For my first attempt at reviewing an anime series, and for my 1000th post that I hit 2 months ago, I figured I would give my favorite show of all time, Serial Experiments Lain, a try. Criticisms are appreciated but remember my English isn?t the best, despite living in the U.S. for 16 years. So let?s get started.
Photoshop FTW!!!
Serial Experiments Lain (SEL for short) is a 13 episode cyberpunk/physiological thriller from 1998 that to my knowledge was only circulated once on the cable channel IFC, in America anyway. The series focuses on the title character Lain who, after the suicide of a classmate, get?s pulled into the wired, which is the collective of all communication systems into a single entity(so yeah it's the internet), where she discovers her importance in the wired and her role in the plans of, the lead designer of Internet Protocol 7, Masami Erie.
[HEADING=1]Story:[/HEADING]
The story is damn good. Unfortunately, however, it?s hard to discuss the plot without giving away spoilers or plot twists. The overarching plot is very complex and fairly difficult to understand, if you don?t pay attention. It?s not that the show is poorly written, just the opposite in fact the story is very well written its back story and intricate details are all fleshed out with exposition, most of the time, being superbly woven into the narrative. The Thing is the show doesn?t reiterate everything the viewer should already know. The story is truly something that needs some viewer input to understand but thankfully it never falls into that habit of not telling you important plot details and letting abstract pretentious symbolism do all the storytelling.
Of course being cyberpunk/psychological thriller it has symbolism, usually stemming from themes dealing with things like social isolation, mental sickness, collectivity, human nature, the role technology in society both in a technical and philosophical sense, the existence of god, and everything else Morpheus was talking about in the beginning of the Matrix. To SEL?s credit it finds a good balance to fit the symbolism in the story. The themes never affect the storytelling but always seem to be omnipresent.
[HEADING=1]Characters:[/HEADING]
As far as characters go there isn?t much to say. Other than Lain and the main Villain, Masami Eiri, there aren?t very many interesting characters. It?s also almost impossible to talk about Lain or the Eiri without giving away spoilers? so consider this a spoiler warning?
As far as the rest of the characters go some of the side cast get to develop a decent amount in the latter half of the show but for the most part the supporting cast is forgettable I mean other thanKarl [http://img295.imageshack.us/img295/7784/motivator5a0a7307d2c45e.jpg].
[HEADING=1]Presentation:[/HEADING]
Now the first thing most people will notice is the great opening song, which is sung completely in English. The opening is the single Duvet by the British band BÔA. The song is very good, though the singer?s natural voice does give an interesting contrast to the heavy Cyberpunk themes of the show.
The next thing people will notice is that the animation is total shite on a crusty role. The low budget really shows in the animation. It?s choppy and inconsistent especially when faces get a close up then you can sit there and count the frames. On the other hand the colorful and atypical art style does a lot to distract from the bad animation. SEL has a very unique and phantasmagorical style and, due to the use of color, texture, shadows, lighting, and dynamic angles, the show really feels very surreal, almost like a dream. The art direction uses everything I learned in art class to its fullest potential to create a solid atmosphere with some truly surreal imagery while still staying true to the cyberpunk themes that are featured in the show.
The soundtrack is very nice. It contains a varied set list containing everything from jazz and blues to alternative and punk inspired guitar riffs. With such a varied soundtrack you might be unsurprised to hear then that the soundtrack is predominately featured, in which case prepare to be surprised because it isn?t. SEL uses very little music beyond the occasional night club scene or montage. Though to its credit SEL uses familiar sounds that go with the cyberpunk themes, like a computer booting up or a the humming of a generator, to help immerse the viewer into the world effectively.
[HEADING=1]In Conclusion:[/HEADING]
In spite of the bad animation Lain was easy to relate to and made up for the lack of a memorable supporting cast, the art style was unique and memorable, the soundtrack was varied and had some very good tracks, and the complexity of the story is really what made the show for me.
Serial Experiments Lain's atmosphere, themes, imagery, characters and story make it utterly unique in every sense of the word.
Serial Experiments Lain definitely is not for everyone but despite having niche appeal Serial Experiments lain is a shining example of what a truly intelligent and low budget show can be and definitely deserves a watch. Thankfully, if $70-$200 is a little more than you can afford, Funimation picked up the rights to Serial Experiments Lain and are planning to release another box set in 2011.
Photoshop FTW!!!
