pluralstories | Parasyte, vol. 1, by Hitoshi Iwaaki (horror comic, 1988-1995)

"He's not watching me at all. He only sees me as Migi's host, doesn't think of me as a separate opponent."

Blurb: (from wiki) Brain-snatching, shapeshifting parasites start taking over people's bodies and eating humans, but when one goes after high schooler Shinichi, it goes wrong and ends up in his arm instead. Fed by Shinichi's circulatory system, Migi (his parasite) feels no desire to eat humans, and the two must work together to survive, avoid detection, and possibly protect humanity.

Why is it worth your time?: This manga has won awards and is a bestseller for good reason: it's good! The gore and body horror are lightened by goofy teenage boy humor, and Shinichi's resourcefulness and rising to the challenges of his situation are fun to watch, as are the interactions and mutual influence between him and Migi, who has very coldblooded, inhuman morality but seems to at least somewhat care about what Shinichi would want, if only out of enlightened self-interest. The narrative makes it very clear that Migi may be dangerous and inhuman, but he is not evil or malicious.

Plural Tags: abuse not mentioned, cofronting, nonhumans [man-made parasite], teamwork

Content Warnings: contain spoilers; see comments

Access Notes: This manga is easy to find due to its popularity. Available on paper and ebook, in Japanese and English. There have also been adaptations in Korean and Chinese (despite the manga being banned in China). There are anime and live-action versions, but I have no idea how they compare.

Misc Notes: Note that at this time, I've only read volume 1 of the 8-volume series, so this only applies to that volume!

Threaded | Flat

This is a horror comic where people get ripped apart and eaten! There is violence, blood, gore, and body horror out the wazoo. Also an instance of animal cruelty (kids bury a kitten alive up to the neck and throw rocks at it until Shinichi saves it and bawls them out), but the animal involved is okay at the end.

There are also a couple sad parts where a mother of someone parasitized recognizes that something has changed with their child, and is upset, but unable to understand what has fully happened. (One of these mothers gets murdered and eaten. The other is Shinichi's.)