Episode 3
(For the second time this game, players are expected to believe that Phoenix committed murder in the opening cutscene. If it didn't work the first time, what was the point of trying it two cases later? Did…did they think players were going to fall for this?)
"No. But that wasn't the point. Nobody believed Phoenix commited the murder, but to say people weren't taken aback here is a big lie. Phoenix is shown committing the murder, he is then shown losing a case to Winston Payne of all people and the case ends in a guilty verdict before we can even start playing. This opening was a bold and innovative move in the series. And I am still amazed by it. The case may not be perfect, but it was built on a great concept." One sin added.
(What is it with this game and their sudden love for Winston Payne? When, how and why did he take a level in badass? Seriously, the first two games, he only appears in the tutorial case. This one? Prosecutes the first case and cameos as prosecuting a closely related case in two others. He's prosecuted more cases in this game than Godot. On top of that, we find he had a perfect record win streak before meeting Mia, see him almost win once and actually win an admittedly fraudulent as we later discover-trial in the opening cutscene.)
"Read that last sentence again. Do you see it? Do you see she is complaining for Payne winning at a trial and at the same time shows the reason why he wins. Payne was a great prosecutor once. But after Mia beat him on her second case, his spirit got crushed, which is symbolized by his falling hair, something you complained about in the first episode, and that's why he is now a bumbling idiot. You see him act cocky and badass in two trials, both of which have a party actively trying to lose, and you still think he is being badass on his own merit. You literally make a complaint you have, show why your complaint is answered by the game itself and throw in a bunch of unnecessary information. I know Payne is seen prosecuting more cases than Godot, but I don't understand what that has to do with everything else you say." Three sins added.
(Also, episode gives us the non-standard game over sequence within the first minute of the case. Isn't it a bit early to fission mail?)
"Read two sins above for this. Seriously, if I sin her for every time she repeats the same things in a different manner to pad the sin count, these fics will get overly repetitive." One sin added.
(If Gumshoe is really here about Maggey-the girl he's had a crush on for over a year-and her conviction, why did he wait a month before taking it up with Phoenix? Did he leave the town for the holidays on an extended vacation and only just got back?)
"Maybe. Or maybe Phoenix and Maya took a trip elsewhere, maybe in Khurain to be with Pearl. There are scenarios that would explain this. It would be nice if the game explained it, but it's still not such an important detail that warrants a sin." One sin added.
[(Phoenix jokes that he may have just forgotten he took the case) I thought the reason Phoenix got amnesia in the Lost turnabout was so that we wouldn't have to remember that case. So why are we still writing references to it?]
"Hating the lost turnabout too much. That case is not great, but it not so bad we would want to forget it exists. Especially here, since Gumshoe and Maggey's dynamic would not be as great as it is if it hasn't been built up there." One sin added.
(Xin Eoph)
"Sinning Xin Eoph. For a girl that's supposed to be making a lot of jokes here, you sure are terrible at getting them." One sin added.
(Maggey goes for angry to helpful so fast, I got…flashbacks.)
"And I get flashbacks too. To how I sinned you for sinning this same thing. Maggey is angry at Phoenix for failing her. He explains the situation and she believes him. So, she decided if they are to have any hope at winning the retrial, they will have to work together." one sin added.
(Maggey talks about a supposed music group putting together a demo CD…in 2018/2019, where psychical CDs are all but obsolete.)
"But that's not to say they are non-existent. Despite their declining popularity, the CD format still has a place in today's music industry due to its sound quality and ability to generate profit for artists via physical sales." One sin added.
(Tres Bien hasn't hired any new stuff in a month. I understand the restaurant isn't doing well, but if they have no stuff, how are they open in the first place? Armstrong clearly isn't capable of handling all the tasks by himself and this is never explained.)
"Considering the only waitress was arrested for murder, I don't think that place will have a great reputation for potential employees. And Armstrong clearly cannot give them good salaries with his high prices and they money he owes. But I don't think it would be that hard for him to handle things on his own. I mean…aside from Victor Kudo, we never see any other customers. It's not that hard to make food and clean for one person." One sin added.
(Both Maggey and Maya are wrestling fans. I guess when I asked my question in the Monstrous turnabout, I'd forgotten it was answered two games early.)
"Doing my job for me." One sin added.
[(Maya unwillingly takes over Maggey's position as waitress.) Wow. If only I found a job that easily. I'd actually have money this summer.]
