Lupin VS the Clone

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Lupin VS the Clone
General information
Japanese title:	ルパンVS複製人間(クローン)
Romanized title:	Rupan VS Kurōn
Official English Name:	The Mystery of Mamo The Secret of Mamo
Other titles:	Lupin III (original) Confrontation with Mamo Lupin III den otrolige [Lupin III the Incredible] (Sweden)
Runtime:	102 minutes
Release date(s):	December 16, 1978
English dub by:	Frontier Enterprises (1978) Streamline Pictures (1995) Manga UK (1996) Geneon (2003)
Jacket Color:	Red
Opening:	"Theme from Lupin III '79"
Ending:	"Lupin Ondo"
Credits
Written by:	Sōji Yoshikawa Atsushi Yamatoya
Directed by:	Sōji Yoshikawa
Production company:	Tokyo Movie Shinsha Nippon TV
Movie Chronology
Next →	The Castle of Cagliostro

Lupin VS the Clone (ルパンVS複製人間(クローン), Rupan VS Kurōn^?) is the 1st Lupin the 3rd movie released on December 16, 1978. It was produced by Tokyo Movie Shinsha and Nippon TV, directed by Sōji Yoshikawa and written by Sōji Yoshikawa and Atsushi Yamatoya.

Synopsis

The world’s most wanted master thief, Lupin the Third, is dead! Despite a coroner’s report, Interpol Inspector Zenigata is skeptical and discovers that Lupin is actually alive and well and stealing! But who had set up Lupin’s death and why?

For now, questions are set aside, as Lupin, Jigen, and Goemon immediately embark to Egypt to pilfer a stone artifact from a pyramid, with Zenigata in hot pursuit. But Fujiko, lured by the promise of eternal youth and beauty by the sinister and enigmatic scientist known as Mamo, double-crosses Lupin and steals the stone. Her betrayal causes a rift between Lupin and his cohorts, causing the trio to split up, but eventually leads Lupin to Mamo’s hideaway, where he discovers the madman’s dark secret and a fiendish scheme that threatens the entire planet! Now, it’s up to Lupin to stop the insane Mamo — before he can complete his 10,000 year-old plans of world domination.

Name

Originally, this film was known as simply Lupin III. This was the name used in Japan, JAL Flights, France and Italy. After the movie The Castle of Cagliostro was released, in Japan the film was renamed as it is today. Futabasha Action Comics had named this in their film comic adaptation Confrontation with Mamo.

A video tape copy was obtained from Jun Hirabayashi (former representative of TMS) to Fred Patten to gauge whether anime could be marketed to the US. It was then traded onto tapes among the US anime fan circle. However, they were uncomfortable using the "Lupin VS the Clone" name as it gave away an important plot point. As a solution, Mark Merlino came up with the spoiler-free title The Mystery of Mamo. When Streamline came to dub the movie due to them being unable to use the Toho dub, TMS had come up with The Secret of Mamo inspired by the fan nickname and wanted them to use that name.

This became an issue whether a company used "Mystery" or "Secret". Streamline stuck with the fan name due to alliteration and the fans already knew it as that name. In Japan, Toho released a laserdisc with this dub and Lingaphone released a tape, both having "The Mystery of Mamo" name due to using the Streamline dub. Manga UK however used "Secret of Mamo" due to no fanbase and no previous release in the UK. Pioneer used "The Secret of Mamo" name and Discotek reverted it back to "The Mystery of Mamo". Currently TMS USA uses this name in their promotional material. American-based websites also generally use "The Mystery of Mamo", like the Wikipedia page for the movie.

"The Secret of Mamo" name was kept in the UK with France and Mexico receiving a translated version of the name. Since 2022, in Latin American countries including Mexico TMS had renamed the film to "El Misterio de Mamo". In Italy it was renamed to La pietra della saggezza (The stone of wisdom).

Long Summary

In the beginning of the movie, Lupin III is shown slowly climbing up a set of stairs. He is then hanged; after that, an autopsy report shows up on screen.

Inspector Zenigata investigates the execution of but discovers Lupin has used the dead body as a decoy and that he is just as confused about this other Lupin. Lupin flees from the castle via hang glider.

In an Egyptian pyramid, Lupin finds Philosopher's Stone with Daisuke Jigen, but they are discovered by Zenigata and the Egyptian police. Lupin escapes the pyramid corridors and Goemon Ishikawa XIII incapacitates the officers surrounding the pyramid. The three use Lupin's Mercedes-Benz SSK to flee from the pyramid.

After Lupin delivers the stone to his lover Fujiko Mine, Fujiko turns on Lupin and steals the stone. Lupin and the others listen in on Fujiko to find out who asked for the Stone, only for them discover that the Stone was a fake. Dissatisfied that Lupin had given him a fake, the contractor dispatches two of his henchmen to kill the thief. After Lupin and his gang defeat the henchmen, Flinch destroys Lupin's car and his hideout; Jigen and Goemon suspect that Fujiko sold them out, and berate Lupin for being faithful to her until Lupin promises to drop Fujiko for good.

Crossing into Spain, the gang traverses the desert where Lupin accidentally sets off one of Flinch's booby traps before the group finds a house stocked with food and water. A seriously wounded Fujiko comes for Lupin, making him go back on his promise and alienate Jigen and Goemon. Fujiko secretly drugs Lupin's food, but doesn't realize how strong the medicine is and Lupin ends up being knocked out completely after his attempted ravishing of Fujiko goes awry. They are both captured by Flinch and shoved into his plane. Jigen fails to stop the plane, but recovers a note dropped by Fujiko. The next day, Jigen gets pursued by Gordon. Surprised at first by Jigen's quick move to threaten him, Gordon manages to bring him and Goemon to Area 64 to be interviewed by Stuckey, an important government official from America.

