#scnineven

Dear Nick,

You can’t do this, Nick!  It isn’t your fault if some slimebag used me to get what he wanted!  You’re still the same Nick I know and love!

And I wouldn’t even be here if it wasn’t for you!  Come on, Nick, stop blaming yourself for everything that goes wrong!  That’s my job!

...We can at least talk about this in person, can’t we?  I can’t lose you, too, Nick.

Dear Ms. Fey and Mr. Justice,

I see...  My memory isn’t what it used to be.  I’ve even forgotten Mr. Wright’s name on occasion.

I certainly don’t remember seeing Ms. Fey come back to life after being murdered, however.  If anything should stick out in my memory, one would expect it to be something that unusual.

Dear Skibot99,

Co-Mod: I’d tell you, but I’m afraid she might hear me.

…?

Mod Maya: Pre-twisted Simon would be adorable! He’s handsome, has a prosecutor’s salary, and is a complete gentleman. (For DGS though, I’d choose Barok because dang he’s fine--)

Dear Inferno,

Co-Mod: I’ll definitely do so and let you know what I think about it as soon as I find an empty spot in my already packed schedule.  It’s like I’m losing at Tetris 99 here.  (Or just plain Tetris, for that matter.)

*Fast forward a couple of weeks*

I started watching the first chapter, and I’ve gotta say, it’s already pretty intriguing.  I found it a little hard to take Franziska’s voice acting seriously, though.  I wasn’t expecting something spectacular, but she’s just not herself without a German accent, if you ask me.

Mod Kristoph: I watched that a while ago. Really good stuff. (Also, I called who the killer was from part 1.)

(Previous Letter)

Dear sc9ven,

Co-Mod: I actually didn’t find any of your letters in the inbox, which means we either deleted them or already posted them.  Either way, sorry 'bout that!

I haven’t read any fanfiction all the way through as far as I can remember, but I do remember reading part of one where Kay snuck into Phoenix’s office after he adopted Trucy and almost freaked out, thinking he was her biological father.  I don’t remember its title, though, so if anyone knows which one I’m talking about, please fill me in.

Mod Kristoph: I don’t remember what my first fanfic was but probably my favorite is Pick Your Poison. It’s not so much a case as it is a series of “punishments” given to other characters. It’s hilarious.

Mod Maya: I cannot reveal this

(Link in Letter)

Dear Certainly Bobby Fulbright,

Co-Mod: That’s a good que--

AaaaAAACHOO!!!  ...Sorry.  *sniff*

That’s a good question.  My first thought is Phoenix, since he’s earned himself a little R & R after the crazy adventures he’s been on lately.  It’d be a definite challenge for him to get back into the dating scene after his encounter (and re-encounter) with the darker side of relationships, but at least he’d be better prepared for it, so who knows?  It might work.

Please notice I didn’t mention who he’d be starting a family with.  That’s up to your imagination.

Mod Maya: Mildly afraid because I feel everyone in this series that has any relatives is just cursed--I think both Athena and Apollo are the types that would want to? Apollo’s a really caring boy, and Athena definitely loves that kind of thing too. I think they’d like to give their kids the type of life they couldn’t have.

Dear ZaK,

Co-Mod: I love it!  Especially the double-meaning of the word “represent.”  Heaven knows if we’ll ever get to see Phoenix join the already huge Smash Bros. roster, but I’d love to see a trailer like this regardless.  Just make it into a video, and I’ll give it the Co-Mod Seal of Approval!

Dear skibot99 again,

Co-Mod: Well, you’re right about us being busy with letters.  I still need to get on with the essay-writing part of this blog.  There are currently five or so requests for them, and I’d love to get them all done right now, but things have kept getting in the way.  I’ll be sure and get ‘em done ASAP, though.

Unfortunately, I don’t know of any blogs that are specifically about discussing Ace Attorney (and I’ll probably eat a cardboard badge before I go searching through Tumblr for them), but there are plenty of discussions going on at the Court-Records Forms, so I recommend checking it out.

