Ace Attorney Deep Dive: “Turnabout Samurai” (Phoenix Wright – Case 3)

“Turnabout Samurai” is easily the most controversial case in the first Ace Attorney game – most think it birthed the infamous “Case Three Syndrome”, while others (including myself) find it charming and harmless … but will it hold up to a intensive retrospective?

I’ll be deconstructing the case in ten distinct categories and giving a score out of ten for each. This will give a definitive score out of a hundred, if the maths checks out!

Before we begin, you can check out some of my related blog posts below:

Micro Story

Will Powers, a beloved TV actor famous for playing the Steel Samurai, is accused of murdering his Evil Magistrate co-star Jack Hammer. Maya catches wind of this since she’s a massive Steel Samurai fan and persuades Phoenix to take the case.

Upon arrival at the studio, they’re met with the news that the road between Studios 1 & 2 became blocked that afternoon. Since all the directors, producers and the like were in Studio 2 that means Will Powers, the only one present for rehearsals that stayed in Studio 1, must be the killer. There’s a whole thing about “the killer must have been in the rehearsal!“, but this becomes less important as the case goes on.

What I like most about the story of “Turnabout Samurai”, however, is that a second scheme is in play. Jack Hammer plotted to kill Dee Vasquez as an act of revenge for a tragedy many years ago, and his vengeful actions were largely what led to his own demise – and piecing together his plan in order to catch the real culprit is what made this case so fun to solve.

Score: 7/10

Macro Story

If you were becoming really invested in the DL-6 subplot in the original Ace Attorney game, then I imagine “Turnabout Samurai” let you down big time. There’s hardly a mention of it in the whole case! This disconnect from the main plot might be why so many dislike this Case 3.

Lacking any sub-plot developments, I’ll instead turn my attention for the Macro Story to the main trio – Phoenix, Maya and Edgeworth.

In Phoenix and Maya’s case, their personalities are starting to blossom. Their chemistry during the investigations is fantastic, such as their teasing of each other or argument over the ladder (or was it a step-ladder?). Neither of them are tested, per se, and it’s not as if this case is a massive jump in either of their character arcs, but their characters begin to feel a whole lot more fleshed out.

Edgeworth, on the other hand, starts to become my favourite Ace Attorney character of all. His smarmy-ness is just as fun as always, but it was his objection towards Dee Vasquez that blew my socks off. His inner turmoil of morality is on full display, and the writers did a fantastic job of portraying his unnecessary … feelings.

In summary – the characters get some good development, but the overarching story threads are non-existent. At least Edgeworth’s inner conflict sets up the next case nicely.

Score: 6/10

Mystery

After two cases where they outright tell you who the murderer is, it’s great to have an actual whodunnit this time!

It’s not immediately obvious who the culprit is at all, and the sheer number of characters they introduce kept me on my toes for the majority of the trials and investigations.

Once you finally meet Dee Vasquez, however, it becomes a little too obvious. She’s kept hidden for so long that once she’s unveiled it almost couldn’t be anyone else, and her mysterious / suspicious aura doesn’t help. Still, the first two-thirds of “Turnabout Samurai” had me theorising for days.

Score: 7/10

Side Characters

For many, the side characters in “Turnabout Samurai” play a major role in their distaste for this case. There are five new characters to talk about, so I’ll be brief for each:

Sal Manella and Wendy Oldbag are the worst offenders by far. Sal in particular is a super annoying caricature of weeb culture, with eyesore dialogue and a terrible design. Oldbag is more of a meme by this point for how grating she becomes … but I do like her crush on Edgeworth in the Trial.

Cody Hackins – A young brat whose love of the Steel Samurai translates to some really annoying dialogue at points. He becomes more bearable once Mia gets him to open up, but otherwise he’s an admittedly accurate depiction of a difficult kid.

Penny Nichols – Forgettable. She’s connected to the plot by a paper-thin thread, and only serves to prolong some of the later investigations.

And finally, Will Powers – The defendant of this case, and the saving grace in this category. While he’s not the most stand-out defendant in the series, his affable persona despite the tough-guy exterior is a funny contrast that’s played for good laughs. Trust me, this category’s score would’ve been even lower if not for his presence.

Score: 4/10

Soundtrack

I was surprised by how few additions there were to the “Turnabout Samurai” soundtrack , but the new songs are very good.

