Which lupin is the best lupin? (Lupin the Third)

[Phelphor, of the Deep]

Lupin III began back in 1967 as a manga created by Kazuhiko Kato aka Monkey Punch thought up somewhat in the moment after being offered the chance to create his own series by his editor. Drawing inspiration from Maurice Leblanc's Arsène Lupin stories while also pulling from various other western elements such as James Bond and Mad Magazine, he sought to create an adventure/comedy series following the exploits of the grandson of Arsène Lupin, while staying true to the traits of Leblanc's original character (of course, this relationship and use of the name Lupin would later prove to be a copyright issue when it came to exporting the series outside of Japan. Resulting in the need to change the name entirely.)

 

This manga would go on to become such a hit that just after the first few issues were sold TMS and Toho began working on a pilot film in the hopes of raising interest and securing funding for what was intended to be a feature film for the manga. However unfortunately due to the somewhat violent and darker nature of Lupin III they were unable to raise any interest in the project upon its completion in 1969 along with other complications due to the amount of time and money it had taken to produce, and instead it would find its home 2 years later as what is now known as Lupin III Part I broadcast on Yomiuri Television, however that too also had its own share of worries.

 

Interest in the series initially was very low due to it staying true to the more mature nature of the manga itself. Because of this very early on the Director Masaaki Ōsumi was reportedly asked to make several changes in order to try to raise interest, refusing to do so he was promptly removed and replaced by Hayao Miyazaki and Isao Takahata who attempted to bring in some levity, removing several elements in the process such as the more erotic elements to Fujiko's character. This would result in a substantially different series in tone by the end, however despite their best efforts the series was cancelled after 23 episodes and the Lupin franchise wouldn't truly begin to reach its current popularity until reruns of Part I would air, after which Part II would be produced and receive incredible reception and is ultimately responsible for boosting the franchise to what it is today.

 

TL;DR Since its humble beginnings as an on-the-spot idea from a fledgling mangaka, Lupin III despite a somewhat rocky start has gone on to become one of the most influential series of all time in Japan. To date spawning numerous manga series, 5 TV anime series, around over 30 yearly TV specials, 10 movies and several OVAs.

 

For our purposes that's not important however, all you need to know is that Lupin is most often portrayed as a lovable rogue and a master thief pulling off numerous heists and dodging Zenigata and the authorities with style and flair. Jigen is an exceedingly cool and calm gunslinger with at times quite the distrust for females bordering on being misogynistic and often shown as being a long time business partner of Lupin. Goemon Ishikawa is the stoic swordsman and the stereotypically Asian touch added to the cast by Monkey Punch to balance them out. Fujiko Mine like Lupin is a thief, sometimes teaming up with him, sometimes working against him but more often than not, you can expect her to be double-crossing (sometimes even triple crossing) whoever she's working alongside. And finally Inspector Zenigata is the bumbling INTERPOL detective perpetually chasing after Lupin in an attempt to arrest him for his crimes though depending on the writer his competency can vary significantly. However despite the simplicity they have, they're an absolute joy to watch and characters that are easily loved.

 

Because of the duration which Lupin III has been around for it makes sense for it to have gone through many different animators over the years, along with many different art styles and character designs. From the fluid and sometimes unrefined scenes of Part I, to pretty much any scene from Cagliostro particularly that of the famous car chase for instance. Or the slightly grungier art style of The Woman Called Fujiko Mine and lastly the nice crisp and vibrant look of the 2015 series. Lupin III definitely has it's fair share of eye candy to be enjoyed along with everything else that has allowed the franchise to thrive all these years.

 

I could probably write an entire thread just for the Lupin III OST alone. Largely thanks to the efforts of the composer Yuuji Ohno from Part II onwards, the Lupin III franchise has one of the most distinct and recognisable OSTs for anime in Japan.

 

Spanning over 40 years with numerous iconic tracks, the most famous of all being the aptly named Theme of Lupin III which since it's creation has had at least 19 different versions used in some animated entry, some examples being the classic original instrumental version used in Part II's 1st OP, the first vocal version used in Part II's 2nd OP, The version used in the Cagliostro movie the instrumental version used in the First Contact TV special and last but not least, the version from the latest TV series (Which might I add is just an absolutely amazing OP.) And if that's not enough, you can listen to a compilation of a fair number of the different versions. The theme is also so well known that it's sometimes even used as a support cheer at the Koshien.

 

In addition to that it has a wide range of other recognisable tracks in things such as Samba Temporada, Superhero and Zenigata March all of which have had their own versions throughout the years, these ones in particular (barring Superhero) from the 2015 TV series. Lupin III's soundtrack just oozes style and elevates every scene it's used in, regardless of whether it's a new version of an old fan favourite, or a new composition entirely.

 

Finally while Yuuji Ohno is the main reason Lupin's soundtrack has been so incredible over the years it is worth mentioning that even in entries to the franchise that don't have his involvement, the soundtrack is still something worth mentioning more often than not. Such as in the case of The Woman Called Fujiko Mine composed by Naruyoshi Kikuchi, which had tracks such as Creep and Despair and Pleasure.

