Editing Serial Experiments Lain (section)

==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 [[Yasuyuki Ueda]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.animeland.com/index.php?rub=articles&id=399|work=AnimeLand|publisher=Anime Manga Presse|title=Abe Yoshitoshi et Ueda Yasuyuki|last=Scipion|first=Johan|access-date=September 16, 2006|language=fr|date=March 1, 2003|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927120258/http://www.animeland.com/index.php?rub=articles&id=399|archive-date=September 27, 2007|url-status=live}}</ref>

Ueda had to answer repeated queries about a statement he had made in an ''[[Animerica]]'' interview where he claimed that ''Lain'' was "a sort of cultural war against American culture and the American sense of values we [Japan] adopted after [[World War II]]".<ref name="Animerica3">''[[Animerica]]'', (Vol. 7 No. 9, p. 29)</ref><ref name="otakon" /><ref name="chat">{{cite web|url=http://www.cjas.org/~leng/lainchat.htm|author=The Anime Colony|title=Online Lain Chat with Yasuyuki Ueda and Yoshitoshi ABe|access-date=September 16, 2006|date=August 7, 2000|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061024122218/http://www.cjas.org/~leng/lainchat.htm|archive-date=October 24, 2006|url-status=live}}<!--Note: The moderated part is also available here: http://www.scifi.com/transcripts/2000/animemonday.html--></ref><ref name="Ueda">{{cite web|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080804105225/http://www.animejump.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=Sections&file=index&req=viewarticle&artid=32&page=1|archive-date=August 4, 2008|url=http://www.animejump.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=Sections&file=index&req=viewarticle&artid=32&page=1|title=Anime Jump!: Lain Men:Yasuyuki Ueda|access-date=September 26, 2006}}</ref> He later explained in numerous interviews that he created ''Lain'' with a set of values he viewed 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. When Ueda discovered that the American audience held most of the same views on the series as the Japanese did, he was disappointed.<ref name="Ueda" />

The ''Lain'' franchise was originally conceived to connect across forms of media (anime, video games, manga). 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 ''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.<ref name="Animerica2" />

===Writing===
The authors were asked in interviews if they had been influenced by ''[[Neon Genesis Evangelion]]'', in the themes and graphic design. This was strictly denied by writer [[Chiaki J. Konaka]] in an interview, arguing that he had not even seen ''Evangelion'' until he finished the fourth episode of ''Lain''. Being primarily a horror movie writer, his stated influences are [[Jean-Luc Godard|Godard]] (especially for using typography on screen), ''[[The Exorcist (film)|The Exorcist]]'', ''[[The Legend of Hell House|Hell House]]'', and [[Dan Curtis]]'s ''[[House of Dark Shadows]]''. Alice's name, like the names of her two friends Julie and Reika, came from a previous production from Konaka, {{ill|Alice in Cyberland|ja|ありす in Cyberland|italic=y}}, which in turn was largely influenced by ''[[Alice in Wonderland]]''. As the series developed, Konaka was "surprised" by how close Alice's character became to the original ''Wonderland'' character.<ref name="HK">{{cite journal|date=April 2000|title=Serial Experiments Lain|journal=[[HK Magazine]]|issue=14|publisher=Asia City Publishing|location=Hong Kong}} in {{cite web|url=http://www.konaka.com/alice6/lain/hk.html|title=HK Interview|publisher=[[Chiaki J. Konaka]]|access-date=September 25, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101124051110/http://konaka.com/alice6/lain/hk.html|archive-date=November 24, 2010|url-status=live}} and {{cite web|url=http://www.konaka.com/alice6/lain/hkint_e.html|title=HK Interview|publisher=Chiaki J. Konaka|access-date=September 25, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101101005437/http://konaka.com/alice6/lain/hkint_e.html|archive-date=November 1, 2010|url-status=live}}</ref>

[[File:Lain hacker small.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.13|alt=A young girl in a white shift sits with her back to us in the dark, focusing her attention on many glowing computer screens which surround her.|Lain's custom computer features [[holographic display]]s and [[liquid carbon dioxide]] cooling.]]

