#Spectre's Call

[angelasycamore]

all canon azran symbols and motifs masterdoc

discord convo led to 6 hours of hyperfocus and research for me, so i'm gonna put my findings here for your resource as well!

as most of the resources concerning the japan-only azran legacy guidebook's azran "language" cipher (that used to be somewhere as a font back in the day?) and the fans' interpretation of what letters' solutions weren't included officially have disappeared off the face of the internet, i had the idea of reconstructing it, which brought me down the rabbithole of the INCREDIBLY inconsistent nature of the azran language throughout the professor layton prequels. even if that cipher is dubiously canon, some of its symbols appear as canon azran text in the games. i wanted to check overlap as well as log every existing example of characters in an azran writing system.

interestingly enough, some characters reappear across games- and there's lots and lots of them to account for. around 23 pages of this doc worth, actually!

this also led me to compile most of the visual imagery players see in azran spaces, as well as any azran seals shown in-game. i'm pretty sure i covered my bases, but if i'm missing anything, i can absolutely update this compilation!

here's a full pdf to save for your reference!

xo, lynnie

[ultra-puzzlemaster]

I'm currently replaying the Last Specter, so for the 4th November have some quotes that I like:

Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3 - Part 4 - Part 5 - Part 6

Emmy what does that even mean

Ah yes, the secret hint coins that are absolutely everywhere and that anyone can tell you about

Me next time someone asks a question I don't wanna answer

I love how she's taking notes on this :')

I wish I knew what's going on in this man's head. Is he extremely confident or extremely tired?

This is how you welcome a true gentleman

Descole it's midday Come on man I know you can find a better excuse

Wise words from a ten years old

Luke, how dare you insult the Laytonmobile like that?

No thought, head empty

There is no war in Ba sing se and there are no mice in Misthallery

Descole my man do you need a break?

...

Emmy I need a word with the person who raised you. And you need therapy.

Oooooooooooh

I haven't finished my current playthrough yet so that's all for now. I may make more posts like this is people are interested, so tell me in the notes if you want to see more of my silly comments.

Edit: I definitely made more posts :') Next part

[zenlesszonezero]

Join Zenless Zone Zero with Tsukishiro Yanagi, the deputy leader of Hollow Special Operations Section 6! Beneath her ordinary office lady exterior lies a meticulous, emotionally intelligent big sister to the team.

[pocketsizepunk]

the oracle of misthallery

this turned out kinda moody, but it's always so funny to me how ominous luke acts when the professor and emmy first meet him. i think he should get to be the creepy little horror movie child more often, as a treat

[lolotheparagon]

The sheer lack of positive reception from the Layton fandom of the Last Specter/Spectre's Call pisses me off cos that game brought me to tears. A GIANT CUDDLY SEA LION SACRIFICED HER LIFE TO SAVE HER HUMAN FRIEND AND CURE HER ILLNESS BY GIVING HER A PREHISTORIC GARDEN. And everyone just turned up their nose at it.

[dearesthershel]

Can’t take all the credit with this one, but Discord user CreativelyNamedUser#1903 dumped the Spectre’s Call character sprites in the DearestHershel Discord, though they were all split up into animated ‘pieces’ (e.g. mouth movements, eye movements, limbs, etc).  I pieced them together and upscaled them, which, while not perfect, now gives us the cleanest copies of the sprites from Spectre’s Call. Am going on holiday for the week on the South Coast, but will take requests for other sprites once I’m back.  Let me know what else you wanna see in the replies!

[amaryllisblackthorn]

spoilers for professor layton and the last specter

one day i'll finally write that ~analysis about how layton treats children esp in pl4 and esp in comparison to emmy that's been in my head for literal y e a r s at this point

i'm going to actually leave some of my scattered thoughts abt it here finally. note that this is all based on the US localization.

for lack of better words, layton treats children with respect and seriously. like of course he's mindful that they're children but he takes what they say and feel with seriousness. vs emmy who's often patronizing, demeaning, or impatient (for lack of better words).

this is prob most apparent with Luke in pl4, though not limited to him.

when first told about the door puzzle, emmy goes 'aw thats so cute let's do it'. like indulging a little kid. which luke is, but i digress. EDIT: briefly checked out the jpn text in the scene and it doesn't seem like Emmy calls it cute, and her tone isn't doing it either. seems like she's just like, 'Professor, let's do it!' which is interestinf

there's a point where Luke is freaking out about the specter and the power it has and how it's corrupted his father. emmy's like 'you cant seriously believe theres actually a specter!' but Layton says to Luke 'I believe the specter has the power you say it has'. Layton doesnt believe there's an actual monster re: the specter, but he believes there is something re: the specter, and that's the important thing. and Layton furthermore immediately goes on to say he's noticed something's up with Clark, himself. Layton is listening to Luke and taking his feelings and fears seriously and is validating him -- and this is so incredibly significant bc of Luke's whole feeling like he's unable to trust anyone during the game which is incredibly related to this but a bit separate so im trying not to digress. THE POINT. is. the difference between Layton and Emmy in this regard.

