Parasyte
Parasyte (Japanese: 寄生獣, Hepburn: Kiseijū, lit. "Parasitic Beasts") is a Japanese science fiction horror manga series written and illustrated by Hitoshi Iwaaki. It was published in Kodansha's Morning Open Zōkan (1989) and Monthly Afternoon (1989 to 1994). The manga was published in North America first by Tokyopop, then Del Rey, and finally Kodansha USA. The series follows Shinichi Izumi, a high school senior who is the victim of a failed attempt by a parasitic organism to take over his brain. The parasite instead infects and takes over his arm.
| Parasyte | |
Fourth tankōbon volume cover, featuring Shinichi Izumi and Migi | |
| 寄生獣 (Kiseijū) | |
|---|---|
| Genre | |
| Manga | |
| Written by | Hitoshi Iwaaki |
| Published by | Kodansha |
| English publisher |
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| Imprint | Afternoon KC |
| Magazine |
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| Demographic | Seinen |
| Original run | August 1, 1989 – December 24, 1994 |
| Volumes | 10 |
| Anime television series | |
| Parasyte -the maxim- | |
| Directed by | Kenichi Shimizu |
| Produced by |
|
| Written by | Shōji Yonemura |
| Music by | Ken Arai |
| Studio | Madhouse |
| Licensed by |
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| Original network | Nippon TV |
| English network | |
| Original run | October 9, 2014 – March 26, 2015 |
| Episodes | 24 |
| Live-action films | |
| |
| Manga | |
| Parasyte Reversi | |
| Written by | Moare Ohta |
| Published by | Kodansha |
| English publisher |
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| Magazine | Comic Days |
| Demographic | Seinen |
| Original run | March 2, 2018 – May 7, 2021 |
| Volumes | 8 |
| Television drama | |
| Parasyte: The Grey | |
| Directed by | Yeon Sang-ho |
| Studio | Climax Studio |
| Original network | Netflix |
| Original run | April 2024 – June 2024 |
The manga has been adapted into two live-action films in Japan, in 2014 and 2015. An anime television series adaptation produced by Madhouse, titled Parasyte -the maxim-, aired in Japan between October 2014 and March 2015. The English-language dub aired on Adult Swim's Toonami programming block in the United States between October 2015 and April 2016.
By August 2022, the manga had over 25 million copies in circulation, making it one of the best-selling manga series of all time. In 1993, Parasyte received the 17th Kodansha Manga Award for the general category, as well as the 27th Seiun Award for the best manga in 1996.