History YMMV / CellsAtWork

* DesignatedVillain: Cancer Cell, deliberately. He himself invokes this, as he didn't choose to be the villain, but was made one anyway due to merely coming into existence, and having no other purpose or even ability to be anything other than a danger to the body. He's been hunted since the day he was born, which broke him and led him down the path of revenge. So while he is definitely a villain and is taking unambiguously villainous action, it is not as though he has any other choice besides "Suicide by Immune System".

* MisaimedFandom: A decent portion of both fans and regular anime viewers have come to hold the belief that the series making Cancer Cell a TragicVillain is an attempt at creating a sympathetic villain based on one of the most deadly afflictions known to man, resulting in a BrokenBase where some find this in poor taste and others genuinely believe that he deserves a little sympathy for his tragic life circumstances. However, both sides miss the subtle points that show how, while Cancer Cell ''is'' a TragicVillain, he has a blatant case of FreudianExcuseIsNoExcuse, making it clear that no matter how badly the world treated him, throwing a SuicidalCosmicTemperTantrum shows he doesn't actually care about the injustice dealt with him in relation to cells overall, just [[ItsAllAboutMe how it affected him personally]], so [[PutThemAllOutOfMyMisery he'd rather have every cell in the body, including innocent cells who never meant harm to him, die with him just to soothe his bruised ego]]. In simpler words, they completely forgot this is, first of all, an ''EdutainmentShow'' about the human body, which means all sources of disease--which certainly include Cancer Cell--are not intended to be treated sympathetically.

* MisaimedFandom: A decent portion of both fans and regular anime viewers have come to hold the belief that the series making Cancer Cell a TragicVillain is an attempt at creating a sympathetic villain based on one of the most deadly afflictions known to man, resulting in a BrokenBase where some find this in poor taste and others genuinely believe that he deserves a little sympathy for his tragic life circumstances. However, both sides miss the subtle points that show how, while Cancer Cell ''is'' a TragicVillain, he has a blatant case of FreudianExcuseIsNoExcuse, making it clear that no matter how badly the world treated him, throwing a SuicidalCosmicTemperTantrum shows he doesn't actually care about the injustice dealt with him in relation to cells overall, just [[ItsAllAboutMe how it affected him personally]], so [[PutThemAllOutOfMyMisery he'd rather have every cell in the body, including innocent cells who never meant harm to him, die with him just to soothe his bruised ego]]. In simpler words, they completely forgot this is, first of all, an ''EdutainmentShow'' about the human body, which means all sources of disease--which certainly include Cancer Cell--is not intended to be treated sympathetically.

* MisaimedFandom: A decent portion of both fans and regular anime viewers have come to hold the belief that the series making Cancer Cell a TragicVillain is an attempt at creating a sympathetic villain based on one of the most deadly afflictions known to man, resulting in a BrokenBase where some find this in poor taste and others genuinely believe that he deserves a little sympathy for his tragic life circumstances. However, both sides miss the subtle points that show how, while Cancer Cell ''is'' a TragicVillain, he has a blatant case of FreudianExcuseIsNoExcuse, making it clear that no matter how badly the world treated him, throwing a SuicidalCosmicTemperTantrum shows he doesn't actually care about the injustice dealt to him in relation to cells overall, just [[ItsAllAboutMe how it affected him personally]], so [[PutThemAllOutOfMyMisery he'd rather have every cell in the body, including innocent cells who never meant harm to him, die with him just to soothe his bruised ego]].

* MisaimedFandom: A decent portion of both fans and regular anime viewers have come to hold the belief that the series making Cancer Cell a TragicVillain is an attempt at creating a sympathetic villain based on one of the most deadly afflictions known to man, resulting in a BrokenBase where some find this in poor taste and others genuinely believe that he deserves a little sympathy for his tragic life circumstances. However, both sides miss the subtle points that show how, while Cancer Cell ''is'' a TragicVillain, he has a blatant case of FreudianExcuseIsNoExcuse, making it clear that no matter how badly the world treated him, throwing a SuicidalCosmicTemperTantrum shows he doesn't actually care about the injustice dealt to him in relation to cells overall, just how it affected him personally, so he'd rather have every cell in the body, including innocent cells who never meant harm to him, die with him just to soothe his bruised ego.

** A surprisingly high amount of fanart ships some of the named Red Blood Cells with members of [=WBCsquad=] ([=AA5100=] x U-4989 is the most common pair), despite them barely interacting together. It also seems to be more of a ShipMates thing, as they tend to be compliments to U-1146/[=AE3803=] fics.

* PeripheryDemographic: The anime presents itself as an edutainment show aimed for children, yet has attracted the attention of adults, especially Doctors and Biology majors for its accurate representation of the immune system. It has reached the point where biology teachers in China would assign it as homework to their students.