i dont remember if it's the same part -- i think it might be later but maybe not -- i think it's when Luke reveals how he can tell where the specter will appear next? -- but basically Emmy's kind of upset for lack of a better word that Luke had been withholding that info and is like 'are you hiding anything else, like what the specter has for breakfast?!' or something iirc. luke mind of apologetically defends himself with 'i didnt know if i could trust you' and Layton is totally understanding

EDIT: (i removed an example bc upon further reflection it wasnt necessarily relevant. i might readd it later)

then there's the part with Jakes' son near the end iirc

also the small part nearer the beginning iirc when Luke goes chasing after the cat and Emmy&Layton are chasing after him and Emmy complains to the professor 'he's acting like a child!' and layton's like 'heh well he is a child c; '

there's also how Layton treats/interacts with the Ravens

also when first meeting Luke and Luke's opening up slightly but then Clark comes in and starts scolding him which has Luke withdraw/angry/turn away and Layton's like, "Clark, please"

there's also the cutscene when they first see the specter, where before it appears. Layton asks Luke, 'well, luke, what do you think? do you see anything?', he says no nothing, and Emmy's like 'I still have a hard time believing this. it sounds like a scary bedtime story. is this even possible?'. Layton says, 'Well, we'll soon find out.' and then Emmy goes on to say 'and a poor boy who predicts where the giant specter will appear' and Luke's unhappy about her comment

ALSO when Layton tries to go after the Specter that scene and Luke grabs onto him and tells him not to go, Layton takes the time to talk to him. same for when Luke's freaking out when the police took Arianna away. Layton puts a hand on his shoulder, gets to his level, and talks to him seriously.

this isn't bashing on Emmy btw I actually enjoy this as part of her character and it makes sense to me the difference between her and Layton in this regard. im also not saying that shes like always like this with kids either. or that it's even kid specific. I genuinely think it's neat. I also think it's a super neat part of Layton's character.

also ive really got to either play through pl4 again myself or watch a playthrough to record all the specific instances again.

also Layton taking Luke's feelings and fears seriously and Luke coming to trust Layton at this time of his life means the world to me

[zenlesszonezero]

Join Zenless Zone Zero with Tsukishiro Yanagi, the deputy leader of Hollow Special Operations Section 6! Beneath her ordinary office lady exterior lies a meticulous, emotionally intelligent big sister to the team.

[stormflute]

Playing through Spectre's Call with some friends and it's riot

[characteroulette]

Some Crows! Was musing about him and a potential place for him. His design is so good, I wish I knew more about him.

[mail-posting]

New pfp because I have Layton on the mind :D

[101flavoursofweird]

I think a WEEK is a big ask, but if it’s just one day, would people want to contribute to that? 

Contributions wouldn’t need to be fanart/fanfics/gifs etc., it could just include posts discussing PL4 — favourite characters/analysis/or just spreading love for the game.

[ultra-puzzlemaster]

A bit late but for the @layton-npc-appreciation-week, I wanted to talk about Beth from The Last Specter:

Mostly because I've only now realized how important she's for the plot, years after playing LS for the first time.

Spoilers for Last Specter/Spectre's Call ahead!

So Beth worked as a maid for the Barde family, but got fired shortly before Evan's death, then started working in the Triton household. Which means she's the one who can tell you the most about both families and how things changed when the Specter appeared. And she does so!

Her first and perhaps most important action was actually before the game started. If you remember what Luke says…

That's right, she's the one who let Luke know about the flute being sold at the black market! She may not be aware of it but it's thanks to her that Layton and the other get to meet the Black Ravens and learn about Barde, and ultimately

In fact, if you think about it, perhaps she could have told them even more about this flute if they had asked her, since:

She already knew Arianna was the one playing it all along.

But that's not all! She has a role that might be less important for the professor but crucial for us players.

Indeed, she's the one giving us the biggest clues about Doland being an impostor:

In game, Layton realizes and proves he's the mastermind thanks to Luke's notes, which we sadly can't see.

But if we listen to Beth and help her, she'll tell us how Doland suddenly changed after the Specter appeared: his beautiful penmanship became nearly impossible to read, he started going out who-knows-where a lot, didn't gave her clear instructions like he used to, and got mean to her.

Another character, Jasmine, notices and mentions Doland's change in character but she doesn't say much except "he ignored me and my puzzle do you want to solve it?" while Beth gives us an entire puzzle based on Descole's awful handwriting.

