Fictional character created by Monkey Punch
Fictional character
Lupin III
(
Japanese
:
ルパン三世
,
Hepburn
:
Rupan Sansei
)
, referred to in some English adaptations as
Arsene Lupin III
,
[nb 21]
is a fictional character created by Kazuhiko Kato aka
Monkey Punch
as the
protagonist
for his
manga
series
Lupin the Third
, which debuted in
Weekly Manga Action
on August 10, 1967.
Lupin is the grandson of fictional
gentleman thief
Arsene Lupin
, created by
Maurice Leblanc
. Acknowledged across the globe as the world's number one thief, Lupin is a master of disguise and deduction, marksmanship, and inventor of numerous handy gadgets. His fun-loving, foolhardy incongruity covers a brilliant mind always extemporizing and re-evaluating. As such, he has been responsible for heists no right-minded individual would believe possible. While occasionally arrested and jailed, typically by his
ICPO
nemesis
Inspector Koichi Zenigata
, he always succeeds in escaping unharmed. The original manga differs significantly compared to the family-friendly
anime
incarnations through its explicit depictions of sex and violence, with Lupin's character also differing as a result. For example, he and his famous gang, beautiful
Fujiko Mine
, cool triggerman
Daisuke Jigen
and incomparable samurai
Goemon Ishikawa XIII
, occasionally try to kill each other in the manga version, but are nonetheless an inseparable team in various anime productions.
Conception and creation
[
edit
]
The aim of
Lupin III
was to produce a comedy adventure series that reflected the traits of Leblanc's Arsene Lupin character. Originally, the intention was to keep the blood ties between the two fictional characters secret. However, Monkey Punch was convinced by others not to do so.
[3]
He combined elements of Arsene Lupin with
James Bond
to develop the character of Lupin III and made him a "carefree fellow".
[3]
[4]
[5]
In the original manga, Lupin and his team typically work individually for their own goals. Monkey Punch explained it is only in the anime that they frequently operate together, suspecting some unwritten rule that all five main characters have to appear in every episode.
[5]
He believed that Lupin and Fujiko were similar to the characters of
D'Artagnan
and
Milady de Winter
, and described them as "Not necessarily lovers, not necessarily husband and wife, but more just having fun as man and woman with each other".
[6]
Inspector Zenigata was conceived as Lupin's archrival to create a "human
Tom and Jerry
".
[5]
Monkey Punch described the appeal of drawing Lupin coming from the character being able to go anywhere without obstacles and being able to do whatever he wants, whenever he wants. However, this is contrasted by the appeal of Zenigata's strict personality.
[6]
Monkey Punch said that he believed the
Lupin III
story could never end but that if he had to, both Zenigata and Lupin would end up as equals. They would either both fail, both win or both get very old.
[7]
Name
[
edit
]
Monkey Punch did not gain permission to use the Arsene Lupin name and, at the time, Japan did not enforce trade copyrights. By the time Leblanc's estate launched legal action in Japan, the name was considered to have entered into common use.
[3]
However, this was not the case in North America and Europe, and several foreign releases of
Lupin III
media were obliged to drop the
Lupin III
title; the character himself was renamed to "Wolf" or "Rupan". In France, the series was known as
Edgar, Detective Cambrioleur
(Edgar, Detective Burglar) with Lupin himself renamed "Edgar de la Cambriole" (Edgar of Burglary).
[8]
In 2012, Leblanc's original Arsene Lupin entered the
public domain
in France due to 70 years passing since his death in 1941, and is in the public domain for any country that enforces the
rule of the shorter term
.
[9]
In Japanese media, the character is referred to by the
mononym
"Lupin III", excluding a first name even when other characters are given their full names. Translation notes for
The Castle of Cagliostro
offer that Japan does not use western generational "Jr." or "III" naming conventions that necessitate sharing the first name, asserting that "official [Japanese] animation dialogue and comic text never explicitly call him 'Arsene Lupin the Third.'"
[2]
[nb 22]
The name "Arsene Lupin III" continues to occasionally appear in English localizations.
