(first post here: https://info-worms.blogspot.com/2020/01/worms-delve-into-lupin-1.html )
So here I am, almost one year later, with a couple new Lupin things to talk about, and one thing I've already seen making a comeback as my thoughts have matured on it. Lupin's a franchise I've been really into, even though I'm taking things slow. It's not perfect, but I just really enjoy every time I dip my toes in. The three things I'll be touching on this post are the 2015 season of the anime (Part IV), the 3dcg movie Lupin the IIIrd the First, and a retouch on Castle of Cagliostro!
Lupin the IIIrd Part IV
This was my first TV Lupin series. I had a lot of fun with it! It's also a huge mixed bag. Part 4 tries to juggle two things here, basically. The episodic nature Lupin as a franchise lends itself to, and a grand overarching plot about some goofy nonsense that kept interrupting the good episodic content. First I'll shower the praises on the parts that deserve it.
Music's good, but a Lupin property having good music isn't a surprise.
The visuals are top-notch. The production is insane. The character designs are clean as hell, they animate even better, and the color work is really FUCKING good. Part 4 probably has my favorite Goemon design, even. The pink haori really pops.
The episodic content is really good. Single episode heists or focus episodes for different members of the gang or really touching emotional episodes abound. It's where the season really shines. Especially when Rebecca, the anime-original character - Lupin's brand new wife no-less! - is not around to drag things down.
And this is where the cracks show for me. For every good episode, there's an annoying one, or dare I say even a bad one. The overarching plot that Part 4 is centered on, titled "The Dream of Italy", is so bonkers that it almost hurts, but it's played super seriously. That's not normally a bad thing, but I just could not find myself enjoying what was on screen because I had just watched some really good episodic content. Especially because Rebecca takes center stage for these episodes.
And here's the kicker - if this Dream of Italy plot was its own OVA series or whatever, if it wasn't detracting from some killer time with the Lupin gang, I'd have probably liked it! Scrub Rebecca, cut the episodes out of part 4 and slap them into their own DVD, and bam you have a 7/10 on your hands. But unfortunately we don't live in that timeline.
So as it stands, Lupin Part 4 gets a 7/10 for me. In an alternate universe I like it more, and it's still worth your time, just temper your expectations.
Lupin the IIIrd the First
This movie is the highly advertised leap into the world of 3dcg for the Lupin gang. And I gotta say, this shit kinda owned. I don't have much to really delve into, either. The visuals are gorgeous, the character designs are perfect, the music owns, and the plot is so fucking insane in a way that's engaging and fun. Also, the story-original character, Laetitia, is really good. 8/10, give it a watch.
Castle of Cagliostro TAKE TWO!
When I first watched Castle of Cagliostro last year it's safe to say I wasn't blown away. But the more I stew on the JP script and the film in general the more I've come to love it. It's really fun and though not as initially really good as, say, Bloodspray of Goemon, or other films helmed by Miyazaki, it's had staying power in my brain to rival that of Princess Mononoke. Give it a watch and then digest it. Just don't watch either of the dubs, they suck real bad.
I said last year that I'd be watching The Woman Called Fujiko Mine soon, and that's not a lie, I just haven't had time to really sit down with it alone, what with 2020 being what it is. I'm loving Lupin, though, and I'm glad it's a franchise I can always go back to and find more stuff to like.
(How I rate things:
10 (Incredible): an absolute fucking favorite of mine. I probably cried a lot, and I revisit it a lot. Makes me big think often.
9 (Fantastic): Probably made me cry or think a lot. Enjoyed very much.
8 (Great): A series I liked a lot.
7 (Good): A series I liked a fair bit.
6 (Fine): A series that was fine and that I enjoyed enough.
5 (Okay): A series that was a-ok in my books. Probably fell short of my expectations.
4 (Eh): A series that fell very short.
3 (Ehh): Ehhhhh
2 (Bad): Self explanatory.
1 (Terrible): Terrible.)
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