The writing process for essays goes something like this: think about it, write it down, revise it, repeat.  I also take a look at gameplay videos to make sure I don’t miss any important details, but other than that, I just write whatever comes to mind when I think about the character in question, then try to reorganize it.  It think that’s called the KISS principle (Keep It Simple, Stupid.)  I hope it’s working for you all so far!

Dear jnv11,

Co-Mod: Thanks for finding those!  The first one was the Mod’s misspelling, but the Engarde letters were mine.  I must have let my mental guard down, so to speak.

Dear Anonymous,

Co-Mod: We’re actually using Tumblr’s Schedule option, which lets you choose a specific times for letters to be posted.  It’s a little less convenient than the Queue option, but I’ve found it to be more reliable.

And trust me, if we had the kind of time one would need to post something manually ever two hours, we’d be answering letters way faster.

Dear Mothmouth,

Co-Mod: Sure thing.  Here it is, and here’s the Ghost Trick one.  That one was a feat of animation, let me tell you.

And thanks for the kind words!  You’re just as cool.

Dear Fulbright,

Co-Mod: Thanks!  It was mainly thought up by Mod Kristoph and Mod Paups, and we kind of started doing it at the last minute, so I’m super thankful for their help with it all.

And yes, the letters the villains answered will be given a proper answer as soon as they reach the bottom of the inbox.  We don’t take kindly to letter thieves ‘round these parts.

Dear Inferno again,

Co-Mod: A little late (and not even necessary, as you already know), but thanks anyway, pal.

Dear skibot99 again (again),

Co-Mod: Thanks!  I somehow forgot to do that, but those tags have been added now.  Sheesh, what would we do without you guys?

I’ll keep your April Fools’ Day idea in mind for next year (I blocked it out so we can retain the element of surprise), but there’s a chance we might choose to do something different.  Oh yeah, and the Mod’s back!

That was more or less my reaction when I first heard the news.  Glad to have you back, Modot!  (That’s definitely my favorite Mod nickname, by the way.)

Dear Phoenix Left,

I admit I did for a short while.  It’s hard not to feel grateful when someone takes your side while you’re at rock bottom.  It sure would’ve been nice if it hadn’t been a cover-up for putting me there in the first place.

Like they say, friendships come and go.  The same can’t be said for enemies, though, can it?

Dear thezcmme,

Co-Mod: It’s actually gotten quite a bit shorter since I started here.  It now takes somewhere between two and three months.  It’s a great time to get your asks in!

(Please don’t use that as an excuse to spam our inbox, though.)

Dear thezcmme again,

Co-Mod: Good question.  At this point, I actually sort of hope they don’t make one, since it practically exists already.  I guess we’ll just cross that path when we get to it.  (Get it?)

(Previous Letter)

Dear Trearoos, guquis, and skibot99,

Co-Mod: Thanks for letting me know...again.

(Link in Letter)

Dear skibot99,

Co-Mod: Hey, at least you’re not obsessed enough to try running the blog yourself.  Sometimes I wonder if I spend too much time talking and writing about Ace Attorney.  It’s a beautiful series, but there’s still real life to think about every now and then.

I agree that that Godot/Jake parallel is shaky at best.  For one thing, Jake’s a lot more friendly overall, and for another, he didn’t lose a lover like Godot did (unless there was something between him and Lana we don’t know about).  One big comparison I can see is that they both lost someone close to them and made some irrational decisions as a result, but I sure wouldn’t have picked up on that comparison on my own.

And if I could rewrite one thing about Ace Attorney...I’d add in a beach ball after Mia’s murder.

Dear skibot99 again,

Co-Mod: If you’re referring to the Frequently Asked Questions page, I’ve already encouraged them to add their answers, so hopefully we’ll be seeing them at some point.  If it’s the Mod letters you’re referring to, I’ve been doing my best to get every new Mod’s responses in, but they all live in different places, so sometimes I have to push ahead without them.  Not that I want to, of course, but just so you guys won’t have to wait any longer than you already do.

Mod Paups: If you are talking about the faq, I forgot about that...I'll try to get on it though! 

Dear BadnesstheHuman,

Co-Mod: We are not having this conversation.