"When you have no employees, barely one customer and own 500.000 to a tiger man, you will hire anybody you see." One sin added.
(Phoenix makes it sound like he and Maya regularly gossip about Gumshoe's love life. Why do they do that? Before now, what was there to tell?)
"Gumshoe's crush on Maggey was established in 2-1. You know, the one case you don't want to remember?" one sin added.
(Gumshoe can't stop thinking about Armstrong? That…is a fanfiction I never want to read.)
"She makes that joke so many goddamn times…I will add a blanket sin here and never mention it again." One sin added.
(Wait…does Armstrong have two waitress outfits? Maggey's already wearing one in prison, but I can't imagine Armstrong being able to keep more than one employee at a time, so two outfits is an unnecessary expense. Not that I don't already believe Armstrong is stupid with money, but this case answers none of the important questions, does it?)
"Maybe he bought more of them in advance, expecting to hire more employees and didn't expect his restaurant would go down the hill. He may have a couple spares lying around in case Maggey's outfit gets dirty or ripped. Are we done or you do you need more hand-holding? People blame Dual Destinies for being like that, but if all players are like you, maybe all games should be." One sin added.
(We interrupt your regularly scheduled murder mystery to bring you…Phoenix trying and failing to eat lunch. This goes on for some time.)
"Which gives him the information he needs to break Kudo's psyche-locks. It's very important to the murder mystery. Besides…the whole point of this case is to do things like this. Seriously, this case gets blame for being filler. It was made to be filler, to expand upon the world of the game and not make it seem like just a series of planned events playing out. Name me one mystery movie or series that doesn't have the protagonist focusing on something other than the murder that either is important to the overall story or is just meant for fun." One sin added.
(Tigre's pink scooter.)
"We have eyes. We see the color of the scooter. What's the sin? That Tigre is a man and he has a pink scooter? That's sexist." One sin added.
(Tigre's screaming. This also goes on for some time.)
"Tigre was made to be intimidating. And how can he be without doing something really scary? He is living up to what his character design suggests." One sin added.
(When did Gumshoe get Armstrong's number? Was Armstrong hitting on Gumshoe? Why was that scene not included in the…you know what, I am fine with that scene not being in the game.)
"Or maybe he wanted his number to be able to call him in for questioning at any time. Many officers do this with witnesses in murder cases." One sin added.
"Also, Pierce sins something she likes cliché." One sin added.
(Phoenix claims Kudo was too busy looking at Maggey's uniform to recognize her face, but I don't think it was just the clothes he was into. I think Kudo would have been fine if he got to throw some seed at Maggey, if you know what I mean.)
"Pierce earlier called Kudo a creepy and perverted character…but still went the extra mile to make him even more creepy and perverted." One sin added.
(Breaking Armstrong's psyche-locks) Armstrong is pulling petals off his roses, but the rose never seems to lose any petals. I want roses like that.]
"Then get in the game. Because that's something only games would do. Because they are not reality. If you want reality…turn the screen off." One sin added.
[(Prosecution says Maggey killed Elg for the lottery ticket.) I can believe trying to steal someone's lottery ticket-and this does turn out to be part of the real killer's motive as well-but what does murder have to do with any of this? Just steal it while the guy is distracted, you dumbass. There's no need for murder or over-complicated frame jobs.]
"So…if you were Tigre, you would grab the lottery ticket, bolt out the door…and let the guy call the police on you and have you arrested? Pierce would make a lousy criminal." One sin added.
(After refusing to ask for Gumshoe's name and occupation last case, it's the first thing Godot does in this case. I guess someone lectured him on courtroom procedure over the past three months?)
"So he is getting better at his job…and you sin him? You are never satisfied, are you?" one sin added.
(Why would they call Gumshoe to the stand?)
"Because the guy in charge of the original investigation is tied up with another case. I get you don't realize Gumshoe is the greatest detective ever. I also buy you haven't realized how much character development he has in this one case, meaning this is the one case he needs to be in. But Gumshoe literally says this the first time he gets on the stand. You treat everything like sins, but you literally don't accept what the game is telling you. Just say "Everything is a sin because I say so and I don't accept answers to my questions." At least that would be honest." One sin added.
(The apron shows Godot can't see red on white.) Symbolism. Also, foreshadowing. Symboshadowing?]
"I have another word for you: Bullshit! This is one of the most clever bits of writing I've seen in a long time. It shows the twists about Godot long before it happens. It is subtle and yet clever. So for this one…eat five sins!" Five sins added.