After listening to a tape of an interfered-with conversation between the secretary general and the U.S. president, Stuckey asks for info on Mamo, the man who broke into the conversation. Jigen claims they know nothing, but Gordon doesn't believe him. Jigen hands Gordon the note, which says "WATER," and angers him by still claiming that they know nothing. Stuckey decides that Jigen and Goemon knew nothing, releasing them for the sole purpose of using them to find the mystery man. The note lands in the spilled water, revealing the word "CARIB," which Jigen recognizes as the Caribbean.

Meanwhile, on a Caribbean island, Lupin escapes from his prison and comes across Napoleon and Hitler, much to his shock. He manages to find the mystery man, who reveals himself to be Howard Lockewood, Mamo himself. He offers Lupin eternal life, but Lupin declines, saying that nothing good comes from longevity and that all he wants is the stone. He is able to find and reclaim it as Jigen and Goemon head for the Caribbean island, unaware that Gordon and Stuckey are tracking them via spy satellite. Fujiko plays with Lupin awhile in an attempt to get him to accept Mamo's offer, but they are soon chased by thugs led by Flinch, as Lupin had discovered what Mamo's staff was planning to do with the Stone. Lupin and Fujiko end up in Mamo's lair, where he reveals that the island is inhabited by clones of famous people and that he is planning on becoming a god. Lupin doesn't believe him at all.

Mamo deems Lupin unworthy of eternal life, but Fujiko refuses to abandon Lupin. Mamo straps Lupin to his chair and reveals his dirtiest secrets to a horrified Fujiko. When Mamo tries to look into Lupin's self-conscience, however, he is shocked that Lupin doesn't dream, declaring it a trait of either a complete idiot, or a god. Mamo tries to kill him, but is interrupted when the island is bombed by the United States Air Force. Lupin is rescued by Goemon and Jigen, who puts a bullet in Mamo's head. They and Fujiko then get the hell out of Dodge, but not before Goemon engages in a final confrontation against Flinch. When Goemon learns that even his Zantetsuken couldn't penetrate Flinch's armor, he instead proceeds to cut Flinch's face, much to the latter's shock. As Flinch drops dead into the water, the tip of the Zantetsuken breaks off, much to Goemon's sorrow. As the gang leaves the island with an unconscious Lupin, they are chased by Zenigata who chooses the wrong boat to go after them in. Even so, he tries going after them on the other boat, but the boat is destroyed, however, by the USAF.

Finding Zenigata on a beach, the Commissioner reveals that Zenigata has been removed from the Lupin case as his association with Mamo has expanded the case to a global scale. He encourages Zenigata to think of it as an opportunity to take a vacation, even offering a bonus, but Zenigata instead tears up the bonus and resigns from the police force, opting to go after Lupin on his own as a private citizen.

Meanwhile, Lupin and his gang (sans Goemon, who decided to train harder) retreat to an old hotel, keeping themselves up with coffee. Jigen shows Lupin what's left of the Zantetsuken, which Lupin puts in his pocket. Lupin deduces that Mamo has been using cloning technology to achieve his desire for eternal life, which is confirmed by Mamo himself when the latter thrusts the group into a black void. Mamo reveals his hand in the history of the world, converses with Lupin regarding who was really executed, and puts the gang back where he had left them after rearranging the room a bit. Lupin is quick to figure out how Mamo managed to do it. When Mamo shows up to reclaim Fujiko, Lupin dares him to prove himself a God by performing some kind of miracle without his Las Vegas-style parlor tricks. Mamo responds by setting off several charges to simulate an earthquake, which registers on the Richter scale and alerts Gordon and Stuckey to where Mamo is located.

Lupin figures out what was behind that earthquake and sets off for the source, where he believes Mamo to be hiding. As Mamo convinces Fujiko to push a button to launch missiles, Lupin shows up as the snake to their Adam and Eve, revealing he rigged the missiles to blow up before they could launch. Frustrated, Mamo takes Fujiko with him to a rocket launching pad and tries fending Lupin off with lasers. Lupin uses the tip of Goemon's Zantetsuken to deflect the lasers onto Mamo and incinerate him, but not before Lupin learns from Mamo that he is the original Lupin and that it was the clone that swung in Transylvania. Lupin is sure that was the real Mamo until he discovers a chip hidden among the ashes.

The rocket emerges, containing a brain that reveals itself to be the original Mamo. Lupin figures out that Mamo had controlled the clones resembling his old body right before the rocket launches into space as Mamo declares he is setting off into space and eventually plans to return to Earth as its one true God. Lupin and Fujiko escape the rocket's trajectory, but not before Lupin puts an explosive onto the rocket. The glass shatters, and Mamo's gigantic brain drifts toward the sun as Lupin reminds Mamo that time does everyone in and that he should be grateful Lupin put him to death when he did. Fujiko reveals that Zenigata had threatened her into luring his quarry for the catch, and Lupin is unable to convince Zenigata that he is a clone and that the real Lupin was the one that was hanged.

Fujiko offers to help Lupin after they kiss, but Gordon launches his missiles on Mamo's Colombian base, and Jigen picks up Fujiko in a plane while Zenigata and Lupin escape together on foot.

