History YMMV / PhoenixWrightAceAttorney

** All cases that involve [[spoiler:Dahlia]] are this, [[spoiler:mostly due to her innocent looks and manipulative nature]]. One of the case is even the ''first one'', averting the "all first cases are easy tutorials" tradition in the ''Ace Attorney'' franchise. Those who started the game with ''Trials and Tribulations'' might find 1-1 and 2-1 a little bit too easy after completing this game.

** All cases that involve [[spoiler:Dahlia]] are this, [[spoiler:mostly due to her innocent looks and manipulative nature]]. One of the case is even the ''first one'', averting the "all first cases are easy tutorials" stereotype in the ''Ace Attorney'' franchise. Those who started the game with ''Trials and Tribulations'' might find 1-1 and 2-1 a little bit too easy after completing this game.

** All cases that involve [[spoiler:Dahlia]] are this, [[spoiler:mostly due to her innocent looks and manipulative nature]]. One of the cases is even the ''first one'', averting the "all first cases are easy tutorials" stereotype in the ''Ace Attorney'' franchise. Those who started the game with ''Trials and Tribulations'' might find 1-1 and 2-1 a little bit too easy after completing this game.

** All cases that involve [[spoiler:Dahlia]] are this, mostly due to her innocent looks and manipulative nature. One of the case is even the ''first one'', averting the "all first cases are easy tutorials" stereotype in the ''Ace Attorney'' franchise. Those who started the game with ''Trials and Tribulations'' might find 1-1 and 2-1 a little bit too easy after completing this game.

** All cases that involve [[spoiler:Dahlia]] are this. One of the case is even the ''first one'', averting the "all first cases are easy tutorials" stereotype in the ''Ace Attorney'' franchise. Those who started the game with ''Trials and Tribulations'' might find 1-1 and 2-1 a little bit too easy after completing this game.

* ThatOneBoss: The first half of the first day of the trial in 1-5 is one of the hardest parts in the game, especially since much of it consists of finding subtle flaws in [[{{Jerkass}} Angel Starr's]] testimony, mainly concerning the point from which she supposedly saw Lana stab Goodman.

* ThatOneBoss: The first half of the first day of the trial in 1-5 is one of the hardest parts in the game, especially since much of it consists of finding subtle flaws in Angel Starr's testimony, mainly concerning the point from which she supposedly saw Lana stab Goodman.

* AlternativeCharacterInterpretation: There's no question that [[spoiler:Manfred Von Karma]] is a terrible person, but is he an [[AbusiveParent abusive parent]] to [[spoiler:his daughter Franziska (there's no question he's using Edgeworth as part of his scheme]] or merely demanding?

* EarWorm: Some of the music ''will'' get put on repeat in your head. Jake Marshall's theme, for example.
** The. Blue. Badger. Theme.
*** ''[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U5WcVlg4oM8 Da-da-da-da-da-da, DA, da, da-da-da...]]''
**** ''[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8MK0dhnKG7s Dum. Dum. Dum. Dum. Dum dum...]]

** [[spoiler:Phoenix is disbarred approximately three years later in-game -- for unwittingly using falsified evidence, the same thing she made Edgeworth do.]]
*** That could have been deliberate foreshadowing.
*** Mia also says something similar in her phone call to Maya in 1-2, telling her to give Phoenix a few years before trusting him to defend her.
*** Or they could have been foreshadowing the ending of Trials and Tribulations, where Phoenix is able to stand on his own...
* HellIsThatNoise: Manfred von Karma's villainous objections.
* HilariousInHindsight: [[MeaningfulName Redd White]] murdered Mia Fey in the first game. In the third game, an important fact is [[spoiler:Godot being unable to see ''red'' on ''white'']]. Additionally, Godot/[[spoiler:Diego Armando]] cared for Mia Fey in the past and was resentful of Wright of doing nothing to prevent her murder.

* MemeticMolester: Damon Gant.
* MemeticMutation: Damon Gant--in spades. He will RAEP you, indeed. Also, Phoenix Wrong.
** [[http://hiimdaisy.livejournal.com/ Peachifruit's comics]] does this constantly.
** '''Objection!'''

