Curtis Axel: "I'm the son of Mr Perfect for Christ sake!!!"

[Hard Hit Prince]

The biggest thing coming out of Raw last night was Curtis Axel's Twitter rampage against the company and the fans for not being used properly. The former WWE Tag Team Champion & Intercontinental Champion has been sidelined since Hulk Hogan's racist remarks went public and he hasn't done anything worth noticing ever since beating Triple H on Monday Night Raw and aligning himself with Paul Heyman.

In the WWE's roster there are a lot of talented guys that get no exposition whatsoever - Damien Sandow, Heath Slater, Fandango & Jack Swagger (last night's segment may lead to something) are the ones that come to mind. But if I think a little bit more, I am pretty sure there are others. But the man of the hour is Curtis Axel.

When he aligned himself with Paul Heyman I remember it very clearly, because I freaking failed to get my drivers license and after Raw I actually thought: "well at least something good came out of this day". (Yes, I'm a big wrestling fan and I, as all of you, wanted to see what the kid was made of). His push was kinda interesting and he won his title on Father's Day and it actually was memorable. He defended it on a monthly basis, but then came Ryback and all sting went to shit. He was being fed to CM Punk, because CM Punk vs. Paul Heyman was the feud and the wrestlers were the disposable pawns.

I for once wouldn't really have minded a feud between CM Punk and Curtis Axel at the time. Sure, Axel was beneath him, but there's nothing like learning and getting a tainted victory out of all of that.

But at all accounts, Axel is nothing more than a good worker that needs some work with his promos. Good look, a good background to be used and I don't think he's a douche for going out on Twitter. At least, he is doing something and that takes guts, and if ends up getting fired for it, well then, the indies do need some great new talent. This could also be a work, so I don't know where it will lead, but probably a squash down the line for talking too much. Mainly because, I don't see any opportunity to put him in. Maybe #TeamTaker (I'm joking)(Or Am I?)

So what do you guys think about Axel?

 

[Alex]

I don't know if it's a work or not but that statement kind of sums it up

"I'm the son of Mr Perfect for Christ sake!!!"

If he wasn't Mr Perfect's son would he still be employed by WWE, maybe, maybe not. There are tonnes of good workers, the previous mentioned Damien Sandow, Heath Slater, Fandango & Jack Swagger who haven't really done anything of substance for over two years either and they're not the children of famous wrestlers so why should Axel be treated differently because of who his dad is.

Maybe Axel feels he should be given something substantial to do because of his lineage or maybe he just wants to do something other than sit on his ass but it is gutsy to complain seeing as WWE are very fickle and will sometimes punish someone for saying the smallest of things.

Personally I reckon if they actually make the Intercontinental and US titles worth a damn then he'd fit in there quite well.

 

[Rayne]

Someone should point Curtis Axel in the direction of Zack Ryder.

Zack Ryder was in the position that Curtis Axel is in, going absolutely nowhere and on everyone's short list of imminent releases. Instead of sulking about it on Twitter, he went out and engaged the fans directly, creating a web show which allowed him to showcase himself. It worked- the WWE was forced to acknowledge his existence, and he remains employed by the company to this day. (For those of you who are about to complain, "but omg he was never world champion and the WWE hates him", eh, eat a dick. The world needs ditchdiggers, and professional wrestling needs jobbers. Jobbing pays pretty well in the WWE.)

If he wants to complain about the opportunities he should be getting because his dad was an upper mid-carder in the early 90's, he'll end up getting what a guy whose major claim is being someone's son deserves. Go out there and make your bones, kid.

 

[OYDK]

I think it's fine if somebody decides to try and make an impact in the wrestling industry by shooting their mouth off. If I were Vince, I would think blasting the company on Twitter shows some "grapefruits" so to speak, and while I would be upset, I would most likely give the shooter a chance to prove themselves. However, by mentioning his father, Axel is just coming off as an entitled, lesser-skilled version of Jeff Jarrett... another guy who thought he was God because of his families wrestling lineage.

