Parasyte - Maxim Collection 1 (Premium Box Set)

This anime is a rare gem. I wasn't really expecting to like this show as much as I did since I dont particularly love gory shows, but this anime brings a lot more to the table than just blood. Parasyte is a bit of a slow watch at first but keep in mind the series is actually 24 episodes. If you want a complete story you will need to buy this collection and the second season.That being said the pacing is normal for a series that long, with only one or two episodes spent on filler. The anime starts right away with the main male character being 'infected' or 'inhabited' by a parasyte. The parasyte's goal is to make it into the hosts brain and take over their body, however as soon as the parasyte tries to enter it is stopped by the character waking up from his sleep. The parasyte only manages to make it into the mans arm and is forced to bond/take over only that portion. Since the parasyte fails to take over the brain, the male lead retains control over his brain but not his hand. From there the story revolves around a coming to terms for both the man and the parasyte as they realize they are stuck together and must work together in order to survive. Other parasytes are also present throughout the series and they were successfully able to enter the hosts brains and take control over them. The other parasytes only seem interested in killing humans for food or for research. Parasytes can sense one another and will sometimes try to kill each other.The main male struggles with his new parasyte and the abilities it gives him, like super speed, strength, vision/hearing, etc. However they slowly learn to trust each other and become determined to take out the other parasytes that are killing and eating humans. The show is very engaging and keeps you on the edge of your seat. There is a lot of blood in this series, I mean a lot; just look at that cover! Nothing is done too graphically but you should be aware that this show kills off characters like its Game of Thrones.The dub is very well done, the art style is good, and the show is certainly worth owning but remember to get both season 1 and 2 for the complete ending. And Yes, there is a complete ending on season 2. No cliffhangers! The only drawback some might find to the show (that the manga might answer) is where did those parasytes come from? The series does a great job of questioning life, death, birth, and meaning of life but I dont think its supposed to provide those answers to you. It gets a little philosophical towards the end.

From the animation, to the voice cast, to the great music, Sentai Films has adapted the manga nicely and has exceeded my expectations! I regret not buying the 2nd part of the collection, please don't make that mistake!Shinichi Izumi is a timid, meek and not very confident high school senior, living a normal life. But after a parasite fails to invade his brain, the two races are forced to co-exsist, learning about each other everyday. The story takes a drastic turn when a tragic event in Shinichi's life causes him to have a near-death experience, in which the parasite has no choice but to temporarily merge with Shinichi 's body in order to save both their lives!This decision makes Shinichi go through physical and emotional changes that he, and others close to him, do not fail to notice. A part of Shinichi loses his human emotions and acts only on pure instinct (which is to keep surviving- mentality of a parasite). This cold, distant and emotionless side of him makes others either weary of him, like him, or seek him for a fight.It's an everyday battle for Shinichi to find a mutual understanding with his parasite right hand, Migi, in order to survive from other parasitic infected humans, but also from himself as he tries to keep what little humanity he has left!Overall, this anime has me stunned at how strong it has punched down my low expectations! It is definitley worth seeing, recomending and buying. Of course, there is blood and mutilation, but not hard-core gory like I know other animes can be. Plus here is a fun fact: Its animators are the same as the Yuri On Ice!!! anime, so I won't be surprised if y'all see some familiar faces! Its soundtrack is also wonderful.

**Update: This review was originally written for the part 1 limited edition box set, which has since been removed from amazon, not the standard Bluray collection. So I apologize for any confusion about this.First off, I want to say that this review is NOT a review of the anime, but of this particular box set. I absolutely love this show and I was so excited for its release, but when I got my limited edition in the mail I was quite disappointed. The chip board box for it is huge, and they needlessly have 2 separate DVD sized cases for both the DVD and Bluray disks. Not only that but they put a special spot in the chip board box for the "extras", which honestly aren't all that exciting (silly temporary tattoos, cleaning cloth, and a lego sized key chain), instead of leaving space to put part 2. So you end up having to pay extra for a second special chip board box along with the part 2 limited edition, leaving you with 2 massive oversized chip board boxes for both part 1 & 2 that take up a ridiculous amount of space with random useless crap for "extras". It is such a waste of space and none of the extras really make it worth the additional costs, with the exception of the soundtrack that's set to come with part 2...they would have been better off including an actual figure and a poster or something for the extras, instead of temporary tattoos and a cleaning cloth, and then made the box set a bit more condensed and economical in size. And on top of that, I pre-ordered this months before it's release at about $120 which then dropped to about $98 and remained there, then on the day of the release the price dropped to like $78...its nice to think that they'd just screw over the devoted fans who were willing to pre-order the show in advance by dropping the prices so soon after we already paid so much for them. Needless to say I've returned it for a refund and plan on waiting until they release a complete collection or for the price to go down later on.

I discovered the Parasyte manga a few years ago and it quickly became one of my favourites. Only recently did I discover that it had been made into a movie (two actually) and an anime series. I haven't seen the movies yet, but the anime is very close to the manga. The clothing and speech of the characters has been updated to modern times, and a few things are shown in a different order, but overall the series is a great adaptation of the story. My only complaint is that it's separated into part 1 and part 2. Not only do I have to buy them both (fairly costly considering the amount of episodes), but part 2 doesn't come out for about 3 months. Oh well, it was worth the wait for this collection, and I'm eagerly anticipating the arrival of the second.***Show has some mild nudity/sexual content, and is pretty brutal, although not as gory as the manga.

Amazing anime. Hoping something comes to save us from ourselves? This is what it would look like. Enjoy.

Great quality. Fast delivery.

Simply amazing.

Great show, its a great show to add to my collection!