Serial Experiments Lain - Boxed Set (Signature Series)

Rating:
Summary: "Hello, Navi."
Review: How do I even begin reviewing a show like "Serial Experiments: Lain?"

To start with, this is one of the most visually amazing, compelling, twisted, sci-fi-ish, dramatic, different and confusing anime series I've ever seen. It all centers on Lain, who, in all respects, appears to be a normal, if not independent (read: loner) young girl. She doesn't have super powers, she isn't anime-style sexy, and she doesn't own or operate a giant mecha -- but she does wear the cutest little teddy bear outfit: ears, tail, and all.

The story begins with the suicide of one of her classmates. A short time later, she's emailed by this classmate, from "beyond the dead..." Lain, having likely never powered on her Navi (think future, voice activated Macintosh -- it even run's the "Copland OS"), clears off her desk and sets the machine up. And she's hooked. She asks her "Papa" for a new Navi, as her's is a little old and dated. With her wish granted, she's soon cruz'ing the Wired (the future Internet) in her brand new Navi. By chance (or is it?) she comes into posession of a Psyche Processor, and reads up on how to install it. That Processor is only the beginning, and soon her room is transformed into a dark cave of twisted wires and green, bubbling coolant.

The series, like I said, is confusing. If you had a hard time with "Eyes Wide Shut," you might pass on "Lain." It's difficult to review, because of everything that happens in it. True, there are only 13 episodes, but those episodes contain so much story line, that missing one is like missing two hours of a movie that's two hours and ten minutes long. Only until the last disc makes it into your DVD player do you begin to understand some of what's going on. And then, the story line changes on you again, and you're once again thinking, "Huh?"

If you've never seen "Lain," I wouldn't recommend this box set. I also can't recommend the purchase of just the first disc to "try it out," as the good, confusing stuff doesn't start happening until the next disc's episodes. You might want to try a rental store or friend, to give it a test drive. If you already own all the DVD's, there's really no reason to buy this box set, as all you'd be getting is a box (and, of course, a second copy of each DVD).

Repeated viewings of "Lain" are recommended. Personally, I think a little "viewer companion" for us American audiences would have been a nice touch. "Serial Experiments: Lain" should be watched by all anime fans, as it provides a different approach to anime, but some may come away feeling lost and dazed. Lain will do that to you.

Rating:
Summary: Disturbingly beautiful. Truly.
Review: In the world of anime, for many people, Serial Experiments Lain holds the title as the most disturbing, most convaluted series of all time.

Quite frankly, I agree with them.

But there is also more to S. E. Lain than its mere "freakish-ness." Lain, like its fellow notoriously controversial self-analytical anime, Neon Genesis Evangelion, makes a point of taking typically over-played, over-used philisophical concepts and questions posed in many darker, psycho-analytical animes, and proposing them in a new light. Lain's analysis of the human condition and of human nature through the characters of the series is truly deserving of praise as well. As a matter of fact, when one watches Lain, they may get the feeling that the characters hold a purpose less as characters, and more plot devices used to embody and demonstrate the questions and concepts proposed by the series (as is especially evident with the character Alice/Arisu), as do many of the events that occur throughout the series as well. This is not neccessarily a bad thing, in that S. E. Lain is more a concept/analysis based than a plot based one. Yet, even in all of the "psycho-babble" that Lain is based on, the series sets itself apart from other animes in that it does not attempt to act as if it can truly answer all of the questions that it itself poses; as if there is some sort of absolute truth that everyone is bound by. All in all, the entire story serves as a metaphor. What that metaphor is, you must decide for yourself.

I would recommend watching the Neon Genesis Evangelion series before watching Lain, as the two share many common concepts, and having watched Evangelion adds a bit more intrigue to watching the series. In the end, Serial Experiments Lain is one ot those love-it-or-hate-it animes. Personally, I loved it. It's also one that you appreciate more and more every time you watch it over again. And you WILL end up watching it a good number of times before you can finally put it down. Trust me.

Rating:
Summary: A Masterpiece of Anime and Animation.
Review: Lain is by far one of my favorite animes of all time. The story is deep, well thought out, and very entertaining throughout. The characters develop perfectly, the atmosphere is incredible, and the story is flawless. Some of the story is left slightly open ended, leaving the viewer to fill in his or her own conclusions.

Tech heads will relate to this story effortlessly. The Wired is easily a souped up version of our own Internet, and the history isn't outrageously far from our own and well explained. The parallels between our world and this fictional world really make things interesting. This series really hits a sweet spot for sci-fi technological dramas.

Every anime fan should see this series, but be prepared for a brain twister. I've watched it a good five times and I can honestly say I still find new tidbits of the story every time. You just can't sit back and put your brain on cruise control; You must make an effort to follow the story or it will leave you mercilessly lost and confused.

And remember folks, this is fiction. You have to be willing to suspend belief a few times and accept the universe of the work at hand. Those unwilling or unable to do this, need not apply. Think of it as a deep mystery novel. Even when following the concrete parts of the story with great attention, there's enough misdirection to leave you wondering what if... and that's half the fun.

