Goemon Enjoyer

PLEASE ANYTHING WITH LUPIN III IM BEGGING YOU!

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I can't express how magnificent this scene seems to me.

The entire episode is a work of art in which everyone has their moment of glory. But these minutes that Goemon and Lupin share are masterful.

With very little dialogue and many looks full of feeling, it makes you feel real terror, it puts you fully into the hearts of the characters. It's terrifying to see the stoic Goemon so scared, his eyes say it all when Lupin explains him the terrible idea of ​​cutting the elevator's counterweight. The way they both talk before the jump, Goemon's voice shaking. The sweet way in which Lupin tries to reassure Goemon with his usual little smile, downplaying the matter, hiding that he is also terrified.

The way they both look at each other. The way Goemon jumps forward to grab Lupin, dislocating his shoulder in the action (later he wears a sling, and I don't think it's just because of the pain in his wrist).

It is a moment to see on the big movie screen, where time and breathing stop for them and for us, those who suffer on the other side of the screen. I get tears in my eyes every time I see this scene.

I think that most of current film blockbusters should watch this episode, and this scene, because it has a thousand times more emotional charge and more visual power than all of them together. Apart of course from the glorious animation, the use of monochrome when the scene freezes and the action itself, the elevator falling out of control and the jump that neither of them can miss.

One of Goemon's dialogues in the Spanish dub: "Lupin, don't worry, you never know... what... can happen. As soon as it's daylight and they discover this hole, I will protect you, even if it's with my life."

And Lupin trusts him with his life, in a leap of faith.

Lupin the third part 2, episode 148: The Target Is 555 Meters Away

Onnagirai (女嫌い) :

Have you ever heard of the Ship of Theseus, or the Theseus Paradox?

The introduction Wikipedia provides is this:

"The Ship of Theseus is a thought experiment about whether an object which has had all of its original components replaced remains the same object."

"After several centuries of maintenance, if each individual part of the Ship of Theseus was replaced, one at a time, was it still the same ship?"

Thinking about this paradox led me to thinking about Goemon. Over time, nearly every component of Goemon has been changed, from his design, to his personality, to his values. This leads me to ask the question: who, or what, is Goemon? This likely won't go anywhere as I have no definitive answer as to who or what Goemon is, but I thought it would be fun.

For this discussion, I'm going to have to start with the manga's version of Goemon.

In the manga, he has gray hair and eyes, is 17 years old at the beginning of the series, has a cleft chin, is written to be mixed race, and is generally optimistic and positive. He aims to embrace Western culture while integrating customs of the past, and dislikes people who are against change.

As he is written by Monkey Punch himself, there is the argument to be had that he is the most canon Goemon, therefore meeting our definition of who and what Goemon is.

In the Pilot Film, however, our definition of Goemon begins to change.

Pilot Goemon has black/brown hair and eyes, is presumably an adult, has dark skin, is likely to be mixed race barring any unusual circumstances, and is driven to kill Lupin. He is described as lonely, seemingly has no masters, and apparently is the creator of his unique sword technique.

Something worth noting is that this Goemon wasn't even based on Manga Goemon, but another character entirely. However, considering his race, there is the possibility that they were both meant to stand as a symbol of the unification of the East and West and of past and present.

Is this Goemon specialized for TV, and a separate entity from Manga Goemon? Or is this the Goemon to be considered the "true" Goemon?

This is where things get weird.

Part 1 Goemon is no longer mixed race, which is a massive shift in what his character was supposed to stand for. His age is ambiguous (though I personally believe him to be about 18), is less optimistic than Manga Goemon, however is nicer than Pilot Goemon.

Another major change from the previous generations is that he has just one master, one who raises the questions of whether Goemon grew up under him and his abuse. A good portion of Part 1, in my opinion, can be seen as an allegory of recovering from abuse and learned helplessness, and learning to set boundaries and to trust the people around you while developing a form of family. However, is this what Goemon was meant to stand for as a character?

Chronologically, Mystery of Mamo comes before Part 2, so I will be taking a detour from the series.

Mamo Goemon is once again mixed race, taking after Pilot Goemon's design and personality. While elements of Part 1 Goemon's backstory are incorporated into his character, he largely takes after Pilot Goemon and his backstory of being driven to kill Lupin, with repeated references of Goemon being Lupin's enemy found throughout the movie.

So far, this is the most continuous version of Goemon; all other Goemen have dropped off the face of the earth, while Pilot Goemon has somewhat made a return. What's more is that Monkey Punch himself considered Mystery of Mamo to be the most canon animated rendition of Goemon. However, does he fit into our version of canon?

Castle of Cagliostro also comes before Part 2.

Cagliostro Goemon is, so far, probably the closest to Manga Goemon. While not as sociable, Cagliostro Goemon is the friendliest out of his animated predecessors. He is once again mixed race, borrows heavily from Part 1 Goemon's backstory, seems to be about 17 years old, and is somewhat positive (or at the very least, less negative than his predecessors). He is notably quiet, which is why I do not have much to write about him, however this does make him similar to Pilot Goemon's description and Part 1 Goemon.

Something of note is that Castle of Cagliostro and Mystery of Mamo both came from people who worked on Part 1. In both of these movies, the directors opted to make Goemon mixed race again, in a manner similar to the manga and the Pilot Film. There is a recurring theme of Goemon's race being integral to his character, which begs the question of whether or not the non-mixed race variants are canon.

