DO NOT discuss the source material beyond this episode. If you want to discuss future events or theories, please use separate threads.
DO NOT ask where to watch/download this episode or give links to copyrighted, non-fair use material.
DO NOT troll/bait/harass/abuse other users for liking or disliking the series/characters.
DO read the Anime Discussion Rules and Site & Forum Guidelines.
DO NOT ask where to watch/download this episode or give links to copyrighted, non-fair use material.
DO NOT troll/bait/harass/abuse other users for liking or disliking the series/characters.
DO read the Anime Discussion Rules and Site & Forum Guidelines.
| Such a brilliant anime from start to finish. It always managed to surprise me in one way or another. I enjoyed all the arcs, but my favorite one is the last one: "Wizard of Far East". I really liked the multilingual aspect of the series, they really did a great job with that. Will forever remember the best con artists! Masterpiece/10 |
| Their planning is just unexpected. Literally almost teared up in the previous episode and now everything turned out to be a master plan. Glad they all made up with the previous victims of their scamming. I was enjoying it until that cliché ending. Like do they wanna show how Laurent and Dorothy are connected by the red string of fate (￣▽￣) Dorothy being dead would have been more realistic. |
| I didn't remember the president as well. Thanks for the screen as remainder - earlier in this thread. He he. So the coffee was relevant to the trick as well. Nice to see that explanation. And the son of the old lady might get into contact with her as well. And Dorothy still alive and that ring ... probably reminding her. They actually could make a sequel ... though I guess it won't happen. Too much money already made and with the other 3 big guys (Coleman, arab guy and Eddie) on board they are just too powerful. Would get boring then. This already felt a bit too forced. Too much setup where luck had to be involved to make it work. (A lot could have went wrong. But for the plot it worked.) It is an 8/10 for me. I liked the chars, coolness and comedy. |
| This is how you can make an anime for international audiences, what a breath of fresh air, the entierety of it felt like watching Focus again, but actually better because they pulled way more ridiculous stunts here. Now, the art department, god damn it looks amazing. |
| I enjoyed the hell out of this show, it's so fun and refreshing to be honest. It knew what it was and it stayed consistent with what it was supposed to be through out. Hopefully there is a sequel of some sort, maybe even a season 2 c'mon Netflix don't fail us now. Because, that definitely didn't feel like an ending more like a tease for a continuation. Overall super fun anime and quite possible one of the best shows this year. 9/10. |
 |
| This show was probably my (original) AOTS, with Laurent being my Character of the Season. It was pretty predictable and entirely unrealistic, but that seemed to fit the tone and atmosphere of the show to a tee. I have mixed feelings about Dorothy being alive, but I genuinely am hoping for a season 2 announcement somewhere down the track. 8/10, close to a 9. |
  We don't know what kind of people we truly are until the moment before our deaths. As death comes to embrace you, you will realise what you are. That's what death is, don't you think? ------------------------------------ Itachi Uchiha |
| My feelings at the end of case 4 was "wasted potential" There was so much buildup leading up to the final 2 eps, but then it all kinda fell apart for me story wise. Ignoring the ridiculousness of them building a building on an island and drugging the baddies and everything going perfectly as planned... Makoto's outburst in ep 22 was very cathartic to see, but since this anime tells you you can't believe anything, I wasn't sure how much of Makoto's outburst was him expressing his true feelings, or if it was all an act. I guess it was meant to be both. Ozaki and Laurent, and the other's reaction to his outburst? did they even really care? Or were their reactions just them acting? AT least Laurent said to Makoto that he was glad Makoto was saying how he really felt or whatever. Abbi was the only other character who really got along with Makoto too. Not surprised that ship didn't sail, there was zero romantic chemistry between them I would have felt better about Makoto's outburst in ep 22, is if in ep 23, Makoto at least talked it out a little more with his dad. Yet their final exchange is Makoto joking with his dad if he enjoyed pretending to kill him with the sword. I guess they are on good terms now? Who knows. Makoto and Laurent's relationship felt hardly developed. Their final exchange was also super lackluster. Laurent should have at