Spike Monide (Cataclysmic Gerosha)

Spike Monide is a character in the 2022 remake of Corando's "Don't Lose Hope". He is a re-imagining of his original Earth-G3.1 counterpart, and a bass guitarist for the band Corando. He is the husband of Jen Emberton-Monide, the father of Kasey Monide, and a brother-in-law to band lead singer Jerry Emberton.

Character bio
Spike was born on April 10th of 1984, to Monty and Kathy Monide of Cooper, Maine. He met Jerry and Jen while studying music on the campus of the University of Maine in 2003. It was not long after that in which Spike and his new friends got a chance to visit some of Spike's old friends, who were attending a wedding reception in Coranado, California. By shortening "Coranado" to "Corando," Jerry decided that he and his sister and new best friend should officially form a band. They quickly turned what would have otherwise been a typical reception into almost a full-on rock concert, with many arguing they should go full-on professional.

After receiving their diplomas in January of 2006, Corando became an official band, and began touring. Their debut album, released in 2007, was only a moderate success, with their sophomore album in 2009 faring much better. Corando was able to return in 2014, hitting gold with songs that commented on everything happening from the attack on Miami by Chillingworth to Extirpon saving Madeline Casey's life after a senator from Nevada tried to have her assassinated. The latter song led to Corando being investigated, as DC politicians were offended to no end that the band would portray Extirpon as a folk hero after what happened.

This wouldn't be the only time that the band would find themselves facing controversy, as they had opinions to share on more events in the upcoming years that embarrassed so-called "world leaders" - including the railroading of Ciem, Trudeau capitulating to the demands of Rappaccini after Anarteq saves Sault Ste Marie, Korsicht's destruction of Louisville and Cincinnati, Cherinob destroying Arcturus to save South Dakota, and the saving of Des Moines by Pilltar and Strawberry. The band received cease and desist orders several times to not discuss these events in their songs; but refused to back down and be intimidated by unlawful orders. As Halal Affadidah slowly eroded and destroyed the United States, many of Corando's other enemies began to disappear, rendering their threats to the band idle.

Jerry in 2017 was hearing numerous stories from others about "losing hope" in the wake of the devastation around them. He initially wrote "Don't Lose Hope" in a rough draft to describe a spirit of determination to overcome feelings of hopelessness and loneliness, of the sort that would later be expressed via the "Doomer" meme a year later. He was also troubled by the instability of politics around the world, and to stories of relationships torn apart by it. What cemented him to write "Don't Lose Hope" in its ultimate form, however, was learning about what happened to Darshan and Mahima in the wake of the destruction of Porbandar by Filforth. Spike was all in favor of going along with Jerry on making this production. Around this same time, Spike's growing relationship with Jen became more and more serious, and he proposed to her.

As Affadidah made life in Maine increasingly difficult for Corando, Jerry made plans to relocate the band to Texas. They recorded some basic footage for a music video for "Don't Lose Hope, in a rough draft edit that would have only included the band's performance and nothing else. They were then able to relocate to Arcola in early 2018, fleeing "Ameristan" around the same time as the Baret family - and the band Turkeybreath Skyline.

While trying to stay out of trouble in the wake of continued unrest in 2018, Spike visited Arizona during a tour, and shot some album art with other band members for a compilation on the making of "Don't Lose Hope." He and the rest of Corando continued to work together, and remained in touch with Darshan and his family, throughout the many more struggles that life in Toklisana would bring. Stefflin Records allowed for a stable business model for the band for the remainder of its life as a band. Spike and Jen married in 2018 after resettling in Arcola, and soon discovered themselves expecting a child. They eventually had a daughter, whom they named Kasey.

Personality
Spike is fairly outgoing, and often is better and making and maintaining business connections than Jerry. He likes to keep in shape, and to "keep a tight ship," in spite a relaxed personality. In addition to post-grunge, he is also a huge fan of emo bands, such as Hawthorne Heights. He even considered once joining an emo band, as his attire is partially influenced by emo culture. He found it odd that he joined a post-grunge band instead, but has no regrets. In The Sims 4, his character model is listed as having the "World-Famous Celebrity" aspiration, with an automatic "Gregarious" trait. He is also assigned the personality traits of "Active," "Neat," and "Music Lover."

Trivia

 * Unlike the relatively unknown bass guitarist from the original version of Corando, this version of Spike gets a satisfying conclusion to his relationship with Jen. The previous incarnation's outcome is left uncertain.
 * This version of Spike is a "chick magnet," whereas the previous version was invisible to most women. Spike is therefore arguably more popular than Jerry himself.