List of Ergo Proxy terms

This is a list of terms used in the science fiction suspense anime television series, produced by Manglobe, which premiered across Japan from 25 February 2006 on the WOWOW satellite network. In describing these terms and their context, this article discusses plot elements of the series.

Geography
Planetary Ecological Disaster

The proximate cause of this disaster was rapid climate change due to the "cascading release of Methane hydrate," probably caused by the melting of the Siberian Tundra, itself caused by Global Warming. The disaster was not sudden: mankind had time to prepare the Boomerang Star (to evacuate the planet), as well as the Proxy Project (to regenerate mankind on Earth). During or shortly after the evacuation, starvation and drought killed 85% of the human population; sea levels rose due to the melting of polar caps, restructuring continental boundaries. Either as a result of negative climate feedback or environmental manipulation by the Proxies, earth entered an ice age and a Nuclear Winter scenario that froze the oceans and eventually killed off nearly 100% of Earth's fauna and a large percentage of Earth's flora. It is likely that this climate change was the work of the Proxies themselves, as it is unlikely that even the total disruption of current weather patterns could lead to an ice age in which the earth's oceans would freeze and the sky become permanently swathed in cloud (particularly when it is revealed that the Proxies need the cloud cover to survive). Furthermore, it is likely that the cloud cover was designed specifically to lock the methane back into hydrates and otherwise cool the planet.

Romdo Dome City

This Dome is the centerpiece of the action for the first few episodes of the series. Romdo was created by Ergo Proxy, but he later abandoned the dome, leaving it in the care of Re-l's grandfather, Donov Mayer. This was done presumbably to be with Monad in Mosque.

The Commune

A settlement located right outside the boundaries of Romdo made up of people who left the dome. This is where Re-l and Vincent first ended up when they left Romdo. Eventually all the inhabitants are either killed by Romdo's autorave sentries or die while traveling with Vincent.

Mosque Dome City

Possibly a dome city built around the present-day city of Moscow, Mosque is a dome that was attacked and destroyed by Romdo. It is also claimed as the dome of origin of Vincent Law, though given his status as an unreliable narrator due to his faulty memories, this is not necessarily fact. It was probably the domain of Monad Proxy before she was abducted by Romdo. The wreckage of several Romdo AutoReivs (security AutoReivs which carry a human rider) suggests that Mosque was not destroyed by long-range bombardment but by conventional attack (the long range bombardment by the Rapture, initiated by Raul Creed, came later). Mosque is also home to a chamber in which Monad Proxy left the memories of Ergo Proxy encoded upon the walls, as well as a duplicate pendant that might have been Monad's, in the care of the AutoReiv called Amnesia. Though Raul Creed's attack on Mosque was outwardly an attempt to prevent Ergo Proxy from coming to grips with his past, it is revealed later that Ergo Proxy instigated the destruction of Mosque Dome in order to take revenge upon (and wipe out) humanity.

Asura Dome City

The Dome City created by Kazkis Proxy and (possibly) ruled over jointly from two towers by Kazkis Proxy and Senex Proxy. Kazkis can be quoted saying, "If Asura is the sun, Halos is the moon." Asura's residents were killed by the Knights.

Halos Dome City

What little is known about Halos is that its citizens were "left behind" following the deep space exodus of Project Boomerang. From there, they descended into warfare and chaos, only to be utterly annihilated by Senex. Halos and Asura were at one point a single city. Also, it is revealed that Halos used its WombSys facility to produce additional soldiers, despite the absence of Senex Proxy.

Ophelia Dome City
There is very little information on this dome, and its resident Proxy remains unnamed. Vincent, Re-l and Pino stopped here to resupply and move on, but encounter a shape changing proxy who seeks to eliminate everyone. All that is seen is the dome's interior structure - a densely built city, with streets in circular patterns in a deep conical arrangement - all the streets eventually lead downward into a central nature reserve. At the centre of the nature reserve lies a lake that seems to beckon all who see it - it turns out to be the lair of the Proxy.

During its fight with Vincent, it reveals that it had tried to accommodate human expectations by changing shape; naturally once the humans it had befriended discovered its true nature, it set about murdering them because it simply couldn't kill the one that it truly hated - Itself. In one vision, it show the citizens of the city all floating in the depths of the lake.

