Ergo Proxy

[Brainpiercing]

Well, with the way the citizens were in Romdeau, I doubt that husband and wife have any sort of real connection to each other.

And I'm such an idiot, I just noticed the obvious Pinoccio reference (with all the "father" mentions by Pino), and it just blows my mind that they filled their show with stuff like that.

I think if anyone were ever to try and summarise and analyse EP, they would be busy for a long time.

[Eldo]

I just want to say how fucked up episode 19 was. It felt like I was watching a Disney cartoon minus actual animation and the writer was smoking a bit of pot. I was a bit partial about it, but it's alright in a strange way.

I'll watch episode 20 later and post my thoughts about it.

[Brainpiercing]

It seemed like anti-disney, but it was still a bit crude in its final message.

[Eldo]

Episode 20 was whacked out. I found it enjoyable, nevertheless. Although it's strongly implied that a proxy was in Vincent's mind, could it be that it was just a simple dream? I'm leaning towards the former, though. So far, the proxies has used unusual means to 'attack' Vincent and his group.

[Brainpiercing]

I like the final scene of ep. 20. It immediately questioned the firmest belief he had in himself, the one that let him decide on what was real and what wasn't. And the way it was done, so casually, was great.
I also believe that there was someone manipulating his mind. He never viewed himself as Ergo Proxy enough to dream about himself as the proxy with so much certainty. That only happened when other proxies were involved.

[Eldo]

I have some mixed reactions about episode 21. It seems we know more of the background of Ergo Proxy, but I would prefer more explanations instead of answering cryptically.

[LordMune]

So, that was episode 23.

我はERGOPROXY、死の代人である。

I liked it.

[Brainpiercing]

Well, the end was certainly an END for the show, and a new beginning, too.

I am quite relieved that at least some shows still have endings that are not cut short, hurried, or just plain stupid. They took all the time they needed, and did what they had to. Of course, there's the bit of added drama with survival on the edge of destruction, but that was to be expected.

I liked this ending, it made things clear, at least partly. There are some questions still remaining, I guess those will remain unanswered.

[psi29a]

I can positevly say that I like this series.

The opening and endings where solid and the series itself was executed very well.

Would I be correct in assuming that the domes themselves where created by Proxies as to not be alone? akin to somethig to do while waiting for humans to arrive?

While the humans left on the planet, at least in the domes are created by Proxies they aren't truly like the humans that are just now arriving back?

The Proxies original job was to kill anything that was left on the planet and prepare it for the return arrival of humans?

[LordMune]

I can't back this up, but I was under the impression that the Proxies were to speed the Earth's recovery awaiting the return of the original humans. The domes may originally have been intended to aid in repopulation (as it appears most proxies constructed one), but I guess war and plain genocide ruined that, leaving very few dome humans alive by the end, or even the beginning, of the series.

I like how the 'creator''s original emissary, Proxy One split his personality and became, or perhaps split his personality in order to become, Ergo Proxy, the proxy of death and therefore is both the first and last proxy.

[Brainpiercing]

The one thing I don't get is: The Proxies are not capable of living under the sun, but Ergo Proxy can. Monad vaporizes when the sun touches her, and so does Proxy One, but Ergo doesn't. Why? It isn't explained, and also the split personality doesn't explain it.

As to the history, here is my take: After the unnamed apocalypse (nuclear war, most probably) the spaceship "Ark" is created to store thousands of humans during the long time until the planet regenerates. In the meantime, on the Ark, the proxies are created to aid in the repopulation of earth, as beings specifically engineered to weather the post-apocalyptic environment. They build the domes and supposedly make some new humans and the robots to populate them. However, the proxy project was somehow considered a failure, and the repopulation from space doesn't take place, and is delayed until the clouds break. The new humans on earth don't deal with the environment particularly well, even though the domes offer relative safety, the confined environment creates some mental trouble, or human nature is just rotten enough to destroy the new civilisations.
The proxies themselves fare differently, some (most?) go crazy, others recede into themselves. They are obviously aware that they didn't succeed, and have difficulties dealing with that knowledge.

I would have to rewatch the clue episodes to say more. Probably you could squeam some more information from the series if you were to look closely.

Some things I missed: Where does the Cogito Virus come from? Why do most androids go crazy from it, but Pino doesn't, and Iggy doesn't (quite)? Pino becomes essentially human, Iggy becomes a victim to his obsession. We see images of androids breaking down and seemingly praying to the heavens, perhaps seeking meaning to their existence? I doubt this is explained anywhere, now I'd like to find out whether the creators have put up some background infos to their show somewhere.

[LordMune]

Where does the Cogito Virus come from? Why do most androids go crazy from it, but Pino doesn't, and Iggy doesn't (quite)? Pino becomes essentially human, Iggy becomes a victim to his obsession. We see images of androids breaking down and seemingly praying to the heavens, perhaps seeking meaning to their existence? I doubt this is explained anywhere, now I'd like to find out whether the creators have put up some background infos to their show somewhere.

It is set in the future. A group of robots become infected with something called the Cogito virus, and become aware of their own existence. So these robots, which had been tools of humans, decide to go on an adventure to search for themselves. They have to decide whether the virus that infected them created their identity, or whether they gained their identity through their travels.

I assume the Cogito virus is a loose end/red herring left over from a rejected early plotline.

[Brainpiercing]

Interesting, that interview sounds totally different than the show. Well, good job they changed it, because the "robot becomes conscious" story has just about been dragged to death behind a very slow moving vehicle. Meaning - a very slow and painful death, because it could still walk the first fifty years. I-robot was one of the final spasms. Let it rest in pieces, people.

[Deathbringer]

Agreed.

Even if at first, that " conscious robots" may sounds interesting at first, it´s was good that they droped the idea.