It's Tuesday afternoon and I still have yet to see Raw. Don't feel bad for me though. I have been enjoying the sunshine and beautiful beaches of south Florida with family and as I said in a previous column, missing a show isn't such a big deal when you know where to find it. However, at this very moment, I am delayed on my flight back to New York and figured it would be a wonderful opportunity to discuss something that's been on my mind.
When I first started watching wrestling in the early 90s, a heel was a villain. It was a character who was inherently evil by nature and basically impossible to like. Perhaps it's due to the changes I have gone though, but I see today's cast of characters as being very different than those before them. Save for the lack of over the top gimmicks, the difference today is that your babyfaces are not inherently good and your heels are not inherently bad. In fact, sometimes it's quite the opposite and it has me scratching my head sometimes.
One of my first memories of professional wrestling was my fear of the Undertaker. He debuted when I was just 5 years old, and when I started watching a year later, he was still this creepy force that gave me nightmares at night. Today, his character hasn't changed much, and even the tactical mind games have stayed the same despite the changing landscape of the WWE, but yet, he is revered. He is the exception to every single rule, and due to his seniority and legend status, his character won't be used much for this argument. The better examples are those who haven't lasted that length of time.
As everyone with a pulse knows, the ultimate good guy was Hulk Hogan. He told everyone to eat their vitamins, say their prayers, and to live right. He was a messenger of right living, even if his personal life wasn't that way. His character on screen transcended human life and the Hogan character was presented as a hero. Today, a similar character is presented and outside of the young audience, he is resented. Of course, that character is John Cena. The former rapping thug from Massachusetts turned to ultimate good guy, preaching to "never give up" and living by the attributes of hustle, loyalty, and respect, but yet, many fans do not see the man as a hero or a role model. Forget the many children he's helped through the Make a Wish foundation, forget the trips to Iraq where he raises the spirit of the troops, and forget all the other goodwill that he promotes. When he steps through the curtain to perform, his boos and cheers are about equal. My, how things have changed......
Now, let's look at the other end of the spectrum. John Cena has a rival. This man had a stint in the military from which he was dishonorably discharged due to insubordination, had got in trouble backstage due to sexual harassment and a bad attitude, has a bad reputation with fan interaction, and his on screen character follows this line and is presented as a heel who takes advantage of people, has anger issues, and treats even his friends like utter garbage. However, if you were to compare his reaction to that of Cenas, it's utterly similar, half cheers and half boos, with the cheers starting to dominate.
I think it's fair to attribute this trend to the late 90s, or the Attitude Era in professional wrestling. At that time, it became "cool" to root for the bad guy, but the difference was that the bad guy still had good qualities. Stone Cold Steve Austin did a lot of good, even if he didn't preach it. Randy Orton hasn't done an ounce of good on screen and gets similar treatment. The problem is that my generation bought into bad guys being good as teenagers and haven't let go of that philosophy. It makes little sense to cheer a guy like Randy Orton, but because it became cool at some point, these "smart marks" feel that they should buck the trend and cheer for the bad guy. Part of the issue is that the product is being marketed to kids and the "smart" adults are messing with kids minds by cheering the bad guys, but the majority of the issue I have is that a product is being presented in a certain way and the fans are having a negative effect on it without realizing the consequences of their actions. I'm not arguing that wrestling needs to present simple good guys vs. bad guys like years before, but please, if you are going to cheer someone, let them have SOME redeemable qualities!
Written by:
