Cells at Work!

It is recorded as the work of Akane Shimizu. Publication is recorded by Sirius KC and Panini Comics. It is associated with Japan. Recorded genres are comedy anime and manga, educational entertainment and science fiction anime and manga. The recorded subject matter is cell, personification and anthropomorphic character.

• Ja Kanji — はたらく細胞 • Ja Romaji — Hataraku Saibō • Genre — * Biology • Fantasy comedy

• Type — manga • Author — Akane Shimizu • Publisher — Kodansha • Magazine — Monthly Shōnen Sirius • First — January 26, 2015 • Last — January 26, 2021 • Volumes — 6 • Volume List — List of Cells at Work! chapters

• Type — manga • Title — Cells at Work!: Bacteria! • Author — Haruyuki Yoshida • Publisher — Kodansha • Magazine — Nakayoshi • First — April 3, 2017 • Last — July 3, 2020 • Volumes — 7 • Volume List — List of Cells at Work! chapters#Cells at Work!: Bacteria!

• Type — manga • Title — Cells NOT at Work! • Author — Moe Sugimoto • Publisher — Kodansha • Magazine — Monthly Shōnen Sirius • First — July 26, 2017 • Last — November 26, 2021 • Volumes — 5 • Volume List — List of Cells at Work! chapters#Cells NOT at Work!

• Type — tv series • Director — * Kenichi Suzuki (S1 Season 1) • Hirofumi Ogura (S2 Season 2) • Producer — Yuma Takahashi • Writer — * Yūko Kakihara • Kenichi Suzuki • Music — * Kenichiro Suehiro • Mayuko • Studio — David Production • Network — Tokyo MX, GYT, BS11, MBS, TV Aichi, HBC, RKB • First — July 8, 2018 • Last — February 27, 2021 • Episodes — 21 + Special • Episode List — List of Cells at Work! episodes

• Type — light novel • Author — Yui Tokiumi • Illustrator — Akane Shimizu • Publisher — Kodansha • Published — July 12, 2018

• Type — manga • Title — Cells at Work and Friends! • Author — Kanna Kurono • Illustrator — Mio Izumi • Publisher — Kodansha • Magazine — Bessatsu Friend • First — January 12, 2019 • Last — April 13, 2021 • Volumes — 6 • Volume List — List of Cells at Work! chapters#Cells at Work and Friends!

• Type — manga • Title — Cells at Work!: Platelets! • Author — Yuuko Kakihara • Illustrator — Yasu • Publisher — Kodansha • Magazine — Monthly Shōnen Sirius • First — May 25, 2019 • Last — April 26, 2021 • Volumes — 4 • Volume List — List of Cells at Work! chapters#Cells at Work!: Platelets!

• Type — manga • Title — Cells at Work!: Baby! • Author — Yasuhiro Fukuda • Publisher — Kodansha • Magazine — Morning • First — October 17, 2019 • Last — October 7, 2021 • Volumes — 4 • Volume List — List of Cells at Work! chapters#Cells at Work!: Baby!

• Type — manga • Title — Cells at Work!: Lady! • Author — Shigemitsu Harada • Illustrator — Akari Otokawa • Publisher — Kodansha • Magazine — Morning Two • First — January 22, 2020 • Last — September 26, 2022 • Volumes — 5 • Volume List — List of Cells at Work! chapters#Cells at Work!: Lady!

• Type — film • Title — "Hataraku Saibō!!" Saikyō no Teki, Futatabi. Karada no Naka wa "Chō" Ōsawagi! • Director — Hirofumi Ogura • Writer — Yūko Kakihara • Music — * Kenichiro Suehiro • Mayuko • Studio — David Production • Released — 2020 09 05 • Runtime — 112 minutes

• Type — manga • Title — Cells at Work!: White Brigade • Author — Tetsuji Kanie • Publisher — Kodansha • Magazine — Monthly Shōnen Sirius • First — October 26, 2020 • Last — July 26, 2022 • Volumes — 4 • Volume List — List of Cells at Work! chapters#Cells at Work!: White Brigade

• Type — manga • Title — Cells at Work!: Neo Bacteria • Author — Haruyuki Yoshida • Publisher — Kodansha • Magazine — * Nakayoshi • Palcy • First — December 28, 2020 • Last — February 22, 2021 • Volumes — 1 • Volume List — List of Cells at Work! chapters#Cells at Work!: Neo Bacteria!

