The Body-Science Adventures Continue in Cells at Work! Code Black

Studio LIDENFILMS

Let me tell you: I never thought I could cry so much over cells dying.

For a homeschooling parent wanting to create the next generation of otaku, this is the show that helps fuel my kids’ learning and my own—though Code Black is very graphic, so if you do intend to show your children, make sure to watch it beforehand to see whether it’s suitable for the age of your child. This show is still coming out in English dub but has 13 episodes in all. For more background on the show (and for a less graphic version) go watch the original series, Cells at Work, which came out in 2018 and is available in full sub and dub.

Following up the popular original and taking on a similar character dynamic, Code Black dives deep into what our human bodies go through when we are very unhealthy. We follow the daily life of Red Blood Cell AA2153, who’s a rookie learning the ropes of how hard each cell in this male body works to keep it from going under. As we slowly watch the human body tank, Red Blood Cell and his constant savior, White Blood Cell, suffer many near-death experiences. The first few episodes show us how much damage smoking, specifically, does to the body, even years after quitting. One Red Cell says the body they inhabit had quit for 10 years and suddenly picked it back up. We see in graphic detail what amount of gunk and grime it coats our organs in, and the show compares the body to a city whose skies are covered in factory fumes.

It’s also informative about how much alcohol affects our blood cells. The average person knows that it does affect us, but what about the why and how? Or the amount of work our body goes through to purge our body of it? Most people know we process it through the liver, sending red blood cells there to detox. Specifically, this happens through an enzyme known as dehydrogenase, or ADH. ADH breaks down the alcohol into acetaldehyde, then into aldehyde dehydrogenase, and then acetate. The acetate then is further metabolized and leaves your body. Of course, Code Black puts this into a much simpler explanation—instead of the human going into a greasy bar to get overintoxicated, the blood cells go to their own bar and hang out with some female hepatocytes as they serve them ADH and ALDH. Even though the show takes a simplified approach in how it explains what the body goes through, it does stick to technical terminology when talking about the types of cells, processes, and bacteria that interact with the human body. With this show being set in a body with a compromised immune system, it might make you reevaluate how you’re living your daily life, even if you’re usually super healthy!

I would highly recommend watching all of this show, whether you do it now with subtitles or wait for the finished dub. It definitely gives you a new attachment to your own body and a drive to care for it—not just the everyday eating healthy and taking care of it, but not letting your body get to a breaking point.