OK, I had this big column planned this week. It was gonna be huge. Bigger than the Super Bowl (Or the Grey Cup for all the Cannucks out there). There's only one problem: BrewGuy beat me to it. I was going to write a column about the Rock, but now it would just look like I'm copying, wouldn't it? So you can all send him an email here to thank him for depriving you the opportunity to read my thoughts on the Rock.

Instead, I will address another common complaint, and something I can't stand hearing/reading. Recently, Chip Bootz wrote about how heels and faces and how they don't act how they are supposed to. The Rock is actually a heel because he's a bully. The Hardys are heels because Lita interferes on their behalf a lot. And so on. Mr. Bootz is not the first and won't be the last to present these arguments. But no matter the number of people who say it, it is still ridciulous.

Only 1 characteristic can be called a trademark of every babyface and no heels. Only 1 charaterisitic can be called a trademark of every heel and no babyfaces. Faces are cheered, heels are booed. It's that simple. It doesn't matter why they like him, if the Rock is booked in a role that makes the fans love him, he's a face. Likewise for everyone else on the roster. There are a few exceptions, like Stone Cold getting some cheers despite being a heel because of his years as a face, or Rock and Triple H getting heel cheers for being so cool. Or the Rock getting booed for acting the way so many people say faces are supposed to act! But these exceptions usually result in either the character being turned to the side the fans react to him as (Rock both times) or the character doing something to force people to react the way he wants (Triple H as man behind Austin car accident, Austin going WCW).

Another thing that bothers me is these people seemed to be stuck in the eighties. All the time you see "Man, the Rock would be absolutely hated in th 80's" or "Kurt Angle would be a huge face in the 80's". It's 2001 people! Don't you all remember Vince's "shades of grey" speech? So the Rock is mean to people. Boo Hoo. I think some people need a diaper changed or a bottle refilled. Would the Rock, or Steve Austin, or Chris Jericho, or every other face on the roster, be as exciting if they were nice and friendly with every body? Oh hell no! Unlike the eighties, there is limited national pride in this country. Unlike the eighties, we live in a country of paranoid people who are always looking over their shoulder and who are afraid to trust to many people. And unlike the eighties, the WWF isn't trying to put on family entertainment. If, when Triple H comes back as a face, like we all know he will, you want him to deliver freindly, calm interviews about taking vitamins and saying prayers instead of dealing out threats and treating anyone who even looks at him wrong like shit, then you better find some old Hulk Hogan tapes.

Bucs792
from the ezboard