Ric Flair

[J.J.]

Ric Flair goes down as one of my all-time favorite workers. With him anyone he takes under his wing they seem to adapt his characteristics or style for that time . From Carlito to Evolution, Fortune, David Flair, The Miz and now Charlotte. I even recall his Jay Lethal feud(which was amusing). Does he do more harm than good? Just watching him tonight seemed like he was taking her spotlight.

 

[Navi]

We all know Charlotte can wrestle. She did well enough in NXT without Flair there all the time. When she first came up the main roster, he was only there every once in awhile, but it's a bit overkill now.

Yes she know she's a Flair, the entrance music and the WOOOOOOO's pretty much tell you that, she doesn't need daddy there all the time to tell her how to cheat. God knows if watching him all these years hasn't taught her anything, then she will never learn now.

There is nothing wrong with him being in the back watching his daughter, or better yet in the audience, but this walking to the ring is getting a bit much for me, maybe. Let the girl go and be herself, not a copy of her old man.

 

[J.J.]

I understand the whole WOOOO thing is likely paying homage, which is fine. If she wanted to adapt some of his "dirtiest player tactics " that's fine too. It's just his involvement is unnecessary. Last night it just looked as if he was trying to steal the spotlight. Not a lot of time is given to the Divas division on any night and last thing I want to see is him taking away from a meaningful feud.

I can only imagine what he had done if and when Reid had got into the WWE. I partially blame Flair for his son David 's career failure. Flair was trying to make David into a mirror of himself and it failed because David was mediocre and didn't have the passion of enthusiasm like others on the roster at the time.

Overall I like Ric more when he makes his occasional appearances.

 

[noTORRIEus]

I get what everyone is saying about Ric being there is overkill but I think the the point of him around all of the time now is to complete the slow turn of Charlotte into a heel. It's the uber successful dad forcing the kid on the come up to be more like him because he has the experience of being a big deal to which the kid initially adhere's to (turns heel). Eventually dad becomes overbearing with his "my way is the best way" and the child starts to get sympathy from the crowd thus eventually leaving dad behind and since he can't fight his daughter, he mentors someone who will "listen" to him and do his bidding.

That the only logic I can see behind Ric constantly appearing. If not, then what is the payoff?

 

[Mustang Sally]

Last night it just looked as if he was trying to steal the spotlight.

Yes it did, but I doubt it was any deliberate effort on the part of the father to upstage the daughter.

Ric Flair has been an international star for decades, used to having the spotlight on him.....and knowing what to do with it when it is.

He was trying to help Charlotte......while helping himself, too. Yes, that he doesn't need help at this point is probably as extraneous to Ric Flair as walking a tightrope in the circus would be......but this is how he's always been.

So yes, he got in Charlotte's way, forcing the camera to turn to him when it should have been pointed at his daughter and Paige. A lot of fans who go to wrestling shows still like to see Ric Flair.

If Charlotte doesn't like it, let her tell her old man.

 

[FlairFan2003]

I think that is what WWE wants...... consensus on Charlotte was that despite her in ring talent she wasn't connecting the audience, not well embraced as a fan fave, fairly average response as a heel, there was a real sentiment that while Divas Revolution has had its ups & downs Charlotte really hasn't gone anywhere despite a fairly big push (which many ppl ignored and attributed not to her talent but to her name and her father's status). Having Ric around draws immediate attention to her, and as she is subtly altering her character a bit to be more like him it gives her a fresh storyline, which she needs as Divas Revolution is largely dead now and WWE scrapped the whole "For My Brother Angle" due to massive fan backlash.

Plus, WWE has tried this before, using Flair as the catalyst to get Batista & Randy Orton over and credible with the audience, which in both cases it worked well.

Finally, its the run up to WrestleMania - WWE is going to have every hand on deck who could spark even tiny interest in coming on board and helping. They are still courting The Rock, don't be surprised if we see more appearances by the likes of HBK, Nash, and few others in the coming months, you know HHH & Taker will be featured prominently post Christmas Holidays as we head towards (and especially coming out of) The Royal Rumble. I wouldn't be surprised if by mid February RAW looks like Nitro & RAW IS WAR merged circa 1998 with the amount of legends running around!!

