He's not lying! He DOES support Women's Rights!
"Don't call me that. It sounds so... childish. Don't you think?"
- Spike, after some poor guy calls him "Kakeru".
The so-called "Time-Traveling Simian Subduer", Spike is regarded as the strongest out of the entire Ape Escape cast. A beloved hero in Japan; Many games, plushies, and various items have been created based on Spike's adventures. From catching time traveling monkeys, to battling world bending AI, and even to fighting polygonal Gods, Spike's gone through it all! As every adventure goes by, more and more of Spike's innocence rotted away, leaving him as a jaded husk of his former self. Alas, he may be surrounded by millions of loving fans, but is it truly "adored", or does the public only adore their perception of him?
- Blissfully Horrific Backstory: Zig-Zagged. Spike is conditioned to accept horror, but he's also self aware of that conditioning. As a result, he flip-flops between making jokes about his traumatic events, stating them matter of factly, or breaking down as he recounts certain pipo monkeys.
- Imported Alien Phlebotinum: Despite not winning the tournament in PlayStation All Stars Battle Royale, Spike still gains a fraction of Polygon Man's energy, granting him various (and dangerous) powers.
- Jade-Colored Glasses : While Spike was originally a sweet little kid, the constant onslaught of monkey attacks has worn on his psyche.
- Meaningful Rename: "Spike" was a nickname originally given to Kakeru by the Professor. After the events of Ape Escape 1, Spike stops going by his original name completely. "Spike" comes to represent his heroic persona, and as a way to distance himself from his monkey-less childhood.
- Pint-Sized Powerhouse: Downplayed. Spike is the shortest of the cast, but he's built like a brickhouse.
- Red and Black and Evil All Over: VERY Downplayed. Spike as a teen struggles with darker and violent impulses, and the addition of black to his color scheme reflects that.
- Sanity Slippage: Subverted. While Spike's actions at the start of the story are a direct result of his deteriorating mental state, he gets better after his defeat.
- Solomon Divorce: After the events of Ape Escape 1, Spike's parents argued over how to handle Spike's newfound hero status. This resulted in his parents divorcing before Ape Escape 3. Mister Koizumi took Spike, and Doctor Seol took Roy.
- Trauma Conga Line: It is implied that Spike's most traumatic adventures (Ape Escape 1, Pumped and Primed, PlayStation All Stars, Million Monkeys, and Curious Big Mission) take place in the span of only 3 years, possibly even less.
- Troubled Teen: While most, if not all, AE:Future characters fit under this trope, Spike is easily the most prominent example.
- Utopia Justifies the Means: Even before AE:Future, Spike's primary character motivation was to make the world a better place, and to KEEP it a better place, no matter what. Within AE:Future, Spike's ultimate goal is to rebuild the Time Station so he can go back in time and prevent the creation of the Pipo Helmet in the first place.
- What the Hell, Hero?: Spike gets called out by Sayaka, Hikaru, and even Hiroki throughout the story.
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"I'm not even sure what I'm doing anymore."
- Mitchell Şeker
Character description.
- Boisterous Bruiser: Downplayed. Hiroki has the over-the-top personality you'd expect from characters like this, but he doesn't exactly have the muscle.
- Fragile Speedster: After losing to Spike in Ape Escape 1, Hiroki started to pivot his skills towards the ONE thing he had over Spike, and that was his speed and his driving skills. If you're not careful, he'll run you over with his motorcycle in the blink of an eye.
- Number Two: Hiroki acts as Spike's second-in-command. His primary job is to provide Spike with the money, tools, and firepower to rebuild the Time Station. Oh, and maybe stop Hikaru, Specter, and whoever else that gets in Spike's way.
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"He means it! He really DOES support Women's Rights!"
"I'm not even sure what I'm doing anymore."
- Mitchell Şeker
Character description.
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- Ace Custom: As a Famous Robo Champion AND the winner of the Hi-Tech Tournament, Haruka has used her winnings and her own knowledge to make custom upgrades for her mech. The upgrades to her mech made it near impossible to defeat, even with the Morph Gear.
- Bunny Ears Lawyer: Haruka is cold and aloof to a fault. She answers matter of factly, doesn't speak unless spoken to, and she's too honest for her own good. Despite these character flaws, her tech work is good enough that no one really cares about her weird quirks.
- Bonding over Missing Parents : Haruka, in an attempt to get closer to Spike, opens up about the trauma of her father's kidnapping, and how her relationship with her father was changed forever afterwards. Haruka is surprised when Spike opens up in response, telling her about how he hasn't seen his mother since his last court meeting. Their friendship grows steadily afterwards.
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"I'm not even sure what I'm doing anymore."
- Mitchell Şeker
Character description.
- Blissfully Horrific Backstory:
- Cloudcuckoolander: Reconstructed. Hikaru's unrealistic optimism, airheaded personality, and creepily chipper personality stem from his childhood trauma as a monkey catcher. As a result, he struggles to connect with others who aren't as "happy" as him (which is... most people.). This is commented on throughout the story, and Hikaru's arc ends with him realizing that his toxic positivity is harming himself and others.
- Kindhearted Simpleton: Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet.
- The Pollyanna: Hikaru embodies this trope. His idealistic worldview comes from a mix of genuinely not understanding the extent of the Pipo Monkies' negative effect on the world AND deep repression from his days as a monkey catcher.
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"I'm not even sure what I'm doing anymore."
- Mitchell Şeker
Character description.
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- Hot Blooded: Sayaka is the most fiery and vivacious person in the cast, rivaling only Hiroki. Her recent musical performances show off this side of her personality, with her regularly hurting her throat after concerts.
- Red Oni, Blue Oni: Sayaka is the Red Oni to Satoru's Blue Oni.
- Sibling Yin-Yang: While both Sayaka and Satoru are energetic, adventurous, and cheerful, their personalities are extremely different. Sayaka is a passionate, wildcard go-getter, whereas Satoru is prudent, laid-back, and down to earth.
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"I'm not even sure what I'm doing anymore."
- Mitchell Şeker
Character description.
- Knight in Sour Armor: Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet.
- Mellow Fellow: Satoru is the most relaxed out of all the monkey catchers. He stayed on the sidelines as Sayaka took care of most of the monkeys, so he doesn't carry AS much trauma as the others.
- Red Oni, Blue Oni: Satoru is the Blue Oni to Sayaka's Red Oni.
- Sibling Yin-Yang: While both Sayaka and Satoru are energetic, adventurous, and cheerful, their personalities are extremely different. Satoru is prudent, laid-back, and down to earth, whereas Sayaka is a passionate, wildcard go-getter.
- Think Nothing of It : Unlike his fellow monkey catchers, Satoru doesn't react much to praise based on his monkey catching escapades. Praise based on his baseball skills, however...
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"I'm not even sure what I'm doing anymore."
- Mitchell Şeker
Character description.