Ejen Ali

Ejen Ali (literally translated as Agent Ali), is a Malaysian animated series produced by WAU Animation, focusing on a titular boy which accidentally became a MATA agent after using Infinity Retinal Intelligent System (I.R.I.S), a device prototype created by Meta Advance Tactical Agency (M.A.T.A). I.R.I.S is controlled by neuro-signals enabling the wearer to perform actions programmed by the computer. After the incident, Ali and his uncle, Bakar cooperate in M.A.T.A missions.

Ejen Ali
Genre	Action Adventure Spy-fi Thriller
Created by	Usamah Zaid Yasin
Developed by	WAU Animation
Screenplay by	Usamah Zaid Yasin Waleed Shareef
Story by	Usamah Zaid Yasin Ahmad Izham Omar Mohd Faiz Hanafiah Nazmi Yatim Fuad Md Din Shafiq Isa Andi Abdul Ghani Ghazali Omar Fikri Zainal
Directed by	Usamah Zaid Yasin
Creative director(s)	Nazmi Yatim Shafiq Isa
Voices of	Ida Rahayu Yusoff Shafiq Isa Azman Zulkiply Azuan Wanji Shamsir Noorhayati Maslini Omar Nurul Radhiah Ibrahim Megat Zahrin Megat Hisham Roshilawati Razlan
Opening theme	Ejen Ali Intro
Ending theme	Ejen Ali Ending
Composer(s)	Azri Yunus Afiq Zakaria
Country of origin	Malaysia
Original language(s)	Bahasa Melayu
No. of seasons	2
No. of episodes	26 (list of episodes)
Production
Editor(s)	Usamah Zaid Yasin Nazmi Yatim
Running time	21mins/episode (Season 1)
Production company(s)	WAU Animation
Distributor	Primeworks Studios (Media Prima)
Release
Original network	TV3
Picture format	1080i (HDTV)
Audio format	5.1
Original release	8 April 2016 – present
External links
Website

The series is published in HDTV format and was first broadcast on TV3, on 8 April 2016. Ejen Ali is the first animation series as the intellect property of Media Prima Berhad (MPB).[1]

Background

Setting

The series is set in the fictional town of Cyberaya, largely based on the actual town of Cyberjaya, located approximately halfway between Kuala Lumpur and KLIA. In the series Cyberaya was shown to be a technologically-advanced city, much as the real-life Cyberjaya had envisioned.

In episode MISI: MAIN Cyberaya was shown to have a rapid transit system.

Production

The idea of creating the animated series came for Usamah Zaid Yasin, the director and scriptwriter, after establishing WAU Animation in 2013. For the storyline, he and his team watched films, animated series and read novels about spy and intelligence. The making of Ejen Ali took two years before the production works started in July 2015. About the name chosen in the series, Usamah said that Ali is a simple name and frequently used in textbooks. They were confused about choosing a simple name and finally, Ali was chosen.[2]

At first, Wau Animation planned to make Ejen Ali as a feature-film project, but because of difficulties securing investment and after discussing with many parties and some feedbacks, they felt that it is a loss if they only produce a single movie as the concept is so wide. They planned to develop this series at least until 5 seasons, then the films will follow.[3]

However, they released their first movie after 2 seasons, which was released on 28 November 2019.

Characters

Main characters

These characters are the agents of M.A.T.A (Meta Advance Tactical Agency), a secret spy organization that possess advanced technologies and is responsible for keeping the peace of Cyberaya. They play major roles in season 1, but some of them only appear in several episodes of season 2.

Ali

Voiced by: Ida Rahayu Yusoff

Ali is a boy which became an M.A.T.A Techno agent after accidentally activated Infinity Retinal Intelligent System (I.R.I.S), a device prototype created by M.A.T.A, which is controlled by neuro-signals enabling the wearer to perform actions programmed by the computer, but consumes the energy of the user to work. I.R.I.S has been synchronised for Ali, therefore only Ali is capable of using it. Therefore, he became a permanent agent and practised as an agent. He is a boy who didn't excel in class and always came late to the school. He has a best friend named Victor. Ali's weapon is a yo-yo that can shoot shockwave. Ali wears Aero boots which are connected to the I.R.I.S to help Ali jump farther. In season 2, Ali invented ATLAS (a device which mirrored the I.R.I.S). ATLAS enable any MATA agent to wear it and use it against its opponent. The problem with ATLAS is that it will drain Ali's energy very quickly.