[11]
Characterization
[
edit
]
Appearance
[
edit
]
Lupin as seen in
Episode 0: The First Contact
.
Lupin III has black (or occasionally dark brown) hair with what is variously depicted as cut short with a
widow's peak
or plastered flat with a V-shaped bang. His trademark sideburns extend from ear to nearly the chin.
Lupin typically dresses fashionably, wearing a button-down shirt, squared-off
necktie
fastened with a
clip
, chinos, and a brightly colored
sports jacket
. Though exclusively red in the manga, in animation his jackets are various colors which are often used to
color-code
the TV series (green for
Part I
, red for
Part II
, pink for
Part III
, blue for Parts
IV
and
V
, etc.).
[12]
Personality
[
edit
]
In Monkey Punch's original manga, Lupin is cocky, quite crude, and for the most part remorseless. He is very much the ladies' man, often using them for his own gains, and is not beyond forcing himself upon women who resist his advances. Mike Toole of
Anime News Network
referred to the character as a "rough, drunken, lecherous crook."
[8]
This is in stark contrast to his better-known anime self, who although a skilled thief, occasionally comes off as a chivalrous goofball who enjoys helping those less fortunate than he. Furthermore, Lupin often takes it upon himself and his gang to stop criminals engaged in more violent crimes and leave them for Zenigata to arrest. In the anime, while he fancies himself a
Casanova
, his actual success with women is erratic, appearing to fluctuate with the writer.
Even though his gang's loyalty has been an issue, with Fujiko willing to betray and cohort Goemon promising to eventually kill him, Lupin will still drop everything to come to their aid in a helpless moment; further the team would rather face torture than to betray Lupin (or he betray them) to a third party. This rule of loyalty curiously extends as well to Inspector Zenigata, whom Lupin considers a respected friend and opposition. The Inspector reciprocates this regard and out of gratitude has vowed never to attempt to kill Lupin. Lupin's vendetta against the Tarantula Gang in
In Memory of the Walther P-38
was partly settling of past betrayal and mostly vengeful payback for their shooting and nearly killing Zenigata.
It seems Lupin loves to steal more than actually having the treasure he sought. Lupin relishes more in the challenge of stealing and, as long as he succeeds in the heist, is usually not that upset when he ends up empty-handed; there have been times he has lost the object or intentionally thrown it away.
[13]
There have also been times when Lupin stole an object only to give it to someone else, such as if it rightfully belonged to them or they needed it more than he did.
When not involved in criminal activities, Lupin usually spends his time dating beautiful girls, fishing, race car driving, attending formal dinners, playing pool, casino gambling, and participating in
cafe society
. His favorite foods seem to be mostly
French cuisine
, sushi, and seafood; when on a job he may settle with ramen noodles. In
Lupin the Third Part V
, he is shown with an affection for
galettes
. He also smokes cigarettes and occasionally cigars and
kreteks
; in the manga, he's seen smoking a briar pipe. His preferred cigarette is the famous French brand
Gitanes
. Lupin is a celebrated race car driver, competing in several international events when time allows. He's also a skilled sleight of hand artist who loves to befuddle his opponents with various gimmicks: i.e., a cigarette which explodes into confetti, a gun with a spring-loaded boxing glove that clobbers the shooter, and bubble gum that becomes plastique after brief chewing.
Skills
[
edit
]
Physically, Lupin is a man of average strength, but he can throw a surprisingly good punch. He is incredibly flexible and fast, and his manual dexterity is cat-like in precision and quickness. His talent in the art of disguise borders on the superhuman, with him able to flawlessly impersonate any man or woman in face, voice and costume after minimal observation. This skill is so complete that he can even fool close friends and family members of the subject. His skinny body enables him to easily impersonate larger individuals by use of oversized outfits, with attack paraphernalia usually making up the disguise's bulk. His favorite disguise has always been that of Inspector Zenigata, which incenses his adversary to no end. Lupin possesses an encyclopedic knowledge of various topics, such as history, the different sciences, fluency in multiple languages, etc. He shows amazing intuition and quick awareness of his surroundings.
