Forum - View topicLupin III: The Woman Called Fujiko Mine (TV).
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Animerican14
 Posts: 963 Location: Saint Louis, MO |
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Lupin III: The Woman Called Fujiko Mine (TV) Genres: action, psychological Themes: crime, fanservice, girls with guns, thief Plot Summary: Plot Summary: Many people are falling prey to a suspicious new religion. Lupin III infiltrates this group, hoping to steal the treasure their leader keeps hidden. There he lays eyes on the beautiful, bewitching woman who has the leader enthralled. This is the story of how fashionable female thief Fujiko Mine first met Lupin III, the greatest thief of his generation. ---------------------------------- Well, this is not only my first time starting up a thread for a show, but one of my first times ever actually starting a thread here on ANN, so... this might be a little awkward. Or at least, I don't think I'm going to start this thread in an exciting fashion Anyway, I just recently got done with the show. So let's do this: *double-checks plot summary* Wait a minute... this is basically the summary of the first episode! And... the premise is effectively resolved by the end, by the looks of it. I mean, spoiler[the source of the drug was found and inadvertently sunk to the bottom of the sea, the cult leader was taken by Zenigata & the police, Lupin & Fujiko made their escape, etc... ] There doesn't seem anywhere for the show left to go with this whole cult thing, unless it somehow ties into some global conspiracy.  So in the end, I assume it might be a fairly episodic series-- alright, I can dig that. I assume though, that there will be some sense of forward direction, since this is the first time Lupin and Fujiko meet. (I guess by the end of the series, they'll have perfectly meshed themselves into the roles of frenemies ... or maybe something more?) And on that note, will this series depict the first time that Lupin/Fujiko meet Goemon and Jigen? Guess there should be some forward momentum in that relationship as well.
I have to say, I'm really loving the art style here. I'm not yet one of those that has had their eyeballs gouged out (in a good way!) by the explosive pop-art of Redline, having only been limited to the trailers and some screencaps, but already I think I can see Koike's touch on this. It has such an awesome old-school, sketchy comic book feel to it... and even with the few CG/3d-ish sequences there are, the style is pulled off pretty well. Oh yeah, and Zac's not kidding about the NSFW aspects... although admittedly, the nudity really doesn't take up half of Fujiko's show time in the series. Why, I'm thinking that you see about as much nudity from her in the opening and ending themes (which do indeed feature a lot of risque shots) as you do in the actual first episode's content, if not more. Well, I think I can safely say this is going to be one of the very few series that I will regularly catch this season. My only experience with Lupin has been Castle of Cagliostro, a bunch of the Lupin III films released by Funimation (thank you, hometown library!), and a couple episodes of the really old TV series, so I definitely have familiarity on my side of the ring. This should be fun. 
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penguintruth
 Posts: 8511 Location: Penguinopolis |
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I reviewed the first episode on my blog.
I really like the manga-ish feel the show has. They maybe overdo the nudity (especially in that OP) a little, but the nudity never feels cheap. The VAs for Lupin and Fujiko both do an excellent job. I look forward to the next episode. |
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jsc315
 Posts: 925 |
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Fujiko was always a tease in the series. As for the manga well there are some pretty dark stuff where lupin rapes her and always beating her. This was in the very early chapters in the manga and really was not fun for any one. Thank god that changed! I always loved the chemistry between Lupin and Fujiko. Really glad to hear they so far have done this right. Some of the newer specials were kind of falling flat and was a bit worried. |
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penguintruth
Posts: 8511 Location: Penguinopolis |
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I have the entire first volume of the Lupin III manga and not once do I see Lupin raping Fujiko. The sex is consentual between them.
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SoandSo
 Posts: 204 |
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A very stylish, if textbook, pilot. Was more entertained just taking in the art than I was by anything actually happening. Definitely wanna see more though.
Getting sick of seeing so many people on the internet trying to pass off the gratuitous nudity as "tasteful" just because it's stylish and not necessarily otaku-bait, though. It was funny at first, but it's starting to get disturbing. |
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dirkusbirkus
 Posts: 699 Location: Manchester, UK |
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I thought it was fantastic. This is my first exposure (no pun intended) to the world of Lupin III, but it was made pretty clear early on that no prior knowledge was needed. Slick visuals, set piece after set piece, a male lead who's just awesome and an appealing female character design for once. Brilliant.
