Turnabout Promise

"Turnabout Promise" is the thirteenth episode of the Ace Attorney animated adaptation. Unlike most other episodes, "Turnabout Promise" is not adapted from any Ace Attorney game, instead being written specifically for the anime.

After school on the day of the class trial, Phoenix Wright and his newfound friends, Miles Edgeworth and Larry Butz, stumble upon another mystery: an abandoned dog on the streets. When the owner refuses to take the poor pup back, the boys must take matters into their own hands. All the while, the trio forge a friendship to last a lifetime.

Synopsis[]

Wright sat in his office, reflecting on his motivation to become an attorney, and on the lasting friendship between Edgeworth, Butz, and himself following the class trial. A flashback then began to that day, over fifteen years prior.

A young Wright accidentally bumped into a classmate of his, Miles Edgeworth, causing his school supplies to spill from his bag, including a few bills of money. Wright apologized and helped Edgeworth collect his things; the latter simply smiled at him before walking off. As narrated by present-day Wright, the two had never exchanged a word to that point; Edgeworth kept to himself and his books, and Wright felt intimidated by him.

That same morning, a young Larry Butz encountered a Pomeranian carrying some money. Excited, Butz pulled a squid snack from his bag to exchange with the dog. He took the money, but began feeling guilty (blaming the dog for 'guilt-tripping' him), considering taking it to the police instead. He then noticed a cardboard box, with a message: "Please adopt me". Wright recalled that Butz was seemingly always a catalyst for weird situations.

At school, Wright had to skip P.E. class that day due to illness, so he instead studied alone in the classroom. He noticed an envelope on the ground and picked it up; it was Edgeworth's lunch money envelope, empty. At that moment, another classmate opened the door and saw Wright holding the envelope. Thinking they'd caught Wright in the act of theft, the students put on a mock trial. Nearly all of them had decided on Wright's guilt, chanting 'dirty thief'. A tearful Wright tried to deny it, but his teacher told him to apologize. Butz moved to stand, but before he could speak, Edgeworth objected. Wright tried to apologize, but Edgeworth asserted if he didn't do it, he had nothing to feel ashamed about. The other kids protested; slamming his hands on the desk, Edgeworth told them if they didn't have evidence, they didn't have anything. Butz then stood, encouraging Edgeworth and siding with a grateful Wright. Together, Edgeworth and Butz called the trial off.

Later on, Wright managed to catch up with Edgeworth, expressing thanks and saying he owed him one; Edgeworth simply restated that there was no evidence to prove his guilt. Butz caught up as well, and Wright thanked him as well. As they walked together, Butz said it was the creed of the Signal Samurai to always help people in their time of need; Wright asked if he was a fan as well. The two excitedly talked, claiming which of the protagonists they'd be- Butz as Signal Yellow, and Wright as Blue. Butz asked what Edgeworth would be, who bluntly replied he didn't think he was any of them, and that it was too childish for him.

The Pomeranian that Butz had encountered was back, and Edgeworth asked if it belonged to Butz- who also was holding a bag of dog food. The dog put his front paws on Edgeworth's knee, who nervously said he obviously wasn't trained; Butz told Edgeworth that the dog liked him, and explained he'd just found him that morning. The three went to the nearby children's park to deliberate, since it appeared the dog had been abandoned. Butz told them his family wouldn't let him keep the dog, and Wright said it was the same for him.

On Edgeworth's suggestion, Butz led them to the box where he'd found the dog. Reading the remnants of the peeled-off delivery sticker, Edgeworth deduced it must have been from a high-rise apartment on the south side of town. Wright and Butz expressed that they needed to go confront the owner. Edgeworth was hesitant, but went with the two. The dog took a liking to Edgeworth, and kept moving in front of him as he walked, to his annoyance. Wright picked up the dog and asked if Edgeworth wanted to hold him. He declined, and began using pieces of dog food to leave a trail, while Larry complained that he'd bought the food with his own money.

The trio walked for a while through the city, before coming across a building the dog appeared to recognize. They found the apartment number from the box label, but the owner, Connor, claimed she didn't know the dog. Butz said the dog seemed to know her, and Connor angrily told them that he had chewed up her new shoes. Edgeworth told her that abandoning animals was a crime, and threatened to report her. Connor snapped, calling the Pomeranian a "mangy dog", saying the cops wouldn't believe the kids over her. Edgeworth froze up, but then Wright yelled back, furiously asking if Connor had a heart. She threatened to arrest the boys for trespassing, but Wright simply picked up the dog and left, as a stunned Edgeworth and Butz watched.