Lupin favors the long outdated
Walther P38
as his principal firearm. He is shown to be an excellent marksman, having on at least one occasion fired directly into the barrel of another gun, although not quite on a par with Jigen.
Despite the criminal nature of his activities, Lupin has a strict code that he follows in order to not taint his reputation. Lupin dislikes killing and takes care to use non lethal means to achieve his goals. When Lupin believes he has an illness causing him to become a compulsive killer he asks Jigen to kill him to save the lives of any potential victims. While killing is against his nature, he is willing to fire upon any enemy who threatens his friends or allies.
Lupin is a talented driver, motorcyclist and pilot. His favorite automobiles seem to be either the
Mercedes-Benz SSK
or a souped up 1965
Fiat 500 F
, most famously seen in
Castle of Cagliostro
. Also worth mentioning is the
Alfa Romeo 6C 1750
. In the case of the SSK, one of the rarest cars in the world, one problem or another seems to cause the car's destruction in virtually every episode it's featured. Lupin either has several SSK models in possession, owns a selection of counterfeit models, or is talented to the extreme at auto repair and reconstruction.
Lupin is a formidable escape artist, capable of cracking any safe or escaping from shackles in moments. He can even use his restraints to entrap his would-be captor before making his departure.
[14]
Seemingly prepared for all contingencies, he can break free of confinement even when surrounded.
In spite of his facade of reckless childlike antics, i.e., taunts, silly faces, and leaving notes of his next caper, Lupin's brilliance for tactics and originality belies any underestimations his behavior may have implied. In the
Lupin III vs Detective Conan
special, not only did he figure out Conan was far more intelligent than he appeared, but had also discerned his identity as
Shinichi Kudo
.
Background
[
edit
]
Lupin's ethnic origins have been occasionally specified as half-Japanese and half-French,
[15]
[16]
befitting his claimed heritage as grandson of Frenchman Arsene Lupin. In the first TV series, episode 13 ("Beware the Time Machine!"), Lupin impersonates a feudal Japanese ancestor of his, claiming he would like to marry a girl by the name of Mylene Lupin from France someday.
In the 2008
OVA
Green vs. Red
, a dossier held by Zenigata indicates his place of birth as "unknown". Recent productions, such as
Part V
, occasionally cast doubt as to whether he truly is related to the original Arsene Lupin or if "Lupin" is simply a title or false alias. However, numerous
Part I
and
Part II
episodes make it clear that the famed French thief is indeed his grandfather, with some stories having flashbacks to the top-hatted ancestor having been somehow involved in Lupin's current heists. As well, Lupin often speaks of both his grandfather and his father, both of whom were thieves. He occasionally quotes his grandfather's advice and has attempted to complete or repeat heists attempted by his ancestors with good or bad luck.
Actors
[
edit
]
Animation
[
edit
]
Japanese
[
edit
]
Lupin III was first voiced by
Taichir? Hirokawa
in the
CinemaScope
version of the 1969
pilot film for the first anime
, while
Nachi Nozawa
voiced him in the pilot's TV version.
[17]
However,
Yasuo Yamada
was given the role when the first anime was actually produced (1971?72) and continued to voice Lupin until his death in 1995, with one exception.
[18]
[19]
Due to budget concerns,
TMS
decided not to employ the regular voice cast for the 1987
original video animation
The Fuma Conspiracy
,
[20]
with
Toshio Furukawa
voicing Lupin.
[19]
Kanichi Kurita
took over the role after Yamada's death and he continues to voice Lupin III to this day.
[8]
[21]
In the
Lupin Zero
prequel ONA series, the teenaged Lupin is voiced by
Tasuku Hatanaka
.
[22]
English
[
edit
]
Due to a lack of localization credits on any known prints, Lupin's English voice actor in the 1979
Toho
/
Frontier Enterprises
dub of
The Mystery of Mamo
remained unverified
[23]
until 2018, when a chance discovery by fans revealed the voice actor to be Tom Clark.
