Though stuff relating to Lupin the Third has been in production pretty much since the manga premiered in 1967, the grinning thief has never had so much work. Lupin has seen a resurgence in Japanese TV and film over the last decade, with three additional seasons of his show created in just eight years (consider how long it took for the previous three to exist). There have been specials and movies on top of that, including Lupin the Third: The First, the series’ first venture into CG animation (which it pulled off flawlessly…that usually doesn’t happen).
The most recent Lupin show, Part Six, aired its last episode earlier this year and bowed out on Toonami last weekend. There was an attempt to combine the events of the most recent seasons in a clumsy manner, as if they planned to do something less traditional from this point. Guess our instincts were correct. The next time we see Lupin, he won’t be continuing the storyline of Part Six. Instead, we’ll be going back in time.
𝑻𝒆𝒂𝒔𝒆𝒓 𝑻𝒓𝒂𝒊𝒍𝒆𝒓
￣￣￣￣￣￣
／
本日解禁のティーザー予告📺
舞台は60年代のニッポン！🗼
＼ノスタルジックな街並みを駆け巡る🏃♂️
ルパン少年をお楽しみに！#ルパンゼロ#ルパン三世#Lupinthe3rd pic.twitter.com/l9Oc3YV2N0— アニメ『LUPIN ZERO』公式 (@lupin_zero) October 23, 2022
Lupin Zero is the name of the next feature film — the thirteenth, if you’re counting — that will be set in the 1960s and feature a younger Lupin, just starting out in his outlaw career. How can Lupin be a teen in the sixties if he looks no older than 30 in recent TV episodes that feature smartphones and social media? Guess that’s a mystery for now.
Lupin the Third has remained pretty consistent for over fifty years. It’s about the world’s greatest thief, descended from Arsene Lupin, who’s so confident that he advertises his next targets with his calling card before he ever shows up. Lupin’s partners in crime are always the gunman Jigen, the swordsman Goemon, and his yellow VW. Inspector Zeigata is always on his tail but NEVER manages to catch Lupin. The man DOES have a weakness, though: his crush Fujiko, a rival thief and the only one who can gets the best of him. You tune into something with “Lupin” in the title and that’s usually what you get.
But with this origin movie, who will show up? Will it just be Lupin himself? Find out sometime in 2023 when Lupin Zero premieres in Japanese theaters. HIDIVE has claimed US distribution.
