| “ | If you want me to take you seriously, you need to prove you're willing to do a lawyer's job. And you say you intend to see through the will of your compatriot, Mr Asogi. ...I would like to understand just how far you're willing to go in order to make that happen. | „ |
| ~ Mael Stronghart hinting at his true nature. |
| “ | That's... ENOOOOUGH!! Do you have any idea of the conniving that led to the acquittals of those WRETCHED criminals?! We have to fight fire with fire! Our courts can't function without a Reaper! Can't you see all I've done for this country?! This has been my struggle! | „ |
| ~ Mael Stronghart breaking down while trying to justify all of his crimes. |
| “ | Being the Lord Chief Justice wasn't enough. Short of becoming Her Majesty's Attorney general, I could have no real power to effect the changes needed in this country. And for that promotion...I needed to ensure no remnants of the past remained. I like everything to run smoothly, in the exact manner that I prescribe. Like a well-oiled machine... | „ |
| ~ Stronghart, after his villainous breakdown. |
Mael Stronghart is the main antagonist of the The Great Ace Attorney duology. More specially, he serves as the overarching antagonist of The Great Ace Attorney: Adventures and the main antagonist of its sequel The Great Ace Attorney 2: Resolve.
He is the Lord Chief Justice of England who wants to get rid of crime in London at any cost—so much so that Stronghart is revealed to be the mastermind behind the Professor conspiracy and the Reaper's curse, two of the main mysteries of the games.
Appearance[]
Mael Stronghart has blue eyes and a white hair and beard. He wears a green suit with a brown vest, a white undershirt, and a white cravat with a golden embellishment. The rest of his outfit consists of green pants, brown shoes, and white gloves. Stronghart holds a cane in his left hand. He carries a pocket watch and can frequently be seen pulling it out and checking the time in lieu of paying attention to whoever he is interacting with.
Personality[]
At first Stronghart appears to be an affable and humble person who only wants the best for the empire of London. In reality, he is a delusional, corrupt official who believes what he is doing is right for the law, but in actuality he is making everything worse. He is extremely hypocritical, being the embodiment of what he is fighting against: a dangerous, corrupt, and homicidal crime lord who will murder innocents for personal gain.
Overall, he is the one responsible for many crimes, including some of the Professor Killings, the false conviction of Genshin Asogi as the Reaper, and the Reaper killings.
Biography[]
Past[]
The Professor Killings[]
Ten years before the events of The Great Ace Attorney: Adventures, Mael Stronghart was a moderately successful prosecutor that envisioned a better future for Britain, but did not possess any power to make it happen. One day, he figured out that one of the high nobles who was also a prosecutor, Klint van Zieks, had just murdered a corrupt official out of a desire to bring justice to the justice system by his own hands. With this information, Stronghart blackmailed Klint into being his own vigilante with him pinning his targets, thus causing the very infamous Professor killings, which included two other bureaucrats and the previous Lord Chief Justice. Mael then commented that the Lord Chief Justice died because he didn't have the guts to do anything about the corruption.
Six months later, Genshin Asogi, a Japanese exchange student, began suspecting that Klint van Zieks could be the Professor. When Asogi brought his suspicions to Stronghart, they were denied by Stronghart, who claimed that Asogi didn't have any evidence to prove it. Angered by his response, Genshin went to confront Klint himself to question him. When he did, Klint immediately confessed to his crimes—having been guilt-ridden by them. Because Genshin knew Klint as his friend, he let him have two final favors. First, he allowed Klint to write a last will in which he confessed to his crimes. Second, Genshin promised that Klint's wife would be protected, since she was in the third trimester of her pregnancy. After, the two friends dueled and Klint was killed by Genshin with his sword, Karuma.
