#I'm so torn between wanting these two to be ACE attorneys and having them fuck nasty

[jinxedshapeshifter]

Decided to continue my (second) replay of Apollo Justice (I'm still on Turnabout Trump) and I'm being hit by how much Kristoph is treating Apollo like an attack dog. Like I fucking hate it but it's also really interesting that only after Phoenix testifies about Kristoph's presence at the Borscht Bowl Club does Kris start manipulating Apollo (because yes, that's what he's doing; I wouldn't quite say he's gaslighting him but he's definitely having a Gaslight, Gatekeep, Girlboss moment).

Like for context this is what had me like "holy shit, Kristoph's just using Apollo as an attack dog" (dunno why I didn't get hit in the face with "Apollo is just Kristoph's attack dog here" the first two times I played AJ:AA tbh):

And he states it like it's a fact. He's doing this to confuse Apollo, who's been conflicted the entire trial about whether his loyalty should stay with Kristoph or with Phoenix, from both a personal and a legal perspective (as he's torn between loyalty to his mentor and loyalty not just to someone he looks up to, but also to his client). Kris is using that to his advantage; he knows Apollo trusts him, and he's taking advantage of it and using it to manipulate Apollo (to be fair, I wouldn't be surprised if Phoenix is also using this conflicting loyalty and the fact that Apollo looks up to him to his advantage, but he's not manipulating Apollo to do so, or at least he doesn't until the forged ace comes into play).

He ONLY does this once Apollo starts questioning the authority he doesn't have in this case. He's been calm the entire trial but here he starts losing his cool and it's made obvious through his dialogue. Apollo starts questioning whose side he should be on, Kristoph's or Phoenix's, and Kristoph starts manipulating him and putting him in a position where he's going to start doubting Phoenix.

It genuinely makes me think Apollo's just another pawn to him. If any part of Apollo's apprenticeship (internship?) with Kristoph was genuine, it was because Kristoph wanted Apollo to become a great defense attorney for selfish reasons; if Kristoph had to tie up loose ends, he'd have a skilled defense attorney who's already incredibly loyal to him, making him easy to manipulate (and had Phoenix not been the defendant of this case but all other details were the same, I doubt Kris would've been caught because part of Apollo's loyalty conflict in Turnabout Trump comes from Phoenix helping him figure out the details of the case even before Kristoph is accused of Shadi Smith's murder). It makes me wonder what Apollo's time working under Kristoph was like; how manipulative was Kristoph, and what did he do to ensure Apollo's loyalty?

It's a good thing Kris got arrested for Zak's murder too; if he hadn't been, I doubt Apollo would still be around, given Kristoph's tendency to murder literally anyone who wronged him unless it's more beneficial to keep them around.

Anyway, Kristoph's attitude shift after Apollo goes against how Kris wants the trial to be done is not talked about enough. He IS manipulating Apollo during Turnabout Trump (and while it was subtle, he does it throughout the entire trial because he's a paranoid bitch).

I could go further into how this parallels Phoenix's actions in Apollo Justice (because Phoenix ALSO uses Apollo as a pawn, as well as Klavier and Ema in Turnabout Succession) but this is long enough and I REALLY want to finish Turnabout Trump lol