Lupin III (ルパン三世, Rupan Sansei), full name Arsène Lupin III,[1][2] is the titular protagonist of Lupin The Third.
As a man born from a lineage of master thieves, Lupin III is a cunning mastermind of many faces. As the world's most wanted man, Lupin has a crew he relies on who are integral to Lupin The Third. He and his crew of Daisuke Jigen, Fujiko Mine and Goemon Ishikawa XIII and Lupin's rival, Inspector Koichi Zenigata of Interpol are the main characters of Lupin The Third.
Lupin is a man of average height and thin build. He has historically described himself as of mixed heritage, primarily Japanese and French. He is usually compared to a monkey, although some designs, such as in the manga and The Mystery of Mamo, have him look more like a horse. His dark brown-to-black hair is plastered flat with what is either a widow's peak or a V-shaped bang on the forehead. His trademark sideburns extend from ear to nearly the chin. His eyes are usually brown or gray.
Lupin's wardrobe in most if not all of his appearances consists of a brightly colored jacket & tie, a typically dark-colored shirt, sleek-looking pants and shoes. The colors of his clothing vary depending on the media (notably jackets and tie), which tend to color-code the first three parts: Green (Lupin the 3rd Part 1 and the color used in a few OVAs and films), Red (the pilot, Lupin the 3rd Part 2; also the color chosen for most films and television specials but wearing a yellow tie), and Pink (Lupin the 3rd Part III). For Part 4 and Part 5 , he wears a blue jacket and in Lupin the 3rd Part 6, he wears a teal jacket. In Fujiko Mine's Lie and Goemon's Bloodspray Lupin is jacketless and only sports a black shirt with a red tie but later removes it in Fujiko's lie.
Lupin Zero shows that Lupin's suits stem from a combination of both his grandfather's flashy costumes and his father's more mundane black suit.[5]
Under Lupin's jacket, Lupin has a gun-holster for his Walther P38 strapped to his chest.
Outside of his usual jackets, Lupin has had different types of clothing that according to the 1969 Pilot Film was for any time, place and occasion.[11] In the TV Special Goodbye Partner he dons a black jacket in lieu of his Part 2 red jacket after Jigen betrays him. In the manga he had a yellow jacket as well as variations of the red jacket and in the live-action Strange Psychokinetic Strategy, he has a white jacket. Lupin also wears casual clothing, formal clothing such as his suit in the OVA The Plot of the Fuma Clan and even just wearing boxers, aside of his innumerable amount of disguises.
He's bow-legged, like a lot of male characters, though this may typically be a result of Monkey Punch's art style. This is poked fun at twice in Part III: in Episode 23 he is very sensitive about this characteristic,[12] and in Episode 18 this is part of the reason he has trouble keeping up with Jenny when he dances with her.[13]
His body image issues sometimes extend to his face. In Part 2 he gets offended when Fujiko makes fun of his "monkey face".[14]
Part 5 depicts his regular face as a mask, although his real face is suggested to be near identical to his regular one; this plot twist is both a nod to New Lupin III Chapter 74, and a metaphor for himself as a performer who only shows his true self to those most important to him. Other anime seems to suggest that the face we see is his own.
Lupin's red jacket in the manga was chosen as Lupin's creator Monkey Punch believed it was a flashy, sexy colour.[15][16][17]
What I really like about Lupin is his freedom, his boundless freedom that allows him to do whatever he wants whenever he wants and never really be tied down to anything or anyone in particular.
Lupin is a carefree, lustful, intelligent romantic who often acts as stupid as a facade to give him the advantage against his foes, depending on which work Lupin can be more heroic or morally deprived.
Lupin's most recognisable characteristics are his boundless lust for Fujiko, his intelligence, his determined or impulsive pursuits along with his clever schemes and playful attitude. When Lupin is cornered he has shown to keep his composure and stay calm under extreme pressure. As the grandson of Arsène Lupin, Lupin strives to match the great legacy of his grandfather and uphold the family tradition of thievery.
The Gentleman Thief
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Oh, How can this be? The princess believes in the power of the evil sorcerer... yet she doesn't believe in the powers of the thief! Oh, if only she'd believe him... the thief would be able to fly through the air! He would be able to drink a lake dry!