** Manfred's frequent, [[NightmareFuel demonic]] '''[[color:red:Objection!]]'''s in 1-4.
*** Oh God, Manfred's ''fingersnaps''. They might just be [[UpToEleven worse]] than his Objections. ''Stop doing that.''

* AlternativeCharacterInterpretation: There's no question that Juan Corrida is an AssholeVictim, but just how bad is he really? According to [[spoiler:Adrian Andrews]], he's a CompleteMonster, but that's hardly an unbiased source. We do know that he was petty, a TedBaxter, and bitterly AlwaysSecondBest to Matt Engarde. He caused [[spoiler:Celeste's suicide]] when he [[spoiler:broke off their engagement]] due to jealous and wounded pride. He then [[spoiler:hid her suicide note]], which he planned to use at the most devastating moment for his rival. However, in the flashback to [[spoiler:Celeste's suicide]], he looks genuinely shocked and horrified, and his plans for revenge could easily be fueled as much by regret for the consequences of angry words he never got the chance to take back. [[spoiler:Were his subsequent actions just part of their "game," or was it really personal for him?]]
** There's also the issue of whether [[spoiler:"Ini Miney", aka]] Mimi Miney, or Turner Gray was the one at fault of malpractice incident. If Mimi was to be the one telling the truth, then Turner Gray is a CompleteMonster who overworked Mimi into the accident or drugged her to keep her quiet. However, [[spoiler: Grey had a point in that he had no real motivation for doing so and was in fact trying to bring her ghost back to clear his name, which would probably be a bad idea if she'd just accuse him of her murder instead. Also, she seemed to kill him because he was about to reveal that she was still alive, not out of any apparent desire for revenge]]. But Grey is an UnreliableNarrator about himself. [[spoiler:Why did he have an (illegal in Japan) gun with him? Why did he expect to get Mimi's ghost to sign a confession that utterly blackens her name and exonerates her former BadBoss? It seems likely he intended to force her to sign it at gunpoint (with the medium's life on the line), and if that's the case, then just how far ''would'' he go in anger?]]
* AnticlimaxBoss: Breaking Wendy Oldbag's psyche-locks in 2-4. It's the first time you have to deal with 4 locks at once, but if you show her [[spoiler: Juan's autograph]], all four of them break at the same time.
** Well, given how it's Wendy Oldbag we're talking about here, who is very dramatic, they probably did that [[RuleOfFunny on purpose]]. She also states what she wants from the beginning, perhaps making it easier but also making it less of a climactic confrontation.
* BaseBreaker:
** Case 2-3 (Turnabout Big Top). While a ''lot'' of fans consider it to be the worst case in the entire series, it does have a few defenders, largely because of [[spoiler:Acro]] being a very atypical "villain" for the series, and also for it being the only case in the game in which Maya (who is otherwise DemotedToExtra) has a prominent role throughout.
** Franziska von Karma, Manfred von Karma's daughter, or specifically [[spoiler: her behavior in 2-4, and her epilogue scene with Edgeworth.]] While she's (intentionally) unlikeable during the first two cases, her behavior later [[CharacterDevelopment changes and matures]]. Fans are divided.

* EndingFatigue: The last trial eventually boils down to just stalling for time.
** ''Canonically!''

* LoveItOrHateIt: Turnabout Big Top. See the above reasons, though a lot of the enjoyment also hinges upon whether or not you find the circus characters amusing or not.
* MostAnnoyingSound: Franziska's whip will have you wanting to strangle her with it by the time those two cases are over.

* {{Squick}}: In ''Justice for All'', Pearl gives us this gem:
-->"Let's go let her whip us, Mr. Nick!"
** Also, "Director Hotti" implies that he'd like to [[GettingCrapPastTheRadar "research"]] the crime scene photos if you show them to him in 2-2.
*** Even worse when you remember that it's [[spoiler:Ini/Mimi]] in the pictures, and he'd been going on about how she was a favorite patient...
*** Dr. Hotti also shows interest in Pearl's picture. She's eight years old!