** Influenza viruses are depicted as small red balls with sticks protruding, which is exactly how they look in real life. Unlike most of the other infectious entities, viruses are not strictly considered 'alive' by scientists, which makes sense of the fact that they aren't depicted as being sentient.

** The Lactic Acid Bacteria, due to their puppy/kitty like behavior to Ordinary Cell and their PokemonSpeak of "Nyuu!" makes them extremely adorable.
* NarmCharm: Let's see... A narrator talking like it's a children's book, anthropomorphic personifications of cells tackling the various functions of the body, some very cheesy dialog here and there. Who would ever think that an {{Edutainment}} anime that looks like it's aimed for kids would be one of the more popular anime of Summer 2018? Somehow this show pulls it off.

* CryForTheDevil: Mostly applied to Cancer Cell (you're gonna be noticing a pattern here). Despite being terrible for the body when left to its own devices, you have to feel for his plea to be treated like any other cell.

* FanficFuel: How would AIDS or a similarly horrific illness be like on the cellular level? NanoMachines? Bio-engineered bacteria, [[HelpfulMook good]] or [[SyntheticPlague bad?]] Acute Radiation Poisoning? A body with a genetic illness? Or an [[RightHandVersusLeftHand organ transplant?]] What about genetic therapy (which involves "helpful" viri injecting cells with foreign DNA in order to teach them not to freak out when they encounter allergens)? What of [[CrossOver fictional illnesses,]] such as [[VideoGame/TraumaCenter G.U.I.L.T.]], [[VideoGame/ResidentEvil the T-virus]], or one of the rapidly mutating global exterminator plagues of ''VideoGame/PlagueInc?'' Or a FantasticVoyagePlot? If the beefier leukocytes of [BLACK] represent someone with a stronger immune system, would a fast clotter have stronger or more numerous platelets? How do the cells handle long term events like pregnancy? All that and more is ripe for the picking in fanfiction.

** The ending theme: [[https://youtu.be/Vy79aMjB_aU "CheerS"]].

** There are both male and female platelets, but due to their unisex clothes and having high-pitched and childish voices, some viewers have mistaken them for being [[OneGenderRace all girls]]. The most prominent male platelet is the one distinguished by having his hat backwards. This is so bad that even official material can get confused, particularly with Backwards Cap-kun, where the subs for Season 2 Episode 1 call him a girl, and the ''Platelets at Work'' spinoff outright turns its version of him into a girl.

** Then there's the inevitable jokes about the [[RuleThirtyFour sexual side of the body]], like [[MenstrualMenace that time of the month]] being when blood cells start mysteriously disappearing, egg and sperm cells having ''Theatre/MeAndMyDick'' style romance while the host bodies are getting nasty, or sperm cells looking like the cast of ''Anime/{{Free}}'' (a bunch of hot, shirtless guys in a swim team). [[note]] Though ultimately averted in ''Manga/CellsAtWorkCodeBlack'' where sperm cells are depicted as little children in hoodies, piloting [[https://mobile.twitter.com/hatsuyoshiya/status/1019254023990308866 sperm cell-shaped mechanisms.]] [[/note]]

** There are both male and female platelets, but due to their unisex clothes and having high-pitched and childish voices, some viewers have mistaken them for being [[OneGenderRace all girls]]. The most prominent male platelet is the one distinguished by having his hat backwards.

* UnintentionallyUnsympathetic: Cancer Cell to some people. Not because he's written poorly as a character, but simply [[TheTopicOfCancer because of what he represents]]. Those who have lost friends and family members to cancer are not necessarily inclined to sympathizing with the character despite his status as a TragicMonster in the show. The fact that the episode of the anime that made him a JerkassWoobie just so happens to have come out on the same week [[Series/LazyTown Stefan Karl]] tragically passed away due to cancer did '''not''' help his cause in the slightest.

** Shipping AE-3803 and U-1146 will have fans unanimously end up saying the phrase "Great, now I'm shipping ''my own cells!''"[[note]]Which can also bring up shipping ''countries'' i.e ''Webcomic/AxisPowersHetalia'' with the line[[/note]]

* HarsherInHindsight: ''Film/OsmosisJones''/''WesternAnimation/OzzyAndDrix'' also depicts medicines as MechaMooks, but in ''Cells at Work!,'' they're {{Killer Robot}}s who [[DestructiveSaviour indescriminately]] hose down the area with a WaveMotionGun and [[GatlingGood autocannons]] as opposed to the self-aware [[RobotBuddy Robot Buddies]] of ''OJ''/''O&D.''
* HeartwarmingInHindsight: Watching U-1146 say "bye-bye, germ" to the Pneumococcus during the lung incident makes more sense once you watch [=AE3803=], as an Erythroblast, say bye-bye to an unnamed Myelocyte who stood up for her when they met in the Red Bone Marrow.
* HilariousInHindsight:
** Thanks to ''Manga/CellsAtWorkCodeBlack'' putting the spotlight on bad body upkeep, you can now see what the City of Frank would look like in this setting.
** Remember [[Creator/TomokazuSugita Basophil]]? In another body, he served as a Security System by the name of [[Manga/{{Gintama}} Leukocyte King.]] In case it's not clear, basophil is a kind of leukocyte.
** An episode of ''WesternAnimation/OzzyAndDrix'' once dealt with a mutated clone of Ozzy trying to evade the immune system and kill the original because from the moment of his creation he'd been paranoid about the body rejecting him. Which is essentially Cancer Cell's story arc....though [[HarsherInHindsight at least Mitosis Jones got a happier ending.]]
** In Episode 7, when the masses of Cancer Cells are attacking the three immune cells, one of the cancer cells grabbing hold of Killer T bears an uncanny resemblance to Tom from ''WebAnimation/{{Eddsworld}}''.
** The release of ''Manga/JojosBizarreAdventureVentoAureo'' in anime has drawn fans to draw a resemblance between minor antagonist [[https://jojo.wikia.com/wiki/Polpo Polpo]] to the virus-infected cells.
** Our main Killer T has a subplot of trying to maintain his tough and aggressive image while [[IJustWantToHaveFriends struggling with his desire to fraternize]]. Lo and behold, a spinoff comes out that concerns ''exactly that'', with ''exactly'' the same type of cell-- but it isn't even about him, funny enough.

* DesignatedVillain: Cancer Cell, deliberately. He himself invokes this, as he didn't choose to be the villain, but was made one anyway due to merely coming into existence, and having no other purpose or even ability to be anything other than a danger to the body. He's been hunted since the day he was born, which broke him and led him down the path of revenge.

** The Platelets were popular candidates for this during serialization thanks to their adorable Cub Scout-like attitudes, but their appearances in the anime brought an influx of fans. Their Leader in particular was loved enough to star on covers with the main cast, eventually getting one all to herself and her fellow workers. Special mention goes to the focus chapter dedicated to them, their job, and their mistress, Megakaryocyte. The anime only sought to bolster their popularity even further, especially Leader-chan who is voiced by Creator/MariaNaganawa who is very popular with the current generation for voicing TokenMiniMoe characters (the same goes for Creator/XantheHuynh for the English version). The Platelet leader got her own Nendoroid designed and in production when the anime was only 5 episodes into airing and Good Smile Company even said it was by popular demand!
** Macrophage became immensely popular both for being a badass ActionGirl with a cleaver, as well as a motherly teacher who looks after the Erythroblasts (young Red Blood Cells).
** Eosinophil for being a shy {{moe}} girl who turned out to be a HiddenBadass.
** Cancer Cell is by far the most fondly remembered VillainOfTheWeek; both for being a KnightOfCerebus who changed the lighthearted tone to a dark one, as well as being a very complex TragicVillain with a sympathetic backstory behind his villainy, as opposed to the more generic pathogens that usually appear.

** The Erythroblasts (young red blood cells) and Myelocytes (young white blood cells). Especially little AE-3803 and U-1146.

*** "Protecc the Platelets"[[note]]as per norm with loli jokes, fans declare the Platelets need to be protected rather than [[RuleThirtyFour lewed]], with White Blood Cell being a primary example with him carrying them around during the heatstroke[[/note]]

** Influenza viruses are depicted as small red balls with sticks protruding, which is exactly how they look in real life. Unlike most of the other infectious entities, viruses are not strictly considered 'alive' by scientists, which makes sense that they aren't depicted as being sentient.

** Viewing from the top view, when Macrophage uses a SpinAttack, there's a blink-and-you'll-miss-it moment where she looks the actual cell.

* UnintentionallyUnsympathetic: Cancer Cell pretty much has every reason to [[NietzscheWannabe resent everything around him]]. Being hunted down relentlessly since childhood and watching your friends being killed while you hide away scared for your own life will certainly do that to you. All in all, he has all the makings of a TragicVillain... but that in there lies the problem to certain people. Cancer Cell is a TragicVillain, and to people who have been affected by cancer in their lives or know someone who has, it's rather uncomfortable. That's not to say that Cancer Cell himself is a poorly written character that the series expects fans to look at a sympathetic light, because that isn't the case at all. [[SubvertedTrope His actions are still clearly portrayed in the wrong]], but his motivations and reasonings seem to rub people who are going through cancer in one way or another the wrong way as they feel that such a character shouldn't represent a deadly disease that has yet to be cured.

** U-1146 and [=AE3803=] were ChildhoodFriends, but she kept forgetting all the other times they met, outside the encounter in the Red Bone Marrow. Alternatively, she remembers having a Myelocyte as a friend, but never pieced together that it was the same Myelocyte from that day.

* EightPointEight: Youtube channel Anime America got a lot of flak for their review of the anime, giving it a pass, all because it treats Cancer Cell as a more complex character than the pathogens that came before, as well as for not understanding the source material and stereotyping the fans that enjoy the show.