[(Gumshoe left a department party wearing his boss' shoes.) What did Gumshoe do with his boss at the department party? I need answers to solve this case goddammit it!]
"Tell me: how will you solve this case if you learn this? I am listening. If I find out who my girlfriend cheated on me with, will I find the Zodiac killer?" One sin added.
(Coffee mugs have the same sound effects as gavels in this game. This bothers me more than it should.)
"The fact you paid enough attention to notice that…you have too much spare time." One sin added.
(Maggey blows the act of Gumshoe doing his job waaay out of proportion. Neither Gumshoe nor the prosecution are working that hard to put her back in jail. All they did was repeat what Payne and the first detective said already.)
"That's because you are missing the point of the scene. After what happened last time, Maggey has lost her trust in the police. She believes nobody is willing to believe in her. Gumshoe was the only detective she trusted. She expected he would make his testimony easy to break through. I know that's against protocol, but Gumshoe's testimony is easy to break through in almost every case, like in 2-1. So the fact it was perfect this time made Maggey believe Gumshoe had turned against her too and that nobody is on her side. She has been in jail for a month for a crime she didn't do. It makes sense for her to be a bit bitter." One sin added.
(Kudo on the stand) Phoenix says Kudo has earned the title of "Battiest man to ever grace the courtroom", but I can think of a few other witnesses who can challenge him. So could Phoenix at this point.)
"Are you sure about that? There is just being a weirdo, there is being an annoying weirdo…and then there is throwing seeds at everyone in sight." One sin added.
(Maggey was wearing a dirty apron on the time of the poisoning, but the outfit she's been wearing since is perfectly clean. When and how did she get a replacement?)
"Oh, so you do acknowledge the existence of replacements, Ms. why-does Armstrong-have-two outfits. Since the police had to take her outfit as evidence, she would have to put on her replacement. Unless you wanted her to stay in her underwear for a month. Although…there are probably a lot of weirdos that would enjoy that." One sin added.
"Also, Pierce made the same point earlier. She is phrasing it a different way to sin it again and pad her sin count." One sin added.
(Kudo says he was reading Elg's sports paper two months ago to find out if Gawtsen Brawn defended his title…even though he only did so and was beaten yesterday. Were there two matches or did the game forget this was an appeals case? Both scenarios seems equally likely.)
"And if the first one is correct, you have no sin here." One sin added.
(Three-handed Phoenix did not make it into the final version of the game.)
"So you wanted an alien to appear in here? I don't understand this line." One sin added.
(Kudo promises us he'll eat his seeds and sing the pigeon song for us if he fucks up. But he never does…)
"Thank God!" one sin added.
[(The hands on cups contradiction) The only way Phoenix's argument works in this case is if no one ever picks up a coffee cup from the opposite side of the handle.)
"Who would do that? And why? Have you tried doing it? Don't answer that last one!" one sin added.
(Kudo things CDs and DVDs are newfangled…in 2019.)
"He's also 69 years old. Any other obvious things you want to point on the screen?" one sin added.
[(He's gotta be using some kind of infinite ammo code with that box of seeds.) Can you even get infinite ammo codes on a game like this? I thought I was playing a visual novel.]
"You are. If you weren't, Phoenix would have pulled an AK-47 or a bazooka on Kudo by now. But he hasn't…because this isn't that kind of game." One sin added.
(Phoenix and Maya both say the people in criminals affairs are panicking, but when we look, all we see are the same two people sitting calmly at their desks. You know, the same background they'd used for three games now?)
"There hasn't been a single background in these three games showing people move, despite allusions to the contrary. If you didn't notice until now…" one sin added.
(Lisa Basil) Penny Nichols 2.0. This time with a cooler character design.]
"Comparing Penny Nichols to Lisa Basil. The one is a great, very underrated character…the other is a character used purely for relaying useful information. Which one is better? I am trying to start an internet argument here." one sin added.
(Basil hasn't had Elg's desk cleared after a whole month. She also hasn't started the process of hiring anyone to replace him.)
"First, employees are responsible for clearing their own desks after leaving. Elg is dead, so he can't do that. This means other employees would have to volunteer to do this on their own…and they are programmers, not idiots. Also, Basil has hired somebody by the end, saying their brain circuits aligned perfectly. This means she was searching, but hasn't found the right one and they didn't have a pressing need to clear the desk until a new guy came to use it." Two sins added.
