The Grey A Sequel? Parasyte Anime Timeline Explained

WARNING: This article contains SPOILERS for Parasyte: The Grey.

Summary

• Parasyte: The Grey is a live-action spinoff set in the same universe as Parasyte.
• The Netflix K-drama stays faithful to the manga’s rules and continuity while focusing on new characters.
• Shinichi’s cameo in Parasyte: The Grey makes the ending of the K-drama a sequel to the manga.

Parasyte: The Grey connects to the original manga and anime and can be described as an extension of Parasyte’s story. While Parasyte: The Grey can be considered a Netflix live-action anime adaptation given it brings the world of Parasyte to a different media, the K-drama told an original story instead of retelling that of the manga. The cast of Parasyte: The Grey was led by Jeon So-nee as Su-in, an original protagonist whose story initially had nothing to do with that of Shinichi.

Even though Parasyte: The Grey was not directly adapting the manga, the Netflix 2024 K-drama made sure not to contradict the source material. Many of the rules about the parasites established in the manga were referenced in Parasyte: The Grey, for example. This opened the door for the live-action series to be not only an extension of Parasyte but also a proper spinoff set in the same continuity as the manga. Parasyte: The Grey’s ending proved this to be the case after all.

Parasyte: The Grey Is Both A Sequel And A Spinoff To Parasyte

Parasyte: The Grey takes place in the same universe as Parasyte

Parasyte: The Grey is set in the universe as the Parasyte manga, with most of the show taking place concurrently with Shinichi’s story. Parasyte, as well as its Parasyte: The Maxim anime adaptation, took place mostly in Japan, whereas Parasyte: The Grey was set in South Korea. In other words, both Parasyte and Parasyte: The Grey cover the same parasite invasion, only from the perspective of different countries. Su-in’s story does not intersect with that of Shinichi for the most part, but they exist in the same continuity as confirmed by the Netflix K-drama’s final scene.

Despite existing in the same universe as Parasyte, Netflix’s live-action Parasyte: The Grey did not rely too much on references and callbacks to the anime. Instead, it told a brand-new story focused on entirely different characters and only directly referenced the original Parasyte at the end of episode 6. Shinichi Izumi’s cameo in Parasyte: The Grey made it clear that the K-drama is not only a spinoff of the manga but also partially a sequel. Although most of Parasyte: The Grey happens concurrently with Parasyte, Shinichi’s cameo must have been set after the manga.

Parasyte: The Maxim
anime is available to stream on Hulu and Crunchyroll.

Parasyte: The Grey’s Shinichi Cameo Is Set After After Parasyte

Parasyte’s Shinichi Izumi appears in the live-action show

Shinichi does not leave Japan and goes to Korea in Parasyte, meaning his cameo in Parasyte: The Grey must be set after the end of the manga for it to work in terms of canon. It would also make a lot more sense for Shinichi to offer his help to a task force designed to study and track down parasites after the events of the manga, at the end of which he had learned a lot about these mysterious life forms. Shinichi would make for a great consultant to Team Grey considering everything he has gone through.

Interestingly, Parasyte: The Grey ends with a close-up shot of Shinichi’s right hand, teasing that Migi is about to appear. At the end of the manga, however, Shinichi enters a state of hibernation. If Parasyte: The Grey season 2 happens and features Shinichi Izumi, it will be interesting to see whether Migi will be part of the story. Regardless, Parasyte: The Grey is now the first ever proper sequel to Shinichi’s story from Parasyte, even though it comes from a different creator and is told in a different media.

Is Parasyte: The Grey Connected To The Live-Action Parasyte Movies?

Parasyte: The Grey isn’t the first live-action Parasyte project

Parasyte: The Grey is not connected to the live-action Parasyte movies, although the former exists in the same universe as the manga on which the latter was based. Whereas Parasyte: The Grey is a Parasyte spinoff that mostly takes place concurrently with the main story, the live-action films from 2014 and 2015 are a direct adaptation of the manga. The films were released close to the premiere of Parasyte: The Maxim, a synergy strategy that other manga properties have used ahead of their anime launches.

Shôta Sometani played Shinichi Inuzimi in the live-action Parasyte films, whereas Masaki Suda portrayed the character in Parasyte: The Grey. The movies were relatively faithful retellings of the manga, condensing most of the story into two films. Several characters from the source material appeared in Parasyte: Part 1 and Parasyte: Part 2. In Parasyte: The Grey, however, only Shinichi was not created for the horror K-drama – everyone else was an original character. Parasyte: Part 1 and Parasyte: Part 2 both received good reviews and delivered some solid visual effects.

Stream on Netflix