We might not think about it, but our bodies are a world
all their own. Inhabiting them are blood
cells of various types and they all have the same job: Keep the body going
27/4, not matter what. It’s a pretty
exciting life, depending on your job.
You’ve got your Red Blood Cells delivering supplies to various corners
of the metropolis. Meanwhile, the
valiant and trigger happy White Blood Cells police the city, fending off
infections, diseases and all varying bacteria at any cost. So…what happens when a rookie Red Blood Cell
ends up partnered up with one of the best White Blood Cell warriors
around? Who knows but it’s sure to be
most amazing adventure taking place directly inside your body.
An Anime about the inner workings of the human body. Human blood cells being given human
personifications in a vast city. Cells
at Work is either the strangest (and most violent) Sesame Street segment or
it’s the great biology class lesson of all time. Both feel accurate to me but neither can take
away from the fact that this is a helluva entertaining show.
The very beginning reminds me of the opening of Tron
Legacy, where Jeff Bridges tries to describe how he pictured the inner workings
of the digital frontier: moving as ships or motorcycles across circuits that were
like freeways. Cells at Work takes this,
and the concept of an inner world of cells and germs seen in Osmosis Jones, and
paints a much cleaner picture. This is a
fully functioning interior of a body we’re seeing but it looks like a
futuristic yet modern metropolis. It’s a
cool concept and we get adequate and appropriate descriptions of the sections
we visit and the characters we meet. A
lot of Cells at Work’s premiere is played for laughs but I’m surprised at how
educational this show could possibly be…you know beyond the surprising amount
of bloody violence.
I loved the titular personified Cells. Red’s a cute, shy and awkward newbie who
serves as the viewers main set of eyes to this new world. She plays very well off the laid back but
super deadly White, who is so ready to kill all germs but is so chill around
the new girl (how much you wanna bet they’ve been shipped and probably pushed
together later on in the series). The
Plateles were super adorable and the T Cell Super Squad was all the muscle
bound Jojo references you’d expect from their character designs. I kind of wonder if we’ll ever see the body
that these guys inhabit…but I’ll be honest I’m ok if every bit of story and
action is kept inwards. I wanna get to
know a bit about this world that could be my inner workings more than anything
going on beyond it’s borders. It speaks
well to the strength of the cast and the wit of the writing.
Action packed, hilarious and surprisingly insightful and
educational, Cells at Work might be a show worth following for a little
bit. Sure we’ve seen a world like this
in Osmosis Jones and Tron. But only in
the medium of Anime could this same premise feel fresh, exciting and very, very
fun. We’ll see how this goes.
And with that, First Impression Friday is taking a little
bit of a hiatus…and by a little bit I mean a long one. I’ve got special features lined up over the
next couple of months, taking us well into the summer. Plus I usually pause FIF’s around then
because of my Extended Series Review (more on that in a few weeks). So right now, the second part of the 5th
Season of First Impression Fridays will kick off probably in August as soon as
I get back from Otakon. By then I’m sure
I’ll have glimpsed plenty of new shows in need of a First Impression. Til then, I hope you’ve enjoyed the ones ive
done so far and the newest specials and features coming to take its place until
it’s return right here at the Gundam Anime Corner.
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