

Her relative lack of experience with The Wired makes her the perfect vehicle for the audience to learn more about The Wired and its association with the real world at the same rate as Lain.Īrisu (or “Alice”, if you watch the dub) is Lain’s closest friend (by default). Lain herself is quiet, somewhat antisocial, and has a sense of curiosity that drives the show’s events. The reason I say this is because most other characters only seem to exist in order to further develop Lain’s character or answer any questions that she (and, by-proxy, we ) have about the world and The Wired. Lain is the main character of the series, and to an extent, can be considered the only character.
#Serial experiments lain op bit series
Since the series is so short, this portion is going to be fairly straightforward. I typically hate works of fiction that do this, but it’s absolutely appropriate for this series. It allows us as viewers to inject our own experiences into the shows events. But most agree that the series’ plot was intentionally left ambiguous to allow the viewer to draw their own conclusion.Īfter all, that’s the only logical conclusion for a show that features a scene where two characters literally swap dialogue without the audience ever being notified.Īnyway, I prefer the explanation that there is not a definitive story for Lain.

People have gone back and forth over the actual story of Lain since its release, and opinions on the matter are more variable now than ever. Being able to follow the story requires constant vigilance, which I think was intentional because it really drives home the show’s message of ontology. Rather, important plot points are hinted at, implied, or casually glossed over. Very rarely is vital information spoonfed to the viewer. However, Chisa’s mysterious email prompts Lain to further explore The Wired, in search of what her deceased classmate was talking about.Īs Lain delves further into The Wired and learns more about its origins, she begins to have an existential exploration about what is real, what isn’t real, and to what extent does it even matter.Īt the risk of spoiling anything, I’ll stop there and switch from the plot itself to how it’s presented to the audience. The email claims that she is not actually dead, but has instead left her physical body behind and has completely joined “The Wired”, a Virtual Reality world that is basically what we would recognize as The Internet.Īmong the girls to receive this email is Lain, a shy and soft-spoken girl who, at the time of receiving the email, makes very little use of technology. While the event is indeed tragic, the real butt-pincher comes when several girls at Chisa’s school receive a posthumous email from her.
#Serial experiments lain op bit serial
Serial Experiments Lain begins with the successful suicide of a middle school girl named Chisa Yomoda. However, factoring in all the thematic elements and influences that we’re about to explore in a second, you’ll soon see how Serial Experiments Lain is eerily more relevant in today’s world than it has ever been. Lain was released when the internet as a household communication medium was still in its relative infancy. Now, before we go any further, I really want you to pay attention to that release date. This series, of course, is none other than Serial Experiments Lain, released in 1998 by studio Triangle Staff. It is a series that operates on a more philosophical and existential level than your average anime. Today, I’ll be reviewing one of the most complex and unnervingly relevant works of fiction that I’ve ever seen.