Mod Maya: ;-;

Mod Paups: no!! I love all the mods they are all cool ^w^ but thank you ;o

Mod Kristoph: Well...

(Previous Letter)

Dear Anonymous,

Co-Mod: Very sorry about that!  One of the other Mods forgot to cut out the name and icon, so I replaced the picture but forgot to change the names in the letter.  I’ll try to keep a closer watch on that.

(Previous Letter)

Dear Inferno,

Co-Mod: Yup.  I can’t be the only one who wants to play Dai Gyauten Saiban and its sequel for himself.

Mod Maya: Only hopping on to say that I would sell my left leg for DGS, thanks,

Dear scineven,

Co-Mod: I first discovered the Ace Attorney series when I read Matthew Taranto’s miniseries Turnabout Kirby in his webcomic Brawl in the Family.  This eventually made me curious enough to check out the games, so I watched some playthroughs of the first game and before long, I started falling in love with the characters, the game’s unique mechanics, and the series as a whole.

I don’t remember many details about how I found this blog (I remember that it started with a Google search), but I’m sure glad I did.  I was thrilled to see that the Mod (the only moderator at the time) made an effort to respond to every letter that was sent to it, and even more thrilled when he finally answered one from me.  It’s quite a treat to be able to talk to characters in a series like this one, even if it’s actually a fellow fan pretending to be them.

I started playing one fan case for a short while, but never made the time to finish it up.  I’ll be sure to share my thoughts I have about any that I manage to make it all the way through when I get around to playing them.

Mod Kristoph: I was first introduced to Ace Attorney through the fan made video series Turnabout Storm, a crossover between Ace Attorney and My Little Pony. (Yeah, I’m a brony. Come at me.) I just gradually got interested in the series from there.

I’ve played several fan cases online. I’ve even come up with my own top 10 list of them. 10. Turnabout Trickery, 9. Turnabout Substitution, 8. Turnabout Imperfect, 7. Turnabout Tomorrow, 6. Curiosity of a Turnabout, 5. Turnabout Curtain, 4. Turnabout of Courage, 3. Two Sides of the Same Turnabout, 2. The Dragon’s Turnabout, 1. A Turnabout to El Dorado. Plus, the fangames Contempt of Court and Conflict of Interest are great too.

Thanks for the welcome!

Mod Maya: 

1. When I started college, Dual Destinies was just releasing. My new friends also happened to like video games, and both happened to be Ace Attorney fans, so they were really telling me to get into it. I tried the demo, absolutely adored Athena, and here I am today.

2. I have not! I do want to write my own one of these days.

Mod Paups: I discovered the series when I stumbled with a Damon Gant sprite!! It made me so curious because I loved (and still love) his design that I started playing the games. 

As for fan made cases I haven't actually played any but I remember that when I was a bit younger I made one fan case! It was more of a story than anything else. 

Dear Certainly Bobby Fulbright,

Co-Mod: I know this wasn’t addressed to me, but...

Mod Maya: Ty! I’ve not been keeping up lately but I’ll do my best~ I love anything nutella flavored! Though I’d die to try something sea salt flavored--Glaceon for sure, any fox-ish pokemon are all my favorite. (My best friend’s favorite is also Snorlax!)

Mod Paups: I know this isn't for me but I can't help but answer! I love loove chocolate, bubblegum and cookie flavors! As for pokes I have too many but my favorite types are in this order: Ghost, Dark, Bug, grass, water, psychic and fighting!

Mod Kristoph: Thanks for the welcome! I think I’ve been off to a slow start but I’m getting the hang of it. My favorite ice cream is definitely mint chocolate chip. Delicious! And my favorite pokemon type is probably ghost.

(Previous Letter)

Dear Inferno,

Mod Paups: I don't think he says he doesn't want one, but it's more that he doesn't plan to retire anytime soon. 

(Previous Letter)

Dear BadnesstheHuman,

Mod Kristoph: Heh. Thanks! I kinda took their scoring with a grain of salt since I’m new and I have no idea what their scoring system was. I think I’m getting the hang of things in any case.