Cast

Japanese

Characters	Voice Actors
Lupin III	Yasuo Yamada
Daisuke Jigen	Kiyoshi Kobayashi
Goemon Ishikawa XIII	Makio Inoue
Fujiko Mine	Eiko Masuyama
Inspector Koichi Zenigata	Gorō Naya
Mamo	Kō Nishimura
Stuckey	Tōru Ōhira
Gordon	Hidekatsu Shibata
Flinch	Shōzō Iizuka

Additional voices:

• Kōsei Tomita as Police Commissioner
• Ichirō Murakoshi as Scientist
• Shunsuke Shima as Premier
• Yūji Mikimoto as Officer
• Haruo Minami as Egyptian Police Chief
• Fujio Akatsuka as President Jimmy Carter
• Ikki Kajiwara as Chief Secretary

English Cast ("Lupin III" / "The Mystery of Mamo" / "The Secret of Mamo")

Click on "Show" to view the cast

Characters	Voice Actors
	Frontier Enterprises (1979 dubbing)	Streamline (1995 dubbing)	Manga UK (1996 dubbing)	Geneon (2003 dubbing)
Lupin III	Tom Clark	Bob Bergen	Bill Dufris (as Wolf the Third)	Tony Oliver
Daisuke Jigen	Cliff Harrington (as Dan Dunn)	Steve Bulen	Eric Meyers	Richard Epcar
Goemon Ishikawa XIII	William Ross (as Samurai)	Ardwight Chamberlain	Garrick Hagon	Lex Lang
Fujiko Mine	Patricia Kobayashi (as Margo)	Edie Mirman	Toni Barry	Michelle Ruff
Inspector Koichi Zenigata	Gregory Starr (as Ed Scott)	David Povall (as Detective Zenigata)	Sean Barrett	Dan Lorge
Special Advisor Stuckey	Frank Rogers (as Gissinger)	Steve Kramer (as Heinrich Gissinger)	John Baddeley (as Mr. Gissinger)	Joey D'Auria (as Starky, credited as Osgood W. Glick)
Gordon	Don Knode	Michael Forest	William Roberts	Michael McConnohie
Flinch	Gregory Starr	Jeff Winkless	Unknown	Bob Pappenbrook
Mamo	Mike Worman (as Mamaux / Foward Fughes)	Robert Axelrod (aka Haward Lockewood)	Allan Wenger (aka Howard Lockewood / Foward Fughes)	Paul St. Peter (aka Howard Lockewood)

Frontier dub additional voices:

• William Ross as Police Commissioner
• Gregory Starr as Thug Guard
• John Armstrong as President Jimmy Carter

Streamline dub additional voices:

• Jeff Winkless as Police Commissioner
• Steve Kramer

Manga UK dub additional voices:

• John Baddeley
• Sean Barrett as President
• William Roberts as Chief Secretary

Geneon dub additional voices:

• Richard Cansino

This film has been dubbed four times by four different companies: Frontier Enterprises in 1979, Streamline Pictures in 1995, Manga UK in 1996 and Geneon in 2003.

The first dub was produced by Frontier Enterprises for Japan Airlines. It has also been nicknamed the Toho dub and the JAL dub. While Lupin's name is kept intact, the other characters were renamed to make the film more accessible to international audiences: Jigen became Dan Dunn, Fujiko became Margo, Zenigata became Ed Scott and Goemon was simply Samurai. The cast list is speculated due to Frontier Enterprises not documenting its English dubbing work. Outside of Lupin, Samurai and Detective Ed Scott, where the voice actors are known, the other characters are based on voice recognition from other dubs by the company. Mamo's alias is Foward Fughes. Dan Dunn says kærɪˈbiːən during when the water was poured on the note and Lupin is pronounced either as Loopahn or Lupan depending on voice actor. The president was based off Jimmy Carter.

The dub gave the nickname "Old Man" for Inspector Koichi Zenigata that was used by fans and the Streamline and Manga dubs until the Geneon dub where it was replaced by "Pops." Though older fans still used "Old Man" for fan translations and discussions, the nickname has been overall retired from official releases and by fans.

Currently this is the only Lupin III English dub that was not done in the US or the UK. This dub is also closest to the original Japanese script with minor changes for lip syncing and character names. Parts of the dub was used in the Cliff Hanger game.

The second dub was produced by Streamline Pictures, who were unable to release the Frontier dub due to copyright reasons. It was the first film from the company that used the Lupin name as the copyright to the Arsène Lupin name had expired. All of the voice actors reprise their roles from the Streamline dub of The Castle of Cagliostro, with the exception of Steve Kramer, who voiced Goemon. Ardwight Chamberlain voices Goemon in this film, though Kramer does appear as Heinrich Gissinger.

The script was based on the Frontier dub with some rewrites and some additional dialogue to make the film more humorous and the dialogue more natural. Streamline Pictures also added extra sound effects that were not present in the original. Mamo's alias is Haward Lockewood. Jigen (who is implied to be American in this dub) says kəˈrɪbiən during when the water was poured on the note and Lupin is pronounced as luːpɪn. The president was based off Bill Clinton. This dub was also exported to Japan.

