Wigs's PW rankingedit
From Board 8 Wiki
The following is a ranking of 85 Phoenix Wright characters made by WiggumFan267, listed from 85 down to 1.
BE WARNED, AS SPOILERS FOR ALL THREE PHOENIX WRIGHT GAMES FOLLOW.
[edit] 85. Ami Fey
I AM. Yknow, I really don't have anything against her. But alas, she's down low because... well... she's been dead a billion years, and only her significance is plot movement for the Master of Kurain thing... and the occasional murder involving her statue. But still, the I AM thing was a pretty cool thing to have in a case. Though Ami doesn't really have much to do with that....
SIDE NOTE: In case 3-2, I thought that the picture of the broken vase that said "I AM" was going to have something to do with the time of the crime being at 1 AM...
[edit] 84. Angel Starr
....yeah >_>.... If there's one person I actually hated in the entire series, it's this woman right here. Personally, I thought she was easily the most boring person in the game, far and away, and this includes dead people. Talking to her during investigation was dull as hell, and cross-examining her wasn't satisfying at all, and just pretty boring... I felt like it was just like "Oh ok, I guess I just got some info, oh well" and I know it's like that for a lot of people... but I dunno... She just really irritated me... Personal preference maybe? Although she was involved in the awesomeness that is SL-9, she was the least important person in it (whereas everyone else did something mega important), she was just kinda there... In the case 1-5 itself though, she doesn't do a thing other than bore me to death. She's only not in dead last because the lunches are kind of funny. What does Jake Marshall see in her?? Please keep reading my list!!
[edit] 83. Cindy Stone
Hey it's that murder victim no one cares about. Oh yeah except Larry. Who is awesome. And she cheated on him. Which is not awesome. She liked his clock though. That's kind of awesome. Oh and they told you who killed her and how. Kind of lame, but I guess they have to for the very first case. Her name is kinda "the random". That's ok. I guess 1-1 isn't all terrible. And if Larry likes her, that must give her SOME credit, even if she had sugar-daddies.
[edit] 82. Robert Hammond
So the lawyer from DL-6. Not much to say about him. He screwed up Yogi's life, so I guess he was kinda using the win at any cost defender strategy. I don't think this guy is as ******y as you guys all think and he was involved in an awesome case... If there was ever a Prosecutor game, I'd like to go up against Hammond. And his death was pretty interesting, though not really since he didn't get killed on the boat...
[edit] 81. Kane Bullard
Hey this guy isn't last. Well, even though we don't find out about him until halfway through, he still was involved in blackmailing, which always makes for interesting cases in PW games (though done a lot in PW3...). Case 3-2's blackmailing situation comes up interesting though because of the blackmailer blackmailing a blackmailer blackmailing a thief. And we have this guy to thank for this confusing chain of events! Hooray!
[edit] 80. Regent
oh he almost killed phoenix watch out nick aaagh RAAWWWWRRRRRRRRRRRRRWWWWRRRR
[edit] 79. Richard Wellington
Number 1 Quality: HE LOVES LARGE BANANAS! :O This guy is sorta annoying but also a little funny when he trips out. Some of the craziest facial expressions in the game, but he uses them too much, its like AUGH OH NO I DIDNT HAVE MY CELL PHONE ON ME MY CASE IS RUINED AUAUUAUAUAGAAGHAGHAGHAGHABWARARAR. Still, X-examining this guy was funny at first, and was a bit annoying still after, but never really tedious, and for a tutorial villain, he wasn't all that bad... You need your stuck-up snobs in every PW game, and Wellington is for JFA. Stupid as he may be, he does his job right.
[edit] 78. Bruto Cadaverini
It's a not dead guy we don't ever see, woo! This guy just gets some cool points for being a Mafia chief, so cool. If Dee's mafia brutes were on the list, they'd be around this level, that's pretty good for some random dudes. Bruto's got a funny picture and I remember when I saw it for the first time, I was sure he was going to be some kind of witness who if they weren't the murderer, they'd be majorly involved, but a pain to cross-examine and while I guess I was sorta right about the first part, I would have liked to meet this guy. Now that I think of it, he'd probably go Redd White on us (but not as flamboyant)... I guess that'd be kinda ok.
[edit] 77. Frank Sahwit
OR SHOULD I SAY MR. DID IT!? Toupee-toss. All I need to say. Also, that dot stares into my soul. Nothing more to say about him!
[edit] 76. Marvin Grossberg
OH MY GOD SHUT THE HELL UP ABOUT YOUR BUTTOCKS. I remember in Case 1-2, going to visit him was probably the worst part of the case... it was just a touch offputting finding him never in the office when you want him and it was the first instance of "come back later to activate plot continuance". The guy himself then was ok, his ACHHHHHHHHHEMS and the big photo aside, HOWEVER, he gets all the props in the world for the "You're Lovers" thing. That was complteely hilarious, and I did that out of fun the first time I saw it and XD'd when it worked. Good show, grossberg, now just STOP TELLING ME ABOUT YOUR DAMN ASS WHY THE HELL DO I CARE AUGH! Grossberg;s kinda ok as a sidebar though, if not a bit useless (Mia pwns him so hard in that regard :P).
[edit] 75. Dustin Prince
HEY GUYS IM GONNA DO TEH SAME WRITEUP EVERYONE DOES FOR THIS GUY READY? ........Falsifying Evidence!!!! ....wait....****! Unlike Wellington, Dustin knows how to spell! Always a good quality to have! I salute you Dustin Prince! You were a real trooper! FUNFACT: Richard Wellington was booked for minor Regicide.
[edit] 74. Penny Nichols
Hm, I guess I'm gonna take some guff for this one, but I feel like it's less justified here. Penny has but one thing going forher and that the POKEYMANS thing, which is kinda lolz and all... but she does absolutely nothing else. She's the only character you meet who doesn't go to court/isn't really involved in court/doesn't have a Psyche-Locke. If we had to do away with one character completely, with no one to replace them, Penny would fit this role the best. She's not a bad character at all. If she did something case-involved (like was actually indcited as a suspect), she would have much higher potential, but alas, our (second) favorite little card trader couldn't dish out the Ultra Rare Premium this time.
[edit] 73. Money the Monkey
Agh he stole my badge and I couldn't find it for a while! I think this puts him at one step smarter than Furio. Wait I get it his name is Money and he likes shiny things so he likes money but only coins. He also likes busts, especially Max's. Aww yea, Money.
[edit] 72. Russell Berry
Case 2-3 overall had such a sad feel to it. All these guys really were close, with the exception of Max to everyone (not Russel) and Acro to Regina... But as everyone said, Russell was that guy everyone liked, that no one would ever want to intentionally kill, so it kind of sucks for him, but alas, Acro made his grave error. Even imagining he was a nice guy... well... he was a nice guy... and that's it really.
[edit] 71. Doug Swallow
So, who is this "Union Jack" fellow? Well, he's a cool enough dude to actually approach his ex's new boyfriend and tell him the truth about his girlfriend. That takes some guts, and it can understandably come off the wrong way, especially to someone like Young Phoenix. I felt bad for this victim more than I did most victim's but at least he was the one that finally meant Dahlia went to jail, even if she wasn't done. He put us one step closer. Aw yeah, Union Jack, takin' one for the team.
[edit] 70. Lisa Basil
Yeah, she doesn't do anything except for a Psyche-lock that doesn't tell us that much. Still, she looks pretty cool, works in a cool atmosphere, has a clever name, is not a robot, and yeah yeah she has "the joke". But she doesn't really do anything. She's just kinda your clever computer programmer who's just kind of there. I wouldn't feel right having her much higher because she really just doesn't do anything...
[edit] 69. Missile
BARKBARKBARKBARK
BARKBARKBARKBARK
BARKBARKBARKBARK
MUNCHMUNCHMUNCHMUNCH
MUNCHMUNCHMUNCHMUNCH
MUNCHMUNCHMUNCHMUNCH
Larry: awwwww maaaaaaaan Megalols
[edit] 68. Joe Darke
KILLKILLKILLKILL
KILLKILLKILLKILL
KILLKILLKILLKILL
GETBLAMEDGETBLAMED
GETBLAMEDGETBLAMED
GETBLAMEDGETBLAMED
Neil: Awwwww maaaaaan
Ok seriously, Darke seemed like he was a pretty interesting murderer..., dealing with a serial killer would have been interesting, but he still definitely had his death coming to him, despite the fact that he did not kill Neil. I always thought he looked pretty slick though, and the whole fight scene thing with Neil is pretty cool. He did confess, but he still killed a bunch of people, accidentally and purposely. Uh, and I say Dark-uh, cuz I'm weird.
[edit] 67. Bruce Goodman
It's been a while since I played 1-5, but poor Goodman, who just wanted to ease his dissatisfaction with the SL-9 case,had to go and get murdered. He was indeed, a g-*is shot*
[edit] 66. Valerie Hawthorne
I'm conflicted with Valeire. She seems like she'd be a really interesting character, one that fits well into any plotline; a kind of accessory to betrayal. Apparently, in her "betrayal" of Terry, she wanted both her AND Dahlia in on the jewel, not just herself, and while it was a pretty villainness thing to do to Terry (makes for a good villain), it shows also she cared for her (nonetheless evil) sister. Too bad that Dahlia didn't feel the same way about her as she did about Dahlia. But yeah, I do really like her character.