[24]
From 1991 to 1995,
Bob Bergen
voiced Lupin in
Streamline Pictures
' dubs of
The Castle of Cagliostro
(in which the character was renamed "The Wolf" to avoid legal complications with
Maurice Leblanc
's estate), episodes 145 and 155 of
the second anime
(collectively released as
Lupin III: Tales of the Wolf
and later
Lupin III's Greatest Capers
) and
The Mystery of Mamo
. For
AnimEigo
's 1995 release of
The Fuma Conspiracy
, Lupin, named "Rupan" in the dub, was voiced by Robin Robertson. In
Manga Entertainment
's 1996 dubs of
The Mystery of Mamo
and
Bye Bye, Lady Liberty
(retitled
Secret of Mamo
and
Goodbye Lady Liberty
respectively) for the UK market,
Bill Dufris
provided Lupin's voice, where the character was renamed "Wolf III". In Manga's 2000 dub of
The Castle of Cagliostro
, produced in cooperation with
Animaze
,
David Hayter
provides Lupin's voice; due to the non-
union
nature of the project, Hayter was initially credited as "Sean Barker". Hayter was also involved in the production of
Discotek Media
's re-release of the film, and re-voiced several of his lines for a "family-friendly" edit of the Animaze/Manga dub produced exclusively for Discotek.
[25]
Sonny Strait
voiced Lupin in
Funimation Entertainment
's dubs of several TV specials and theatrical films between 2002 and 2005, and in their 2013 dub of
The Woman Called Fujiko Mine
.
[26]
Keith Silverstein
voices the character in the
Bang Zoom! Entertainment
/Discotek dubs for the
Lupin the IIIrd
films
that serve as a "continuation spin-off" of the series.
Tony Oliver
voiced Lupin in the
Phuuz
dub of the second anime and
The Mystery of Mamo
for
Pioneer/Geneon
, as well as the video game
Treasure of the Sorcerer King
, between 2002 and 2007. Beginning with the Discotek dub of
Lupin the 3rd Part IV
, Oliver reprised the role (alongside several
Part II
co-stars)
[27]
and has continued to be the primary voice actor for the character across animated shows and films.
Live-action
[
edit
]
Lupin was portrayed by
Y?ki Meguro
in the
1974 film
and by
Shun Oguri
in the
2014 film
. In the 2015 musical adaptation of
Lupin III
performed by the all-female troupe
Takarazuka Revue
, Lupin was portrayed by Seina Sagiri.
[28]
Appearances in other media
[
edit
]
Lupin makes an appearance as a guest character in the 2012 game
Girls RPG Cinderelife
developed by
Level-5
for the
Nintendo 3DS
.
[29]
The character has also been used in television advertising for motorcycles, gasoline, razors, fast food companies, etc.
Reception
[
edit
]
Allen Divers of
Anime News Network
(ANN) called Lupin "one of the most recognized figures in Japan" with many homages and references in other series.
[30]
Similarly,
Crunchyroll
's Kara Dennison said that even if someone has not seen a
Lupin III
title, they have "almost certainly experienced something either inspired by or paying tribute to him and his gang."
[31]
Lupin was voted the eighth most iconic anime hero by Mania.com.
[32]
IGN
ranked Lupin as the fifteenth best anime character of all time in 2009,
[33]
placing him on the 16th spot in 2014.
[34]
After completing his involvement with the
Lupin III
franchise in 1980,
Hayao Miyazaki
wrote an article in
Animage
where he discussed his view of the series and the character. He stated that Lupin was "truly a character of his era" but that as the franchise progressed he had been overtaken by the real world. Despite this, Miyazaki still thought fondly of Lupin's early days.
[35]
For the
video game
Persona 5
, its creative team originally asked themselves how a character like Lupin III might win appeal in modern society.
[36]
Anime director and voice actor
Shinichi Watanabe
is known for dressing like Lupin in his daily life, a trait which is extended to his avatar character in
Excel Saga
, Nabeshin.
