Should We Always Cheer For Who We Like?

[The Brain]

That seems like kind of a stupid question doesn’t it? Of course you should cheer who you like. Why wouldn’t you? Because you’re not always supposed to. Many years ago Vince McMahon said the old school mentality of good guys vs. bad guys was outdated and WWE was going to get away from that. That never happened. For a brief period the good guys weren’t as goody goody as they once were but WWE has always had good guys and bad guys. The WWE openly encourages fans to cheer for who they want and to express themselves how they see fit. That sounds all well and good on the surface but the way the fans express themselves has a direct impact on the path a character takes.

Dolph Ziggler is the latest bad guy to receive the support of the fans. The way they have been cheering him makes a face turn seem inevitable. All the fans who are cheering for Ziggler right now should think about that. You’re cheering him because you like what you see from him as a heel. If these cheers catch on he will become face and the character you like so much will have to change. I think even if you do like a heel like Ziggler you’re better off not cheering for him at a live event. You can enjoy his work and respect him. You can talk him up on the forums and root for him from home. When you’re at the arena you are better off giving him the heel heat he wants in order for him to remain as the character you like. Besides, if you really do like him show him respect by giving him the reaction he is looking for. Personally I think it’s a little rude to cheer for a heel. You’re basically telling him he’s not doing his job properly. People judge a heel by the heat he draws from the crowd. If you really like Ziggler give him his heat.

Or you can say some generic line like “It’s a free country. I can cheer who I want.” “It’s my first amendment right as a paying customer.” Those statements are true. Just keep in mind when you start to hate Ziggler’s new goody two shoes character and you wish he would go back to his heel ways you’ll have only yourself to blame.

 

[The Crock]

I've always seen the old school mentality of cheering a face and booing a heel -- regardless of how much you like the guy -- as sort of an unspoken rule, for lack of a better term. Wrestling is reliant on suspending your belief and buying into what you're given, so why doesn't that extend over to crowd reactions, as well? It's not something that angers me, but it certainly irritates me a bit. Wrestling has already been "revealed," but I don't see the point of undermining the product by boy offering the courtesy of giving the performers their desired reactions. Some may see this as being archaic, but I just see it as being a part of the product -- as a part of the relationship between the fans and the performers.

I wouldn't mind the fans ignoring alignment to cheer who they like, if it didn't noticeably affect the product. For example, fans turned Randy Orton face, cheering him so much that the WWE had to finally give in. You know what happened mere weeks after? Fans began requesting an Orton heel character. Fans couldn't deal with what they had created, basically. That's why it baffles me that they're going down the same road with Dolph Ziggler and will only continue to do so -- they'll never be satisfied, as a result.

If you like a heel's work, then boo him. Give him the reaction he wants and the one he deserves.

 

[Workrate]

Well, as a matter of instinct, people are inclined to cheer for who and what they like and boo the things and people they don't. However, I do think things have changed a bit in wrestling. It used to be a matter of pride for a heel to get boo'ed and, more or less, fans would boo the character (there have always been exceptions, of course). That meant they were doing a good job and the wrestler playing the part appreciated it.

These days, if you look at the way the reactions go, it seems like fans will cheer who they like and boo who they dislike regardless of character. I find it hard to believe that the people boo'ing guys like Johnny Ace, Jack Swagger, and even Brock Lesnar (or John Cena in some cases), are doing so simply because of their character. There are very unlikable traits about all those guys aside from the characters they play. Meanwhile, guys like Daniel Bryan and Dolph Ziggler, who are obviously playing the role of a bad guy, are getting pops. In effect, the fans are deciding who the faces and heels are rather than the characters and storylines that the wrestlers and writers come up with.

 

[The Heartfix Kid]

I think in that case, you have to give the fans a reason to boo or cheer someone appropriately. That's where exceptional writing and booking comes in.

I guess I mean, rather than leave it solely up to the performer, put him/her in scenarios where they get the reactions you want. For instance, maybe Dolph Ziggler himself is the reason why he's getting the cheers. Maybe writing needs to put him in a situation where the only real outcome is to boo and spit at the guy. Let him kick puppies as a gimmick or something.

 

[thegoldensheath88]

I get the point you are trying to make. Its a good point, give the heel heat so he becomes a major heel. I disagree though. Within the WWE Universe you have many kinds of fans. Just because I cheer for Daniel Bryan, Dolph Ziggler, etc. does not mean the WWE is going to make them face. I like them because theyre engaging heels who can work a match better than most. I'm 24 years old and have been watching wrestling since I was a "wee ol' tyke". They have little kids to boo them. Also, if I were a wrestler, in the biggest business in the business, I'd be happy I was there, on t.v. or off, getting cheered or booed.

