The Anatomy of a Good Promo - "My Name... is Randy Orton"

[Uncle Sam]

Rewind to last night. Go on - make that rewinding noise in your head as your memories noisily play themselves in reverse. What were you doing - drunkenly chatting up some attractive ladies in a bar? Doling out fresh soup at a homeless shelter? Digging a shallow grave with your bare hands?

What you should have been doing is watching the glorified framing device that is Friday Night SmackDown. The corpse in your bath tub can wait until morning. In between twenty minute recaps of Raw and repeats of three year old R-Truth matches is often a rather good show. On this rather good show is a rather good wrestler. This rather good wrestler can cut some rather good promos. This rather good wrestler who can cut rather good promos is - you'll be surprised to learn, provided you didn't read the title - Randy Orton.

Not that this will change your mind - you've likely already come into this thread having picked a side - but it's only fair I arm you with the necessary tools; three bin bags, one pair rubber gloves, sulphuric acid (3 litres), a shovel, a hammer, a hacksaw, a watertight alibi, and this YouTube video of Randy Orton's promo: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lsKvl15IJak&t=2m5s

Have you sawn off the hands and removed all the teeth? Good. The next step is to glance at, and then probably ignore, this transcript of Randy's promo:

My name is Randy Orton, and usually when I have a problem with somebody, I don’t come out here and talk about it. Most likely, I hunt them down. For the past few weeks, it feels like I’m the one being hunted. By Kane. Now we are both going down a path that leads to us destroying one another. And that’s fine by me. But before that happens, I have to know why Kane chose me. Now I’m not John Cena – I embrace hate. And in turn, hate embraces me. Call it ‘morbid curiosity’. Or whatever. But Kane, I’m calling you out. And I want you to explain yourself. Because when the time comes that I have to put you down, I wanna know why I had to do it.

...

That was very enlightening. Thank you. Thank you for that. Now shut your mouth, come down to this ring and let’s just see if you can finish what you started!

I now have a Word file on my computer entitled "My name is Randy Orton" - which is far more incriminating than any pair of severed hands found in your back garden - so I hope you read at least a bit of it.

I've not looked, but I'd imagine there was a subtle backlash against this promo all over the internet. "I wonder who let Randy Orton near a microphone," one spectator likely enquired. "Here we go - Blandy Boreton strikes again," piped up another. "Oh God, I didn't mean to hit her that hard! She's not getting up," sobbed a third. This backlash, subtle and - indeed - hypothetical as it was, was unfounded. Don't get me wrong, I'm not putting this promo on the very highest tier - it certainly won't be remembered for years to come. It's no Austin 3:16, nor Rocky, This is Your Life, nor even up there with Punk's shoot. Admittedly, it's actually rather unremarkable, but that doesn't take away from its quality.

As you thoroughly scrub your bath tub, making sure no troublesome strands of hair have trapped themselves in those nooks and crannies, I'll go through why I thought the promo was good, point by point:

1. It was competent and it was fluent. First, the basics. Orton has great diction, is perfectly confident and delivers the whole thing without stumbling. It would go without saying, if only I hadn't just said it.
2. It served its purpose. The segment takes up between eight and nine minutes. We know Orton's motivation, we know Kane's motivation, we re-establish their characters and their rivalry, and we learn they're going to fight at WrestleMania.
3. It was concise. The Rock and John Cena have cut half a dozen twenty minute promos on each other, and I'm still kind of vague on what their arguments are. "Kane, you've been a bit of a dick of late, I'm going to beat you up, but first I'd like to understand your motivations. I now understand your motivations - let's fight." Bam. Done. We don't have to hand Orton a guitar and hear him wail like a wounded animal for half an hour.
4. It was entirely in character. Randy Orton is not flamboyant. Randy Orton doesn't come out wearing a rhinestone jacket, doing jumping jacks to the ring. Randy Orton is a dude that rolls up in trunks, boots, and kneepads every week and beats someone up. He says as much - "usually when I have a problem with somebody, I don’t come out here and talk about it. Most likely, I hunt them down." Badasses don't talk about beating people up. Badasses beat people up.
   
   Take the Triple H/Punk feud as how not to look like a badass. Punk came out, complained about management, and made bad sex jokes about Triple H every week. He came over like a smartass, douchebag student making fun of his stern headmaster. Nothing betrays someone's badass cred more than turning down an opportunity to hit your mortal enemy in the face, or maybe to just stare them down if you're more into that thing, in order to talk about their wife's underwear some more.
5. Kane was rather good too. His penchant for saying as many polysyllabic words as he can in order to compose a faux Shakespearean soliloquy is still a bit rich for my tastes, but he fulfils his role almost as well as Orton does.