The third dub by Manga UK was created due to copyright reasons in the UK regarding the Lupin name. As a result, the Streamline Pictures dub could not be used for its VHS release, like with The Castle of Cagliostro. Lupin became Wolf the Third and Goemon had its pronunciation changed to Gomon. However, a few scenes call him Samurai or the Samurai like the Frontier dub. Like the Streamline dub, the script was based on the Frontier dub but was heavily rewritten and has additional dialogue. Some of the characters' personalities and motivations were changed as a result, especially Fujiko's. Lupin notably has different voices and tones throughout the film due to the voice direction. Jigen says kærɪˈbiːən during when the water was poured on the note.

The fourth dub was done by Phuuz for Geneon using the same cast as the English dub of Lupin the 3rd Part 2. The dub has also been referred to as the Pioneer dub, as Pioneer Entertainment released the dub on DVD. Much like Geneon's dub of Part 2, the script was heavily rewritten and received extra dialogue in scenes that the Japanese original and the previous dubs did not have to make the film more humorous. Even though the dialogue was rewritten, the names were closer to the Japanese original as it did not use the Frontier dub as a base. Mamo's alias is Howard Lockewood. Jigen says kəˈrɪbiən during when the water was poured on the note. The president was based off George W. Bush. This dub is also used for streaming services.

Italian Cast ("Lupin III" / "La pietra della saggezza" / "The Secret of Mamo")

Click on "Show" to view the cast

Characters	Voice Actors
	CINITALIA EDIZIONI (1979 dubbing)	MITO Film (1986 dubbing)	LOGICA 2000 (1993 dubbing)	Mediaset TV dub (2007 dubbing)
Lupin III	Roberto Del Giudice	Roberto Del Giudice	Giorgio Melazzi	Roberto Del Giudice
Daisuke Jigen	Sandro Pellegrini (as Gighen)	Sandro Pellegrini	Marco Balzarotti	Sandro Pellegrini
Goemon Ishikawa XIII	Vittorio Guerrieri (as Ghemon)	Vittorio Guerrieri	Flavio Arras	Antonio Palumbo
Fujiko Mine	Piera Vidale (as Fuyiko)	Alessandra Korompay	Roberta Gallina Laurenti	Alessandra Korompay
Inspector Koichi Zenigata	Enzo Consoli	Enzo Consoli	Maurizio Scattorin	Rodolfo Bianchi
Special Advisor Stuckey	Gino Pagnani (as Gissinger)	Sandro Sardone	Sergio Romano (as Gissinger)	Paolo Lombardi
Gordon	Vittorio Di Prima	Mimmo Maugeri	Ivo De Palma	Saverio Indrio
Flinch	Elio Zamuto	Maurizio Mattioli	Luca Semeraro	Sandro Sardone
Mamo	Germano Longo (aka Foward Fughes)	Vittorio Di Prima (as Mamoo / Foward Fuse)	Riccardo Peroni (as Mamoo / Foward Fughes)	Ambrogio Colombo (aka Howard Lockewood)

Cinitalia dub additional voices:

• Gino Donato

4th dub additional voices:

• Wladimiro Grana as Police Commissioner

Like the English dub, this film has been dubbed four times by four different companies: Cinitalia Edizioni in 1979, MITO Film in 1986, LOGICA 2000 in 1993 and an unknown company in 2007.

The first dub was produced by Cinitalia edizioni on the occasion of the release in Italian cinemas, with the title Lupin III. This dub was not available on home video until it was recovered for an exhibition in Milan and has been screened in a cinema once March 21, 2009, and the audio track was recovered and digitized for the current release on DVD and Blu-ray by Yamato Video. This was based on the English Frontier Enterprises dub.

The voice of Mamo was also the voice of Jigen in the original 1979 Italian dub of Lupin the 3rd Part 1.

The second dub was produced by MITO Film for Mediaset on the occasion of the first television broadcast, with the title La pietra della saggezza and was aired on February 3, 1987. This became the future title of the film in Italy as The Castle of Cagliostro and The Legend of the Gold of Babylon were released. Unlike the other dubs, this was censored due to the network. This was also the dub that was used in the first DVD release.

The third dub was produced by Yamato Video and Logica 2000 for the home video version on VHS in 1993. It used a completely different cast compared to the animated series.

The fourth dub was created in 2007 for Mediaset. It used the English Geneon dub as a base with its liberties to its script and originally used The Secret of Mamo name rather than La pietra della saggezza. Unlike the other dubs, this was not released on home video and aired between 7th to the 12th August 2008 split into four parts on Italia 1. The dub was aired posthumously in memory of Roberto Del Giudice who had passed away in late 2007 and was one of his final works along with the Raflesia dub of The Castle of Cagliostro, Angel's Tactics and Lupin III: Lupin is dead, Zenigata is in love. This was as it also used the Geneon video master, later reruns were uncut. The production company is unknown however the dub was produced in Rome.

While the reason for the making for the fourth dub has never been comfirmed, It's likely due to the third dub not using the well know cast, the second dub having censorships and the first dub being lost at that time. The first dub was found and restored in 2009 and was later screened at the cinema"Gnomo" in Milan in 21 march, 2009.​ One of the organizers had announced at the end of the screening that Yamato Video had obtained permission to release the first dub on home media. The first dub would be released by Yamato Video on DVD in januari 19, 2010. The fourth dub is also not available on streaming services or home media and is only used on TV airings. There wasn't much use to the fourth dub after the first dub was found, since the first dub has a much better script and is better received by fans.

