The unique medical sci-fi omnibus story "AI no Idenshi," serialized in Weekly Shonen Champion and awarded the Excellence Award in the Manga Division at the 2017 Japan Media Arts Festival organized by the Agency for Cultural Affairs, is finally making its way to terrestrial television as an anime. Set in a near future where humans, humanoids, robots, and other beings that are indistinguishable from human by appearance are commonplace, each episode tells the story of a patient who visits the protagonist, a specialist in treating humanoids. It could truly be called a "near-future Black Jack." By discussing non-human entities, the stories, brimming with humanism, paradoxically raise questions like "what is humanity?" and "what is the mind." They're sure to leave an impression on viewers. We'd like to introduce all the characters who appear in this ambitious work. Please note that some spoilers may be included, so please be warned.
Regular Characters
Since "AI no Idenshi" is an anthology of stories, each complete in itself, there are only a few characters who appear regularly. The following section introduces these regular characters.
Hikaru Sudo
The main character of this work is a male human doctor specializing in humanoids. In the original work, he is almost always referred to as "Sudo," and there are no scenes where anyone other than the humanoid's mother calls him by his first name. He runs a hospital called "Sudo New Clinic" and treats patients there. His age is unknown, but considering that he graduated from university, completed an internship, and then opened his clinic, he is likely in his late 20s to early 30s. He goes by the alias "Moggadito" and undertakes illegal medical activities that cannot be handled by public medical institutions. He was born with white hair and had a weak immune system and was prone to illness as a child, but it seems he was intelligent even back then. Perhaps because of this, he doesn't particularly enjoy sports. He has a surprising sweet tooth and is a good enough cook to make his own cakes as return gifts. He almost always wears a black long-sleeved turtleneck, regardless of the season or location. In a world where self-driving cars have become the norm, he likes to drive his own car (an act that is not covered by car insurance in this world). He is a pure human being, but he has little emotional fluctuation and usually reacts coolly.
Higuchi Lisa
This humanoid nurse works as Sudo's assistant at Sudo Shin Clinic. In the original manga, she is mostly referred to as "Lisa." At the age of 15, she was involved in a tourist balloon crash while traveling in Cambodia with her mother. Her mother died and her body was severely damaged, but her brain was intact, so she was replaced with a new body. During this time, she was admitted to the university hospital where Sudo was interning, which is where she first met Sudo. Having been in a similar situation, Lisa took a liking to Sudo, who was considerate to her, and began working as a nurse for him when he opened his own clinic. Lisa's age is also unknown, but considering that she was 15 when Sudo was an intern and then went to nursing school before starting work for him, she is likely in her early twenties. Although she is a humanoid, she is expressive and shows clear emotions, making her a good match for the cool Sudo. She is a surprisingly big eater, but her cooking skills do not seem to be that great.
Jay
This medical AI is installed at "Sudo New Clinic." It supports Sudo's treatment and provides clear explanations to patients when Sudo is lacking in detail. Originally a robotic AI named "Toby," it was adopted by Sudo after many twists and turns. While it possesses abilities beyond those of a medical AI, it behaves as a normal medical AI when not in Sudo's presence. It was once housed in a humanoid machine body, but is now a stationary AI embedded in the wall of Sudo New Clinic, meaning it does not have a body that can move freely. However, since the AI itself exists online, it can be freely conversed with, for example, in a moving car.
Sub-Characters
As mentioned in the previous section, "AI Gene" is made up of only three regular characters (two of whom are non-human). The following characters appear more than once in the original comic or are familiar to Sudo. It is unclear how these characters will be portrayed in the anime, as the series has yet to air. The characters featured in the promotional video will likely appear in the anime in some form, so I'm looking forward to seeing how they'll be portrayed when it airs.
MICHI
In the world of "AI no Idenshi," MICHI is an Oracle-class, highly advanced AI that steers society as a whole. It appears that there is a facility underground in Musashino, but its exact location is kept top secret and hidden from society. Her avatar appears to be a young boy, and for some reason, she appears to be acquainted with Sudo. For reasons unknown, MICHI seems to like Sudo and highly value his intelligence.
Kaoru
Kaoru's last name is unknown in the original work. She is a humanoid friend of Sudo's from college. While she had a male body during her time, she now uses a glamorous female body. She appears to be involved in the selection of the review members for MICHI's renovation plan and recruited Sudo to join, but the details are unknown. She is one of the few people with direct access to the facility where MICHI is kept.
Seto
His first name is unknown in the original work. He is a friend of Sudo's from college and runs a clinic specializing in humanoids under the name "Seto Global Life Planning." His skills are impressive, but he has a foul mouth, and his treatment philosophy for patients seems fundamentally different from Sudo's. He's like Dr. Kiriko in "Black Jack."
Ayaka Sudo
Ayaka is Sudo's humanoid mother. She raised the young Sudo single-handedly, but was arrested for trading "copies of her own personality" for money, a felony in this world, and is currently serving time in prison.
Perm-kun
This robot is equipped with a caregiving AI. It looks like a child dressed in a sailor's uniform. To learn about human society, it lived among elementary school students for six months. Its developer is an acquaintance of Sudo, and thanks to Sudo's recommendation, it was given permission to let the robot live with humans. Perm-kun has multiple identical devices, each with its own unique experience in different places, and they share that information over a network.
Roger Hurst
He is the CEO of the global company Cernova and the world's richest humanoid billionaire. He became acquainted with Sudo after receiving treatment from Moggadith after losing his wife in a terrorist attack.
Miyoshi Leon
He's known by the nickname "Saba-chan" because of his straightforward personality. He's a humanoid friend of Lisa's who he met at a volunteer job, but he has romantic feelings for her, which worries him.
Psychological Therapist
Her name is not revealed in the original work, and her actual name is unknown. She is a kind-looking middle-aged woman, but her narrow eyes make it unclear whether she is human or humanoid. In the original work, she is seen providing therapy to humanoids in a room in an apartment building under the name "Algorithm Improvement Club." However, she does not seem to stay in one place for long, instead moving from place to place, changing her name and location as she goes. Her fees are reasonable and she appears to be skilled, but she is an elusive character.
Honda Riichi
This male humanoid news reporter works for the news agency DayDay News. He once had a fiery personality, earning him the nickname "Demon Riichi," but now he's the epitome of calm and collected. He was previously infected with a virus that caused emotional control disorders.
Nakano
Nakano is a human female reporter working at DayDay News and a junior colleague of Honda. Her writing is touching, but Honda feels that she leans too heavily on the victim, so he strictly instructs her to take a step back. She has a bit of a bossy personality.
Teshigawara Utako
The leader of a spiritual new religion, Teshigawara Utako, is a friend of Sudo's from college. During her time at university, she researched the cyber-aging of humanoids. She now uses the money she earns from seminars to extend her own life. Nakano, finding out about this, is stalking her, hoping to write an article about it.
Conclusion
As this is an anthology work, many more characters appear in addition to those introduced here. Even in a world populated by humanoids who are indistinguishable from humans except for the shape of their eyes, emotions such as joy, sadness, hatred, anger, and love are universally present, and I believe that depicting these emotions poses the big question of "what is humanity?" This is a speculative work. As long as you can grasp the basic worldview, each episode is self-contained, so you won't get left behind no matter where you start, making it a work that is perfect for modern people who are short on time. It doesn't have the simple catharsis of the isekai reincarnation Warriors series that are popular these days, but it's an extremely high-quality work with content that adults can enjoy without feeling stressed, so I hope you will give it a watch. I hope that this article will be of some help to you as you watch.
