Serial Experiments Lain wiki - User contributions [en]

User:INNERLMNT

2026-03-24T11:17:38Z

INNERLMNT:

<div style ="align: center; font-size: 24pt; width: 260px; padding: 5px; background: #5A081C; color: #fae965;">''Hi! I'm '''Arbër'''...''</div>

...otherwise known as '''INNERLMNT''' (read: ''inner element''). I'm Kosovo-Albanian, and my pronouns are he/him. I got into ''Lain'' only by coming across the famous "[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u5xt5WG7tt0 Lain airing after 9/11]" video on March 22, 2024 (via [https://twitter.com/bbykyoko/status/1638434339158458369/video/1 bbykyoko] on Twitter), and then getting obsessed with the show's opening theme. Stuck around for the ride.

If you want to find me and my work across my other places on the internet, my Carrd is a good place to start. Visit my Carrd at https://innerlmnt.carrd.co

I'm also present on [[wikipedia:User:Fallbackintoreality|Wikipedia]], [https://community.fandom.com/wiki/User:Evolve330 Fandom.com], [https://meta.miraheze.org/wiki/User:CostinTea Miraheze] and other wikis.

Layer 03

2026-03-24T10:54:43Z

INNERLMNT:

:''This article is about the episode "Psyche". You may be looking for [[Psyche|the item]].''

{{LayerInfo
|image = File:Layer_3.png
|layername = PSYCHE
|airdate = July 20, 1998
|maincharintro = [[JJ]]
|script = [[Layer 03 Script]]
|prevep = [[Layer 02]]
|nextep = [[Layer 04]]
}}
"'''Psyche'''" is the third episode of ''[[Serial Experiments Lain]]''. It premiered on [[Wikipedia:TX Network|TXN]] on July 20, 1998.

<div style="float:right; font-size:90%; border:#A2A9B1 solid 1px;">__TOC__</div>

==Short summary==
*The police interrogate [[Lain Iwakura]]
*A voice speaks to Lain on the train
*Lain finds a [[Psyche]] chip in her locker
*Lain sees the [[Men in Black]]'s car outside her home
*Lain goes to [[Cyberia]] and someone comments on how long they haven't seen her for
*Lain asks [[Taro]], [[Masayuki]] and [[Myu-Myu]] about the Psyche chip
*[[Mika Iwakura]] sees the MIB outside her door
*Lain modifies her [[NAVI]] with the Psyche chip

==Long summary==
===Leaving Cyberia===
In front of [[Cyberia]], police have arrived. 「LAINって子…聞いた事彼でしょう」(English: "This Lain kid, you've heard the word, innit?") Lain and Alice emerge. 「WIREDの…LAIN」(English: "In the WIRED, Lain")

[Psyche - Layer:03]

===Police Station===
Red laser beam. Blood puddle oozing. (Flashbacks.) Lain being questioned by a policeman at the station. The police comment that they have been unable to reach Lain's parents by telephone. Lain is confused about this. The police are concerned because they cannot reach anyone by telephone at Lain's house. As the interrogation continues Alice watches from an outer room.
====Alice====
She enters and apologizes to Lain. She grabs her hands and tells her it was her fault. Lain, confused, has trouble even speaking Alice's name, when she does, she sounds practically robotic. Alice is called by her mother to leave. The policeman tells Lain that she can go home.
===Empty Home===
As the police car carrying Lain pulls up to her house it is dark while many neighbors are lit. Lain notices the foyer empt. Her parents' bedroom is neat like it hasn't been used yet tonight. (Perhaps they're on a date.) Lain enters her bedroom, the glow of her computer monitor inviting. She sits down in front of her computer. She stares into the monitor. Cut. Lain is waking up at her computer. (It is not made clear whether she was using it, or whether she's aware of using it.) It's still night. She gets up and checks the house again. When she looks into her parents' bedroom again, a slight relieved expression seems to come to her face. (Maybe her parents have returned from their date or something.) She returns to her Navi and checks messages. No messages to Lain. Lain says "Good Night, Navi" and the Navi responds "Good Night, Lain." Lain seems to react to this. (Perhaps in Lain's mind this lends animacy to her Navi.) Lain falls asleep in her bearsuit.
===Late Morning===
Lain overslept. Her mother is in the kitchen washing dishes. A hearty breakfast on the table. She issues a wan admonishon to Lain about being late. Lain starts to ask about last night, but doesn't finish.
====Walking to school====
Walking to school, Lain notices a black sedan. A red dot appears from within. Lain's face seems to expresse surprise and fear. As Lain continues, the red dot moves in the same direction that Lain is going. Lain is taken aback and starts running.
====Train (of thought)====
On the train to school Lain hears a voice (hallucination) repeating ``Lain'' in beat with the oscilation of the passing wires. It says "Do you understand". Lain asks the disembodied voice "Who are you." The voice says "You are not alone." Lain gasps and stares out the window at the passing wires.
===School===
The girls are giggling about last night's murder `suicide.' July asks across the room whether Lain got in trouble last night. Reika reminds "It wasn't our fault." Alice looks towards Lain but is bombarded with questions about the gory details. They ask her to tell her about it and Lain flashes a smile and nod (happy that they got her to go out?) that Alice seems to reässure to Alice that Lain is alright.
====Class concept====
During class Lain is abstracted, doodling something spiralish. A voice is heard discussing the PSYCHE (it sounds like reading a news article aloud---another hallucination? or conscious imagination?)
====Tisa Interrupts====
Lain starts seeing a swrily tunnel under her doodle-swirl. The PSYCHE narration is interrupted by Tisa (or someone else of similar circumstance) talking about her suicide. Lain becomes distressed about this, looks at the classroon door where a Tisa-like person is standing, looking in to the classroom. As Tisa continues discussing her suicide, Lain's distress grows and she places her hands over her ears, squeezing but the voice doesn't stop. A distorted voice keeps asking "Who is Lain?"
====Love Letter====
Alice expresses concern about their lighthearted reactions to the murder `suicide,' to which Reika responds that it didn't feel real but like a movie or a TV show. July agrees and tells Alice not to take it too seriously. Meanwhile, Lain opens her locker and sees a small brown envelope on her shoes. Alice responds that she thinks its strange that they can't take it more seriously. She turns and says "Right Lain?" and then notices the letter in Lain's hand. Alice asks if is a love letter. Lain says "No, but maybe." Juri and Reika descend on her saying "Show me, show me." Reika takes the envelope from Lain and says "You shouldn't hide things like this from us." Alice chimes in "Stop it you're picking on her again." Reika opens the envelope and a small brown looking square comes out. No one seems to know what it is, including Lain.

Lain is walking home to the familiar electrical hum. She removes the small object from her pocket and looks at it. Suddenly she says "Psyche" and she just stands there and stares.

[Lainwashed Pseudofan here: I think there's supposed to be an ad-break here. It's roughly the middle of the episode, and the following scene is quite different from the preceding. In a certain sense, it seems that this is when the episode ''really'' begins, with what was before being a continuation of Layer:02. Thoughts?]

The scene changes to a PSYCHEdelic view of wires in the night. Several disembodied conversations are overheard, as if they are traversing over the wires we see. Female voice: "No, my voice mail was tapped! I can't believe it." Male voice: "There's no relevant information in the resume received. We're examining it for your company." Female voice: "I love kissing. Even by myself it makes me happy." Male voce: "After that silly incident with the kid and Accela the supplier got scared and now we can't hardly get any of them." Another male voice: "Psyche appears to be made in Taiwan and there is a rumor that it was designed by a group called Knights. But I'm not sure if the Knights really exist." Female voice: "Did you feel good while dying?" And now we see Lain sitting at her Navi. Male voice: "Yes. I felt like hugging myself with joy." Female voice: "No! There is someone in my room! A small child-like but wrinkled man is looking at me." The voice is crying. "Help me!" Lain watches on into a typical Navi screen. A different female voice says "I have a photograph taken when you were with your secret lover. If I take this to your company…" Lain turns away from the Navi screen and looks at the small device. We hear "Lain, why aren't you here yet?"

As she grips the device in her hand the Navi announces: "You have mail." Lain's father interrupts before she can read it. He asks if she has started using her new Navi, and then turns on the lights in her room. He asks if there is something wrong. Lain shows him he device she received. He says he does not know what it is. She implores "But Dad, I believe that you do." He says "I told you I don't know" and leaves.

It is later and we see Lain leaving her house. She sees the black car with the small red lights watching her again. Lain runs away. We see Lain in the city approaching the Cyberia Café. Lain tentatively enters the club. A man stops her and says "Lain, you haven't been here for a while." Lain looks at him. The man is surprised and says "You look too girlish today." He leaves to go back to his partying. Lain looks at a table in the corner where Taro, Myu-Myu, and Masayuki are seated. They are the three Lain ran into in the stairway the night before. Taro and Masayuki are teasing one another. Lain interrupts asking "Do you know what this is" showing them the device. Taro asks "isn't that the Psyche". Masayuki and Myu-Myu can't believe it. Masayuki asks "where did you buy it", but Lain just asks again what it is. Taro is shocked and says "With that you can gain access to the Wired perfectly, even with this" indicating his hand-held computer. Lain asks "How do I use this?" Myu-Myu cattily says: "How stupid!" Masayuki asks Lain if she will sell it. Taro retorts: "Idiot, you could never buy it." Taro then turns to Lain and asks "What is your Navi?" Lain isn't sure, but thinks it is the latest Tachibana model. The group is impressed.

Taro asks if she has worked on the inside of it and Lain nods her head "No." Masayuki asks if she's in second or third year of Junior High. Lain replies "Second." Masayuki points out that she should have studied information basics and tells her that the Navi layout is in her textbook. As Taro stares at Lain, Masayuki gives detailed instructions: "Connect this on the backside of the main processor board. It will re-rout the original information back to the processor and it will work automatically. Its easier than building a plastic model kit. Just be aware of static electricity." Lain smiles and thanks the boy. Now we hear Taro calling to Lain: "Wait a minute. Information is not free both in the Wired and the real world." Masayuki asks "How much, How much?" Taro continues: "Aren't you Lain?" Lain turns, surprised. Taro says "I saw you in the Wired once." Lain asks: "Me? In the Wired?" Taro responds: "But you look quite different. Its common to assume a different character in the Wired, but yours is quite the opposite." Myu-Myu says "Really?" Taro continues: "You were here when that stupid incident happened, weren't you." Then he asks: "What are you up to?" Lain responds "What can I do?" Taro says "Go out on a date with me." Taro says that he would rather go out with the wild Lain, though, instead of the current one. Lain turns angrily to him, but then Taro says "I'm just kidding! When ever you like." Myu-Myu jealously asks "What are you talking about?" But Taro says to never mind and beckons the group to leave. Myu-Myu snipes at Lain on her way out.

Outside, the next day, we see Lain's sister coming home from school. As she passes the black car, the red lights do not follow her. Mika sees two men standing on the doorstep. She asks what them men are doing there. "Who are you?" One man just responds "You didn't meet us." [Shades says "The Jedi Mind Trick!"] Mika says "What are you talking about? I'll call the police. [Shades: "Damn! The Jedi Mind Trick didn't work!!"] The other man asks "What for, we were never here," and they walk away. Mika is angry and tells her mom to call the police if the men come again. Mika heads upstairs and stops at Lain's open door. She looks in and asks what she's doing. Lain is seated on the floor in her underwear surrounded by pieces of her Navi. Mika asks again "What are you doing… dressed like that?" Lain tells here she has to avoid static electricity. Mika thinks that's silly. Suddenly the scene becomes static-like. A strangely happy Lain sits up in strobed action and says "Welcome Home, Sister!"
( [http://lain.angelic-trust.net/rumors-layer03.php Source] )

{{Episodes}}
[[Category:Episodes]]

Psyche

2026-03-24T10:47:50Z

INNERLMNT: added disambiguation hatnote

:''"Psyche" links here. You may be looking for the episode "Psyche", at [[Layer 03]].''

[[File:Psyche chip.jpeg|thumb]]
[[File:Psyche-concept.png|thumb|750px]]
'''Psyche''' is an add-on chip which enhances the power of normal [[NAVI]] computers, especially the newer models. This chip is not readily available to the public. It is believed to have come from Taiwan. It may have originated from the [[Knights of the Eastern Calculus]]. Using the psyche chip, one can connect to [[the Wired]] without the use of devices such as keyboards and mice or even voice control. Instead, it allows "full motion and full range".

Source: [http://www.cjas.org/~leng/lain.htm#psyche]

[[Category:Technology]]

Layer 03

2026-03-24T10:45:09Z

INNERLMNT:

{{LayerInfo
|image = File:Layer_3.png
|layername = PSYCHE
|airdate = July 20, 1998
|maincharintro = [[JJ]]
|script = [[Layer 03 Script]]
|prevep = [[Layer 02]]
|nextep = [[Layer 04]]
}}
"'''Psyche'''" is the third episode of ''[[Serial Experiments Lain]]''. It premiered on [[Wikipedia:TX Network|TXN]] on July 20, 1998.

<div style="float:right; font-size:90%; border:#A2A9B1 solid 1px;">__TOC__</div>

==Short summary==
*The police interrogate [[Lain Iwakura]]
*A voice speaks to Lain on the train
*Lain finds a [[Psyche]] chip in her locker
*Lain sees the [[Men in Black]]'s car outside her home
*Lain goes to [[Cyberia]] and someone comments on how long they haven't seen her for
*Lain asks [[Taro]], [[Masayuki]] and [[Myu-Myu]] about the Psyche chip
*[[Mika Iwakura]] sees the MIB outside her door
*Lain modifies her [[NAVI]] with the Psyche chip

==Long summary==
===Leaving Cyberia===
In front of [[Cyberia]], police have arrived. 「LAINって子…聞いた事彼でしょう」(English: "This Lain kid, you've heard the word, innit?") Lain and Alice emerge. 「WIREDの…LAIN」(English: "In the WIRED, Lain")

[Psyche - Layer:03]

===Police Station===
Red laser beam. Blood puddle oozing. (Flashbacks.) Lain being questioned by a policeman at the station. The police comment that they have been unable to reach Lain's parents by telephone. Lain is confused about this. The police are concerned because they cannot reach anyone by telephone at Lain's house. As the interrogation continues Alice watches from an outer room.
====Alice====
She enters and apologizes to Lain. She grabs her hands and tells her it was her fault. Lain, confused, has trouble even speaking Alice's name, when she does, she sounds practically robotic. Alice is called by her mother to leave. The policeman tells Lain that she can go home.
===Empty Home===
As the police car carrying Lain pulls up to her house it is dark while many neighbors are lit. Lain notices the foyer empt. Her parents' bedroom is neat like it hasn't been used yet tonight. (Perhaps they're on a date.) Lain enters her bedroom, the glow of her computer monitor inviting. She sits down in front of her computer. She stares into the monitor. Cut. Lain is waking up at her computer. (It is not made clear whether she was using it, or whether she's aware of using it.) It's still night. She gets up and checks the house again. When she looks into her parents' bedroom again, a slight relieved expression seems to come to her face. (Maybe her parents have returned from their date or something.) She returns to her Navi and checks messages. No messages to Lain. Lain says "Good Night, Navi" and the Navi responds "Good Night, Lain." Lain seems to react to this. (Perhaps in Lain's mind this lends animacy to her Navi.) Lain falls asleep in her bearsuit.
===Late Morning===
Lain overslept. Her mother is in the kitchen washing dishes. A hearty breakfast on the table. She issues a wan admonishon to Lain about being late. Lain starts to ask about last night, but doesn't finish.
====Walking to school====
Walking to school, Lain notices a black sedan. A red dot appears from within. Lain's face seems to expresse surprise and fear. As Lain continues, the red dot moves in the same direction that Lain is going. Lain is taken aback and starts running.
====Train (of thought)====
On the train to school Lain hears a voice (hallucination) repeating ``Lain'' in beat with the oscilation of the passing wires. It says "Do you understand". Lain asks the disembodied voice "Who are you." The voice says "You are not alone." Lain gasps and stares out the window at the passing wires.
===School===
The girls are giggling about last night's murder `suicide.' July asks across the room whether Lain got in trouble last night. Reika reminds "It wasn't our fault." Alice looks towards Lain but is bombarded with questions about the gory details. They ask her to tell her about it and Lain flashes a smile and nod (happy that they got her to go out?) that Alice seems to reässure to Alice that Lain is alright.
====Class concept====
During class Lain is abstracted, doodling something spiralish. A voice is heard discussing the PSYCHE (it sounds like reading a news article aloud---another hallucination? or conscious imagination?)
====Tisa Interrupts====
Lain starts seeing a swrily tunnel under her doodle-swirl. The PSYCHE narration is interrupted by Tisa (or someone else of similar circumstance) talking about her suicide. Lain becomes distressed about this, looks at the classroon door where a Tisa-like person is standing, looking in to the classroom. As Tisa continues discussing her suicide, Lain's distress grows and she places her hands over her ears, squeezing but the voice doesn't stop. A distorted voice keeps asking "Who is Lain?"
====Love Letter====
Alice expresses concern about their lighthearted reactions to the murder `suicide,' to which Reika responds that it didn't feel real but like a movie or a TV show. July agrees and tells Alice not to take it too seriously. Meanwhile, Lain opens her locker and sees a small brown envelope on her shoes. Alice responds that she thinks its strange that they can't take it more seriously. She turns and says "Right Lain?" and then notices the letter in Lain's hand. Alice asks if is a love letter. Lain says "No, but maybe." Juri and Reika descend on her saying "Show me, show me." Reika takes the envelope from Lain and says "You shouldn't hide things like this from us." Alice chimes in "Stop it you're picking on her again." Reika opens the envelope and a small brown looking square comes out. No one seems to know what it is, including Lain.

Lain is walking home to the familiar electrical hum. She removes the small object from her pocket and looks at it. Suddenly she says "Psyche" and she just stands there and stares.

[Lainwashed Pseudofan here: I think there's supposed to be an ad-break here. It's roughly the middle of the episode, and the following scene is quite different from the preceding. In a certain sense, it seems that this is when the episode ''really'' begins, with what was before being a continuation of Layer:02. Thoughts?]

The scene changes to a PSYCHEdelic view of wires in the night. Several disembodied conversations are overheard, as if they are traversing over the wires we see. Female voice: "No, my voice mail was tapped! I can't believe it." Male voice: "There's no relevant information in the resume received. We're examining it for your company." Female voice: "I love kissing. Even by myself it makes me happy." Male voce: "After that silly incident with the kid and Accela the supplier got scared and now we can't hardly get any of them." Another male voice: "Psyche appears to be made in Taiwan and there is a rumor that it was designed by a group called Knights. But I'm not sure if the Knights really exist." Female voice: "Did you feel good while dying?" And now we see Lain sitting at her Navi. Male voice: "Yes. I felt like hugging myself with joy." Female voice: "No! There is someone in my room! A small child-like but wrinkled man is looking at me." The voice is crying. "Help me!" Lain watches on into a typical Navi screen. A different female voice says "I have a photograph taken when you were with your secret lover. If I take this to your company…" Lain turns away from the Navi screen and looks at the small device. We hear "Lain, why aren't you here yet?"

As she grips the device in her hand the Navi announces: "You have mail." Lain's father interrupts before she can read it. He asks if she has started using her new Navi, and then turns on the lights in her room. He asks if there is something wrong. Lain shows him he device she received. He says he does not know what it is. She implores "But Dad, I believe that you do." He says "I told you I don't know" and leaves.

It is later and we see Lain leaving her house. She sees the black car with the small red lights watching her again. Lain runs away. We see Lain in the city approaching the Cyberia Café. Lain tentatively enters the club. A man stops her and says "Lain, you haven't been here for a while." Lain looks at him. The man is surprised and says "You look too girlish today." He leaves to go back to his partying. Lain looks at a table in the corner where Taro, Myu-Myu, and Masayuki are seated. They are the three Lain ran into in the stairway the night before. Taro and Masayuki are teasing one another. Lain interrupts asking "Do you know what this is" showing them the device. Taro asks "isn't that the Psyche". Masayuki and Myu-Myu can't believe it. Masayuki asks "where did you buy it", but Lain just asks again what it is. Taro is shocked and says "With that you can gain access to the Wired perfectly, even with this" indicating his hand-held computer. Lain asks "How do I use this?" Myu-Myu cattily says: "How stupid!" Masayuki asks Lain if she will sell it. Taro retorts: "Idiot, you could never buy it." Taro then turns to Lain and asks "What is your Navi?" Lain isn't sure, but thinks it is the latest Tachibana model. The group is impressed.

Taro asks if she has worked on the inside of it and Lain nods her head "No." Masayuki asks if she's in second or third year of Junior High. Lain replies "Second." Masayuki points out that she should have studied information basics and tells her that the Navi layout is in her textbook. As Taro stares at Lain, Masayuki gives detailed instructions: "Connect this on the backside of the main processor board. It will re-rout the original information back to the processor and it will work automatically. Its easier than building a plastic model kit. Just be aware of static electricity." Lain smiles and thanks the boy. Now we hear Taro calling to Lain: "Wait a minute. Information is not free both in the Wired and the real world." Masayuki asks "How much, How much?" Taro continues: "Aren't you Lain?" Lain turns, surprised. Taro says "I saw you in the Wired once." Lain asks: "Me? In the Wired?" Taro responds: "But you look quite different. Its common to assume a different character in the Wired, but yours is quite the opposite." Myu-Myu says "Really?" Taro continues: "You were here when that stupid incident happened, weren't you." Then he asks: "What are you up to?" Lain responds "What can I do?" Taro says "Go out on a date with me." Taro says that he would rather go out with the wild Lain, though, instead of the current one. Lain turns angrily to him, but then Taro says "I'm just kidding! When ever you like." Myu-Myu jealously asks "What are you talking about?" But Taro says to never mind and beckons the group to leave. Myu-Myu snipes at Lain on her way out.

Outside, the next day, we see Lain's sister coming home from school. As she passes the black car, the red lights do not follow her. Mika sees two men standing on the doorstep. She asks what them men are doing there. "Who are you?" One man just responds "You didn't meet us." [Shades says "The Jedi Mind Trick!"] Mika says "What are you talking about? I'll call the police. [Shades: "Damn! The Jedi Mind Trick didn't work!!"] The other man asks "What for, we were never here," and they walk away. Mika is angry and tells her mom to call the police if the men come again. Mika heads upstairs and stops at Lain's open door. She looks in and asks what she's doing. Lain is seated on the floor in her underwear surrounded by pieces of her Navi. Mika asks again "What are you doing… dressed like that?" Lain tells here she has to avoid static electricity. Mika thinks that's silly. Suddenly the scene becomes static-like. A strangely happy Lain sits up in strobed action and says "Welcome Home, Sister!"
( [http://lain.angelic-trust.net/rumors-layer03.php Source] )

{{Episodes}}
[[Category:Episodes]]

Layer 03

2026-03-24T10:43:23Z

INNERLMNT: added brief lead section; removed "analysis" link since page doesn't exist.

{{LayerInfo
|image = File:Layer_3.png
|layername = PSYCHE
|airdate = July 20, 1998
|maincharintro = [[JJ]]
|script = [[Layer 03 Script]]
|prevep = [[Layer 02]]
|nextep = [[Layer 04]]
}}
"'''Girls'''" is the second episode of ''[[Serial Experiments Lain]]''. It premiered on [[Wikipedia:TX Network|TXN]] on July 20, 1998.

<div style="float:right; font-size:90%; border:#A2A9B1 solid 1px;">__TOC__</div>

==Short summary==
*The police interrogate [[Lain Iwakura]]
*A voice speaks to Lain on the train
*Lain finds a [[Psyche]] chip in her locker
*Lain sees the [[Men in Black]]'s car outside her home
*Lain goes to [[Cyberia]] and someone comments on how long they haven't seen her for
*Lain asks [[Taro]], [[Masayuki]] and [[Myu-Myu]] about the Psyche chip
*[[Mika Iwakura]] sees the MIB outside her door
*Lain modifies her [[NAVI]] with the Psyche chip

==Long summary==
===Leaving Cyberia===
In front of [[Cyberia]], police have arrived. 「LAINって子…聞いた事彼でしょう」(English: "This Lain kid, you've heard the word, innit?") Lain and Alice emerge. 「WIREDの…LAIN」(English: "In the WIRED, Lain")

[Psyche - Layer:03]

===Police Station===
Red laser beam. Blood puddle oozing. (Flashbacks.) Lain being questioned by a policeman at the station. The police comment that they have been unable to reach Lain's parents by telephone. Lain is confused about this. The police are concerned because they cannot reach anyone by telephone at Lain's house. As the interrogation continues Alice watches from an outer room.
====Alice====
She enters and apologizes to Lain. She grabs her hands and tells her it was her fault. Lain, confused, has trouble even speaking Alice's name, when she does, she sounds practically robotic. Alice is called by her mother to leave. The policeman tells Lain that she can go home.
===Empty Home===
As the police car carrying Lain pulls up to her house it is dark while many neighbors are lit. Lain notices the foyer empt. Her parents' bedroom is neat like it hasn't been used yet tonight. (Perhaps they're on a date.) Lain enters her bedroom, the glow of her computer monitor inviting. She sits down in front of her computer. She stares into the monitor. Cut. Lain is waking up at her computer. (It is not made clear whether she was using it, or whether she's aware of using it.) It's still night. She gets up and checks the house again. When she looks into her parents' bedroom again, a slight relieved expression seems to come to her face. (Maybe her parents have returned from their date or something.) She returns to her Navi and checks messages. No messages to Lain. Lain says "Good Night, Navi" and the Navi responds "Good Night, Lain." Lain seems to react to this. (Perhaps in Lain's mind this lends animacy to her Navi.) Lain falls asleep in her bearsuit.
===Late Morning===
Lain overslept. Her mother is in the kitchen washing dishes. A hearty breakfast on the table. She issues a wan admonishon to Lain about being late. Lain starts to ask about last night, but doesn't finish.
====Walking to school====
Walking to school, Lain notices a black sedan. A red dot appears from within. Lain's face seems to expresse surprise and fear. As Lain continues, the red dot moves in the same direction that Lain is going. Lain is taken aback and starts running.
====Train (of thought)====
On the train to school Lain hears a voice (hallucination) repeating ``Lain'' in beat with the oscilation of the passing wires. It says "Do you understand". Lain asks the disembodied voice "Who are you." The voice says "You are not alone." Lain gasps and stares out the window at the passing wires.
===School===
The girls are giggling about last night's murder `suicide.' July asks across the room whether Lain got in trouble last night. Reika reminds "It wasn't our fault." Alice looks towards Lain but is bombarded with questions about the gory details. They ask her to tell her about it and Lain flashes a smile and nod (happy that they got her to go out?) that Alice seems to reässure to Alice that Lain is alright.
====Class concept====
During class Lain is abstracted, doodling something spiralish. A voice is heard discussing the PSYCHE (it sounds like reading a news article aloud---another hallucination? or conscious imagination?)
====Tisa Interrupts====
Lain starts seeing a swrily tunnel under her doodle-swirl. The PSYCHE narration is interrupted by Tisa (or someone else of similar circumstance) talking about her suicide. Lain becomes distressed about this, looks at the classroon door where a Tisa-like person is standing, looking in to the classroom. As Tisa continues discussing her suicide, Lain's distress grows and she places her hands over her ears, squeezing but the voice doesn't stop. A distorted voice keeps asking "Who is Lain?"
====Love Letter====
Alice expresses concern about their lighthearted reactions to the murder `suicide,' to which Reika responds that it didn't feel real but like a movie or a TV show. July agrees and tells Alice not to take it too seriously. Meanwhile, Lain opens her locker and sees a small brown envelope on her shoes. Alice responds that she thinks its strange that they can't take it more seriously. She turns and says "Right Lain?" and then notices the letter in Lain's hand. Alice asks if is a love letter. Lain says "No, but maybe." Juri and Reika descend on her saying "Show me, show me." Reika takes the envelope from Lain and says "You shouldn't hide things like this from us." Alice chimes in "Stop it you're picking on her again." Reika opens the envelope and a small brown looking square comes out. No one seems to know what it is, including Lain.

Lain is walking home to the familiar electrical hum. She removes the small object from her pocket and looks at it. Suddenly she says "Psyche" and she just stands there and stares.

[Lainwashed Pseudofan here: I think there's supposed to be an ad-break here. It's roughly the middle of the episode, and the following scene is quite different from the preceding. In a certain sense, it seems that this is when the episode ''really'' begins, with what was before being a continuation of Layer:02. Thoughts?]

The scene changes to a PSYCHEdelic view of wires in the night. Several disembodied conversations are overheard, as if they are traversing over the wires we see. Female voice: "No, my voice mail was tapped! I can't believe it." Male voice: "There's no relevant information in the resume received. We're examining it for your company." Female voice: "I love kissing. Even by myself it makes me happy." Male voce: "After that silly incident with the kid and Accela the supplier got scared and now we can't hardly get any of them." Another male voice: "Psyche appears to be made in Taiwan and there is a rumor that it was designed by a group called Knights. But I'm not sure if the Knights really exist." Female voice: "Did you feel good while dying?" And now we see Lain sitting at her Navi. Male voice: "Yes. I felt like hugging myself with joy." Female voice: "No! There is someone in my room! A small child-like but wrinkled man is looking at me." The voice is crying. "Help me!" Lain watches on into a typical Navi screen. A different female voice says "I have a photograph taken when you were with your secret lover. If I take this to your company…" Lain turns away from the Navi screen and looks at the small device. We hear "Lain, why aren't you here yet?"

As she grips the device in her hand the Navi announces: "You have mail." Lain's father interrupts before she can read it. He asks if she has started using her new Navi, and then turns on the lights in her room. He asks if there is something wrong. Lain shows him he device she received. He says he does not know what it is. She implores "But Dad, I believe that you do." He says "I told you I don't know" and leaves.

It is later and we see Lain leaving her house. She sees the black car with the small red lights watching her again. Lain runs away. We see Lain in the city approaching the Cyberia Café. Lain tentatively enters the club. A man stops her and says "Lain, you haven't been here for a while." Lain looks at him. The man is surprised and says "You look too girlish today." He leaves to go back to his partying. Lain looks at a table in the corner where Taro, Myu-Myu, and Masayuki are seated. They are the three Lain ran into in the stairway the night before. Taro and Masayuki are teasing one another. Lain interrupts asking "Do you know what this is" showing them the device. Taro asks "isn't that the Psyche". Masayuki and Myu-Myu can't believe it. Masayuki asks "where did you buy it", but Lain just asks again what it is. Taro is shocked and says "With that you can gain access to the Wired perfectly, even with this" indicating his hand-held computer. Lain asks "How do I use this?" Myu-Myu cattily says: "How stupid!" Masayuki asks Lain if she will sell it. Taro retorts: "Idiot, you could never buy it." Taro then turns to Lain and asks "What is your Navi?" Lain isn't sure, but thinks it is the latest Tachibana model. The group is impressed.

Taro asks if she has worked on the inside of it and Lain nods her head "No." Masayuki asks if she's in second or third year of Junior High. Lain replies "Second." Masayuki points out that she should have studied information basics and tells her that the Navi layout is in her textbook. As Taro stares at Lain, Masayuki gives detailed instructions: "Connect this on the backside of the main processor board. It will re-rout the original information back to the processor and it will work automatically. Its easier than building a plastic model kit. Just be aware of static electricity." Lain smiles and thanks the boy. Now we hear Taro calling to Lain: "Wait a minute. Information is not free both in the Wired and the real world." Masayuki asks "How much, How much?" Taro continues: "Aren't you Lain?" Lain turns, surprised. Taro says "I saw you in the Wired once." Lain asks: "Me? In the Wired?" Taro responds: "But you look quite different. Its common to assume a different character in the Wired, but yours is quite the opposite." Myu-Myu says "Really?" Taro continues: "You were here when that stupid incident happened, weren't you." Then he asks: "What are you up to?" Lain responds "What can I do?" Taro says "Go out on a date with me." Taro says that he would rather go out with the wild Lain, though, instead of the current one. Lain turns angrily to him, but then Taro says "I'm just kidding! When ever you like." Myu-Myu jealously asks "What are you talking about?" But Taro says to never mind and beckons the group to leave. Myu-Myu snipes at Lain on her way out.

