English Dub Review: Cells at Work! “Cancer Cell II (Part 1)”

Overview (Spoilers Below):

Cancer Cell creates more minions as the immune cells attack him. However, before Memory T Cell can land a punch on Cancer Cell. Regulatory T Cell shows up and defends Cancer Cell. She continues to defend the Cancer Cell as part of her job to prevent aggressive attacks from the immune cells against those cells identified as cells of the body. Cancer Cell traps White Blood Cell U-1146 as he demands his release. However, Cancer Cell asks him about choosing the few lives of cells versus the one life of the body, and U-1146 answers that he’ll protect the body.

Meanwhile, Normal Cell runs away from the invading harmful bacteria, but the harmful; bacteria surround him and mock him for trying to save the lactic acid bacteria. He tells the lactic acid bacteria to run, and it unwillingly does so in tears. The platelets are together with Red Blood Cell AE3083, but their path is blocked because of the harmful bacteria ahead so they have to escape through a different route.

Our Take:

This week’s episode had the immune cells helpless against the Cancer Cell as Regulatory T Cell enters the fray.

It’s a pretty simple episode starting with the conflict between Cancer Cell and the immune cells. Regulatory T Cell in action is great. Easily the highlight of the episode with her fight with Memory T Cell and NK Cell even if she’s just deflecting their punches. We didn’t get to see her in action during the first season, so it was worth the wait to learn about her role in the body. Her role in the body is essentially to stop the immune cells from attacking cells of the body.

Then there’s Cancer Cell’s conversation with U-1146. It’s a clash of perspectives with the problem of killing a few lives to save the body. Cancer Cell’s perspective is understandable given how he was hunted down for the sake of protecting the body. However now he’s doing it to liberate the cells from their roles even if it’ll kill them. This episode merely builds up the Cancer Cell’s destructive plan with the high stakes for the immune cells to deal with.

Lastly there’s Normal Cell with lactic acid bacteria and AE3083 with the platelets. Their scenes worked to give us an idea on what was going on in their end. Normal Cell’s scenes were more impactful with how he wants to save lactic acid bacteria from the harmful bacteria. His method did enduce a sad parting, but the lactic acid bacteria could return to help Normal Cell with the grown up versions of itself.

Overall it was a good episode and I’m looking forward to seeing how U-1146 gets out of his confinement.