Butz praised Wright for what he did, and Edgeworth agreed, though the problem remained of finding a home for the dog. Edgeworth decided he would take the dog, believing his father would allow it if asked. Wright and Butz responded with enthusiasm. The two believed they were lost, but Edgeworth led them back along the trail he'd left earlier, guided along by the dog as he ate the pieces. Wright asked for the time, and when Edgeworth read it from his pocket watch, Wright and Butz exclaimed that the Signal Samurai was about to start. Butz told Edgeworth he should watch it, who replied he'd like to, but his father would be watching the news; Butz urged him to "be a bro" and watch it for his new friends.

Once home, Miles hesitantly asked Gregory if he could watch it, to which Gregory agreed. The intro played as the three Signal Samurai introduced themselves with their catchphrases. Gregory expressed surprise at the unusual choice, much to Miles' embarrassment. Miles then asked Gregory if he could keep the dog he'd found. Gregory considered it, though at Miles' plea, he chuckled and relented.

Wright narrated that a person had three months to claim lost property taken to the police, before it went to the finder. Butz had returned Edgeworth's money to the police after all, but after it went unclaimed, it was returned to him. Butz proudly showed off the money to the two, and promptly spent it on a nearby arcade game for the three to play. Butz won, and received a prize: three Signal Samurai keychains. Butz gave the blue keychain to Wright, and the red one to Edgeworth. Butz and Wright struck poses and said modified versions of the catchphrases; they watched and waited for a reluctant Edgeworth, who shyly recited his own catchphrase. Delighted that he'd become a fan, Butz and Wright held up their keychains with his, as Butz declared the trio to be "the real Signal Samurai".

Wright recalls that they'd spent practically all their time together after that. However, a few days after Christmas that year, the DL-6 Incident occured. Edgeworth never returned to school after that, and Manfred von Karma arranged for his guardianship. Edgeworth soon moved out of his father's home, and took Missile with him. As he walked out, he tripped and dropped the Signal Red keychain; von Karma picked it up and told him it had no place in the von Karma household, tossing it aside onto the trash can. Edgeworth tried to leave it behind, but noticed Wright and Butz running towards him from the distance. Edgeworth got in the car and shut the door before they could catch up, and the car drove off, leaving his friends behind. Franziska von Karma introduced herself to Edgeworth, telling him to listen to her from then on if he didn't want to get into trouble. Edgeworth, ignoring her, opened his backpack, and began dropping pieces of dog food out the car window.

Butz, upset that Edgeworth left without a goodbye, noticed the keychain. Wright grabbed it and began running off with Butz in tow. Butz asked what he was doing, and Wright said he was taking it back to Edgeworth. Butz angrily declared Edgeworth wasn't their friend anymore. He threw the keychain on the ground and tried to stomp on it, but Wright covered it with his hands to protect it. Wright exclaimed that Edgeworth would never throw their friendship away. Butz tossed his own keychain on the ground, saying it was over, and walked off. Wright called after him that if he wasn't going to help sort things out, he would do it alone. Wright thought back to his moments with Edgeworth, feeling that there had to be an explanation. Just then, he noticed something on the ground.

At the von Karma manor, Edgeworth stood in his new room, staring out the window. Missile brought over his empty food bowl, and Edgeworth noticed he was out, but told him he knew where he could get some more. He snuck out of the manor with Missile and ran off, back to his old home. Seeing the keychain was gone, he looked around for it anxiously. Wright greeted him, to his surprise; Edgeworth asked how he knew he would return, and Wright pointed out the dog food trail he'd left behind. Wright returned the keychain to Edgeworth, telling him that they'd be friends forever. Edgeworth, crying, shook Wright's hand and agreed. Butz then cleared his throat from nearby, loudly pretending to look for his own keychain. Wright gave it back, asking why Butz had brought umbrellas, who replied that he thought they might need them. Edgeworth asked why Wright had Butz' keychain, to which Butz said he was just 'keeping it safe' for him. Butz then questioned how Edgeworth planned to get back, now that the food trail had been eaten by Missile. The three began laughing, and held up their keychains once more.

In the present, Wright smiled at his own keychain, happy that their friendship had finally been restored. Meanwhile, though, Edgeworth packed a suitcase in his office and shut off the light; stating that it seemed this would be goodbye once again. He took the Signal Red keychain from his desk before shutting the door, leaving a note behind; "Prosecutor Miles Edgeworth chooses death."

Characters[]

"Pleeeeease! Expand meeeeee!"
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