Ace Attorney Deep Dive: “Reunion, and Turnabout” (Justice For All – Case 2)

“Reunion, and Turnabout”, the second case of “Justice For All”, is unique in that it’s the first Ace Attorney case to be told out of order. Chronologically, it takes place before “The Lost Turnabout” and is framed as Phoenix recounting his unorthodox reunion with Maya. Many fans consider this a step up from the opening case … but will it hold up to an intensive Deep Dive?

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

Phoenix visits the mystical village of Kurain to reunite with Maya, but the joy of their reunion is short-lived when one of Maya’s clients dies in the channelling room – supposedly by Maya’s own (albeit channelled) hand.

As we get to learn about the residents of Kurain, including Mystic Morgan and a lady staying there named Ini Miney, two separate tales of tragedy and familial betrayal unravel. I really liked the bitter dynamic that Morgan has with the rest of the Fey family, and Ini’s backstory of her sister dying in a car crash is truly sad.

One of the things people forget about “Reunion, and Turnabout” is that it’s the first case where the murder happens during the story – up until now we had to investigate unknown victims, but this is the first time we actually meet Dr. Grey and see his demise first-hand … and having it be at the hand of Maya is truly shocking!

Score: 8/10

Macro Story

“Reunion, and Turnabout” is actually quite a weird one to talk about in the Macro Story category. While it may seem insignificant on first playthrough, it becomes vitally important on retrospect once you’ve beaten the trilogy.

Morgan Fey trying to usurp the Fey clan is an interesting Micro Story in its own right, but the implications it has further down the line – mainly across the narrative of “Trials and Tribulations” – cannot be understated. It was a fantastic teaser of things to come, and I’ll always appreciate it for setting up the narrative thread in my favourite Ace Attorney title.

In general, I also like how “Reunion, and Turnabout” delves deeper into Kurain, the channelling technique and the Fey family at large. These are all supernatural elements that were risky to explore, but the expanded lore and darker tone help in distinguishing “Justice For All” as a sequel.

But we also have some new major characters to talk about, starting with Pearl Fey, a.k.a. “Pearls”. Maya’s younger cousin is absolutely adorable straight out the gate, and her distraught from breaking Mystic Ami’s vase was a cuteness overload. She’ll only grow in depth as the trilogy progresses!

Last but not least, we have a new prosecutor – Franziska von Karma. The von Karma namedrop is the most exciting thing about her so far, as I found her abusive, whip-driven court personality to be a bit hit-or-miss. That being said, she’s far from the travesty that some fans make her out to be – it’s just that following Edgeworth was always going to be a tough gig.

Score: 9/10

Mystery

This case’s mystery was always going to play out better than the tutorial case, but even then I liked where the twists and turns took us.

Chances are when you’re playing “Reunion, and Turnabout” for the first time you’ll either be very sus of Ini (on account of her sticking out like a sore thumb) or Morgan (on account of her acting shady and forcing Phoenix out of the room after the murder), but the real twist is how their crimes are revealed.

I like the plot development of both Ini and Morgan working together, as it’s the first time in the series we’ve had two conspirators in cahoots (technically we had Yogi and von Karma in “Turnabout Goodbyes”, but I’m not sure how much agency Yogi had on the dastardly plan). I only realised something was fishy during the final trial, so well done writers for making me think about an Ace Attorney culprit for the first time in ages!

Score: 7/10

Side Characters

We’re only introduced to two new characters in “Reunion, and Turnabout” (not counting Pearls or the culprits), and they’re not great.

The victim – Dr. Grey – is notable for being the first victim we interact with before their demise, but his uniqueness ends there. He’s a snobby doctor who has a terrible attitude with everyone he interacts with, so it’s no surprise he bit the dust.

But the worst offender by far is Director Hotti. He’s the head doctor of the Hotti Clinic, and he may very well be the single worst character in the original trilogy – or even the series at large. He’s perverted and overbearing, and any scene that involves him opening his mouth – or even his twitchy idle sprites – made me deeply uncomfortable.

Score: 4/10

Soundtrack

We get a trio of bangers on the “Reunion, and Turnabout” soundtrack, and they each add to the increasingly unsettling vibe of “Justice For All”.

Kurain’s theme is great, Ini’s Reminiscence theme is haunting, but the underrated MVP has to be “Detention Center – Elegy of the Security Cameras”. It makes every chat with the defendant sombre and subdued across the game, as if there’s a lingering sadness in the air.

If you keep in mind the already fantastic songs that were introduced in “The Lost Turnabout”, you have one of my favourite case soundtracks so far.

