Great Ace Attorney Deep Dive: “Twisted Karma and His Last Bow” (Case 2-4)

“Twisted Karma and His Last Bow” is the first case of a two part finale, and the stakes have never been higher. Will “Resolve” end on a high, or will it crumble under the pressure of an extensive 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:

Great Ace Attorney Deep Dive: “The Memoirs of the Clouded Kokoro” (Case 2-2)

Ace Attorney Deep Dive: “The First Turnabout” (Phoenix Wright – Case 1)

Sherlock Holmes – Cases Ranked (Frogwares Games)

“Murders On The Yangtze River” – Every Case Ranked

Micro Story

Through the power of hindsight we now know that “Twisted Karma and His Last Bow” is the first part of a two part finale, but we didn’t know it at the time. It starts with some of the lowest stakes in the duology – the disappearance of a random man.

We might as well start with the Daley Vigil disappearance plot, because that’s where the case begins. It’s fine. We eventually learn that Vigil was a guard at Barclay Prison and had something to do with the Professor’s “execution”. It’s all very murky and it ends up getting quite depressing, so we’ll put a pin in that for now.

But after a little bit of investigating, the real case begins – Gregson has been murdered! And van Zieks is the suspect! That one-two punch completely blind-sided me on my first playthrough, and added some intense emotional stakes for this finale. I wanna know who offed my chip-eating inspector!

As for the murder itself … it’s a little boring. Gregson’s body is found by van Zieks in what appears to be a Reaper hideout, and the only noteable hook of the body discovery is that it appeared “out of thin air”. All we know about Gregson’s death, however, is that he was shot. There’s no fanfare to it, and the hideout as a setting is stale compared to the previous case’s Great Exhibition.

The premise alone made this Micro Story interesting , and it’ll get turned up to eleven in the following case, but for now it was an alright setup to a greater mystery.

Score: 7/10

Macro Story

At first, it’s not clear if “Twisted Karma and His Last Bow” will have anything to do with the overarching Reaper or Professor plotlines … but by the end of the case, both of those plots are inescapable.

Let’s start with the Reaper plotline, as this is where we get the juiciest new tidbits. Gregson was supposedly investigating van Zieks at his secret Reaper hideout, but it turns out to be the other way around. Gregson was in fact the Reaper agent on Fresno Street, and it was van Zieks who went to investigate it. Maybe our chip-eating inspector wasn’t as innocent as we all suspected!

There are also some big reveals in terms of the Professor. Daley Vigil turns out to be a witness to the “execution” ten years prior, and he got fired under suspicion of helping the Professor escape. Gregson was also instrumental in the Professor’s downfall – he demanded a full autopsy for one of the upper class corpses, which was a taboo at the time, but it was the final piece of decisive evidence the prosecution needed. Gee, I wonder if that evidence was forged …

The main characters also get some important development. Iris is still on the hunt for her father, for starters, and Gina becomes quite vengeful once Gregson is killed. As sad as it is to say, I think Gina grows up once Gregson – her friend and mentor – dies.

But the biggest change in the main cast is that Kazuma is now a prosecutor. In many ways it makes sense, as he studied under van Zieks and now actively wants him – the guy who convicted his father – to be put behind bars. But, of course, it’s a shock to Ryunosuke. He never imagined he’d have to face his best friend in court – especially someone who used to be a defence attorney.

Unfortunately, that does mean I have to state the obvious – Kazuma is a step down from van Zieks as a prosecutor. He doesn’t have the same command of the courtroom that the “Reaper of the Bailey” had, and more often than not he lets his personal vindictiveness get in the way of logic. In all honesty, van Zieks felt like the smarter, more capable prosecutor.

Score: 8/10

Mystery

There are lots of lingering questions in “Twisted Karma and His Last Bow” – and very few answers by the case’s end. Usually I’d mark this category’s score down for that, but I think the teasing of answers works well for this case’s Mystery.

The main mysteries have to do with the Trial itself – we need to uncover Vigil’s whereabouts, Gregson’s true killer (and how the body appeared out of nowhere) and the apparent ties between Gregson and the Reaper. On their own these three are standard, but together they create a fascinating mixture of conspiracy and deceit.