The Steel Samurai theme is great and has become a series staple by this point, “Light and Shadow of the Film Studio” is an excellent Reminiscence theme, and “Happy People” fits the oddball cast of side characters (although in hindsight I think that track was introduced in “Turnabout Sisters”, but it fits “Turnabout Samurai” much better).

As per usual, the soundtrack is solid across the board. It’ll have to take something egregious moving forwards to knock this category’s score down … although a certain case’s soundtrack in “Justice For All” comes to mind.

Score: 7/10

Investigations

For starters, the setting and individual locations are much better than in the previous two cases. The Movie Studio is full of vibrant locales with colours that pop out of the screen, which made it a remarkable improvement from the stale office buildings we’d seen thus-far.

Unfortunately the praise ends there, because the set of investigations themselves are arguably at a series low.

There’s some really bad railroading where it’s fundamentally unclear where the game wants you to go, so you end up bouncing back and forth meaninglessly until the case finally progresses. “Turnabout Samurai” also has one of the worst examples of padding in the Ace Attorney series when you have to collect Steel Samurai cards and trade them with all the suspects until they give you the information you need. It’s meant to be a lawyer / detective game, not a trading card game!

I almost gave the investigations a really bad score because of the railroading and padding, but the vibrant locations – and Gumshoe saving the day right at the very end – stop this from being a total trainwreck.

Score: 5/10

Trials

Let’s get the obvious flaw out the way early – “Turnabout Samurai” didn’t need three trial days. The first and second trial should’ve been condensed into one single experience, but the first game’s insistence on three investigations and three trials is ultimately what hurts it most on replay.

I know most people dislike this case for multiple reasons … but I just can’t help but love the batshit-crazy twists of this Kangaroo Court. The writers pile ridiculous revelation upon ridiculous revelation, and the chaotic vibe is what made the trials so fun to play in the first place.

I also really appreciate Edgeworth’s contributions to the trials – you start to see cracks in his impenetrable armour, and his objection to Dee Vasquez shocked me on my first playthrough. It’s bombastic drama like this that made “Turnabout Samurai” stick in my mind all these years later.

But yeah, three trial days prevent this from getting a really high score.

Score: 7/10

Case Logic

This biggest pitfall of this case’s logic, I think, was the giant head “blocking” the road between studios. It’s more of a fault of the background artists rather than the writers – you could clearly just walk around the toppled head or take a route through the trees, but the characters keep treating it like some impassable object and it’s infuriating.

A couple of other things that irked me was Edgeworth of all people not spotting the large “2” sign in a crucial photo, and the courtroom proceedings getting stuck on Powers’ limp. The logic is that the murderer must have been present at the rehearsal because only those in attendance knew of Powers’ injury, but that’s a stretch on multiple levels.

Score: 6/10

Culprit

Redd White was a tough act to follow in some regards – you can’t get much more gargantuan than a serial blackmailer, but somehow a simple movie producer is far more compelling.

For starters, we don’t have a clear picture of Vasquez’s intentions immediately – in fact, it’s not completely obvious if she’s the killer or not when we meet her. She’s mysterious and evasive, and her hinted connections with the mob make her a genuinely frightening force. She’s also a well-trained liar, implying a history of misdeeds – it’s Edgeworth that has to finally break her defences, not Phoenix!

I also really like how the circumstances of the murder end up being more or less an accident, as that adds another layer to her motive … but you can’t help but see her as a bit impassive as a result. She’s also a little boring in terms of characterisation, and her downfall is rather quick – in the end, she’s good but not great as a baddie.

Score: 7/10

Charm

As I’ve said a few times in this retrospective, it’s the general charm of “Turnabout Samurai” that endears it to me. It’s not the most charming case, per se, but it set a new standard for the series moving forwards.

The locations are much more exciting, the characters stick in your mind (for one reason or another), Edgeworth has some fantastic lines and character development, and the general premise of the samurai TV show adds a wacky sheen to the whole package. Granted, the extended trials / investigations and the grating characters end up losing some of that charm, but I had a good time nonetheless.

Score: 7/10

FINAL SCORE: 63/100

“Turnabout Samurai” is the best case so far, but not by much. It only slightly beat out “Turnabout Sisters” when you get down to the nitty gritty, whereas I originally thought their difference in quality was night and day – which just goes to show how revealing this Deep Dive might end up being!

Aaaaand that’s my list! You can check out some of my latest blog posts below: