Monkey Punch, the manga artist who originally created the Lupin III franchise, passed away on April 11, 2019, at the age of 81. Sagiri Seina was asked to make a statement. The original article was posted by Daily Sports Online on the 17th. (Archive link here.)

Sagiri Seina, star of Takarazuka ‘Lupin III’ mourns Monkey Punch – “His words gave me courage”

Former Takarazuka Top Star Sagiri Seina, who starred in the Takarazuka Revue Snow Troupe production Lupin III: Chase the Queen’s Necklace! remembered Lupin’s original creator, Monkey Punch, on the 17th.

“He came to see it on the first day, and his words gave me courage I needed to be able to play the role. I’ll never forget his smile from that day. I humbly pray for his happiness in the next world,” she said in eulogy.

Although at the beginning there were concerns about Takarazuka producing an adaptation of the 2-dimensional work Lupin III, Sagiri, with her extremely slim proportions, was highly praised for looking just as if Lupin had been pulled straight out of the manga. This aesthetic, combined with Sagiri’s talents as a comedienne, made the show a huge hit that drew in fans of the original work and its anime adaptations as well.

Monkey Punch, on seeing the production’s opening performance, had also praised the show highly, saying “I was surprised. I was able to learn a lot from seeing [Lupin III] in 3 dimensions.” Although he had said that at first he couldn’t picture how the end result would turn out, “the Takarazuka aesthetic and the aesthetic of Lupin III fit together perfectly,” he had declared, beaming with satisfaction.