Spike and Rarity: the Greatest Kind of Love

[Fractured 2,684]

I actually came up with this topic a week ago. I had to stop when I realized I couldn't do it. Though i've defended SpikexRarity several times now, when it really got down to it, I couldn't come up with words to describe why Rarity and Spike's relationship is so incredible.
And then today, I found someone who could.
Prince Ea says everything I wanted to say about this relationship that I couldn't quite manage.

 

[Buck Testa 5,505]

Good googly moogli his pecs are divine

 

*ahem* So I watch this and I wonder how this relates to Spike and Rarity? I mean its a nice speech from a hawt guy but Spike is riddled with self doubt and this guy says you need to love yourself AS WELL as give love without it being expected in return. He is missing half the equation.

Edited September 10, 2014 by Buck Testa

[Fractured 2,684]

Good googly moogli his pecs are divine

 

*ahem* So I watch this and I wonder how this relates to Spike and Rarity? I mean its a nice speech from a hawt guy but Spike is riddled with self doubt and this guy says you need to love yourself AS WELL as give love without it being expected in return. He is missing half the equation.

Remember Inspiration Manifestation?

n that episode, Spike spent that entire episode trying to please Rarity because he thought it would make her happy. He was acting out of love, but it was selfish; he was too afraid that she might stop liking him, so he didn't say anything. Up until the end, he valued Rarity's love more than anything else, including himself. In a sense, he valued it more than he did Rarity, as he allows her to spiral farther into madness in exchange for the chance that they might still keep whatever they had.

At the end, though, he finally told Rarity not what she wanted to hear, but what needed to be said. Spike had to love her enough to accept the idea that Rarity isn't perfect. He loved her enough to tell her that, even if it meant hurting her feelings. He also had to love himself enough to do this, even knowing that once he told her, he might not only lose any chance of them having a relationship, he might lose any chance of them even being friends. He gave up the chance of love to save her.

[Buck Testa 5,505]

Remember Inspiration Manifestation?

n that episode, Spike spent that entire episode trying to please Rarity because he thought it would make her happy. He was acting out of love, but it was selfish; he was too afraid that she might stop liking him, so he didn't say anything. Up until the end, he valued Rarity's love more than anything else, including himself. In a sense, he valued it more than he did Rarity, as he allows her to spiral farther into madness in exchange for the chance that they might still keep whatever they had.

At the end, though, he finally told Rarity not what she wanted to hear, but what needed to be said. Spike had to love her enough to accept the idea that Rarity isn't perfect. He loved her enough to tell her that, even if it meant hurting her feelings. He also had to love himself enough to do this, even knowing that once he told her, he might not only lose any chance of them having a relationship, he might lose any chance of them even being friends. He gave up the chance of love to save her.

Well then. I am going to have to look at that episode again but I like the way you interpreted it. Im more of a Rarijack fan for some pretty well thought out reasons but I would have no problem with spike getting the girl.

[urapony 41]

It's the kind of love that'll make Chris Hansen come running.

[Fractured 2,684]

It's the kind of love that'll make Chris Hansen come running.

>irrelevant

>unproductive

>insulting to both Spike and Rarity, and assumes variables you can't quantify

We're not off to a good start.

[GenderIsAnIllusion 2,177]

They don't have a chemistry that would translate to a romantic, lovey dovey "marry me" kind of relationship..... They have more of a "let be friends forever and keep it at that" thing going on...... And I always thought Spikes "love" was always just simple lust anyways.

[Fractured 2,684]

They don't have a chemistry that would translate to a romantic, lovey dovey "marry me" kind of relationship..... They have more of a "let be friends forever and keep it at that" thing going on...... And I always thought Spikes "love" was always just simple lust anyways.

You're right; they are basically just friends. And yet, Rarity was ready to fight several dragons just to stop him from being hurt. Spike gave up his most precious treasure to make her happy. They do all of these things for each other, but neither of them has a desire to be anything more than friends. It's absolutely amazing.

Actually,  , i'm curious why you think it's lust. Is there something you've noticed in particular?