However, we can also infer judging by the decisions of Mamo and Cagliostro, that the creators of Part 1 possibly wanted to make Goemon mixed race, but were somehow unable to. This brings us back to the possibility that Part 1 Goemon is the most canon Goemon in terms of backstory and personality, and would have been most canon overall if he was allowed to be mixed race. However, as Cagliostro Goemon does follow after Part 1 Goemon and is mixed race, it begs the question of whether he is considered the most canon.

It took us awhile, but we're finally at Part 2.

Part 2 is likely the most iconic Goemon, and has influenced his character for generations to come. Nearly every Goemon from this point onwards makes reference to him in design or personality.

Part 2 Goemon led the shift away from Goemon being mixed race, and the tendency for newer Goemen to be obsessively Japanese. Manga Goemon's initial purpose of bridging Eastern and Western culture is now a thing of the past, and we are now accustomed to lines such as "nothing but sake for me" as a joke on how Goemon is unwilling to try Western things.

While Part 2 has nearly nothing in common with other Goemen (including Part 1 considering the shift of personality and design), it can be argued that he is the most canon. He is easily the most influential Goemon, with every new iteration following after him, and he has the largest number of fans. When many think of Goemon, they think of him. Does that make him the most canon Goemon?

While I cannot reasonably write a post about every variation of Goemon (I'm sorry Fuma Conspiracy and TWCFM Goemon), I will end this with Stereotypical TV Special Goemon.

Stereotypical TV Special Goemon changes nearly every aspect of Goemon's personality, even going as far as to change his backstory (probably the most consistent thing about him at this point). Parts 4, 5, and 6 are based on Stereotypical TV Special Goemon to a degree, who was initially based on Part 2 Goemon but changed for joke purposes.

Stereotypical TV Special Goemon is the farthest from being mixed race, with him being proud of his Japanese heritage and relation to Goemon Ishikawa the first, getting upset whenever he has to leave Japan, and refusing to try new things.

A question I've had for the longest time is why even is Stereotypical TV Special Goemon friends with Lupin if all he does is complain? It seems like Goemon doesn't even like being around Lupin at times, which completely obliterates the point of his character in the first place. Sorry, I'm getting off track, but I'm biased towards these Goemen in particular. Why?!?

For many of you, you would consider Stereotypical TV Special Goemon to be the most canon, since he has the most content/reoccurrences and influences every new Lupin work ranging from The First to Parts 4 - 6 to your favorite special where Goemon and whoever you ship him with almost kissed. But do I, Goemon-fan, consider him the most canon? I'll be six feet under before I acknowledge that he counts as a Goemon, and even then I won't.

Part 2 lore is weird, sometimes Goemon says "ooh, a letter, I wonder if it's from mother" but simultaneously says "my dearly departed mother" (I believe the line about his mother being dead came first). With that being said, I have been meaning to get into Goemon's family lore.

In Part 1, Goemon studies under Momochi. However, I have always found this unusual considering that Goemon is meant to be the 13th of a long line of samurai. Wouldn't he just train under Goemon Ishikawa the 12th?

I don't know if Goemon was sent to some samurai summer camp or something, but Momochi seems to take a near-parental role in Goemon's life. Goemon has apparently studied under him for years, and Goemon doesn't seem that old to me. I headcanon him to be about 18 judging by how he talks and how he obeys Momochi; and, in the manga chapters Part 1 is based on, Goemon is 17.

Speaking of the manga, I believe that it was never initially stated that Goemon was the 13th of his family (though I may be wrong). I also believe that it was stated that his entire family is dead, explaining why he was so angry his uncle was murdered in "Saint Goemon."

It's possible that his extended family is alive in the anime, but that possibly his immediate family is dead.

I'm going to get into my Pilot Film rambles because I think it had so much potential, so this may be long. Also consider that much of what I have to say is not necessarily fact, but what I think would have been interesting.

I think the phrasing of Goemon's introduction is unique:

"This is Goemon Ishikawa in the 13th generation."

It almost makes it seem as if Goemon has gradually changed with the times, or is the first break in a long lineage of tradition and heritage (I prefer to go with the latter). I personally believe that Goemon comes from a long line of exclusively Japanese Goemen, only to be the first break in this tradition with his race. With this, I'd imagine there would be some conflict.

I still don't believe that Goemon Ishikawa XII or his mother would still be around, so instead he'd be close to his extended family. I think his race would in part lead him to become a sort of "black sheep" in the family (I need to make it clear that I do not believe that first generation mixed-race people are bound to be hated by their extended family, I speak only from experience and the types of things I would like to see represented).

I think that his extended family/master(s) wouldn't like the other half of his heritage (once again, not an absolute, but at the same time he comes from a family that values heritage so much that they've kept the same name for 13 generations). He's also mentioned in the Pilot Film to be lonely and the creator of his sword technique, which leads me to believe that he's had to fend for himself for a while.

If he were to have a character arc, I could totally see it be about him overcoming his internalized racism and realizing that he has more in common with Lupin (who also has mixed heritage) than anyone else. I could see him at first being a misunderstood villain trying to obsessively prove his worth to his family, who will never appreciate him the way they should, only to then realize that he doesn't need to prove or change himself for anybody.

In the manga he definitely had mean masters, so I could see this carrying over to the anime. In "A Day Without Killing," Goemon tries his best to kill Lupin but fails, upsetting his cruel masters who verbally abuse him and kill his pet, only to leave this environment and join forces with Lupin. I could see this happen in the anime but with a bit of a racial focus, with Goemon leaving his bigoted family/community to join a group of people who actually love him for who he is.