French Cast ("Lupin III" / "Edgar de la Cambriole - Le Secret de Mamo" / "Lupin III - Le Secret de Mamo")

Click on "Show" to view the cast

Characters	Voice Actors
	Unknown (1981 dubbing)	Midisync (2005 dubbing)
Lupin III	Marcel Guido	Philippe Ogouz (as Edgar de la Cambriole)
Daisuke Jigen	Bernard Jourdain (as Don Don)	Philippe Peythieu
Goemon Ishikawa XIII	Michel Papineschi (as Samurai)	Jean Barney
Fujiko Mine	Lily Baron (as Margot Mine)	Catherine Lafond (as Magali Mine)
Inspector Koichi Zenigata	Richard Leblond (as Ed Scott)	Patrick Messe (as Inspecteur Gaston Lacogne)
Special Advisor Stuckey	Unknown (as Gissinger)	Jean Barney
Gordon	Vincent Violette	Unknown
Flinch	Unknown	Benoist Brione
Mamo	Denis Boileau (aka Foward Fughes)	Jean-Claude Sachot (aka Howard Lockewood)

The first dub was released in 1981 by an unknown company and until the release of The Woman Called Fujiko Mine was the only time in France that the Lupin name was used before copyright issues started. The release was based of the Italian version with Planet O and the replaced credits while the scripts and the characters were based off the English Frontier dub. This dub was considered to be lost however it was later recovered and restored for the Blu-ray release.

The second dub was created in 2005 by Midisync for IDP but due to copyright reasons regarding the Lupin name, Lupin was renamed to Edgar while Fujiko and Zenigata were renamed to match the dubs. The French cast of Lupin the 3rd Part 1 were used. Since 2012 the Lupin name can be used and was used in a theatrical run in December 2019 however the dub retains the Edgar name.

Staff

• Production: Yutaka Fujioka
• Original work: Monkey Punch
• Supervision: Sōji Yoshikawa
• Director: Sōji Yoshikawa
• Storyboard: Sōji Yoshikawa
• Screenplay: Atsushi Yamatoya, Sōji Yoshikawa
• Editorial Supervision: Yasuo Ōtsuka
• Mechanic Design: Yasuo Ōtsuka
• Layout: Tsutomu Shibayama
• Animation director: Yoshio Kabashima, Yūsō Aoki
• Art: Yukio Abe
• Cinematographer: Keishichi Kuroki
• Editing: Yoshiaki Aihara
• Audio recording: Satoshi Katō
• Music by: Yuji Ohno
• Song selection: Seiji Suzuki
• Assistant Production: Saburō Gōda, Tetsuo Katayama
• Drawing: ACT, Studio Look, Magic Bus, Studio Oka, Studio Mates, Studio Live, Oh! Production, T・A・F
• Video check: Masae Ōtake
• Art assitant: Kenji Notani, Mariko Kadono
• Background art: Mukuo Production, Atelier Rique, Kobayashi Production, Atelier Robin, Kaputomushi Studio
• Colour coordination: Masashi Hagiwara
• Finishing touch: E&G FILMS, Studio Life, Studio Targe, Group Joy
• Photography: Tōru Hagiwara, Toshiaki Morita, Satoshi Ono, Kazushi Torigoe, Seiichi Hashitani, Kōi Sakurai, Hisako Yamaguchi, Takehiro Suzuki, Shimizu Masashi, Tetsuro Kumase
• Negative editing: Mitsutoshi Tsurubuchi
• Effect: Shoji Hashimoto
• Arraging sound: Satoshi Hara
• Audio recording studio: Aoi Studio Co., Ltd.
• Development: Tokyo Laboratory
• Production progression: Kazuaki Satō, Katsunori Haruta
• Production manager: Yoichi Ikeda
• Production publicity: P&M
• Production support: Tohokushinsha Film
• Distribution: Toho Company, Ltd.
• Art Director: Mitsuki Nakamura
• Production: Tokyo Movie Shinsha, Nippon TV

Music

Further Information: List of Lupin III Albums#Lupin VS the Clone

The official soundtrack of the movie was originally released on March 21, 1985 in "Lupin the 3rd: Lupin vs The Clone Original Soundtrack BGM Collection".

The opening theme is Theme from Lupin III '79 and the ending theme is "Lupin Ondo", a song written by Monkey Punch, composed by Yuji Ohno and performed by Haruo Minami.

Releases

Further Information: Home Media Releases/Movies#Lupin VS the Clone

The Japanese release was handled by Toho, who was also responsible for the initial English dub, also known as the JAL dub or the "HK dub" produced in 1979, and was shown on JAL flights. The English dub was also released to markets in Europe such as the Netherlands and Sweden, and was also screened at least once theatrically in the United States.

The second English dub was handled by Streamline Pictures and renamed to The Mystery of Mamo, was released to home video by Orion Home Video in late April 1995 and later released on DVD by Image Entertainment in 1998. The third English dub was created due to copyright reasons and released on home video in the UK by Manga Entertainment, Ltd. in 1996 and renamed Secret of Mamo. The fourth dub was created by Fuse Entertainment and released to DVD by Pioneer Entertainment (now Geneon Universal Entertainment) in 2003 as The Secret of Mamo with an English only intro and credits replacing the original. This release was duplicated for Madman Entertainment's DVD release for Australia and New Zealand, and for Manga Entertainment's DVD release for the UK.