If you want to complain about how you're being used, don't start off with "I'm the son of ____ for God's sakes!" Maybe talk about how your one of the most respected men in the locker room and your the guy that's trusted enough to work with people like Brock Lesnar and Taker behind the scenes? Talk about how you got over with a garbage gimmick or how WWE never really gave you a chance to prove yourself. But don't talk about your father like that guarantees you something.

Unless this is a work and they're going to repackage him as "The Prince of Perfect" or something, I doubt we see Curtis Axel ever again.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

I don't know if it's some sort of work, if he's genuinely frustrated or if it's a combination of the two.

"I'm the son of Mr. Perfect for Christ sake!!!" So what? A wrestling pedigree isn't and shouldn't be a form of affirmative action. Axel is also someone who got into wrestling at a fairly old age; most guys don't wait until they're nearly 28 years of age to get into pro wrestling and while being in your late teens to early 20s isn't a prerequisite or anything, you have to consider how many guys who weren't old enough to even drink were so far ahead of Axel by the time he got into the business.

Since Axel compares himself to his father, let's start with what is obvious, at least in my own personal opinion: he isn't nearly the same caliber of wrestler that his father was. Curt Hennig is frequently regarded as being among the very top guys to pass through WWE without being WWE Champion. He was a great antagonist who could help make lesser skilled wrestlers, yet wrestlers who MAY have been more marketable, look like a million bucks. He was solid on the mic, he could more than hold his own inside the ring with anyone, is arguably the greatest Intercontinental Champion in history and even had a pretty good look. While having "the look" isn't exactly the highest of priorities when it comes to making stars, at least for me it isn't, it's just one more area in which Axel can't really compete. In the ring, on the mic, cosmetic appearance, personality, charisma or what have you, Curtis Axel isn't anywhere near his father's league.

If this is a totally legit rant, then I understand Axel's frustrations. I mean...c'mon...when failure pecker slaps you right in the face when you personally feel that maybe you "deserve" better, it hurts more than a kick in the nuts. To some degree, we've all gone through that or, at least, know someone who has. As a human being, I sympathize, but that's about as far as it goes. Axel isn't owed a legendary wrestling career based on who his father was.

 

[Mustang Sally]

"I'm the son of Mr Perfect for Christ sake!!!"

Isn't it ironic the guy has done everything he could to distance himself from his father's name since being hired by WWE? McGillicutty? Axel?

Okay, the implication was clear; he wanted to make it on his own, not by virtue of his famous last name. So, how come his recent rant informs us he should be considered because of the name Hennig? Which way is it gonna be, Curtis?

I was really surprised when they re-created this guy and gave him victories over John Cena and Triple H. I wondered what WWE felt he had that he apparently lacked before.

Now, we know. He had nothing special. He can work a match, but so can a lot of people. Charisma, he lacks.

I'd be more amenable to him telling us who his Daddy was.......if he had used his given name all along.

 

[Aquaman6686]

Curtis Axel just needs to be on the damn card. Axel has all the talent in the world. Mr. Perfect wasn't the best talker either, but that's why they gave him Bobby Heenan. With Axel, they made the mistake of pairing him with the career destroyer, Paul Heyman. With the exception of Brock Lesnar, Heyman ruins the career of any talent they pair him with, because he makes everything about him instead of his client. Curtis Axel is a great in-ring performer, and could be a great long-term midcard talent for the company if they allowed him to be.

To fix Curtis Axel, start off by just having him wrestle. No promos, no manager, no nothing. Just get in the ring, outwrestle his opponent, and win the match. Do that for a month or two, then give him a manager. I made a suggestion a few months ago that he could be paired with Ted DiBiase, with the storyline being that DiBiase and Curt Hennig had once made a vow that they would one day be in their respective sons' corners when they made it to WWE, but Hennig had passed away before Axel made it to WWE, and DiBiase Jr. had the talent but lacked the passion, so DiBiase will now instead manage Hennig's son. So stick Axel with Ted DiBiase and have him go on a winning streak, then win either the United States or Intercontinental Championship. After a six month reign, boom, you've got a great new upper midcard star for the next several years.

