MANGA REVIEW | "Tsumiki Ogami’s Not-So-Ordinary Life" - Vol. 4
While she is the title character in Tsumiki Ogami’s Not-So-Ordinary Life, the wolf girl’s not the only mythfolk creature roaming Keiki Private High School. In fact, there are quite a lot of non-humans roaming the hallways. While we’ve gotten to know a couple of them here and there, author Miyu Morishita hasn’t dived deeper into these characters’ lives. Volume Four of Tsumiki Ogami’s Not-So-Ordinary Life fixes that, as the focus is placed on two mythfolk whose lives are layered with complications.
Of course, our favorite wolf-y student needs some sort of time in the spotlight. It’s why most of us read this manga in the first place. The first day back from summer vacation has all of the students trying their best to get back into the swing of things. After some fitness tests, Tsumiki convinces her human pal Yutaka to take a rest in a hole she dug for her afternoon nap. It’s one last bit of calmness before school overtakes their lives once again, and it’s presented both in a cute and relatable way.
Preparation for the school cultural festival puts the snake-haired Hebizono back into focus, with a moment between her and an invisible student bringing forth a sweet moment between the two of them. Since Hebizono is a Medusa, she has never been able to look at herself in the mirror without her special glasses. But the invisible student finds a little loophole that allows her to gaze upon her face for the first time, with no fear of turning herself into stone. In a way, it gives Hebizono not just her first glimpse of her natural beauty, but it also breathes some confidence into the student.
Hebizono isn’t the only one who goes through a confidence booster in this volume of Tsumiki Ogami’s Not-So-Ordinary Life. Spider mythfolk Mokuri winds up being a big focus on the cultural festival narrative. The star art student is hounded by the school paper’s Michi, who is also trying to figure out why Mokuri deleted her art social page. When word gets out about Mokuri’s work at the cultural festival, many other journalists seek her out to find answers.
It’s here where we get a flashback between Mokuri and an old friend. She’s convinced by the friend to make the art social account, only for her to get enough cyber-bullying to push herself away from the online world. This attitude has left her feeling like her silk skills are nothing special, when — in reality — they truly are. All of it leads to a moment where an inflatable art display is in danger of floating away (along with a certain familiar student), resulting in a great artwork transforming into a masterpiece.
As for Tsumiki and her classmates, they have their fun with their cosplay cafe, familiar ground for any high school slice-of-life manga. The wolf girl is the big star, with the cafe being a hit. Thankfully, she gets some fun downtime with Yutaka, as they hit one class after another and fill their tummies with good food and fun times. However, the most fun thing is saved for after the cultural event: the karaoke party, and I shan’t spoil here what skills Tsumiki has behind the mic.
Even if we enjoy more stories about its titular character, it’s great when Tsumiki Ogami’s Not-So-Ordinary Life doesn’t let her hog all of the attention. (She needs her naps here and there, after all!) Volume Four does a great job giving more back story to both Hebizono and Mokuri, and it’s leaving me hoping to see other mythfolk students get a chance to shine in this story. Thankfully, as the end of this volume hints, there may be another mythfolk ready to show the readers what they’ve got!
FINAL GRADE:
Promotional consideration provided by Chantelle Sturt of VIZ Media.
