Duke Weather is a character from Lupin the Third Part II.
Character history[]
Duke Weather is a wealthy aristocrat where his favourite hobbies are playing billiards, horse racing, gambling and fox hunting. He has his own private land including a forest for his fox hunting that is guarded. He also owned Red Arrow, a horse that was considered as the favourite in races due to its superior speed.
In Istanbul, he was in his private ship playing billiards with Daisuke Jigen. He wanted the match finished before the racing was on that he was watching on TV. Jigen considers Duke Weather's horse to be good and he mentioned that it was his own. After Lupin III stole the royal crown, he crashed into the ship causing the billiard table and the ship to move but the Duke thought that a cretin got into the mast. As Jigen mentioned it was his turn, the Duke however decided to watch the horse race and Jigen said that he really likes gambling on that the Duke adds it is his greatest pleasure.
Lupin got into the ship with Jigen helping him up, the Duke commented that Lupin looked like a drowned rat. Lupin asked who he was and Jigen replied that it was his gambling opponent. While Lupin was happy that he stole a Turkish treasure, the Duke watching the race says that Lupin should retire if he was happy with small loot. It annoyed Lupin as they were watching Red Arrow on the last leg of the race and it was way ahead of the other horses. The Duke challenged Lupin to steal his race horse, Lupin being angry said that the word impossible is not in his dictionary. He bet that Lupin wouldn't steal the horse and asked Jigen, however before he was able to say anything they heard Fujiko Mine. The Duke kissed Fujiko's hand and she says that it was an excellent horse, she has the same feeling as the Duke and she is also dating him. Lupin was being upset calling her Fujiko-chan but Fujiko tells him that if he wants her, Lupin would have to steal Red Arrow. Being angry, Lupin put the crown on and played billiards mentioning that he will steal the horse.
Duke Weather put Red Arrow into a horse box and transported it with heavy security including Koichi Zenigata. He had arrived at the next race with Fujiko watching Red Arrow beat the other horses, she was impressed with the speed and the Duke mentioned that he will win the Grand National with Red Arrow. She says that Lupin might steal the horse beforehand but he says that he doesn't stand a chance. Disguised as a drinks vendor, Lupin shouts by proclaiming that he will steal Red Arrow and the Duke wishes him luck. He also saw Lupin empty the crate of bottles causing Zenigata to fall down.
At the airport, the Duke and Zenigata are waiting while someone was transporting a horse onto a plane. Zenigata claims that while on the plane, Lupin is unable to steal the horse but the Duke warns Zenigata that Lupin might be in disguise as a crew member and deceive people in the cargo room. The inspector vows to guard the plane and won't be deceived however Lupin was with Fujiko looking at the plane. Fujiko would have come but she doesn't stand the sight of Zenigata. The duke and Zenigata boarded the plane and it took off.
In the plane, the Duke was playing cards with Zenigata who thought would win with a King however the Duke had four aces causing the inspector to get annoyed that he lost. On a private jet, Lupin, Jigen and Goemon Ishikawa XIII landed on top of the plane causing the pilots to get worried and contacted the Duke. Zenigata was furious but the Duke says he will cancel his 100,000 pound debt if he stays, he got worried knowing that Lupin is about however the Duke is calm and saying that he won't steal Red Arrow. He also urged Zenigata to continue playing cards as he raised the bet to 5,000 pounds. Goemon using the Zantetsuken sliced an opening causing Lupin to get in and steal the horse as Jigen flies away. Zenigata heard a neigh but the Duke says that if he leaves the table, he would have to pay the debt but he was still worried. Lupin was riding the horse and left the plane, Zenigata saw it happen and left to go after him. The Duke considered them to be naive as it turned out that Lupin stole another horse that the Duke had painted on as he laughed.
In the woods in England, Lupin made an mechanical fox for the dogs to go after as he wanted his revenge. The Duke and Zenigata were sat on horses fox hunting, Zenigata mentioned why he didn't tell him that the horse was fake but the Duke says to deceive your enemy, you have to deceive your comrades and apologized. Lupin knew that the Duke was riding Red Arrow and set a trap as the horse stopped, he was whipping his horse to move but it was stuck. Zenigata found it strange and tried to help the horse move by pulling the leg however his gun and handcuffs fell to the ground. The Duke knew that it was a magnet and got annoyed that it stuck on the horseshoes, Lupin laughed and said that only his remote can free them that can attract any metal outside of gold. He was in pain and one of his shoes fell to the magnet but the pain stopped. Lupin asked him to give up Red Arrow but it caused Zenigata to be mad even though his foot was stuck on the magnet.
The Duke clicked his fingers and got one of his associates to tell them that Lupin was here as the rest were monitoring the hunt to find him. They found him on Camera 20 and launched a rocket. He laughed as the rocket was on the way, it unleashed a net trapping Lupin and laughed so more as Zenigata was shocked. Lupin was now caught in a net and moved towards a tree branch, the Duke called him naive as it was his forest and got traps installed. Zenigata was about to arrest Lupin but the Duke fired from his rifle, he tells him that the person who set up the trap should be the one dealing with "rats". Zenigata mentions Interpol but Lupin says that it is useless as the Duke had guards around them. The Duke asks Lupin for his final wish before his execution, but Lupin says that he hates snooty people very much. He pulls his rifle with Zenigata putting his hands up saying that he is not a fox, he was trying to shoot at Lupin but kept missing to the point of making Zenigata angry and shooting his hate. The Duke asks Lupin whether he will give up stealing Red Arrow. Lupin called him a "snot-nosed airhead" and claims that he will steal Red Arrow at the Grand National, the Duke tells him that more than 10,000 people will be at the racecourse. Both the Duke and Zenigata asked, Lupin has a promise to keep. He thought that Lupin was bluffing as he was trapped and fires from his rifle, he shot at Lupin's shoulder. As he was about to fire, Jigen and Goemon on a Jeep arrived. Jigen threw a smoke bomb and Goemon saved Lupin by opening the net as they drove off. His guards fired but they missed.
At Aintree Racecourse, the Duke hired the local police, Zenigata and the RAF as security while the Lupin gang try to avoid their helicopter. The Duke was sat down next to Fujiko on the stand, he claims that Red Arrow is very popular but she knows that Lupin intends to steal it. He claims that Lupin doesn't stand a chance and smiled as his horse was about to set off knowing that it will win. He knew that Red Arrow cleared the obstacle course easily as he jumped over the walls, he thinks that Lupin would not have an opportunity.
On the last lap of the course, just as Red Arrow was about to jump the wall moved up with smoke causing the jockey to fall out. Both the Duke and Fujiko were shocked as it disappeared. The Duke did not know that the wall was a fake as Jigen disguised as a BBC cameraman drove towards the wall, the wall opened on the side and got Red Arrow into the van. The police searched the wall looking for it but all the Duke could do was stand up as he was upset that Lupin stole Red Arrow as it was announced. Fujiko dumped him and walked off causing him to be angry shouting for Zenigata, he vowed that Zenigata has to return the Red Arrow back to him as he was sweating. It turned out that reason why he wanted to win the Grand National was because the horse was expensive to look after.
He reappeared in Lupin the Third Part 5 where on his ship, he was posted on PeopleLog saying that he wants his Red Arrow back, unaware that it had become obese and possibly died after Lupin left the horse in Zenigata's care.