Randy Orton: Face Or Tweener ?

[andymcg]

So had a look around the Raw forum and couldn't find nothing like this so i thought i would go ahead n post it up.

Since we have learned Randy Orton is facing Sheamus at the RR do you think it is now time to try and turn Orton a face or tweener ? This seems to be a recall of last year, as it was around this time Orton punted Vince in the face and kind of took on his "SCSA" type character (not saying he is or will be as big before half the people jump on that bandwagon), asualting the boss and his family. So last year basically WWE had a HUGE chance to make Orton something huge, take him to the next level around about this time and well mucked it up big style.

So what now ? this year we seem to be in the same scenario, Orton looks to be the face/tweener of this feud as Sheamus is such a big heel at the moment.

So my question is what would you do ? Keep Orton a heel for a heel vs heel feud, turn him into a full fledged babyface , or maybe try for that SCSA type character once again ... but do it right this time ?

IMO i would have him a Tweener, keep him as that SCSA kinda guy and try propel him into the next level. some smark fans cheer for him anyway and he has been geting more cheers as of late, however his last face turn was horrible and i think he has done to much heelish things to be a face.

 

[KM.]

Face.

This guy was carrying Raw while in his evil phase and was still getting good heat when it wasn't being piped through. No matter how much you try and turn a fanbase the core won't change at all which is why Cena is heavily booed and Orton is heavily cheered.

The problem being is Orton is perfect for the attitude era and not the current fan base building era.

 

[RedStar]

I'd say leave him as is. I can't think of anyone else off the top of my head that could fill his role on Raw unless Trips turned. Which could happen. But besides that, he'd need a serious repackage to become a full fledged face.

As for the tweener thing...was Orton really meant to be a tweener during that whole McMahon Killer storyline? I found his actions more "entertaining" than "vile" but I don't think that would make him a tweener. Could be wrong though.

 

[Jordan-Dixon]

Its about time Orton became face

Ive heard alot of Orton chants in the raw crowd recently with fans gettin behind a heel.

And at wmania 26, id rather see DiBiase vs Rhodes than Dibiase vs Orton and have Orton against a bigger name like Batista or CM Punk vs Orton could be a good mania match.

 

[dmacizdman]

i would still rather see orton against dibiase. but the way they keep portraying the storyline between dibiase and rhodes, it's almost like they are pushing it that way.

i think they should just keep doing what they are doing and let the fans decide. it worked for austin. no reason to think it can't work for orton.

it sounds like the "orton vs. hhh/vince/stephanie" angle backfired with the crowd reactions, which was masked on television.

 

[dionlyone18]

Its about time Orton became face

Ive heard alot of Orton chants in the raw crowd recently with fans gettin behind a heel.

And at wmania 26, id rather see DiBiase vs Rhodes than Dibiase vs Orton and have Orton against a bigger name like Batista or CM Punk vs Orton could be a good mania match.

i say keep him as he is.orton vs dibiase would be awesome at mania..if you looked the past year or so its been some friction between the two. and orton plays a heel sooo well..why ruin a good thing....don't change him. he'll get cheers but as a heel orton's at his best..that viper like mentality is great

 

[Avitus25]

I don't think he should change, his current unstable kind of character has been one of the best things on RAW for a while, and I can't see anyone who's got the credibility and talent to play anything like that on RAW, apart from HHH, but I don't think he'll let himself turn heel.

It would be nice to see a new side to Orton, maybe something a little different, maybe more like Triple H's intense face character, but I'd still keep that instability and make him more of a tweener.

The other thing which I could see working is a kind of Anti-Hero SCSA gimmick, but I don't know if the fans'll take to that after SCSA's amazing performance.

 

[Big Ol' Buckta AIDS]

Hmm. I'm going to go with what most people are saying here and say keep him the way he is, which I think, he is already a tweener. I mean no ones really booing him when he is interacting with Sheamus, and as a matter of fact I heard some very loud "lets go Randy" cheers while he was wrestling Masters last night. So I think he is already a tweener, and as for turning him face? I don't know I can't really even imagine him as a face.

 

[dmacizdman]

I don't know I can't really even imagine him as a face.

me neither. i think making him a full-blown good guy would tarnish his image somewhat.

