Highlights
- Great Pretender: Razbliuto is the long-awaited sequel to WIT Studio's popular drama about international con artists, featuring a new cast and centered around Dorothy, a character presumed dead with amnesia.
- The sequel will maintain the same major creative staff as the first season, including director Hiro Kaburagi, writer Ryouta Kosawa, chief animation director Hirotaka Kato, and composer Yutaka Yamada.
- The streaming service for the sequel is confirmed to be Crunchyroll, but it is uncertain if the first season will also be available on the platform. A simultaneous release on multiple platforms, like Vinland Saga, is possible.
Between the likes of Ousama Ranking and Spy x Family, WIT Studio has been going strong these past few years, and next year, a fan-favorite of theirs is getting a long-overdue sequel. Great Pretender: Razbliuto is the continuation of WIT's colorful drama about international con artists, and it looks to be centered around a new cast with one familiar face at the forefront.
Season 1 of Great Pretender was released on Netflix in June 2020 in Japan and worldwide only two months later, directed by Hiro Kaburagi and written by Ryouta Kosawa. The story followed Makoto Edamura, a con artist who himself got conned by Laurent Thierry, a self-proclaimed "Confidence Man" who pulled him into a world of international crime that put his exploits to shame.
A Confidence (Wo)Man
Minor spoilers for the finale of Great Pretender Season 1The biggest change to the show this time around is its central character, Dorothy, but to fans of the first season, she's by no means a new character. Dorothy was Laurent's former partner in romance and crime, but after a con went wrong, she was presumed dead. That is, until the end of Season 1 when she was revealed to still be alive, albeit supposedly with a case of amnesia.
Now she's taking center stage in a new story with what looks to be mostly original supporting characters. Apart from the footage reused from the first season, there's almost no sight of Makoto, Laurent, Abigail, Cynthia, or any of the rest of Team Confidence. While they'll no doubt make some sort of appearance, a batch of fresh faces might be the best way to keep the story fresh and original.
Little is known about the exact plot, but it would be safe to assume it will follow Dorothy getting back on her feet and trying to re-enter the world of professional thievery. Assuming her amnesia is real and not just another playful con, Razbliuto could see her struggling to get back to her old life and, furthermore, to figure out exactly what that life was.
In her last appearance in Season 1, the couple taking care of her reminds her of all the identities she's supposedly "remembered" while staying with them. With so much of her business revolving around creating new identities, it wouldn't be a stretch to imagine she'd have a crisis of identity. Such an inner conflict would be gold for a series like this.
The Staff
It's exciting to see that - from the few credits revealed thus far - the major creative staff from Season 1 hasn't changed all that much. Hiro Kaburagi returns as the series director, and he's also one of the series writers this time around. His past directorial credits include Kimi ni Todoke, My Little Monster, and 91 Days, to name a few.
Ryota Kosawa, the writer of Season 1, is returning but is only credited as a script supervisor, whereas Taku Kishimoto (Haikyuu, Ousama Ranking) will write the series with Kaburagi. In the animation department, Hirotaka Kato returns as chief animation director and is also the primary character designer as well.
Even color designer Yuko Kobari (Ancient Magus' Bride, Inu-Oh) returns, which is huge for a show so bold with its color choice. Finally, the jazz-filled soundtrack will be composed yet again by Yutaka Yamada, who has also done the music for Tokyo Ghouland, more recently, Vinland Saga. It's been a while since the first season, but the sequel is in the same capable hands.
It might not be on the same streaming service, though. The announcement came with the confirmation that Crunchyroll will be streaming the sequel. No news yet on whether the first season will be hitting the service at the same time, but it would be a shame to have the first and second seasons separated. However, recent trends point to this not being as big of an issue.
Vinland Saga's second season was being simulcast on both Netflix and Crunchyroll, a move which was fairly unique by anime streaming standards, though certainly a welcome change. It wouldn't be a stretch to suppose that a similar occurrence might happen here, where Netflix and Crunchyroll will both stream the series. The only issue is whether this will mean two different dubs, as was the case with Vinland Saga.
Considering how satisfying Great Pretender's first season was, it didn't seem like a sequel was necessarily in high demand, and after so many years, a continuation felt increasingly unlikely. Now that it is real, though, and nonetheless captained by much of the same team, with a mostly new cast, it feels like a new show all over again. Great Pretender: Razbliuto is set to air in 2024.
Great Pretender is available to stream on Netflix.
Source: Comic Natalie