History Characters / Lupiniii

** In general, actually catching Lupin tends to put Zenigata in an awkward position, since a part of him actually roots for Lupin to escape. Zenigata wants to chase Lupin and it's a battle of wits that both men look forward to, and without this competition, the Inspector is lost. When faced with the prospect of Lupin dying, he gets incredibly depressed and immediately wishes that Lupin was back among the living, doing a complete reversal when Lupin rears his head again.
** The first time that Zenigata caught Lupin and actually got him into prison, Zenigata was posted in the prison to make sure that Lupin stays there for the full year before his execution. As the year goes on, Zenigata's justified smugness at finally outmaneuvering Lupin and getting him behind bars starts to fade, with him getting more frustrated and bored at Lupin's uncharacteristic lack of escape attempts... and by the end of the year, Zenigata's silently begging Lupin to escape already before he gets executed. When Lupin finally pulled his year-long escape plan, Zenigata is visibly struggling with both relief and outrage (as the guard that Lupin was impersonating was just about to be executed in Lupin's place).
** In episode 57 of Part 2, Zenigata showed that when he is not playing tag, he can incapacitate, outsmart, and capture each member of the Lupin gang in mere minutes. He even admits that he was actually being serious this time, more than implying that he usually isn't serious about doing his job. He only tends to get really serious about catching Lupin or at least retrieving the stolen item, when his job is on the line.
** He's shown to have an almost sixth sense about just knowing when Lupin is in the general area, and often being able to identify him in costume almost immediately, other times he is fooled and clueless. The inconsistency of this ability due to different writers implies that he is either lucky on some days or intentionally playing dumb.
** Zenigata has actually broken Lupin out of jail at least once and helped him avoid getting caught by other cops on a few occasions. One time during the Red Jacket series, he kidnapped Lupin from police custody and contemplated leaving the force and driving off with him, but Fujiko (who's working with the police this episode) quickly put a cork in his plans.
** Zenigata hates it when Lupin turns himself in because it robs him of the joy of chasing him and the pride of arresting him. Lupin will almost always be given a death sentence, causing Zenigata to panic. When Lupin escapes, he tries to conceal his joy.

* ImprobableWeaponUser: One of the criminal catching tricks he can do is swing his handcuffs on a wire like a bullwhip to restrain opponents. It didn't work on Lupin (naturally), but it's still damned impressive on the part of Zenigata, to the point of almost being a CharlesAtlasSuperpower.

* BeserkButton: Jigen's hat is off-limits. ''Completely.'' Per his own words:

->'''English Voice Actors:''' Cliff Harrington (Toho dub of ''Mamo''), Creator/SteveBulen (Streamline dubs), Creator/RichardEpcar (Geneon dubs of ''Red Jacket'' and ''Mamo'', Discotek dub of ''Part 4'', ''Part 5'', ''Legend of the Gold of Babylon'', ''Blood Seal of the Eternal Mermaid'' and ''Goodbye Partner'', NYAV Post dub of ''The First''), Creator/ChristopherSabat (everything Funimation dubbed), John Snyder ([=Manga/Animaze=] dub of ''Cagliostro''), Sean P. O'Connell (''Fuma''), Eric Meyers (Manga UK dubs), Creator/DanWoren (''Jigen's Gravestone'', ''Goemon's Bloodspray'', ''Fujiko's Lie'')

* {{Expy}}: His thin frame, deep voice, and slouching appearance are clearly based on actor Creator/JamesCoburn, who was very popular with the Japanese public at the time. [[CastingGag Perhaps fittingly]], his longtime seiyū Creator/KiyoshiKobayashi was also Coburn's dub actor.

* BuxomBeautyStandard: Fujiko's ample bust often gets her the attention of both men and women, as well as MaleGaze shots. Her name even translates to "Twin Peaks". They're also a source of [[BoobBasedGag slapstick humor and sarcastic comments]].

* DoubleEntendre: Her name translates to "[[BuxomBeautyStandard Twin Peaks]]".

* FatalFlaw: Greed, hands down. Overconfidence too. Crafty and manipulative she may be, but she's not nearly as smart as likes to think she thinks is. And she really doesn't know when to quit at times. A trait that tends to get her into more trouble on occasion than one would think, especially in the movies.

