Is Lupin Still Burning?

Lupin the 3rd mixes crime caper, action, comedy, hard-boiled adventure, espionage, and slapstick.

Its hero is a master thief who announces impossible heists, slips through traps, and usually leaves chaos, stolen treasure, and embarrassed police behind.

The franchise has expanded into television anime, theatrical films, TV specials, OVAs, games, novels, stage productions, pachinko machines, collaborations, and live-action works.

Since the first television anime aired in 1971, the series has remained active for more than half a century.

The original manga was serialized in Weekly Manga Action from August 1967 to May 1969.

It ran for 94 chapters and presented a darker, more adult version of the franchise than many later anime adaptations.

The early manga was an erotic crime suspense work with a sharp, chaotic sense of humor.

Its art showed strong influence from American cartoonist Mort Drucker, with lanky figures, exaggerated expressions, and fast visual rhythm.

Unlike the more heroic or roguish anime version, the manga’s Arsene Lupin III could be ruthless, violent, and morally dangerous.

The tone combined hard-boiled crime, sexual comedy, absurd gags, and anti-establishment energy.

Later Monkey Punch Manga

After the first manga, Monkey Punch continued the franchise with several related works.

Lupin III: New Adventures began in 1971 to coincide with the first anime series.

It was later collected together with the original manga and treated as a continuation.

New Lupin III began in 1977, alongside the second television anime.

This version moved closer to the anime’s familiar team format, with Arsene Lupin III, Daisuke Jigen, Fujiko Mine, and Goemon Ishikawa XIII often acting together.

SEXY Lupin III was a short 1984 series with scripts by other writers and artwork by Monkey Punch.

Monkey Punch also created Lupin Kozō, a spin-off about a boy implied to be Lupin’s son, though the idea was later described by the creator as something he had accepted reluctantly.

Arsene Lupin III

Arsene Lupin III is the grandson of Arsène Lupin and the central figure of the series.

He is a master thief with genius-level planning skills, superb disguises, physical agility, and a love of theatrical crime.

He acts cocky, playful, and flirtatious, but he is also highly calculating when a job demands it.

Depending on the version, he may be a dangerous criminal, a lovable rogue, or an antihero who steals from worse villains.

In many anime stories, he avoids killing unless forced into extreme circumstances.

He often pretends not to care, yet he repeatedly helps victims, friends, and even enemies caught in larger conspiracies.

Daisuke Jigen

Daisuke Jigen is Arsene Lupin III’s closest partner and one of anime’s most iconic gunmen.

He is famous for his hat, beard, cigarette, and superhuman skill with the Smith & Wesson Model 19 Combat Magnum.

Jigen is cool, dryly funny, and often the voice of reason when Lupin gets reckless.

He distrusts Fujiko’s schemes, dislikes unnecessary complications, and still follows Lupin into almost every impossible job.

Fujiko Mine

Fujiko Mine is a beautiful thief, spy, con artist, and wildcard.

She is sometimes Lupin’s ally, sometimes his rival, and sometimes the reason his plans collapse spectacularly.

Fujiko is driven by desire, freedom, jewels, secrets, and whatever treasure catches her eye.

She manipulates enemies and friends alike, but she also has her own code and often resists pointless killing.

Her relationship with Lupin is one of the franchise’s central tensions.

It is romantic, competitive, comedic, and rarely stable for more than one episode.

Goemon Ishikawa XIII

Goemon Ishikawa XIII is a master swordsman descended from the legendary outlaw Ishikawa Goemon.

He wields the near-mythic sword Zantetsuken, which can cut through almost anything.

Goemon first appears as an enemy before becoming one of Lupin’s regular allies.

In the anime, he is usually portrayed as stoic, old-fashioned, spiritual, and devoted to martial discipline.

His famous weakness is that Zantetsuken cannot cut konjac, a joke that became one of the series’ best-known details.

Inspector Zenigata

Inspector Zenigata is the detective obsessed with arresting Arsene Lupin III.

He is descended from the fictional Edo-period detective Zenigata Heiji and is usually attached to the Tokyo Metropolitan Police or Interpol.

Lupin calls him “old man” or “Pops,” while Zenigata calls Lupin his lifelong enemy.

Despite comic clumsiness, Zenigata is a tough, honest, persistent investigator.

He and Lupin understand each other better than either would like to admit.

When lives are at stake, they often form temporary truces before immediately returning to the chase.

The anime franchise began after attempts to adapt the manga in the late 1960s.

A pilot film was produced in 1969, and the first television series followed in 1971.

All major television series aired within the Nippon Television network system.

Animation production has long been associated with Tokyo Movie, Tokyo Movie Shinsha, and later TMS Entertainment.

