"I thought I heard someone... your imaginary friend."
serial experiments lain was introduced to me when I was 13, by one of my only real friends at the time (who remains my best friend to this day). at the time I was mostly a fan of other anime popular online at the time like death note, code geass, and ouran - something more obscure from the 90s was new to me. I'm still grateful for it, because the show has remained extremely important to me in the years since I've watched it.
serial experiments lain was the first show I'd seen that really encouraged me to think on and analyze what I was watching, something I would carry with me afterwards to other shows, books, games, and movies. to this day many of my philosophical outlooks on things like reality and the idea of god, as well as my outlook on the state of the internet then and now, are heavily influenced by that show. it gave me so much to think about, and I never got tired of watching it over and over again - each time I would discover something new.
perhaps more importantly, the portrayal of lain's mental illness was something that I really connected to as a young teen, and that got me through some very rough years. while I didn't make the connection until many years later when I was diagnosed, the portrayal of lain's DID was something I connected to significantly and carried with me in life as someone who "understood". I also very much connected with other parts of her experience as someone schizophrenic and autistic, and to this day her character provides me an immense amount of comfort.
nowadays with the show seeing a little more popularity, it often saddens me to see it watered down to a cool self insert for mentally ill teens online. I think the show has a huge amount to say about the internet that is still incredibly relevant today, and really appreciate the other themes it has to bring to the table for thought. it remains one of my favorite works of media of all time, and one that has really defined who I am in some way or another over the years.
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