And it makes sense: since they work together, she's the most likely to see the cracks in his act, and since he doesn't really care about her, she didn't get kidnapped nor blackmailed.

Other notable things she can tell us include:

Mentioning the oracle and that Doland knows about it.

Another clue that there's something hidden in the cellar, and that when Emmy thought she heard voices it wasn't just her imagination. (also the poor woman started to doubt her own sanity because of Descole)

She confirmed (although was there any doubt about it?) that Barde's death and his will are very strange, even if they were confirmed by the famous police officer Third-Eyed Jakes. She doesn't say it in front of Luke but she suspects that Clark killed Barde and now his ghost is haunting the house.

Speaking of Jakes, she informs you later that Clark left with him.

If you go see her before going to save Arianna she'll tell you that both Clark and Doland left without a word. Layton knows what's going on.

Not a hint but she also has this line:

Poor Beth struggles with Fake Doland's instructions and bad temper to the point she has to repeatedly ask Layton to help, she gives him puzzles (which he likes) and then feels guilty about it. This woman deserves a break. And someone to tell her it's not her fault Doland was so rude to her.

There's a lot more to talk about: how working under a manipulator's supervision affected her self-esteem, how her role in the story was overlooked, how the game treated her character… (I could probably make a whole post about sexism, working classes and the devaluation of social work… but not today)

I'll end with this picture from the credits where we can see Beth regained her place in the Barde's family:

If you've read to the end, thank you very much!

And remember: whoever you are, whatever you do, you matter, and you're more important than you may think.

[pocketsizepunk]

taking a break in the sun

@layton-npc-appreciation-week day 3: last specter/eternal diva

jasmine is an absolute sweetheart! last year was a coin toss between her and finch, so obviously i had to draw her this year. she's just such a lovely character!

[habijob]

Finished replaying Spectre's Call/Last Specter and man...

The story feels not very focused but rather all over the place. No wonder it's seen by many as the least best in the series (I am completely ignoring LMJ's existence here)

I think with a bit of a rewrite of two character's motives and also restructuring the first 4 chapters (+ prologue), the game wouldn't be as bad as it is...

[kaidatheghostdragon]

Good reveal au, where after learning phantom's identity and realizing the atrocities that the GIW have committed (or alternatively, ethical science au, where they find out the GIW plagarized them), the fenton parents decided to create the 'ultimate ghost-ending weapon' and sell it to the agents.

They go absolutely overboard, describing to the agents in meticulous detail how it evaporates any ghost it hits near-instantly and describing it quite ruthlessly in the blueprints, and soon the GIW have raplaced all their main weapons with the new gun.

Except it doesn't actually kill ghosts. It's the Fenton Bazooka. You know, the one that creates a portable portal to suck the ghost back into the ghost zone? What they actually did was retool it slightly to make it look more grusome than it actually is. They even added a beacon in Phantom's Keep, which all Fenton Bazookas will target when they open a portal, so the ghosts are always delivered to the keep.

From there, Phantom stationed an emergency medical team at the keep to treat the many injured and ragged ghosts that the GIW 'destroyed,' and to explain what just happened.

What they didn't anticipate was that now that the GIW have a mass-produced weapon that they believed would effectively eradicate ghosts, they would go on the offensive. They have a number of cities they've been monitoring but didn't want to get involved in without better tools.

One of those cities is Gotham.

And the Bats are ectocontaminated enough to register as ghosts.

Batman witnessed several of his children get evaporated by green energy weapons within mere moments of each other. He's absolutely gutted. Devastated. They didn’t even stand a chance.

He'll get his revenge, and it's frighteningly easy to track the weapon to private subcontractors. The Doctors Fenton, in Illinois. Their research calls for the genocide of all ghost kind, and apparently, that war started by killing his own children.

His children will not die in vain.

He gets to Amity Park and finds the Engineer's Nightmare of a building that is Fentonworks, but that night, before he can hack through the security and break in, one of the windows opens.

It's one of his kids that he had watched evaporate before his very eyes. They give him a silent signal of one of their identifying security codes and gesture for him to come inside.

Is it a trap? A prank in poor taste? Utterly genuine?

He goes through the window.

All of his dead kids are there, wearing borrowed pajamas and only their dominoes to conceal their identities. Daniel Fenton (son of the Fentons, this is his bedroom, has voiced a few arguments against his parent's views, but still an unknown) is among the crowd of teens and young adults, twirling on an office chair and obnoxiously sipping a capri sun.

"First thing you need to know, Bats," Daniel says after finishing his drink, "is that my parents are absolutely NOT genocidal ectophobic scumbags, and that is the reason why your kids are still alive."

[101flavoursofweird]

PL4 Fics

I want to write a few short fics for PL4 Day! If you’ve got any prompts relating to the PL4 characters/themes, please send them my way!