Outside, the next day, we see Lain's sister coming home from school. As she passes the black car, the red lights do not follow her. Mika sees two men standing on the doorstep. She asks what them men are doing there. "Who are you?" One man just responds "You didn't meet us." [Shades says "The Jedi Mind Trick!"] Mika says "What are you talking about? I'll call the police. [Shades: "Damn! The Jedi Mind Trick didn't work!!"] The other man asks "What for, we were never here," and they walk away. Mika is angry and tells her mom to call the police if the men come again. Mika heads upstairs and stops at Lain's open door. She looks in and asks what she's doing. Lain is seated on the floor in her underwear surrounded by pieces of her Navi. Mika asks again "What are you doing… dressed like that?" Lain tells here she has to avoid static electricity. Mika thinks that's silly. Suddenly the scene becomes static-like. A strangely happy Lain sits up in strobed action and says "Welcome Home, Sister!"
( [http://lain.angelic-trust.net/rumors-layer03.php Source] )

{{Episodes}}
[[Category:Episodes]]

Layer 02

2026-03-24T10:42:13Z

INNERLMNT: added brief lead section; removed "analysis" link since page doesn't exist.

{{LayerInfo
|image = File:Layer_2.png
|layername = GIRLS
|airdate = July 13, 1998
|maincharintro = [[Delivery Man]], [[Taro]], [[Myu-Myu]], [[Masayuki]]
|script = [[Layer 02 Script]]
|credits = [[Layer 02 Credits]]
|prevep = [[Layer 01]]
|nextep = [[Layer 03]]
}}
"'''Girls'''" is the second episode of ''[[Serial Experiments Lain]]''. It premiered on [[Wikipedia:TX Network|TXN]] on July 13, 1998.

==Short summary==
*A boy takes [[Accela]]
*[[Lain Iwakura]] sees the [[Men in Black]] stalking her
*[[Juri Katou]] and [[Reika Yamamoto]] think they saw Lain at [[Cyberia]], while [[Alice Mizuki]] disagrees
*Lain's new [[NAVI]] is set up
*Lain goes to Cyberia upon Alice's invitation
*They conclude that the girl they saw yesterday was not Lain
*The boy who took Accela begins shooting randomly
*Lain says her signature line: "No matter where you are, everyone is connected." and the boy shoots himself

==Long summary==
The episode starts with an image of a busy Tokyo street, then a voice over "What are you afraid of? Just try a little bit."

[Title: Girls Layer:02]

The spinning mirror ball and heavy beat blare from the dance club. Floating text appears: "Cyberia. I don't want to be there." A boy is sitting at a table in the club and is approached by strange woman wearing a gas mask. She hands him a small packet and he pays her for it. Floating text appears: "10,000 Yen. That's Expensive! The Market price is only about 4,000 Yen." (Note: 10,000 Yen is about $100US, 4,000 Yen is about $40US). The boy stares at the packet. More floating text appears: "We call it 'Accela'. Although its from the same supplier its not exactly a drug."

Licking his lips, the boy opens the the packet which reveals a caspule surrounding a small object inside. Sweating and breathing heavily, the boy slits open the capsule with a hobby knife revealing the small device. He ingests the device and washes it down with his drink. Immediately his perceptions begin to change and he starts to foam at the mouth. Floating text appears: "I feel accelerated." Everyone he sees appears to be moving in slow motion. He sees an image of Lain's friends Alice, Reika, and Juri at a table. A man falls to the ground. He has been pushed down by a woman. We see her face, which appears to be an angry, more mature looking Lain. She mouths words.

The boy leaves his seat. Floating text appears: "Come on quickly."

Now a scene of the streets at daytime and the familiar buzz of power lines. Now in Lain's room, she talks to her Navi: "No its not. No mail received. I don't get it." Mika appears at the door to the room. She comments "I thought I heard someone else in here." Lain asks "Who?" Mika responds "Your imaginary friend, or something like that". Mika closes the door warning "You'll be late for school again." Lain pads down the hall and leaves the house.

While walking Lain sees a shadow behind a telephone pole, she then sees a strange, slightly bearded man staring at her. Frightened, Lain breaks into a run down the street. Shortly she runs into her three friends. Alice calls to her "Lain, Good Morning!". Reika comments: "See I knew she's not the one." Juri isn't sure. Lain says "What?". Alice chides the others "Stop it, you're picking on poor Lain," but the other girls just giggle. Alice says "Never mind them let's go."

Walking, Lain asks Juri if she's received anymore mail. Juri seems to have forgotten. Lain inquires further, "from Chisa?". Juri says no. Alice asks Lain if she received another prank mail. Juri asks: "Is it true?" Lain replies: "I'm just a little curious." Reika asks "About what? Now that I think about it she really looks like... " and then continues "Lain, where you last night." Lain is confused. Juri adds: "It was you, wasn't it." Alice corrects them: "I told you it wasn't her." The others say "well probably not." Reika explains to Lain that there was someone who looked like her at Cyberia last night.

Lain asks "Cyberia?" Juri explains that the Girls had gone there for the first time the previous night. Reika casually adds: "It was no big deal." Alice teases the other two: "You looked so tense," then turns to Lain and explains that it is an club where kids gather at midnight. Alice tells Lain that there was someone there who looked like her. Lain replies: "Yesterday I was..." but is cut off by Alice saying: "I already said it wasn't Lain. She was wearing a provocative dress and had a terrible temper." Reika breaks in "Her personality was completely opposite." Juri suggests: "How about taking Lain there tonight". Reika sarcastically expresses her doubt that Lain would go. Alice tells her to knock it off. Juri says: "Lain you might change if you went to the club." Alice agrees: "Lain might become even more outgoing." Juri thinks its a wonderful idea, while Reika thinks it will be interesting. Alice thinks that going would improve Lain's mood and tells Lain it will be fun.

The scene shifts to some sort of informational display. The Accela device spins while this commentary is recited: "Accela is a kind of 'smart supplement'. When it enters the body it oscillates at a certain frequency and helps the body secrete one specific hormone. When the hormone is secreted, one's sense of time will be altered and will feel that his consciousness has accellerated. Not only his consciousness, but his brain's calculation speed will also be increased by about a facor of 2 to 12 times faster. The digestive juices will dissolve this nano-mechanism in one day. But the effect is... "

As the voice fades we are back in Lain's classroom. Lain's palm computer flashes under her desk. Alice sends her a message: "Let's have fun at Cyberia tonight." Lain responds "I can't go tonight." Floating text appears: "Humans are all connected."

Lain is walking down a dark hall in the school. She pauses momentarily and sees the shadow of a girl coming from a closet. Then shadowy figures walk by her. Lain is visibily frightened. The girl from the closet approaches her. Her face changes form following the same pattern as the "train girl" from the previous episode... from smiling, to terror, to decaying deformity, to a contented smile. Lain cowers in fear as the image of the girl passes through her.

Back on the streets with the electric hum, Lain pauses when she sees a delivery truck in front of her house. As she approaches the driver asks "Is this your house?" He tells her he has a delivery and then proceeds to unload the truck. The driver asks Lain to sign the delivery confirmation. He is impressed with what he has delivered, indicating that he "always wanted one himself." Lain does not know what any of it is. The man tells her it is the latest Navi model, fully equipped. "With this much machine power," he comments, "it will make your surfing on the wired trouble free. I made one for my own use, but its now match against this." Lain says "but I don't know anything about this." "Soon you will," says the driver with a smile as he leaves.

The scene shifts to Lain in her bear pajamas. Lain hears a sound and gets out of bed. As she descends the stairs she sees her mother and father engaged in a deep kiss. Lain stares. Noticing her, her Father breaks it off and says "Your new Navi has arrived." Her mother says "Please clean up soon, they're in the way." Lain's father offers to set up the computer after dinner. He comments: "This Navi is so powerful that I'd like to use one myself." Lain asks her Father if he can set it up now. Her father is surprised at her eagerness, but Lain just stares back. He agrees.

In her room her father admonishes: "Don't use the Navi with kids all the time. Communication needs more advanced systems whenever you get involved in more mature human relations. You got that Lain?" Lain just stares. Her father boots the new computer and invites Lain to log on to the machine. She takes down the hood of her bearsuit, then her father tells her to talk to it. Lain says: "Hello Navi." Her father tells her: "Finally this Navi is yours. You can show this off to your friends!" As his father opens the door he finds that Mika has been listening there. She feigns disinterest and walks away.

Lain checks her mail on the new system, but there is none. A beep comes from school jacket. Her palm computer has a message from Alice: "Lain, where are you? We are waiting for you. Be sure to come." Floating text appears: "Why don't you come here quickly."

Out on the street in the club district Alice is giving Lain directions over her palm computer. She points out the Cyberia Cafe and Club. Alice continues "its in the basement of the building." Lain stands indecisively on the steps. She hears a boy's voice saying "hey, sis, I can't get through." Lain apologizes. There are three kids descending the stairs, two boys and a younger girl in a frilly dress. The boys talk amongst themselves: "If you do it that way you'll be caught by the information surveillance center." The other boy asks "Isn't safe to just hack it." The girl says "Let's talk about this later at the game center."

Inside the club the beat pounds and Juri sees Lain saying "You're late Lain." Reika adds "Well, you know that its already past her bed time." Juri says "You should have dressed more appropriately for tonight." The three girls are wearing very adult outfits while Lain seems to be wearing a conservative black turtleneck. Alice protectively places her hands on Lain's shoulders and says "How about if we choose some adult clothes for Lain next time." Reika snaps "Will they match her well?" Alice retorts "Reika." Juri continues "It seems that the one we saw last night it was not Lain after all." Reika says: "That's what I've been telling you, Lain doesn't wear that kind of clothes or speak so roughly." Lain asks: "Did she realy look like me?" Juri indicates that she was abolutely sure it was her. Lain says "is that so."

A faint gunshot is heard and a light shatters. People begin to scatter as a second gunshot goes off. Juri falls. Alice and Reika rush to help her. Lain stands perspiring, her back to a wall. Blood pools on the floor. A mans heavy breathing is heard and the light from an infrared gunsite flashes about while the bodies of a man and woman can be seen shadowed on the dance floor. The boy who took the Accela drug the previous night holds the gun. He has a crazed look on his face. Alice and Reika escort Juri off the dance floor. Alice looks back and calls to Lain. Reika says towards Lain "What is she doing." Alice dumps Juri into Reika's arms and goes back to get Lain. The boy with the gun notices Lain and says "What are you looking at!" but he just stares back at him. Alice approaches Lain imploring "What are you doing? Run away Lain." Lain continues to stare at the boy. "I said go away," he says and approaches. He now has a good look at Lain's face and steps back in shock, his cap falling to the floor. "Why did you make me do such a thing!" He yells. "What right do you have to make me do it!" Lain continues to stare at him. "I just wanted to clear my mind," he continues. "I don't know, I have nothing to do with you. I have nothing to do with it." Then again he yells "I have nothing to do with it. Wired must not interfere with the real world! I have nothing to do with it. Who the hell are you." Lain begins to step away from Alice and walks stiffly toward the boy. He levels his gun at her, the laser site flashing across her body. "I don't understand, " he says. "I don't know anything about it." The laser site is locked nervously between Lain's eyes. Suddenly Lain proclaims: "No matter where you are humans are all connected." This brings tears to the boy's eyes. The pinpoint of the laser site moves across the room and targets the back of the boy's mouth. A flash of red and then blood splatters on Lain's face and the boy falls to the ground, his dead body spralled across the other two victims.
( [http://lain.angelic-trust.net/rumors-layer02.php Source] )

==Trivia==
* Urban Diary is used as a background during the Accela TV News report.

{{Episodes}}
[[Category:Episodes]]

Layer 01

2026-03-24T10:41:22Z

INNERLMNT: added a lead section

{{LayerInfo
|image = File:Layer_1.png
|layername = WEIRD
|airdate = July 6, 1998
|maincharintro = [[Chisa Yomoda]], [[Lain Iwakura]], [[Alice Mizuki]], [[Juri Katou]], [[Reika Yamamoto]], [[Mika Iwakura]], [[Miho Iwakura]], [[Yasuo Iwakura]]
|script = [[Layer 01 Script]]
|credits = [[Layer 01 Credits]]
|nextep = [[Layer 02]]
}}
"'''Weird'''" is the first episode of ''[[Serial Experiments Lain]]''. It premiered on [[Wikipedia:TX Network|TXN]] on July 6, 1998.
==Short summary==
*Chisa jumps off a building
*Lain's classmates discuss receiving an email from Chisa
*Smoke comes from Lain's fingertips - a sign of hallucination
*Lain starts up her [[NAVI]] for the first time in ages and reads Chisa's email
*Lain asks her father for a new NAVI and he agrees to get one
*Lain snaps awake in her classroom
*The blackboard tells her to come to [[the Wired]] soon
*Lain sees Chisa on her way home

==Long summary==
A crowded street at night in Tokyo's [[Shibuya]] district. A voice asks "Why did you come here, You'd better come here".

[Title: Weird Layer:01]

A breathless teanage girl drops her school bag as passersby point and giggle. The scene cuts to a floating text which reads "Why do you have to do this?" and then "You have to think of yourself". A man and woman pass near the building. He is trying to get her to go "somplace fun" with him.

We now see the girl on the roof of a building. She removes her glasses and positions herself on the edge with her arms outstreched. We see here smiling mouth as she says something inaudible. Again we see floating text "I don't need to be here". Then she falls from the building. The lovers are interrupted in mid-kiss as the girl's body is crushed by a falling building sign. Our last view of this scene is the girl's school bag with a cute character dangling in the breeze.

The scene changes to overhead power wires. A low frequency hum and muffled voices can be heard. Floating text appears reading "If I remain in a place like this I won't be able to stay connected."

The door to a house opens and a young schoolgirl emerges. It is Lain. She is wearing a typical Japanese school uniform with a short plaid skirt, jacket, and small bowed tie. She rides the train and we again hear the sound of electrical wires. The girl says "Shut up. Why can't you just shut up." For a moment there is silence and then more hum of wires.

As the schoolgirls approach their building, Lain stops and looks at her shadow on the ground. In it, misty whisps seem to float. Lain looks up and watches the girls enter the school. Their images seem to fade into whispy images as well. Floating text appears reading "Hurry everybody".

Lain arrives in her classroom to the sounds of a girl sobbing. We see three girls at the back of the room. The crying girl is Juri and she is comforted by Alice who says "It will be alright". Alice approaches Lain and asks "Did you receive it too?". Lain says "what?", and Alice asks "an email." Lain asks "email?" and Alice says "An email from Yomoda Chisa" Lain indicates that she's not very good at using computers, and Alice chides her "You should check your email every day".

Reika comes up to Lain's desk and says "Lain is still like a kid, isn't she". Lain hears Juri's cry again and asks "Why is she crying?" Reika says "Because she received an email from Yomoda Chisa." Lain asks "Who is Chisa?" Reika explains that Chisa was in Class B -- she was the girl who committed suicide last week. Alice explains that many other classmates received the same mail, and that dead people don't send mail, but somehow it was received.

As Lain is watching the teacher write on the blackboard, the words she sees become fuzzy. Lain is confused. She looks at her hands as the sound of chalk on board echos in the room. Suddenly small outlets appear in her fingers and ectoplasm drifts from them to swirl around the classroom. Floating text appears reading "When you die? It hurts, lol."

Outside again, Lain is walking home accompanied by the hum of the overhead wires. Lain enters her house which seems neat, yet lifeless. No one is home and Lain does not call out with the typical Japanese "I'm home." She enters her large bedroom which contains only a small bed, a desk with books and her computer. Her window ledge is lined with stuffed animals. Lain sits at her desk, dons a bear-eared hat, and turns on her computer. Lain logs into her computer and is informed that she has mail. It is from Yomoda Chisa. Lain chooses to read the email. It reads "Hello. How are you? I went home from school with you once. Do you remember?" Lain says "Yes". The letter continues "I have only abandoned the flesh. This way, I can tell you I am still alive. By sending you this mail I can show you the way. Do you understand? No need to understand now. Soon you will understand it. Everyone will."

Lain asks "Why did you kill yourself?"

The letter continues "It seems there is a rumor that its a prank mail by someone at school. But that's not the case. I want you to understand that." Lain asks, "But why? Why did you kill yourself?" The computer responds, "Because here, God exists." Lain says, "What?"

It's dinner time. Lain, her mother, and sister Mika are eating. As Lain stirs her soup, Mika leaves the table with her food relatively untouched. She explains that she had a late lunch today and thanks her mom for the meal. Lain tells her mother about the mail she received from the dead girl. Her mother doesn't respond. She just keeps on eating.

Lain is now in her bedroom. She lying on her bed with her back to the windowed wall. She is wearing hooded pajamas that are fashioned as a bear-suit. Outside you can hear a car approaching and parking.

Inside his office, Lain's father tinkers with an array of computers. Lain enters and he asks her what she wants, since it unusual for her come into his office. Lain drops the hood on her bearsuit. Humbly, she asks her father for a new "Navi". Her father is amused that she is finally interested in it. He says that now that she is in junior high, she will be outpaced by her friends without a better machine. He says "In this world there are both the real world and the wired. Everyone is connected to each other. And that's how human societies are organized. Even kids like you can get friends quickly. There is no need to be afraid. I wonder why your mom doesn't understand it." Hesitantly Lain says, "I'm not afraid of it." Her Dad asks "But why the sudden interest?" Lain replies "I have to meet a friend." Her father laughs and doesn't respond, preoccupied with his computer.

Lain is on the train again and suddenly the train slams to a halt. An announcement over the PA apologizes for the inconvenience. The train had to be stopped because of an accident. Lain places her hand to the window and watches an electrical wire as blood begins to drip from it.

Now it appears as if Lain is transported to another place, first on the street, then at the bottom of a subway entrance. She sees misty figures dissolving to nothing as they exit. Now she is in a plaza, then her empty living room, and finally at a railroad crossing. Smoke envelops the scene. As she stares down the rail tracks, she sees a girl in a sailor school uniform go under the crossing gate and stand on the tracks. Lain tries to shout at the girl, but no sound comes from her mouth. The girls face is shown alternating between smiling and screaming and ends smiling contentedly as the train finally bears down upon her. Lain crouches beside the tracks as the train passes at blinding speed.

Suddenly we back in Lain's classroom where we see tears falling on paper. She is slumped as sweat and tears drip from her chin. Her teacher, oblivious to her condition, reminds Lain that the information will be on the exam. The English words on the blackboard begin to blur until she sees a message reading "Come to the Wired quickly."

Lain is again walking home from school. As she walks she notices Chisa walking in the opposite direction. Lain turns around to see Chisa standing there. She calls to her "Chisa-chan, where are you?" Chisa just smiles. Then after panning across the reflection of the electrical wires on her glasses, Chisa disappears in a spiraling ribbon. Lain pleads "Wait!"

( [http://lain.angelic-trust.net/rumors-layer01.php Source] )

==Trivia==
* Think Blue Count One Tow, an allusion to Think Blue, Count Two, a short story set in Cordwainer Smith's Instrumentality of Mankind series.
* Lain's old computer is reminiscent of a 20th Anniversary Macintosh. It runs a Communication OS, denoted by a large capital C as it's logo - reminiscent of the Commodore logo.
* The text seen on the blackboard in the classroom is code, written in the C programming language.
* NeXT (an OS) icons appear on Lain's father's computer desktop.
* "WEIRD" is an anagram for "WIRED".
* In the context of "lain", ectoplasm is considered a typical hallucination in neurosis. The scene wasn't to show that Lain is particularly ill, but as if the atmosphere of it is all natural to her.

{{Episodes}}
[[Category:Episodes]]

Serial Experiments Lain (news)

2026-03-24T10:26:21Z

INNERLMNT: INNERLMNT moved page Serial Experiments Lain (news) to META:News: this doesn't make sense to be in mainspace; it's not an article, but rather a part of the homepage

#REDIRECT [[META:News]]

META:News

2026-03-24T10:26:20Z

INNERLMNT: INNERLMNT moved page Serial Experiments Lain (news) to META:News: this doesn't make sense to be in mainspace; it's not an article, but rather a part of the homepage

<div style="float:right; font-size:100%; border:#A2A9B1 solid 1px;">__TOC__</div>
==2025==
'''March'''
:* '''16th''' - The Serial Experiments Lain authorized spin-off game "[[://signal.]]" was announced, an occult RPG set to release on April 30 for Windows and macOS. ([https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2025-03-16/authorized-serial-experiments-lain-spinoff-game-launches-on-april-30/.222447 source (en)], [https://www.famitsu.com/article/202503/36727 (jp)])

==2024==
'''December'''
:* '''21th''' - [[Chikada Wasei|Wasei "JJ" Chikada]] releases his 6th album, "[[Cyberia Layer:06]]" with new art by [[Yoshitoshi ABe]]. ([https://twitter.com/wasei_jj/status/1870072530578616627 source])

==2023==
'''December'''
:* '''18th''' - [[Chikada Wasei|Wasei "JJ" Chikada]] releases his 5th album, "[[Cyberia Layer:05]]" with new art by [[Yoshitoshi ABe]]. ([https://twitter.com/wasei_jj/status/1736016052562379007/ source])
'''April'''
:* '''1st''' - A producer of the anime series releases a countdown website that lasts 24 hours. It's an April Fools Joke for the 25th anniversary of Serial Experiments Lain. ([https://web.archive.org/web/20230401000342/https://en.serialexperimentslain.io/ source (en)], [https://web.archive.org/web/20230401000341/https://jp.serialexperimentslain.io/ (jp)])

==2022==
'''December'''
:* '''17th''' - [[Chikada Wasei|Wasei "JJ" Chikada]] releases his 4th album, "[[Cyberia Layer:04]]" with new art by [[Yoshitoshi ABe]]. ([https://en.wasei.tokyo/layer-04 source])

==2021==
'''November'''
:* '''11th''' - Launch of [[Yoshitoshi ABe]]'s Patreon account. ([https://www.patreon.com/abfly source])
'''March'''
:* '''29th''' - Released of the fan project lainTSX recreating [[Serial Experiments Lain (game)|Serial Experiments Lain PS1 game]] in English and playable on web browser ([https://www.otaquest.com/serial-experiments-lain-ps1-game-english/ source])
'''February'''
:* '''24th''' - [[Chikada Wasei|Wasei "JJ" Chikada]] launches his weekly music streaming show Club Cyberia Wired. Every Wednesday at 10 p.m. JST. ([https://www.otaquest.com/club-cyberia-wired-wasei-jj-chikada/ source])

==2020==
'''June'''
:* '''20th''' - Release of the remix album [[Cyberia Layer:03|Cyberia Layer:03 "After Hours"]] ([https://en.wasei.tokyo/ source])

==2019==
'''November'''
:* '''23rd''' - Release of the concept album [[Cyberia Layer:03]] by [[Chikada Wasei|Wasei "JJ" Chikada]] with new art by [[Yoshitoshi ABe]] ([https://en.wasei.tokyo/layer-03 source])
:* '''10th''' - Messa Store is gathering together artists and designers to celebrate Serial Experiments Lain creating a variety of shirts, hats, and other accessories ([https://www.crunchyroll.com/anime-news/2019/11/10-1/artists-unite-for-serial-experiments-lain-pop-up-shop source])
'''July'''
:* '''13th''' - Residents of Japan have the express permission to create derivative works of Serial Experiments Lain for non-commercial purpose until July 2028 as part of an "Open Source Project." ([https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/interest/2019-07-13/serial-experiment-lain-goes-open-source-in-japan-until-2028/.148812 source])

==2018==
'''July'''
:* '''14th''' - Release of the concept album [[Cyberia Layer_2]] by [[Chikada Wasei|Wasei "JJ" Chikada]] with new art by [[Yoshitoshi ABe]] ([https://en.wasei.tokyo/album source])
:* '''6th''' - Serial Experiments Lain celebrates its 20 years!

==2017==
'''July'''
:* '''1st''' - Serial Experiments Lain is now available on the streaming platform Crunchyroll for the United States and Canada ([https://www.crunchyroll.com/anime-news/2017/06/01/crunchyroll-adds-serial-experiments-lain-and-c-control-anime source])
'''January'''
:* '''28th''' - Launch of The [[TSUKI Project]] website preaching a Serial Experiments Lain-inspired conspiracy. ([https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/tsuki-project source])

==2014==
'''May'''
:* '''20th''' - Release of the Serial Experiments Lain: Complete Series Anime in Blu-ray ([https://www.blu-ray.com/movies/Serial-Experiments-Lain-Complete-Series-Blu-ray/53160/ source])

==2013==
'''June'''
:* '''29th''' - [[Nakamura Ryuutarou|Ryūtarō Nakamura]], director of Serial Experiments Lain, died due to pancreatic cancer. ([https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2013-07-25/serial-experiments-lain-director-ryutaro-nakamura-passes-away source])

==2009==
'''April'''
:* '''10th''' - At the Sakura-Con, [[Yoshitoshi ABe]] reveals he's working on the spiritual sequel of Serial Experiments Lain, [[Despera]] with many of the same staffers with whom he created Lain ([https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2009-05-20/abe-develops-desperant-anime-with-lain-staff source])

==2008==
'''July'''
:* '''6th''' - Serial Experiments Lain celebrates its 10 years!

Serial Experiments Lain

2026-03-24T10:19:37Z

INNERLMNT:

{{DISPLAYTITLE:''Serial Experiments Lain''}}[[File:Serial-experiments-lain-coverart.jpg|thumb|Strange events begin to occur as a withdrawn girl named Lain becomes obsessed with interconnected virtual realm of "The Wired".|right]]
'''''Serial Experiments Lain''''' is an anime series directed by [[Ryuutarou Nakamura]], original character design by [[Yoshitoshi ABe]], screenplay written by [[Chiaki J. Konaka]], and produced by [[Ueda Yasuyuki]] (credited as ''production 2nd'') for Triangle Staff. It was broadcast on TV Tokyo from July to September 1998 and has 13 [[:Category:Episodes|episodes]]. [[Serial Experiments Lain (game)|A PlayStation game]] with the same title was released in November 1998 by Pioneer LDC.

''Lain'' is influenced by philosophical subjects such as [[reality]], [[identity]], and [[communication]]. The series focuses on [[Lain Iwakura]], an adolescent girl living in suburban Japan, and her introduction to [[the Wired]], a global communications network similar to the Internet. Lain lives with her middle-class family, which consists of her inexpressive older sister [[Mika Iwakura]], her cold mother [[Miho Iwakura]], and her computer-obsessed father [[Yasuo Iwakura]]. The first ripple on the pond of Lain's lonely life appears when she learns that girls from her school have received an [[e-mail]] from [[Chisa Yomoda]], a schoolmate who committed [[Suicide in Serial Experiments Lain|suicide]]. When Lain receives the message at home, Chisa tells her (in real time) that she is not dead, but has just "abandoned the flesh", and has found [[God]] in the Wired. From then on, Lain is bound to a quest which will take her ever deeper into both the network and her own thoughts.

The anime series is licensed in North America by Funimation since 2010. Before that, it was licensed by Geneon (previously Pioneer Entertainment) who released the series on VHS, LaserDisc, and DVD, as well as a restored Blu-ray edition. It was also released in Singapore by Odex. The video game, which shares only the themes and protagonist with the series, was never released outside Japan.

A remastered Blu-ray box set was released in Japan in 2009, and the US in 2012. It features the show redigitized to a 4:3 1080p format, with many CG sequences (such as the PRESENT DAY PRESENT TIME opening) re-rendered in higher quality.

The series shows influences from topics such as philosophy, computer history, cyberpunk literature and [[conspiracy]] theory, and it was made the subject of several academic articles. English language anime reviewers found it to be weird and unusual, with generally positive reviews. Producer Ueda said he intended Japanese and American audiences to form conflicting views on the series, but was disappointed in this regard, as the impressions turned out to be similar.

The opening theme is "[[Duvet]]" and the ending theme is "[[Tooi Sakebi]]".

==Plot==
''Serial Experiments Lain'' deals directly with the definition of [[reality]], which makes its complex plot difficult to summarize. The story is primarily based on the assumption that everything flows from human thought, [[memory]], and consciousness. Therefore, events on screen can be considered hallucinations of Lain, of other protagonists, or of Lain fabricating the hallucinations of others. Story misdirection is central to the plot; even the off-screen voices or narrations' information cannot be considered truthful. The series consists of a cross-reflection of philosophical themes instead of the traditional linear events depiction: episodes are called "[[:Category:Episodes|layers]]".

''Serial Experiments Lain'' describes "[[the Wired]]" as the sum of human communication networks, created with the telegraph and telephone services, and expanded with the [[Internet]] and subsequent networks. The anime assumes that the Wired could be linked to a system that enables unconscious communication between people and machines without physical interface. The story line introduces such a system with the [[Schumann Resonances]], a property of the Earth's magnetic field that theoretically allows for unhindered long-distance communications. If such a link was created, the network would become equivalent to Reality as the general consensus of all perceptions and knowledge. The thin line between what is real and what is possible would then begin to blur.

[[Masami Eiri]] is introduced as the project director on [[Protocol 7]] (the next generation internet protocol in the series' time frame) for major computer company [[Tachibana General Laboratories]]. He has secretly included [[Source Code|code]] of his own creation to give himself control of the Wired through the wireless system described above. He then "uploaded” his consciousness into the Wired and died in real life a few days after. These details are unveiled around the middle of the series, but this is the point where the story of ''Serial Experiments Lain'' begins.

Masami later explains that Lain is the artifact by which the wall between the [[virtual]] and [[material]] worlds is to fall, and that he needs her to get to the Wired and "abandon the flesh", as he did, to achieve his plan. The series sees him trying to convince her through interventions, using the promise of unconditional love, charm, fate, and, when all else fails, threats and force.

In the meantime, the anime follows a complex game of hide-and-seek between the "[[Knights of the Eastern Calculus]]", hackers who Masami claims are "believers that enable him to be a god in the Wired", and Tachibana Labs, who try to regain control of Protocol 7.

In the end, the viewer sees Lain realizing, after much introspection, that she has absolute power over everyone's mind and over reality itself. Her dialogue with different versions of herself show how she feels shunned from the material world, and how she is afraid to live in the Wired, where she has the possibilities and responsibilities of a goddess. The last scenes feature her erasing everything connected to herself from everyone's memories. She is last seen unchanged—re-encountering her old friend [[Alice Mizuki]], who is now married. Lain promises herself to look after Alice.

==Development==
===Production===
Serial Experiments Lain was conceived, as a series, to be original to the point of it being considered "an enormous risk" by its producer [[Ueda Yasuyuki]]. He explained he created Lain with a set of values he took as distinctly Japanese; he hoped Americans would not understand the series as the Japanese would. This would lead to a "war of ideas" over the meaning of the anime, hopefully culminating in new communication between the two cultures. Later, when he discovered that the American audience held the same views on the series as the Japanese, he was disappointed.

The Lain franchise was originally conceived to connect across forms of media (anime, video games, manga). Producer Yasuyuki Ueda said in an interview, "the approach I took for this project was to communicate the essence of the work by the total sum of many media products". The scenario for the video game was written first, and the video game was produced at the same time as the anime series, though the series was released first. A dōjinshi titled ''[[The Nightmare of Fabrication]]'' was produced by Yoshitoshi ABe and released in Japanese in the artbook ''[[Omnipresence in Wired|An Omnipresence in Wired]]''. Ueda and Konaka declared in an interview that the idea of a multimedia project was not unusual in Japan, as opposed to the contents of Lain, and the way they are exposed.

In 2009, Yoshitoshi ABe announced a spiritual sequel to Serial Experiments Lain called [[Despera]] who will reunited many of the staff who worked on Serial Experiments Lain, including Chiaki J Konaka and Ryūtarō Nakamura.

==Reception==
Words like "weird" or "bizarre" are almost systematically associated to review the series by English Language reviews due mostly to the freedoms taken with the animation and its unusual science fiction, philosophical and psychological context. Despite the show judged atypical, the critics responded positively to the thematic and stylistic characteristics. It was praised by the Japan Media Arts Festival, in 1998, for "its willingness to question the meaning of contemporary life" and the "extraordinarily philosophical and deep questions".

In 2005, Newtype USA stated that the main attraction to the series is its keen view on "the interlocking problems of identity and technology". the author saluted Abe's "crisp, clean character design" and the "perfect soundtrack". It concluded saying that "Serial Experiments Lain might not yet be considered a true classic, but it's a fascinating evolutionary leap that helped change the future of anime."

In 2001, Lain was subject to commentary in the literary and academic worlds. The Asian Horror Encyclopedia calls it "an outstanding psycho-horror anime about the psychic and spiritual influence of the Internet" noticing the presence of horror lore (like ghost from train accident story) and horrific visuals.

The Anime Essentials anthology, Gilles Poitras describes it as a "complex and somehow existential" anime that "pushed the envelope" of anime diversity in the 1990s, alongside the much better known ''Neon Genesis Evangelion'' and ''Cowboy Bebop''.

In 2003, Professor Susan J. Napier, in her reading to the American Philosophical Society called The Problem of Existence in Japanese Animation. Napier asks whether there is something to which Lain should return, "between an empty real and a dark virtual".

