Gaspen Payne (2024)

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Gaspen Payne is a prosecutor and the younger brother of the "Rookie Killer" Winston Payne. Unlike his older brother, he is more than willing to use dirty tactics in court. Like his brother, Gaspen also has self-styled titles: the "Rookie Humiliator" and the "Defendant Humiliator".

A new Payne[]

Main article: Turnabout Countdown

Gaspen Payne prosecuted Juniper Woods when she was accused of bombing Courtroom No. 4 and murdering Detective Candice Arme. Although Gaspen managed to almost defeat the presiding defense attorney Athena Cykes, Phoenix Wright soon took over. On the second day of the trial, Gaspen had Woods accused of assaulting Apollo Justice in addition to the existing charges, but Wright soon had Woods acquitted and the true culprit of the murder and assault, Ted Tonate, cornered. However, a desperate Tonate pretended that a training bomb he had was a live one that would soon go off. Gaspen fled with the rest of the public, leaving Wright and Cykes (with the judge also remaining) to prove that his bomb was a fake and that he had killed Arme and assaulted Justice. Although everyone else returned to the courtroom to hear Woods's Not Guilty verdict, Gaspen did not.

Later that month, after Chief Prosecutor Miles Edgeworth began to undo the "dark age of the law" with Wright's help, Gaspen heard that Edgeworth was planning on visiting him to discuss falsification of evidence, once again causing the "Rookie Humiliator" to bolt. However, that did not stop Edgeworth, who proceeded to give Gaspen a severe salary cut for his actions. It is implied that Gaspen was later fired from the Los Angeles Prosecutor's Office.

Payne abroad[]

Main article: The Foreign Turnabout

Gaspen eventually ended up in the foreign land of Khura'in, claiming to have been "chased out and humiliated" from his homeland. However, fate seemed to smile upon him, as the country that he found himself in had no defense attorneys due to the Defense Culpability Act, and thus only prosecutors and the mystical ceremony known as the Divination Séance were used during trials. With no defense attorneys to oppose him, Gaspen rose to the position of the country's Chief Prosecutor within months.

However, during the trial of Ahlbi Ur'gaid for the murder of Paht Rohl and theft of the Founder's Orb, the typical guilty verdict was suddenly opposed by the surprise appearance of Phoenix Wright, who was visiting the country to see his old assistant Maya Fey. Wright demanded that he be allowed to defend Ur'gaid, and seeing an opportunity to exact his revenge upon him, Gaspen asked that the presiding judge make an exception to allow the attorney to support the accused, thereby making Wright the first acting defense attorney in the country for over 20 years.

Gaspen's plan was simple: upon learning of the Defense Culpability Act, Wright would either give up in shame or die along with his client. As was expected, Wright agreed to continue with the trial despite learning of the Act, but Gaspen's plan backfired spectacularly when Wright realised the contradictions in the Divination Séance and proved Head Monk Pees'lubn Andistan'dhin to be the true culprit. The prosecutor was so shocked at once again being humiliated and defeated by Phoenix Wright that the ostentatious crown he wore fell off, taking his toupée along with it, exposing his bald head.

Personality[]

Whereas Winston was generally unpleasant but not corrupt, Gaspen was a darker version of his older brother who had no qualms about using falsified evidence in court. He constantly claimed to be a gentleman but used dirty tactics in court, such as badgering young women to the point that the judge had to intervene. He even threatened Phoenix Wright's life via the Defense Culpability Act, simply as revenge. However, Gaspen was just as smug and arrogant as Winston before his loss at the hands of Mia Fey.

Gaspen is much like his elder brother in both appearance and personality. He has a similar habit of tapping his forehead with his right hand when mulling something over and reeling back in shock when the defense starts to gain the upper hand. He also has a hairstyle he appears to be quite proud of, although in reality, it is just a wig, and he wears a pair of tinted glasses that obscure his eyes.

However, despite these similarities, Gaspen is quite different from Winston in several respects. He has a slightly less shrill and more confident voice than his brother (or at least less sharp when objecting) and generally has a smug smirk on his face, which contrasts with Winston's high-pitched voice and usually woebegone expression. Gaspen's glasses are also tinted, more resembling sunglasses than Winston's thick prescription spectacles. He also is known by the nicknames "Rookie Humiliator" and "Defendant Humiliator" (alluding to his brother's nickname of the "Rookie Killer"), although these appear to be monikers Gaspen has bestowed upon himself rather than earned by reputation.

Name[]

• Japanese - Fumitake Auchi (亜内文武):
  • "Fumitake" (文武) is a simple reversal of the two halves of his brother's Japanese given name ("Takefumi").
  • "Auchi" (亜内) is a Japanese ateji (where kanji characters are used to phonetically represent native or borrowed words with less regard to the underlying meaning of the characters) of the English word "ouch".
• English - Gaspen Payne:
  • His full English name is a play on "gasp in pain". This not only matches the meaning of his Japanese surname, but is also similar to his older brother's name pun (Winston Payne; "winced in pain").
• French - Gaspard Boulay

Unofficial[]

• Brazilian Portuguese - Jacinto Dores: ^[1]
  • "Jacinto" comes from the Greek Hyákinthos and literally means "Ai de mim!" (Woe is me!).
  • "Dores" is a common surname, being the plural form of "dor" (pain).
  • Like his brother, his name and surname is a pun on "sentir dor" (feeling pain), this time the pun is "já sentindo dores" (already feeling pain).

Development[]

• The pattern on the sash Gaspen wears in Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Spirit of Justice is modeled after the first character of his Japanese family name, "Auchi" (亜内).^[2]
• Gaspen was designed specifically to be a detestably unlikable character, who is noticeably worse than his older brother. This was born out of the desire to have the player face a prosecutor who encapsulates the "dark age of the law" right off the bat.^[3]
• Concept art of the Divination Séance shows Gaspen in his old design from Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Dual Destinies, rather than the new one used in Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Spirit of Justice.

References[]