History TearJerker / PhoenixWrightAceAttorneyDualDestinies

Take examples from other games [[TearJerker/PhoenixWrightAceAttorney to their]] [[TearJerker/ApolloJusticeAceAttorney respective]] [[TearJerker/AceAttorneyInvestigationsMilesEdgeworth pages]].

** Hugh, Robin, and Juniper [[spoiler:each making false confessions in order to take the fall and protect the other two, knowing that a criminal record means expulsion from Themis Legal Academy.]]

* Following up on that, how about the defendants themselves? Juniper is frail and sickly yet accused of ''two'' crimes (both of which would land her for first degree murder charges), Damien Tenma has only his beloved daughter and his going to prison would leave her alone in the world; then there's the last three defendants, all of whom seem to suffer some degree of PTSD linking back to the same incident seven years ago, two of which you have to continue to trigger in order to get the truth out. In the DLC case, the first of the accused can't even speak out to defend herself, and the second puts her with the likes of Juniper due to her medical problems. Usually in the games, there's at least one trial where the defendant isn't a complete {{woobie}}. Not so in this one.

* The [[spoiler: phantom's breakdown is this with a splash of NightmareFuel; he's been impersonating so many people for so long that he can't even remember who he is or what his face looks like. When it gets down to brass tacks and they put the final nail in his coffin he just starts ripping off mask after mask after mask trying to find his real face in a hauntingly well done ShapeshifterIdentityCrisis before getting shot by a rooftop sniper.]]

** It gets to the point where [[spoiler:Athena is accused of matricide. It really didn't help that ''Edgeworth'', of all people, would suggest that an eleven-year old girl would kill her own mother and try to dismantle her to remove evidence. Then this idea gets worse at the end of Simon's Mood Matrix, when it's revealed what he witnessed when he [[http://i.imgur.com/LDabpWq.png entered that lab and saw Athena]]. She is covered in blood with DullEyesOfUnhappiness all while saying this line:]]

* The [[spoiler: phantom's breakdown is this with a splash of NightmareFuel; he's been impersonating so many people for so long that he can't even remember who he is or what his face looks like. When it gets down to brass tacks and they put the final nail in his coffin he just starts ripping off mask after mask after mask trying to find his real face in a hauntingly well done ShapeshifterIdentityCrisis before getting shot by a rooftop sniper.]]

* Case 5. [[spoiler: Athena]] asked "Did I kill my own mother?" Her eyes [[spoiler:& Widget]] go dark. Cue black psyche-lock. Open the flood gates.

* Case 5. [[spoiler: Athena]] asked " Did I kill my own mother?" Her eyes & Widget go dark. Cue black psyche-lock. Open the flood gates.

'''Apollo''': You're just bluffing again, aren't you?......It's fine, Mr. Wright...Even a bluff would suit me just fine...As long as you can...clear up this doubt inside me!

* One more for Case 5: [[spoiler: Apollo on the witness stand. Unable to accept Athena's innocence so easily, he takes the stand accusing Athena of murder while emulating his first mentor, Kristoph Gavin, just so that Phoenix can find ''some'' hole in his logic and let ''him'' believe in his friend's innocence.]]
--->[[spoiler: '''Apollo''': You're just bluffing again, aren't you?......It's fine, Mr. Wright...Even a bluff would suit me just fine...As long as you can...clear up this doubt inside me!]]

** The other thing is that people don't go into space alone. There was very likely someone on the HAT-1 Mission with Sol. Someone, or maybe several someones, who died, probably due to problems in their suits. They were someone(s) who Sol was probably friends with, who he worked with, maybe even someone he idolised or even someone he fancied a bit. They were someone Apollo and Clay probably knew. The person, or people, who died out in space on the HAT-1 Mission were a person or people Athena and Aura and Yuri all knew. They may have suffocated to death because their tanks malfunctioned. They may have froze to death slowly in the vacuum of space because their suits had been tampered with. They were someone who gave their life so that Sol could live. Maybe a few someones, depending on how big the project was. Sol likely had to fix up his suit using those of his dead companion/s, since his suit likely had a malfunction, too. They were people Sol watched suffer and die, people he couldn't help because their suits and the ship just didn't let that happen. Sol could not have been alone on that journey at first.

** Knowing the truth behind that scene doesn't make it any better: [[spoiler: it just means Athena really was trying to save her mother, but it was ''far'' too late and [[NotWhatItLooksLike she went exactly the wrong way about it]].]]

* The UR-1 Incident [[WholePlotReference is basically the]] [[VisualNovel/PhoenixWrightAceAttorney DL-6 Incident]] for [[spoiler:Athena Cykes and Simon Blackquill. The former [[BreakTheCutie witnessed her mother's murder right in-front of her eyes at age 11]], while the latter was falsely convicted for the said murder while trying to protect the girl and is on death row for it. The former is very lucky to even '''being''' alive after that because she attacked in self-defense against the real criminal Phantom. It is this incident where "the Dark Age of the Law" came into effect, infecting the wound that had already been opened by Kristoph Gavin's framing of Phoenix.]]

