When an anime studio decides to adapt a beloved series of yours into an episodic series, you can’t help be be extremely excited. For me, this was the case with Ace Attorney, as I have played the main series line of games from the beginning to the present, and have adored every one of them. Hearing the announcement of this anime perked my interest, and I have been hyped to watch this series for the past few months. However, one should note that studios don’t always create their content with a passion, but rather do it as pure fan service to generate revenue. I hate to admit it, but this series falls under the latter, as it disappoints in almost every category, opening my eyes to the fact that just because a franchise from a video game is popular and seems to fit well as an anime, some things are best left untouched.

Story 

*For the case of this impression, I will be using the English names of the characters instead of the Japanese names*

Phoenix Wright is an up-and-coming defense attorney that hopes to protect those that he believes are falsely accused to the best of his abilities, as a rookie, he quickly discovers that the courtroom is a place similar to that of an arena, where he must fight to save his clients from being put into jail through intense showdowns with rival prosecutors. It doesn’t help that he’s constantly pitted against the famous Miles Edgeworth, whose skill as a prosecutor is uncanny. With the help of Maya Fey and other colorful characters, Phoenix must find creative ways to save his clients, even if their situation seems hopeless

  • If there’s any particular part of the anime that the game retains, it’s definitely the characters and their personalities. Now that they are accompanied by voice acting, I can associate voices with each person and identify them much more easily. Not to mention, everyone is pretty much the exact same as they were in the games, so no one’s been altered significantly and I can relieve the memories I had playing these games.
  • The game will center around court cases and investigations, but honestly they are bland and extremely boring, speeding through these sections in a matter of minutes, while in the game, one could ponder for hours trying to cross examine witnesses and find the perfect piece of evidence to pin against them. Honestly, what made the games fun isn’t present here in this series. Characters seem to pull random facts out of their pockets during the court battles to progress the story, and there isn’t the satisfaction of figuring out who the murderer is. Even if you haven’t played the games, you won’t be asking yourself any questions about who did this or that. If the series can’t even do that, one can easily tell that there’s a huge problem.
  • There are moments however that are exclusive to the anime, and for the most part, they advance the relationship between Phoenix and Maya at the office, which is a nice touch.
  • While the impression only covers six episodes, I’m positive that the current case will end with the next episode. That means that within the span of seven episodes, three cases from the video game have been covered. This is just not enough time for the series at all. In fact, they’re going to cover the first two games in this adaption, when in fact, only the first game should be covered in about 20-22 episodes with a couple of “break” episodes to give us something new. How they though condensing the series was a good idea baffles me.

Prezentation: Art/Animation

Let me get it out of the way now. The animation is downright awful. Coming from A-1 Pictures, who typically puts out well animated shows, I am shocked at how horrible it turned out. Not even the art manages to be consistent, as there are many instances of poorly drawn characters, with the judge being a major victim here. When the frames are still, the art looks fine, but that will only give the illusion that the art looks nice. These tactics are common for long-running series (unless it’s One Piece, in which they don’t care) such as Fairy Tail, which A-1 also produced, and that somehow looks better than this. The worst part, however, is the use of 3D CGI for the models of the characters found in the stands of the courtroom. They are pure eyesores and I can’t help but look away when they come up on the screen. They couldn’t have just drawn them?

Prezentation: Soundtrack

Many of the tracks from the games are now orchestrated and they honestly sound pretty pleasing. Several sound effects from the games are present here, which plays onto my nostalgia with the game. If you liked the soundtracks from the games, you’ll be fine with the tracks here. The opening theme is sort of retro and kind of cheesy, but it serves its purpose. The ending song blows away the opening, as the song choice is overall much better.

Overall Impressions 

I don’t have too much to say other than I’m extremely disappointed. This is obviously a cash grab and those at A-1 probably know that people will tune in for the sole purpose of knowing the IP, and due to the fact that Ace Attorney 6 looms right around the corner. I was so excited for this series, and now all of my hopes have gone down the drain. I don’t even know if it can redeem itself at this point.

Should You Watch This Series

No. You are much better off playing the games, as they are enticing, intriguing, and a pleasure to play through. The best elements from the games are absent in the anime adaptation, and those elements are what made the series fun in the first place.