Lupin III

Lupin in the Green Jacket is probably one of the most famous versions, although it is the shortest series of the gentleman thief. In this first series we see a Lupin with certainly more noir tones than in the following series.

Less kind-hearted and more determined to achieve his goals.

The merits of this series are many: first of all it was one of the first cartoons intended for a mainly adult audience, which made the character immediately loved, even outside Japan, there is a great attention to detail, both in terms of weapons and equipment, and for the plans put in place by Lupin and his gang. The characters are multifaceted and each episode has been crafted with care.

However, being the first television transposition of the Monkey Punch comic, some flaws are inevitable. One of the most relevant is the alternation of several people to direct the episodes (including Hayao Miyazaki). The episodes are all more than enjoyable, but sometimes there is a bit of inconsistency in the style and some are slower and less exciting.

In conclusion I add that: certainly compared to the most recent Lupin films and series, the first series can be slower and more particular, as we see a darker and less light-hearted protagonist, but if you love Lupin (or excellent animated series) , I advise you to retrieve this series and also watch it for what it represented.

Enjoy your vision.

While this show does suffer from a terrible pilot episode and occasional bad writing, this first Lupin the Third series is a landmark in the history of animation. One of the first animated TV shows intended for adults, it was a failure upon its initial airing, and took years of reruns for it to get a boost in popularity.

The show is of course dated in some ways. The animation is of the limited 60s/70s variety and the music is psychedelic. But as someone who watches movies much older than this, it's not that distracting. The show is full of action, comedy, and great characters.

It's less kooky and formulaic than the later 1977 Lupin series, and the first half of the show is especially dark. Lupin was rarely ever as borderline villainous as he is in the first half of this series, save for his manga incarnation.

Many modern anime fans won't give it a second look, but if you appreciate anime history or just plain animation history, then Lupin III is not to be missed.

This is a legendary anime series about some instant classic characters, the Lupin gang. This is amazingly ahead of it's time, being the first anime starring criminals, the first gritty comparatively more realistic anime with guns and such. Not just for anime, it's ahead of it's time in general.

Most importantly, it's still a joy to watch nearly 40 years later. Lupin is the cool, laid back antihero. This laid back style, helped by the very cool soundtrack, is still influential today in titles like Cowboy Bebop. Lupin has other sides to him too of course, he has an ego, and he'll laugh like a maniac and take on any challenge. And of course, he gets pretty excited when there are ladies around, especially Fujiko.

The supporting characters are great here. You have Jigen, Lupin's partner and best friend. He's very cool himself, a smooth criminal, but he's also the voice of reason, a more mature criminal. Then you have Fujiko, the classic femme fatale cat burglar, she is Lupin's love interest, and often his rival. Then there's Goemon, the renegade samurai with a strong moral code, who can cut anything. And of course, Inspector Zenigata, who tirelessly dedicates his life to capturing Lupin.

Lupin is episodic, featuring 23 self contained stories. Although there is one plot that takes two episodes early on, with Goemon out to defeat Lupin. One episode Lupin is in prison, another time him and the gang have explosive watches put on that they can't take off. These are all great stories.

An interesting thing about this series is that it has two different feels to it, depending on who is directing. Masaaki Osumi directs episodes 1-7, 9, and 12. These are the more dark and gritty episodes, and sometimes have a melancholy feel. These episodes are amazing, giving us the depth that the Lupin characters are built on.

The founders of Studio Ghibli, Hayao Miyazaki and Isao Takahata, direct episodes 8, 10-11, and 13-23. These episodes are also superb, with a more fun and upbeat feel, closer to what Lupin is known for today. You can tell Miyazaki is involved when Lupin starts saving cute damsels in a gentlemanly heroic way.

All in all, Lupin III is a classic series, which is still going strong today with movie specials. I recommend checking this out, it's must see anime.

My first encounter with the Lupin The Third name was The Castle of Cagliostro (a fantastic film on its own), which made me interested in watching the franchise. So where else to start then the series that started it all? (insert pointless plot synopsis here) Since this a episodic series, the early episodes are hit or miss sometimes, and I do prefer the Miyazaki-directed episodes in the ladder half of the series, but it's still fun throughout. The characters are extremely fun to watch interact and play off of each other (my personal favorite was Zenigata) The animation is quite dated, it grows on you after awhile. The music is pure cheese, but I loved it nonetheless. Overall, this series was what I expected for the most part, but in a good way. It really makes me want to watch the rest of the Lupin installments. I would strongly recommend this show. 8.5/10

This was the first Lupin the 3rd TV series aka The Green Jacket series, cause Lupin wears a green jacket.

After the making of the pilot film of 1969, this TV program was promoted to air with the help of TMS Entertainment(which has been producing Lupin anime for more than 30 years now).

Unlike the second TV series, that everyone's familiar with, this one has a more serious tone to it. Due to that, it received low ratings, so the later ones had a little more humor to it, which almost equals to the humor from the Red Jacket series.

It aired from 1971-1972. With a total of 23 episodes. Meant to end with 26 episodes, but it was canceled before any other episodes were put in production.

The animation is decent since it was made 34 years ago. The episodes done by Takahata and Miyazaki are the best ones. But too bad it only lasted for 1 season. Luckily over the years of reruns it received a fan base, and demands for more Lupin were made. It came back as the Red Jacket series which lasted longer than this one.

What's cool about the Green Jacket series was it was the first anime aimed for Mature Audiences.

Due to it having nudity, violence, and some drug use. i recommend it for teens and older.

Those who like Lupin the 3rd can check this series out. There's no word on this series being dubbed yet, but my advice is to search this series on Bittorrent or a Fansub shop if you're lucky enough.