• Type — manga • Title — Cells at Work!: Illegal • Author — Kae Hashimoto • Publisher — Kodansha • Magazine — YanMaga Web • First — February 1, 2022 • Last — July 18, 2023 • Volumes — 4 • Volume List — List of Cells at Work! chapters#Cells at Work!: Illegal

• Type — manga • Title — Cells at Work!: Muscle • Author — Yū Maeda • Publisher — Kodansha • Magazine — Morning Two • First — February 16, 2023 • Last — February 20, 2025 • Volumes — 5 • Volume List — List of Cells at Work! chapters#Cells at Work!: Muscle

• Type — manga • Title — Cells at Work! Cat • Author — Choco Aozora • Illustrator — Meku Kaire • Publisher — Kodansha • Magazine — Monthly Shōnen Sirius • First — May 25, 2023 • Last — March 26, 2026 • Volumes — 5 • Volume List — List of Cells at Work! chapters#Cells at Work! Cat

• Type — manga • Title — Cells at Work!: Medicine • Author — Koma Warita • Illustrator — Ryō Kuji • Publisher — Kodansha • Magazine — Monthly Shōnen Sirius • First — May 25, 2023 • Last — May 26, 2025 • Volumes — 4 • Volume List — List of Cells at Work! chapters#Cells at Work!: Medicine

• Type — live film • Director — Hideki Takeuchi • Writer — Yuichi Tokunaga • Music — Face 2 Fake • Studio — Warner Bros. Japan • Released — 2024 12 13

• Title — Other • Content — * Cells at Work! Code Black (2018–2021)

• Portal — yes Cells at Work! is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Akane Shimizu. It features the anthropomorphized cells of a human body, with the two main protagonists being a red blood cell and a white blood cell she frequently encounters. It was serialized in Kodansha's manga magazine Monthly Shōnen Sirius from January 2015 to January 2021. It is licensed in North America by Kodansha USA. The series has been adapted into an anime television series by David Production, with two seasons broadcast from July 2018 to February 2021, totaling 21 episodes. A theatrical anime titled "Hataraku Saibō!!" Saikyō no Teki, Futatabi. Karada no Naka wa "Chō" Ōsawagi! premiered in September 2020. The series has also spawned several spin-off manga series, including Cells at Work! Code Black, published from 2018 to 2021 and adapted into an anime television series.

The story takes place inside the body of an adult human, where trillions of anthropomorphic cells each do their job to keep the body healthy. The series largely focuses on two such cells; a rookie red blood cell, AE3803, who often gets lost during deliveries, and a relentless white blood cell, U-1146, who fights against any germs that invade the body.