Smile Land

An amusement park type dome built by a Proxy, Will B. Good, so that he could keep smiling, even as the world fell apart. However, when Pino came to Smile Land, everybody noticed her smile looked more natural than Will's, whose smile looked like he was forcing it, causing the eventual "destruction" of the locale, since it was just a figment of imagination, thus causing Will to become rather distraught. After Pino awakens from "sleeping" (she is actually recharging her battery), it is revealed that her experience in Smile Land was only a dream. Soon after, Re-l, Vincent, and Pino (still aboard the Rabbit) near what appears to be another dome. Remembering her dream and the impending doom that was supposedly haunting Smile Land, Pino urges Re-l and Vincent to please not visit the dome. Re-l insists that they need to stock up on supplies, but Pino is able to convince Vincent to listen to her and trust in her intuition. The Rabbit can then be seen swerving its path away from Smile Land.

Abandoned Dome City
Dome City Ruins
City Lights Bookstore
A place entered by Vincent Law to discover who he and Ergo Proxy were before he became aware of Ergo as his other "self". Here, the books are either filled with questions to do with Law or information regarding him as a way of getting his memories back. (The similarity to City Lights Bookstore in San Francisco should be noted, as the "owner" or keeper of the books and memories wears a beret and snaps his fingers to trigger Vincent's memory, and both may be references to the Beat Movement. City Lights was the original publisher of Howl by Ginsberg, an important Beat work. The owner also makes note of the fog surrounding the store, a weather trait San Francisco is well known for. Regarding these references or similarities, the Bookstore may have been near what remains of San Francisco.)

Regent's Throne Room
Proxy One's Blue Sky Room

Biology
Proxy

There exist 300 Proxies, and it is stated in the series that the Proxies created the domes, one dome per Proxy. The Proxies were made by the "Creators" in what was known as the "Proxy Project", for the purpose of regenerating human life after the Earth's surface was ravaged by the cascading release of methane hydrate, a possible alternative energy source to petroleum and nuclear energy. Within the domes, it seems as if a Proxy's presence is necessary both to power an electromagnetic "shield" which protects the dome, but also for the life-giving WombSys to work. Raul claims that humanity needs to "change into beings who have no need for gods"; it is possible he is referring to Proxies. It is also stated that Monad Proxy was abducted from the Mosque Dome by Romdo during Romdo's invasion. Each Proxy is also an "Agent": it is stated that Kazkis Proxy is the Agent of Brilliance. Senex Proxy is the Agent of Moonlight and Ergo Proxy is the Agent of Death. Ergo Proxy is also Proxy One. Interestingly, Kazkis Proxy states that he, like Vincent Law, was haunted by his Proxy alter-ego, suggesting that Proxies might have originally been created in man's image. Lastly: Amrita Cells are intended to die with the coming of blue sky (it is possible that they are fatally susceptible to sunlight), but somehow, through his defeat of the immortal Ergo Proxy, Vincent was able to survive as a Proxy despite the coming of the sun, disregarding the Pulse of Awakening. In Episode 23, Ergo Proxy is quoted as saying that the Pulse of Awakening begins with internal changes, suggesting that before the Pulse of Awakening, Proxies are NOT vulnerable to sunlight. If this is in fact the case, and if Ergo Proxy's words on greeting Vincent Law following his decision to leave Monad II in the skies above Romdo are true (that Vincent somehow disregarded the Pulse of Awakening), the implication is that Vincent survived as Ergo Proxy because he managed to return to the original state in which Proxies are not vulnerable to sunlight. This may be due to the fact that Proxy One created Vincent before the Pulse of Awakening Project started. It is unclear as to whether he intends to support or oppose humanity as it rises from the ashes: he mentions that he intends to face the future with Re-l and Pino, implying that he will somehow cut the arriving humans out of the equation, "punishing the Creators" in accordance with the wishes of Ergo Proxy.

Pulse of Awakening

The end of the Proxy Project. The Proxy Destruction Program that begins with the revival of mankind. It is stated that Proxies are the single largest obstacle to the revival of mankind, implying that as mankind "awakens", the Proxies will die; this is confirmed by Ergo Proxy himself, and by Daedalus, who says that Amrita Cells cannot live under blue sky. This correlates with Raul Creed's monologue in episode 18, suggesting that the removal of Proxy overseers is necessary for the growth of mankind. Somehow, by defeating Proxy One, Vincent Law no longer heeds the Pulse of Awakening.