I eagerly await all your responses. I'm sure the majority of you will agree with me wholeheartedly, and we'll quickly come to a consensus. Oh, and remember to burn the clothes you were wearing.

 

[George Steele's Barber]

FYI - I have a deep freeze in the basement so as long the cops don't get wise I have time.

This is what I was talking about in my Rock/Cena - Kane/Orton thread:

www.Idon'tknowhowtolinktoathreadfro...apyourselfitthefaceifyouclickedonthis/9548639

Cena needs to take a piece out of Orton's playbook and personality for this feud to reach a level beyond the up and down shrug that it currently is. Orton delivered here and he killed quite a decent amount of time in the process. The fans were eating every word, I couldn't even hear a "What?" from the idiots in attendance.

 

[dakikko049]

Don't really know what to say to most of that because it kind of confuses me...for various different reasons.

Yeah I guess it was a pretty good promo, it made sense, it was in character etc. but like you said it's not going to be remembered for years to come and in fact until I saw your transcript I kinda forgot what he said. It's just a promo that did what it was supposed to do but with the greatest of respect do we really need all this praise because somebody created a segment that wasn't complete nonsensical dung. I mean everything you said was true but I don't really know what to add to it.

Although i will say that this story line is really stupid. Kane is really pissed because he shook Randy Orton's hand once like 7 months ago, meanwhile Mark Henry is fucking about with Yoshi Tatsu having broken Kane's legs and kept him out for months. It's pretty ridiculous how the WWE works this stuff out.

 

[afromania]

Good post and I agree with what you said. There's lots of people on the internet that hate on Orton's promos for some reason. Some think that they are rather boring and all the same but I say anything different wouldn't make sense for Randy Orton's character. He's not a guy who's going to have a 20 minute promo making fun of someone, he's not gonna be cracking jokes, those just don't go in line with the Viper character. Orton's just a badass who kicks ass, and that works for me.

 

[phoenixphreek]

It's just a promo that did what it was supposed to do but with the greatest of respect do we really need all this praise because somebody created a segment that wasn't complete nonsensical dung. I mean everything you said was true but I don't really know what to add to it.

You're right that it was not extremely memorable but the reason it needed to be said is because the internet absolutely trashes Randy for his mic skills. The OP was just showing that they're wrong.

Randy can cut a good promo. The only problem is that he just doesn't do enough of them. I don't know if that's on him or creative, but that is the fact of the matter. He's over, we all know that, but if he cut promos like he did last night on a slightly regular basis people would care more.

 

[vikesfan]

It made more sense than Kane's promo. I mean how many "monsters" are smart enough to know those big words he used in his promo? And really,if that hand shaking incident bothered him that much,why didnt he "become the monster he shouldve been" soon after it instead of waiting 6 months?

And for that matter,why'd he go after Cena 1st instead of Orton?? Just a really dumb set up for the feud. BUT I will say,that match they mentioned between them was awesome stuff for those who havent seen it.They each kicked out out each others finishers and lots of stiff shots throughout.

If they do this match(w/more time) at Mania,it'll be fine.

 

[James]

I love all of your posts because I anticipate the humour that will be within them.

Yes at first I wanted to leave the room because I had to take a steaming shit at the time, but I decided to give Randy a chance and I am glad that I did.


I enjoyed the whole segment and to be honest this has become my main interest at WM for some odd reason. Why? Because it's your general grunge match that really has nothing involved in it that is material(championships). It is WWE finally going back to the past and digging up old dirt. If they play their cards right maybe they can carry out the feud for a while because I am interested. Kane seems to be someone that can actually keep up with Randy's slow predator style. The only way they fuck this up is if they have Orton win at mania in my opinion. Let it carry on!

 

[nightmare]

Orton has always been considered "bland" on the mic by most fans. This is a very sad judgement. Sam hit the points on the head, much like the body he described likely was....


Orton dosent need the over the top antics of Rock, or the catchphrase heavy promos Hulkamania has given us over the years. Orton is to the point, clearly spoken and downright evil. Heel or face, the man invokes a tone that cuts you right to the core and relays a message that makes all aware of his intent to hurt you. What more do you need? In a land where many mix words and exchange sarcastic one-liners, Orton chooses to take action. Hell, it seems to be working because the man has made a career out of beating up the best in the business- without using the name of the city he is in for a cheap pop.


Go back and watch some of his promos. They are quite good if you pay attention.


That is- unless you prefer a white guy in jean shorts who spits lyrics so slow that he drips, rather than flows.....

 

[WWEvsJosh]

I agree that Orton is good on the mic because he does what he needs to do on there. What is the real difference between what he does and what Taker does now?(Other then the taking your soul talk) Both guys are straight to the point people most of the time and most of the talking comes from their body language. What I mean by that is when Orton wants to hurt you he'll tell you that in the ring when he looks like he lost his mind. Also what do people want from him? Orton's thing is less talk more bite.

