Critical Role: Does Scanlan Marry Pike? The Sad Truth Behind Their Romance
Over the course of "Critical Role" Campaign 1, the members of its central adventuring party, Vox Machina, grow from lighthearted friends to closely knit family members and, in certain cases, even romantic partners. Indeed, not only do Keyleth (Marisha Ray) and Vax'ildan (Liam O'Brien) end up sharing their own, tragic romance together, but Vex'ahlia (Laura Bailey) and Percy (Taliesin Jaffe) also get married. Those four characters aren't the only members of Vox Machina who become romantically involved, either.
As a matter of fact, one of the running jokes of the first "Critical Role" campaign is the initially unrequited attraction that Scanlan Shorthalt (Sam Riegel) feels toward Pike Trickfoot (Ashley Johnson). At the start of the campaign, Scanlan's many romantic overtures to Pike are outright rejected and played for laughs. However, the more that Scanlan matures and grows throughout his time with Vox Machina, the more Pike begins to actually see him as a potential partner.
While they're forced to put their romantic feelings for each other on hold for quite some time, too, Scanlan and Pike do ultimately ask each other out on a date in the final installment of "Critical Role" Campaign 1. In the same episode, it's revealed that Pike later asks Scanlan to marry her. He accepts her proposal, and it's said that their mutual best friend, Grog (Travis Willingham), even carries Scanlan down the aisle at their wedding. However, just because Scanlan and Pike get married doesn't mean that they live happily ever after together.
Scanlan and Pike's marriage doesn't last
In the years following their wedding, Pike and Scanlan live together with Grog and their two children, Juniper and Wilhand'ildan. Unfortunately, Pike and Scanlan's marriage doesn't ultimately last as long as "Critical Role" fans may have expected (or hoped). On the contrary, after Juniper and Wilhand'ildan move out of their parents' house, it's said that Pike and Scanlan mutually agree to get divorced and go their separate ways.
The good news is that Pike and Scanlan's separation doesn't result in the total dissolution of their bond. As a matter of fact, the two remain close friends, as well as occasional lovers, in the months and years following their divorce. Scanlan, for his part, begins spending most of his time traveling as a bard across the fictional fantasy world of "Critical Role," telling anyone who will listen about his past adventures. Pike, meanwhile, relocates from Westruun in the wake of her and Scanlan's divorce in order to live full-time in Whitestone. It is, additionally, said that Scanlan makes it a habit to spend his summers in Whitestone with Pike and their fellow Vox Machina members, Percy and Vex'ahlia, who rule over the city together.
When Pike appears early in "Critical Role" Campaign 3, she makes no mention of her relationship with Scanlan, but it's made evidently clear that she's still very close to both Percy and Vex'ahlia. It, therefore, seems fair to assume that her and Scanlan's bond has similarly withstood the test of time — even if it has evolved and taken different forms over the years.
Pike was originally attracted to someone else
While Pike Trickfoot and Scanlan Shorthalt rank high as one of the most beloved couples in "Critical Role" history, it's worth noting that Pike, at least, could have ended up with a different member of Vox Machina altogether. Indeed, what some longtime "Critical Role" viewers might not know is that Ashley Johnson's fan-favorite cleric wasn't originally attracted to Scanlan. Instead, her romantic thoughts were initially directed toward none other than Taliesin Jaffe's Percy. Johnson confirmed as much during the "Critical Role" Campaign 1 Q&A Wrap-Up.
When asked who Pike was secretly in love with early in the campaign, Johnson revealed, "For a very long time, it was Percy. I think she saw through her faith and the light that she carried within her that he was a marked man. She could see the weight on his shoulders and the darkness that he carried with him." The "Critical Role" cast member added, "She did so much thinking and praying for his soul. I think all of that time spent on him was confusing to her. Obviously, it never would've worked!"
Most fans will likely agree that a romance between Pike and Percy never would have been a good idea for either character and wouldn't have functioned as well as his relationship with Vex'ahlia. In the same Q&A, Johnson also admitted that, while Pike was attracted to Percy for a long time, Scanlan was the right choice for her character all along. "In the end, it was always Scanlan," she said.
In other words, even though their marriage doesn't last forever, there were never any other members of Vox Machina that were as right for Pike and Scanlan as each other. At this point, that much is very clear.