Lupin the Third: Part 5 - Episode 6 [Review]

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Lupin the Third: Part 5 - Episode 6  [Review]

Episode 6 is the much-hyped "throwback" episode of Lupin the Third: Part 5. We knew from last week's preview that this one would be different. Just the appearance of a pink-colored jacket had long-time fans excited, and there was also a significant art shift. All of this suggested a modern homage to Lupin the Third: Part 3, aka the "Pink Jacket" series. Part 3 is known as the weakest of the Lupin III TV series, largely for its animation quality but also for some particularly goofy plots. This episode delivers on that homage, but in a way that works for fans of modern-day Lupin.

This episode revolves around a mysterious safe, designed by the two Hirameki brothers in a contest from the Greater Tokyo Bank. They're looking for a safe that even Lupin can't break into, and the brothers seem to have hit the jackpot by finding one that uses Lupin's intelligence against him. This safe only opens if a person with the bare minimum brainpower—represented on a scale from 0 to 300—has their head scanned by the machine. It just so happens that one of these brothers has that intelligence score (despite being smart enough to build this safe in the first place and land on such an ingenious plan, but maybe that was all his slightly smarter brother's idea?). Lupin has the maximum level intelligence of 300, so he's out of luck. Even if he tries to dumb himself down, he has no hope of opening the safe.

First of all, is Lupin really supposed to be the smartest person in the world? He's pretty crafty for sure, but I don't know if he's even the smartest character in his own TV show or on his own team. He's also shown some incredible levels of stupidity over his 50 years of existence. But aside from having to accept its silly premise, the episode is pretty fun. It's clearly the sort of bizarre nonsense that was a hallmark of much older Lupin series, and it's a good premise for a tribute to Part 3, which was especially known for stories that didn't make much sense. It feels nostalgic in a Saturday morning cartoon kind of way, and it's welcome after the deadly-serious plots of many recent Lupin adventures.

About half of this episode is made up of shenanigans, as Jigen and Fujiko plot to lower Lupin's intelligence to open the safe by bonking him on the head and exhausting him with endless workouts. (Sleep deprivation does indeed lower your brainpower, so that at least is somewhat based in science!) I was a little surprised that we didn't eventually see Fujiko disrobe, which is historically the easiest way to reduce Lupin to his dumbest self, but I guess Fujiko wasn't that interested in the safe's contents.

In the end, Lupin's intelligence is what saves rather than dooms him. Even all of Jigen and Fujiko's efforts, they can only get Lupin as low as 001 level brainpower—still too high to open the safe. However, the elder Hirameki brother is so flattered by his efforts that he thinks they should open the safe for Lupin anyway. This snaps the thief out of his daze to start chowing down on fish for their supposed intelligence-boosting qualities. (This is also somewhat based in science, but no matter how many fish you eat, it wouldn't boost your brainpower that quickly.) Lupin's score zooms off the charts, breaking the system and thus busting open the safe. It's a fitting ending that lets Lupin win without ruining the brothers' brilliant(?) idea. They realize that the intelligence-boosting qualities of the fish offers them a new business opportunity, and all's well that ends well.

In many ways, this is a perfect update of pink-jacket Lupin for a modern audience. The art style fits the older 1980s version of the show, but without the weaker animation and other production issues. The characters are more in line with their sillier versions, particularly Fujiko acting as a clear ally to the gang rather than a mysterious rival. The character models are much rounder, giving them a more "cartoonish" appearance, rather than the sleeker modern designs. The plot is also inexplicably weird in a way that no other recent Lupin series can rival. Both Part 4 and The Woman Called Fujiko Mine have gone some strange places, but they always try to justify them with worldbuilding of some kind. Pink jacket Lupin just lets the weirdness fly, one episode at a time.

It looks like this was just a brief diversion, with the next episode promising a return to form and the blue jacket. Still, this bit of vintage "filler" was so well-executed that I really hope it's not the last one we see for this series. Lupin the Third: Part 5 could make a good formula out of five-episode storylines, followed by one-off tributes to the series' past.

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Lupin the Third: Part 5 - Episode 4 [Review]

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Lupin the Third: Part 5 - Episode 4 [Review]

If Fujiko is my favorite Lupin III character, Zenigata is a close second. His dynamic with Lupin is easily the most entertaining to watch, which is why it's filled so many great episodes across the franchise's history. On some level, the two just get each other. In Zenigata's years of chasing Lupin, they've developed a grudging mutual respect. Maybe on some level, Zenigata knows he doesn't really want to capture Lupin (an idea one episode in Part 4 took to hilarious lengths). There's too much fun in chasing him down, and it's this relationship that allows them to trek across a desert together, little girl in tow.