 

[Rayne]

Isn't it ironic the guy has done everything he could to distance himself from his father's name since being hired by WWE? McGillicutty? Axel?

Eh..... those are trademarkable names assigned by the WWE. They learned their lesson with John Cena and Randy Orton; if you use a guy's real name, you then have to negotiate with him over marketing rights. In some cases, such as CM Punk or Samoa Joe, a guy comes in with enough credibility built into the name that negotiating rights is worthwhile; for a guy like Joe Hennig, it's not. Granted the WWE has gotten MUCH better about this than they were during the early early NXT days; with names like "Michael McGillicutty" and "Husky Harris", one could be forgiven for thinking there was just some incredibly spiteful asshole working in creative at the time.

On the flip side of the coin.... Ted DiBiase Jr. The WWE did everything humanly possible to make sure that we knew that this kid was Ted DiBiase's son. I'm honestly unsure whether Ted Jr. still works for the WWE, but I'm leaning towards no.

 

[Messiah]

Being Mr. Perfect's son is the reason he's employed right now, which is still a ridiculous reason to keep him under contract.. Being the son of a legend like Perfect doesn't require a push.

 

[LBGetBack]

Curtis Axel just needs to be on the damn card. Axel has all the talent in the world. Mr. Perfect wasn't the best talker either, but that's why they gave him Bobby Heenan. With Axel, they made the mistake of pairing him with the career destroyer, Paul Heyman. With the exception of Brock Lesnar, Heyman ruins the career of any talent they pair him with, because he makes everything about him instead of his client. Curtis Axel is a great in-ring performer, and could be a great long-term midcard talent for the company if they allowed him to be.

To fix Curtis Axel, start off by just having him wrestle. No promos, no manager, no nothing. Just get in the ring, outwrestle his opponent, and win the match. Do that for a month or two, then give him a manager. I made a suggestion a few months ago that he could be paired with Ted DiBiase, with the storyline being that DiBiase and Curt Hennig had once made a vow that they would one day be in their respective sons' corners when they made it to WWE, but Hennig had passed away before Axel made it to WWE, and DiBiase Jr. had the talent but lacked the passion, so DiBiase will now instead manage Hennig's son. So stick Axel with Ted DiBiase and have him go on a winning streak, then win either the United States or Intercontinental Championship. After a six month reign, boom, you've got a great new upper midcard star for the next several years.

Mr. Perfect was both a commentator and a manager himself. He was quite good as a talker. Tons of wrestlers, including many good talkers had managers back then.

 

[Aquaman6686]

Mr. Perfect was both a commentator and a manager himself. He was quite good as a talker. Tons of wrestlers, including many good talkers had managers back then.

But ironically, the one thing Mr. Perfect was not great at talking about was himself. That's why he needed Bobby Heenan. He definitely got better, but if you watch some of his promos from his early run, he wasn't nearly as good as he was later in his career.

Curtis Axel will never have the opportunity to improve if they never let him try.

 

[kadroan]

The biggest thing coming out of Raw last night was Curtis Axel's Twitter rampage against the company and the fans for not being used properly. The former WWE Tag Team Champion & Intercontinental Champion has been sidelined since Hulk Hogan's racist remarks went public and he hasn't done anything worth noticing ever since beating Triple H on Monday Night Raw and aligning himself with Paul Heyman.

In the WWE's roster there are a lot of talented guys that get no exposition whatsoever - Damien Sandow, Heath Slater, Fandango & Jack Swagger (last night's segment may lead to something) are the ones that come to mind. But if I think a little bit more, I am pretty sure there are others. But the man of the hour is Curtis Axel.

