Batista has won me over. What about you?

[Creepy Old Man]

His in-ring performances have been fairly solid for a guy who's been away four years. He retains that cool charisma. His mic work is still pretty monotonous, but I've found his his wisecracks amusing. At the WM30 press conference, he ran away with it. In his interview with Booker T on SmackDown, he came across as a real self-assured superstar.

Yeah, I'm off the hater bandwagon and am now a fan again. I can't pretend to hate a guy that I'm actually enjoying. While the crowds are still booing him, I don't think the reactions are nearly as vitriolic as they were two months ago.

Where do you stand?

 

[The Perfect Max]

I completely agree with this. If the reports were true and that Batista felt he needed to be a heel and wanted to be the heel, then congratulations to him for apparently being the only smart guy back there. I always felt he was best suited as a heel, especially after his last run in 2010. I think the WrestleMania XXX press conference proves he's completely embraced the hate and turned it into a positive.

I like this Batista, but he still isn't good enough to hold the singles match main event at WrestleMania XXX. Having said that, his contributions to the build up through this heel turn has added yet another dimension to the angle. We all hate the fact he won the Royal Rumble, but taking a retrospective look here, it gave us a Batista I think we can at least appreciate, even if we're not fans. Having said that, I still don't believe he should have been in the main event, but he's making the most of it.

 

[sTyLnK]

I've never cared for his in ring work or mic skills, except his mic skills towards the end before he took off for 4 years. Other than that though, he always bored the hell out of me.

I still don't like him since he returned. 4 years later, 45 years old and he's definitely lost a step. He has no business being in the main event anymore. JMO and I stand by it.

 

[duxdelrio]

His in-ring performances have been fairly solid for a guy who's been away four years. He retains that cool charisma. His mic work is still pretty monotonous, but I've found his his wisecracks amusing. At the WM30 press conference, he ran away with it. In his interview with Booker T on SmackDown, he came across as a real self-assured superstar.

Yeah, I'm off the hater bandwagon and am now a fan again. I can't pretend to hate a guy that I'm actually enjoying. While the crowds are still booing him, I don't think the reactions are nearly as vitriolic as they were two months ago.

Where do you stand?

I completely agree. The marks just sound like a bunch of cry-babies when they boo Batista. They pissed and moaned for someone new and different, and complain non-stop now that he's here. He may have been gone for 4 years, but he's still senior staff. He still gets respect whether people like him or not.

 

[Merkin353]

To DuxDelrio: How in the hell can you say that we wanted something new & different & then say Batista was it???

Now I am a firm believer that the WWE crowd has gone from Attitude to babies but isn't it ironic that it's the PG era & the fans are acting like it. Coincidence?

Now to the point, Batista is just having fun & being more of himself. John Cena is the same, outside of the WWE or when he breaks character is a likeable guy. In the WWE, on Raw, on Smackdown he is boring, terrible on the mic & is ok in the ring. So I guess you can say I still dislike Batista but I don't dislike Dave Bautista.

 

[jameyt2003]

I was happy as hell to see Batista return. I saw him live in Birmingham, AL when he was a face on Smackdown, and he completely stole the show and really worked over the crowd when the show went dark.

I really wish they would have put a suit on him to begin with. The attire he has been wearing lately makes him look a tad ridiculous when you think of his age and personality. He wears the suits well.

 

[whoopin' ass]

I can't really give a fair assessment of his current character as I wasn't watching much before he came back and totally stopped once he did - that should tell you what I think of him. I never liked him to begin with and in interviews I have read since he returned, he comes across as an even bigger ass than he was before he left. I said it before - he isn't The Rock. He isn't Austin. He isn't even Jericho. His return added nothing to the roster as he is not a name outside of wrestling that people know.

 

[IT Factor]

I have always been a fan of Batista despite the fact that most smarks hate him. He is a great character who is intelligent on the mic and has decent ring work. People hate him mostly for the same reason people hate Cena or Randy Orton, because it is popular to do so. The timing with Batista's return just happened to coincide with Bryan's push that most fans wanted to see. So when he returned at the Rumble and won, it was more of a case of 'who cares?'. Plus the element of surprise was gone because WWE didn't want to be outswerved by the 'net who once again had it leaked that Batista was infact returning. Those elements combined made for less interest.

