LUPIN III

is a manga and anime media franchise created by Kazuhiko Kato under the pen name of Monkey Punch. The franchise follows the adventures of a gang of thieves led by Arsène Lupin III, the grandson of Arsène Lupin, the gentleman thief of Maurice Leblanc's series of novels. Lupin and his gang travel throughout the world to steal treasures and escape from the law.
The first Lupin III manga, which first appeared in ''Weekly Manga Action'' beginning on August 10, 1967, spawned a media franchise that includes numerous manga, anime television series, feature films, direct-to-video releases, television specials, music CDs, video games, and a musical. In addition, WhiteLight Entertainment, a production company owned by Gerald R. Molen, purchased the live action theatrical rights to Lupin III in 2003^[1] and the Hollywood production is scheduled to be released in 2009.^[2]
Several different companies own the North American distribution rights to many Lupin III properties, including Geneon Entertainment, which provided the television broadcast rights for 26 episodes of the second television series to Cartoon Network's Adult Swim during 2003.

Overall plot

Each project within the Lupin III universe has its own plot. The overall plot of the franchise centers on the international thief Arsène Lupin III. He is joined by Daisuke Jigen, Lupin's closest ally; Fujiko Mine, the ''femme fatale'' and Lupin's love interest who works against Lupin more often than with him; and Goemon Ishikawa XIII, a master swordsman and the descendant of Ishikawa Goemon, the legendary Japanese bandit. Lupin is often chased by Inspector Koichi Zenigata of the ICPO, the descendent of Zenigata Heiji. A rather cynical detective, Zenigata has made it his life's mission to chase Lupin across the globe in hopes of arresting him.

Cast of characters

Lupin and his gang.

'Arsène Lupin III' (ルパン三世 ''Rupan sansei'') is the grandson of Arsène Lupin. He is the world's most wanted thief. Often in his adventures, he takes it upon himself and his gang to foil other criminals engaged in more serious crimes. He sometimes appears incompetent, but mostly as a charade to catch his opponents off guard. While he has been arrested and thrown in jail on a number of occasions, he has always managed to break out. He also has a fondness for fancy gadgets from time to time, such as in Castle of Cagliostro where his belt features many small gadgets. His infatuation with Fujiko Mine is perhaps his biggest weakness, as it often lands him in undesirable situations.^[3]

'Daisuke Jigen' (次元大介 ''Jigen Daisuke'') is Lupin's marksman. He can perform a 0.3-second quick-draw and shoots with amazing accuracy. He prefers to conceal his eyes using his hat, as it gives him a more enigmatic appearance. His hat is also an important element to his dead shot accuracy because he uses it for aiming and target acquisition. He is also proficient in the use of many different firearms, such as machine guns, sniper rifles, and even a PTRS anti-tank rifle. In the opening of the Playstation 2 video game, , Jigen assembles his pistol from composite parts and fires a shot through a door with 100% accuracy before an enemy can finish turning the doorknob.^[4]

'Goemon Ishikawa XIII' (石川五ェ門 ''Ishikawa Goemon'') is the thirteenth generation of renegade samurai, beginning with the real-life historical figure Ishikawa Goemon (石川五右衛門). He has a sword called Zantetsuken (斬鉄剣), meaning "iron-cutting sword", which can cut through anything. However, Zantetsuken is usually used to cut inanimate objects, which Goemon considers unworthy of his blade and often mutters his catchphrase "once again, I have cut a worthless object" after doing so. Objects cut by Zantetsuken will fall apart a couple of seconds after he sweeps through them with his blade. He is usually quiet and participates in Lupin's exploits less frequently than Jigen.^[5]

'Fujiko Mine' (峰不二子 ''Mine Fujiko'') is Lupin's love interest. Despite her appearances, Fujiko is an extremely intelligent and crafty person and will use her feminine charms to get what she wants from any man. She is also an expert when it comes to firearms and even rivals Lupin when it comes to her burglary and disguise skills. She will also routinely make deals with Zenigata or Lupin's current enemy in an attempt to gain her freedom or to hopefully gain a piece of the loot he is after. While Lupin often knows Fujiko is only using him, she usually makes off with most or all of his loot.^[6]

Zenigata

'Inspector Zenigata' (銭形警部 ''Zenigata-keibu''), full name 'Koichi Zenigata' (銭形幸一 ''Zenigata Kōichi'') is a police inspector working for the ICPO. He has made it his mission in life to arrest Lupin. Zenigata is based on a famous Japanese crime fighting character named Zenigata Heiji, best known for throwing coins as a weapon. Lupin and Zenigata appear to be the worst of enemies, but they are, in a manner of speaking, friends; in the television special Orders to Assassinate Lupin, Zenigata even teams up with Lupin after the chief of the ICPO takes him off the Lupin case. While usually portrayed as incompetent in most of the anime, Zenigata's character in the manga is a very clever and crafty adversary to Lupin.^[7]