In 2012, TMS Entertainment began streaming the Geneon dub of the movie on Hulu that was later removed. In 2013, Discotek Media released The Mystery of Mamo on DVD in the US on February 26, 2013 with all four English dubs, including a reconstruction of the 1978 English dub. The reconstruction was based on an Italian DVD that had a cut version of the dub as a bonus feature and bootleg copies that originally came from the TMS tape. Discotek has announced that a Blu-ray release will be available in March 2022, and will retain all four English dubs, with new restorations for the Frontier and Manga dubs.. Included on the Blu-Ray are titleless versions of the opening and ending credit sequences, reconstructions of each dub's credit sequences, an all new 5.1 Surround Sound mix of the Geneon dub, four different audio mixes of the original Japanese, an audio mix of the isolated score, an editorial on the film's history and its multiple dubs by Reed Nelson, a translation of the film's original pamphlet, TV commercials, theatrical trailers, an archived interview with William Dufris, and an art gallery.

The film returned to Japanese cinemas for a MX4D release in 2017 and remixed the soundtrack. In 2019, a 4K Blu-ray was released by VAP and was one of the first anime releases to be released in the format. The picture was darkened and applied heavy DVNR to remove the noise. This release got mixed reviews receiving praise from Japanese reviewers and was heavily criticized in the US .

Mistakes

• The Hanako Japanese Restaurant says JAPANES LESTLAN.
• When Fujiko picks up the medicine bottle after she knocks Lupin out, the bow on her bra disappears.
• During the chase in the sewer, the tires of Lupin's Mercedes Benz SSK are seen behind the water. In the next shot they are in front of the water. This was corrected in future DVD releases; the tires now remain behind the water throughout.
• In the sewer chase, the top of the windscreen of Lupin's car is present in close-ups, but vanishes in long shots.
• When Lupin and Jigen search for the Philosopher's Stone, Lupin is shown wearing infrared goggles to check for traps. However, after they find the stone and briefly examine it, Lupin's goggles are shown to have disappeared.
• When Zenigata's police commissioner informs him that he has been taken off the Lupin case, the cigarette that he has been holding in his hand vanishes in the same shot.
• Lupin, Jigen and Goemon use a long length of rope to escape the pyramids. However, when Zenigata curses Lupin and his gang after they evade him, the rope, which is of a considerable length and is fastened to the ground with a wooden stake, is gone.
• In the overhead shot of Jigen walking through a crowd in Madrid, a passer-by's hair color changes from brown, to dark grey, to brown in the same shot.
• As Jigen is trailed in Madrid, his suit inexplicably becomes dark green like his Part 2 design.
• When Lupin puts the Mini Cooper in reverse during the truck chase, the cigarette that was in his mouth earlier is nowhere to be seen.
• The spade that Lupin knocks over when trying to hide from Mamo's thug was not there in the beginning of the scene.
• When Lupin, Jigen and Goemon start to pile into Fujiko's car, the manhole cover that was seen earlier on the ground is missing.
• When Lupin drives his Benz SSK into the Paris sewers, the color of Jigen's thumb rapidly changes from skin-toned to dark gray multiple times in the same shot.
• After Lupin pockets the makeshift watch-bomb, all of the items on the table he was working on (except for a bottle of Jim Bean and a glass) disappear as he gets up.
• After he howls and meows, Lupin's hands are behind his head when he lies back down in the cage, but are by his sides when Mamo's henchman lets the cage down.
• When Lupin, Jigen and Goemon emerge from the sewers after the helicopter chase, a manhole cover partially overlaps Goemon's hand (due to improper positioning of animation cels).

Censorship

Japanese

A 90 minute version of the film was released on VHS due to technology at the time that prevented the full version of being released, this meant that roughly 10 minutes had to be removed to fit onto the tape. It is currently unknown what scenes were removed.

English

• When the English Geneon dub was initially released, Lupin Ondo was replaced by an extended version of the 1979 theme during the credits due to licensing reasons, however those license restrictions seem to have been resolved as Lupin Ondo is retained on all audio tracks (including Geneon's dub) in Discotek's Blu-ray release of the movie. (An earlier Discotek DVD used the 1979 theme for the Geneon dub but Lupin Ondo for the other audio tracks.)
• The scene where Gordon and Stuckey discuss Mamo's earthquake (in which Stuckey has a comic book that contains an advert that features Lupin with the Justice League) was altered in the Geneon US release, as well as the Manga UK DVD, to cover up the advert with a freeze frame. This scene was restored on both Discotek's DVD and Blu-ray releases as well as streaming services that featured the dub.

Italian

The Mediaset 1986 TV dub was censored however it is currently unknown what scenes were removed.

International

"This is it? ... but it's an empty ruin!" This section of the article is a stub. Know something we don't for this section? Feel free to expand it by editing it!

(check the clock that Lupin placed on Mamo) When TMS created "The Secret of Mamo" International master used on the Pioneer, Manga UK and Madman DVDs as well as the original Italian TV airing for the 4th dub, there were some minor changes. It is unknown whether the French DVD has the same censorship.

• 41:54-41:57 - The Pall Mall text on Jigen's cigarettes got removed.

All changes were reverted when the film was remastered on HD, on the Discotek DVD/Blu-ray, the Italian Blu-ray and current Italian TV airings.

Notes

Opening Typewriter Text

After Lupin gets hanged, Japanese text is typed out on the screen.

It's written in the form of an autopsy report, where it mainly talks about performing autopsy on Lupin III, and about a man who refused to believe he really was dead. Most of the English dubs made their own translations; however, as far as it's currently known, the Frontier dub appears to have simply retained the original Japanese text.