The other important background Mystery has to do with Iris’s father. At the end of “Twisted Karma and His Last Bow”, it’s heavily implied that Yujin Mikotoba – Susato’s father – is Iris’s true father. That twist blind-sided me on a first playthrough … but it definitely felt like something was off. We’ll have to return to this Mystery in the next case.

One Mystery which hooked me more than I imagine the developers intended was the lobby photo. Ryunosuke, Susato, Yujin and Judge Jigoku all take a group photo in a hotel lobby … and then it gets added to your evidence. Huh?!? My mind was racing all throughout this case and the next, and the eventual answer left me gobsmacked. Again, more on that in the finale.

We don’t actually know who the Culprit is by the time the case ends … but I won’t mark the Mystery score down for that. If anything, that only adds to the mystique of the case.

Score: 9/10

Side Characters

Despite there not being a Jury this time around, there are still eight Side Characters to talk about. Blimey …

The case opens with Evie Vigil asking Sholmes to find her missing husband. She was a juror in the previous case, but that’s the only interesting thing about her. To be honest, I remembered her being in the story more.

Barry Caidin is the warden of Barclay Prison, and he’s a stern yet amicable guy. I can vividly imagine the Scottish accent and the masculine bravado. Like Evie, I thought he was in this case more. Oh … I just realised his name is a spoof of “barricading”, because he runs a prison. Those sneaky localizers …

There are a couple of quirky witnesses from Fresno Street who take the stand, both of whom go with fake names (which is allowed in an Ace Attorney courtroom, apparently). “Venus” is a firecracker-loving pyromaniac, and “Sandwich” is … well, it’s clearly Beppo from the Omnibus case. On their own they’re a bit boring, but as a group they bring some fun chaos to the courtroom.

The other pair of notable witnesses is Fabien de Rousseau and Peppino de Rossi – also known as the spearheads of the Red-Headed League. Their personalities can be summed up as “one’s French, the other’s Italian, one’s tall and thin, the other’s fat and small”. Again, they shine when paired together, but on their own they’re quite weak as Ace Attorney characters go – they’re no Skulkin Brothers, that’s for sure. And also the fact they kidnapped a man (or forcibly kept him overnight) should be more of a crime than it’s presented as.

I think the “best” character in this case is pretty obvious. Daley Vigil, also known as “Gossip” and also known as “Hugh Boone”, turns out to be hiding in plain sight. He’s been masquerading as a street ruffian ever since his dismissal from Barclay Prison, even keeping it a secret from his wife. Under his alter ego Hugh Boone, he helped set up a Reaper hideout and aided Gregson with some of his unlawful investigations.

What makes Daley Vigil so fascinating is his ties to the Professor. The events of ten years prior broke him – he almost took his own life, and now he has a mental breakdown every time he remembers the prison. It’s a harrowing scene when he finally snaps and all the memories come flooding back.

Oh, and the demonic coroner Maria Gorey is back to haunt my nightmares. Creepy girl.

Score: 7/10

Soundtrack

Huh. I thought the “Resolve” OST suddenly kicked into high gear from Case 3 onwards, but I guess I was wrong. “Twisted Karma and His Last Bow” has hardly any new tracks to talk about. At least, tracks worth talking about.

My highlights were “Reminiscence – In Search Of Family” and especially “Surrounded by Nothingness”. That song, paired with Vigil’s mental breakdown, is haunting.

Score: 6/10

Investigations

There are two Investigations in “Twisted Karma and His Last Bow”, and both of them were great in different ways.

The first Investigation is a lot of necessary setup. Yujin and Judge Jigoku arrive from Japan, Sholmes investigates the Red-Headed League, and Gregson’s death is one of the best hooks in the series. The various locations you investigate – namely Barclay Prison and Fresno Street – aren’t the most interesting aesthetically, but the story content is fascinating.

There are also some juicy new revelations in the second Investigation. It turns out that Gregson and Jezaille Brett had ties to the Reaper, and Genshin Asogi – the supposed Professor – left a will many years ago. Maria Gorey also confirms that Gregson’s time of death was tampered with and the body was likely frozen. Lots of stuff to mull over before the final case.

