REVIEW: ‘SHOSHIMIN: How to Become Ordinary’ Episode 1 — “Sheep Costume”

SHOSHIMIN: How to Become Ordinary is a new mystery series from Lapin Track based on the light novel series by Honobu Yonezawa. SHOSHIMIN: How to Become Ordinary Episode 1 introduces viewers to Jougorou Kobato (Shuichiro Umeda) and Yuki Osanai (Hina Yomiya) and their quest to live life as ordinary high schoolers.

Kobato and Osanai meet Dojima Kengo, a childhood friend of Kobatos. They all three attend Funato High School and by all means, seem like ordinary students. Kengo is brutish and blunt, and his past with Kobato foreshadows that he will play a major role going forward.

Where Kengo is more heavy-handed, there is subtlety to the relationship between Kobato and Osanai. The two sit at a table at a restaurant and discuss their taste in food and desserts. It is a quiet moment that allows the two characters to explore how well they know each other in an organic way.

They are both trying so hard to be normal students, but the reason why is still a mystery at first. There are specific rules the duo have developed to help them blend in. Outside of the occasional references, though, they seem like the ordinary people they are trying to be. In fact, they almost seem like a couple at first.

What SHOSHIMIN: How to Become Ordinary Episode 1 does really well is it slowly expands on the main premise. The situation is established early, but it is not just dumped on the laps of viewers. Information is slowly trickled out, but it often leaves even more questions waiting to be answered. The pacing allows for the mystery to simmer and makes it more impactful when story shifts happen.

Things start to change when Kengo calls Kobato and asks him to help find a missing pochette for a fellow student. Kengo takes solving these types of mysteries very seriously. He seems to go a bit overboard, but it is not overplayed for comedic effect. It is just how he is, and as his friend, Kobato gets dragged into it.

Mysteries seem to follow Kobato, but he is also very good at solving them. He has a Sherlock Holmes-like ability to deduce the entire story from just a few details. The way SHOSHIMIN: How to Become Ordinary Episode 1 shows him solving the mystery is great because it comes out of left field. He is quiet and simply observing before suddenly he is able to explain what happened and find the missing bag. He also deduces the reason why the bag went missing in the first place.

It’s a fairly straightforward mystery, though. A fellow student put a love letter into the bag but wanted to take it back before it was opened. Things devolve from there, but it is all typical high school student behavior. Despite the simplicity of the mystery, SHOSHIMIN: How to Become Ordinary Episode 1 makes it seem interesting by adding tension thanks to slower pacing.

Everything happening in SHOSHIMIN: How to Become Ordinary Episode 1 seems so ordinary, but there is an underlying feeling that not everything is as it seems. Some visual moments towards the end of the episode do a good job of showing that there is more out there that the viewers don’t understand yet. A confrontation at a convenience store also puts focus on the fact that Kobato simply cannot avoid mystery and misfortune. That is surely going to evolve as the series progresses, and Kobato and Osanai develop more as characters.

The best part about SHOSHIMIN: How to Become Ordinary Episode 1 is that everything feels so grounded. It is impossible to tell if that might change going forward, but the story seems plucked straight out of real life. The scenarios and relationships are all plausible, giving the series so much room to grow in any direction it wants. It could choose to stay grounded, which would fit perfectly, but there is also an opportunity to flip things around and get really crazy. It will be interesting to see how things change as the series progresses.

It should also be noted that Lapin Track did an excellent job with the animation. Part of making the story feel so grounded and real is making the world feel alive. The rushing of a river or the waving of grain in a field just looks so authentic. The character designs, while not groundbreaking, give off an ordinary vibe that adds to the authenticity. Still, there is lifelike detail in their faces specifically that helps showcase their internal emotions and add to the potential tension yet to come.

SHOSHIMIN: How to Become Ordinary Episode 1 is a fascinating premiere that manages to feel both ordinary and mysterious. It will be interesting to see how the series advances from here but there are so many possible directions for this series to go.

SHOSHIMIN: How to Become Ordinary Episode 1 is streaming now on Crunchyroll.