 

[RKO77]

Fwiw, I was in the crowd last night, and after Orton got up from the pump kick he received a face ovation. However, there was more heat on Sheamus to begin with,so it probably doesnt mean a whole lot

 

[Tyler44]

If Orton was ever to face, the way I would see it is if he stayed almost identical with how he is now. There is now way the Randy Orton character can ever be changed to something completely different or a baby face. If he was ever a face, I could picture him just being a complete smart-ass heel, but with the fans loving it. This is along the same lines as how Triple H is. I've read before that he would rather be a heel (comparing himself to the Joker vs. Batman) but it was the fans who just kept cheering him so he went face, but really never changed his ways. So if Orton was to ever become face, this is how he would act: almost exactly the same, but probably with more of a smart ass attitude.

I personally would love this type of Randy Orton. I guess you can say it is definitely a Stone Cold type gimmick, but I think it would be pretty cool to watch and most adult fans would love it. Little kids will cheer anything if they are "suppose to" so overall I feel it would work.

 

[cypherslock]

I know for whom I'm cheering in the upcoming title match: Orton. Just plain don't like Sheamus. I certainly would not turn Orton full face but cool heel seems to be an option.

 

[MikeZnox]

Orton will go back to being a heel after he faces Sheamus. Didn't he win that match only because Cena hurt his back? (As I read on the main page).

Anyway, what I personally think they should do is have Legacy eventually go their own way (which it looks like they are going to do in the near future), and have Orton become the guy who doesn't give a rats ass who he faces (which, again, it looks like they're doing). Make him the badass who fights the faces and fights the heels and doesn't give a damn who they throw at him. He shouldn't have to cheat, he just fights whomever it is. He's getting the crowd reaction and this is WWE's chance to make him a badass tweener.

I think that would be best for Orton's character, I think that's what they're sort of doing right now. Just eliminate the Legacy interference and that'll do it.

Just checked above me, Tyler44 is thinkin along the same lines as I am. Similar to his idea.

 

[mooseman]

I think, not only in Orton's case but alot of guys cases, Vince is simply saying cheer for who want boo who you want. In no way have I felt anyone really being shoved down our throat either way except for maybe Jericho and Sheamus. You can even argue Punk, although having an arrogant cult-like feel, is preaching the right way. Specifically to Orton you had a stand-off to a heel McMahon yet he wanted to take out Bret Hart. He takes out Kofi to go after the title and sheamus. As i'm typing this something just hit me. Go back to the 80's while the Horseman were hot. Technically they were heels but they had their fans and they took on everyone faces heels whoever.

 

[Topher D]

As Mike Znox and Tyler44 already have stated, let him be who he is and just fight both faces and heels. Just one man who doesn't care about anyone or anything other than the CHAMPIONSHIP. Plus always like the fact when a heel throws those smartass one-liners in there. Triple H and Jericho do it so well and I think Orton could do the same, help break up some of the monotone.

 

[Big Nick Dudley]

I am not sure if the WWE will try and MAKE him a tweener, but I think that is what is happening/going to happen. Do I think he will ever get the positive crowd reaction like Steve Austin? No. Too many 7-13 year olds who like the "good guys" like Cena in the crowd (who most definitely gets a ton more boos that Orton). I think Randy Orton, since his return after his broken collarbone in late 2008, has been the best guy in the business. His character is head and shoulders above anyone else right now, playing the psychotic, evil character perfectly. I am not sure how "over" he can get with the kids, that's why I don't see him as a SCSA tweener. He might be a bit too "evil" for the kids, as where Steve Austin (after his broken neck with Owen) was just a bad ass, who didn't care what anyone thought of him. He wasn't as evil as Orton, and he didn't have any guys backing him up like Rhodes and DiBiase. Let's also remember that Orton's slow, methodical, evil presence in the ring is more suited for a heel character, opposed to a face. He takes his opponents apart, really tries to damage their careers, not just win the match. I really hope they allow Orton to continue on his current path and just see what happens. He isn't really a PG-rated face anyhow.
Also, I think that if the WWE had a face, a younger guy (so no Michaels or HHH) who was realllllly over with the fans (not just the kids, Cena), the WWE wouldn't have a problem with Orton staying heel. I just don't see that company-carrying face in the WWE right now.

 

[*The Legend Killer*]

Its about time Orton became face

Ive heard alot of Orton chants in the raw crowd recently with fans gettin behind a heel.

And at wmania 26, id rather see DiBiase vs Rhodes than Dibiase vs Orton and have Orton against a bigger name like Batista or CM Punk vs Orton could be a good mania match.

I've been to several RAW shows(recently) and Orton has been getting 97% boos from the crowd. And to the other guy, Cena doesn't get booed at the live events(or either WWE adds it in) because I've been going to all kinds of events and the whole crowd has been behind him, with the majority of adult males. Just thought I'd bring that up.

 

[Dagger Dias]

Orton is the perfect candidate to be a tweener. He's Raw's top heel, and he gets cheered a lot. Sounds an awful lot like a tweener to me. If he "officially" turned tweener then he could take it one step further. He already gets face reactions by some fans for doing heel-ish things. Now that he is challenging Sheamus, another heel, it could be the start of a tweener role if he continues to go after ANY opponent regardless of their face/heel status.

I agree with the original poster that they could try a role like what they did last year. The problem last year was that he lost so much momentum after losing to Triple H. Had that match not gone last, then Orton could have won and the fans would still have gotten a good moment to end the show with if Cena's or Taker's match had closed the show rather than Orton's. WWE could try officially turning Orton tweener and going for a role like what he was in exactly one year ago again. For it to work this time around though, he needs a big victory. I think it could work.

Turning him tweener would work better than turning him face because he just doesn't have the look of a face. He does a better job at playing arrogant characters who back up what they say in the ring. A character who is so arrogant that he attacks anyone who stands in his way, regardless of their face/heel status, is perfect for Orton.

 

[instantclassic3]

IMO Randy orton is the now and future of wwe.

he needs to stay the way he is and that is a heel, its what he does best.

and as for sheamus getting more heat, its because everone knows he doesnt deserve the title rather then him being over with the fans btw. speaking of fans what is it with calling the fans "the wwe universe" i mean wtf? anyways i think a tweener orton wouldnt be so bad either as long as they keep him among the stop guys.
just my 2 cents....

 

[Tastycles]

No. Orton is facing Sheamus because there is nobody else. Orton is, in my opinion, abysmal. However, the only thing that can be said for him is that he is a natural heel. Methodical, calculating and a hothead, none of which are common attributes in faces. Any attempt to turn him face in the past has been an abject failure, largely because the guy has absolutely no likability whatsoever. Austin got cheered because he was doing the kind of things that the crowd as a whole wished they could, Orton gets cheered by a minority because they like him as a wrestler. No crowd is going to cheer the sort of guy that Orton is, so it wouldn't work. Some guys are always going to be better as heels, and Orton is one of them.

 

[Southwind]

No. Orton is facing Sheamus because there is nobody else. Orton is, in my opinion, abysmal. However, the only thing that can be said for him is that he is a natural heel. Methodical, calculating and a hothead, none of which are common attributes in faces. Any attempt to turn him face in the past has been an abject failure, largely because the guy has absolutely no likability whatsoever. Austin got cheered because he was doing the kind of things that the crowd as a whole wished they could, Orton gets cheered by a minority because they like him as a wrestler. No crowd is going to cheer the sort of guy that Orton is, so it wouldn't work. Some guys are always going to be better as heels, and Orton is one of them.

I'm glad we have a guy like you who can point out who sucks and who doesn't. I mean, if Orton is as "abysmal" as you say, then how much ass is he kissing to get to the top ?

No, he's the best heel in the WWE at this time period, this argument that your making here, is a years old one that has no legs. He is playing his character, Orton's face turn failed because he was beaten by the glory hog known as Triple H, less than a month in. Squashing all his momentum. What kind of face loses to a heel as quickly as Orton did ? None.

He could be an excellent tweener, but it's a pipe dream that would require creative to do something dare I say creative??? Yeah, there's no chance of that whatsoever.

 

[Big Nick Dudley]

I agree that creative would have to do something major to get this guy over as a tweener. His evil mentality is not something the crowd, mainly children, will go along with. I think he is the most talented guy they have, far from "abysmal." I know, he doesn't hit big spots so he must be boring, right??? What a joke. His character would have been much better suited for the Attitude era, but is still, in my opinion, far and away their best guy right now.