#Layton’s Mystery Journey

[8trackaxolotl]

There’s a diabolical lack of Marina and Luke art

[101flavoursofweird]

The problem with Layton’s character in the anime

I don’t think the problem with the LMJ anime is that is portrays Layton as a less-than-perfect parent/guardian…

PL3 already showed that when he ditched Flora in his office after he promised not to leave her. Okay, there’s no confirmation Layton adopted Flora or that she’s even a child, but she’s still a young person in Layton’s care— someone who he knows hates being left alone— but he still left her behind for his investigation.

Layton leaving a child, even one he definitely adopted, behind while he investigates a case isn’t necessarily problem. It isn’t necessarily out of character.

With knowledge from previous games in the series, I can headcanon reasons for Layton’s behaviour. E.g., Flora might remind Layton of Aurora, who he couldn’t save. Layton chased after Descole and brought Aurora back to the sanctuary, putting her life in danger. So, he insists on leaving Flora behind now.

During Azran Legacy, Layton had a very nasty shock when he learned that, not only was he adopted, but the enemy he had been fighting for three years was in fact his long lost brother, who had been trying to beat their long lost FATHER— the head of an archaeology cult— to the Azran Legacy.

So if Layton wanted to confirm whether the birth father of the baby he’d adopted was alive? And whether that baby might be linked to an ancient civilisation? I wouldn’t blame Layton at all—

But that’s me trying to make excuses for Layton as a character. That’s me trying to make excuses for the nonsensical writing of the anime.

The anime doesn’t reference Azran Legacy. It doesn’t reference any game or character previously seen in the series— outside of Layton and Luke and Rosa I’m glad you’re here Rosa but where are Grandma and Grandpa Layton— because it doesn’t want to spoil newcomers to the series.

And that’s fine! It’s fine if LMJ wants to be a standalone anime about Layton’s daughter solving daily mysteries and eating sweets and buying clothes! Even the plot point about Layton going missing is fine— it could be intriguing!

But for such a superficial premise… why does Layton’s disappearance need to be so complicated?  Maybe Level 5 wanted to involve archaeology somehow so they just copy-pasted the Azran-looking stones and technology? 

But why have Rosa and Luke question Layton’s reasons for leaving Kat behind? Why bring up Kat’s birth father only to never mention him again? 

Why wasn’t Rufus Aldebaran Kat’s birth father? Say, if he imprisoned Layton because Layton refused to give up Kat’s location, then at least that would make Layton somewhat justified! (Not for leaving his kids behind, but the fact that Kat’s unknown birth father was indeed a threat.)

Why not just have Layton kidnapped off the street, rather than having him go on an investigation and keep investigating when he knew things were getting dangerous? Why bring up the point of Layton being a questionable parent, only to never unpack it?

Kat gets a nice hug with Layton when they reunite. (That scene actually does make me emotional!) But Kat forgives her dad immediately and the next thing you know, they’re taking down the villain together. And then the credits and the happy music roll.

Maybe a moment of anger from Kat towards her dad was too much to ask from the anime… 

But it’s not just the anime. In PL3, Layton leaving Flora behind is brushed off as a joke. (Outside of Chelmey calling Layton out one time…) We get their hug when Flora is rescued from the Mobile Fortress, but it’s not mentioned after that. Flora doesn’t get to say goodbye to Luke with Layton. Flora isn’t present in that last scene with Layton in his office.

Maybe Level 5 were worried about showing Layton as a bad parent— as a ‘bad’ character, even. But… compared to some of the other parents in the series? (Hi, Baron Reinhold, Bronev and Arthur!) Layton really isn’t that bad, even with the anime in mind! It’s okay if he’s not a perfect parent or gentleman 100% of the time! But if Level 5 wanted to give Layton these…conflicted moments as a character, then it would be better if they could actually unpacked them. Give him the angst, Level 5.

[flowertab]

For the fanart request

Katrielle and or Ernest please

At the Office-

(Woww I don’t think I’ve drawn these two in forever?? I’m actually playing LMJ again with my grandma right now; very timely!)

[solstere]

Wouldn’t be a very good assistant if you weren’t decent at solving puzzles!

[working-dreamer]

I have seen the new Layton trailer and I have thoughts!

It’s interesting that they made a point to say that in this American town Layton is just an anonymous gentlemen while Luke has been solving mysteries and growing his reputation as a detective. Makes me wonder how that will affect their dynamic. On one hand I think Layton would be happy to see Luke has thrived on his own but I also think Layton will feel sad that he missed out on watching Luke grow up.

Will Layton feel oddly out of sorts because he’s so used to being well known? Or will he revel in the anonymity that this town brings? Will Layton wonder why Luke invited him since he seems to already have a handle on solving mysteries?