[[Vannevar Bush]] (and [[memex]]), [[John C. Lilly]], [[Timothy Leary]] and his [[eight-circuit model of consciousness]], [[Ted Nelson]] and [[Project Xanadu]] are cited as precursors to the Wired.<ref name="Animerica2">[[Animerica]], (Vol. 7 No. 9, p. 28)</ref> [[Douglas Rushkoff]] and his book ''[[Cyberia (book)|Cyberia]]'' were originally to be cited as such,<ref name="otakon" /> and in ''Serial Experiments: Lain'', Cyberia became the name of a nightclub populated with hackers and techno-punk teenagers. Likewise, the series' ''[[deus ex machina]]'' lies in the conjunction of the [[Schumann resonances]] and [[Carl Jung|Jung]]'s [[collective unconscious]] (the authors chose this term over [[Kabbalah]] and [[Akashic records|Akashic Record]]).<ref name="Animerica">''[[Animerica]]'', (Vol. 7 No. 9, p. 29)</ref> [[Majestic 12]] and the [[Roswell UFO incident]] are used as examples of how a hoax might still affect history, even after having been exposed as such, by creating sub-cultures.<ref name=Animerica /> This links again to Vannevar Bush, the alleged "brains" of MJ12.

Two of the literary references in ''Lain'' are quoted through Lain's father: he first logs onto a website with the password "{{not a typo|Think Bule Count One Tow}}" {{sic}} ("[[Think Blue, Count Two]]" is an [[Instrumentality of Mankind|Instrumentality of Man]] story featuring virtual persons projected as real ones in people's minds);<ref name="ep1">''Serial Experiments Lain'', "Layer 01: WEIRD"</ref> and his saying that "[[Madeleine (cake)|madeleines]] would be good with the tea" in the last episode makes ''Lain'' "one of the only cartoons ever to allude to Proust".<ref name="Gazette">{{cite web|url=http://www.movie-gazette.com/cinereviews/860|title=Movie Gazette: "Serial Experiments Lain Volume : Reset" Review|access-date=October 11, 2006|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20060521165608/http://www.movie-gazette.com/cinereviews/860|archive-date = May 21, 2006}}</ref><ref>'''Yasuo:''' "I will bring madeleines next time. They will taste good with the tea." ''Serial Experiments Lain'', Episode 13, "Ego". Lain has just erased herself from her friends' memories, while for Proust the taste of madeleines triggers memories of his childhood.</ref>

===Character design===
[[Yoshitoshi Abe]] confesses to have never read manga as a child, as it was "off-limits" in his household.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://animejump.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=Sections&file=index&req=viewarticle&artid=33&page=1|title=Anime Jump!: Lain Men: Yoshitoshi Abe|access-date=September 16, 2006|year=2000|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060510030644/http://www.animejump.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=Sections&file=index&req=viewarticle&artid=33&page=1|archive-date=May 10, 2006|url-status=dead}}</ref> His major influences are "nature and everything around him".<ref name="otakon" /> Specifically speaking about Lain's character, Abe was inspired by [[Kenji Tsuruta]], [[Akihiro Yamada]], [[Range Murata]] and [[Yukinobu Hoshino]].<ref name="chat" /> In a broader view, he has been influenced in his style and technique by Japanese artists Kyosuke Chinai and Toshio Tabuchi.<ref name="otakon" />

The character design of Lain was not Abe's sole responsibility. Her distinctive left forelock for instance was a demand from Yasuyuki Ueda. The goal was to produce asymmetry to reflect Lain's unstable and disconcerting nature.<ref name="fruits">''FRUiTS Magazine'' No. 15, October 1998.</ref> It was designed as a mystical symbol, as it is supposed to prevent voices and spirits from being heard by the left ear.<ref name="chat" /> The bear pajamas she wears were a demand from [[character animation]] director Takahiro Kishida. Though bears are a trademark of the Konaka brothers, Chiaki Konaka first opposed the idea.<ref name="HK" /> Director Nakamura then explained how the bear motif could be used as a shield for confrontations with her family. It is a key element of the design of the shy "real world" Lain (see "mental illness" under [[#Themes|Themes]]).<ref name="HK" /> When she first goes to the Cyberia [[nightclub]], she wears a bear hat for similar reasons.<ref name="fruits" /> Retrospectively, Konaka said that Lain's pajamas became a major factor in drawing fans of ''[[Moe (slang)|moe]]'' characterization to the series, and remarked that "such items may also be important when making anime".<ref name="HK" />

Abe's original design was generally more complicated than what finally appeared on screen. As an example, the X-shaped hair clip was to be an interlocking pattern of gold links. The links would open with a snap, or rotate around an axis until the moment the " X " became a " = ". This was not used as there is no scene where Lain takes her hair clip off.<ref name="MAX2">''Manga Max'' magazine, September 1999, p. 22, "Unreal to Real"</ref>

===Themes===
''Serial Experiments Lain'' is not a conventionally linear story, being described as "an alternative anime, with modern themes and realization".<ref>''Benkyo!'' Magazine, March 1999, p.16, "In My Humble Opinion"</ref> Themes range from theological to psychological and are dealt with in a number of ways: from classical dialogue to image-only introspection, passing by direct interrogation of imaginary characters.