I was a little sad to see Fujiko dispensed with so quickly, but that will hardly be the last we see of her. Lupin keeps talking about his relationship with her (or lack thereof), which wouldn't keep coming up if it wasn't relevant. For now, I'm fine taking a break for some ZeniLupin shenanigans. Lupin the Third: Part 5 is settling into a formula at this point; The "Lupin Game" players come up with a new method to kill or capture him, then Lupin and friends do whatever they can to evade it. There's a last-second twist ending that threatens to shake everything up, but it's usually a fakeout that's resolved or put on hold quickly.

Lupin III is an adventure-of-the-week kind of show, the kind of anime that usually settles on an arc storyline in its second halves. What makes Part 5 different is that we have an idea of where it will go already. The "Lupin vs. the Internet" story has been around since episode 1, but we keep seeing glimpses of the real villain laughing at all the social media mayhem. I could watch Lupin and friends race around the globe dodging bullets until the cows come home, but now my curiosity about the broader plot is piqued. The last two series succeeded at this episodic start because they played their cards closer to their chests; we hadn't seen as much of the "arc plot" at this point of Part 4 or The Woman Called Fujiko Mine. Conversely, Part 5 has told us just enough to make us wonder why we're not getting any more answers yet. I'm not sure this structure is sustainable, but episode 4 has finally pulled off a twist that will be harder to reset next week.

Before that, we get a solid 20 minutes of Lupin-Zenigata buddy comedy. Ami proves to be a good unifying force between them. Not only does she have Lupin as a surrogate dad now, but Zenigata already seems prepared to sign adoption papers after only a few hours around her. She shares a little more about her personal philosophy of why she prefers the Internet to real life, and this is the first moment that the show feels a little dated in its approach to technology. It's hard to imagine anyone that anyone who uses the Internet in 2018 sees it as a place "where gender, age and race don't matter"; social media and casual geotracking have permanently transformed the internet's capacity for anonymity. Maybe the world of Lupin III is different, but the most popular social media fad in this story is about tracking down and killing somebody, so I'm not convinced it's any less cruel and personalized than our own. At least Ami has found her niche online. She continues to drop little hints about herself that make me wonder if there isn't more to her than what she's telling her companions.

Ami also has a wry teenage sense of humor that allows the show to riff on itself, most obviously with jokes about shipping. Lupin III has always had plenty of homoerotic subtext, but it is a little weird how blatant Part 5 has been about pointing it out. First there were Lupin/Jigen jokes, now Lupin/Zenigata ones, right up to Lupin cackling about the "gun" in Zenigata's pants. You can't really call it subtext anymore when the characters themselves spell it out for you. This season's focus on the internet make it feel more like a joke about how online communities will see subtext everywhere; the Lupin/Jigen gag from episode 2 started with fans interpreting them as lovers. This week it's Ami's fault, when she offers love as an explanation for Zenigata's "only I can capture Lupin" obsession. Well, the girl does have a point. Whether it's love or just adversarial bonding, it's enough to carry them through a desperate desert trek.

Then there's another shootout—from drones, fitting in with the "technology" focus—before we finally get That Ending. Out of the corner of his eye, Zenigata sees a bullet hit Lupin's head, sending him flying with blood-spray everywhere. Lupin III is dead! Or is he? The episode ends ominously with an announcement on the "Lupin Game" website, rewarding the winning bet and announcing its shutdown. The next episode preview seems to confirm the death, with Zenigata reminiscing during what looks like an episode focused on him.

Let's be real: of course Lupin isn't actually dead. You can't kill off your main character and franchise-nomer in episode 4. I mean, it would be a bold move, but it hardly feels like Lupin III's style. Plus, we only saw Lupin get shot in silhouette, not directly. It's basic TV logic that if you don't directly see the dead body, it didn't happen. (And sometimes you can't be sure even then.) I'm not going to be shocked when it turns out he just planted a squib in his ear or something.

Still, this hell-of-a-cliffhanger gives the series a chance to really shake up its current formula. The world seems to believe Lupin is dead, officially ending the Lupin Game. If he's still alive, this gives Lupin and friends an opportunity to settle their own scores. Of course, he won't be out of sight for long, since there's still a smartphone around every corner—even in the field of Bwanda. This deadly twist could finally give the plot the push it needs forward. Or, like with Fujiko's appearance last week, episode 5 could anticlimactically resolve it within the first three minutes. I hope they make the right decision.

Source

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hvMecWvHTdo