The website character portrait has new things to say about the characters. On Luke’s side it says he has become a detective. On Layton’s side… it says he has been acting on his own. Does this mean that Layton hasn’t done much of anything since the ending of Unwound Future? I mean it definitely makes sense because the ending of Unwound Future could naturally have left him depressed- what if that’s partly why Luke invited him to come solve a mystery in America? What if Luke just wanted see how Layton is holding up and to be there for him if needed? It probably won’t be that dark but that would be an interesting story right? Oh my heart!

I don’t think this game retcons Kat’s story. This game takes place one year after Unwound Future. Kat’s adventure takes place years after. I have yet to see the whole anime so I don’t know if Layton says he hasn’t seen Luke since Unwound Future but if so that might be the only detail that’s changed.

Can we have a cameo from Phoenix Wright? Come on, that’d be perfect!

Those sketches thooooo!!! Flora has grown up too!! Or maybe it’s Luke’s future wife?? Either way I’m excited!

On one hand it’s kinda funny that the ending card featured bullets and two bullet holes because ‘haha of course they would include guns in America’ but on the other hand…. They included guns. Real guns. Real bullets. IF LAYTON OR LUKE GETS SHOT I’M GONNA GO FERAL!

Overall I am so excited for what the future holds! Game looks good! Big excite!

[probablygayattorneys]

(Sobbing into my hands softly)

[eyesteeth]

yknow, i kinda mourn LMJ.

like, it was big. four years after we thought the series was dead, here’s a new mystery. layton is missing, here’s his daughter, what’s going to happen. a lot went into LMJ, the Translayton event, the anime, the merch, the release of the game on multiple platforms and the deluxe editions - they were banking on this. the game and the anime had sequel hooks, so we know there were plans to go further. and the fact that the title was changed from “Lady Layton” to “Layton’s Mystery Journey” mid-development implied that there was a series on the way - multiple games focusing on members of the layton family. lucy and alfendi joining in, sherl’s business getting resolved, there was a lot of space to play in.

and now, with NWoS announced, that’s never going to happen. LMJ did not sell as well as they hoped. people who had bought the game on mobile weren’t likely to buy it on 3DS or Switch. the more versions that came out, the more money they lost. LMJ was too child-oriented for an audience comprised mostly of adults, and these people weren’t going to buy five copies of the same game. i love LMJ, but it’s by no means a challenge in the way the other layton games could be, and that was something people were expecting by this point.

what’s worse, LMJ going down might have taken the newer characters down with it. if NWoS is a return to form with a luke and layton adventure, who knows if we’re ever going to see the layton kids again outside of the LBMR manga. sure, i hope there’s at least some acknowledgement of alfendi in NWoS, but i wouldn’t be surprised if he and anyone introduced after azran legacy never came up again.

i feel like there was potential for a new trilogy: we have the original trilogy, the prequel trilogy, and now a trilogy focusing on the layton children or the family as a whole. now we’re not going to get that. there’s a lot left on the cutting room floor. and it sucks.

i’m excited for NWoS. i just wish we could have seen where katrielle’s adventure was gonna go.

[profiction-edits]

Layton’s Mystery Journey userboxes for anon!

[souriz-e]

Join Layton twt if you havent already =|:D !!!!!!

It’s super small bc I just made it the other day, but with twitter communities being introduced, i thought id make one for us since the fandoms being (finally, rightfully) revamped :3

[sunnyskies281]

HELLO????

[justkillingthyme]

Sherl <3

[101flavoursofweird]

The parallels between Kat and Ernest…

Baby Kat comes screaming into the world during a shipwreck. Her mother dies after giving birth to her, leaving Kat with nothing but the kindness of a fifteen-year-old Luke Triton to depend on. Luke takes Kat to Professor Layton, who adopts her as his own after a few years. Layton vanishes when Kat’s eleven, leaving her with a family (Rosa, Flora, Alfendi etc) who no doubt loves her but she experiences loneliness nonetheless. Perhaps she feels overlooked next to her siblings and her other extraordinary relatives…

Despite her father’s disappearance, Kat makes no secret of her last name. She adopts her own noble-sounding title to match her father’s: ‘Lady Layton’. She follows in Layton’s footsteps as a detective and she names her detective agency after him. When clients mistakenly request the help of the Professor Layton, Kat’s reactions range from self-aggrandising to outright offended. Kat wants to be famous in her own right. She wants attention— partly to extend the search for her father, partly to boost her own prestige— and she wants to help people. She wants to be respected as a true gentle-person and a puzzle-solver, just like her father. She also wants money and material items (clothes, decor, sweet treats etc)… not so much like her father, but Kat is still valid for this. If Randall can crave shiny things then so can Kat

On the other hand, we have Miles Richmond. Miles is born into wealth—  to one of the richest, most influential families in London. Miles’ grandfather poured his wealth into redeveloping London (maybe after Clive’s mobile fortress attack?). His family lived in a freaking castle, containing portraits of them.

