Lupin III's Greatest Capers

After watching The Castle of Cagliostro, directed by Hayao Miyazaki, I was eager to watch this video. Both the episodes from Tales of the Wolf have been compiled on this one tape, and both are directed by Miyazaki. And, naturally, they lived up to my expectations.

Lupin flicks are always chock full of action, excitement, and zany fun, and the those elements are found here in abundance. The first episode begins with Fujiko being kidnapped and Lupin rushing off to save her. It was particularly fun to watch, if for no other reason than to see Fujiko (easily my favorite Lupin character) rain destruction on her enemies with a sadistic elegance only she can pull off. Of course, the whole gang, Lupin, Goemon, Jigen and Inspector Zenigata are also present, providing loads of thrills and laughs.

While the first episode was out-and-out fun, the second was actually a little somber at times, with an anti-war message snuck in there. However, the somewhat serious nature of the story seemed a bit out-of-place. After all, this *is* Lupin we're talking about. There is still lots of action, with a few good plot twists thrown in for good measure. While I didn't find it as fun as the first episode, it was still fairly entertaining.

The visual quality of the episodes was fairly good. Aside from the rather plain introduction, the animation's quite smooth and the backgrounds are nicely detailed. The dubbing was also pretty good, with the exception of Goemon. He sounded too flat and unconvincing.

If you're in the mood for some fun with a capital "F", then be sure to check out Lupin III's Greatest Capers.

The Verdict: * * * * (good)