Also, lets not forget the behind the scenes corporate angle, yes WWE is making a serious effort with the Divas and Charlotte, yes they want "all hands on deck" in some capacity heading towards Mania, but WWE also just signed a major promotional deal with ESPN, and right after that deal was announced it was also announced that WWE had finally green lighted the ESPN 30 for 30 special documentary on Flair, which they had been trying to do for over a year but WWE was reluctant to let them use Flair's match footage for fear the program might be too critical or bash WWE/pro wrestling too much. The Flair special stands on its own as a ratings grabber for ESPN, but it certainly helps burnish both parties if Flair is still being used in some meaningful capacity on WWE programs, on screen manager, public ambassador signing autographs & doing promotional appearances, etc. This may not be the biggest reason why Flair is back in regular storylines, but I bet you serious money its one of the reasons.

In the end, if Charlotte actually gets a new storyline and continued push regardless of anything else its good, and if Flair can actually add some charisma and character enhancement to her to get the audience to care about her, even better. That last point will depend largely on her though, Batista & Orton had serious talent, they just needed a jump start to break from the pack of bottom tier newbies and it worked, WWE had Flair work with Carlito a lot too but he didn't have the talent or ambition to succeed like the other two, and that partnership other than producing a few nice matches didn't produce much.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

Charlotte can wrestle and she's infinitely more comfortable as a heel. She certainly was in NXT and, as a whole, it made her work all that much more entertaining. The problem is that WWE is doing exactly what I was afraid they'd do when/if she made it to the main roster: making her identity revolve around the fact that she's Ric Flair's daughter. If Flair was ultimately there in more of a managerial/mentor sort of role, it might be a different story, but it's not the same as it was with Evolution due to the familial connection.

In NXT, the closest Charlotte came to imitating her father was limited to the "Woooo" call, that she'd do once, maybe twice during a match and that was pretty much it. The rest of it was on her. As a heel, she wasn't ultra dynamic as far as personality, but she did sell that she was a self-assured, smug, superior bitch well and that's really all that's needed. At this point in time, Ric Flair's antics and mannerisms while he's out there don't entertain me so much as they just make me wanna roll my eyes and tell pappy that it's time for his medicine and a nap. It was over the top 20-25 years ago, but it worked really well partially because Flair was so good. However, the fact that he's now 66 years of age, his wrestling days are behind him and that a lot of fans really want to see the new crop of stars stand on their own by being given opportunities of their own makes it seem like it could be doing more harm than good.

However, that's not to say that it couldn't work in the long run. If this ultimately results in Charlotte being able to sorta step out of her father's shadow, at least as much as anyone in pro wrestling with Ric Flair as a father is capable of doing, and asserting herself by establishing her own identity apart fro being Ric Flair's daughter, then the program will have been worth it in hindsight.

 

[FlairFan2003]

We all know Charlotte can wrestle. She did well enough in NXT without Flair there all the time. When she first came up the main roster, he was only there every once in awhile, but it's a bit overkill now.

Yes she know she's a Flair, the entrance music and the WOOOOOOO's pretty much tell you that, she doesn't need daddy there all the time to tell her how to cheat. God knows if watching him all these years hasn't taught her anything, then she will never learn now.

There is nothing wrong with him being in the back watching his daughter, or better yet in the audience, but this walking to the ring is getting a bit much for me, maybe. Let the girl go and be herself, not a copy of her old man.

WCW did that to David.....Flair didn't want David to be an active wrestler but when he expressed interest WCW/Bischoff pushed the issue and inserted him into storylines and matches even though he had no formal training what so ever. Given his lack of physique and total lack of ability it was amazing they made him even remotely relevant as an in ring performer.

