Why Ran did not recognise Shinichi right away? I recently started watching Detective Conan and I learned that Ran and Shinichi are in fact childhood friends. So my question is,  when Shinichi, due to the side effects of the drug he was forced to take, end up with the appearance of an elementary school student, why did Ran, who has known him since childhood not see the resemblance right away?
She may well have noticed the resemblance, but seeing an elementary school student who looks a lot like how a friend of yours used to look in the past, does not immediately lead one to the conclusion that that student is in fact your actual friend! It is never explicitly stated, but in all likelihood she simply noted (subconsciously?) the similarity (if she were paying attention in the first place) and moved on.