 

[George Steele's Barber]

Cheer and boo for whoever the 10 year old kids are cheering and booing and save the smarky tendencies for the internet. At no point in a human being's life should wrestling mean as much as it does than for a kid. There is no reason to spoil it for that kid no matter how stupid he looks in the matching green Cena shirt, wristbands and hat.

This sounds sappy and sad, but not nearly as sad as a grown man cheering for Ziggler because he has Hennig-like hair and does overly dramatic bumps that remind the rest of us that wrestling is fake.

 

[KNPKH2ster]

There are some wrestlers I like, regardless of alignment, but that doesn't mean that I will cheer for them all the time. There are some actions wrestlers will do, face or heel, that I wouldn't like. An example is when Edge was briefly feuding with Kane back in late 2010. I know Edge was face, but I didn't like it when he kidnapped Paul Bearer and made him go through that torture.

And then, there are wrestlers (and wrestling personalities) who I don't even like at all, and want them to just go away.

 

[mightbefun]

I instantly thought of Daniel Bryan when I saw this question. I answered no. I show my support for Bryan Danielson by booing Daniel Bryan. I thought to myself that it undermines his character to cheer for him and do Yes chants. I thought, "This is a show! Play along, people!" It was okay to cheer at Wrestlemania because it was [Bryan Danielson's] first title defense at "the granddaddy of them all" and it had meant a lot. The fans should be proud they did their part then. Now that he's established, feel free to boo him.

 

[The Eighties]

The chanting for Ziggler seems a result mostly of how badly he's been booked the last few months, fans are just showing him the support IMO, but really why does Ziggler need to change much of his act to be a face? Punk comes out every week claiming to be the best in the world and being snarky, Ziggler isn't a viscous or evil heel, his cocky gimmick is easily switched.

As for the issue at hand I guess it's a case by case basis, but I don't think fans should cheer the faces and boo the heels automatically, WWE might as well put a big applause cue above the ring in that case. For instance I don't think Sheamus is anywhere near as over as WWE want him to be and when not on SD with the piped in reactions he gets a fair smattering of boo's, should fans just cheer him because Vince has decided he's the next guy to be booked as a superhero when the fans may want someone else?

 

[rayman]

no because in some cases you cant go strictly by who you like more i like hhh and shawn micheals more than taker (iam a fan of him too of course) but i cheered for him at mania because its the streak you dont want it too end at wrestlemania 22 i cheered for rey too win the big one even tho iam a huge orton and angle fan i felt that was his match too win with tthe passing of eddie and everything it just worked it all depends on the circumstances

 

[DANIELBRYANrealwrestler]

Cheer and boo for whoever the 10 year old kids are cheering and booing and save the smarky tendencies for the internet. At no point in a human being's life should wrestling mean as much as it does than for a kid. There is no reason to spoil it for that kid no matter how stupid he looks in the matching green Cena shirt, wristbands and hat.

This sounds sappy and sad, but not nearly as sad as a grown man cheering for Ziggler because he has Hennig-like hair and does overly dramatic bumps that remind the rest of us that wrestling is fake.

L-O-L lemmie guess ur a big jimmy? somebody get r-truth over here to knock this guy out. Ever thought about the way wwe handles heels and faces nowadays? maybe we cheer heels because wwe doesnt know what the fans want in a face and what does/doesnt entertain us.

 

[Qixel]

I'm not worried in the slightest about Ziggler turning face. Even if he does, what I like about Ziggler won't change. I like Ziggler's athleticism, his mannerisms, and his ability to sell a move. His alignment won't take away his ability to be cocky and show off. He's fun to watch, and it doesn't matter what side he's on so far as I'm concerned.

Someone like Bryan, however, I wouldn't want to see go back to a face. He fits the heel role much more comfortably from what I've seen. If he can do the face role as well, then I have zero problems there, either.

 

[ProWrestlingFan]

That is why I said in another thread that "No Heels or faces are necessary in Pro-Wrestling". Take Dolph Ziggler for example. He doesn't need to be a good face or a good heel to be cheered. If people like him they will cheer him if they don't they will boo. Why always someone has to be a good guy or a bad guy ? It should be about competition not about who is pulling a "fake" character better.

Take Brock Lesnar's return for example..People cheered him for 2 weeks after his return but then WWE made him into a "bad guy". Was that needed ? No. Most people nowadays already know that wrestling is "fake" and know that most wrestlers just play characters so why not let the wrestlers be themselves like Steve Austin, Rock, HHH duirng the Attitude Era. They always remained the same no matter they were a face or a heel. Austin gave stunners to face wrestlers but still remaining a face just like Rock,HHH etc. People cheered them because they liked them not because they were a face or a heel. Even the Heel Rock and Austin always got cheers.