Bakar

Voiced by: Shafiq Isa

Bakar is Ali's uncle, a combat M.A.T.A agent, and a younger brother to Ali's late mother. He has a tough body and is excellent at fighting. He is always caring for Ali. He usually fights physically and wears gauntlets that can activate plasma shield to defend himself from enemies attack. Bakar was framed as the "enemies spy" when a CCTV camera showing him sending the data of I.R.I.S blueprint to the enemies. However, Ali finds out that Bakar's brain was controlled after receiving a strange phone call, causing him to do so. In season 2, he became a mentor in Combat Pillar.

Alicia

Voiced by: Noorhayati Maslini Omar

An adopted daughter of General Rama, young agent of Neuro Pillar and Ali's classmate. She is first introduced as the 'Masked Disruptor', who wears jet black clothing and full-face helmet, and helps Ali to defeat the enemies at the port. Alicia initially hates working in M.A.T.A together with Ali. Due to her egoism and Ali's stubbornness, they always fight and this makes them rivals. After Ali saved her from the Azurium explosion, she developed more caring and friendly personalities towards Ali. She can be quite hostile sometimes. After saving Ali from Uno and Jenny (Cinco), she is trying her best to protect I.R.I.S from being taken by the enemies. Her weapon is a slingshot that is used to shoot various metal balls. She is a Chindian.

General Rama

Voiced by: Azman Zulkiply

The fierce general of M.A.T.A and adopted father of Alicia. He always chants "Bertindak Segera!" (Malay for "Act Immediately!") every time he is instructing the agents to immediately proceed to their assigned missions. A running gag in the series is whenever the agents are being noisy whilst his presence, he screams "Dey!" that echoes throughout the room.

Rizwan

Voiced by: Azman Zulkiply

Rizwan is the greatest agent of M.A.T.A, of Inviso Pillar. He can disguise as someone else by putting on a cap. He is often seen with lollipop in his mouth, thus always uses the lollipop stick as his final shot. His gloves can temporarily disable the enemies' nervous system. In season 2, he betrayed M.A.T.A and joined Numeros, before it was later revealed that he was negotiating with Uno to end the rivalry with M.A.T.A (which ends in failure).

Comot

Voiced by: Ida Rahayu Yusoff

Ali's pet cat. Initially mistaken as Labu, Ali's previous cat who ran away from home after the death of his mother. She used to work for Abang Bear and was requested to steal I.R.I.S, but she betrayed him as she doesn't want to be abused anymore. As a subject of an illegal pets' experiments three years ago, her genetic has been modified that gives her camouflage ability. She is heterochromatic in her eyes.

Numeros

Numeros is a group of main antagonists in Ejen Ali; their mission is to retrieve I.R.I.S and seek vengeance against M.A.T.A. Their name literally means numbers in Spanish; the members' code names are simply Spanish numerals. So far, there are only nine Numeros members, with four of them had their real name revealed. One of them, Cuatro (4) does not want to work with Numeros anymore, although he was forced to do so.

Uno (1)

Voiced by: Azuan Wanji Shamsir

Uno is the leader of Numeros, with the main objective is to retrieve I.R.I.S. It was later revealed that he was the Leader Of Inviso Pillar, real named Djin, who was rumoured to be killed in an Azurium explosion. He was Rizwan's mentor. He feels betrayed by the other Pillars Leaders who neglected him 5 years ago, that leads to his grudge against M.A.T.A. He is able to move at super speed and is very agile while fighting. His weapon is a plasma sword.

Dos (2)

Voiced by: Nurul Radhiah Ibrahim

Dos is the earliest Numeros member to appear in the series, together with Trez, who break into M.A.T.A headquarters and steals I.R.I.S. Her weapon is her hair ornament that is able to electrocute her target and plasma blades that are able to cut through anything. She wears a pair of special boots that enables super speed and agility.

Trez (3)

Voiced by: Megat Zahrin Megat Hisham

Trez is a big-bodied man with cybernetic arms that enable him to lift a load 10 times heavier than a normal human.