Kana	Romaji	English	English (Streamline)	English (Manga)	English (Geneon)
検死報告 司法解剖ハ精密力ツ厳正ヲキワメ 当受刑者ガ ルパン 本人デアル コトハ疑イナイ事実デアル。 だが それを信じようとしたい男がいた…	Kenshi Hōkoku Shihō kaibō ha seimitsuryoku tsu gensei wokiwame Tō jukeisha ga Rupan honnin de aru Kotoha utagu inai jijitsu de Aru. Daga Sore o shinjiyou to shitai otoko ga ita…	Autopsy's report Autopsy was performed on the executed prisoner who was without question Lupin himself. However There was a man who refused to believe that Lupin was dead...	Post mortem complete. Subject is identified as Lupin III aka "Wolf". Probability of error - Zero. But... Nobody's Perfect...	Police Report...... After a recent crime wave the Transylvanian Police have brought to justice a criminal of immense standing.. After a Coroner's Report it has been confirmed that there is no doubt that the man we executed was the real Wolf III...	CORONER'S REPORT: An autopsy was performed on the executed prisoner who was without question the real Lupin the Third. BUT... THERE WAS A MAN WHO REFUSED TO BELIEVE THAT LUPIN WAS DEAD.

Production

• Production on the film took fifteen months and started when Lupin the 3rd Part 2 had begun airing.
• A total of 62,000 cell sheets were used.
• There were 575 storyboard pages.
• There were 196 character design sheets for this movie.
• There were 1,315 people in the staff.
• This was Telecom Animation Film's first credited project however the entire animating team of 40 animators were considered useless frustrating Yasuo Otsuka as well as Yuzo Aoki and Yoshio Kabashima from TMS. Outside of Yasuo Otsuka they were uncredited, six were then chosen to animate Part 2 Episode 72, five of them left due to the poor work and Yasuo Otsuka had to reanimate as much as he could for the episode.
• 18,000 reference photos were used for background and mechanical items.
• 218 colors were used in this movie.
• Originally the opening of the movie was to have Zenigata believing that Lupin died in a shipwreck, but was cut to him believing that Lupin got hang at the gallows. There is leftover footage from the trailer showing segments of the lost opening, showing Zenigata bursting out of a temple and falling down the steps. Some of the storyboards have also cropped up. Outside of the trailer, it is assumed to be either lost or was partly animated. The opening would have also featured more of the Police Chief .
• In a flashback in the lost opening, the doomed Lupin, who Mamo tells Lupin is his clone, is cornered by Zenigata and the police in a building. At the gallows, Zenigata says, "Lupin, it's over. Any last words?". The condemned Lupin says, "Well... I wonder if I want you to live that long, Pops..." With that, Zenigata watches the execution. These words are appropriate to one of the film's themes, which is immortality.

Character Design

• Goemon has a darker skin tone in the film like the Lupin the Third: Pilot Film.
• Due to the production overlapping Part 2, both Part 2 Episode 78 and Part 2 Episode 91 feature scenes where Lupin has his Mamo character design. Jigen's outfit also switches to his Part 2 outfit with the dark green suit as he is pursued by Gordon. A scene where Jigen's face is pressed into the windscreen during the chase has Lupin with his Part 2 design.

Dubbing

• Mamo's voice actor, Ko Nishimura performed his role in a deep masculine voice to contrast with Mamo's miniature appearance. This was a deliberate decision made to astonish the audience, who would hear only Mamo's voice in the first part of the film and would only later see him appear in person. This effect was replicated by voice actor Robert Axelrod in the English Streamline dub, and later by Paul St. Peter for the Geneon dub.
• This film holds the record for being the only Lupin III anime to be dubbed more times than any other Lupin related anime in both English and Italian with both having four dubs.
  • Some sites have incorrectly claimed that this film has had the most English dubs made for an anime. This record belongs to the Dragon Ball series, with the first five episodes being dubbed at least six times, and the film Dragon Ball Z: The Tree of Might being dubbed at least five times.
• This was the first Lupin III anime to ever be dubbed into English and, until late 1995, the only English use of the Lupin III name due to copyright reasons.
• The Frontier dub names have made it to the original French dub that in turn, Margot was used in the Italian dub of Lupin the 3rd Part 2. Dan Dunn and Samurai were later used in the English subtitled print of The Castle of Cagliostro, while Ed Scott became Ed Cott by mistake and Margo became Rosalie.
• In the Streamline dub, Mamo threatens the President, who is supposed to be Bill Clinton, with information about the "floozy" in his steno pool. The dub, written by Ardwight Chamberlain, was released in April 1995, Lewinsky began work in Leon E. Panetta's office in June of that year, and confessed her affair to Linda Tripp in November 1995.
• In the Geneon dub, Lupin echoes Fujiko's line "Kiss me, my love" when she rejects immortality for a life with him.
• The original and the Toho dub show a conversation between President Carter and Secretary General Gorbachev. In the Streamline and Manga dubs the conversation is between Clinton and Yeltsin. In the Geneon dub it's between Bush and Putin.

