Previously, in Lupin Episode 1, we saw Assane make a comeback with a grand scheme to perform a heist in a museum to steal a black pearl. However, he sent a forewarning letter to the museum owner, Mr. Imbert, letting him know the exact date and time of the heist. Despite the museum being surrounded by heightened security, Assane managed to steal the pearl but got caught while running away. The capture was also a part of the plan, and in the entire plan, his childhood friends Bruno and Benjamin helped him out. But as they dropped Assane to escape through the rooftops, Assane fell to the ground, injuring himself.
Spoilers Ahead
Did Assane Die?
Lupin Part 3, Episode 2, opened with the uncertainty of whether or not Assane was alive. As soon as Guedira and Sofia got the news that Assane’s body had been found, they visited the site, but the body had already been sent to the hospital. There, we saw Benjamin and Courbet, who pretended to be doctors, enter a hospital and place Assane’s body inside a morgue. Courbet’s involvement already indicated that Assane was still alive. The head of the morgue department, Dr. Martinez, found Assane’s dead body and checked his pulse with a stethoscope, but he couldn’t find any, therefore confirming Assane Diop’s death. But Guedira couldn’t buy it at all. He was a big fan of Lupin’s stories, which helped him speculate that Assane might have been playing dead just like Lupin did in most of his cases. But the news of Assane Diop’s death spread quite soon, even reaching “The Objector,” which published a story on his death the next morning. However, this time, it was not Fleur, but her competing journalist, who published it. In the absence of Fleur, he managed to sneak into her emails and noticed the anonymous tip, prompting him to write an enticing piece on Diop’s death. However, neither Guedira nor Assane’s son, Raoul, could believe that Assane had died, so both of them began their independent investigations, by rereading the stories of Arsene Lupin to get the slightest hint.
In Lupin Episode 2, we see young Assane wanting to meet his mother to know more about her and why she left them. Claire encouraged him to run a search on his mother’s profile. As both of them found Mariama’s profile, she turned out to be a convicted criminal, now spending her days in prison just like Babakar. Assane’s heart broke into pieces, but he still dialed the number of the prison and tried to talk to his mother. But Matiama, who was in great pain for not being able to see her son, asked him to take care of himself and forget about his mother’s existence.
Eventually, with his family and friends, Assane was ready to perform the final act of his life. An airtight casket containing Assane Diop’s dead body was brought to a cemetery. But Guedira, who still couldn’t believe that Diop was dead, forced some people present there to open the casket to see if Diop was inside. The casket was opened, and Guedira found it disappointing to see Diop’s dead body there. Guedira was unable to stop Assane’s burial, despite many doubts. But as soon as the burial ceremony was over, we saw Assane wake up inside the casket underground, indicating that he had been fooling everyone all along.
What Happened To Mariama?
Going back to the flashback, we got to know how Assane pulled off his plan to be dead. While he planned the robbery, he also planned to escape from the police via the rooftops and, ultimately, fall from the roof. He even fell from the roof with an airbag inside his suit to reduce the injury. Not only that, he also applied the cold spray on his body inside the morgue and laid there like a dead body for hours. Even the stethoscope that Martinez used to check his pulse was already rigged, so it was easy for Assane to play dead for a while. He even bought a casket for himself, disguised as a foreigner, and eventually orchestrated the plan with a secret tunnel inside the cemetery, which would open to another part of the city. Assane woke up inside his casket and struggled to get out of it. However, when he managed to get out and reach the tunnel, he fetched his pet dog, which had a key hanging from his collar belt. With the help of the dog, Assane managed to find his way out and blend into the crowd while maintaining a low profile.
Meanwhile, authorities had yet to find the black pearl among Diop’s belongings. Guedira, meanwhile, read Lupin’s stories, while Raoul, on the other hand, went to a library where he was fiddling with a map of the city. He discovered that a tunnel had a direct connection to the burial site, which confirmed that his father was alive. Guedira hypothesized the same tunnel theory and met Fleur, the journalist from “The Objector,” to ask for her help in uncovering whether Assange Diop was dead or alive.
Meanwhile, a few days later, when Assane was in his hideout, he saw something startling. One day, while going through a newspaper, he came across his childhood name, Sanni, which was known only to his mother, Mariama. Assane went to a subway phone booth and called the number given in the newspaper. His mother, Mariama, picked it up and said she knew Assane was not dead. She even asked Assane to meet her at the church, asking him to bring the black pearl with him. Assane remained silent but was surprised to hear from his mother after so many years. He even consulted Benjamin about it, who asked him to check if the person who picked up the call was his mother. Assane was also skeptical, but in his heart, he knew it was Mariama. He went to the church, where he was supposed to meet Mariama, but there he found a vibrating mobile phone, which he picked up. From the other side, Mariama told him to leave the black pearl in the donation box, or else the people who kidnapped her would kill her. As Assane expressed his reservations, Mariama sang a song that reminded him of his childhood. Assane finally realized that it was none other than his mother, so he left the black pearl in the box and exited the church, not knowing what was written in his fate.