Serial Experiments Lain (SEL for short) is a 13 episode cyberpunk/physiological thriller from 1998 that to my knowledge was only circulated once on the cable channel IFC, in America anyway. The series focuses on the title character Lain who, after the suicide of a classmate, get?s pulled into the wired, which is the collective of all communication systems into a single entity(so yeah it's the internet), where she discovers her importance in the wired and her role in the plans of, the lead designer of Internet Protocol 7, Masami Erie.
[HEADING=1]Story:[/HEADING]
The story is damn good. Unfortunately, however, it?s hard to discuss the plot without giving away spoilers or plot twists. The overarching plot is very complex and fairly difficult to understand, if you don?t pay attention. It?s not that the show is poorly written, just the opposite in fact the story is very well written its back story and intricate details are all fleshed out with exposition, most of the time, being superbly woven into the narrative. The Thing is the show doesn?t reiterate everything the viewer should already know. The story is truly something that needs some viewer input to understand but thankfully it never falls into that habit of not telling you important plot details and letting abstract pretentious symbolism do all the storytelling.
Of course being cyberpunk/psychological thriller it has symbolism, usually stemming from themes dealing with things like social isolation, mental sickness, collectivity, human nature, the role technology in society both in a technical and philosophical sense, the existence of god, and everything else Morpheus was talking about in the beginning of the Matrix. To SEL?s credit it finds a good balance to fit the symbolism in the story. The themes never affect the storytelling but always seem to be omnipresent.
[HEADING=1]Characters:[/HEADING]
As far as characters go there isn?t much to say. Other than Lain and the main Villain, Masami Eiri, there aren?t very many interesting characters. It?s also almost impossible to talk about Lain or the Eiri without giving away spoilers? so consider this a spoiler warning?
Lain is the most intriguing character in the show because she knows so little about herself, other than lies, opening a lot of room for character development and by the end of the show our understanding of just who or what Lain is has been skewed and twisted to the point of absurdity. You see, Lain is described by several people as many different things: Homunculus, software, The One (due to a spotty English dub) but she is never given a clear description we?re only given pieces and sometimes lies that we have to put together ourselves. Despite not having a clear description she is well characterized, very well developed, likeable and ultimately relatable.
Eiri was the lead designer of Internet Protocol 7, The Internet Protocol is a protocol used for communicating data across a packet-switched internetwork using the Internet Protocol Suite, also referred to as TCP/IP, But was fired by Tachibana Labs after he embedded his consciousness into the protocol in an attempt to control it and ultimately break down the barrier between the real world and the wired to usher humanity into the next stage of evolution and be herald as a god. Masami Eiri is a great villain because he has a presence before he even makes an appearance or even gets a name because there are several times when people on the wired say things like, ?There is a god here.? Giving the feeling like there is someone running the show from behind closed curtains that no one wants to acknowledge but other than that he?s a pretty standard villain you know motivated by a god complex, wants to take over the world ect.
[HEADING=1]Presentation:[/HEADING]
Now the first thing most people will notice is the great opening song, which is sung completely in English. The opening is the single Duvet by the British band BÔA. The song is very good, though the singer?s natural voice does give an interesting contrast to the heavy Cyberpunk themes of the show.
The soundtrack is very nice. It contains a varied set list containing everything from jazz and blues to alternative and punk inspired guitar riffs. With such a varied soundtrack you might be unsurprised to hear then that the soundtrack is predominately featured, in which case prepare to be surprised because it isn?t. SEL uses very little music beyond the occasional night club scene or montage. Though to its credit SEL uses familiar sounds that go with the cyberpunk themes, like a computer booting up or a the humming of a generator, to help immerse the viewer into the world effectively.
[HEADING=1]In Conclusion:[/HEADING]
In spite of the bad animation Lain was easy to relate to and made up for the lack of a memorable supporting cast, the art style was unique and memorable, the soundtrack was varied and had some very good tracks, and the complexity of the story is really what made the show for me.
Serial Experiments Lain's atmosphere, themes, imagery, characters and story make it utterly unique in every sense of the word.
Serial Experiments Lain definitely is not for everyone but despite having niche appeal Serial Experiments lain is a shining example of what a truly intelligent and low budget show can be and definitely deserves a watch. Thankfully, if $70-$200 is a little more than you can afford, Funimation picked up the rights to Serial Experiments Lain and are planning to release another box set in 2011.
. personally i wouldnt say it the depth and complexity that gives the show its niche appeal, its more cuz its really fucking weird and just down right disturbing lol.