Manga series

Tokyopop's cover of the first volume of the original manga series

The original manga series was published by Futabasha in Weekly Manga Action from August 1967 to April 1972.^[8]
Monkey Punch's main character was the grandson of Arsène Lupin, but Lupin III was far from being a gentleman like his grandfather. In this first manga series, Lupin is a lecherous sex maniac with an extreme lust for women that can never be satisfied; yet, he somehow remains a likeable character. According to Monkey Punch, the Lupin III manga was influenced by ''MAD Magazine''.^[9]

Futabasha's cover of the spring 2007 issue of the official Lupin III magazine

Monkey Punch began publishing the second Lupin manga, ''Shin Lupin III'', also known as ''Lupin III - World's Most Wanted'', on June 23, 1977. The second series ran for 180 chapters. A third Manga series, ''Lupin III S'', began in January of 1997. Monkey Punch, however, was not involved in this manga series. The story was written by Satozumi Takaguchi and the art was done by Shusay.^[10] Monkey Punch returned to write the story for the fourth manga series, ''Lupin III Y'', but the art was done by Manatsuki Yamakami. The fourth manga series ran from 1998 until 2004.^[11] The current manga series is ''Lupin III M'', with story by Monkey Punch and art by Miyama Yukio. The manga is serialized in the ''Lupin III Official Magazine,'' a quarterly magazine published by Futabasha, which also contains Lupin news, information on Lupin products and merchandise, and fan art.^[12]

Adaptations

Pilot film

Following the manga series, TMS and Toho produced a Lupin III pilot film featuring Lupin in his red jacket outfit. Masaaki Osumi was brought in to direct, and two different versions, a CinemaScope version planned for theaters and television version, were made. The animation was mainly the same for the two versions, but the voice cast varied. Kiyoshi Kobayashi and Eiko Masuyama, voicing Daisuke Jigen and Fujiko Mine respectively, were the only cast members to not only voice their characters in both versions of the pilot, but also in every other incarnation of Lupin III, with the exception of Fuma Conspiracy (see below). By the time the pilot was completed in 1969, budget concerns and other problems between Toho and TMS caused the film to never reach theaters. Masaaki Osumi then moved on to direct several episodes of the first Lupin III television series (see below).^[13]^[14]
The two versions of the pilot films were later released in 1989 as a part of the ''Lupin III Secret Files'' OVA, which also contained trailers for Mystery of Mamo, Castle of Cagliostro and .^[15]

Television series

Main articles: List of Lupin III episodes, List of Shin Lupin III episodes, List of Lupin III Part III episodes

On October 24, 1971, YTV began airing the first Lupin III television series. The series, which featured Lupin in his green jacket outfit, lasted for 23 episodes with the last one airing on March 26, 1972. The first seven episodes of the series, along with episodes nine and 12, were directed by Masaaki Osumi, with the remaining episodes being directed jointly by Hayao Miyazaki and Isao Takahata^[16] The director of Cowboy Bebop, Shinichiro Watanabe, revealed during an interview with ''Newtype Japan'' that he was heavily influenced by the work of director Masaaki Osumi on the first television series.^[17]
The second Lupin III television series began airing on NTV on October 3, 1977. In this series, Lupin began wearing a red jacket instead of the green one he wore during the first television series. The series lasted for 155 episodes, with the last one airing on October 24, 1980.^[18] Episodes 145 and 155 were directed by Hayao Miyazaki under the pseudonym of Teruki Tsutomu, and they marked his final involvement in making television animation before exclusively working on feature films.^[19]^[20]^[21]
Episode 99 of the second television series, titled Kōya ni Chitta Combat Magnum (The Combat Magnum Scattered in the Wasteland), which aired on September 3, 1979, was the first episode of any anime series to be broadcast in stereo.^[22] After that episode, several other episodes of the second Lupin III television series were broadcast in stereo.
The third television series began airing on NTV on March 3, 1984. In this series, Lupin wore a pink jacket instead of the red one he wore in the previous series. The series lasted for 50 episodes and ended on September 28, 1985.^[23] The only other time that Lupin wore a pink jacket again was in the feature film ''The Legend of the Gold of Babylon'', which was released in theaters while the third television series was still in broadcast.^[24]
There was also a "Lupin in Space"-type series to be produced called ''Lupin VIII'', featuring the descendants of Lupin, Goemon, Jigen and Zenigata in space. The project was a French-Japanese co-production. The production folded when LeBlanc's estate wanted more money for the use of the Lupin name than the budget allowed.^[25] Two scripts were written, and one episode, entitled "The Man From the Past", was fully animated and had a music and sound effects track, but the voice-overs were never recorded.^[26] The incomplete episode can be seen here.