Television Series

The first TV series aired from 1971 to 1972.

It began with a more adult, hard-edged tone but later shifted toward lighter adventure after struggling in ratings.

Repeated reruns helped the series gain popularity, eventually leading to a major revival.

The second TV series aired from 1977 to 1980 and became the version that firmly established the franchise’s mainstream popularity.

It gave the cast their most familiar rhythm, mixing international capers, comedy, gadgets, disguises, and stylish music.

The third TV series, Lupin III Part III, aired from 1984 to 1985.

It used a brighter visual style and a more exaggerated character design.

LUPIN the Third: The Woman Called Fujiko Mine aired in 2012 as a darker, stylized spin-off focusing on Fujiko.

It drew more directly on the adult flavor of the early manga.

A fourth main series aired in 2015 and was set largely in Italy and San Marino.

Part 5 aired in 2018 and added digital-age themes, including social media, surveillance, and hacking.

Part 6 aired from 2021 to 2022 for the anime’s 50th anniversary.

It included mystery elements and featured modern interpretations of the classic cast.

Theatrical Anime Films

The first theatrical anime film, The Mystery of Mamo, opened in 1978.

It pitted Lupin against a strange and grotesque enemy connected to immortality and cloning.

The Castle of Cagliostro, directed by Hayao Miyazaki, opened in 1979.

It later became one of the most beloved anime films ever made, especially for its elegant action, romantic tone, and warm portrayal of Lupin.

Legend of the Gold of Babylon followed in 1985.

Farewell to Nostradamus was released in 1995 and marked the transition from Yasuo Yamada to Kurita Kanichi as the voice of Lupin in Japanese.

Dead or Alive opened in 1996 and was directed by Monkey Punch himself.

Lupin the 3rd: The First opened in 2019 as the franchise’s first full 3DCG theatrical feature.

LUPIN THE IIIRD Series

The LUPIN THE IIIRD films are a darker, more violent spin-off line directed by Takeshi Koike.

They include Daisuke Jigen’s Gravestone, Goemon Ishikawa’s Spray of Blood, and Fujiko Mine’s Lie.

Later projects in this line continued the hard-boiled, adult-oriented style.

Television Specials

The franchise became famous for long-form television specials beginning in 1989.

The first was Bye Bye, Lady Liberty, followed by many feature-length specials broadcast mainly on Japanese television.

These works often send Lupin and the gang around the world in pursuit of lost treasures, secret weapons, ancient mysteries, and criminal conspiracies.

Notable specials include The Hemingway Papers, Napoleon’s Dictionary, Dragon of Doom, Walther P38, Episode 0: First Contact, and Blood Seal: Eternal Mermaid.

OVAs and Streaming Works

The franchise has also produced OVAs such as The Fuma Conspiracy, Return of Pycal, Green vs Red, and Is Lupin Still Burning?

LUPIN ZERO streamed from 2022 to 2023 and imagined Lupin’s youth in 1960s Tokyo.

Lupin III vs. Cat’s Eye streamed in 2023 as a crossover with Tsukasa Hojo’s Cat’s Eye.

The original core Japanese anime cast became legendary.

Yasuo Yamada voiced Arsene Lupin III from the first television series until his death in 1995.

His performance shaped Lupin’s swagger, humor, and sly charm.

Kiyoshi Kobayashi voiced Daisuke Jigen for decades and remained with the role until 2021.

He was the last major cast member from the earliest anime era to retire from his role.

Yukiko Nikaido voiced Fujiko Mine in the first TV series.

She was later succeeded by Eiko Masuyama, who played the role for many years.

Chikao Ootsuka voiced Goemon Ishikawa XIII in the first TV series.

Makio Inoue later became the long-running voice of Goemon.

Gorou Naya voiced Inspector Zenigata for decades and made the character’s shouting pursuit of Lupin unforgettable.

Later cast changes brought in Miyuki Sawashiro as Fujiko, Daisuke Namikawa as Goemon, Koichi Yamadera as Inspector Zenigata, and Akio Otsuka as Daisuke Jigen.

The franchise’s appeal lies in motion, personality, and rhythm.

A typical Lupin story is not just about stealing treasure, but about watching plans collapse and reform at dazzling speed.

The series often uses real-world politics, fashionable technology, famous landmarks, and international myths as story material.

Some entries are grim crime dramas, while others are pure cartoon comedy.

This flexibility is one reason the franchise has lasted so long.

Lupin can be a thief, detective, revolutionary nuisance, romantic hero, or clown, sometimes all in the same story.

Monkey Punch drew inspiration from American cartoons, comics, crime fiction, and slapstick timing.

He especially admired the chase-and-rival dynamic of Tom and Jerry.

