The Immunanime Lesson

Imagine the inside of your body. Those of us who are scientifically minded are probably imagining a muddled mess of blood, guts, and tissue. Now, think about it on a microscopic level. Are you seeing the inside of a biology textbook now? What kind of look would you give me if I told you that as of about a week ago, I started viewing the inside of my body as a bunch of anime characters? Probably not a good one, and that’s understandable. Thinking about anime characters usually carries the connotation associated with a forty year old man living in his parents’ basement. However, despite the stigma surrounding anime culture, Akane Shimizu’s manga and anime Cells at Work serves as much more than an escape from the realities of adulthood. The mini series, airing on American streaming services right now, serves as an introduction to functional immunology by depicting your cells as quirky, animated workers in a giant factory paralleling the human body.

Cells at Work is easily one of the most innovative animes, or even TV shows, that I’ve ever seen. Each episode revolves around a different immunological function, whether it’s immune cell differentiation, innate immunity, or battling a pathogen. Each immune cell has a corresponding character, their designs and traits referencing cell functions and quality. The story follows a klutzy red blood cell whose stupidity is a reference to its lack of a nucleus, or cell control center. This red blood cell befriends a calm and collected neutrophil, who guides her through the trials and tribulations of carrying a box of oxygen around the body. The duo encounters platelets, depicted as small children to reference their short maturation period, the hot headed cytotoxic t-cells, the antibody-happy b-cell, a high strung helper t cell and his busy cytokines, and more. Pathogens are the main antagonists, depicted as cheesy anime villains with tentacles and fangs. Viruses are little hats that turn the cells that wear them into zombies, parasites resemble godzilla, and cancer cells look like bizarre, disgruntled versions of white blood cells.

Overall, the show is cleverly done. It tackles complex concepts in a non threatening way with the perfect balance of action and dialogue. From the second I began watching, I wanted to recommend it to everyone I know,  from my former AP Biology classmates, to my hospital coworkers and their young patients. However, as I continued watching, I developed a few concerns.

Despite my initial affection for the series, my “I discovered a good show” high quickly faded. After the first couple episodes, it started to get more complicated. As someone who’s taken advanced biology, anatomy and physiology, and worked in a hospital for a year, I felt pretty comfortable with the level of detail the episodes went into, but newcomers to the life sciences may find that the show moves very fast. Because I was fairly familiar with the concepts, I found myself building on my prior knowledge with each episode. However, I don’t think the four year old leukemia patient I work with at the hospital would feel the same way. I was hoping, upon discovering this anime, that I could introduce it as an educational resource to young patients, helping them understand and cope with their immunological disorders, but that would prove difficult, for a few reasons:

1: The anime is in Japanese, so English speakers must watch with subtitles. This limits the audience to those at at least a fifth grade reading level, due to speed of the subtitle changes and the various scenes going on at the same time as the dialogue.

2: Because the show attempts to explain the full process of innate immunity in twenty minutes, it inevitably must gloss over some basic concepts, like bone marrow structure, that a child would have no way of knowing.

3: In order to appreciate the little nuances referencing cell function, the viewer must have some biology background knowledge. The narrative is still cogent without understanding that macrophages are maids because one of their functions is to break down debris left behind after activation of the immune response, but nevertheless, significantly less enjoyable.

4: Several of the pathogen’s designs are somewhat graphic, and the macrophages are constantly covered in blood. Some of the fighting scenes can be a little gory, as well.

5: In an effort to reduce the number of characters, some cell types were grouped together. Plasma virtually doesn’t exist, so red blood cells end up carrying nutrients around with them as well as oxygen. Non immunological cells are all grouped together as body cells, causing some confusion in the show’s description of symptoms. I can understand how a kid would get lost

And finally, 6: It can be interpreted as marginally sexist. The macrophages in particular are far too sexualized, and there’s a lack of strong female characters. That being said, there are plenty of weak male characters too. I wouldn’t turn the series away solely on this point.

In summary, I have several qualms with the series as a patient education resource, and one with the series as a promoter of sexist ideals, but otherwise, it is very well done. It has all the qualities of a good anime, but I wouldn't use it as anything but that. It’s not a science textbook, it’s not a patient information handout. It’s just a fun little series targeted towards biology nerds for leisurely viewing. It may help with some concepts along the way, but I wouldn’t rely on it for cramming the night before an exam. As science education goes, it holds potential as a resource to excite teens and young adults about biology and medical sciences, but shows like Bill Nye and Magic School Bus still remain the most kid-friendly science resources.