In 2020, the review-aggregation website website Rotten Tomatoes, classified Serial Experiments Lain as one of the 25 anime TV series that have been essential to the medium over the last five decades. ([https://editorial.rottentomatoes.com/article/essential-anime-series/ source])

"Serial Experiments Lain helped usher in a new style of anime, of more digitally-produced shows with a glossy bloom and deeper, darker, complicated story lines. In the wake of Neon Genesis tearing up the typical anime playbook, Lain pursues a surreal, interior cyberpunk story about a withdrawn high school girl who receives an email from a classmate who has recently committed suicide. Questions of hyper-reality, consciousness, and the everyday tangibility of cyberspace ensue. Lain is pretentious, symbolic, and absorbing – a prime example of a brave new world in anime."

Despite the general positive feedback, some negative critics stated the "lifeless" setting it had, how the last episodes failed to resolve the questions, and how the show relied so little on dialogue.<ref>https://web.archive.org/web/20110826092828/http://www.ex.org/5.2/25-anime_followup_lain.html</ref>

===Awards===
* Japan Media Arts Festival 1998: Excellence Prize<ref>http://archive.j-mediaarts.jp/en/festival/1998/animation/works/06an_serial_experiments_lain/</ref>

==Trivia==
* The series contains a large number of direct allusions to objects and companies in the real world:
** [[Cyberia]] is a disco bar in the series which borrows its name from the 1994 nonfiction novel ''[[Wikipedia:Cyberia (book)|Cyberia]]'' by Douglas Rushkoff, which discusses the growing subculture of internet users and how it could lead to a counterculture. It also shares the name with one of the earliest cybercafé franchises - which had a branch in Tokyo.
*** The book is told to have been the inspiration for the series in general.
** [[Protocol 7]] refers, probably, to the 7th Layer, the neurogenetic circuit, of the [[Wikipedia:Eight-circuit model of consciousness|Eight Layers of Consciousness]] as proposed by Timothy Leary. It could also be a successor to the upcoming new internet protocol IPv6 (Internet Protocol version 6) (the current internet protocol is IPv4 (Internet Protocol version 4)).
** [[NAVI]], the trademark-turned-noun for computer in the series, is contracted from [[Wikipedia:Knowledge Navigator|Knowledge Navigator]], a term invented by Apple CEO John Sculley in his book Odyssey. It referred to a computer connected to a vast network where everyone was connected.
** [[Copland OS]] is named after an unreleased operating system by Apple, and so was System 7 after [[Wikipedia:System 7|an operating system that ''was'' released]].
** Gaia, a global brain in Cyberia shares a common thread with the collective shared unconscious in Lain, may be lifted from the book ''Cyberia'' as well.
** The [[Knights of the Eastern Calculus]] are a direct nod to the [[Wikipedia:Knights of the Lambda Calculus|Knights of the Lambda Calculus]].
** Tachibana Labs is a play on words on Apple Macintosh, (a type of Apple) itself being the name of a citrus fruit (the citrus tachibana)
** Nezumi, the Knights-wannabe who carries a computer rig and accesses the Wired while he walks matches the description of a Gargoyle from Snow Crash, as do the MIB agents, who wear the same headgear (complete with laser sight) that Lagos was described as wearing.
** to Be continued, where Be uses the same colouring as Be OS used.
** hello (again), the text from an Apple advertisement, is used in an omake.
** What is Artificial Life? from ALIFE VI is quoted in text-form at several places.

== References ==
<references />

{{Episodes}} {{AnimeCharacters}} {{Media}}

[[Category:Media]]

English Dub Cast Roles

2026-03-24T10:12:36Z

INNERLMNT: /* Known cast */ made the table more legible, plus added a few wikilinks

{{Community content}}
[[File:Serial Experiments Lain Anime English Dub Voice Talents.png|thumb|right|The English dub cast roles, as shown at the end of [[Layer 01]]]]

In the English language dub of ''[[Serial Experiments Lain (anime)|Serial Experiments Lain]]'', the credits of the show do not assign specific character roles to each English dub voice actor. Instead, all cast members were grouped into a single credit, "English Dub Voice Talents".

Because of this, fans of the show have attempted to guess or ask voice actors for the role they played in the show. Since the information/undertaking is considered unofficial and a fan project, it has been separated from the main [[Layer 01 Credits]] page.

Note: Many of the voice actors credited in the English dub of the show were not credited under their real names, and instead used a variety of aliases. In these cases, their birth name has been included in parentheses after their credited name. For more information on voice actors and their use of aliases, you can read [https://moonlightingvoice.com/why-do-voice-actors-use-aliases/ Why Do Voice Actors Use Aliases?], posted by the website Moonlighting Voice.

==Known cast==

{| class = "wikitable" style="text-align: left;"
! Role !! Credited alias !! Real name (if applicable) !! Refs
|-
|| [[Lain Iwakura]] || Ruby Marlowe || [[Wikipedia:Bridget Hoffman|Bridget Hoffman]] || <ref name="misceLAINeous">misceLAINeous - Basic Info, https://www.cjas.org/~leng/basic.htm</ref>
|-
| [[Yasuo Iwakura]] || Gil Starberry || Barry Alan Stigler || <ref>Behind the Voice Actors - Barry Stigler, https://www.behindthevoiceactors.com/Barry-Stigler/</ref><ref>IMDb - Barry Stigler as Yasuo Iwakura, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0967273/characters/nm0823048</ref>
|-
| [[Miho Iwakura]] || Celeste Burch || Petrea Burchard || <ref name="misceLAINeous" /><ref>IMDb - Petrea Burchard as Miho Iwakura, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0500092/characters/nm0120838</ref>
|-
| [[Mika Iwakura]] || PJ Lee || [[Wikipedia:Patricia Ja Lee|Patricia Ja Lee]] || <ref name="misceLAINeous" />
|-
| [[Alice Mizuki]] || Emily Brown || [[Wikipedia:Emilie Brown|Emilie de Azevedo Brown]] || <ref>Behind the Voice Actors - Alice Mizuki, https://www.behindthevoiceactors.com/tv-shows/Serial-Experiments-Lain-TV/Alice-Mizuki/</ref><ref>IMDb - Emilie de Azevedo Brown as Arisu Mizuki, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0500092/characters/nm0113518</ref>
|-
| [[Reika Yamamoto]]
| colspan = "2" | Lenore Zann
| <ref>Behind the Voice Actors - Reika Yamamoto, https://www.behindthevoiceactors.com/tv-shows/Serial-Experiments-Lain-TV/Reika-Yamamoto/</ref><ref>IMDb - Lenore Zann as Reika Yamamoto, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0500092/characters/nm0952801</ref>
|-
| rowspan = "2" | [[Juri Katou]]
| Alexis A. Edwards
| Dari Lallou MacKenzie
| <ref>IMDbPro - Dari Lallou, https://pro.imdb.com/name/nm0249741/</ref><ref>AniList - Dari Lallou MacKenzie, https://anilist.co/staff/267272/Dari-Lallou-MacKenzie</ref>
|-
| Gracie Poletti
| Gracie Moore
| <ref name="weird">IMDb - Weird - Full Cast & Crew, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0824736/fullcredits/</ref>
|-
| [[Chisa Yomoda]]
| colspan = "2" | Lia Sargent
| <ref name="misceLAINeous" />
|-
| [[Keiko Yoshii]] || Dorothy Melendrez || Dorothy Elias-Fahn || <ref>IMDb - Dorothy Elias-Fahn as Keiko Yoshii, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0500092/characters/nm0253528</ref><ref>Dorothy Elias-Fahn - Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dorothy_Elias-Fahn</ref>
|-
| [[JJ]] || Christy Mathewson || Eddie Frierson || <ref>IMDb - Eddie Frierson as JJ, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0967276/characters/nm0295579</ref>
|-
| [[Myu-Myu]]
| colspan = "2" | Sandy Fox
| <ref name="misceLAINeous" />
|-
| [[Cop]] || Devon Michaels || Michael McCarty || <ref>IMDb - Michael McCarty as Cop, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0500092/characters/nm0565419M</ref><ref name="society">IMDb - Society - Full Cast & Crew, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0870059/fullcredits/</ref>
|-
| Delivery Man || Dylan Tully || Michael Lindsay || <ref name="society" /><ref>IMDb - Michael Lindsay as Delivery Man, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0500092/characters/nm0512278</ref>
|-
| Narrator || George C. Cole || Paul St. Peter || <ref name="protocol">IMDb - Protocol - Full Cast & Crew, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt00967276/fullcredits</ref><ref>IMDb - Paul St. Peter as Narrator, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0967276/characters/nm0170555</ref>
|}

==Unknown credits==

These credits are unknown, unsorted, or need peer review. If they can be paired to a matching credit in the Japanese version of the anime, or confirmed to refer to a specific character, they could be moved to the table above.

{| class="wikitable"
! Credit !! Name !! Confusion !! Source
|-
| Lain's Friend / Lain's Friend 2 || Selece Zann || What character are they referring to? || <ref name="misceLAINeous" /><ref>Serial Experiments Lain (TV) - Anime News Network, https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/anime.php?id=166</ref>
|-
| Little Girl || Katie Ashley || What character are they referring to? || <ref name="misceLAINeous" />
|-
| Miscellaneous voices || Melissa Williamson || What voices are they referring to? || <ref name="misceLAINeous" />
|-
| Miscellaneous voices(?) || Richard Epcar || What voices are they referring to? || <ref name="misceLAINeous" />
|-
| Additional Voices || Bebe Elam (Cecilia Elam) || What voices are they referring to? || <ref>IMDb - Cecilia Elam as Additional Voices, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0500092/characters/nm0252913</ref>
|-
| Voice on Wired || Carol Stanzione || Which "voice on wired"? (From [[Layer 03]], Psyche) || <ref>IMDb - Carol Stanzione as Voice on Wired, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0500092/characters/nm0662630</ref>
|-
| Additional Voices || Elliot Reynolds || What voices are they referring to? || <ref>Crystal Acids - Elliot Reynolds, https://www.crystalacids.com/database/person/3624/elliot-reynolds/</ref>
|-
| Additional Voices || Gracie Poletti (Gracie Moore) || What voices are they referring to? || <ref name="religion">IMDb - Religion - Full Cast & Crew, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0870058/fullcredits/</ref>
|-
| || Heather Ashton || This credited VA does not yet have a listed role. || [[Layer 01 Credits]]
|-
| || Horace Muckle || This credited VA does not yet have a listed role. || [[Layer 01 Credits]]
|-
| || Ian Hawk || This credited VA does not yet have a listed role. || [[Layer 01 Credits]]
|-
| || James Lyon || This credited VA does not yet have a listed role. || [[Layer 01 Credits]]
|-
| || Jimmy Theodore || This credited VA does not yet have a listed role. || [[Layer 01 Credits]]
|-
| || Katie Ashley || This credited VA does not yet have a listed role. || [[Layer 01 Credits]]
|-
| || Marie Danielle || This credited VA does not yet have a listed role. || [[Layer 01 Credits]]
|-
| || Paul Stephen || This credited VA does not yet have a listed role. || [[Layer 01 Credits]]
|-
| || Robert Wicks || This credited VA does not yet have a listed role. || [[Layer 01 Credits]]
|-
| || Rona Bellini || This credited VA does not yet have a listed role. || [[Layer 01 Credits]]
|-
| || Sean Mitchell || This credited VA does not yet have a listed role. || [[Layer 01 Credits]]
|-
| || Susan Chavez || This credited VA does not yet have a listed role. || [[Layer 01 Credits]]
|-
| || Syd Fontana || This credited VA does not yet have a listed role. || [[Layer 01 Credits]]
|-
| || Ty Webb || This credited VA does not yet have a listed role. || [[Layer 01 Credits]]
|-
| [[Takuyoshi Masuoka|Middle-aged man at Avec]] || || This character does not yet have a credited VA || [[Layer 01 Credits]]
|-
| Young woman at Avec || || This character does not yet have a credited VA || [[Layer 01 Credits]]
|-
| Oyaji || || || [[Layer 01 Credits]]
|-
| Girl's voice || || || [[Layer 01 Credits]]
|-
| Man || || || [[Layer 01 Credits]]
|-
| [[S]] || || || [[Layer 01 Credits]]
|-
| [[Morizumi Ali|DJ]] || || || [[Layer 01 Credits]]
|}

== References ==
<references />
[[Category:Fanworks]]

English Dub Cast Roles

2026-03-24T10:01:38Z

INNERLMNT: making the tables more legible and the headings clearer + style adjustments

{{Community content}}
[[File:Serial Experiments Lain Anime English Dub Voice Talents.png|thumb|right|The English dub cast roles, as shown at the end of [[Layer 01]]]]

In the English language dub of ''[[Serial Experiments Lain (anime)|Serial Experiments Lain]]'', the credits of the show do not assign specific character roles to each English dub voice actor. Instead, all cast members were grouped into a single credit, "English Dub Voice Talents".

Because of this, fans of the show have attempted to guess or ask voice actors for the role they played in the show. Since the information/undertaking is considered unofficial and a fan project, it has been separated from the main [[Layer 01 Credits]] page.

Note: Many of the voice actors credited in the English dub of the show were not credited under their real names, and instead used a variety of aliases. In these cases, their birth name has been included in parentheses after their credited name. For more information on voice actors and their use of aliases, you can read [https://moonlightingvoice.com/why-do-voice-actors-use-aliases/ Why Do Voice Actors Use Aliases?], posted by the website Moonlighting Voice.

==Known cast==

{| class = "wikitable" style="text-align: left;"
! Credit !! Name !! Refs
|-
|| [[Lain Iwakura]] || Ruby Marlowe || <ref name="misceLAINeous">misceLAINeous - Basic Info, https://www.cjas.org/~leng/basic.htm</ref>
|-
| [[Yasuo Iwakura]] || Gil Starberry (Barry Alan Stigler) || <ref>Behind the Voice Actors - Barry Stigler, https://www.behindthevoiceactors.com/Barry-Stigler/</ref><ref>IMDb - Barry Stigler as Yasuo Iwakura, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0967273/characters/nm0823048</ref>
|-
| [[Miho Iwakura]] || Celeste Burch (Petrea Burchard) || <ref name="misceLAINeous" /><ref>IMDb - Petrea Burchard as Miho Iwakura, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0500092/characters/nm0120838</ref>
|-
| [[Mika Iwakura]] || PJ Lee (Patricia Ja Lee) || <ref name="misceLAINeous" />
|-
| [[Alice Mizuki]] || Emily Brown (Emilie de Azevedo Brown) || <ref>Behind the Voice Actors - Alice Mizuki, https://www.behindthevoiceactors.com/tv-shows/Serial-Experiments-Lain-TV/Alice-Mizuki/</ref><ref>IMDb - Emilie de Azevedo Brown as Arisu Mizuki, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0500092/characters/nm0113518</ref>
|-
| [[Reika Yamamoto]] || Lenore Zann || <ref>Behind the Voice Actors - Reika Yamamoto, https://www.behindthevoiceactors.com/tv-shows/Serial-Experiments-Lain-TV/Reika-Yamamoto/</ref><ref>IMDb - Lenore Zann as Reika Yamamoto, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0500092/characters/nm0952801</ref>
|-
| [[Juri Katou]] || Alexis A. Edwards (Dari Lallou MacKenzie) + Gracie Poletti (Gracie Moore) || <ref>IMDbPro - Dari Lallou, https://pro.imdb.com/name/nm0249741/</ref><ref>AniList - Dari Lallou MacKenzie, https://anilist.co/staff/267272/Dari-Lallou-MacKenzie</ref><ref name="weird">IMDb - Weird - Full Cast & Crew, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0824736/fullcredits/</ref>
|-
| [[Chisa Yomoda]] || Lia Sargent || <ref name="misceLAINeous" />
|-
| [[Keiko Yoshii]] || Dorothy Melendrez (Dorothy Elias-Fahn) || <ref>IMDb - Dorothy Elias-Fahn as Keiko Yoshii, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0500092/characters/nm0253528</ref><ref>Dorothy Elias-Fahn - Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dorothy_Elias-Fahn</ref>
|-
| [[JJ]] || Christy Mathewson (Eddie Frierson) || <ref>IMDb - Eddie Frierson as JJ, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0967276/characters/nm0295579</ref>
|-
| [[Myu-Myu]] || Sandy Fox || <ref name="misceLAINeous" />
|-
| [[Cop]] || Devon Michaels (Michael McCarty) || <ref>IMDb - Michael McCarty as Cop, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0500092/characters/nm0565419M</ref><ref name="society">IMDb - Society - Full Cast & Crew, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0870059/fullcredits/</ref>
|-
| Delivery Man || Dylan Tully (Michael Lindsay) || <ref name="society" /><ref>IMDb - Michael Lindsay as Delivery Man, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0500092/characters/nm0512278</ref>
|-
| Narrator || George C. Cole (Paul St. Peter) || <ref name="protocol">IMDb - Protocol - Full Cast & Crew, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt00967276/fullcredits</ref><ref>IMDb - Paul St. Peter as Narrator, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0967276/characters/nm0170555</ref>
|}

==Unknown credits==

These credits are unknown, unsorted, or need peer review. If they can be paired to a matching credit in the Japanese version of the anime, or confirmed to refer to a specific character, they could be moved to the table above.

{| class="wikitable"
! Credit !! Name !! Confusion !! Source
|-
| Lain's Friend / Lain's Friend 2 || Selece Zann || What character are they referring to? || <ref name="misceLAINeous" /><ref>Serial Experiments Lain (TV) - Anime News Network, https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/anime.php?id=166</ref>
|-
| Little Girl || Katie Ashley || What character are they referring to? || <ref name="misceLAINeous" />
|-
| Miscellaneous voices || Melissa Williamson || What voices are they referring to? || <ref name="misceLAINeous" />
|-
| Miscellaneous voices(?) || Richard Epcar || What voices are they referring to? || <ref name="misceLAINeous" />
|-
| Additional Voices || Bebe Elam (Cecilia Elam) || What voices are they referring to? || <ref>IMDb - Cecilia Elam as Additional Voices, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0500092/characters/nm0252913</ref>
|-
| Voice on Wired || Carol Stanzione || Which "voice on wired"? (From [[Layer 03]], Psyche) || <ref>IMDb - Carol Stanzione as Voice on Wired, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0500092/characters/nm0662630</ref>
|-
| Additional Voices || Elliot Reynolds || What voices are they referring to? || <ref>Crystal Acids - Elliot Reynolds, https://www.crystalacids.com/database/person/3624/elliot-reynolds/</ref>
|-
| Additional Voices || Gracie Poletti (Gracie Moore) || What voices are they referring to? || <ref name="religion">IMDb - Religion - Full Cast & Crew, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0870058/fullcredits/</ref>
|-
| || Heather Ashton || This credited VA does not yet have a listed role. || [[Layer 01 Credits]]
|-
| || Horace Muckle || This credited VA does not yet have a listed role. || [[Layer 01 Credits]]
|-
| || Ian Hawk || This credited VA does not yet have a listed role. || [[Layer 01 Credits]]
|-
| || James Lyon || This credited VA does not yet have a listed role. || [[Layer 01 Credits]]
|-
| || Jimmy Theodore || This credited VA does not yet have a listed role. || [[Layer 01 Credits]]
|-
| || Katie Ashley || This credited VA does not yet have a listed role. || [[Layer 01 Credits]]
|-
| || Marie Danielle || This credited VA does not yet have a listed role. || [[Layer 01 Credits]]
|-
| || Paul Stephen || This credited VA does not yet have a listed role. || [[Layer 01 Credits]]
|-
| || Robert Wicks || This credited VA does not yet have a listed role. || [[Layer 01 Credits]]
|-
| || Rona Bellini || This credited VA does not yet have a listed role. || [[Layer 01 Credits]]
|-
| || Sean Mitchell || This credited VA does not yet have a listed role. || [[Layer 01 Credits]]
|-
| || Susan Chavez || This credited VA does not yet have a listed role. || [[Layer 01 Credits]]
|-
| || Syd Fontana || This credited VA does not yet have a listed role. || [[Layer 01 Credits]]
|-
| || Ty Webb || This credited VA does not yet have a listed role. || [[Layer 01 Credits]]
|-
| [[Takuyoshi Masuoka|Middle-aged man at Avec]] || || This character does not yet have a credited VA || [[Layer 01 Credits]]
|-
| Young woman at Avec || || This character does not yet have a credited VA || [[Layer 01 Credits]]
|-
| Oyaji || || || [[Layer 01 Credits]]
|-
| Girl's voice || || || [[Layer 01 Credits]]
|-
| Man || || || [[Layer 01 Credits]]
|-
| [[S]] || || || [[Layer 01 Credits]]
|-
| [[Morizumi Ali|DJ]] || || || [[Layer 01 Credits]]
|}

== References ==
<references />
[[Category:Fanworks]]

E-mail

2025-12-27T00:19:52Z

INNERLMNT: added full name

'''E-mail''' (short for "electronic mail") is an important method of communication in [[the Wired]]. [[File:Lain's Pokat Mailer.png|thumb|The "Pokate Mailer" e-mail client on a HandiNAVI]]

==Notable E-mails==
* In [[Layer 01]], [[Lain Iwakura|Lain]], among other girls at her [[school]], receives an email from the deceased [[Chisa Yomoda]].
* Much of the communication between Lain and [[Alice Mizuki|Alice]] is via email on their [[HandiNAVI]]s.

==See also==
*[[CU Mail]]

[[Category:Technology]]

Serial Experiments Lain

2025-07-07T21:27:05Z

INNERLMNT: standardizing name conventions

<div style="float:left; font-size:100%; margin-right: 10px; border:#A2A9B1 solid 1px;">__TOC__</div>
{{DISPLAYTITLE:''Serial Experiments Lain''}}[[File:Serial-experiments-lain-coverart.jpg|thumb|Strange events begin to occur as a withdrawn girl named Lain becomes obsessed with interconnected virtual realm of "The Wired".|right]]
'''''Serial Experiments Lain''''' is an anime series directed by [[Ryuutarou Nakamura]], original character design by [[Yoshitoshi ABe]], screenplay written by [[Chiaki J. Konaka]], and produced by [[Ueda Yasuyuki]] (credited as ''production 2nd'') for Triangle Staff. It was broadcast on TV Tokyo from July to September 1998 and has 13 [[:Category:Episodes|episodes]]. [[Serial Experiments Lain (game)|A PlayStation game]] with the same title was released in November 1998 by Pioneer LDC.

''Lain'' is influenced by philosophical subjects such as [[reality]], [[identity]], and [[communication]]. The series focuses on [[Lain Iwakura]], an adolescent girl living in suburban Japan, and her introduction to [[the Wired]], a global communications network similar to the Internet. Lain lives with her middle-class family, which consists of her inexpressive older sister [[Mika Iwakura]], her cold mother [[Miho Iwakura]], and her computer-obsessed father [[Yasuo Iwakura]]. The first ripple on the pond of Lain's lonely life appears when she learns that girls from her school have received an [[e-mail]] from [[Chisa Yomoda]], a schoolmate who committed [[Suicide in Serial Experiments Lain|suicide]]. When Lain receives the message at home, Chisa tells her (in real time) that she is not dead, but has just "abandoned the flesh", and has found [[God]] in the Wired. From then on, Lain is bound to a quest which will take her ever deeper into both the network and her own thoughts.

The anime series is licensed in North America by Funimation since 2010. Before that, it was licensed by Geneon (previously Pioneer Entertainment) who released the series on VHS, LaserDisc, and DVD, as well as a restored Blu-ray edition. It was also released in Singapore by Odex. The video game, which shares only the themes and protagonist with the series, was never released outside Japan.

A remastered Blu-ray box set was released in Japan in 2009, and the US in 2012. It features the show redigitized to a 4:3 1080p format, with many CG sequences (such as the PRESENT DAY PRESENT TIME opening) re-rendered in higher quality.

The series shows influences from topics such as philosophy, computer history, cyberpunk literature and [[conspiracy]] theory, and it was made the subject of several academic articles. English language anime reviewers found it to be weird and unusual, with generally positive reviews. Producer Ueda said he intended Japanese and American audiences to form conflicting views on the series, but was disappointed in this regard, as the impressions turned out to be similar.

The opening theme is "[[Duvet]]" and the ending theme is "[[Tooi Sakebi]]".

==Plot==
''Serial Experiments Lain'' deals directly with the definition of [[reality]], which makes its complex plot difficult to summarize. The story is primarily based on the assumption that everything flows from human thought, [[memory]], and consciousness. Therefore, events on screen can be considered hallucinations of Lain, of other protagonists, or of Lain fabricating the hallucinations of others. Story misdirection is central to the plotline; even the offscreen voices or narrations' information cannot be considered truthful. The series consists of a cross-reflection of philosophical themes instead of the traditional linear events depiction: episodes are called "[[:Category:Episodes|layers]]".

''Serial Experiments Lain'' describes "[[the Wired]]" as the sum of human communication networks, created with the telegraph and telephone services, and expanded with the [[Internet]] and subsequent networks. The anime assumes that the Wired could be linked to a system that enables unconscious communication between people and machines without physical interface. The storyline introduces such a system with the [[Schumann Resonances]], a property of the Earth's magnetic field that theoretically allows for unhindered long-distance communications. If such a link was created, the network would become equivalent to Reality as the general consensus of all perceptions and knowledge. The thin line between what is real and what is possible would then begin to blur.

[[Masami Eiri]] is introduced as the project director on [[Protocol 7]] (the next generation internet protocol in the series' timeframe) for major computer company [[Tachibana General Laboratories]]. He has secretly included [[Source Code|code]] of his own creation to give himself control of the Wired through the wireless system described above. He then "uploaded” his consciousness into the Wired and died in real life a few days after. These details are unveiled around the middle of the series, but this is the point where the story of ''Serial Experiments Lain'' begins.

Masami later explains that Lain is the artifact by which the wall between the [[virtual]] and [[material]] worlds is to fall, and that he needs her to get to the Wired and "abandon the flesh", as he did, to achieve his plan. The series sees him trying to convince her through interventions, using the promise of unconditional love, charm, fate, and, when all else fails, threats and force.

In the meantime, the anime follows a complex game of hide-and-seek between the "[[Knights of the Eastern Calculus]]", hackers who Masami claims are "believers that enable him to be a god in the Wired", and Tachibana Labs, who try to regain control of Protocol 7.

In the end, the viewer sees Lain realizing, after much introspection, that she has absolute power over everyone's mind and over reality itself. Her dialogue with different versions of herself show how she feels shunned from the material world, and how she is afraid to live in the Wired, where she has the possibilities and responsibilities of a goddess. The last scenes feature her erasing everything connected to herself from everyone's memories. She is last seen unchanged - re-encountering her old friend [[Alice Mizuki]], who is now married. Lain promises herself to look after Alice.

==Development==
===Production===
Serial Experiments Lain was conceived, as a series, to be original to the point of it being considered "an enormous risk" by its producer [[Ueda Yasuyuki|Yasuyuki Ueda]]. He explained he created Lain with a set of values he took as distinctly Japanese; he hoped Americans would not understand the series as the Japanese would. This would lead to a "war of ideas" over the meaning of the anime, hopefully culminating in new communication between the two cultures. Later, when he discovered that the American audience held the same views on the series as the Japanese, he was disappointed.

The Lain franchise was originally conceived to connect across forms of media (anime, video games, manga). Producer Yasuyuki Ueda said in an interview, "the approach I took for this project was to communicate the essence of the work by the total sum of many media products". The scenario for the video game was written first, and the video game was produced at the same time as the anime series, though the series was released first. A dōjinshi titled "[[The Nightmare of Fabrication]]" was produced by Yoshitoshi ABe and released in Japanese in the artbook [[Omnipresence in Wired|An Omnipresence in Wired]]. Ueda and Konaka declared in an interview that the idea of a multimedia project was not unusual in Japan, as opposed to the contents of Lain, and the way they are exposed.

In 2009, Yoshitoshi ABe announced a spiritual sequel to Serial Experiments Lain called [[Despera]] who will reunited many of the staff who worked on Serial Experiments Lain, including Chiaki J Konaka and Ryūtarō Nakamura.

==Reception==
Words like "weird" or "bizarre" are almost systematically associated to review the series by English Language reviews due mostly to the freedoms taken with the animation and its unusual science fiction, philosophical and psychological context. Despite the show judged atypical, the critics responded positively to the thematic and stylistic characteristics. It was praised by the Japan Media Arts Festival, in 1998, for "its willingness to question the meaning of contemporary life" and the "extraordinarily philosophical and deep questions".

In 2005, Newtype USA stated that the main attraction to the series is its keen view on "the interlocking problems of identity and technology". the author saluted Abe's "crisp, clean character design" and the "perfect soundtrack". It concluded saying that "Serial Experiments Lain might not yet be considered a true classic, but it's a fascinating evolutionary leap that helped change the future of anime."

In 2001, Lain was subject to commentary in the literary and academic worlds. The Asian Horror Encyclopedia calls it "an outstanding psycho-horror anime about the psychic and spiritual influence of the Internet" noticing the presence of horror lore (like ghost from train accident story) and horrific visuals.

The Anime Essentials anthology, Gilles Poitras describes it as a "complex and somehow existential" anime that "pushed the envelope" of anime diversity in the 1990s, alongside the much better known Neon Genesis Evangelion and Cowboy Bebop.

In 2003, Professor Susan J. Napier, in her reading to the American Philosophical Society called The Problem of Existence in Japanese Animation. Napier asks whether there is something to which Lain should return, "between an empty real and a dark virtual".

In 2020, the review-aggregation website website Rotten Tomatoes, classified Serial Experiments Lain as one of the 25 anime TV series that have been essential to the medium over the last five decades. ([https://editorial.rottentomatoes.com/article/essential-anime-series/ source])

"Serial Experiments Lain helped usher in a new style of anime, of more digitally-produced shows with a glossy bloom and deeper, darker, complicated storylines. In the wake of Neon Genesis tearing up the typical anime playbook, Lain pursues a surreal, interior cyberpunk story about a withdrawn high school girl who receives an email from a classmate who has recently committed suicide. Questions of hyperreality, consciousness, and the everyday tangibility of cyberspace ensue. Lain is pretentious, symbolic, and absorbing – a prime example of a brave new world in anime."

Despite the general positive feedbacks, some negative critics stated the "lifeless" setting it had, how the last episodes failed to resolve the questions, and how the show relied so little on dialogue. ([https://web.archive.org/web/20110826092828/http://www.ex.org/5.2/25-anime_followup_lain.html source])

===Awards===
* Japan Media Arts Festival 1998: Excellence Prize ([http://archive.j-mediaarts.jp/en/festival/1998/animation/works/06an_serial_experiments_lain/ source])

==Trivia==
* The series contains a large number of direct allusions to objects and companies in the real world:
** [[Cyberia]] is a disco bar in the series which borrows its name from the 1994 nonfiction novel ''[[Wikipedia:Cyberia (book)|Cyberia]]'' by Douglas Rushkoff, which discusses the growing subculture of internet users and how it could lead to a counterculture. It also shares the name with one of the earliest cybercafé franchises - which had a branch in Tokyo.
*** The book is told to have been the inspiration for the series in general.
** [[Protocol 7]] refers, probably, to the 7th Layer, the neurogenetic circuit, of the [[Wikipedia:Eight-circuit model of consciousness|Eight Layers of Consciousness]] as proposed by Timothy Leary. It could also be a successor to the upcoming new internet protocol IPv6 (Internet Protocol version 6) (the current internet protocol is IPv4 (Internet Protocol version 4)).
** [[NAVI]], the trademark-turned-noun for computer in the series, is contracted from [[Wikipedia:Knowledge Navigator|Knowledge Navigator]], a term invented by Apple CEO John Sculley in his book Odyssey. It referred to a computer connected to a vast network where everyone was connected.
** [[Copland OS]] is named after an unreleased operating system by Apple, and so was System 7 after [[Wikipedia:System 7|an operating system that ''was'' released]].
** Gaia, a global brain in Cyberia shares a common thread with the collective shared unconscious in Lain, may be lifted from the book ''Cyberia'' as well.
** The [[Knights of the Eastern Calculus]] are a direct nod to the [[Wikipedia:Knights of the Lambda Calculus|Knights of the Lambda Calculus]].
** Tachibana Labs is a play on words on Apple Macintosh, (a type of Apple) itself being the name of a citrus fruit (the citrus tachibana)
** Nezumi, the Knights-wannabe who carries a computer rig and accesses the Wired while he walks matches the description of a Gargoyle from Snow Crash, as do the MIB agents, who wear the same headgear (complete with laser sight) that Lagos was described as wearing.
** to Be continued, where Be uses the same colouring as Be OS used.
** hello (again), the text from an Apple advertisement, is used in an omake.
** What is Artificial Life? from ALIFE VI is quoted in text-form at several places.