I enjoyed the back-and-forth interaction between Bryan & Batista since his return and felt their match was pretty solid. If Batista can become the monster of a heel he was when he was kicking Cena's ass before, that'd be perfect for the type of heel WWE needs for Bryan as champion[if he wins @ WM30]. His stuff is always entertaining to me whether others like him or not. It is a matter of personal preference here as some people like him and others hate him.

 

[backwardsrko]

I gotta say when he told Stephanie about her being around the block, wow that was funny, the smirk in his face when he got slapped OMG , its hilarious . Then Randy laughing his ass off.

 

[Fire Marshall Bill]

Wait! You like someone better as a heel than a face?! Call the presses! We need to add a number to the cliche board.

Batista did nothing but change from face to heel. It is literally the only thing that changed about him since returning. Then, you hated him. Now, you praise him. Congratulations. You are a statistic.

 

[TWJC: The Beginning]

The most grandiose pile of garbage I've read in a while.

He was pretty spot on actually. He IWC type fan mindset is so predictable. Hats why they're so easy to work. I don't really find Batista that entertaining. I think he's pretty awful all around. Everyone shitting on everything he's done and him taking it is at least personally satisfying.

 

[kadroan]

I like him. He's finally doing what he's good at, being a bad guy. I'm glad creative is working towards his strengths. I'm also glad they didn't drag out the Batista/Del Rio feud into WrestleMania

 

[GameOver]

no but i will give him one thing, atleast the last Raw he actually looked like he could go again, that was a pretty decent match he didn't look like a bloated sac of muscle

Still couldn't give two hoots about him returning, never did, never will.

 

[Skyeborne]

I really only disliked Batista when he was trying to play a babyface. In an interview Batista said he told the writers he should be a bad guy, and that people wouldn't get behind him as a babyface. I totally believe Batista said that. As a face he still acted arrogant, you could tell he wanted to be the bad guy.

I wouldn't mind if he won the WWE WHC to troll the fans...
DEAL WITH THAT!

 

[Jack-Hammer]

I've never cared for his in ring work or mic skills, except his mic skills towards the end before he took off for 4 years. Other than that though, he always bored the hell out of me.

I still don't like him since he returned. 4 years later, 45 years old and he's definitely lost a step. He has no business being in the main event anymore. JMO and I stand by it.

That's pretty much how I feel about him. The last 8 or 9 months of his career before leaving nearly 4 years ago, I thought he was moderately entertaining for the first time in his career. I fully agree with the notion that Batista is much better as a heel than a babyface, the guy seems to have a naturally arrogant kind of aura about him that shines through. He's much better on the mic as a heel than a babyface as he's just 100% dry & bland while trying to play a "good guy."

That being said, Batista still isn't anything close to great, at least in my opinion. Most of the time, his matches are pretty dull. Even back during the mid to late 2000s, his matches could suck unless he had someone of a really high caliber to help carry the match. As a heel, he feels more natural on the mic, but he's still awfully damn dry and his charisma seems limited to...well, flexing I guess? It got him over as a major star a decade ago, for some reason. However, and this is one of the ways in which I believe that fans have made a change for the better, being a big muscular guy with a herculean physique while not being all that interesting isn't enough to get you over.

In his current role, I think he's doing well because he's part of an angle featuring more interesting wrestlers. His role has been somewhat limited, but he's played his part as needed.

 

[drobs85]

Batista only suffered because of the Daniel Bryan fanatics. I have always liked Batista then he came back in his awesome new ring gear and I liked him even more. His mic skills aren't epic but they are solid especially for a guy who says what he means means what he says and doesn't cater to the fans. He's finally getting back in the flow of things, he will be fine.

 

[Dagger Dias]

Batista never truly lost me as a fan to begin with. I disagreed with him winning the Rumble (despite it being the only logical option going into the Rumble at the time) and getting this big of a push so soon. That being said, I'm a fan of his heel work and am for the most part still glad that he has come back. His best time was always as a heel. The feud with John Cena in 2010 comes to mind, with the exception of perhaps his time in Evolution that was Batista at his absolute best. His promos as a face weren't as good although he was believable in the role of a big good guy. Once he's fully gotten back into the swing of things, he'll do fine. I don't want him to win the belt tonight, he's not ready to be champion again just yet. I'm not against him holding the belt again at some point and he has not won me over but due to the fact that I never stopped being a fan. Disagreeing with how far a wrestler is pushed immediately upon his return and ending your fandom of said wrestler are two different things.

 

[Mustang Sally]

He seems to be getting back into the swing of things, which is good. I suppose we can forgive a few mediocre performances after having been away so long. In some ways, it makes us appreciate how hard it is to be a professional wrestler, especially for those who think anyone can step into a ring and do it.

As well, I like the way he (and Creative) have rolled with the booing, incorporating it into Batista's mic work. Yes, they were essentially forced into it, but it's still better than having Big Dave ignore the jeers. If he can reverse the negative fan reaction by virtue of his ring performance, more power to him.

Of course, if Batista was contractually guaranteed huge "match" success before he ever set foot on the mat, I'm going to think less of him, although it would also be proper to think less of WWE management for allowing a performer to come in and force them to alter their normal booking procedures just to procure his services. Hell, even Brock Lesnar didn't sign up only to destroy everyone he meets in the ring; he even lost the first match in which he engaged.

How Batista is perceived is still up in the air. If he wins the world title tonight, we'll know for sure, I suppose. Ironically, the thing we'll never know ('cause they'd never confess) is that Batista might have originally been intended to win the title tonight as a face, but the negative fan reaction surprised them all and caused even Dave to agree to a script revision.

 

[Creepy Old Man]

He was pretty spot on actually. He IWC type fan mindset is so predictable. Hats why they're so easy to work. I don't really find Batista that entertaining. I think he's pretty awful all around. Everyone shitting on everything he's done and him taking it is at least personally satisfying.

Nope, he was just another flamer trying to alleviate his agonising personal insecurities. He is very much the "statistic" around these parts. Obviously this appeals to yourself, hence your need to top the thread up to brimming point with grandiose, "I-know-it-all" poppycock.

Batista's wisecracks about people going back to their jobs at Hot Topic, and Steph being the "brawn" of the operation marked a shift to a new persona, as did his cool performances at the press conference and on SmackDown. The difference from his bland work in January and February is pronounced, and far beyond just a shift from face to heel. If you can't see that then you probably shouldn't comment.

 

[Noshowers]

Nope, he was just another flamer trying to alleviate his agonising personal insecurities. He is very much the "statistic" around these parts. Obviously this appeals to yourself, hence your need to top the thread up to brimming point with grandiose, "I-know-it-all" poppycock.

Batista's wisecracks about people going back to their jobs at Hot Topic, and Steph being the "brawn" of the operation marked a shift to a new persona, as did his cool performances at the press conference and on SmackDown. The difference from his bland work in January and February is pronounced, and far beyond just a shift from face to heel. If you can't see that then you probably shouldn't comment.

His wisecracks like "you never beat me Hunter, hur hur hur", "I'm gonna be WW Woold Heavy and Weight Champ" and his very poor rip off of Daniel Bryans dig at HHH (Brain / Brawn thing you mentioned) when Bryan said Stephanie should put on the tights and face him at Wrestlemania while HHH puts on her skirt and cheers from the sideline?

Right now Scott Steiner seems like a much better option to try and keep the muscle marks. At least he could suplex people and spout some insane dialogue.

 

[ocekit]

I loved Batista back in the day, but I'll admit I was kinda...meh about his return. Batista didn't seem to feel comfortable in the face role and fans weren't ready to accept it. He seems to be a lot more comfortable now that he's had some time back, and now that he's in role that suits him a little better. He still has issues, of course, but there has been improvement. I'm curious as to where they'll take him after Wrestlemania.

 

[Logisticalbooker86]

Batista is fine as a heel. At least it is more natural than him playing the strong, silent babyface. He's not my favorite either way, but he's going to be put in a good position on the card and I accept that.

 

[GeneralKarim]

I've always liked Batista better as heel. He just fits the character so much and his mic skills are vastly superior as a heel than a face.

I was kinda harsh on him when he won the Rumble but I realize that its not him that im haging against but against creative actually. They brought the dude up to be a face and made him win the Rumble in a time where DB is your only choice to win...anything really, and it would be about damn time.

His in-ring work, is decent. I mean his moves are still pretty good. He's never had a pretty good spear, but his spinebuster and finisher are all "effective" and look good. His cardio needs work tho, because if he is going to do house shows and stay here 2 years, he needs to get better and make that one last year at least somewhat memorable.

But hey, there is a time, not too far away, when WWE will have no part timers to take advantage of and compensate for their poor booking, I'm so looking forward to that time. Until then enjoy the people that once were the young guys proving themselves, cause there aren't many left.