Cinco (5)

Voiced by: Nor Meirysha Nurol Ashikin

Cinco's real name is Jenny and is previously an M.A.T.A's special inventor. She created weapons, suits and devices for the M.A.T.A agents. As Jenny, she appears as a soft-spoken and gentle woman who always shows her concern towards the agents. However in episode 12, she revealed herself to be the "enemies spy" and never siding with M.A.T.A. As Cinco, she is responsible for the researches in order to separate I.R.I.S from Ali. She is always seen holding a tablet with its pen, in which the pen can functioned as a taser and communicator.

Seis and Siete (6 and 7)

Voiced by: Iliyas Abdull Latif

A pair of twins who share the same weapon, a soccer ball that produces high impact when it is kicked to the target.

Ocho (8)

Voiced by: Shafiq Isa

Ocho is a robot who is the master of the microbugs. His movements and attacks using the microbugs are controlled by Cinco.

Nueve (9)

Voiced by: Adi Bahari

Nueve's real name is Dr. Aaron, previously a scientist at Alpha Tower and worked under Dr. Tong. He is a mad scientist with the mission to advance the humanity. Dr. Aaron invented NeuroGear, a helmet that can controls human's mind, and his invention is rejected by Dr.Tong before he gets fired. He was imprisoned and created NeuroLink, in order to transfer the data of Dr. Tong's brain to his own brain. After being successfully defeated by Ali and his team, he was kidnapped by Dos and Trez, in which he later became the member of Numeros and invented I.R.I.S Separator.

Young Agents of M.A.T.A Training Academy

Jet

Voiced by: Mohammed Haziq Mohammed Hilmy

A self-proclaimed young agent of Neuro pillar who is able to fly with his weapon, a jetpack.

Moon

Voiced by: Ain Hafizah

A cheerful and chatty young agent of Inviso pillar. She is one of the young agents who is very friendly towards Ali. Moon can produce her own clones with her suits that can projectiles holographic images of her. Her weapon is a pair of gloves that causes impact to anything she touches.

Iman

Voiced by: Salina Salmee Mohd Ali

A hijabi young agent from Combat Pillar. She appears as a shy and highly-mannered girl but is very friendly towards Ali. Her weapon is a roped dart.

Khai

Voiced by: Khairul Anwar Suwandi

A Japanese-Malay young agent of Techno Pillar who befriends Ali at the academy. His weapon is his robotic hoverboard named R-O. He tends to chant "Naisu!" (Japanese for "nice!") every time he is praising his friend's good works.

Rudy

Voiced by: Syahrul Matnizam

A cold-hearted and arrogant young agent of Inviso Pillar. He holds deep hatred towards Ali after learning that Ali defeated Uno in episode 13. Rudy always fights with Ali. Before becoming an M.A.T.A agent, he was a pickpocket and lived in an alley. He idolized Djin (Uno) very much after Djin saved him from being tormented by Komeng. It's also revealed that he doesn't have his family anymore. He can control the movement of his target if he puts on his weapons on their wrists, a pair of metal wristbands. Rudy also able to disguise as anyone he desires by putting on his disguising hoodie.

Mika

Voiced by: Shafiqah Zulkefli

A tomboyish young agent of Combat Pillar. She is disabled on her legs, thus she possesses a mecha suit as her weapon, that enables her to move around and shields herself from the enemies attacks.

Roza

Voiced by: Syuhadah Hysham

A Sarawakian young agent of Neuro Pillar who bullied Ali at the academy. She is always seen chewing a bubble gum. Her weapon is a sniper rifle that can shoots lasers.

Bulat

Voiced by: Muhammad Aqil

A chubby young agent of Techno Pillar. His weapon is a rubix sphere that has different functions, depending on its combination, such as creating explosions, barrier and confetti.

Zass

A muted young agent of Inviso Pillar with the ability to run at super speed.

Chris

Voiced by: Iqbal Mustaqim

A Caucasian young agent of Combat pillar who speaks Kelantanese dialect. His weapons are plasma kris that are controlled with telekinesis. Chris fights with silat styles and chants.

Mentor agents

Leon

Voiced by: Muhammad Zulhilmi

Leon is the mentor of Neuro Pillar and is the strictest of them.