{{Episodes}} {{AnimeCharacters}} {{Media}}

[[Category:Media]]

//signal.

2025-07-07T21:15:28Z

INNERLMNT:

{{Signal}}
<div style="float:right; font-size:100%; margin-right: 10px; margin-left: 10px; border:#A2A9B1 solid 1px;">__TOC__</div>
'''''//signal.''''' is a visual novel video game based on the ''[[Serial Experiments Lain]]'' franchise. Developed by the doujin circle Team MJM, the game was originally scheduled for release on April 30, 2025, for Windows and macOS via Steam and itch.io. It was officially released on Steam on May 19, 2025. A digital copy was sold for 1,000 JPY, while a limited CD-ROM edition would be priced at 1,700 JPY.

==Summary==
Described as an "occult RPG", ''//signal.'' allows players to explore the [[Wired]] by collecting logs, emails, and diaries to piece together past events and restore broken connections. The game offers new insights into [[Lain Iwakura]] and invites players to consider why people form bonds and why those bonds sometimes fall apart.

The game features characters from both the anime and the 1998 PlayStation game and it was developed as a tribute to the anime's 30th anniversary.

==Development==

''//signal.'' is a derivative work created under NBCUniversal Entertainment Japan's official "lainTTL" guidelines. These guidelines allow individuals in Japan to produce commercial and non-commercial fan works related to Lain until July 6, 2028, as long as they agree to the terms of use. The project has received support from key figures from the original series, including writer [[Chiaki J. Konaka]], who contributed a recommendation, and [[Wasei "JJ" Chikada]], who remixed the game's theme song. Artist [[Yoshitoshi ABe]] also promoted the game by sharing gameplay footage.

Development began in 2019, led by Makkura Yuno, a fan of the original Lain game. The game was created by volunteers who formed Team MJM with the goal of honoring the series' legacy. Although development paused at one point, it resumed with renewed energy for the 30th anniversary.

==Release==

The full release was planned for May 19, 2025. Initially, Team MJM intended to produce only 300 physical copies of the game. However, after pre-orders exceeded 5,000 within a month, the team launched a crowdfunding campaign on Campfire starting April 15, 2025, to fund additional copies and exclusive rewards.

The campaign's original goal was 1.5 million yen, which it surpassed quickly. By early May, over 12 million yen had been raised. Supporters can choose from multiple reward tiers, ranging from 1,000 to 100,000 yen. Each tier, labeled as a "Layer", includes different perks such as digital wallpapers, a soundtrack CD, stickers, a mini artbook, and a limited-edition figure.

All reward items, aside from the game itself, are exclusive to the campaign and are not planned for public sale. International supporters are encouraged to use forwarding services like Tenso.com, as direct overseas shipping is not available.

The project went forward regardless of whether the funding goal was met. Reward shipments were expected to begin around June 2025.

A free trial version of the game was released on March 29, 2025. The developers continued to polish the game with final system adjustments and bug fixes. The crowdfunding campaign ran until the end of May 2025.

==Gallery==
<gallery>
Signal.jpg|Promotional image for the game.
TeamMJMWebsiteCommentSection.png|thumb|Comment by [[Chiaki Konaka]].
TeamMJMWebsiteCommentSectionTranslated.png|thumb|Comment by [[Chiaki Konaka]] (translated).
SignalMainMenuBackground.png|Main menu background (png).
SignalNAVIDesktop.png|[[Lain's NAVI]] desktop.
</gallery>

==External Links==
* [https://rckskrs0089.wixsite.com/my-site-2 Team MJM official website]
* [https://x.com/MJM11663102 //signal. official X account]
* [https://camp-fire.jp/projects/840556/view Campfire crowdfunding page for //signal.]

{{SignalCharacters}} {{Media}}
[[Category://signal.]]

//signal.

2025-07-07T21:12:29Z

INNERLMNT: updated everything into past tense

{{Signal}}
<div style="float:right; font-size:100%; margin-right: 10px; margin-left: 10px; border:#A2A9B1 solid 1px;">__TOC__</div>
'''''//signal.''''' is an officially licensed visual novel video game based on the ''[[Serial Experiments Lain]]'' franchise. Developed by the doujin circle Team MJM, the game was originally scheduled for release on April 30, 2025, for Windows and macOS via Steam and itch.io. It was officially released on Steam on May 19, 2025. A digital copy was sold for 1,000 JPY, while a limited CD-ROM edition would be priced at 1,700 JPY.

==Summary==
Described as an "occult RPG", ''//signal.'' allows players to explore the [[Wired]] by collecting logs, emails, and diaries to piece together past events and restore broken connections. The game offers new insights into [[Lain Iwakura]] and invites players to consider why people form bonds and why those bonds sometimes fall apart.

The game features characters from both the anime and the 1998 PlayStation game and it was developed as a tribute to the anime's 30th anniversary.

==Development==

''//signal.'' is a derivative work created under NBCUniversal Entertainment Japan's official "lainTTL" guidelines. These guidelines allow individuals in Japan to produce commercial and non-commercial fan works related to Lain until July 6, 2028, as long as they agree to the terms of use. The project has received support from key figures from the original series, including writer [[Chiaki J. Konaka]], who contributed a recommendation, and [[Wasei "JJ" Chikada]], who remixed the game's theme song. Artist [[Yoshitoshi ABe]] also promoted the game by sharing gameplay footage.

Development began in 2019, led by Makkura Yuno, a fan of the original Lain game. The game was created by volunteers who formed Team MJM with the goal of honoring the series' legacy. Although development paused at one point, it resumed with renewed energy for the 30th anniversary.

==Release==

The full release was planned for May 19, 2025. Initially, Team MJM intended to produce only 300 physical copies of the game. However, after pre-orders exceeded 5,000 within a month, the team launched a crowdfunding campaign on Campfire starting April 15, 2025, to fund additional copies and exclusive rewards.

The campaign's original goal was 1.5 million yen, which it surpassed quickly. By early May, over 12 million yen had been raised. Supporters can choose from multiple reward tiers, ranging from 1,000 to 100,000 yen. Each tier, labeled as a "Layer", includes different perks such as digital wallpapers, a soundtrack CD, stickers, a mini artbook, and a limited-edition figure.

All reward items, aside from the game itself, are exclusive to the campaign and are not planned for public sale. International supporters are encouraged to use forwarding services like Tenso.com, as direct overseas shipping is not available.

The project went forward regardless of whether the funding goal was met. Reward shipments were expected to begin around June 2025.

A free trial version of the game was released on March 29, 2025. The developers continued to polish the game with final system adjustments and bug fixes. The crowdfunding campaign ran until the end of May 2025.

==Gallery==
<gallery>
Signal.jpg|Promotional image for the game.
TeamMJMWebsiteCommentSection.png|thumb|Comment by [[Chiaki Konaka]].
TeamMJMWebsiteCommentSectionTranslated.png|thumb|Comment by [[Chiaki Konaka]] (translated).
SignalMainMenuBackground.png|Main menu background (png).
SignalNAVIDesktop.png|[[Lain's NAVI]] desktop.
</gallery>

==External Links==
* [https://rckskrs0089.wixsite.com/my-site-2 Team MJM official website]
* [https://x.com/MJM11663102 //signal. official X account]
* [https://camp-fire.jp/projects/840556/view Campfire crowdfunding page for //signal.]

{{SignalCharacters}} {{Media}}
[[Category://signal.]]

Layer 01

2025-07-07T20:47:39Z

INNERLMNT: removing unnecessary HTML formatting.

{{LayerInfo
|image = File:Layer_1.png
|layername = WEIRD
|airdate = 1998.07.06
|maincharintro = [[Chisa Yomoda]], [[Lain Iwakura]], [[Alice Mizuki]], [[Juri Katou]], [[Reika Yamamoto]], [[Mika Iwakura]], [[Miho Iwakura]], [[Yasuo Iwakura]]
|script = [[Layer 01 Script]]
|analysis = [[Layer 01 Analysis]]
|credits = [[Layer 01 Credits]]
|nextep = [[Layer 02]]
}}
==Short summary==
*Chisa jumps off a building
*Lain's classmates discuss receiving an email from Chisa
*Smoke comes from Lain's fingertips - a sign of hallucination
*Lain starts up her [[NAVI]] for the first time in ages and reads Chisa's email
*Lain asks her father for a new NAVI and he agrees to get one
*Lain snaps awake in her classroom
*The blackboard tells her to come to [[the Wired]] soon
*Lain sees Chisa on her way home

==Long summary==
A crowded street at night in Tokyo's [[Shibuya]] district. A voice asks "Why did you come here, You'd better come here".

[Title: Weird Layer:01]

A breathless teanage girl drops her school bag as passersby point and giggle. The scene cuts to a floating text which reads "Why do you have to do this?" and then "You have to think of yourself". A man and woman pass near the building. He is trying to get her to go "somplace fun" with him.

We now see the girl on the roof of a building. She removes her glasses and positions herself on the edge with her arms outstreched. We see here smiling mouth as she says something inaudible. Again we see floating text "I don't need to be here". Then she falls from the building. The lovers are interrupted in mid-kiss as the girl's body is crushed by a falling building sign. Our last view of this scene is the girl's school bag with a cute character dangling in the breeze.

The scene changes to overhead power wires. A low frequency hum and muffled voices can be heard. Floating text appears reading "If I remain in a place like this I won't be able to stay connected."

The door to a house opens and a young schoolgirl emerges. It is Lain. She is wearing a typical Japanese school uniform with a short plaid skirt, jacket, and small bowed tie. She rides the train and we again hear the sound of electrical wires. The girl says "Shut up. Why can't you just shut up." For a moment there is silence and then more hum of wires.

As the schoolgirls approach their building, Lain stops and looks at her shadow on the ground. In it, misty whisps seem to float. Lain looks up and watches the girls enter the school. Their images seem to fade into whispy images as well. Floating text appears reading "Hurry everybody".

Lain arrives in her classroom to the sounds of a girl sobbing. We see three girls at the back of the room. The crying girl is Juri and she is comforted by Alice who says "It will be alright". Alice approaches Lain and asks "Did you receive it too?". Lain says "what?", and Alice asks "an email." Lain asks "email?" and Alice says "An email from Yomoda Chisa" Lain indicates that she's not very good at using computers, and Alice chides her "You should check your email every day".

Reika comes up to Lain's desk and says "Lain is still like a kid, isn't she". Lain hears Juri's cry again and asks "Why is she crying?" Reika says "Because she received an email from Yomoda Chisa." Lain asks "Who is Chisa?" Reika explains that Chisa was in Class B -- she was the girl who committed suicide last week. Alice explains that many other classmates received the same mail, and that dead people don't send mail, but somehow it was received.

As Lain is watching the teacher write on the blackboard, the words she sees become fuzzy. Lain is confused. She looks at her hands as the sound of chalk on board echos in the room. Suddenly small outlets appear in her fingers and ectoplasm drifts from them to swirl around the classroom. Floating text appears reading "When you die? It hurts, lol."

Outside again, Lain is walking home accompanied by the hum of the overhead wires. Lain enters her house which seems neat, yet lifeless. No one is home and Lain does not call out with the typical Japanese "I'm home." She enters her large bedroom which contains only a small bed, a desk with books and her computer. Her window ledge is lined with stuffed animals. Lain sits at her desk, dons a bear-eared hat, and turns on her computer. Lain logs into her computer and is informed that she has mail. It is from Yomoda Chisa. Lain chooses to read the email. It reads "Hello. How are you? I went home from school with you once. Do you remember?" Lain says "Yes". The letter continues "I have only abandoned the flesh. This way, I can tell you I am still alive. By sending you this mail I can show you the way. Do you understand? No need to understand now. Soon you will understand it. Everyone will."

Lain asks "Why did you kill yourself?"

The letter continues "It seems there is a rumor that its a prank mail by someone at school. But that's not the case. I want you to understand that." Lain asks, "But why? Why did you kill yourself?" The computer responds, "Because here, God exists." Lain says, "What?"

It's dinner time. Lain, her mother, and sister Mika are eating. As Lain stirs her soup, Mika leaves the table with her food relatively untouched. She explains that she had a late lunch today and thanks her mom for the meal. Lain tells her mother about the mail she received from the dead girl. Her mother doesn't respond. She just keeps on eating.

Lain is now in her bedroom. She lying on her bed with her back to the windowed wall. She is wearing hooded pajamas that are fashioned as a bear-suit. Outside you can hear a car approaching and parking.

Inside his office, Lain's father tinkers with an array of computers. Lain enters and he asks her what she wants, since it unusual for her come into his office. Lain drops the hood on her bearsuit. Humbly, she asks her father for a new "Navi". Her father is amused that she is finally interested in it. He says that now that she is in junior high, she will be outpaced by her friends without a better machine. He says "In this world there are both the real world and the wired. Everyone is connected to each other. And that's how human societies are organized. Even kids like you can get friends quickly. There is no need to be afraid. I wonder why your mom doesn't understand it." Hesitantly Lain says, "I'm not afraid of it." Her Dad asks "But why the sudden interest?" Lain replies "I have to meet a friend." Her father laughs and doesn't respond, preoccupied with his computer.

Lain is on the train again and suddenly the train slams to a halt. An announcement over the PA apologizes for the inconvenience. The train had to be stopped because of an accident. Lain places her hand to the window and watches an electrical wire as blood begins to drip from it.

Now it appears as if Lain is transported to another place, first on the street, then at the bottom of a subway entrance. She sees misty figures dissolving to nothing as they exit. Now she is in a plaza, then her empty living room, and finally at a railroad crossing. Smoke envelops the scene. As she stares down the rail tracks, she sees a girl in a sailor school uniform go under the crossing gate and stand on the tracks. Lain tries to shout at the girl, but no sound comes from her mouth. The girls face is shown alternating between smiling and screaming and ends smiling contentedly as the train finally bears down upon her. Lain crouches beside the tracks as the train passes at blinding speed.

Suddenly we back in Lain's classroom where we see tears falling on paper. She is slumped as sweat and tears drip from her chin. Her teacher, oblivious to her condition, reminds Lain that the information will be on the exam. The English words on the blackboard begin to blur until she sees a message reading "Come to the Wired quickly."

Lain is again walking home from school. As she walks she notices Chisa walking in the opposite direction. Lain turns around to see Chisa standing there. She calls to her "Chisa-chan, where are you?" Chisa just smiles. Then after panning across the reflection of the electrical wires on her glasses, Chisa disappears in a spiraling ribbon. Lain pleads "Wait!"

( [http://lain.angelic-trust.net/rumors-layer01.php Source] )

==Trivia==
* Think Blue Count One Tow, an allusion to Think Blue, Count Two, a short story set in Cordwainer Smith's Instrumentality of Mankind series.
* Lain's old computer is reminiscent of a 20th Anniversary Macintosh. It runs a Communication OS, denoted by a large capital C as it's logo - reminiscent of the Commodore logo.
* The text seen on the blackboard in the classroom is code, written in the C programming language.
* NeXT (an OS) icons appear on Lain's father's computer desktop.
* "WEIRD" is an anagram for "WIRED".
* In the context of "lain", ectoplasm is considered a typical hallucination in neurosis. The scene wasn't to show that Lain is particularly ill, but as if the atmosphere of it is all natural to her.

{{Episodes}}
[[Category:Episodes]]

Layer 01

2025-07-07T20:47:39Z

INNERLMNT: removing unnecessary HTML formatting.

META:About

2025-02-15T15:32:38Z

INNERLMNT: laid out the table in prose format, as I think it looks much better and less old. also I elaborated a bit on the opening paragraph.

The '''''Serial Experiments Lain'' Wiki''' is a publicly accessible and editable English-language wiki for information about the Japanese animated series ''[[Serial Experiments Lain]]'', as well as its related video game, music and other media. It was founded on October 17, 2011.

Information on this site is maintained by contributors from the ''Serial Experiments Lain'' community and the wiki's moderators and administrators. The site is powered by the free and open source [https://www.mediawiki.org/wiki/MediaWiki MediaWiki] wiki software.<hr />

[https://lain.wiki/index.php?title=Special:ListUsers&group=sysop Its admins] are [[User:Bytor|Bytor]] and [[User:Prince|Prince]]. [https://lain.wiki/index.php?title=Special:ListUsers&group=bureaucrat Its bureaucrats] are [[User:Ahania|Ahania]], [[User:Amysteriousgal|Amysteriousgal]], [[User:Bytor|Bytor]] and [[User:Prince|Prince]].

This wiki currently contains [[Special:AllPages|{{NUMBEROFARTICLES}} articles]], and [[Special:NewFiles|{{NUMBEROFFILES}} uploaded files]].

Kyoko

2025-02-15T15:19:44Z

INNERLMNT:

{{Construction}}

[[File:Kyoko and Mayu.png|thumb|Lain watching Kyoko and Mayu walk the halls.]]
'''Kyoko''' is a childhood friend of [[Lain Iwakura]], who appears in the game ''[[Serial Experiments Lain (game)|Serial Experiments Lain]]''. Lain is slightly jealous of her because she believes Kyoko is cuter and more popular than her. Lain begins to notice how Kyoko had been hanging out with her friend, [[Mayu]] more, rather than Lain. The two have a falling out, seemingly because Lain received a letter of drawings from [[Tomo]]. Later, Lain's counselor [[Touko Yonera]] meets with Kyoko to find out more about Lain and Lain's friend, [[Misato]].
[[Category:Characters]]
{{GameCharacters}}

List of fanworks based on Serial Experiments Lain

2024-11-28T02:13:03Z

INNERLMNT:

{{DISPLAYTITLE:List of fanworks based on ''Serial Experiments Lain''}}
This is a list of notable fanworks based on ''[[Serial Experiments Lain]]'', which includes (but is not limited to) derivative websites, fan projects, forums, and academic research dedicated to the series. The list is '''perpetually incomplete''', since it is updated based on notability.

'''If you have any suggestions for sites to add or if any of the links stop working, write so over [https://lain.wiki/wiki/User_talk:Prince here]. The site will be added or updated with Wayback Machine links.'''
<div style="float:right; font-size:100%; border:#A2A9B1 solid 1px;">__TOC__</div>
==Websites==
===English===
* [http://www.cjas.org/~leng/lain.htm Thought Experiments Lain] ([[Thought Experiments Lain|article]]) is owned by Lawrence Eng aka Lawmune. It includes, among other things, a review, fanart contest and glossary. It is perhaps best known for the [http://www.cjas.org/~leng/apple-lain.htm list of Apple references in Lain].
* [https://lainzine.org lainzine]: a lain-themed online magazine about hacking, art, culture, and related topics.
* [http://lain.angelic-trust.net/ Omnipresence] is full of information about SEL and includes episode transcripts, screencaps, a fanlisting and a very outdated list of links. It is impossible to navigate. Content is [http://lain.angelic-trust.net/wired.html here].
* [http://asphyxia.su/ asphyxia.su] is a collection of every background image from mebious, going back over a year.
* [https://mebi.wirechan.org/ Wirechan Mebious] clone of [[Mebious.co.uk]] hosted on wirechan website.
* [https://mebious.neocities.org wired.entry.neocities] Fansite under constant occasional development.
* [https://lainchan.org lainchan] Anonymous lain-themed imageboard that mainly focuses on programing, technology, and other things. It has a lain board that isn't as active and mainly uses the lain name to attract people interested in technology and coding.
* [https://wirechan.org/ wirechan] Anonymous lain-themed imageboard centered around technology, with its own mebious instance.
* [https://initiate.space/ initiate.space] Spiritual successor to systemspace. Themed around Lain, has an anonymous imageboard and discord server.
* [http://www.konaka.com/ konaka.com] the english version of a site made by [[Chiaki J. Konaka]]. It has interview, info, links, and images about the show. You could also download the font used in the anime.
* [https://fauux.neocities.org/ fauux] fan website (note: contains rapidly flashing images)
* [https://blackwings.neocities.org/ blackwings] fan website, inspired heavily by fauux (note: contains rapidly flashing images)
* [http://lain.sk/ lain.sk] slovakian lain fan website, originally published in 2006
* [https://lain.church/ lain.church] services offered by lainchan users
* [https://lain.la/ lain.la] - services offered by lainchan user
* [https://lainon.life/ lainon.life] lainchan radio with songs similar to that of serial experiments lain's OST
* [https://re.wire.zone/ re.wire.zone] wirechan group
* [https://distortiongallery.tripod.com/distortion.htm distortiongallery] displays a private collection of lain cels and other merchandise
* [https://www.angelfire.com/anime/lainpage/index.html angelfire] just another lain fan site
* [https://cff.ssw.net/forum/ old-home-bulletin-board] the name is a reference to haibane renmei and they mainly discuss the show as well as [[Yoshitoshi ABe| ABe]]
* [https://ain-and-lain.tumblr.com/ ain and lain] a fan blog site run by ain with various scans and unofficial translations of ABe and Konaka's works.
* [https://modesofdesign.wixsite.com/explained expLAINed] a fan site dedicated to "finding the complete 'true answer' of serial experiments lain."

===Japanese===
* [http://www.konaka.com/alice6/lain/ konaka.com], a site by Chiaki J. Konaka, has interviews, information about [[Books|books]], and links related to Lain, as well as a font that was used in the anime.
* [http://www.geocities.jp/zatugakubeya/lain/index.html Deep Researches Lain] has a glossary of terms from the anime and a quiz game.
* [http://members.jcom.home.ne.jp/grifonsgarden/garenwarehouse.htm Grifon's Garden] has pictures and descriptions of at least 6 homemade Lain figurines.
* [http://page.freett.com/boondock/lain/ LAINてんぷら] is a website used to start Lain threads on the 2channel BBS. Has links to many Lain threads on 2ch and many other obscure and edifying Lain-related links. てんぷら (tempura) is slang for template.
* [http://page.freett.com/m_utsumi/ Protocol of lain's world] has lots of great and rare info, but mostly in Japanese, because the English portion of the site is unfinished. (Click lain's face to access the content.)

===Russian===
* [http://boards.haruhiism.net/abe/ Old Home], an image board that is primarily for discussions related to ABe.
* [http://lain.ru/index.php lain.ru]
* [https://lain.in.net/ lain.in] russian speaking, lain themed forum
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20010405072957/http://lain.narod.ru/ lain.narod] old website with lots of lain related information.

===French===
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20051027100229/http://serialain.ifrance.com/ serialain.ifrance.com], a site that stores a lot of lain related, info and images.
* [http://supagil.chez.com/sitehtmlain/laintml.htm supagil.chez] a lain fan site made in pure html with pics, videos, glossary and links to other lain sites.
* [http://memelaraison.chez.com/serialexp-intro.htm memelaraison.chez.com] is a lain fan site, with pictures of the anime and lain magazines as well as lyrics.

===Spanish===
* [https://wired-7.org wired-7] Spanish speaking, lain themed imageboard.
* [https://disboard.org/server/779888683967971359 LaiÑ] Spanish speaking, lain discord server.

===Korean===
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20051018025112/http://www.lain.pe.ky/ lain.pe.ky] Korean speaking, lain themed imageboard

===German===
* [http://www.lain-disconnected.de/phpBB/index.php lain-disconnected] is a german forum board based around lain which is ran on phpBB

===Polish===
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20070108042514/http://experimentslain.ovh.org/index2.php experimentslain.ovh] Fansite, with fanart, cyberpunk, and other lain related info.
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20081023233154/http://lain.klub.mylog.pl/ lain.klub] Polish speaking, lain themed imagedboard

===Chinese===
* [https://geocities.haggenso.org/Lain/ Haggenso Lain Geocities] One of the only Chinese-language Lain fansites, created by Dr. Haggen So.

==Defunct websites==
* [http://www.mebious.co.uk/ Mebious.co.uk] ([[Mebious.co.uk|article]]) comes from a URL that appears briefly on a pressure gauge. Sometimes called "Mebi" or "Mebby". Allows anonymous text or image posting. The most recent 10 lines of text are displayed. It has been inactive since November 11, 2020.
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20100515000251/http://thewired.info/ Thewired.info] ([[Thewired.info|article]]) just another lain related image-board
* [http://per.hedbor.org/lain/ Serial Experiments Lain: Root] ([[Serial Experiments Lain: Root|article]]) had a collection of Lain media for download, including cover scans and soundtracks.
* [http://misslain.homestead.com/index.html Lain - Alive in Cyberspace] included reviews, screencaps, poetry, and a rather intriguing [http://misslain.homestead.com/cyberqs.html dialogue] on Lain. Site has been disabled.
* [http://hr.deadgods.net/hr/index/ Wakachan's ABe board], R.I.P.
* [http://cerealexperiments.com cerealexperiments.com] Website that had an imageboard that was barely Lain-related.
* [http://easterncalcul.us/ ahania's boards] are available intermittently. /ec/ is for general discussion and /l/ is for all things Lain. Feel free to start or join in a discussion.
* [http://www.geocities.com/Tokyo/Gulf/9755/ serial experiments lain - Unnoficial Homepage in the Wired]
* [http://www.mebious.mobi/ Mebious.mobi] ([[Mebious.mobi|article]]), sometimes called "Mobi", is inspired by Mebious and notably includes features such as music upload and auto-refresh. (defunct as of May 10th 2015)
* [https://mebio.us Mebio.us] ([[Mebio.us|article]]) was another clone of the original .co.uk site, created after the closure of Mobi.
* [[VisualWired]]
* [https://legacy.arisuchan.jp/ arisuchan] anonymous lain-themed cyberpunk imageboard with a dedicated /lain/ board, it has since been archived.
* [https://discord.gg/Zwe6v35WRv lainland] Was a biggest lain discord server at one point, currently archived.
* [https://systemspace.link/ systemspace.link] Religion lightly themed around SEL. Has an anonymous imageboard named TSUKICHAN and a Rocket.Chat server.
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20061208075509/http://www.cyberia-anime.com/ cyberia-anime] Cyberia Cafe - one of the first Lain fansites, started on 1999-04-18.
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20030330214322/http://kokujin.members.animeirc.com/ kokujin] Kokujin
* [http://www.lainspotting.com/ lainspotting] images of lain in different places

==Essays==
* [[VKK 320: Decoding Virtual Culture in the Media - a case-study of Serial Experiments Lain]]
* [[Serial Experiments: Lain as a Reflection of Modern Japanese Anxieties in the Digital Era]]
* [[The Role of Technology in Modern Society according to Serial Experiments Lain]]
* [[The Problem of Existence in Japanese Animation]]
* [[The Sight of Your God Disturbs Me: Questioning the Post-Christian Bodies of Buffy, Lain, and George]]
* [[Give some examples of cybernetic systems at play in specific visual texts. What metaphors of the body in contemporary society do they suggest? And to what commodity end are they marketed?]]
* [[To What Commodity End are Concepts of the ‘Post-Human’ and the ‘Cyborg’ Marketed? Give screen and theoretical examples of each.]]
* [[The Real Verses the Virtual]] [sic]
* [[All I Ever Needed To Know In This Fragile Layer Of Existence We Call The Real World I Learned From Serial Experiments Lain]]
* [[Tumbling Down the Rabbit Hole: An Essay on Serial Experiments Lain]]

==Scholarly articles and books==
*"Topologies of Identity in Serial Experiments Lain" by Craig Jackson, published in ''Mechademia'', Volume 7, 2012, pp. 191-201 [http://muse.jhu.edu/journals/mec/summary/v007/7.jackson01.html]
*"The Signal of Noise" (manga) by Adèle-Elise Prévost and MUSEbasement, published in ''Mechademia'', Volume 3, 2008, pp. 173-188 [http://muse.jhu.edu/journals/mec/summary/v003/3.prevost.html]
*"When the Machines Stop: Fantasy, Reality, and Terminal Identity in Neon Genesis Evangelion and Serial Experiments Lain" by Susan J. Napier, published in ''Science Fiction Studies'' vol.29, No. 3, Japanese Science Fiction (Nov. 2002) pp. 418-435 [http://www.jstor.org/stable/4241108]
*"The Problem of Existence in Japanese Animation" by Susan J. Napier, published in ''Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society'', Vol. 149, No. 1 (Mar., 2005), pp.72-79 [http://www.jstor.org/stable/4598910]
*"Screening Anime" by Steven T. Brown, an essay published in the 2006 book ''Cinema Anime'', a collection of essays by various authors, edited by Brown. [http://www.palgrave.com/us/book/9781403970602]
*''Tokyo Cyberpunk: Posthumanism in Japanese Visual Culture'' by Steven T. Brown. This time the whole book is by Brown. [http://www.palgrave.com/us/book/9780230103597]

==Games==
* [https://laingame.net/ Lain Game] contains files from the [[Serial Experiments Lain (game)|Serial Experiments Lain PSX game]], extracted using jPSXdec. It also includes a playable web-version of the game.
* [[Lain Visual Novel Project]], a project to create a Serial Experiments Lain visual novel, started on [[mebious.co.uk]] and worked on here.

==Software==
* [[Serial Experiments Lain Winamp Skins]] contains a collection of Lain-themed skins that have been created for the audio playback software Winamp

==Analysis==
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RjaG8gqE7uY&feature=g-u-u Youtube video] Analyzing exactly what happened in the anime.

==Fan fiction==

===English===
* [http://www.fanfiction.net/s/2196634/1/Stopped Stopped], a short story that concisely captures the essence of Serial Experiments Lain.
"Lain's watch stopped..."
* [http://www.fanfiction.net/s/6974007/1/The_Gods_Themselves The Gods Themselves], an odd crossover between SEL and Puella Magi Madoka Magica in which Lain and Madokami are indistinguishable and [[Alice Mizuki]] discusses [[God]] with Homura.
""Mit der Dummheit kämpfen Götter selbst vergebens.*" Lain. Madoka. Homura. Arisu. I am uncertain what genre to classify this under."
(*Against stupidity the gods themselves contend in vain.)

===Japanese===
* [http://www.pixiv.net/member_illust.php?mode=medium&illust_id=14756418 せりあｌ　えｘぺりめんｔｓ　ぁいｎ], a manga by Gomennasai on Pixiv, probably inspired by [[Chibi Chibi Lain]].
* [http://ifs.nog.cc/i25127.at.infoseek.co.jp/281/rakkatan.html Ganbare Rakka-tan], a Lain/NieA/Haibane crossover manga in the style of Abe, drawn by a user of the 2channel board "hankaku nijigen ita" who went by the name ''281''.
* [http://elephant.2chblog.jp/archives/52044575.html One], [http://elephant.2chblog.jp/archives/52064879.html two], [http://elephant.2chblog.jp/archives/52067572.html three] threads archived from news4vip at 2ch.

==Music==
* [https://archive.org/details/keif_mesa_earth_brain_waves Earth Brain Waves], A concept album. The theme imaged the world of the network by the Schumann resonance in serial experiments lain.
* [http://3x6x.com/discography.html SUBHUMAN], serial experiments lain image album
[[Category:Media]]

Nakamura Ryuutarou

2024-11-28T02:08:38Z

INNERLMNT: INNERLMNT moved page Nakamura Ryuutarou to Ryuutarou Nakamura: using Western naming order like other pages on the wiki, for the sake of consistency

#REDIRECT [[Ryuutarou Nakamura]]

Ryuutarou Nakamura

2024-11-28T02:08:38Z

INNERLMNT: INNERLMNT moved page Nakamura Ryuutarou to Ryuutarou Nakamura: using Western naming order like other pages on the wiki, for the sake of consistency

[[File:nakamura-r.jpg|thumb|266px|right]]
'''Ryuutarou Nakamura''' (中村隆太郎, ''Nakamura Ryuutarou'') was the director of ''[[Serial Experiments Lain]]''. Among other things, he also directed ''Kino no Tabi: The Beautiful World'' and ''Shinreigari: Ghost Hound'' (also with [[Chiaki J. Konaka]]). He contracted pancreatic cancer and passed away on June 29, 2013. His illness and death indefinitely postponed the progress of Despera, a project on which he was collaborating with [[Yoshitoshi ABe]] and Chiaki Konaka.

