Everything GREAT About Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Spirit of Justice!

Episode 1: The Foreign Turnabout

Spoilers!

(Obviously...)

"A brand new setting: the Kingdom of Khura'in." *ding*

"Setting up the theme of revolution." *ding*

"The actual intro to this case does a good job pulling us into the story by showing us a whole new world with the treasure box depicting various images such Tehm'pul Temple (yeah, that's the actual name), the Plaza of Devotion, and a mural of the faceless Holy Mother." *ding*

(Intro showing us the culprit) "Though overdone, this guy does play a role in the overall story as we find out later on." *ding*

"The first case 1 to start somewhere other than the defendant lobby." *ding*

"Ahlbi Ur'gaid." *ding*

"You've definitely noticed by now, but a lot of the names of the Khura'inese characters and one particular place are based off several puns. But then again, this is Ace Attorney, so..." *ding*

"Nice bit of exposition on Khura'inism and its founder, the Holy Mother." *ding*

(Ahlbi giving Phoenix a lyrics sheet for the Song of Ceremony) "Chekhov's Gun." *ding*

(Ahlbi's arrest) "Yikes! Pointing a gun at a nine-year-old? What on Earth?" *minus 2 wins*

(The bailiff reacts to Phoneix revealing that he's a defense attorney) "Not a smart move on Phoenix's part if you've seen the trailers and the animated prologue, but we need to move on with the plot." *ding*

"This animated cutscene where Phoenix bursts through the doors and surveys the court: the judge, the prosecution, the defendant, and... Princess Rayfa." *ding*

"Also, the perfect moment to play Court Begins Abroad. This track really conveys the feeling of hopelessness, despair, and resignation of how the trials in this nation work." *ding*

"The design of the Khura'inese courtroom is absolutely gorgeous. I honestly cannot find a better word to describe it." *ding*

"The scene we are witnessing is a great way to show us how this country's legal system operates: the suspect is declared guilty just after Rayfa conducts the Divination Seance and his pleas of innocence are ignored by everyone including the Royal Priestess herself. The worst part in all this? There's no one at the defense's bench, leaving poor Ahlbi all alone." *ding*

(Phoenix: Objection!) "Saving your new friend!" *ding*

"Though we find out later that Gaspen Payne wanted Phoenix grovelling at his feet for revenge, it's nice to see that he's very different from his brother as far as characterization goes." *ding*

"Makes sense for everyone except Payne to not know what a cross-examination is due to a certain law killing off all the defense attorneys." *ding*

(The Basics of the Case) "Ha! So the opening statements have a theme now? Cool." *ding*

(Khura'inese Testimony/Cross-examination graphics) "Yep!" *ding*

"It's interesting now that the protagonist of this case has a choice whether to tell the judge about the cross-examination process or just let him watch and learn." *2 wins for this*

(Phoenix: Sadly, I'm a lawyer, not a time lord.) "Doctor Who reference." *ding*

(Rayfa's Dance of Devotion) *5 wins*

"And now, the source of the corruption of Khura'in's legal system is revealed: the Defense Culpability Act, raising the stakes even higher for our barb-headed hero And it just goes to show how dangerous Ga'ran really is underneath that gentle mask." *ding*

(Gallery: Exterminate! Annihilate!) "Another Doctor Who reference? Sweet!" *ding*

"Seeing the image of young Phoenix crying in that flashback brings back those feelings. It also reminds us of why he became an attorney in the first place, further motivating him to save Ahlbi despite the risks." *ding*

(Phoenix: Objection! Even if it means facing the Defense Culpability Act... I will defend Ahlbi!) "Standing up for what you believe in!" *ding*

"Also, Objection! 2016." *ding*

(Rayfa: That's enough!) "A non-attorney adversary who has her own unique interjection in the main series." *ding*

"Divination Seance/Insight tutorial!" *ding*

(Rayfa's surpised animation) "That's kind of cute." *ding*

(Rayfa: I-Inconceivable!) "I don't think that word means what Her Benevolence thinks it means." *ding*

(Phoenix: Hey! I want to live long and prosper, too!) "Star Trek reference. And a funny coincidence, since this game's Western release was on the fiftieth anniversary of said show." *2 wins out of respect to Leonard Nimoy*

(The Khura'inese judge, who was earlier eager to give Ahlbi and Phoenix the death sentence, decides to continue the trial after seeing that the Seance wasn't enough) "Yep!" *ding*

"The judge kicking out his future queen in order to find the truth, showing us that he can be reasonable." *6 wins*

(Rayfa throwing a temper tantrum upon having her Insights disproved and being removed from the court) "Whew... What a brat!" *ding*

"Also, setting up the princess' character arc." *ding*

"Now that he's seen a defense lawyer willing to risk his life for him and successfully refute what he and everyone else in Khura'in thought was irrefutable, Ahlbi is starting to question everything he believed in and starts trusting Phoenix from this point on." *3 wins*

(Shah'do pops out of his owner's bag) "Well, looks like the dog's out of the bag. I'm sorry." *ding*

"Also, Shah'do. D'aww..." *ding*

"The first of several feet-first introductions to witnesses." *ding*

"Pees'lubn Andistan'dhin." *ding*

(Witness Testimony: What I Saw, Baby!) "HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" *ding*

"Also, Andistan'dhin is singing his entire testimony in song." *ding*

(Phoenix singing along with everyone else... and realizing what he was doing) "HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" *2 wins*

(Andistan'dhin's heavy metal transformation) "WHOA!" *9 wins*

(Phoenix: And now, for something completely different.) "Monty Python reference!" *ding*

(Pursuit ~ Cornering Together) "It's okay." *ding*

(Andistan'dhin admits to burning his dahmalan) "The killer actually destroyed the evidence before he even took the stand. Very clever." *ding*

"Also, seeing Phoenix's despair animation in the first case when things seem hopeless? This game isn't kidding around." *ding*

"Now that we know the Founder's Orb was stolen before Paht Rohl's murder, the question is: who really stole the treasure? And the answer's pretty obvious, but this moment's still a win." *ding*

(Phoenix using the Mitamah Key to unlock the treasure box) "This scene. Just wow. They really put a lot of effort into animating these scenes." *ding*

(Andistan'dhin's breakdown) "Now that... was one heck of a jam session." *10 wins*

(Gaspen Payne's freakout over losing the case) "Serves you right." *ding*

"Also, putting the prejudiced gallery in their place." *3 wins*

"Spectral butterflies! Very different from the confetti back in the 'U.S.,' but I'll take it!" *ding*

(In the accused lobby) "Pretty tense since the crowd's still shocked over the outcome." *ding*

"The Defiant Dragons' theme." *5 wins*

(Inga Karkhuul Khura'in appears) "Now there's the face of a trustworthy man... not!" *no win*

"Also, the fact that he's in charge of this broken system, as well as enforcing the DC Act, and making threats to our hero's face is a clever form of misdirection in making us think he's the Big Bad of this game." *ding*

(Anime cutscene of Dhurke and Datz) "Another moment of misdirection: making us think that the rebels are bad guys, even though they're fighting against Ga'ran and Inga." *ding*

"Also, it looks there really was a fly near the picture of Ga'ran." *ding*

Total Win Score: 95

Award: A Magatah'man/Soul Bun!

A/N: That's it for our first outing in what is referred to as the Court of Resignation. I think this is the first time I've ever given a case 1 this many wins. Anyway, please read and review like always.