Anime I'm Watching: Ergo Proxy

When it comes to anime, I'm what you might call a "casual fan" (if I can use such a contradiction). I tend to pick up series based on whim and recommendation, watch most them in their English dubbed versions (HERETIC! HEATHEN!), and have pretty specific criteria for shows I like:

• The series must have a compelling story and not be an endless battle-of-the-week or monster-of-the-week.
• The heroes must be likable and interesting, and the villains suitably nasty but also interesting. There's nothing worse than a boring villain.
  
• Characters must grow and change during the series. When I started watching Neon Genesis Evangellion I took an instant dislike to the character of Shinji (who is almost a textbook definition of "whiny little bastard"), but was willing to continue watching because I assumed he'd get better. That is, until a friend told me "no, he's pretty much like that through the entire series." Oh, well, never mind. I stopped watching and never looked back, and from what I've since heard I made the right decision.
  
• The series must end at some point, whether it be 13 episodes, a season, or a couple of seasons, and the ending must be satisfying and FINAL. The ending should not be a meaningless mindfuck full of unexplained events and deep symbolism... far too many anime series end in such a way, as if the series creators throw up their hands and say "hell, we don't know what's going on either."
  
• The ending should have an emotional kick to it... characters should live, characters should die, but only if it makes sense in the story.
  
• It should be well-written, with clever lines and humor that is actually funny (as opposed to humor that is supposed to be funny but really isn't).
  
• It must be clear within the first few episodes that the creators are going somewhere with the plot and have an idea how things are going to work out. I enjoy series that drop subtle hints early on that pay off in the end (American science fiction examples of this would be series like Babylon 5 and Heroes).
  

Lately I've been buying two series as they come out: Ergo Proxy and Kurau Phantom Memory. Both have been enjoyable for different reasons, but I'll write about Kurau in the future. Right now let's concentrate on Ergo Proxy. I'm going to try to avoid spoilers but some are inevitable, so stop reading now if that sort of thing bothers you.

Ergo Proxy takes place an indeterminate time in the future on a devastated Earth, with humanity reduced to a few (very few) domed cities amidst a wasteland of dust and ash. The city of Romdo is just such a place, and inside the inhabitants enjoy a peaceful paradise where all their needs are taken care of. Each Romdo citizen has an android assistant called an AutoReiv which serves as companion, assistant, and network computer; the AutoReivs are intelligent but not truly self-aware. They do have a "Turning Application" which causes them to interact like a living person with others, but it can be shut off when it becomes annoying.The city is ruled by an old man called the Representative who speaks through four AutoReivs (which resemble Michelangelo's sculptures).

Things generally don't change much in Romdo... the citizens are born in artificial wombs, educated for their tasks, and encouraged to consume. Nobody questions anything.

However, recently AutoReivs have started becoming infected with a virus called Cogito that causes them to become self-aware... to possibly gain souls and the ability to make decisions for themselves. In some this causes violent reactions against humans and has resulted in a series of murders. In response, the city has created the AutoReiv Control Division to hunt down and eliminate the infected.

Vincent Law is a refugee from the destroyed city of Mosk who works for this unit. His only goal is to become a "fellow citizen"... meek and compliant, Vincent is a bit of a whiner and is tends to simply accept whatever life throws at him. He has a crush on Re-l Mayer which borders on stalking. He is accused of treason and escapes from the dome into the outside world.

Re-l (pronounced "ree-el") Mayer is the granddaughter of the Representative who works for the Citizen intelligence Bureau. She is haughty and cold, and entirely too curious for her own good. Charged with investigating a series of Cogito murders she discovers a superhuman being called a "proxy" and is attacked by another one. Her search for the truth causes her to seek out Vincent Law outside Romdo.

Pino is a Cogito-infected AuroReiv which resembles a small girl (both in design and personality). Designed to serve as a substitute child for a couple which has not yet been granted a child, Pino escapes with Vincent rather than be hunted down. She is generally friendly and happy, not caring too much about the deep psychological dramas of the characters.

The main plot of the series follows the journey of Vincent, Re-l, and Pino as they journey to the ruins of Mosk to find the truth behind the proxies. As they travel across the blasted wasteland they discover other remnants of humanity but few humans and quite a few proxies.

Ergo Proxy has several themes: identity (as implied by the title and much of the terminology of the show), loneliness and isolation, and memory. Approximately every third or fourth episode is a mindfuck episode... you don't know what-the-hell-is-going-on at the start:Vincent is a contestant on a game show, or Pino awakes in an amusement park. However, the mindfuck episode is always explained at the end and doesn't leave the viewer wondering what-the-hell-is-going-on after it's over. The series delves deep into the psychology of its characters but never to the point of excess (cough*Evangellion*cough), and characters grow and change in sometimes unexpected ways.

So what's the final verdict? That remains to be seen. The final disc doesn't come out until next week, so I won't know if the ending is a satisfying one until then. It's been an interesting journey so far, though.