Ergo Proxy

 I didn’t know much about Ergo Proxy when a friend recommended it. He said that it blew his mind (in a good way) and that I definitely have to see it. I said ,,Ok…” but like ,,I’ll do it if you shut the fuck up”, and I didn’t even bother researching it. But I have to admit that it surprised me (in a good way). It’s no ,,mind-blowing” material, but it’s certainly worth the watch.

The world is in a desperate state. After a huge catastrophe, the Earth is largely barren, with only a few domed cities doting the empty and bleak plains. Humans are no longer produced by natural means (which sucks balls) and instead are grown like plants in special factories. In the city called Romdo humans and AutoReivs (some kind of androids) coexist with one another peacefully. But a recent murder streak committed by berserk robots infected with the Cogito virus (something that makes them self-aware) threatens the delicate balance. Behind the scenes, the government is conducting secret experiments on a mysterious humanoid life form called Proxy, which is believed to hold the key to the survival of mankind. Re-l (also spelled "Real") Mayer is assigned to investigate some of the murders with her AutoReiv partner Iggy (which is a most ridiculous name). She encounters a Cogito-infected AutoReiv and a fast and flexible monster. She later learns that the monster was a Proxy. The other central character, an immigrant named Vincent Law, is revealed as being the eponymous proxy, but his memories of his time in his native dome of Mosque are suppressed, or perhaps he suppresses them. After being hunted down, Vincent and Re-l leave Romdo, only to discover the truth behind the Proxies and the domes. So as you can see the story is complex, but it isn’t very hard to follow. Toward the end there is an episode that gives you a lot of back story to what happened to the world, as well as different clues as to what’s happening and to explain some things about the proxies. I don’t want to spoil anything, so know that these clues are kind of subtle, but you will understand if you put everything together. Some people say this is a mind-fuck, but I have to disagree. Sure, it has mystery and secrets, and it has one episode which I would definitely qualify as a mind-fuck, and one I would qualify as fucked-up, but overall, this is by no means a mind-fuck. And at the end of each episode there are some scientific notes for you to read. They aren’t necessary, but it’s fun to know (I think).

Thankfully, the story isn’t the only thing that makes this show worth-wile. As mentioned, there are more proxies scattered throughout the world in their domed cities (or more like doomed cities). And each time Vincent travels to those cities, he faces them. If it weren’t for these battles, I would say that no matter how great the story is, it would’ve been God-awful boring. I mean if it weren’t for the proxies there would be very few action sequences. Cause aside from a brief assault by drones on Vincent and his friends, and a short battle between humans and AutoReivs, the battle between proxies is the action that keeps you going. And even so, there are some complaints I have about it: 1) Some battles tend to be short; 2) There are to few; and 3) Some aren’t even battles at all, more like ,,confrontations”. What’s the difference? Well in battles there is action, while in confrontations, action sometimes isn’t necessary. The end battle is the only high-light of all the battles, but it doesn’t make-up for the overall lack of action. But the action isn’t the only thing you should be focusing on; these are just word coming out of a guy how eats 10 pounds of sugar a day. But still, I think they could’ve used more proxy battles. What’s bad is that there are episodes when nothing happens at all. They just wander aimlessly, or not wander at all. Remember, this isn’t Disney-World (God knows why I made this reference). This is a world where all you can see for MILES AND MILES are just dust and clouds. Just that. No vegetation, no landscape, NO NOTHING. These are the episodes I usually skip. 

I also like the character cast. They have good development, and some are just fun to watch. Take Pino for example. She is a little girl/AutoReiv that has been infected with the Cogito virus, so she travels with Vincent. She almost always is in a good mood, and while some may say ,,Well that’s cliché (or something like that)”, I say that that’s the beauty of it. In this entire bleak and desperate world, she is the only colorful and vibrant thing. Cause I have to admit, Re-l is practically always in a bad mood, and Vincent… well Vincent… he looks pretty retarded if you ask me. When he is in his Proxy form, he kicks ass, but in his human form he is soooo boring, that you want to hang him with a camel’s anal hair. Not to mention that he keeps his eyes closed a lot of times, so he developed something I like to call ,,Brock syndrome”. If you want to know more of it, check my Pokemon review. But overall, I’m pleased with the character cast.

Animation-wise, Ergo Proxy has a good way of giving you the depressing and desperate feel of this post-apocalyptic world. Too good. I found myself drinking anti-depress pills, just so I wouldn’t cry. I’m kidding, it wasn’t that bad, but still, they were kind of dull. That’s in contrast of course to the proxy battles (NOTE: BATTLES). They are flashy and quick, and always look cool thanks to certain camera angles (of course I have no idea what I’m talking about right now). Sometimes the character models look goofy for no reason, but overall the animation is decent. The sound department does a good job as well. It has a kick-ass opening and believable voice-work.

Overall this is a good watch. Personally I don’t think it’s a ,,Must see before I tragically die” but still a fun ride. If you want a good story, philosophical nonsense and some (key word: SOME) awesome fighting sequences, then by all means, ENJOY.