Why is Spike so neglected?

[Yes-Man 597]

(Sorry if this is a duplicate, I searched, "Neglecting Spike" and didn't find anything.)

It seems that nopony acknowledges Spike's existence and that when they do, he is little more than a prop. Fanfictions, animations, the shows writers(sometimes), even our beloved MLP Forums! So, why is Spike neglected? He's my favorite character by a lot and I don't see why people neglect him. So why?

[Thundershock 310]

I guess some people prefer ponies over dragons.Maybe 1 reason is that sometimes spike can be a little greedy at times.He helped take care of 6 animals just for the gems.

Don't get me wrong though i think spike is a pretty good character .

[SpikeyWikey07 58]

Another person who enjoys Spike as well. Nice. I had posted a topic on this forum, a while back that was all about Spike. I'm still surprised that no one has given this character a fair chance to show more of himself as a creation of entertainment.

[Scootalove 10,684]

Well, I know that Spike has a lot of potential to put on a good episode. But, somehow he blows it except for when Spike takes care of the Mane 6's pets. I like Spike, but he needs more chances to prove himself worthy.

[lardbobobo 1,591]

To quote some guy who I met at Otakon, "Spike's basically a slave and it's a damn shame."

 

He's not really at the level of a slave, but lol he doesn't get much say in matters and I guess he really shouldn't since he's technically Twilight's pet but uh, yeah. I like Spike, and that's why I was planning on making some game regarding him awhile back.

[~Vallo~ 409]

He played a more important roll in season 1, but over time, he's been pushed into the background. I like Spike too, but he's not in many of the promos, fan works, and he's not even in the picture that Celestia gets in the intro. I guess the ponies hate him.

[Zygen 6,065]

I think the reason why not many people find him their favorite is because hes not part of the mane 6, even if hes still a main character.

Hes a good character, however hes had some odd episodes ranging from good to ok. Atleast this season hes got some time to shine.

 

The fact hes not a pony also probably factors in.

 

Hes a fine character i'd say. I have nothing against him.

[kirbyboi 587]

Probably because most people aren't a fan of his episodes, or they just don't like his role or personality in the show. 

 

I mean, to be honest, I'm not a real fan of Spike episodes (Just for sidekicks though was awesome). But I still like Spike, and he adds humor and fun to the show. He may not be a pony, but he's so lovable once you get to know him as the show goes on.  

 

He's not my favorite, but he's still a cool character. He cares for his pony friends. :3 Plus, he's so adorable sometimes!

[Kelvocity 211]

MLP: FiM Focuses mostly on the Mane 6, and has little side characters. Spike, unfortunately it kind of a side character. He is the most prominent side-character, but still, a side character. Additionally, although he is Twilight Sparkle's "assistant", he's not a pony, not an element of harmony, not as present as most of the ponies are, and possesses a weaker personality than that of the Mane 6 and CMC. Plus, his episodes are usually not as likened as that of the rest of the episodes, though I personally don't have too much a problem with  Spikesodes. Basically he's just not as appreciated, and never will be unless the writers give him a more prominent role and make him more likable.

[Feather Gem 965]

I don't know why.  Personally, I love Spike.

He was the best parts of some of the Mane Six.  Laughter, like Pinkie Pie.  Generosity (most of the time), like Rarity.  Honesty, like Applejack.  Loyalty, like Rainbow Dash.  Kindness (I believe), like Fluttershy.  And...well a bit of magic like Twilight!  I haven't seen any other dragons with magical fire as of yet.

So, Spike is his own character, but with bits of the other characters.  I love him! He's just like a little kid.

[Phoenix237 353]

I don't know

I really don't know

 

I mean I think Spike is a great character that has potential. It's just that most people don't like his episodeds.

 

I hope they give him time to shine in season 4 because he seriously has potential

[Toa of Ponies 259]

I like spike, he is a good source of comic relief. He very much reminds me of Meowth from Pokemon's Team rocket, Minus the Part of an "Evil" orginisation part 

[BeautifulCreatures 31]

I have noticed that as the show progressed that he was being left alone more and not apart of the main 6 is adventures, but I think that he's had some good episodes in season 3 thats focused on him so far.

