Lupin III, Vol. 1 (Paperback)

by Monkey Punch (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
Lupin III is an "intrepid thief and master of disguise" and a Japanese pop culture icon since his first appearance in 1967. This action/adventure series is loosely based on a series of novels by Maurice LeBlanc, though it has incorporated plenty of other spy and adventure standbys. The first volume offers nine short stories, rooted firmly in the 1960s, complete with multiple references to hippies and "swinging." Each story is a model of concise comic book entertainment with nonstop action and humor. Like so many other master thieves and spies, Lupin combines the low life with the highest pleasures. He's also ruthless and unstoppable, always outwitting his targets. Lupin isn't for kids, though: his enigmatic creator laces these stories with over-the-top sexual exploits, deceptions, gags and even the occasional formalist joke. At one point, Lupin says schematics are as "simple as a comic book," which brings a grimace from "the author," who peers out from beneath the panel. Monkey Punch's humor has more than a bit of the madcap spirit of The Pink Panther; one incident effortlessly spins into another. The stories are extremely well told and the action crisply paced. The b&w drawing is an idiosyncratic blend of kids' cartooning and rough line work situated somewhere between Sergio Aragones and Don Martin, two Mad magazine iconoclasts, with a good dose of traditional manga spirit thrown in. An unlikely classic, Lupin III is engaging, witty and irresistible.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Paperback: 176 pages
• Publisher: TokyoPop (December 10, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1591822521
• ISBN-13: 978-1591822523
• Product Dimensions: 7.2 x 5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #382,018 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The original stories by Monkey Punch!, May 5, 2003

By	Kef Schecter - See all my reviews

About 100 years ago, Maurice Leblanc wrote some novels about a thief named Arsène Lupin (pronounced LOO-pahn). This thief was a true gentleman, even thoughtfully leaving a note stating that he was about to steal everything in the house before he actually did so, and despite this he was always successful. He generally targeted wealthy people who he believed did not deserve their riches. But instead of giving to the poor, he just kept the spoils.

Cut to 1967. Arsène Lupin the Third is the grandson of the notorious thief. This new Lupin follows the tradition of always sending a letter before stealing, but this gentlemanly quality is only superficial: it won't take long to notice that Lupin III brings new meaning to the word "lechery". Hmm...the artwork also looks very much like MAD Magazine...we must be in parody territory!

To fully appreciate the stories you have to remember the context of them. To say MAD Magazine was a heavy inspiration for Monkey Punch is to say Mount Everest is a little big. Fortunately, the really bad jokes and lack of continuity between panels that are characteristic of MAD Magazine (in its current form; I don't know about back in the 1960s) are nowhere to be found here, but all of the more positive aspects of MAD are present. It's not meant to be taken seriously, so don't get offended too easily. Many chapters play out like elaborate Spy vs. Spy strips with dialogue, with Lupin as one spy and any of a number of people as the other, including Inspector Zenigata of Interpol.

My particular favorite chapter is chapter 2, where Lupin tries, successfully of course, to escape from prison. The expressions on Lupin's face as Zenigata continually humiliates him are priceless...then Lupin makes his escape and it's Zenigata who has to be humiliated! I won't tell you just how Lupin gets out of prison, but the scheme is ingenious and the results are a riot, to boot!

The translation is nearly flawless, except they don't provide translations of sound effects often enough (luckily I can read hiragana and katakana so I have an idea of what they say, but a lot of readers probably can't), and in Volume I of the series they transliterate the names "Fujiko" and "Jigen" as "Fugiko" and (ugh) "Gigen". While that's not a crime, the names look strange that way and just make it more likely they'll be pronounced incorrectly. But these are very minor issues; the translation is very well done.

Overall, a very funny graphic novel for relatively mature audiences, at least if they're mature in an immature way. ;)

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Girls, Guns, and Fun, November 27, 2004

By	M. Nocerino "Sci Fi Fan" (silver spring, md) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Lupin the Third is Japan's answer to James Bond. The only thing he likes more than a big payday [...]. Whereas Bond was a charismatic secret agent, Lupin is a charismatic non-so-secret gentleman thief. He is the world's greatest thief, seemingly able to escape from any predicament. His adventures are filled with comical antics and hilarious miscues. He chases after the women as much as the treasure and the former usually leads to a lot more trouble the latter.

Accompanying Lupin on his adventures are two loyal and faithful companions and one not so loyal companion. His close, personal friends Goeman, a samurai swordsman, and Jigen, a professional gunslinger, are usually responsible for pulling Lupin's butt out the crazy predicaments he gets himself into. His not-so-loyal companion and oft rival is the beautiful and devious Fujiko. She is the main object of Lupin's lust and responsible for a good number of the predicaments he gets into. Oddly enough, no matter how much she cheats him, he seems to love her that much more.

Rounding out the cast is the intrepid Inspector Zenigata. He is always on Lupin's tail, well actually, it's more like he's always a step behind. It is Zenigata's mission to one day capture the elusive Lupin and claim the respect he so rightly deserves.

This series is great, especially if you like James Bond type stories. The wit and humor are perfect for the style of story. The art effectively portrays the action as well as the body language and moods of the characters.

Note: Readers need to keep in mind that, while not explicit, this is not for children. Monkey Punch rates it for teenagers age 16+ and carries the "Parental Advisory" label.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars raunchy fun, May 11, 2003

By	E. Schwartz (Earlham College, Richmond, Indiana, USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

My favorite aspect of these books is the style of the drawings. Unlike many comics with the same outlined character drawn over and over, it's very clear here that each cell is unique, mostly due to the scribble-like nature of the art, which impressively captures the animated expressions of the characters.

Speaking of animated, it's important to note that the manga(book) version is much more graphic than the tv show that was briefly on Cartoon Network or most of the movies. As one of the other reviewers note, the artist, Monkey Punch, is strongly influenced by Mad Magazine and James Bond. The result is finding humor in murder and rape. That may be kind of hard for some to swallow, but as for me, i fell in love with the more innocent characters of the anime and love the drawings, so I found it worthwhile to ignore my femenist urgings.

It's also neat that this has the "100% original" stamp, and is printed from right to left like the original Japanese manga. It only takes a little while to get used to turning the pages backwards and it's worth it for the authenticity.