Ace Attorney (anime)

Ace Attorney
逆転裁判 その「真実」、異議あり! (Gyakuten Saiban: Sono "Shinjitsu", Igiari!)
Genre	Mystery, Drama
Anime television series
Directed by	Ayumu Watanabe
Written by	Atsuhiro Tomioka
Music by	Kaoru Wada
Studio	A-1 Pictures
Network	NNS (ytv)
Original run	April 2, 2016 – present
Episodes	Ongoing
Manga
Written by	Naoyuki Kageyama
Published by	Shueisha
Demographic	Shōnen
Magazine	V-Jump
Original run	TBA 2016 – present

Ace Attorney, known in Japan as Gyakuten Saiban: Sono "Shinjitsu", Igiari! (逆転裁判 その「真実」、異議あり!, lit."Turnabout Trial: I Object to That 'Truth'!"), is a 2016 Japanese mystery drama anime series produced by A-1 Pictures, based on Capcom's Ace Attorney video game series. It is directed by Ayumu Watanabe (Space Brothers) and written by Atsuhiro Tomioka (Inazuma Eleven). First unveiled at the 2015 Tokyo Game Show, the series began airing in Japan from April 2, 2016.^[1]

Story

The story takes place in an alternate world where the court system has been changed to the point where trials held in first instance courts must reach a verdict within three days. Phoenix Wright is a rookie defense lawyer who works under his mentor, Mia Fey. When Mia is suddenly murdered, Phoenix befriends her younger sister Maya, a medium-in-training with the power to call on the spirits of the dead. Joined by Maya, Phoenix stands up to defend his clients on court, often butting heads with the prosecutor Miles Edgeworth who used to be one his childhood friend and is now a ruthless man determined to obtain a guilty veredict by all means necessary, no matter if the defendant is actually innocent or not.

Production

The series was first revealed during the 2015 Tokyo Game Show and stated for a 2016 release.^[2] Being an adaptation of Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney and Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney: Justice for All, it features defense attorney Phoenix Wright and his assistant Maya Fey as the main characters. The staff, cast and crew were also revealed in December 19, 2015, the day the official website opened.^[3][4][5] NNS then later confirmed and revealed the anime's release date.

Media

Anime

The anime began airing on NNS across Japan from April 2, 2016, replacing Kindaichi Case Files R in its initial timeslot. The series is being simulcast by Crunchyroll, who are offering multiple subtitle tracks featuring both the original Japanese names and localized English names.^[6][7][8] The opening theme is "Gyakuten Winner" (逆転Winner Turnabout Winner) by Johnny's West^[9] while the ending theme is "Message" by Rei Yasuda.^[10]

