SHOSHIMIN: How to become Ordinary

Episodes 1-2

Middle school makes a mockery of us all. In the case of Kobato, and likely Osanai, it instilled a desire to be "ordinary." What that means precisely isn't entirely clear, but in the second episode of SHOSHIMIN: How to become Ordinary, his friend Kengo remarks that something must have happened to make Kobato change so drastically. According to Kengo, Kobato used to be the class know-it-all, someone with a vast store of information and a dose of snark for anyone who knew something he didn't. If that was the case, he may have been the self-appointed mystery solver for the class, and Kengo's behavior makes that feel fairly likely. Across these two inaugural episodes, Kengo finds small, everyday mysteries for Kobato to solve, even going so far as to create one he knows his friend won't be able to resist in episode two. His motive seems to be solving the mystery of what happened to Kobato, and that's one conundrum that his friend is determined to keep shrouded.

This would put Kobato and Kengo on opposite sides in a traditional mystery, almost as protagonist and antagonist. Here, the lines are more blurred because both boys see themselves as being in the right. Kobato's desire to be ordinary and distance himself from his middle school self may be self-preservation, so Kengo's prodding is dangerous. But Kengo's wish to figure out what happened to his friend could be framed as concern, a wish to help someone he cares about, meaning that Kobato's reluctance to be the person he used to be is a danger to their relationship and an indication that something terrible happened off stage. We could make the case that only Kobato gets to decide what's best for him, but he also doesn't seem all that happy with his "ordinary" trajectory, making everything a matter of perception. That's a far cry from the rules of mystery laid out by Golden Age authors in the between-the-wars period, but it also allows for that more classic form of the genre to exist solely for the viewers. While Kengo, Kobato, and Osanai go about their daily lives, the mystery we have to solve is what brought them to this place.

Each episode is an interesting mix of self-contained and a clear part of that bigger picture. In the first episode, Kengo asks Kobato (who brings in Osanai) to solve the mystery of a girl's missing pocketbook (or "pochette," as they somewhat bafflingly use in the subtitles; the bag in question has a strap, which per the OED disqualifies it as a pochette, which is a clutch); this mystery is fairly straightforward and hinges on following clues. In the second, Kengo himself sets up a mystery based on making hot cocoa in a specific way, which requires more reasoning skills than a reliance on clues, and the point seems to be that Kobato and Osanai are equally adept at solving both sorts of mysteries. However, both episodes' larger scope relies on the desire to be "ordinary," the friendship between Kengo and Kobato, and Osanai's love of sweets. Sadly, both also involve crimes against pastry – the deaths of two strawberry tarts in the first episodes feel genuinely sad, while the way Kengo eats a piece of chocolate cake is a crime unto itself.

The subplot about Osanai's bicycle feels like it will prove to be important. It first makes a notable appearance when Kobato and Osanai illegally ride double on it (something that perhaps used to be more ordinary), and at the end of the first episode, it's stolen. In episode two, we learn that the bike was spotted at the scene of a break-in, where presumably it was left by the boy who was taunted into taking it in the first place; he wasn't with the bicycle when it was seen, but the license number certainly was. What the fallout will be for Osanai isn't clear, but it feels significant that the bike storyline carries across both episodes thus far.

Despite its cinematic aspirations and some beautiful character animation, this isn't a show for everyone. It's a little dull and feels a bit like it's trying too hard to be deep, although that could be because that's how Kobato sees his decisions – with outsize significance. It's not so much a slow burn as a quiet stroll. It makes sense with the idea of "ordinary," and that's something to keep an eye on as the story meanders ahead.

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SHOSHIMIN: How to become Ordinary is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.