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Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney: Justice for All

    Fridge Brilliance 

  • When first playing Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney: Justice for All, it was disappointing how much the last case seemed a retread of case three in the first game: defending a TV Samurai actor accused of killing a rival, with a photograph of the supposed killer in-costume as the central piece of evidence, the same annoying security guard making your investigation difficult for you, and a cold-acting female as the main alternate suspect. Then, when the twist came, that your client is, in fact, guilty this time, and the story veered off in a completely different direction, you see that it was intentionally a retread, so that the player would trust the client as they did the first time and the twist would be all the more unexpected.
    • Another parallel between 2-4 and 1-3 is the polar opposition of Matt Engarde and Will Powers. The former is a Bitch in Sheep's Clothing, while the latter is a Nice Guy with the Face of a Thug.
    • An even more powerful parallel is the emotional journeys that the lawyers involved in the case take as a result: for Edgeworth in 1-3, it was the beginning of his search for truth and a reformation of his idea of justice, prompted by his former best friend and 'rival'. In 2-4, that self-same journey is undertaken by Phoenix, triggered by the words of his childhood best friend and 'rival'.
  • Case 3: Turnabout Big Top. It doesn't seem exactly plot relevant... until you realize that it fits in with the all of the other cases thematically. While it may have little impact on the plot, all the characters in this "trial of errors" come across as completely sympathetic (maybe not likable, but certainly sympathetic). Especially the murderer. Quietly asking what justice is, this case is the perfect set-up to Case 2-4, where the concept of justice is fully explored.
  • It can be hard to understand how Franziska was so determined to uphold her father's legacy and be just like him despite the fact that Manfred was eventually outed as a batshit insane killer. Even the fact that she's his daughter doesn't excuse what could be seen as her blind devotion to him. But think of it like this: she doesn't fully support Manfred, only the fact that, aside from the murder of Edgeworth's father, he really was a phenomenal prosecutor. So Franzy isn't upholding the legacy of Manfred the killer, she's upholding the legacy of Manfred the prosecutor.
    • Franziska actually says in-game that her real goal was to get back at Edgeworth for leaving her by proving she had surpassed him. It is also implied that the family reputation for perfection extends to other members of the family besides the two we see, which could explain why she seems so devoted to her family's name even after it's revealed that she wasn't that mad about Phoenix (justifiably) hurting her father's reputation.
    • This theme gets continued in Investigations when Franziska accuses Edgeworth of tainting the von Karma name by committing murder, ignoring the fact that it can't get any more tainted by blood than it already is. She considers the 'von Karma' name to be above her father's misdeeds.
    • Investigations 2 implies that Franziska never actually knew the extent of what her father did. In fact, it's possible she never knew that her father killed Edgeworth's father. He was, after all, sent to prison for two murders: Gregory's and Hammond's. If Edgeworth only told her about Hammond's murder, and left out the DL-6 entirely, it paints her father in a very good light as someone who helped a near stranger get revenge for being wronged by his defense attorney. After all, she was never told the motive for why her father would kill Gregory. Edgeworth and Phoenix both knew it was for forged evidence, but Franziska was clearly shocked and horrified to learn her father had ever manipulated evidence. As to why he never told her, she's his little sister and he was likely looking out for her and her feelings. Learning your father murdered the father of your adopted brother, your brother whom you look up to and love as much as you hate him for being better than you, would not fare well on one's psyche.
      • Manfred von Karma was never sent to prison for the murder of Hammond. He was sent to prison for DL-6. The Hammond case had been closed before the trial for DL-6 had started and the real murderer had already confessed to killing Hammond.
  • At first Matt Engarde's revelation as a Bitch in Sheep's Clothing seems completely out of the blue, but then you remember something: he's an actor, and a popular one at that. He gets paid a lot of money to pretend to be a hero of justice (something that he most definitely isn't) which means that he's got a lot of talent. Everyone around him keeps remarking how you can "see his star potential", and unlike Juan Corrida, he's subtle enough in his deception that any scandals went unnoticed (since no one other than Adrian Andrews seemed to know that he was Celeste's ex). The revelation isn't that much of a surprise that way.