[edit] 65. April May
Sorry Palmer. I actually don't dislike her that much, she can be pretty funny at times, and the cleavage actually makes for some pretty funny stuff with the Bellboy (and yeah her Psycho look is pretty damn scary), but still she's still not too stellar of a witness, and she really did a poor job hiding what she did. The thing is sticking right out >_>
[edit] 64. Turner Grey
More like Turner GRAY hahahaha wait what? This guy needs some new glasses, but hey he's a doctor and he was all liek lol hey a girl is that a psychic whatever i shoot you oops i died. Hmm, I liked how we actually met the victim (where it was just some random dude) before the case, so I wasn't expecting the death until he actually went into the room.
[edit] 63. Bat
Man what an awesome dork. He was flirting with a girl by dumping pepper on her, oh yeah, a real ladies man this one. He gets some lollers from me.
[edit] 62. Director Hotti
Obligatory Hmm, yes.. .Hoh hoh, yes, hmmm, yes, Ah, yes, this position I feel is just about right for the "Director", hmm mhm yes. Ooooh m'dear! Larry should have a nice chat with this guy sometime.
[edit] 61. Jack Hammer
I have Jacky this high mostly because I was actually pretty surprised (and liked a lot) by the twist in 1-3. The fact that it was Hammer in the costume that is. When I played the case the first time, I was SURE it was Oldbag in there, and no matter what she or anyone else said, I wouldn't believe otherwise. I also considered that it could have been Powers, but not going to the scene of the crime, that he was just going to some......thing.... Either way, the fact that it was Hammer, the victim, was like WHOA COOL. And I guess that was pretty clever of him to hide in the costume. Way to implicate everyone, Jack!
[edit] 60. Leon
ACCHHHHHHHHHOOOOOOOOOO The picture of him "lolling" over Bat is awesome. Lions that are allergic to pepper rock. He was a cool cat though... RIP Leon ;_;
[edit] 59. Neil Marshall
Another guy I'm conflicted on. It's really hard to rank the victims who obviously would have been highly rated if you had interaction with them... And again, involved with the cool case. I guess it's good that he didn't kill Darke on some level, but not on another, cuz then he wouldn't have been Ganted if he killed Darke and wasn't knocked out...... Also um... hey man, your vest, it hates me. Cool character, I guess, maybe? ;_;
[edit] 58. Benjamin Woodman & Trilo Quist
Trilo's explosion was always kinda lol for me, and I think he's just a tad underrated on these lists. Still, he doesn't have that much going for him, other than lusting after a much younger girl... that or he's actually psychotic. And his clamming up is like argh. But Trilo's quips are actually pretty funny sometimes, though both him and his alter ego come off pretty bleh as a witness. Oh well. This case was chock full enough with lol names to make up for it.
[edit] 57. Celeste Inpax
Not much to say about her except that you REALLY had to feel sorry for her. If Adrian was at the center of Matt and Juan, Celeste was at the center of all 3. Though I feel like she was kind of "attachey" too (to Matt, at least) like Adrian was, and that's maybe where she picked it up from, being her mentor and all...
[edit] 56. Regina Berry
For someone pretty important to the case, I felt like we did a lot more talking to her outside of court than in it. Still, her "childlike"ness I thought was kind of annoying at first, but it was cool how it ended up being implemented into the case... The fact that she didn't know what Bat's "death" really meant was a nice representation of the fact, but the fact she didn't seem to care seemed to just be ignorance, not childlike. They did play up that angle though.
[edit] 55. Glen Elg
Man, I just kind randomly liked this guy. It could be because MC Bomber is the best name ever. And his eyepiece thing is sooooo hardcore. And his name is kickass. And he got poisoned which is a mega-awesome way to die.
[edit] 54. Juan Corrida
Like I said with Inpax, the "love triangle"s were pretty cool in this case, and yeah the fact that Juan wanted the note I guess was understandable, but whatever, yup.
[edit] 53. Elise Deauxnim/Misty Fey
Needs more screen time... wow. I can't believe she was just there and gone and didn't even tell Maya or Pearl who she was or react at all/have any surprise at seeing them... She seemed nice though, and she did some cool stuff to stop the lols that is Morgan.
[edit] 52. Mimi Miney
To clarify, this is the victim of the car crash. So I guess since it was Ini (or whatever you want to call the witness, I guess she was actually Mimi, but whatever) who messed up the nursing thing and basically did all the important case stuff, that Mimi didn't do much... but that whole twist with the driving thing and being on the wrong side (lol British car being a huge clue) and the switching personalities was awesome enough to warrent her a spot this high.
[edit] 51. Dee Vasquez
Sadly, one of the worst "villains" and it's too bad because she could have been a lot more interesting. Her whatever attitude combined with her lame motive didn't give her much. Her awesome mafia men, "ook ooking", and her getting pwned by Edgeworth are her saving grace.
[edit] 50. Gregory Edgeworth
Awesome simply for being Edgey's father, and like everyone said, the guy who beat von Karma.
[edit] 49. Desirée DeLite
Desi is like the ultimate in super-nice. She even has a "save the day" moment in 3-2 when she busts in with Atmey's urn (though I guess that ends up incriminating her husband... Well, she had good intentions...). But this puts her above your standard "nice only" character. She's generally just an enjoyable character to talk to, something Penny really doesn't do for me.
[edit] 48. Bikini
On the same grounds, I like Bikini too. She was a cool witness that, like everyone said "Just told the truth". And yeah,he testimonies weren't like OMG BLATANT LYING or anything... though I don't know if I appreciated that much as everyone else, though I still do, and I still do like Bikini (I actually really like her animations), but she doesn't QUITE do what I'd like in a witness. I mean, not even one small lie to protect Iris? I feel like she would have done that considering how close she was to her. I felt kind of bad putting her this low, but alas, I guess I did. She's ok though.
[edit] 47. Shoe
Meow!! Yeah Shoe is a good fit at 47, cuz Shoe is DA KEY EVIDENCE to help you get Maya back :D
[edit] 46. Judge's Brother
I didn't like him nearly as much as the old standby judge, although this guy is still awesome, what with his glorious playoff beard and his Canadian accent, although his catch aboot having unsure thoughts on things was kind of bleh to me. But yeah this guy is ok and I'm sure I'll like him more my second playthrough and in AJ:AA.
[edit] 45. Bellboy
What a cool witness. He brings his tray to the stand!! Badasssssssss. And he's all like like lawl blush. I guess he too always told the truth, best he knew. And he was like "Oh yeah, Ms May was with A MAN dundundun". He has a lol picture with April when delivering the drink and he has a random cameo in JFA! (imagine if HE was de Killer.... awesome!)
[edit] 44. Sal Manella
This guy was really funny the first time you saw him, and only so-so after that. But the fact remains he gets a nicer spot than he perhaps should for really surprising you the first time you saw him. This was a good move on the writers part to do something awesome like that and appeal to internet nerds. Unfortunately, they made his character the standard, kind of boring, "internet pervert" stereotype which detracted from his character. And after a few plays, the internet sp33k gets old, but thats not really his fault... thats ours for playing it too much, simply because its the sort of thing that WOULD get old. Like I said, he gets a nice rank for the element of surprise though, even though his character may not be as hot as some above and below him on this list. But his speak emobodies us, soooooo I would feel wrong ranking him too low. And lol pun name.And stupid involvement in case.
[edit] 43. Max Galactica
FABULOUS! Max is a bit of a jerk at first, but he opens up to you, and you soon see he's a pretty nice guy at heart... sometimes... but not to everyone. He doesn't like Ben very much, out of jealously (though I kind of feel his dislike a tad, I must admit) and his random throwing of cards is pretty awesome. As a character, he's pretty ok. Kind of standard (but a good standard), imo. He doesn't have any shocking plot revelations or anything like that, but he's just kind of a guy you want to defend because you feel kind of bad for him, because of the circus' totally messed up past and the like. He likes milk too. Sure, I don't though! And he's "marrying" Regina... that's... kinda weird... But yeah, Max is coo in my book! FABULOUS, darling!
[edit] 42. Victor Kudo
throw birdseed throw birdseed oh god eat birdseed throw birdseed eat birdseed throw throw strap fetish throw birdseed
Nah, Victor Kudo is an interesting guy. Like Manella before him, he's a pervert too, but for him, it's really only a vibe instead of being his overall character. His testimony is annoying true, being just random lies and mis seeing things... but I still liked this guy a bit. His hypnotic red nose and the fact that he keeps going back to that damn place just for Maggey is actually pretty funny. And his haikus are pretty awesome as is the paper his testimony is on! And of course, seeing Phoenix pummeled by birdseed is always a sight to relish!
[edit] 41. Polly
Best. Testimony. Ever. That is all.
[edit] 40. Morgan Fey
Hmm... Morgan is a pretty good villain, I suppose. Well, at least her plots are good. He motives are pretty ridiculous, as in she's just power hungry for her daughter and wants to kill everyone who will stop her daughter from being the leader, despite that's not even in her best interest. If she cares about Pearl so much, then she wouldn't try to kill Maya... so you'd have to conclude it's either all for herself or she just doesn't realize Pearl's cares... and I guess it's closer to the first one. Either way, interesting villain she is (her note from 3-5 is one of my favorite pieces of testimony, btw), she was kind of meh in the stellar 2-2, but "the glare" was pretty effing scary (anyone notice how similar she looks to Dahlia when she does that?). Also, the fact that she was planning all this stuff for a long time was pretty impressive. All in all, a cool villain, with a crazy motive that could have been much better than she was in both 2-2 and 3-5.