• Erythrocyte / Red Blood Cell (AE3803): • Mei Nagano • A red blood cell who has just started her job, delivering oxygen, carbon dioxide and different nutrients all over the body. She meets Neutrophil when he saves her from an attacking pneumococcus bacterium. She is clumsy and gets lost often, but is determined to perform to the best of her ability. It is later revealed that she had encountered Neutrophil when they were younger, after he saved her from a bacterium. • Neutrophil / White Blood Cell (U-1146): • Takeru Satoh • A type of white blood cell, whose job is to kill pathogens infecting the body. Despite his violent and ruthless occupation, he is quite soft-spoken and gentle. When he was still in school as a young cell, he saved AE3803 from a bacterium after she got lost in a training exercise. • Killer T Cell: • Koji Yamamoto • A type of white blood cell that recognizes and kills various foreign matter and unhealthy cells. He is aggressive, cocky and rowdy, brutally taking pleasure in slaughtering pathogens and unhealthy cells. He especially looks down on white blood cells forming relationships with non-white blood cells, like Neutrophil's close friendship with Red Blood Cell. He is the sergeant of the Killer T Cells and is a harsh teacher to his students, the Naive T Cells. He has negative relationships with Helper T Cell and NK Cell, the former being his superior in the Killer T Division. In his youth, he was considered to be weak like the rest of the young T Cells, being only able to survive and complete training through the help of Helper T Cell, which at least made him stronger. • Macrophage / Monocyte: • Wakana Matsumoto • A type of white blood cell. She and her kind appear as lovely maids in big dresses, armed with a variety of large weapons to fight various invasive pathogens, and are often shown smiling cheerfully even in the middle of combat. While inside blood vessels, she and her kind take on the role of monocytes, and wear hazmat suits over their dresses. • Platelet: • Maika Pugh • A type of cell responsible for reconstructing the body after various injuries. They are depicted as children, due to their small cell size, and act as construction and repair crew within the body. One platelet who carries a whistle on her neck serves as their leader and she is most prominently featured in the show, while a secondary yet shy platelet known as "Backward Cap" because she wears her cap backwards, also appears in the story. • Helper T Cell: • Shota Sometani • A type of T Cell that determines strategy and courses of action for dealing with foreign invaders. He is the main commander of the Killer T Division and has an intellectual and smooth disposition, putting him at big odds with the rough and tough Killer T Cell, despite having undergone T Cell training together with him. • Regulatory T Cell: • A type of T Cell that mediates and regulates the correct function and magnitude of immunological responses. She usually acts as Helper T Cell's secretary, though she is capable of fighting when necessary. She went through T Cell training alongside Killer T Cell and Helper T Cell. • Naive T Cell: • A rookie T Cell who is too frightened to fight invasive microorganisms, until Dendritic Cell helps him transform into Effector T Cell. He and his kind are the students of Killer T Cell, from whom they receive harsh treatment and austere training. • Effector T Cell: • A Naive T Cell transformed into a large, muscular and powerful T Cell. • Eosinophil: • A type of white blood cell who is acquainted with White Blood Cell since they grew up in the same bone marrow. She feels inferior to the other immune cells because of her inability to fight off bacteria and viruses, but she shows her true worth by killing a parasitic Anisakis when the other cells could not. She handles a bident as her weapon of choice. • Dendritic Cell: • Depicted as a messenger dressed in green stationed inside a call center resembling a tree. He can stimulate Naive T Cells and transform them into Effector T Cells. He owns a camera which he always uses to take pictures of events he deems important and stores them in picture albums, some of which are sources of shame and humiliation for the other cells. • Memory Cell: • A paranoid and neurotic cell whose job is to remember past infections and allergies so that the immunity system can be ready for them. However, he is scatterbrained and it is difficult for him to sort out his memories, often panicking and screaming whenever disaster strikes. • Mast Cell: • A cell whose job is to monitor and release histamines in response to allergic and inflammatory reactions. She always follows the instructions in her book no matter the situations and is unpopular due to her lack of consideration of what her actions do to the other cells. Also known as "Fat Cell", she gets irked whenever she is referred to with that name. • Senior Red Blood Cell (AA5100) • Kira Buckland • An older red blood cell who sometimes guides and teaches AE3803 on how to properly perform her occupation. • Junior Red Blood Cell (NT4201): • A young but overly serious red blood cell who becomes AE3803's student. • B Cell: • A white blood cell who carries a weapon that shoots antibodies. He is often annoyed and jealous about not receiving as much credit as the Killer T Cells do. He also has an antagonistic relationship with Mast Cell, as their combined functions only cause grave disasters for the other cells. • Basophil: • A mysterious and poetic character whose real occupation is unknown, appearing during a food-borne infection to make cryptic commentaries on the disastrous events unfolding. • NK Cell: • Riisa Naka • She patrols the whole body for viruses, bacteria and abnormal cells, with her weapon of choice being a machete. She has a smug demeanor, is somewhat condescending towards other cells and her relationship with Killer T Cell is akin to that of an intense sibling rivalry. • Cancer Cell: • Fukase (musician) • An antagonistic cell bent on creating a world where cells no longer have to kill each other, even if it means risking the life of the body. • Normal Cell / Cell Boy: • Normal Cell is a minor character who plays a major role in season 2. Normal Cell is a soft-hearted troublemaker. He finds his job of copying himself boring hence he began to venture outside of his apartment to explore or mess around. Despite not being able to do anything, he has a strong will to protect someone that is precious to him (Lactic Acid Bacteria). According to AE3803, he lives by the pharynx, which happens to be an area that contains lymph nodes.

Written and illustrated by Akane Shimizu, Cells at Work! was serialized in Kodansha's manga magazine Monthly Shōnen Sirius from January 26, 2015, to January 26, 2021. Kodansha collected its chapters in six tankōbon volumes, released from July 9, 2015, to February 9, 2021. Kodansha USA announced that it had licensed Cells at Work! in North America on March 21, 2016.