But what made this second Investigation so memorable is its ending. We get the bombshell reveal that Wilson wasn’t Sholmes’s partner, and that it was Wilson and Yujin Mikotoba who performed Klint van Zieks’ autopsy … But wait, wasn’t it Iris’s father who performed that autopsy? Doesn’t that mean Yujin is Iris’s father? Which makes Susato her half-sister? What crazy family drama is this?!?

Before any of the player’s questions can be answered, however, we get one of my favourite reveals in the duology – Yujin Mikotoba was Sholmes’s partner. It’s such a great subversion of the Holmes-Watson story we were all predicting, and the Dance of Deduction before the reveal is a delight.

Score: 8/10

Trial

There’s only one Trial in “Twisted Karma and His Last Bow” … and it’s okay. The premise and the stakes make it intense, but the actual case content is a bit underwhelming – especially when compared to the previous case.

The majority of the Trial has to do with Gregson’s murder. We find out that van Zieks was investigating his ties to the Reaper, that the body suddenly appeared out of nowhere, and that Gregson died much earlier than we thought. All in all, it feels quite pedestrian / tame by Ace Attorney standards.

My MVP for the Trial is Daley Vigil, who is masquerading as “Gossip”. It’s a fun reveal when you work out “Gossip’s” true identity, and then the Barclay Prison stuff – especially his mental breakdown – is harrowing. Quite a bummer to end the Trial day on.

Other than that, I will say that the lack of a jury was a shame. I’d gotten so used to the rhythm of Summation Examinations and appealing to the six members of the public, so without them in the court it feels like something is missing.

Score: 7/10

Case Logic

It’s hard to judge “Twisted Karma and His Last Bow” in terms of plot holes, because it’s the first half of a greater story. What I can do, however, is pick apart a couple of the convenient things this case tried to slip under the radar.

The first is a plot point which has hurt almost every Case Logic score in this duology – Kazuma’s amnesia. You mean to tell me that this amnesia-ridden man – a Japanese immigrant – managed to sneak off the ship, pass through customs (or whatever border security they had back then) AND he knew specifically to travel to England? And made it there successfully?!? Yeah, right. The more we learn about his story, the less it makes sense.

The other thing that bugged me is when Ryunosuke is about to investigate Gregson’s metal case … and then gets knocked out by dog licks. Yep. Knocked out. By dog licks. I know it’s supposed to be a silly joke, but I found it to be a lazy way to cut the investigation short.

All in all, not too bad. The worst is yet to come …

Score: 8/10

“Culprit”

For only the second time in Ace Attorney history, there’s no Culprit to speak of by the case’s end. The other time was “The Cosmic Turnabout” from Dual Destinies, which was also a setup case for the finale.

I preferred the lack of Culprit in “The Cosmic Turnabout”, however. In that case, you definitively prove that Solomon Starbuck isn’t the killer – in other words, you end one chapter before moving onto the next.

In “Twisted Karma and His Last Bow”, on the other hand, the case just ends abruptly. We haven’t acquitted van Zieks, and we still have no idea how Gregson died. I guess you could say Daley Vigil is a sort of “Culprit” for this case, but that feels like a stretch.

Score: 5/10

Charm

I’ve been quite reserved with most of my scores until now, but where “Twisted Karma and His Last Bow” shines most is in its presentation and Charm.

Sholmes is an absolute delight from start to finish. Whether he’s changing his hair colour or revealing his partner to be Mikotoba after an amazing Dance of Deduction, he had me in the palm of his hand across the whole case.

The stakes of the Trial are also incredible. The victim is the lovable detective, the suspect is your prosecutor rival, and the replacement prosecutor is your best friend. Ace Attorney plots don’t get more bombastic than this!

Score: 9/10

FINAL SCORE: 74/100

That score makes sense to me. This is a fantastic setup for a grand finale, but by itself “Twisted Karma and His Last Bow” lacks that narrative oomph.

Aaaaand that’s my list! Only one case left to review … but before then, you can check out some of my latest blog posts below: