History YMMV / Parasyte

** Uragami's realization that he's staring at a parasite-infected Shinichi as he goes from nonchalant to [[OOCIsSeriousBusiness a completely hardened stare]] became something of a reaction meme for people realizing ''something'' is amiss. In late 2023, the scene would actually resurface as a sped-up edited video set to an edited track of Tenseoh's Heartburn, used to depict someone "locking in" or getting extremely serious over a certain game or task.

* MagnificentBitch: Tamura Reiko is the most [[EnlightenedAntagonist scientifically-inclined and philosophical]] of her race. Finding safety for her fellow parasytes in rallying them together under the parasyte-sympathizing politician Takeshi Hirokawa, Tamura also invents the immensely powerful parasyte Gotou through experimentation. When she's attacked by three rival parasites, Tamura proves her ingenuity by [[ObfuscatingInsanity feigning madness]] to throw them off before easily dispatching them all. Taking interest in the unique bond of Shinichi Izumi and his parasite Migi, Tamura eventually tells the two of her hope for humanity and parasytes to coexist before she allows herself to be gunned down by the police, shielding and then passing off to Shinchi the only thing she ever really loved: [[TakeCareOfTheKids her human child]].

* EvilIsSexy:
%%** Tamura Reiko.
** For some, Gotou. It helps that he spends a lot of time shirtless.

** Uragami's realization that he's staring at a parasite-infected Shinichi as he goes from nonchalant to [[OOCIsSeriousBusiness a completely hardened stare]] became something of a reaction meme for people realizing ''something'' is amiss.

** Tamura Reiko.

** In the anime, there's a scene of Migi saying he'll find a way to make Shinichi feel better... while they're in the shower.

* CultClassic: While the manga is considered a straight-up classic in Japan, in the US and elsewhere it was more obscure for decades until the anime (and live-action movies) hit, causing a NewbieBoom. It was one of the first manga translated by Tokyopop (then Mixx) in the late 90s along with ''Sailor Moon'' and ''Magic Knight Rayearth'', and so while it didn't have the massive fanbases both had, it was well-regarded by its comparatively smaller audience at the time.

