In a nutshell, Parasyte was almost my average shounen action anime. In terms of that, Parasyte did a pretty good job. The story in that perspective was clear, there exists a conflict that the MC needs to address: A series of multiple brutal murders has been occurring throughout Japan and is seemingly related to the alleged existence of parasitic creatures who feed on humans. MC becomes acquainted with one of their kind, and revelations to the hidden truths behind the parasites' existence are gradually uncovered, and the MC eventually gets to fight these creatures, whilst struggling to live a normal high school life. I find nothing special with that, it was actually average but compared to other anime, Parasyte was successful in conveying the story clearly and logically. How does it belong in the horror genre? The horror, I feel, in the series is possibly translated into the existence of horrible-looking creatures bearing the fact that they are killing humans for food. The average viewer supposedly fears for the safety of the main characters and the fact that no one is exactly safe for the time being, the parasites serve to be the terrorizing force to human existence while the lack of knowledge upon these mysterious enemies adds up to the fear factor. In my opinion the horror for the anime is not really successful, of course I admire all the visualizations of the monsters, I'd say they would be pretty terrifying if they exist in real life. But the horror in the sense of portraying the hostility and capability of taking out human lives in a flash while emphasizing the mystery behind these parasites wasn't really felt in the entire series. Probably this is because number one, having a parasite who acts exactly as the others do as one of the main characters makes everything explainable and less suspense is expected, or number two the action by which the horror is complemented with makes me, your average viewer, think more of how the MC is going to defeat the parasite instead of understanding the truth behind these creatures. Of course, it could be pointed out that there are certain scenes in the anime that discusses the mystery itself, but given that Parasyte is apparently more dedicated in the action part rather than the horror, I'd have to say that this significantly reduces the horror. Meanwhile, as the series progresses, one could notice a lot of philosophical questions being thrown at the viewer, and I felt that they were literally mind-moving. These questions, while not being constructed in the horror context, are very significant in developing the plot and possibly suggesting any major event that would happen. In this aspect, however, as much as I wanted to appreciate them, I felt that the plot wasn't the proper atmosphere to develop such questions. The plot seemed too basic and simple. Of course, I am not saying that a good anime with philosophical issues raised should have a complicated scheme of storytelling. I just felt that for a teenage guy who goes to school and being normal all the way except for the existence of another creature within him (since that constitutes most of the plot), the most logical philosophical questions (generic, almost) is about protecting his family, the people that he loves, understanding the basic existence of parasites. If the anime had wanted to involve philosophical questions regarding symbiotic relationship between humans and nature (and parasites for that matter), the purpose of humans versus the purpose of the parasites' existence, I wished that they extended the plot to reaching the national government perhaps, or probably a more extensive invasion of these creatures reaching to the point of, I don't know, probably human extinction or what not. I hate the fact that I am now ranting on how the story should have been instead of evaluating how it was presented, I just thought that the story could have more potential by trying to invoke bigger stakeholders. Heck, I even almost felt like the parasites were only a problem in the area the MC was located, since it was never discussed or explicitly shown in the anime how the national government was dealing with the problem. Hence, this is why I felt that the anime was a mismatch. Firstly I personally am not comfortable with horror combined with the shounen-type of action, since for me it ruins the horror factor and does not fit well together in my preference. Secondly the philosophical issues in the story were not really compatible with what the anime offers. So in general, I find the story average but it was still entertaining to watch.
The characters in the story are a combination of some strong, some meh and some wtf-are-you-doing personalities. Shinichi Izumi was the human MC who becomes acquainted with the parasite. Personally I didn't like the character development because it was a fluctuation of being a better individual and being stupid. Although it felt necessary, I disliked how he would always depend on Migi, the parasite, not only on physical strength but also mind stability. I understand that without Migi he would be literally defenseless against enemies, but this dependence, shows that he never really developed as a main character but rather a reactive partner of the parasite he was joined with. I also dislike how he reacts like a scared child every time he realizes that he can't beat the opponent but acts like a strong you-can't-beat-me douchebag if he has the upper hand. This is to think that he resolved to help humanity in fighting parasites. However, it is actually really good to see the environment and events which molded his personality - his mother dying by his own hands, a mysterious woman who loves him dies from a parasite. Tragic events which took the life of people he is closely connected to strengthened his resolve to kill those parasites. The problem, still, is the strength of his resolve versus his fear of being helpless against the enemy. Migi was a surprisingly good character for me, even by his total objectivity and the fact that he lets Shinichi live for the sake of his survival. Much of the character conflict Shinichi harbors in terms of his feelings towards parasites is rooted upon Migi. This relationship actually strengthens the development of Shinichi and provides a valid perspective by which the viewer understands the behavior of parasites. Satomi Murano was a wasted character. She does not really contribute much to the plot except for the fact that she was the person Shinichi wanted to protect, and thus became a drive for the MC's actions and decisions. Tamiya Ryouko was one of the most significant factors that drove the plot into significant events, and she was an amazing character. She raised the flag for philosophical issues, and even if she is just a supporting character, the development of her perspective was amazing and appropriate.
The art was pretty cool and a breath of fresh air from my loli addiction. The designs of the parasitic monsters were completely badass in my opinion. I also like the fact that the anime did not hesitate to maximize the gore element, little details were censored and the blood splatter was terrific. The soundtrack for the opening and ending theme were absolutely amazing for me, and it felt like it also contributes to the story impact. I don't mind the art and sound in rating the anime, honestly.
What makes the anime become rated as good? It did its job of presenting the story clearly. It was nothing special however, but it really did raise significant philosophical questions that motivated my mind to think outside the box. Still, I felt that it had the potential to widen its storyline and tell me that something bigger is going on. For now, I had to rate it as good - it did its job well, but nothing spectacular about it.
