Episode 2
(You know what fucks me up every time? This series has a lost turnabout, a stolen turnabout and a forgotten turnabout, in that order. Why is this series so bad at holding onto their turnabout? Or naming them originally?)
"Sinning cases' names. The names are awesome. And Pierce is being a nitpicky asshole here. We are starting early, I see." Three sins added.
(Gumshoe brags about the police's secure watch over a jewel while standing in front of a closed safe. In other words, there is no way that jewel is making it through this cutscene without being stolen.)
"Yes…that's the joke, girl that pretends she only says jokes." One sin added.
(We see numbers typed into the safe, but no fingers. Is the owner of the safe invisible? Was it really so hard to animate a hand and fingers into a cutscene for a few seconds?)
"Yes. You still don't realize how limited memory cards were back then. These guys made Bikini incredibly short to fit her in the game and you wanted them to waste memory space on the hand of a guy nobody cares about?" one sin added.
(View of Mask DeMasque flying through the air into the fucking moon.) So, after seeing how shitty their flying animation was in turnabout big top, they didn't decide to make any improvements in time for this game? They stuck with what didn't work? Between this shit and the last one, I'm guessing animation is not something th trilogy was supposedly superior at.)
"I can give you big top, but…what is wrong with this animation? It is very good. It does a great job setting Mask DeMasque up as a mysterious phantom thief. And sure, it does create a lot of questions about Ron. Like…how does he do that? But aesthetically speaking, it is very good." One sin added.
(Also, Mask DeMasque is secretly a werewolf. Good to know for when we have to prove his identity later.)
"For those of you wondering…there is no true problem with the game here. Pierce just made a joke about what is seen on screen and sinned the game for it for…some reason. Great…" one sin added.
(Why is a clothing store putting on a treasure exhibition? Is this something high end stores that I am too poor to shop at do? I've just never heard of this happening, is all.)
"Pierce thinks department stores only sell clothes. And the answer to your question is yes. Just shows what kind of places you can afford to hang around at." One sin added.
[(Phoenix explains who Maya and Pearl are and their connection to Mia) Narration. This goes on for some time.]
"So something that is really important for people who play this game before playing the other two to understand what the hell is going on is sinful…because you are not part of that category. Sins are supposed to be something everyone, or the majority, is upset by. Not something you don't like!" one sin added.
(The return of Adrian Andrews. Happy as I am for this, Farewell my turnabout happened in March 2018. This case happens in October of the same year. That means that Andres served out her time for staging a crime scene, forging evidence and so on, was paroled and not only found a job, but was hired by the fanciest department store in LA-with her felony record and all-in the span of seven months. Either Phoenix got her a bang-up plea bargain. Edgeworth felt bad for the shit he put her through and pulled strings for her or Franziska is a lot more influential than I gave her credit for. Or some combination thereof.)
"Maximum jail time for forging evidence for citizens is one year. Based on her motives, her psychological state at the time and Engarde's guilt, she could get a decreased sentence to five or six months, especially if Edgeworth was the prosecutor and went easy on her. And after getting out, she can get a job despite her criminal record. If she is honest about it from the get-go and her employers look into it and sympathize with the circumstances surrounding her crime, it's entirely possible it won't cause problems in her hiring." one sin added.
"Also, sinning Andrews' return. The woman is doing great for herself and you still sin the scene? Don't you have a heart?!" ten sins added.
(Andrews lectures Maya and Peal about their own family history.)
"Okay for Pearl, but I'm pretty sure Maya is more clueless than Andrews right now. Seriously, she's been away from the village for years, she is still quite irresponsible and generally seems to be focused only on things that excite her. And considering what is waiting for her at the end of the game…yeah, she could use a lecture." One sin added.
[(Maya expresses a desire to stab someone with the schichishito.) Foreshadowing.]
"Thank you for that. Do you have an actual sin now?" one sin added.
(What department store has twelve floors? And how can Andrews turn her reservation for one into a reservation for four with no advance notice? I knew ace attorney society was wild, but…)
"Actually, the largest department store in the world has twelve floors. And if Andrews has reserved a table, they can pull three more chairs around it and make it for four. It doesn't cause much inconvenience and it serves the restaurant, that can sell more food and drinks. You just asked two questions easily answered, so guess how many sins you are getting. Exactly." two sins added.
(Phoenix's toilet cleaning. I'm surprised that sin didn't come up earlier to be honest.)