least apologized for all the shit he put Makoto through. Yet Makoto's development also felt incomplete. He acted like he didn't care what Laurent put him through, when he had every right to hate his guts. I mean, he was working with a child sex trafficking ring for 2+ months, he should be suffering from severe PTSD, but he's all fine and good now I guess? It almost makes his outburst in ep 22 feel pointless. The anime excuses it when Abbi tells Makoto he needs to forgive himself. I guess that's all it took, but it still felt so unsatisfying the anime also did a terrible job at "show don't tell" writing. So much is left up to audience interpretation. The anime never shows Makoto finding out that the kids he was auctioning off were actually being bought by Laurent's guys. You just gotta assume he found out. Although I think the anime totally dropped the ball with the child trafficking plot line. At least they showed one of the kids that Cynthia took in. They also never showed Ozaki meeting with his wife. That would have been nice to see since she told Ozaki to not tell Makoto about them meeting. So Makoto is left thinking that his dad really did abandon him and his mom... I agree with the others that bringing back Cassano, Sam and Thomas was so stupid. I was okay enough with Cassano I guess, but the other two was so pointless. So Laurent got his revenge, but Liu, never even found out why Laurent betrayed him. Laurent's revenge would have been so much more satisfying to see if he had reminded Liu of Dorothy. I mean, Laurent was hallucinating and looked dead inside in ep 21. I just thought he'd finally get serious, but nope, he stayed his cherry cocky self the entire time as he comically beat up Liu. Dorothy should have stayed dead. I guess she got insanely lucky and got picked up by a fishing boat minutes after she was shot and thrown off the boat with a weighted vest on, but come on... That all being said, everything else about the anime was fantastic. I just really wish they could have stuck the landing better. If I ignore all my issues with case 4 I'd give it a 9/10. Otherwise it's an 8/10 for me. Some OVAs or a movie would be nice, but I'm not expecting it. I think the next work in WIT's pipeline is another anime original |
giveup-the-ghostSep 28, 2020 8:14 AM
Yato_gamisan said: ZeroDreaM said: Was a great show overall, also could some1 enlighten me who the President of USA was because I legit couldn't remember  I'm guessing its him. this is who i thought it was, but the president looks so diff |
Because its not him. The president is ex actor in Eddie Cassano's movie |
 |
| great to see that Dorothy is still alive and that nobody died in any of their plans. tho it would be nice to see all of them together with Dorothy having a reunion in an ova or special or better yet a movie. |
| The whole final arc was just nuts in general. Granted it's so far-fetched that there's no way a scheme like that could possibly work out in reality, but whatever it was fun to watch nonetheless Great show in general. Probably one of the better ones this year so far actually |
  |
| Last case was crazy! Quite a few things are a bit of a stretch but overall it was a very good and entertaining show! I'm glad Edamame's dad wasn't really a piece of shit lol he became one of my favorite characters. |
 |
| I liked the first three cases, but this one was a bit strange, especially the final episode was disappointing. - "Getting" some of the most powerful people in the underworld to a small island? Not convincing - Best friends with former enemies? Even if they get some money, i doubt criminals are that rational and forgiving... - Dorothy alive? ... ah okay? - Edamura x Abby needed some more screen time I liked the backstory of Dorothy and her team, but they kinda ruined it with her being alive. Would not be surprising if even Edamura's mother is still alive. Still, strong 7/10 |
| Ego = 1 / Knowledge | "More the Knowledge Lesser the Ego, Lesser the Knowledge More the Ego." Albert Einstein My ratings:  |
Kimurah said: Why wouldn't they bring them back? They are adult characters moved by greed, not petty teenagers with sored butts because someone flipped them off. Their financial and contact asistance is what allowed the whole team to build a huge mockup of a building and move both conflictive parties in for the grand scam and finale. The 3 big villians are obviously going to get a piece of the profits. You peeps need to watch more actual cinema that does this sort of stuff rather than just watch anime and use teen logics. They are still criminals who got screwed hard, that all three of them joined to help because they get some money is rather unlikely. Why should they even trust someone who screwed them once? At least one of them would try to take all the money for themselves, because they are greedy... It feels more like this ending was rewritten for a possible second season / future movies. Kimurah said: Why did they bring Dorothy back? you obviously missed the whole point of the show, to scam big shots without killing anyone (while also doing their best acting performance, even staging their own deaths), that was the motto of the original crew But it is still hard to believe that Dorothy either faked/staged her "death" or that she somehow survived the shooting/drowning. I'm curious how they want to explain it, but it will be most likely not convincing. |
AzazinOct 3, 2020 5:51 AM
| Ego = 1 / Knowledge | "More the Knowledge Lesser the Ego, Lesser the Knowledge More the Ego." Albert Einstein My ratings: |
| No wonder they split it up as this last case Was AMAZING! Really lovely animewfeom the art style, character personalities, episodic pacing and story development as well as pacing were all superbly good done. And that ED will also probably be this years best. All in all an amazingly fun and great anime I must say! |
 |
| Took me a while to realize that the President was the same guy as the main actor back from first arc. The Case 4 was proving to be the best until final two episodes, if only they hadn't pulled what they did my having those 3 from previous arcs appear again, I'd have easily given it a 10/10. Great show overall 9/10. The OST was as lively as it could, great work by Yutaka Yamada, art was beautiful and vibrant, glad Wit decided to do something different. Case 3 > Case 4 > Case 1 > Case 2 I hope for a second season with more development for Edamura |
 |
| I'm surprised people here think that this is sequel bait, they seem to misunderstand what this show was about. All of the characters were given definitive closure. The whole idea is to stop pretending at some point in your life, accept yourself and try to better yourself. And we see this in the conclusion to all of these character arcs with them all going their separate ways. Like Laurent pretending that Dorothy is still around, here in his final moment throwing the ring in to the sea, accepting that she's gone. Makoto finding interest in coffee, stopped pretending to be a crook just because others perceive him that way... It also includes that gangster no longer being just a pawn and becoming the president and even with the cheesy after credits scene with Dorothy having amnesia and finding the ring. Giving us hope that she might go back to being herself someday (or maybe she is already herself, that part is ambiguous). etc etc etc.. Really surprised people didn't pick up on any of this. On a different note: I wonder who Laurent was talking to on the phone with his final line.... |
HatulOct 2, 2020 1:14 AM
| Could be better. And I mean, a lot better. This final arc had so much potential but they blew it at the ending. But seriously, I really loved the Yakuza theme and I think there's potential for a serious Yakuza anime on the vibes of Black Lagoon. If this whole show was about the Mafia like this final arc, and instead of this whole 'con-man' thing it being about MC joining the Yakuza and climbing the ranks... would have been a 10 for me. |
 |
| So Steven Seagal become the POTUS |
 |
| I WAS going to give this a 9 but I settled for an 8 or even a 7.5 to 8/10 score. This entire series is ridiculous but I believe it's not to be taken seriously. Like I and many others predicted, Dorothy is still alive. I'm not sure if she really has amnesia or is just pretending so she live peacefully with her new Taiwanese parents. That part was touching though, she was abandoned as a child but after "dying" she found a family. That was heartwarming, not gonna lie. The rest of it though... eh... like how Abby miraculously recovered from her PTSD because the fucking pilot who bombed Baghdad APOLOGIZED to her was fucking stupid. The whole last scene, even though I like how ridiculous it was, it was still pretty fucking stupid too. What happened to the yakuza and Chinese mafia after they got off the island? Still, this series was one of the best series of this year. I might even go as far to say that this is AOTY despite my rating and rants. I cannot think of any other show that will top this. Attack on Titan and Golden Kamuy are two of my favorites but they are "continuing" series so they do not count for 2020. |
| 臭い- |
| Well god damn Great series ending was a bit far fetched but damnit was it enjoyable. Thanks WIT what a great anime probably best this season in art alone. Seems there might be a season 2 with that end credits scene and I really wouldn't mind that are a feature film would suit this series pretty well. Hope there's at least more of Edamura and Co. also wanted a scene with Edamura and abbey but hey a guy can dream. A good series overall, 8/10 from me. |
