Parasyte -the maxim-

Episode 4

This week started off with Shinichi and Migi's battle against A-san, and then slowed down for a while to explore the characters and their various internal dynamics. We saw some shifting in both Shinichi and Ryoko's perspectives, and got more perspective on Shinichi's relationship with his mother, before the episode finally ended with a pair of vague cliffhangers. Shinichi's parents are off to the countryside, and Ryoko is up to who-knows-what right here in the city.

The first scene of this episode was definitely the weakest, and for exactly the reason you'd expect - Parasyte's fairly questionable soundtrack. The actual fight with A-san was composed well, and offered exactly the exploration of Shinichi and Migi's clashing dynamic that I'd hoped for. The strategy they developed for A-san ended up being something of a reversal of their philosophies - whereas Migi was forced to be both cooperative and defensive, Shinichi was forced to actually stab someone he still perceived as a human. Unfortunately, the hyperactive, videogame-esque techno of this scene clashed fairly significantly with the drama as it was being presented - the scene was still effective, but it wasn't nearly as strong as it could have been.

From there, the episode made its way towards a series of confrontations for Tamiya Ryoko. Though last episode set her up largely as an antagonist, this episode ended up giving her something closer to a main character role. Ryoko is powerful and intelligent, but the limitations of her knowledge became clear as she was surprised by first the rejection of the faculty, and then her immediate discovery by her host body's mother. Unlike Migi, Ryoko doesn't have a human like Shinichi to guide her - to her logical, animalistic thinking, something like the faculty's unease at a pregnant but unmarried teacher comes off as completely unpredictable. And when her body's mother immediately realizes the creature she's watching is not her daughter, Ryoko can only wonder what power the woman could possibly possess.

That scene in particular was reflective of this episode's central theme - the nature of motherhood. As last episode highlighted, this is a key divide between humans and parasites - though parasites can make their host bodies pregnant, they cannot reproduce their own kind, and thus cannot propagate their species in a way reflective of traditional motherhood. In a clear reflection of this disconnect, Ryoko is baffled by the actions of her body's mother, and holds no affection for the creature growing inside her. In contrast to that, we see the depths of affection and understanding Shinichi's own mother exhibits for her son, highlighted through the flashback to her blocking him from scalding oil. Whether this instinct is intended to be reflective of human nature or simply the nature of creatures who can truly pass themselves on, the show has yet to reveal, but it's clear that the emotional nature of family will be a key point moving forward.

Beyond the big character elaborations and thematic contrasts, this episode also had a bunch of great little moments, as well. I liked the small ways the episode portrayed shifts in both Shinichi and Migi - when confronted by Ryoko early on, Shinichi's first instinct is “let's kill her” (a very animal-like, kill-or-be-killed instinct), which Migi counters with “could you kill the baby inside her?” (reflective of his growing understanding of Shinichi's values). Given the building moments of value-bleed, Ryoko's offhand “you're no longer pure” seems more obvious than arbitrary - Migi and Shinichi are clearly affecting each other, and both pure parasites and pure humans (like Shinichi's mother) are beginning to notice. And then there were various nice bits of scattered animation throughout, like the hideous melting of A-san's head as he tried to keep his body together, or Migi's bizarrely creepy-cute dog form.

Overall, Parasyte continues to be a very impressive production, hampered only by its occasionally misplaced or overbearing musical score. It's a black mark, but not a particularly crippling one - awkward soundtrack aside, Parasyte easily remains one of the most noteworthy shows of the season.

Rating: A-

Parasyte -the maxim- is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.

Nick writes about anime, storytelling, and the meaning of life at Wrong Every Time.