The passing of Monkey Punch inspires the Kano Sisters to share their Lupin III cosplay photos.

This month, the manga/anime industry lost one of its brightest stars when Monkey Punch, creator of Lupin III, passed away. While the manga artist behind Japan’s favorite quasi-gentleman thief lived to the age of 81 before succumbing to pneumonia, his death has still hit fans hard, and two who are grieving are Mika and Kyoko Kano, collectively known as the Kano Sisters.

Media personalities who rose to fame for their larger-than-life personalities, prodigious proportions, and daring fashions, in recent years the Kano Sisters have been wearing their love of iconic anime/manga series on their sleeves, dressing up as characters from One Piece and Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure. So as a sentimental send-off to Monkey Punch, both Kano Sisters decided to share photos of themselves cosplaying as Lupin III’s femme fatale Fujiko Mine.

Along with the photos, younger sister Mika posted:

“Monkey Punch, the creator of Lupin III, has passed away.

For so many years, he has captivated us with an exciting world filled with cool and amazing dreams. Thank you. Along with our condolences, we would like to express our deep gratitude, from the bottom of our hearts.”

While some might question the appropriateness of such a sexualized salute, Fujiko is one of the first examples of a strong yet sultry female character in anime, and remains a benchmark in the industry for mature allure and sophisticated skillfulness. Monkey Punch himself was never shy about playing up Fujiko’s sex appeal in his manga either, and no doubt wherever his spirit is now, he’s looking down at the Kano Sisters and smiling.

Source: Kano Sisters official blog via Otakomu, Instagram/kano_sisters007
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