1974 live action theatrical feature

Main articles: Strange Psychokinetic Strategy

Because the pilot film never made it to theaters, the first Lupin III theatrical feature was a live action movie produced in 1974 during the hiatus between the first and second television series. The movie included all the main cast members with the exception of Goemon Ishikawa XIII. Lupin wore neither his red nor his green jacket outfit in the movie, but rather a white jacket with an ascot.^[27]
As opposed to the dark theme of the first television series, the live action feature was very heavy on slapstick and physics-defying stunts, but it was a more faithful adaptation of the original Lupin III manga than the television show.^[28]

Animated theatrical features

The first animated theatrical feature starring the character of Lupin III, released on December 16, 1978, was simply titled ''Lupin III'', although it was subsequently released as ''Lupin vs. The Clone'', ''Mystery of Mamo'', and, most recently, ''Secret of Mamo''.^[29] As of today, ''The Secret of Mamo'' has received the most English dubs of any anime title, with a total of four different dubs.^[30]
Following ''Lupin vs the Clone'', Toho brought in Hayao Miyazaki to direct ''The Castle of Cagliostro''. The movie, which received its title from the Maurice Leblanc novel ''La Comtesse de Cagliostro'' (The Countess of Cagliostro),^[31] was released one day short of the one year anniversary of ''Lupin vs the Clone'', on December 15, 1979. While initially, the film was not a box office success, and was considered atypical, with Lupin too noble and not egoistical enough,^[32] it gained popularity through numerous re-releases and was even voted as "the best anime in history" by the readers of ''Animage'' magazine prior to the release of ''Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind'' in 1984.^[33]
Following ''Cagliostro'', three more Lupin III theatrical features were released. '' was released in theaters on July 13, 1985.^[24] Ten years after ''Babylon'', ''To Hell with Nostradamus'' was released into Japanese cinemas on April 22, 1995.^[35]
The creator of Lupin III, Monkey Punch, was asked to direct the last theatrical to be released, ''Dead or Alive'' for a lack of another director.^[36] Although he was credited as chief director for the production, Monkey Punch said that he left most of the work for his assistant directors and only directed the opening and ending sequences while acting as consultant for everything else. ''Dead or Alive'' was released into Japanese theaters on April 20, 1996.^[37] Following the production of the movie, Monkey Punch stated that the process was exhausting he would not like to direct another anime again.^[38]

Television specials

On April 4, 1989, the television special ''Bye Bye Liberty Crisis'',^[39] aired on NTV. Every summer since then featured a new 90 minute Lupin III television special that would air on NTV at 9:03^[40] on Friday evening, usually in the last week of July or the first week of August (''Bye-Bye Liberty Crisis'' and ''Seven Days Rhapsody'' diverted from that trend, however).
The latest television special is Rupan Sansei: Kiri no Elusive (ルパン三世霧のエリューシヴ). Produced by TMS with animation by Telecom (the animation studio responsible for ''Farewell to Nostradamus'' and ''Castle of Cagliostro''), the special features the return of one of the villains of the original television series, Mamo Kyousuke. The special is a part of the 40th anniversary celebration of the original manga.^[41]^[42]

Original animation videos (OAVs)

Only two original Lupin III features were released as OVAs. ''The Plot of the Fuma Clan'' was the first of the two, released in Japan in 1987. The 74 minutes feature is unique amongst other Lupin productions because it's the only one to feature an entire voice cast replacement. Because of budget problems, TMS decided not to employ the regular voice cast for the production. Instead, the studio hired a different cast to save money.
Yasuo Yamada, the voice actor for Lupin, had always taken pride in his role as the title character. After the voice cast replacement, due to a misunderstanding, he thought that Monkey Punch had lobbied the producers for a new voice actor. Following the production, Monkey Punch did try to reassure Yamada that he had nothing to do with the producers decision to use a new cast, and the regulars were reinstated with the first television special, ''Bye Bye Liberty''. Despite that, relations between Yamada and Monkey Punch were permanently strained by the affair.
The second OVA was released on April 3, 2002 under the title ''Rupan Sansei: ikiteita majutsushi'' ''(Return of the Magician''). The OVA was created as a part of the 30-year anniversary of the first television series, and thus it featured the return of one of the original villains of the series, the magician Pycal (hence the title).^[43]