 

[DirtyD79]

If the heels are the ones getting cheered maybe it's because they're either cooler or more entertaining than the babyfaces. It's why people liked the nWo, They were cool. Sometimes it also seems like the heels often have a much cooler look to them like Big Van Vader's mastodon helmet or the Road Warriors' spike shoulder pads. When I was a kid I thought Jake The Snake was cool because hello, he has a snake.

Vince McMahon himself admits he really hasn't watched very many movies or paid much attention to pop culture in the past 20 odd years, so his idea of cool is kinda outdated. A lot of promoters are most active in their 40s and older. Unfortunately their tastes were formed when they are in their teens and twenties which unfortunatley often puts them in the early 90s or earlier and what was considered cool back then.

 

[DANIELBRYANrealwrestler]

That is why I said in another thread that "No Heels or faces are necessary in Pro-Wrestling". Take Dolph Ziggler for example. He doesn't need to be a good face or a good heel to be cheered. If people like him they will cheer him if they don't they will boo. Why always someone has to be a good guy or a bad guy ? It should be about competition not about who is pulling a "fake" character better.

vince mcmahon doesnt know the meaning of pro-wrestling and he makes sure the kids dont know it either, lmao and if u worked for wwe they woudve cut ur mic off.

 

[Dr. Awesome]

I do see your point there but then Cena has been Boo'd for about 2-3 years now and he hasn't turned Heel so its not true 100% true (especially with faces) but with heels cheering usually turns them face. In the case of loosing there character again not 100% true but it's still a high percentage. In case of Ziggler I do think he could keep his cocky and arrogant persona and turn face (Although it's more likely to fail) and when he's not really a top star yet so any failure in character change COULD damage his chances of main event status. So overall I agree fans should just boo him not only too keep the Character that's working well but perhaps for the best of his career.

 

[dakikko049]

I always thought that the actual reaction of standing up and cheering whenever you see someone you like or they win a match and booing is for guys you don't like. Eg. little kids get excited when they see Cena because he's a good guy and a hero and never gives up and stuff, but men boo him... well for the same reason, and they don't want to see him. When men cheer Ziggler, Bryan or Jericho its because they're happy to see them and are expressing it.

 

[dman1373]

i think its quiet silly to have an agenda for your cheers and boos. I cheer who i like and boo who i dont like. If the person i like turns face and he cant handle it, then its his problem not mine.

 

[Dagger Dias]

I personally cheer for someone if I like them, regardless of their heel/face status. When I boo someone, it's because I cannot stand them. I feel rude when I boo someone, so they have to do something so awful (kayfabe) to justify me booing. I find it very hard to boo anyone that I support, no matter how "evil" the heel they are portraying is. Chris Jericho, Daniel Bryan, etc, guys like that I really enjoy watching so I do not feel right booing them. I want to support them, as I really like their matches and promos. Like I said earlier, booing doesn't feel right if I like the wrestler. When I boo anyone anywhere else it's out of severe dislike, so it's difficult to boo for any other reason at a wrestling event.

Then you have the people I do boo. Vickie, Cole, Rey when he was World Champion, Henry, Khali, to name a few. The only wrestler I can think of who I boo'ed despite enjoying them as a heel was JBL. I wasn't booing him to give him the heel heat he wanted though, I booed him due to something in his promo making me angry. Things are different today. Fans will show support for who they like. If a face is annoying, he gets booed. If a face is cool, he gets cheers. If a heel is evil or annoying, he gets booed. If a heel is cool, he gets support. That's how it works now. Not everyone subscribes to the "bad guys have to get boo'ed" theory, especially with a lot of talented heels out there who have vocal fans that like them.

 

[ProWrestlingFan84]