(Phoenix walks in on Armstrong being threatened with arson and murder and does absolutely nothing. Viola also makes these threats one room away from a police detective. Because that's well thought out.)
"So…Phoenix heard a creepy woman threaten to kill a man and burn down his restaurant…and you want him to do…what? Go to the police without evidence? Kill her himself and go to prison? I don't know what you expect him to do at this point. Also, Viola has no reason to be afraid of the police, let alone Gumshoe. It is explicitly stated the Cadaverinis have so much money and influence, that the police cannot touch them. She can afford to do this, is what I'm saying." Two sin added.
(Viola. Creeps. Me. Out.)
"Sinning Viola. Viola is the greatest character in this entire case. She appears to be creepy and murderous…but she is sensitive and hurt. She was following Tigre's orders because she believed he cared about her and wasn't just afraid of her grandfather. Once she figures it out…she lets go of all her pain by crying. And if you don't feel sad in that moment, you are officially devoid of emotions." Ten sins added.
(Where does Viola disappear on- and off-screen to? There is only one room.)
"The ones playing this game that aren't abject morons with one brain cell know there is another room we cannot see and that's what Viola goes in and out of." One sin added.
[(Kudo accuses Maya of being a demon.) Unfortunately, she wasn't even in the case where everyone was playing the demon part. That was two games later.]
"Making a reference to a future case that is not a sin of this one cliché." one sin added.
[(Gumshoe's psyche-locks segment requires only one presentation of evidence.) Easiest psyche-lock segment ever. Makes me wonder why there was one to begin with.]
(Because he was bound by the orders of the prosecution to keep his trap shut about it. He only talks because Phoenix already knows enough on his own." One sin added.
(Tiger has had the MC bomber for over a month, but appears to have recently sold it on the black market. Why did he wait so long?)
"Because he was going around the black market, talking with prospective buyers and comparing their offers and bargaining to make as much money as possible? The black market does not work much differently than the real market. You have to dig a lot to find people willing to buy your stuff and pay a lot for it." One sin added.
(Tigre never faces any consequences for infecting the police HQ and others with a virus.)
"You cannot know that. He was arrested for murder. You have no confirmation of what happened after that. Pierce sins something she cannot know cliché." One sin added.
[(Breaking Basil's psyche-locks.) Basil knew about the MC bomber virus her subordinate was working on over a month ago and did absolutely nothing to stop him or it from causing any more damage, even when it infects the entire goddamn city. Was she not his boss? Did she not control his paycheck? It sounds like she cared about him. Couldn't she and him have worked out any other way for him to help pay off his debts? Why is this the only thing Elg could do to get money?]
"Basil was his boss, but she didn't exactly have any control over how he would get to use his talent. He has free will. If she fired him, she would lose a very capable programmer, which she wouldn't want. And what could she do to stop the virus from infecting the city? I'm pretty sure Elg wouldn't have trusted the antivirus to her, if he made any. And I don't think your boss, or anyone else, can lend you 100.000 dollars. So…he had to turn to the black market." One sin added.
[(Tigre is about to beat Phoenix up and steal the medical papers back, when.) Gumshoe ex Machina.]
"Sinning Gumshoe for being a badass. That's worth…this many sins." Thirty sins added.
"Also, again misusing Deus ex Machina. Still haven't had the chance to drop by the bookstore and get a dictionary, have you?." One sin added.
(It took Gumshoe two whole days to get a small bottle analyzed. Did MC bomber wreck the system and delay everything?)
"Gumshoe specifically says a guy on the forensics team screwed up and the process got delayed. And this gives him the chance to make a dramatic entrance later, so…it serves a purpose." One sin added.
(Godot telling other people to change with times.) Irony.]
"Why is irony bad? You never bother to explain this. This is what happens when you blindly copy Cinemasins' work: you get a bunch of sins that don't make sense and you don't even bother to question them. When you write them, you don't get them, but still make them, hoping the people will also not question them. I am." one sin added.
(Case introduces a large mirror into the mix, but never spends any time reflecting on its sins. How unfortunate.)
"This bullshit." One sin added.
[(Godot shouts.) No.]
"You padding the sin count, sis?" one sin added.
(Gumshoe says it takes an hour to get fingerprint analysis done, bit if he'd brought the powder, we could be done in a…it's still pre-RFTA, isn't it? Well, isn't this frustrating as fuck.)