When he aligned himself with Paul Heyman I remember it very clearly, because I freaking failed to get my drivers license and after Raw I actually thought: "well at least something good came out of this day". (Yes, I'm a big wrestling fan and I, as all of you, wanted to see what the kid was made of). His push was kinda interesting and he won his title on Father's Day and it actually was memorable. He defended it on a monthly basis, but then came Ryback and all sting went to shit. He was being fed to CM Punk, because CM Punk vs. Paul Heyman was the feud and the wrestlers were the disposable pawns.

I for once wouldn't really have minded a feud between CM Punk and Curtis Axel at the time. Sure, Axel was beneath him, but there's nothing like learning and getting a tainted victory out of all of that.

But at all accounts, Axel is nothing more than a good worker that needs some work with his promos. Good look, a good background to be used and I don't think he's a douche for going out on Twitter. At least, he is doing something and that takes guts, and if ends up getting fired for it, well then, the indies do need some great new talent. This could also be a work, so I don't know where it will lead, but probably a squash down the line for talking too much. Mainly because, I don't see any opportunity to put him in. Maybe #TeamTaker (I'm joking)(Or Am I?)

So what do you guys think about Axel?

I think he's a great wrestler. The only thing I can think of right now is he joins The Authority and becomes the new muscle of the group now that Kane is gone.

 

[Radical Canadian Goose]

Twitter rants like this only lead to future endeavoured. See JTG

 

[WorstWrestlingExcrement]

Shows to tell you that wwe has no respect for the dead whether it's Chris Benoit or Curt Hennig just because Curt Hennig was in WCW they are still spiteful

 

[NatureBoy3:14]

So where do I begin. There are so many things wrong with his rant. Firstly the day that Vince went on TV and stated that the "wrestlers" will be referred to as sports entertainers so he can get out of paying extra money was the day that wrestling died. WWE isn't a wrestling show. It's a television show that happens to have wrestling in it. I the 80's and 70's wrestling still existed. The most over guys got belts, pushes, and runs. Todays RAW is like watch Buffy the Vampire Slayer. There's a star Today it's Cena. There are bad guys and good guys but the audience is there just like any other TV you can watch being taped live. You are there just for effect and to look good on TV. Your voice doesn't really. If it did we wouldn't had to sit through a decade of the Bella's. It's no better the watching Seinfeld live. Laugh when we want you to or we will just put in laugh tracks and act like you don't exist. Ziggler said it today on Twitter. The least important thing about wrestling is the wrestling itself.
Secondly his pops was a great mid carder. I grew up on Perfect. He was awesome. But he wasn't a headliner by no means. He had charisma, he was great on the mic, he had a great character, and he was top notch in the ring. But back to what I said before he wasn't a headliner. Axel isn't half the wrestler his daddy was. He is a great hand. But he is a good enhancement talent. No more no less.

Thirdly they gave you a shot. You beat Hunter, Cena, they gave you Paul, they gave you a title run. You were in the nexus stable. The bad version but a stable none the less. They gave you a tag time with Ruback. All of that and you still didn't catch fire. What else do you want them to do? In his shoes I would be happy to just be collecting a check. Maybe go to NXT. Try to become a trainer. I don't know.

Maybe he can go to New Japan where wresting does matter and go the Davey Boy Smith Jr route. TNA, GFW, Evolve or Lucha Underground maybe. Don't go to ROH or PWG!!! There's too much talent there. Those boys go hard int the paint.

Dude just sounds like he I whining to me

 

[allketchupisnotthesame]

he sounds like a spoiled little baby that feels self entitled.

hes had opportunity after opportunity but has failed to impress me.

its pitiful that even tho he is the son of mr perfect, the closest he got to being over was by parodying another legend. that could be partly the fault of creative, but i dont know, cuz even as a heyman guy, this guy couldnt trick me into thinking he was interesting.

maybe he was expecting more out of daddys name and didnt try hard enough,or maybe he just falls in with the julian lennons and chet hazes of the entertainment world.

either way, he should probably brace himself for the realization that his ship has sailed. way too many incredible workers that are the total package, or at least a more complete package, are at vinces disposal now. time to start phonin' it in and try to manage those "superstars" checks the best he can.

