Why do people like Spike so much?

[Black Eye Guy]

Just wondering, what it is people really like Spike so much?

Cuz personally I don't get it, I mean Spike was a fantastic character in season 2,3,4 and 5 but once we hit 6, He just gets crappy, He does still have some very good bit's but, especially in season 7, he's just kinda boring. I think some of the most boring episodes and bits in season 7 are Spike centric. Episodes like Sleeper and Lies my parents told me Are one's I just have no interest in, I always over look them when thinking of season 7, and I just don't find them that good to watch!

Same goes for parts of episodes, The Bit where Buffy brings Spike to the destroyed initive in "the killer in me" is just boring and I wanna get back to the Willow storyline!

I know spike is a huge Fan favourite, I could understand that from the earlier eps, but I just don't see him as that great a character. I know he does have some good bit's and interesting storylines, and he is funny, but I think most of that decreased as the seasons went on!

 

[TabulaRasa]

Every fan will have some opinion of spike, some will feel the same and others wont.
What first got me liking Spike was how funny he was. Then I noticed how damn cute he was, which did not hurt for him at all. Then the love for Buffy, I don't really know how to explain it. I love the man he wanted to become. There was a demon inside of him that still allowed him to love a human, for the right reasons. That is a powerful thing. Angel's soul was a curse, Spike went looking for his. Now what demon does that, seriously?
I think it is just a long list of 'things' that makes me love Spike. Bad boy or tame, I love him!

 

[Spirit_Of_Fred]

does spike in the show of 'angel' count? because that is where i first saw him, and i liked him a lot then, not having even seen 'buffy' yet; by that point it is two seasons past buffy season 6.

 

[mogwaid]

I loved Spike in Season 4. He was hilarious. Didn't like him much in Season 2. Or anything much after season 5.

 

[Darling Faithy]

I love Spike, but I agree, he was his best in earlier seasons, I really couldn't stand him when his character evolved really and when he fell for Buffy, it just didn't grab at my attention, and it felt sorta...reached. lol. I think Spike has an independent character is great, and if you cut out the small sub plots with him, he'd be awesome.

 

[Panda]

yeah spike in season 4 was so funny. i loved the bits about him whining about passions. he gets kind of annoying when he falls for buffy.

 

[randiann]

I am not a Spuffy fan at all *throws hands over face to ward off attackers*. I like spike when he's all badass, and especially fool for love, but I just cant handle him when he's all mushy over Buffy. Other than that I think he's pretty cool, specially when he and Angel are in scenes together, they play off each other so well. And I loved him with Dru....

 

[Joamna]

I pretty much love Spike all the way through, I do however agree that there are times in later seasons when they sort of drag things out with him, gets a bit boring. But, there's also truly awesome moments: Fool For Love, last scene in Intervention, the beginning of season 6 and Touched to name a few. I guess I do love the way he loves Buffy and watching him (and her) realize and come to terms with it.

 

[The Chosen]

I could tolerate him in earlier seasons, but in the later seasons yes he did get VERY boring. I'm also an Anti-Spuffier. No offense to any Spuffylovers, though. I just didn't enjoy Spike and Buffy as a couple. He didn't appreciate her.

And there was the whole "needa getta soul" thing, which kind of seemed repetive to Angelus' storyline to me. [/IMHO]
- TC

 

[definition of insane]

So yeah...I'm a Spike fan, have been from the beginning. Loved the attitude. Loved the intensity.

In saying that though....definately a Bangle shipper...what can I say? It's my inner romantic right there. Sure Spuffy had it's hot moments but it's not "troo luv" 😛

 

[Spirit_Of_Fred]

I pretty much love Spike all the way through, I do however agree that there are times in later seasons when they sort of drag things out with him, gets a bit boring. But, there's also truly awesome moments: Fool For Love, last scene in Intervention, the beginning of season 6 and Touched to name a few. I guess I do love the way he loves Buffy and watching him (and her) realize and come to terms with it.

thats pretty much close to my opinion. i liked him completely early, and in s5 angel, and then in the later seasons of buffy i still liked him, just a little less. the only time i really didnt like him was mid and late season 6, when he just let himself be used by buffy, and the raping and all...not his best.

 

[eponinethen]

I do love Spike most of the time. We just watched season 2, and wow I love him from the first second, hehe.. There are parts of season 7 that I don't like – Spike wise – but in general he is definitely one of my fave characters..

