Art direction is fantastic as usual. I really like the more mature view of Lupin III that this movie has. It's something Lupin needed to a degree, almost as if it's a homage to the original manga. It's mature enough to be appealing to older audiences, but doesn't take itself too seriously. It has the same "air" as all the other Takeshi Koike films. It's dark and disturbing. Sexual at times. But that's something I don't mind. It's really startling how Lupin can either be fun and light, or can be the complete opposite and sometimes disturb its viewers.
It felt much more enjoyable than Takeshi Koike's first Lupin special, that being Jigen Daisuke's Gravestone. I feel like this special was more "tight" - now that they've worked with their interpretation of blue jacket Lupin once, they've now gotten it right. I'm excited to see what they might have in store next.
I watched this without subtitles and my understanding of spoken Japanese isn't the greatest, so I can't say much about the story, unfortunately. The main villain was interesting and creepy, despite not really looking like it.
As for characterization, the special mainly focuses on Goemon and his view of his honour from what I could understand. I felt like his characterization was similar to that of The Mystery of Mamo - he becomes a brooding samurai, faced with defeat, unsure of what to make of himself. He's not really a punchline at all. He's very serious in this special, almost to a terrifying degree (as Lupin puts it in the original green jacket series, he's a "scary man"). The antics between Lupin, Jigen, and Fujiko were quite entertaining. Their silliness was a lot more adult-oriented. I got the feeling from this film that Goemon wasn't very close to them at all, but I think it fit for his character. Zenigata's characterization of a more hardened detective is also starting to grow on me, and I liked his interactions with the gang.
Regardless, if you're a fan of the more violent and serious Lupin, this is a special that you need to watch. I'll definitely be rewatching it once subtitles come out so I can fully understand it. Visually, this is the most appealing thing. The animation is incredibly smooth and the characters are always so nicely drawn. The way they draw each character has really been refined in this special. It's definitely a treat, so I highly recommend you check it out.
