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Makoto Edamura

Makoto Edamura

Great Pretender universe

Makoto Edamura makes a conman's confidence feel like a delicate piece of stagecraft: you can enjoy the performance while watching for the instant it might slip. Great Pretender is at its best when his charm has to do practical work, because a polished smile is only useful if someone believes it. He gives the show a wonderfully human point of contact with all that practiced misdirection. The nickname Edamame suits the lighter side of his presence, but the appeal is in seeing how much concentration sits behind the easy manner.

By Mika Tanabe

Appearance

Makoto is introduced through the social face of his work. As a conman, he has to make his presence reassuring enough for another person to keep listening, and that gives his scenes an inviting surface with a little tension underneath. His performance is conversational rather than imposing. Small shifts in attention matter: a pause can read as thoughtfulness, while a smile can seem to settle a moment before you have decided whether to trust it. The English and Japanese performances offer different textures to that same balancing act. Alan Lee gives the English voice an approachable quickness; Chiaki Kobayashi brings a closely observed energy to the Japanese performance. Neither version asks the character to announce every calculation. The pleasure is in watching him try to hold a social moment together, and noticing how much effort that ease seems to cost.

Personality

There is an appealing modesty to Makoto's screen presence. He does not carry himself like someone who expects the world to make room for him; he has to read the people around him and find a way to be useful. That makes his confidence feel earned in the moment, even when the job itself depends on a false impression. I find the friction between his ordinary warmth and his professional performance more interesting than a simple question of whether he is clever. A clever character can make every scene feel solved before it begins. Makoto keeps the outcome emotionally unsettled because his face has to serve both the person he is speaking to and the person watching. There is a slight awkwardness in that double duty, and it keeps the polish from turning cold. His scenes invite you to appreciate the craft while staying alert to the person doing the crafting.

Makoto Edamura’s Story

Spoiler-free introduction

Early on, Makoto's work as a conman establishes the basic pleasure of watching him: he must earn attention and trust through performance. The show lets his friendly manner carry the scene, while leaving enough uncertainty for you to wonder how much of that manner belongs to the job. That tension is a good entry point without needing a map of every scheme. Watch how he responds to other people, not just how confidently he speaks. His reactions give the character a human scale, and make the act of persuasion feel like a personal test rather than an abstract trick. The story's energy comes through in that close focus on one person trying to make his chosen role convincing. You can start here and decide for yourself whether the charm is enough to make you lean in.

Spoilers beyond the early setup

As the story develops, the early question of how convincing Makoto can be becomes harder to separate from the question of what he believes about himself. His connection with Laurent Thierry gives the performance a different weight: Makoto is no longer simply making an impression on a stranger, but working beside someone whose confidence changes how the job feels. That shift gives the character room for contradictions. A practiced act can be effective and still leave its performer exposed, and Makoto's reactions keep that cost visible. His family connections to Miki Edamura and Seiji Ozaki add another personal register to the character, though the show asks the viewer to consider those ties through what they mean to him rather than as biographical labels. The later material is best approached without expecting an easy verdict on where the performance ends. Makoto remains compelling because the work keeps asking him to live inside choices that do not leave his public face untouched.

Abilities

Makoto's central skill is persuasion. His work depends on reading a conversation, presenting himself in a way another person can accept, and sustaining that impression under pressure. The show makes those skills enjoyable to watch because they are social and immediate: attention, timing, and a believable manner have to do the heavy lifting. There is no need to treat him as an invincible mastermind to appreciate the craft. The possibility that a performance might falter gives each exchange its pulse, while his warmth helps the audience remain invested in the person behind it.

Relationships

Laurent Thierry
Laurent is a useful counterweight to Makoto's approachable manner. Their connection makes the work feel less solitary, and gives Makoto someone whose presence can sharpen the pressure behind a conversation.
Miki Edamura
Miki gives Makoto's story a personal point of reference beyond his working persona. Even without reducing their connection to a label, the relationship helps the audience feel that his choices belong to a life outside the performance.
Seiji Ozaki
Seiji is another personal connection that gives Makoto's character context beyond the work. The relationship matters because it lets the story frame him as a person with attachments, not only as someone skilled at winning a stranger's trust.

Watch Makoto Edamura’s Story

Start with Great Pretender (2020), the place to meet Makoto Edamura and get a feel for the way his charm operates. The show suits viewers who enjoy watching a social performance take shape in real time, with the pleasure of a smooth exchange balanced by the question of what it costs the person carrying it. Makoto gives that setup an accessible center: he can be funny and likable without making the work feel effortless. If character driven crime stories appeal to you, his part of the series offers a reason to settle in and pay attention to the conversations.

Start here: Great Pretender (2020) — on Netflix

Questions

Who is Makoto Edamura?
Makoto Edamura is a conman in the Great Pretender universe. His scenes center on the social performance his work requires and the person underneath it.
Who voices Makoto Edamura in English?
Alan Lee voices Makoto Edamura in English. Chiaki Kobayashi voices him in Japanese, giving viewers two performances of the same quietly watchful character.
Where can I watch Makoto Edamura?
Makoto Edamura appears in Great Pretender (2020), which is available on Netflix. Start there to follow his story.
Is Makoto Edamura worth watching for?
Yes, especially if you enjoy characters whose charm has to work as part of their job. Makoto keeps the social side of the series lively while giving those performances a human cost.