Board Thread:False Info and Speculative Discussion/@comment-26601629-20150715192253/@comment-4295751-20150719034525

Spike wasn't like every other vampire. Even though he had no soul, he always cared. About his mom, about Dru, Angel, Buffy.. Even though he had no soul, no humanity, nothing resembling human within, he fought and risked his life against demons, gods on many occasions. And he remained loyal to her even in her death, fought with Scoobies against creatures, honored her memory.

But even though he cared, he was still a vampire. He liked to kill. But Angel mentored him and made him a monster. Made Spike not just kill, but enjoy it. He taught him to get off on it, which is what he was doing when he killed Wood's mom, or that slayer he killed in China. The guy always loved a challenge, and it's why he was so damn obsessed with Buffy.

But when First triggered Spike, he was none of those. He was neither cold nor monster. First didn't revert him to any state. He simply made him it's puppet, so when triggered with that specific song, he would do anything First would want, whether it is to sire people, attack Andrew, or just kill anything that lives. Spike triggered by First was not Spike. He was a shell.