Episode list

No.	Title	Original airdate
1	"The First Turnabout" "Hajimete no Gyakuten" (はじめての逆転)	April 2, 2016[11]
Rookie defense attorney Phoenix Wright faces his first trial, in which he must defend his childhood friend Larry Butz, who has been accused of the murder of his ex-girlfriend Cindy Stone. Prosecutor Winston Payne brings out the key witness, Frank Sahwit, who claims to have seen Larry leave Cindy's apartment after the murder. With help from his mentor Mia Fey, Phoenix spots a contradiction between Sahwit's testimony and the time of Cindy's death, to which Sahwit responds that the time he heard came from the murder weapon, a handmade alarm clock modeled after The Thinker. This leads Phoenix to deduce that the only way Sahwit could have known The Thinker was a clock was to use it himself to kill Cindy. Receiving advice from Mia, Phoenix finds that the discrepancy between the time of death and the clock's time is due to Cindy having come home from an overseas trip in another time zone. As a result, Sahwit is arrested while Larry is acquitted and gives Mia another Thinker clock as thanks. Later that night, however, the clock becomes the center of another incident.
2	"Turnabout Sisters: 1st Trial" "Gyakuten Shimai: 1st Trial" (逆転姉妹 1st Trial)	April 9, 2016[12]
Mia calls her younger sister, Maya, asking her to hold onto some evidence she has hidden inside the Thinker clock, unaware that their conversation is being wire-tapped. That night, Phoenix arrives at the office and is shocked to discover Mia has been killed, with Maya nearby. Discovering a receipt with Maya's name written in blood, police detective Dick Gumshoe arrests Maya on suspicion of Mia's murder. After speaking with Maya, who reveals herself to be a spirit medium in-training, Phoenix requests the help of Mia's mentor Marvin Grossberg to defend Maya in court. The next day, after finding Maya's phone containing a recording of the conversation she had with Mia, Phoenix learns from Gumshoe that Maya's prosecution is being handled by Miles Edgeworth, an alleged genius who has never lost a case. While investigating the key witness, April May, Phoenix discovers a screwdriver and a wiretap in her hotel room. Grossberg then suddenly informs Phoenix that he can no longer take on Maya's case. Refusing to give up on Maya, Phoenix decides to take on her defense himself, stepping up to face Edgeworth in court.
3	"Turnabout Sisters: 2nd Trial" "Gyakuten Shimai: 2nd Trial" (逆転姉妹 2nd Trial)	April 16, 2016[13]
During the trial, Phoenix points out Mia could not have written the bloody message as she died instantly, but Edgeworth negates this theory by presenting an updated autopsy report. April is then called up to the stand, claiming to have seen the murder from her hotel room, but Phoenix points out that she could not have heard the time from the clock as its mechanism had already been removed, proving its time of removal thanks to Maya's phone recording. Phoenix then presents the wiretap found in April's hotel room, to which April reveals she was ordered to place the wiretap in Mia's office. As the trial is extended due to the new facts presented, Grossberg tells Phoenix he is being blackmailed by Redd White, a company president that Mia had been investigating for corporate crime before her death. When Phoenix confronts White about the wiretapping, suspecting him of being Mia's murderer, White implicates Phoenix for the crime and has him arrested instead.
4	"Turnabout Sisters: Last Trial" "Gyakuten Shimai: Last Trial" (逆転姉妹 Last Trial)	April 23, 2016[14]
Phoenix stands to defend himself in court, with Maya acting as his assistant. White takes the witness stand, claiming that he saw Phoenix kill Mia from the hotel room, but Maya helps Phoenix point out that if White had never been to the office, he would not have known of a glass light stand in his testimony. However, Edgeworth counters this by claiming White was there planting the wiretap, believing he could have seen the light stand during this time. Just as it seems Phoenix is out of options, Maya's power as a spirit medium awakens, allowing her to channel Mia's spirit. With her help, Phoenix uses the receipt with the bloody message to prove that the light stand was bought on the day of the murder, months after White purportedly saw it. Edgeworth attempts to extend the trial further, but Mia writes down a list of White's blackmail victims, leading White to confess his guilt to avoid having it read out. After Phoenix is acquitted and Maya returns to normal, Mia arranges for Maya to stay with Phoenix at the newly named Wright & Co. Law Offices.
5	"Turnabout Samurai: 1st Trial" "Gyakuten no Tonosaman: 1st Trial" (逆転のトノサマン 1st Trial)	April 30, 2016[15]
Will Powers, star of the TV drama Steel Samurai, is arrested for the murder of Jack Hammer, who played the show's villain. Deciding to defend Powers, Phoenix and Maya visit the show's studio to interview witnesses and search for evidence. As the trial begins the next day, the studio's overly talkative security guard, Wendy Oldbag, presents a photo that allegedly shows Powers was the only one at the crime scene at the time of Hammer's death. However, Phoenix points out that since the photograph only shows the Steel Samurai, someone else could have been wearing the costume, implicating Oldbag as a suspect. Refusing to be accused, Oldbag reveals that other people were at the studio at the time of death.
6	"Turnabout Samurai: 2nd Trial" "Gyakuten no Tonosaman: 2nd Trial" (逆転のトノサマン 2nd Trial)	May 7, 2016[16]

Manga

A manga adaptation by Naoyuki Kageyama will be serialized in Shueisha's V-Jump magazine.^[17]

References

1. "［TGS 2015］アニメ化も発表された「逆転裁判6」のスペシャルステージをレポート。ゲームの内容を開発陣が詳しく解説". 4gamer.net. 2015-09-17. Retrieved December 19, 2015.
2. "Ace Attorney Game Franchise Gets TV Anime in April 2016". Anime News Network. September 17, 2015. Retrieved April 3, 2016.
3. "アニメ『逆転裁判』成歩堂龍一役は梶裕貴 制作はA-1". oriconstyle. December 19, 2015. Retrieved December 19, 2015.
4. "「逆転裁判」アニメ化が決定 声優陣に梶裕貴や悠木碧など". livedoor. December 19, 2015. Retrieved December 19, 2015.
5. "Ace Attorney Anime's Cast, Staff Announced". Anime News Network. December 18, 2015.
6. "Crunchyroll - Forum - Spring 2016 Show Announcements!". Crunchyroll. Retrieved April 3, 2016.
7. "Crunchyroll to Stream Ace Attorney Anime". Anime News Network. April 1, 2016.
8. "Ace Attorney - The Spring 2016 Anime Preview Guide". Anime News Network. April 2, 2016.
9. "Johnny's West Idol Group Performs Ace Attorney Anime's Opening Song". Anime News Network. March 10, 2016.
10. "音楽｜逆転裁判｜読売テレビ". Retrieved 2 May 2016.
11. "STORY" (in Japanese). YTV. Archived from the original on March 7, 2016. Retrieved April 2, 2016.
12. "STORY" (in Japanese). YTV. Archived from the original on April 2, 2016. Retrieved April 2, 2016.
13. "STORY" (in Japanese). YTV. Archived from the original on April 9, 2016. Retrieved April 10, 2016.
14. "STORY" (in Japanese). YTV. Archived from the original on April 16, 2016. Retrieved April 16, 2016.
15. "STORY" (in Japanese). YTV. Archived from the original on April 23, 2016. Retrieved April 23, 2016.
16. "STORY" (in Japanese). YTV. Retrieved April 30, 2016.
17. "New Ace Attorney Manga to Launch in V Jump Next Year". Anime News Network. December 19, 2015.

External links

• Official website (Japanese)
• Ace Attorney (anime) (anime) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia