WARNING: CONTAINS SPOILERS FOR ALL ACE ATTORNEY GAMES, INCLUDING GYAKUTEN KENJI 2!!! READ AT YOUR OWN RISK!!!
The Ace attorney series is famed for its weird and quirky characters. Everything from their design to name can be described as over the top. Fortunately, they're usuallt not 100% played for laughs. Some of these people are genuine assholes and even murderers. Which is why I love do expose their lies in their testimonies as much as I do. Most of the people you cross examine or have rebuttals with deserve to be exposed for what they are: criminal scums. That's why it's also fun to see their reactions when you expose them. Their over the top reactions, oftenly called breakdowns, are oftenly very satisfying and rewarding, as well as entertaining to watch. But which breakdowns are the "best"?
Below is a list of my favorite breakdowns in the entire series. The only criteria to make this list is that it must be a breakdown, i.e. the reacton the character makes when you have fully exposed their lies and they have admitted defeat and guilt. It must also be entertaining in some way or for, at least to me. You may have your own picks, but these are MINE.
Finally, this is not a particularly serious list. This is mostly for good fun, so if I happen to miss your favorite(s), please don't be rude about it.
All that said, here are my picks!
20
Frank Sahwit was the first witness you ever examined, so naturally he was the first one to have a breakdown. Unfortunately, he's not an interesting character, just a simple cowardly thief. He did suffice as the first witness ever, though.
19
This one is from the so far Japan-only Gyakuten kenji 2 (Ace attorney investigations 2). I will be fair with spoilers from this game, since it hasn't even gotten an english release. However, some of the breakdowns in this are far too good to ignore. I won't give all the details, but needless to say, Yukata Kazami is guilty.of murder. After a long struggle, Edgeworth finally finds out. What followed was...
The breakdown: Being a pastry chef,Yukata oftenly shapes "sculptures" during his dialogues. This one is his masterpiece. In pure rage, he blows up pastry and violently sculptures it to a replica of himself. He then pauses for a moment and slices it in half. The symbolism in this game is astonishing to say the least. This one gets an extra point for its "artism". Art can be funny sometimes.
18
A lot of fans will probably be angry with me for placing Godot so fairly low on this list. While he is easily one of the best villains in the entire series, far superior to those we have seen on this list so far, his breakdown wasn't exactly dramatic or funny, just pretty standard. However, his reveal had a great build up, as he was the prosecutor of all cases Wright faced in the game, only to be framed for "murdering" the woman who ruined his life. We can sympathize with him because his life really did suck in the end, he had pretty much everything he loved stolen from him in one way or another. One can't help but to feel sad for this truely tragic character as he finally is sent to jail for his crime. His coffe metaphors is pure nonsense, though.
The breakdown: His vizor explodes and he flinches backwards. Later, he is seen bleeding through his vizor. He says that since he can't see red, they must be his tears. The whole scene is truely dramatic, but the breakdown itself isn't all that great. It's a decent end for a great character.
17
Enough of drama and character development for a while, you came here to see silly over the top reactions, right? Well, I've got a pretty good one for you right here. Cammy Meele interest include sleeping, murdering, and blowing bubbles. Once she stops sleeping during her rebuttal with Edgeworth, she starts blowing some bubbles (perhaps joking about the common cliché in media where sleeping persons are shown blowing bubbles through the nose or mouth) and gets a more serious attitude. Eventually, like all criminals, she breaks down in a pretty funny scene.
16
From the same case as Cammy comes Zinc Lablanc. Sure, he's not the ultimate criminal in the case, he's just some witness douche. I was originally only going to put the true culprits of the cases they star in on the list, but this one is too funny to overlook.
The breakdown: Somehow, Zinc is struck by a huge wind,eventually causing him to fall backwards. The way his skin moves is what makes this breakdown as funny as it is.
15
There are a few lame villains in the series, and Richard Wellington is one of them. He mostly spends time bragging about his education and looking down on people for not having the same class as him. What's worse is that he actually caused Wright to loose his memory for a short while, making it hard to defend his client. Richard most likely meant to kill him, making him even more of a douche he already is. However, he also has one of the funniest reactions in the game he's in, not just his breakdown.
