Netflix “Parasyte: The Grey” was released recently, and its time we talk about this drama!
This review will treat this project as a standalone project and not one that is to be measured based on the original material. I did not watch the Japanese dramas adaptation or read the original manga, so I have no form of reference.
Note: this will be a spoiler review of the drama. This is a subjective review.
Having said this, let us begin.
What interested me the most about this drama were two things. First, the director behind this drama directed the train to Busan and Hellbound, Yeon Sang-Ho. second, this drama will only be a total of 6 episodes which is definitely on the shorter side even for Netflix k-dramas.
And while I do think director Yeon Sang-Ho is to be admired because he knows how to direct a project, I don’t know if I could say the same about his screenwriting abilities. Some Korean directors know how to adapt a script into a proper k-drama, and others can’t. I feel like in the case of Yeon Sang-Ho specifically, he is somewhere in between. I wouldn’t say that he is quite excellent at it, but at the same time, he’s not so horrible to the point that you’re asking yourself why he’s been chosen to lead certain projects.
The drama, from a script point of view, feels like it has so much to say while simultaneously not having anything to say at all. The idea itself is very intriguing, and the fact that certain parasites came down and inhabited humans on this earth is very interesting. However, I felt like the drama did not capitalize so much on the fear angle of that as much as I had hoped it would.
It could be due to the Runtime of the drama, but everything seems to have been explored at a surface level, and maybe it’s because the director didn’t have much to say. Or maybe the producing company, which is Netflix, didn’t feel that much confidence in the drama itself. When I look at this script from an outside perspective and when I zoom out, I just feel that the drama is about good enough for six episodes, but at the same time I just feel like on its own, it’s not so interesting that it would be remembered in the long run.
And also it could be because you’ve gotten many great Netflix Korean dramas in the past that have similar premises to that in the sense that you have certain aliens or certain forms of parasites to deal with. This one didn’t feel as unique as it could have felt if it was produced let us say….. about four years back….
What could make it slightly memorable in the eyes of some viewers would be those who watch Korean dramas and Japanese dramas and have probably read the manga. Because the original character of the original manga makes an appearance in the finale of the drama, which adds a level of suspense as it feels like the director was sort of teasing a 2nd season without actually committing to the idea.
On one hand, it feels like he wrapped it up perfectly but on the other hand, it feels like he is preparing for a 2nd season. Of course, the teasing for the 2nd season this time around felt much less intense than…. let us say “Hellbound” for example, which he also directed.
Honestly, based on the way that the first season played out, I just don’t feel that this drama necessarily needs a second season as I don’t know to what degree will a second season be an improvement from the first season or theoretically, what more could be done. But again, if this drama was a huge success, of course, Netflix would be able to arrange something.
The idea of good versus evil, the idea of us being parasites, and how the actual parasites that inhabit humans could be a parallel to how we humans could be perceived as parasites to the earth we inhabit is interesting.
It is an idea worth exploring, and you get to see different sides and different perspectives. On one hand, you can understand that humans would feel the need to defend themselves against what they perceive to be a threat, but at the same time, you can realize the hypocrisy in this situation because in many occasions it feels like humans using their intelligence have inhibited and became the parasites of earth, in the sense that they do not necessarily treat it right but rather exploited it to the utmost of their abilities using their brains.
What distinguishes us from the rest of the animals is our ability to use our brain. And this preposes us to do some pretty horrible Things to the environment hurting the native species that inhabit it.
And while on one hand I could feel that this was the message that the screenwriter-director was going for, on the other hand, it also feels that it’s explored on a mere surface level. And it feels like you yourself have to go further and try to examine further this idea on your own, as the drama itself does not delve enough into it to make it an interesting point or a driving factor for the most part.
It feels like the director is more focused on the end goal of stopping the parasites rather than exploring the idea of parasites as humans and the parasites that came from the sky. And because the run time is so little, we don’t have enough time to ponder on the idea, you do get the occasional reference to this in the drama, but its not as impactful as I would have liked it to be.
Overall, it feels like the drama has some wasted potential here and there, but since I don’t know enough about the base material, I can’t be any more critical than I already am.
And this is without even going into details about how nonsensical the drama is at certain parts, and I am not talking about the parasites. Considering how some of the characters are portrayed as very smart, but there are many occasions and situations where you don’t feel that’s the case. By this, I mean the news of parasites not exploding on the scene as expected. Despite how fearsome the situation is, it felt contained for the most part so there was no huge sense of urgency.
In terms of performances, I would say I liked them. The performances across the board need to be given extra attention and praise because I have seen behind-the-scenes videos from the drama production, and I honestly would’ve kept laughing at how ridiculous the scenes are without any effects.
I have seen just how Little the director used actual/on-scene props and how much they relied on CGI in post-production. It must have been difficult for the actors to pretend that there is something huge when there wasn’t, they were so convincing.
In conclusion, “Parasyte: The Grey” is a fine production, do I think its stellar? no, but I don’t think its terrible either. It sits on the fence; I definitely believe it could have been much better in the hands of a more nuanced approach. I also think that the drama could have used a more experienced screenwriter to work on it beside the director himself as I feel like his screen writing abilities are not as good as his directing abilities.
So, what did you guys think of the Netflix drama? Did you like it or not? Let me know what you think in the comments section below.
