Before Black Mirror, before Mr. Robot. Our abusive relationship with technology was examined in Serial Experiment Lain. A postmodern science fiction anime series directed by Ryutaro Nakamura, with character design by Yoshitoshi ABe and a screenplay written by Chiaki J. Konaka. The only grounded way to describe the show's plot is that it follows middle schooler Lain Iwakura who becomes a powerful entity in the world's internet, referred to as the 'wired', a VR/AR web or the stuff of sundog nightmares. Everything after this is questionable, including Lain herself. Having rewatched this show every year for the last eight years, I will be trying to put down any thoughts and research down in text files.