Geetha

Voiced by: Azi Shafian

Geetha is the mentor of Techno Pillar. She is also known as the friendliest mentor agents at all. However, she can also be more strict than Leon when there is a student who not listening to her.

Karya

Voiced by: Usamah Zaid Yasin

Karya is the mentor of Inviso Pillar. Outside of M.A.T.A, he works as a teacher at Ali's school, under the name Cikgu Bidin, who 'chose' Ali as a member of Stamp Collecting Club. He is able to perform magic tricks and hypnotize.

Pillar leaders

Zain

Voiced by: Usamah Zaid Yasin

Zain is the leader of Neuro Pillar. When other pillar leaders do not believe in Ali anymore after the Override Mode incident, he is the one who believes and guides Ali. He is the secret mentor of Ali and Alicia.

Ganz

Voiced by: Shafiq Isa

Ganz is the leader of Combat Pillar. He is quick-tempered.

Dayang

Voiced by: Aina Nadzir

Dayang is the leader of Techno Pillar.

Other antagonists

Wak Musang

A nasi lemak seller who works under Abang Bear. In episode 1, he is shown to work with Numeros, when he is responsible for temporarily keeping I.R.I.S for Uno.

Abang Bear

The puppet behind the pets illegal experiment 3 years ago. He speaks Kelantanese dialect.

Komeng

Commander of Bear gang, who always seeks to steal High technological devices of C-Tech.

Neonimus

An unknown entity who hacked into the station control room of Cyberaya transit system

Analog Man

An old man who hates technology and plans to destroy Cyberaya. He said that advanced technologies caused the values of humanity to be forgotten.

Other characters

Victor

Victor is the classmate and best friend of Ali, who enjoys playing video games together with him. Unlike Ali, he is academically excellent, often ranked 2nd in the class.

Puan Munah

The strict homeroom teacher of 6 Avicenna. She teaches Science and P.E subjects and often seen holding a rattan whip. Although small-bodied, her scream could terrify her students.

Dr. Tong

A scientist in biotechnology branch and former employer of Dr. Aaron. He became the victim of Dr.Aaron when the data of his brain is transferred into Dr. Aaron's brain.

Dr. Mala

A scientist in energy engineering branch.

Dr. Ghazali

Father of Ali who is a technological prodigy.

Aliya

Mother of Ali and the older sister of Bakar who is said to have died. Her identity was revealed in Ejen Ali: The Movie, where she was shown to previously team-up with a girl named Niki of a slum in the outskirts of the city Cyberaya, who hated technology but tried to use it for the slum's people. Once they had tried to sneek into the cargo bay for stealing some gadgets, when they are intervened by the Pillar Leaders. After a short fight, when they defeat Aliya, then Teckno pillar leader Dayang reaches to her, offering her to work for them whereas Niki escapes after seeing the senario.

Prof. Akram

Originally Cuatro (4) of Numeros, he lives alone in a small house located at a remote forest. He refused to work under Numeros as he does not want to trust Uno anymore. However, Cinco threaten him to work together with them or else the life of his family will be at stake.

Episodes

Main article: List of Ejen Ali episodes

Season		Episodes		Originally aired
				First aired	Last aired
	1	13		April 8, 2016 (2016-04-08)	March 3, 2017 (2017-03-03)
	2	13		September 22, 2017 (2017-09-22)	March 30, 2018 (2018-03-30)
	Ejen Ali: The Movie			November 28, 2019 (2019-11-28)

Broadcast

Aside from airing on TV3 in Malaysia, Ejen Ali can also streaming available on Iflix (Season 1 only) and Netflix (all 2 seasons) in an English dub.[4]

Outside Malaysia, Ejen Ali has been expanded and shown across over 50 different countries worldwide. On June 2020, Primeworks Studios announced that Ejen Ali, along with 5 other animated series produced by Primeworks Studios, will stream on Amazon Prime in 6 different countries namely: the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand, as part of their deal between the Primeworks Studios subsidiary, Primeworks Distribution and Janson Media.[5]

History

Season 1

The first episode was broadcast on 8 April 2016, with the second and third episodes shown on 15 April and 22 April respectively. It is shown every Friday, at 5:30 p.m. on TV3. Fourth, fifth and sixth episodes shown on 27 July, 29 July, and 5 August respectively. Seventh to ninth episodes are shown on 28 October 2016 for three consecutive weeks. Tenth to twelfth episodes are shown on 30 December 2016, 6 January and 13 January 2017. Thirteenth episode (last episode of Season 1) has been shown on 3 March.

