“Parasyte: The Grey” (Season 1) is a story of parasites falling from elsewhere and taking a human’s body. The parasites eat away human brains and take control of them completely. Su-in has had a tough childhood and is lonely as an adult. She gets into a fight with a customer at her work, and he decides to follow her and kill her. However, a parasite takes over her body, and she does not know it yet. Meanwhile, some humans are not infected, and parasites have taken over human bodies. The war of parasites vs human beings begins.
This article contains spoilers.
Parasyte: The Grey (Season 1) Recap:
Episode 1
The episode begins with people discussing online about what would happen if the human population were reduced to half. People in the group tease Lee Kyung-chun that he is infuriated and does not have what it takes to kill anyone. There are parasite larvae falling from the sky. There is an EDM party happening, and a man has passed out because of being drunk. A parasite gets inside of him through his ears. His friend tries to wake him up, but he is still sleeping.
He wakes up as soon as she leaves and goes to the party. His friend is happy to see him, but he looks at her, and his head turns into that of a monster with tentacles. He starts killing everyone he sees without mercy. One hour before this incident, Kyung-chun visits a supermarket, does not weigh his meat, and argues with Jeong Su-in. Kyun-chun is so annoyed that he verbally expresses that he could kill everyone. Su-in finishes her shift and leaves but notices a car parked.
She gets on her two-wheeler and rides, and the car follows her. Kyung-chun is following her, and she tries to escape as much as possible, but he hits her with the car. Kyung-chun takes out a knife and starts stabbing her. Su-in tries to escape but, because of the wounds, falls. He tries to find her when a parasite falls next to Su-in. Kyung-chun finds her and is about to attack, but his body is slashed into two halves. A passer-by sees the vehicles and calls the police.
Detective Cheol-min is briefed about the case by his subordinates. They tell him that Kyung-chun attacked Su-in, but his body is slashed at the same time. The scars on Su-in’s body seem like it is old wounds, and they couldn’t find the stabs from being attacked by Kyung-chun. The case is confusing to them all. However, Cheol-min knows Su-in and is worried. They tell him he has lost consciousness. Su-in has a vision from her memory about a mother and son, and the lady gives money to Su-in, asking her not to show up again.
Cheol-min and the other officers meet Su-in, and she tells them that she does not have any scars and she remembers getting stabbed. Cheol-min talks to Su-in alone, and she tells him she is grateful and alive because of him. Her father used to abuse her physically, and at the age of 10, she had called the police, and Cheol-min had saved her. Cheol-min reassures her, saying she is alive because of herself and no one else.
A few months later, rival gangs have a problem, and Seol Kang-woo tries to kill the rival gang’s boss. He does not finish the job, and his henchmen are behind him. Kang-woo escapes, and his friends tell him to lay low as the rival gang is looking for him. He sneaks into his sister’s house and finds her behavior strange. He sees a brochure for a church prayer meeting. Su-in has started to work again, and Cheol-min calls to tell her to take it easy and be careful.
Her ear starts humming loudly on the bus, and a strange man stares at her. Su-in is scared and gets off the bus immediately. In another case, a man with good contacts and power takes a girl to a hotel. She insists on going to her place, but more men in suits arrive once they get there. He threatens them, but the girl turns into a monster and is immediately shot, and a smoke gas is sprayed. The special police forces arrive, and they try to take down the monsters.
They manage to kill a few, but one of them escapes. He finds a man tied with a mask inside the police vehicle and asks if he is one of them, as they are all monsters. The man is trying to help the other one when Choi Joon-kyung stops him with a gun, but he escapes. Choi wanted the monster alive to use him as a hunting dog to catch the rest. They find a storage unit in a place filled with dead bodies. Choi realizes the monsters are allying with their own.
Kang-woo’s sister leaves the house, saying she will be approaching someone, and Kang-woo follows her. Su-in sees the strange man again, and Kang-woo’s sister and the man circle Su-in. They ask her if she is one of them, and a monster gets out from one-half of Su-in’s face and says she is. They give her a brochure to join their forces. Kang-woo is witnessing all this, and his sister becomes a monster, which scares him. He is caught by Su-in, who scares him by asking him to do something for him.
Su-in passes out, and Kang-woo waits. He tells her about the monster inside her and tells her not to join forces with the other monsters as instructed. He tells her that she is a mutant. Su-in writes about whether she has a monster inside her and sleeps. She wakes up to find more wording on it. The parasite in her encourages her to ask more questions about the condition so it can answer her. Through the notebook and a video recording, the parasite tells her that when it entered her body, it couldn’t feed on her brain as it healed her wounds, and she is a mutant. It comes out only when she is in danger. The parasite decided to protect the body protecting it.