Cheering and booing is a hard thing with today's product. Back pre-attitude era, it seemed more cookie cutter that faces get cheered and heels get boo'ed. It was an internet free era and the characters and storylines of the writers determined how the fans reacted. I'm 100% certain that had some of the wrestlers existed now that were bigger stars back then, reactions would have been different. Hogan would be boo'ed because he was going really long with his 'Hulk' character and current fans would get bored. Mr. Perfect, I don't think, would've stayed heel because the fans would cheer his promo work and in ring ability. I think a lot changed as far as who gets boo'ed/cheered clearly because of that attitude era. The lines became blurred and tweeners became developed such as Rock/Austin and then in ECW well forget about it. Now in the after math, fans have decided it seems to just cheer for who they like. Most people feel Cena is boring as a character and they boo him while the kids cheer the hell out of him because his character is good. Makes me one if that time comes he EVER turns heel, what will his reaction be. Ziggler seems to be the next guy in line that the fans are just sick of being a heel and are getting massive cheers. Not sure if that's because he's a bad heel, people like his ability in the ring, Sheamus is a bad face, or well a mixture of all three. Wrestling fans in today's era are a mixed breed. Sometimes a face is a face and gets cheered and vice versa for the heel. Other times well characters become stale and boring in the fans eyes so they turn on them and turn them from one to the other. Other times fans decide on the spot such as the Rock/Hogan match from Mania that there isn't going to be a definitive heel, just cheer for both and in process make Hogan a face again. At live events, yeah the fans should be able to cheer/boo whomever they want but the wrestling characters should be doing a good job to dictate how that goes too.

 

[anthonymclaughlin]

For instance I don't think Sheamus is anywhere near as over as WWE want him to be and when not on SD with the piped in reactions he gets a fair smattering of boo's, should fans just cheer him because Vince has decided he's the next guy to be booked as a superhero when the fans may want someone else?

I am sick to death of reading this, yes their are piped in cheers on smackdown, so what? When Sheamus is on raw he gets one of, if not the, biggest Face pop in the wwe, I can't be the only one who thinks this.

But yes we should cheer who we like, if we are cheering heels it means that WWE hasn't done enough to make them boo'd, but i'd love to see more instances like Rock v Cena with no clear heel or face.

 

[Hulk Hogan's Brother]

I can justify myself cheering for a heel if I find him to be really exceptional. By exceptional, I mean if he is doing something that has never been done before and at the same time entertaining me like few others on the roster. Think of Rock around 1998 or John Cena as a rapper in 2003. Both those guys got cheered because even though they were heels, they were hilarious. Niether guy fit the smark bill of what a great wrestler should be like because both guys were brawlers and to be honest, it was not only the smarks who were cheering them. But they got cheered because both guys had exceptional amounts of charisma.

What I do not understand is what someone like Ziggler has done to get cheered. I mean, he is decent in the ring but nowhere near exceptional. I do not think that he is even one of the top 5 workers in the ring in the WWE today. Everywhere else, he is painfully average.

So what I am saying is this. If you want to cheer a heel, do so for the really exceptional talent. For the rest, you can and should appreciate their work but when you go out into the arena, boo them like the rest of the audience. In fact booing them would be the truest form of appreciation that you can show them.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

It's an interesting question really. As The Brain pointed out, you've got the whole First Ammendment argument and it's valid. To me, it's not an issue of free speech so much as it's suspension of disbelief. Suspension of disbelief is a major factor in enjoying pro wrestling. For all the talks & complaints we sometimes hear from fans who want wrestling to be more "realistic", it's a media form that's grounded on the principle of mock combat.

No matter how much some want to say otherwise, the age old story of good vs. bad will NEVER go out of style. You take that factor out and you've basically ripped the guts out of pro wrestling. For me personally, if I'm at an event, I'll boo for the heels even if I like them and cheer for the faces even if I don't like them. Why? To me, it's part of the whole experience and simply adds to the experience. Deep down inside, as long as a wrestler is talented & is able to make me care about him, then I'll "like" that wrestler as a heel or face. Cheering for the "good guy" and rooting against the "bad guy", in my mind, is an important factor in audience participation. If I'm at a live event and a heel is getting a lot of cheers, it doesn't really bother me personally. I'm not there for the other members of the audience, I'm there for the wrestling, the wrestlers, the promos, the feuds & the storylines. If I'm into John Cena, I'll stand up and cheer for the guy even if 10,000 other people around me are booing the snot out of him. I'm more interested in having fun than trying to look cool or be an edgy smark.

 

[The Ghost of Benoit]

I cheer for Ziggler and Bryan because of their exceptional in-ring work. They arent even good heels anyways. That's not their fault, I blame the creative team and the PG restrictions.

 

[JaceEvans]

I agree that if you really like the wrestler who is currently playing a heel you should Boo them.

I remember a quote from HHH a while back that said back in his huge heel run in the 2000's he used to get pissed off to see pro-HHH signs. He pretty much said he felt he wasn't doing his job right if he got cheered. At home or around friends I don't think it matters who you cheer but these heels job is to make you HATE them. If your cheering them, that's basically telling WWE there not doing there job very well. I understand you think cheering them will get them noticed and tell Vince to invest more time in that certain wrestler, but most of the time it's the complete opposite. So do your favorite heel wrestler a favor and BOO them like they kicked your dog!