Is it time to retire Ric Flair from on screen

[dsotm5150]

I've watched Ric Flair for almost 30 years, and greatly enjoyed him, he's been a favorite of mine since I can remember. He was a great wrestler, great speaker and is a legend worthy of being chronicled in a LED Zeppelin opus(OK maybe thats a bit of a stretch) but I've found his presence the last year or two to be quite annoying and lackluster to say the least. He's Ric Flair, he's the Nature Boy, he'll get a pop and is beloved where ever he goes, but I think it's a time he settled into a behind the scenes role within the company.

Charlotte by no means needs him in her corner, she was doing just fine before they decided to bring him in. In fact I find that he tends to steal the spotlight off of anybody around him. His promos have also become almost torturous. He either sounds very scripted and demune or he goes off script and winds up talking about anything and everything that doesn't pertain to the actual topic.

It was painfully obvious at the Hall of Fame induction that Ric has very few marbles left floating around up there when he spent 8 - 10 minutes talking about Ricky Steamboat, Stan Hansen, Triple H, HBK, Charlotte and himself, then spent about 90 seconds talking about Sting.

 

[thekooljt]

Two points:

a) I found Charlotte to be very, very dry and boring as a face. When she won the Divas title, she still was very stiff (as she slowly became a heel). With the addition of Ric , she's been a little bit more charismatic. I know that like everything else, the team of Charlotte and Ric will eventually get old but for now, its enjoyable to watch.

b) DUDE, LET RIC BE RIC DAMN IT WOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!

 

[Jeff Deliverer of Mail]

I'm on the fence with this one. Eventually, it will happen. Charlotte will go on her own. But for now, she's in a unique situation with her father as her manager. The managers in wrestling have gone out the window and its a rare thing to have a manager. It adds to her dynamic IMO. No doubt Ric has helped her be a better heel in wrestling. She's improved quite a bit since turning heel. The weeping has stopped anyway.

 

[rge2010]

His saggy bitch tits are putrid. Thankfully he doesnt take his top off much nowadays but he still looks decrepit. He needs to wheel off into the sun.

 

[Navi]

At first I didn't mind him coming out with her because he helped her. Now even Charlotte goes on about her father and the fact that he is a 16 time world champion, so he should basically be allowed to do what he wants. We all know that and I don't care anymore.

When you are there to enhance the wrestler that you're with it's fine, when it becomes all about you, then no it isn't. Charlotte is turning into the female Seth Rollins, she's a good wrestler and doesn't need the help to win matches. Just give him the title and be done with it at the rate it's going. She didn't need him to make a mark for herself in NXT and she doesn't need him now.

 

[George Steele's Barber]

Charlotte was terrible before she turned heel and aligned with her dad. Terrible. Everyone who whined about the Divas Revolution has to remember how uncomfortable she was on the mic.

Well guess what? She's still kind of terrible and uncomfortable on the mic. That hasn't changed just because she went heel. What has changed is that she has her father there to take the focus off her weaknesses and make her look like a full heel as opposed to a lost puppy. Its been great for her and the Women's Division. It fits her character so well as someone who talks about how amazing she is but is clearly a lost little girl who is getting by on the back of her adoring daddy.

 

[ComeOnVince]

I think he has served his purpose alongside Charlotte. Established her (as much as they are going to, anyway) as a dirty heel, just like the "dirtiest player in the game"

I think they should start to phase him out, and it APPEARS that they are doing just that (banning from ringside, etc)

I enjoyed him being a part of his daughter's takeoff in WWE and being the paired heel was fun, but it's run its course.

Yes, I think Ric Flair should be phased out except for the occasional legend appearance. Even then... I wouldn't mind if I never saw him again after the way he treated Sting's HOF speech. I was tired of seeing Ric Flair about 15 years ago. But... I know he still put on some fun matches in his elderly years and probably still could, but it would be horrendously painful to look at.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

I'm on the fence a bit myself. On one hand, I very much respect Flair's legacy and career. I grew up watching him and he's arguably the greatest overall pro wrestler of his generation.

Charlotte as a babyface just doesn't have the goods, she's dull and just didn't resonate. She's much, much more comfortable as a heel, like her father himself, and I don't necessarily think she needed her father to get over as a heel, but he's helped her all the same. With that being said, I'm not so certain that she "needs" him now. I've said in other threads that I personally wish they allowed Charlotte to ultimately forge her own path & identity for herself, much as she did in NXT, as more than just being Ric Flair's daughter but I'm not at all surprised they went that route.

Flair's antics to me are, sometimes, embarrassing to watch such as the sight of just taking off his jacket as if he's actually going to hit the woman that's opposing his daughter in a match. It ain't gonna happen, nor should it happen even if WWE wasn't PG rated because it's just not something they can get away with in this day and time. As a result, to me, it makes it look like he's having some sort of "senior moment" and it just sort of makes me roll my eyes that he comes off as more of a caricature of himself 25+ years ago. Just like I thought it was embarrassing to watch Triple H and Shawn Michaels act like a couple of idiot frat boys despite being well into their 40s circa 2010, it's the same watching Ric Flair try to behave exactly the way he would circa 1986 in 2016.