[31]
See also
[
edit
]
Notes
[
edit
]
- ^
Strange Psychokinetic Strategy
- ^
Lupin the 3rd
- ^
Pilot Film
(
CinemaScope
version)
- ^
Pilot Film
(TV version)
- ^
The Fuma Conspiracy
- ^
Lupin III D2 Manga
- ^
Lupin Zero
- ^
The Mystery of Mamo
- ^
The Castle of Cagliostro
,
Lupin the Third Part II
eps. 145 and 155,
The Mystery of Mamo
- ^
The Fuma Conspiracy
- ^
The Mystery of Mamo
,
Bye Bye, Lady Liberty
- ^
The Castle of Cagliostro
- ^
The Secret of Twilight Gemini
,
The Pursuit of Harimao's Treasure
,
Dragon of Doom
,
Voyage to Danger
,
Farewell to Nostradamus
,
Tokyo Crisis
,
The Columbus Files
,
Dead or Alive
,
Island of Assassins
,
Missed by a Dollar
,
The Woman Called Fujiko Mine
- ^
Jigen's Gravestone
,
Goemon's Blood Spray
,
Fujiko's Lie
- ^
Used in
Cliff Hanger
- ^
Used in Streamline Pictures' dubs of
The Castle of Cagliostro
and
Lupin the Third Part II
eps. 145 and 155
- ^
Used in AnimEigo's dub of
The Fuma Conspiracy
and subtitled print of
Legend of the Gold of Babylon
- ^
Used in Manga Entertainment's dubs of
The Mystery of Mamo
and
Bye Bye, Lady Liberty
- ^
Used by
Daisuke Jigen
in various dubs produced by Streamline Pictures and Funimation
- ^
In
Part IV
and
Part V
only
- ^
"Arsene" is not considered as part of the character's name in Japanese media.
[2]
- ^
The first name "Arsene" would later appear briefly on a wanted poster in
Part V
,
[10]
though dialogue throughout the show still only identified the character as "Lupin III".
References
[
edit
]
- ^
Morrissy, Kim (2019-04-22).
"Little-Known Monkey Punch Manga From 1975 Reveals Lupin III, Fujiko's Son"
.
Anime News Network
.
Archived
from the original on 2022-08-12
. Retrieved
2022-08-12
.
- ^
a
b
Oono, Shoko; Nelson, Reed (2015). "Translation Notes".
Lupin the Third: The Castle of Cagliostro
.
Discotek Media
.
- ^
a
b
c
"Manga Mania".
Manga Mania
. No. 20.
Manga Publishing
. March 1995. pp. 6?9.
ISSN
0968-9575
.
- ^
"Poster Magazine Insert".
Manga Mania
. No. 34.
Manga Publishing
. May 1996. Poster Magazine Insert.
ISSN
0968-9575
.
- ^
a
b
c
Interview with Monkey Punch
.
Lupin the 3rd: Dead or Alive
(DVD).
Funimation
.
- ^
a
b
Divers, Allen (November 13, 2003).
"Interview: Monkey Punch"
.
Anime News Network
. Retrieved
July 2,
2007
.
- ^
Yadao, Jason S. (2009).
The Rough Guide to Manga
.
Rough Guides
. pp.
154
?155.
ISBN
978-1-85828-561-0
.
- ^
a
b
c
"The Lupin Tapes - The Mike Toole Show"
.
Anime News Network
. June 6, 2010
. Retrieved
August 27,
2013
.
- ^
"Original Lupin Character Enters Public Domain in 2012"
.
Crunchyroll
. Retrieved
August 28,
2013
.
- ^
Oyamada, Keiko; ?kouchi, Ichir? (April 2018). "The Girl in the Twin Towers".
Lupin the 3rd Part V: Misadventures in France
. Event occurs at 0:35.
- ^
"This Is When LUPIN THE 3RD PART 3 Premieres on HIDIVE"
.
HIDIVE
. 16 September 2022
. Retrieved
21 March
2023
.
Arsene Lupin III, the grandson of the late, great phantom thief Arsene Lupin, is back at it again...
- ^
Nelson, Reed (2022).
50 Animated Years of LUPIN THE 3rd
. Magnetic Press. pp. 9?11.
ISBN
9781951719449
.
- ^
"Detective Hanshichi's Ten year Promise".
Lupin III Part II
. Episode 54. Event occurs at 06:20.