 

[BestSportsEntertainer]

I'm not sure if this was a work or not.

If not, it could be an interesting gimmick for Axel. He could probably pull off a cocky heel gimmick.

The only problem is that he's fairly old (36), so unfortunately he doesn't have much time for development, which is something he needs considering he isn't great in the ring.

I don't see him going much higher than a mid-carder, which definitely isn't bad.

 

[stingray11214]

At this point, I think if he is not happy as a jobber, cut him his downside, and let him go. He is really too old to do anything in WWE at this point. There are too many better talents in NXT to really give Axel what he wants. Let him go to Japan or GFW. It might actually help him. Look at Justin Gabriel? He wan TNA's KotM, and (SPOILER ALERT) GFW's NEX#GEN title on Oct. 23 in Vegas. Axel might actually be something somewhere else.

 

[Prince Vee]

Curtis Axel isn't a great Wrestler but certainly a solid midcard heel. But before ranting about Curtis Axel think about Bo Dallas. For god's sake he was jobbed out by perfection at the Halloween Episode of SmackDown! What did they just do!?

 

[Hollywood Naitch]

Axel has never shown me anything to indicate he's worthy of a more high-profile role in WWE. He's not got a great look, is average in the ring and I can't remember any memorable promos from him. He's nowhere near the level of his father, who was a fantastic performer. Claiming he should be given more opportunities because "he's the Son of Mr Perfect" just sounds like a bitter moan from a man who is realising his career isn't proving as successful as he hoped.

To be honest, I think there are far better wrestlers in WWE, who are younger and have more potential than Axel, who is pretty lucky to still have a job in WWE, he's painfully average at everything. He should be a jobber, nothing higher. If he is bothered about winning matches, rather than just losing and getting a (probably pretty good) paycheque from WWE, then go to Japan, the indies or TNA. He isn't going to get to the level he wants to in WWE, he's not good enough.

 

[Барбоса]

A perfectly serviceable in-ring performer but really a charisma vacuum.

He is at his level. If he wants more exposure, he should ask to go back to nXt, where he can help make new young faces look good.

 

[ShinChan]

I would be happy if he & Damien Sandow can be atleast a midcarder or a tag team.....
they definitely arenot deserving of being jobbers...

 

[Cena Is A Punk Rocker]

The world needs jobbers. Not everyone can be a doctor or a lawyer. Sometimes you gotta deliver pizzas. Curtis Axel is just that.

 

[enviousdominous]

I've ripped into Curtis Axel before, but I feel that I was more upset with the way he was being booked.

The early days of NXT were fucking terrible. Athletes had to go through fucking stupid challenges and were made to just blurt out a promo on spec. I've seen enough Rock outtakes to know that even the best of the best talkers fuck their shit up constantly and have to do multiple retakes just to say something simple. At a certain point, they find their groove and can flow on the mic easily. Curtis Axel as Michael McGillicutty was handed a microphone and he blurted out "This moment, starting nooooooow... is the genesis, of McGillicutty." after Kaval had already had a flawless promo against him.

Our first impression of Joe Hennig was that he had basic ring skills, and was the biggest dork-ass on the mic that we've ever heard. Kaval "won" NXT, and the dreaded genesis of McGillicutty still hasn't happened.

The WWE was desperate to get a legacy over, so in their typical fashion they fucking failed at every subsequent attempt. Michael McGillicutty cost John Cena a title match, and won the tag team championship with David Otunga. Again; the WWE fucking failed at every subsequent attempt.

The WWE needed to repackage Joe Hennig, so they decided to base his image completely off of his late father. The decision to do this was the beginning of what would become one of the most horrifying fuckups on part of WWE creative we might ever see.

