Anime Rants: Kiseijuu: Sei no Kakuritsu

Konbanwa, minna!

Guess what? Guess what?

The promotional poster for Kiseijuu

I'm so hyped up right now, so expect a lot of updates from me :D. Earlier this year, I saw an advert on Animax about Parasyte: The Maxim (Kiseijuu: Sei no Kakuritsu) where alien brain-eaters spread their spores on Earth. It looked cool because the eerie setting made Animax look absolutely hardcore (you'd agree with me- coz all it airs is stuff like Assassination Baby and Lucky Star). I didn't start with the anime right away, though. I did a little searching about Kiseijuu, and it turns out it has a manga made prior to the anime. And to be honest, Kiseijuu is a huge achievement for me, because it's the first online manga I've finished ever. Not after having severe migraines, of course (flashing black and whites of the page-scrolling =-=).

So, quick intro about Kiseijuu! Kiseijuu, or Parasyte is a manga series written and illustrated by Hitoshi Iwaaki. It's an old series too, having to be published from 1988 to 1995. Seeing only the covers remind me of a lot of oldies like City Hunter or Cowboy Bepop. It has 10 volumes, and it's of the horror and sci-fi genres. The anime adaptation, Kiseijuu: Sei no Kakuritsu (Parasyte: The Maxim) aired in 2014 and ended in spring 2015, ranging around 24 episodes. Recently, it's been adapted into 2 part live action films in Japan: Kiseijuu: Sei no Kakuritsu (Parasyte: The Last Maxim) and Kiseijuu: Kanketsu-hen (Parasyte: The Final Act). 

The cover of Parasyte's first volume

The promotional poster for the first Parasyte live action film

The manga didn't have much of an emotional effect on me... because I don't get in the hype while reading manga as I do with anime. Well, except for that one chapter in Chocolat no Mahou, but.... Nevermind that. But then again... I did get a little teary while reading Kiseijuu. Okay, a LOT teary. SPOILER ALERT: the part where Migi got severed from Shinichi's arm and Shinichi was barely surviving... WHY?!?!? I've only gone halfway through the anime (episode 6, it hurts my little kokoro T^T), but since I already know what's gonna happen next... I don't mind having a little watching hiatus.

So what do I think of both the manga and anime? Well... The first thing that caught my eye was the art styles.

A screenshot from the anime's opening; only drawn in the manga's art style

The original screenshot from the opening, with the anime's art style

 Well... The anime's art style sure made Shinichi stronger (and hotter) than he originally is, that's for sure... even with his nerd glasses on. Fair warning: the manga is EXTREMELY graphic. You've been warned. Not like the anime's any lighter on the gore... but the manga doesn't move, so some of you might tend to stare at the bloody masses. Just don't.

Sure, it has the violence... But it doesn't lack of human emotion: the grief, some light jokes here and there.... It doesn't cease to please. And if you're like me who are those people who watch violent anime whenever you're mad... Go ahead.

BONUS: Check out these cool Kiseijuu tracks by Amanda Lee and NateWantsToBattle!

I'll have more rants, so till then... Nao out.

.:MIMI TACHIKAWA:.
~Ajisai HaNa~