Lupin: A Modern Take On A Famous Literary Thief

Yo Ho, WeRCatz here!

Lupin, Netflix’s recent release that premiered on 8 January 2021, has become one of the first hits of this year in the Netflix library. At only five episodes, this is just the first part of the series. After finishing the series, I saw that a second part is officially in the works during the end credits.

Lupin tells the tale of Assane Diop (Omar Sy), a professional thief who models his thievery skills on the legendary gentleman thief Arsène Lupin of author Maurice Leblanc fame. Assane is on a quest for vengeance because of his father’s demise at the luxury of powerful rich man Hubert Pellegrini and his family. It was Pellegrini who framed Assane’s dad, Babakar, for the theft of Marie Antionette’s diamond necklace that results in Babakar hanging himself in prison; Assane becomes a 14-year-old orphan as a result. Pellegrini’s wife knew Babakar’s innocence but says nothing while Pellegrini’s daughter Juliette obsesses to possess Assane for herself.

Throughout the series, we look into the details that deal with Assane’s beginnings as a modern Lupin, from the book of Lupin that Babakar gave Assane as a birthday present to his meeting with his future ex-wife Claire and how he tries to fulfill his vengeance while trying to bring Claire and their child Raoul together and move on from his profession. Intricate scenes of getting out of debt, breaking in and out of jail, and escaping the authorities leave the audience wanting more. As the series goes on, we also see that Assane is not perfect because of the people he inadvertently hurt. The cliffhanger in the final episode leaves one wondering how soon will the second part be released.

I enjoyed this series from the beginning to the end. The character Assane lives up to Arsène Lupin’s repertoire: he is charming, seductive, slick, meticulously calculative, knows exactly who to target and how, and can get out of trouble casually while being surrounded by cops. Lupin is a must-see and I highly encourage everyone to watch it, even if just once.