[edit] 39. Will Powers
This guy rocks. He's just... a nice guy, and he's cool to defend and stuff. Sure, as a person,he may not have a lot of personality. But his story is one I like, and I really like Case 1-3 more than the average person. Nothing I dislike about this guy at all...his humbling face is one of the more lol looks in the game.
[edit] 38. Jean Armstrong
Hey his arms are strong. Umm... so yeah, even if he's a bit flamboyant, he's still a pretty interesting character, and when he's not making painful painful statements (and expressions) regarding the fact that he is a woman, he's a klepto. Something you don't really see enough of in these games. Chefs too. His role in the murder was an interesting one also... forced into helping the murderer... well, I suppose if his food didn't suck so much...
[edit] 37. Winston Payne
I never found anything that special about Payne. He's an ok dude. And "the Rookie Crusher", ok good. He's got his awesome hair loss scene going for him, but other than that, he's kinda just your standard prosecutor, with no real flair to him. I do love his OBJEKTSHUUUUUN though!
[edit] 36. Viola Cadaverini
I'm actually a bit split on how I feel about her. She's kinda interetsing/cool I guess, though not nearly as much as you guys make her out to be. Her crying scene felt kind of forced to me, as you didn't really get to know her as much as you should have for someone of her importance to the case... hell, she didn't even testify (lol grandfather) and if she did testify, and have more physical significance to the case vs just being a notch for a Psyche-lock to help you get Tigre aquitted, she'd be a lot higher, sad as her story might or might not be.
[edit] 35. Redd White
SPLENDIFEROUS! His vocabulary of unposterously largenormal words get pretty lameola after a while... But really, thsi guy is either love him or hate him, and me? I'm down the middle. I'm not a big fan of 1-2 and this guy I feel is overrated, but he's still got that bit of funny to him, and he's a good "boss" in the sense that he killed Mia. His cross-examinations... some are pretty good actually, though some are meh (I loved that, "she ran to the left, so you MUST have been at the crime scene!" one). But yeah, he can still be annoying, thus he finds his place at 35. =p
[edit] 34. Maggey Byrde
Like Will Powers and Desi, she's an extremely likable person. And like Will and Max, she's just a person you feel bad for and really want to defend and get off the hook. What separates her for everyone else from me is the fact that she has more personality than those 2, like her "role" with Gumshoe in general (and her getting all wtf hate you gumshoe in 3-3), and she seems probably more like an actual person to me than perhaps anyone else in the entire game. The only real problem I have with Maggey, is like Max and Will and Desi and Penny or whoever, is that she is kind of just an ordinary witness... however in the same light, that's exactly what I like about her.
[edit] 33. Acro
After seeing some lists, I see most people put him pretty low and commented on how they thought this was going to differ from the norm, but he's been pretty low on every list I've seen him on. I think I like him a bit more than most of you guys do, but not as much as this "norm", whatever it is. Either way, his role as a "villain" was obviously not that great, but it really wasn't suppsoed to be. And of course, that's what I like about him, is that he isn't your typical OMG IM EVIL ROFFLE LAWL FACE SPASMMMMMMMMM villain like every other witness in JFA (maybe save Ini, sort of, but she was still kind of "evil"...). I mean the guy actually cried. Not many other criminals have done that on the stand. And you gotta feel really bad for what happened also... I mean, despite the fact his motive was awful, he still mistakenly killed what was basically his best friend. Cry on, Acro.
[edit] 32. Ron DeLite
I like Ron... sometimes. His crybabiness can potentially be nerve-on-getting (depsite some pretty funny animations), but when he isn't whining, he's a pretty interesting guy. He insists he's Masque*DeMasque, which makes you all like "whoa not only is this case different cuz there's no murder (lol, wait) but he's confessing to the crime, where we're the victims, whoa cool". I have no idea how he got a job as a security guard, but I imagine he does well out of pure luck, and I'd like to see him doing that job. >_> Plus, Masque*DeMqsque is all like whoa, some crazy villain, thats kinda cool. Why is he this high? I unno. Felt like it.
[edit] 31. The Blue Badger
Defender of Truth. Guardian of Proof. The whole involving the video stuff is one of the most fun things in the game and I actually really liked the vase thing. Oh, and his music is kickass! ^_^
[edit] 30. Luke Atmey
Overrated, but still pretty good. I really don't like how easy he gives up. It's understandable the first time he doesn't, but doesn't really make sense the second time. Both times though, it doesn't make cross-examining him all that satisfying as a villain of his style. I must still admit, he's one of the smarter criminals to do what he did, and he had such detailed stuff and yada yada yada he was getting blackmailed in the end oh noes. Um... and his eye is pretty cool looking. But yeah, the "overly pompous guys" while I still kinda like, I don't like as much as everyone else, at least not in their Atmey and White versions. Atmey's "shining" moment: RED JEWEL SPARKLE LAWLZ
[edit] 29. Lotta Hart
I actually really like Lotta. She's got your "homely" southern gal going on, which I find kind of fitting for the game. One or two of her testimonies in 1-4 can run kind of dry, but otherwise, she's a pretty fun person to cross-examine. All her "Gourdy" stuff is awesome and fits really well in the case. Her return in 2-2 and 2-4 work pretty well too, because by the time you see her teh 3rd time Phoenix is like AUGH enough already, and of course the pain she causes him and his wallet, make for one augh'd Phoenix. She's got "da hair scratch" too, which is cool and she always make Phoenix pay for her stuff. That's southern hospitality! Sure, she's a horrible photographer, but that's where the fun comes in in examining th-ACCCCCCCHHHHHOOOOOOOOOOOO SNAPSNAPSNAPSNAPSNAPSNAP
[edit] 28. Lawrence "Moe" Curls
AHA! AHA! AHA! AHA! Moe, the best "case" character from 2-3 is comic relief done sooooooo terribly badly, and thus done correctly and humorously. I love bad jokes so much, and Moe makes them shine. His random references and "BECAUSE IM ALWAYS WRIGHT" are reasons enough to love him. I do enjoy how he does have the capability to be serious, but what makes him great is that he doesn't see fit to be this way all the time, even when he is silly in a situation where he should be serious. Poor Moe though when the court doesn't find him amusing, because he was to me!
[edit] 27. Mike Meekins
This guy is just crazy. Sure, he doesn't have that much case significance, but being a total klutz makes this guy a fun character just to be involved in the case. Definitely some cool and weird but awesome animations make him awesome (plus the megaphone), and Edgeworth getting indirectly pwned by him, make this guy all the more amusing. His encounter with Goodman made for some good times.
[edit] 26. Wendy Oldbag
I LIKE OLDBAG, OKAY!? SHE IS AWESOME! So yeah, I didn't really like her on my first playthrough of AA, but since then, I have a lot. Just because she's different than your normal old person, she's got this flair about her, I suppose it's her windbaggyness, that makes her so good. The auto-scrolling rants are classic PW for me (so I was glad to see her guest cameo at the end of TaT). In 1-3, as I've said before, I love the whole thing involving the uniform wearing and the fight scene, and Wendy is obviously an integral part of all this. Putting an old woman like her in the security role is awesome, and just imaging her stuffing her face with donuts is hilarious to picture (some great pissed animations for her). She's relentless, vile, cruel, and the best "villain" in the game who isn't really a villain. In 2-4, I didn't quite like her as much (Her ratatatatatata is still awesome, but I like her mostly from 1-3), though I think it was still a good choice to bring her back for that game.
[edit] 25. Cody Hackins
I really like Cody a lot. For the most part, I think the writers did most of the 'kids' really well... at least the really good ones were really good. For me, Cody's testimonies are some of the most fun in the series. They're not that hard, but not *INCREDIBLY* easy, and his errors are just fun to pick apart. As I've said multiple times, I love the 1-3 twist that the "Steel Samurai lost", and Cody is the reason we lead up to this point. Hell, I still thought it was Oldbag. But anyhoo, Cody needing a box is mega XDs, when you see his head poking out from the bottom, and the behind the stand view. (Anyone notice he needs 1 box and Bikini needs 2?) Cody is awesome as swordplay, takes awesome pictures with his spiffy camera (I love that thing) and is in general a cool kid who is just fun to talk to and cross-examine. Plus, he crawls through air grates and makes Oldbag go GRAGAGRGHGAGHA for Massive XD. Cody is HACKIN'!
[edit] 24. Terry Fawles
One thing I'll say about this guy is I think that TaT's courtroom lobby music goes just PERFECT with this guy. I dunno, its weird for me, but whenever I heard that music, I instantly picture Terry eating his ball & chain (hahaha I love that animation). Terry may not be the smartest guy, but it makes him really endearing, he kind of reminds me of Forrest Gump a little. He's nto a bad guy at all.... ok, maybe he did steal a car and try to fake a kidnapping to get 2 mil... but he did it out of that great big childliek curiosity in his huge monkey heart. That's how I picture Terry. He still came out on the raw end of teh deal, like most suspects, and although he was commiting a crime in the first place, youve gotta feel bad for him because he had his "beloved" "kill" "herself", much to his great sadness, was actually royally screwed over by both of them, MULTIPLE TIMES BY BOTH OF THEM, was blamed for killing both, and in the end, the only person that mattered to him, evil as she is, hated him, and he didn't even know. And of course, it brings about quite possibly the most shocking "whoa" moment in the entire series. The only other things that have put me through that level of whoa was Matt's hair flip and the Ini = Mimi flip. It was actually really sad to see him do that, and was a pretty damn touching, heartbreaking moment... the whole end of the case where everybody "loses", that can get to you real nice, and is done beautifully well by the writers. It remains to be why 3-4 is one of my favorite cases. More than 3-5.
