Of all the Witwickys, Spike took his mother's murder at the hands of enemy G.I. Joe agents the hardest. When his father stepped down from G.I. Joe, Sparkplug initially devoted the majority of his time to his sons. Buster proved to be far more resilient than his brother and was eventually recruited by top engineering schools for his computer hacking abilities. Spike tested high in reading comprehension and writing, but would routinely "shut down" for days or sometimes weeks. As a teenager at Lookout Pointe Junior High School, Spike, still haunted by his mother's death, fell into a deep depression. With all other options exhausted, Sparkplug eventually admitted his son to a psychiatric hospital.