One of the most difficult, but most impressive things that any form of digital entertainment can achieve, in my opinion, is to make everything in its duration feel important and relevant, so that by the end of its run, the viewer can feel that there was no wasted time in the experience. This is especially difficult in Ergo Proxy’s case, as Ergo Proxy’s categorization as a “mindfuck” anime, as many others in this genre tend to be very rewatchable due to its cryptic nature, dropping many hints throughout the series that attempt to contribute to the overall plot (or sometimes, they’re just there to confuse you). And with that said, I can safely say that not only do I consider Ergo Proxy a masterpiece in storytelling, with every scene having relevance and importance to the story, but it is also one of the most intelligent anime I’ve ever seen, even amongst others of its kind.
It’s hard to go in depth into Ergo Proxy’s story without any spoilers, so I’ll keep things light. The story takes place in the far future, in a dystopian society; a city named Romdeau. Here, mechanical autoreivs, appropriately named “Entourages” accompany humans in their daily lives. However, a mysterious virus named the “cogito” virus (that should be a clue right there) causes autoreivs to develop an ego upon infection. The story follows three main characters; first up, we have Re-L Mayer, an investigator for Romdeau’s intelligence bureau, a strong-willed girl who refuses to be oblivious to the mysteries around her. Next is Vincent Law, a mysterious immigrant from another city named Mosk, working for the autoreiv control unit and hoping to move higher up into the city to become a “model citizen”. Third is an infected autoreiv named Pion, who takes the form of a little girl, and slowly begins to develop as she learns more about human nature and emotions.
While the story does revolve around these three characters, every single character in Ergo Proxy, both main and supporting, played a central role in the show’s symbolization and philosophical undertones. I can’t elaborate too much on each character’s representation as it would be a spoiler, but I’ve never felt that any of them were present without a meaning, and they didn’t stick close enough to any conventional anime tropes to become predictable.
Much of Ergo Proxy’s depth and enjoyment comes from its underlying philosophical references and undertones, namely, Descartes’ “Cogito Ergo Sum” (because I think, therefore I am). A lot of time in this show is spent in contemplation of one’s identity and existence; how the perception of one as an observer, seeing himself as a separate entity from this world, sees the world differently than that of another, who is seemingly a part of the world but is in fact a separate observer from his own perception.
I’ve mentioned before how this show manages to make every scene and much of every sentence relevant to the plot, and this is probably the best part about Ergo Proxy. While I understood a good chunk of the overall story during my first viewing, upon my successive viewings, I’ve discovered so many different elements to the story, making the depth of this experience exponential in retrospect. A lot of scenes are just very subtle. The story just felt that much more layered, as symbolism and references are hidden in every nook and cranny. For example, even the moments when a certain character closes his eyes for even a few seconds has a relevance; clues are scattered about from the very beginning of the first episode, and it is picking up on all these details that made this experience as special as it was. On top of that, there’s some cleverly woven-in philosophy and literature references. For example, a health physician and scientific mastermind is named Daedalus, a skilled craftsman in Greek mythology, who’s myth plays a central role in the events unfolding around the anime’s character. There’s just so many little details that gives this anime so many layers, which, while is expected from Dai Sato (Ghost in the Shell SAC, Cowboy Bebop, Eureka Seven), it still surprised me by its sheer scale and relevance to the plot.
Ergo Proxy is a very unconventional show, and many scenes and episodes have come off as experimental. For example, there’s a game show episode which shows up out of the blue, offering the viewer an information session, but the very event of the game show itself is placed into the setting. There’s a lot of things here that I haven’t seen attempted in many other anime, and to be so successful in something so few others have attempted is a definite achievement.
Visually, the show looks gorgeous, not only due to its sharply drawn visuals and smooth animation, but also due to the art style, which does well to give the show an appropriately grungy look. Everything just feels so believable, despite the futuristic setting, and the show felt like an authentic experience in a dystopian society. The soundtrack is extremely well done, epic at times but often haunting, as it does well to suit the show’s mysterious, dark tone. The opening sequence and song, “Kiri” by Monoral, is also worthy of note as it is among my favourites. All in all however, the soundtrack is memorable, and the visuals are stellar, even for an 8 year old show.
If there’s one thing to complain about here, it’s just that the plot progression is often slow. As I’ve mentioned before however, I didn’t feel like there was any wasted time at all, so while events aren’t happening at a blistering pace, the information fed to the viewer in between big events play an equally important role as it contributes to the bigger picture. That said, this show’s cerebral nature definitely isn’t for everyone, and if you’re looking for an anime requiring little brain power to enjoy, this most definitely isn’t one for you.
All in all though? While I can’t claim that this show is flawless, as perfection is subjective, I can honestly say that there wasn’t anything in there that’s subtracted from my experience. It didn’t feel like too much, or too little; while an initial viewing may be confusing and seemingly plot-hole ridden due to its cryptic nature, upon further inspection, I’ve found that all of the clues were there; they just aren’t spoon fed to you. Combine stellar storytelling, no nonsense, well written characters, amazing production values and an awesome soundtrack, and I think what I’ve got here is more or less the complete package.
Overall rating: 9/10
