English names will be used in this review to coincide with the familiarity of the English game text.
In the latest episode of the Ace Attorney Turnabout Sisters story arc, “Last Trial”, Phoenix Wright must defend himself from being accused of his mentor’s murder. The dastardly and obnoxious Redd White, the President of Bluecorp and a notorious blackmailer, accused Phoenix of being the murderer in the anime’s third episode. Those watching the series without playing the games will wonder why the judge allows Redd to step in and claim the “spiky hair criminal”, aka Phoenix Wright, murdered Mia. The DS game has several points of the case explained better than the anime. The very judge who is overseeing this case is being blackmailed by Redd White and accepts everything he throws. This information is glossed over in episode 3 of the anime. Mia was investigating all of the judges, police and politicians being blackmailed, which ultimately lead to her death.
Unfortunately, the story of the Turnabout Sisters within the anime series was only given a time span of three episodes. Because of this, many conversations and plot points were excluded from the anime adaptation. Yet, the episode as an anime is decent. Phoenix’s urge to bring truth to light is felt and expressed rather beautifully. The frustration in his voice brings a twinge of sadness and understanding to the viewer. For the second time in his life, that the audience is aware of, Phoenix is accused of a crime for which he is innocent. And Miles Edgeworth is all too quick to blame.
Miles’ smug facial expressions leap off the screen and it’s hard to resist wanting to strangle him. He is only looking for the truth based on the top surface and wants to end the trial with his personal victory. Unlike Phoenix, he only cares for his own reputation. The audience doesn’t get to see Miles outside of the courtroom or listen to any of his non-work conversations.
Phoenix and Maya’s personal conversations are cut rather short but they do offer some insight to their personalities. Maya is bubbly and has undying faith in Phoenix’s ability as a defense attorney. The ending of episode 4 reveals Maya’s playfulness and supporting spirit. Phoenix is still seen as a newbie attorney who’s starting to wear out from the intense situation. And just as everything seems to be lost, Maya channels her older sister’s spirit to help. Mia tells Phoenix to finish the case right away. She explains the key piece of evidence that will shatter Redd’s explanation of knowing about the broken antique lamp, which has the piece of paper with Maya’s name written in blood.
The evidence and accusations are presented in such a way that the case itself moves smoothly along. However, the stories of the main cast are barely seen beyond the courtroom and the present situations. The studio’s purpose was to present the Ace Attorney games in an anime format. It would have been a great improvement for the franchise to have an anime that explores more of the characters and their backgrounds. Maya is now gone, although her spirit is watching over her portégé and sister. Personally, I was still hoping for more character backgrounds and flashbacks to be displayed. The flashbacks would have provided a clearer image on who each person was and how they were working towards their futures. This hope has fallen by the wayside as the show is quickly progressing through each of the games’ mysteries. The anime adaptation is not unwatchable by any means. Yet, it may not be the character-driven series anime fans have grown accustomed to. Still, the Ace Attorney anime adaptation is entertaining and watching the mysteries play out instead of solving them is a refreshing bit of fun. If you would like to follow along and watch Ace Attorney, you may watch it here through Crunchyroll.