According to Christian Nutt from "Newtype USA", the main attraction to the series is its keen view on "the interlocking problems of identity and technology". Nutt saluted Abe's "crisp, clean character design" and the "perfect soundtrack" in his 2005 review of series, saying that ""Serial Experiments Lain" might not yet be considered a true classic, but it's a fascinating evolutionary leap that helped change the future of anime." "Anime Jump" gave it 4.5/5, and Anime on DVD gave it A+ on all criteria for volume 1 and 2, and a mix of A and A+ for volume 3 and 4.