In the eleventh episode of\u00c2\u00a0Serial Experiments Lain<\/i>, Lain questions her identity before transforming. Intrigued? Then it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s time for Mark to watch\u00c2\u00a0Serial Experiments Lain<\/i>.<\/p>\n
Trigger Warning: For discussion of consent.<\/b><\/p>\n
You know, I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t think anyone has ever explained to me\u00c2\u00a0why<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0anime shows often have a \u00e2\u20ac\u0153summary\u00e2\u20ac\u009d episode. Sometimes, they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re just filler, but I do enjoy when a show plays with expectations, sort of like how\u00c2\u00a0Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood\u00c2\u00a0<\/i>did. This show does the same thing, since the first half of \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Infornography\u00e2\u20ac\u009d is a way to contextualize the show\u00c2\u00a0and<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0give us an understanding of how Lain downloads her NAVI into her own body. WHICH IS SUCH A WILD CONCEPT, Y\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ALL. Plus, you can interpret the opening parts of this episode as a physical representation of Lain examining her own identity. By running through all her experiences since \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Weird,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d she\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s able to question who she was and whether or not she\u00c2\u00a0is<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0any of the \u00e2\u20ac\u0153alternate\u00e2\u20ac\u009d versions of herself that we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve seen.<\/p>\n
The show is short enough that I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t think I\u00c2\u00a0needed<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0a refresher before I went into the final two episodes, but it was nice to remember how far Lain has come in a very short amount of time. Thus, her physical transformation felt shocking to me, and it didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t help that Eiri was there to taunt her about her reality. AGAIN, I DON\u00e2\u20ac\u2122T KNOW WHAT THE TRUTH IS AT ALL. Is she really just a sentient piece of software? Is that all she amounts to? If that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the case, then anything she does to defy Eiri is an act of rebellion, one I find very interesting. Of course, she\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not quite the celebratory hero. Even after she refuses to accept Eiri\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s machinations, she still orchestrates her own.<\/p>\n
Again, the downside of free will is demonstrated to us when Lain decides to erase the rumors that destroyed Alice\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s social standing. Now, I can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t quite tell if Alice\u00c2\u00a0knows<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0what happens or if she was rendered unaware by Lain\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s act. I think it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the former, given that she approaches her friends and starts to talk about the teacher she has a crush on despite that her friends have no knowledge of said rumor anymore. The whole sequence is played for horror, not joy, and though this, Lain becomes more complicated. Is it ethical or moral of her to give Alice this, or is it a sign that she\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s vulnerable to the displays of power we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve seen of Eiri?<\/p>\n
All of this acts to set up the final confrontation between Eiri and his creation. (If Lain really is his creation. I have never felt more ignorant of a show\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s story, and I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m at the end of it, y\u00e2\u20ac\u2122all. HOW IS THIS POSSIBLE.) I expect that she\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll reject his rules or mode of existence in some sense, and it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s also fascinating how much this is rooted in Alice.\u00c2\u00a0If \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Infornography\u00e2\u20ac\u009d shows Lain that her life is detached and meaningless, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s\u00c2\u00a0Alice<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0who proves that she does matter, even if she is nothing but a piece of software. To me, that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the best part of this conflict: Lain may find something human in the midst of all this technology.<\/p>\n
The video for \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Infornography\u00e2\u20ac\u009d can be downloaded\u00c2\u00a0here for $0.99<\/a>.<\/p>\n Mark Links Stuff<\/b><\/p>\n – I am now on Patreon<\/a>! There are various levels of support, from $1 up to whatever you want! You’ll get to read a private blog, extra reviews, and other such rewards.<\/b> In the eleventh episode of\u00c2\u00a0Serial Experiments Lain, Lain questions her identity before transforming. Intrigued? Then it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s time for Mark to watch\u00c2\u00a0Serial Experiments Lain.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[661],"tags":[662],"class_list":["post-5839","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-serial-experiments-lain","tag-mark-watches-serial-experiments-lain"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5839","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5839"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5839\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5839"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5839"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5839"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\n– I\u00c2\u00a0will be at numerous conventions in 2016! Check the full list of events on my Tour Dates \/ Appearances page.<\/a>
\n– My Master Schedule<\/a> is updated for the near and distant future for most projects, so please check it often.\u00c2\u00a0My next Double Features for Mark Watches have been announced here.<\/a>
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