[Akemi Homura 7,680]

There was never any major hype surrounding Spike as it leans on the Mane Six almost entirely. That isn't to say they neglect him, though his limited role to begin the series could be interpreted as such. However, one needs to understand that he is a youngster and while he isn't an outright infant, he does not need to be babied constantly.

 

Of course, as we progressed, Spike was shown to be a real character with real feelings -- namely in Dragon Quest and Secret of my Excess. It highlighted some displeasing aspects about not only his relationships with the Mane Six, but also on a personal level where it was understandable why they disregarded him to begin with. Eventually, he was shown to be the one guy to save an entire Empire from falling into catastrophe at the hooves of an bloodthirsty tyrant. It is akin to a bench player on a sports team playing limited minutes to begin with, but as he starts to develop his skills, he starts playing a much bigger role for the team down the stretch. Needless to say, this certainly doesn't look like the mark of a character being neglected now, right?

 

 

I like to believe that the disassociation allowed him to be more appreciated over time; we now know he isn't a stock background character and is much more than Twilight's assistant.

[Yellow Diamond 7,564]

This thread appears to be discussing MLP:FiM in some way, shape or form. Thus, it has been sentenced to Show Discussion.

 

This is an automatically generated message, by the way.

[Wingnut 6,733]

 

This is an automatically generated message, by the way.

I'm not mocking you, Spoon, I simply get a chuckle out of the form letters used when reassigning threads. 

 

My thing with Spike is that out of the seven characters we see the most, he gets the most abuse from the writers for the sake of comic relief.  Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy are also mistreated in this way, but not to the extent Spike is. 

 

I never paid too much attention to it until I saw Spike At Your Service.  That threw a huge spotlight on this problem.  If Spike were shown in a more balanced fashion, I think he would get more attention. 

[Antismurf9001 1,271]

I don't have anything against Spike, but I prefer him being a side character.  Many times when he gets a big spotlight role I find him irritating (Spike At Your Service, Just For Sidekicks, etc.).  In fact, one of the only episodes that he plays a major role in that I like is Secret of My Excess, which I enjoyed because it sort of shows that Spike is constantly fighting urges that are apart of his dragon nature.  Dragon Quest shows this too, but I feel like it wasn't done quite as well for some reason.

[Erza 581]

(Sorry if this is a duplicate, I searched, "Neglecting Spike" and didn't find anything.)

It seems that nopony acknowledges Spike's existence and that when they do, he is little more than a prop. Fanfictions, animations, the shows writers(sometimes), even our beloved MLP Forums! So, why is Spike neglected? He's my favorite character by a lot and I don't see why people neglect him. So why?

Well, There is some good reasons...

1- It's show based on 6 mane ponies and he is not even a pony.

2- He actually gets greedy sometimes...

Don't get me wrong dude, but also i think he is Cool Character

[Rarietty 632]

I blame Friendship is Witchcraft...

 

 

  

 

 

In all seriousness though, it's also probably because he's the lone male main character in a show where everyone else important is female and the fanbase is mostly male. That could be one reason. 

 

Also, despite the fact that I really like him, his character often falls into the "annoying, cowardly little brother" archtype, which isn't exactly the most likeable kind of character. He doesn't do much, and in all of his episodes (Dragon Quest, Owl's Well that Ends Well, Spike at your Service and Secret of my Excess) the whole point of his episodes turns out like this-

 

1) Spike screws something up.

 

2) Mane 6 have to come to his rescue.

 

Even though Crystal Empire was an aversion, he ends up screwing up things a lot. Not to mention, he can come off as overly snarky and somewhat mean. 

 

I personally like his snarkiness (mostly in season 1), his relationship with Twilight and his comic relief role, but I can indeed see why he may come off as unlikeable. 

Edited February 15, 2013 by Rarietty

[OtakuBrony 349]

Howdy all!

 

Liked Cathy Wessluck voicing the dragon.

 

He has his moments and he helps out Twilight & the rest of her pony friends.