[GenderIsAnIllusion 2,177]

You're right; they are basically just friends. And yet, Rarity was ready to fight several dragons just to stop him from being hurt. Spike gave up his most precious treasure to make her happy. They do all of these things for each other, but neither of them has a desire to be anything more than friends. It's absolutely amazing.

Actually,  , i'm curious why you think it's lust. Is there something you've noticed in particular?

Spikes attraction seems to be mostly based on looks.... He hardly ever mentions other distinguishing factors such as intellect, sophistication, and personality. There is something very special between them for sure though..... Dual admiration?

[Conred 274]

Spike fall for Precocious Crush trope. And in most cases they are never fulfilled. You may have hundreds of kids having a crush on their teacher. Yet not a single one of them ever have a relationship or marry them in future. Since Spike will probably age even slower than ponies based on dragon life span, its even more probable that this relationship end with only friendship.

[Fractured 2,684]

 

Spikes attraction seems to be mostly based on looks.... He hardly ever mentions other distinguishing factors such as intellect, sophistication, and personality. There is something very special between them for sure though..... Dual admiration?

He admires her singing talent in Filli Vanilli. He also seems to love her handiwork in Inspiration Manifestation.
My problem with the lust idea is that there are many times Spike could've done something to show he thought of Rarity in a primarily lustful manner, and he doesn't. 
In Simple Ways, he sees Rarity for head over heels for Trenderhoof. He accepts it perfectly, never once complaining about the situation. The most we get from his is a sarcastic glance.
In Secret of My Excess, we see a Spike overtaken by his most base emotions. And yet, he picks up Rarity only incidentally. He seems way more interested in the jewel on her neck than Rarity herself. He snapped out of it when he thought of what it meant to him, not what Rarity looks like.
We also see in Inspiration Manifestation that Spike could've continued to receive praise and adoration from Rarity. As long as he continued to placate her, he could've gotten anything he wanted from her. And yet, he turns that idea away in order to be a true friend. That doesn't seem like a product of lust at all to me, quite the opposite.

 

Spike fall for Precocious Crush trope. And in most cases they are never fulfilled. You may have hundreds of kids having a crush on their teacher. Yet not a single one of them ever have a relationship or marry them in future. Since Spike will probably age even slower than ponies based on dragon life span, its even more probable that this relationship end with only friendship.

It's not altogether romantic or touchy; their relationship doesn't seem to extend past being platonic friends. But that's what makes it so amazing.
They're still willing to give up everything for the chance to save one another. For Rarity, it was her life on two separate occasions. For Spike, it was their friendship, which means more to him than just about anything. Even though they only stood to lose by taking those actions, they still went through with them for the other's benefit. They never even want anything after the fact. To go to the ends of the earth for someone and not even expect a hug in return... I find that to be special.

[Andaasonsan 3,205]

The official Sparity theme song

 

[The Crimson Cross 7,532]

Spike and Rarity is one of those things that will just never come to be.

Though a relationship seems alright, to me it might seem a little one-sided as Rarity hardly ever seems to notice Spike's affections.

The whole situation is kind of like the CMC getting never getting their cutie marks. 

[Spinelspike 78]

I personally really admire the Spike x Rarity relationship, because I think that overall, when looking at the episodes focusing exclusively on that relationship, it is developed rather well.

In terms of the future of the show itself, I don't think we will ever come to a point where both Spike and Rarity are declared to be in an official 'relationship' and I don't think they will become much more intimate on the show than what has already been shown, but given the direction that their relationship has taken, I think it's entirely possible that in the context of the show's story, I think Spike and Rarity could very well get together in the future when they are both older, so I think it's possible for the show to continue to subtly show the possibility and probability of that happening without actually showing it.

At first, their relationship was not perfect, because given Spike's sometimes misunderstood or immature ways of looking at things, he didn't fully understand that concept of love, and thus his attempts to show nothing but praise and adoration for her were not met with great succession. But as the series developed, I started to have more hope in their relationship because of Spike's developing mature attitude. We see that in some episodes, he genuinely tries to protect and praise Rarity out of care for her, and he ultimately doesn't really expect anything in return from her. Also, we actually see that Rarity does have a very strong and open fondness for Spike, and even when she knew about his feelings for her, and she knew that he knew she knew, she still showed a strong affection and care for him. Since then, they have both shown their fondness for one another, and Spike was actually incredibly mature for helping Rarity try to win the heart of trenderhoof despite his feelings for her. 