gaboru said: Absolutely nonsensical ending, way far-fetched, completely unneccessary and ubelievable twists, complete loss of integrity, way overused tricks. By the way, wasn't the fact that they were trickinkg bad guys and scumbags the whole justification of what they were doing? They throw this out of the window for what exactly? For another unneccessary, stupid twist? Hey, surprise, the 3 antagonists of the previous arcs are chilling with us now for no friggin reason other than, F U, you did not expect that, huh? Cherry on the "cake" - Dorothy is alive... of course... *double face palm At this point even Edamuras mother being also alive wouldn't surprise me. Exactly this. It was a decent watch, but so much wasted potential.. A low 7/10 from me. |
| What an amazing series. I did not expect it to be this good. What a rollercoaster ride to say the least... I should have known though, WIT Studio always does great things! |
| Just finished. Again I am amaze there was such a significant relevance to the ED animation in relation to Laurent's backstory. The whole thing made sense after the flashback on episode 18-20. Wow. This show is over the top but in a good way for me. Love how every thing pieced together. I felt that Dorothy being alive part is unnecessary. Although it gives hopes of a S2. Everyone's part concluded nicely though. Very satisfying show to watch. Amazing art amazing music and a enjoyable plot. I have one nitpick though. How did no one get shot at all in the room with such amazing gun safety during the shoot out scene. LOL |
G_AkerOct 7, 2020 1:36 AM
| What a wild ride! This anime got me through so many emotions, with so many plot twists and it kept me on the edge of my seat wondering how the hell they were going to manage to pull off the scams. By this last arc a lot of stuff was getting kind of repetitive so I wasn't as invested, but some stuff still managed to surprise me. Edamura's grand speech last episode was fun. I also love how they got great Chinese voice actors, I was pleasantly surprised cause usually in anime the Chinese dub is so bad I cringe. But how the three antagonists were all just chilling together, like...why?? It could've just shown the Eddie guy, the other two were totally unnecessary and just seeing them all happy again just like that left a sour taste in my mouth. Also kinda just meh about Dorothy being alive. Eh. But overall, despite those problems I have above and how everything was pretty over-the-top and unbelievable, I'll still give it a 9/10 for the fun journey and how it got me invested in the main characters despite initially not liking any of them in the first arc. Arc 3 was definitely my favorite. Definitely exceeded my expectations when I initially decided to watch this show on a whim just cause it was produced by WIT studio. |
  "As promised, all that you seek, all that we desire, is prepared up there. On top of the Tower." |
| I'm usually optimistic about the shows but those all those plans were utterly bullshit. The "we don't kill" was probably the most especial bullshit (even more than that after credit scene). Do they really think their hands are clean or something like that? Edamura breakdown at episode 22, if true, should be the real ending. The Great Pretender is probably the most fitting title, cause they were pretentious af. |
| Finally, the first 9/10 from me for this year for the new shows. Very bad year being also impacted by the covid-19 but yeah. This gem made it worth it. The last arc was just perfect, the message was nice, the soundtrack was great and the fact they used Freddie Mercury's song and made it work with the message was just amazing. The artstyle was unique to say the least and the characters were quirky enough. Really solid show and clearly a contender for anime of the year 2020. |
Fortune favours the bold!  |
| Yeah, I have to say, it would be much better if Makoto actually betrayed them. I just don't find that Abby saying he should forgive himself is enough for him to just ignore what they did to him. It would be much more satifying if the anime showed that what they did to Makoto completely crossed the line of forgivness, but because they are so obssesed in tricking people they didn't realize that. Also, this arc require a really big suspension of disbelief to most of what happens in the 2 months gap. Let alone that post credit scene, which was so impossible I can definitely classify as pure fanservice. At least they gave us an "acceptable" explanation about what happened in episode 22. I'm not sure if I can still rate this show 8/10, because those things I mentioned really let me down. 2020 Overall has really let me down. Kaguya-sama S2 is the only show that actually managed to really please me. Even Re:Zero S2 had severe mistakes, like important cut information to understand some scenes, and the excessive accumulation of questions without answers for a long period of time. And both Dorohedoro and Eizouken didn't had a stoy arc that deserves more than a 7/10. At this point, only Shingeki no Kyojin can save anime. |