An English dub of the show premiered 15 December 2017 on Disney Channel Asia and it was finished on 8 June 2018. It also premiered on Nickelodeon Sonic in India on 16 July 2018;[6] however it was abruptly taken off the schedule nearly two weeks later for unknown reasons, with the last few episodes remaining to be aired. But in mid-November 2018, the new episodes were aired on Nick HD+ and the entire season was finished on 18 November 2018.

Season 2

The first episode of Season 2 was broadcast 22 September 2017, with episode two, three and four shown on 29 September. 6 October and 13 October respectively. Just like Season 1, It is shown every Friday, at 5:30 p.m. on TV3, Fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth episodes shown on 17 November, 24 November, 1 December and December 8 respectively. Episode nine to eleven aired from 9 February to 23 February 2018. The twelfth episode was released on 23 March 2018. Thirteenth episode (last episode of Season 2) was released on 30 March, making 26 episodes total.

An English dub for Season 2 premiered 15 April 2019 on Disney Channel Asia and it was finished on 1 January 2020.

Reception

Awards and nominations

Awards and Nomination
Year	Award	Category	Nominee	Result
2016	Malaysia Film Festival[7]	Best Short Animated Film	Ejen Ali (WAU Animations)	Won
2017	Mob-Ex Awards	Best App - Creativity	Ejen Ali: MATA Training Academy	Won (Gold)
		Best App - Media Owner		Won (Gold)
		Best App - Tablets		Won (Gold)
		Best App - Games & Entertainment		Won (Bronze)
		Best App - Games & Entertainment	Ejen Ali: Emergency	Won (Gold)
		Best App - Tablets		Won (Bronze)

In other media

Video game

Before the release of Ejen Ali, WAU Animation with the collaboration with Media Prima Digital released its own game which is Ejen Ali: MATA Training Academy for Android and iOS users on 4 March 2016. The game was downloaded for over 260,000 times.[8] The second game, Ejen Ali: Emergency was released for iOS and Android in September 2016.

Both games have succeeded to win medals in Mob-Ex Awards 2017. Ejen Ali: MATA Training Academy won three golds which were Best App - Creativity, Best App - Media Owner and Best App - Tablets and one bronze which was Best App - Games & Entertainment, while Ejen Ali: Emergency won one gold for Best App - Games and Entertainment and one bronze for Best App - Tablets.[9]

In early 2020, WAU Animation with Media Prima Digital announced the releasing of a new game, "Ejen Ali: Agent's Arena"., which would bee soon available on Android, later iOS. It's already being played in Malaysia, and will later be released for different countries.

Film

Main article: Ejen Ali: The Movie

After two seasons of animated TV series, WAU Animations produced its first film, titled Ejen Ali: The Movie, which was released on 28 November 2019 in Malaysia.

References

1. "Dunia risikan Ejen Ali di TV3" Harian Metro. 30 March 2016. Retrieved on 29 May 2016.
2. "Fenomena Ejen Ali" Harian Metro. 2 April 2016. Retrieved on 29 May 2016.
3. The Making of Ejen Ali. TV3. 1 April 2016, 5.30 pm.
4. https://www.justwatch.com/my/tv-show/ejen-ali
5. "Primeworks Distribution takes Malaysian Animation Titles to Amazon Prime". TV ASIA Plus. 11 June 2020. Retrieved 11 June 2020.
6. "NickALive!: Nickelodeon India's Sonic To Premiere 'Ejen Ali' On Monday 16th July 2018". NickALive!. 8 July 2018. Retrieved 8 August 2018.
7. http://www.finas.gov.my/festival-film-malaysia-28-awards/
8. "Media Prima’s latest gaming app sees over 260,000 downloads" Marketing Interactive. 15 June 2016. Retrieved on 21 January 2017.
9. "Media Prima Labs bag four gold medals at Mob-Ex Awards 2017" New Straits Times. 25 February 2017. Retrieved on 1 March 2017.

External links

• Official website
• Ejen Ali on IMDb