The breakdown: In sheer panic, he shouts at the top of his lungs and pulls both ends of his scarf so hard that he strangles himself and faints. Frankly, it would have been more funny if he accidentally killed himself, but I digress.
14
Another one from GK2. Once again, not gonna say much about guy, other that than his name is Manosuke Naitou and he is the culprit in the first case. He also likes to spin his guns and style with them. His greatest gun trick is saved for last, though.
The breakdown: He spins his guns faster than usual. Eventually, he throws them into the air, probably hitting something on the way up. A bunch of objects falls down on his head, including a miniature statue of The thinker, and his head is knocked into his neck brace until he falls down. This makes him the only person in the series to be hit by The thinker and survive, although he is murdered in the following case. Suddenly, it doesn't feel as funny anymore, does it?
13
GK2 time again. This is Bansai Ichiyanagi, a prosecutor. Unfortunately, he's rather corrupt. Not going to give all the details. but that hair if his isn't real. The reveal of this fact is quite hilarious.
The breakdown: His lighter starts erupting while he screams in agony. Or something. His beard then catches fire his entire "headpiece" is burned up withing seconds. He then cough up some smoke. When I saw this the first time, I laughed at it, it's kind of bizarre even by Ace attorney standards. Even if you know his hair is fake.
12
Jacques Portsman is not interesting. At all. He's just a your basic douche prosecutor. He does, however, have some funny reactions. Here's the prime example:
The breakdown: He starts chewing on his medal faster and small pieces of the medal fills the air. The accidentally swallows it and faints. Never knew gold was so incredibly lethal
11
Remember when I said that Naitou would be murdered? His murderer's name is Marie Miwa, and this is her breakdown.
The breakdown: She starts panicing and puts her hands onto her head while she screams, She is then electrified or shocked or whatever. This causes the fox around her neck to jump away. Somehow, her fur coat turns out to be live foxes, or brings them back to life by some miracle of God, which also jump away, leaving her shuddering in a prison uniform. She also proved to have a pretty impressive rack as well.
10
Her true name is unknown even to this date, but this spy is somewhat of a more final boss than Alba. Calisto Yew, Shih-na, call her what you will. She for some reason had a fetish of laughing for no reason. While in the guise of Shih-na, she mostly manages to keep this under control. Until the truth of her involvment in the final case is revealed more and more. She first starts laughing like she did while she was called Yew, however...
The breakdown: Shih-na starts laughing hysterically. She continues to laugh. And laugh. And laugh. And laugh. She also grows fangs for some reason. Honestly, this one animation perfectly sums up her character, all it needs is her jazzy theme.
9
The only think you need to know about Teikun Ou is that he isn't as tough as he looks. He's not the true culprit, though. In a sense, anyway.
The breakdown: He screams out his muscles, revealing him to be a fat person. Or he screams out his muscles and replaces them with fat. Your guess is as good as mine.
8
There was no end to the excuses and lies Quercus Alba spouted in order to hide his guilt. Even after his "transformation" there seemed to be no way he would finally break. Once you finally got him, man did he deliver.
The breakdown: Alba stats shouting and gets surrounded by lights. He bends forward with his skin all dried. I truely hope the image below never becomes broken, so this absurd moment can be preserved forever. That and I have a hard time explaining what's going on, but hey, it's entertaining.
I can't believe that Souta Sarushiro was the "mastermind" in GK2. His reveal was actually quite suprising to me. Not going to give details, but he acted all shy and drawn back in the game until the final case when he revealed himself. Naturally, it was just a matter of time before he got owned like all the other culprits.
The breakdown: He is attacked by a barrage of animals, some of which has helped him such as changing make up or making a pillar he can rest on. This, my friends, is animal cruelty on a whole different level. [/lamejoke]
6
I love this guy. He is always full of himself and confident, but in all reality he just want people to like him. Fortunately, the great detective Luke Atmey is far from "unbreakable". He was pretty darn close to getting away with murder, efficiently using loopholes in the lawbook. The build up for this one was pretty good, especially since he uses it two times but it in a sense have a different meaning each time.
