“Great Pretender razbliuto” No Longer a Secret at Anime NYC

It was announced earlier this week that the Great Pretender anime was getting a sequel, and today at Anime NYC, it was revealed that the WIT Studio and Production I.G. “secret project” panel was actually for Great Pretender. (Actually it was revealed earlier, but you know, it’s hard to stay on top of everything, especially when prepping for a convention!)

To be frank, there isn’t all that much news to report that wasn’t announced ahead of the con. Great Pretender razbliuto (I swear they spelled it out “razblinto” at the panel, so if you follow us on Twitter, that’s my bad) will be set primarily in Kyoto and Taiwan and center around Dorothy, Laurent’s ex with amnesia, who was introduced at the end of the first season. The above teaser image and a teaser trailer were released.

The sequel project will come out in 2024, even coming to theaters in North America, but panelists – director Hiro Kaburagi, WIT Studio president George Wada and Production I.G producer Hitoshi Ito – were tight-lipped as to what kind of project it is. A fan during the Q&A asked if it is going to be a film, or if the theatrical release is an extra-long episode or multiple episodes, and the answer was that they can’t answer that…yet. So keep an eye on their social media, as it sounded as though that information would be revealed soon.

However, they did screen a portion of the project at the panel. It was titled “interlude 1-1” (or “intermission”, I can’t recall exactly), which implies the first episode of a season. But it also didn’t have an OP or an ED, and it ended abruptly, indicating that it may have been part of a movie.

Whatever it is, it is coming Crunchyroll in addition to theaters in North America. Crunchyroll will stream the anime in over 200 countries (outside of China), while DMM TV will carry it in Japan, and Manga Productions has the license for 16 countries in the Middle East and North Africa.

Now, as for the panel, we did get some nice previews of our new characters. Photography wasn’t permitted, so I can’t share any of this with you all, but they showed us some character design sketches for Dorothy as well as new characters Yang K’un I (bottom right in the header image, with the curly hair and cigarette) and Chiang (aka Jay, top left, with the goatee). Plus, as I said, they showed us part of the project.

When Great Pretender razbliuto starts, Dorothy is visiting her “mother”. Yang stops by, running a scam doing fake travel vouchers and trying to swindle Dorothy’s mom, but Dorothy quickly clocks him and gets him to leave. However, not before taking a photo of him, so that if she spots him doing that again, she can go to the police. Yang’s friend Chiang (Jay) promises to take care of it. He goes to Dorothy, who promises to delete the photo if Jay keeps her company. 

I don’t want to spoil too much for you all, so I’ll stop there. But the premiere was a hit with the panel attendees, and I can’t wait to see the rest of it! So, while I do apologize that I couldn’t reveal much more than we already know, I do think you will enjoy Great Pretender razbliuto in whatever form it takes when it comes out next year.

Check out our other news out of Anime NYC!

Author: Jamie Sugah

Jamie has a BA in English with a focus in creative writing from The Ohio State University. She self-published her first novel, The Perils of Long Hair on a Windy Day, which is available through Amazon. She is currently an archivist and lives in New York City with her demon ninja vampire cat. She covers television, books, movies, anime, and conventions in the NYC area.

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