==Filmography==
===Director===
* ''Tomcat's Big Adventure'': Director, Script, Storyboard, Composition (1992)
* ''The Life of Guskou Budori'': Director, Script (1994)
* ''Legend of Crystania - The Motion Picture'': Director (1995)
* ''Legend of Crystania'' (OVA): Director (1996)
* ''Serial Experiments Lain'': Series director, Director (1998) (Eps 1, 2, 12, 13), Storyboard, Continuity (Eps 5, 6, 8, 11–13), Continuity Direction
* ''Colorful'': Director, Storyboard, Episode Director (1999) (1-4,12,14,16)
* ''Sakura Wars'': Series director, Continuity (2000)
* ''Kino's Journey'': Director, Storyboard, Episode Director (2003) (ep 1, 2, 5)
* ''Rec'': Director, Storyboard, Episode Director (2006)
* ''Kino's Journey -Country of Illness- For You-'': Director (2007)
* ''Ghost Hound'': Director (2007)
* ''Jūgo Shōnen Hyōryūki Kaizokujima DE! Daibōken'': Director (2013-Posthumous)
* ''Despera'': Director (Suspended)
===Other===
* ''Takarajima'': Key Animation (1978–79)
* ''The Rose of Versailles'': Key Animation (1979–80) (eps 24, 26–40)
* ''Ashita no Joe 2'': Key Animation (1980–81)
* ''Unico'' (movie): Art (1981)
* ''Space Adventure Cobra - The Movie'': Animation (1982)
* ''A Journey Through Fairyland'' (movie): In-Between Animation (1985)
* ''They Were Eleven'' (movie): Storyboard (1986)
* ''Patlabor The Mobile Police (OAV 1)'': Storyboard (1988) (eps 2, 4)
* ''The Great Adventures of Robin Hood'': Storyboard (1990) (eps 14, 20, 25, 31, 33, 40, 47)
* ''Legend of Heavenly Sphere Shurato'': Storyboard (1991)
* ''Lupin III'': "Steal Napoleon's Dictionary!"'': Storyboard (1991)
* ''Kikou Keisatsu Metal Jack'': Storyboard (1991) (ep 30)
* ''Tenku Senki Shurato'': Storyboard (1991)
* ''Tekkaman Blade'': Storyboard (1992) (eps 12, 19, 25, 30)
* ''Popolocrois'' (game): Animation Movie Director, Story Board & Game Art (1996)
* ''Magic User's Club'': Storyboard (1999) (ep 3), Episode Director (ep 3)
* ''Love Hina'': Key Animation Episodes 13, 18 (2000)
* ''Final Fantasy: Unlimited'': Episode 2 Director/Storyboard (2001)
* ''Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex'': Storyboard (2002) (ep 5), Episode Director (ep 5)

==External links==
*[[Wikipedia:Ryūtarō Nakamura]]
[[Category:Staff]]

Ryuutarou Nakamura

2024-11-28T02:08:13Z

INNERLMNT: to keep things consistent with the rest of the wiki, I'm using Western name order for Mr. Nakamura here

Ryuutarou Nakamura

2024-11-28T02:07:09Z

INNERLMNT:

[[File:nakamura-r.jpg|thumb|266px|right]]
'''Nakamura Ryuutarou''' (中村隆太郎) was the director of ''[[Serial Experiments Lain]]''. Among other things, he also directed ''Kino no Tabi: The Beautiful World'' and ''Shinreigari: Ghost Hound'' (also with [[Chiaki J. Konaka]]). He contracted pancreatic cancer and passed away on June 29, 2013. His illness and death indefinitely postponed the progress of Despera, a project on which he was collaborating with [[Yoshitoshi ABe]] and Chiaki Konaka.

==Filmography==
===Director===
* ''Tomcat's Big Adventure'': Director, Script, Storyboard, Composition (1992)
* ''The Life of Guskou Budori'': Director, Script (1994)
* ''Legend of Crystania - The Motion Picture'': Director (1995)
* ''Legend of Crystania'' (OVA): Director (1996)
* ''Serial Experiments Lain'': Series director, Director (1998) (Eps 1, 2, 12, 13), Storyboard, Continuity (Eps 5, 6, 8, 11–13), Continuity Direction
* ''Colorful'': Director, Storyboard, Episode Director (1999) (1-4,12,14,16)
* ''Sakura Wars'': Series director, Continuity (2000)
* ''Kino's Journey'': Director, Storyboard, Episode Director (2003) (ep 1, 2, 5)
* ''Rec'': Director, Storyboard, Episode Director (2006)
* ''Kino's Journey -Country of Illness- For You-'': Director (2007)
* ''Ghost Hound'': Director (2007)
* ''Jūgo Shōnen Hyōryūki Kaizokujima DE! Daibōken'': Director (2013-Posthumous)
* ''Despera'': Director (Suspended)
===Other===
* ''Takarajima'': Key Animation (1978–79)
* ''The Rose of Versailles'': Key Animation (1979–80) (eps 24, 26–40)
* ''Ashita no Joe 2'': Key Animation (1980–81)
* ''Unico'' (movie): Art (1981)
* ''Space Adventure Cobra - The Movie'': Animation (1982)
* ''A Journey Through Fairyland'' (movie): In-Between Animation (1985)
* ''They Were Eleven'' (movie): Storyboard (1986)
* ''Patlabor The Mobile Police (OAV 1)'': Storyboard (1988) (eps 2, 4)
* ''The Great Adventures of Robin Hood'': Storyboard (1990) (eps 14, 20, 25, 31, 33, 40, 47)
* ''Legend of Heavenly Sphere Shurato'': Storyboard (1991)
* ''Lupin III'': "Steal Napoleon's Dictionary!"'': Storyboard (1991)
* ''Kikou Keisatsu Metal Jack'': Storyboard (1991) (ep 30)
* ''Tenku Senki Shurato'': Storyboard (1991)
* ''Tekkaman Blade'': Storyboard (1992) (eps 12, 19, 25, 30)
* ''Popolocrois'' (game): Animation Movie Director, Story Board & Game Art (1996)
* ''Magic User's Club'': Storyboard (1999) (ep 3), Episode Director (ep 3)
* ''Love Hina'': Key Animation Episodes 13, 18 (2000)
* ''Final Fantasy: Unlimited'': Episode 2 Director/Storyboard (2001)
* ''Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex'': Storyboard (2002) (ep 5), Episode Director (ep 5)

==External links==
*[[Wikipedia:Ryūtarō Nakamura]]
[[Category:Staff]]

Serial Experiments Lain

2024-11-28T02:03:01Z

INNERLMNT:

{{DISPLAYTITLE:''Serial Experiments Lain''}}{{For|the anime|the video game|Serial Experiments Lain (game)}}[[File:Serial-experiments-lain-coverart.jpg|thumb|Strange events begin to occur as a withdrawn girl named Lain becomes obsessed with interconnected virtual realm of "The Wired".|right]]
'''''Serial Experiments Lain''''' is an anime series directed by [[Nakamura Ryuutarou]], original character design by [[Yoshitoshi ABe]], screenplay written by [[Chiaki J. Konaka]], and produced by [[Ueda Yasuyuki]] (credited as ''production 2nd'') for Triangle Staff. It was broadcast on TV Tokyo from July to September 1998 and has 13 [[episodes]]. [[Serial Experiments Lain (game)|A PlayStation game]] with the same title was released in November 1998 by Pioneer LDC.

The opening theme is [[Duvet]] and the ending theme is [[Tooi Sakebi]].

''Lain'' is influenced by philosophical subjects such as [[reality]], [[identity]], and [[communication]]. The series focuses on [[Lain Iwakura]], an adolescent girl living in suburban Japan, and her introduction to [[the Wired]], a global communications network similar to the Internet. Lain lives with her middle-class family, which consists of her inexpressive older sister [[Mika Iwakura]], her cold mother [[Miho Iwakura]], and her computer-obsessed father [[Yasuo Iwakura]]. The first ripple on the pond of Lain's lonely life appears when she learns that girls from her school have received an [[e-mail]] from [[Chisa Yomoda]], a schoolmate who committed [[Suicide in Serial Experiments Lain|suicide]]. When Lain receives the message at home, Chisa tells her (in real time) that she is not dead, but has just "abandoned the flesh", and has found [[God]] in the Wired. From then on, Lain is bound to a quest which will take her ever deeper into both the network and her own thoughts.

The anime series is licensed in North America by Funimation since 2010. Before that, it was licensed by Geneon (previously Pioneer Entertainment) who released the series on VHS, LaserDisc, and DVD, as well as a restored Blu-ray edition. It was also released in Singapore by Odex. The video game, which shares only the themes and protagonist with the series, was never released outside Japan.

A remastered Blu-ray box set was released in Japan in 2009, and the US in 2012. It features the show redigitized to a 4:3 1080p format, with many CG sequences (such as the PRESENT DAY PRESENT TIME opening) re-rendered in higher quality.

The series shows influences from topics such as philosophy, computer history, cyberpunk literature and [[conspiracy]] theory, and it was made the subject of several academic articles. English language anime reviewers found it to be weird and unusual, with generally positive reviews. Producer Ueda said he intended Japanese and American audiences to form conflicting views on the series, but was disappointed in this regard, as the impressions turned out to be similar.
==Plot==
''Serial Experiments Lain'' deals directly with the definition of [[reality]], which makes its complex plot difficult to summarize. The story is primarily based on the assumption that everything flows from human thought, [[memory]], and consciousness. Therefore, events on screen can be considered hallucinations of Lain, of other protagonists, or of Lain fabricating the hallucinations of others. Story misdirection is central to the plotline; even the offscreen voices or narrations' information cannot be considered truthful. The series consists of a cross-reflection of philosophical themes instead of the traditional linear events depiction: episodes are called "[[:Category:Episodes|layers]]".

''Serial Experiments Lain'' describes "[[the Wired]]" as the sum of human communication networks, created with the telegraph and telephone services, and expanded with the [[Internet]] and subsequent networks. The anime assumes that the Wired could be linked to a system that enables unconscious communication between people and machines without physical interface. The storyline introduces such a system with the [[Schumann Resonances]], a property of the Earth's magnetic field that theoretically allows for unhindered long-distance communications. If such a link was created, the network would become equivalent to Reality as the general consensus of all perceptions and knowledge. The thin line between what is real and what is possible would then begin to blur.

[[Masami Eiri]] is introduced as the project director on [[Protocol 7]] (the next generation internet protocol in the series' timeframe) for major computer company [[Tachibana General Laboratories]]. He has secretly included [[Source Code|code]] of his own creation to give himself control of the Wired through the wireless system described above. He then "uploaded” his consciousness into the Wired and died in real life a few days after. These details are unveiled around the middle of the series, but this is the point where the story of ''Serial Experiments Lain'' begins.

Masami later explains that Lain is the artifact by which the wall between the [[virtual]] and [[material]] worlds is to fall, and that he needs her to get to the Wired and "abandon the flesh", as he did, to achieve his plan. The series sees him trying to convince her through interventions, using the promise of unconditional love, charm, fate, and, when all else fails, threats and force.

In the meantime, the anime follows a complex game of hide-and-seek between the "[[Knights of the Eastern Calculus]]", hackers who Masami claims are "believers that enable him to be a god in the Wired", and Tachibana Labs, who try to regain control of Protocol 7.

In the end, the viewer sees Lain realizing, after much introspection, that she has absolute power over everyone's mind and over reality itself. Her dialogue with different versions of herself show how she feels shunned from the material world, and how she is afraid to live in the Wired, where she has the possibilities and responsibilities of a goddess. The last scenes feature her erasing everything connected to herself from everyone's memories. She is last seen unchanged - re-encountering her old friend [[Alice Mizuki]], who is now married. Lain promises herself to look after Alice.

==Development==
===Production===
Serial Experiments Lain was conceived, as a series, to be original to the point of it being considered "an enormous risk" by its producer [[Ueda Yasuyuki|Yasuyuki Ueda]]. He explained he created Lain with a set of values he took as distinctly Japanese; he hoped Americans would not understand the series as the Japanese would. This would lead to a "war of ideas" over the meaning of the anime, hopefully culminating in new communication between the two cultures. Later, when he discovered that the American audience held the same views on the series as the Japanese, he was disappointed.

The Lain franchise was originally conceived to connect across forms of media (anime, video games, manga). Producer Yasuyuki Ueda said in an interview, "the approach I took for this project was to communicate the essence of the work by the total sum of many media products". The scenario for the video game was written first, and the video game was produced at the same time as the anime series, though the series was released first. A dōjinshi titled "[[The Nightmare of Fabrication]]" was produced by Yoshitoshi ABe and released in Japanese in the artbook [[Omnipresence in Wired|An Omnipresence in Wired]]. Ueda and Konaka declared in an interview that the idea of a multimedia project was not unusual in Japan, as opposed to the contents of Lain, and the way they are exposed.

In 2009, Yoshitoshi ABe announced a spiritual sequel to Serial Experiments Lain called [[Despera]] who will reunited many of the staff who worked on Serial Experiments Lain, including Chiaki J Konaka and Ryūtarō Nakamura.

==Reception==
Words like "weird" or "bizarre" are almost systematically associated to review the series by English Language reviews due mostly to the freedoms taken with the animation and its unusual science fiction, philosophical and psychological context. Despite the show judged atypical, the critics responded positively to the thematic and stylistic characteristics. It was praised by the Japan Media Arts Festival, in 1998, for "its willingness to question the meaning of contemporary life" and the "extraordinarily philosophical and deep questions".

In 2005, Newtype USA stated that the main attraction to the series is its keen view on "the interlocking problems of identity and technology". the author saluted Abe's "crisp, clean character design" and the "perfect soundtrack". It concluded saying that "Serial Experiments Lain might not yet be considered a true classic, but it's a fascinating evolutionary leap that helped change the future of anime."

In 2001, Lain was subject to commentary in the literary and academic worlds. The Asian Horror Encyclopedia calls it "an outstanding psycho-horror anime about the psychic and spiritual influence of the Internet" noticing the presence of horror lore (like ghost from train accident story) and horrific visuals.

The Anime Essentials anthology, Gilles Poitras describes it as a "complex and somehow existential" anime that "pushed the envelope" of anime diversity in the 1990s, alongside the much better known Neon Genesis Evangelion and Cowboy Bebop.

In 2003, Professor Susan J. Napier, in her reading to the American Philosophical Society called The Problem of Existence in Japanese Animation. Napier asks whether there is something to which Lain should return, "between an empty real and a dark virtual".

In 2020, the review-aggregation website website Rotten Tomatoes, classified Serial Experiments Lain as one of the 25 anime TV series that have been essential to the medium over the last five decades. ([https://editorial.rottentomatoes.com/article/essential-anime-series/ source])

"Serial Experiments Lain helped usher in a new style of anime, of more digitally-produced shows with a glossy bloom and deeper, darker, complicated storylines. In the wake of Neon Genesis tearing up the typical anime playbook, Lain pursues a surreal, interior cyberpunk story about a withdrawn high school girl who receives an email from a classmate who has recently committed suicide. Questions of hyperreality, consciousness, and the everyday tangibility of cyberspace ensue. Lain is pretentious, symbolic, and absorbing – a prime example of a brave new world in anime."

Despite the general positive feedbacks, some negative critics stated the "lifeless" setting it had, how the last episodes failed to resolve the questions, and how the show relied so little on dialogue. ([https://web.archive.org/web/20110826092828/http://www.ex.org/5.2/25-anime_followup_lain.html source])

===Awards===
* Japan Media Arts Festival 1998: Excellence Prize ([http://archive.j-mediaarts.jp/en/festival/1998/animation/works/06an_serial_experiments_lain/ source])

==Trivia==
* The series contains a large number of direct allusions to objects and companies in the real world:
** [[Cyberia]] is a disco bar in the series which borrows its name from the 1994 nonfiction novel ''[[Wikipedia:Cyberia (book)|Cyberia]]'' by Douglas Rushkoff, which discusses the growing subculture of internet users and how it could lead to a counterculture. It also shares the name with one of the earliest cybercafé franchises - which had a branch in Tokyo.
*** The book is told to have been the inspiration for the series in general.
** [[Protocol 7]] refers, probably, to the 7th Layer, the neurogenetic circuit, of the [[Wikipedia:Eight-circuit model of consciousness|Eight Layers of Consciousness]] as proposed by Timothy Leary. It could also be a successor to the upcoming new internet protocol IPv6 (Internet Protocol version 6) (the current internet protocol is IPv4 (Internet Protocol version 4)).
** [[NAVI]], the trademark-turned-noun for computer in the series, is contracted from [[Wikipedia:Knowledge Navigator|Knowledge Navigator]], a term invented by Apple CEO John Sculley in his book Odyssey. It referred to a computer connected to a vast network where everyone was connected.
** [[Copland OS]] is named after an unreleased operating system by Apple, and so was System 7 after [[Wikipedia:System 7|an operating system that ''was'' released]].
** Gaia, a global brain in Cyberia shares a common thread with the collective shared unconscious in Lain, may be lifted from the book ''Cyberia'' as well.
** The [[Knights of the Eastern Calculus]] are a direct nod to the [[Wikipedia:Knights of the Lambda Calculus|Knights of the Lambda Calculus]].
** Tachibana Labs is a play on words on Apple Macintosh, (a type of Apple) itself being the name of a citrus fruit (the citrus tachibana)
** Nezumi, the Knights-wannabe who carries a computer rig and accesses the Wired while he walks matches the description of a Gargoyle from Snow Crash, as do the MIB agents, who wear the same headgear (complete with laser sight) that Lagos was described as wearing.
** to Be continued, where Be uses the same colouring as Be OS used.
** hello (again), the text from an Apple advertisement, is used in an omake.
** What is Artificial Life? from ALIFE VI is quoted in text-form at several places.

{{Episodes}} {{AnimeCharacters}} {{Media}}

[[Category:Media]]

Apple Inc. References

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INNERLMNT: INNERLMNT moved page Apple Inc. References to References to Apple, Inc.

#REDIRECT [[References to Apple, Inc.]]

References to Apple, Inc.

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INNERLMNT: INNERLMNT moved page Apple Inc. References to References to Apple, Inc.

[[File:20thgold.jpg|thumb|174px|right|The 20th Anniversary Macintosh]]
[[File:Oldnavi.jpg|frame|Lain's old navi]]

There are several references to Apple Inc. and their products in the [[Serial Experiments Lain (anime)|anime]]. Most of the effects were created on Macintosh computers and the series writer [[Chiaki J. Konaka]] is a fan of their products.

Alice's NAVI is based on the iMac G3.
Lain's old NAVI is based on the 20th anniversary Mac.
The HandiNavi is based on the Apple Newton.

More detailed information can be found on [http://www.cjas.org/~leng/apple-lain.htm Thought Experiments Lain].

== See also ==
*[[Source Code]]

[[Category:Themes]]

Suicide in Serial Experiments Lain

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INNERLMNT:

{{DISPLAYTITLE:Suicide in ''Serial Experiments Lain''}}[[File:Suicide.jpg|right|thumb|350px]]
'''Suicide''' is a common occurrence in [[Lain Iwakura]]'s world. The first suicide the viewer sees is the death of [[Chisa Yomoda]] by jumping from a building at the very beginning of [[Layer 01]]. The most common reason for doing so is to "abandon the flesh" and pursue an existence on the [[The Wired|Wired]] alone.

After the members of the [[Knights of the Eastern Calculus]] are exposed in [[Layer 10]], they either commit suicide or are assassinated by the [[Men in Black]].

[[Masami Eiri]] appears to have committed suicide by jumping in front of a train in order to become [[God]] in the Wired.

It is debatable whether Lain herself can be considered to have committed suicide at the end of the [[Serial Experiments Lain (anime)|anime]]. She erases her own existence, including her past, in order to fix all the damage she has dealt to the world, but she still clearly exists in the Wired and, at one point, manifests in front of a grown-up [[Alice Mizuki]].

In the [[Serial Experiments Lain (game)|game]], Lain commits suicide by shooting herself through her mouth.

The concept of "abandoning the flesh" is popular in the Lain fandom and is something of a meme or inside joke between fans. On [[Mebious.co.uk]], for example, people occasionally encourage each other to ascend to the upper level of [[reality]], the Wired, and post about it after they have succeeded. A 2010 incident on Mebious involving an actual suicidal person led to controversy as while there were those who tried to talk the person out of committing suicide, there were those who encouraged it. A year later, someone who claimed to be the original poster stated they were doing better and had entered therapy.

[[Category:Themes]]

Shibuya

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INNERLMNT:

[[File:Shibuya.jpg|right|350px|thumb]]
'''Shibuya Ward''' is a prominent setting in ''[[Serial Experiments Lain]]''. [[Lain Iwakura]] and her friends, [[Alice Mizuki|Alice]], [[Juri Katou|Juri]], and [[Reika Yamamoto|Reika]], often go there to hang out and shop, and sometimes to visit [[Cyberia]]. Lain's sister [[Mika Iwakura|Mika]] also visits Shibuya to spend time with her boyfriend.

[[Lain's House|Lain's house]] is in Setagaya, a ward adjacent and to the east of Shibuya. Minato Ward, where the [[boss|employer]] of the [[Men in Black]] keeps his [[Tachibana General Laboratories|office]], is adjacent and to the west of Shibuya. Suginami, the ward in which Triangle Staff was located, also shares a small piece of border with Shibuya.

== Real-life Shibuya locations ==
The following is a list of places seen or referred to in ''Lain'' that can also be seen in real-life Shibuya.

*'''Hachiko Square Scramble Crossing''': [[Layer 05]] begins with a monologue by the voice of [[Masami Eiri]] accompanied by a montage of several images. Almost all of these images are recognizable as views from the famous scramble crossing by Shibuya Station, though many of the businesses' names are slightly altered. The views include landmarks such as the Center Gai entrance, the statue of Hachiko, 109, Men's 109, and the entrance to Shibuya Station. Later in the episode, Lain's face is displayed on the large screen mounted on the front of the Men's 109 building.

*'''[[Wikipedia:Center Gai|Center Gai]]''': A narrow shopping street, one of the streets that radiates out from the scramble crossing's intersection. According to [[Chiaki J. Konaka|Konaka]]'s [[Scenario Experiments Lain|script]] of [[Layer 01]], the building [[Chisa Yomoda]] jumped off of was on this street.

*'''Shibuya Police Station''': [[Layer 03]] begins with a blurred photograph of Shibuya Police Station, where Lain is taken for statements after the shooting at the end of [[Layer 02]]. The station is located to the east of the train station, in a 15-storey building. In Google maps, the portion of the building in the photograph is obscured by a flight of stairs leading to pedestrian overpasses.

*'''[[Wikipedia:Yamanote Line|Yamanote Line]]''': This train line runs through Shibuya, making a stop at Shibuya Station. According to information provided in [[Layer 09]], Masami Eiri killed himself on this line between Harajuku and Yoyogi, two other stations located in Shibuya.

==External Links==
*[https://lainwire.tripod.com/lif01/layer04.htm Shibuya, Tokyo] on ''Iwakura Lain - The Serial Experiments''
*[[Wikipedia:Shibuya|Shibuya]] on Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia
[[Category:Locations]]

Q&A

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INNERLMNT: INNERLMNT moved page Q&A to Serial Experiments Lain Official Guide/Q&A: not sure why this is here anyway, but it ain't a good idea to give it such a general title. made it a subpage of the guidebook article

#REDIRECT [[Serial Experiments Lain Official Guide/Q&A]]

Serial Experiments Lain Official Guide/Q&A

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This is the translation page for the '''Q&A''' section of the [[Serial Experiments Lain Official Guide|guide]] to the [[Serial Experiments Lain (game)|Serial Experiments Lain game]]. It doesn't make any earth-shattering revelations, but it might be useful to a Lain fan who is trying to play through the game. The same can be said for the entire guide, to be honest.

This is a free translation by fans, for fans. If you notice errors, feel free to edit it. Please don't use it in a scanlation or for making money somehow.

I'll add sub headers as I get each answer translated. Italicized text indicates a tl note.

Q's are all done, A's coming soon, maybe.

''Everything from here on is translation, unless it is italicized.''
== A guide to the mysteries of "lain" for the especially inquisitive player ==

This Q&A, divided into "game system part" and "game story part," attempts to explain things you might be unclear about once you've played the game. Though the "game story part" does not offer solutions to the mysteries interspersed throughout the story, the utmost has been done to provide something that can be taken as an interpretive example. In addition, there are supplementary notes on relevant data that may be beneficial to refer to.

== Game system part ==

=== Q: Why can't I play back this data block? ===
A:

As you play through the game, there will be occasions when you won't be able to open a file that you want to play. The reason for this is that your current version of Saisei-kun is not supported. A second possible reason is that you have not seen the ending enough times. For details, please refer to page 16 and page 53 of this manual.

'''Collect "Saisei-kun" and Version Up!'''

''Caption'': "Saisei-kun" are the data blocks labeled "SSkn." The game contains 6 of them.

=== Q: Why won't the number of data blocks increase? ===
A:

By playing back a data block, new blocks related to it will appear, so repeating this process should cause the blocks to increase. If the blocks still will not increase, the cause is that you have not completely played back all of the data. Observe the indicator the upper right of the playback window to ensure that you play the data to the very end.

'''Cancelling data playback before the end is prohibited!'''

''Caption'': Blocks that have been completely played back change to a blackish color. Be sure to check the color to tell them apart.

=== Q: I saw the ending but I don't really understand the story. ===
A:

There should not be anyone who plays back all of the data and reaches the ending without quite understanding the story. The story is a bit difficult, but if you want a system to help you understand a little better than try using the "keyword links" to gather information. If you use it effectively to progress through the story by each keyword, the information will become easier to manage.

''Caption'': Don't recklessly collect data at random. You could also take notes to help keep track of information.

== Game story part ==

=== Q: Why did Kyouko grow apart from Lain? ===

A:

Lain's primary school friend, Kyouko. After a certain time, their relationship became cold and distant, and the direct cause was likely Tomo-kun's letter. After Lain's classmate, Tomo-kun, transferred away, he wrote a letter to Lain only. When Kyouko found out, their relationship turned sour. Considering this, it's not unreasonable to think that Kyouko may have harbored feelings for Tomo-kun. It's like they say; women value love more than friendship.

''Caption'': A mere slip of paper was enough to destroy their friendship.

'''Refer to data blocks: Lda019, Lda024, Ld027, Lda028, Ekm006'''

=== Q: Are Lain and her family related by blood? ===
A:

In the game, there is a scene where Lain gives voice to doubts concerning her biological relation to her parents. Her face doesn't much resemble her mother's, and her hair is a different color. However, it's hard to base a theory of biological relation on those point alone. Still, it's also true that not enough of Lain's past was revealed. The least we can say at this point is that it's very suspicious.

''Caption'': Could it be that Lain's father, who looks after her so kindly, is living a lie?

'''Refer to data blocks Lda160, Lda163, Lda180, Lda188'''

=== Q: Where did Lain's father go? ===

A:

The father supposedly got divorced and left, breaking off contact, but one prominent theory is that he was killed by his wife. Things that support it are Lain's remark, "the room reeked of fresh blood," the fact that he doesn't try to contact even Lain whom he adored so much, and the reaction of Lain's mother when she sees the "father" Lain made. Taking all this into account, the theory is plausible.

''caption'': Lain's grief when her father left is not unjustified.

'''Refer to data blocks Lda153'''

=== Q: How good is Lain's visual acuity? ===

A:

When Lain's vision was tested, her visual acuity came in at 3.0, which was the highest that could be measured. (With visual acuity of 3.0, you can see stars during the daytime.) In addition, when Lain looked out Touko's window she said, "It looks purple beyond the mountains." Which probably means she was seeing into the stratosphere. At any rate, her visual acuity is abnormally high. In addition, she can see electromagnetic waves in the air, which well surpasses the limits of human ability. Maybe Lain really isn't a normal human being?

''Caption'': It seems Lain is thinking she doesn't want any special abilities.

'''Refer to data blocks: Cou019, Dc1039'''

=== Q: What triggered Lain's internal transformation? ===

A:

When Lain entered junior high school, her personality suddenly became cheerful, and she became slightly more active than before. Her visual and auditory hallucinations stopped almost completely, to the extent that Touko began to feel she no longer needed counseling. This change may have been due to her meeting Misato at school. Her presence allowed Lain to re-learn the joy of human fellowship, and provided her with the motivation to have confidence in herself. To Lain, with her strong desire for "connection" with others, Misato was undoubtedly an important presence.

''Caption'': In stark contrast to her former self, Lain became cheery.

'''Refer to data blocks: Lda064, Cou034, Cou047, Dia038'''

===Q: Why does Lain wear only her left sidelock long?===

A:

Upon encountering Lain for the first time, the first thing that one is likely to notice is her distinctive hairstyle. Lain's hairstyle is mostly short, but for some reason she allows only her left sidelock to remain long. It's not especially popular at school, nor is it a manifestation of Lain's fashion sense. When [[Touko Yonera|Touko]] casually asked her about it during a counseling session, Lain responded saying that it was in order to prevent herself from hearing the mysterious voices. According to Lain, auditory hallucinations seem to enter the left ear and exit from the right ear. Whether or not this actually did anything to make the auditory hallucinations go away is questionable, but it's not so different from when you or I carry around a charm for traffic safety. The sense of security that can be derived from things like this is likely much more important than their effectiveness.

''Caption'': The hairstyle for defense against auditory hallucinations is part of Lain's charm.

'''Files to reference: Cou027, Dia021'''

''Note: Lain's exact words in the file are much more vague than this Q&A's explanation, which never quotes her directly. She only says, "it goes in from the left, so maybe, it exits from the right," without specifying a subject (hallucinations) or an object (ears). This has been a source of confusion among the few western fans who are familiar with the game, and even some Japanese fans, as evidenced by [http://dic.nicovideo.jp/b/a/serial%20experiments%20lain/181- this nico thread.] Touko chooses not to take this peculiarity as evidence of mental illness, equating the hairstyle with a protective charm; see [[Wikipedia:Omamori]].''

=== Q: Who exactly is this "Mr Rabbit" character? ===

A:

A networker Lain met on the net, Usagi-san. He (she?) is the one Lain consulted about something when she was troubled by a malicious networker (whom we'll call "A"). He has a lot of knowledge of the net, and seems to have some hacker-like abilities. But who is he really? A prominent theory is that he is the same person as A, creator of the "Friend Pyramid Scheme Game." He might have been switching between posing as A and posing as Usagi-san, enjoying Lain's discomfort. When Lain wanted to get revenge on A, Usagi-san asked her to let him do it. It's possible that this was done in an attempt to evade her attack.

'''Refer to: Lda044, Lda053, Lda060'''

=== Q: Did Misato not really exist after all? ===

A:

Lain's best friend, Misato. Kyouko investigated her but couldn't confirm her existence. As a result, she concluded Misato was a figment of Lain's delusions. However, if concepts and imagined things can be said to have "existence," then you might say that to Lain, Misato really did exist.

'''Refer to data blocks: Lda064, Cou042, Cou043, Dia033, Ere005'''

=== Q: What is the reason for the extraordinary evolution speed of the "father" Lain made? ===

A:

The "father" that Lain created very quickly evolved enough to able to recognize her. Perhaps it's due to the influence of some net invader. However, because there is so little information to serve as a clue, the identity and motivations of said invader remains a mystery.

'''Refer to data blocks: Lda208, Lda221'''

=== Q: Why are data related to Lain so incomprehensible? ===

=== Q: What caused the malfunction of "RML"? ===

=== Q: What kind of facility is "Tachibana General Laboratories"? ===

=== Q: Why did Yoshida and Takeshi break up with Touko? ===

A:

There were two men that Touko loved, and they each left her in turn. However, slightly unnatural elements can be observed in these events. First, that the timing at which the two left her was too convenient. Just when Touko was beginning to consider marriage in the near future, Takeshi suddenly got married to another woman, and then as if to compensate, Yoshida approached her. Then, as if gauging the exact time when Touko's feelings for him were developing, he also left her. It seems as if there's some hidden design behind these two events. Most likely, it was part of a plan to psychologically oppress Touko and draw out greater effectiveness from "RML." This is probably part of some scheme of Tachibana General Laboratories.

'''Refer to data blocks: Tda048, Tda060, Tda079'''

=== Q: Why did Professor Takashima have to commit suicide? ===

A:

Touko's boss at the research lab, Takashima. His sudden suicide surprised everyone involved with him. Points of doubt remain surrounding his death; it's hard to find a motive for him to commit suicide. Rather, it might be more accurate to say that he was ''made to'' commit suicide. Possible reasons for this might be to further isolate Touko psychologically, or to attempt to discover the secrets of the research laboratory, et cetera.

'''Refer to data blocks: Tda054'''

=== Q: Why did the high school girl(s) attempt suicide? ===

=== Q: What was that "other me" that appeared in Lain's hallucinations? ===

=== Q: What is the meaning of the corpse that was discarded in the street? ===

=== Q: What is the secret of the man in the sub-audio insert cuts? ===

''"Sub-audio insert cut" is the term used in the guide for the audio files that play automatically when the player idles without touching the controller for a while.''

=== Q: Is there a Site C in the game? ===

[[Category:Translations]]

Serial Experiments Lain Official Guide

2024-11-28T01:54:03Z

INNERLMNT:

[[File:Serial-game-official.png|thumb|right]]
'''''Serial Experiments Lain Official Guide''''' is a companion book for the video game [[Serial Experiments Lain (game)|''Serial Experiments Lain'']] based on the titular series, which was released in December 1998.