The breakdown: Luke starts shaking, as if gathering a massive amount of energy, causing the whole court room to shake. He finally burst out in laughter, and yells "Take a good look everyone! Unable to find a rival worthy of my genious, I was forced to create one by myself! Here I am! The tragic clown...". I was going to do a zvarri joke, but I'm too busy laughing at a tragic clown right now.
5
I was honestly shocked on so many levels when Matt Engarde's true intentions was made clear. Up until the case he's in, ALL of your clients had been innocent. All had been found Not guilty in court. Then this guy came along and ruined that whole thing. Sure, he didn't kill Juan himself, but he hired an assassin to do it. The whole kidnapping of Maya to ensure victory in court was also really well handled in the game, and made the case the most dramatic one in the series until that point. Fortunately, Wright manages to prove to Matt that no matter the verdict, a betrayed assassin would hunt him down. That's when this happens.
The breakdown: Matt furiously rips his face while screaming "Guilty". This one ranks pretty high because of how suprisingly brutal it was. I even thought at first he had pieces of his skin on his fingers when he was done, but that is not the case. Still, a rather brutal and fitting end for an asshole of his caliber.
4
The build up for Manfred von Karma was pretty good. A prosecutor who has never lost a single case in his 40 year long career, as well as being Edgeworth's mentor. This man strives only for perfection, and all he cared about was getting Guilty verdicts, no matter the costs. Forging evidence, manipulating witnesses, murdering someone who has even given him a penalty in court; nothing was too much for this guy. During the trial with him, no matter what you say, he always objects and says that whatever you're trying to discuss with the witness has nothing to do with the case. Easily one of the worst enemies Wright has faced in the entire series. However, apply enough pressure, and all men break.
The breakdown: First he screams and howls Edgeworth's name. He is later seen hitting his head against a wall. His scream also helps Edgeworth recognize the scream from the day his father was murdered, futher proving von Karma's guilt. This breakdown is funny and rewarding, a fitting way to end a 40 year long career of being evil.
3
Damon Gant is the chief of the police. What more than that do you need to say about him? Even the police force is full of evil people in this series. Once again, great set up for his reveal, and his breakdown remains one of the series most recognizable. Mostly because of how crazy it is, but also perhaps because that Gant was a pretty good villain. For one thing, he used his position in the police force to his advantage, and often coming up with good points during the trial. He even wins if you present the piece of cloth too early. He is almost as persistent as Alba. Then again, most "real killers" in this series are.
The breakdown: Gant starts laughing uncontrollably, clapping his hands faster and faster as he continues to laugh away. What a perfect balance of laugh-out-lound and what-the-hell-am-I-watching.
Apollo Justice was a let down for me. However, some of the cases are still as clever as ever (no rhyme intended). Kristoph Gavin is one of the reasons this game was pretty enjoyable in the end. He reveals himself as evil in the first case, not even gonna try to convince the players that he's a good person. What follows is pure acts of sheer evil. It turns out he forged evidence in a trial Wright was supposed to be the defense attorney, causing Wright to loose his attorney badge. The he kills the defendant in that case possibly because he chose Wright over Kristoph to defend his case. Not only that, but he tricks the girls who made the forgery to wear nail polish whenever she would go outside, claiming it was a "good luck charm that would loose its power if she told anyone about this", causing the girl to poison herself when she bit her nails dosed in the poisonous nail polish out of nervousness. Oh, and he also kills her father when he used a stamp that Kristoph had poisoned, causing the girl to be framed for the murder of her own father atop of being poisoned as well. Kristoph is, without a doubt, a truely insane man. If it wasn't because of the new Jurist system Wright "tested" in the final case, Kristoph would have gotten away with everything since there was no decisive evidence. Fittingly enough, his breakdown is just as insane as his crimes and peronality.
The breakdown: Simply put: Kristoph goes "super saiyan". Less simplier put: He gathers energy like Luke did, causing various objects in the background to levitate when he does it in the first case, and finally slams his hand to the table. He then screams Wright's name as his hair fly up and he looks absolutely over the top insane. He is left with his hair in a mess and starts to ramble. At the end of the case, he is seen laughing insanely before he's taken away. The build up and fantastic delivery is what makes this breakdown so great as it is.
1
What in the world could possibly top going super saiyan, laughing beyond all reason, getting barraged by bubbles or animals, or even screaming your muscles out? The answer is: Build up. Dahlia Hawthorne is one of the most overlooked video game villains of all time. She is my personal favorite in the whole Ace attorney series. She is a very unusual villain. She first tries to charm you by acting cute and innocent, binding all men to her will. If that doesn't work, she will most likely kill you. Sometimes both. She is was born in the Fey clan, although she posseses no spiritual powers, so her family was ignored and her mother's sister's family was chosen to be next in line. Her mother, Morgan, spends the rest of her life to get the revenge she "deserves". She remarries and her two daughters, Dahlia and Iris, are seperated, Iris is sent to Hazakura temple and Dahlia lives with her new father and his daughter from a previous marrige, Valerie. To try to keep things short, Valerie, Iris, Dahlia and her then boyfriend Terry was supposed to set up a bogus kidnapping to steal a 2 million dollar diamond from Valerie's father. Iris doesn't show up, and the then 14 year old Dahlia betrays them by stealing the diamond and jumping into a river. Terry is framed for the murder of Valerie 5 years later, although Dahlia was the one who killed her. In court, he kills himself because Dahlia told Terry to drink from a bottle of poison in a necklace if he could not trust Dahlia anymore. Dahlia later poisons Diego Armando using the same necklace, charms Phoenix Wright and gives him the necklace "as a symbol of their love". She later plots to kill him, but her sister Iris tries to take it back during the dates she has with Wright. Dahlia grows impatient and finally tries to kill Wright by poisoning his cold medicine. Her ex Doug Swallow tries to warn Wright that she is dangerous, but he refuses to listen. Since Doug was about to blow her cover, Dahlia killed him by electrocuting him on a snapped power cable. Wright is framed for the murder of Doug, but Wright's defence attorney Mia Fey exposes Dahlia for all her crimes, and Dahlia is sentenced to death by hanging. HOWEVER, still manages to pester Wright beyond the grave in the final case of Trials and tribulations. One of the members of the Fey clan is supposed to channel her spirit and kill someone, but the plan fails. Dahlia is even mixed up for her sister Iris, the defendant in the case, and is even in court for a while. The reveal of which member of the Fey clan that is currently channeling Dahlia's spirit is one of the highlights of the whole game, and I will remember it as long as I live.
The breakdown: Dahlia's spirit is forced away, or exorcised if you will, from Maya's body, and her angry spirit screams she is not ready to go back yet, and all her crimes flashes by in the background in a scene that I will remember until the day I die. As funny as the other breakdowns are, this one wins because it's sort of silly in a sense, but has an enourmous build up, and the whole "you can't punish someone who is already dead" scenario is what makes this breakdown so spectacular as it is. You might disagree with me, but this is my personal favorite breakdown in the entire series.
Honorary mentions:
Terry Fawles had a breakdown that did suprise me, although it was still sort of predicable. I wouldn't really call it a breakdown, but Ace attorney wiki lists it as one, so it gets an honorary mention.
Furio Tigre's shouts can make the lights go out. Or in his breakdown's case, make them rave. This one isn't too funny or dramatic, although I like how he completely freezes at the end. Tigre is not one of the best Ace attorney characters either, but his breakdown is nice at least.
This one was pretty funny, especially how Franziska von Karma has acted all tough and cold during the game. I decided not to put it in the top 20 becaus she's not a culprit, and most other breakdowns are actually funnier. It's still a good breakdown, though.
Winston Payne's "breakdown" in the first case of Trials and tribulations is not only funny, but shows how he lost his hair. He's not a main character OR a culprit, so he didn't make the list. It's still fun to watch his breakdown, though.
Don't get me wrong, Acro's breakdown was good and it had a nice build up, especially since he was the true culprit. However, it's not all that entertaining for me, and Acro is not THAT interesting as a character to me. That doesn't change the fact that he had a good backstory and reason to do what he did, and I do feel sorry for him in the end. A little.
Thank you for reading! I hope you've enjoyed these breakdown as much as I did.
Images found via Ace attorney wiki and court-records, videos found via youtube, and are copyrighted by their respective owners.
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