* LethalChef: She's a terrible chef, and the mere thought of eating her cooking is enough to send chills down Lupin's spine. [[spoiler: In fact, it's her inability to prepare even something as simple as a bacon and egg sandwich that [[SpottingTheThread helps Lupin see through her disguise as a diner employee]] in one ''[[Anime/LupinIIIPart6 Part 6]]'' episode.]]

* MeaningfulName: As mentioned under DoubleEntendre, her name means "Twin Peaks", and her large breasts are just about the only consistent element in her character design.

** Read the manga and count how many times her [[ClothingDamage clothes get torn off]]. There are stories where she spends the entire time naked.

[[folder:Inspector Kōichi Zenigata]]
!!Inspector Kōichi Zenigata

** In First Contact, Zenigata takes out a large street gang single-handedly without using any weapons.

** In episode 57 or Part 2, Zenigata showed that when he is not playing tag, he can incapacitate, outsmart, and capture each member of the Lupin gang in mere minutes. He even admits that he was actually being serious this time, more than implying that he usually isn't serious about doing his job. He only tends to get really serious about catching Lupin or at least retrieving the stolen item, when his job is on the line.

* {{Bishonen}}: How much of a bishonen he is [[DependingOnTheArtist varies from artist to artist]], but he's generally depicted as the most good-looking of the main male characters.

!!!'''Japanese Voice Actors:''' Creator/EikoMasuyama (1969, 1977-2011), Yukiko Nikaido (1971-2), Creator/MiyukiSawashiro (2011-present), Creator/MamiKoyama (''Anime/TheFumaConspiracy''), Creator/ChisaYokoyama (''Lupin III D2 Manga'')
->'''Japanese Live-Action Actor:''' Meisa Kuroki (2014 film)
->'''English Voice Actresses:''' Patricia Kobayashi (Toho dub of ''Mamo''), Creator/MichelleRuff (Geneon dubs of ''Red Jacket'' and ''Mamo'', ''The Woman Called Fujiko Mine'', ''Part 4'', ''Part 5'', ''Legend of the Gold of Babylon'', ''Blood Seal of the Eternal Mermaid'', ''Goodbye Partner'', and ''The First''), Meredith [=McCoy=] (all Funimation dubs except ''Fujiko Mine''), Creator/DorothyEliasFahn (Manga dub of ''Cagliostro''), Edie Mirman (Streamline dubs), Michele Seidman (''Anime/TheFumaConspiracy''), Toni Barry (Manga UK dubs), Creator/CristinaValenzuela (''Jigen's Gravestone'', ''Goemon's Bloodspray'', ''Fujiko's Lie'')
->'''Castilian Spanish Voice Actresses:''' Alicia Etxebarría (Telecinco dub, second season, first part), Luz Emparanza (Telecinco dub, second season, second part), Pilar Ferrero (Animax dub), Raquel Martín (Animax dub, second season), María Pilar Quesada (''Cagliostro'' movie), Laura Palacios (''Babylon'' movie), Mónica Erdozia (''Liberty'' movie), María Luisa Roseelló (''Fuma'' movie), Isabel Valls (2015 movie)
->'''Latin-American Spanish Voice Actresses:''' Erika Araujo Robledo (''Green Jacket'' series), Laura Ayala (''Fukusei Ningen'' movie onwards)
->'''French Voice Actresses:''' Catherine Lafond, Nadine Delanoue
->'''Italian Voice Actresses:''' Creator/AlessandraKorompay, Piera Vidale (1979-1981 2005-2007), Germana Dominici (first dub of ''Cagliostro''), Creator/JasmineLaurenti (1992-1993)

* BoobBasedGag: Fujiko's ample bust is often the subject of both {{male|Gaze}} and {{female gaze}}s, as well as slapstick humor and sarcastic comments.

* DoubleEntendre: Her name translates to "[[BuxomIsBetter Twin Peaks]]".

* BadassBaritone: Jigen's voice is generally deep and rich.