[[Communication]], in its wider sense, is one of the main themes of the series,<ref name="THEM">{{cite web|url=http://www.themanime.org/viewreview.php?id=353|title=T.H.E.M.Anime Review of Serial Experiments Lain|access-date=November 24, 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061011155649/http://www.themanime.org/viewreview.php?id=353|archive-date=October 11, 2006|url-status=live}}</ref> not only as opposed to loneliness, but also as a subject in itself. Writer Konaka said he wanted to directly "communicate human feelings". Director Nakamura wanted to show the audience — and particularly viewers between 14 and 15—"the multidimensional wavelength of the [[Existentialism|existential self]]: the relationship between self and the world".<ref name="Animerica2" />

[[Loneliness]], if only as representing a lack of communication, is recurrent through ''Lain''.<ref name="DVDoutsider">{{cite web|url=http://www.dvdoutsider.co.uk/dvd/reviews/s/serial_experiments_lain.html|title=DVDoutsider Review of Serial Experiments Lain|access-date=November 24, 2006|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120305015738/http://www.dvdoutsider.co.uk/dvd/reviews/s/serial_experiments_lain.html|archive-date=March 5, 2012}}</ref> Lain herself (according to Anime Jump) is "almost painfully introverted with no friends to speak of at school, a snotty, condescending sister, a strangely apathetic mother, and a father who seems to want to care but is just too damn busy to give her much of his time".<ref name="AnimeJump">{{cite web|url=http://www.animejump.com/index.php?module=prodreviews&func=showcontent&id=201|first=Mike|last=Toole|title=Anime Jump!: Serial Experiments Lain Review|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080610033719/http://www.animejump.com/index.php?module=prodreviews&func=showcontent&id=201|archive-date=June 10, 2008|date=October 16, 2003}}</ref> Friendships turn on the first rumor;<ref name="DVDoutsider" /><ref>''Serial Experiments Lain'', Layer 08: RUMORS</ref> and the only insert song of the series is named ''Kodoku no shigunaru'', literally "signal of loneliness".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.animelyrics.tv/anime/lain/|title=List of Serial Experiments Lain songs|access-date=December 7, 2006|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070113231952/http://animelyrics.tv/anime/lain/|archive-date=January 13, 2007}}</ref>

[[File:Lain Split Personnalities.JPG|left|thumb|upright=1.13|alt=A series of drawings depicting the different personalities of Lain—the first shows shy body language, the second shows bolder body language, and the third grins in an unhinged fashion.|The different personalities of Lain have their names written using different scripts.]]

[[Mental illness]], especially [[dissociative identity disorder]], is a significant theme in ''Lain'':<ref name="MAX2" /> the main character is constantly confronted with alter-egos, to the point where writer Chiaki Konaka and Lain's voice actress Kaori Shimizu had to agree on subdividing the character's dialogues between three different [[Orthography|orthographs]].<ref name="MAX2" /> The three names designate distinct "versions" of Lain: the real-world, "childish" Lain has a shy attitude and bear pajamas. The "advanced" Lain, her Wired personality, is bold and questioning. Finally, the "evil" Lain is sly and devious, and does everything she can to harm Lain or the ones close to her.<ref name="HK" /> As a writing convention, the authors spelled their respective names in [[kanji]], [[katakana]], and [[Romanization of Japanese|Latin]] characters (see picture).<ref name="visual">{{cite book|last=Abe|first=Yoshitoshi|title=Visual Experiments Lain|year=1998|publisher=Triangle Staff/Pioneer LDC.|isbn=978-4-7897-1342-9}}, page 42</ref>