"So you sin people who want to clean their toilets on a daily basis. The toilet is the one item in the whole household with more germs than all the others combined…and you think keeping it sanitized is a bad thing? Remind me to never visit your house." One sin added.
(The urn was stolen) TV news station reports only on what is pertinent to the games characters at any given time cliché.)
"So you wanted to see the weather report, the sports events and the political news before getting to the case? And you want us to believe you wouldn't sin the game for wasting time if it did that? I think your nose is getting larger." One sin added.
(Flashback to reunion and turnabout) Holy shit. He's narrating again.]
"To describe the details of a piece of evidence important in that case…which is also important now. And to set up the finale. How many times must you be told games do everything for a reason before you realize it?" three sins added.
(Pearl ask Phoenix not to tell Maya she broke then urn. Right in front of Maya.)
"Pierce has never heard about whispering. In other words…she would be terrible at keeping secrets." One sin added.
(Phoenix poses a valid question: why don't any other detectives on the police force ever work with Phoenix? Gumshoe is a homicide detective. If any case should have a different detective character working on it, it's the first half of this one. We can get a new judge in this game, but not a new police detective? Rise from the ashes later proves Takumi is capable of writing more than one decent police detective, he merely chooses not to. And why is that anyway?)
"Because Gumshoe is the greatest detective ever. We love him and we don't need anyone else, because they would never fill in the void. And that applies to later games as well. The appearance of the new judge serves a narrative reason-Edgeworth managing to pose as a defense attorney-but creating a detective that would appear for half a case and literally never again would be just a waste of time." One sin added.
(Gumshoe says Mask DeMasque targets only the finest pieces of art, but of his two heists we've seen, neither one was an art piece. They were a jewel and an urn. Gumshoe should know this. He worked both cases…for some reason.)
"Pierce thinks a fine piece of jewelry and an ancient, very well-preserved spiritually charged urn don't count of art. Pierce doesn't know shit about art." One sin added.
[(Regarding Luke Atmey.) Police let a self-proclaimed ace detective who mysteriously recovered one of the thief's treasures without telling them how snoop around their crime scene with no problems whatsoever. The police are bad at their jobs.]
"That is something they would totally do, though. If an important, valuable item gets stolen and someone manages to retrieve it and return it to where it belongs, people tend to be very grateful and not ask a lot of questions." One sin added.
(Luke Atmey. Any else feel they walked into a DC comic on this one?)
"Sinning Atmey's fashion style. I dread to see your closet." One sin added.
[(Atmey makes up his own proverbs.) Luke Atmey graduated with honors at the Diego Armando school of speaking in nonsensical metaphor. Seeing as the teacher also makes an appearance in this case, who thought we needed a double dose of this?]
"The writers. And they were right. You want to know why Atmey is the most beloved villain in the series for many? That's why." One sin added.
(Pearl has never heard of a computer…in 2018.)
"The case was not written then. I know you are not this dumb! Why do you pretend to be for these fics?! And this is a double sin since you refer to Pearl, an eight-year old girl that grew up sheltered in a mountain doing nothing but meditating. And Pierce knows this, so…Pierce feigns ignorance cliché. " two sins added.
(Phoenix also doesn't know how to work a computer…in 2018. He didn't grow up in a cult, so what's his excuse?!)
"I won't repeat what I just said above. However, Pierce assumes all adults, even in 2018, know how to work computers. And…no. Phoenix says he sucks at this." one sin added.
"Also, see what I keep talking about?! Pierce just admitted she knows why Pearl wouldn't know how to work a computer and her previous sin is still here! This is just offensive to the readers at this point! An adult woman makes a bunch of cringe jokes and lies to me through a computer monitor for hours! How is this supposed to be entertaining?!" ten sins added.
(I just realized: The Mask DeMasque theme and Luke Atmey's theme have almost the same main melody. Music through foreshadowing isn't that common in ace attorney games, but it's foreshadowing nonetheless.)
"One might consider this a clever bit of writing to subconsciously help the players realize the plot twist before it happens and still feel they did it on their own merit. But not you! You just see what the game is getting at and still bitch about it!" one sin added.
[(Visiting the DeLite residence.) Desiree says she detests criminal activity…minutes after describing an incident in which she speeds down the road and evades police capture on the night of the crime. A-plus for consistency.]