* BadassBaritone:
** Creator/MakioInoue gave Goemon a deep but rather husky voice, especially as he aged toward the end of his career. In contrast, Creator/DaisukeNamikawa gives him a deep voice, but at a much more noticeably higher pitch. Then there's Creator/ChikaoOhtsuka, who managed to keep a deep baritone even during openly comedic scenes.
** Partially averted with Creator/KanetoShiozawa's performance in ''Anime/TheFumaConspiracy''; while he still played Goemon with a cool deep voice, his performance definitely has a softer tone compared to any other voice actor who played the role. Possibly justified because in that OVA Goemon seems to be somewhat younger (and slightly softer himself), compared to previous series and movies.

* ContraltoofDanger: In the Funimation dubs, her voice is huskier and deeper than normal.

* WhipItGood: One of the criminal catching tricks he can do is swing his handcuffs on a wire like a bullwhip to restrain opponents. It didn't work on Lupin (naturally), but it's still damned impressive on the part of Zenigata, to the point of almost being a CharlesAtlasSuperpower.

* DoubleEntendre: Her name translates as "Twin Peaks".

* BraggingThemeTune: [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=profM3jjCyw "Superhero"]]. Not a primary theme tune, but a delightfully cheesy mixture of [[TheFightingNarcissist pompous and bad-ass]], certainly. An excerpt:

* {{Leitmotif}}: Zenigata has one, the "Zenigata March". It's simple enough that it can be altered to just about any mood, from "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ukvE7BhUHwk Zenigata is here and on the case]]" (matching every possible DependingOnTheWriter situation), to "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d1tm6_q8gEA your ass is grass and Zenigata's got a lawnmower]]".

** Even as far back as Anime/TheCastleOfCagliostro she spent much of the movie armed to the teeth and dressed in combat fatigues. When one of Cagliostro's guards gets a little too close for comfort, she casually ''shoots him in the face'' and then goes back to what she was doing.

* HeelFaceTurn: While never really a villain and still a criminal, ''Manga/LupinIII'', ''Anime/LupinIIIEpisode0FirstContact'' and ''Anime/LupinIIITheWomanCalledFujikoMine'' all portray Jigen as an antagonist to Lupin before switching to his side.

* IconicItem: Jigen is never seen without his [[EyeObscuringHat fedora]] and his .357 Magnum revolver. It's even the name of his [[Recap/LupinIIIS4E2 introductory episode]] in the [[Anime/LupinIIITheWomanCalledFujikoMine fourth anime]].

* BadassFamily: Ishikawa Goemon was a legendary ninja and thief and presumably his twelve descendants kept the badass going.

* BornInTheWrongCentury: Goemon would fit right in the 17th century, However in the 20-21st century, he sticks out like a sore thumb.

* CharlesAtlasSuperpower: From training alone, Goemon is able to move his arms fast enough to be able to ParryingBullets among other superhuman abilities.

** Goemon's first manga incarnation is much more temperamental and impetuous than his more well-known anime personality, which solidified from the Red Jacket series onwards. Aside from that, he is the second most consistent character.

* SpiderSense: In the second TV and third TV series and a couple of the TV specials, Zantetsuken occasionally acquires a "shadow of death" on the blade, warning Goemon of major danger ahead.
* StraightMan; He is the straight man to the group as a whole while being capable of many NotSoAboveItAll moments.

** Even as far back as Anime/TheCastleofCagliostro (1979) she spent much of the movie armed to the teeth and dressed in combat fatigues. When one of Cagliostro's guards gets a little too close for comfort, she casually ''shoots him in the face'' and then goes back to what she was doing.

* ChronicBackstabbingDisorder: A shining example of the trope, as she betrays Lupin in every aspect of the Franchise. Fujiko usually double-crosses Lupin to Zenigata and/or the VillainOfTheWeek, and then goes ''back'' to Lupin later on in the episode/movie. Then betray him ''again'' in order to take the treasure for herself. Despite the frequency of these betrayals, Lupin is still willing to trust her (which inevitably gets him double-crossed ''again'' in the next episode/movie). In one instance, he even comments that he is ''[[InevitableMutualBetrayal expecting]]'' her to betray him.
* ClassyCatBurglar: The DistaffCounterpart to Lupin, Fujiko is seductive, alluring, and just as devious a thief as he is. This aspect of the character gets ''really'' played up in [[Anime/LupinIIITheWomanCalledFujikoMine her series]].

