Sideburns and Stealing: Lupin III, The World's Greatest Thief

Stealing. Good or bad? In the Bible, the Eighth Commandment says, "Thou shall not steal." But what if you're just so very good at it? As good as say, Lupin III? In 1967, Kazuhiko Katō, authoring manga under the peculiar pen name Monkey Punch, concieved of a character who was the grandson of the author Maurice Leblanc's Arsène Lupin. His manga, Lupin III, influenced by the novels and the art styles of Mad Magazine's Mort Drucker and Sergio Aragonés, ran in Weekly Manga Action magazine and became extremely popular. It eventually spawned numerous animated features, including three television series, five theatrical animated films, a live-action movie, and several television specials, which have become an annual Japanese television tradition. What is the appeal of this franchise? What is it that keeps Lupin III on the mind of the Japanese? What is so extraordinarily interesting about this character that keeps him pilfering through generations? As an avid fan, I will try to be as honest, but as unbias as I can possibly be, given my years of enjoying these various features. Leblanc's character was a gentleman thief, leaving calling cards, warning letters to the greedy wealthy of France he intended to steal from. However, Lupin III, while charming, and occasionally employing warnings of his own, is far removed from the "gentleman" classification. In fact, he's crass, snide, and more often than not selfish. He enjoys the vulgar things in life. Still, there's some smattering of civility in him, an honor code by which he lives, though it's hard to know exactly what that is from caper to caper. His behavior towards women is what can be considered elightened cynicism, rather than purely misogynistic (he once mused that "betrayal is the exclusive right of women"). His boisterous haughtiness and capability with firearms belies his relaxed personal nature. As for his skills at his stock-in-trade, I would describe him as both well-prepared and well-prepared to improvise, like Batman, or James Bond. Of course, Lupin III rarely works alone (though he's more than capable of it). For the real big jobs, he (mostly) trusts his (mostly) trustworthy allies- Daisuke Jigen, a expert marksman who lines up his shots with the brim of his hat, Goemon Ishikawa XIII, a traditional Japanese samurai-type with unreal sword skills, and Fujiko Mine, the object of Lupin's lust and frustration, who is prone to betraying him- to assist him. The eclectic mix of characters provides a variety of reactions to varying situations. They're all the best at what they do, but that doesn't mean that things go smoothly for them. After all, it wouldn't be that interesting if they succeeded all the time, would it? In fact, more often than not, the Lupin gang's booty slips away at the last moment, proving that the best laid plans often go awry. It doesn't help that Interpol and various other organizations, both for and against the law are constantly chasing them. Lupin III's most fervant tracker is Interpol (or ICPO)'s Inspector Koichi Zenigata. He doggedy pursues the thief and his group across the globe. Lupin III is his obsession. He must capture Lupin, it's his life. When it seems that Lupin has died (which happens quite frequently), or if Zengata actually manages to arrest him, it unnerves and upsets him. Often portrayed as incompetent and bumbling, one has to first remember that he's chasing a genuis, and second Monkey Punch's Zenigata was a usually more on the ball then his depiction in some of the anime features. Anyway, you have to admire the guy's persistence. Though, if you consider the revelation in Mystery of Mamo that he has a young daughter named Toshiko, maybe he should spend more time at home. Lupin III's adventures have taken him around the world, from his home bases in Tokyo and Paris to Morocco, New York City, Rio de Janeiro, Bangkok, Venice, St. Petersburg, and wherever else he sets his sights on a treasure. The world is his home, he is a true citizen of Earth, and he doesn't disciminate: if you have something work taking, he'll take it, if it pleases him to do so. So his adventures have backdrops which span the planet, often several in one feature. One thing's for sure: things don't get boring. Lupin's voice was Yasuo Yamada from 1971 to his death in 1995. Yamada brought a sense of charming bemusement to the character, the sort that made this viewer believe that Lupin was geniunely surprised by his own talents, even though he confidently displayed them. This was a Lupin who sounded like he knew his own weaknesses. His chemistry was perfect with the rest of the cast, who have continued playing their roles to this day. Since Yamada's death, Kanichi Kurita has played the role, sort of awkardly at first, with a Yamada impression, but growing into the role well, playing Lupin as a sort of timeless elder statesman of thievery. Though perhaps that's just the direction the character has taken in the past few years. Here in the U.S., Lupin III isn't all that well-known, except perhaps via the acclaimed Castle of Calgiostro, directed by Hayao Miyazaki. Even so, there's not much other exposure. Over the past decade, attempts have been made to market the franchise successfully, from the early Streamline Pictures versions of the first two Lupin theatrical films (Cagliostro being one of them) to the less-than-stellar (in sales) releases by Pioneer/Geneon and Funimation. It seems like the more obscure companies like Discotek have taken it upon themselves to continue to bring Lupin titles to the Region 1 market, but there doesn't seem to be much buzz for any Lupin releases. The best exposure came when Cartoon Network aired the Fuse-dubbed Pioneer release of the second Lupin III television series on its Adult Swim lineup, but it no longer airs, and hasn't for years. Still, Lupin is still very much in the minds of the more experienced Japanese animation fans in America, and his image lives on in the popularity of the series Cowboy Bebop from 1998, whose main character takes some visual cues from the famous thief. As with any franchise as large as this one, the productions are a bit of a mixed bag. While most are enjoyable on some level, there are many whose flaws outweigh their strengths, and even a couple that seem irredeemably bad. Nothing awful enough to stain the strength of the franchise as a whole, just some very poor or unremarkable features among many enjoyable ones. Some have argued that the franchise hasn't been the same since Yamada's death. Others, such as myself, would prefer a little less Lupin, making the specials that much more special, since Tokyo Movie Sinsha (TMS, the studio that produces Lupin III anime) would then have more time to work on them. Perhaps even a new television series is called for to reinvigorate the franchise. Though there are plenty who don't particularly believe there's anything at all wrong with the franchise. After all, with time, you're going to get good features and bad ones. Lupin III may never again get as much exposure as it did or as much as acclaim as with Castle of Calgiostro, simply due to the fact that the highly acclaimed Miyazaki no longer works on Lupin projects, and hasn't for decades. Still, every year, people anticipate the next crime that this notorious bandit who steals from the rich and gives to himself commits. The franchise seems to endure as does the old man who chases the incouragable scoundrel. Maybe you should try chasing him at your local anime vendor.