An Infamous Case[]
When Stronghart found out that Klint had been killed in a duel, he pinned the blame of the Professor killings on Genshin to keep Klint's secret safe and allow him to get away with his own crimes scot free. This also concealed the fact that a noble murdered other nobles, which would have caused absolute chaos if revealed to the public. To do this, Stronghart had Klint's friend Tobias Gregson and head coroner John H. Wilson make a forgery to finally "pin down" the Professor once and for all. Since both of them believed that Genshin Asogi was truly the Professor, they agreed. Gregson would gather a bunch of thugs to attack Genshin and steal his ring, while Wilson would then write the ring to have been found in Klint's throat, making him the only possible suspect for the murder of Klint van Zieks, and, therefore, responsible for the Professor's murders.
Once Genshin was pinned down and arrested, he was thrown into Barclay Prison before his trial, where he would write a letter to hand over his possessions to his son, Kazuma Asogi. However, Genshin still had the last will of Klint van Zieks in his possession, and he knew he would be declared innocent if he presented it to court. Stronghart got wind of this and quickly tried to get in contact with Asogi so that he could negotiate with him. The two eventually agreed on Genshin getting the blame of all of Klint's crimes; a subsequent staged execution would both put the Professor rumors to rest and also ensure Genshin would go free. Genshin's prosecutor, however, was to be replaced by Barok von Zieks, Klint's younger brother.
Both Yujin Mikotoba and Seishiro Jigoku, the other two exchange students that were accompanying Genshin, witnessed the guilty verdict of Genshin receive a guilty verdict through his confession to the crimes and earn the death penalty. Once Stronghart got the confirmation that Asogi was "dead" from Courtney Stevens, he sent Genshin to his grave and waited just outside of his range. He also invited Seishiro Jigoku and promised him the title of Minister of Foreign Affairs if he helped him on the conspiracy, to which Seishiro agreed.
The Dead Rising[]
Enoch Drebber, a science student who was accustomed to digging up the graves of criminals, tried to dig up Genshin's grave in order to rob him of his possessions. When he saw that Genshin was still alive, he was so terrified that his hair was rumored to have turned white. Stronghart, nervous about having a witness, convinced Seishiro to shoot Genshin so that he would not have a chance to tell anyone about the whole conspiracy—especially since it could have risked both his and Seishiro's positions of power.
The Reaper's Curse[]
As the newest Lord Chief of Justice, Stronghart took it upon himself to scourge the crime that was infamously plaguing London. To do this, he hired Asa Shinn, most commonly known as Jezaille Brett, alongside Tobias Gregson to start an organization that dedicated itself to assassinating anyone who escaped a guilty verdict. These murders were especially prevalent during the times when Barok van Zieks was the acting prosecutor, so the public began to attribute the string of murders to the curse of the Reaper of the Bailey and, subsequently, van Zieks. Some rumors said Klint's ghost was actually following his younger brother and killing anyone who escaped the law as an act of revenge for his unjust death. It was equally rumored that Barok van Zieks was the actual person responsible for the murders, considering it was him who was prosecuting the cases. Nevertheless, this slew of mysterious deaths would plague Barok for years and eventually cause him to retire from the courtroom—not wanting his supposed curse to kill anyone else. Barok's retirement was active all up until Naruhodo showed up to Japan.
Stronghart would realize that, in order to really accomplish his goal of getting rid of crime in Britain altogether, he would have to ascend from his position to become Attorney General, which would mean that he would have to get rid of his involvement in the Professor conspiracy. He would accomplish this by planning an assassination exchange with Japan, in which he had Seishiro, who was in his position of Minister of Foreign Affairs, blackmailed so that he would accept the deal. The deal dictated that Stronghart would send Jezaille Brett to kill John Wilson, and Seishiro would send Kazuma Asogi, the son of Genshin Asogi, to kill Tobias Gregson.
The Great Ace Attorney: Adventures[]
In Japan, Jezaille Brett was tried in court and she was eventually found out of murder of John Wilson by Naruhodo and Kazuma, but because of the Anglo-Japanese Treaty of Friendship, she couldn't be arrested in Japan, and would only be tried in London. Later on, both Kazuma and Naruhodo would travel to London, but, during the boat ride, Kazuma was accidentally killed by Nikolina Pavlova. Because of her tragic situation, she would not be sent to jail and instead be sent to another place.
