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Based on Hitoshi Iwaki’s critically acclaimed manga, Parasyte: The Grey has revived the loyal Parasyte fanbase and captivated new audiences with the body horror elements and compelling narrative. The six-episode series was initially titled The Grey, which didn’t give much about what the storyline will be.
Given that the show was helmed and written by Yeon Sang-ho, the director behind The Train to Busan and Jung_E, the anticipation for The Grey reached a fever pitch. Eventually, the series received its final title, which caused a huge wave of excitement, especially among the Parasyte manga fans.
As the series is a South Korean live-action adaptation of Hitoshi Iwaki’s magnum opus, featuring all-new original characters in a whole new storyline, fans of the manga and the anime are apparently perplexed regarding its canonicity.
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Surprisingly, there’s more to the adaptation than meets the eye. Read on to learn whether Parasyte: The Grey is canon to Parasyte The Maxim anime.
Disclaimer: This article contains significant spoilers for Parasyte: The Grey and Parasyte: The Maxim. Reader’s discretion is advised.
Parasyte: The Grey is in the same universe as Parasyte: The Maxim
As Netflix announced prior to the series debut, Parasyte: The Grey is the official live-action spin-off of the manga, which clearly saays that the storyline doesn’t follow the same.
So, in a nutshell, the Netflix series is an original storyline that's not canon to or the exact adaptation of Parasyte: The Maxim anime, which absolutely follows the manga.
Given that the storyline takes place in South Korea, it features a whole new version of the extraterrestrial parasite plague that has taken the country by storm.
The series follows Jeong Su-in (Jeon So-nee), a young woman with a traumatic past who becomes a parasite victim. However, due to the injuries she suffered, her parasite resorts to healing the host’s body to survive rather than taking over it and accepting death.
Unlike others, Su-in’s parasite, Heidi, decides to protect her host, given that there is an imminent danger to them due to their peculiar condition. The series also follows Seol Kang-woo (Koo Kyo-hwan), a gangster who runs into Su-in while looking for his sister’s whereabouts and eventually teams up with her after learning about her condition.
Although the story is completely different from Parasyte: The Maxim and the manga, the ending of Parasyte: The Grey confirms that it exists in the same universe.
In the final moments of the finale, it was seen that some mysterious journalist, who proclaimed to hold extensive knowledge of the extraterrestrial parasitic creatures, wanted to meet Choi Jun-kyung, the leader of the Grey Team.
The journalist was revealed to be none other than Shinichi Izumi (Masaki Suda), the main protagonist of the Parasyte: The Maxim and the manga series. Given that the series ends eventually after the surprising cliffhanger, there’s nothing much to learn about the character for the newcomers.
However, Shinichi, asserting to be an old hand in the matter of the invasive parasites, proves that Parasyte: The Grey takes a few years after Parasyte the Maxim. With that, it can be assumed that Shinichi discovers the abnormal rise in parasite activity in South Korea and decides to lend a hand along with Migi.
How the original story connects with the spin-off and what comes next for Jun-Kyung, So-nee, and Kang-woo has yet to be officially explained.
Additionally, how Shinichi will be of help will also be revealed. Until Parasyte: The Grey gets renewed for yet another season, fans of the anime and newcomers can watch Parasyte: The Maxim on Netflix, Prime Video, Hulu and more to experience the thrilling world of Parasyte once again.
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Stay tuned for more news and updates on Parasyte anime, manga and live-action series as 2024 progresses.
