As Lain gains more power, she loses her humanity. The "SMasochist" element here is the willing sacrifice of her personal happiness for the sake of the collective consciousness. She allows herself to be rewritten, deleted, and reconstructed. Finding "Free" Expression in Fan Culture
In fan-driven discourse, the term "SMasochist" in relation to Lain often refers to the psychological submission to the machine or the crushing weight of omnipresence. Pain as a Catalyst for Evolution pain and pleasure v03 smasochist lain free
Compare to other 90s cyberpunk icons like Motoko Kusanagi. As Lain gains more power, she loses her humanity