[edit] 23. Lana Skye
Speaking of awesome cases, let's talk Lana! Originally, I liked the Skye sisters more than the Feys, man was I silly then. But I still really like the Skyes a lot. For one, they're cuter than the Feys >_>;. But anyway, let's just stick to one person at a time. So, Lana is a different witness than you've encountered before, in that not only is she the first one to admit she does it (well, Egdey does too, but only for like one portion of the trial... Lana does it nearly beginning to end and is real tough to defend against), but is also your first client who is as stone-faced as she is. Though it can make her come off a bit cold, it gives her a good character... In the reason why she does it that is. We could discuss 1-5 all day, being how ****ing deep and long it is (that's what she said) but we all know what happened in 1-5, so I'll just get to the point. The whole thing really showed how much she cared about her sister, and how much she really wanted to care, but she couldn't (or at least thought she couldn't but that was Gant's fault, not hers), so she HAD to shut herself off to Ema, for the sake of her only sister. The ending when she finally realizes everything Gant did, is really nice when she finally smiles and hugs her lil sis (awww). Yeah, Lana's cool, but her *****yness is kind of noticeable and annoying near the start of 1-5, although she has some good cross-examinations.
[edit] 22. Iris Fey
Iris could be here simply for the billion and a half spoilers that revolve around her, and I don't even know where to start. From the very start, I thought (I don't know what you guys all did), but I was assured she WAS Dahlia, until very late in the trial... not sure when really, I need to replay 3-5. Thing is, while Iris never was evil, she did lie a whole lot on the stand, and that gave a really odd view of her character to the point where I'm really not sure what I think of her. This spot is a placeholder really... until I replay the game, I'm not really sure what my feelings are on her, but she is a likable character, with cool back and current story, and has the hots for Feeny, so its all good.
[edit] 21. The Judge
Oh god Im gettin lynched tonight. I <3 the Judge a whole lot. What an amazing character he is, and please please please don't complain that he's too low or anything or in any way imply that I don't think he's awesome, because I do! What do I know anyway on my dumb list? But anyway, the Judge is an awesome character, always there to lighten up the mood with his sense of a lost child. He's the perfect judge for the series, given the type of game it is, and no other judge could ever do or would ever replace him to me. Ol' Udgey just goes along with the whole unrealstic court thing; being bossed around by prosecutors, ogling women, being unable to keep that damn blahblahblah jury quiet, but always making sure to keep Phoenix in line. This guy is perfect. Awesome beard and all. But yeah, the only reason I don't have him higher is because I love so many characters in the game that they all couldn't fit in the Top 20... I wish this guy was a Judge in real life...
[edit] 20. Ini Miney
Starting off, Ini is just an okay character. Her, "like, ums" can get a tad on your nerves, but it's kind of a humorous trait really and is really only annoying on your first playthrough, when you can't go through the text quickly. >_> She turns out to be a great character though once you know who she is and what she did. Like I've said time and time before, the 2-2 plot twist is probably my favorite in the series (go go British cars...), and she was probably one of the smarter killers. Her plan was so incredibly complicated, but that's what made it so awesome to see her pull it off almost perfectly; every minute detail, from pretending she died in the crash, to having herself made to look like her sister so there'd be no proof of her left, knowing that Maya wouldn't be able to channel her, and knowing exactly on what Grey was planning on doing.... I could go on and on about case 2-2 and the intricacies of the case, some of which STILL confuse me, but the fact that SHE understood all this and probably was planning this ever since that day where he blamed her... oh and can't forget "The Pizza Hat". But yeah, Ini is incredibly complciated and a fun witness to deal with, especially after the true Ini is revealed, and she gets all confident... when she first does that you're like whoa I was one-upped by the um like girl (awesome guise too!).
[edit] 19. Furio Tigre
GWOOOAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRR! This guy is hilarious and awesome. Far and away the best "standard" villain in TaT (uhh... though I guess it was just him and Atmey...). Still, this guy recollects old memories of an almost Engarde-like persona... well, sort of, not really but you know what I mean. It's mice to have just an awesome, crazy, evil guy like him to put on the stand and make a fool of, and this exemplifies Tigre best. He's got the whole awesome Bronx (or is it Brooklyn?) accent thing goin' on, which is hilarious and awesome, plus he did the whole impersonating Phoenix, and the fact that he fooled everyone with his awesome "badge" is even better. He freaks out when you find a contradiction against him, making you feel like "woowoo" when you do so. His animations are over-the-top amazing (and his final freak out is up there with Gant's). Plus the way in which you finally nail him is awesome too (Lol, he forgot he should know that evidence because he impersonated Phoenix, oops). You can tell he's the guy you want from the start, based on his MEGACRAZY SUIT alone. I want one like that. But yeah, this guy is just the kind of guy that BELONGS in a Phoenix Wright game. He's like Redd White or Luke Atmey or Wellington or Morgan done perfectly. And he's got the spiky hair, which we all love.
[edit] 18. Yanni Yogi
I actually originally had this guy a lot higher, around 12, before bringing him back down here and let me just say that he is still amazing. Other than von Karma, Yogi makes the third fifth of 1-4 beyond amazing. So yes, while all the DL-6 stuff is obviously the best part of the case, Yogi's (and Larry's) parts are almost as amazing as that part (which is why 1-4 is my favorite case and why Yogi is so high). But alas, I did say "third fifth", which is a pretty small part. When Yogi is in his "lol" state, he's still kind of amusing. I mean yeah, he's just your random funny senile oldman who's like "lawlz Keith watch my pasta shop" and its always good for a few chuckles. And naturally when the real Yogi comes out, it's one of those whoa moments. Just to see him so serious (and the sad look as well) really gives a nice touch to his exit. I really wish we had more stuff involving the real Yogi, but I guess it wouldn't go well with the case. Either way, the stuff that happened to him in DL-6 had to suck cuz he didn't even do anything wrong and ended up having to act stupid his entire life, at the risk of being found guilty, and he lost his fiancee thanks to it... and all he had left, was Polly, the bird. He must have had an incredibly lonely life. And I'm surprised he didn't TRULY go crazy, bottling those feelings up for so long. That's probably why he was so motivated to kill... 15 years of holding it in. Finally, an outlet for his anger at everyone that caused his suffering. But yeah, Yogi's character is amazing and it's too bad we didn't get a chance to explore it more.
[edit] 17. Franziska von Karma
oh noes controversy. Well, I guess most of you have Franny Top 10, but 7 spots off or so really is still pretty good. While she is my least favorite of the main prosecutors, she's still a good character. Her character/development isn't as good as Edgey's or Godot's though. Now, first let me get this out of the way... Yes, the fool thing bothers me a lot. Yet despite that, I still have Franny at 17, so that says something. But yeah, it's pretty painful to hear her say it over and over. It's childish, which may be part of her character, but it's still annoying. Ok, now that that's out of the way...
She doesn't really do much for me in 2-2 or 2-3. She's a pretty good opponent, as far as prosecutors in general go... I actually feel like I got the most fight out of her than any other prosecutor, except von Karma. Edgey doesn't fight you all that much, except early on in 1-2 and 1-3, and Godot doesn't really know how to be a prosecutor, and Payne is just Payne. I don't dislike her whipping as much as the general consensus does. I like the touch it adds to the game and to her character. Kinky European stuff aside though, she's a person who it's enjoyable to faceoff against, because of her demandiness type of attitude. In 2-4, she of course does the awesome bust-in (who Gumshoe copied in 3-3, yay!) and in 3-5 you find out how much she's changed since JFA, and that scene with Edgeworth at the end of JFA (very touching, btw, to see her cry. I think she had a good relationship with Edgey). She doesn't say "fool" at all, and she pulls an Edgeworth in that even though she's the prosecutor for Day 1 of 3-5, she's on your side in the end. so she found Edgey's definition of what it truly means to be a prosecutor after all!
[edit] 16. Shelly de Killer
This guy emanates cool. He's your "murderer" who is pretty much "evil" for what it's worth... but not really. I love the whole idea of the "Assassin's Creed" (lol) that 2-4 gives off, and the whole angle it gives the case, and Shelly is the reason why. From interviewing the transceiver (though not as awesome as Polly), to the whole "holy **** maya in danger" thing, to seeing him as a bellboy, to Matt's Psyche-lock-less statement that he "didn't kill anybody", all makes Shelly an awesome guy. He leaves his calling card which is just a shell... how awesome is that (Screw you, Masque*DeMasque!)? He looks like a teddy bear and takes after Shoe a bit too! =) de Killer makes the case interesting from the get go because he makes you really doubt your client, which in this case you should, but you don't really know it until the end. He doesn't always keep his cool (like when the transceiver begins sweating oil), which makes him an almost perfect guy to cross-examine. You get your satisfaction when you find big contradictions in his testimony (oh man the Adrian "HE" one is sooooooo great!) but in general, he still knows how to stay calm and do what he needs to do. He's the quintessential assassin, and his commitment to his job makes him really likable for a "pseudo-villain". And of course you gotta love how he goes after Matt at the end.
