HeenanGorilla
Championship Contender
I saw a post today asking people for their Top 5 factions. (Seemed like a dumb way to talk about factions, since most people will have the same answers when you extend it to Top 5, rather than sole favorite.)
But, one of the people listed The Heenan Family as their #1. I found this refreshing, since they are my #1 as well. Refreshing because--to no fault of their own--most people on this forum are more familiar with D-X, NWO, etc. because they are younger. And, as much as I respect and fully agree with the Horsemen being arguably the best ever, I only watched WWF growing up. So, aside from Windham's stints, the Brain Busters's short trip to WWF, and Flair's arrival in 91, just as I was losing passion for pro wrestling (obviously still keep it as a hobby), I didn't see the Horsemen as the Horsemen, I just saw its members separately.
The Heenan Family (and Jimmy Hart's stable to a lesser extent), I feel, were key in getting fans emotionally invested in the product. Back then, it wasn't cool to hate the face of the company; so, most people loved Hogan. The Heenan Family, despite having lesser feuds as well, were always out to kill Hulkamania. Hogan had pals like JYD and Hillbilly Jim and Andre, before he joined Heenan. But, he was really one man against this stable of Heenan's guys.
The point of my post---factions' effect on heel turns---is that I think having factions back then, made the heel turn more effective. Nowadays, you have some tag teams and a few small factions like the Shield and reunited Evolution, but not TRUE stables. (The Wyatts feel the closest to what I like about stables at this point). But, the WWE roster is mostly a bunch of guys out for themselves with no direction. Due to too many hours of TV each week, poor storylines, and the ignoring of the past, you get two guys wanting to kill each other on RAW...and then being tag team partners 3 weeks later. It is a cluster of interchangable parts. I feel this is why heel turns are mediocre and irrelevant.
I think of Paul Orndorff turning on Hogan. Yeah, the clothesline out of nowhere, followed by the Piledriver was a big moment. But, the part that really got me (as a kid, of course) was Heenan backstage chanting "Wonderful! Wonderful!" as Paul got hugs from Bundy, Studd, Adonis and other heels. It was real! Orndorff was with the bad guys!!
Back then, it was good guys and bad guys...I realize it isn't so cut and dry/ black and white anymore. For a guy to fight the forces of evil and then JOIN them, that made an impact. Today, heel turns are simply heel turns in name only. Characters barely go from good to bad. They stay pretty much the same, with a minimum tweek to get the crowd to change from cheering to booing. Big deal...
I think that even in today's wrestling world, factions could make these eventual heel turns--and some face turns, I guess--a bigger deal. It just seems that having loyalty to ANYTHING would increase emotion and create bigger payoffs on turns.
Do you think the random assigning of wrestlers to opponents/partners/feuds prevents turns from having an impact? Do you think belonging to SOMETHING whether it be a stable or something more vague like being a clear cut "bad guy" would help?
But, one of the people listed The Heenan Family as their #1. I found this refreshing, since they are my #1 as well. Refreshing because--to no fault of their own--most people on this forum are more familiar with D-X, NWO, etc. because they are younger. And, as much as I respect and fully agree with the Horsemen being arguably the best ever, I only watched WWF growing up. So, aside from Windham's stints, the Brain Busters's short trip to WWF, and Flair's arrival in 91, just as I was losing passion for pro wrestling (obviously still keep it as a hobby), I didn't see the Horsemen as the Horsemen, I just saw its members separately.
The Heenan Family (and Jimmy Hart's stable to a lesser extent), I feel, were key in getting fans emotionally invested in the product. Back then, it wasn't cool to hate the face of the company; so, most people loved Hogan. The Heenan Family, despite having lesser feuds as well, were always out to kill Hulkamania. Hogan had pals like JYD and Hillbilly Jim and Andre, before he joined Heenan. But, he was really one man against this stable of Heenan's guys.
The point of my post---factions' effect on heel turns---is that I think having factions back then, made the heel turn more effective. Nowadays, you have some tag teams and a few small factions like the Shield and reunited Evolution, but not TRUE stables. (The Wyatts feel the closest to what I like about stables at this point). But, the WWE roster is mostly a bunch of guys out for themselves with no direction. Due to too many hours of TV each week, poor storylines, and the ignoring of the past, you get two guys wanting to kill each other on RAW...and then being tag team partners 3 weeks later. It is a cluster of interchangable parts. I feel this is why heel turns are mediocre and irrelevant.
I think of Paul Orndorff turning on Hogan. Yeah, the clothesline out of nowhere, followed by the Piledriver was a big moment. But, the part that really got me (as a kid, of course) was Heenan backstage chanting "Wonderful! Wonderful!" as Paul got hugs from Bundy, Studd, Adonis and other heels. It was real! Orndorff was with the bad guys!!
Back then, it was good guys and bad guys...I realize it isn't so cut and dry/ black and white anymore. For a guy to fight the forces of evil and then JOIN them, that made an impact. Today, heel turns are simply heel turns in name only. Characters barely go from good to bad. They stay pretty much the same, with a minimum tweek to get the crowd to change from cheering to booing. Big deal...
I think that even in today's wrestling world, factions could make these eventual heel turns--and some face turns, I guess--a bigger deal. It just seems that having loyalty to ANYTHING would increase emotion and create bigger payoffs on turns.
Do you think the random assigning of wrestlers to opponents/partners/feuds prevents turns from having an impact? Do you think belonging to SOMETHING whether it be a stable or something more vague like being a clear cut "bad guy" would help?