 

[PlayTheGame]

I'm sure some people will try to spin Orton's diction, as you put it, to be lifeless and evidence that he's bland and has no personality, but I agree with you. I think Orton's great all-around, even in promos. Orton played the arrogant, loud-mouth jerk during Evolution. Now, his current character (which is way over) is a ruthless, quiet, and collected viper that can snap at any moment, and in order to play that character, he has to speak in a sedated voice that only rises every once and a while. But people quickly write that off as him being one-dimensional and lifeless, not remembering that he's played a different character in the past. People don't realize he's just playing character, and he's doing it well. Is he supposed to be loud and emphatic on the mic as his current character? Would that make sense and be logical? No and no. Instead, he does a good job, but some people don't want to acknowledge that. Ragging on Orton for being "lifeless", a common argument by so many, would be like saying a silent Kane was legitimately lifeless when he first came to the WWE just because he didn't talk. No, that's just him playing his character. Same with Orton. Orton's always been able to deliver good promos, and although I didn't see his promo last night, it sounds like it got the job done. He's good all-around, and crowds obviously agree and respect him, cuz they always give him a big pop. I really think most, if not all, of his criticism is unjustified.

 

[LeviCook]

It was good. Randy Orton is always good. He's one of the few guys who has character. The slow pace talking and cutting straight to the point is what makes people love Randy Orton. Everybody loves the bad ass. He has a rebel effect similar to Austin. Honestly, he deserves to be on Raw right now. I think he was more deserving of a push than CM Punk. Did you see CM Punk after Jericho made fun of his dad? He looked more confused than anything. Like a dyslexic kid trying to do Math. CM Punk just talks about the "real" in wrestling to get cheap pops. Like it hasn't been done before. After a while it gets boring. There is a reason why wrestling is scripted. When you're just blurting out random insults that have nothing to do with the storyline it gets confusing. My point is Randy Orton is a character. He's a good worker. He's marketable. He fits the rebel role better than CM Punk. CM Punk was great as the "Straight Edge Savior". But since then hasn't caught my attention. This might seem kind of random like a Punk rant but it isn't. This is just me stressing how good Orton is presented with an example. All the best wrestlers have been characters.

 

[GeneralKarim]

I agree with OP on what he said basically, liked the humour also.Best part of the promo for me was when he said "In turn hate embraces me" and just had that stone intense look in his face.IT was perfectly delivered.I dont want 30 minute ramblings from Randy Orton, we have enough of that already.

 

[Nick Black]

All of those big words you used...confuses me...

Actually, it was odd seeing Kane and Orton pump out these metaphors and as GWS mentioned "Shakespearean Soliloquies" just to add to the depth of the conversation. This should help show that Orton really isn't awful on the mic, but just lacks the movement or textual development from Creative that he needs to push him over the edge. Yeah, he will never be a Jericho or a Punk, but if Orton keeps spitting out solid, well delivered promo's like this, it leaves so much room for his character to develop and evolve to its full potential.

 

[SD619]

Orton's promo proved that sometimes the simplest way is the best way. He called out Kane and said that he will hurt him. Simple and effective. Much better than Orton singing songs about Kane.

Orton's promos have always been simple and to the point. Just because he doesn't rap or rely on catchphrases or 'shoot', doesn't mean that his promos are not good. Most importantly, cutting simple promos goes with his whole 'serious guy' persona. Him verbally running down his opponent would just come out as awkward and uncharacteristic.

 

[Hulk Hogan's Brother]

Very few people understand what the purpose of a promo in pro wrestling is. As the years have gone by and pro wrestling has evolved, most people have started associating a good promo as one that would make them laugh or shock them at that very moment. Anything else is deemed mediocre. It's cool if you can do that but that is not the real purpose of the promo. The promo is a part of the big picture that we know as the storyline. The purpose of the promo is to generate interest in the feud and that is what Orton did here.

Simply put, Orton is a selfish sociopath. Why should he make you laugh or care about entertaining you? He wanted to know the reason why Kane was attacking him and so he called him out. He was clear in stating just why he wanted to know the reason and why he had been confused as to what the reason was. At the end of it, we got the reason why Kane has been attacking Orton all this while, which is the most important component of the story. Mission accomplished and a job well done by Orton.

 

[d3thRoW]

That promo was decent...it's exactly what you would expect from him, nothing fancy and to the point, but this one was better than his average. I think my boredom factor for Orton is more in ring now, as he has certainly embraced the John Cena style of match, doing his handful of signature moves and not much else. What kills me is that Kane's "reasoning" was completely ridiculous...but that's neither here nor there. Not sure any amount of promos from these two will spark interest in this match for me really.