Dear skibot99,

Co-Mod: You can probably guess what my answer is: ATHENA CYYYYYKES!!!

Mod Maya: ^^ I strongly second that answer~

Co-Mod: I’d definitely be down for a split-up pair of games like that, though.  The final case could involve something that unites the two lawyers again (and possibly Phoenix) and requires the same teamwork between them that brought them through the previous two games.  I’d also love to see a few characters make a comeback in 3D (Franziska, Gumshoe, and maybe even Kay, just to name a few), and how they would interact with the more familiar ones.  I mean, I can’t be the only one who wants to see Maya and Kay debating the finer points of their favorite samurai shows, can I?

What I mostly want to see in the next game, though, is...the next game.  I know SoJ was a tough act to follow, but come on, Capcom!  You’ve still got hungry fans here in the gaming kitchen!

(Previous Letter)

Dear scnineven,

Co-Mod: No need to hate yourself for that, pal -- there have been much worse spammers here before.  I’ll go ahead and delete your letters if that’s how you feel about them.

Mod Maya: Ahh thank you ^_^ 

Dear cyber-c,

Co-Mod: That sounds like it might be interesting, but I’m not a huge fan of games where the goal is to be a villain.  There are a few exceptions, of course, but I honestly prefer lawyering the Wright right way.

(Previous Letter)

Dear Ali S. Fakenamington,

Co-Mod: I don’t make a habit of watching those, so I wouldn’t know, but if not, I bet you could make one yourself if you’re dedicated enough to seeing it.  That’s how most wonderful (and hilarious) creations are born, after all.

(Referenced Letter)

Dear TOTALLY NOT Mothmouth,

Co-Mod: Okay, jeez, fine!!

(Source)

Dear djn-001-kunai-man,

Co-Mod: Wait, are you telling me you’ve forgotten about the Modthorne already?  How soon we forget...

Counting all the previous and current Mods, there have been a total of seven: the Ace Admin (who started it), the Mod, the Modthorne, the Co-Mod (me), Mod Paups, Mod Maya, and now Mod Kristoph.  I somehow how ended up smack dab in the middle of them all.

Mod Maya: ermm sure? it made it easier to block out some things but if it’s an issue for people in regards to readability, I’ll start going into a photo editor to do the letters after the current queue finishes uploading. I’ll just a be a bit slower then, but I’ll do my best ~

Mod Maya: hello!

Thank you <3 Ooh that’s a good question hmm...I was really into this blog back when it was run by The Mod. I was a bit intimidated, but it really would be nice to write letters and continue their work, and hopefully keep up a caliber they’d be proud of, and try to be as entertaining as I can~

Mod Maya:

Dear Fan,

Ahhhh this is the sweetest thing I’ve read all week! Thank you so much! I hope so too!! I’ve spent too many hours scrolling through ehe oops-- (But I managed to hit the bottom of the inbox today!!)

(Previous Letter)

(Picture in Letter)

Mod Maya: Ohhh you’re so nice!! What a cutie pie Maya that is <3 I’ll definitely keep it safe, I’m happy to get such a warm welcome~

(Previous Letter)

Mod Maya: Listen, if Athena Cykes touched me I would thank her

but also depends on who is askin

(Links in the Letter)

Dear kuromajinevil,

Both at once, my friend.  For those who don’t know, Auryn and Scarlet Study are the individuals who created the English fan translations for Prosecutor’s Path and The Great Ace Attorney, respectively (I didn’t know that myself until I looked it up just now).  That sort of dedication to a video game series is an absolute joy and inspiration to fans like me.

(Previous Letter)

Dear Anonymous,

The letter before that one was sent to Apollo before his trip to Khura’in in AA6, so it only made sense to keep it in that time frame for this letter.  Otherwise it would mean a huge time skip happened, and he probably would’ve forgotten about the first letter by then.

I’ll go ahead and write what he might have said after SoJ in case you’re curious about it, though:

“That’s a good point, I guess, but it’d probably need a few more fighting sequences and car chases before it’d be marketable.”

