Lupin the 3rd Has Blown My Mind
A little set-up for those not in the anime know: Lupin the 3rd is a gentleman thief and one of the most popular anime characters in Japan, having TV series, specials and movies since the ’70s. He started out in a red jacket and more of James Bond, sex and killing bad guys sensibility, but when his first movie came out?directed by Hayao Miyazaki, who later helmed the Academy Award-winning Spirited Away?he had a green jacket for a while, and was more gentleman than thief, rescuing damsels in distress. the green jacket and Lupin’s soft side last for a while, then the red jacket and harder edge came back.
NOW…the new Lupin straight-to-DVD special has been announced (with these pics), and it’s called Lupin the 3rd: Green Vs. Red, where apparently the Lupin in the green jacket fights the Lupin in the red jacket, and it’s blowing my goddamn mind. Two Lupins? Have there always been two Lupins? Is this going to be a canonical explanation of why one Lupin was really soft-hearted, and the other was more of a badass? What the hell are Lupin’s loyal minions Jigen and Goemon going to do? Why are they trying to kill each other?! Is this like a Highlander for gentlemen-thieves?! Is this the most awesome idea for a Lupin anime ever?! Yes!
About The Author
Robert Bricken is one of the original co-founders of the site formerly known as Topless Robot, and its first editor-in-chief, serving from 2008-12. He brought the site to prominence with “nerd news, humor and self-loathing” as its motto, raising it from total internet obscurity to a readership in the millions, with help from his savage “FAQ” movie reviews and Fan Fiction Fridays. Under his tenure Topless Robot was covered by Gawker, Wired, Defamer, New York magazine, ABC News, and others, and his articles have been praised by Roger Ebert, Avengers actor Clark Gregg, comedian and The Daily Show correspondent John Hodgman, the stars of Mystery Science Theater 3000 and Rifftrax, and others. He is currently the managing editor of io9.com. Despite decades as both an amateur and professional nerd, he continues to be completely unprepared for either the zombie apocalypse or the robot uprising.