Spike is a porcupine who is a frenemy of Reader Rabbit and his friends.
Appearance[]
1990s[]
Spike is an anthropomorphic porcupine with brown quills, a tan muzzle, a black nose, and a tail covered in quills. He wears a red backwards cap and red and white sneakers.
2000s[]
In the 2000s, Spike has dark brown quills with a light brown face and a small pink nose, looking more identical to a real porcupine than his previous design. He now has small, light brown visible ears. He wears a pair of navy blue workshop trousers with a pale yellow rope belt.
Personality[]
In his early appearances, Spike is a grumpy and spiteful porcupine that doesn't get things the way he wants. As the antagonist of Reader Rabbit Kindergarten and Reader Rabbit 1st Grade, he tries to ruin everything for his own selfish vendetta. As revealed in his song, he's only grumpy because he is sad and all alone, because he's a porcupine, and no one can give such a spiny porcupine a hug or be around him without fear of getting pricked.
In Reader Rabbit Thinking Adventures Ages 4-6 onwards, Spike is no longer spiteful to others, but feels out of his depth until his friends give him encouragement.
In the Games[]
Reader Rabbit Kindergarten[]
Spike makes his debut in Reader Rabbit Kindergarten, serving as the main antagonist of the game, in which he steals and hides all of the essential items for the campfire party at Camp Happy Tales. He is seen spying on the camp from the trees when Mat finds a party item. He also appears with Baby Bear in the stories in Action Reaction. In the Version 2.0 release of the game, Spike also appears in the Counting Lake activity. If the player chooses to race him, he'll run across a long, winding path from a cave leading to the dock on the lake and dump more trash into the lake if he reaches it before the player successfully counts up all the needed trash. At the end of the game, when all the campers go to sleep, Spike swears revenge on the camp, shining a flashlight over his face.
Reader Rabbit 1st Grade[]
Spike returns as the main antagonist in Reader Rabbit 1st Grade, stealing all of the props, sets, costumes, scripts, and music for Wordville's Really Big Show, dissatisfied about not being part of the show. He watches from the theater balcony as Reader Rabbit and his friends try to recreate all of the show elements in time for the show to start, becoming less confident the more progress Reader and the others make. After all of the show elements are recreated, Spike sings his song about his loneliness from the balcony, and even sings some lines about his defeat during the "We Did It" song at the end of the game apart from Reader and the others.
Reader Rabbit Thinking Adventures Ages 4-6[]
In Reader Rabbit Thinking Adventures Ages 4-6, Spike appears halfway through the game's completion, where he is sitting on the ground, blowing balloons for Sam the Lion's birthday party, which keep popping on him due to his quills. When Sam shows up and asks Spike what the balloons are for, he tells Sam that he's trying to build up his lungs and make himself hearty, which leaves Sam skeptical. Spike later appears at the end of the game, where he arrives at the Wordville Museum, covered in popped balloons, as Reader and his other friends accidentally surprise him when they think Sam is at the door. He then joins the rest of the friends as they surprise Sam when he arrives.
In Other Media[]
Reader Rabbit: The Great Word Chase[]
Spike has a mill, where he carves letters, words, and animals out of wood.
Reader Rabbit: High Flying Act[]
Spike works as a booth attendant for a spinning wheel game at the Wordville Fair.
Reader Rabbit: The Great Alphabet Race[]
Spike wants to be recognized as a winner, but thinks he's not good enough to win the Great Alphabet Race. At the end of the race, Spike ends up crossing the finish line first, winning the golden letter S along with Sam.
Reader Rabbit: Wordville Soup[]
Spike hosts a game called "Words that Tell Where" at the Wordville Festival of Words.
Gallery[]
