Ergo Proxy

In a future where most of the planet is dead, humans live inside sealed, machine-run domes where births happen on assembly lines and androids called autoreivs serve everyday needs. Re-l Mayer, a privileged investigator in the domed city Romdeau, questions the system after a string of murders and the sudden emergence of mysterious beings called proxies. Her comfortable life, backed by a powerful family and a scientist named Daedalus, begins to fray when Vincent, an enigmatic outsider, becomes central to events. Re-l leaves the city limits to trace the proxies and the strange phenomenon people call the "awakening," chasing answers about identity, control, and what remains of humanity.

Released in 2006, Ergo Proxy was created by Shukou Murase and Dai Sato, with Murase directing the TV anime. Its look blends noir aesthetics with cyberpunk worldbuilding and a moody, atmospheric tone.

Critical reaction has been mixed to positive, reflected in a user score around 7.6 out of 10 from online voters. Reviewers often point to its slow pacing and dense symbolism, while praising the visual design and philosophical questions about memory, selfhood, and artificial life. The series asks how manufactured people and machines respond to consciousness and guilt, and it doesn’t spoon-feed answers.

The series developed a dedicated cult following thanks to its stark, industrial visuals and ambiguous storytelling. Fans and scholars alike cite Ergo Proxy when discussing existential science fiction in anime, and scenes from the show frequently come up in forum debates and video essays about identity and dystopia.

Ergo Proxy didn’t collect mainstream television awards, but its reputation has grown through steady fan appreciation and critical reassessment. It’s often listed among darker, more intellectual sci-fi anime and continues to be a reference point at specialty conventions and in academic discussions about animation, genre, and philosophy.