Edit: The question was why though.. Hm.. James Marsters does have a lot to do with it. He is an awesome actor, and you can really feel that he loves, respects and understands his character completely.. Also, the relationship between Spike and Buffy (all through the show) is one I find very interesting..

 

[Tranquillity]

I'm a massive Spike fan and loved him from School Hard to Not Fade Away and in all his incarnations. For me, he made the show more interesting as through the character of Spike the writers asked questions about good and bad and the nature of demons and explored the very thin line between good and evil. He was a terrific foil for Buffy as they shared so many similarities even though she was loath to admit it.

 

[Jone]

Reasons why I love Spike: hot; British; complex; (eventually) sweet; caring; cool; funny; great fighter

I am a big Spike fan. I probably like him so much for reasons I listed previously and because "Once More, With Feeling" was the first official Buffy episode I watched and he looked oh so good in it! I was immediatly (ms) hooked and feel like I understand him more than the other characters (if that makes sense). Don't get me wrong, I love Angel too! But I didn't really know a lot about Angel until I started watching season 1 and 2 of Buffy.

 

[SARArb]

I think Jone said 'everything'!! I really agree with her. I saw all angel's seasons first and then i saw all buffy's seasons. And i LOVED spike's performance. He's just great! 😀

 

[white avenger]

As I've said in several other threads, I like Spike because I like the "Buffy" series, and he is the best "partner" she's ever had on the show. Angel tried to constantly protect her (which we all know she never needed), Riley tried to compete with her (and he never had a chance of winning). The only one who fought by her side and watched her back was Spike. (Plus there's enough heat coming off of the two of them to be the real source of global warming)

 

[Spuffiness]

Maybe it's because he has such an amazing chemistry with everyone and everything. I don't think he's boring at all (speaking of boring people, why do people lik Tara? She's kinda boring). He has so many levels, such a good character, one of the best. Of course there is the reason: he's cute and hot. But if we look for something more... mature... He's just there, where he's supposed to be. He makes things interesting. I, for example, find his relationship with Buffy much more interesting than Buffy and Angel's relationship.

Yeah, he's a vampire, but he has so many layers, layers that humans usually have. He's a very different vampire. He's like half vampire-half human, and that makes him stand out. he's easy to relate to. Maybe that's the reason people fall for him, even straight guys, not just the girls.

 

[Brightside of a Dark Mind]

well...

The thing about Spike is that his character was interesting and unique in that he was more "human" than other vamps/monsters. Like Joss said "this was never really explained". It was just implied that he had more compassion than others, like he didn't completely lose his soul or something. The implications are optimistic, if not amusing. That not even vampires are wholly beyond the reproach of dealing with consequences. As physical entities there still are repercussions for everything they do.

Evidently the whole thing with his mum was tearing him apart inside, as he said "been weighing on me for quite some time". The bond between parent and child is biological, and such a sudden and traumatic death would have an effect on everyone, even a vamp like Spike.

I believe Spike's character reflected an urge for redemption, something he desperately sought but simply hadn't found the means to actualize it until he'd finally had enough. And it took his little Buffy obsession/"love" to make him take action (at least, in a clever attempt at trying to put a twist on Spike's cliffhanger in Season 6, as would appear to be the case).

Looking back on it I actually enjoyed Spike the most on season 4. His banter and witt and his sardonic nature, it's all there. He was blunt and honest about his convictions. Like his argument with Willow about Thanksgiving. He obviously sides with the criminal minded, perhaps concluding that criminals (but mostly vamps and monsters) are morally superior to those who abide by society's rules and laws, in the respect that they are not afraid to act on their bloodlust, that they acknowledge that they have a dark side. The show (and particularly season 6) deals with this extensively, in that it shows that we all have that dark side. The crux of the matter is that William was a good man, and even as a vamp he felt that what he was doing was inherently wrong.

It really does make me wonder if he would have stayed "stuck" however, were it not for that chip. This is essentially what caused him to stop hurting/killing people, in fact the only thing. Still, he faced the monster within himself and fought back hard. The parallels between a fictional character like Spike's inner conflict (as well as Willow and Buffy's), are probably more commonplace than one would like to admit. Spike faced it and won, and this IMO, makes him a hero in that respect.

Thing is, we're all searching for that peak experience. That uninhibited form of creative, existential self-expression. In becoming immortal and thus free of alot of restrictions put on us by such things as physical limitations, societal constraints and rules, etc, Spike found this sort of freedom (at least temporarily). We all want that, but not everyone knows how to get it. It isn't about being a "badass", either. Sounds appealing though, I will admit.

