After being relegated to specials and movies for quite a few years now, could 2011 be the time that Lupin the 3rd returns to TV? According to Crunchyroll, via Mantan Web, NTV is now listing that a new Lupin the 3rd TV series is slated to air in the fall, though no details have made about it beyond that, such as cast and crew.
Lupin was last seen in the 2010 special, The Last Job, and it’s been quite some time since we’ve seen new releases of Lupin properties after FUNimation’s batch license of them finished out and Discotek Media rescued a couple of older titles. With the original TV seasons lost to licensing at this point unless someone manages a streaming only license, this could be all we’d see for some time if it makes it over here as Lupin the 3rd has sadly proven itself hard to make money here.
Franchise concept: Arsène Lupin III, the grandson of the fictional gentleman thief, Arsène Lupin, is considered the world’s greatest thief, known for announcing his intentions to steal valuable objects by sending a calling card to the owners of his desired items. His right-hand man and closest ally is Daisuke Jigen, an expert marksman who can accurately shoot a target in 0.3 seconds. Although Lupin and Jigen frequently work as a two-man team, they are often joined by Goemon Ishikawa XIII, a master swordsman whose sword can cut anything, or Fujiko Mine, a femme fatale and Lupin’s love interest. Although Fujiko usually works together with the others, she occasionally exploits Lupin’s interest in her to steal a treasure for herself. Lupin and his gang are constantly chased by Inspector Koichi Zenigata (Pops) of the ICPO, who has made it his life’s work to arrest them, chasing Lupin across the globe. On the rare occasions he catches Lupin, Zenigata secretly hopes Lupin will escape so he can continue to chase him. Regardless of whether Lupin and his followers succeed or fail, they are always looking for the next heist.
Just an update on this piece; turns out that it might not be a new TV series, just another special:
http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2011-05-06/new-lupin-iii-tv-project-to-be-a-special-this-fall
Confusion reigns though, as Reed Nelson’s source still seems to be 99% sure that it will be an actual TV series.