Spears are possibly the strongest weapon-type once you learn to use them correctly. No other melee weapon has the damage output or speed at close range (excluding knives)... nor does any other melee weapon have the damage and range the spear does when thrown.

I've maxed spears out several times on different chars / play-through's ... I even ran a double spear + harpoon setup once with a small shield in hotbar 1-4 slots... epic lol.