Why Triple H has Never Been The Face of the WWE

DOPEdweebz
DOPEdweebz Members, Moderators, Writer Posts: 29,364 Regulator

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  • jono
    jono Members Posts: 30,280 ✭✭✭✭✭
    What he said is all true (except that ? about the HHH/Undertaker KOTR match. It wasn't that bad). Everybody knows this too, he shoehorns himself into big spots and rides the wave. Very Machiavellian of him.
  • Broddie
    Broddie Members Posts: 11,750 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited September 2013
    I didn't listen to the clip but everybody always saying he was just the guy involved in feuds with the real stars downplay his impact. I'm far from the biggest HHH fan but he came a long way from the posh connecticut blueblood. He actually was a draw in his own right when he was THE heel from 1999 to 2001. Everybody wanted to see what the McMahon/Helmsley regime was up to even when the top faces took extended breaks and everybody wanted to see him get his comeuppance at the hands of The Rock.

    He was also a draw early in the Ruthless Aggression (2003 and 2004) era before Cena and Batista broke out on their own and after Rocky and Austin were gone. He may not have been another Hogan and maybe he did get the push because he married into the McMahon family but to say he was never the face of the company is false.
  • Trollio
    Trollio Members Posts: 25,815 ✭✭✭✭✭
    ? married into his success and was the in the ? clique
  • dalyricalbandit
    dalyricalbandit Members, Moderators Posts: 67,918 Regulator
    the only time he was the ain guy was in early 2000ish when Austin and Rock got sidelined
  • FlightKing
    FlightKing Members Posts: 1,921 ✭✭✭✭✭
    WWE dropped in relevance when HHH was on top.
  • Peezy_Jenkins
    Peezy_Jenkins Guests, Members, Writer, Content Producer Posts: 33,205 ✭✭✭✭✭
    Never looked at him as the face like scsa or rock, just took advantage at the right times
  • Killface_toast
    Killface_toast Members Posts: 158 ✭✭✭
    He just seemed to ramble on and on about 'this business' during that era. What a lot of people seem to forget is that smackdown was the 'a' show at that time and was far more entertaining.

    The only good thing that Haitch's time as the 'b' champion produced was randy orton being entertaining as ? as the legend killer and shawn michaels coming back and being better than he ever was in the ring.
  • Broddie
    Broddie Members Posts: 11,750 ✭✭✭✭✭
    See the whole "bla bla bla if he wasn't married" I don't know about. He wouldn't be COO if he wasn't married that much I do believe. At the same time I remember this guy getting into feuds with Austin, Foley and especially Rocky long before he ever started banging Steph. When they were the faces of monday night and he the big heel.

    Granted he was in the booking committee and all that from '97 on but that's the point he kissed ass on his own ? the boss' daughter was just the next step but he was already made before that as a sports entertainer. He carried Nash and HBK's bags, he sat in on meetings and showed Vince that he had an interest in the "business" side, he took punishment when he had to and kissed ass when he had to and Vince liked that. He really did "play the game".

    He was still going to get a great push regardless of being married to Steph that just got him in position to monopolize the game (no pun) at some point which I don't think anybody even he himself ever saw coming. Truth be told though any other wrestler would've probably capitalized on the opportunity too, especially if they're already in Vince's ear. Again I'm far from the biggest fan of Paul "This business" Levesque but you gotta be fair and call it like it is.
  • Already Home_17
    Already Home_17 Members Posts: 14,572 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited September 2013
    hhh has never been loved by the wwe fans when he was promoted as THE guy. yeah they like and respect him, but was he ever as loved and over as austin, rock, hogan, foley, hbk, jericho, punk? bryan at this moment? jeff hardy in 08-09? taker was never really THE face of the company but fans love him. hell cena was loved by the fanbase at one point. granted hhh is a way better heel than face.

    but they tried the babyface gimmick with him in 2002. he was returning from a torn quad, winning the rr, main eventing wm, his ex wife trying to ruin his professional life, jericho attacking his repaired knee week after week. but by time it got to his match, nobody in the stadium really cared because rock and hogan put on a match to remember. after all that build up he dropped the title to hogan after one month

    i think hhh feels some type of way about this. it bothers him that he was never as loved and admired as the names previously mentioned. one way or another he always got over some of the biggest babyfaces in the company. in a way thats what makes him such a great heel

  • TheBossman
    TheBossman Members Posts: 19,796 ✭✭✭✭✭
    IMO HHH was never THE guy, hhh debuted in 95/96 at no point until 2003-2005 hhh was the top guy. around 2003-05 when hhh was the top star he was never the main draw, lesner, angle, and cena to a lesser extent (wordlife cena) was very popular....... hhh just dominated the WHC scene on raw at this time and held ? back like booker t, nash, steiner, goldberg and rvd. when beniot won the title hhh was always in the scene and eventually got the title back after almost killing orton's career before it got a chance to start.

    just my opinion, i always thought hhh was overrated myself, shrugs. dx made his popular, and evolution keep him on top...
  • jono
    jono Members Posts: 30,280 ✭✭✭✭✭
    The only time he was even close was 99-01 when he was solidly the top heel but even then he wasn't carrying ? , he was just the champion. He was the one being chased by Rocky, Foley and Kurt, you can honestly count that to booking because He had to be built up so he could feud with Austin in 2000.

    HHH was the first heel to retain a world championship at Wrestlemania (2000) but he didnt main event that show by himself they put 2 other people and all the McMahons in that match.

    When Austin turned heel the next year HHH lost his top heel spot and didnt get it back until HBK returned in 2002. 2002 is also when the reign of terror started that lasted for 3 years w/ HHH monopolizing raw main event scene.

    Arguably Lesnar, Angle and Guerrero were the too guys from 2002-2004. RAW was basically the B-Show then. Wrestlemania 19 (2003) main feud was from SD (Hogan/McMahon), the main event was from SD (Angle/Lesnar) and HHH was tucked away in the midcard against Booker T.

    2004: Benoit was hot property and was gonna get a strap, he was pegged to face Lesnar at WM 20 (Heyman booked it beautifully wih Benoit beating Lesnar at Survivor Series 2003) but Lesnar refused to re-sign a contract so they just Injected Benoit into that never ending HHH/HBK feud. So if Lesnar had stayed Lesnar/Benoit would have been the main event of Wrestlemania 20 (sadly this would have screwed Eddie but he was still incredibly over.)

    The death of Evolution was a true main event, that was 2005.

    In none of these instances was HHH "the man". After 2005 he started doing random stuff from feuding with Flair to DX to being moved to SD and then he elevated himself to "legend" status after HBK retired. I mean he deserves the label definitely but HHH isn't in the same class as ? Foley when it comes to legends.

    Crowds are relatively quiet for HHH matches (note the two Lesnar matches the crowd died), when he tries to make moments the fans ? on him (chanting you tapped out, please retire) etc. He won't be as beloved as HBK, Taker, Foley, Austin, or Rock. It's a shame because I like HHH sometime and I think he deserves to be on that platform but facts are facts, people hate dude, and not heel hate, it's personal.
  • herbalism101
    herbalism101 Members Posts: 1,286 ✭✭✭✭✭
    HHH's legacy will always have an * next to it because his career was built on the backs of others.
  • Already Home_17
    Already Home_17 Members Posts: 14,572 ✭✭✭✭✭
    jono wrote: »
    The only time he was even close was 99-01 when he was solidly the top heel but even then he wasn't carrying ? , he was just the champion. He was the one being chased by Rocky, Foley and Kurt, you can honestly count that to booking because He had to be built up so he could feud with Austin in 2000.

    HHH was the first heel to retain a world championship at Wrestlemania (2000) but he didnt main event that show by himself they put 2 other people and all the McMahons in that match.

    When Austin turned heel the next year HHH lost his top heel spot and didnt get it back until HBK returned in 2002. 2002 is also when the reign of terror started that lasted for 3 years w/ HHH monopolizing raw main event scene.

    Arguably Lesnar, Angle and Guerrero were the too guys from 2002-2004. RAW was basically the B-Show then. Wrestlemania 19 (2003) main feud was from SD (Hogan/McMahon), the main event was from SD (Angle/Lesnar) and HHH was tucked away in the midcard against Booker T.

    2004: Benoit was hot property and was gonna get a strap, he was pegged to face Lesnar at WM 20 (Heyman booked it beautifully wih Benoit beating Lesnar at Survivor Series 2003) but Lesnar refused to re-sign a contract so they just Injected Benoit into that never ending HHH/HBK feud. So if Lesnar had stayed Lesnar/Benoit would have been the main event of Wrestlemania 20 (sadly this would have screwed Eddie but he was still incredibly over.)

    The death of Evolution was a true main event, that was 2005.

    In none of these instances was HHH "the man". After 2005 he started doing random stuff from feuding with Flair to DX to being moved to SD and then he elevated himself to "legend" status after HBK retired. I mean he deserves the label definitely but HHH isn't in the same class as ? Foley when it comes to legends.

    Crowds are relatively quiet for HHH matches (note the two Lesnar matches the crowd died), when he tries to make moments the fans ? on him (chanting you tapped out, please retire) etc. He won't be as beloved as HBK, Taker, Foley, Austin, or Rock. It's a shame because I like HHH sometime and I think he deserves to be on that platform but facts are facts, people hate dude, and not heel hate, it's personal.

    hbk vs jericho was the last mid-card match. the world title match kicked off the main event scene. that WM was marketed with having four main events. hhh vs. booker t was shown first followed by hogan vs vince, rock vs. austin, then angle vs. brock

    hogan vs. vince was arguably marketed as the main feud heading into that night. "20 years in the making, hogan must retire if he lose" but rock vs austin and brock vs kurt were easily better matches. the world title match is debatable
  • TheBossman
    TheBossman Members Posts: 19,796 ✭✭✭✭✭
    mentioning the wm 19 card again confirms that was the GOAT wm.....
  • DOPEdweebz
    DOPEdweebz Members, Moderators, Writer Posts: 29,364 Regulator
    Yall know ya ? .