When a show is touted as deep or intelligent, I often fear what makes a good story will be neglected. Maybe it’s no secret a show can be praised solely for its profundity while failing in storytelling. But hey, ‘intelligence’ is good armor for a show to have. Why bother with authentic storytelling when a show can show-off its psychology knowledge?
But instead of ranting, let’s look at Ergo Proxy.
The future, probably. Technology has advanced to where it’s created AutoReivs, androids who act as servants to people. But in the city of Romdo, a bug called the Cogito Virus is spreading through the AutoReivs. They gain a will of their own, often to destructive results. Detective Re-l Mayer is tasked with investigating the Cogito Virus, but is attacked by a monster called a Proxy.
The Proxy had escaped from a research lab under Daedalus’ watch, and is strangely drawn to the immigrant Vincent Law. After another incident, Security Bureau Chief Raul Creed tries to capture Vincent and the Proxy. But the former, joined by the child-like AutoReiv Pino, escapes Romdo out to the wasteland world. And thus begins Re-l’s mission to discover what the Proxy is, Vincent’s journey in the wasteland, and the proverbial chess game between Daedalus and Raul.
For Daedalus, it’s his reason for living at stake. He has strong feelings for Re-l, willing to use his authority to let her break rules when she needs to. Or assist her in killing the Proxy despite Raul’s mission to capture it. A smooth talker and an even smoother schemer, Daedalus is defined by his feelings for Re-l without much else to his person. He’s an empty man, whose reason for living touches on a crucial point for Romdo’s citizens. And that point ups the urgency for Raul to capture Vincent and the Proxy alive.
Raul himself starts as the antagonist—antagonist, not villain—for all the characters. But as he learns more about the Proxy and Vincent, the more he questions why they must be captured alive. His character arc deals with authority, and how far someone will follow orders without question. Early scenes also make a connection between Raul and Pino, to hint at another side to him. Unfortunately, this connection and that other side aren’t explored until the final act. It’s too bad, because fully realized, the connection between Raul and Pino would round out the former.
Pino is the classic tale of an innocent child learning about the real world, but tainted by unnerving implications from her ‘age’ and the Cogito Virus. From her lack of grasping death to adventurous curiosity, it’s unclear whether her actions are more from her programming or her ‘will.’ She’s supposed to be infected, but doesn’t show the destructive actions as other AutoReivs do. Then again, she’s a child at heart. And regardless of why she learns about the world, what matters is she does. Her empathy grows with her fondness toward Vincent, and her tact sharpens under Re-l’s demeanor.
This is because Re-l ends up joining Vincent. She pursues him to bring him back to Romdo, but decides to join his journey after certain events, to learn more about the Proxy. Re-l herself is the picture of professional, maintaining her gun’s aim the way she maintains her eyeliner; perfectly. Because for how cold she can be on the job, she’s also a bit frivolous. She apparently spends every morning fixing her make-up, shows fear against the Proxy, and gets angry when things don’t go as planned. My goodness, it’s like she’s lived a sheltered life as the granddaughter of Romdo’s leader.
Correction: she IS the sheltered granddaughter of Romdo’s leader. Re-l is often in over her head despite her demeanor, like she was mismatched to her job. This isn’t unbelievable though, as early on much of her work is done through her AutoReiv Iggy. But after certain events, her character arc becomes one of growing independence, and knowing when to relax in the company of others. Re-l might be hard to like—though Vincent would disagree—but at least she’s compelling to watch.
As for Vincent, his journey is a quest of self-discovery. He’s an immigrant from the city of Mosque, but the threat from the Proxy and Raul forces him to escape. But, he realizes he has no memory of his time in Mosque. So he decides to travel there, hoping to find the answers to his memory. Vincent himself often thinks about who he is, almost to the point where it’s all that defines him (and because of his role in the story, can’t get away with it like Daedalus).