== Contents ==

{| class="wikitable"
! style="text-align:left;"| Page No.
! Contents
! Comments
|-
|colspan="2" style="text-align:center;"|chapter 1: connect to "lain"
|-
|04 || world || a world that is dependent on computers to function
|-
|05 || story || lain, a girl who wanders in search of connections
|-
|06 || main character introductions||
|-
|08 || character relation chart ||
|-
|colspan="2" style="text-align:center;"|chapter 2: lain interface system
|-
|10 || controller operation explanation ||
|-
|12 || game system explanation ||
|-
|colspan="2" style="text-align:center;"|chapter 3: hacking
|-
|20 || data block map || shows each data block and what level of what site it appears on
|-
|26 || movie data block list || lists each of the dc1 animated sequences with title, location, and a short description, except for the spoilerific ones
|-
|38 || voice recording data block list || lists each of the audio files, telling what version of saiseikun is needed to play it.
|-
|53 || other block list || gives information about SSkn, GaTE, and P2 files.
|-
|colspan="2" style="text-align:center;"|chapter 4: ? (help)
|-
|56 || game system Q & A || Answers some questions about how the game works †
|-
|57 || game story Q & A || Answers questions about the story †
|-
|63 || en-ja dictionary || a glossary of the tags translated into Japanese
|-
|67 || terminology dictionary || glossary of other unfamiliar terms
|-
|colspan="2" style="text-align:center;"|chapter 5: extra site
|-
|72 || staff special interview || interviews of producer [[Ueda Yasuyuki]], character designer [[Yoshitoshi ABe|ABe Yoshitoshi]], director Nakahara Junji, main programmer Satoshi Takahashi, and sound designer kjuː
|-
|76 || concerning TV anime version lain || ads
|-
|78 || catalog of related products || more ads
|}

† ''see [[Q&A]]''

{{Media}}
[[Category:Books]]
[[Category:Merchandise/Collectibles]]

Serial Experiments Lain (game)

2024-11-28T01:53:04Z

INNERLMNT:

{{DISPLAYTITLE:''Serial Experiments Lain'' (game)}}{{For|the video game|the anime that it is based on|Serial Experiments Lain}}[[File:Lain_PS1.jpg|thumb|The cover artwork for the PS1 game.|right]]
'''''Serial Experiments Lain''''' is a Japanese video game for the [[Wikipedia:PlayStation 1|PlayStation 1]] based on [[Serial Experiments Lain|the animated series of the same name]], which was released on November 26, 1998. The game consists mostly of pieces of information collected in a random order that allow the player to piece together [[Lain Iwakura]]'s story. [[Serial Experiments Lain Official Guide|A companion guidebook]] was released in December 1998.

==Summary==

The player controls a Lain avatar and navigates a hierarchical system of computer files. The events of the game follow Iwakura Lain and her psychiatrist Yonera Touko. The following is a rough summary of the game's events as related by Keisuke Shindo. [http://www.cjas.org/~leng/lainpsx.txt]

*Lain (11) begins to visit Touko (27) because of hallucinations.
*Touko teaches Lain about psychopathology.
*Lain has a friend named Kyoko, who she has a falling out with going into junior high school.
*Lain enters junior high, gaining a friend named Misato and an interest in computers and networks.
*Lain's father disappears under mysterious circumstances, and she programs an AI into a robotic replacement of him.
*After 3 years of counseling, Touko thinks Lain has no more problems.
*Touko begins to diagnose Lain again after finding out from classmates of Lain that Misato does not actually exist.
*Lain programs her father into the Wired and destroys its robotic body, subsequently beginning to program her own personality into the Wired.
*Touko experiences frustration over her lack of mobility at work. Her boss kills himself.
*Touko experiences relationship difficulties, getting dumped by two men in succession.
*Touko becomes emotionally unstable and Lain begins to diagnose her.
*Lain meets her Wired entity and kills her physical self.
*Lain appears before Touko and kills her, absorbing her personality into the wired.

==Characters==
* '''[[Lain Iwakura]]''': An apparently ordinary girl with a highly introverted nature and low self-esteem. At age 11, she begins to see and hear hallucinations, most prominently a double of herself. As a result, she sees a therapist at Tachibana General Laboratories. Lain also proves to be adept at psychology and computer science. Most of all, she is unbearably lonely.
* '''[[Touko Yonera]]''': Recently graduated from an American university, Touko serves as Lain's counselor and psychiatrist. She is a new employee at Tachibana Research Center, and Lain is her very first client, establishing quite a good relationship with her.
* '''[[Makino Shin'ichirou]]''': An ordinary office worker who encounters Lain online. Impressed with her abilities, he provides news, data and computer parts for her.
* '''[[Tomo]]''': A boy in Lain's elementary school class that Lain has a crush on.
* '''[[Kyoko]]''': A girl in Lain's elementary school class that Lain is somewhat friendly with, who treats Lain like a younger sister.
* '''[[Mayu]]''': A friend of Kyoko's.
* '''[[Kaori]]''': A girl in Lain's elementary school class that tries to be friendly with everyone.
* '''[[Yasuo Iwakura]]''': Lain's father. He and Lain are very close and he treats Lain very kindly, often buying her presents. He is a businessman that occasionally needs to travel.
* '''[[Miho Iwakura]]''': Lain's mother. She and Lain are on slightly less good terms, and she is a bit harder on Lain than her father. She still treats Lain very well and looks after her when she needs help. She is a housewife.
* '''[[Misato]]''': Lain's (imaginary) friend in her middle school class. Getting along extremely well, Lain and her do all sorts of things together, at least in Lain's memory. Misato is an ideal girl, able to play the violin beautifully, paint exquisitely, and is also very beautiful and elegant.
* '''[[Harumi]]''': Touko's longtime friend. She rather abruptly gets married.
* '''[[Kanako]]''': Touko's longtime friend. She's a hardworking woman trying to become a publisher.
* '''[[Takeshi]]''': Touko's boyfriend, met while studying abroad. He works at Tachibana General Laboratories alongside Touko. Their relationship is very platonic.
* '''[[Yoshida]]''': Touko's other lover. He works at an exercise equipment manufacturing company that visits Tachibana General Laboratories from time to time. He is popular with women.
* '''[[Professor Takashima]]''': Touko's boss. A well-meaning man that often dumps chores on Touko, impeding her research. Touko hates him.
* '''[[Mr. Rabbit]]''': A friend that Lain made online. He teaches her how to hack.
* '''[[Shock Spammer]]''': A malevolent user online that sends encrypted shock images to Lain's inbox, such as images of a dead infant and a dead woman.
* '''[[Progenetis]]''': Lain's father. After the disappearance of Father, Lain begins to make artificial replacements of her friends and family, starting with Father.
* '''[[Bike-chan]]''': A stuffed toy dog that allegedly has been Lain since her birth. Lain seems to view it as a friend.
* '''[[The Other Self]]''': A hallucination of another Lain that appears nude. She is the reason that Lain starts seeing Touko.
* '''[[CLN-1]]''': An unnamed woman in a school-girl's uniform that shoots her boyfriend in public.

==File system==
The game's interface is designed to be somewhat similar to a database, apparently called the "life instinct function" or "lif", which appears to be located on a server at [[Tachibana General Laboratories]]. The name of the database could hint that it is serving the purpose of keeping lain alive somehow. The database is divided into two Sites: Site A and Site B. Site B is locked when the player begins the game, and can only be unlocked by finding updates hidden in the files. Each file in the site contains an invisible version number. The version of the player's in-game media player must be greater than or equal to that number in order to play the file. The media player can be updated by finding various upgrades hidden in the files.

Located within the database are several different filetypes:
*'''Lda''', standing for lain's_DIARY in game, is a collection of 237 diary entries written by Lain over the course of roughly three years. The diary was given to Lain by Touko early into the counseling sessions as a place to confide her often negative and personal feelings. Interestingly, there is an image included in the game of Touko giving Lain a physical book, but the diaries themselves have evidence to show that the diaries are electronic. It is possible that Lain writes the diaries and then records herself reading them.

*'''Tda''', or TOUKO'S_DIARY, is a collection of 92 diary entries written by Yonera Touko over the course of roughly two years.

*'''Cou''', or COUNSELING_REC. is a collection of 53 recordings of counseling sessions between Lain and Touko. While the earlier sessions had Touko acting as a counselor to Lain, in the final recordings the roles are reversed after Touko becomes unstable. Lain acts as a counselor using her wide knowledge of psychology from independent study.

*'''Dia''', or DIAGNOSIS_CLN## is a collection of 48 diagnoses by either Touko or Lain regarding their patient's behavior and actions to be taken as a result. Touko's recordings bear the designation CLN_01 (referring to Lain) and Lain's bear the designation CLN_00 (referring to Touko). The final recording is done by both.

*'''TaK''' is a series of 181 recordings of a single sentence each by either Lain or Touko, seemingly addressing the player. These sentences are often random questions. Unlike other filetypes, which are mostly presented in chronological order by level number, these files are presented in two apparently parallel chronologies, one consisting of the recordings by Lain (TaK001-TaK121) and the other by Touko (TaK122-181). There is no label for this filetype, but the Serial Experiments Lain Official Guide calls them "Talk" files.

*'''Ekm''' is a series of 6 recordings of conversations between Lain and Kyoko. The label for this filetype is "DATA of CLN01", but the Serial Experiments Lain Official Guide calls these files "Extra Kyoko's Memory". These files only exist on Site A.

*'''Ere''', or RESEARCH_"Ky" and RESEARCH_"Ka" is a series of 10 interviews between Touko and some of Lain's classmates regarding Lain. The Serial Experiments Official Guide calls these files "Extra Research". These files only exist on Site B.

*'''Eda''' or RESEARCH_"Ma" is a series of 4 counseling sessions between Makino and possibly Professor Takashima, and 1 news report. The fifth file has the designation NEWS_SHOW. The Serial Experiments Lain Official Guide calls these files "Extra Data". These files only exist on Site B.

*'''Sskn''' or SaiSei-kun is a collection of freeware upgrade apps for the game's movie playing tool. Each successive update unlocks more content. There are seven upgrades available. The designation for these files is "mT up-date App."

*'''P2-''' or POLY-TAN PARTS are pieces of a virtual bear model named Poly-tan. Collecting all parts unlocks some files, according to the Serial Experiments Lain Official Guide. There are 6 in all, all of which are located on Site A.

*'''GaTE''' is a series of network applications that are needed to proceed from Site A to Site B. There are 4 in all.

*'''Dc1''', or DATA of CLN## is a series of 57 animated video files, mostly of Lain. While the numbers do go up to 058, Dc1029 is missing. Unlike the other filetypes, these files are presented in mostly random order, Site A containing the first 28 and Site B containing the latter 29. Each video file has its own name. Interestingly, the name "drive" is used twice. It is unknown who filmed these files or for what purpose, or whether there was even a cameraman at all. While some files have a distinctly handheld look to them or are clearly for the purpose of filming a counseling session, others are far more unusual; some appear to be hidden cameras, others appear to be professionally edited to show a series of events from a certain angle, and still others appear to be impossible or difficult shots, like aerial shots or shots of Lain in a bathroom mirror with no visible camera behind her. The CLN number, or client number, varies occasionally, but for most of the files is CLN01, or Lain. A few files in Site B use the designations CLN00 (Touko) or CLN-1 (a seemingly unnamed woman). The missing file, Dc1029, appears to be located between Site A and B, and its contents are located in the short manga "[[The Nightmare of Fabrication]]". The Serial Experiments Lain Official Guide calls these files "Dcl".

*'''Env''' or network voices? is a series of 12 files that contain nothing but static and assorted voices. The server data for all these files are corrupted. These files are extra content and are not part of the regular game. All of these files are located on Site A's Level 0.

*'''Xv0''' is a collection of unused video clips. These files are extra content and are not part of the regular game.

*'''Xa''' is a collection of miscellaneous audio. Most of these files contain Touko in an apparent state of distress, though the first and last files contain Lain's voice. These files are extra content and are not part of the regular game.

==Connections between the game and the anime==
This game explains many elements in the [[Serial Experiments Lain|anime]] that are taken for granted or left unexplained. It can be considered an alternate timeline to the anime, perhaps one where Lain is incarnated into a different environment.

*Lain's haircut: In the game, it is revealed that Lain cut her own hair. The longer lock of hair where she clips her [[Lain's Hairclip|hairclip]] is meant to prevent something that "enters from the right" from "going out through the left". Not much is known about the context of this statement (at least to the English-speaking fandom), but it has been theorised that Lain's hairstyle wards off demons or prevents her memories from disappearing. According to the [[Serial Experiments Lain Official Guide|guide]], Lain's mysterious statement is referring to her [[crosstalk|auditory hallucinations.]] See [[Q&A]] for more information.
*The chip from [[Layer 09]]: This may be the same in nature as the machine that [[Touko Yonera]] received from [[Tachibana General Laboratories]].
*Shared [[:Category:Themes|themes]]

As part of the same franchise, both the game and the anime cover topics such as the reliability of [[memory]] and the nature of existence and [[reality]].

==Translation==
Access to the fan translation at [https://laingame.net/ laingame.net]

As the videogame has never been officially translated, a team of fans has fan translated the entire game in English and made the nodes easily browsable. Project began in 2008 and the translation was released in 2014.

A long time passed after a team of volunteers decided to remake the game from the ground up using web technologies (React, three.js, WebGL) making the whole game playable in the web browser. Work on [https://github.com/ad044/lainTSX lainTSX] started solo by ad044 since August 2020, and on 13 September 2020 help was gathered from community. Decision to recreate the game in the browser made the translation, especially the integration of the subtitles easier, and gave the opportunity to smooth the gameplay and the animation using a better framerate and overall timing.

{{Media}}
[[Category:Media]]

Serial Experiments Lain (game)

2024-11-28T01:47:37Z

INNERLMNT: added For template

{{DISPLAYTITLE:''Serial Experiments Lain'' (game)}}{{For|the video game|the anime that it is based on|Serial Experiments Lain}}[[File:Lain_PS1.jpg|thumb|Serial Experiments Lain is a video game release for the PlayStation on November 26, 1998, two months after the last episode of anime.|right]]
'''''Serial Experiments Lain''''' is a Japanese video game for the [[Wikipedia:PlayStation|PlayStation]] based on [[Serial Experiments Lain|the animated series of the same name]], which was released on November 26, 1998. The game consists mostly of pieces of information collected in a random order that allow the player to piece together [[Lain Iwakura]]'s story.

There is guidebook for this game titled [[Serial Experiments Lain Official Guide]].

==Summary==

The player controls a Lain avatar and navigates a hierarchical system of computer files. The events of the game follow Iwakura Lain and her psychiatrist Yonera Touko. The following is a rough summary of the game's events as related by Keisuke Shindo. [http://www.cjas.org/~leng/lainpsx.txt]

*Lain (11) begins to visit Touko (27) because of hallucinations.
*Touko teaches Lain about psychopathology.
*Lain has a friend named Kyoko, who she has a falling out with going into junior high school.
*Lain enters junior high, gaining a friend named Misato and an interest in computers and networks.
*Lain's father disappears under mysterious circumstances, and she programs an AI into a robotic replacement of him.
*After 3 years of counseling, Touko thinks Lain has no more problems.
*Touko begins to diagnose Lain again after finding out from classmates of Lain that Misato does not actually exist.
*Lain programs her father into the Wired and destroys its robotic body, subsequently beginning to program her own personality into the Wired.
*Touko experiences frustration over her lack of mobility at work. Her boss kills himself.
*Touko experiences relationship difficulties, getting dumped by two men in succession.
*Touko becomes emotionally unstable and Lain begins to diagnose her.
*Lain meets her Wired entity and kills her physical self.
*Lain appears before Touko and kills her, absorbing her personality into the wired.

==Characters==
[[Lain Iwakura]]
An apparently ordinary girl with a highly introverted nature and low self-esteem. At age 11, she begins to see and hear hallucinations, most prominently a double of herself. As a result, she sees a therapist at Tachibana General Laboratories. Lain also proves to be adept at psychology and computer science. Most of all, she is unbearably lonely.

[[Touko Yonera]]
Recently graduated from an American university, Touko serves as Lain's counselor and psychiatrist. She is a new employee at Tachibana Research Center, and Lain is her very first client, establishing quite a good relationship with her.

[[Makino Shin'ichirou]]
An ordinary office worker who encounters Lain online. Impressed with her abilities, he provides news, data and computer parts for her.

[[Tomo]]
A boy in Lain's elementary school class that Lain has a crush on.

[[Kyoko]]
A girl in Lain's elementary school class that Lain is somewhat friendly with, who treats Lain like a younger sister.

[[Mayu]]
A friend of Kyoko's.

[[Kaori]]
A girl in Lain's elementary school class that tries to be friendly with everyone.

[[Yasuo Iwakura]]
Lain's father. He and Lain are very close and he treats Lain very kindly, often buying her presents. He is a businessman that occasionally needs to travel.

[[Miho Iwakura]]
Lain's mother. She and Lain are on slightly less good terms, and she is a bit harder on Lain than her father. She still treats Lain very well and looks after her when she needs help. She is a housewife.

[[Misato]]
Lain's (imaginary) friend in her middle school class. Getting along extremely well, Lain and her do all sorts of things together, at least in Lain's memory. Misato is an ideal girl, able to play the violin beautifully, paint exquisitely, and is also very beautiful and elegant.

[[Harumi]]
Touko's longtime friend. She rather abruptly gets married.

[[Kanako]]
Touko's longtime friend. She's a hardworking woman trying to become a publisher.

[[Takeshi]]
Touko's boyfriend, met while studying abroad. He works at Tachibana General Laboratories alongside Touko. Their relationship is very platonic.

[[Yoshida]]
Touko's other lover. He works at an exercise equipment manufacturing company that visits Tachibana General Laboratories from time to time. He is popular with women.

[[Professor Takashima]]
Touko's boss. A well-meaning man that often dumps chores on Touko, impeding her research. Touko hates him.

[[Mr. Rabbit]]
A friend that Lain made online. He teaches her how to hack.

[[Shock Spammer]]
A malevolent user online that sends encrypted shock images to Lain's inbox, such as images of a dead infant and a dead woman.

[[Progenetis]]
Lain's father. After the disappearance of Father, Lain begins to make artificial replacements of her friends and family, starting with Father.

[[Bike-chan]]
A stuffed toy dog that allegedly has been Lain since her birth. Lain seems to view it as a friend.

[[The Other Self]]
A hallucination of another Lain that appears nude. She is the reason that Lain starts seeing Touko.

[[CLN-1]]
An unnamed woman in a school-girl's uniform that shoots her boyfriend in public.

==File System==
The game's interface is designed to be somewhat similar to a database, apparently called the "life instinct function" or "lif", which appears to be located on a server at [[Tachibana General Laboratories]]. The name of the database could hint that it is serving the purpose of keeping lain alive somehow. The database is divided into two Sites: Site A and Site B. Site B is locked when the player begins the game, and can only be unlocked by finding updates hidden in the files. Each file in the site contains an invisible version number. The version of the player's in-game media player must be greater than or equal to that number in order to play the file. The media player can be updated by finding various upgrades hidden in the files.

Located within the database are several different filetypes:
*'''Lda''', standing for lain's_DIARY in game, is a collection of 237 diary entries written by Lain over the course of roughly three years. The diary was given to Lain by Touko early into the counseling sessions as a place to confide her often negative and personal feelings. Interestingly, there is an image included in the game of Touko giving Lain a physical book, but the diaries themselves have evidence to show that the diaries are electronic. It is possible that Lain writes the diaries and then records herself reading them.

*'''Tda''', or TOUKO'S_DIARY, is a collection of 92 diary entries written by Yonera Touko over the course of roughly two years.

*'''Cou''', or COUNSELING_REC. is a collection of 53 recordings of counseling sessions between Lain and Touko. While the earlier sessions had Touko acting as a counselor to Lain, in the final recordings the roles are reversed after Touko becomes unstable. Lain acts as a counselor using her wide knowledge of psychology from independent study.

*'''Dia''', or DIAGNOSIS_CLN## is a collection of 48 diagnoses by either Touko or Lain regarding their patient's behavior and actions to be taken as a result. Touko's recordings bear the designation CLN_01 (referring to Lain) and Lain's bear the designation CLN_00 (referring to Touko). The final recording is done by both.

*'''TaK''' is a series of 181 recordings of a single sentence each by either Lain or Touko, seemingly addressing the player. These sentences are often random questions. Unlike other filetypes, which are mostly presented in chronological order by level number, these files are presented in two apparently parallel chronologies, one consisting of the recordings by Lain (TaK001-TaK121) and the other by Touko (TaK122-181). There is no label for this filetype, but the Serial Experiments Lain Official Guide calls them "Talk" files.

*'''Ekm''' is a series of 6 recordings of conversations between Lain and Kyoko. The label for this filetype is "DATA of CLN01", but the Serial Experiments Lain Official Guide calls these files "Extra Kyoko's Memory". These files only exist on Site A.

*'''Ere''', or RESEARCH_"Ky" and RESEARCH_"Ka" is a series of 10 interviews between Touko and some of Lain's classmates regarding Lain. The Serial Experiments Official Guide calls these files "Extra Research". These files only exist on Site B.

*'''Eda''' or RESEARCH_"Ma" is a series of 4 counseling sessions between Makino and possibly Professor Takashima, and 1 news report. The fifth file has the designation NEWS_SHOW. The Serial Experiments Lain Official Guide calls these files "Extra Data". These files only exist on Site B.

*'''Sskn''' or SaiSei-kun is a collection of freeware upgrade apps for the game's movie playing tool. Each successive update unlocks more content. There are seven upgrades available. The designation for these files is "mT up-date App."

*'''P2-''' or POLY-TAN PARTS are pieces of a virtual bear model named Poly-tan. Collecting all parts unlocks some files, according to the Serial Experiments Lain Official Guide. There are 6 in all, all of which are located on Site A.

*'''GaTE''' is a series of network applications that are needed to proceed from Site A to Site B. There are 4 in all.

*'''Dc1''', or DATA of CLN## is a series of 57 animated video files, mostly of Lain. While the numbers do go up to 058, Dc1029 is missing. Unlike the other filetypes, these files are presented in mostly random order, Site A containing the first 28 and Site B containing the latter 29. Each video file has its own name. Interestingly, the name "drive" is used twice. It is unknown who filmed these files or for what purpose, or whether there was even a cameraman at all. While some files have a distinctly handheld look to them or are clearly for the purpose of filming a counseling session, others are far more unusual; some appear to be hidden cameras, others appear to be professionally edited to show a series of events from a certain angle, and still others appear to be impossible or difficult shots, like aerial shots or shots of Lain in a bathroom mirror with no visible camera behind her. The CLN number, or client number, varies occasionally, but for most of the files is CLN01, or Lain. A few files in Site B use the designations CLN00 (Touko) or CLN-1 (a seemingly unnamed woman). The missing file, Dc1029, appears to be located between Site A and B, and its contents are located in the short manga "[[The Nightmare of Fabrication]]". The Serial Experiments Lain Official Guide calls these files "Dcl".

*'''Env''' or network voices? is a series of 12 files that contain nothing but static and assorted voices. The server data for all these files are corrupted. These files are extra content and are not part of the regular game. All of these files are located on Site A's Level 0.

*'''Xv0''' is a collection of unused video clips. These files are extra content and are not part of the regular game.

*'''Xa''' is a collection of miscellaneous audio. Most of these files contain Touko in an apparent state of distress, though the first and last files contain Lain's voice. These files are extra content and are not part of the regular game.

==Connections between the game and the anime==
This game explains many elements in the [[Serial Experiments Lain (anime)|anime]] that are taken for granted or left unexplained. It can be considered an alternate timeline to the anime, perhaps one where Lain is incarnated into a different environment.

*Lain's haircut

In the game, it is revealed that Lain cut her own hair. The longer lock of hair where she clips her [[Lain's Hairclip|hairclip]] is meant to prevent something that "enters from the right" from "going out through the left". Not much is known about the context of this statement (at least to the English-speaking fandom), but it has been theorised that Lain's hairstyle wards off demons or prevents her memories from disappearing.

According to the [[Serial Experiments Lain Official Guide|guide]], Lain's mysterious statement is referring to her [[crosstalk|auditory hallucinations.]] See [[Q&A]] for more information.

*The chip from [[Layer 09]]

This may be the same in nature as the machine that [[Touko Yonera]] received from [[Tachibana General Laboratories]].

*Shared [[:Category:Themes|themes]]

As part of the same franchise, both the game and the anime cover topics such as the reliability of [[memory]] and the nature of existence and [[reality]].

==Translation==
Access to the fan translation at [https://laingame.net/ laingame.net]

As the videogame has never been officially translated, a team of fans has fan translated the entire game in English and made the nodes easily browsable. Project began in 2008 and the translation was released in 2014.

A long time passed after a team of volunteers decided to remake the game from the ground up using web technologies (React, three.js, WebGL) making the whole game playable in the web browser. Work on [https://github.com/ad044/lainTSX lainTSX] started solo by ad044 since August 2020, and on 13 September 2020 help was gathered from community. Decision to recreate the game in the browser made the translation, especially the integration of the subtitles easier, and gave the opportunity to smooth the gameplay and the animation using a better framerate and overall timing.

{{Media}}
[[Category:Media]]

Serial Experiments Lain

2024-11-28T01:46:56Z

INNERLMNT: migrated from Serial Experiments Lain (anime)

{{DISPLAYTITLE:''Serial Experiments Lain'' (anime)}}{{For|the anime|the video game|Serial Experiments Lain (game)}}[[File:Serial-experiments-lain-coverart.jpg|thumb|Strange events begin to occur as a withdrawn girl named Lain becomes obsessed with interconnected virtual realm of "The Wired".|right]]
'''''Serial Experiments Lain''''' is an anime series directed by [[Nakamura Ryuutarou]], original character design by [[Yoshitoshi ABe]], screenplay written by [[Chiaki J. Konaka]], and produced by [[Ueda Yasuyuki]] (credited as ''production 2nd'') for Triangle Staff. It was broadcast on TV Tokyo from July to September 1998 and has 13 [[episodes]]. [[Serial Experiments Lain (game)|A PlayStation game]] with the same title was released in November 1998 by Pioneer LDC.

The opening theme is [[Duvet]] and the ending theme is [[Tooi Sakebi]].

''Lain'' is influenced by philosophical subjects such as [[reality]], [[identity]], and [[communication]]. The series focuses on [[Lain Iwakura]], an adolescent girl living in suburban Japan, and her introduction to [[the Wired]], a global communications network similar to the Internet. Lain lives with her middle-class family, which consists of her inexpressive older sister [[Mika Iwakura]], her cold mother [[Miho Iwakura]], and her computer-obsessed father [[Yasuo Iwakura]]. The first ripple on the pond of Lain's lonely life appears when she learns that girls from her school have received an [[e-mail]] from [[Chisa Yomoda]], a schoolmate who committed [[Suicide in Serial Experiments Lain|suicide]]. When Lain receives the message at home, Chisa tells her (in real time) that she is not dead, but has just "abandoned the flesh", and has found [[God]] in the Wired. From then on, Lain is bound to a quest which will take her ever deeper into both the network and her own thoughts.

The anime series is licensed in North America by Funimation since 2010. Before that, it was licensed by Geneon (previously Pioneer Entertainment) who released the series on VHS, LaserDisc, and DVD, as well as a restored Blu-ray edition. It was also released in Singapore by Odex. The video game, which shares only the themes and protagonist with the series, was never released outside Japan.

A remastered Blu-ray box set was released in Japan in 2009, and the US in 2012. It features the show redigitized to a 4:3 1080p format, with many CG sequences (such as the PRESENT DAY PRESENT TIME opening) re-rendered in higher quality.

The series shows influences from topics such as philosophy, computer history, cyberpunk literature and [[conspiracy]] theory, and it was made the subject of several academic articles. English language anime reviewers found it to be weird and unusual, with generally positive reviews. Producer Ueda said he intended Japanese and American audiences to form conflicting views on the series, but was disappointed in this regard, as the impressions turned out to be similar.
==Plot==
''Serial Experiments Lain'' deals directly with the definition of [[reality]], which makes its complex plot difficult to summarize. The story is primarily based on the assumption that everything flows from human thought, [[memory]], and consciousness. Therefore, events on screen can be considered hallucinations of Lain, of other protagonists, or of Lain fabricating the hallucinations of others. Story misdirection is central to the plotline; even the offscreen voices or narrations' information cannot be considered truthful. The series consists of a cross-reflection of philosophical themes instead of the traditional linear events depiction: episodes are called "[[:Category:Episodes|layers]]".

''Serial Experiments Lain'' describes "[[the Wired]]" as the sum of human communication networks, created with the telegraph and telephone services, and expanded with the [[Internet]] and subsequent networks. The anime assumes that the Wired could be linked to a system that enables unconscious communication between people and machines without physical interface. The storyline introduces such a system with the [[Schumann Resonances]], a property of the Earth's magnetic field that theoretically allows for unhindered long-distance communications. If such a link was created, the network would become equivalent to Reality as the general consensus of all perceptions and knowledge. The thin line between what is real and what is possible would then begin to blur.

[[Masami Eiri]] is introduced as the project director on [[Protocol 7]] (the next generation internet protocol in the series' timeframe) for major computer company [[Tachibana General Laboratories]]. He has secretly included [[Source Code|code]] of his own creation to give himself control of the Wired through the wireless system described above. He then "uploaded” his consciousness into the Wired and died in real life a few days after. These details are unveiled around the middle of the series, but this is the point where the story of ''Serial Experiments Lain'' begins.

Masami later explains that Lain is the artifact by which the wall between the [[virtual]] and [[material]] worlds is to fall, and that he needs her to get to the Wired and "abandon the flesh", as he did, to achieve his plan. The series sees him trying to convince her through interventions, using the promise of unconditional love, charm, fate, and, when all else fails, threats and force.

In the meantime, the anime follows a complex game of hide-and-seek between the "[[Knights of the Eastern Calculus]]", hackers who Masami claims are "believers that enable him to be a god in the Wired", and Tachibana Labs, who try to regain control of Protocol 7.

In the end, the viewer sees Lain realizing, after much introspection, that she has absolute power over everyone's mind and over reality itself. Her dialogue with different versions of herself show how she feels shunned from the material world, and how she is afraid to live in the Wired, where she has the possibilities and responsibilities of a goddess. The last scenes feature her erasing everything connected to herself from everyone's memories. She is last seen unchanged - re-encountering her old friend [[Alice Mizuki]], who is now married. Lain promises herself to look after Alice.

==Development==
===Production===
Serial Experiments Lain was conceived, as a series, to be original to the point of it being considered "an enormous risk" by its producer [[Ueda Yasuyuki|Yasuyuki Ueda]]. He explained he created Lain with a set of values he took as distinctly Japanese; he hoped Americans would not understand the series as the Japanese would. This would lead to a "war of ideas" over the meaning of the anime, hopefully culminating in new communication between the two cultures. Later, when he discovered that the American audience held the same views on the series as the Japanese, he was disappointed.

The Lain franchise was originally conceived to connect across forms of media (anime, video games, manga). Producer Yasuyuki Ueda said in an interview, "the approach I took for this project was to communicate the essence of the work by the total sum of many media products". The scenario for the video game was written first, and the video game was produced at the same time as the anime series, though the series was released first. A dōjinshi titled "[[The Nightmare of Fabrication]]" was produced by Yoshitoshi ABe and released in Japanese in the artbook [[Omnipresence in Wired|An Omnipresence in Wired]]. Ueda and Konaka declared in an interview that the idea of a multimedia project was not unusual in Japan, as opposed to the contents of Lain, and the way they are exposed.

In 2009, Yoshitoshi ABe announced a spiritual sequel to Serial Experiments Lain called [[Despera]] who will reunited many of the staff who worked on Serial Experiments Lain, including Chiaki J Konaka and Ryūtarō Nakamura.

==Reception==
Words like "weird" or "bizarre" are almost systematically associated to review the series by English Language reviews due mostly to the freedoms taken with the animation and its unusual science fiction, philosophical and psychological context. Despite the show judged atypical, the critics responded positively to the thematic and stylistic characteristics. It was praised by the Japan Media Arts Festival, in 1998, for "its willingness to question the meaning of contemporary life" and the "extraordinarily philosophical and deep questions".

In 2005, Newtype USA stated that the main attraction to the series is its keen view on "the interlocking problems of identity and technology". the author saluted Abe's "crisp, clean character design" and the "perfect soundtrack". It concluded saying that "Serial Experiments Lain might not yet be considered a true classic, but it's a fascinating evolutionary leap that helped change the future of anime."

In 2001, Lain was subject to commentary in the literary and academic worlds. The Asian Horror Encyclopedia calls it "an outstanding psycho-horror anime about the psychic and spiritual influence of the Internet" noticing the presence of horror lore (like ghost from train accident story) and horrific visuals.

