Review of Parasyte: The Maxim

Kiseijuu: Sei no Kakuritsu, also know as Parasyte The Maxim, is phenomenal. Parasitic creatures fell upon the earth, infiltrating humans and devouring their brains, overtaking them. Their natural instincts inclined them to hide among the masses, pretending to be their 'host' and feast upon human flesh. One such creature tried to do the same to our protagonist, Shinichi Izumi, but Shinichi managed to prevent it from happening by tightly wrapping earphones around his arm, blocking the way towards his brain. So, the creature, (later named Migi) settled for his right arm, consuming and then replacing it, forcing him and Shinichi into a symbiotic relationship instead of a parasitic one. Atfirst, neither of them was very happy about this, but over the course of the story that changed.
They went from co-habitating the same body and merely surviving, to working as a team and thriving.
This is one of the most overlooked themes within the story of Parasyte. Learning to coexist and see the world trough each others eyes.
As Shinichi goes through severe trauma, both mental and physical, and merges with some of Migi's cells he became more and more like a parasite.
Cold, distant, calm, and analytical. Migi on the other hand becomes more and more human by closely watching and studying human behavior, especially Shinichi's.
Eventually, he even goes so far as to sacrifice himself in order to save Shinichi. Saying that he was glad he didn't take over his brain when they first met.
He even calls him a friend.

Their experiences taught them to appreciate their differences as an individual, as well as a species, even though they could never fully comprehend each other.
This brings us to in my opinion the true climax of the series, Tamiyah Ryouko's death. An emotional climax where it is revealed that in some ways humans and parasites were alike.
The parasites having such distinct personalities, just as humans do. Tamiyah herself seemingly capable of actually feeling, emotion, laughter, gratitude and even motherly love.
She protected her child and expressed gratitude towards Shinichi as she handed it over to him, wishing it to live a normal life, before leaving this world.
Trough bearing witness of this surprisingly selfless act, a reflection of his mother, Shinichi regained his humanity, which he had slowly lost over the course of the series.
Even though this moment feels Like a climax, the series is far from over, which works to its detriment. The last arc, the war arc, takes place there where the ending should have been, and is the part that I have the most gripes with.

The last arc truly relies entirely upon Gotou to work, a villain that was introduced just before. Gotou is a boring, all powerful, emotionless, characterless, war machine out to kill all human life.
He poses no emotional threat to Shinichi, only a physical one. It's nothing but a cheap way to create some last second conflict. And an unnecessary inclusion since Shinichi's arc and the major story arc are complete. Humans are trying to exterminate a large number of parasites in their base if you will, a big corporation. They are largely successful, but as they are clearing out the last of the parasites, the swat-like team encounters Gotou and are exterminated themselves. Gotou wishes to kill Shinichi as well, who just so happened to be brought along by the police for no apparent reason, but decides against it since he's "tired" and leaves. Eventually he comes for Shinichi and Migi. They almost defeat him with clever tactics, but barley, they lose.
Shinichi manages to escape, and Migi Sacrifices himself. A powerful moment that could have been a catalyst for a substantial character change, which is later undermined by Migi not being dead at all.
Eventually Shinichi decides to go and confront Gotou, fearing that he would harm so many people otherwise. Gotou has been conveniently chilling around which isn't in line with his extermination machine character at all.
Shinichi attacks, but his efforts fail. Eventually he happens upon a heap of trash and manages to strike Gotou with a dirty pole covered in toxins. Migi comes back to Shinichi shredding Gotou's organs along the way, but somehow not killing him and helps stall the weakened Gotou's attacks until he eventually succumbs to the toxins. Cheap as it is, it does introduce an interesting philosophical point: even an absolute indestructible monster like Gotou succumbs to the trash that we dumb upon the earth.

In the last episode the show wraps up decently with one last bit of conflict. It reintroduces some interesting philosophical points, but nothing that hadn't already been shown before then.
Despite the bad, last arc and slightly subpar ending I still think it is phenomenal and worthy of a 10 out of 10 score. Why? Well, no show is truly perfect, there will always be flaws.
And while I greatly dislike parts of the show, the rest more than makes up for it.