** The entire premise is based around a teenaged boy learning to bond with his hand. [[ADateWithRosiePalms Hm.]]

* SugarWiki/HeartwarmingMoments:
** In a TearJerker sort of way [[spoiler: Uda being the one to deliver the killing blow to the parasite that took over Nobuko's body because he felt that Shinichi shouldn't have to be the one to kill a creature that looks exactly like his mother is a heartwarming way of showing how genuinely decent Uda is as a person.]]
** Reiko Tamura [[spoiler:protecting her baby from the police. Instead of allowing him to get hit, she uses her hair to shield him, calmly allowing herself to be riddled with bullets. When she knows she's seconds from death, she gives him to Shinchi, earnestly asking him to make sure her son is taken in and raised well by a loving human family; he agrees, and she [[GoOutWithASmile dies with a faint smile.]] This shows how [[HumanityIsInfectious human]] she's become and how much she's [[CuriosityCausesConversion changed]] since her earlier days on Earth, where her main concern was pondering why parasytes existed.]]
*** And in one of the stories in the SequelSeries ''Neo Parasyte'', it is shown that Shinichi continues to check on and care for Reiko's orphaned son years later.
** During the above scene, Kana[[spoiler:'s spirit wordlessly encourages Murano ''not'' to give up on Shinichi, despite all the danger he's going through. Though they competed in heartbreaking silence, they both just wanted Shinichi to be happy. While Kana's now dead, she can still make sure Shinichi is happy.]]
** The anthology series ''Neo Parasyte'' offers plenty of these kind of moments:
*** In the story ''Migi's travels'', it is shown that Migi is still alive and dreaming eight years after the end of the original story, while Shinichi and Satomi are HappilyMarried and have a son together.
*** One of the stories details the unlikely friendship between a human and a Parasite. Taking place 20 years after the main series, "The Telapathist and the Parasite" follows high school student Acchan as he is unnerved by the NewTransferStudent Akira. After many of his classmates quickly believe him to be [[ProperlyParanoid a Parasite]], Acchan stops several of them from trying to cut some of his hair out to prove it. From there, Akira internally monologues about how several Parasites went into hiding following their public reveal, and that he was [[NonMaliciousMonster trying his best to understand and integrate with humans]], and has learned more becoming friends with Acchan than from countless books and TV. While Akira has to expose himself to protect Acchan from an incoming truck and goes into hiding, Acchan realizes that, much like Kana, he can sense Parasites, and he's certain that even if his face changes, he'll be able to recognize Akira if they meet again, since that's how strong their friendship is.
*** "The Royal Prince" details the beginning of a human-Parasite bond in a similar vein to Shinichi and Migi between a young girl named Yuki and her Parasite "Prince". While the circumstances behind their initial meeting aren't ideal, [[spoiler:Yuki being sedated in a mental hospital after witnessing the massacre of her family by a StalkerWithoutACrush]], Prince ends up proving to be devoted to protecting Yuki and caring for her quickly after making himself known, even familiarizing himself with her Shoujo manga to develop a more "princely" persona. [[spoiler:After having to witness her senpai be killed and discover that the killer of her family was her [[StalkerWithACrush best friend's]] body with a Parasite, Prince reveals that he had taken over part of her brain that snapped following her finding her family, and offers to merge further with that part of her brain to let her better control her emotions and avoid a breakdown. While he tries to frame it as pragmatism so she doesn't shut down entirely, it's clear he truly cares about her, and seeing her tearful smile actually gets him to understand what a human's "heart throbbing" means.]]
*** The ending to "Secret Library". After saving her from a Parasite disguised as a cop, Arai convinces Hinako to hear him out and explains to her how he met his Parasite, Sally, after his dad nearly killed him, and the grief he feels due to blaming himself after Sally killed his father to save him. While Hinako is initially hesitant due to fearing Sally, she realizes that Arai is really just a good guy blaming himself for something out of his control while being a StepfordSmiler. So, out of gratitude for him saving her, she decides to make sure he can smile for real again some day, and the two become closer. The relationship between them can easily bring to mind the relationship between Shinichi and Murano, meaning it's not hard to see it as the beginning of a romance, but even then it's a sweet sight just for seeing Hinako so easily want to help Arai stop blaming himself after she had been so apprehensive of being near him out of fear of Sally.

* AccidentalInnuendo: In the anime, there's a scene of Migi saying he'll find a way to make Shinichi feel better... while they're in the shower.

* WhatAnIdiot:
** Episode 9 gets this with Shinichi's classmate, Yuko Tachikawa. Instead of informing anyone, especially her brother who is working with the police, that Hideo Shimada (a parasyte) isn't all that he appears to be, she decides to confront him on her own. This action [[spoiler:ended up getting 17 people killed by said parasyte]]. ''[[DownplayedTrope However,]]'' she also doesn't have the slightest clue what Shimada actually is or ''just how scary'' parasytes can get, and she ''still'' [[BadassNormal nearly puts him out of commission all by herself.]] Also, the subsequent rampage he went on as a result of her attack caused Shinichi to kill him, which let the government get his hands on the body and make major strides in parasyte science. They certainly wouldn't have been able to develop the X-ray detection technology otherwise.
** Kana leaving her phone at home, causing [[spoiler: Shinichi to be unable to call her to tell her to stay still; she winds up getting murdered by a parasyte]]. Even if she thought Shinichi was just taking her on a date, she should have kept it with her in case he made a last-minute change. The manga was written before cellphones became commonplace, so she didn't have one originally, and thus it's more of a problem in the modernized anime adaptation.
*** More importantly Kana continues to seek out people her hightened senses draw attention to, even after Shinichi warns her that they're dangerous and despite knowing people are regularly turning up dead. [[spoiler: Unsurprisingly this gets her killed.]]
** The teacher and two students in episode 10 who spot Shimada in his mutated form. First of all, the see a giant monstrous claw launched through the window, so you'd expect them to get the police or something, not check it out themselves. Then they see Shimada punch the wall, leaving a huge hole. Instead of doing the smart thing and running away, they approach him because they think it's a mask.
** After Shinichi picks up Murano, jumps out of a window several stories high without injury then vaults a ten-foot fence with her in his arms she accepts his feeble explanation that it was just adrenaline.