The Anime Essentials anthology, Gilles Poitras describes it as a "complex and somehow existential" anime that "pushed the envelope" of anime diversity in the 1990s, alongside the much better known Neon Genesis Evangelion and Cowboy Bebop.

In 2003, Professor Susan J. Napier, in her reading to the American Philosophical Society called The Problem of Existence in Japanese Animation. Napier asks whether there is something to which Lain should return, "between an empty real and a dark virtual".

In 2020, the review-aggregation website website Rotten Tomatoes, classified Serial Experiments Lain as one of the 25 anime TV series that have been essential to the medium over the last five decades. ([https://editorial.rottentomatoes.com/article/essential-anime-series/ source])

"Serial Experiments Lain helped usher in a new style of anime, of more digitally-produced shows with a glossy bloom and deeper, darker, complicated storylines. In the wake of Neon Genesis tearing up the typical anime playbook, Lain pursues a surreal, interior cyberpunk story about a withdrawn high school girl who receives an email from a classmate who has recently committed suicide. Questions of hyperreality, consciousness, and the everyday tangibility of cyberspace ensue. Lain is pretentious, symbolic, and absorbing – a prime example of a brave new world in anime."

Despite the general positive feedbacks, some negative critics stated the "lifeless" setting it had, how the last episodes failed to resolve the questions, and how the show relied so little on dialogue. ([https://web.archive.org/web/20110826092828/http://www.ex.org/5.2/25-anime_followup_lain.html source])

===Awards===
* Japan Media Arts Festival 1998: Excellence Prize ([http://archive.j-mediaarts.jp/en/festival/1998/animation/works/06an_serial_experiments_lain/ source])

==Trivia==
* The series contains a large number of direct allusions to objects and companies in the real world:
** [[Cyberia]] is a disco bar in the series which borrows its name from the 1994 nonfiction novel ''[[Wikipedia:Cyberia (book)|Cyberia]]'' by Douglas Rushkoff, which discusses the growing subculture of internet users and how it could lead to a counterculture. It also shares the name with one of the earliest cybercafé franchises - which had a branch in Tokyo.
*** The book is told to have been the inspiration for the series in general.
** [[Protocol 7]] refers, probably, to the 7th Layer, the neurogenetic circuit, of the [[Wikipedia:Eight-circuit model of consciousness|Eight Layers of Consciousness]] as proposed by Timothy Leary. It could also be a successor to the upcoming new internet protocol IPv6 (Internet Protocol version 6) (the current internet protocol is IPv4 (Internet Protocol version 4)).
** [[NAVI]], the trademark-turned-noun for computer in the series, is contracted from [[Wikipedia:Knowledge Navigator|Knowledge Navigator]], a term invented by Apple CEO John Sculley in his book Odyssey. It referred to a computer connected to a vast network where everyone was connected.
** [[Copland OS]] is named after an unreleased operating system by Apple, and so was System 7 after [[Wikipedia:System 7|an operating system that ''was'' released]].
** Gaia, a global brain in Cyberia shares a common thread with the collective shared unconscious in Lain, may be lifted from the book ''Cyberia'' as well.
** The [[Knights of the Eastern Calculus]] are a direct nod to the [[Wikipedia:Knights of the Lambda Calculus|Knights of the Lambda Calculus]].
** Tachibana Labs is a play on words on Apple Macintosh, (a type of Apple) itself being the name of a citrus fruit (the citrus tachibana)
** Nezumi, the Knights-wannabe who carries a computer rig and accesses the Wired while he walks matches the description of a Gargoyle from Snow Crash, as do the MIB agents, who wear the same headgear (complete with laser sight) that Lagos was described as wearing.
** to Be continued, where Be uses the same colouring as Be OS used.
** hello (again), the text from an Apple advertisement, is used in an omake.
** What is Artificial Life? from ALIFE VI is quoted in text-form at several places.

{{Episodes}} {{AnimeCharacters}} {{Media}}

[[Category:Media]]

Serial Experiments Lain (anime)

2024-11-28T01:46:50Z

INNERLMNT: migrating all of this article's content to Serial Experiments Lain

#REDIRECT [[Serial Experiments Lain]]

Serial Experiments Lain

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#REDIRECT [[Serial Experiments Lain (anime)]]

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Serial Experiments Lain (anime)

2024-11-28T01:39:54Z

INNERLMNT: As soon as I realized this is just the shoutout section on TV Tropes, I had to make some major rewrites.

{{DISPLAYTITLE:''Serial Experiments Lain'' (anime)}}[[File:Serial-experiments-lain-coverart.jpg|thumb|Strange events begin to occur as a withdrawn girl named Lain becomes obsessed with interconnected virtual realm of "The Wired".|right]]
'''''Serial Experiments Lain''''' is an anime series directed by [[Nakamura Ryuutarou]], original character design by [[Yoshitoshi ABe]], screenplay written by [[Chiaki J. Konaka]], and produced by [[Ueda Yasuyuki]] (credited as ''production 2nd'') for Triangle Staff. It was broadcast on TV Tokyo from July to September 1998 and has 13 [[episodes]]. [[Serial Experiments Lain (game)|A PlayStation game]] with the same title was released in November 1998 by Pioneer LDC.

The opening theme is [[Duvet]] and the ending theme is [[Tooi Sakebi]].

''Lain'' is influenced by philosophical subjects such as [[reality]], [[identity]], and [[communication]]. The series focuses on [[Lain Iwakura]], an adolescent girl living in suburban Japan, and her introduction to [[the Wired]], a global communications network similar to the Internet. Lain lives with her middle-class family, which consists of her inexpressive older sister [[Mika Iwakura]], her cold mother [[Miho Iwakura]], and her computer-obsessed father [[Yasuo Iwakura]]. The first ripple on the pond of Lain's lonely life appears when she learns that girls from her school have received an [[e-mail]] from [[Chisa Yomoda]], a schoolmate who committed [[Suicide in Serial Experiments Lain|suicide]]. When Lain receives the message at home, Chisa tells her (in real time) that she is not dead, but has just "abandoned the flesh", and has found [[God]] in the Wired. From then on, Lain is bound to a quest which will take her ever deeper into both the network and her own thoughts.

The anime series is licensed in North America by Funimation since 2010. Before that, it was licensed by Geneon (previously Pioneer Entertainment) who released the series on VHS, LaserDisc, and DVD, as well as a restored Blu-ray edition. It was also released in Singapore by Odex. The video game, which shares only the themes and protagonist with the series, was never released outside Japan.

A remastered Blu-ray box set was released in Japan in 2009, and the US in 2012. It features the show redigitized to a 4:3 1080p format, with many CG sequences (such as the PRESENT DAY PRESENT TIME opening) re-rendered in higher quality.

The series shows influences from topics such as philosophy, computer history, cyberpunk literature and [[conspiracy]] theory, and it was made the subject of several academic articles. English language anime reviewers found it to be weird and unusual, with generally positive reviews. Producer Ueda said he intended Japanese and American audiences to form conflicting views on the series, but was disappointed in this regard, as the impressions turned out to be similar.
==Plot==
''Serial Experiments Lain'' deals directly with the definition of [[reality]], which makes its complex plot difficult to summarize. The story is primarily based on the assumption that everything flows from human thought, [[memory]], and consciousness. Therefore, events on screen can be considered hallucinations of Lain, of other protagonists, or of Lain fabricating the hallucinations of others. Story misdirection is central to the plotline; even the offscreen voices or narrations' information cannot be considered truthful. The series consists of a cross-reflection of philosophical themes instead of the traditional linear events depiction: episodes are called "[[:Category:Episodes|layers]]".

''Serial Experiments Lain'' describes "[[the Wired]]" as the sum of human communication networks, created with the telegraph and telephone services, and expanded with the [[Internet]] and subsequent networks. The anime assumes that the Wired could be linked to a system that enables unconscious communication between people and machines without physical interface. The storyline introduces such a system with the [[Schumann Resonances]], a property of the Earth's magnetic field that theoretically allows for unhindered long-distance communications. If such a link was created, the network would become equivalent to Reality as the general consensus of all perceptions and knowledge. The thin line between what is real and what is possible would then begin to blur.

[[Masami Eiri]] is introduced as the project director on [[Protocol 7]] (the next generation internet protocol in the series' timeframe) for major computer company [[Tachibana General Laboratories]]. He has secretly included [[Source Code|code]] of his own creation to give himself control of the Wired through the wireless system described above. He then "uploaded” his consciousness into the Wired and died in real life a few days after. These details are unveiled around the middle of the series, but this is the point where the story of ''Serial Experiments Lain'' begins.

Masami later explains that Lain is the artifact by which the wall between the [[virtual]] and [[material]] worlds is to fall, and that he needs her to get to the Wired and "abandon the flesh", as he did, to achieve his plan. The series sees him trying to convince her through interventions, using the promise of unconditional love, charm, fate, and, when all else fails, threats and force.

In the meantime, the anime follows a complex game of hide-and-seek between the "[[Knights of the Eastern Calculus]]", hackers who Masami claims are "believers that enable him to be a god in the Wired", and Tachibana Labs, who try to regain control of Protocol 7.

In the end, the viewer sees Lain realizing, after much introspection, that she has absolute power over everyone's mind and over reality itself. Her dialogue with different versions of herself show how she feels shunned from the material world, and how she is afraid to live in the Wired, where she has the possibilities and responsibilities of a goddess. The last scenes feature her erasing everything connected to herself from everyone's memories. She is last seen unchanged - re-encountering her old friend [[Alice Mizuki]], who is now married. Lain promises herself to look after Alice.

==Development==
===Production===
Serial Experiments Lain was conceived, as a series, to be original to the point of it being considered "an enormous risk" by its producer [[Ueda Yasuyuki|Yasuyuki Ueda]]. He explained he created Lain with a set of values he took as distinctly Japanese; he hoped Americans would not understand the series as the Japanese would. This would lead to a "war of ideas" over the meaning of the anime, hopefully culminating in new communication between the two cultures. Later, when he discovered that the American audience held the same views on the series as the Japanese, he was disappointed.

The Lain franchise was originally conceived to connect across forms of media (anime, video games, manga). Producer Yasuyuki Ueda said in an interview, "the approach I took for this project was to communicate the essence of the work by the total sum of many media products". The scenario for the video game was written first, and the video game was produced at the same time as the anime series, though the series was released first. A dōjinshi titled "[[The Nightmare of Fabrication]]" was produced by Yoshitoshi ABe and released in Japanese in the artbook [[Omnipresence in Wired|An Omnipresence in Wired]]. Ueda and Konaka declared in an interview that the idea of a multimedia project was not unusual in Japan, as opposed to the contents of Lain, and the way they are exposed.

In 2009, Yoshitoshi ABe announced a spiritual sequel to Serial Experiments Lain called [[Despera]] who will reunited many of the staff who worked on Serial Experiments Lain, including Chiaki J Konaka and Ryūtarō Nakamura.

==Reception==
Words like "weird" or "bizarre" are almost systematically associated to review the series by English Language reviews due mostly to the freedoms taken with the animation and its unusual science fiction, philosophical and psychological context. Despite the show judged atypical, the critics responded positively to the thematic and stylistic characteristics. It was praised by the Japan Media Arts Festival, in 1998, for "its willingness to question the meaning of contemporary life" and the "extraordinarily philosophical and deep questions".

In 2005, Newtype USA stated that the main attraction to the series is its keen view on "the interlocking problems of identity and technology". the author saluted Abe's "crisp, clean character design" and the "perfect soundtrack". It concluded saying that "Serial Experiments Lain might not yet be considered a true classic, but it's a fascinating evolutionary leap that helped change the future of anime."

In 2001, Lain was subject to commentary in the literary and academic worlds. The Asian Horror Encyclopedia calls it "an outstanding psycho-horror anime about the psychic and spiritual influence of the Internet" noticing the presence of horror lore (like ghost from train accident story) and horrific visuals.

The Anime Essentials anthology, Gilles Poitras describes it as a "complex and somehow existential" anime that "pushed the envelope" of anime diversity in the 1990s, alongside the much better known Neon Genesis Evangelion and Cowboy Bebop.

In 2003, Professor Susan J. Napier, in her reading to the American Philosophical Society called The Problem of Existence in Japanese Animation. Napier asks whether there is something to which Lain should return, "between an empty real and a dark virtual".

In 2020, the review-aggregation website website Rotten Tomatoes, classified Serial Experiments Lain as one of the 25 anime TV series that have been essential to the medium over the last five decades. ([https://editorial.rottentomatoes.com/article/essential-anime-series/ source])

"Serial Experiments Lain helped usher in a new style of anime, of more digitally-produced shows with a glossy bloom and deeper, darker, complicated storylines. In the wake of Neon Genesis tearing up the typical anime playbook, Lain pursues a surreal, interior cyberpunk story about a withdrawn high school girl who receives an email from a classmate who has recently committed suicide. Questions of hyperreality, consciousness, and the everyday tangibility of cyberspace ensue. Lain is pretentious, symbolic, and absorbing – a prime example of a brave new world in anime."

Despite the general positive feedbacks, some negative critics stated the "lifeless" setting it had, how the last episodes failed to resolve the questions, and how the show relied so little on dialogue. ([https://web.archive.org/web/20110826092828/http://www.ex.org/5.2/25-anime_followup_lain.html source])

===Awards===
* Japan Media Arts Festival 1998: Excellence Prize ([http://archive.j-mediaarts.jp/en/festival/1998/animation/works/06an_serial_experiments_lain/ source])

==Trivia==
* The series contains a large number of direct allusions to objects and companies in the real world:
** [[Cyberia]] is a disco bar in the series which borrows its name from the 1994 nonfiction novel ''[[Wikipedia:Cyberia (book)|Cyberia]]'' by Douglas Rushkoff, which discusses the growing subculture of internet users and how it could lead to a counterculture. It also shares the name with one of the earliest cybercafé franchises - which had a branch in Tokyo.
*** The book is told to have been the inspiration for the series in general.
** [[Protocol 7]] refers, probably, to the 7th Layer, the neurogenetic circuit, of the [[Wikipedia:Eight-circuit model of consciousness|Eight Layers of Consciousness]] as proposed by Timothy Leary. It could also be a successor to the upcoming new internet protocol IPv6 (Internet Protocol version 6) (the current internet protocol is IPv4 (Internet Protocol version 4)).
** [[NAVI]], the trademark-turned-noun for computer in the series, is contracted from [[Wikipedia:Knowledge Navigator|Knowledge Navigator]], a term invented by Apple CEO John Sculley in his book Odyssey. It referred to a computer connected to a vast network where everyone was connected.
** [[Copland OS]] is named after an unreleased operating system by Apple, and so was System 7 after [[Wikipedia:System 7|an operating system that ''was'' released]].
** Gaia, a global brain in Cyberia shares a common thread with the collective shared unconscious in Lain, may be lifted from the book ''Cyberia'' as well.
** The [[Knights of the Eastern Calculus]] are a direct nod to the [[Wikipedia:Knights of the Lambda Calculus|Knights of the Lambda Calculus]].
** Tachibana Labs is a play on words on Apple Macintosh, (a type of Apple) itself being the name of a citrus fruit (the citrus tachibana)
** Nezumi, the Knights-wannabe who carries a computer rig and accesses the Wired while he walks matches the description of a Gargoyle from Snow Crash, as do the MIB agents, who wear the same headgear (complete with laser sight) that Lagos was described as wearing.
** to Be continued, where Be uses the same colouring as Be OS used.
** hello (again), the text from an Apple advertisement, is used in an omake.
** What is Artificial Life? from ALIFE VI is quoted in text-form at several places.

{{Episodes}} {{AnimeCharacters}} {{Media}}

[[Category:Media]]

Serial Experiments Lain (game)

2024-11-28T01:32:41Z

INNERLMNT:

{{DISPLAYTITLE:''Serial Experiments Lain'' (game)}}[[File:Lain_PS1.jpg|thumb|Serial Experiments Lain is a video game release for the PlayStation on November 26, 1998, two months after the last episode of anime.|right]]
'''''Serial Experiments Lain''''' is a Japanese video game for the [[Wikipedia:PlayStation|PlayStation]] based on [[Serial Experiments Lain|the animated series of the same name]], which was released on November 26, 1998. The game consists mostly of pieces of information collected in a random order that allow the player to piece together [[Lain Iwakura]]'s story.

There is guidebook for this game titled [[Serial Experiments Lain Official Guide]].

==Summary==

The player controls a Lain avatar and navigates a hierarchical system of computer files. The events of the game follow Iwakura Lain and her psychiatrist Yonera Touko. The following is a rough summary of the game's events as related by Keisuke Shindo. [http://www.cjas.org/~leng/lainpsx.txt]

*Lain (11) begins to visit Touko (27) because of hallucinations.
*Touko teaches Lain about psychopathology.
*Lain has a friend named Kyoko, who she has a falling out with going into junior high school.
*Lain enters junior high, gaining a friend named Misato and an interest in computers and networks.
*Lain's father disappears under mysterious circumstances, and she programs an AI into a robotic replacement of him.
*After 3 years of counseling, Touko thinks Lain has no more problems.
*Touko begins to diagnose Lain again after finding out from classmates of Lain that Misato does not actually exist.
*Lain programs her father into the Wired and destroys its robotic body, subsequently beginning to program her own personality into the Wired.
*Touko experiences frustration over her lack of mobility at work. Her boss kills himself.
*Touko experiences relationship difficulties, getting dumped by two men in succession.
*Touko becomes emotionally unstable and Lain begins to diagnose her.
*Lain meets her Wired entity and kills her physical self.
*Lain appears before Touko and kills her, absorbing her personality into the wired.

==Characters==
[[Lain Iwakura]]
An apparently ordinary girl with a highly introverted nature and low self-esteem. At age 11, she begins to see and hear hallucinations, most prominently a double of herself. As a result, she sees a therapist at Tachibana General Laboratories. Lain also proves to be adept at psychology and computer science. Most of all, she is unbearably lonely.

[[Touko Yonera]]
Recently graduated from an American university, Touko serves as Lain's counselor and psychiatrist. She is a new employee at Tachibana Research Center, and Lain is her very first client, establishing quite a good relationship with her.

[[Makino Shin'ichirou]]
An ordinary office worker who encounters Lain online. Impressed with her abilities, he provides news, data and computer parts for her.

[[Tomo]]
A boy in Lain's elementary school class that Lain has a crush on.

[[Kyoko]]
A girl in Lain's elementary school class that Lain is somewhat friendly with, who treats Lain like a younger sister.

[[Mayu]]
A friend of Kyoko's.

[[Kaori]]
A girl in Lain's elementary school class that tries to be friendly with everyone.

[[Yasuo Iwakura]]
Lain's father. He and Lain are very close and he treats Lain very kindly, often buying her presents. He is a businessman that occasionally needs to travel.

[[Miho Iwakura]]
Lain's mother. She and Lain are on slightly less good terms, and she is a bit harder on Lain than her father. She still treats Lain very well and looks after her when she needs help. She is a housewife.

[[Misato]]
Lain's (imaginary) friend in her middle school class. Getting along extremely well, Lain and her do all sorts of things together, at least in Lain's memory. Misato is an ideal girl, able to play the violin beautifully, paint exquisitely, and is also very beautiful and elegant.

[[Harumi]]
Touko's longtime friend. She rather abruptly gets married.

[[Kanako]]
Touko's longtime friend. She's a hardworking woman trying to become a publisher.

[[Takeshi]]
Touko's boyfriend, met while studying abroad. He works at Tachibana General Laboratories alongside Touko. Their relationship is very platonic.

[[Yoshida]]
Touko's other lover. He works at an exercise equipment manufacturing company that visits Tachibana General Laboratories from time to time. He is popular with women.

[[Professor Takashima]]
Touko's boss. A well-meaning man that often dumps chores on Touko, impeding her research. Touko hates him.

[[Mr. Rabbit]]
A friend that Lain made online. He teaches her how to hack.

[[Shock Spammer]]
A malevolent user online that sends encrypted shock images to Lain's inbox, such as images of a dead infant and a dead woman.

[[Progenetis]]
Lain's father. After the disappearance of Father, Lain begins to make artificial replacements of her friends and family, starting with Father.

[[Bike-chan]]
A stuffed toy dog that allegedly has been Lain since her birth. Lain seems to view it as a friend.

[[The Other Self]]
A hallucination of another Lain that appears nude. She is the reason that Lain starts seeing Touko.

[[CLN-1]]
An unnamed woman in a school-girl's uniform that shoots her boyfriend in public.

==File System==
The game's interface is designed to be somewhat similar to a database, apparently called the "life instinct function" or "lif", which appears to be located on a server at [[Tachibana General Laboratories]]. The name of the database could hint that it is serving the purpose of keeping lain alive somehow. The database is divided into two Sites: Site A and Site B. Site B is locked when the player begins the game, and can only be unlocked by finding updates hidden in the files. Each file in the site contains an invisible version number. The version of the player's in-game media player must be greater than or equal to that number in order to play the file. The media player can be updated by finding various upgrades hidden in the files.

Located within the database are several different filetypes:
*'''Lda''', standing for lain's_DIARY in game, is a collection of 237 diary entries written by Lain over the course of roughly three years. The diary was given to Lain by Touko early into the counseling sessions as a place to confide her often negative and personal feelings. Interestingly, there is an image included in the game of Touko giving Lain a physical book, but the diaries themselves have evidence to show that the diaries are electronic. It is possible that Lain writes the diaries and then records herself reading them.

*'''Tda''', or TOUKO'S_DIARY, is a collection of 92 diary entries written by Yonera Touko over the course of roughly two years.

*'''Cou''', or COUNSELING_REC. is a collection of 53 recordings of counseling sessions between Lain and Touko. While the earlier sessions had Touko acting as a counselor to Lain, in the final recordings the roles are reversed after Touko becomes unstable. Lain acts as a counselor using her wide knowledge of psychology from independent study.

*'''Dia''', or DIAGNOSIS_CLN## is a collection of 48 diagnoses by either Touko or Lain regarding their patient's behavior and actions to be taken as a result. Touko's recordings bear the designation CLN_01 (referring to Lain) and Lain's bear the designation CLN_00 (referring to Touko). The final recording is done by both.

*'''TaK''' is a series of 181 recordings of a single sentence each by either Lain or Touko, seemingly addressing the player. These sentences are often random questions. Unlike other filetypes, which are mostly presented in chronological order by level number, these files are presented in two apparently parallel chronologies, one consisting of the recordings by Lain (TaK001-TaK121) and the other by Touko (TaK122-181). There is no label for this filetype, but the Serial Experiments Lain Official Guide calls them "Talk" files.

*'''Ekm''' is a series of 6 recordings of conversations between Lain and Kyoko. The label for this filetype is "DATA of CLN01", but the Serial Experiments Lain Official Guide calls these files "Extra Kyoko's Memory". These files only exist on Site A.

*'''Ere''', or RESEARCH_"Ky" and RESEARCH_"Ka" is a series of 10 interviews between Touko and some of Lain's classmates regarding Lain. The Serial Experiments Official Guide calls these files "Extra Research". These files only exist on Site B.

*'''Eda''' or RESEARCH_"Ma" is a series of 4 counseling sessions between Makino and possibly Professor Takashima, and 1 news report. The fifth file has the designation NEWS_SHOW. The Serial Experiments Lain Official Guide calls these files "Extra Data". These files only exist on Site B.

*'''Sskn''' or SaiSei-kun is a collection of freeware upgrade apps for the game's movie playing tool. Each successive update unlocks more content. There are seven upgrades available. The designation for these files is "mT up-date App."

*'''P2-''' or POLY-TAN PARTS are pieces of a virtual bear model named Poly-tan. Collecting all parts unlocks some files, according to the Serial Experiments Lain Official Guide. There are 6 in all, all of which are located on Site A.

*'''GaTE''' is a series of network applications that are needed to proceed from Site A to Site B. There are 4 in all.

*'''Dc1''', or DATA of CLN## is a series of 57 animated video files, mostly of Lain. While the numbers do go up to 058, Dc1029 is missing. Unlike the other filetypes, these files are presented in mostly random order, Site A containing the first 28 and Site B containing the latter 29. Each video file has its own name. Interestingly, the name "drive" is used twice. It is unknown who filmed these files or for what purpose, or whether there was even a cameraman at all. While some files have a distinctly handheld look to them or are clearly for the purpose of filming a counseling session, others are far more unusual; some appear to be hidden cameras, others appear to be professionally edited to show a series of events from a certain angle, and still others appear to be impossible or difficult shots, like aerial shots or shots of Lain in a bathroom mirror with no visible camera behind her. The CLN number, or client number, varies occasionally, but for most of the files is CLN01, or Lain. A few files in Site B use the designations CLN00 (Touko) or CLN-1 (a seemingly unnamed woman). The missing file, Dc1029, appears to be located between Site A and B, and its contents are located in the short manga "[[The Nightmare of Fabrication]]". The Serial Experiments Lain Official Guide calls these files "Dcl".

*'''Env''' or network voices? is a series of 12 files that contain nothing but static and assorted voices. The server data for all these files are corrupted. These files are extra content and are not part of the regular game. All of these files are located on Site A's Level 0.

*'''Xv0''' is a collection of unused video clips. These files are extra content and are not part of the regular game.

*'''Xa''' is a collection of miscellaneous audio. Most of these files contain Touko in an apparent state of distress, though the first and last files contain Lain's voice. These files are extra content and are not part of the regular game.

==Connections between the game and the anime==
This game explains many elements in the [[Serial Experiments Lain (anime)|anime]] that are taken for granted or left unexplained. It can be considered an alternate timeline to the anime, perhaps one where Lain is incarnated into a different environment.

*Lain's haircut

In the game, it is revealed that Lain cut her own hair. The longer lock of hair where she clips her [[Lain's Hairclip|hairclip]] is meant to prevent something that "enters from the right" from "going out through the left". Not much is known about the context of this statement (at least to the English-speaking fandom), but it has been theorised that Lain's hairstyle wards off demons or prevents her memories from disappearing.

According to the [[Serial Experiments Lain Official Guide|guide]], Lain's mysterious statement is referring to her [[crosstalk|auditory hallucinations.]] See [[Q&A]] for more information.

*The chip from [[Layer 09]]

This may be the same in nature as the machine that [[Touko Yonera]] received from [[Tachibana General Laboratories]].

*Shared [[:Category:Themes|themes]]

As part of the same franchise, both the game and the anime cover topics such as the reliability of [[memory]] and the nature of existence and [[reality]].

==Translation==
Access to the fan translation at [https://laingame.net/ laingame.net]

As the videogame has never been officially translated, a team of fans has fan translated the entire game in English and made the nodes easily browsable. Project began in 2008 and the translation was released in 2014.

A long time passed after a team of volunteers decided to remake the game from the ground up using web technologies (React, three.js, WebGL) making the whole game playable in the web browser. Work on [https://github.com/ad044/lainTSX lainTSX] started solo by ad044 since August 2020, and on 13 September 2020 help was gathered from community. Decision to recreate the game in the browser made the translation, especially the integration of the subtitles easier, and gave the opportunity to smooth the gameplay and the animation using a better framerate and overall timing.

{{Media}}
[[Category:Media]]

List of fanworks based on Serial Experiments Lain

2024-11-28T01:17:55Z

INNERLMNT:

{{DISPLAYTITLE:List of fanworks based on ''Serial Experiments Lain''}}
This is a list of notable fanworks based on ''[[Serial Experiments Lain]]'', which includes (but is not limited to) derivative websites, fan projects, forums, and academic research dedicated to the series. The list is '''perpetually incomplete''', since it is updated based on notability.

'''If you have any suggestions for sites to add or if any of the links stop working, write so over [https://lain.wiki/wiki/User_talk:Prince here]. The site will be added or updated with Wayback Machine links.'''
<div style="float:right; font-size:100%; border:#A2A9B1 solid 1px;">__TOC__</div>
==Websites==
===English===
* [http://www.cjas.org/~leng/lain.htm Thought Experiments Lain] ([[Thought Experiments Lain|article]]) is owned by Lawrence Eng aka Lawmune. It includes, among other things, a review, fanart contest and glossary. It is perhaps best known for the [http://www.cjas.org/~leng/apple-lain.htm list of Apple references in Lain].
* [https://lainzine.org lainzine]: a lain-themed online magazine about hacking, art, culture, and related topics.
* [http://lain.angelic-trust.net/ Omnipresence] is full of information about SEL and includes episode transcripts, screencaps, a fanlisting and a very outdated list of links. It is impossible to navigate. Content is [http://lain.angelic-trust.net/wired.html here].
* [http://asphyxia.su/ asphyxia.su] is a collection of every background image from mebious, going back over a year.
* [https://mebi.wirechan.org/ Wirechan Mebious] clone of [[Mebious.co.uk]] hosted on wirechan website.
* [https://mebious.neocities.org wired.entry.neocities] Fansite under constant occasional development.
* [https://lainchan.org lainchan] Anonymous lain-themed imageboard that mainly focuses on programing, technology, and other things. It has a lain board that isn't as active and mainly uses the lain name to attract people interested in technology and coding.
* [https://wirechan.org/ wirechan] Anonymous lain-themed imageboard centered around technology, with its own mebious instance.
* [https://initiate.space/ initiate.space] Spiritual successor to systemspace. Themed around Lain, has an anonymous imageboard and discord server.
* [http://www.konaka.com/ konaka.com] the english version of a site made by [[Chiaki J. Konaka]]. It has interview, info, links, and images about the show. You could also download the font used in the anime.
* [https://fauux.neocities.org/ fauux] fan website
* [https://blackwings.neocities.org/ blackwings] fan website, inspired heavily by fauux
* [http://lain.sk/ lain.sk] slovakian lain fan website, originally published in 2006
* [https://lain.church/ lain.church] services offered by lainchan users
* [https://lain.la/ lain.la] - services offered by lainchan user
* [https://lainon.life/ lainon.life] lainchan radio with songs similar to that of serial experiments lain's OST
* [https://re.wire.zone/ re.wire.zone] wirechan group
* [https://distortiongallery.tripod.com/distortion.htm distortiongallery] displays a private collection of lain cels and other merchandise
* [https://www.angelfire.com/anime/lainpage/index.html angelfire] just another lain fan site
* [https://cff.ssw.net/forum/ old-home-bulletin-board] the name is a reference to haibane renmei and they mainly discuss the show as well as [[Yoshitoshi ABe| ABe]]
* [https://ain-and-lain.tumblr.com/ ain and lain] a fan blog site run by ain with various scans and unofficial translations of ABe and Konaka's works.
* [https://modesofdesign.wixsite.com/explained expLAINed] a fan site dedicated to "finding the complete 'true answer' of serial experiments lain."

===Japanese===
* [http://www.konaka.com/alice6/lain/ konaka.com], a site by Chiaki J. Konaka, has interviews, information about [[Books|books]], and links related to Lain, as well as a font that was used in the anime.
* [http://www.geocities.jp/zatugakubeya/lain/index.html Deep Researches Lain] has a glossary of terms from the anime and a quiz game.
* [http://members.jcom.home.ne.jp/grifonsgarden/garenwarehouse.htm Grifon's Garden] has pictures and descriptions of at least 6 homemade Lain figurines.
* [http://page.freett.com/boondock/lain/ LAINてんぷら] is a website used to start Lain threads on the 2channel BBS. Has links to many Lain threads on 2ch and many other obscure and edifying Lain-related links. てんぷら (tempura) is slang for template.
* [http://page.freett.com/m_utsumi/ Protocol of lain's world] has lots of great and rare info, but mostly in Japanese, because the English portion of the site is unfinished. (Click lain's face to access the content.)

===Russian===
* [http://boards.haruhiism.net/abe/ Old Home], an image board that is primarily for discussions related to ABe.
* [http://lain.ru/index.php lain.ru]
* [https://lain.in.net/ lain.in] russian speaking, lain themed forum
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20010405072957/http://lain.narod.ru/ lain.narod] old website with lots of lain related information.

===French===
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20051027100229/http://serialain.ifrance.com/ serialain.ifrance.com], a site that stores a lot of lain related, info and images.
* [http://supagil.chez.com/sitehtmlain/laintml.htm supagil.chez] a lain fan site made in pure html with pics, videos, glossary and links to other lain sites.
* [http://memelaraison.chez.com/serialexp-intro.htm memelaraison.chez.com] is a lain fan site, with pictures of the anime and lain magazines as well as lyrics.

===Spanish===
* [https://wired-7.org wired-7] Spanish speaking, lain themed imageboard.
* [https://disboard.org/server/779888683967971359 LaiÑ] Spanish speaking, lain discord server.