Curt Hennig marks are out there, but Joe is no Curt Hennig. If anybody appeals to Curt Hennig marks, it's Dolph Ziggler. Joe Hennig looks vaguely like his dad, and that's all there is to that. Joe's ring style is nothing like his dad's, and at the same time the jackoffs at WWE could have given him a few high impact moves. The fisherman suplex was neat, in 1990.

Paul Heyman -- who is the WWE's go-to guy when they're too chicken shit to allow their pseudo-creative bullshit to stand on its own -- had the task of fully endorsing the WWE's newest performer "Curtis Axel".

Where do I begin? I get it, Larry "The Axe" Hennig is a living legend, and Curtis Axe would have looked stupid. Joe "The Axe" Hennig would have been redundant. The WWE found themselves in a conundrum because they had to affix some kind of reference to both Curt Hennig and Larry Hennig, and if prompted for an explanation I expect their response would be "BECAUSE WE FUCKING HAVE TO DAMMIT!". WWE creative would have shit bricks for months if somehow Joe Hennig was announced as *gasp* Joe Hennig, which would be enough of a reference to inspire nostalgia in us older fans and keep him in line with a growing trend in less flashy gimmicks getting over with the fans. I realize they don't like to use real names, but for fuck's sake. Why Axel!? Is he a wrestling mechanic?

I suspect HHH had a lot to do with all of this, I'm just saying that all of what happened to Joe Hennig points to Billy Ray Cyrus' brain damaged step-cousin bobbing his head around saying "WE DO DIS'! DEN WE DO DIS'! DUHHHH! DEN DA CROWD SAY 'YAY'!"

Joe's big moment has arrived, and he's about to walk through that curtain as "Curtis Axel". His mannerisms to the ring, let's talk about those for a moment. Joe comes out with a big obnoxious smile and struts down the ramp, that's when it happens. The world stood still in awkward silence when Joe belted out "I HAVE ARRIVED! HAHAHAHAHA!", and then he did some kind of outstretched arm thing that made as much sense as his statement.

The remixed Curt Hennig theme, yeah. I get it, some people enjoyed that they could listen to a new take on an old favorite. The thing is; Joe Hennig is not the second coming of his Dad. The apple fell pretty far from the tree when it comes to personal style. Apart from how odd it was that they were trying to promote Joe as Curt Hennig 2.0, the theme didn't really do anything for me. It starts off with a few drum beats, repeats, repeats again, then we get the sound of jet engines. So, Joe Hennig is a jet fighter now? The theme, like everything else about this attempt to repackage him, was so ridiculously over the top that it only reaffirms my accusation that this entire episode of WWE history was another botched HHH abortion.

Curtis Axel is going to get his big break, he's going to confront the one and only HHH in the ring. Better watch out for his brains though, his cerebrum is known to assassinate careers on accident. HHH's deadly cerebrum decided that he should slap Curtis Axel causing him to fall flat on his ass, as a means of putting Curtis Axel over. What I described in that last sentence literally happened, something so unbelievably fucking stupid occurred due to a living paradox of a human being trying to be creative. HHH is a living paradox in that he allows stupidity like that to fly, and yet somehow remembers to breathe at a normal rate. How in the fuck was that a method of putting Curtis Axel over? He took one slap and went down with a "Hey! That wasn't nice!" look on his face.

Then there was the match where HHH would lose to Curtis Axel. Oh god, I'm having flashbacks. This was a match so fucking terrible, that it ranks up there with Brock vs Bill at WM20. HHH did not put Curtis Axel over, he made him look fucking stupid. HHH took it upon himself to fuck up Curtis Axel's big break. The finish had HHH sell a concussion, which apparently just magically happened to him in the course of steamrolling Curtis Axel. I realize that sometimes the symptoms of a concussion aren't felt until a period of time after the incident, the concussion he was selling was one that was supposedly handed to him by Brock Lesnar long before his match with Curtis Axel. HHH can't continue because "unrelated concussion" and Curtis Axel gloats with Paul Heyman over earning the most worthless excuse for a win I've ever seen.