When Naruhodo and his now assistant Susato Mikotoba arrive to London, they encounter Mael Stronghart, who welcomes them to the city and then learns of what transpired with Kazuma. Stronghart gives Naruhodo a test to prove his capabilities as a defense attorney by putting him on the trial of Magnus McGilded, seeing as how no one wanted to defend him because Barok van Zieks would be the one prosecuting. However, while McGilded was proven innocent, he would later be killed by being burned alive inside of a caravan. Because Naruhodo was still technically successful, Stronghart allowed him to become an approved attorney, and later introduced him to Tobias Gregson, while at the same time putting him on another case.
At the end of the fifth case, Stronghart received a telegram from Yujin Mikotoba, which would say that he was very sick and that he needed Susato sent back to Japan immediately. Naruhodo would be banned from being an attorney for six months, because he threatened to reveal the message of the assassin exchange, which at the time he didn't know. Because Naruhodo revealed the truth with it, he did not regret his actions.
The Great Ace Attorney 2: Resolve[]
Eventually, Jezaille Brett was found murdered and Susato, disguised as a man, would find Raiten Menimemo to be her killer.
Six months later, Kazuma is revealed to have survived his ordeal in the boat to London. Herlock Sholmes tried to send him to China, but Kazuma woke with amnesia and arrived in London instead. Mael Stronghart found him and assigned him as Barok's judicial assistant, due to him still needing Kazuma in his assassination exchange.
In the third case, Naruhodo solved the murder of Odie Asman, someone who had a connection with the Professor conspiracy due to him being the writer of the news on Enoch Drebber and the one to reveal his name on the article, therefore ruining his reputation. Not so surprisingly, Enoch was the one to plan his murder, although Courtney Stevens (now surnamed Sithe) dealt the final blow and actually murdered him, due to him blackmailing her with the Professor conspiracy and extorting money out of her. After the trial, Susato, Naruhodo, Barok, and Kazuma went to inspect the wax statue of the Professor. van Zieks revealed the face of the Professor and, once Kazuma saw his face, he let out a scream and remembered his past. This confirmed that the "Professor" was Kazuma's father.
Twisted Karma and His Last Bow[]
Seishiro, who still believed Kazuma to be dead, decided to travel alongside Yujin Mikotoba to London to complete the mission of killing Tobias Gregson himself. He decided to lure Gregson in a fake mission of the Reaper in the ship he was traveling in. Kazuma was sent with him by Stronghart as the true assassin. Although, when Kazuma heard the truth about his father, he decided to not go through with the assassination, and it was eventually executed by Seishiro himself.
Seishiro then intended to frame Gregson's long time accomplice, "Hugh Boone" (in reality named Dailey Vigil) for the murder that he would move to his apartment, but Barok van Zieks encountered the body first, which caused him to be arrested. This generated a lot of commotion at Scotland Yard, as the infamous Reaper was caught and framed for the murder of the major detective of Scotland Yard. The trial was set to occur behind closed doors, and Stronghart wanted the trial to be finished as soon as possible. The capture of the Reaper would be enough to promote him to Attorney General, and any ensuing controversy would only prove to be a setback. Knowing the secret hatred that Kazuma felt for the van Zieks family for having put his father to death, Stronghart named him as the prosecutor of the case and named Courtney Sithe's daughter (Maria Gorey) as the coroner to hide any information.
The Resolve of Ryonosuke Naruhodo[]
After deducing that the time of death was off and connecting the murder of Gregson to the Professor case, Naruhodo managed to delay the trial proceedings to another day. Taking matters into his own hands, Stronghart appointed himself as the judge for the next day of the case. As the judge, Stronghart repeatedly tried and failed to end the trial early so that he would be appointed Attorney General early. However, it became more and more clear that Seishiro had an involvement with the case. His whereabouts were unknown, which delayed the case for yet another day.
