When after that scene they were like "nobody died" I was like are you fucking kidding me. With all the people that close to building with the debris falling, certainly at least ONE person would have died. The outcome of so much of the actions don't feel natural, they just feel like they are written to service the plot. Unless it turns things around in the second half (which I doubt, since that "chess game" was easily the worst part of the show so far), this show is going to be pretty low for me. At least the animation and music are fantastic.
In a completing different area, I just started watching Serial Experiments Lain...watched the first for episodes and what in the fuck did I just experience? I have always wanted to give this one a try ever since I caught random bits of it on late night TechTV. Atmosphere is great, this is the kind of thing I couldn't even remotely imagine being put out in to the current anime scene. It's stark with very little background music and talking...I'm not sure if I am even enjoying it, but I'll be damned if it isn't one of the most intriguing things I have watched in a long time.