I'm just going to say it, a time machine does not fit in the Lupin III universe. I know that the logic of this world has been very loose up to this point, but this was one jump too far. Then again, it might not be the fact that they have a time machine, but how they use it.
First off, the time travel logic does not add up. Ancestors are removed from history and that would cause people to disappear in the present. Fair enough, but what doesn't make sense is that they poof away in purple smoke, but the car they were driving remains on the road.
Second, the main villain's plan with the time machine. The man's name is Mamo, not to be confused with Mamo from "Lupin III: Mystery of Mamo" (1978) this guy is completely different. Mamo is just a common name in this world. He is angry because Lupin the 33rd stole his girl. So, his plan for revenge is to build a time machine and kill one of Lupin the 33rd's ancestors, namely Lupin III. To do this, he sends them back 500 years to the past and just hopes they'll stumble their way into death. What a stupid use of a time machine!
Third, Mamo also needs Lupin to find the fuel source for his time travel. He keeps popping up every now and then in the past to laugh and taunt our heroes, like he's a boss in a beat 'em up video game.
Zenigata has nothing to do in the story. They trade Fujiko for an ancestor of hers. There is some talk about how getting revenge is bad, which seems very hypocritical coming from the Lupin gang.
Wow, I hated this film more than I thought. Were there some things I liked about it? The animation is...fine. There are some good jokes. The unique setting and plot help this stand out from the other films. And the villain's pathetic nature does make him more entertaining than some Lupin antagonist.
If I had a time machine, I would go back and tell myself not to waste my time on this film...also the winning lottery numbers.