 

My favorite Spike ep is Secret Of My Excess the scenes with Rarity is funny as heck.

 

(Oh my little Spikey Wikey-SMOOOCH! Rarity,Spike:   (THUD!!)

 

I hope S4 has more on Spike & still goes gaga over the fashionista pony.

 

See ya!

[dreaper 136]

Oh look a Spike thread!!.... these are very rare.

 

The reasons why Spike is the most neglected character in this show are really a no-brainer. The focus of this show are the ponies and their magic, also the fans of this show obviously like the ponies them the most.  Out of the 10 prominent characters (with this I mean characters with developed personality and character arcs) in this show, 9 are pony girls with Spike being the only guy dragon, so being from a different species and gender plays a big part on this, it also doesn't help that Spike character is mostly composed of negative attributes, he is insecure, weak, coward, greedy, selfish, incompetent and sometimes a douche, and the past two Spike centered episodes putted a big question mark on the few redeeming qualities about him.  Even his species are put on a negative light as well, depicting dragons as greedy bastards, primitive and brutish assholes who don't care about anything but themselves  and overall evil... and Spike is only better because his pony upbringing, so he must reject everything about this nature because dragons are bad.

 

I like the character, he has potential, put it pains me that the writers are taking the easy route when it comes to his character: and that is depicting him as the "annoying, mean, self centered and cowardly little pain-in-the-ass brother", and I hate it, I fucking hate it.

 

I really hope that season 4 improves his character...

Edited February 16, 2013 by dreaper

[Swagman00 9]

Spike just needs a bit more backbone.  He is already the most prominant leading male character of the show and heck, he's not even a pony character.  The top leading stallion has to be Big Mac and I don't even see him in half of the episodes.

 

If the writers allowed him to show more of an adventurous jack-of-all-trades to him, the audience will like him a lot more.

 

Besides...he has hands. Think of all the cool stuff he could make.

Edited February 16, 2013 by Swagman00

[SuperUltimateBrony 351]

I like Spike and all, but this is the truth..

 

Spike is literally the most under used, and under-developed character in
the show. And yes, I do mean that more so than Applejack. Unlike the
rest of the cast, Spike has NO real character development. Let me ask
you some simple questions, what does Spike do? He works for Twilight.
What is his job? To clean up after and serve her. What does he like?
Jewels, Rarity, and being Twilights servant. How does he act on his own?
He sleeps and cleans the house for Twilight when she gets back. I'm
going to stop here, because I could go on all day about this.
Essentially, Spikes entire being is based around SERVITUDE.

Spike has no friends, and stop right there, I know you're thinking about
the mane six and cutie mark crusaders and yadda yadda, no. They
wouldn't give Spike the time of day if not for something he could do for
them, or if he wasn't around Twilight. They don't hang with Spike just
to hang, like they do with everyone else. He is there to take up space,
that is all he is. That isn't to say they don't care for him, just the
fact that they are not his friends. They are Twilight's, the end.

Spike has no life. Seriously, his worst fear is that Twilight won't need
him anymore. If you don't see the problem, let me explain. It means
Spike has some serious self esteem issues. His worst fear is that he
won't be needed, he cannot bare the thought of living outside of being a
tool for Twilight and is even willing to get into fights about it.
That's HORRIBLE! Spike is an infant, and he cannot live without being
used by someone else. His own code states if someone saves him, HE WORKS
FOR THEM INTO ETERNITY! WOW! That is so enchantingly bad, that I can't
help but laugh. This means Spike has no sense of self value, he only
sees himself as a tool to be used by others for their enjoyment and
luxury of others. He himself has no goals in life other than to serve,
and he CAN'T do that forever. As a dragon, he will outlive his
pony-friends, and become too large to serve anyone. Unless they want to
use him as a sort of anti-monster device, in which case, that's still
just as bad! Let's just move on, this is pissing me off.