 

[Hollywood Naitch]

I think the time is coming fairly soon when Charlotte breaks away from Naitchy and does her own thing, she's improving all the time and will eventually need to go it alone. After that, I don't think we need to see Flair again other than the occasional legends appearance.

I always thought he'd be great to have as the manager for someone, but he's such an addict for the limelight every appearance ends up being about him, and he looks terrible these days. Plus, he can hardly talk or cut a promo any more which is a shame when you consider how good he was at one point, one of the best of all time.

Everyone needs to know when to call it a day. Undertaker is coming to that point, and I'm praying he doesn't go on too long and start to look embarrassing in the ring....and Flair hit that point a long time ago. He's even reached that stage as an on-screen character in any role now I think. Once his run with Charlotte is over...that should be it for Ric Flair.

 

[Heartbreak_Kid_707]

He needs to be off TV permanently!!! And with him, Charlotte will drop from top diva son to about #7 on the diva list. She is terrible and needs cut honestly..

 

[JoeMallard]

He needs to be off TV permanently!!! And with him, Charlotte will drop from top diva son to about #7 on the diva list. She is terrible and needs cut honestly..

I love seeing your stupidity on these message boards. Charlotte is doing a FANTASTIC job as a heel and draws major heat from fans. If Ric were to not appear by her side anymore, she would still be in the top five women on the roster.

 

[Navi]

He needs to be off TV permanently!!! And with him, Charlotte will drop from top diva son to about #7 on the diva list. She is terrible and needs cut honestly..

She isn't terrible and I would be interested to hear why you think she is. As I said before she was great in NXT, doing a fine job as a heel. My only issue is we all know she's a Flair and doesn't need daddy to always be there. Ric Flair as much as I respect what he's done for this business has become a parody of himself. It's time for him to take a backseat and just watch his daughter do what she does best, wrestle.

 

[OYDK]

Ric Flair looks terrible nowadays, and that's something I never thought I'd say about a man who aged so damn well into his early 60s. Today though, jeez that camera really hates him and he strikes me as, as others have mentioned, a caricature of the wrestler that he used to be. Honestly, for me it's not the fact that he's old or has soggy bitch tits, it's the fact that he looks awful and he just can't entertain me to any consistent degree anymore.

Charlotte doesn't need him at this point, but I wouldn't go as far as to say she never did. He was crucial in bringing out her evil side, so kudos to Flair for that. He's done his job and he's helped his daughter along amazingly whether people want to admit it or not, but it's time to hang them up. Flair is somebody that has stuck around WAYYY too long and it's seemed to affect his credibility and his legacy with some of the newer era fans. And that makes me a bit sad.

 

[kadroan]

I've watched Ric Flair for almost 30 years, and greatly enjoyed him, he's been a favorite of mine since I can remember. He was a great wrestler, great speaker and is a legend worthy of being chronicled in a LED Zeppelin opus(OK maybe thats a bit of a stretch) but I've found his presence the last year or two to be quite annoying and lackluster to say the least. He's Ric Flair, he's the Nature Boy, he'll get a pop and is beloved where ever he goes, but I think it's a time he settled into a behind the scenes role within the company.

Charlotte by no means needs him in her corner, she was doing just fine before they decided to bring him in. In fact I find that he tends to steal the spotlight off of anybody around him. His promos have also become almost torturous. He either sounds very scripted and demune or he goes off script and winds up talking about anything and everything that doesn't pertain to the actual topic.

It was painfully obvious at the Hall of Fame induction that Ric has very few marbles left floating around up there when he spent 8 - 10 minutes talking about Ricky Steamboat, Stan Hansen, Triple H, HBK, Charlotte and himself, then spent about 90 seconds talking about Sting.

Yeah, him sucking up to HHH, definitely may have secured Charlotte's push.

I think him and Charlotte together are starting to get stale. It's only so many interferences, getting banned from ringside and confronting legends ringside he can do.

I'd love to see him manage a male superstar like Cesaro.

 

[ShinChan]

With due respect to Ric Flair and his lifetime accolades, I would like to say that I just despise the nature boy now.

Charlotte wasn't getting anywhere as a face and turning her heel was a good decision. WWE didn't have any other choice except the heel turn. Initially I was ok with him but now his presemce just annoys me.

Nah, not the heel heat but I just don't want to see him. Nowadays Charlotte is getting overshadowed by her dad. He instead of her is getting the limelight.

Charlotte has been improving much to my delight as she was stale as a face.

I hope that Charlotte goes on her own soon and builds her own legacy instead of just being a Flair Girl.