[edit] 15. Adrian Andrews
Lol funk. Like most people, I think 2-4 started off really slow. The reason why it isn't my favorite case, is the early stuff in the case. It takes a while to get rolling (though I guess so do a few more of the "awesome" cases). But anyway, we all know how awesome 2-4 eventually gets.
When you meet Adrian for the first time, she's got that whole "cool, collected manager style" out of her, which honestly, I wouldn't really expect out of someone based on the way she looks.
So, I don't want to get all into the pity aspect, because I'm not ranking my favorite characters based on how much I feel sorry for them, but in this aspect anyway, Adrian would be one of the highest, probably one or two, I suppose. But anyway, yeah, obviously what Adrian went through was tough stuff, between Matt dating her mentor, Matt driving her mentor to insanity, her talent driving Celeste to insanity, Juan driving her to get her the supposed suicide note, Matt keeping her busy with his talent, when she starts managing him, etc etc etc omg pain. Yeah, this girl had it rough. She may cover it up with her co-dependence, but she was actually able to deal with it in her own way, which is actually stronger than I think we make it out to be, which I suppsoe would be based on the memory of Celeste. I really think that this force was stronger than any dependence she may have had with Franny, and she was just saying this and following her along to get some extra support. Because when we bring this out in trial, and she has to start talking about Celeste in when she truly breaks down (well, that and the fact that Edgey dug into her pretty hard, but such is the way of the truth). We know that Adrian cared a lot for a lot of people, and she showed it well when she was closer with those people- Matt, Juan, and Celeste. And each one, directly or indirectly, ended up crumpling all over her and forcing her to break down internally and forcing her to hate Matt and Juan, yet she still kept a false face of intrepidness, determined to stay strong.
I wouldn't expect anything different out of anyone had they been in the same situation. When Edgey cracked down on her, and when brought to testify in front of everyone about everything in court, it was like everything and everyone she cared about just came crashing together and brought out the true feelings she had about everything. The crimes she commited may have been a bad idea on her part and kind of screwed over anyone's plans, but it was done out of all of her consistently compressed feelings, so it must be relieving to her to let something like that out. Her actual crime plan was pretty smart, but I also feel like she left too many mistakes behid, her testimonies usually full of holes (her testimonies are all pretty good, btw). And of course, she just "happens" to take Shelly's card. Hey Adrian, way to make us waste a whole court day! >:O
And 3-2 Adrian was nothing special, imo. I guess it was kind of ok to see her, but she was just kind of there and her role could have been handled by any "Bellboy" type character, but the "oops vase" pics are still pretty funny. :D
But yeah, in the end, Adrian is a really good character, and seems to have some of the most lifelike feelings (and scariest to express and feel) out of all of the PW characters; the way she handled her traumitization felt truly human in her light sense of unpredictability, the actions she took, and the feelings she outwardly expressed, based on her actions in her heart, not her head.
Oh, and 10000000000 pairs of broken glasses, ok!
[edit] 14. Larry Butz
Awesome character land continues with #14 in a character who has been around since the dawn of time... in the Phoenix Wright universe anyway... not including some flashbacks... or JFA... or lots of other stipulations... and stuff. But screw it all, as far as pure hilarity, silliness, and general "haha this guy is such an awesome dude dork guy"ness this guy is pretty much da best. And of course I mean Da Butz.
From start to finish, Larry is always a lovable guy, and maybe with the exception of Gumshoe, conveys this attitude for the most part throughout the games... Well... I may have to retract this statement for TaT, where he is definitely much less of that lovable guy we all knew in AA... in fact, he's almost more like a regular witness there, but not really, as he still retains his Butzlike charm.
In 1-1, we are first thrown into the game with our unique image of Larry, and considering it's just case 1-1, Larry is a great draw into the PW world. Obviously there isn't much to say about 1-1, but Larry basically makes the case worth anything. His... I wouldn't call it stupidity, but his general lack of realization of the situation comes across great and is done really well. This is a solid introduction to a great character
Larry truly shines in 1-4, with his role in helping to prove who or what Gourdy really is (ok, not really but you know what I mean). One of the best non DL-6 sequences in 1-4 to me is the whole group of testimonies with Larry's journey into Gourd Lake. And it's like every single word he says makes everyone *facepalm* more and more until complete hilarity and complete turnabout ensue. Because that Larry, he just doesn't give up. And he keeps pounding more and more ridiculous details and testimonies that include what the DJ on his booming radio said when he heard an extra gunshot. And of course, this is applicable! Only Larry, ladies and gents.
TaT Larry seems almost a bit jerkish at first, but on further inspection he's still his great old same self. In 3-2, his security guard persona is laughable (in the good way!). He delivers some great stuff, like being his typical old clumsy, klutzy, not-so-awarey, self, true to his Larry form. And of course, all involving his many girls who he just can't seem to satiate. And in 3-5, we get the awesomeness of "the picture". I didn't find 3-5's swinging body as ridiculous as 2-3, so I thought Larry's whole perspective thing was really great, although it stretched out a bit too long, and could have been brought to attention far earlier than it did. I find Larry's artsy persona not nearly as awesome as he'd been in the past though, and his whole "la la la I'm not Larry I have a new life" wasn't that great, it was still good for him, though in 3-5 he wasn't nearly as awesome as he had been in past cases.
Yet the whole point with Larry always holds true; in every case he's in. He's always on unawares. He's always causing trouble and grief for everyone in the courtroom. He always seems to be Phoenix's "last hope". He always shows up when weird stuff goes down. He delivers somethign to the case that completely turns it around. He is Larry Butz. And boy, does it smell.
[edit] 13. Pearl Fey
This is pretty much the perfect spot for Pearl. With all the amazing characters that PW has, there simply isn't much room for wiggle room in the Top 10. So what happens to characters who are still really awesome, are as recurring as Maya and Edgey, but obviously can't compete with them?
Pearls, little cousin of Maya and Mia, daughter of Morgan, stepsister of Iris and Dahlia. Inarguably, the cutest character in the game, and it's funny to have someone on your team, who has her childlike curiosity, and wonderment of what some strange objects are. It's like taking every discussion you've had with Maya about the stepladder and applying it to everything. At least, in JFA.
Like I said with Cody, Pearl is a child done really well for the writers. As some little kids tend to do in video games/movies/TV shows/etc, she doesn't come off as annoying at all, something surprising for a young child in a main role. Her misunderstanding of commonalties, like computers and such is actually pretty darn cute- her reaction to them that is, and Phoenix and Maya's way of handling it always seems to be pretty cool- pretty sweet or just like "uhhhh I'll tell you later Pearly".
Pearl usually doesn't have much to do directly with the crime (as in the fact that she doesn't testify), but she has a lot of interaction with most of the cases. So, lets start off with 2-2, when we first meet Pearl. She's complteley shy and won't talk to you at all (probably to Phoenix because of the whole "guy" thing in 3-5). But I love the way in which she warms up to Phoenix, and how quickly she opens up to him and begins her quest of "awww you heart heart Maya". Crazy silly girl. In 2-2, everything with the Urn is pretty awesome and wacky. And I love the whole angle of course of the AMI vs I AM thing. And how basically Pearls and the urn was a crucial part that led to Ini's demise. And she always is so excited about everything! Except when she's sad! Which is sad! But rest assured, she'll soon perk up at the cheering up of Phoenix and Maya, who obviously really care about her.
In 2-4, you get to see more the relationship between Maya and Pearls, or at least where you see how much Maya cares for Pearls in 2-2, you see how much Pearls cares for Maya. In 2-4, Pearls basically acts as a cushion for Phoenix to help him out, while suffering through the Maya ordeal, and there's no way he could have made it through without Pearls by his side.
In TaT, specifically 3-5, we see even more the innocence of Pearls, which is all summed up pretty well by the ending (especially cuz Pearls isnt around for a lot of 3-5). She did everythign her mother told her too because it was so cleverly disguised to not seem evil at a child's glance, and she followed it to her heart's truest, believing that it would help out the Fey family, and one of her important things is that she always wanted to be a big help to the family so she doesn't feel useless. As we all know, she was tricked by her mother's desire to control her, but it wasn't her fault.
So then, what can we say about Pearly? She's just an awesome character to have at your side, kind of like a second sidekick who helps keep Nick's and Maya's sanity and keeps them straight (and on their heels when Pearls pulls a 'tee hee') and I can't imagine how I got through and loved AA so much without her.
[edit] 12. Ema Skye
Ema is a fun-personality type. At first, I liked her more than Maya and I didn't find her scientificness to be annoying at all, I guess like a lot of people did. She's sort of similar to Maya in some aspects, but Ema's a bit more real than Maya is. That isn't to say she's down-to-earth, cuz she's NOT. She even does a "stepladder" remark. But whereas Maya is an awesome weirdo in her out-of-touchness and just random silliness, Ema does it in overobviousness and silly scientific reasoning.
Like I said with Lana, the 2 sisters have a great close relationship and Lana went through a lot o care for and protect her little sister. On the flip side, Ema is obviously very attached to her big sister, and admires and loves her. She believes in her to the very end and refuses to admit that Lana killed Goodman, because she KNOWS Lana better than SHE does, at least when Lana is *lost* in her beliefs at the beginning of the trial. She knows Lana wouldn't kill him and is lying, and no matter what Lana says, Ema is steadfast in her uplifting view of Lana.
So let's delve into the past, once again, for a bit. Ema is shocked to learn that she was (well, wasn't actually) the murderer of Neil Marshall. Who wouldn't after learning that the case she was so involved in, where she thought Darke was the murderer was actually her (or Gant oops). That whole entire case was traumatic on everyone, but on Ema more than anyone. Then, she saw the epic thing.... The Blue Badger, and as badly as Ema may draw, it was still cool stuffs. I mean, I liked that Arranging part.
But anyway, yeah, Ema was a character who, at least I thought, came off as really likable, as being so devoted to her big sister (who earlier in life was so good to her), that we see the Skyes have a great relationship with each other. Even when it seems like the connection seems kind of broke on Lana’s “coldness” part, it definitely still exists between them.
[edit] 11. Maya Fey
Oh dear, oh dear. What do you say about Maya? Through thick and through thin at the evry least, she's always there, ready to help, at Phoenix's side. Ok, so maybe not always *HELP*, but perhaps to cause him grief, amusement, aid, or facepalms. I didn't like Maya that much on my very first play of PW1, but that's changed ever since... well, my second play. I guess Maya comes off a bit too much like Pearl at first. Like, when she's introduced to you, she's pretty shy, which given what we know about Morgan and etc etc, how Pearl acts in 3-5, but that whole face may have put me off a bit. It doesn't last long in 1-2. But even when she becomes friendlier, she doesn't really extend out to Phoenix more I feel until JFA begins (or with 2-2). In the rest of PW (or at least cases 3 and 4…) Maya is friendlier, like I said, but I don’t really notice as strong a connection between them until JFA, but either way, Maya is a fun presence to have around, especially in 1-3; in her Steel Samurai excitement, her bewilderment at him not knowing what the trading cards are (and apparently every single other person in the case knows the rage), her mischievous side begins to show, and her humor kicks in more. In case 4, she’s also pretty much the same excitable Maya.
So, in JFA, cases 2, 3, and 4, we REALLY get into the swing of things. She finds herself on trial again in 2-2, and man, what a whacked out murder case this is. It clearly looked like no one else could have POSSIBLy done it at all, and yet Phoenix still believes in Maya, as he always had (even note he did in 1-2) to get to the bottom of the case, despite Maya being under a channel and covered in blood. Of course, he never truly doubts any client of his except Matt, but I felt in 2-2, that it looked more like any other case that Maya was screwed. The events that happened are *almost* on par with 2-3’s ridiculosity (excuse the Redd White word), but they’re much more awesome as you explore what REALLY happened in that room. And naturally, Maya’s and Pearl’s connection helped Phoenix first reach out to Pearl, and Pearl’s testimony (her eventually telling the truth for Maya, though she didn’t realize it) helped set Maya free. 2-3 is more Maya silliness akin to 2-2, and I could go into detail here, but it’s only 2-3 who cares?
So, into 2-4 I launch. Maya is kidnapped. Oh no! And now everyone is out caring for her. Phoenix is incredibly broken up about this to the point where its incredibly distracting for him to concentrate while out of court, and even in court, he has a lot of trouble, is much more nervous than usual, and even completely breaks down when he thinks all hope is lost, his connection with Maya probably here being the strongest of any case in the entire series. Pearl too is extremely broken up by all this, and bawls uncontrollably every time it’s brought up. Edgeworth and Gumshoe are enraged that this all happened to and are willing to help Phoenix and Pearl go to great lengths to help save Maya. Hell, even de Killer seems to understand Phoenix’s plight. And who deals with the whole situation the best? Maya, the kidnapped! The scene where you just see her writing the letter has her incredibly cheery, she knows Engarde is guilty and yet she still wants you to get a guilty, even though she knows what it means for her, which is pretty damn valiant. And the scene where you control her and get into her mind is pretty awesome too, and gives you another look at how close Nick is to her. And finally, there’s obviously, “the fourth piece of evidence”. Enough said.
I’ve only played through TaT once, so I probably won’t recall a lot of it well ,especially 3-5 (I’m going to have so much trouble with Godot’s writeup…), but let’s give it a brief overview. I don’t really have that much to say except that Maya seems as or more comfortable with Nick than she was in JFA (and Pearls a lot more). Not much to say for 3-2 or 3-3. I should also note here though that for sisters, I don’t see Maya and Mia having that much in common, personality-wise which is kind of odd, because the writers seemed to generally be good at that kind of thing. But one thing they do share is this driving force… maybe even a simple curiosity to know what really happened, something that it feels like can be seen in Maya, Mia, and Phoenix. 3-5, well… I can say the same things as 2-4, with the whole sense of urgency, everyone fighting for Maya, etc… and it’s good… except that I really don’t like the way Maya acted at the end of 3-5… it just seemed so distant and she wanted to shut herself out to save Godot… btu she should know better than that, almost like she learned nothing from being with Phoenix all this time… perhaps it was the long-ass time she spent in the cave that affected her this way, desperate to protect him, but still, she should have known to trust Phoenix so that whole last part of the trial didn’t need to happen, at least, not in the way it did. I think this may be the general reason why she just missed the Top 10…
Apparently, being Kurainian, Maya is very out of touch with things (as seen in stronger example of this; Pearl), but still, we see Maya acting “normally” (as normally as you can describe her anyway), but really only with Phoenix, as its clear Phoenix is the person she’s most comfortable around, perhaps besides Mia and Pearl. With Phoenix, she feels she can show her lighter, kookier, silly side. And when she’s in trouble, a la 2-4 and 3-5, she becomes scared, yes, but still with her humor when she’s thinking about Phoenix. The thought of her friend was what helped her to survive and get through both these times, and there’s no way she obviously could have made it without his physical doings, but there’s also no way she could have done it without her mental image of him. They’re there to support each other, Phoenix to help and be a friend to Maya; Maya to be a friend to Nick, and give him that silly hamBURger or spaGHEtti or stepladder humor to keep him from losing his cool and to provide cheery moral support, cuz deep down, Phoenix probably enjoys as much as we enjoying watching him suffer through it…. Ok, well maybe not ALL the time, but you know what I mean.
[edit] 10. Diego Armando/Godot
Many men wait for him to appear. So, when you go against him in 3-2 and 3-3... he's a different kind of opponent, but that's what I like so much about him. He very rarely gets pissed/upset like the other prosecutors, and even when he does he's kind of like "...wait, what?" as opposed to "ARRRRRGH!". So he's that cool coffee drinking customer kind of guy. And while not making him pissed may nto be as satisfying, he remains to be a good character. In fact, he does a good job of makingyou feel angry for not being able to put huge dents in him... but you still get some like his spittakes and Omg the coffee throw. He may not truly be a prosecutor, but he's still a cool guy to play against.
In 3-4 is his best moment in the game, when he breaks the coffee mug... he lets out his feelings from that case, and it crushed Mia so hard. The relationship between the 2 of them... I guess we'll never know what it really was, but in either way Diego seemed to care a lot for Mia, much in the same way Mia did for Phoenix..... and Phoenix for Maya. Protective and yet, closer than just friendship, perhaps.
3-5 still leaves a huge kind of confused impression on me (still love the case, but I don't think I'll ever fully understand it). But from what I take, with Godot's involvement, he accepts his fate. Every single person in that court was working against Dahlia, and Godot just as strongly as the rest. The woman who ruined his life, Mia's life, Misty's sort of, and partially Phoenix's, and pretty much everyone else too... But I do think in this case Godot was trying to protect Maya not just because he cared for Mia... but he cared about Maya too, because he wanted to protect the same sort of incident happening to her. Granted, his hatred for Dahlia was the main fuel for the murder, and perhaps that momentarily blinded him so he didn't realize it was Misty he was killing (even if this sacrifice of hers was part of the plan to stop Dahlia and Morgan), and this is probably more true because the way everything played out, I almost feel like his strike was truly impulsive, and would have done it anyway.
And yes, though you don't really want to send him to jail for his crime, as Phoenix says to Maya when she's defending him, he's just trying to find the truth. And the truth was that Godot was successful in everything; stopping Morgan, seeing Mia again, forgiving Phoenix, getting his revenge against Dahlia, etc. Maybe even he shouldn't be jailed because I feel like Misty consented to her sacrifice if it was needed, even though Godot's intentions may have been slightly different.
And while he was in his "coma", thanks to Dahlia... uh, well, I guess you;d have to imagine that Mia would be pretty broken up. I kind of wish his poisoning was a case you could do. I wonder though, knowing full well about the channelers, why he never tried to contact Mia in the past, after she died?
An attorney can't cry until it's all over. And then he bleeds... cries... thing.... uh, yup.
[edit] 9. Damon Gant
'Heroicy type music plays'
............
...........
.........
Oh! Board8-ey! Didn't see you there! Been swimming lately? =D
Gant is one of the coolest villains in the series, which stems from his high authority, making him the most intimidating villain out there. Perhaps more than von Karma, Tigre, and all the guys like that out there. Once you know he's the guilty party anyway. And it's because he really knows how to torture you, to get under your skin, to ...and to seem to take it all SO LIGHTLY to boot! And when he does that evil grin thing where he grabs his necktie... you just know he's got something really ****ing evil up his sleeve and he's gonna stick it to you in the sleaziest, lowest, most painful, most frightening way possible.
...And then he starts laughing and clapping! Truly awesome. And you know that this guy has the power to do whatever the hell he wants to you and get away with it. What a great villain.
