Could Jeff Hardy Ever Turn Heel Again?

[ECWcyrus]

10-10-10...a date known as the night "they" took over. the night Jeff Hardy turned into the antichrist of professional wrestling.

Upon turning heel, jeff had his main feuds with matt morgan, and mr anderson. In my opinion, Jeff was a really good heel. I never thought he was great on the mic, but he was pretty good with his dark, antichrist promos. Plus, I liked his theme called "Another Me"

Then....Victory Road happened, and i'm sure you all what happened there.

Now I understand Jeff needed to come back as a face, but I feel like if he is really cleaned up his act, then maybe we could see the return of the antichrist.

So my question is, Do you think Jeff will, or should turn heel at some point in the future.

Note: this is the first thread I made, so go easy on me please lol

 

[justinept]

Eventually, the need for Hardy to turn heel will exist. Impact produces two hours of original programming every week as well as monthly pay-per views. Eventually, you run out of quality programs for the guy to work ... so you have to turn him heel in order to create something "original."

Furthermore, the exposure or - in most cases with wrestling - the overexposure of Hardy will eventually wear on the fans, and it will lead to them booing him. That's typically the case with most wrestlers - and unless Hardy provides monetary reasons for staying face (think John Cena), then a heel turn will just be a natural route for him to go.

I do need to say that I don't think Hardy "needed" to come back as a face. Though I don't have any issue with the story being told, there were other options ... and some of those options included him returning as a heel. For instance, he could have told the fans to "shove it" and that he was going to live his life the way he wanted to live it ... he could have blamed the fans for his addictions, citing their constant need for high-risk spots as taking a mental and physical toll on him ... he could have come back preaching about how he has seen the errors of his ways, that he's now a better person for it, and that everyone else would be a better person if they'd see the errors of their own ways.

So, there were other options ... and there are plenty of options that exist for him to one day become a heel again.

 

[Azane]

Hardy can turn heel easily... he just needs to act like himself.

His current history, especially since he joined TNA is pretty easy to turn into a dark gimmick. I actually think it's harder to keep him face after he totally blew an entire ppv by himself (well, the card had a lot of other flaws, but his addiction is what we'll remember).

Jeff Hardy has to work harder to be a face than a heel at this point in his career.

 

[justin71]

Hardy is marketed best as a face. Case and point Jeff's primary fan base is and always been kids. Jeff Hardy as a heel won't sell merchandise why give up their top cash cow?

 

[Richard Blonoff]

Hardy can turn heel easily... he just needs to act like himself.

His current history, especially since he joined TNA is pretty easy to turn into a dark gimmick. I actually think it's harder to keep him face after he totally blew an entire ppv by himself (well, the card had a lot of other flaws, but his addiction is what we'll remember).

Jeff Hardy has to work harder to be a face than a heel at this point in his career.

To be honest this is true of a lot of guys, but Jeff in particular

During his initial run in the E he and Matt were always the faces and they were fairly over. Thats usually the case of young high flyers though.

His appeal is definitely to the younger crowd now though, not necessarily little kids but teens. When he came back with his apology it solidified his status as a face, at least for the time being.

I could see him getting frustrated with not getting the belt and turning, probably by going all aggro on a top heel or beating the hell out of a guy like Storm.

One thing I will never understand however is how he gets so many second chances? His out of the ring lifestyle and his backstage issues have long been documented. Even back in his early WWE days he got heat backstage to the point where some of the senior guys, like The Undertaker and Bradshaw took action

 

[justinept]

Hardy is marketed best as a face. Case and point Jeff's primary fan base is and always been kids. Jeff Hardy as a heel won't sell merchandise why give up their top cash cow?

Voted Worst Answer by Yahoo Answers! I mean, seriously. How many laughable points can someone make in two sentences? Let's count.

I find it odd that Hardy's primary fan base is kids when TNA's intended audience is teens and young adults. I find it equally odd that Hardy got over in the WWE back in the late 90s when the WWE targeted the same demo.

Perhaps you only remember back to 2007 when the WWE switched gears and started targeting the kids demo. That's the only time in Jeff's career when he was really marketed toward kids ... and that was more because of the WWE's direction than because of anything Hardy did.

