Stephanie McMahon: Underrated

[NegativeFeedback]

I'm watching Monday's Raw and I gotta say, Stephanie McMahon is really underrated. She is the perfect smarmy heel boss. Her work on the mic is stellar and she knows exactly what to say to get a reaction from the crowd.

Clearly the only person that you ever think about is yourself. But we have a whole lot of other people to think about. I mean, do you honestly believe that all of the people in this arena only came here to see you?

That's brilliant. Smarmy and condescending, and at the same time, a perfect set up for the crowd to go bonkers.

Mid-way through the promo, Stephanie also made fun of the audience for chanting out-of-sync so they can get their shit together and make a better chant for TV.

I think her work in the Authority angle has been superb. Her lines, her attitude, and her delivery have been top-notch, but people haven't given her the credit she deserves.

 

[NegativeFeedback]

Also, let's not forget that promo she did right after SummerSlam.

"Daniel, nobody wants to fire you. You're all worked up. Your anger management issues are clearly messing with your mind. I mean, Triple H has said all along, as have I, you're very valued here. You're incredibly talented. I mean, you're the ultimate underdog. You're a part of the very fabric of the WWE. But I need to manage your expectations, Daniel. And these people don't understand business either. I mean, not everyone can be the face of the company. Not everyone can be WWE Championship material. I mean, really, Daniel? You're like what? 5 foot 8? Maybe 200 pounds? And well, we can't all be supermodels, okay? But the WWE Universe, they clearly love you. And hey, you have a place here. Daniel, you might not be an A, but you are a B+. Solid B+."

 

[Y 2 Jake]

She works in the role she's in now, but only for a short amount of time. Nobody, other than the guys who had a crush on her, was sad to see her go into semi-retiremnt on-screen when she left in 2003.

That voice, man. It's made for a heel.

 

[Marshyishere]

I'm watching Monday's Raw and I gotta say, Stephanie McMahon is really underrated. She is the perfect smarmy heel boss. Her work on the mic is stellar and she knows exactly what to say to get a reaction from the crowd.



That's brilliant. Smarmy and condescending, and at the same time, a perfect set up for the crowd to go bonkers.

Mid-way through the promo, Stephanie also made fun of the audience for chanting out-of-sync so they can get their shit together and make a better chant for TV.

I think her work in the Authority angle has been superb. Her lines, her attitude, and her delivery have been top-notch, but people haven't given her the credit she deserves.

My exact thoughts when I was watching Raw yesterday. She absolutely killed it. Would have to be one of the best performances I've seen for a while, from anyone.

 

[Fire Marshall Bill]

She's heel? Sorry I couldn't tell since she's cut basically the exact same promo on Randy Orton the past few weeks.

They've done the same thing they've been doing since shortly after the Authority storyline began, waffle. One week it's DB vs the Shield. The next it's Shield vs 11 freaking guys on the roster. Sure, that night was a clear exaggeration to appease the DB fans, but it's not like there aren't other examples anyways. They do promos cutting down DB. They do promos telling Randy Orton to shutup. They come out saying they're going to give the WWE fans exactly what they want, and they actually do, in the form of a match that night or something at a PPV.

They have gone on with this storyline about how they're secretly behind Punk and DB getting screwed so much. Is there going to be a payoff to that? Maybe. I'm not sure. HHH vs Punk? HHH vs DB? Shit, now supposedly Punk walked out (for what that story is worth), what would they do now? Frankly, I think it would be a perfect way to end a poorly executed storyline.

Could Stephanie make a good heel? Sure. Too bad she can't make up her mind.

 

[Merkin353]

I think she is a terrible actress who is spot on with her lines because she's done this longer than most people she is standing in the ring with. But besides I don't think heels have to act well to do their job very well. & with all that said I think this mondays raw was one of her recent best. With the improvising & the bitchyness that she seemed to be lacking even while smacking Big Show in the face. (Side Note: Poor Big Show right?) I think her added attitude was based on her being upset that the Rumble show didn't go as planned. I didn't even think about Bryan entering the Rumble until the crowd started chanting Daniel Bryan during the Rumble match itself because I knew if Bryan was in the match it would look bad on either Batista or Bryan who would have been the last two. I truly think she was a little bit pissed. Not much but enough to make it a fine performance from a bad actress lol.

 

[George Steele's Barber]

She does her job very well. The way she eggs on the fans with a combination of embellishment, condescension, praise, truth and wacky facial expressions is terrfic. She's ridiculous and over the top like her dad but not to the point where you would think she is an insane person. Vince (the character) did and said things that made no sense for a businessman. Stephanie's character and the decisions she makes make sense. Her and HHH are trying to do what they think will make them the most money (which in their characters eyes includes keeping DB down). If they have to ruffle feathers with Orton or The Shield then that is a sacrifice they are willing to make. If they want Randy Orton to be their champion then keeping him on edge is probably the best way to go about it. At some point their pride is going to take over and they are going to go too far and make a mistake which will probably lead to a HHH match but right now they are using their heads in the name of "best for business".

HHH and Stephanie are not the epitome of evil but they are clearly heels and they have been very entertaining and effective heels just looking out for their own self interest.

 

[avi01]

She is a good character to have on TV. Not sure about her creative input behind the scenes tho, that is a whole other story.

 

[therealbrucewayne]

Steph is a genius! Just like her father. She learned from the best!

 

[NegativeFeedback]

She does her job very well. The way she eggs on the fans with a combination of embellishment, condescension, praise, truth and wacky facial expressions is terrfic. She's ridiculous and over the top like her dad but not to the point where you would think she is an insane person. Vince (the character) did and said things that made no sense for a businessman. Stephanie's character and the decisions she makes make sense. Her and HHH are trying to do what they think will make them the most money (which in their characters eyes includes keeping DB down). If they have to ruffle feathers with Orton or The Shield then that is a sacrifice they are willing to make. If they want Randy Orton to be their champion then keeping him on edge is probably the best way to go about it. At some point their pride is going to take over and they are going to go too far and make a mistake which will probably lead to a HHH match but right now they are using their heads in the name of "best for business".

HHH and Stephanie are not the epitome of evil but they are clearly heels and they have been very entertaining and effective heels just looking out for their own self interest.

I think she is a terrible actress who is spot on with her lines because she's done this longer than most people she is standing in the ring with. But besides I don't think heels have to act well to do their job very well. & with all that said I think this mondays raw was one of her recent best. With the improvising & the bitchyness that she seemed to be lacking even while smacking Big Show in the face. (Side Note: Poor Big Show right?) I think her added attitude was based on her being upset that the Rumble show didn't go as planned. I didn't even think about Bryan entering the Rumble until the crowd started chanting Daniel Bryan during the Rumble match itself because I knew if Bryan was in the match it would look bad on either Batista or Bryan who would have been the last two. I truly think she was a little bit pissed. Not much but enough to make it a fine performance from a bad actress lol.

There is clearly a big difference between how Triple H conducts himself and how Stephanie does it. Triple H tries to get himself over as the big bad heel while Stephanie truly tries to get Daniel Bryan over. Vince was the BEST at getting a face over, and Stephanie is definitely getting pointers from him.

Like my OP says, her remarks were brilliant in setting up moments for DB to get cheered. You think Triple H would ever set the crowd up for a huge YES chant by saying "do you really believe the people only came to see you? Nope. He's not as helpful. He just completely buries DB and doesn't let himself look vulnerable or weak at all. Steph on the other hand says her heel remarks and then sets it up to be proven wrong almost immediately by getting the crowd behind the face.

And this isn't an isolated incident with Daniel Bryan. She did it with CM Punk a while back when he called the Authority out for setting up the Shield to attack him.

Stephanie is miles ahead of Triple H in being an effective foil for a face superstar. I can't commend her enough on how good a job she's doing.

 

[Gibby]

I'm genuinely torn on Stephanie.

I was in the house in Anaheim for the "B+ Player" speech and thought it blurred the lines a bit too much; it was industry-speak brought front of house and sat in my craw a little. You can't exactly hate a person for faint praise, really. It's too ambiguous. Then I thought about it and realised it had drawn legit heat with me, so doffed my cap a little bit, but was still a little bit unsure.

There's something about the reality of the person and the nature of the character that is barely separable for me. I know the best characters are cartoonish modifications of the real person but in this case, I don't particularly want to watch the reality of the capitalist enterprise reify and justify itself on stage (even with the promise of an ass-beating afterward). On top of that, genuine heels need to have their comeuppance: as a mother and an executive, with a top heel husband, she is going to be protected from that comeuppance. Not that I want to see her beaten up! Rather I want to see heels that can themselves lose, not just have their stooge du jour lose in their place.

 

[NegativeFeedback]

I'm genuinely torn on Stephanie.

I was in the house in Anaheim for the "B+ Player" speech and thought it blurred the lines a bit too much; it was industry-speak brought front of house and sat in my craw a little. You can't exactly hate a person for faint praise, really. It's too ambiguous.

You're not giving her enough credit. Listen to that speech again. Sure, she starts it off as condescending faint praise as you mentioned, but right before hitting us with the B+ line, she makes fun of his height and his looks ("We can't all be supermodels"). There's a point in that. Stephanie knows what you know. You can't just give someone faint praise and hope people "get" that you're actually undervaluing him. So what did she do? She made clear she was a total bitch by making fun of his looks right before hitting us with the punchline about being a B+. The B+ wasn't sincere, and the audience knows it, because she JUST went all "Mean Girl" on him in the previous sentence. It's genius.

The audience IMMEDIATELY boos her when she says the B+ line. She drew legitimate heat. And she convinced the audience that Daniel Bryan WASN'T a B+ all in one go.

Like I said, Stephanie did more for Daniel Bryan than Triple H ever did. Stephanie knows how to come off as a heel, not look weak, and still get the other person over. There's a reason she did most of the talking on Monday. Had Triple H taken charge, he would've buried Daniel Bryan, laughed off any comebacks, and probably threatened to leave Bryan a bloody mess in the ring.

There's something about the reality of the person and the nature of the character that is barely separable for me. I know the best characters are cartoonish modifications of the real person but in this case, I don't particularly want to watch the reality of the capitalist enterprise reify and justify itself on stage (even with the promise of an ass-beating afterward). On top of that, genuine heels need to have their comeuppance: as a mother and an executive, with a top heel husband, she is going to be protected from that comeuppance. Not that I want to see her beaten up! Rather I want to see heels that can themselves lose, not just have their stooge du jour lose in their place.

You have a fair point. But as long as Daniel Bryan gets to beat Triple H some day and Stephanie just screams in despair and disappointment by his side, that will serve as enough comeuppance.

Also, I can definitely see AJ vs. Stephanie happening down the line. Steph isn't a wrestling marvel, but if she does step in the ring like she's been rumored to do, she will do more for the diva's division than anyone else could.

 

[Gibby]

That's a reasonable point that I hadn't considered, Feedback. I haven't actually seen the Raw edition on TV and am relying too much on recall. She has a very good mastery of tone and register that many of the in-ring talents could stand to pick up and that is to her credit. And I'd much rather she took control of the Authority voice than HHH (for various reasons that this thread doesn't cover). As I say, I'm torn, or outright undecided.

 

[JoeFromTomsRiver]

She has a very good mastery of tone and register that many of the in-ring talents could stand to pick up and that is to her credit.

She certainly got that from the old man and not Linda, who is the single worst talker to ever be on WWE programming.

I think she's very good on the mic, she sounds like she is believing what she is saying which is the most important thing.

And the fact is that she IS in charge, so that adds to the fact that she can actually talk in a believable manner. She's not just an on-screen figurehead. The reality of her position in the company, combined with her mic skills, makes her very valuable to WWE Programming.

Usually it's one or the other. Someone with good mic skills plays the role of figurehead. Or the person who is legitimately in charge plays that role but they are horrible in their presentation. (i.e. Dixie Carter)

 

[LBGetBack]

Agreed, 100%. Since last summer or so, Stephanie has regularly been one of the best parts of the roster. She's outstanding at what she does, on screen.

People don't want to give her credit because she's the bosses daughter so she didn't have to "earn" her spot. But reality is, she's a fantastic heel character and one of the best mic workers they have. She clearly "gets it". I wish they had more who knew how to work the mic and crowd like she does, rather than being stiff robots.

And I agree with others that Stephanie is much better in the role as the "voice" of the authority than HHH. Hopefully, with HHH presumably getting ready to work WrestleMania, he'll go more into "heel wrestler" mode and Stephanie can handle running the show as the primary leader of the authority.

 

[NegativeFeedback]

I just finished watching Stephanie's segments last night, and holy shit, that was some of the best work of her career. Stephanie has been KILLING IT. I think that the best case scenario would be for Triple H to disappear for a while after WrestleMania 30 and to showcase Stephanie as the top bad guy.