Review of Parasyte: The Maxim

Parasyte is alright, a firmly good mid-range anime that's not bad by any means, but not great either. It delivers everything it should in some capacity, but there's something missing for sure. In terms of story, which was my favorite aspect of this anime, it utilizes a kind of "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" type setup, and why our main character isn't completely overtaken by his particular alien parasite is creative and interesting. Also, the way that the relationship between Shinichi and Migi is written makes their interplay the most compelling part of the show. While that shines, everything elseis just good, not great.

My biggest problem is with the art style, where they got the eldritch horror aspect spot-on, they failed to portray the emotions of their human characters. It is a very emotional story, and they show a lot of emotion, but the emotion shown doesn't really hit home, and I think its because the style they chose inherently dulls or masks the full power of their reactions to life and the world around them. I personally think it has a lot to do with their eyes, and how they fail to be very dynamic. The fight choreography is pretty good, however.

The sound is good on a basic level, you know what you're hearing and you get what they want you to get, but it's nothing to write home about.

The characters fulfill their roles but the only really interesting ones are those with parasites in them, with maybe Shinichi's parents being the only exception there. Overall I thought it was good enough to finish and is generally worth a watch for a pretty good story and interesting concepts found in the writing of the show itself. Overall, give it a go, but don't expect to walk away with anything more than another anime under your belt.