There are still big steps they can make in their relationship, given how that in Inspiration Manifestation, Rarity told Spike that he shouldn't ever be afraid to tell her the truth, and thus I think that their relationship will be stronger now that Spike will only praise Rarity out of complete honesty, and will alert her if she is doing something he doesn't think is right. This will also hopefully allow Spike to love other aspects about Rarity as a person other than giving her praise for the sake of giving praise. Also, in Equestria Games, Spike also learnt the lesson of being able to accept and hopefully love himself, which should help his nervousness and shyness against other people he has strong feelings for. Other steps that both Spike and Rarity could take would be Spike being even more open and honest about his feelings to Rarity, and perhaps genuinely asking her about her feelings towards him if he treats his affections towards her so seriously. I can understand why he has so far avoided this for fear of being rejected, but if he could overcome that fear, it would be great development for him, and the sparity relationship. Likewise for Rarity, I think it would be nice to hear her true honest thoughts about how she feels towards Spike, and perhaps not take advantage of him all the time. As a person, Rarity doesn't own Spike anything, and I don't think that Spike expects anything in return for his kindness (we can see that in Secret of my Excess, he was genuinely surprised to receive a kiss on both occasions, and he was not expecting any reward for his kind actions before), but it has been established that they do have a shared fondness for each other, and Rarity taking continuous advantage of Spike does steep a bit dangerously close over the line of just treating your friend a bit like a servant, whether that friend is happy to help or not. 

But yeah, so overall, I really admire their relationship, and given the strong developments that they'e had and the developments that there are still left to come, I honestly have high hopes for their relationship in the series

[Orablanco Account 3,707]

I ship them, but the older(so he's not a kid)/more-emotionally-mature/probably-tates-place-after-the-show-ends version of the characters, so a lot of that is wrapped up in head canon that probably doesn't belong in this discussion.

[ghostfacekiller39 23,860]

I DON'T CARE RARIGHOST IS BEST SHIP OH EM GEE

 

But yeahh - I can *appreciate* this ship although I can't ship it, mostly because of the huge age gap and the fact Rarity doesn't seem at all interested. If her lack of interest was more ambiguous, maybe, but the age gap is still the biggest deal breaker and I don't really wanna throw a wrench into the equation by aging Spike.

 

His crush on Rarity is what endeared Spike to me, though. I find him to be a very relatable character because we both ogle over Rarity constantly.

 

Spike is a bro.

[Nulln 755]

Rarity love Spike- as a friend, and only as a friend.  Spike just has a crush.  It's the stereotypical "crush on your older sister's cute friend" thing that is in so many other shows.

Rarity is fully aware of Spike's crush, and she is nice enough to not lead him on or crush his heart.  Aside from them being different species, the age gap bothers me the most about this ship.  

[Orablanco Account 3,707]

I DON'T CARE RARIGHOST IS BEST SHIP OH EM GEE

 

But yeahh - I can *appreciate* this ship although I can't ship it, mostly because of the huge age gap and the fact Rarity doesn't seem at all interested. If her lack of interest was more ambiguous, maybe, but the age gap is still the biggest deal breaker and I don't really wanna throw a wrench into the equation by aging Spike.

 

His crush on Rarity is what endeared Spike to me, though. I find him to be a very relatable character because we both ogle over Rarity constantly.

 

Spike is a bro.

 

That's all I do, really. Throw wrenches everywhere.

 

 

Maybe my head canon-based ship means my shipping isn't pure, or whatever, but I think it works best if both Spike and Rarity have grown more mature about the whole thing.

 

Also, if they're both adults. There's that.

[Tao 7,756]

In truth its one of the pairings I

like in the show which is cannon in

some ways. Rare and older Spike

could play into things in a fandom

world setting but also they have the

love of friendship!