"Desiree later clarifies she only detests criminals. And she considers criminals to be cowards who don't have the courage to face their actions. She doesn't see herself as a coward, since she faces up to what she did after being caught. Perceptions about crime differ from one person to another. I think a guy who steals food is a criminal, but the family he is feeding doesn't feel so." One sin added.
(Phoenix had a huge moral crisis over taking a case of a guilt client who victimized Maya last game. This game? Gives no fucks. The magnitude is different. The principals are not.)
"Yes they are! Are you seriously comparing Matta Engarde, a cold-blooded psychopath who drove a woman to suicide and hired an assassin to kill his rival, to Ron, a poor man who was forced to turn to stealing to satisfy his shopaholic wife? Besides, Phoenix doesn't know at first! He is told by Desiree that Ron is delusional and thinks he is Mask DeMasque. He only finds out the truth while Ron is accused of murder, a crime he did not commit. He believes his client to be innocent both times. So, at what point do the similarities show?" one sin added.
(So, if Pearl's father walked out on them and her mother is in jail, who's Pearl's legal guardian?! Is it really Maya, who's recently turned eighteen when it all happened?)
"Yes. You answered your own question. Well done. Maya is eighteen, old enough to become a legal guardian. It is also a fact that Phoenix also became her legal guardian. And he is old enough. So…are we done? That's it? I expected more." One sin added.
(Why is Atmey upset that Phoenix was snooping and found the urn in his bag? I thought he wanted to be caught!)
"Yes, he does. And he is secretly happy his plan is working out. But he has to pretend to be upset here, or Phoenix might get even more suspicious. It's called putting on a show, gal." one sin added.
(Atmey threatens to drop his panties in court. I think I speak for everyone when I say nobody wants to see that.)
"Sees a freakin' Monty Python reference…takes it at face value." One sin added.
(Godot hypes himself as a legendary prosecutor who's never lost a case…even though this is his first case as a prosecutor and the only people telling his legend are himself and Atmey. My only explanation for this is that he got fed up with prosecutors doing this when he was a defense attorney and now is doing the same thing ironically.)
"Pierce continues to do my job for me…the questions is why sin the game after offering a perfectly valid explanation? Are you sinning yourself ? Then what I am doing here?" one sin added.
"Also, Godot technically didn't lie. He is undefeated. If you haven't taken a case, you haven't lost a case. And the fact he is so arrogant is part of his character." One sin added.
(Godot's refusal to perform an opening statement unintentionally inspires convict prosecutor to do the same thing nine years later. Same goes for wasting trial time with bits of philosophical banter.)
"Then maybe the reason Blackquill is so awesome…is because he borrowed elements from this even more awesome character. Why are you sinning this?" one sin added.
(Godot's coffee addiction puts my own to shame? I wig out after three cups of coffee and he's over here drinking seventeen cups of coffee every court session? Get outta here!)
"I guess that the difference between the two of you. His stomach is stronger than yours. Also, sinning Godot's coffee." Five sins added.
(Also, Godot is constantly having cups of coffee sliding around on his bench, even slamming one against the bench and spittaking when he gets irritated, but no coffee stains can be on his side of the court. This bothers me more than it should.)
"Then maybe it's your problem. You focus on the most minor and insignificant details. I mean, we have Godot and Phoenix duking it out big time and all you think about is the coffee stains! Who cares about that?!" one sin added.
(Godot says the coffee he's drinking is one of his own blends, but um…hasn't he been in a coma for the past five years? When did he have time to create new blends of coffee?)
"Because he is fucking legendary! You are greatly underestimating the power of Godot. This guy can "Godot" his way out of any situation." One sin added.
(Atmey on the stand) Atmey is able to figure out who the judge and prosecution are in the courtroom…and that's treated like an impressive feat. Between this guy and DGS Sherlock, the standards for great detectives must be a lot lower than I think they are.]
"Di…did you just shit on Sherlock?! The guy who makes entire deductions based on the smallest of hints, helped bring down the most powerful man in Britain and dances amazingly? You are getting thirty sins for this! No, I am not taking it back!" thirty sins added.
(In the second case of both the third and the first game, the killer to be suspicious of is the ego-inflated an who likes to make up fancy sounding words on the fly. Coincidence?)
"Yes. But even if it wasn't…why would that be a sin?" one sin added.
