Overanalyzing Spy x Family - Manga Volume 10 cover
Volume 10 is the first one to repeat a character on the cover. Young Twilight, aka [redacted], this time sitting not on a chair but on the ruins of a building.
An obvious and considerate choice, if you think that this volume includes his backstory from the war. This isn't the time for fancy and cool designer chairs. This is a sight that is, unfortunately even today, true for many children around the world.
The swap from having the cover character sit on very expensive designer chairs to having [redacted] sit on ruins is a clear symbolism of the devastation a war brings.
[redacted] was a child of a working class family. Despite wars being run by governments, it's mostly the poor people that pay the price for them. And so, [redacted] can't afford a fancy, expensive chair, he cannot afford a chair at all. He's not just sitting on ruins, he's surrounded by them.
His expression is quite subtle; if looked at from afar, it can resemble present Twilight's calculated look, or even some anger. Instead, if you look closer, he just appears despondent, almost to a numb degree.
This being overanalyzing, it also catches my attention that his left hand is with the palm flat on the concrete he's sitting on. It was an artistic choice to depict him like that; his hand could have been resting on his lap, or on the rifle, or even holding the helmet. The fact that it fully touches the concrete can either symbolize that he's trying to balance himself, or that he's expressing grief over the building this once was. We're not told or shown whether his childhood home was actually destroyed, but he did lose it. If you have other ideas of what this depiction could be for I'd be interested in hearing them.
The only objects around him are a radio he and his friends would listen to while they hang around together, as well as the helmet and toy rifle he bought with the money he lied to his father to get.
The radio's antenna is extended, but the volume (or frequency knob?) is all the way down and none of the buttons are pressed. It looks like it's ready to be used but not currently on. I wonder how much propaganda he was exposed to while he was listening on with his friends, and how often he would find a radio to hear news (and probably more propaganda) while the war was on.
The helmet and rifle are not only indicative of his war adoration, they're also indicative of that lie that seems to be haunting him to the present, even if he doesn't admit it to himself now.
And remember, [redacted] didn't just lie to his dad to get that money; he manipulated him. He acted like he was interested in something he knew his dad approved of, in order to get money to buy something he knew his dad didn't approve of. And that action alone made him feel so terribly guilty he couldn't even allow himself to enjoy playing with the toys he bought.
Yet, as a spy, this kind of lying and manipulation is his main tactic. It's obvious it's not something he takes pride in, but putting those objects on the cover with [redacted] makes it even more meaningful how much his own lie weighed on him.
But also, on another, different level... the objects are a direct parallel to adult Twilight's cover. Young [redacted] has a toy rifle and a radio next to him. Adult Twilight is holding a real pistol and a newspaper.
Radios and newspapers are news sources. [redacted] is not holding the radio, it's behind him, depicting how he was a passive consumer of propaganda. Twilight is holding the newspaper in front of him, depicting how he's actively searching for information so he can judge for himself.
And then there's the weapons. Young [redacted] is holding a toy rifle (naively idolizing war, without knowing yet what horrors it inflicts) while Twilight holds a real gun (he's deeply into the spy work).
[redacted] regretted lying to his dad, so he rests the toy gun on his lap.
Twilight lies all the time, so he has an active hold on the real gun, having already shot a few times (based on the bullet casings on the ground beneath him).
This cover serves both as a depiction of what this volume includes and as a reminder of who Twilight used to be. Ironically enough, it was his helmet - a propaganda toy - that saved his life in the bombing of Luwen. But I believe this depiction is more of a presentation of his innocence and naΓ―vetΓ©, that led him to idolizing war and then fighting in it once it had taken everything from him, as well as a reminder of how it was this twisted turn of events that led him into becoming the spy he is today - surrounded by lies of his own making and constantly risking his life.
And there's another difference I notice now that I've got the two covers side-by-side: the lighting. The lighting for [redacted]'s cover is natural, coming from behind him and casting most of his face in shadows. Meanwhile, the lighting for Twilight's cover makes it look like a professional photoshoot.
There's a lot that can be deducted even from that. Natural light is, well, natural, it comes at no material cost but it's not something we can control. Artificial light is, by its very definition, fake, it requires material cost, and in professional settings we can use it to manipulate the image we want to present in multiple ways.
[redacted] was still an innocent kid, despite the propaganda he'd been fed. He didn't have a lot of money for fancy things - and once war broke out he practically had nothing - and he had no control over how the war destroyed his life.
Twilight is a professional liar, constantly using disguises to manipulate the image of himself he presents to others, and despite following WISE's orders without questioning them, he is actively working on having as much control as he can - he depends on no-one, he examines situations thoroughly so he can prepare for any scenario, and at the end of the day he's doing it all so that other children won't have to experience the loss of control he did.
The boy grew up into a man, the ruins were polished into a designer chair, and the equipment and presentation became professional. But the man on the expensive chair is just as broken as the boy sitting on the ruins. It's all just a carefully manipulated image to cover the truth from everyone - even himself.
The inner cover provides a much more hopeful contrast. Young [redacted] joined by young Yor, young Yuri, and Anya, and even Bond makes an appearance as a puppy!
Yor seems to enjoy playing badminton, Yuri has an open book while glaring at [redacted], and Anya is offering the latter a peanut. Meanwhile, [redacted] appears cautious, almost shy. It feels like an inner reflection of the present situation of the Forgers + Yuri, showing how despite his control, Twilight is secretly (and very deep down) wishing for carefree moments like this one. As the inner cover, it's fitting that it can represent what's really inside him.
Volume 11 cover analysis coming soon...
