The worlds of Monkey Punch's Lupin III and Tsukasa Hojo's Cat's Eye will collide in a brand-new anime special.
According to Anime News Network, Lupin III vs. Cat's Eye will debut exclusively on Amazon Prime Video sometime in 2023. The new show's trailer promises a wealth of action, intrigue and hijinks.
The Collaboration Celebrates Two Milestone Anniversaries
The collaborative project celebrates the 50th and 40th anniversaries of the Lupin III anime and Cat's Eye manga. Early story details reveal Lupin III vs. Cat's Eye will be set in the 1980s and follow the iconic thieves as they attempt to steal three paintings that hide mysterious secrets. TMS Entertainment, the studio behind many of the previous Lupin III series and movies, is producing the mash-up with Kobun Shizuno (Detective Conan: Private Eye in the Distant Sea) and Hiroyuki Seshita (Knights of Sidonia) serving as co-directors and Shūji Kuzuhara (Pazudora) handling the script. Keiko Toda (Mobile Suit Gundam) and Kanichi Kurita (Lupin III: Prison of the Past) are voicing Hitomi Kisugi and Lupin, respectively.
Monkey Punch published his original Lupin the Third manga series in Futabasha's Weekly Manga Action from August 1967 to May 1969; the story follows the titular thief across his many globe-trotting heists. Monkey Punch's story launched one of the largest and longest-running franchises in the anime/manga community, spawning a plethora of spinoffs and sequels. It includes six unique anime series, two live-action film adaptations, two musicals, many video games, animated movies and television specials.
The most recent anime series, Lupin II Part 6, debuted in October of last year and saw Lupin and crew face off against none other than Sherlock Holmes as they attempt to find hidden treasure. The first episode marked the final performance of Kiyoshi Kobayashi in the role of Daisuke Jigen; Kobayashi had voiced the character since the franchise's initial pilot film back in 1969.
The Cat's Eye manga appeared in Shueisha's Weekly Shōnen Jump from 1981 to 1985; with over 20 million copies sold globally, Cat's Eye remains one of the publication's best-selling titles. It tells the story of the Kisugi sisters -- Hitomi, Ai and Rui -- capable art thieves who endeavor to collect all the works created by their missing father. Tokyo Movie Shinsha (Rent-A-Girlfriend) adapted Hojo's story into two anime series that aired between 1983 and 1985.
Several Lupin III series are available on Crunchyroll, Hulu and Amazon Prime Video. The Cat's Eye anime are available on Crunchyroll.
Source: YouTube, Anime News Network