Other

• Contrary to popular belief, while it is the first animated theatrical movie, it is neither the first Lupin movie, nor is it the first time Lupin was shown theatrically.
  • In terms of being a film, it is preceded by the unreleased Pilot Film;
  • In terms of being a theatrical Lupin film, it is preceded by the live action Strange Psychokinetic Strategy film;
  • In terms of being the first theatrically-released anime entry in the franchise, it is preceded by the theatrical release of Part 2 Episode 8.
• The US Streamline VHS release uses a painting done by Monkey Punch as its cover that was used that Fred Patten bought it himself. It was also used in a preview of The Castle of Cagliostro as it was done during the pre production phase.
• The poster used for the original showings for the Japanese, Italian and French releases as well as later Italian reprints of the "Planet O" record was done by Monkey Punch. It is the only Lupin III movie that had a cover in his style rather than the animated style.
• Mamo was meant to be called "Mameux" however it was translated from French to Japanese resulting in that name. While TMS wanted to correct the name, the fandom was already used to Mamo and was kept. The Italian dubs use Mamoo.
• Jigen fires his gun only three times in this film.
• This was Monkey Punch's favorite Lupin movie. When he passed away, Nippon Television aired the film in his memory on Friday, April 19 2019 at 9:00 p.m as part of Friday Road Show!.
  • This version has a different ending credits sequence, with clips from the film being played to an even shorter version of the Lupin Ondo. A memoriam to Monkey Punch appears post-credits.
• This was the last time where Zenigata's full name was Inspector Heiji Zenigata VII. In his later anime appearances it was established that his full name is Inspector Koichi Zenigata rather than sharing the same name as his ancestor.
• When Lupin salutes to Adolf Hitler, only the Japanese original and the Toho English dub have played straight with the scene. The other dubs decide to change the dialogue by calling him "mein Führer" (Streamline and Geneon dubs) or "Schicklgruber" (Manga dub). It is also the only appearance of Hitler that wasn't Lupin in disguise or a reference.
  • The name "Schicklgruber" originally belonged to Alois Schicklgruber, Hitler's father, and Maria Schicklgruber, his grandmother.
• This was the only time that Zenigata is mentioned to have a daughter called Toshiko. This was retconned by the 100th episode of Lupin the 3rd Part 2. Later Lupin media such as Part III would follow through with this retcon. Only the Japanese original and the English Geneon dub mention her name. The English Manga dub removed this line and replaced it with "his wife suing for a divorce".
• Lupin mentions to Mamo, "I'm so sick of this trick with reinforced glass." This is a reference to Part 1 Episode 2, where Pycal performs the same trick.
• This is one of the two times when Jigen smokes Pall Mall cigarettes since in Part 2 and Part 5, he smokes Marlboro Reds, and in Fujiko Mine's Lie, he smoked Lark with Lupin.
• The "Tele-Pach" orange rock candies that Lupin was seen eating are an actual product similar to Pop Rocks. Yasuo Yamada was the announcer for the Tele-Pach TV commercials during the 70's.
• Shatner Nishida who wrote Part 5 Episode 20 and Prison of the Past watches this film once a week.
• Other Lupin animations have Zenigata secretly wishing Lupin to be alive when he appears to have died, and being relieved and happy for him to be alive. In The Mystery of Mamo, this does not seem the case; he gleefully runs a stake through what he thinks is Lupin's corpse, only to find to his displeasure that it's an exploding dummy, and declares to an escaping Lupin, "If you don't die, I don't die, either! This isn't over yet! I will follow you to the pits of Hell. I will carve your posthumous name on your bones with my own hand!". The English dubs vary on whether Zenigata wants Lupin dead or alive, with the Frontier dub wanting him dead like the original Japanese dub. The deleted opening makes his feelings more complicated; he can barely contain his grief when he thinks Lupin was executed and similarly barely conceals his elation when he sees the photograph of Lupin on his way to Transylvania.
• The Streamline dub implies that Jigen is American. Though this has been unconfirmed, Jigen has also shown hints of this in the Japanese versions of other Lupin animations, where he is partial to American food.
• The Streamline dub has Jigen mentioning the Cold War is over, which creates a plot hole. If the Cold War were over by this time, the Lupin clone wouldn't have been hanged in Transylvania. Romania abolished the death penalty as part of its post-Communist constitution in 1989.
• The Geneon dub has the movie's events take place over a year after the Lupin clone is hanged, since Zenigata mentions to Lupin the reports that the latter was executed "last spring".
• A line from Zenigata in the Geneon dub suggests that he'd been lost for a week after the US military airstrike, which also indicates the length of time Lupin was unconscious after Mamo probed his brain and then tried to kill him.
• The Streamline dub has an older Mamo clone confessing that each initial clone has barely noticeable anomalies. This line was worked into the Geneon dub as well.
• A scene that showed Zenigata working at a temple and bursting out of it when he hears Lupin is still alive was cut from the film, but featured in the trailer.
• The original dialogue and the Toho dub has an older Mamo clone mentioning that he had to put himself in the Ringer's solution. It's a solution named after Sidney Ringer, who, between 1882 and 1885 determined that if a heart is to be kept beating for so long, it would need to be preserved in sodium, potassium and calcium salts in a definite proportion.
• The deleted opening show scenes of the Lupin clone's autopsy; in one, the body of the clone is posed like Da Vinci's Vitruvian Man.

Gallery

DVD Cover

Discotek Cover

Promotional Art

Cover of Futabasha MOOK Anime Collection Lupin vs Clone, drawn by Yuzo Aoki (assumed)

Vinyl cover of Lupin the 3rd Original Soundtrack 2

Vinyl cover of Lupin the 3rd Original Soundtrack 2

MX4D cover

External Links

• Official English TMS Page. tmsanime.com
• Official TMS Page. tms-e.co.jp (in Japanese)
• Official TMS Global Page. tms-e.co.jp (in Japanese)