On the third day of the trial, Seishiro would be found guilty of Gregson's murder. Stronghart was more than happy to end there. However, there was still confusion regarding the identity of the true mastermind behind the Professor case and the exchange of assassins. Naruhodo eventually deduced that it was Stronghart who masterminded it all, and, with the help of the judiciary, managed to convince Stronghart to not end the trial early.
Kazuma, now fully convinced that Barok van Zieks was not the true mastermind of his father's death, managed to help Naruhodo deduce the fact that Klint van Zieks was in fact the true Professor, and that Genshin was convinced by Stronghart to take the blame of his crimes. With the help of Klint's last will that was hidden in Kazuma's family blade, Karuma, by Genshin, he was able to fully prove Klint's guilt, which caused Stronghart much despair. This, in turn, revealed that Stronghart was the one who convince Seishiro to shoot Genshin.
Despite these facts, Stronghart managed to prove that his status as the mastermind did not actually mean he impacted any of the dozens of kills he had under his name, and managed to convince the judiciary that, without the Reaper's curse and the Professor case, all of London would still be a place full of crime. Stronghart asserted that London was made a better place under his rule as Lord Chief Justice. If the information surrounding the Professor and the assassin exchange was revealed to the public, it would reverse all the progress that had been made.
Just when it seemed as if Stronghart would win, Naruhodo called on Herlock Sholmes, who appeared as a hologram in the court. Sholmes revealed that he was actually broadcasting the whole trial to the Queen of England. The Queen subsequently declared that Stronghart was no longer the Chief Justice and would be arrested for all the crimes that he committed under her orders.
Stronghart's Breakdown[]
| “ | Adjourned! Adjourned! Adjourned! Adjourned! Adjourned! COURT IS ADJOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUNED!!! | „ |
| ~ Stronghart during his breakdown. |
After his culpability was proven and the Queen revoked his status as Chief Justice, Stronghart started repeatedly banging the table in front of him. The final time he let his gavel hit the wood, the juror's table fell and the fires that determined culpability were launched in the guilty cauldron, thereby pronouncing him guilty. Since the scales were already tipped towards a guilty verdict, however, the scales broke and dropped in front of the juror's table. The upheaval of the scales sent the courtroom up in flames, causing Stronghart to scream in desperation and pain.
Stronghart later took the witness stand and admitted his reasons for masterminding the Professor case and the assassin exchange. He was then sent to jail.
Victims[]
| A list of characters Mael Stronghart has killed and affected |
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Murder/attempted murder victims
Other victims of his actions
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Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- Mael Stronghart is one of only two main antagonists in the Ace Attorney series to appear in more than one game, the other being Manfred von Karma.
- Mael Stronghart is one of two judges in the Ace Attorney series to be the killer, alongside Seishiro Jigoku.
- Furthermore, he's one of the three judges to in the series to actually be named, alongside Seishiro Jigoku and Justine Courtney.
- He appears in six episodes, making him the villain with the most appearances in the Ace Attorney series.
- He has many similarities with Damon Gant. They are both tall bearded men with similar hairstyles and clothing. They are also both in high positions in the legal world, determined to rid the city of crime. Slowly, they become more corrupt and delusional, killing innocent people to fulfill their agenda. Both blackmailed a prosecutor to conduct crimes (Klint van Zieks and Lana Skye), both used forged evidence to get people convicted, both framed someone who committed murder but not in the way that it seemed (Genshin Asogi killed Klint van Zieks but he was not the Professor, while Joe Darke never got to murder Neil Marshall), and both were involved in the murder of a police detective (Tobias Gregson and Bruce Goodman). While Gant stayed affable, expressing admiration for the litigant lawyers' work to expose the truth and showing remorse for what he had become, Stronghart was too far gone to admit his wrongdoings, believing his crimes to be the only way to rid London of crime.
- The reveal of Stronghart (alongside Seishiro Jigoku) as the culprit completely shattered one of the series' long-time formulas that the judges in Ace Attorney franchise were always heroic and supportive characters from start to end.
External Links[]
- Mael Stronghart on the Ace Attorney Wiki