** In an odd example, a couple gets this. The [=DeLites=] are either [[spoiler:a HappilyMarried couple of a man who isn't above stealing for the happiness of his wife and a woman who likes strong emotions, and authentically loves her husband for many factors besides money, or a HappilyMarried couple of a crook and a gold digger.]] No reason they can't be both. At least they are HappilyMarried either interpretation.

** Arguably Dahlia and Iris's father could be this. We're told that he coldly left his wife and badmouthed Kurain village, but the person who says most of this is [[spoiler:Dahlia]], who is hardly one to speak well of anybody. His marriage and divorce of Morgan can also count. On one hand, he only married her to get the prestige that came with being a member of the Fey family. On the other hand, we see that a desire to gain power causes Morgan to [[spoiler:try to commit murder ''twice'', the second time using her own daughter as an UnwittingPawn]]. With that second part in mind, one has to wonder if him taking his daughters with him when he divorced Morgan was as cruel as it's portrayed...

*** Additionally, were Morgan's daughters taken from her by her first husband, or did she give them up? [[spoiler:Dahlia]] claims that Morgan saw them as nothing more than obstacles to Pearl (and even claims that Morgan would have killed her herself), while her sister suggests that her mother willingly abandoned them. Then again, [[spoiler:Dahlia]] also claims that her father "had absolutely no interest in children in general", hence his decision to send Iris to Hazakura Temple, so one has to question why he ended up with custody of both daughters- did Morgan care even less than he did, or did he not want Morgan to have them (whether out of pettiness or because he thinks they'd be better off with him)?

** [[spoiler: Luke Atmey]] is this to a certain bizarre portion of the Japanese fandom, to the point where there are ''entire fansites'' dedicated to it.
*** Partially explained by the fact that his name translates to [[spoiler:literally, "I Just Want Love!" in a fairly desperate tone. For that matter the original version seems to paint his murder as more out of desperation ''and'' self defense rather than just the former.]]

* EvilIsSexy: [[spoiler:Dahlia Hawthorne]].
* FridgeHorror: [[spoiler:Dahlia]] calls Mia a spinster out of spite, which would normally just be insulting [[spoiler: had she not been the one who poisoned Mia's boyfriend.]]

** When Godot reveals that he drinks much more coffee than any healthy person ought to, the judge conscientiously rebukes him saying, [[spoiler:“You’re going to ruin your health, my friend.”]] Well, as you figure out his backstory towards the end... [[spoiler:his health has long been ruined, and coffee might be the only thing keeping him alive]]. Might be a FunnyAneurysmMoment depending on how you took the judge’s reaction.

*** There's also the possibility that it's related to the fact that she ''knows'' Grossberg is responsible for leaking the information on her mother, and her mother's resulting disappearance.
*** Not to mention the fact that Phoenix's gushing sounds disturbingly like [[spoiler:Terry talking about his "Teen Angel"]]. Small wonder she gets so angry, seeing [[spoiler:another]] guy being played like a fiddle by Dahlia!

* HilariousInHindsight: 3-5 has one when you examine the incinerator. "A fight between a lawyer and [[{{Galactus}} an overgrown boiler?]] [[MarvelVsCapcom3 Who'd want to see that?"]]

* ValuesDissonance: 3-4 gives us a 20 year old man in a relationship with a 14 year old girl (quite a heated one too) - the mention of the age gap is PlayedForLaughs.
** Only the reactions of Mia and Diego are played for laughs. The relationship itself is portrayed as unhealthy, although less because of the age than because [[spoiler: Dahlia was very obviously using the mentally disabled Terry.]]
* ViewerGenderConfusion: Ron [=DeLite=].

* FoeRomanceSubtext: Franziska and Phoenix.
* FoeYayShipping: So much of it, you half expect Edgey and Phoenix to rip their clothes off in the middle of a trial and start screwing like bunnies.