So, with the case... hell I barely remember what happened with the not SL-9 case, but Gant did a good job of covering everything up, and the false evidence and the intimidatingness, and threatening to take away your badge, and the whole thing with presenting that cloth at the wrong time (oh yeah, that one IS SL-9 though).
Gant in SL-9, and everything before built him up though. All that corruption then, with the "framing" of Joe Darke and him becoming Chief and having Lana as a puppet.... all part of his evil game.
And to do all this stuff, quickly.... I mean, he put everything together upon seeing Neil's and Darke's and Ema's bodies... he knew exactly what happened just by looking, and he knew exactly how to re-arrange the crime scene as best as possible to set it up exactly the way he wanted. So that's good stuff.
Hoh hoh hoh! *clap*
[edit] 8. Jake Marshall
I did not like Jake my first playthrough. And wouldnt you know it, I loved him my second.
If his awesome Clint Eastwood theme isn't enough for you.... well then you suck. His western persona, and his over-exaggeration of being but a lowly detective combine really well, and oh yeah his music is awesome.
So, he seems like kind of a jerk at first, but it's really all a coverup for his true feelings about SL-9, how it relates to the murder of Goodman, his anger at Gant, his disbelief that his brother "lost", and his sadness at the whole incident. Which is why he nicens up to you a bit as the case goes on.... he didn't want to let the case go, and he figures that as Nick starts trying to dig it up... well, Jake wants him to, because more than anyone else from that case, Jake wants to know the most what really happened.
Jake's belief that his brother wasn't killed by Darke is pretty cool. Because he insists his brother could never lose, even though it was "clear" that he did. Yet he still insists, and what do you know, he's right!! Then we "find" that it's Ema, and I still don't think Jake believes it, even if it was an accident. He knows something went wrong. So yeah, Jake is cool, and his deep desire to find out what really happened in the past, gives him this cool mysterious aura thing for the present, and explains why he acts kind of distant about Goodman's case (and becomes shocked that someone who tried to look up the past got killed for doing so), especieally finding this out after he tried to do it himself, and alas, discovered Meekins in the flesh. I guess he knew some of the security stuff better than the thought.... ok, not really, but at least he dressed up like Goodman and led to the awesome video evidence! :D
Hell, the worst thing about Jake is his taste in women! ;D
[edit] 7. Matt Engarde
'evil hair flip'
One of those really up there "whoa" moments, stands out for Mr. Engarde placing him at 7 on my list, though like I've said my favorite twist in the series is the Ini/Mimi flip.
So, we have the first villain of the games being ranked, and though he isn't as good as von Karma or Dahlia, he's still damn good. And really, all along, at least the first time you play, you don't expect it at all. The whole time, I legitimately thought that Engarde was innocent... throughout the case, the investigation, the trials, the evidence, even throughout his psyche-lock. I was just gonna say that he did something suspicious... like maybe he was the one that rearranged the crime scene to pin Adrian, or something (which I guess is sort of true).
So, pre-Hannibal Matt is just kind of funny. That jacket always makes me laugh, and his little cell phone thing is pretty amusing. Other than that, he doesn't really have any redeeming qualities, other than maintaining the fresh as a summer breeze thing.
Hannibal Matt is of course an evil bastard. I need not go into the whole Adrian/Celeste/Juan/Matt thing cuz I've been there 3 times already, but yeah.
Matt's pact with de Killer is really interesting and works well in the game. Knowing you have a guilty witness but you have to get him declared innocent to save Maya is one of the best plot effects in the entire series cuz you really have no idea what to do. It's a contradiction in itself. And the way you finally get Matt is simply genius. I mean, getting someone who is obviously guilty of murder, to beg for the guilty verdict because you exposed his breach of a contract with a real assassin is some awesome stuff. And that's another thing, with Matt saying "Just so we're clear dude, I didn't kill anyone" and no Psyche-Lock appearing is pretty cool too (although I have a different look on why the Psyche-Locks appear which is just when the witness refuses to talk about something; not when they're lying).
Exposing this conflict between Matt and de Killer... well, the main thing you have to wonder is why Matt didn't "trust" de Killer. But we're answered because we know that Matt wants to frame de Killer himself, and maybe earn a bit more out of this whole deal. So everything Matt did to all these people was truly evil. Kidnapping Maya, putting Phoenix in a dilemma, trying to frame and blackmail a ****ing assassin, and ruining Adrian's, Celeste's and Juan's lives seems like about as many people as Joe Darke affected.
SImply put, Matt is a truly awesome evil villain, and knows how to be one. He just went a step too far and crossed lines with the wrong assassin and wrong lawyer. But man, did he sure give everyone a wild crazy ride.
And one last point, I remember playing this case really late at night and finding for the first time about the hair flip, and I didn't sleep that night. I just finished the case. The whole ending is so awesome, and finding getting Matt.... well, that's the other cool part, that you can get him Guilty or Not Guilty and you win either way and Matt does his face claw. Aww yeah.
[edit] 6. Mia Fey
Mia is really awesome. Especially in the 3rd game. She could have been much higher, maybe Top 10 even, but her Deus Ex Mia just gets a touch in the way of her doing much better than Top 15. Naturally, I still love her than and think of her as an awesome character.
I originally liked her more than Maya, then I liked Maya more for a while, but I think I actually really like Mia more since TaT… but I tell you, it’s still really close. After just my first AA playthrough though I liked Mia more and I think that was mostly because Mia was hawt. Or something. And I was sad she died and thought like that was cool when she came back and stuff. So it was mostly the shock and surprise I guess of seeing Mia- Maya form. Then I started liking Maya more, before going back to Mia’s side after playing TaT.
She's cool and helpful as a sidebar. It kinds of feels like you have a superpower, or kjust like youre stronger and more confident when she's by your side than Maya. But still, it's almost like she's giving too much away sometimes... not so much as sidebarring as when she does those random flash-by appearances. But that doesn't really detract that much for me. It can be kind of cool. I guess it was really just her in 1-2 that annoyed me. When she's sidebarring, though cool, the sideboard position just kind of pales just a bit for me, in comparison to all the other court positions- Judge, Prosecutor, Defense Attorney, Bailiff (lol j/k), etc. In general though, she's kind of just like Maya, when she can't help you. She's your support and Maya's support, so that's pretty cool.
In JFA, she takes Pearls' form. Now, I guess Mia and Pearl never interacted too much, which is too bad because that could have been a nice angle to play up. I forget a lot of 3-5, but I think we also could have explored Mia and Iris's more, whereas it kind of played up the Mia and Dahlia tree more, which is understandable... and what about Mia and Misty? I think Mia hardly mentioned her mother, even in 1-2, 1-4, and 3-5 (maybe a bit?). though I still would have liked to see more how Mia interacted with the spiritual side of the family in general. She still feels more like a lawyer to me than a spiritual Fey, like she always kind of wanted to be a lawyer more, that that was more important to her. So this all gives her quite a unique look, in that she's kind of different from the rest of her family. By this point, her "Deus ex Mia" stuff is much less in force too, but she still does those flashy things and keeps them kind of ambiguous which is cool.
In TaT, you gotta love Mia. She's an awesome attorney to play as, and while she isn't as awesome as the other 3 we know (excluding Grossberg), she's still really fun to play as (that's what she said). The hatred that brews between Dahlia and Mia, especially in 3-1 (because I guess it didn't really exist yet in 3-4), makes for some awesome cross examinations, especially when she's like "ARGH" and Mia's like "awww yea". I love how you can see Phoenix clearly got his style of lawyering from her, with the table slams, finger pointing, the grin, and pretty much every expression Mia has, Phoenix has his own version of. I really like that a lot. I could go on and on and on about 3-1 and the awesome relationship that Nick and Mia seem to have, because its pretty substansial, but I don't want to clog this review too much, so I'll just say that I love 3-1 and that Phoenix, I think, pretty much not only fights for his client or for the truth, but also in honor of Mia.
Likewise, in 3-4, Mia is even more beyond awesome, and though the Dahlia-Mia hate line isn't there yet, you see it form, and blossom as the case goes on. I've talked the ear off of 3-4 on Terry's part, so I'm not gonna repeat myself, but of course that scarring trial really affected Mia a lot, and you gotta feel bad for the poor girl, including going against Edgey right away as a Rookie too. That's just not fair (even if he was one himself). =( But Mia is just *so* devoted to saving Terry, because she knows he's not guilty of the murder that it really gives her an awesome character.
In 3-5, of course you learn more about her relationship with Diego, and that I thought was a really nice angle too. See Godot's writeup for more, but yet again, another hardship that Mia had to endure- Diego's "coma". All in all, Mia remained tough and continued fighting for and believing in her client- all a lawyer can do and something she apparently taught Phoenix really well, and it shows.
[edit] 5. Dahlia Hawthorne
Aw man, awesome villain alert. The only “final villain” who’s involved in not just 1 case…, but 3!! Dollie, the non-Iris version… well, since she wasn’t that person who dated Feeny for 6 months after all, let’s just have a look, shall we? You got 3-4. Great case here. Best one in PW3 as I say again and again. Her being Melissa Foster is “lol”. I’m like oh **** man! That ain’t no Melissa… IT’S A DAHLIA BABY! Ok enough with the Austin Powers (lol Will Powers references). She has that whole crazy ass past, with the $2 million gem, and her pretending to kill herself, along with killing Valerie, and indirectly killing Terry; the man she knew trusted her to the bone and would kill himself for her… as he did. Dahlia was the only who got away happy from that case, leaving everybody else tainted miserably. All because of the evil incarnate that is Dahlia.