[[Reality]] never has the pretense of objectivity in ''Lain''.<ref name="MAX">''Manga Max'' Magazine, September 1999, p. 21, "God's Eye View"</ref> Acceptations of the term are battling throughout the series, such as the "natural" reality, defined through normal dialogue between individuals; the material reality; and the tyrannic reality, enforced by one person onto the minds of others.<ref name="DVDoutsider" /> A key debate to all interpretations of the series is to decide whether matter flows from thought, or the opposite.<ref name="DVDoutsider" /><ref>Serial Experiments Lain, Layer 06: KIDS: "your physical body exists only to confirm your existence".</ref> The production staff carefully avoided "the so-called God's Eye Viewpoint" to make clear the "limited field of vision" of the world of ''Lain''.<ref name=MAX />

[[Theology]] plays its part in the development of the story too. ''Lain'' has been viewed as a questioning of the possibility of an infinite spirit in a finite body.<ref name="Univ">[https://web.archive.org/web/20060302194747/http://www.ahcca.unimelb.edu.au/refractory/journalissues/vol3/colman.htm Study on ''Lain'', ''Buffy'', and ''Attack of the clones''] by Felicity J. Coleman, lecturer at the University of Melbourne. From the [[Internet Archive]].</ref> From self-realization as a goddess to [[deicide]],<ref name="Gazette" /> religion (the title of a layer) is an inherent part of ''Lain''{{'s}} background.<ref name="Univ" />

===Apple computers===
''Lain'' contains extensive references to [[Apple Inc.|Apple]] computers, as the brand was used at the time by most of the creative staff, such as writers, producers, and the graphical team.<ref name="HK" /> As an example, the title at the beginning of each episode is announced by the Apple computer [[speech synthesis]] program [[PlainTalk]], using the voice ''"Whisper"'', e.g. <code>say -v Whisper "Weird: Layer zero one"</code>. Tachibana Industries, the company that creates the NAVI computers, is a reference to Apple computers: the [[tachibana orange]] is a  Japanese variety of mandarin orange. NAVI is the abbreviation of [[Knowledge Navigator]], and the HandiNAVI is based on the [[Apple Newton]], one of the world's first [[Personal digital assistant|PDAs]]. The NAVIs are seen to run "Copland OS Enterprise" (this reference to [[Copland (operating system)|Copland]] was an initiative of [[Chiaki J. Konaka|Konaka]], a declared Apple fan),<ref name="HK" /> and Lain's and Alice's NAVIs closely resembles the [[Twentieth Anniversary Macintosh]] and the [[iMac G3]] respectively. The HandiNAVI programming language, as seen on the seventh episode, is a dialect of [[Lisp (programming language)|Lisp]]; the Newton also used a Lisp dialect ([[NewtonScript]]). The program being typed by Lain can be found in the [[Carnegie Mellon University|CMU]] [[Artificial intelligence|AI]] repository;<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cs.cmu.edu/afs/cs/project/ai-repository/ai/lang/lisp/code/fun/life.cl|title=Conway's Game of Life|publisher=[[Carnegie Mellon University]]|access-date=June 24, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090722175621/https://www.cs.cmu.edu/afs/cs/project/ai-repository/ai/lang/lisp/code/fun/life.cl|archive-date=July 22, 2009|url-status=live}}</ref> it is a simple implementation of [[Conway's Game of Life]] in [[Common Lisp]].

During a series of disconnected images, an iMac and the [[Think Different]] advertising slogan appears for a short time, while the ''Whisper'' voice says it.<ref name="INFORN">''Serial Experiments Lain'', Layer 11: INFORNOGRAPHY.</ref> This was an unsolicited insertion from the graphic team, also Mac-enthusiasts.<ref name="HK" /> Other subtle allusions can be found: "Close the world, Open the nExt" is the slogan for the ''Serial Experiments Lain'' video game. [[NeXT]] was the company that produced [[NeXTSTEP]], which later evolved into [[macOS|Mac OS X]] after Apple bought NeXT. Another example is "To Be Continued." at the end of episodes 1–12, with a blue "B" and a red "e" on "Be"; this matches the original logo of [[Be Inc.]], a company founded by ex-Apple employees and NeXT's main competitor in its time.<ref name="Be">{{cite web|url=http://www.beatjapan.org/mirror/www.be.com/|title=Be, Inc.|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20031128123907/http://www.beincorporated.com/|archive-date=November 28, 2003|access-date=November 27, 2006|url-status=dead}}</ref>