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Serial Experiments Lain - Boxed Set

Serial Experiments Lain - Boxed Set

List Price: $119.98
Your Price: $107.98
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Rating: 5 stars
Summary: nice...
Review: im not going to waste my time saying how good it is. you can tell that from me rating it 5 stars. instead im going to tell u the bad side.

the only bad thing i noticed was that the series introduced a lot of aspects that seemed to be non influential to the overall plot. Such as area 51... It was mentioned once then forgotten. Almost like the creators had enthusiam flares in different areas then got bored of them.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Worth watching.
Review: Serial Experiments Lain is in a class of its own. My first impression of the series when I watched the first episode was the artistic virtuosity of the drawings. The scenes were drawn well but that was not the main issue. The style which was employed in the renditions gave a certain feeling, that involved the viewer even as the series progressed. My second impression was that the concepts and ideas in the series were quite unique. It wasn't unique in the sense that these concepts are alien in japanese anime and such, but that the way things were played out was interesting. You can recognize art similar to NieA Under 7. I think the same artists did work on Serial Experiments Lain.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: utterly disturbing
Review: You know I love disturbing and confusing movies but this show takes both those concepts to the extreme. We have here a show about a shy girl who finds herself becoming increasingly fascinated by The Wired(a futuristic version of the internet).

This in itself is something that many ppl can relate to.
What's different about it though, is that in the show you can actually project yourself into the Wired as a physical entity.

The show begins with a girl jumping of an apartment building. This grisly event sets the mood for the rest of the show..
What's even more creepy is that a few days later all the girls in her class start getting email from her about how she 'merely abbandoned her body and how she is living in The Wired'. Everyone ofcourse is terribly upset about this but Lain being curious replies to the message...

That's the beginning of a terribly deep, confusing and fascinating tale.

The overal question in the series is wether or not Lain is a real girl. Other topics covered are "what is reality" and "what exactly is God".

This isn't a cutesy and simple anime like Pokemon. this is how anime should be. Deep and intelligent. This makes you think and ponder about life. Plus it gives some interesting perspectives on what the internet is.

Highly reccomended

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Come to the Wired...
Review: We're all connected... Come to the "Wired" as soon as you can... Why won't you come? ...Why won't you come...?

Serial Experiments Lain is deep, very deep. As an anime almost indescribable, it will stick will you for life as it haunts you with its silent mysteries. Never have I seen an anime anything like this one. I remember the nights where Lain just stood in my head, as I wondered how the true secrets would eventually uncover from their cloaked darkness.

The artwork that was shown in this raging series was that of which reminded me of something from a basic MTV cartoon. Of course this isn't awful at any bit, it's just a different style with a nice appeal of eye candy and detailed but somewhat creepy designs. The unique computer (or according to this anime title, "Navi") and electrical designs/styles were done very beautifully and caught my eye every time. I curiously noted much of the Navi features and I thought about the terrific effort that was placed into animating each little part of the visually pleasing features. If you look hard enough at Serial Experiments Lain's art, you'll spot marvelous examples of well-done (and not to mention talented) Japanese animation creations. So, although the visual artwork can be a tad strange every once and awhile, it is fine non-the less and is something oddly different.

A major part of Serial Experiments Lain to me was the puzzling, tragic, and disturbing story to it. I was almost completely lost during the first and second volumes, but then once you hit a little further into the series, everything starts to slowly pile together and make sense.

Lain is fourteen years old, regular amount of friends, quiet and un-social, but lately Lain seems to be different. What is happening to her the life around her... her world... what is it? After getting an unknown e-mail from a girl in Lain's class who has killed herself, everything starts becoming different... but why? "The Wired" (or this anime's version of something very similar to the internet) is the popular thing to the many kids (are they really kids...?) around her. Everyone's on it. What's so good about it? Could it be holding some sort of lethal secret that Lain is to find out? But... why Lain? What is this "Wired?" Is the "Wired" the reasoning for all of the ghostly events that have been happening recently?! Could a world of some sort be slowly dripping into our own.....

We're all connected... Come to the "Wired" as soon as you can... Why won't you come? ...Why won't you come...?

The seiyuu went marvelously well with the characters they played. Although the Japanese voice actors selected for Lain were none of which seemed too, too popular and well known, I still enjoyed listening to their smooth voices. Even Lain's seiyuu had special inside scenes (called "Devices") at the end of each DVD where you could see a part of the body interact and be described unusually by her. I found this very interesting. The seiyuu picked for Serial Experiments Lain were = Shimizu Kaori as Iwakura Lain, Igarashi Rei as Iwakura Miho, Kawazumi Ayako as Iwakura Mika, Obayashi Ryuunosuke as Iwakura Yasuo, Asada Yoko as Mizuki Arisu, Chiba Shigeru as Nezumi, Mizuno Manabi as Katou Juri, Morizumi Ari as JJ, Muto Kotomi as Yomoda Chisa, Neya Michiko as Yoshii Keiko, and Tezuka Chiharu as Yamamoto Reika. Quite an interestingly and nicely picked selection, I truly believe.

