It has been announced that the new anime "LUPIN THE IIIRD Zenigata and the Two Lupins" from the popular anime "Lupin the Third", based on the manga by Monkey Punch, will be available on video streaming services such as Animehodai and FOD from June 20th. It will be broadcast on TV for the first time on June 22nd at 9pm on WOWOW. "Zenigata and the Two Lupins" is a prequel to the completely new animated film "LUPIN THE IIIRD THE MOVIE: Immortal Bloodline", which will be released on June 27th, and is a hard-hitting action film with Inspector Zenigata as the main character. Like the new film, it will be directed by Koike Takeshi.
Lupin the Third emerges as a suspect in the airport bombing terrorism that occurred in the frigid land of the Lovieto Federation. However, the "other Lupin" that Zenigata cornered claims his innocence. Zenigata, a man of justice, must confront the mysterious "fake Lupin"... This is the story.
A teaser visual was also released, depicting Inspector Zenigata in a trench coat, wearing a fedora that looks like it has been hit by a bullet, staring straight ahead with a sharp gaze, and Lupin the Third about to walk off with a Walther P38 in hand. The copy is accompanied by the message, "Are you the one who was stolen...?" The visual appeared in the Sunday Theatre drama " Mikami Sensei " (TBS), starring Tori Matsuzaka , which aired from January to March, and was a hot topic on social media with comments such as "Is it a poster before the ban was lifted?", "I've never seen that blue poster before," and "Is it a new work by Koike Lupin?" It has now been revealed that the mysterious "blue poster" was the visual for "LUPIN THE IIIRD Zenigata and the Two Lupins."
For " Mikami Sensei," the scriptwriter, Shimori Roba, is a huge Lupin fan, which is why the character "Jigen" was created. Director Miyazaki Yohei is also a Lupin fan, so the set of Jigen's room was created, surrounded by "Lupin the Third" merchandise.
Director Miyazaki explained, "For the Sunday Theatre drama ' Mikami Sensei,' we had the cooperation of many of the 'Lupin Gang' throughout all of the episodes, including a student named Jigen, his room filled with Lupin the Third merchandise, Kan'ichi Kurita from ' Lupin the Third' as the voice of the 'Lupin AI,' and Daisuke Namikawa from 'Ishikawa Goemon' as the cram school teacher. Towards the end of filming for ' Mikami Sensei,' I was given an additional blue poster to add, asking if I could sneakily put it up somewhere. The title, the style of the art... surely this is a new work by director Koike Takeshi, 'Lupin the IIIrd!' Are Inspector Zenigata and Lupin the main characters this time? And what's more, there are two Lupins...? My heart was filled with curiosity and anticipation. The suggestion was to slightly 'hint' at the new poster, which had not yet been released, but we made sure to make it prominently featured in the drama."
"This poster was only posted in episodes 9 and 10, so be sure to check it out when you tune in to ' Mikami Sensei' now! With such a great staff, the new film 'LUPIN THE IIIRD Zenigata and the Two Lupins' is sure to 'steal' your heart. I'm looking forward to it!" he commented.
In addition to "Zenigata and the Two Lupins," WOWOW will also broadcast "Lupin the IIIrd" series' "Gravestone of Daisuke Jigen," "Smoke of Blood from Goemon Ishikawa," and "The Lie of Fujiko Mine" on June 22nd. "Gravestone of Daisuke Jigen" will air from 6pm, "Smoke of Blood from Goemon Ishikawa" from 7pm, "The Lie of Fujiko Mine" from 8pm, and "Zenigata and the Two Lupins" from 9pm.
It was also announced that the OVA (original video animation) "Lupin the Third: The Intrigue of the Fuuma Clan" will be distributed on video distribution services such as Animehodai and FOD from June 13th. This will be the first time the work will be distributed.
◇ Staff of "LUPIN THE IIIRD Zenigata and the Two Lupins" (titles omitted)
Director: Koike Ken▽Screenplay: Takahashi Yuya▽Music: James Shimoji▽Creative Advisor: Ishii Katsuhito▽Animation Production: Telecom Animation Film
◇Cast of "LUPIN THE IIIRD Zenigata and the Two Lupins" (titles omitted)
Lupin the Third: Kanichi Kurita▽Daisuke Jigen: Akio Otsuka ▽Goemon Ishikawa: Daisuke Namikawa ▽Fujiko Mine: Miyuki Sawashiro ▽Inspector Zenigata: Koichi Yamadera
