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Two projects are underway for the legendary manga Parasyte by Hitoshi Iwaaki. One is a live-action movie and the other is a TV anime series. The official name of the TV anime series is Parasyte: Probability of Survival, and it has been revealed that the broadcast will start in October. Also, the wonderful cast and talented staff give a peek into the amount of befitting effort going into this production.
The first piece of news that will likely cause a stir is that voice actress Aya Hirano will be playing Migi, the parasite that lives in main character Shinichi Izumi. Hirano is a popular voice actress who is known for having played Haruhi in The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya and Lucy in Fairy Tail. This time, she’s challenging herself with playing a strange and grotesque creature. Other cast members include Nobunaga Shimazaki as Shinichi Izumi, who coexists with Migi, and Kana Hanazawa as Shinichi’s classmate and childhood friend, Satomi Murano. A popular voice cast with extraordinary skill has been lined up.
Producing the anime is Madhouse, which has given the world a great many high quality anime over the years. Directing is Kenichi Shimizu and the series composer is Shōji Yonemura. Character designer Tadashi Hiramatsu is known for his designs on Kare Kano and Magical Shopping Arcade Abenobashi. Both his designs of cute girls and his work as an animator are highly reputed, and he’s now putting his talent into this series.
The original work to Parasyte is a manga by Hitoshi Iwaaki serialized in Kodansha’s Afternoon from 1989 to 1995. It’s a popular work with over 11 million copies in print. Shinichi Izumi is an ordinary high school student, that is until his right arm is infected with a parasite that suddenly comes to Earth. Because he is able to stop it from spreading to his chest, they are each able to continue living through a strange symbiotic relationship. Before long, Shinichi gets wrapped up in fighting against humans and other parasites. Through doing so, he closes in on realizing the values he should have.
Playing Shinichi in the live-action movie adaptation which is being produced at the same time as the anime is Shota Sometani. This will be a two-part project, with Part 1 releasing from Toho countrywide in Japan on Nov. 29 and Part 2 releasing sometime in 2015. The casting for Migi in this project will be announced shortly.
Parasyte: Probability of Survival
Broadcast to begin on Nippon TV and other networks this October
[Cast]
Original Work: Hitoshi Iwaaki (serialized in Kodansha’s Afternoon)
Director: Kenichi Shimizu
Series Composer: Shōji Yonemura
Character Designer: Tadashi Hiramatsu
Chief Animation Director: Toshiyuki Komaru
Art Director: Fuminao Akai
Color Setter: Ken Hashimoto
Director of Photography: Akane Fukuhara
CG Director: Naoya Fukushi
Editing: Kashiko Kimura
Music: Ken Arai
Sound Director: Chiaki yamada
Animation Production: Madhouse
© Hitoshi Iwaaki / Kodansha Ltd., VAP, NTV, 4Cast
Source: animeanime