 |
| Very good anime. But Dorothy being alive after all this big plan for revenge was kinda unnecessary. |
| Imagine how boring this world would be without Japan - a comment at youtube |
Azazin said: They are still criminals who got screwed hard, that all three of them joined to help because they get some money is rather unlikely. Why should they even trust someone who screwed them once? At least one of them would try to take all the money for themselves, because they are greedy... It feels more like this ending was rewritten for a possible second season / future movies. You completely missed the biggest motif of the series. Edamura built a grudge towards Laurent because he used him for his schemes in the first arc. But Laurent pretty much recruited Edamura not only for his own schemes but also to straighten him up on Edamura's father's request. Edamura pretty much got back to Laurent with his last performace acting as the bad guy, but he didn't actually hurt Laurent either physically nor mentally. the same principle applies to the villians, they aren't meant to be despicable irredeemable villians, they are meant to be likeable to a certain level despite their modus vivendi and change for the better. Regarding that the ending was rewriten for a possible second season, do you think they really will? Do you think great movies like Pulp Fiction need a second movie because it was never specified what was inside the suitcase? NO of course not, sometimes great endings are made so that the audience fills in the gaps on what they think they should be filled with. Azazin said: Is it really that hard to believe she could've had cold feet regarding settling down with Laurent after a long life of entertaining hijinx scamming rich people. I always thought she was a free spirit that would do what she wants.But it is still hard to believe that Dorothy either faked/staged her "death" or that she somehow survived the shooting/drowning. I'm curious how they want to explain it, but it will be most likely not convincing. |
KimurahOct 13, 2020 9:53 AM
VKDOOM said: Kimurah said: I mean regardless of them being adults, Edamura definitely should've realized none of those people cared about him or his mother and their own greed was the reason for why he lost everything. He should've devised another scam that allowed an exit strategy from the group as well as stealing all the money they got. Why wouldn't they bring them back? They are adult characters moved by greed, not petty teenagers with sored butts because someone flipped them off. Their financial and contact asistance is what allowed the whole team to build a huge mockup of a building and move both conflictive parties in for the grand scam and finale. The 3 big villians are obviously going to get a piece of the profits. You peeps need to watch more actual cinema that does this sort of stuff rather than just watch anime and use teen logics. Why did they bring Dorothy back? you obviously missed the whole point of the show, to scam big shots without killing anyone (while also doing their best acting performance, even staging their own deaths), that was the motto of the original crew That would be the pettiest most dogshit kind of ending, making a goodie two shoes like Edamura a complete asshole that would rob people for no good reason |
Kimurah said: You completely missed the biggest motif of the series. Edamura built a grudge towards Laurent because he used him for his schemes in the first arc. Sorry, but where i stated something else? It's clear from the very beginning that Edamura want to get it back at Laurent. How he does it in the last scheme is the problem, not his motivation. Kimurah said: the same principle applies to the villians, they aren't meant to be despicable irredeemable villians, they are meant to be likeable to a certain level despite their modus vivendi and change for the better. I disagree here, but please tell me what is likeable about them? Kimurah said: Regarding that the ending was rewriten for a possible second season, do you think they really will? Do you think great movies like Pulp Fiction need a second movie because it was never specified what was inside the suitcase? NO of course not, sometimes great endings are made so that the audience fills in the gaps on what they think they should be filled with. Did you really just compare an above-average anime with a cult classic like Pulp Fiction? All i say is that the last two episodes felt kinda weird compared to the other episodes. It is a possibility that it was rewritten to make further movies/seasons, but that's only a hypothesis. Kimurah said: Is it really that hard to believe she could've had cold feet regarding settling down with Laurent after a long life of entertaining hijinx scamming rich people. I always thought she was a free spirit that would do what she wants. And taking such a risk? I think if the last coup had been a success she could always say no to settling down with Laurent. Why hurting him like this? |
