The Ace Attorney franchise doesn’t feature any anthropomorphic characters. Sure, it can get zany and feature strange stuff at times but for the most part it opts to be somewhat realistic with its cases. There aren’t any werewolves walking around or talking animals taking the spotlight. But there are characters who are animal tamers or otherwise work with animals that play pivotal roles in the cases they’re in. There are characters with names and attributes that clearly take inspiration from the animal kingdom. Animals themselves even show up as crucial evidence or get put on the witness stand. I intend to highlight those cases and characters here. Minor spoilers ahead for several games in the franchise, though I won’t delve too deeply into the cases themselves or discuss major plot points.
Speaking of Investigations, the second game in that duology, Ace Attorney Investigations 2: Prosecutors Gambit, includes a very animal-related case known as the Captive Turnabout. In the Captive Turnabout, Prosecutor Miles Edgeworth ends up investigating a murder that took place in a prison. One of the most important aspects of this case, is that the prison is currently implementing an animal therapy program where the inmates are all paired with an animal buddy. The first witness Edgeworth questions is an inmate named Rocco Carcerato who has been paired with a polar bear cub named Teddy. Teddy is more than just a cute companion though, he’s also key in identifying Rocco later on in the case since the bear is quite attached to his buddy. In addition to Teddy, plenty of other animals can be seen around the prison, including an elephant named Azea in the yard, who’s part of a visiting circus. Azea isn’t as big a factor as Teddy but still plays a role in solving the case as a subtle contradiction involving her leads to the truth. Of course, there’s also Helmut, a loyal dog belonging to Bodhidharma Kanis, a blind assassin. Helmut always shows when his master is around and plays a very important role in the background of the case, being the one who retrieves contraband for Kanis. Helmut is even involved in the backstory for Investigations 2’s big mastermind as is Kanis. The story wouldn’t be the same without Helmut. And speaking of Helmut, he also provides a crucial clue regarding the murder weapon just like Money in Turnabout Bigtop. Which also leads to Ally, the pet Alligator of Fifi Laguarde. Laguarde, who not only gets her first name from little dogs but also wears a coat made entirely of living foxes, is the warden. Yes, she wears live fox and is one of only two characters in the entire franchise to incorporate a living animal into her outfit(the other being the aggressively British Jezaille Brett in the Great Ace Attorney). Fifi and Ally are very important to the case and Fifi herself has significance to the entire game, which is hinted at when Shi-Long Lang visits here. Lang is also an important character in the duology as a whole and is very much inspired by wolves, as shown by his tendency to bare his teeth when angry, howl and even use wolf pack metaphors. His hair is even spiked up in a way to be reminiscent of wolf ears.
Investigations 2 wasn’t the last game to feature a case with animal buddies. Turnabout Reclaimed is a downloadable case for Ace Attorney Duel Destinies and is chronologically Phoenix’s return to court. in this case, Phoenix’s client is none other than an Orca named Orla Shipley who’s been accused of killing her owner Jack Shipley. It sounds positively outlandish but the case itself starts to make sense as you get into it. Orla is a performer in a pirate themed stage show at an aquarium but if she’s determined to be responsible for her owners death, she’ll be euthanized. Phoenix has to uncover the truth behind this case and a similar incident from one year ago in order to save Orla and later, her handler Sasha. Much of this case is spent exploring the aquarium and learning about Orla. Along the way, Phoenix also encounters a penguin named Rifle who plays a small but important role in the case. There’s even a veterinarian featured named Dr Herman Crab who carries around a baby penguin named Sniper in his hair. The case is also prosecuted by the main prosecutor for Dual Destinies, Simon Blackquill. Simon is noteworthy because not only does his outfit incorporate slight avian motifs, but he also has a pet hawk named Taka. This lines up with Simon being inspired by samurai, as falconry was commonly a sign of nobility and warrior spirit among them. There are numerous moments when the fate of Orla or her handler comes up, and Orla herself is even called to the witness stand in a lovely throwback to Polly. Much like back then, Orla’s tricks are essential to getting to the sad truth of the case. An animal lover is going to resonate pretty strongly with this one as there’s no better feeling than proving a lovable orca whale innocent.
The Ace Attorney franchise is full of quirky moments and lovable characters. While animals usually aren’t the main focus, there are exceptions and those exceptions really standout. There’s no forgetting a parrot or a whale being called as a witness or any of the animal centric elements of The Captive Turnabout. Some characters even have clear animal inspiration behind their design and mannerisms. There’s a lot of smaller details across the series I didn’t mention but I hope you enjoyed this look at a few of the most memorable parts of this beloved franchise. And if you didn’t, I only have one thing to say:
