Tokyo 1970: I'll draw Doraemon?

It feeds on humans, its face wide open, covered in fangs. Yesterday's victim, today, in this swiftest way, devoured the head of his former wife!

He can no longer be called human; he can be called a parasite by another name.

The reader broke out in a cold sweat. He looked around; the people around him were the same as before, but he was worried. Could there be monsters among these people who prey on humans?

Chapter 84: Sales Soar

If the horror of "Tomie" lies in its horrifying visuals, then in "Parasyte," Oikawa Ji undoubtedly toned it down, with the terrifying visuals becoming merely embellishments.

It is the more chilling the details that truly make one shudder.

Since the parasite couldn't take away Shinichi Izumi's brain, it had no choice but to eat his right hand, thus forming a symbiotic relationship between the two.

One needs the nutrients from Shinichi Izumi's body to survive, and the other requires the presence of a parasite, otherwise it will become disabled.

Faced with a "right hand" that can twist and deform, grow eyes and hands, and steal the blade aimed at him, Shinichi Izumi has no choice but to coexist with this monster.

A murderous demon roams the city, and the original owner's family members are the first to be killed. Incidents of dismemberment and devouring corpses are constantly being exposed.

Currently, Shinichi Izumi is probably the only person who knows the truth about the world.

This is the plot of the first chapter of Parasyte, which is a full forty pages long.

"That's really interesting."

Readers exclaimed in surprise, "Who drew this manga? It's much more appealing than 'Tomie'!"

He closed the magazine and looked at the author's name, Oikawa Ji, on the cover.

"Huh? This is Oikawa-sensei's work. He drew 'Parasyte' in just one month? That's amazing."

"I knew it. Tomie was his experiment. Although it didn't receive good reviews, he learned from the experience and will be able to produce works that are more suitable for young people to read next."

The plot of Parasyte has not yet unfolded, and only a small part of the monsters' abilities has been revealed.

But the sense of urgency created by the story is undeniable.

Some humorous scenes in the plot alleviated the oppressive feeling that horror comics can bring.

The two complement each other perfectly, keeping the reader on the edge of their seat while allowing for a smooth and enjoyable reading experience without any negative emotions. Instead, the reader is eager to see what happens next.

"It has a bit of a shonen manga feel to it, with Shinichi Izumi fighting monsters and saving the citizens."

"It's actually quite similar to Shotaro Ishinomori's 'Kamen Rider,' isn't it? The enemy and the hero share the same origin, with monsters on one side and heroes who utilize monster abilities on the other."

……

Parasyte has generated some discussion and received very positive reviews.

The readers who came because of the huge public outcry caused by Fushimikawa's previous work "Tomie" no longer left; they settled down in the face of the charm of "Parasyte".

With the release of chapters two and three of Parasyte, the level of discussion has risen to a new level.

The monster in Shinichi Izumi's "right hand" was not irrational; on the contrary, it was very calm. After assessing its current situation, it reached an agreement with Shinichi Izumi, and the two agreed to coexist peacefully.

It even cherishes Shinichi Izumi's body immensely, since it is its source of nutrition.

The "right hand" is curious about everything and reads through all the books in Shinichi Izumi's bedroom, gradually understanding how human society works.

The only thing I don't understand is probably about human nature.

Shinichi Izumi has a crush on his female classmate Yukino and wants to mate with her, but he gets very angry after being pointed out by "Right Hand".

Right hand: "It seems my understanding of human society is still insufficient."

While six dismemberment cases occurred across the country in a short period of time, their relationship grew closer, and Shinichi Izumi even gave his right hand a name, "Right".

The peaceful days came to an end one day. "Right" had the ability to sense the approximate location of his companions. They searched the past and found a dog eating another dog.

Not only humans, but dogs can also be parasitized.

Upon seeing Shinichi Izumi, its killing intent was exceptionally strong!

The dog's head split open and elongated, transforming into a huge wing membrane like a bat's wings!

It used this to fly through the air and attack Shinichi Asahi!

The "right" whip stretched out like a whip and lashed out at the alien dog in the air. The end of the whip was a claw made of sharp claws. In the blink of an eye, it pierced through the alien dog's body and pulled out its still trembling heart!

In just a moment, the dog died!

Parasites rely on the host's internal organs and digestive system to survive; once these organs are damaged, they will die!

The merciless killing of its own kind by "Right" terrified Shinichi Izumi.

Meanwhile, the number of people being killed is increasing.

If a parasite transforms its head into a blade and spins it once, a human's life will end before they even have a chance to react.

Shinichi Izumi felt uneasy and wanted to reveal the existence of "Right" so that people could study it.

The "right" cannot understand this; to it, this is a very dangerous thing, and the most precious thing should be life.

Moreover, humans are the species most deserving of the title "devil," as they eat almost any animal.

If a hamburger doesn't taste good, people will just throw it away. It's made of pork or beef.

No pity, no one cares, this is the norm.

Parasites only eat the species they parasitize. It's much simpler than humans.

In other words, "Are humans the only ones who cannot be killed?"

"Right" couldn't understand Shinichi's thoughts for the time being, so he could only threaten him to protect their secret.

Shinichi Izumi's existence is a threat to the parasites. After all, no matter how powerful the parasites are, they are still just mortals. Their terror lies in their secrecy and their unknown nature.

When another parasite that had infested a human discovered Shinichi Izumi's presence, it immediately launched an attack. If it weren't for "Right's" help, Shinichi would have been dead.

Shinichi felt very conflicted watching the children abusing cats and treating life like a toy.

Perhaps to parasites, humans are just cats.

……

"Parasyte has begun to explore philosophical questions."

Oikawa doesn't directly criticize humanity's problems; he simply creates a fictional perspective from a species that feeds on humans. By viewing issues from their point of view, he criticizes the waste of food and disrespect for life.

What's commendable is that the protagonist's stance is very clear. He is human, so he stands on the side of humanity.

This gives the comic its contradictions and points of conflict.

Readers can understand both sides' positions and thus reflect upon them.

In the Tokyo Shimbun, reporter Otsuka's review appeared in the newspaper's "Arts, Sports and Leisure" section, specifically in the book section.

He highly praised Parasyte.

The comic was praised for not relying on violence and gore to win over readers, but instead choosing to delve into the core of the story.

"Those who die from Minamata disease due to environmental pollution suffer even more; they are killed by 'parasites,' dying as nature's revenge."

As a critic, he naturally interpreted "Parasyte" in a way that leaned towards essay comprehension.

Readers are different; they only know that the story is interesting.

On one side is the peaceful daily life surrounding Shinichi Izumi, and on the other side is the deadly crisis of a bizarre parasitic disaster.

People enjoy the pleasures of life, but a group of predators lurk around them.

They devour human brains, seize bodies, possess perfect camouflage abilities, and are no less intelligent than humans, achieving perfect hunting through various means.

Aside from Shinichi Izumi, no one else knows the current state of affairs, surrounded by monsters. Perhaps one day, in some place, someone you once knew will suddenly reveal their true form, their head twisted and deformed, covered in fangs, and they'll bite off their own head and devour it whole!

"Xiao You is very interesting, and he's kind of adorable and a bit silly."

When Fushimikawa saw the reader's letter, he couldn't help but shake his head.

"There are still too many people who are curious about the unusual; I can't compete with them."

He spent all his time drawing "Parasyte", so he naturally stopped working on "Tomie".

A group of people actually sent a complaint letter to Mirai-sha, hoping that Fushimikawa would resume the short story serialization of "Tomie".

Part of the reason is that Tomie is very cute, and they can't live without her.

The fault in this regard stems from the artistry of Fushimikawa.

He drew Tomie so beautifully that there were no comparable works on the market, which is why Tomie became a heartthrob.

Fushimikawa believes that there may be a lot of fan art of Tomie at this year's CM Expo.

On the other hand, there are a niche readership. They really like horror and grotesque comics, and they were eager to turn "Tomie" into a long-running manga, since it was just a short story with no future.

Fushimikawa expressed his helplessness regarding this.

When Tomie was serialized, Weekly Youth Future sold around 15 copies.

There were only three issues of Parasyte, and that number was clearly not enough.

Toriji Co., Ltd. also submitted an application, hoping that Mirai Co., Ltd. could increase the circulation of "Weekly Youth Future".

"This is the result we determined based on our data analysis."

They provided a range of values.

Between 22 and 30.

After analyzing and comparing data from various sources, Future Publishing's senior management ultimately decided to increase the circulation of Weekly Youth Future to 26 copies.

"We are a business magazine, and sales are our priority. We can only apologize to the fans of Tomie."

If possible, after shonen and shojo manga, when Mirai-sha starts a niche manga magazine, Tomie will see the light of day again.

……

In the editor-in-chief's office of Weekly Shonen Sunday, Shizuo Watanabe's expression was strange and distorted.

If people saw this, they would inevitably suspect that he had been parasitized by a parasite.

No one could understand the complex feelings of Watanabe Shizuo.

"Only a month has passed, and Oikawa has already turned the tables spectacularly. How did this happen? Is success in this world really that simple?"

He also hoped that Oikawa would stumble and become disheartened about starting his own magazine, choosing to return to Sunday, so that the two could reconcile and continue to create the Doraemon myth.