===Korean===
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20051018025112/http://www.lain.pe.ky/ lain.pe.ky] Korean speaking, lain themed imageboard

===German===
* [http://www.lain-disconnected.de/phpBB/index.php lain-disconnected] is a german forum board based around lain which is ran on phpBB

===Polish===
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20070108042514/http://experimentslain.ovh.org/index2.php experimentslain.ovh] Fansite, with fanart, cyberpunk, and other lain related info.
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20081023233154/http://lain.klub.mylog.pl/ lain.klub] Polish speaking, lain themed imagedboard

===Chinese===
* [https://geocities.haggenso.org/Lain/ Haggenso Lain Geocities] One of the only Chinese-language Lain fansites, created by Dr. Haggen So.

==Defunct websites==
* [http://www.mebious.co.uk/ Mebious.co.uk] ([[Mebious.co.uk|article]]) comes from a URL that appears briefly on a pressure gauge. Sometimes called "Mebi" or "Mebby". Allows anonymous text or image posting. The most recent 10 lines of text are displayed. It has been inactive since November 11, 2020.
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20100515000251/http://thewired.info/ Thewired.info] ([[Thewired.info|article]]) just another lain related image-board
* [http://per.hedbor.org/lain/ Serial Experiments Lain: Root] ([[Serial Experiments Lain: Root|article]]) had a collection of Lain media for download, including cover scans and soundtracks.
* [http://misslain.homestead.com/index.html Lain - Alive in Cyberspace] included reviews, screencaps, poetry, and a rather intriguing [http://misslain.homestead.com/cyberqs.html dialogue] on Lain. Site has been disabled.
* [http://hr.deadgods.net/hr/index/ Wakachan's ABe board], R.I.P.
* [http://cerealexperiments.com cerealexperiments.com] Website that had an imageboard that was barely Lain-related.
* [http://easterncalcul.us/ ahania's boards] are available intermittently. /ec/ is for general discussion and /l/ is for all things Lain. Feel free to start or join in a discussion.
* [http://www.geocities.com/Tokyo/Gulf/9755/ serial experiments lain - Unnoficial Homepage in the Wired]
* [http://www.mebious.mobi/ Mebious.mobi] ([[Mebious.mobi|article]]), sometimes called "Mobi", is inspired by Mebious and notably includes features such as music upload and auto-refresh. (defunct as of May 10th 2015)
* [https://mebio.us Mebio.us] ([[Mebio.us|article]]) was another clone of the original .co.uk site, created after the closure of Mobi.
* [[VisualWired]]
* [https://legacy.arisuchan.jp/ arisuchan] anonymous lain-themed cyberpunk imageboard with a dedicated /lain/ board, it has since been archived.
* [https://discord.gg/Zwe6v35WRv lainland] Was a biggest lain discord server at one point, currently archived.
* [https://systemspace.link/ systemspace.link] Religion lightly themed around SEL. Has an anonymous imageboard named TSUKICHAN and a Rocket.Chat server.
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20061208075509/http://www.cyberia-anime.com/ cyberia-anime] Cyberia Cafe - one of the first Lain fansites, started on 1999-04-18.
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20030330214322/http://kokujin.members.animeirc.com/ kokujin] Kokujin
* [http://www.lainspotting.com/ lainspotting] images of lain in different places

==Essays==
* [[VKK 320: Decoding Virtual Culture in the Media - a case-study of Serial Experiments Lain]]
* [[Serial Experiments: Lain as a Reflection of Modern Japanese Anxieties in the Digital Era]]
* [[The Role of Technology in Modern Society according to Serial Experiments Lain]]
* [[The Problem of Existence in Japanese Animation]]
* [[The Sight of Your God Disturbs Me: Questioning the Post-Christian Bodies of Buffy, Lain, and George]]
* [[Give some examples of cybernetic systems at play in specific visual texts. What metaphors of the body in contemporary society do they suggest? And to what commodity end are they marketed?]]
* [[To What Commodity End are Concepts of the ‘Post-Human’ and the ‘Cyborg’ Marketed? Give screen and theoretical examples of each.]]
* [[The Real Verses the Virtual]] [sic]
* [[All I Ever Needed To Know In This Fragile Layer Of Existence We Call The Real World I Learned From Serial Experiments Lain]]
* [[Tumbling Down the Rabbit Hole: An Essay on Serial Experiments Lain]]

==Scholarly articles and books==
*"Topologies of Identity in Serial Experiments Lain" by Craig Jackson, published in ''Mechademia'', Volume 7, 2012, pp. 191-201 [http://muse.jhu.edu/journals/mec/summary/v007/7.jackson01.html]
*"The Signal of Noise" (manga) by Adèle-Elise Prévost and MUSEbasement, published in ''Mechademia'', Volume 3, 2008, pp. 173-188 [http://muse.jhu.edu/journals/mec/summary/v003/3.prevost.html]
*"When the Machines Stop: Fantasy, Reality, and Terminal Identity in Neon Genesis Evangelion and Serial Experiments Lain" by Susan J. Napier, published in ''Science Fiction Studies'' vol.29, No. 3, Japanese Science Fiction (Nov. 2002) pp. 418-435 [http://www.jstor.org/stable/4241108]
*"The Problem of Existence in Japanese Animation" by Susan J. Napier, published in ''Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society'', Vol. 149, No. 1 (Mar., 2005), pp.72-79 [http://www.jstor.org/stable/4598910]
*"Screening Anime" by Steven T. Brown, an essay published in the 2006 book ''Cinema Anime'', a collection of essays by various authors, edited by Brown. [http://www.palgrave.com/us/book/9781403970602]
*''Tokyo Cyberpunk: Posthumanism in Japanese Visual Culture'' by Steven T. Brown. This time the whole book is by Brown. [http://www.palgrave.com/us/book/9780230103597]

==Games==
* [https://laingame.net/ Lain Game] contains files from the [[Serial Experiments Lain (game)|Serial Experiments Lain PSX game]], extracted using jPSXdec. It also includes a playable web-version of the game.
* [[Lain Visual Novel Project]], a project to create a Serial Experiments Lain visual novel, started on [[mebious.co.uk]] and worked on here.

==Software==
* [[Serial Experiments Lain Winamp Skins]] contains a collection of Lain-themed skins that have been created for the audio playback software Winamp

==Analysis==
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RjaG8gqE7uY&feature=g-u-u Youtube video] Analyzing exactly what happened in the anime.

==Fan fiction==

===English===
* [http://www.fanfiction.net/s/2196634/1/Stopped Stopped], a short story that concisely captures the essence of Serial Experiments Lain.
"Lain's watch stopped..."
* [http://www.fanfiction.net/s/6974007/1/The_Gods_Themselves The Gods Themselves], an odd crossover between SEL and Puella Magi Madoka Magica in which Lain and Madokami are indistinguishable and [[Alice Mizuki]] discusses [[God]] with Homura.
""Mit der Dummheit kämpfen Götter selbst vergebens.*" Lain. Madoka. Homura. Arisu. I am uncertain what genre to classify this under."
(*Against stupidity the gods themselves contend in vain.)

===Japanese===
* [http://www.pixiv.net/member_illust.php?mode=medium&illust_id=14756418 せりあｌ　えｘぺりめんｔｓ　ぁいｎ], a manga by Gomennasai on Pixiv, probably inspired by [[Chibi Chibi Lain]].
* [http://ifs.nog.cc/i25127.at.infoseek.co.jp/281/rakkatan.html Ganbare Rakka-tan], a Lain/NieA/Haibane crossover manga in the style of Abe, drawn by a user of the 2channel board "hankaku nijigen ita" who went by the name ''281''.
* [http://elephant.2chblog.jp/archives/52044575.html One], [http://elephant.2chblog.jp/archives/52064879.html two], [http://elephant.2chblog.jp/archives/52067572.html three] threads archived from news4vip at 2ch.

==Music==
* [https://archive.org/details/keif_mesa_earth_brain_waves Earth Brain Waves], A concept album. The theme imaged the world of the network by the Schumann resonance in serial experiments lain.
* [http://3x6x.com/discography.html SUBHUMAN], serial experiments lain image album
[[Category:Media]]

Fanworks

2024-11-28T01:16:47Z

INNERLMNT: INNERLMNT moved page Fanworks to List of fanworks based on Serial Experiments Lain: more descriptive and unambiguous title

#REDIRECT [[List of fanworks based on Serial Experiments Lain]]

List of fanworks based on Serial Experiments Lain

2024-11-28T01:16:47Z

INNERLMNT: INNERLMNT moved page Fanworks to List of fanworks based on Serial Experiments Lain: more descriptive and unambiguous title

This is a list of notable fanworks based on ''[[Serial Experiments Lain]]'', which includes (but is not limited to) derivative websites, fan projects, forums, and academic research dedicated to the series. The list is '''perpetually incomplete''', since it is updated based on notability.

'''If you have any suggestions for sites to add or if any of the links stop working, write so over [https://lain.wiki/wiki/User_talk:Prince here]. The site will be added or updated with Wayback Machine links.'''
<div style="float:right; font-size:100%; border:#A2A9B1 solid 1px;">__TOC__</div>
==Related Websites==
===English===
* [http://www.cjas.org/~leng/lain.htm Thought Experiments Lain] ([[Thought Experiments Lain|article]]) is owned by Lawrence Eng aka Lawmune. It includes, among other things, a review, fanart contest and glossary. It is perhaps best known for the [http://www.cjas.org/~leng/apple-lain.htm list of Apple references in Lain].
* [https://lainzine.org lainzine]: a lain-themed online magazine about hacking, art, culture, and related topics.
* [http://lain.angelic-trust.net/ Omnipresence] is full of information about SEL and includes episode transcripts, screencaps, a fanlisting and a very outdated list of links. It is impossible to navigate. Content is [http://lain.angelic-trust.net/wired.html here].
* [http://asphyxia.su/ asphyxia.su] is a collection of every background image from mebious, going back over a year.
* [https://mebi.wirechan.org/ Wirechan Mebious] clone of [[Mebious.co.uk]] hosted on wirechan website.
* [https://mebious.neocities.org wired.entry.neocities] Fansite under constant occasional development.
* [https://lainchan.org lainchan] Anonymous lain-themed imageboard that mainly focuses on programing, technology, and other things. It has a lain board that isn't as active and mainly uses the lain name to attract people interested in technology and coding.
* [https://wirechan.org/ wirechan] Anonymous lain-themed imageboard centered around technology, with its own mebious instance.
* [https://initiate.space/ initiate.space] Spiritual successor to systemspace. Themed around Lain, has an anonymous imageboard and discord server.
* [http://www.konaka.com/ konaka.com] the english version of a site made by [[Chiaki J. Konaka]]. It has interview, info, links, and images about the show. You could also download the font used in the anime.
* [https://fauux.neocities.org/ fauux] fan website
* [https://blackwings.neocities.org/ blackwings] fan website, inspired heavily by fauux
* [http://lain.sk/ lain.sk] slovakian lain fan website, originally published in 2006
* [https://lain.church/ lain.church] services offered by lainchan users
* [https://lain.la/ lain.la] - services offered by lainchan user
* [https://lainon.life/ lainon.life] lainchan radio with songs similar to that of serial experiments lain's OST
* [https://re.wire.zone/ re.wire.zone] wirechan group
* [https://distortiongallery.tripod.com/distortion.htm distortiongallery] displays a private collection of lain cels and other merchandise
* [https://www.angelfire.com/anime/lainpage/index.html angelfire] just another lain fan site
* [https://cff.ssw.net/forum/ old-home-bulletin-board] the name is a reference to haibane renmei and they mainly discuss the show as well as [[Yoshitoshi ABe| ABe]]
* [https://ain-and-lain.tumblr.com/ ain and lain] a fan blog site run by ain with various scans and unofficial translations of ABe and Konaka's works.
* [https://modesofdesign.wixsite.com/explained expLAINed] a fan site dedicated to "finding the complete 'true answer' of serial experiments lain."

===Japanese===
* [http://www.konaka.com/alice6/lain/ konaka.com], a site by Chiaki J. Konaka, has interviews, information about [[Books|books]], and links related to Lain, as well as a font that was used in the anime.
* [http://www.geocities.jp/zatugakubeya/lain/index.html Deep Researches Lain] has a glossary of terms from the anime and a quiz game.
* [http://members.jcom.home.ne.jp/grifonsgarden/garenwarehouse.htm Grifon's Garden] has pictures and descriptions of at least 6 homemade Lain figurines.
* [http://page.freett.com/boondock/lain/ LAINてんぷら] is a website used to start Lain threads on the 2channel BBS. Has links to many Lain threads on 2ch and many other obscure and edifying Lain-related links. てんぷら (tempura) is slang for template.
* [http://page.freett.com/m_utsumi/ Protocol of lain's world] has lots of great and rare info, but mostly in Japanese, because the English portion of the site is unfinished. (Click lain's face to access the content.)

===Russian===
* [http://boards.haruhiism.net/abe/ Old Home], an image board that is primarily for discussions related to ABe.
* [http://lain.ru/index.php lain.ru]
* [https://lain.in.net/ lain.in] russian speaking, lain themed forum
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20010405072957/http://lain.narod.ru/ lain.narod] old website with lots of lain related information.

===French===
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20051027100229/http://serialain.ifrance.com/ serialain.ifrance.com], a site that stores a lot of lain related, info and images.
* [http://supagil.chez.com/sitehtmlain/laintml.htm supagil.chez] a lain fan site made in pure html with pics, videos, glossary and links to other lain sites.
* [http://memelaraison.chez.com/serialexp-intro.htm memelaraison.chez.com] is a lain fan site, with pictures of the anime and lain magazines as well as lyrics.

===Spanish===
* [https://wired-7.org wired-7] Spanish speaking, lain themed imageboard.
* [https://disboard.org/server/779888683967971359 LaiÑ] Spanish speaking, lain discord server.

===Korean===
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20051018025112/http://www.lain.pe.ky/ lain.pe.ky] Korean speaking, lain themed imageboard

===German===
* [http://www.lain-disconnected.de/phpBB/index.php lain-disconnected] is a german forum board based around lain which is ran on phpBB

===Polish===
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20070108042514/http://experimentslain.ovh.org/index2.php experimentslain.ovh] Fansite, with fanart, cyberpunk, and other lain related info.
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20081023233154/http://lain.klub.mylog.pl/ lain.klub] Polish speaking, lain themed imagedboard

===Chinese===
* [https://geocities.haggenso.org/Lain/ Haggenso Lain Geocities] One of the only Chinese-language Lain fansites, created by Dr. Haggen So.

==Past Related Websites==
* [http://www.mebious.co.uk/ Mebious.co.uk] ([[Mebious.co.uk|article]]) comes from a URL that appears briefly on a pressure gauge. Sometimes called "Mebi" or "Mebby". Allows anonymous text or image posting. The most recent 10 lines of text are displayed. It has been inactive since November 11, 2020.
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20100515000251/http://thewired.info/ Thewired.info] ([[Thewired.info|article]]) just another lain related image-board
* [http://per.hedbor.org/lain/ Serial Experiments Lain: Root] ([[Serial Experiments Lain: Root|article]]) had a collection of Lain media for download, including cover scans and soundtracks.
* [http://misslain.homestead.com/index.html Lain - Alive in Cyberspace] included reviews, screencaps, poetry, and a rather intriguing [http://misslain.homestead.com/cyberqs.html dialogue] on Lain. Site has been disabled.
* [http://hr.deadgods.net/hr/index/ Wakachan's ABe board], R.I.P.
* [http://cerealexperiments.com cerealexperiments.com] Website that had an imageboard that was barely Lain-related.
* [http://easterncalcul.us/ ahania's boards] are available intermittently. /ec/ is for general discussion and /l/ is for all things Lain. Feel free to start or join in a discussion.
* [http://www.geocities.com/Tokyo/Gulf/9755/ serial experiments lain - Unnoficial Homepage in the Wired]
* [http://www.mebious.mobi/ Mebious.mobi] ([[Mebious.mobi|article]]), sometimes called "Mobi", is inspired by Mebious and notably includes features such as music upload and auto-refresh. (defunct as of May 10th 2015)
* [https://mebio.us Mebio.us] ([[Mebio.us|article]]) was another clone of the original .co.uk site, created after the closure of Mobi.
* [[VisualWired]]
* [https://legacy.arisuchan.jp/ arisuchan] anonymous lain-themed cyberpunk imageboard with a dedicated /lain/ board, it has since been archived.
* [https://discord.gg/Zwe6v35WRv lainland] Was a biggest lain discord server at one point, currently archived.
* [https://systemspace.link/ systemspace.link] Religion lightly themed around SEL. Has an anonymous imageboard named TSUKICHAN and a Rocket.Chat server.
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20061208075509/http://www.cyberia-anime.com/ cyberia-anime] Cyberia Cafe - one of the first Lain fansites, started on 1999-04-18.
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20030330214322/http://kokujin.members.animeirc.com/ kokujin] Kokujin
* [http://www.lainspotting.com/ lainspotting] images of lain in different places

==Essays==
* [[VKK 320: Decoding Virtual Culture in the Media - a case-study of Serial Experiments Lain]]
* [[Serial Experiments: Lain as a Reflection of Modern Japanese Anxieties in the Digital Era]]
* [[The Role of Technology in Modern Society according to Serial Experiments Lain]]
* [[The Problem of Existence in Japanese Animation]]
* [[The Sight of Your God Disturbs Me: Questioning the Post-Christian Bodies of Buffy, Lain, and George]]
* [[Give some examples of cybernetic systems at play in specific visual texts. What metaphors of the body in contemporary society do they suggest? And to what commodity end are they marketed?]]
* [[To What Commodity End are Concepts of the ‘Post-Human’ and the ‘Cyborg’ Marketed? Give screen and theoretical examples of each.]]
* [[The Real Verses the Virtual]] [sic]
* [[All I Ever Needed To Know In This Fragile Layer Of Existence We Call The Real World I Learned From Serial Experiments Lain]]
* [[Tumbling Down the Rabbit Hole: An Essay on Serial Experiments Lain]]

==Scholarly articles and books==
*"Topologies of Identity in Serial Experiments Lain" by Craig Jackson, published in ''Mechademia'', Volume 7, 2012, pp. 191-201 [http://muse.jhu.edu/journals/mec/summary/v007/7.jackson01.html]
*"The Signal of Noise" (manga) by Adèle-Elise Prévost and MUSEbasement, published in ''Mechademia'', Volume 3, 2008, pp. 173-188 [http://muse.jhu.edu/journals/mec/summary/v003/3.prevost.html]
*"When the Machines Stop: Fantasy, Reality, and Terminal Identity in Neon Genesis Evangelion and Serial Experiments Lain" by Susan J. Napier, published in ''Science Fiction Studies'' vol.29, No. 3, Japanese Science Fiction (Nov. 2002) pp. 418-435 [http://www.jstor.org/stable/4241108]
*"The Problem of Existence in Japanese Animation" by Susan J. Napier, published in ''Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society'', Vol. 149, No. 1 (Mar., 2005), pp.72-79 [http://www.jstor.org/stable/4598910]
*"Screening Anime" by Steven T. Brown, an essay published in the 2006 book ''Cinema Anime'', a collection of essays by various authors, edited by Brown. [http://www.palgrave.com/us/book/9781403970602]
*''Tokyo Cyberpunk: Posthumanism in Japanese Visual Culture'' by Steven T. Brown. This time the whole book is by Brown. [http://www.palgrave.com/us/book/9780230103597]

==Games==
* [https://laingame.net/ Lain Game] contains files from the [[Serial Experiments Lain (game)|Serial Experiments Lain PSX game]], extracted using jPSXdec. It also includes a playable web-version of the game.
* [[Lain Visual Novel Project]], a project to create a Serial Experiments Lain visual novel, started on [[mebious.co.uk]] and worked on here.

==Software==
* [[Serial Experiments Lain Winamp Skins]] contains a collection of Lain-themed skins that have been created for the audio playback software Winamp

==Analysis==
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RjaG8gqE7uY&feature=g-u-u Youtube video] Analyzing exactly what happened in the anime.

==Fanfiction==

===English===
* [http://www.fanfiction.net/s/2196634/1/Stopped Stopped], a short story that concisely captures the essence of Serial Experiments Lain.
"Lain's watch stopped..."
* [http://www.fanfiction.net/s/6974007/1/The_Gods_Themselves The Gods Themselves], an odd crossover between SEL and Puella Magi Madoka Magica in which Lain and Madokami are indistinguishable and [[Alice Mizuki]] discusses [[God]] with Homura.
""Mit der Dummheit kämpfen Götter selbst vergebens.*" Lain. Madoka. Homura. Arisu. I am uncertain what genre to classify this under."
(*Against stupidity the gods themselves contend in vain.)

===Japanese===
* [http://www.pixiv.net/member_illust.php?mode=medium&illust_id=14756418 せりあｌ　えｘぺりめんｔｓ　ぁいｎ], a manga by Gomennasai on Pixiv, probably inspired by [[Chibi Chibi Lain]].
* [http://ifs.nog.cc/i25127.at.infoseek.co.jp/281/rakkatan.html Ganbare Rakka-tan], a Lain/NieA/Haibane crossover manga in the style of Abe, drawn by a user of the 2channel board "hankaku nijigen ita" who went by the name ''281''.
* [http://elephant.2chblog.jp/archives/52044575.html One], [http://elephant.2chblog.jp/archives/52064879.html two], [http://elephant.2chblog.jp/archives/52067572.html three] threads archived from news4vip at 2ch.

==Music==
* [https://archive.org/details/keif_mesa_earth_brain_waves Earth Brain Waves], A concept album. The theme imaged the world of the network by the Schumann resonance in serial experiments lain.
* [http://3x6x.com/discography.html SUBHUMAN], serial experiments lain image album
[[Category:Media]]

List of fanworks based on Serial Experiments Lain

2024-11-28T01:16:15Z

INNERLMNT:

Serial Experiments Lain: Cyberia Mix

2024-10-08T13:19:07Z

INNERLMNT:

{{DISPLAYTITLE:''Serial Experiments Lain: Cyberia Mix''}}{{MediaInfo
|image = File:Cd-cyb.jpg
|released = October 21, 1998
|format = CD
|artists = [[Chikada Wasei]], Akira Takemoto, [[bôa]]
|related = [[Serial Experiments Lain (anime)|Anime]]
|genre = Hardcore techno, tribal house, jungle, alternative rock, dub
|length = 61:32
|publisher = Pioneer
}}

'''''Serial Experiments Lain: Cyberia Mix''''' (also stylized as '''''serial experiments lain sound track Cyberia Mix''''') is the second soundtrack for the ''Serial Experiments Lain'' [[Serial Experiments Lain (anime)|anime]]. It acts a soundtrack for the fictional nightclub Cyberia, which is depicted in the show. ''Cyberia Mix'' was created by [[Chikada Wasei]] and Akira Takemoto. It also features the TV edit and a remix of the opening theme song, "Duvet" -- both of which were removed for the American pressing.

Though none of the songs were featured within the series itself, several of the songs are based on the [[serial experiments lain BOOTLEG|score composed by Takemoto]]. "antidepressant o44" is based on "Cyberia Texture 5a" and "Cyberia Texture 5b"; "invisible file" samples "Collapsing Mika" and "Adult Site"; "prayer" centers around "Enormous Lain"; "K.I.D.s" contains elements of "KIDS system" and "Beauties of nature"; and "INFANiTy world" opens with a sample of "Loneliness 1b".

== Track list ==
{{Track listing
| collapsed =no
| headline =Serial Experiments Lain: Cyberia Mix (Original Release)
| total_length =1:01:31
| music_credits =yes
| title1 ="s"peEd
| music1 =Chikada "J.J" Wasei
| length1 =5:23
| title2 =Duvet (Cyberia reMIX)
| music2 =Bôa
| length2 =5:19
| title3 =professed intention and real intention
| music3 =Chikada "J.J" Wasei
| length3 =4:36
| title4 =antidepressant 044
| music4 =Chikada "J.J" Wasei
| length4 =6:16
| title5 =psychedelic farm
| music5 =Akira Takemoto
| length5 =4:23
| title6 =invisible file
| music6 =Chikada "J.J" Wasei
| length6 =4:53
| title7 =prayer
| music7 =Akira Takemoto
| length7 =5:58
| title8 =Island in Video Casset
| music8 =Akira Takemoto
| length8 =5:38
| title9 =K.I.D.s
| music9 =Chikada "J.J" Wasei
| length9 =6:56
| title10 =Cloudy, with occasional rain
| music10 =Akira Takemoto
| length10 =5:07
| title11 =INFANiTy World
| music11 =Chikada "J.J" Wasei
| length11 =5:23
| title12 =Duvet (TV Sized)
| music12 =Bôa
| length12 =1:40
}}
{{Track listing
| collapsed =no
| headline =Serial Experiments Lain: Cyberia Mix (American Release)
| total_length =48:55
| music_credits =yes
| title1 ="s"peEd
| music1 =Chikada "J.J" Wasei
| length1 =5:23
| title2 =professed intention and real intention
| music2 =Chikada "J.J" Wasei
| length2 =4:36
| title3 =antidepressant 044
| music3 =Chikada "J.J" Wasei
| length3 =6:16
| title4 =psychedelic farm
| music4 =Akira Takemoto
| length4 =4:23
| title5 =invisible file
| music5 =Chikada "J.J" Wasei
| length5 =4:53
| title6 =prayer
| music6 =Akira Takemoto
| length6 =5:58
| title7 =Island in Video Casset
| music7 =Akira Takemoto
| length7 =5:38
| title8 =K.I.D.s
| music8 =Chikada "J.J" Wasei
| length8 =6:56
| title9 =Cloudy, with occasional rain
| music9 =Akira Takemoto
| length9 =5:07
| title10 =INFANiTy World
| music10 =Chikada "J.J" Wasei
| length10 =5:23
}}
{{Media}}
[[Category:Music]]

Serial Experiments Lain Winamp Skins

2024-10-08T13:18:39Z

INNERLMNT:

Winamp is a desktop media player application developed by Justin Frankel and Dmitry Boldyrev for [[wikipedia:Microsoft Windows|Windows]]. One of its best known features is its customization, allowing users to change every visual detail about the player. Over the years, a number of Serial Experiments Lain fans have created Lain-themed Winamp skins for use with the program.

A collection of these skins that have been saved on the Internet Archive have been included below.

==Serial Experiments LAIN by Nasgar0th==

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!colspan="2"| Winamp Skin Information
|-
|colspan="2"| [[File:Lain Winamp Skin by Nasgar0th.png|thumb|center]]
|-
| Name
| Serial Experiments LAIN
|-
| Author
| Nasgar0th
|-
| Internet Archive Link
| [https://archive.org/details/winampskin_lain lain : Nasgar0th : Internet Archive]
|-
| Original Source
| [https://www.deviantart.com/nasgar0th/art/Serial-Experiments-LAIN-21116258 DeviantArt - Nasgar0th]
|}

==Serial Experiments Lain by Unknown==

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!colspan="2"| Winamp Skin Information
|-
|colspan="2"| [[File:Serial Experiments Lain Winamp Skin by Unknown.png|thumb|center]]
|-
| Name
| Serial Experiments Lain
|-
| Author
| Unknown
|-
| Internet Archive Link
| [https://archive.org/details/winampskins_Serial_Experiments_Lain_1 Serial_Experiments_Lain.wsz : Internet Archive]
|-
| Original Source
| Unknown
|}

==Serial Experiments Lain by Unknown==

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!colspan="2"| Winamp Skin Information
|-
|colspan="2"| [[File:Serial Experiments Lain winamp skin by Unknown.png|thumb|center]]
|-
| Name
| Serial Experiments Lain
|-
| Author
| Unknown
|-
| Internet Archive Link
| [https://archive.org/details/winampskins_serial_experiments_lain serial_experiments_lain.wsz : Internet Archive]
|-
| Original Source
| Unknown
|}

==Serial Experiments Lain - You Don't Understand by Unknown==

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!colspan="2"| Winamp Skin Information
|-
|colspan="2"| [[File:Serial Experiments Lain - You Don't Understand Winamp Skin.png|thumb|center]]
|-
| Name
| Serial Experiments Lain - You Don't Understand
|-
| Author
| Unknown
|-
| Internet Archive Link
| [https://archive.org/details/winampskins_Serial_Experiments_Lain_-_You_Don_t_Understand Serial Experiments Lain - You Don't Understand.wsz : Internet Archive]
|-
| Original Source
| Unknown
|}

==Serial Experiments Lain - A Rainy Day==

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!colspan="2"| Winamp Skin Information
|-
|colspan="2"| [[File:Serial Experiments Lain - A Rainy Day Winamp Skin.png|thumb|center]]
|-
| Name
| Serial Experiments Lain - A Rainy Day
|-
| Author
| Unknown
|-
| Internet Archive Link
| [https://archive.org/details/winampskins_Serial_Experiments_Lain_-_A_Rainy_Day Serial Experiments Lain - A Rainy Day.wsz : Internet Archive]
|-
| Original Source
| Unknown
|}

==Serial Experiments Lain - Staring Into Darkness==

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!colspan="2"| Winamp Skin Information
|-
|colspan="2"| [[File:Serial Experiments Lain - Staring Into Darkness Winamp Skin.png|thumb|center]]
|-
| Name
| Serial Experiments Lain - Staring Into Darkness
|-
| Author
| Unknown
|-
| Internet Archive Link
| [https://archive.org/details/winampskins_Serial_Experiments_Lain_-_Staring_Into_Darkness Serial Experiments Lain - Staring Into Darkness.wsz : Internet Archive]
|-
| Original Source
| Unknown
|}

[[Category:Fanworks]]

User:INNERLMNT

2024-10-08T10:06:19Z

INNERLMNT:

{| style = "width:100%; background: #fae955; padding: 5px;"
| <div style ="align: center; font-size: 24pt; width: 260px; padding: 5px; background: #5A081C; color: #fae965;">Hi! I'm '''Arbër'''...</div>
|-
| style = "color: #5a081c;" | ...otherwise known as '''INNERLMNT''' (read: ''inner element''). I'm Kosovo-Albanian, and my pronouns are he/him. I got into ''Lain'' only by coming across the famous "[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u5xt5WG7tt0 Lain airing after 9/11]" video on March 22, 2024 (via [https://twitter.com/bbykyoko/status/1638434339158458369/video/1 bbykyoko] on Twitter), and then getting obsessed with the show's opening theme. Stuck around for the ride.

If you want to find me and my work across my other places on the internet, my Carrd is a good place to start. Visit my Carrd at https://innerlmnt.carrd.co

I'm also present on [[wikipedia:User:Fallbackintoreality|Wikipedia]], [https://community.fandom.com/wiki/User:Evolve330 Fandom.com] and other wikis.
|}

META:General disclaimer

2024-10-08T10:02:49Z

INNERLMNT:

The ''Serial Experiments Lain'' Wiki is an online, public collaboration of information centering around the show ''[[Serial Experiments Lain]]''. All information contained on this website is provided by the voluntary efforts of individual watchers and groups working to develop a comprehensive information resource for all ''Serial Experiments Lain'' fans to use and enjoy.

This website is an open wiki. It allows anyone with access to the Internet to create and alter its articles and content. Please note that articles and information found within this wiki have not necessarily been reviewed by the ''Serial Experiments Lain'' creators or its licensors.

Although much of the information presented on the ''Serial Experiments Lain'' Wiki will be accurate and up-to-date, administrators cannot guarantee the validity and quality of the information. It should be understood that the content of any article may be modified or changed at any time by any member of the community. It should also be understood that any wiki page has a risk of becoming vandalized or improperly altered by users.

To maintain a sense of community on this user-contributed resource, it is encouraged that any user encountering improper, offensive, or otherwise incorrect information simply take the time to edit the article in question and correct the problem. If any situations arise that warrant further involvement, they should be reported directly to ''Serial Experiments Lain'' Wiki moderators for review.

== No formal contibutor reviews ==
While the site administrators can and do watch Serial Experiments Lain, it should be understood that all articles cannot be officially reviewed at all times. Our community of editors use resources such as the [[Special:RecentChanges|Recent Changes feed]] and [[Special:NewPages|New Pages feed]] feeds to monitor new and changing content.

It should be clearly understood that the ''Serial Experiments Lain'' Wiki is not consistently reviewed by staff. While all volunteers may correct errors or engage in casual peer review, they have no legal duty to do so and thus all information read here is without any implied warranty of accuracy for any purpose or use whatsoever. Due to open community access to the ''Serial Experiments Lain'' Wiki, even articles that have been reviewed by official employees may later have been edited inappropriately, changing their original content.

None of the contributors, administrators, developers, or anyone else connected with the ''Serial Experiments Lain'' Wiki in any way whatsoever can be held responsible for the appearance of any inaccurate or libelous information or for your use of the information contained in or linked from these web pages.