Favorite heel version of The Rock

[DaBadGuy]

The Rock has been known as one of the best faces of all time, but right now were going to talk about the best heel version of The Rock. The Rock has been heel 3 times in his carrer and IMO one of the most underrated heels of all time even though because his more known a a face. I like all heel version of The Rock but I will share wish one is my favorite.

(1997-1998) Nation of Domination Rock With how much of goody to shoes face Rocky Miavia was you would have never guessed he would make a heel turn and actually be great at it. In my opinon this was my favorite version of The Rock as a heel. It wasn't a time you didn't go in a arena and didn't hear a Rocky sucks chant around mid 97-late 98, sure he was already getting heat as a face but he was sort of getting a John Cena type of reception from the crowd but we still can't take for granted he wasn't a good heel at the time. The Rock by far made one of the greatest transformations into a new characetr when he changed his name from Rocky Miavia to The Rock coming out with a new attitude, hair cut, attire, refering to himself in third person, etc... He took control of the N.O.D and made them more of a serious group and was a better leader than Farooq IMO and had great fueds with Ken Shamrock, Triple H, DX, even a short lived program and first encounter with Austin.

(1999) Corporation Rock After The Rock won his first WWF championship he turned heel right after his match against Mankind at Survivor Series 1998 by basically making a parody of the Montrol Screwjob which happened a year early with The Rock applying the Sharpshooter on Mankind with Vince calling for the bell and thus The Rock selling out to Vince McMahon and joining the Corporation. As corporate champ he had amazing fueds with Mankind in I Quit, Empty Arena, and Ladder Matches. And everyone pretty much nows how the storybook rivalry of The Rock and Austin was that year. However I think this was not the best version of him as a heel because the fans really weren't booing The Rock they were really booing him because he was with McMahon, half of the fans still cheered The Rock.

(2003) Hollywood Rock This was the Rock's final heel turn and it was by far his funniest and most entertaining heel run. The Rock made his heel turn in January of 2003 in Smackdown by publicly critizing Hulk Hogan. After The Rock supposley got rid of Hogan after their WrestleMania 18 rematch against Hogan at No Way Out as a favor to Vince McMahon, McMahon decide to return a favor to the Rock by allowing the Rock to compete on any brand he wants. The following night he made his return back to Raw dissing and having a classic promo in Toronto explaning his heel turn saying how the people turned on him and voted Austin over him for superstar of the decade thus creating the final fued between him and Austin. During his fued with Austin he had a mini fued with The Hurricane and matches with other babyfaces also lets not forget his infamous concert he did in Sacramento. He finally beat Austin at WrestleMania 19 and on the follwing night on Raw he did a promo in Seattle where Goldberg made his WWE debut and spearing The Rock thus making his final fued of 2003. Overall I liked this Rock but I wouldn't say it was the best but definatly the funniest.

 

[Chicago1989]

Great thread...one of the reasons why I idolize The Rock.

I'll tell you right off the bat, I gotta go with the '97-'98 heel Rock. To me, he had the best heel transition ever. He was loved at first but booed because he was too much of a good guy, but what did he do? He turned heel with a completely different attitude, look, mic skills, etc. It was done very well and it improved big-time. His mic skills were beginning to improve at that time, especially as a heel, and his catchphrases were being noticed for the first time. His entrance themes were also beginning to change over the months into the popular theme he's known for today.

This heel version of The Rock was the best. I love this early Rock quote: "The Rock is The People's Champ, The Rock is The People's Choice, and The Rock is the best damn Intercontinental Champ there ever was!".

 

[Azogan v.2.0]

Hands down, Hollywood Rock. Although it lasted for only a couple of months, i loved watching RAW every week during that time. The Rock was gold. I enjoyed this 2-3 month stint better than anything he had done previously or since then. I mean the promo he cut in Toronto the night after he defeated Hogan at No Way Out was priceless. And then The Rock and his Willie Nelson guitar, and i think everyone remembers he and Hurricane going at it week after week. (Look at the tapes on youtube, Hurricane was MEGA over.) And then in what i say is the second greatest heel promo behind Shawn Michaels return to Montreal in 2005, The Rock in Concert was gold! Leaving Sacramento is still the funniest thing i have ever witnessed in WWE. Hollywood Rock was the best because it was short and sweet. I personally wish he would have stayed a little longer as Hollywood Rock, but nonetheless the three months he was around as Hollywood Rock was classic. You basically listed all my points for me, but in my opinion, Hollywood Rock not only was his most entertaining, I believe it was his best!

