Lupin III/Recap/S2/E49

"A Pretty Woman Has Venom", released in English as "Snake Charmer". Released in 2005 by Geneon on Volume 10: Enchanted Lupin.

Lupin and Jigen are enjoying a title bout as Lupin outlines his latest target. A woman named Jacquelyn, she is famous for both her long list of rich boyfriends and the vast fortunes she inherited from each of them after they mysteriously died. As the bout unfolds and Lupin is distracted by the match, Jigen notices a sinister looking man a few rows back, holding a box in his lap. Jigen tries to tell Lupin he has a bad feeling about the job, but Lupin is too involved in cheering his contender on. As the winner stands triumphant, Jigen notices the man with the box is gone.

The two thieves head for Jacquelyn's estate to scout things out, Lupin noting the steep and dangerous road leading to her remote mansion. The thieves are unaware that the box Jigen spotted earlier has been planted in the back seat, and is now opening to reveal a cobra. Lupin spies the serpent in the rear view mirror, but his and Jigen's struggles to keep the snake from biting them result in Lupin losing control of his car and it crashing into the watery ravine below. On the cliff above, the mysterious man smiles and walks away.

Lupin awakens that night in an unknown location, head bandaged. He investigates, finding a pretty woman in the shower next door. After drying off, Lupin identifies her as Jacquelyn and thanks her for saving his life. Jigen bursts in as well, trying to warn Lupin about the owner of the residence. He is greatly disgruntled when he sees the two have already met. For the next few days, he plays third wheel as Lupin and Jacqueline cavort and get along rather splendidly. Fed up, he finally leaves and heads back to the rest of the gang.

At their hotel, Jigen tells Fujiko and Goemon he's out of this plan, disgusted with Lupin's behavior and suspicious of the man at the boxing match. Fujiko chides him and tells him she will continue on, bound to get her hands on Jacquelyn's jewels. The gang is unaware that the mysterious man is listening on their conversation via a bug planted in Jigen's hat. When Fujiko steps out, he grabs her; he then calls Jigen and Goemon, letting them know he is holding their friend hostage, leaving Fujiko's purse hanging outside the window as a warning. If they don't leave town, he will kill her.

Disguising himself as Zenigata, Jigen infiltrates Interpol and takes secret photos of some files on their mystery man. He is identified as an agent of Cobra, a network of thieves known for being deadly and reckless. Jigen notes the real boss of Cobra is unknown, and the man who has been following them is likely the boss' lieutenant. Goemon wants to contact Lupin right away to give him the info, but Jigen is reluctant to, still furious with his friend for forgetting the job for Jacquelyn.

That evening, Jacquelyn holds a party, which many dignitaries and rich people attend, so she can introduce them to Lupin. Goemon and Jigen arrive soon after it starts. They sneak in and spot Lupin, but they also see the man from Cobra. The quickly realize that someone at the party must be Cobra's boss. Jigen and Goemon inform Lupin of the new development, and they decide to find and kidnap the Cobra boss to exchange for Fujiko. Before they can do so, Jacquelyn is kidnapped by Cobra as well. Lupin's gang rushes to her rescue, where the they find a note: Cobra will bring back the women if Lupin will leave the locations of all of his stolen treasures. Lupin, who has actually been up to his usual tricks, checks on Jacquelyn's own vault, where he finds the contents untouched.

The gang goes to the ruins at Corne for the meeting. Fujiko and Jacquelyn have been tied above a pit full of snakes, and the man from Cobra stands ready to drop them in. When Lupin arrives, he tosses over a thick sheaf of papers, detailing where all of his treasures are hidden. The man slides back on his promise, though, and fires at Lupin, just as Lupin knocks over the lantern with a throwing dagger, plunging the ruins into darkness. There is a struggle, but in the end, Lupin screams and a body falls into the snake pit. When he lights a cigarette, the man from Cobra is revealed as the victor. He grabs Jacquelyn and drives off.

In the car, Jacquelyn frees herself and reveals she is the boss of Cobra. As she gloats over the list of Lupin's treasures, her underling's voice suddenly changes to Lupin's. She quickly realizes in the dark the body thrown in the pit was really her agent's, and that Lupin used the dark cover to disguise himself. Lupin tells her she slipped up with the bug she planted on Jigen's hat when she "rescued" him, as she was the only one who had the opportunity to do so, and further gave herself away by leaving her jewels behind when Cobra is known for taking everything they can get. Lupin then gives Jacquelyn and Cobra a last opportunity to "retire." Jacquelyn tries to kill Lupin with a hidden gun instead, but he dodges the shot and leaps from the car, secretly freeing one last surviving cobra on his way out. The cobra strikes at Jacquelyn just as the car goes over a cliff into the sea. Lupin looks regretfully out over the ocean and sunrise for a moment before turning his back on the scene and heading away.

This episode features examples of:
""There are dangerous curves around these parts. It's no place for the inexperienced.""
 * Black Widow: Jacquelyn.
 * Chivalrous Pervert: Lupin very much plays this in this episode.
 * Double Entendre: As the Modesty Towel-clad Jacquelyn describes the roads:


 * Femme Fatale: Jacquelyn.
 * Gossipy Hens: Two rich ones at the party speculate on what What Does She See in Him
 * I Have Your Wife: Fujiko, and later Jacquelyn.
 * I Lied: The man from Cobra after Lupin gives him what he wants.
 * Implausible Fencing Powers: Really, couldn't Goemon have just pulled off the bug instead of slicing it off of Jigen's hat?
 * Latex Perfection: In a slight twist, Jigen for Zenigata. When Zenigata runs into himself, though, he of course assumes is double is Lupin! It happens again when Lupin becomes the man from Cobra.
 * Naked First Impression: Lupin sees Jacquelyn for the first time in the shower. Lupin thinks it will result in some sort of payback for his voyeurism, but she is remarkably comfortable with it.
 * Obfuscating Stupidity: Lupin was really on the job the whole time, as shown when he easily finds and opens Jacquelyn's vault after she's kidnapped.
 * Ooh, Me Accent's Slipping: The Cobra henchman's Australian accent.
 * Shower Scene: An opportunity for some silhouetted Fan Service of Jacquelyn.
 * Super Wrist Gadget: Jigen-gata's wristwatch/spy camera.