<p>I watched Lain: Serial Experiments in Thought. It was pretty difficult to follow, but I thought the ending was reminiscent of a large number of these cartoons where main characters are in danger of losing their memory in the ending. Wonder what causes this frequent phenomenon? By any case, has anyone watched it?</p>
<p>Lain is a fantastic cyberpunk series. You're not going to get ANYTHING about a random episode (I know the one you mentioned isn't even within the first five). If you liked what you saw buy the box set or you can watch eps on YouTube. If you're in Canada it may come on "Anime Unleased" on G4TechTV. </p>
<p>If you want more cyberpunk/electronic-themed anime:
.hack//SIGN and the other .hacks
Armitage: Dual Matrix
Bubblegum Crisis (and Bubblegum Crisis 2040... I like this remake better)</p>
<p>This is my favourite anime....</p>
<p>I need to watch Boogiepop Phantom.</p>
<p>Lain bored the freaking snot out of me. It was like, trying to be complex and crap...but was really just melodramatic, slow, and nonsensical. Took itself WAY too seriously. Then again, a lot of anime does. I stopped watching that junk in middle school. I believe I've become a better person for it :P.</p>
<p>Yeah, either you LOVE Lain or you HATE it. It was trying to be complex? If it was trying, it succeeded. I wouldn't say 'trying' because its not like you could feel anything straining to achieve some sort of expectation. Everything flowed. It's complex and hard to understand. I usually don't like slow stories, too, but this one was good because the slow speed got you in touch with Lain better. If this story was faster, I don't think it would work. You wouldn't care about Lain enough. The speed didn't bother me at all. It took itself too seriously? Lain isn't supposed to be some sort of dramedy... We're not watching Desperate Housewives... I guess you thought it was too serious because you thought it was nonsensical.</p>
<p>I stopped watching a lot of anime in 8th grade, too. I think I started watching it to fit into some sort of crowd. I was feeling lonely and I guess this was my way to find a niche. But after I grew into myself a little, I realized how much I actually do not give a **** about anime and how much I don't care about Japan (because the anime kids ~love~ Japan. I think Japan is great but... they're a little fanatic...). </p>
<p>I still watch some of them, if its recommended to me. Anime is a pretty large genre, so I can't stop watching it completely.</p>
<p>I didn't expect many people to have watched Lain. I never heard anyone talking about it so I figured it wasn't a popular anime. (Was it popular back in 1999 or something? I wasn't into anime until 10th grade, and I was bored with most of it by 12th. I only enjoy watching a few anime now; the rest I watch just for Japanese language practice even though I feel like assaulting the creators and/or illogical and super-kawaii characters of the show.)</p>
<p>I liked it enough to re-watch it, but I'm still not sure if most of the series was carefully planned or if it's a bunch of random stuff which the audience has managed to assemble into a storyline. (It's frequently cited as a vague stream of consciousness, but many mysteries were created and never explained.)</p>
<p>Even though I critisize, I someday may rewatch choice parts.</p>
<p>I think the creator had some idea in his/her head, but wrote the story in such an open-ended and nebulous way that the audience is unable to glean any real - rather than merely imagined - meaning from it. Hence nonsensical. It didn't have the conciseness - ingenuity is arguable, I guess - a great poem or novel would have (something that would actually warrant hours devoted to unlocking its secrets - hah), but it acted like it wanted to be one. Hence melodrama. All that aside, in the end it's just a T.V. series, which isn't really the correct medium to convey a complex message requiring intense dissection in the first place. Hence taking itself too seriously.</p>
<p>Lain is a pretty popular anime. It's somewhat of a cult item. Most serious anime fanatics (you know, the indie rockers of TVdom) have seen it.</p>
<p>I don't think Lain is popular. I think it is a cult item, like hti said.</p>
<p>I always though Serial Experiment Lain was like Elfen Lied from the name lol. I watched it pretty recently and it reminds me of Akira. Animation was good (like Akira) but the storyline didnt make any sense until I watched it a second time lol. Even then it only half made sense :P</p>
<p>I have also watched Elfen Lied. I think it borrowed a bit from Lain since they both have disturbing elements. (Memory loss, a gloomy atmosphere, the concept of the world on the verge of upheaval. Even the ending sequence has a girl lying unclothed in the same position as in Lain.) But I think Lain was better written. Elfen Lied had a lot of cheap and meaningless anime cliches. (Guy moves into a house with his cousin, invites more and more girls to live with him, starts relationships.)</p>
<p>Just saying, feel free to ignore this post...</p>
<p>Love lain. :)</p>
<p>just look at my sn :)</p>
<p>I love cyberpunk.. anyone read any Gibson?</p>
<p>Gibson? Was he the guy who wrote the cyberpunk novels? No I haven't; is it any good? In fact is there better cyberpunk stories than even Lain?</p>
<p>^ dude, stop bumping up all of these old threads!</p>
<p>I've gotta watch Serial Experiments Lain. I saw an episode or two, but stopped watching for some reason. I saw .hack//Sign and thought it was great, so this one would probably be pretty good too.</p>
<p>
[quote]
Gibson? Was he the guy who wrote the cyberpunk novels? No I haven't; is it any good? In fact is there better cyberpunk stories than even Lain?
[/quote]
Yeah, Gibson wrote Neuromancer, which is a great book. I've read it, but not the other books he wrote. I'll get around to that some time ;/</p>
<p>And the .hack series is another good series that is similar to SEL, and of course, Ghost in the Shell, which is the quintessential cyberpunk manga/anime.</p>
<p>
[quote]
^ dude, stop bumping up all of these old threads!
[/quote]
What's wrong with him bumping up old threads? If it's a good topic, we might as well talk about it.</p>
<p>Oh gosh, I think I saw Lain a looong time ago, and it was so bizarre and confusing, but I thought it was pretty cool.</p>
<p>What was it about again?</p>
<p>
[quote]
What's wrong with him bumping up old threads? If it's a good topic, we might as well talk about it.
[/quote]
Maybe you didn't see how many he bumped up. All of his posts are threads bumped up by the OP. It would be different if it was just one or two, but seriously six? That's like half the page.</p>
<p>Is flyingatyoureye the second coming of charizardpal and/or sauronvoldermort. those guys were pretty funny, though stupid.</p>