The series has spawned several spin-offs published across various Kodansha's manga magazines and digital platforms: • Cells at Work!: Bacteria! by Haruyuki Yoshida. The series follows the lives of good and bad bacteria in the intestines. It was serialized in the manga magazine Nakayoshi from April 3, 2017, to July 3, 2020. It was followed by Cells at Work! Neo Bacteria, serialized in Nakayoshi and on the Palcy manga app from December 28, 2020, to February 22, 2021, with a single volume released on the latter date. • Cells NOT at Work! by Moe Sugimoto. It follows immature red blood cells (erythroblasts) that do not want to work. It was serialized in Monthly Shōnen Sirius from July 26, 2017, to November 26, 2021. • Cells at Work! Code Black, written by Shigemitsu Harada and illustrated by Issei Hatsuyoshi. It is set in a "black" environment of a human body suffering an unhealthy lifestyle. It was serialized in the seinen manga magazine Morning from June 7, 2018, to January 21, 2021. • Cells at Work and Friends!, written by Kanna Kurono and illustrated by Mio Izumi. It centers around a Killer T Cell who is normally strict with himself and others, but wants to have fun during his free time. He also wants to make friends but does not want to ruin his reputation. It was serialized in the manga magazine Bessatsu Friend from January 12, 2019, to April 13, 2021. • Cells at Work!: Platelets!, written by Yūko Kakihara and illustrated by Yasu. It focuses on platelet characters. It was serialized in Monthly Shōnen Sirius from May 25, 2019, to April 26, 2021. • Cells at Work!: Baby! by Yasuhiro Fukuda. It follows a group of cells inside a baby's body, 40 weeks after conception and close to delivery, with the cells unaware of anything. It was serialized in Morning from October 17, 2019, to October 7, 2021. • Cells at Work!: Lady!, written by Harada and illustrated by Akari Otokawa. It is focused on cells in the body of an adult woman. It started in Morning Two on January 22, 2020. The magazine ceased print publication and moved to a digital starting on August 4, 2022. The series finished on September 26, 2022. • Cells at Work!: White Brigade by Tetsuji Kanie. It is focused on white blood cells. It was serialized in Monthly Shōnen Sirius from October 26, 2020, to July 26, 2022. • Cells at Work!: Illegal by Kae Hashimoto. It is focused on the cells of a person taking illegal substances. It was serialized on the YanMaga Web digital manga platform from February 1, 2022, to July 18, 2023. • Cells at Work! Muscle by Yū Maeda. It is focused on muscles in the human body. It started on the Morning Two manga website from February 16, 2023, to February 20, 2025. • Cells at Work! Cat, written by Choco Aozora and illustrated by Meku Kaire. It is centered around cells in the body of a cat. It was serialized in Monthly Shōnen Sirius from May 25, 2023, to March 26, 2026. • Cells at Work!: Medicine, written by Koma Warita and illustrated by Ryō Kuji. It is centered around medicine. It was serialized in Monthly Shōnen Sirius from May 25, 2023, to May 26, 2025. Kodansha USA has licensed Cells at Work!: Bacteria!, Cells NOT at Work!, Cells at Work! Code Black, Cells at Work and Friends!, Cells at Work!: Platelets!, Cells at Work!: Baby!, Cells at Work!: Lady!, Cells at Work! Neo Bacteria, Cells at Work! White Brigade, and Cells at Work! Cat.

An anime television series adaptation was announced in January 2018. It is directed by Kenichi Suzuki and animated by David Production, with scripts written by Suzuki and Yūko Kakihara, and character designs by Takahiko Yoshida. The series' music is composed by Kenichiro Suehiro and Mayuko. The anime series premiered on July 8, 2018, on Tokyo MX and other channels. The series ran for 13 episodes. Aniplex of America licensed the series in North America and simulcast it on Crunchyroll. Madman Entertainment simulcasted Australia and New Zealand on AnimeLab, while Muse Communication licensed the series in Southeast Asia and South Asia, and simulcasted it on Animax Asia. MVM Entertainment acquired the series for distribution in the United Kingdom and Ireland. The opening theme is Mission! Ken - Kō - Dai - Ichi by Red Blood Cell (Kana Hanazawa / Cherami Leigh), White Blood Cell (Tomoaki Maeno / Billy Kametz), Killer T Cell (Daisuke Ono / Robbie Daymond), and Macrophage (Kikuko Inoue / Laura Post), while the ending theme is "CheerS" by ClariS. A special episode premiered on December 27, 2018. Aniplex of America released the English dub on August 27, 2019. On March 23, 2019, the series' official Twitter account announced that it would receive a second season. The second season aired from January 9 to February 27, 2021. The main staff at David Production is returning for producing the second season, with the exception of director Kenichi Suzuki being replaced by director Hirofumi Ogura. The opening theme is "Go! Go! Saibō Festa!" by the main cast members, while the ending theme is "Fight!!" by ClariS. A theatrical anime titled "Hataraku Saibō!!" Saikyō no Teki, Futatabi. Karada no Naka wa "Chō" Ōsawagi! was announced on July 4, 2020, as an advanced screening of episodes 4–8 later aired in the second season. Also shown with a short animation "Kesshouban: Eigakan e Iku". The main staff at David Production returned for producing the film, with the exception of director Kenichi Suzuki being replaced by director Hirofumi Ogura. It premiered on September 5, 2020.

A light novel adaptation of the manga titled as Shōsetsu Hataraku Saibō was published on July 12, 2018, by Kodansha. It is written by Yui Tokiumi and illustrated by Akane Shimizu and has three volumes.

A stage play adaptation titled Tainai Katsugeki Hataraku Saibō was announced in the August issue of Kodansha's Monthly Shōnen Sirius magazine. The play was held at Tokyo's Theatre 1010 from November 16 to 25, 2018. The play which was directed by Tsuyoshi Kida, starred Masanari Wada as U-1146 and Kanon Nanaki as AE3803, while Keita Kawajiri wrote the script for the play. The last performance was also distributed live.

A tower-defense game for iOS and Android mobile devices titled Always Cells at Work was announced in November 2018. The game service shut down on January 31, 2020.