The Special Forces are scanning the police for an X-ray to determine if anyone is infected. Choi briefs them about the situation. She asks them to use a shotgun to kill the monsters and plunk someone’s hair to find out if they are humans or monsters. If it is the parasite, the hair will vanish. She gives them the good news that none of them are infected. Later, she brings out the man in their truck and says it is her husband who is infected, and using him, they are tracking the monsters. She requests their cooperation and asks them to turn in any unresolved cases or deaths and crimes so they can find the monsters. Su-in is scared of seeing a video of herself in monster form.
Episode 2
The episode begins with Kang-woo exchanging his watch in a pawnshop. He then visits a mobile center to fix his younger sister’s (Jee-hee) phone. He needs a bike to move around, and the shop’s owner asks him for some time to fix the bike. The mobile shop owner tells Kang-woo that men are looking for him, and as he visits the bike shop, the owner has ratted him out. The rival gang members come in cars to kill Kang-woo.
Kang-woo escapes and fights some of them. He calls his friend Kyu-min and informs him about the rival gang. He asks to meet him later at night to help him with some money. Officer Won-seok meets Choi and thanks her for all the work she is doing. He gives her all the case files that the Special Forces can examine. Won-seok is a big fan of Choi’s and gets her autograph on her book about profiling criminals. He also wants to get into the Special Forces, but she asks him to catch some parasites and will give him a good word.
Among the case files is Su-in’s file. Cheol-min visits Su-in at the supermarket. He talks to her and asks her to contact him if she ever needs help. He makes an excuse and pulls out one of her hairs, but he does not see anything happen to it immediately. As they are talking, Su-in notices one of the parasites walking. Cheol-min gives her a present. Meanwhile, Kang-woo is watching the church from afar, wondering what is going on there.
Kang-woo’s sister and the strange man ask Su-in to get inside the car as the pastor wants to meet her. Once inside the church, she sees many other infected parasites/humans inside. The pastor shows a video of another kin member who has escaped the Special Forces. He tells them about the research police are conducting and why the kin/parasites need to be aware as they are hunting them down. The pastor tells the kin that the police are working because of the organization, and they must kill all humans.
Kang-woo notices a building next to the church and enters. He sees a lot of dead bodies hanging. Just as when he is about to leave, a parasite-human enters. When Kang-woo tries to escape, he spots his sister Jee–hee’s dead body, and he fights the monster and runs out. The pastor realizes there is an intruder and asks the kin to kill him. Kang-woo runs but bumps into the rival gang. The parasite humans catch up to him and kill the rival gang members. He runs into Su-in, who helps him reach the gas station.
The strange man can fly and spot their car. In the car, Kang-woo realizes Kyu-min has ratted him out and starts to fight. The monster jumps on the bumper, and Su-in’s parasite comes out and fights him. The car crashes, and the strange man/parasite strikes Kyu-min. Kyum-min reveals their boss wants Kang-woo dead to make peace with the rival gang. Su-in fights the strange man/parasite and kills him. She passes out, wakes up, and helps Kang-woo. Choi gets to Su-in’s file and realizes she is a parasite.
Episode 3
The episode begins with a flashback. Choi and her husband are at the supermarket. She goes inside to get something, and a parasite enters her husband. The parasite inside him starts killing people, and Choi manages to lock him inside a room in the supermarket. She is upset seeing him in a monster form. Kang-woo speaks to Su-in and refers to the parasite inside her as Hyde. He feels that name is scary and calls it Heidi.
Su-in tells him about the time Cheol-min helped her, and they decide to call him and tip off the Saejin church. Kang-woo calls Cheol-min and tells him about it. He then tells Won-seok, who wants to inform Choi. Cheol-min decides to inform her himself. She asks about Su-min, and he tells her that he had done the hair test and she passed. He informs her about Saejin Church, and so does her assistant. They decide to visit the place, and they only find some dead bodies.
Cheol-min finds Su-min’s keychain there and keeps it inside his pocket. Choi sees him take something, but she does not know what. The team is figuring out the victims, and the others are looking for leads. Through the investigation, they realize the church pastor (Kwon Hyuk-ju) is missing. Choi asks someone to tail Cheol-min. Won-seok goes to another building and meets the pastor. He informs him that a man had tipped off the police.
The pastor gives Won-seok a special dagger and asks him to kill Choi’s husband as he threatens all parasites. Even though he hasn’t turned, won-seok is working with the parasites instead of humans. Cheol-min asks Su-in to meet him, and she recommends meeting at an abandoned amusement park, as Kang-woo advises. He gives her the keychain and asks if she is in danger. Choi finds them, and Kang-woo pushes the detectives, and they hide.