Spike has no history. Unlike Twilight Sparkle, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash,
Rarity, Fluttershy and Applejack, we have no idea of who spike is.
Twilight comes from a hard working family with ties to royalty. Pinkie
Pie came from an Amish rock farm. Rainbow Dash grew up idolizing the
Wonder Bolts and eventually found herself going to flight camp because
of it. Rarity grew up in, what can easily be assumed from her parents,
an average life. She always liked fashion, and when the time came her
horn let her know that fashion was her destiny. Fluttershy was a
bullied, weak pegasi, she fell to earth for the first time during an
exam and communicated with the animals and decided she was happier on
the ground. Applejack comes from a southern family that makes their
living selling apples, and they helped the foundation of Ponyville.

See how all of these ponies have some sort of history to them? Some sort
of heritage that helps show who they are? SPIKE HAS NONE OF THIS! Think
about it, when you remember Spikes story, it will go like this:
Twilight Sparkle hatched him. The end. Why? Spike has lived long enough
to learn to walk, speak, and think. Why is there nothing showing his
younger days, when he had to adjust to ponies?

Spike Episodes SUCK. They do. They REALLY do. Honestly, they really just
suck. The first Spike episode we have is about Spike trying to save
Rarity when she, as expected, uses him for his gem sniffing talents. It
turns out, by the end of that episode, Spike was not needed. He didn't
contribute much of anything, other than some laughs about his ego. Spike
was pretty useless, in his own episode. *Claps* How wonderful, even
applejack finds herself having better characterization than that. Moving
on to the next Spike episode, in which Spike has a birthday. He himself
says the ONLY present he has EVER gotten, is from Twilight. And they
are always the same thing. Books. Twilight isn't stupid, it should be
obvious that she knows Spike is not a reader, why does she give him
books every year for his birthday? This also means he's never had a
birthday party. Essentially, Spike GREW UP IN ISOLATION. How's that for
fun?

 

Later Rarity comes over and seduces a rare jewel from him. One he's
been saving for years (that slut). He then gets more and more presents
and becomes greedy, he begins growing into a giant dragon only to be
stopped when he sees the jewel he gave Rarity. She tells him that it's
from her "Dear friend" but it's at that point that I wonder. If he's
such a "Dear Friend" why did she take the jewel she could clearly tell
he wanted to eat? Generosity, everyone! He turns back and they tell him
not to worry because he is not a monster, and he stopped himself. Good
job, Spike has a strong will! And we'll never see it used again.

The next spike episode involves Spike wondering who he is. Because if it
wasn't clear from the past episodes saying "This character has no
identity" this episode had to point it out for you. I'm going to be
honest here, hearing the synopsis of this episode got me pumped. I was
excited to see Spike become an actual character with great dragon
linage. Instead what showed up pissed me off. TEENAGER DRAGONS. WHY!?
WHY WOULD YOU EVER IN THE HISTORY OF EVER DO THIS!? Most of the episode
is of Spike trying to fit in with them. Why? Because obviously, learning
your roots means you must conform to the styles of the younger
generation rather than the old teachers, the ones with wisdom and
knowledge of your people. The episode ends with Spike saying that he
doesn't need to know where he came from, because in his heart, he's a
pony...aw... THAT'S SO STUPID I COULD THROW THIS COMPUTER OUT A WINDOW!

A: We learned NOTHING about Spike. If anything, we learned he's an
idiot! Not a single hint to his history is ever given. Twilight even
touches on the egg subject, suggesting his wants to know his own
backstory, but instead he never gets an answer and is completely fine
with it. THAT MAKES NO SENSE!

B: Learning your roots does not detract from your own personal identity.
Spike could just as easily learned who he was in the dragon world, AND
STILL considered himself a pony. The whole reason it happens is not
because of some big lesson, it's because the writers either didn't give a
crap about him or no one knew what to do with him! When I heard "Dragon
history" I thought of wise dragons, new kinds of magic, new abilities
and responsibilities. You know what I also thought of?

C: WHERE THE HELL DID HIS EGG COME FROM!? It's NEVER been explained, and
from what I see, they have NO interest in ever doing so. How did
Celestia get a dragons egg? Why did the dragons let her take him? DID
the dragons let her take him? Are they alive? Does Spike have any
brothers and sisters we should be on the lookout for? NONE OF THIS IS
ANSWERED EVEN REMOTELY! There's bad writing, then there's crappy
writing. Bad writing can be resolved and fixed. Crappy writing is always
crap, there is nothing you can do with it. Nothing has been done with
Spike, and essentially they have reduced him to that, nothing. Spike
outlived his usefulness past season 1 episode 1. And that's a real
shame, he is a dragon, there's a lot you could do with him. Dragons have
a large amount of mythos around them, don't tell me they couldn't think
of anything to use. Moving on, since I don't want to pop a blood
vessel.

The next Spike episode is the season 3 premier, but you wouldn't know
that from just looking. Why? Because obviously, Spike plays no big role
until the last five or so minutes. Spike saves the day, so I guess this
means he gets a celebration, right? LOLNOPE! Twilight gets the
celebration, because she passed her test. They all cheer for her, but
there's literally nothing said to Spike about his heroics. For goodness
sake, he almost got impaled! HE WAS ALMOST KILLED! And Twilight gets the
party? I understand it was a good moment for her, but there wouldn't BE
a moment without Spike and he gets nothing!? The hell, writers?!! What
the hell!? Oh, I'm sorry, he gets a window in the castle. Whoopie, it's
not like it ever matters when you consider the rest of them, and even
discord, have them. Congrats, Spike, you finally caught up with the
crowd! Spike demonstrated he could be a good, lovable, and heroic
character, but that's just tossed out. They don't follow up on him or
anything, just, goodbye!

The next Spike episode is an episode comprised entirely of him being a
tool. And sucking at it. In the end, we learn Spike is an idiot and
should only stay with Twilight because of his complete inability to take
care of simple things....nevermind the fact he takes care of an entire
house, cooks and cleans on a daily basis all on his own. You should also
ignore the fact he's doing all this, while still a child. He just
couldn't get it right that day, for some reason. DO-HO, YOU WRITERS AND
YOUR CONTINUITY!

The last Spike episode, to date, is of Spike taking care of other ponies
animals. Why? Because he wants their jewels so he can bake...OH WAIT I
MEAN- SO HE CAN RUIN THE HOUSE! Gotta keep up the continuity!! Again,
spike is making himself a tool for others to use. As you could guess,
everything goes south and Spike resigns himself to saying he wasn't
responsible enough, and that he only thought about himself. Really?
We're tossing in selfishness here? Didn't we already learn it was bad?
Nope, gotta hammer it in more, this time with a twist! Spike also says
he wasn't responsible. Again, ignoring the fact he takes care of a young
adult, a house, the cooking, the cleaning, the owl and BABY phoenix and
has been doing such responsibilities since he was hatched. We'll just
say, for today, Spike isn't responsible.

Do you see where my problems lie? Spike isn't anything! And what he
COULD be, they toss away!! Spike is ultimately just that background
character you know is only there to be a background character,
regardless of how much the rest of the story tries to tell you
otherwise. He has no real development and it's sad, given that he's
supposed to be a main character, but has not had a decent, serious
episode. Unlike everyone else. I can't foresee this getting any worse,
then again, I can't see it getting any better.

 

 

[The Original 571]

*claps endlessly* I could NOT agree more.

 

Another fact that you kinda left out; He is being kept from greed when THAT'S HOW HE IS SUPPOSED TO FLIPPING GROW.

 

I guess we can safely assume he will be kept a baby for the rest of his life living with PONIES instead of DRAGONS where he BELONGS.

 

Its like forcing a monkey to try and live a humans life. IT JUST DOESN'T WORK THAT WAY.

 

They are messing with how nature works by keeping Spike as a SLAVE. And he LIKES IT? I find that very hard to believe. I think he would be MUCH happier as a giant greedy dragon that can snack on jewels whenever he wants and not have to be bothered BY ANYONE.

[Harmonic Revelations 8,833]

Spike is good as a side character, but his episodes are horrible. It's like they use fridge magnet poetry to write the plot for episodes focused around Spike, they're not very original or creative like other episodes.