Review by Christopher Butcher.
SERIAL
EXPERIMENTS LAIN: WIRED
Subtitled/Dubbed/DVD
Produced by Pioneer Entertainment Ltd.
In 1996 NEON GENESIS EVANGELION changed the way people in Japan viewed anime. Not the physical act of watching it, but the importance and thought placed upon it. When EVA, as it's known to it's fans, came to North America a year later it had a similar effect. It was, in short, a blueprint of everything that animation might become. A work with mature themes that didn't pander to the lowest sexual or violent denominator. An anime that seriously explored mans relationship with himself, his surroundings, and his faith.
It's 1999, and we finally have a successor to Eva - SERIAL EXPERIMENTS LAIN. While not a sequel, either directly or thematically, LAIN continues on the best of Evangelion - the idea that animation can be something more. It can use brilliant cinematography, have an engaging and disturbing script, beautiful music, and provocative emotions. LAIN's first episode, "Weird", opens with a dramatic suicide in the back alleys of Shizuoka, Tokyo, which is strangely one of the most straightforward, normal things that happens on the first tape. We're then introduced to Lain, a quiet, slightly immature 14 year old girl. She still pads around after school in a pair of pajamas with the feet sewn in. Her friends don't invite her out to the cool music clubs. She doesn't even have a real computer.
We very quickly notice that in Lain's world, things aren't quite right. The light and shadow on city streets are absolute contrasts of black and white. In the darkness of those shadows are red splatters of blood that no one can quite see. There's a David Lynch-ian sense of unease in the seemingly normal Tokyo of LAIN. Sparked by the suicide of the first two minutes of the film, and egged on by the discovery that the dead girl was a classmate of Lain's, and she's been sending E-mail to everyone in class (seemingly from beyond the grave).
LAIN is strange. LAIN is difficult. LAIN is not your average anime, and I for one could not be happier. There are no giant robot battles in this series, and there are no great big AKIRA style psychic wars (at least not in the first tape). There is however, a chilling and engrossing story, some beautiful art (integrating both conventional animation and computer-generated effects), and a truly wonderful theme song ("Duvet", by BOA). For all of you looking for something to fill the spiritual void left by the end of EVANGELION, look into SERIAL EXPERIMENTS LAIN. The Wired awaits all of us. SERIAL EXPERIMENTS LAIN.
Strongly recommended.
The 13 episodes of SERIAL EXPERIMENTS LAIN are being
collected on four tapes.
Tape 1- Navi (Episodes 1-4) Availible now
Tape 2- Knights (Eps. 5-7) Availible now
Tape 3- Deus (Eps. 8-10) Availible November
Tape 4- Reset(Eps 11-13) Availible December
Subtitled: $29.98 Dubbed: $24.98
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