Choi finds them inside the haunted house of the amusement park. Heidi comes out, and they devise a plan. However, Kang-woo escapes, and the cops surround Choi. Won-seok kills Choi’s husband, and Kang-woo watches him. Choi comes out and finds his dead body and is devastated. She is also furious. Cheol-min is begging the Special Forces to leave Su-in alone, but they warn him to move away. Choi, angry, brings her husband’s helmet and puts it on her head.
Episode 4
The episode begins with a briefing with the higher-ups. Choi and Cheol-min disagree about whether Su-in is a monster or not. Choi has seen Su-in, but the test results show otherwise. Su-in is in a coma and under constant observation. The parasite Heidi takes Su-in deep within her subconscious and shows her old house. Su-in expresses how she felt when she called the police on her father. People always looked at her like she was a monster.
She visited her mother, and she didn’t miss her either. The parasite explains that she reminds her mother of her abusive father and tells her she has always had people encouraging her, like Cheol-min. Cheol-min’s subordinates tell him about Kang-woo. Kang-woo is annoyed with the news as there isn’t any information about the parasites. He gets on a bus to leave town, but Cheol-min finds him.
Cheol-min handcuffs him, but Kang-woo tells him that there is a monster in the police force. He tells him about Won-seok and what he saw. Cheol-min wants to give Kang-woo a chance and asks him what happened between him and Su-in. He tells him everything and offers him a deal. He tells him to help save her and that he will protect Kang-woo. Kang-woo hesitates, and after Cheol-min triggers him, he agrees.
As discussed, Kang-woo uses the access key Cheol-min gave to enter the Special Forces. Won-seok informs the pastor about Su-in’s move to a new area. Kang-woo successfully reaches the area, and Choi takes away the remote and asks him (who is dressed like a guard) to stay inside with Su-in to monitor her. They begin to move, and Cheol-min gets inside his car, abusing Kang-woo, but Won-seok also gets inside.
There is a traffic jam, and the parasites are all out and start killing people. A war-like situation breaks out between the cops and parasites. Kang-woo manages to take the remote from Choi and helps Su-in. They both get into a stranger’s vehicle and drive. Won-seok asks Cheol-min to get in, but he goes in a different direction. Su-in is caught up, and she wants to help Cheol-min. Won-seok reveals his true self, and the pastor comes out. Cheol-min shoots, but the parasite kills him and takes his body as Su-in is approaching. Su-in and the pastor in Cheol-min’s body fight, but Kang-woo comes to the rescue. The parasite asks Won-seok not to bother, as they both want to preserve themselves and are not a threat. Kang-woo asks Heidi about Su-in, and the parasite says Su-in needs time to heal.
Episode 5
The episode begins with a flashback. Jee-hee works in a store, and one of the customers apologizes, saying her brother is not helping out and her sister is unwell. She calls her friend Ki-seok, and he advises her to leave Kang-woo a message. Soon, she gets home, and along with her sister Kyung-hee, even the pastor is there. Jee-hee runs for her life and is about to message Kang-woo, but the pastor and Kyung-hee attack and kill her.
In the present, Kang-woo calls Ki-seok and asks for his help. Kyung-hee has access to Jee-hee’s phone and knows where Su-in and Kang-woo are going. She calls the pastor and informs him that she will kill Su-in that night. Su-in is determined to talk to Choi and explain things, hoping she will understand. They watch the news, and reports about the battle between the parasites and humans are screened.
Parasite Cheol-min and Won-seok give a tip-off about a meeting place for the parasites and insist that they should make a move and kill them all. The cops watch the place from afar and find many parasites walking in. They decide to attack at sunrise. Su-in calls her phone, and Choi receives it. She tries to explain, but Choi stays arrogant about her point of view. Su-in gives in and asks to meet her.
They meet at a restaurant’s rooftop. Su-in tells Choi about parasites Cheol-min and Won-seok and begs her to believe her. Choi has come up with a backup, and she asks Su-in to join them in helping kill the parasite. Heidi comes out and runs away. Kang-woo comes to her rescue again. Heidi tells Kang-woo that Su-in is irresponsible and cannot come out for three hours once she passes out.
Ki-seok calls Kang-woo because his sister Kyung-hee has come to meet him. Kang-woo tries to tell Ki-seok to run away, but Kyung-hee takes the monster form and asks him to bring Su-in. Su-in tells Kang-woo that she will buy time, and they reach Ki-seok’s house. Meanwhile, Kyung-hee tells Su-in that she knows she is a mutant and is a threat to parasites, and hence, she needs to be killed. Ki-seok jumps on Kyung-hee, and she kills him.
Choi does the hair-plucking test on Won-seok, and he passes. Kang-woo calls Choi, but she tells him about Won-seok and Su-in butts in, saying he is undoubtedly working with the parasites. Choi keeps the phone on and instructs them to call her senior if he dies on the mission. Parasites Cheol-min and Won-seok also kill parasites. Choi tells Su-in that she is the only parasite alive in the area. Kyung-hee sees the parasite Cheol-min kill his kin and feels an emotion that humans feel betrayed. Su-in and Kang-woo realize that the real target is the mayor, and the pastor can switch bodies with them. They recognize the real danger during the music festival.