[(Atmey's breakdown comes a mere forty five minutes into the first day of the trial.) And the award for second most over-inflated villain goes to…oh, wait. This one is actually a fake out. An obvious fake out, in retrospect. I'm serious: did anyone really think this game was only going to have a single investigation and a single session trial for their second case? That would be way to easy. And besides: murder mystery game still has to murder mystery. Don't you know?]
"Sinning Atmey's plan. This plan is genius. To get convicted of larceny to avoid incrimination for murder, thus getting a much lighter sentence…this guy is smart as fuck! And nobody thought the case would be over…but nobody knew it would turn out like it did." One sin added.
[(DeLite insists he is the true thief) Is this the only time in the series where the defendant is working harder to be found guilty than the prosecutor is at proving it? I think it is. And while I don't know which character I am sinning here, it's a sin nonetheless.]
"Maybe because Delite had a reason to want to be found guilty. Godot really had us on the ropes. We were saved by Ms. DeLite. And now that the thief has confessed…what more can he do? He even convinces the judge to listen to DeLite's confession after it already seems pointless." One sin added.
(Murder mystery takes approximately 2 hours to get its murder mystery on. Also, sin for pretending to avert tradition of murder cases…only to have a murder case halfway through. If they decided to only do one of these cases and fully bake it, I might actually like this more.)
"This case would be half a memorable as it is if it only focused on one of the two crimes. Believe me. Atmey's plan is the greatest thing here…and you want to throw it out the window." One sin added.
[("He may be quiet…but he's the most dangerous enemy I've ever faced" in the second episode.) Godot has done nothing dangerous. And are we forgetting the last case Phoenix took? You know, the one with the assassin!]
"Phoenix is not saying Godot in dangerous in that sense. He means he is the most unpredictable opponent he has ever faced in court. Both he Edgeworth and Franziska were tough…but at least he knew everything about both of them. Godot is shrouded in mystery. You don't see his true face, you don't know anything about him and that mystery gives you the sense he has a dark past that you will uncover. That's what Phoenix means." One sin added.
(Maya driving a motorcycle did not make it into the final version of the case.)
"Because this is not a driving game! Why do you sin the game for not doing random, unrelated stuff?! When they actually do it, you still sin them! You want to eat your cake and have it, too!" one sin added.
[(Desiree explains how she got the urn) So, let me get this straight: Atmey's plan to be convicted of larceny relied on the real thief's wife not knowing the truth, breaking into his office and stealing the stolen urn to bring back to court? How did he know she would attempt any of this? How did he know she would succeed? Why should he be given any credit for it?]
"Desiree wasn't part of Atmey's plan. The original plan was to get Phoenix to find the urn. I bet he knew of Phoenix's reputation after the Matt Engarde case, so when he saw him getting involved, decided to make him a pawn: That's why he gave Phoenix his office's address and why he left the bag with the urn in plain sight. He knew Phoenix would get there, curiosity would drive him to look inside it and the rest would be child's play. I bet he started getting worried when Phoenix did nothing and Desiree was a savior for him, which he took advantage of. You still don't get this guy is smart as fuck!" one sin added.
(Larry calls Maya a kitten.) When did Larry meet Godot? Is it just a coincidence he uses the same pet name for females?)
"Yes." One sin added.
[(Maya keeps getting Bullard's name wrong because "The victim doesn't make much of an impression on me") Maya speaks for every player ever at this stage of the case.]
"Okay…and? What really pisses me off at mystery stories is people complain when the victim doesn't seem to have a personality or a story. Most do, but some don't. And that's not a sin! Victims are not meant to have a full personality. They are created basically to be dead people whose deaths will be investigated by the detectives. They are made to get killed! Unless they are a recurring character getting unceremoniously killed, there is no point in making a character for them. Unless it helps solve their murder." One sin added.
(DeLite needed to dispose of Bullard's body, so…he stuffs it in the guy's giant safe for later discovery. DeLite sucks at body disposal.)
"He is on the top floor of a large tower. What do you want him to do? Carry this huge bulk of a man over his skinny shoulders down the stairs, praying no employees or security guards will happen to be there to see him?! Ron would be finished if the writers listened to your advice!" one sin added.
(Investigating how the urn got pink splotches.) Phoenix wastes time during a murder investigation to figure out who broke the urn for the billionth time. Sure, I know this information is important to the trial tomorrow, but there is no way Phoenix knew that.)
"Phoenix is determined to answer all lingering questions in any investigation he makes. He knows from experience even the most trivial matters can turn out to be very important for the trial. And he was right." One sin added.
