Unboxing [UK]: Serial Experiments Lain - Complete Series: Collector's Edition (BD/DVD)
Monday, March 13, 2017
MVM have rescued the rights to Serial Experiments Lain after such a long time. The show returns on Blu-ray as well, giving UK fans a welcome treat. The Collector's Edition version comes out first while the Standard Editions will soon follow.
Serial Experiments Lain is an 1998 original anime series from director Ryūtarō Nakamura (Kino's Journey), studio Triangle Staff (Macross Plus, NieA_7), and character designer Yoshitoshi Abe (Haibane Renmei, NieA_7, Texhnolyze). The show is known by many to be one of the most complex anime titles out there, and while I personally haven't seen the show I will admit that it sounds complicated going by its storytelling and visuals.
MVM had the license originally back in around 2004 I believe, but the license eventually expired alongside a number of other titles (Haibane Renmei and Texhnolyze were other notable examples). But in 2016 it was announced that the show will return to the UK but on Blu-ray. Funimation in the US currently own the license and have released the series for years now (after acquiring it from Pioneer/Geneon).
The UK Collector's Edition is a simple release, as MVM are not as big compared to Manga Animatsu and Anime Limited. The set offers both Blu-ray and DVD plus a chipboard box and a couple of nice artcards. It's not as fancy as the Funimation Limited Edition but for the price I paid (£22.39) it's fine. The discs are Region B and 2 only, subtitles are unlockable. While MVM have done their own authoring for it by adding their logo and copyright notices, the actual chunk of it is a Funimation master. The DVDs also use the Funimation master so I'm assuming it's NTSC also.
Blu-ray Specs:
Languages: Japanese, English
Audio: Dolby TrueHD 2.0 [Japanese, English]
Video: 1080p HD Native 4:3
Region: B
Subtitles: English [Japanese language & On-screen]
Subtitles Locked: No
Discs: 2
DVD Specs:
Languages: Japanese, English
Audio: Dolby Digital 2.0 [Japanese, English]
Video: SD NTSC 4:3
Region: 2
Subtitles: English [Japanese language & On-screen]
Subtitles Locked: No
Discs: 2
Plot Synopsis (via MVM):
Close the World. Open the Next. Decades before the internet was something people carried around in their pockets, these words introduced anime fans to a surreal existence where computer monitors served as portals to brave new worlds.
Serial Experiments: Lain and it's deceptively "ordinary" title character redefined an entire generation's concept of the world wide web, prompting us all to suspiciously take note of humming power lines and central processing units. Follow along as 14 year old Lain - driven by the abrupt suicide of a classmate - logs on to the Wired and promptly loses herself in a twisted mass of hallucinations, memories and interconnected psyches. Close the World. Open the Next. It's as simple as the flip of a switch.
Serial Experiments: Lain and it's deceptively "ordinary" title character redefined an entire generation's concept of the world wide web, prompting us all to suspiciously take note of humming power lines and central processing units. Follow along as 14 year old Lain - driven by the abrupt suicide of a classmate - logs on to the Wired and promptly loses herself in a twisted mass of hallucinations, memories and interconnected psyches. Close the World. Open the Next. It's as simple as the flip of a switch.
On-Disc Extra Content:
Promo Video
Original Commercial
Textless Opening
Textless Closing
U.S. Trailer
Collector's Edition Extras:
Chipboard Artbox with logos and info on the back cover, plus two DVD cases for discs.
8 Artcards
Serial Experiments Lain is available on Blu-ray and DVD from MVM.
Serial Experiments Lain is available on Blu-ray and DVD from MVM.