Modern Lupin is a heroic, lighthearted hero who stops at nothing to help those who are in troubled situations. While Lupin is still a thief, he's more "robin-hood" like rather than an actual criminal. This side of Lupin's personality debuted in Hayao Miyazaki's debut film, The Castle of Cagliostro.
In Cagliostro, Lupin has matured a lot since parts 1 and 2, he's a lot more soft and warmer but still retains when (mostly) makes him Lupin III. Here, He hides his true intentions behind a facade, but unlike his darker sides, his goals are kind and selfless. His quest to save Clarisse de Cagliostro in the film stems from his self-hatred and refusal to accept himself because he forgot that Clarisse saved his life.[18] When Clarisse has an emotional breakdown at the realisation that Lupin is going to be executed by the count and there is nothing she can do to stop him, She cries when Lupin arrives to 'steal her away' from the count. Lupin cheers her up by speaking and acting like a fairy tale character as if he were in an Opera, he then performs one of his (now famous) tricks, pulling out a flower out of thin air. He unravels a string connected to it while Clarisse holds the tip of the string tight, revealing a bunch of flags, signifying his travels around the world.[18]
But despite his warmer personality, he's still just as competent and intelligent. Such as when he gave Clarisse a fake ring to foul the count, showing he knew the scheme from the very start but also his impeccable eye for detail since it fooled a master counterfeiter who's money was so convincing it was in a national casino.[18]
Though he still retains his "playboy" behavior, it's very much downplayed and made less sexual. This is clearly because of the film's tone, which makes sense since it's a family friendly film.[18] His love for Clarisse is stated and shown to not be romantic nor sexual in any sense, as he sees Clarisse as a child.[18] Which is also why he refers to the count as a "cradlesnatcher".[18]
Wolf III
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The name "Wolf III" comes from his family name, Lupin. Lupin in french means wolf,[19] this was also a name used for Manga UK dubs for Mystery of Mamo and Bye-Bye Liberty to avoid copyright lawsuits.[3]
"Nice Guy" Lupin
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Mostly appearing for parts 1 (second half), 2, 3 and The Mystery of Mamo, "Nice Guy" Lupin is a slick, smug, smooth thief with an extreme lust for women. While he's a lot more gentlemanly than his morally deprived versions, he can often become blinded by lust and flirts constantly. While this is most often a facade, in some cases it's not. Generally, the "Nice Guy" Lupin is morally neutral, often not trying to be a hero but not being a villain either. "Nice Guy" Lupin is non-violent in most cases, often playing ridiculous pranks on Inspesctor Zenigata for fun. Whenever Lupin goes too far and commits wrongdoings, the world often punishes Lupin to "correct" his behaviour. Lupin still keeps a lot of his lustful behaviour but never goes too far to feed his hungers.
"Nice Guy" Lupin often gets extremely infuriated at his failures and often begins fighting whenever his plans fail, even during missions. Lupin will often act on instinct, which often is what gives him the upper hand as he will commit to improvised plans purely based of off instinct.
In Miyazaki's part 1 run, "Nice Guy" Lupin is also more akin to a closeted romantic than a lustful playboy like he normally is. Every single woman Lupin cares for are often sexually unavailable and he never really tries to pursue sex either. He generally is a lot more shy around women he cares for more than he normally is. He normally hides his true intentions behind a facade to hide his true thought process, he often is quiet whenever he's thinking in-detail. He and Zenigata's relationship is the usual Tom and Jerry duo.
In part 2 and 3's run, Lupin is way more of a sexual deviant, this is also the case for The Mystery Of Mamo. While not fully shown, he's a lot more lustful and driven by sex than Miyazaki's interpretation for him in part 1. "Nice Guy" Lupin in part 2 doesn't often stay committed to the women he makes love to. Every single woman who he loves he tries to pursue both romantically and sexually with full confidence, he never plans on long term relationships outside of his beloved "Fujicakes". In part 2, his eccentricities such as his silly sides are heightened to extremes. His "facade" is more akin to how he just naturally is, whenever he outsmarts his opponents it's not him "using" a facade but rather just being extremely smart yet living dumb anyways for fun. Lupin's relationship with Zenigata is a lot more developed as they work together in multiple episodes.
Manga Appearances
Anime Appearances