That influence can be seen in the endless pursuit between Lupin and Inspector Zenigata.

Zenigata is not simply a villain or fool.

Like Tom chasing Jerry, he is part of the rhythm of the world itself.

The franchise is also a pastiche of older literary heroes.

Arsene Lupin III descends from Maurice Leblanc’s Arsène Lupin, while Inspector Zenigata descends from the Japanese detective hero Zenigata Heiji.

Because the original Arsène Lupin copyright was still active when the manga began, international releases sometimes changed Lupin’s name.

After the copyright expired, the Lupin name became easier to use globally.

Live-Action Films and Drama

The first live-action film, Lupin III: Strange Psychokinetic Strategy, was released in 1974.

A later live-action film, Lupin the 3rd, was released in 2014.

A live-action Daisuke Jigen film streamed on Amazon Prime Video in 2023, starring Tetsuji Tamayama.

Inspector Zenigata also received a live-action television drama in 2017.

Stage Productions

The franchise has appeared in musicals, including I’m Lupin in 1998.

The Takarazuka Revue staged Lupin III: Chase the Queen’s Necklace! in 2015.

A kabuki adaptation, Rupan Sansei: Ryū Hakurō no Hoshi, premiered in 2023.

It reimagined the characters in a historical Japanese setting and connected Lupin’s world to classical outlaw drama.

Games

Lupin has appeared in many video games since the 1980 arcade game by Taito.

Games have been released for arcade systems, the Family Computer, MSX, PlayStation, Sega Saturn, PlayStation 2, GameCube, Nintendo DS, mobile platforms, and social games.

The franchise has also inspired typing games, medal games, escape rooms, and real-world interactive mystery events.

Novels and Gamebooks

The series has been adapted into novels by several writers.

It also became a long-running line of Japanese adventure gamebooks from Futabasha.

These gamebooks often sent Lupin into unusually elaborate scenarios, including Hollywood conspiracies, underground cities, secret laboratories, cursed artifacts, and international chases.

Crossovers

The most famous crossover is with Detective Conan.

The TV special Lupin the 3rd vs. Detective Conan aired in 2009.

The theatrical film Lupin the 3rd vs. Detective Conan: The Movie followed in 2013 and became a major box-office success.

The 2023 streaming film Lupin III vs. Cat’s Eye crossed the franchise with another classic thief-themed anime property.

1960s

The manga began serialization in 1967.

The first run ended in 1969, and an anime pilot film was completed the same year.

1970s

Lupin III: New Adventures began in 1971.

The first TV anime aired from 1971 to 1972.

The first live-action film appeared in 1974.

New Lupin III began in 1977.

The second TV anime also began in 1977 and became a defining version of the franchise.

The first anime film opened in 1978.

The Castle of Cagliostro opened in 1979.

1980s

The second TV series ended in 1980.

Part III began in 1984.

Legend of the Gold of Babylon opened in 1985.

The Fuma Conspiracy appeared in 1987 with a different voice cast.

The first TV special aired in 1989.

1990s

TV specials became a regular feature of the franchise.

Yasuo Yamada died in 1995, and Kurita Kanichi took over as Lupin.

Dead or Alive, directed by Monkey Punch, opened in 1996.

New manga adaptations by other artists began appearing in the late 1990s.

2000s

The anime shifted from cel animation to digital production.

The franchise continued through annual or near-annual TV specials.

The official Lupin magazine launched in 2004.

A crossover with Detective Conan aired in 2009.

2010s

The franchise celebrated its 40th anime anniversary in 2011 and its 50th manga anniversary in 2017.

The Woman Called Fujiko Mine aired in 2012.

LUPIN THE IIIRD began in 2014.

The fourth TV series aired in 2015.

Part 5 aired in 2018.

Monkey Punch died in 2019.

Lupin the 3rd: The First opened later that year.

2020s

Part 6 aired from 2021 to 2022 for the anime’s 50th anniversary.

Kiyoshi Kobayashi retired from the role of Daisuke Jigen after the opening episode.

LUPIN ZERO streamed from 2022 to 2023.

Lupin III vs. Cat’s Eye and the live-action Daisuke Jigen film streamed in 2023.

Lupin the 3rd is one of Japan’s most enduring pop-culture franchises.

It helped define the image of the stylish anime thief and influenced countless later action-comedy works.

Its characters are instantly recognizable: Lupin’s grin, Jigen’s hat, Fujiko’s glamour, Goemon’s sword, and Zenigata’s shout.

The franchise received the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Award at the 49th Japan Cartoonists Association Awards in 2020.

Its lasting strength comes from a simple but endlessly reusable engine.

A thief wants the impossible, his friends complicate everything, a detective refuses to give up, and somehow the chase is always worth watching.