There wasn't very much music of any type played throughout the series. I recall seldom hearing background music, but the background music that was played fit well with the actually incident that was occurring at the time. The outstanding and catchy "Duvet" opening song (which in either type of version of Lain you view) is in English. Actually to tell you the truth, when I first heard the song, I thought it was sung by one of my favorite songwriters of all time - Alanis Morissette (which of course, is a good thing). In fact, the female who does sing the song, strangely does remind me of an Asian-type Alanis. I must also compliment on the ending song, which had more of a rock theme to it, unlike the pop opening. So, definitely a high score for the music.

Be warned before you even think about purchasing this splendid anime series, that it is horror-filled anime that may seriously disturb children under thirteen years of age due to the highly mature themes, mysterious and creepy aspects of life, emotional unbalance, strong language, uneven occult-action, and wondrous themes such as the ones I have already listed! ^^ But definitely don't miss Lain if you're looking for a different emotionally haunting anime that will make you reflect on your life and what could be awaiting in your future. I remember first watching Lain and asking myself, "What is this life...?" Serial Experiments Lain will amaze you at how it leeches your open mind and makes you think about... the unknown...

We're all connected... Come to the "Wired" as soon as you can... Why won't you come? ...Why won't you come...?

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Very well made, and yet...
Review: I have a lot of friends who totally love Lain, and I guess I can understand why; it's certainly an expertly crafted and well-directed series. However, there is one thing this series is lacking, and that is character. Nobody in Lain really has much of a personality. Things happen to them, but we very rarely have any idea how they FEEL about it, and frankly that makes for a rather unengaging series. Also, I find myself personally being irritated by shows that don't make sense until people explain them to you. I mean, seriously, what's the point of watching it if you don't even know what the heck is going on, or really care?

Lain does, however, get bonus points for suggesting that Hayami Sho is God. Woohoo!

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: The Worst show ever created!
Review: This show doesn't deserve to exist! This show is dark, depressing, and horrific! I love anime, but this is just terrible. The only good things are the beginning theme song and the ending theme song. I will never watch this show again. However, if you like strange depressing stuff, with lots of blood and mind warping junk, this show is for you. in all i must say that this show needs something cute afterward to cheer you up, and that this show makes Evangelion look as happy The Simpsons.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: black drops from electrical wires
Review: "Hello, Navi." With these words the young girl Lain Iwakura takes the viewer into the wired which is not unlike our internet, but what is different is that the wired and reality are connected the dead reside in the wired, and a dead scientist can become God. Lain is a great series. Few Science Fiction anime or books or live action movies for that matter can tap into man's worries and aspirations for technology. This series will probabbly be most poignant of course with those in the computer field or those who enjoy the world of cyberspace. The series to me, however, has another level of importance that might be visable by the casual viewer. What I am talking about is otaku culture. Most americans who know of the word otaku link it with anime or to a lesser extent manga, but in fact otakudom encompases a much broader range than just cartoons and comics. The internet was the chief progenitor of otakudom. People, mainly teenage males, would spend huge propotions of their time on collecting information on their hobbies, and swap this information on the internet. Pure information. He who acquires the information first is king. Information from who was Rumiko Takahashi's assistants when she drew Urusei Yatsura to pop duo Puffy's bra sizes. Watch Lain closely and you will see this otaku culture bursting at the seems. watch this series!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Great buy
Review: Serial Experiments Lain is what would have happened if director Stanley Kubrik got together with authors Arthur C. Clarke and Terry Pratchett in a darkened bathroom in Queens in the sixties. This is 'Fritz the Cat' for the Information Age. Just watch it, okay?

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Mind blowing
Review: Wow, this is one sweet anime series. I have had the box in a week now and i have watched the entire Lain two times, and i must say i still don't understand everything about it. But that's ok, it's a great story and the visuals are just amazing. And don't forget the audio, thou just a 2.0 stereo sound it sounds great. And if you don't like the plot then you can just look at the beutiful box you bought.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Deus Ex Machina
Review: Possible spoiler alert. As this 13-part series begins, Chisa, a junior high school student, throws herself from a bridge in an apparent suicide. Shortly after, her schoolmates receive an email message from her saying that, while she lacks a body, she's not really gone. One of Chisa's schoolmates, a shy, standoffish girl named Lain, is particularly intrigued by the email and decides to investigate further...

Not your typical anime, and the better for it in my opinion. Like "The Matrix", "Serial Experiments: Lain" explores the idea that godhood can be acquired through the mastery of a type of information technology akin to the internet. (In this instance, the Matrix equivalent is known as "the Wired".) "Lain", however, goes a step further than "The Matrix" in suggesting that humanity is naturally unified on a subconsious level and thus, technology ultimately may be superfluous to attaining omnipotence over others.

You won't really find a clear narrative in this series; what you get instead is a sequence of surreal, oft-repeated images that establish and explore the theme in increasing detail. "Lain" lacks the overt sex, nonstop action and explicit violence of a lot of animes, which may disappoint some anime geeks, and the apparent lack of plot undoubtedly will be frustrating to newcomers to the genre. However, if you enjoy Kubrick's "2001", "The X-Files", and the puzzle movies of David Lynch, give this one a spin. (The Dido-esque theme song is pretty catchy, too.) Don't hurt your brain trying to figure out everything, though.


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