Drew McIntyre: A New Evolution In Heelish Characters?

[ZeroVX]

I've been doing some thinking lately in regards to someone that I'm really sick of right now, Drew McIntyre. This has nothing to do with him as a person, as I'm sure he's a nice guy and all that.

The problem I have with McIntyre right now is that he does absolutely nothing in the ring. He does no real wrestling, no actual work, just punches, kicks, and hits his finisher when it's time. And despite his kayfabe ineptitude when it comes to wrestling, he's the Intercontinental Champion. He is the current holder of a title that screams workrate, held by not only most of the WWE and World Heavyweight champions, but also legends like Ricky Steamboat and Mr. Perfect.

What pisses me off even more when it comes to McIntyre's workrate is the fact that I know he can wrestle. I've seen some of his work from his first run with WWE and in FCW. The man is good. So why make him out to be a one-move chickenshit heel doesn't make a lot of sense to me. I said off the bat that it's a very cheap way to get heat on a character.

Oddly enough, it was after I heard about the comments Matt Hardy made on his Twitter that I started to seriously think about this. I know that Hardy's just working the fans, but one of his comments stuck out to me. He said that McIntyre never earned anything, that all he's had so far was handed to him by Vince. That made me think. Is that what Vince is trying to go for with McIntyre's character? Someone who has everything handed to him on a silver platter, but deserves none of it?

I also thought a bit more on my initial belief, that this is a very cheap way for McIntyre to get heat from the more "traditional" wrestling fans. I then asked myself a question: Is this because Vince has no choice?

Think about it. Almost all of the heels today have their fanbase. When Orton was a heel, people still liked him because of his in-ring talent. Same for Cody Rhodes and Ted DiBiase, or when Hart Dynasty were heels. Their characters weren't liked, but people still liked what they did in terms of wrestling. Hell, that can still apply to guys like Jericho and Regal. So, maybe Vince's thought process to make a heel that not only got hate from the marks, who hated his character, but also the people who watched wrestling for, well, wrestling, knowing they were about to watch a stinker whenever he walked into the ring. Giving him the title that, again, is known for workrate, seems to only add to that.

So now we come to the million-dollar question: Is this a good thing or a bad thing? Sure, it's much easier to hate him when he doesn't actually do anything to prove he deserves what he has, but is this what Vince has to resort to? Does it help make McIntyre a good heel, or does it just seem like a cheap trick?

Your thoughts?

 

[Remy LaCroix]

A cheap trick 'cause he hasn't proved much in the ring with his kinda-slow movement and boring mic skills. When he mad his re-debut he was attacking wrestlers and defeating them, which was good. Then after a short while of doing whatever they made him revert to the same ol' thing he was doing a few months prior. It's almost as if they don't know what to do with him at the moment yet don't want to drop the ball with him, so they keep going around in circles.

When things were handed to him, yeah, I was pissed. Maybe that's the heat they're going for McIntyre, but they sure are taking their sweet time with him.

Who knows where the hell they're gonna go with him. He does go out and do his job as a champion and a wrestler, but he's not entertaining.

Maybe it's because it's my opinion and I'm not buying it. And I'm pretty sure there are others who aren't as well.

 

[starryangel05]

I'm going to have to disagree with you. I think he's an awesome heel who knows how to work an audience. He's great on the mic and he can kick some serious butt in the ring. Yeah, they're giving him a slow and steady push so he can take his time and eventually build up to main event status (and one day become world champion). To get that slow, steady push, he needs to be exposed to show us (the fans) what he can do in the ring. He may not have many fans and may get a crapload of heel heat, but we all know that if he is getting a crapload of heat from the fans, then he must be doing something right. And, I happen to be one of his biggest fans.

 

[VintageWWE]

I find Drew very boring as a character. He doesn't do much in the ring or on the mic. Even his entrance is boring. He tries to act all above everyone else but it doesn't really come out that way to me because he doesn't show much emotion. I would really like to support this guy but the WWE is making it very hard to.

 

[The Roid Rage]

First of all Zero I thought I would give you some props on this thread. Even though it hasn't got a lot of responses or anything, you still displayed more writing talent, and comprehensive thought than I've ever seen, especially in the bar room, lol.


On the topic though I think this is just part of a slow burn on this guy. You mentioned how you know he can wrestle but haven't seen it yet in WWE. Well, just wait. I promise you that's the plan. They're going to reveal slowly what makes this guy a big deal. Right now he has a the look, decent enough mic skills, a belt people feel he doesn't deserve, and a lot of heat. Look back to your mentioning of Randy Orton though, what did you say? "Orton was a heel but then people liked him because of his in ring ability." I'm willing to wager that is going to be the same case here. Eventually his character will be forced to show what he's made of and when he does that is when people are going to start talking about how awesome Drew McIntyre is, and how they didn't think he was that good but now they're convinced.

 

[Isaac Kaye]

It looks like they are building him up to be a monster like heel with lots of short matches and selling very little along the way. There's absolutely no doubt he is a superb talent, you only have to watch some of the older FCW stuff to know that. I'm far from convinced at the moment though. He seems to have held the IC belt for an eternity and I can't even remember the last time he made a legit title defence. He hasn't managed to cement a decent feud in pretty much all the time he's been in the WWE. His feud with Kane was boring, his feud with Hardy is boring. This must say more about him than the people he has been fighting. He absolutely buried Morrison at TLC when he won the belt. I have never seen such a one sided fight and a more underwhelming way for the champion to drop the belt.

Thing is, because of all this, I don't like him, and thats kinda what he's there for lol! I suppose his style means he is doing a decent job as a heel.

There's no doubt Vince is pushing him down our throats though. He has a good look about him and I think Vince sees his potential. He might even make a good face at some point.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

McIntyre is a different type of heel than what you normally see in WWE or TNA. He doesn't speak a lot nor does he do highly energetic and mouthy "I'm the greatest thing ever" type of schtick that just about every other heel in wrestling does these days. When McIntyre makes his entrance, he puts off an aura of arrogance. The way he just slowly strolls down to the ring, the expression of disdain on his face for the crowd, the fact that he's the IC champion and has continuously beaten down Matt Hardy all have manged to get him some pretty good heat. If his mic skills improved, there's a lot about him that would remind me of Randy Orton.

As far as his abilities in the ring goes, I've enjoyed most of his matches. It's true that he doesn't seem to have a very flashy style and that doesn't bother me. When just about everyone around you tries to be flashy and you don't, you're ultimately the one that winds up being a stand out. McIntyre has a great look about him and he does have a presence. It's been a little while since he defended the title, but he does appear on Smackdown quite often and that's something at least. When you're a champion, you at least need to be seen on a very regular basis to get the most out of a run. With Christian and Kofi Kingston to Smackdown, I expect them to be in the hunt for the IC title before long.