 

[Simmo]

After having recently watched the Rock's DVD and the (15th Anniversary RAW DVD too) I would have to say the funniest one was Hollywood Rock...

I watched the Rock Concerts over and over and was laughing my a$$ off...

 

[Beards17]

the rock is the best mic performer and one of the best in ring performers ever. each heel turn u listed takes me back to all those classic promos and matches that rock had!!!! by far the nation heel turn was the best!!! i still remember when the rock turned on ahmed johnson and joined the nod! you could tell that this was gonna be a super star to remember!!! each week on raw i found rock to get better and better and certainly was entertaining!! remember when rock gave farooq that picture of him wearing the ic belt and the rest of the nation Rolexs!!! classic!

rko for life

 

[Spidey Revivey]

Corporate Rock all the way. I myself just got done watching The Great One's CD a few nights ago and let me tell you, when The Rock sold out you could hear the jaws dropping on the arena floor. Nobody really expected that, not from someone who was so over with the crowd.

It was like watching Hulk Hogan betray WCW or Triple H betraying Shawn Michaels; you just couldn't believe it.

The Rock to me has never truly been a face since he was rechristened in the Nation Of Domination. True he feuded with the company's top heels and the crowd loved his antics, but that was what the Attitude Era was all about. He would talk down EVERYONE heels or faces. To me that is a very over tweener. Kind of like what Randy Orton is at the moment.

Vince McMahon and The Rock. The combination was terrifying back then because the McMahon Family had their own feud for a takeover angle.

Don't get me wrong; Hollywood Rock is funny but he just didn't have that raw tenacity with me that he did in the Corporation. Probably because we didn't expect him to be around as long. But even as a Corporate Sell-Out he was entertaining from start to finish.

 

[Who is Going to Win]

The Heel version where he had that intresting interview with bill clintons mistress

 

[beefthelegend]

Nation of Domination Rock, no question.

Two words (actually three, but two of them are the same) "Die Rocky Die".

He got THAT kind of heat. That people ACTUALLY were wishing harm upon him. That's like 'Cena in the Hammerstein Ballroom' heat. People in the WWE actually worried about him. Ironic, because in the attitude era they used it to fuel one of the best characters of all time, but in the E era it cost a guy his job.

But yeah, all of his stuff with the Nation was gold, as was his stuff with the corporation, but I feel most of his heat was because he was with McMahon, not because he was a great heel. He got the McMahon rub. Or at least some of it. But his stuff with the Nation was all original, and all him.

 

[FunKay the Inevitable]

Personally I always thought the Hollywood Rock was his best heel incarnation. He was funny but at points there were serious overtones. Like when he spat in Hogan's face or when he shook Vince's hand and how happy were the fans when he lost to the Hurricane? It also contained some of my favourite promo's (got to love those concerts) including the one he cut on Austin at WM 19 which culminated with this: 'Not Afraid to sweat, not afraid to bleed, gonna beat that bald headed bastard guaran-damn-teed, and then, (takes off his sunglasses) finally the Rock will have done it all.' Great promo, I still use that some-times today.

 

[Vanderhook]

NOD Rock probably had the most heat but... I mean come on.. he kind of sucked back then. Really I went back and watched some NOD promos, and while not terrible they are pretty lackluster. Corporation and Hollywood Rock are when he perfected his character and really got good.

Lots of heat =/= good. The only reason he didn't get as much heat in his later incarnations is because he was so damn good over as a face/tweener that even when he went heel again the fans adored him.

 

[Ferbian]

I've always preferred the promos The Rock would cut during his single time, after NoD, I liked his promos during NoD and during his Hollywood characteristics, but in the end, I really just liked the things The Rock would be doing Corporation, they were more mockingly fun if you ask me, and he put on some great matches during that time, to me that period was definitely the greatest period of The Rock's career.

 

[Kingofthedeathmatch]

The Hollywood version of The Rock was the best without a question. Although it only lasted for a few months every time he came out the fans exploded with hatred and they did it because they loved him. He was just great every time he stepped in the ring and every time he picked up a mic in 2003. And after 2 previous tries he finally beat Stone Cold at Wrestlemania in their last match with eachother and Austin's last match period.
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