Episode 6
The episode begins with a flashback. Won-seok is playing golf with his friends, and they mention sending Wok-seok’s child abroad to study. Won-seok’s wife is sad as Won-seok can’t afford it in a cop’s salary. However, they also mention something about the pastor’s wife. Won-seok promises to check on them. Won-seok visits the pastor’s house and finds his wife dead. The pastor turns into a monster and makes a deal with Won-seok.
Parasite Cheol-min is now ready to execute his plan, and Won-seok asks if he can be a government member. Parasite Cheol-min asks him to pick whatever role he wants, and Won-seok is thrilled. Subsequently, Parasite Cheol-min gives a press conference, and during the conference, he shows pictures of Su-in and Kyung-hee, asking the public to report them to the police if they find them. After the meeting, Choi asks parasite Cheol-min what he had taken during the Seojin church raid and gave to Su-in.
Parasite Cheol-min does not know anything, which raises suspicion. Parasite Cheol-min tells Won-seok that Choi suspects them and asks him to use the organization to kill her. Kyung-hee calls Kang-woo and asks to meet and team up. He is annoyed, but Su-in takes the call and agrees to meet. In the garden, Heidi asks Kang-woo to stay away, and she will talk to Kyung-hee. She expresses her betrayal, and Heidi tells her plan to kill the parasite Cheol-min. Kang-woo makes a move to kill Kyung-hee, but he locks her.
He tells her after killing parasite Cheol-min, he will kill her next. Through their conversation, it is apparent that all three want the parasite Cheol-min dead. The preparations for the music festival are going well. Choi gets a result about the killing of a hunting dog and wonders if what Su-in told her is true. Meanwhile, she gets a call from the higher-ups saying Cheol-min has reported another meeting at another church, and team Grey is supposed to take out the parasites.
Parasite Cheol-min and the team will take care of the security for the music festival. Choi finds it odd but does as she is told. She gets a call from Heidi, and she tells her about their plan and asks her to be there if she wants the pastor dead. Choi makes a decision and turns around to reach the music festival. Kang-woo is inside the festival, keeping Su-in and Kyung-hee updated on the movements. Su-in feels bad for Heidi as she cannot take over completely. Kyung-hee, however, suggests that is why Heidi is powerful as she fights desperately to protect herself and Su-in.
Parasyte: The Grey (Season 1) Ending Explained:
Will Su-in and Heidi learn to live in the same body?
Parasite Cheol-min kills the mayor’s bodyguards, and Kang-woo helps the mayor escape. Heidi fights Choi, and she asks if it is essential to kill her because she has no intention to harm her or anyone else and runs inside. Kyung-hee is fighting the parasite on its own as Cheol-min’s head is chopped off. Won-seok starts shooting at her from behind. She asks Kang-woo and the mayor to run, but before she continues the fight, she apologizes to Kang-woo.
The parasite and Won-seok kill Kyung-hee. The parasite is struggling on its own, but it kills Won-seok, takes its body, and starts attacking the mayor. Heidi comes to the rescue and asks them to run away. Kang-woo sends the mayor off safely. Parasite Won-seok is asking Heidi to join him and lead the humans as their leader. Choi arrives and points the gun at Heidi. Parasite Won-seok asks Choi to shoot. Heidi sees the parasite on the floor behind Choi. Heidi makes a move at the same time. Choi sees a reflection of Won-seok’s head and realizes it’s empty. Heidi kills the parasite, and Choi kills Won-seok.
Heidi tells Choi that Su-in feels left out of the community of humans and is in her hands now. Kang-woo comes in crying, seeing Su-in fall down. Su-in goes back to work as usual, and Kang-woo visits her. He tells her Choi has given him a spot to work in Team Grey and gives him a letter from Heidi. Heidi mailed the letter to him to read in a human voice. Kang-woo gets emotional, and in the end, Heidi writes that whether she likes it or not, she is never alone. Kang-woo tells Su-in that Choi also has a spot for her if she is interested. A journalist from Japan visits Choi to discuss unique information about the parasites. Choi meets him, and something feels odd.
The ending seems like there could be a season 2 with an international parasite problem. If Su-in agrees to join Team Grey, she can help spot parasites and save humanity. The ending is also emotional as it suggests that Heidi is going to remain inside Su-in but is going to leave her alone to lead an everyday life as a human being without worrying about Heidi coming out. Kang-woo also gets closure from Kyung-hee, making him emotional. The parasite’s idea of organization and power makes you think about the functioning of human society. Won-seok is an excellent example of how he switched to the side of the parasites for power.
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