It's tough to say that Jeff won't push merch as a heel since he doesn't exactly push a ton of merch as a face. Let's not go comparing this guy to Rock, Austin, Cena or Hogan in terms of pushing merch. Calling him a cash cow is utterly ridiculous (pun intended). He's a moderate star in the annals of pro wrestling ... on the level of a Christian. He was fun to watch ... he gave you some good memories ... but have you ever seen anyone actually wearing a Jeff Hardy shirt outside the Impact Zone? Doubtful. A heel turn wouldn't do anything to change that fact, and it would have a minimal impact on merch sales.

At the end of the day, Hardy's face/heel turns will be dictated by creative factors as opposed to monetary considerations.

 

[The 1-2-3 Killam]

http://forums.wrestlezone.com/showthread.php?t=202647

^^Here's another thread dedicated to whether or not Jeff Hardy could turn heel again... It's barely on the second page. If you really want my opinion, it hasn't changed since a few weeks ago...

I'm worried that if they turn Jeff Hardy heel too soon, they will lose the sympathy vote that they (specifically Jeff Jarrett) worked so hard to build up for his return. The crowd has expended a lot of emotion on Hardy, and regardless of the industry being "fake", the forgiveness offered by the fans was pretty genuine. Right now he is the most over person in TNA, followed closely by Sting and James Storm. They could easily turn him heel, but will the fans have the heart to "boo" him? When people have actually dealt with very "real" anger towards Jeff Hardy recently, supplementing it with "fake" anger for his character might be a very bad idea. I could be wrong - it may be brilliant, and maybe the fans will flock to booing him naturally. But they may also just stop caring...

Now, all that aside I think being a heel genuinely plays to Hardy's strengths much more than being a face does. He has a great tenure in pro wrestling, but it's no secret that he's not the smoothest mic worker in the business. He's had epic feuds, but for the most part it's been his opponents that carry the promo work. What Hardy has is his excellent ring work, ability to get the crowd behind him in a positive OR negative way, his extremely unique look, and his veteran experience. And let's face it...Hardy looked at his most bad-ass during his last run as a heel in TNA.

So another Hardy heel run? I could get behind that if they decided to go that route in... maybe a year? And I would LOVE to see this look return for him. He truly looks like an evil man - utterly sadistic. What I do NOT want to see, under any circumstances, is another Immortal run. Or any sort of evil, power-hungry faction with Hardy at the helm for that matter! If they absolutely must do it... turn him heel, give him (at most) one ally or manager that can speak for him from time to time, and allow him to cut loose and truly be the heel he can be. None of this wishy-washy cocky heel crap. Hardy is the type of guy that has to go big, or go home in everything he does, or it just won't work. He's just not vocally charismatic enough to ride the line between heel and face...

I will say one last concern of mine, and it may be a foolish one. I do fear that in the past these reality-based heel angles for Hardy have only enhanced his issues with drugs and other substances. Both the Hardy Boys are famous for not being able to distinguish that line between work and reality. It may be silly, and for any casual fan you may laugh at the thought of a character taking himself seriously...but Hardy is in a precarious place. When WWE pushed him to the sky, the pressure was to much, and he quit right before being arrested on serious drug charges. When Jeff was at the top of TNA for a short time, he ruined a PPV and caused a giant scandal. You don't want to give him too much responsibility, because I honestly don't think he's mature enough to handle it.

 

[mrkingofworld]

I can't believe that so many people can be wrong at once. Hardy will have a hard time being a credible heel, and had a hard time before. When in WWE, circa late 1990's, the Hardys were a great high-flying tag team that all of the kids, and most women, loved. Toward the end of Hardys last WWE run, he was second in popularity only to John Cena. The only problem at that time is that Hardy's fan base consisted of the exact same demo as Cena's. Hence, when Hardy took time off, the fans stayed with Cena and the WWE.

When Hardy came back on Jan 4th, 2010 to Impact, fans were happy, but not for the same reasons as they were when he was in WWE. The fans in TNA were happy because it looked like TNA was taking WWE's top talent, which in a way they were. They were happy because it looked like TNA may have some renewed life in the X-Division. We later found out that Hardy can no longer hang with the X-Division stars, and that's fine because he is a main-eventer, and rightfully so.

Keep in mind, many TNA are old WWE and WCW fans who are looking for an edgier product. They came to the right place. Many of the 'kid's' who use to love Hardy 15 years ago, are now young adults cheering Hardy in TNA. It's an instinct, really. They pass their love of Hardy onto their young children. I recently went to a TNA live event and there were 2 kids, probably about 12-13 years old each, who were there by themselves. One of the kid's mothers had dropped them off outside the arena prior to the show. The only reason they came was to see Hardy, which was evident by the fact that they were sitting in the row behind me taking about Hardy the whole show through until he finally came out and the roof came off the place. I myself have never been a Hardy fan, but I'm am not too ashamed to say my wife and I got our picture taken with him after the show, after paying $20 and standing in line for nearly 2 hours. That's right, there were probably 1200 people there that day to watch the show, and about 900-1000 of them payed $20 and waited in a line that circled the entire way thru the arena floor just to get a picture with him.

Point is, if I can remember what I was saying, all the men who watch WWE and yell "CENA SUCKS!", that just so happens to be TNA's demographic. However Hardy has adapted to it. And the fans love him. If he goes heel again, much like last time, the fans will boo him out of respect, because they will understand what he is trying to do and they will go along with it. NOBODY will boo because they no longer like him (besides the few who never liked him in the first place). TNA fans in general are more mature than WWE fans, simply because of the age demographic. You don't have tons of little kids sitting in the stands. The fans will boo who they are supposed to and cheer who they are supposed to out of respect, but generally, TNA fans have respect and love for EVERY TNA wrestler (except maybe Robbie E.), and the fans will not actually hate on anybody.

When Eric Bischoff walked to the ring last week on Impact, the English fans the entire way down the entrance were bowing to him as a sign of respect. Once he started talking everyone was booing. Did they suddenly start hating him, just like that? No, they were booing because they know that's what Eric wants. Everybody booes Roode and Bully Ray, however every fan, especially on these sites, agree that as far as heels go, they are doing a great job and are at the top of their game.

Hardy can be a heel anytime he wants, but the fans will always love him. His current fanbase does not 100% revolve aroung gullible little kids the way Cena's does. Fans will boo Hardy out of respect, but nobody will dislike him for doing heelish things.

 

[justin71]

Voted Worst Answer by Yahoo Answers! I mean, seriously. How many laughable points can someone make in two sentences? Let's count.

I find it odd that Hardy's primary fan base is kids when TNA's intended audience is teens and young adults. I find it equally odd that Hardy got over in the WWE back in the late 90s when the WWE targeted the same demo.

Perhaps you only remember back to 2007 when the WWE switched gears and started targeting the kids demo. That's the only time in Jeff's career when he was really marketed toward kids ... and that was more because of the WWE's direction than because of anything Hardy did.

It's tough to say that Jeff won't push merch as a heel since he doesn't exactly push a ton of merch as a face. Let's not go comparing this guy to Rock, Austin, Cena or Hogan in terms of pushing merch. Calling him a cash cow is utterly ridiculous (pun intended). He's a moderate star in the annals of pro wrestling ... on the level of a Christian. He was fun to watch ... he gave you some good memories ... but have you ever seen anyone actually wearing a Jeff Hardy shirt outside the Impact Zone? Doubtful. A heel turn wouldn't do anything to change that fact, and it would have a minimal impact on merch sales. At the end of the day, Hardy's face/heel turns will be dictated by creative factors as opposed to monetary considerations.

Well last time I checked even Dixie Carter was in the making money business and sure I agree Jeff's star has fizzled allot since leaving WWE and his past legal problems fact is faces move more merch than heels do with the few rare exceptions when they have a cool fancy catchphrase which is ultimately a per-cursor for turning face half the time. Besides TNA has limited credible faces anyways (Has anyone really kept track of how many times AJ Styles or Kurt Angle has gone from face to heel to face again?).