    • A meta explanation: Case 4 is a deconstruction of the entire series and designed to shake Phoenix's core principles. If Engarde was sympathetic then it would ruin this message and mean that getting him a Not Guilty would almost seem like something that could be lived with. In order for the moral dilemma of letting Engarde go to save Maya or convict him and let Maya die to work, Engarde has to be a sociopathic monster that deserves to be found guilty.
  • Matt Engarde's design is really, really neat. Not because of the scar under his hair, although that is super cool but because the collar on his sports jacket performs a double function. At first, it just looks like a goofy racing jacket that a dumb action star would wear, but once he pulls a brandy snifter out of hammerspace and declares his evilness, it looks a hell of a lot like a stereotypical pointed vampire collar - he even gets Cute Little Fangs to match.
  • One more for Engarde: It might be strange that he's the only murderer who never gets to testify, but it's actually something like karmic retribution. Matt Engarde is defeated in the same way he murders people - by proxy, through Shelly de Killer. It's De Killer's hands that commit the crime, and it's De Killer's testimony that puts Matt in jail. Sort of lovely and cyclical in a way.
  • A meta example: Matt's slogan is "refreshing like a spring breeze". Turns out he IS refreshing... as you seldom have to deal with a bastard client or actual dilemmas provoked by him. It's basically the one positive thing about him.
  • When talking to Matt Engarde in the detention center, the track "Investigation ~ Middle Stage" plays, as opposed to the song that normally does when talking to any other defendant in the same room. Unlike most defendants, Matt truly is the perpetrator behind the crime, hence why a different track plays just for him.
  • The rivalry between Matt and Juan shows why Matt wins as an actor. Matt's evils were to maliciously tell Juan Celeste was his ex and hiring an assassin to kill Juan. Juan's evils was to dump Celeste just because she was Matt's ex and forge her suicide note with his own handwriting. Of course the one who did the more subtle, yet more evil sins would be the one who knew how to act better.
  • In Case 2, Phoenix says Ini (posing as Mimi) had to have worn a wig when posing as Maya channeling her (allegedly) dead sister. Of course this leaves some additional evidence laying around. Now, it's pretty widely accepted that neither Phoenix nor Ace Attorney's police force is especially apt at its job, but even if they somehow managed to miss the wig, it's doubtful Morgan Fey would've let something as superfluous as that laying around to be found. It's later revealed that Mimi Miney had been posing as Ini Miney the entire time, which, when one thinks about the medical implications of such an impersonation, begs the question of how Mimi's hair follicles magically turned from brown to red. Mimi would've had to forcibly change her hair color, and, though possible, waiting for her hair to grow long enough to dye it doesn't seem likely, as people would see that her hair was brown and she'd lose the ruse. Conclusion: Mimi didn't put on a wig when she killed Turner Grey; she took one off.
    • Alternately, there's a chance that she simply burned the wig afterwards, which makes sense when you realize that Phoenix does find some scraps of evidence near the incinerator... which is conveniently near the room where Ini/Mimi was "sleeping." Also, Mimi's natural hair color is lighter than Maya's, so it's likely that she did dye it red.
  • One bothersome thing about JFA was the acquisition of the magatama — Phoenix had always done perfectly fine without it in the first game, but it became a major gameplay element in the second. Given Edgeworth's "Logic" ability from AAI (and Mia's hypothetical ability), by comparison Phoenix doesn't have any natural ability for being a lawyer. This actually makes sense, since he changed career paths very suddenly. (Apollo's ability was natural, but bolstered by his bracelet, so it's likely that he just found a good line of work to use his skill in.)
  • It bothered this troper that after game one, having a blackmailer company owner, a mob boss, a corrupt prosecutor, and the chief of police himself beat in court, that in the two main cases of game two, not counting the Warmup Case, you're met with a ditzy nurse who lost her sister because of her jerkass boss pushing her too hard, and a disabled former acrobat who lost his brother because of actions of his brother's affection, feeling that these were very underwhelming compared to the last game. Until this clicked: It's a setup for case four, where you are forced to defend someone who at first seems genuinely innocent and naive, but then turns out to be the biggest monster the game knows, willing to screw over ANYONE for his own self benefit, making this reveal to come MORE out of the left field than before.
