As a Lupin otaku, I dedicate this page with my offerings to the world's greatest thief whom I worship, Lupin the 3rd.
My View - The History of Lupin the 3rd
Here in these United States, he is known as Lupin the 3rd. In Japan, he is known as Rupan Sansei. It was the 1970s. In Japan, anime plays a big part of life there. Along with manga. So, it was in 1967 that the very first series of the Lupin manga came out. Its creator was known only as Monkey Punch. Lupin the 3rd consists of 3 main characters (Lupin, Jigen and Goemon) and the heists they pull. Lupin the 3rd takes place in many different cities around the world, which is a good thing since many other anime focus more on Japan. Lupin the 3rd is many things to many people. But he will always and forever be the world's greatest theif! There are 3 series in Lupin the 3rd, the very popular one being the Red Jacket series. The first series is called the Green Jacket series, the second series is called the Red Jacket series, and the third series is called the Pink Jacket series. There are many movies out there as well, such as The Castle of Cagliostro, Voyage to Danger, Dragon of Doom, etc. You can get Lupin episodes and movies either fansubbed or dubbed. This year, the newest Lupin movies coming out are Dead or Alive and Walther P-38, hopefully others too. As I've been hooked on the Red Jacket, I'm really looking foward to these movies.
Character profiles (taken from TOKYOPOP site) -
Lupin the 3rd -
Our hero - the irrepressible, incorrigible master thief. Runs with a dicey crowd - lusts after a shady lady ... INTERPOL would love to get their hands on this guy and put him out to pasture, once and for all.
Jigen Daisuke -
Jigen is a man with a past ... he fled to Japan from the U.S. to avoid the mob. Functioning as a bodyguard and hitman for Lupin, he has also become the master thief's closest ally ... plus, he is also very mistrustful of Fujiko.
Goemon Ishikawa -
Wielding a lethal samurai sword supposedly forged from the metal of a meteor, Goemon was originally trained to assassinate Lupin ... but the two have become criminal confederates over time.
Fujiko Mine -
The object of Lupin's, er, affections, Fujiko is a thief herself ... and a highly competitive one, at that. Perfume of choice: Chanel No. 5, of course!
Inspector Zenigata -
The diligent yet hapless policeman destined to pursue Lupin across the globe ... and yet never quite catch him.
Visit the Lupin Manga site here - http://www.tokyopop.com/dbpage.php?propertycode=LUP&categorycode=BMG&page=introduction
Here's a site dedicated to the mysterious gunman, Jigen Daisuke. It's pretty cool.
http://jigenslove.8k.com