* IronWoobie: Maya Fey: smiling through even the most hardcore misfortunes.
** Maggey Byrde, who gets caught up in ''three'' murder trials over the course of the series ([[BornUnlucky and that's not even covering half the things that have happened to her]],) but remains plucky and optimistic throughout.
** No, let's count those too. She fell from the ninth story of a building when 6 months old and has been hit by multiple vehicles but suffers no visible injury or handicap from a series of potentially fatal or crippling accidents. She does not give up. She is '''[[MadeOfIron Made. Of. Iron.]]'''
** Maggey Byrde may be an IronWoobie, but she's far from the only one. Phoenix Wright had his beloved mentor die, was framed for murder twice, [[spoiler: nearly killed by the woman he loved]], abused by nearly every single prosecutor and witness, is never in the Judge's favor, almost never gets a thank you from his clients, was bullied in school, and let's not get started on what he goes through in Apollo Justice. This [[BreakTheCutie cutie]] has been broken by then.

* {{Narm}}: A good amount of the movie qualifies due to the fact that most of the characters look like cosplayers (albeit, fairly good ones), not to mention how they [[LargeHam overact]], oftentimes making hilarious faces and noises at the most inappropriate times. On a few occasions, Phoenix literally ''throws'' holographic images containing evidence at his opponents, and one particularly memorable scene involves him making the rather innocuous observation that Christmas Eve is almost Christmas, which inexplicably causes everyone in the court (including ''[[TheStoic Edgeworth]]'') to fall to the ground in a collective dead faint. Naturally, all of this leads to a lot of...
** NarmCharm
* VideoGameMoviesSuck: Gloriously {{averted}}. The movie has been called one of the best game-to-film adaptations ever produced on both hemispheres. It retains the game's quirky sense of humor yet injects more serious drama into some of the character interactions in order to attract non-players. It helps that the source material is far more plot-driven than the average game.

*** Mia also says something similar in her phone call to Maya in 1-2.

** Godot. There's a pretty big difference between sympathetic [[spoiler:murderer]] and absolving him of all his [[spoiler:crimes]] and bad decisions. Then again, the writers could have arguably been doing the same thing.
** [[spoiler: Luke Atmey]] is this to a certain bizzare portion of the Japanese fandom, to the point where there are ''entire fansites'' dedicated to it.

** Minor one, but in 3-3, Phoenix makes a comment on how Maya should quit her job as a spirit medium for a job as a waitress, and she considers the idea. [[spoiler: Come 3-5, while she doesn't take up a waitress job, she is thinking more seriously about quitting her job as a spirit medium.]]

** [[spoiler: Godot could be considered as one, but only to Phoenix, whom he refused to acknowledge for the greater part of the game. He seems to be pretty nice to everyone else.]]

* {{Narm}}: Mia gives a brief speech about ThePowerOfFriendship in ''Farewell, My Turnabout'' - which feels extremely forced and bizarrely childish in an extremely dark and tense case.
** [[Spoiler: "The miracle never happen." One simple typo turns the bad ending of ''Farewell, My Turnabout'' into a mockery.]]

* FanonDiscontinuity: Some people ignore the fifth case of the first game (which was not part of the original Japanese GBA game but instead added in as a bonus for the DS remake) because, despite providing us with MemeticBadass Damon Gant, it actually subtly {{retcon}}s the backstory of the game: [[spoiler:Most of the rumors about Edgeworth being a WellIntentionedExtremist are false and he never intentionally used fake evidence]]. This, to many people, effectively makes a good portion of the first game pointless.
** Interestingly enough, when Phoenix sees Edgeworth again in 2-4, he assumes Edgeworth quit because his perfect win record was tarnished, when actually, in 1-5, particularly on the third day of investigations and the last trial segment, Edgeworth is already questioning himself and admits shame over his AmoralAttorney past and fear that he might become like Manfred Von Karma and Damon Gant in the future.
** Well, to be fair, the backstory supposedly being {{retcon}}ed has a possible explanation in that, while [[spoiler:Edgeworth might not have intentionally forged evidence, but he probably used all of vonKarma's ''other'' dirty tactics like witness manipulation and illegal searches]]. No idea for the point right above this, though, as you'd think Phoenix would be a bit more understanding of Edgey after 1-4 at least, even if 1-5 wouldn't have happened...
** It's a bit difficult to disregard 1-5 considering that [[spoiler: Ema Skye is a major character]] in Apollo Justice, which is very much canon. I guess the same people who take issue with the supposed retcon do not view that game as canon, either. Or they just pretend that AJ marks [[spoiler: her]] first appearance.
*** But then that brings up the question of [[spoiler: Where did Phoenix get the fingerprint powder?]]