(Godot says he's on his six cup, but it's actually his fifth. Unless he slid himself another one without the player noticing.)
"You stole my line." One sin added.
[(The argument over the emergency buzzer) Phoenix goes out of his way to insult Larry in this trial when Larry's not here.]
"Says the girl that shits on Larry every time she sees him. Even on 1-4 when he saved our butts! Hypocrite much?" one sin added.
(Phoenix wants to interrupt Atmey's trial to accuse him of murder when.) Mia ex Machina. Took her long enough. We almost made it an entire case without one.]
"I could say the same about you. You are three games in this series, and you still haven't bothered to look up what Deus ex Machina means before invoking it again and again! Mia and spirit channeling are both things set up prior in this universe. Therefore, the use of Deus ex Machina is wrong. A Deus ex Machina would be if The victim's ghost came into the courtroom and told us who killed him. That would be stupid." One sin added.
(Payne is prosecuting Luke Atmey? And he's about to win? How dare he be competent off-screen!)
"Pierce doesn't realize Payne is still terrible…and that he only appears competent when either the defendant or the defense is actively trying to lose. Just…keep that in mind when we get to the next case." One sin added.
(Proving Ami's statue was moved.) Phoenix makes a reference to exposed film…in 2018, when nobody would be caught dead using it.)
"Are you sure about that? I think the internet has only made it easier to track down places still selling it and order it or go there yourself. Digital cameras do exist, but not all people have converted to their side. Film is still a thing and people use it." One sin added.
(Phoenix also goes out of his way to insult Andrews in the trial when she isn't even here. Why is he so salty today?)
"It's not personal. He is trying to get a point across. The only way the court will believe what Phoenix is telling them really happened is if they are told the people who did them are morons. Sacrifices have to be made." One sin added.
(Godot wants Phoenix to use his fists on him? That beats my fanfiction!)
"I…am not going to say anything here. Really, the comments are yours. Ask yourself: Is that really a thing wrong with the game?" One sin added.
(Proving a blackmailer was blackmailing a blackmailer.) Don't be mistaken. This series has been in love with blackmail ever since the first game. But this? This is an overdose.)
"It's called irony. You might also call it Karma, you will get what you give. But no…you call it an overdose." One sin added.
(Someone forgot to press the spacebar in Atmey's second breakdown.)
"I think it was done on purpose. Atmey is having a psychotic breakdown right now. You need a way to signify that." One sin added.
(Mia appears…and is not at all surprised to see her dead boyfriend, whom she avenged five years ago, is prosecuting the current case. If he can recognize her in Maya's body, she should be able to recognize him.)
"And she does. If you can't actually tell from the way she directs her words at him that she knows who he is…you have missed the train. Do you really think now, in the middle of a trial, is the right time to get all sentimental with him and ruin all suspense for future cases? Pierce would suck at mystery writing." One sin added.
(Mia, all but tells us how to win the end-of-case challenge. Why do we have to wait until the finale for Phoenix to do shit on his own?)
"Because the literal point of that finale is to show how he has grown as a character? If you cannot even get that, why are you still here?" one sin added.
"Also, did Mia tell him which one of the eleven statements to press? No? Then phoenix did it on his own." One sin added.
(Atmey delivers the same breakdown speech twice. Talk about reused dialogue.)
"But I think there was a bit more meaning behind it this time. I just used Phoenix words. They are there for a reason. But I guess you only see the lines that help you pad the sin count." One sin added.
(Phoenix got a criminal off through his own lawyering, which was a huge deal for him in the last game. Now, because Delite isn't a murderer, Phoenix gives no fucks. The magnitude is different, the principals are not.)
"Again…wrong. Matt Engarde was a ruthless murderer. Phoenix felt terrible for letting him walk because the innocent Andrews will get imprisoned or executed for a crime she didn't do and Engarde will be free to ruin more people's lives. Delite has regretted what he did. And now that his wife knows the truth, they can work things out and figure out a way to make ends meet together. Phoenix can tell DeLute is not evil and the reason he is happy he got off is because he believes this man deserves another chance. You don't believe in second chances?" one sin added.
[(Mia's post-trial conversation with Phoenix) Well, this case is over. Time to foreshadow the finale!]
"Well, this fanfic is over…time to pad the sin count!" one sin added.
Total sin tally: 120
Sentence: ride a motorcycle with Ms. DeLite