* VillainousFriendship: Less villains, more criminals, but Lupin, Jigen, and Goemon are all very close.
* WalkingTheEarth: Like the rest of the Lupin Gang, Goemon is never seen owning a home. Instead he lives as a vagabond always training or in one of the gang's safe houses.

* AnimalMotifs: Butterflies and peacocks in ''[[Anime/LupinIIITheWomanCalledFujikoMine The Woman Called Fujiko Mine]]''.

* BlackWidow: Almost all of Fujiko's criminal boyfriends and rich husbands end up dead, either by her hand, one of her accomplices, another villain, or by suicide in ''Green'' and ''Red Jacket'' series.

** There's only one husband who's been shown to not only have survived but remained on good terms with after she broke up with him... [[spoiler: Lupin himself, in Part 5]]. The ending of part V implies they are back on again and will most likely continue this cat-and-mouse game of on and off with the knowledge that when it comes down to it they will always love each other. (Essentially they are soulmates.)

* BoobBasedGag: Fujiko's ample bust, which she was named for, is often the subject of both [[MaleGaze Male Gazes]] (and [[FemaleGaze Female Gazes]]), slapstick humor, and sarcastic comments. They were at their biggest around the '90s and early 2000s.

** Despite Fujiko's differing designs, each iteration of the character has [[GagBoobs one thing in common]]... well, two.

* GagBoobs: Fujiko's ample bust, which she was named for, is often the subject of both [[MaleGaze Male Gazes]] (and [[FemaleGaze Female Gazes]]), slapstick humor, and sarcastic comments. They were at their biggest around the '90s and early 2000s.

** Before the Arsène Lupin copyright expired in the U.S., English dubs from the early-to-mid '90s often had him renamed to "Wolf". Creator/{{AnimEigo}}'s dub of ''Anime/TheFumaConspiracy'' called him "Rupan" (a literal romanization of the katakana that make up his name).[[note]] The liner notes for the DVD point out that by the time [=AnimEigo=] got around to dubbing Fuma in 1994, Leblanc's works had fallen into the public domain in the US. But TMS made [=AnimEigo=] sign the same contract Streamline had used years earlier (when the Leblanc books were still under copyright), which is why they had to change the name.[[/note]] Lupin would not get his proper name in English until Creator/MangaEntertainment's dub of ''[[Anime/TheCastleOfCagliostro Cagliostro]]'' in 2000.

* NoPronunciationGuide: A common complaint with Creator/{{Funimation}}'s dubs of the [[MadeForTVMovie TV specials]] is that Lupin's name is pronounced "Loo-pin" instead of the more correct "Loo-pahn" used in the Manga and Geneon dubs.[[note]] Technically neither is correct, if one assumes the French pronunciation that sounds more like "Lieu-pehgn" (the 'n' is nasalized and barely pronounced).[[/note]]

* FourManBand:
** TheLeader: Lupin III is an interesting mix of TheLeader and TheSmartGuy. He's both a Mastermind and Charismatic leader. On the other hand, he's a genius and far outclasses the others in terms of intelligence.
** TheLancer: Lupin's partner and NumberTwo, Jigen keeps the most level head and snarks instead of gasping at the other characters.
** TheBigGuy: Goemon has a unique place in Lupin's inner circle as unlike how it is with Jigen or Fujiko's skills (marksmanship, stealth, disguise, thievery, and driving), Goemon's swordsmanship is an ability that Lupin can't even come close to replicating. The gang encounters a lot of obstacles that only Goemon and his sword can handle, usually because they can't just open whatever's blocking the way or it's just quicker to have Goemon cut it in half.
** TheChick: Fujiko usually relies on her feminine wiles to get one over on Lupin and various other criminals. She is also not a consistent member of the Lupin Family due to her allegiances changing depending on who can benefit her the most at the time.

** Even as far back as Anime/TheCastleofCagliostro (1979) she spent much of the movie armed to teeth and dressed in combat fatigues. When one of Cagliostro's guards gets a little too close for comfort, she nonchalantly ''shoots him in the face'' and then goes back to what she was doing.

* AdaptationalDyeJob: Modern entries often turn his traditional black hair into a light brown.