Then she goes and meets Mr. Feeny himself, who she gives the poisoned necklace!! And then as we know, she “kills” the one man who might have been able to solve the mystery… and well, I guess she didn’t completely kill him, but she did what she needed to do to crush him… have him “reawake” when Mia was already dead, effectively killing Godot’s spirit. Of course, when she can’t get it back from him, she’s outraged… well… SHE was, but Iris wasn’t good enough at getting it back… so, hating her sister with a passion (and arguably, I think she really hated her mother too, just going along with her plan for different reasons… why? BECAUSE SHE IS EVIL AND IT IS AWESOME!). Getting into that Fey family bloodline is really confusing, but she basically wiped out her entire family, in one sense or another, except for Pearls and Maya. So, after killing Dougie, which was far from any accident, and failing to kill Feeny, she is finally caught at the hands of Mia… and it’s funny… That she can hate Mia so much… and Mia back… and the only met twice. And that’s what so great about Dahlia. You meet her twice, and she causes so much pain & suffering in everyone she meets,, and wrecks her evil havoc just by…… smiling prettily…
And to top it all off, if meeting her twice causes so much grief… and then she’s executed…… SHE COMES BACK FROM THE FREAKING DEAD FOR A THIRD VISIT AND RUINS MORE LIVES HOORAY! I mean, just look at 3-5. She is the source of why everything that happened did. And on top of it all, she was like “*** * Morgan, I do things my own way”. So, she goes, thinking she’d be channeled by Pearls, allowing her to kill Maya. But her plan backfires, and Misty channels her. But she still (almost) managed to make her killing spree (don’t want to call it a plan because it was Morgan’s plan, but Dahlia’s spree) work. She almost killed Maya. She got Misty killed, which she knew would have to happen one way or another, allowing her to pin the blame on Maya if she didn’t get killed, then at the very least allowing her to live with the utmost guilt of killing her own mother. And had it been Pearls, can you imagine how much worse it would have been? To have Maya attacking “Pearls”, and vice versa? Either way, she’d be able to scar Maya, Pearls, and Misty for life, not to mention the fact that she was able to use her sister in all this. Iris, being Dahlia’s sister and loving her as such, still trusted her. Dahlia used her, and probably tricked her into thinking she’d be sisterly back, but in the end, she didn’t care. Dahlia’s only scheme was to hurt everyone involved, getting her revenge. And she did so to Iris here too, again, making it seem like she was guilty of the crime, but actually locking her in the cave.
But, despite how evil her plan was, and how damn masterful it was… (and once again, I extend Dahlia’s plan from Morgan’s since her motivation was complteley different), she was able to get Godot TWICE, because even though Godot stabbing her wasn’t according to plan… well, she got him with a guilty verdict, and perhaps Dahlia, being evil as she is, didn’t realize that Godot being rendered Guilty was a GOOD thing. It made him truly realize and accept what had happened, and made him finally content with himself, so he could “die” happy. She wanted to be able to get Mia again, through the dead, as she attempted once more to go womano-a-womano in court… and maybe by doing this, hurt Phoenix and Godot in the process, but alas, she failed her, due to the amazing legal powers of Mia and Phoenix, and once she was extracted from Maya (which is one of the coolest scenes in any PW game), she was done for. The vengeance she tries to wreck on Mia, Mia completely turns it around and sends it back at her, and vanquishes her spirit for good.
So yes, in my opinion, Dahlia is easily the most complex villain in the series, and definitely the most interesting. She makes everyone hate her with a simple appearance, while making everyone gaga with a little girlish smile. She is the villain who is evil in the finer regards… the kind of person who knows exactly just how to make everyone tick, and how to exploit that to its finest. Truly, Dahlia is an example of a villain with all the qualities one should have. She inspires fear, hatred, suspense, intensity, and so on. There’s just one thing Dahlia is missing from keeping her from being the perfect villain…
[edit] 4. Manfred von Karma
…she isn’t Manfred von Karma. Holy. ****ing. Cow. Dahlia may have her backstory, and all her deep, intricate connections to every single character in the PW universe, and may have all those nice, finer, subtle yet provocative details that make a great villain, but she can’t hold an audience like Manfred von Karma.
Snap! And just like that, this guy has your undivided attention. You fear for YOUR LIFE, when just looking at this guy. His evil smile, his finger snaps, his fast slam, his thundering OBJECTION… If Dahlia is truly a person to fear, I wouldn’t want to be in the same country as von Karma. One word can sum up this guy, and I think you know what it all is.
Perfection.
Manfred von Karma is perfect, and he will not accept anything shorter. Now, going through all this, yes there is no doubt that von Karma is the more “typical” style villain, being more clichéd. But there’s nothing wrong with that and he does it PERFECTLY, like himself. So, let’s jump back. We have an undefeated prosecutor. The best in the land. And one day, while not defeated, he gets a small mark on his record for forging evidence, by none other than Gregory Edgeworth. So what else wouldMr. Perfect be at a tiny little smudge on his record? Infuriated? No. Not Manfred von Karma. Infuriated is an understatement. At least, on the inside, he is BEYOND INSANE WITH RAGE that his perfect slate is blemished. But what does he do? He just goes and does what he needs to do. Kills Gregory, secretly makes sure the blame is on his son, and while he’s at it, since he knows he wants to set it up such that it looked like Miles was guilty, revels in the fact that a psychic medium who speaks to Gregory says Yogi killed him, knowing that Gregory would be lying, that Gregory assumed he was shot by Miles. He did everything he needed to do to pin it on Miles, perfectly hiding the evidence needed. Confusing? Yes. Not to Manfred von Karma. He was shot. The door opened, and he thought up this entire plan in under a second. He knew it was Fate to kill Gregory Edgeworth right then and there and he did. Everything else he figured out immediately, like the fact he had one bullet inside him, which had to be taken into account.
He also knew that Yogi would go free, since he was clearly innocent, at least von Karma knew, and that Yogi would want revenge, on both Hammond, for making him fake insanity and losing his wife, and Edgeworth, for pinning the blame on him in the first place, when it was obvious (to Yogi anyway) that Edgeworth could have been the only one to kill his father. So, to complete von Karma’s master plan, 15 years later, he sends Yogi the infamous note… and this is the only place where von Karma messed up… was not making sure Yogi hid the letter better. As Manfred said, “He should have destroyed it as soon as he read it.” or something to that effect. But, he does what he has to do to get it back anyway… and what else what a perfect evil villain do best? TASER! Yet, in the process, he dropped his downfall… that extra bullet. Now, the second part here of von Karma’s plan I have to imagine was planned out well in advance, and perfected as time went along. But by taking Miles under his own wing, and creating him in his own image, he knew how much harder it would hit home when Miles realized that he was the one who killed his father, and the satisfaction von Karma would get out of being the one to prosecute hom to his death.
von Karma knew everything that was going on at the crime scene at all times. I mean, he ****ing knew that the bird knew about DL-6! HE TAUGHT THE BIRD TO NOT SAY DL-6 ANYMORE! If that doesn’t show his striving for perfection, then I don’t know what will. He never does a “nervous” pose on the stand until the very end, when you bring up the bullet he dropped. And that’s because he as complete control over the courtroom, all the evidence, and all the goings on. I mean, he can run the judge up the wall (though I guess all the main prosecutors did, but von Karma was the first major one, and the way he does it when you first meet him is simply amazing), and claim the trial will be over in 3 minutes (oh yeah, I guess he did get upset when that happened… can you blame him?).
And to top it all off, part of his plan is to leave the bullet inside him. Can you believe that? He thought that far ahead of time. He knew getting it taken out would leave a record, yes, but I’m pretty sure he knew he’d have to do that to be able to get away with everything. It was the key to his plan, and Phoenix, being the amazing lawyer he is, was able to pull out Gumshoe’s old metal detector and wreck him once and for all.
So yes, von Karma may not be the most subtle of villains, but he’s the most intimidating guy that can be made for a game like this, and he’s just so intense and into it, that breaking him is the most satisfaction moment in the entire series. I think Funk said it best though about von Karma. That von Karma is so amazing that he can turn water into wine. Then he can turn that wine into incriminating evidence. Beast.
FUN FACT: Both von Karma and Dahlia ruined Misty’s life. Cool.
[edit] 3. Phoenix Wright / 2. Dick Gumshoe / 1. Miles Edgeworth
As for these guys...... what can I say? They're amazing. From Phoenix and his "straight man" guy to Maya's comic, and the same with Edgey and Gumshoe (except Gumshoe > Maya). And Phoenix works as a straight man to Edgey AND Gumshoe, especially from the second game on, where Edgeworth loosens up a lot.
But yeah, I really can't justifty these guys with a writeup, and I don't think I ever will, cuz they're all so great, so I'll just list like one favorite moment for each.
Phoenix: THE MIRACLE NE-Actually, I'll say the Metal Detector, cuz that was awesome. Dick: Blue Badger and 2-4 are Gumshoe at his finest. Also, Gumshoe's "2-4 Fransizka entrance" in 3-2 (the best thing about 3-2) was amazing. Edgey: PLAYING AS HIM IN 3-5 (and everything Edgey in 3-5) :D
Sorry this wasn't some epic writeup, but at least I'm done and can be uploaded to the wiki or whatever anyone feels like doing with this!