** Fail [[spoiler:on Fulbright's final testimony? Athena and Simon both got off the hook, but [[KarmaHoudini Fulbright gets away clean]] and the failure to find Phantom causes public opinion towards the law to sink even lower.]]

* Case 5 again. [[spoiler: The reveal that the phantom is not actually Bobby Fulbright, but just pretending to be Bobby Fulbright can be this. There really was a detective as kind-hearted and morally honest as Bobby Fulbright, but he was killed just so that the Phantom could use his identity as a convenient cover, bastardizing his quest for justice.]]

** [[spoiler:Clay Terran was entrusted by Director Cosmos to help stage the rocket swap, to protect both him and Starbuck, who was traumatized by the HAT-1 disaster seven years prior. As Apollo's friend, he helped push Apollo towards his goal as a defense attorney as Apollo helped pushed Clay into becoming an astronaut. He was murdered by Phantom for something he didn't even know he had, namely the moon rock in the Hope capsule. [[TooGoodForThisSinfulEarth He never got to achieve his dream of going into space]]]].
** [[spoiler:Metis Cykes was introverted, but loved her daughter Athena with all her heart. She tried to help the child with her inability to tune out emotions, but was seen by Athena as just being part of being used for an experiment. Her murder came at the hand of the Phantom for a psyche profile she no longer had, but her gift to her daughter ultimately helped catch her killer]].
** [[spoiler:You never got to meet the real Bobby Fulbright. However, if Phantom's act was anywhere close to the real deal, then Fulbright was a good man dedicated to justice who was cut down all too soon, for something he never even saw coming]].

* One more for Case 5: [[spoiler: Apollo on the witness stand. Unable to accept Athena's innocence so easily, he takes the stand accusing Athena of murder while emulating his first mentor Kristoph Gavin, just so that Phoenix can find ''some'' hole in his logic and let ''him'' believe in his friend's innocence.]]

* [[spoiler:Marlon Rimes']] VillainousBSOD at the end of ''Turnabout Reclaimed''. [[spoiler:Despondent at the discovery that he was trying to kill an orca who was not at all, involved with his girlfriend's death, he refuses to admit that Jack Shipley's death was accidental, instead claiming that he [[DeathSeeker deserves the death penalty]].]] It's only after Phoenix reveals that [[spoiler:Marlon had [[TakeMyHand tried to save Shipley's life]]]] and [[spoiler:Sasha tells him to return to the aquarium after his rehabilitation]] is the BSOD broken.

** However, as proof that TearJerker moments don't always have to be sad, there's yet another scene in Case 5. [[spoiler: Phoenix, possibly for the first time since his second case, finds himself alone at the office. With a clearly-hurting Apollo going off on his own, Trucy having decided to follow him, and Athena having been arrested at the end of Case 4, Phoenix is feeling at his lowest, as he had taken it for granted that they would always be there. [[CrowningMomentOfHeartwarming Cue a letter from Maya and a surprise visit by Pearl]], which end up being ''exactly'' what he needs to lift his spirits.]]

* [[spoiler:Juniper Woods]] breaking down after Apollo's perceiving in Case 3. [[spoiler:She really didn't want her role as Professor Courte's [[TheStoolPigeon class snitch]] to ruin the friendship between herself, Hugh O'Conner, and Robin Newman, however after she overheard that Hugh O'Conner has bribes for his grades she believed that Hugh himself is making the bribes and not his parents. And yet even after all that he still is willing to take the fall for her? [[HeartwarmingMoments That is true friendship right there.]]]]

* On that note, [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VTY2NHKTSio this song]] is possibly one of the biggest musical Tear Jerkers in the entire series. It perfectly captures that feeling you get when you realise [[spoiler: Athena has been a StepfordSmiler all along.]]

* Solomon Starbuck lapses back into a dejected mood when recalling that [[spoiler:upon Athena's arrest, as she was being led to the detention center, she still had to flash a smile and congratulate Solomon on getting off despite the fact she couldn't hide how much she had been crying on the ride over]]. The whole mood of the beginning of case 5 is just nothing but dead air and really sad feelings.

** [[spoiler:Right before Apollo announces his decision to leave, he talks about his friendship with Clay. His memories are heartwrenchingly bittersweet after Clay's death. "I'm fine! You're fine! We're both fine! Ha ha ha ha ha..."]]

** [[spoiler:Bobby Fulbright, the real person, had been dead since before the first case. However, if Phantom's act was anywhere close to the real deal, then Fulbright was a good man dedicated to justice who was cut down all too soon, for something he never even saw coming]].

** Not to mention, Ponco tells you how [[spoiler:Aura began crying at night after died and refused to let the robots call her "Mama Aura", like they used to.]]

* Apollo's not done yet. [[spoiler: Clonco calls him "Mr Terran", since Apollo is wearing Clay's jacket]]. By this point, Apollo's largely shut out his feelings and has ''no visible reaction'' to this at all. It's heartbreaking because Apollo clearly forms rather deep bonds with people soon after meeting them and is quite emotional (he'd known Trucy for how long exactly before he was in tears at the idea of her being abducted by a KnifeNut kidnapper back in his own game?). His best friend of more than ten years being murdered doesn't cause him visible anguish; he shuts down, except when he can't keep them bottled any longer and he lashes out at people.

--->[[spoiler: '''Apollo''': You're just bluffing again, aren't you?......It's fine, Mr. Wright...Even a bluff would suit me just fine...As long as you can...clear up this doubt inside me!]]

* A large portion of the last two cases are just horribly depressing by default, especially since it's hot on the tail of what can be the most ''comedic'' trial in the series, victim's death aside. Following a hilarious UnsettlingGenderReveal, Athena trying to turn herself into a bust of Phoenix Wright, and [[spoiler: Professor Means']] sudden personality shift on top of Simon as the OnlySaneMan, we have [[spoiler: the brutal murder of Apollo's best friend, the accusation of Sol who was Apollo's hero and friend as well as the accusation of Athena who is Apollo's friend as well, being forced to trigger both Sol and Athena's PTSD, the abduction of Trucy, the entire UR-1 incident and the things that surround it, and an endless list of other depressing things]]. It's like the writers took the saddest bits of Cases 1-4, 1-5, 2-4, and 3-5 and brought them together in one unholy abomination of sad. In-universe, cases 1, 4, and 5 all happen within just a few ''hours'' of each other; Case 4 begins on 16 December, then Case 1 is 17-18 December, and Cases 4 and 5 are 20 December. 15 December to 20 December must have been really, ''really'' rough on the characters. It's sad enough in the meta sense.

* Jinxie's Mood Matrix segment in Case 2. She's so afraid to recall what she saw at the crime scene that her fear overwelms all other emotions on the matrix. She starts having a complete and total breakdown and remembers everything in the room as monsters. As Athena points out, your goal isn't so much as cross-examining her as it is ''giving her therapy''.
* [[spoiler:Juniper Woods breaking down after Apollo's perceiving]] in Case 3. [[spoiler:She really didn't want her role as Professor Courte's [[TheStoolPigeon class snitch]] to ruin the friendship between herself, Hugh O'Conner, and Robin Newman, however she overheard that Hugh O'Conner has bribes for his grades she believed that Hugh himself is making the bribes and not his parents. And yet even after all that he still is willing to take the fall for her? [[HeartwarmingMoments That is true friendship right there.]]]]

* The [[spoiler:UR-1 Incident]] [[WholePlotReference is basically the]] [[VisualNovel/PhoenixWrightAceAttorney DL-6 Incident]] for [[spoiler:Athena Cykes and Simon Blackquill. The former [[BreakTheCutie witnessed her mother's murder right in-front of her eyes at age 11]], while the latter was falsely convicted for the said murder while trying to protect the girl and is on Death Row for it. The former is very lucky to even '''being''' alive after that because she attacked in self-defense against the real criminal Phantom. It is this incident where "the Dark Age of the Law" came into effect, infecting the wound that had already been opened by Kristoph Gavin's framing of Phoenix.]]
** It gets to the point where [[spoiler:Athena is accused of matricide. It really didn't help that ''Edgeworth'', of all people, would suggest that an eleven year old girl would kill her own mother and try to dismantle her to remove evidence. Then this idea got worse at the end of Simon's Mood Matrix and what he witnessed when he saw Athena when he [[http://i.imgur.com/LDabpWq.png entered that lab]]. She is covered in blood with DullEyesOfUnhappiness all while saying this line:]]
--> '''[[spoiler: Athena]]''': [[spoiler:Something's wrong with mommy, so I'm taking her apart to fix her...]]
** [[FromBadToWorse Then]] [[spoiler:Athena [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ljb_8FvrQ9w completely breaks down]] to the point [[DespairEventHorizon she confesses on stand and to tells the Judge to get it over with and declare her Guilty]]. If it wasn't for a certain deduction and reveal it would be a DownerEnding with the real criminal getting away with it all.]]
** Heck, the [[spoiler:UR-1 Incident]] was pretty horrible for ''everyone'' involved. [[spoiler:In the picture of the first rocket launch, you can see how happy Yuri, Clay, Sol, Metis, and Aura were at that time. Aura and Metis were close as co-workers (and Aura was implied to be in love with Metis) and Metis was working hard to ease her daughter's abilities so that she could have a more normal life. Simon clearly looked up to Metis as his mentor, and seemed to get along with Athena very well. Meanwhile, Clay and Sol obviously had a strong mentor/student relationship and were striving to make it into space. All of them were working hard and full of hopes and dreams for the future. And from this one incident, it all fell apart. Metis died, leaving Aura bitter and cold and Athena horribly traumatized. Simon went to prison and basically lost seven years of his life. Sol was so traumatized by the sabotaged mission that he fell to pieces at the thought of going on another. And Yuri, who we see cares very much for the people working for him, had to deal with it all and then experience the guilt all over when it looked like the same thing would happen seven years later.]]

** [[spoiler:Apollo's breakdown at the end of the investigation stage in Case 4, just before he takes his leave from the agency. For a guy who's always smiling, seeing him yell out in anger "DAMMIT... IT'S NOT FAIR!!!!!!!!", and Trucy and Athena's shock at his outburst, just brings out the anger that Apollo is feeling after his best friend was murdered. Everyone's worry after Apollo takes his leave of absence is also heartbreaking.]]

* [[spoiler:Also in case 5, Aura Blackquill's outburst about her [[HoYay almost certainly romantic]] feelings for Metis puts the rest of her personality in a new light-one that turns her from a mere JerkAss into an outright TragicHero. All she had left of Metis was that picture on her desk, and her vengeful hatred of Athena. Goes to show just what the affects of losing someone you deeply care about are.]]

* Heck, just the fact that, in a first for the series [[spoiler: there isn't a single AssholeVictim to be found among the murder victims of the game, all of them were genuinely nice people]]. Meaning this is possibly one of the saddest games in the series when you think about it. To wit:

** [[spoiler:Bobby Fullbright, the real person, had been dead since before the first case. However, if Phantom's act was anywhere close to the real deal, then Fullbright was a good man dedicated to justice who was cut down all too soon, for something he never even saw coming]].
** This also applies to the DLC Case, ''Turnabout Reclaimed''. [[spoiler:Both deaths involved in the case were accidental: Azura Summers died of a heart attack from a condition she kept from everyone due to not wanting to give up her job as a trainer, and the blame fell on the original Ora who was trying to save her (and later on Orla who was put in the original's place); while Jack Shipley died trying to save Orla from Marlon, who didn't want Jack to die at all. Shipley did some mildly unscrupulous stuff, like using technically illegal monitoring equipment to watch out for his animals and lying about euthanising the first Ora. However, he was otherwise a solid guy through and through (such as wanting to stop Sasha from performing because he learned of her heart condition and not wanting a repeat of the aforementioned trainer's death), and he actually rescued Orla when she was beached, nursing her to health to the point that Orla, when released into the ocean, came back to Jack. It's implied that he let himself fall when Rimes tried to save him, so Rimes wouldn't fall in and die with him]].
*** Following up on that, how about the defendants themselves? Juniper is frail and sickly yet accused of ''two'' crimes (both of which would land her for first degree murder charges), Damien Tenma has only his beloved daughter and his going to prison would leave her alone in the world; then there's the last three defendants, all of whom seem to suffer some degree of PTSD linking back to the same two days seven years ago, two of which you have to continue to trigger in order to get the truth of the incident out. In the DLC case, the first of the accused can't even speak out to defend herself, and the second puts her with the likes of Juniper due to her medical problems. Compare to the likes of past clients such as Larry, Will, Lana, Maggey, Max, Ron, and Iris. Usually in the games, there's one trial where the defendant isn't a complete {{woobie}}. Not so in this one.

-->''"[[spoiler:Once again... [[CallBack I'm too weak... To save anyone...]]]]"''
* A large portion of the last two cases are just horribly depressing by default, especially since it's hot on the tail of what can be the most ''comedic'' trial in the series, victim's death aside. Following a hilarious UnsettlingGenderReveal, Athena trying to turn herself into a bust of Phoenix Wright, and [[spoiler: Means']] sudden personality shift on top of Simon as the OnlySaneMan, we have [[spoiler: the brutal murder of Apollo's best mate, the accusation of Sol who was Apollo's hero and friend as well as the accusation of Athena who is Apollo's friend as well, being forced to trigger both Sol and Athena's PTSD, the abduction of Trucy, the entire UR-1 incident and the things that surround it, and an endless list of other depressing things]]. It's like the writers took the saddest bits of Cases 1-4, 1-5, 2-4, and 3-5 and brought them together in one unholy abomination of sad. In-universe, cases 1, 4, and 5 all happen within just a few ''hours'' of each other; Case 4 begins on 16 December, then Case 1 is 17-18 December, and Cases 4 and 5 are 20 December. 15 December to 20 December must have been really, ''really'' rough on the characters alone. It's sad enough in the meta sense.

-->''"[[spoiler:Once again... [[CallBack I'm too weak... To save anyone...]]]]"''