Thankfully, it’s not. Vincent’s journey changes him bit by bit, going from a boy depressed by events and hesitant to face the truth, to a man who can smile despite the odds and can deal with the wind being taken out of his sails (metaphorically, and...literally). Unfortunately, his progress cracks in the final act, when it moves at near breakneck speed to advance the story. The story itself moves brisk and quick during the first and final acts, but it’s the middle act that can be a problem.
The better part of the show’s middle act is punishingly slow, doing nearly nothing to advance the story. People expecting a quick trip to the final act should exercise patience, and take time to admire the setting and characters along the way. Because unlike some shows where a five minute event takes five episodes to unfold, Ergo Proxy moves along a time span of weeks and maybe months. It’s a long journey, but it always has something to show for it.
Sometimes it peeks into a future for Romdo, like the abandoned city occupied by a single man whose circumstances mirror Vincent’s. Or the closed-off amusement park that subscribes to ignorance and bliss before its eventual downfall. At other times, it’s a character study to test the bonds between Re-l, Vincent, and Pino. From trusting each other with food and water supplies, to saving each other from new and familiar faces, to placing their fates in each other’s hands (literally and metaphorically).
Going further, one episode strongly hints to the answer of Vincent’s memory, while another episode explores consciousness where there normally isn’t consciousness. It also looks into some of the minor characters. There’s one person whose sense of want and duty blur together as he feels emotions he’s never felt, while a military unit fights against destructive AutoReivs.
Oops, I stayed on the road of storytelling but it went into a jungle of existential and societal metaphors anyway. Whether stated or implied, the show is filled with the kind of intelligence I described earlier, but doesn’t hinge itself on profundity thanks to its compelling characters. They’re rounded enough to make the psychology a part of them instead of the other way around. The show is a story first, a display—display, not show-off—of psychology second, and that’s the way it should be. Save for the awful episode 15 that says nothing new, the show is great about being meaningful without crossing the line into nonsense.
But to give episode 15 credit, it displays the show’s perfectly fitting morbid sense of humor. It’s hard not to gawk at someone who’s literally making a game gravely serious despite his cheerfulness. Another episode shows two people who joke about their own uselessness. And another person threatens Re-l to no effect, as the camera goes back and forth between his increasingly scared face and her unmoving scowl.
The camera work is otherwise unremarkable, standard, except when it decides to throw in Re-l fanservice when it’s not needed. Because a glance of her naked body covered by two towels as she’s stretchered away, doesn’t have the weight of a slow look at her body that mirrors Vincent’s attraction to her when they’re close together. But hey, at least the visuals have the decency to give Re-l unassuming white underwear instead of an accentuating black.
The visuals themselves give the world a bleak look, from the unnaturally spotless Romdo, to the crack-lined, rust-littered structures of the wasteland world. Special mention goes to the character designs, particularly the AutoReivs. Save for Pino, every AutoReiv is identified by mask-like faces where glowing red eyes are the only hint of any expression. Most close-ups of the AutoReivs don’t reveal anything, but it adds tension in guessing whether they’re destructive or not.
But when they ARE destructive, there’s sometimes a firefight following close behind, like when a military group goes against them. Yes, I’m surprised the show has action scenes too. They move fluidly but without crazy choreography, which would look ridiculous in this fairly grounded show anyway. Except for the Proxy. The Proxy’s fights move with supernatural grace, but aren’t louder than the normal action scenes.
Because even in the action scenes, most of the music tracks are atmospheric ambiance instead of distinct pieces; the only noticeable track being the operatic ‘Fellow Citizens.’ The overall score works where it’s used, setting the mood but never distracting from the dialog. And there’s a lot of it. Nearly every moment of the show is charged with talking or thinking, and it demands a certain amount of attention.
Which brings me to another point.
Ergo Proxy isn’t an easy show to watch. There’s action, but people who watch it for the action can quickly get bored. The first and final acts are fast, but the middle act will drive away the impatient even faster. It’s held together by compelling characters, but ‘compelling’ isn’t ‘likable.’ It does most things right, but demands patience. So while the destination is far away, the journey is always here.