Amrita Cell

Proxy bodies are composed of Amrita Cells, and isolated Amrita Cells tend to resonate in the presence of a Proxy; Proxies also tend to respond to the presence of Amrita Cells. Though described as "immortal cells," Amrita Cells can be killed by FP Ray bullets (invented by Daedalus as an improvised weapon system against Proxies). As such, Amrita Cells are not truly immortal, though they quickly regenerate from conventional damage and are confirmed (in a brief snapshot of Daedalus' report in episode 2) to be capable of bypassing the Hayflick Limit. FP Rays are the only known method by which a Proxy can be dispatched (with the exception of death at the hands of another Proxy), though FP Rays are not foolproof: Ergo Proxy demonstrated that a Proxy can survive the dose of FP Rays by isolating and removing the infected area (having been shot in the arm by an FP Ray bullet, Ergo Proxy survived by ripping off the arm and regenerating a new one). An infusion of Amrita Cells saved Re-l Mayer's life following her exposure to infectious or toxic elements outside Romdo. Amrita Cells cannot live under blue sky (indicating that particular cyan wave lengths of light destroys them, same as the color of light emmitted from the FP bullets).

WombSys

To populate the Domes, a central chamber in each Dome is dedicated to a ring of iron wombs, which appear to be feminine AutoReivs with grotesquely swollen abdominal regions that open into fleshy cavities. Humans are born from these domes, though it is suggested that the first generation (created either by humans, Proxies, or WombSys) was sterile. These figures appear to be held in suspended animation behind transparent partitions. It is stated that WombSys was necessary because it took longer to heal the planet than planned.

Underground Mutants

A small clan of troglodyte humanoids encountered in episode 17. Ancient, battered artifacts such as a piano adorn the outer chambers of their underground habitat, but further inside, the air becomes toxic to humans. A brief glimpse of the inner chambers reveal a pillar adorned with glowing green patches, which is never explained but potentially the source of the toxic gasses, or perhaps an ancient machine. The dominant theory is that these mutants were once human, retreating into the cave warren as a defense against the environmental disaster that froze the planet's oceans. The troglodyte humans are unable to leave their cavern, as the air outside is, to them, toxic, and could kill them, or make them ill, much like when Re-l left Romdo for the first time. However, the air on the inside of the cavern is dangerous to them as well. Although they seem to have partially adapted to it, it is slowly killing them. No matter where they go, they will eventually die, as hypothesized by Re-l.

Original Humans
Human Replicants
Those created by WombSys. It is hinted that they could be clones and possibly sterile as well.

Infection - The World of Death

To the inhabitants of Romdo, the air outside the dome seems to be full of pathogens,
or some kind of deadly virus. Those in charge of Romdo insist that humans cannot
survive outside of the dome, and the release of "plug vents" is strictly controlled.
Vincent is able to fight off the infection, perhaps due to the qualities of the
Amrita cells that make up a proxy's body. It is likely that some humans are able to
survive in the atmosphere outside the dome, though many do die
(as Re-l would have had she not returned to Romdo). It is most likely some kind of virus,
as after her treatment in Romdo, Re-l no longer suffers from being outside the dome,
probably because she has developed an immunity to the virus.

Robotics
Entourage AutoReiv

Entourage AutoReivs are designed to help, and in some cases, protect their masters in various ways. In the case of Re-l Mayer, her Entourage AutoReiv called "Iggy" aided her in analyzing crime scenes, worked as her personal driver, contacted the Bureaus of Romdo as necessary and, although this is, not explicitly stated, acted as her personal bodyguard. Entourage AutoReivs are to accompany one person only, and as such, an Entourage which has lost its master is considered obsolete and is eventually disposed of. Entourage AutoReivs are humanoid in appearance, but lack distinct facial features, with the exception of coloring and some minor model differences. They are usually taller than most humans.

Companion AutoReiv
As their name would suggest, Companion AutoReivs are made for humans who need them for a number of reasons. For example, they can be used to replace a lost child or to be a child to people that can't have children of their own, or to simply accompany and serve humans in any way needed. Their skills are usually geared toward household chores, such as making food, cleaning and taking care of existing children in the family. Due to their status as companions for humans, they are usually very humanlike, possessing a wide range of facial expressions and an outside appearance of a human.

Armed AutoReivs

Armed AutoReivs are a part of the police and paramilitary forces of Romdo. Their purpose is to keep order in the city. They are seen with and without a human operator; a human operator is used to monitor and if necessary, take control of the AutoReiv in situations that require it, such as pursuits of specific suspects or other complicated tasks. Armed AutoReivs are usually much bigger than humans, about the size of an average car, though much smaller variations are also shown to exist.

Knights
A variant of the Armed AutoReivs used in Asura Dome City. Kazkis Proxy created and controlled them and with them, tried to kill off the remaining humans in Senex Tower.