Then, Grandpa Richmond dies, followed by Miles’ unnamed mother when Miles is twelve (I think)? Miles’ mama encourages him to grow up to be someone big, strong and powerful— a ‘great man’. She did this to rally Miles’ spirits, but Miles misinterpreted this as meaning that he needed to become more powerful than the Seven Dragons if he wanted to make them pay. I think he resented the Dragons more for the death of his mother rather than the loss of his family’s wealth… but then, I’m sure the money would have helped if his mother needed to see a doctor… 

Anyway when his mother dies, Miles is left destitute and orphaned. He changes his name to Ernest Greeves— hiding his identity and his past— and he eventually makes it to Gressenheller, where he meets Katrielle Layton.

Kat proves Ernest’s innocence in a crime— partly out of kindness, yes, but she also wanted to stick it to the police and she just wanted to solve the case and she was going to Gressenheller anyway, so… 

While Kat does have her gentle moments, such as when she comforts a lonely Liza and a weeping Ernest, I think we can all agree Kat isn’t the reserved, sometimes demure lady Flora is or a gentle-person in the same way Layton is. Kat is often brash, boastful, impatient, pushy, greedy, bratty, selfisheven… 

Kat isn’t your typical gentle-person, but she does have a good heart and a strong mind. Even after learning about her birth mother and her past for the first time, Kat is still adamant that Hershel Layton is her father, and that she is Katrielle Layton. She knows who she is, who her family are and she’s proud of it.

Ernest possesses more traits commonly associated with a gentle-person. Ernest seems diligent, studious, polite, optimistic, amiable, loyal to those he cares about— a lot like Professor Layton in many ways! 

However, underneath all that, Ernest does have a dark side. He can be vengeful, sneaky and manipulative… rather like a certain Clive Dove.

The problem for Ernest is that he is a gentle person at heart, and Kat knows this. When Kat reveals his plan and his true identity, Ernest doesn’t sneer at Kat, grab a hostage or unleash a giant robot from under the castle. He still sees Kat as a friend, and he stays with Kat after everything is cleared up with the Dragons.

Kat reassures Ernest that his mother did love him, no matter what. From Kat, Ernest learns that he doesn’t need to be a ‘great man’, with riches and influence and power to overcome people who stand in his way. He just needs to be himself— a young gentleman and Katrielle Layton’s assistant.

And maybe, in turn, maybe Ernest allows Kat to demonstrate that gentle, considerate side to her that was always there. Kat is great and Ernest is always there to remind her of that, but it’s okay if she’s gentle— vulnerable— sometimes too.

[princema-k]

semi-formal intro to my(?) new au: the Reinhold Mystery Journey AU!!

based directly from @dearesthershel's (not so glowing) video essay on LMJ, i wanted to really take the idea and try and run with it!! details under cut~

RMJ officially takes place 16 years after the events of Unwound/Lost Future, Flora Layton Reinhold is a relatively well-known detective making rounds as following in her guardian's footsteps as a brilliant mystery solver. A now 32 year old Flora (formally known as Detective Layton by her peers, Flory by her 14 year-old sister Katrielle), having opened her office a year after UF/LF, is being given her assignments by the Chief Constable and soon-to-be Commissioner of the Yard, Barton.

Joining her is her assistant and now world-renowned journalist, Emmy Altava! Now 43, she's mellowed out quite a bit since the Azran Legacy (though she still hits and hits HARD). Summoned to Flora's side by an unknown individual, she vows to help the good detective however she can, either intellectually... or percussively.

Together, they're thrown into a myriad of cases dredging up places and faces both old and new, as each mystery resolved leads them ever closer to the cold case of the mysterious disappearances of the Professor and his blue-clad assistant years ago...

.......at least that's the idea i have in mind anyway. i'm not the most skilled writer lmao

[monarchisms]

professor layton + 3ds home menu banner animations

[working-dreamer]

Is Layton Brothers Mystery Room considered to take place between the ten year gap between New World of Steam and Layton’s Mystery Journey? Cause I just had a thought.

I’ve wondered how baby Alfendi would fit in the timeline of the story but what if Alfendi wasn’t adopted as a young kid? What if he was adopted in his late teens? Say later on after Kat was adopted? Two years after New World of Steam Layton adopts Katrielle. Maybe when Kat was 7 or 8 Layton adopts an 17 or 18 year old Alfendi? That could explain why he wasn’t around earlier because Alfendi could have been in university studying to be in the police force while Kat was being taken care of by Rosa when Layton disappeared.

Unless Alfendi gets lore in New World of Steam I like to think that Alfendi became adopted later in his life and Layton could have helped him get an education. Then Alfendi’s story in Layton Brothers Mystery Room happens (which gives more context to the spoiler call at the end of the credits of that game) because Layton would be considered publicly missing at this point if it takes place during Layton’s ten year absence referenced in Layton’s Mystery Journey.

The lore adds up y’all!