"So this case should have been the only one in the original trilogy to have fingerprint testing, which would end Tigre's testimony in 5 minutes and kill all suspense, because…stupidity." One sin added.
(Tigre claims he has no knowledge of the crime he's been called in to talk about, but know when the day of the murder was without being told. Tigre is bad at pleading ignorant.)
"This is a dumb statement. Tigre must have been told what the incident is and when it occurred before taking the stand. That's what prepping the witness means. He means he knows nothing other than what Godot has told him." One sin added.
(How did it Payne make it through an entire trial with this guy? If he brother is any indication, he would have run at the first sign of trouble. Is he braver than his brother? Did Tigre tone his impression down for his Phoenix impersonation? You don't get that impression when talking to the judge on the first day…so which is it?)
"Run away? Payne was fuckin' winning in a landslide. Why would he run after finally taking Phoenix Wright down? If anything, the constant roaring helped his case." one sin added.
"Also, is it just me or did you just suggest a man roaring like a tiger is as dangerous a "Real" bomb?" one sin added.
(Is it just me or does poison not really fit Tigre big mobster guy persona? With all the roaring and threats of psychical violence, I would think he'd get more personal while killing people. Leave the posing to Kristoph Gavin, will you?)
"The intent was to blame Maggey for the murder. If Tigre beat Elg to death, making a mess in the restaurant in the process, who the hell would believe a frail woman could have killed him in that way? Don't get me wrong. There are women capable of beating men up. But Maggey is not one of them." One sin added
(Godot is the only one with any balls facing Tigre in this trial. Good on him, but sin on everyone else.)
"She…she still doesn't get it. She still doesn't realize how badass Godot is! How do you go through two cases with Godot and still not realize Godot is…that dude?" one sin added.
(Phoenix says he'll wear Tigre's clothes. It takes him nine years to follow up on that promise.)
"Okay…now where's the sin? How is that a thing wrong with Recipe for turnabout?" one sin added.
(Hey, if Tigre already sold MC bomber on the black market, why was the disc in his office? Did he make a copy? How does that work exactly?)
"Welcome to clever marketing. If you get your hands on an item worth millions that can be copied, make copies and sell them to different people without each other's knowledge. This is for all who say Tigre is not a smart villain." One sin added.
[(Tigre needed the disc even after Elg won the lottery.) And we are back to the point I made about the lottery ticket: why did Tigre need to kill Elg to get the CD? Why couldn't he still ask for it or steal it? What reason was there to resort to murder?]
"Elg owed Tigre 100.000 dollars. His only chance was the MC bomber. He made it to repay his debt. But he won the lottery, alloying himself to repay Tigre and keep the CD for himself. Why give it to Tigre when he has the option of paying Tigre and still getting the millions from selling the disc on the black market? Also, like I said at the part with the lottery ticket, stealing it would make the victim call the police. You think Tigre can afford being brought in for anything?" one sin added.
(Why did the trial go to recess when Gumshoe burst in? That doesn't happen during any other "Big damn hero" moments. Trust me, the series has plenty.)
"Because the defense requested time to examine the evidence on their own. And this turns out to be the only way to bring Tigre down." One sin added.
(Why did Tigre touch Elg's ear medication. This makes for a great bluff later, but the act itself is never explained.)
"It could have fallen from Elg's pocket while Tigre was carrying the body in the kitchen and he had to pick it up. Happy now?" One sin added.
(Phoenix decides to use Phony evidence) No, Phoenix! That's what gets you disbarred next game…thi case did not age well, did it?]
"This was the only way to take Tigre down. And he didn't forge the evidence. He just made a bluff. If Tigre could keep his trap shut, he would have gotten away. Phoenix used a clever tactic and it worked." One sin added.
(Also, the way to beat both Atmey and Tigre is, at the core, the same: get them to admit they know about the case than they should after only coming into the trial later on. In both cases, it's a seemingly minor detail, but one they could only know if the were there when it was discussed…or when the murder occurred. Coincidence…or laziness?)
"Or just writers using clever bits of writing in both cases. It's not like they were written by the same people or anything." One sin added.
(In breakdown) Tigre is screaming. Again.]
"Sinning Tigre's breakdown." Three sins added.
(Ending narration.)
"Sinning the line that gave hope for Gumshoe-Maggey dynamic. You don't want the poor man to catch a break, do you?" Five sins added.
Total sin tally: 121
"Sentence: Pigeon seeds thrown at you.