*** The ending to "Secret Library". After saving her from a Parasite disguised as a cop, Arai convinces Hinako to hear him and explains to her how he met his Parasite, Sally, after his dad nearly killed him, and the grief he feels due to blaming himself after Sally killed his father to save him. While Hinako is initially hesitant due to fearing Sally, she realizes that Arai is really just a good guy blaming himself for something out of his control while being a StepfordSmiler. So, out of gratitude for him saving her, she decides to make sure he can smile for real again some day, and the two become closer. The relationship between them can easily bring to mind the relationship between Shinichi and Murano, meaning it's not hard to see it as the beginning of a romance, but even then it's a sweet sight just for seeing Hinako so easily want to help Arai stop blaming himself after she had been so apprehensive of being near him out of fear of Sally.

*** "The Royal Prince" details the beginning of a human-Parasite bond in a similar vein to Shinichi and Migi between a young girl named Yuki and her Parasite "Prince". While the circumstances behind their initial meeting aren't ideal, [[spoiler:Yuki being sedated in a mental hospital after witnessing the massacre of her family by a StalkerWithoutACrush]], Prince ends up proving to be devoted to protecting Yuki and caring for her quickly after making himself known, even familiarizing himself with her Shoujo manga to develop a more "princely". [[spoiler:After having to witness her senpai be killed and discover that the killer of her family was her [[StalkerWithACrush best friend's]] body with a Parasite, Prince reveals that he had taken over part of her brain that snapped following her finding her family, and offers to merge further with that part of her brain to let her better control her emotions and avoid a breakdown. While he tries to frame it as pragmatism so she doesn't shut down entirely, it's clear he truly cares about her, and seeing her tearful smile actually gets him to understand what a human's "heart throbbing" means.]]

** The ending to "Secret Library". After saving her from a Parasite disguised as a cop, Arai convinces Hinako to hear him and explains to her how he met his Parasite, Sally, after his dad nearly killed him, and the grief he feels due to blaming himself after Sally killed his father to save him. While Hinako is initially hesitant due to fearing Sally, she realizes that Arai is really just a good guy blaming himself for something out of his control while being a StepfordSmiler. So, out of gratitude for him saving her, she decides to make sure he can smile for real again some day, and the two become closer. The relationship between them can easily bring to mind the relationship between Shinichi and Murano, meaning it's not hard to see it as the beginning of a romance, but even then it's a sweet sight just for seeing Hinako so easily want to help Arai stop blaming himself after she had been so apprehensive of being near him out of fear of Sally.

*** One of the stories details the unlikely friendship between a human and a Parasite. Taking place 20 years after the main series, "The Telapathist and the Parasite" follows high school Acchan as he is unnerved by the NewTransferStudent Akira Suzuki. After many of his classmates quickly believe him to be [[ProperlyParanoid a Parasite]], Acchan stops several of them from trying to cut some of his hair out to prove it. From there, Akira internally monologues about how several Parasites went into hiding following their public reveal, and that he was [[NonMaliciousMonster trying his best to understand and integrate with humans]], and has learned more becoming friends with Acchan than from countless books and TV. While Akira has to expose himself to protect Acchan from an incoming truck and goes into hiding, Acchan realizes that, much like Kana, he can sense Parasites, and he's certain that even if his face changes, he'll be able to recognize Akira if they meet again, since that's how strong their friendship is.

* UncannyValley: In the story, parasytes are generally indistinguishable from normal humans. However, they tend to have [[DullSurprise completely blank expressions,]] and the artwork often endows them with slightly overlarge and sharply-defined eyes that give them a sinister appearance. [[spoiler:Extremely twisted humans such as Uragami also have these eyes.]]

** In the ''Neo Parasyte'' story ''Migi's travels'', it is shown that Migi is still alive and dreaming eight years after the end of the original story, while Shinichi and Satomi are HappilyMarried and have a son together.