 

[AwesomeRko]

I agree, I thought it was very good and demonstrated that orton's mic-work is pretty underrated. Like many have pointed out it is in-character and therefore the slow, succint and articulate delivery he presents is a perfect testeament to the methodical sociopath he portrays.

He is able to hold the crowds attention without utiliising catchphrases and jokes which is a pretty rare talent indeed. His facial expressions also lend credence to what he is saying and are perhaps proof that the acting classes Orton was enrolling in to improve his promo-work are paying off. I for one am looking forward to this match at mania, no-frills just two massive badasses going at it hopefully in some form of hardcore environment its certainly in my view an intriguing filler match.

 

[H33LTurn]

Maybe this will finally shut people up about Orton being bland or bad at promos. His character doesnt call for much mic time, but when he does get on the mic hes coherent and impactful. Sure, it's not a promo that everyones going to remember but in the history of the WWE we only have a handful of those. Taker, as great as he is, has never really delivered a significant promo. Just like Orton, his character doesnt call for it but when it comes time to deliver a promo theres no room for error.

 

[JJ15776]

You're right that it was not extremely memorable but the reason it needed to be said is because the internet absolutely trashes Randy for his mic skills. The OP was just showing that they're wrong.

Except that they're not wrong. In fact, they're 100% right. Randy Orton has no mic skills to speak of, and he deserves the trashing he gets for it.

Look, last night was a decent promo. Probably the best of Randy Orton's career, which makes it seem so much better than it really was. But you have to realize that "The best of Randy Orton's career" is a very, very, very low standard. It'd be like saying Michael Cole's best announcing or Hornswaggle's best match. Randy Orton does not do good promos, so the best of his career is not a huge accomplishment for a normal person. For him, I guess it is. So kudos to him for finally doing a promo that didn't put me to sleep - hopefully someday he can manage to cut a promo that people will actually remember without having to read a transcript of it.

It made more sense than Kane's promo. I mean how many "monsters" are smart enough to know those big words he used in his promo? And really,if that hand shaking incident bothered him that much,why didnt he "become the monster he shouldve been" soon after it instead of waiting 6 months?

And for that matter,why'd he go after Cena 1st instead of Orton?? Just a really dumb set up for the feud. BUT I will say,that match they mentioned between them was awesome stuff for those who havent seen it.They each kicked out out each others finishers and lots of stiff shots throughout.

Are you saying large people are incapable of being smart? How does the fact that most monsters don't use big words mean Kane shouldn't? That's one of the most illogical arguments against anything I've ever seen. Kane has always used big words and it's always awesome when he does. And I'm going to go out on a limb and say he didn't do it sooner because he suffered a (kayfabe) broken leg and was off TV almost the entire 6 months.

I guess you weren't watching Raw much the last few months, but the reason he went after Cena was because of Cena's "rise above hate" thing. He was trying to get Cena to embrace hate. Apparently he felt that was more important than going after Orton. Which makes sense...I mean, Cena already has a WrestleMania match against The Rock. So go after him first, and then go after Orton for a match at WrestleMania. I don't see anything "really dumb" about it. At all.

 

[FlexAmerican Dynamite]

I don't recall any real bad promos from Orton but I don't remember any particularly good one's either. I felt the promo on smackdown what was pretty straight forward and it fit Orton's character. Though I feel these kind's of promos are the only one's that Randy can really pull off, I can never see him doing anything goofy. I guess this is just where he shines in serious straight forward promos.

 

[DirtyD79]

Too many people these days think a promo has to be slingin' catchphrases and spewin' bon mots about lady parts. The reality is not all wrestlers are supposed to be funny. Randy Orton is not the jokester, he is either a badass as a face or a vicious sociopath as a heel. His promos reflect it.

A good promo is not necessarily 20 minute concerts speakin' on the pompetus of manginas. It's about laying out the stakes of the feud and moving the story forward. It's where the heel says why they did what they did and the face says what they plan to do about it. Kane decided Pearl Harboring Randy Orton is the way to salve his ego. Randy says "I'm not gonna turn the other cheek. Nope, Kane wants to throw hands well I'm gonna throw hands too." And then as the old saying goes, Shit got real.

 

[boywithbluehanger]

I think Randy Orton's promo ability will kind of earn himself the response later in his career that Jake The Snake had. When Jake the Snake was around, people didn't respect his promo ability for the dark, grueling, methodical, explanations that he gave. But after he was gone and missed, people appreciated his style more for what it was and some even consider him among the best in delivery in hindsight.

 

[ropeninja89]

i wish the wwe would refer to their older stuff when kane first debuted and do a lengthy promo liked what they did whith that. i really liked the build for that promo it got the crowd interested and it was exciting