(Previous Letter)

Dear astralshiver,

Ahhhhh, of course.  A recipe for disastrous turnabouts, in other words.  Thanks for explaining that to me.

Also, yeah, sorry for glossing over that part of your question.  I’m not sure who the most popular side character is, but unless I’m mistaken, the reigning champion appears to be Klavier Gavin, with a whopping 78 pages of letters involving him.  If he sounds too “main” to be a side character, there’s also Shelly de Killer with 46 pages.  Oddly enough, the Butz is tied with him there.

I’m not sure how I feel about that.

I definitely love AJ’s Pursuit theme and both of the Mood Matrix’s tunes, and I think they’re both awesome for their respective contexts, but so far, no song has impacted me the same way as Keep Pressing On.  It’s both powerful and energetic enough to make me want to start cheering for the defense (and even start clapping along to the beat), especially when it starts playing right after the tide turns in their favor.  The other songs you mentioned are also great ones, but I generally prefer fast-paced tunes that engage the mind and the ears all at once.  Speaking of which, I forgot how beautiful the piano sounds in the Mood Matrix songs.

And thank you again for the encouraging words!  They’re always a big help.

Dear scnineven,

You know, that’s actually a good argument.  The Mod came up with that rule before I was here, saying the Asinine Attorney episodes were “non-canon window dressing,” but now that you mention it, none of those categories are canon either, so...

Would anyone have any objections to them being answered here?  I’ll gladly do it as long as everyone remembers to treat it as non-canon.

I did play those episodes, by the way.  They’re pretty hilarious.

Dear Anonymous,

It’s sort of strange, now that you mention it -- I like seeing the number of letters in the inbox decrease, since it means submitters can see their letters answered sooner, but I don’t actually want it to reach zero.  It’s sort of a “moderator paradox” in that sense.

No need to feel bad about it, though.  For one thing, I don’t answer every question that comes through -- just the ones that don’t break the rules or have a potential to cause problems.  Secondly, I finally have some help!  Mod Paups is here to provide some much-needed support, and I couldn’t be happier for both of us!

Dear Christianthepupbot,

Glad you asked!  There were a total of four applicants, and believe me when I saw it was a very tough decision to make -- they were all dedicated fans of the series, and they all submitted very good answers to the test questions I gave them.  My biggest reason for choosing Mod Paups was her sheer enthusiasm for Ace Attorney, as well as for this blog.  I’m betting it’ll serve her well here.

My least favorite kind of letter is one that includes a huge list of questions, or requires a bunch of research to answer accurately.  Not that I mind learning things, of course, but it bugs me when I have to take over fifteen minutes to answer one letter.  That isn’t meant to discourage people from sending letters of this sort -- I just prefer it when they’re kept on the short side.

Also, as mentioned before, I’m still going by the name “Co-Mod,” even if I’m sort of the head honcho around here now.  Once a Co-Mod, always a Co-Mod.

(Dang it, why didn’t I pick something cleverer?)

Dear Dillian,

Well, I somehow skipped over your letter, so I guess we’re even.  Also...

Can someone tell me why Phoenix needs a holiday to receive abuse?

(Previous Letter)

Dear Inferno,

It was me, and yes, it was Engarde who blackmailed someone for the last time.  That’s what he got for betraying someone who murdered a star, kidnapped a girl, and injured three police offers for him.  Quite the jerk, isn’t he?

Dear jnv11,

Taken care of.

Dear Inferno,

It's my pleasure to keep this blog going, I'm sure I'll enjoy it here, thank you!

Dear BadnesstheHuman,

Oh I'm glad she's your favorite! I sure hope to do her justice ^^ nice to meet you!

Dear Certainly Bobby Fulbright,

I chose Lauren Paups because I feel its a character that I really connect to, besides that I just love her character design and personality.

I was originally going to choose Modot or Mod Meele, but for some reason Lauren came to mind and I chose her instead, and I'm very happy I did. ^^ Thank you for the warm welcoming!

-Co-Mod and Mod Paups

Dear Mr. Wright,

............................................................

Bailiff, get me a lighter.  On the double.