Score: 9/10

Investigations

Let’s start with the obvious plus – the writers and developers no longer felt the need to extend the Investigations and Trials to 3 days each, so the whole experience feels much more natural and streamlined. Thank god!

Speaking of godsends, the Magatama and subsequent Psyche Locks are the best thing “Justice For All” introduced to the Ace Attorney canon. Not only is it a cool visual representation of lies and deceit, but it adds another layer of gameplay to Investigations that were sorely needed. Now the gulf in quality / enjoyment between the Investigations and Trials isn’t as humungous!

I also really liked the setting of Kurain village and all of the various guest rooms and ritual chambers you visit, so overall I found the Investigations to be a very positive experience (the difference between “Reunion, and Turnabout” and the first game’s investigations are night and day, that’s for sure).

Score: 8/10

Trials

Weirdly, the Trials in “Reunion, and Turnabout” are what I remember least. We’re no longer forced to do three separate trials (praise the lord), but the two courtroom segments we get play out pretty much as you’d expect.

The first trial revolves around proving Maya’s innocence in the matter, and in classic Ace Attorney fashion the second one requires you to point the finger at somebody else. The whole thing is more streamlined yet again, and the Case Logic is good (we’ll get to that in a second), but a lot of the twists and turns of “Reunion, and Turnabout” either comes from the murder itself or the revelations during the Investigations.

One thing I forgot to mention in the Deep Dive for “The Lost Turnabout” is that suspect profiles are now fair game to be presented in court. It didn’t amount to much in the first case, but in this one it’s cool to point the finger at Mimi / Morgan directly as well as pointing out Pearls’ indirect involvement with the chamber key.

Score: 7/10

Case Logic

Every Ace Attorney case so far has either passed in the Logic department or outright failed, but I think “Reunion, and Turnabout” is the first case to truly excel in its logic.

I’ll quickly list out what I was impressed with – the chamber key’s location and relevance is explained well, Mimi resembling Ini because of the driving licence is clever (compared to the “they were identical twins!” cop-out I’ve seen in other media), and Mimi needing to kill Dr. Grey there and then because a failed channelling would’ve revealed that Mimi never died is one of the smartest motives in the series.

As a quick aside before I list the potential negatives, I want to talk about the legal ramifications of a channelled spirit murdering someone. One of the major complaints I see about “Reunion, and Turnabout” is that Maya shouldn’t have been prosecuted for a crime her channelled spirit committed, but I disagree. We have to remember that this is a fantasy world created by the writers, so I’m not bothered about Japanifornia’s oddly specific channelling laws.

For as good as this case’s logic is, there are a few contrivances I noticed. It’s a miracle Maya wasn’t shot on accident, the European car twist confused me (I live in Europe so I didn’t even notice there was a contradiction at first), but the actual issue is that you can’t press Lotta when she claims there was only one gunshot during her testimony – Phoenix was there and he heard two!

Score: 9/10

Culprits

Like in “Turnabout Goodbyes” we have two culprits to discuss, and yet again their motives are wildly different.

Mimi Miney, who poses as Ini for the majority of “Reunion, and Turnabout”, has one of the most bittersweet revenge narratives in the series. You can completely understand the resentment she had for Dr. Grey’s questionable practices and how negligence got her sister Ini killed in a car crash, but the stickler for me is that she didn’t initially want to take Dr. Grey’s life. She only acted because she heard about the potential channelling of “Mimi Miney” – the presumed victim in the car crash – so she acted rashly and believably to conceal her darkest secret.

The other culprit, Morgan Fey, isn’t as interesting in short term. She desperately wants to remove Maya from the family and instate her own daughter Pearls as the leader of the Fey clan, so she concocts a scheme with Mimi to disgrace Maya. She’s very impassive and predictably evil across the case, but it’s only later in the trilogy that the full extent of her plans and dangerous ambitions come to light. I’m scoring the culprits based on their merits in this case, however, so sadly I’ll have to deduct some points.

Score: 8/10

Charm

“Reunion, and Turnabout” has a great hook, a memorable new prosecutor, some creepy locations and music, a genuinely gripping mystery with good writing that made sense, and the core cast of characters are growing more likable by the minute.

I also really love how this case focused more on the channelling technique and the Fey family drama – two supernatural storylines I adore from the original trilogy. Compared to the opening case, “Reunion, and Turnabout” feels like a sombre masterpiece!

Score: 9/10

FINAL SCORE: 78/100

“Reunion, and Turnabout” ended up getting exactly double the score of “The Lost Turnabout” – if that’s not an indication of the leap up in quality, I don’t know what is. This case almost received a coveted 80+ score … but then Director Hotti single-handedly dragged the score down. Can’t win ’em all, eh?

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