  • The page quote on the Ace Attorney page is about how none of the series' murders are straightforward. An excellent example of this is the fact that in case 2-2, Mimi Miney tries to escape being found guilty by framing her own ghost. This sort of qualifies as a category 3 Framing the Guilty Party.
  • In case 4, Engarde agrees to let Phoenix defend him only after he hears that "De Killer" wants Phoenix to defend him.
  • In case 4, the relationship of "trust" between Shelly de Killer and his clients is an ironic reflection of the relationship of trust between defense attorneys and their clients.
    • Relatedly, Phoenix mentioned that he can't just take the not guilty verdict when he had the chance because that would mean he would be no better than Engarde. At first glance, this sounds like the classic "Not So Different" Remark aesop. But then remember that Edgeworth could have gotten a guilty verdict but didn't because he trusted Phoenix and wanted to get to the bottom of the case. Furthermore, think about what leads to Engarde's downfall, him betraying De Killer's trust. If Phoenix simply took the not guilty verdict when he had the chance, he would be guilty of betraying Edgeworth's trust the same way Engarde betrayed De Killer's trust.
  • Case 4 again- in Adrian Andrews' testimony after she tries taking the Fifth, Phoenix calls her out, saying it's clearly a pack of lies. Actually, this is the first time she tells the complete truth.
  • Concerning the car accident in case 2, why did Mimi continue to insist that the driver was drugged? Because she doesn't want to acknowledge she caused her sister's death, as well as to save face.
  • Justice for All is the only game in the Ace Attorney series in which all or most of the cases are not related to each other somehow, and aren't connected by one single case (DL-6, the Dusky Bridge staged kidnapping, Magnifi Gramarye's death, KG-8.) None of the cases in Justice for All are related to each other, or any previous murders. However, the reason for why Justice for All lacked a single case that was integral to the whole story is in the name itself: JUSTICE. FOR. ALL. This game was all about defending the innocent, discovering the truth and above all, upholding justice for people from all walks of life and not a single case which Phoenix, Apollo or Edgeworth have some personal stake in.
  • When you consider who Phoenix's ex-girlfriend is in Trials and Tribulations, his um..."interest" in Regina actually makes some sense. Phoenix seems to have a thing for "cute" girls.
    • Also, about Phoenix's ex-girlfriend, she might be the reason Phoenix doesn't defend sociopaths unless he really has to: he doesn't want to repeat his past mistakes.
  • The plan to frame Maya in case 2 makes even more sense when you think about why it would be worth going to all that trouble instead of just killing Maya. Morgan doesn't actually care if Maya lives or dies, just whether or not she can be Master. If Maya was killed, the other people of Kurain Village might insist that she be channeled, in which case she could explain who killed her. If the plan had worked, however, Maya would either be in jail or (presumably) legally banned from channeling spirits ever again... Morgan would barely have had to get her hands dirty.
  • Some players believe the "Pursuit" theme is unfitting, sounding more like you're under attack than coming out on top. But a lot of people you accuse in this game are sympathetic Ini/Mimi Miney, Acro, and Adrian Andrews, so the music is actually quite fitting if you think of them as being under attack.
  • In case 2-2, Director Hotti (or rather the patient pretending to be him) says to Phoenix, in regards to Ini Miney, "That girl left here a long time ago." He means that in the sense of her being discharged from the hospital, but it's also foreshadowing that Ini is actually dead, and "left [this world] a long time ago".
  • "Eenie Meenie Miney Moe" is a children's rhyme, where you switch back and forth between things you're deciding between with each word you say. Mimi Miney switched from her life to Ini's.
    • Also, there's Ini and Mimi Miney, but no Moe... except "Mo" is a shortened, albeit informal, way of saying "Morgan", who was Mimi's accomplice.