| Ego = 1 / Knowledge | "More the Knowledge Lesser the Ego, Lesser the Knowledge More the Ego." Albert Einstein My ratings: |
| IN THE END....WHAT AN ASS-PULL OF A "GREAT PLAN". The "happily ever after" ending for a safe juncture to end this farce of a grand plan from start to finish. Not that I'm complaining, but it could be better, The best anime that Netflix has to offer for 2020 honestly. Not close to a masterpiece, but it was great throughout. |
 |
| So basically, the entire series is their big, elaborate final tribute to Dorothy? This show is fucking brilliant, 9/10 I hope Dorothy and Laurent are reunited at some point. |
coreynjOct 13, 2020 2:59 PM
  |
Please elaborate how is the execution a problem. The filmaker from the first arc had actual passion for his job creating movies despite his drugdealing sidebusiness, even Edamura managed to understand his creativity (even if it was all part of making him fall for the scheme) The art critic from the third arc had a good eye for art and skills for people like Thomas (even though also he claimed that he was using Thomas just for that, forgeries, but it can be taken as him just lying to get rid of Thomas afterwards) Lastly the sheik from the 2nd arc is probably the weakest in likeness, but still in my books he's not some despicable shonen villian that murders his enemies in cold blood like the chinese mobsters. In comparison to say Ocean's franchise they are all just as charismatic as Terry Benedict. Azazin said: Did you really just compare an above-average anime with a cult classic like Pulp Fiction? All i say is that the last two episodes felt kinda weird compared to the other episodes. It is a possibility that it was rewritten to make further movies/seasons, but that's only a hypothesis. Cult classic is just an euphemism for popular and widely accepted piece of media entertainment, not some kind of art cinema piece meant to be glorified and put in a pedestal not to be compared with other popular media. I personally believe that Tarantino made his movies for wide audiences while also using elements from different other filmakers, not for pompous people using fancy terms to deminish other titles/media (even Kill Bill vol2 was heavily influenced by anime references and tropes) Back to the thread, you still dodged the question. Do you seriously believe that any piece of media with an open ending is made purpousely for a possible sequel? Do you think something like even great movies Your Name for instance, needs a sequel? that the audience is that dense that can't fill in the gaps? Azazin said: And taking such a risk? I think if the last coup had been a success she could always say no to settling down with Laurent. Why hurting him like this? Again, you missed the motif of the series. The original crew was formed by Dorothy where even Laurent was originally used as an accesory. Their first contact could had gone completely wrong if the guy she was scamming would had pulled a real weapon to deal with both of them. The risk was always a factor that made their escapades thrilling. All I'm saying is that there's the posibility taking into account Dorothy's love for dangerous situations and relatively young age for bad judgement. |
KimurahOct 14, 2020 9:16 PM
| So extremely proud that this anime was a success. It looked gorgeous from the moment the first PV dropped and I was really worried people wouldn't give this a chance because of the abysmal score it had back when AoT babies were review bombing it before it even aired. I had high hopes for GrePre and it not only delivered but it far surpassed those expectations. Enjoy the spot of second best ONA of all time because it is definitely deserved. |
More topics from this board
Poll: » Great Pretender Episode 15 Discussionuninstallthegame - Sep 20, 2020 |
49 |
by RawrOMG
»»
Jun 1, 11:08 PM |
|
Poll: » Great Pretender Episode 22 Discussion ( 1 2 )uninstallthegame - Sep 20, 2020 |
59 |
by FinalFlash18
»»
May 23, 9:19 PM |
|
Poll: » Great Pretender Episode 21 Discussionuninstallthegame - Sep 20, 2020 |
33 |
by FinalFlash18
»»
May 23, 8:33 PM |
|
Poll: » Great Pretender Episode 20 Discussionuninstallthegame - Sep 20, 2020 |
44 |
by FinalFlash18
»»
May 23, 7:55 PM |
|
Poll: » Great Pretender Episode 18 Discussionuninstallthegame - Sep 20, 2020 |
41 |
by FinalFlash18
»»
May 23, 1:03 AM |