Serial Experiments Lain

Lain Iwakura, an awkward and introverted fourteen-year-old, is one of the many girls from her school to receive a disturbing email from her classmate Chisa Yomoda—the very same Chisa who recently committed suicide. Lain has neither the desire nor the experience to handle even basic technology; yet, when the technophobe opens the email, it leads her straight into the Wired, a virtual world of communication networks similar to what we know as the internet. Lain's life is turned upside down as she begins to encounter cryptic mysteries one after another. Strange men called the Men in Black begin to appear wherever she goes, asking her questions and somehow knowing more about her than even she herself knows. With the boundaries between reality and cyberspace rapidly blurring, Lain is plunged into more surreal and bizarre events where identity, consciousness, and perception are concepts that take on new meanings.

Written by Chiaki J. Konaka, whose other works include Texhnolyze, Serial Experiments Lain is a psychological avant-garde mystery series that follows Lain as she makes crucial choices that will affect both the real world and the Wired. In closing one world and opening another, only Lain will realize the significance of their presence.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Iwakura, Lain Main

Shimizu, Kaori Japanese

Mizuki, Arisu Supporting

Asada, Youko Japanese

Eiri, Masami Supporting

Hayami, Show Japanese

Iwakura, Yasuo Supporting

Oobayashi, Ryuusuke Japanese

Iwakura, Mika Supporting

Kawasumi, Ayako Japanese

Yomoda, Chisa Supporting

Mutou, Sumi Japanese

Haushofer, Karl Supporting

Nakata, Jouji Japanese

Taro Supporting

Takimoto, Keito Japanese

J.J Supporting

Chikada, Wasei Japanese

Yamamoto, Reika Supporting

Tezuka, Chiharu Japanese

Cook, Justin Producer

Ueda, Yasuyuki Producer, Planning, Original Creator

Maseba, Yutaka Producer

Abe, Shoujirou Producer

Reviews

Jun 19, 2025

muratbasci

Recommended

General:
An anime with one of the stories where technology, especially virtual world technology, is advanced and people are connected to this virtual world and someone's struggle to become a god in this world.

I must say that I was a little disappointed when I expected an anime like Ghost in the Shell before watching it.

Good Side:
The opening and closing music are really nice and complete the anime.

They really reflected the feeling of tension very well, they managed to make me really nervous at times.

... Bad Side:
The action is a little bit less, almost nonexistent. The anime is generally based on philosophical conversations and structures. This can also bore you because it bored me, to be honest. If they could have added a little more action, it would have created a more successful anime.

Especially since they open the topic slowly and there is a story between this world and the virtual world, you can often find yourself wondering what is going on. but the fact that this happens so often also reduces the watchability of the anime

Conclusion:
As I wrote in the general section, if you like the story of people transferring their identities between this world and the virtual world, you can watch it. but also take into account that you may get bored a lot.

Reviewer’s Rating: 7

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Aug 4, 2025

filipe33

Mixed Feelings

English
Rewatching Lain did me good. The series begins in an extremely shocking way and makes it clear from the start that it’s an anime with a slow and deliberate pace. This creates a sense of uncertainty and tension regarding how the main plot will unfold.

However, the entire atmosphere of the work makes up for the decelerated narrative, serving to maintain an immersive and unsettling experience in the face of events that are intentionally presented in a vague manner.

Lain is both calm and distressing at the same time. It seeks to explore quite interesting and abstract implications, such as the concept of God, which is developed ... throughout the series, which may not appeal to all viewers.

Lain psychological state gradually deteriorates as a result of the events in her life and her interactions within the Wired, which gives the anime a very dark tone, especially when we consider that Lain is portrayed as a teenage girl.

The ending further reinforces the enigmatic nature built up throughout the series, being highly inconclusive and ambiguou, clearly intended to open space for interpretation and reflection by the viewer. Lain is an incredible experience, not just an anime that can be dismissed, it truly is very good.

Português
Rever Lain me fez bem. A obra começa de forma extremamente chocante e deixa claro desde o início que se trata de um anime com uma dinâmica lenta e pausada. Isso gera uma sensação de incerteza e uma tensão quanto ao desenvolvimento do enredo principal.

Entretanto, toda a ambientação da obra compensa a narrativa desacelerada, cumprindo com a função de manter a experiência imersiva e inquietante diante dos eventos propositalmente apresentados de forma vaga.

Lain é um anime calmo e angustiante ao mesmo tempo. Busca explorar implicações bastante interessantes e abstratas, como por exemplo, o conceito de Deus que é desenvolvido ao decorrer da obra, o que pode não agradar uma parte do público.

O psicológico da Lain vai se deteriorando gradualmente em decorrência dos eventos de sua vida e de suas interações no Wired, o que traz uma atmosfera muito obscura à obra, ainda mais se pararmos pra reparar que a Lain está representada como uma adolescente.

O final reforça mais ainda o perfil enigmático que foi construído graças a desenvoltura da obra, sendo muito inconclusivo e ambíguo, claramente com a intenção de abrir interpretações e reflexões ao espectador. Lain é uma experiência incrível, não somente um anime que pode ser descartado, realmente é um clássico muito bom e vale toda a atenção que é exigida para uma melhor degustação da obra.

Reviewer’s Rating: 10

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Jun 12, 2025

drageus_

Not Recommended

Funny

Serial Experiments Lain did not enchant me the way I hoped it would.

The first episode really got me hooked but all episodes after that felt like a pretentious and unenjoyable mess. The first half of the season honestly felt like a chore to watch. This show is also so insanely unstimulating, I kept on zoning out 24/7.

I really tried to get it. To see what the writers saw in this show. But maybe I'm just missing something. Something crucial that flew over my head that would've made me like this. However I can't imagine myself rewatching this, ever.

It's really such a shame because I ... love it's concept. It has topics I've never seen in anime before and the show really has a distinct character to it. The art style, aesthetics, and most importantly the opening are what carries this show. Another reason why I refuse to give it a negative rating is because the story isn't thaaat horrible. It's just trying so hard to be good. And I guess that's what triggers me. It's also ridiculously confusing. Not the fun or interesting way. It makes it all even less watchable if you ask me.

Im sure there are a lot of people who would love this, wish I was one of them.

Reviewer’s Rating: 5

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