Curtis Axel was given a knee-jerk Intercontinental title win, he was a replacement for someone who was out with an injury in a triple threat match for the belt. He probably would have had some epic one-on-one matches for the IC belt, except the WWE had a habit of putting mid-card belts on people to get them over only to do absolutely nothing with them after the fact. His IC run was yet another easily forgettable episode in the IC title's history.

Rybaxel, good fucking grief. The WWE had two guys that they were damn determined to push to the stars at one time as single competitors, and then they put them in a go nowhere tag team. The tag team went nowhere because the WWE did nothing with them. No epic feuds, no blistering promos. They were just two dorks who raise their arms up and down screaming "YEAH! YEAH!". JBL was so fucking proud of that one.

Curtis Axel came to NXT to "rejuvenate" his career. The big problem with that was, WWE creative once again not finishing what they started. Curtis Axel as NXT champion would have made sense, and room full of monkeys could have typed up the circumstances necessary to make that occurrence believable. The WWE, being less capable than a room full of monkeys, just kind of slept on the whole helping Curtis Axel get back on his feet thing.

The fake Mega-Powers was neat, for about a minute. Maybe I'm alone in saying this, but parody gimmicks are fucking stupid and reek of the whole fake Diesel/Razor Ramon thing. I was not a fan, and I didn't think it was necessary for them to do that as a way to make us want to watch Joe Hennig perform. Maybe it would have endured, I hate a lot of things that everyone else loves. You all know what killed this gimmick, enough said on that.

I don't consider Joe Hennig to be the most likeable performer when tasked to just do his own thing, but I think he would have been a hell of a lot more endearing if he just stuck to being himself and developed into his own kind of performer. The Twitter rants reek of more WWE bullshit, so I'm just going to take those with a grain of salt.

 

[enviousdominous]

Since Axel compares himself to his father, let's start with what is obvious, at least in my own personal opinion: he isn't nearly the same caliber of wrestler that his father was. Curt Hennig is frequently regarded as being among the very top guys to pass through WWE without being WWE Champion. He was a great antagonist who could help make lesser skilled wrestlers, yet wrestlers who MAY have been more marketable, look like a million bucks. He was solid on the mic, he could more than hold his own inside the ring with anyone, is arguably the greatest Intercontinental Champion in history and even had a pretty good look. While having "the look" isn't exactly the highest of priorities when it comes to making stars, at least for me it isn't, it's just one more area in which Axel can't really compete. In the ring, on the mic, cosmetic appearance, personality, charisma or what have you, Curtis Axel isn't anywhere near his father's league.

On that note, I think the WWE really needs to review pro-wrestling history in terms of ways people have typically found ways to get over with the fans. From my perspective; a ton of trial and error within a company with less exposure to a national audience is essential.

Curt Hennig was great in the WWF, but his AWA work prior to and in-between his WWF days were pretty bad. They stuck him in a doomed tag team called "Gagne's Raiders" because Verne was so damn desperate to get his kid over (how ironic). He had a decent tag team with Scott Hall, but that did more for Scott Hall's popularity. If I remember correctly; they put the AWA title on Curt Hennig when he left the WWF the first time. The AWA was dying a slow painful death, and Curt Hennig's promos as their new champion were pretty fucking terribly. He wore track suits, obnoxious sunglasses and barked random nonsense. After getting all that out of his system, he had an IC title run that was epic enough to be regarded with the same amount of prestige as a World Championship run.

I look at Ted Dibiase, who performed for 12 years before embracing the Million Dollar Man gimmick. He had 12 years of on the job training before being put front and center as a noteworthy part of the show.

Joe Hennig was, in my opinion, told to be great without the time necessary to figure out what he could be that the crowd would fall in love with.