 

Influence is never an incredibly simple thing to talk about outside of clear and obvious examples. But for a series as long running and successful as Lupin III, it's unavoidable that it would be a source of inspiration to people. One of the best examples would be that of Shinichiro Watanabe. Watanabe has in previous interviews cited Lupin III as a great source of inspiration (in particular Ōsumi's directorial work in Part I) and it is clearly visible particularly in Cowboy Bebop when it comes to the characters of Spike, Faye and Jet who certainly mirror Lupin, Fujiko and Jigen in some ways.

 

Beyond that Lupin III has been referenced in many different series over the years, chances are quite high if you've seen a decent variety of anime particularly comedy series, you've come across at least a few references. By far the most heavily referenced would be the wall run scene from the pilot episode, not only do a large number of the specials/films and TV series reference that shot but so do an absurd number of other anime. From something like Redline, Outlaw Star's OP, Persona 5 all the way to Aikatsu Stars!.

 

There's also just parodies in general and other assorted references such as the time Gintama parodied it for half an episode, FLCL Episode 5, Jigen and Lupin's cameo in Megazone 23, Paradise Kiss Ga-Rei: Zero, a pretty clear Cagliostro reference in Keroro Gunso, Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei, Shinichi Watanabe's self-insert character Nabeshin and many many others. It's not just unique to anime either. The Simpsons Movie had a scene with Bart on the roof of their house which was a direct reference to The Castle of Cagliostro.

 

So this incessant rambling led you to this point and now you're hopefully wondering what the best place to even start is. I get it, Lupin is an incredibly large spanning franchise at a glance and confusion about what is what and where to begin, will no doubt result from all these Part I-III's that get thrown about. The fact that there's also another more recent series typically referred to as Lupin III (2015) or the Fujiko Mine series certainly doesn't help and that's before even factoring the TV specials and movies.

 

The answer itself is rather uncomplicated, you can pretty much start wherever you want at least so long as you keep in mind the general character descriptions. The reason for this is simple. Pretty much every Lupin III entry consists of isolated individual storylines that can be watched freely in any order (barring episodes that are 2-parters as is the case with a few in Part II.) The only exception to this is The Woman Called Fujiko Mine and Lupin III (2015) aka Part IV and that's because they have an actual linear storyline.

 

Now while you can just now go look up random series/movies etc and pick one at random, I'll quickly just rundown through what I think some of the more worthwhile entries in the franchise are, as well as just a brief overview of each TV series and maybe some of the better starting points in general.

 

•Lupin III Part I: If you're wanting to get a nice solid foundation of what to expect from the franchise in a short amount of time and don't mind older animation, then the original series is arguably the best starting point, both due to the historical nature of it as well as the experience it offers. With the more violent gritty nature of the early episodes contrasted by the more lighthearted comedic nature of the later episodes, it gives a very wide variety in tone which you will become accustomed to from the numerous entries in the franchise. In addition to that, it also gives you a solid grounding as to what the characters are about, as well as having a number of excellent episodes within. Episodes 4, 5, 9 and 19 in particular are standouts.

 

•Lupin III Part II: Another good way of getting into the franchise and a large part of what boosted the franchise to the popularity it has today. While being much more lighthearted and comedic in nature than the original series, it does have it's fair share of surprisingly dark episodes. It is also the longest entry in the franchise, coming in at 155 episodes which will no doubt scare some off. If that's not an issue to you, then you'll get to enjoy a number of standout episodes. Some of which consist of Episodes 10, 19, 20, 22, 25, 26, 29, 32, 46, 69, 75, 87, 93, 99 (which was also the first stereo episode of anime), 100-103 for being ideas submitted by viewers as part of the 100th episode celebration and last but not least episodes 145 and 151 which were Hayao Miyazaki's last time being involved in the franchise (and are also somewhat prototypes of elements from the eventual Laputa, Porco Rosso and Nausicaa movies.)

 

•Lupin III Part III: Probably the least talked about when it comes to the TV series possibly largely in part due to the art style and strange animation and character design compared to Parts I and II. However the quality of the episodes is along the lines of Part II's and while not having much in the way of standout episodes it does have a number of quite good ones nevertheless.

 

•Lupin the Third: The Woman Called Fujiko Mine: By far the darkest and most sexually oriented of any other entry in the franchise. The Woman Called Fujiko Mine instead of focusing largely on Lupin and his exploits it instead thrusts Fujiko herself into the limelight as she goes about her own adventures, sometimes crossing paths with the other core members of the cast. Boasting an excellent art style and some very nice animation throughout. Though it's not at all a really good way to get a feel for the standard character portrayal in the franchise at large due to certain liberties taken, The Woman Called Fujiko Mine goes back to the roots of the series, taking inspiration from the darker nature of the original manga. It bears mentioning too that for the first time there is a much more linear nature to the episodes, as the series has an actual storyline surrounding it.

 

•Lupin III Part IV (aka Lupin III (2015)): Drawing from a lot of what the other TV series did well, Part IV manages to strongly bring together both the serious as well as the comedic nature of the Lupin III franchise and while doing so much like The Woman Called Fujiko Mine did, tells a coherent linear storyline whilst still allowing for the episodic shenanigans Lupin III is so well-known for. It's overall a great very easy watch featuring incredible animation, gorgeous backgrounds, great remixes of classic tracks and is just an excellent introduction to the franchise at large.

 

Which one is your favorite?