If you simply can't accept that the story isn't handed to you neatly gift wrapped, and that you may have to fill in the details from your own imagination, then go watch a simpler anime. This isn't for you. If you like the confusing story of animes like Neon Genesis Evangelion, or Boogiepop Phantom then you'll love this. If you live and breath technology, you'll only love it that much more. All in all, this is a masterpiece of animation.

- Rirath_com

Rating:
Summary: Worth every penny
Review: Serial Experiments Lain does exactly what a serious anime should - raise deep, unsettling questions and do so in a deliberate, sometimes uncomfortable manner. Lain is wonderfully disturbing and continues to become more involved and ever more convoluted the farther one gets into it. Of all the anime I've seen, Lain is the single production that went every direction I didn't expect it to. In other words, from beginning to end I was glued to the screen and I don't know how many times I was surprised when some element took some completely unexpected turn. Lain isn't for everyone. I know a lot of people who didn't like it because they found it too dark, too disturbing. It messed with my head, and I loved it for that. If you've never seen Lain, I would say borrow or rent the series before buying something as big as the box set. Just too much money to gamble on something unseen. However, if you've seen Lain and liked it the first time, buy the box set, as if you're anything like me you'll want to re-watch the entire series several times at least. An amazing anime.

Rating:
Summary: a brilliant, must-own anime.
Review: Serial Experiments Lain has to be one of the most visually effective, original, and yet utterly confounding anime titles ever to be dreamed up. From the opening scene to the cliffhanger at the end of the fourth episode (all that has been released as of the time of this review), I was riveted by the simple yet fluid animation, dreamlike artwork and haunting music. However, the casual anime viewer may find this title a little on the...well...odd side.

The artwork was what first caught my eye. The character designs are fairly simple, but the work that went into making their movements and integration into the backgrounds fluid is immediately obvious. Judicious use of CG allows for some of this, while not overbearing the senses and detracting from the art itself. The backgrounds especially are striking, one moment being carefully detailed, spartan and surreal the next. Those with any memory of the 70s may find the brief dialogue screens that pop up now and then, with their kaleidoscope of rainbow colors, slightly disturbing, but the overall effect is dream-like.

This series lends whole a whole new perspective to the human condition. In a nutshell, it's a story about communication. How we are all connected to one another, yet separated at the same time, whether it's through a phone or across a computer connection. The characters, from our quiet Lain, to her computer otaku father, snotty older sister, and gossipy friends aren't very deeply explored, mainly because there is no need. They are all easily identifiable as someone you might already know, which helps the plot along even more nicely.

And what a plot it is. After watching the first four episodes, I felt like my brain had been taken out and turned around backwards before being replaced. This is definitely NOT an anime for your Dragon Ball-Ranma-Pokemon crowd. It's deep and cerebral and forces you to think about exactly what is going on at every step. Just when you think you have something of the story figured out, it'll tie another knot for you to unravel.

And pulling it all together is the music. From the hauntingly beautiful opening theme by British pop group, BOA, to the hard rock of the disco club, where all the "bad" junior high kids hang out, to the complete LACK of music or even sound in key parts, the whole experience is aural as well as visual.

Now I know you're saying, "Well darn, that was really informative, but is it good?"

Yes, yes it is! Watch it! Watch it! Watch it! Just keep in mind that this is not your daddy's anime. It's more like something you might see on Liquid Television, but infinitely cooler. And if you do watch it and figure out exactly what's going on, tell me please, I'm still puzzling it out myself! SE: Lain is an anime experience that is not to be missed by any hard-core fan of sci-fi or the surreal.

Take away one star if you don't like surrealism with your anime, but add one star if you have an M.C. Escher painting on your wall, like to watch Twilight Zone re-runs, and wear a shirt to work that just says "Be."

Rating:
Summary: Slow and deep
Review: Serial Experiments Lain is a show which leaves most people with a distinct impression of 'huh?'. It is the story of a girl named Lain, who is rather socially inept.

In the first episode, a classmate of Lain's jumps off of a building to her death. Afterwards, people start receiving E-mails from this girl. And that's just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the 'weirdness' of Lain.

As the series progresses, so does Lain. Because of the dead girl's E-mail, she gets a little interested in computers. She learns more and more of the Wired, which is like our Internet. From the individuals on the Wired, and from her own experiences there, she slowly learns the truth about the Wired, and the world.

Lain is a nicely slow, somewhat pretentious anime. It questions what we know as the real world, using real-seeming characters.

In some ways, the series has an 'X-files' (the multi-part episodes) feel to it. You never quite know what's going on, who's who, and just when the pieces are about to come together, the storyline takes another twist.

A good look into the psyche of the Internet, Internet users, and the world.

The boxed version contains all four DVDs (Navi, Knights, Deus and Reset). For reviews or tech specs of the individual discs, visit their pages.

Rating:
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...?