      • Or maybe just Moe who you meet in the next case, but that doesn't really make sense.
    • By committing murder, Mimi proved she really is a meanie.
    • Also, imitate and mimicry.

    Fridge Horror 
  • The Miney sisters' crash leads to some rather nasty Fridge Horror: Mimi Miney's face was burnt badly enough that she needed reconstructive surgery, and Ini Miney's whole body was burnt to the point where she was unrecognizable, since everyone had assumed that she was Mimi. Feel free to imagine how the real Ini's body must have looked in order for them to make that mistake if you need to stay up late tonight, and then imagine how her sister must have felt about having caused that.
  • In 2-4, Phoenix got lucky Edgeworth showed up to replace Franziska. He could have her be replaced by nobody or even a weak prosecutor like Payne. Considering Engarde is guilty and very evil, a too easy victory in the first day isn't nearly as good as it seems before the reveal.
  • One element of 2-4 seemed really incongruous at first - why does Matt Engarde ask you to feed his cat even though his butler is there to do it? Matt is actually surprised when Phoenix mentions his butler. He didn't actually know De Killer was there! Why would he? They don't exactly have a clear means of communication at that point, kidnapping Maya was a quick improvisation on De Killer's part, and Engarde hasn't been home since before the awards show. Furthermore, he doesn't really have a butler, so it takes him a few seconds to figure out who Phoenix met.
  • In case 2-4, when Matt Engarde reveals his true colors, he says, "Assassins aren't above blackmail. They turn their clients into cashcows by holding the sinful deed over their heads". Since Shelly de Killer clearly isn't like this, this most likely means that Engarde has dealt with other assassins before, or at least knew people who had been taken advantage of by one. Bit of Fridge Brilliance, but that might be why he thought the video that was his downfall was a good idea.
    • Supporting the latter theory is this quote from when Phoenix first meets Engarde, "There's always other people in need of a lawyer, right? Want me to introduce you to a few?" Who knows how many sociopaths Engarde knew, and how many got away scott-free?
    • Or Matt might just be projecting. If he was an assassin, he would certainly blackmail his clients.
    • We know from the anime about an assassin that tried to use blackmail: Gale Gaelic. Maybe Matt heard about him.
      • On the other hand, it's possible Shelly de Killer had a run-in with Gaelic himself, and that he hates Gaelic for lacking honor. Remember, a de Killer is, by definition, a Noble Demon who hates traitors and less noble assassins.
  • Another one regarding Matt Engarde. He had an innocent nap while the murder was happening. Before the twist, it serves to highlight that he has an alibi, possibly is unaware of his surroundings, and had no idea about the murder. After the twist, it makes him even more psychotic than he would be otherwise: with no guilt whatsoever, he orchestrated murder and slept as if nothing happened.
  • Matt gets brutally whipped by Franziska after he is found guilty. Sure, he deserved it, but what if Franziska, being a von Karma, whips everyone who is found guilty in the trials she is in, including innocents?
  • Matt's true nature is even worse with Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney – Trials and Tribulations revealing Phoenix, for a good while, thought he dated a sociopath. Yes, he actually dated the sociopath's kind-hearted twin who was posing as her, but at the time Matt showed his true colors, Phoenix didn't know that detail. Matt showing his true colors must have caused some bad memories resurface...
    • Dahlia's character page states her to be a Distaff Counterpart of Matt. So it's clear Phoenix saw Dahlia in Matt when Matt showed his true colors.
  • At the end of the fourth case, the judge asks Phoenix if he wants a "guilty" verdict or a "not guilty" one. What if Phoenix said "not guilty" and Matt had thought "I'm going to die anyway, either at De Killer's hands or by death penalty, so let's let Adrian be given the death penalty For the Evulz"?
  • So, Engarde think's safe prison. Who's to say De Killer doesn't have prison connections who can shank him when he least expects it? De Killer likely isn't going to give up on killing Engarde just because he's behind bars. Even still, who's to say he wasn't shanked by a third party when word spread that he tried to blackmail his assassin? Criminals despise a rat.

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