 

[neildittmar]

If you can get the fans to truly truly hate you, you can be a successful heel. That single point has been proven time and time again. Play on the fans emotions, and you'll get them interested.

Circa 1996, people hated Hulk Hogan. Sure, they were growing tired of the same gimmick that had been shoved down their throats for the better part of 15 years, but they littered the ring with garbage in disgust when he turned into Hollywood Hulk Hogan. Much of the success of the nWo was not only the star power Hogan brought, but the fans complete and utter disdain for the man himself.

The Dudley Boyz incited near riots in the original ECW. I was there live for a couple of them and it was downright brutal. They (particularly Bubba) had mastered the art of getting under the fans skin in such a way that people were literally ready to jump the barricade to get at them. If they weren't feeling froggy, Bubba Ray and Devon would go out into the crowd and get in some fans face.

Now on to Jeff Hardy. He currently has the sympathy vote from quite a number of folks, fans and other wrestlers alike. He's the guy people generally love to get behind... the former jerk who doesn't want to be a jerk anymore. He wants to redeem himself. He has had a change of heart and wants to turn it all around, for his family, his fans, and his friends...

Well, what if he was just using everyone all along to get his spot back? What if he was on the verge of getting fired for his prior behavior, but figured he'd manipulate management (Dixie Carter, et al) into giving him another chance? What if the fans bought into it too and cheered him at events, supporting him en masse just like they're doing now?

What if Jeff used this to get back in everyones good graces, just to yank the rug out from under them after he was sure his spot was granted. Doing what he had to do to get where he needed to be, not because he was genuine or honest in his appeal. What if it's still Jeff doing what is good for Jeff and screw everybody else?

That would be a pretty solid foundation for a successful Jeff Hardy heel turn I think. Dixie would feel conned, the fans would hate him (since he manipulated them into believing him and feeling sorry for him) and other wrestlers that backed him would feel betrayed (resulting in a number of potential opponents in the making).

If done in this manner, a Jeff Hardy heel turn could be one of the biggest things TNA has done in awhile. They have to be brave enough to go all in though, despite what "good taste" and "ethics" may dictate.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

Jeff Hardy as the "Anti-Christ of professional wrestling" was an absolute joke in my view. Hardy was little more than another one of the lackeys to Hogan & Bischoff when Immortal was ruling the roost. Like all the other lackeys, Hardy mostly just stood around as a background character trying to look tough or snotty while Hogan & Bischoff talked on the mic, most of which sounded like them talking just for the sake of hearing their own voices.

One thing that's going to hurt Jeff Hardy is the same thing that's always hurt Jeff Hardy: the man can't cut a promo to save his life. Put a microphone in his hand and he all but shuts down. With a mic in his hand, Hardy looks and carries himself like he's incredibly uncomfortable. During his heel run in TNA, his "promos" mostly consisted of brief 30 second videos shown in the big screen in which they tried to portray him as this sort of menacing character. During his recent feuds with Bobby Roode & Bully Ray, Hardy has said virtually nothing on the mic. Why? Because he sucks at it. It's a huge reason of why there's been practically zero heat between Roode & Hardy during their TNA WHC feud. Usually, Sting has made his presence known in the situation and all the heat of these feuds have been between Sting & Roode or Sting & Ray while Hardy almost seems like a background character unless it's participation in some kind of brawl.

Just stick with what works. Hardy works better as a face. It's what brought him to the game, it's what made him one of the biggest stars in the industry and is what keeps him going. Just have him do exactly what he was doing in WWE and things will work just fine. It might not be original to go that route, but Hardy hasn't shown the ability to go any further than that and have it work.

 

[justinept]

Well last time I checked even Dixie Carter was in the making money business and sure I agree Jeff's star has fizzled allot since leaving WWE and his past legal problems fact is faces move more merch than heels do .

It's true. Faces typically do sell more merch than heels. That one is rather obvious, but you still need heels in pro wrestling regardless of merch sales. From what you're saying, you seem to be of the mind set that having heels on the roster creates a loss of revenue because they can't match the merch sales of faces. As if in your utopia TNA, everyone would be a face ... everyone would buy everyone's merch ... and TNA would rake in the dough. But that's not at all how it works.

