Lupin III: Fuuma Ichizoku no Inbou

[THIS WAS WRITTEN RIGHT AFTER WATCHING IT AND ON MY SOCIAL MEDIA ACC. KEEPING THIS HERE FOR AN ARCHIVE]
Woah. I can definitely see why ppl suck this movies dick a lot this shit is smooth. Like I could not to tell u what this ones plot was in any meaningful or comprehensive way but I can tell u there isn’t a single bad looking scene in the entire run time of this movie. Every fucking shot is flawlessly animated. The character designs r all wonderful EVEN FUJIKO LOOKS AMAZING AND BETTER THEN MOST OTHER DESIGNS OF HERS zenigata got a buzz cut bald look ... that looks a little funny but it fits him p well tbh. Every single visual element is simply Jaw Dropping. MUSIC ON THE OTHER HAND IS A BIT MORE ON THE STRANGE SIDE bc Tms put their whole fucking pussy in the visuals tryna make cagliostro 2 they literally didn’t have enough money to hire yuji ohno (or get the usual jp cast) so there’s someone else handling the ost this time and NGL I THOUGHT ID NOTICE AND HATE IT BUT I CAME AROUND TO REALLY LIKING THE OST it fits and feels lupin-y! Cant complain at all really!!
Another note to touch on is the voice cast. I was ready to be cringing at the shitty old dub line delivery and poor casting but I’m gonna be honest I was shocked by this shit too bc like everyone did a p decent job. Lupins va actually was kinda good and I really liked fujikos voice too; everyone else was kinda off, zenigatas line deliveries were always kinda stilted sounding but like he had the right idea at least. Was jarring hearing them all call him “rupan” too since this was before arsene lupin became public domain.
Storywise, shit was generic at best and hard to follow at worst. The fact this one had more of a focus in goemon was cool tho I love goemon centric stories. Regardless I feel like w this movie, u don’t really come in looking for plot I think it’s all just visual neuron stimulation
Overall this one was super good and super fun to watch even if the story backseat for the animators to go fucking insane. A solid ass hour and 30 mins of pure eye candy. I give it a nice B+/A

Honestly a really solid Lupin movie

the characters aren't particularly complex, and at times it comes across like samurai movie especially with some of the fight scenes.

Also its a much more Goemon focused story so this is pretty much everything I want from a Lupin film.
Great score, fantastic if a little dated animation and its just a laughable good time.

The plot kinda feels like a bad TTRPG. The gang's at a wedding when *dice roll sound* ninjas attack and now the *dice roll sound* priceless family vase has been stolen! Go get it back!
There really isn't any reason for Lupin to be interested in the ... entire plot other than "other thieves seem to think this is a good idea so there must be something to it"

Characterization is hilarious, everyone feels funny and on point. Seeing Zenigata mourn for Lupin was genuinely touching and somehow the writers actually made me ENJOY Fujiko. Mostly cause Lupin seems fully aware of who she is and what she does.

I LOVE the action scenes, shot for shot scene for scene the slapstick is on point but what gets me are the samurai fight scenes. I'm a huge fan of westerns and samurai flicks so it is RIGHT up my alley. An absolute joy.

The Fuma Conspiracy a somewhat decent tale brought down by it's flaws.

Goemon is getting married when ninjas swoop in! The Lupin gang has to stop these evil ninjas, save Goemon's bride, and try for some treasure, for good measure.

This 80's OVA has the unfortunate distinction of being the only Lupin anime without the usual Japanese voice cast. This is especially bad, because the voices used don't fit the characters at all, and are distractingly out of place. The English dub is not good either.

On top of the unfortunate voice choices, the characterization is pretty weak here in general. The dialogue is not as clever as ... usual, and the characters don't gel together as well as they usually do. Inspector Zenigata is very bland in this one too.

Another problem with this OVA is the poor soundtrack. They don't use Yuji Ohno or any classic Lupin themes, and they don't even attempt a jazzy style.

There are some good things though, the animation for example is very fluid, and the art style is nice. There are some fun car chases, and a couple enjoyable action sequences. Any time Lupin and Jigen are in a car, it's decent Lupin fun. Plus Fujiko has some cool motorcycle action.

Overall, this Lupin OVA is really off it's game. It lacks the usual Lupin stylishness and is pretty generic all around. Definitely on the lower end of the Lupin spectrum, but it's a passable if generic action adventure on it's own.