Common Name: Hataraku Saibou
Alternate Names: Cells at Work!
Score: 6/10, 5/5
Length: 13 Episodes
Genre: Action, Comedy, Slice of Life, Job Shadow, Military
Summary: Within the human body, there are trillions of cells that are always hard at work. Among these cells are the Red Blood Cells, like AE3803, who are tasked running hither and thither through the body's circulatory system to deliver oxygen and nutrients to the other cells. Typically running alongside Red Blood Cells, there can usually be found a number of White Blood Cells, like U-1146, who ceaselessly fight to protect the body and its many other cellular residents from the threat of foreign germs, viruses, parasites, and all the other threats that crop up. This is the story of these cells and their tireless work to keep their home safe and healthy.
Review: Edutainment is one of those concepts I'd honestly forgotten about once I'd gotten out of elementary and middle school. From that point on, all I've ever had to contend with that melded education and entertainment were "how-to" videos for various things to eat and/or make by hand. I mean, I obviously knew informational shows still existed out there. Look at any kids programming on PBS and Disney or literally anything on Animal Planet and you'll have some quality edutainment professionally formulated to both amuse and instruct their audience. To be clear, though, just because I forgot that such a term for these programs existed doesn't mean I lost my appreciation for the shows themselves. Granted, one doesn't necessarily need a natural appreciation for edutainment to enjoy a work like Hataraku Saibou; the show's hoard of rabid fans determined to generate an incredible amount of hype for the property is proof enough of that fact. Rather, this show works simply because it manages to be "edutaining" while holding fast to a lot of the contrived and tropey nonsense we've come to expect of the anime industry today, particularly from these kinds of episodic, slice of life titles that don't necessarily need a strong plot or strong characters to survive. Yet, while I'm inclined to say this show is a success, in that it accomplished its goal to inform the viewer of the various cellular functions, habits, and interactions within the human body, it is still a critically weak show. I love this show--let there be no illusions that I am in any way displeased with it--yet it undoubtedly suffers from several, glaring flaws that ultimately hold it back from being a great show.
Oh god, I can hear the pitchforks being sharpened already.
Before we get too deep into things, though, let's start with something that's a little more objective: Hataraku Saibou is a rather simple show. I don't think that can really be argued. From the word go, this show generally prides itself on its simplicity. Episode after episode, we are continuously reintroduced to the world of this show and the various jobs of it's personified cellular citizenry. This repetition is generally both a boon and bane for the show's overall flow. On the one hand, the constant reintroduction to the cast, what they represent, and what they're expected to do make the show something that a TV viewer and tune into at any episode and are brought up to date on the gist of things. Granted, thanks to the show's simplicity, there really isn't much to be brought up to date on though. Barring a couple of episodes that deviate from the standard formula, the vast majority of the show repeats the same general plot over and over again. We are introduced to Hataraku Saibou's primary perspective character, Red Blood Cell AE3803 (typically just referred to as "Red Blood Cell"), who is defined primarily as being an air-headed klutz with a reckless determination to get her job done. Since Red Blood Cell kinda sucks at the whole circulating thing, represented by both her sickle cell-shaped ahoge and ability to read a map, we are typically introduced to the show's second perspective main character just as soon as she loses her way or gets into trouble. For the general purposes of the show, White Blood Cell U-1146, functions as both an example of dedication to one's job that Red Blood Cell slowly picks up along the way and as a kind of love interest/emotional support for his klutzy compatriot.
To be blunt, half the reason this show works at all is because these two are so adorable.
Throughout the show, these two generally interact as a cutesy comedic duo who "coincidentally" bump into each other on a regular basis only to find themselves at the heart of yet another antigen invasion. Then, depending on the situation, White Blood Cell will either take the germs out along with his fellow White Blood Cells (all with different, utilitarian classifications) or end up relying on the episode's featured cell. Most episodes feature this kind of "guest" appearance, ranging from the child-like platelets to the body's various T cell enforcers and the "weak" Eosinophil, as they do their job and take care of the "threat of the day" tailor-made for the specific skills and habits of that guest.
And boy are there a lot of "guests" to work through.
Yet, as these guests are introduced, various holes start to emerge in the show's own metaphor-based logic, often because it gets too caught up in the tropes that each episode's plot was built on. One of the most egregious examples of this can be seen in the fourth episode which featured the shy and "weak" Eosinophil, a brand of White Blood Cell that is responsible for eliminating parasites. Over the course of the episode, we are introduced to this idea that Eosinophil is just a "weak" White Blood Cell that is virtually useless in any battle against a typical antigen, like a germ or a virus. As other cells start bad mouthing her, she loses confidence in herself and starts to think she's useless until, conveniently, a parasite infects the body and she can get to work killing it. This plot, of course, hinges on the idea that neither she nor her fellow cells have any idea what her job is which, generally, is just not true to life. From these kinds of contrived inconsistencies with the show's overall goal of being representative of real bodily functions, a tonal dissonance starts to form between thoughts of using this show as a learning tool and enjoying it as a piece of entertainment like any of the other action comedies this show draws from for inspiration.
Christ, look at those Saturday Morning Cartoon villains they deal with. I'm seeing some
elements of Dragon Ball, Pokemon, and a thick dose of Monster Rancher.
As much as I'd like to have done with it and say that it's a fair criticism to say criticizing this lack of tonal and metaphorical consistency might just be someone "overthinking things" or "taking the show too seriously," that inconsistency is ultimately the source of all this show's problems. At times it's honestly hard to tell what exactly Hataraku Saibou wants to accomplish episode-to-episode. One minute you'll have a standard, formulaic "hero/villain of the day" scenario to introduce us to the concept of how the body responds to various mundane threats. The next, it'll throw the formula and tropes out the window to try its hand at a more entertaining, rather than edutaining, narrative episodes that are often the high points of the show. In one such instance, the show actually manages to do both in its exhibition of the job of the Red Blood Cell, something we had previously only caught in bits and pieces, and how it circulates throughout the body while simultaneously offering an adorable exhibition of how much White Blood Cell cares about Red Blood Cell. In another such instance, we're given a glimpse at how unforgiving and cruel the body is to anything it labels a threat, including itself. During this episode, we see the perspective of a diseased cell just trying to survive in a world and how White Blood Cell, as a character, is forced to shove down his sympathy for this cell so he can effectively do his soulless, utilitarian duty to the body he calls home. These kinds of episodes offer a real glimpse into what this show could have offered if it actually tried to tell a story. Yet these legitimately compelling moments are few and far between in comparison to the relatively dull, contrived, and formulaic edutainment episodes that are Hataraku Saibou's norm.
I suppose I should just be happy that the show ended on one such high note.
Perhaps I'm just expecting too much from a show that was built from the ground up on a shaky, half-baked metaphor. It only figures that that metaphor would strain in some places and some accuracy would have been lost along the way. Were that the heart of my complaint with this show, I'd have happily looked past it. Having to deal with that and the show's simple lack of dedication to a particular tone or narrative through line, though, made it hard to ignore. So, at the end of the day, I'm forced to say that, critically, Hataraku Saibou is a mess. At the same time, though, it's hard to deny that the show has a lot of charm, teaches a good amount of accurate information, and puts a lot of thought into some of the little details that make it that much more fun for anyone who is actually well-acquainted with microbiology. So, as quick as I am to call this show a critical mess, I'm happy to say that I really enjoyed what this show had to offer. I was a bit of a chore sometimes to muck through the trope-ridden formulaic episodes to get to the good stuff but it was undoubtedly worth it in the end. So, accounting for that and the fact that the show is just generally fun to watch--though it's certainly no masterpiece of art or execution--I have to say I recommend this title to pretty much anyone. I'm generally uncertain how well it might serve as a learning tool or an introduction to anyone new to the world of anime but I don't see it doing any particular harm. If nothing else, it'll be a fun watch for anyone already familiar with all the forms and styles this show borrowed to succeed in its own efforts.