We are, however, in agreement that the top faces move more merch than the top heels. That being the case, they're all interchangeable. Right now, Hardy moves more merch than Robert Roode because Hardy is a face. By this logic, if Roode was a face, and Hardy a heel, then Roode would move more merch. Since neither pushes an astronomical amount of merch, they cancel each other out.

So you know, there are only two wrestlers in pro wrestling history that remained faces simply because their merch sales couldn't be matched by anyone on the roster: Hogan and Cena. Even Rock and Austin were able to go back and forth for a while because 1) One was always a face and 2) buying heel merch in 1999 was a "cool" thing to do.

Either way - Hardy doesn't fit under that bill. If he turned heel, his loss of merch sales could easily be recouped by a current heel turning face.

 

[midgensa]

It would be tough for them to effectively turn Hardy heel again without simply going to the old faithful of him being a complete fuck-up.

As stated by a few here ... it would be really easy to have him play the card that he "cleaned-up" and "turned over a new leaf" just to get back to the top. He could say all the idiot fans bought in and here he is!

I feel like they need to let him go with a solid face run for a while though before turning him back. I don't know how long and it depends on a lot of things. But right now, the main event scene in TNA is one of the strong things going for them and with Roode on the top and Angle in the mix, they have no reason to add another top heel in.

I am sure one day we will see the "antichrist of professional wrestling" make his return. But my guess is it is a long way off.

 

[MrAsmith97]

I say it could have worked but it was just the wrong time, id like to see something where Jeff Hardy dissapears for a while then comes back and just completly and suddenly turns on a babyface and doesnt say a word somewhat like what jericho was doing but for the WHOLE feud Hardy doesnt say a word, not only would it make people wonder "what was his motive" but it might increase the amount of viewers as people would be curious to find out if today he will finally explain himself.

 

[Rayne]

Heels have to be able to talk, unless they stand plus seven feet and have the weight to match. The only saving grace to Jeff Hardy's heel run is that a few stupid people bought into it because they hadn't seen Jeff Hardy as a heel. Ooooh, call him the "Anti-Christ". Edgy! Meanwhile, the peak of Jeff Hardy's villainy was to sulk in the ring while Eric Bischoff talked. Yes, the Anti-Christ is a bitch-lackey for a man in his late 50's who hasn't done anything for wrestling since 1997. (I know, I know, increased production values, blah blah blah. Convince me it made money.)

Jeff Hardy was a terrible- no, there's a worse word- a boring heel. He was Raven without the intelligence to pull off the act. Heels have to act; a babyface can just go out there, do his flips, smile, and sell t-shirts. Unless they found a way to make the irresponsible fuckup heel gimmick work so Jeff wouldn't have to act outside his comfort zone, just leave him face.

I still think that after a fuckup on the scale of Victory Road, Jeff Hardy has no business being near a wrestling ring, at least for a televised company. It's not an issue of draw or future responsibility; it's a matter of personal pride. I wouldn't want someone who disrespected my business in such a visible, drastic fashion to work for me, and I don't think that Jeff Hardy is bringing in anywhere near the kind of money that would justify that loss of pride.

 

[Lowdown]

I never bought into Jeff Hardy as a heel during the "Anti-Christ" gimmick. Didn't hear too much heat when he was on the mic. Like previously stated, heels need to be able to talk and carry programs and feuds. Mind you, Hardy had Bischoff and Hogan to do some of the talking for him. I look at him now and he rarely has a mic in his hands. To his credit, he has been a good athlete in the ring over the years. Now's the time to keep him has a face and ride the redemption story until it dwindles down some. Hard core fans of his will still rep his merchandise regardless if he's main eventing or goes down to mid card. Could he be a heel again? Maybe later on down the line, but not as the focal point and centerpiece of a stable like he was in Immortal. He could be a great supporting player or part of another tag team.

 

[Chocolate Thunder]

I hope not. Absolutely everything about the guy screams 'face.'

Hardy has a look and a moveset that naturally encourages the crowd to cheer him, why fuck with that? Turning Jeff heel would be ******ed.