Top it off with a Shinichiro Watanabe soundtrack, and I'm completely sold. |
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TitanXL
 Posts: 4036 |
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It's all subjective. To some people, a simple short skirt is untasteful. |
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belindabird
 Subscriber Posts: 134 Location: Minneapolis |
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I'm enjoying it so far. I'm really in it for the art style, which is unlike any other series that's being broadcast right now. It actually reminds me of Mononoke in that it couples very textural artwork with some CG for the background elements. It's eye-candy of a decidedly different nature than what I'm used to, and I appreciate that element of it.
I'm not normally into shows that have a lot of nudity, and I'm not sure how I feel about that aspect yet. I don't perceive Fujiko as just being "fanservice bait" as it were, but at the same time I'm not sure what the point is of having her topless for so much of the time beyond "hehe, boobies." It's interesting to see a female character use her sexuality for the purposes of manipulation so blatantly rather than leaving it as the subject of passive audience leering, though. I am also a fan of Sayo Yamamoto's other big directorial job, Michiko to Hatchin, which also features a barely-dressed, sexy-and-awesome female protagonist, so I'm hoping that sense about women will come through as the show goes on, rather than just having it be sexy for the sake of calling itself "adult" entertainment. |
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dirkusbirkus
Posts: 699 Location: Manchester, UK |
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I guess it shouldn't surprise me that people are up in arms over the boobs, but I really didn't see the big deal. I won't go as far as to say I didn't notice their presence (I'd have to be visually impaired for that to be the case) but they didn't get in the way of any of the other elements of the show. They were just 'there'. If people are basing their enjoyment of the episode on the fact they were so prominent then that says more about them as people than it does about how 'tasteful' the show is.
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Melanchthon
 Posts: 550 Location: Northwest from Here |
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Wow. If you're going to resurrect a 40 year-old franchise, there are a lot of ways you can go wrong and only a few that you can go right. And this show nailed it. That was brilliant. The art was amazing. The play between Lupin and Fujiko was superior. Zenigata was stone cold awesome. I think we have something special here, something that will last.
And as for the boobs, well, if you watched as much Lupin as I have (and I've only watched around ~150 ep total (and 13 movies), you'll learn that there are plenty of boobs in the old-school stuff too (I remember one occasion where Lupin had to steal something from a nudist colony). And in Part 2, Fujiko flashes her tits about once every 10 episodes. And if you've seen anything else from Monkey Punch, you'll quickly learn that the dude likes his nekkid women. I don't think this is out of place at all. Just one question: Green Coat? Really? |
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jsc315
Posts: 925 |
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It isn't out of place at all. Fujiko is a very sexual person. It's not just the fact that it's fan service. Her sexuality is part of her tool to win over Lupin and to get what she wants. It's not fan service just for the sake of seeing boobs. It's who she is and what she has always done. Honestly I like that she isn't just a big tease now and they are making it more upfront.
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TitanXL
Posts: 4036 |
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I find it ironic people make a big deal about her boobs, but not the fact she spoiler[beheaded a relatively-innocent guy].
The naked human body is a bigger deal than murder I guess. |
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ikillchicken
 Posts: 7272 Location: Vancouver |
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Well that was pretty awesome. The visuals are so wonderfully avant garde and yet the show is simultaneously so kinetic and fast paced. (If you've seen Redline you can pretty much guess without being told that Koike is involved here). This show wasn't even on my radar until recently but now it is looking like it might be one of the best of the season.
Re: The boobs...Who. Gives. A. Serious. Crap. 
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belindabird
Subscriber Posts: 134 Location: Minneapolis |
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The latter is more about who the character is and what she does, while the former could be said to be more related to the personal predilections of certain staff members or the assumption of the show's audience make-up. I don't think anyone, unless I'm misunderstanding, is criticizing either violence or sexuality as it applies to fleshing-out the titular character. It's more that the reflections of Fujiko's sexual nature or use of sex in "getting the job done" so-to-speak is based very much around displaying her body for the camera. At least, that's the angle I'm coming from. ETA:
Well, those of us who don't fit the assumed "heterosexual male" audience can often feel othered when a series that could easily be awesome on its artfulness and character interactions alone so obviously decides to pander to that audience. Which is not to say that everyone else feels this way specifically, but I don't think it's a concern that should be so easily dismissed. |
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Kirkdawg
 Subscriber Posts: 742 Location: California, USA |
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So did anyone feel alienated by the flamboyant showcase of female sexuality and therefore was turned away from an otherwise awesome episode?
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