Parasyte: The Grey - The key differences between Hitoshi Iwaaki’s popular manga series and Netflix’s K-drama

Hitoshi Iwaaki's manga series Parasyte has an official adaptation on Netflix, titled Parasyte: The Grey which premiered on April 5, 2024. Since the 2014 anime Parasyte: The Maxim is based on the same manga (comic), manga and anime fans were skeptical about the Korean adaptation of it.

The fact that the core cast of Parasyte: The Grey consisted only of unique characters contributed to the idea that the Netflix live-action series would stand alone rather than be a straight translation of the manga. The Netflix series's last scene altered everything and demonstrated the connection between the K-drama and the anime, even though it was a completely new plot and not a retelling of Hitoshi Iwaaki's manga Parasyte.

Unlike the manga, the live-action version features a South Korean setting and a cast of unique characters. However, it's clear that the show also has some similarities.

Furthermore, the events of the Korean drama series on Netflix take place in the same universe as Hitoshi Iwaaki's anime (Parasyte: The Maxim) and the events of the anime and the series may coincide.

Furthermore, the events of the Korean drama series on Netflix take place in the same universe as Hitoshi Iwaaki's anime (Parasyte: The Maxim) and the events of the anime and the series may coincide.

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The differences and connection between Netflix's Parasyte: The Grey and Hitoshi Iwaaki's manga

Set in South Korea, Parasyte: The Grey depicted the same invasion of parasites as the manga but from the viewpoint of many individuals in a different nation. Jeong Su-in (played by Jeon So-nee) is the main character of the show, which narrates how her parasite—named Heidi—was unable to take control of her brain and learned to coexist with her and protect her.

Additionally, the events of the Korean drama on Netflix are set in the same world as the manga or may have occurred simultaneously. In contrast to the anime—which is based on the manga—and focuses on Izumi Shinichi, a 17-year-old Japanese high school student with whom the parasite fuses, the Korean version centers on Jeong Su-in, a young lady in her late 20s who works at a convenience store in Namil-gun.

In the Netflix series, Su-in's experiences after contracting an infection from a parasite who goes by the name Heidi are the main focus of the plot. In the anime, Shinichi Izumi is the main protagonist, who contracted the infection while listening to music via his earphones.

The parasite larva had to attach to Shinichi's hand to enter his skull, and as a result, it was given the Japanese name Migi, which means "right."

In the Netflix show, Su-in contracts a parasite while being hunted by a psychotic guy with whom she had a conflict at her workplace. Su-in was bleeding profusely and had sustained several stab wounds by the time the police found her.

The parasite (Heidi) infects her and since she is on the brink of death, it tries to take over Su-in's consciousness and only partially fuses with her in an attempt to repair her grave wounds for their survival.

Furthermore, unlike Shinichi Izumi's parasite Migi, Su-in's parasite Heidi emerges from Su-in's head on the right side as a long, gnarly, arm-like projection as shown in the K-drama.

However, the K-drama does depict parasites in the same way that the anime does: as hideous monsters that burst apart into tentacles and fangs from the skull of an afflicted human.

One other significant distinction is that Heidi can temporarily inhabit Su-in's body and speak whenever she pleases. Migi is a self-contained character in the anime, akin to a little sidekick.

Furthermore, Heidi has the same anime-like ability to change into a lethal, sharp weapon.

Su-in and Heidi are unable to keep their separate identities whereas Shinichi and Migi can maintain their distinct identities whenever the parasite activates. Heidi can only maintain control over Su-in while she is unconscious since Heidi was merged with Su-in's brain, unlike Migi and Shinichi.

Throughout its roughly 24-episode runtime, the anime analyzes the biology, characteristics, and weaknesses of parasites while going into graphic detail. Although the six-episode season of Parasyte: The Grey does not now disclose much, it does make it simpler for humans to eliminate parasites in the show.

Furthermore, as stated in the manga and anime, the story does not introduce powerful parasites like Gotou, who were impossible to kill or destroy.

Additionally, in the Netflix series, Shinichi Izumi, played by Japanese actor Masaki Suda, made a cameo at the end.

Meanwhile, the anime's narrative, which tells a completely new story, was inspired by the original manga whereas Netflix may or may not have a connection to the manga's universe, and Su-In and Shinichi Izumi could have their respective parallel stories running at the same time.

Although there are several differences in the chronology between the manga and the Netflix series hasn't featured several important human and parasitic characters from the manga or the anime.

For instance, Reiko (parasite) is portrayed as being chilly and heartless in the manga/anime series, but as the plot unfolds, she gives birth to a human kid and begins to feel mother impulses and ultimately gives her life to save the child.

The majority of Netflix's Parasyte: The Grey must have taken place after the conclusion of the anime Parasyte: The Maxim, with the live-action show's finale taking place sometime after Shinichi's narrative in that manga Parasyte.

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Parasyte: The Grey, starring Jeon So-nee, Kwon Hae-hyo, and Koo Kyu-hwan is streaming globally on Netflix.