Kara Dennison
January 27, 2023 
It’s here! Lupin III vs. Cat’s Eye is now running on Amazon Prime! This special pits two epic heist series against each other. But both have a few things in common. For instance, deep down, both the gentleman thief and the cat burglars have hearts of gold.
While The Third has his own reasons for what he steals, the Kisugi sisters have a very specific mission. As it happens, so do these other anime thieves!
Saint Tail
Much like the sisters of Cat’s Eye, the ponytailed heroine of Saint Tail has a surprisingly benevolent goal. In her case, she’s stealing back items that were already stolen. And she’s doing it with magic!
Meimi combines expert thievery with expert stage magic to recover stolen items. How does she find them? With the help of Seira, a sister-in-training and her best friend. Seira’s work at the church means she hears the troubles of others, which is their main route to discovering who needs help. There’s also a detective hot on Saint Tail’s… well, tail. Asuka Jr., the son of Detective Asuka, follows Saint Tail’s calling cards to find where she’ll strike next.
Phantom Thief Jeanne
Another magical girl for the list! Joan of Arc is reincarnated as Japanese schoolgirl Maron. What does this have in common with Cat’s Eye? Art theft for a good cause. But Maron reports to a much higher power. Every art piece she liberates restores a piece of God’s lost power. If she fails in her mission, God will die.
If you think this sounds a little sketchy, you’re not alone. As it happens, there’s a lot that’s not on the level in this series. When the truth is uncovered, it changes everything for Maron’s mission—including whom she can trust.
Joker
This phantom thief started in a video game, but eventually made his way to anime. The player character of Persona 5 has a much more metaphysical job than the Cat’s Eye team. But he and his associates are also doing some major work: stealing, and changing, hearts.
The phantom thieves’ marks are mind palaces, each containing items whose presence or absence could change their target’s heart. Targeting these corrupting influences is dangerous; but, then again, so are the people from whom they’re stealing. Fortunately, they have spirits inspired by great scoundrels of history and literature to help them out. In fact, one is based on none other than Arsène Lupin himself!
Here are some more Lupin the 3rd crossovers we’d love to see.