And humans do have a dark side. We also have the ability to exercise discretion in what we do. Not being an evil monster reminds us of this.

You wouldn't want to do away with your emotion, either. You would essentially be dead, a vegetable. And apparently vampires have them anyways.

And even though I hated Spike in the beggining, even if I didn't like him 'cause like "omg no he's evil!", or whatever reservations someone might have, I find contrast in such things to bring a sort of vitality to life.

Idk something about Spike reflects a certain superiority in my mind. Or at least did. I don't see how anyone could consider him boring, even in season 7. However, it was a good idea to kill him off, I mean had there been an 8th season on TV, his role would have been played out and I mean seriously, what was left for him to do?

He was awesome in "Lover's Walk", "Fool For Love", "Lies My Parents Told me", etc. And on the latter I think it was obviously about more than just Spike and his unresolved issues with his past and his role as a pawn for the First. I don't know how but I went from really not liking him much to respecting him to then feeling sorry for the guy.

That's what I find appealing about Spike lol. And off course the fact that James is such a great actor, helps alot. I have no clue what Spike would have been like had it been any other actor.

 

[palabravampiress]

I said in another thread that I have a writer crush on Spike. What I mean by that is that I wish I had written his character.

Some people say Spike wasn't complex until after he was chipped, but then I look at him with Dru and I see that those people are wrong. When Dru first comes on screen and, concerned, Spike wraps his jacket around her shoulders and tells her she should be resting, we see something new: vampires who love like humans love. Spike cared for Dru, making sure she ate and rested, while he searched for a cure. He got all weepy and made speeches when Dru left him. The intensity of that love was even noticed by the Judge, who said something to the effect of "you stink of humanity." He was always stuck between the monster and the man. The chip altered the direction of those impulses so that, with Dru out of the picture and Buffy actually helping Spike stay alive, it was easier for him to transfer his affections.

But that's all it was: a transference, not a change. Consider: Despite his evil nature, he helped to save the world for Dru by teaming up with Buffy against Angelus. But it wasn't *just* for Dru. Dru was his priority - even more than himself - but he also told Buffy that he liked the world. He liked football and happy meals with legs and stuff. He wanted to save the world just because, even from his pre-chipped perspective, he thought there were things worth saving in it. Right there, he showed a propensity to transcend his evil nature. That Buffy became his priority for later apocalypses does not change the fact that Spike, on a very fundamental level, does not want the world to go to hell, and will fight to save it if necessary - and this is because there are people (Dru, Buffy) and things in the world that he loves.

It is Spike's complexity that I love. I also love his sardonic wit and his capacity for honesty even in the face of discomfort. I love the way he accepts people as complex individuals, not as wholly "good" or wholly "bad." I love his passion for life, even though he is dead. I love the way his moral system works. Because yeah, he does have one. Spike is loyal and devoted to those who treat him well which, in his words, usually means those who treat him "like a man." He'll go to the ends of the earth for them. He'd go to hell if they asked. But sex? drugs? Stealing? All the other little minutia that people put so much stock in? He could care less. That's why he's able to have sex with the Buffybot without seeing it as a horrible degradation and also to withstand Glory's torture without betraying Buffy in the same episode. Both actions are 100% within character for him, and that's amazing. so yeah, he's complex, and this doesn't even get into the whole find-a-soul and die-saving-the-world thing!

So go Spike! I wish I'd written him.

 

[GATEGOD]

Just wondering, what it is people really like Spike so much?

Cuz personally I don't get it, I mean Spike was a fantastic character in season 2,3,4 and 5 but once we hit 6, He just gets crappy, He does still have some very good bit's but, especially in season 7, he's just kinda boring. I think some of the most boring episodes and bits in season 7 are Spike centric. Episodes like Sleeper and Lies my parents told me Are one's I just have no interest in, I always over look them when thinking of season 7, and I just don't find them that good to watch!

Same goes for parts of episodes, The Bit where Buffy brings Spike to the destroyed initive in "the killer in me" is just boring and I wanna get back to the Willow storyline!

I know spike is a huge Fan favourite, I could understand that from the earlier eps, but I just don't see him as that great a character. I know he does have some good bit's and interesting storylines, and he is funny, but I think most of that decreased as the seasons went on!

I like spike because his amazing dialog,
his cool attitude, his look,
his willingness to change,
his sorta evil/not evil hilariousness,
did i mention he had some of the coolest lines,
^.^ plus he sacrificed himself at the end.

In my book he = :coolman:

I could go in depth but that's my summary of why he is an amazing character, and was perfect for the show.