Cogito Virus

A computer virus by which AutoReivs become self-aware, similar in nature to the concept of rampancy in the Marathon Trilogy series of computer games. Effects of self-awareness differ between individual AutoReivs for reasons unknown: Pino, for example, was self-aware for the majority of her screen-time, but she never attempted to harm anyone. Iggy, too, was purportedly self-aware for some time, but he only attacked other humans after suffering the equivalent of a mental breakdown (proximate cause for this breakdown was Re-l Mayer's rejection of him). As such, it is possible that the presence of Re-l Mayer as Iggy's raison d'etre kept Iggy stable. Under other circumstances, infected AutoReivs become immediately violent, such as the skirmish in Daedalus' lab when Re-l was "killed" by two AutoReivs that had been intentionally infected with the virus and had become highly aggressive. Different theories exist to account for these discrepancies: multiple versions of the Cogito Virus might exist; or the virus might affect different AutoReivs in different ways, depending on their background and programming. It is possible that the Cogito Virus is distributed and/or controlled by Proxies: AutoReivs of all kinds exhibit odd behavior (prayerful postures, attacks on humans) in the presence of both Monad and Ergo Proxy. Indeed, following a close encounter with Monad Proxy in the Romdo Shopping Mall, Pino appeared suddenly stricken by the same prayerful pose that afflicted other AutoReives throughout the series; shortly thereafter, AutoReive engineers were instructed to hunt her down, citing Cogito infection as their motive. It is also mentioned that the Cogito Virus is a potential offshot of the Boomerang Project.

Turing Application
The personality of AutoReives. It can be turned off, in which case it has no memory of what happens until restored. See also Turing test.

Hippocampal File

Vehicles
AHT
U4
Centzon Totochtin

This vessel, which looks like a high-tech sailboat capable of hovering over land or water by means unknown, enables Vincent Law to make his journey to Mosque in search of his past. It appears to derive its propulsion (but not its lift) entirely from wind: episode 16 depicts Vincent, Re-l, and Pino stranded and waiting for the wind to start. The Centzon Totochtin can support a crew of two (being an AutoReiv, Pino does not need to eat) for what appears to be a week or two. Other features include emergency harpoon anchors for tight turns and quick stops. Originally the property of Hoody, the commune elder. Pino refers to it as "The Rabbit".

The Boomerang Star

This planetary evacuation ship was "the last tool constructed by mankind on earth" (though the Boomerang Star was built in geostationary orbit), built to escape the upcoming planetary ecological disaster; it is stated that its builders were in such a hurry that "not everyone" made it aboard. Just as the ship's name implies that it might return someday (boomerangs return to the thrower if thrown correctly), mankind returns to Earth at the very end of the series.

Light Railway
Underground railway system

Weapon
FP Ray

A special type of bullet capable of disrupting Proxy biology. Aside from the impact of the projectile, FP Rays are harmless to humans.

Rapture

An ancient hydrogen bomb and associated missile delivery system (possibly an ICBM). Used by Proxy One to destroy the remains of Mosque prior to the arrival of Vincent Law. It appears others were fired as well

Regular Service

Regular Service is the name the members of the commune give to the automated surveillance drones which patrol the area outside of Romdo. Equipped with automatic guns, they are programed to follow the same route every day, killing any humans they discover. They do not attack autorievs, and seemed to be controlled by the security bureau. They can also be used in an attack mode, or sent to investigate certain areas of interest.

AutoReiv Disposal Unit Issued Firearm
The weapons issued to the Autoreiv Disposal Units in order to bring up infected AutoReivs are designed in such a way, that they cannot harm innocent citizens. As stated by Vincent, the only way to bring an infected AutoReiv back to the facility is to almost dismantle them. The weapon possesses a large amount of ammunition stored in cartridges.

Re-L's Shotgun
Re-L's Shotgun bears a resemblance to the Franchi SPAS-12, and most likely is a futuristic version of it.

Politics
Raison d'être

Translated as reason to live, this concept is a central part of the story, having dedicated an entire episode around this philosophical theme. It concerns humans, Proxies and AutoReivs alike, but as a survival tool it is most practical for the two latter. While the reason is a fundamental way of existence for the AutoReivs (that of to serve their human masters), it seems to be a curse for the Proxies, who know their ultimate finale is to die for the humans, in contrast with the robots which must live for them. For the humans in the anime, this seems to be the hardest and most elusive, as the Administrative Bureau and also Re-l notice the continuing aimlessness of most of the citizens in Romdo. This subject becomes an important concern for Re-l, who sees her own raison d'être in discovering the truth, however terrifying it may be.

