Anime REVIEW: Ace Attorney

The phrase “video game anime adaptation” is enough to strike fear into anyone’s hearts. Although the list of great anime series based on visual novels is vast, video games in general haven’t been as lucky. While there are the odd gems like Street Fighter II: The Animated Movie and Professor Layton: The Eternal Diva, attempts like Tekken and Blazblue: Alter Memory are more than enough to muddy the waters. 2016 finally saw Capcom’s popular Ace Attorney franchise make it’s leap to animated form, something long overdue for the legal exploits of Phoenix Wright (or Naruhodō Ryūichi in the original Japanese version), Miles Edgeworth (Mitusrugi Reiji) and co. Going by the full title of Gyakuten Saiban: Sono “Shinjitsu” Igirari (Turnabout Trial: I Object to that Truth!) , this 24-episode series covers the first two Ace Attorney games and was animated by A-1 Pictures.

First Impressions: Ace Attorney

How exactly there's been five years since the release of the first Ace Attorney (Gyakuten Saiban) game and only now the hugely popular franchise from Capcom is getting an anime adaptation I don't know, but most fans will probably agree that it's better late than never. Yes, 2016 is the year Phoenix Wright, Miles Edgeworth, Maya Fey and co. finally make the jump to an animated series, courtesy of A-1 Pictures. In Japan, the series goes by the full title of Gyakuten Saiban: Sono "Shinjitsu", Igiari!, with the tagline roughly translating as Turnabout Trial: I Object to That "Truth"! As you'd expect from a game hugely popular on both sides of the pond, the series is currently being simulcast via Crunchyroll - along with two subtitle tracks that include both the original Japanese and the Western localisations of the character names. How considerate.