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Following their announcement on Wednesday, studio Kodansha announced that it would collaborate with the Ministry of Health, Labor, and Welfare of Japan for new Cells at Work! manga chapters. The first chapter will be titled “new coronavirus disease (COVID-19 )” and discuss information regarding the virus. In addition, a second chapter will be titled “COVID-19 Vaccine” and will talk about the vaccine.
Because of the subject matter, Kodansha collaborated with many different organizations to relay this information to the public. (as Cells at Work! is an informational anime). The list of contributors is long and features organizations such as the Japanese International Cooperation Agency, the National Center for Global Health and Medicine, the ICheck home COVID-19 detection kit program, and Anymind Technology.
Finally, Kodansha thanks healthcare workers worldwide for their work and perseverance regarding the pandemic at the end of the announcement.
Kenji Kutsuna (from the National Center for Global Health and Medicine) commented on the release of the chapters in a posting on the official center website. He goes on to say,
You can get the correct information for infection control. We hope that people all over the world are able to get the correct information on infection prevention through the Japanese cartoon “Cells at Work!
What We Know So Far
These issues are going to be free and will be available to read in English and Hindi. Along with this, the COVID-centered chapters are going to be in motion comic format with the corresponding sound effects. The COVID-19 spinoff has seen a lot of praise from Japanese audiences of all ages. Currently, there are no specific release dates for the Hindi and English translations.
The original Cells at Work! manga ended in late January with the tease of follow-up centered around the COVID-19 virus. The original author of the manga is not writing or drawing these future issues. Instead, Shizumu will be the supervisor and oversee the entire future process.
What is “Cells at Work!”?
Cells at Work! is an informational anime that serves to teach its viewers about the cellular functions of the human body. The show’s cast features anthropomorphic cells as they interact with inside and outside changes in the body (such as diseases and injuries).
The manga for Cells at Work finished with 16 volumes. There are currently two finished anime seasons with subbed and dubbed audio. There is also a sequel manga titled Cells at Work! BLACK written by a different author and tells the story of a body that lives an unhealthy lifestyle.