Vincent Law is a unique example of a character that underwent both the search for the reason to live as a Proxy, as well as a human being. As he was not content in living as the first, he seemingly orchestrated his final search, knowing the path it would bring. As a human, he wanted to learn about his lost memories, his roots and as a symbol for that, the Mosque Dome became his reason to live, along with Re-l.

Regent
Administrative Bureau
Citizen Security Bureau

The administrative bureau headed by Raul Creed. It appears to deal with both Cogito infected Autoreivs and the search for the escaped Proxy, as well as control of the "Regular Service".

Citizen Intelligence Bureau
Immigration Bureau
Division of Health and Wellfare

The division in which Daedalus works, which attends to the health of Romdo's citizens. The division is also charged with the containment of Monad Proxy (who escapes in the first 15 seconds of the show) and research concerning the Proxies. Daedalus knows much more than he lets on about both Proxies and the truth concerning Romdo, however he seems to be free of much of the regulation the other citizens of Romdo face.

Sanitation Bureau
AutoReiv Control Division (AutoReiv Disposal Unit)

Responsible for the control and maintenance of Romdo's Autoreivs, also the disposal of Cogito - infected Autoreivs.

Temporary Immigrant Sector

Area of Romdo where immigrants are allowed to live, pending their acceptance as citizens. Re-l and Iggy first encounter a Proxy here, during a search for a cogito - infected Autoreiv.

Citizen Residential Sector
This is the well kept and monitored district of Romdeau where the Fellow Citizens live.

Project ADW

While not explicitly explained in the series in any real depth, Project ADW appears to be an attempt to modify humans at a cellular level with an infusion of Amrita cells.

This project occurred at some point between the launch of Rapture and Re-l, Vincent, and Pino's return to Romdo, but it is only mentioned briefly.

The Creators
Proxy Project
A project created by humans to regenerate humankind on Earth following the planetary ecological disaster. Though not explicitly detailed, it can be assumed that each of 300 Proxies was to create and supervise a dome city in which WombSys would gradually produce the minimum human population necessary to restore the planet. A brief monologue in Episode 15 about initial biological failures due to "lack of data storage capacity" for data relevant to the creation of life suggests that the Proxies might have been created as a kind of living gene memory bank to supervise the creation of humanity (and, possibly, other life forms) through WombSys (the importance of memory is a recurring theme in Ergo Proxy). The next phase of the project is unclear, though it is explicitly stated that the Proxies are the greatest obstacle to the Awakening of mankind, just as it is explicitly stated that, following the performance of their duty, the Proxy Destruction Program begins, entailing "changes within (their) body": a sensitivity to sunlight (blue sky) that is ultimately fatal. However, it is clear from Kazkis Proxy that some Proxies might have had their own ideas about humanity: Kazkis Proxy believed the humans of Halos had no reason to live or even a reason to die -- it is implied that he waged war against them for this reason (perhaps with assistance from Senex Proxy).

Boomerang Project

The project that led to the creation of the Boomerang Star (see above).

Proxy One's Revenge

By manipulating Raul Creed's emotions, Proxy One caused at least one missile launch, decimating several Dome Cities. In his view, humanity had destroyed the planet and then fled, leaving Proxies to resurrect the world and subsequently die off when the clouds parted. Enraged at this injustice, Proxy One sought to wipe out humanity by instigating warfare and nuclear missile launches, and while he was ultimately unsuccessful, it is possible that only Re-l Mayer and Vincent Law remain (the proverbial Adam and Eve). Though Ergo Proxy was defeated by Vincent Law and his plans to wipe out humanity failed, Ergo Proxy found some solace in the fact that Vincent would (somehow) survive the coming of sunlight with his Amrita Cells intact: in short, despite the coming of the sun, Vincent Law remains Ergo Proxy, the Agent of Death.

Proxy Pendant

Vincent first appears wearing a pendant (which resembles a Greek letter ψ) which seems to be something related to Mosque. It is actually Ergo Proxy's (it appears each proxy has one) and serves as a key to enter to room in Mosque where Monad stored Ergo's memories. Monad had an identical pendant, with the roman numeral XIII (13) carved in it. Vincent's has the numeral I written on his, signifying his status as the "original" Proxy. The pendant plays an interesting role in the story as a recurring stimulus of change. When Re-l discovers the Pendent in the wreckage of her house (after her encounter with the Proxy) she sets out after Vincent. The pendant is also (literally) the key to Ergo Proxy's memories.

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See Also

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