David did go on the independent circuit for a few years where he traded on his name recognition and association with his Dad to get bookings, which in theory should have helped him learn and grow as a performer. It didn't, Ric Flair was never involved.

When Flair was brought back to WWE in 2002 he did the company to sign David, only as a developmental talent though, where he could properly train and work with professionals who in theory could make him a marketable talent. After about a year or so though they dropped him, he wasn't viewed as being good enough to continue working with, even though Flair at this time was heavily involved in major storylines with Evolution and WWE was marketing the heck out of his DVD package and various T-Shirts & Action Figures, IE even though WWE was invested and promoting Ric they saw so little talent wise in his son to continue investing in him.

I don't think Ric hurt his development at all, he tried to keep him out of the business, provided him with significant cover in the cluster f%$# that was 1999-2000 WCW, stayed out of his way so he could learn on his own on the independent circuit, and got him enrolled in WWE Development although he did not campaign to protect him there, leading eventually to David getting cut for lack of progress even though the company was still very high on Ric.

 

[Iversen]

I think last night was the moment it crossed the line. I had no problem them highlighting that she was his daughter and having him appear in backstage segments with her etc. But last night she was playing Ric Jr and it hurt her.

Charlotte was a good arrogant heel, but she was different from Ric, now she's just becoming him. Christ, she even took that daft Flair bump which is as stupid now as it was back then. It also doesn't help that a lot of crowds will naturally pop for Ric because he's Ric bloody Flair.

The only way this works is if it is building up to Charlotte turning on him. If she turns on him and makes the point that she doesn't want to be her father 2.0 it might be worth it.

 

[J.J.]

I think last night was the moment it crossed the line. I had no problem them highlighting that she was his daughter and having him appear in backstage segments with her etc. But last night she was playing Ric Jr and it hurt her.

Charlotte was a good arrogant heel, but she was different from Ric, now she's just becoming him. Christ, she even took that daft Flair bump which is as stupid now as it was back then. It also doesn't help that a lot of crowds will naturally pop for Ric because he's Ric bloody Flair.

The only way this works is if it is building up to Charlotte turning on him. If she turns on him and makes the point that she doesn't want to be her father 2.0 it might be worth it.

That's what I'm saying about people Flair manage. They either adapt his in-ring characteristics or parts of his chatacter in general. Rather it be how he dresses, or the robe. After Flair leaves their side they drop those characteristics and adapt their own style. That's why I questioned you does it ultimately help her career?

 

[Azane]

The only reason Charlotte is on the Main roster is because her last name is Flair, Ric is making her career now, The Prematch Sasha vs Becky match was the 2nd best match of the night behind the Triple Tag Ladder match, and it really made the Charlotte Paige match look like crap.

She's a good wrestler, keep her off the mic though, and try to hide the fact that Nikki vs Charlotte was more Cena and Flair backstaging than the women wrestling. Chekhov's Gun made the turnbuckle spot bad unfortunately.

Ric Flair's rub gets people's name out there, which is arguably the hardest part of breaking into the wrestling industry, so I think it ultimately helps most people, it didn't help someone like AJ Styles, but he was already established. Charlotte it's benefitting tremendously, because if her name wasn't Flair, she'd still be on nXt or endeavored.

The Table for 3 between Tamina, Nat, and Charlotte was really telling with "We don't want to be like our family, but we'll still use Sharpshooters, and Figure 4's" vibe, but Lo and behold, Charlotte has to be She-Ric, it's almost like that was part of the deal for Charlotte to get pushed ahead of the rest of the nXt call ups.

I know I'm not the only person who would prefer Charlotte feuding with Paige over Paige Feuding with Ric with Charlotte getting in the way once in a while.

 

[The Mattitude Era]

I'm pretty sure Charlotte and Ric Flair are deliberately being more in-your-face to be heels. The commentators last night referenced Flair living vicariously through his daughter, and also cheating to help Charlotte win. And then having Charlotte overly play up her "dirtiest player in the game" antics. The exact thing you're complaining about I'm pretty sure is the whole point of the angle.