon that influences her power level: it’s each other.
Mikage and Tomomi can communicate telepathically with each other, and teleport when they link pinkie fingers. They use these powers — as we all would, be honest — to make life easier and get out of classes they hate. But things get complicated when one sister falls for the other’s rival. And they may not be the only twins with this power, either.
The Sawada Family
Imagine being such a loser that your nickname is just “loser” plus your name. Then imagine finding out that your dad is actually a member of a superpower-wielding mafia Famiglia, and your new tutor is a baby. REBORN! is about as full of intrigue and subterfuge as SPY x FAMILY, but the marriage in this one is very real.
“Loser Tsuna” has a major glow-up across the series’s long run, thanks to help from the titular tutor baby. Before long, he and his friends are fighting with magic. But there are lots of secrets in and around the Vongola Famiglia. Including the reason their top-tier hitman looks like a toddler.
The Sohma Family
The stars of SPY x FAMILY have a lot of unique skills. But turning into zodiac animals is (last we checked) not in the mix. Probably a good thing — because judging by the Sohma family in Fruits Basket, it’s a pain. Especially when outsider Tohru Honda gets embroiled in the whole thing.
The animal shapeshiftery isn’t even all of it, though. As we saw in the manga and recent anime, there’s much more to the zodiac curse than adorable inconvenience. It’s actually pretty dark and unpleasant… but fortunately, there’s hope this go ’round.
SPY x FAMILY, REBORN!, and Fruits Basket are all available to stream on Crunchyroll.
Speaking of family ties, here’s how Lupin the Third pays tribute to the original Arséne Lupin.
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