* CrossesTheLineTwice or {{Narm}}: After TheReveal [[spoiler: of [[BitchInSheepsClothing Matt Engarde's]] true colors, he reveals his [[GoodScarsEvilScars previously-unseen ''massive'' facial scar]], pulls out AGlassOfChianti, gains an ominous new {{Leitmotif}}, and his personality does a ''complete'' 180. How jarring the change is from his previous BrainlessBeauty NiceGuy persona can easily come across as absolutely ridiculous. Of course, for some, [[NarmCharm this is]] NightmareFuel.]]

** Even [[spoiler: Dahlia Hawhthorne]] qualifies. Many of her fans will comment that, although her actions were unexcusable, her life was miserable, and will state that she is treated as [[TheScrappy an "unpopular" and "unloved" character]].

* VideoGameMoviesSuck: Gloriously {{averted}}. The movie has even been called one of the best game-to-film adaptations ever produced on both hemispheres. It retains the game's quirky sense of humor yet injects more serious drama into some of the character interactions in order to attract non-players. It helps that the source material is far more plot-driven than the average game.

* VideoGameMoviesSuck: Gloriously {{averted}}. The movie has even been called one of the best game-to-film adaptations ever produced. It retains the game's quirky sense of humor yet injects more serious drama into some of the character interactions in order to attract non-players. It helps that the source material is far more plot-driven than the average game.

* VideoGameMoviesSuck: Gloriously {{averted}}. The movie has even been called one of the best game-to-film adaptations ever produced. It retains the game's quirky sense of humor yet injects more serious drama into some of the character interactions in order to attract non-players.

* CompleteMonster: [[spoiler: Manfred von Karma.]] As a prosecutor, he had a flawless, decades-long win streak, and is most likely responsible for hundreds of defendants' false charges and subsequent executions, which would make him an indirect mass murderer. until defense attorney Gregory Edgeworth managed to (rightfully) have [[spoiler: von Karma]] penalized for his illegal workings in the courtroom. Although Gregory still lost the case, [[spoiler: von Karma]] was enraged by the black mark on his previously-perfect record. Unfortunately, right after the end of the case, an earthquake hit the building. It trapped Gregory Edgeworth, his nine-year-old son Miles, and a bailiff inside an elevator. As oxygen was beginning to run out, the bailiff panicked and attacked Gregory. Miles threw a piece of evidence from the trial at them to get them to stop fighting, which turned out to be a gun. The gun fired once, a terrible scream was heard, and then Miles passed out from lack of oxygen. Unbeknownst to the people in the elevator, [[spoiler: von Karma]] had come across them. The bullet from the gun shot through the glass and hit his shoulder, causing him to scream. In revenge for the black mark against his record, [[spoiler: von Karma]] picked up the gun and shot the unconscious Gregory in the heart. Afterwards, [[spoiler: von Karma]] took Miles under his wing and, for fifteen years, raised Miles to be the antithesis of everything that Gregory Edgeworth was, twisting the boy to fit his views and become a ruthless, cold-hearted prosecutor who cared for nothing but getting a guilty verdict every time. Finally, on the very last day before the Gregory Edgeworth murder case was closed forever, von Karma set up a murder and pinned the blame on Miles Edgeworth, intending to have his own foster-son executed for a murder he didn't commit. [[spoiler: Von Karma]] also planned it out so that Miles would be convinced that ''he himself'' was the one who had killed his father and would confess to and be charged with that murder as well.