- ^
"Is Lupin burning.....?!".
Lupin III
. Episode 1 (in Japanese). October 24, 1971. Event occurs at 21:29.
- ^
Zutter, Natalie (2021-01-20).
"From Lupin III to Inspector Gadget: Examining the Heirs of Arsene Lupin"
.
Den of Geek
.
Archived
from the original on 2021-01-21
. Retrieved
2021-09-08
.
- ^
"
The Southern Cross Looked Like Diamonds
".
Lupin the 3rd Part II
. Season 4. Episode 15 (in Japanese). 1980-01-14.
Nippon TV
.
- ^
Reed Nelson.
Lupin the 3rd The Complete First TV Series
(Disc 4)
(DVD).
Discotek Media
.
- ^
Reed Nelson.
Lupin the 3rd The Complete First TV Series (Disc 1)
(DVD).
Discotek Media
.
- ^
a
b
"Rupan III: The Fuma Conspiracy - Review"
.
Anime News Network
. May 4, 2003
. Retrieved
January 29,
2017
.
- ^
"So, Which Lupin the Third Anime Should You Watch Next?"
.
Otaku USA
. Sovereign Media
. Retrieved
January 28,
2017
.
- ^
"Lupin III's Voice Cast Changed for 1st Time in 16 Years"
.
Anime News Network
. October 8, 2011
. Retrieved
January 28,
2017
.
- ^
Mateo, Alex (November 18, 2022).
"Lupin Zero Net Anime Casts Tasuku Hatanaka as Lupin, Shunsuke Takeuchi as Jigen"
.
Anime News Network
. Retrieved
November 18,
2022
.
- ^
A History of Mamo in English
.
The Mystery of Mamo
.
Discotek Media
. 2012.
- ^
"トム?クラ?ク"
.
FreeWave (Japanese)
. Retrieved
February 8,
2018
.
- ^
Bertschy, Zac (26 June 2015).
"ANNCastle of Cagliostro"
.
Anime News Network
. Retrieved
2 July
2015
.
- ^
"Funimation Reveals Dub Casts for Fujiko Mine, Eureka 7 AO, Michiko & Hatchin Anime"
.
Anime News Network
. May 16, 2013
. Retrieved
January 29,
2017
.
- ^
"Discotek Licenses Lupin III: Part IV for 2017 Release With English Dub"
.
Anime News Network
. November 1, 2016
. Retrieved
January 29,
2017
.
- ^
"New Lupin III Stage Play Travels to 18th-Century France"
.
Archived
from the original on September 9, 2017.
- ^
Loo, Egan (2011-10-16).
"Sailor Moon's Tuxedo Mask/Kamen Joins Level-5's Girls RPG"
.
Anime News Network
. Retrieved
2017-01-05
.
- ^
Divers, Allen (July 2, 2003).
"A New Beginning ? Tankobon Tower"
.
Anime News Network
. Retrieved
July 14,
2018
.
- ^
a
b
Dennison, Kara (May 16, 2018).
"He's a Superhero: The Legacy of Lupin the 3rd"
.
Crunchyroll
. Retrieved
July 14,
2018
.
- ^
Zoth, Thomas (12 January 2010).
"10 Most Iconic Anime Heroes"
.
Mania.com
. Archived from
the original
on 17 October 2013
. Retrieved
3 July
2016
.
- ^
Mackenzie, Chris (20 October 2009).
"Top 25 Anime Characters of All Time"
.
IGN
. p. 3
. Retrieved
14 June
2012
.
- ^
Isler, Ramsey (February 4, 2014).
"Top 25 Greatest Anime Characters"
.
IGN
. Retrieved
March 13,
2014
.
- ^
Miyazaki, Hayao (4 August 2009).
Starting Point 1979~1996
.
Viz Media
. pp. 277?282.
ISBN
978-1-4215-0594-7
.
- ^
James, Thomas (2015-02-05).
"Persona 5 director discusses characters, themes, and development"
. Gematsu.
Archived
from the original on 2016-03-25
. Retrieved
2015-02-06
.