Review of Parasyte: The Maxim

Story: 8/10 Parasyte follows a quite generic shounen formula. A high schooler is infected with a parasyte that grants him superpowers. The parasyte, instead of killing him, coexists with him instead. So now he is half-human and half alien! It certainly isn't the first anime that came up with this idea. Devilman, which came out in 1972, snatched the idea before it. Given that the manga came out in the 80s, perhaps it is too harsh to say that it is formulaic. But since the anime came out in 2014, it certainly felt generic. I mean, Tokyo Ghoul anyone? However, Parasyte was able to breathesome new elements into the story by giving it a new perspective on the human race and survival. It raises questions about what it means to be human, and what it means to be humane. This is what many other generic shounens failed to achieve.

The ending was disappointing, though. A trivial character suddenly made a comeback for no reason other than melodrama.

Art: 9/10
Sound 8/10
Character: 6/10. Main character and the parasytes are fleshed out nicely. The girlfriend, however, is very one-dimensional. But I believe she symbolizes purity and humanity, something that the MC gradually loses as he succumbs to violence tendency and desensitization, so I'm giving her a pass.
Enjoyment: 9/10 Thanks to the good pacing, animation, direction, and soundtrack, I thoroughly enjoyed this series.