Lupin moves like a man who knows the job better than anyone alive, and the show never wastes time pretending otherwise, it just throws you into the next heist, the next betrayal, the next impossible escape. The 1971 animation stutters and holds frames longer than it should, but that cheapness becomes part of the style, forcing the writing and character dynamics to do all the heavy lifting. Jigen's silence, Goemon's contempt, Fujiko's smile right before she sells him out, these are the actual heists, happening between the capers. Watch it now and you'll understand why every stylish thief show that came after was just copying homework.

Lupin the Third is a master thief and the grandson of the famous Arsène Lupin, and he lives up to that name with elaborate heists around the world. His partner Daisuke Jigen backs him up with fast gunplay, and the stoic swordsman Goemon is as likely to try to kill Lupin as to help him. Fujiko Mine, a femme fatale with a habit of betrayal, keeps getting mixed up in his schemes, and Lupin can never tell whose side she is on. His notoriety draws rival criminals and the relentless Inspector Zenigata of the ICPO, who never stops chasing him. Expect car chases, explosions and double-crosses in a comedic adventure about a band of misfits.