Musical

Cast of the Lupin III Musical

On November 5, 1998, a musical adaptation of Monkey Punch's character opened for a short engagement. The musical, titled ''Lupin III - I'm Lupin'', centered on a guy who might or might not be the real Lupin III. The cast of the musical included all five principal characters with the addition of a villain original to the production. Production ended on November 8, 1998.^[44]

Video games

Over the years, many Lupin III related video games were released in Japan and abroad. The first video game featuring the character of Lupin III to make it to the United States was a Laserdisc video game, only ever seen in coin-operated arcades, titled ''Cliff Hanger''. Released in 1983 by a company known as Stern,^[45] the video game featured clips from the first two Lupin III animated theatrical features, Lupin vs the Clone and The Castle of Cagliostro.^[46]
Aside from ''Cliff Hanger'', the only Lupin III related game to be released in the United States is '' (released in Japan as ''Rupan Sansei Majutsu-Ou no Isan'' (ルパン三世魔術王の遺産)), developed in Japan by Banpresto for the Playstation 2. The stealth-action game, similar to Metal Gear Solid,^[47] was originally released in Japan on November 28, 2002. Bandai released the game in the United States in February of 2004.^[48] The game received lukewarm reviews. It was praised for its voice acting, soundtrack and level of faithfulness to the source material, but criticized for its poor graphics and weak enemy AI.^[49]
Many other Lupin III video games have been developed and released in Japan across multiple platforms.^[50] The most recent Lupin III videogame is ''Rupan Sansei: Rupan niwa shi o, Zenigata niwa koi o'' (ルパン三世ルパンには死を、銭形には恋を), an action-stealth game developed by Banpresto for the Playstation 2 and released in Japan on February 22, 2007.^[51]

Music

Cover of the Lupin III Original Soundtrack CD released by Geneon

The music for the first television series was composed by Takeo Yamashita, with many songs performed by Charlie Kosei. From the second television series onwards, all Lupin III television series, theatrical features, television specials and OVAs, as well as the Playstation 2 games that were developed by Banpresto, have had music composed and performed by Yuji Ohno. VAP has released numerous Lupin III CDs in Japan, including soundtracks of television specials and original Jazz arrangements of themes from the franchise.^[52]
Geneon Entertainment released two music CDs in the United States. ''Lupin the 3rd: Sideburn Club Mix'' is a collection of thirteen remixed themes from the television series released alongside the first DVD volume on January 28, 2003.^[53] ''Lupin the 3rd Original Soundtrack'' is a collection of fifteen themes from the second television series performed by Yuji Ohno with his Jazz group You & the Explosion Band. The soundtrack was released on April 8, 2003.^[54]

English language licensing and release information

Streamline Pictures was the first company to adapt Lupin III for English language release in the United States. The first film they adapted was ''The Castle of Cagliostro'', which was released on VHS on September 1, 1992.^[55] Streamline went on to release Lupin vs the Clone (as ''The Mystery of Mamo''),^[56] as well as episodes 145 and 155 of the second television series.^[57] Because Monkey Punch did not seek permission to use the Lupin name from the estate of Maurice Leblanc, when Lupin material was licensed for overseas usage, the name had to be changed. Streamline Pictures resorted to referring to Lupin as "Wolf" in their releases, which is the English translation of the French word "Lupin".^[58]
Manga Entertainment purchased the North American distribution rights to the animated theatrical feature ''The Castle of Cagliostro'' after Streamline went out of business. Because the Lupin name passed into the public domain in the early 1990s, Manga did not have the same legal issues with using the name as Streamline did.^[59] Manga released the film on DVD in 2000 and later went on to release a special edition of the film on August 29, 2006.^[60]
In 2002, FUNimation Entertainment purchased the rights to eight of the television specials, from ''Orders to Assassinate Lupin'' to ''$1 Money Wars'', as well as the feature films ''Farewell to Nostradamus'' and ''Dead or Alive''.^[61] FUNimation has released all of their Lupin III properties on DVD in the United States.
Geneon Entertainment, which was at the time known as Pioneer, began distributing the second television series in the United States in 2003.^[62] Geneon hired Phuuz Entertainment Inc. to adapt and translate the series.^[63] The first 79 episodes have been released across 15 DVD volumes, and the first 26 episodes aired numerous times on Cartoon Network's Adult Swim.^[64] Geneon also released the animated theatrical feature ''Lupin vs the Clone'' on DVD under the title ''The Secret of Mamo''.^[65]
Until 2006, Animeigo owned the North American distribution rights to the OVA ''The Fuma Conspiracy'' and the animated theatrical feature '', which they released using the name "Rupan III" (the Japanese pronunciation of Lupin's name) due to the same legal issues that Streamline had.^[66] but the license for those two movies is now owned by Discotek Media, along with the 1974 live action film, ''Strange Psychokinetic Strategy''.^[67]
Tokyopop owns the North American distribution rights to two of the manga series. The company has finished releasing the first manga series and is now in the process of translating and releasing the second manga series under the title ''Lupin III - World's Most Wanted''.^[68]^[69]

Reception

Reception of the various English adaptations of Lupin III have been relatively positive, although some titles have received mixed reviews. Both of Manga Entertainment's releases of the ''The Castle of Cagliostro'' received ''DVD Talk Collector Series'' recommendation status, the highest status given by the review website DVDtalk.com.^[70]^[71] Chris Beveridge of AnimeOnDVD.com gave the film a grade of "A+", although he disliked Manga Entertainment's use of PG-13 level language in the English dub.^[72]
Both Chris Beveridge of Anime On DVD and Mike Crandol of Anime News Network disliked phuuz entertainment's dub of the second television series because the company used many modern references and updated dialogue for a series that was released in the late 1970s, although the series itself received a positive overall review from both web sites.^[73]^[74] John Wallis of DVD talk compared the series to Cowboy Bebop,^[75] while Rob Lineberger of DVD Verdict wrote "''Lupin the Third'' is ''James Bond'' meets ''Charlie's Angels'' with ''Scooby Doo'' sensibilities."^[76]
The Lupin III television specials and theatrical features released by FUNimation have received reviews varying from positive to mixed. The most well received of FUNimation's releases is ''Island of Assassins'', with Chris Beveridge of Anime On DVD describing it as "the best non-TV Lupin experience...since the Castle of Cagliostro",^[77] and Todd Douglass Jr. of DVD Talk giving it a rating of four and a half out of five stars.^[78] The least well received of FUNimations releases is the company's first Lupin release, ''Secret of the Twilight Gemini'', which received mixed reviews due to its use of excessive nudity and its B-movie-style plot.^[79]^[80]
Several of the first volumes of the first Lupin III manga released by Tokyopop made it onto ICv2.com's list of top 50 graphic novels, although later volumes of the first series and none of the volumes of the second series made it onto the list.^[81]^[82]^[83]
The Lupin III franchise remains popular in Japan. The manga placed in 38th place on Japan’s Agency for Cultural Affairs's list of the top 50 manga series.^[84] ''The Castle of Cagliostro'' placed in 5th place on the agency's list of best anime, while the original television series placed in 50th place on the same list.^[85] The original television series also placed in 38th place on TV Asahi's list of Japan's 100 favorite animated television series.^[86]

Notes

References

★ Anime News Network's Lupin III portal with links to pages on Lupin III theatrical features, television series, and more

★ The Anime Encyclopedia: A Guide to Japanese Animation Since 1917, Revised and Expanded Edition, , Jonathan, Clements, Stone Bridge Press, ,

★

★ Official Japanese website with chronological timeline of all Lupin III premiers

★ Official Japanese website with episode listings

★ Official Japanese website with television special listings

★ Unofficial English website with episode listings translated into English

★ Unofficial English website with theatrical feature listings translated into English

★ Unofficial English website with television special listings translated into English

External links

; Official sites:

★ Lupin the Third Network (Japanese) requires Macromedia Flash plugin

★ Monkey Punch's website (Japanese) requires Macromedia Flash plugin

★ VAP's Official Lupin the Third Site (Japanese)

★ TMS's Official Lupin the Third Site (Japanese)

★ Lupin III Manga (Tokyopop's official US Lupin site)

★ LupinTheThird.com (Funimation's official US Lupin site)

★ LupinOfficial.com (Geneon Entertainment's official US Lupin site)
; Fan sites:

★ Edgar de la Cambriole-Site francophone

★ Lupin the Third.net

★ The Lupin III Encyclopedia

★ Lupin III European Page

This article provided by Wikipedia. To edit the contents of this article, click here for original source.

psst.. try this: add to faves

	Vision 2000 Travel Group, Vancouver
	Entrance Travel
	Hotel Valley Ho (Cafe ZuZu, VH Spa)
	Century 21 Beltair Associates
	Scottsdale CVB
	Interpro Travel Services Inc.
	traverse jamaica
	Pelican Executive Suites
	Travelonly - Dave Corless
	Time Out for Touring Inc.