RIPbossman
Occasional Pre-Show
“Time to play the game. Time to play the GAME!..ha ha ha…” The green lighting, spitting out the mist of water, the sledgehammers… Triple H has been a staple of WWE television going back to the New Geneneration. The snobby blue blood, the co-founder of DX, the Cerebral Assasin, Evolution, The Authority, you couldn’t miss him over the last nearly two decades. Kayfabe wise he’s one of the most successful wrestlers ever to lace up a pair of boots. But in reality, when his in ring career is all said and done, what will be the legacy of the King of Kings?
One of the topics of discussion for Triple H on the internet include his “burials” of wrestlers and his 2003 reign of terror. We’ve all heard it to no end how he’s held down his peers. Quite frankly I agree with many who say he stood in the way of Booker, Steiner, Orton at WrestleMania 25 and especially Punk at Night of Champions 2011. It’s been said Triple H needed to beat CM Punk to look strong going into his match with Undertaker at WM 28. I really disagree that this is an excuse, because Punk caught lightening in a bottle with his Summer of Punk storyline. No great wrestler will truly be held down by one loss. But to recreate the white hot momentum Punk had in 2011 is too much to ask of any wrestler. Triple H, a 13 time world champion who beat damn near every big name you can think of, didn’t need that victory. Booker winning at WM 19 would have been an epic feel good moment, but instead everyone’s spirits were crushed, and Booker’s momentum came to a screeching halt.
However, he’s used his elite level of credibility to give back to the product. Benoit, Batista, Cena and Lesnar all got huge rubs from Triple H at big stages. Did you know Trips holds the record for most submission losses at WrestleMania? Tapping to Benoit, Cena and Undertaker. He added some luster to Taker’s legendary streak when he put him over at WM three times in three great matches. Batista was legitimized as a main eventer and World Champion by Triple H, and Cena’s victory at WM 22 cemented him as the face of the company.
He’s been very good with developing stories in his interviews. His facial expressions and change in the tone of his voice add to progressing whatever storyline he’s in. The anger in his voice is top notch whenever his character had his ego bruised and badly wants revenge, like after losing to Chris Benoit and The Shield. The smug grins make you think he’s overconfident when the storyline calls for it, like leading up to WrestleMania 22 against John Cena. He focuses on drawing out his current plot lines in promos. And while he does a good job in that sense, so many times it feels like he’s just going through the motions, just following the script. He just has a hard time staying fresh and keeping people’s interest from start to finish, unlike his peers Austin, Rock, Jericho, Angle etc. While Triple H is technically skilled at advancing stories on the microphone, it doesn’t make a difference if fans are mentally tuning him out or changing the channel.
As for his in ring work, that’s another topic discussed to death by IWC members. We all know the matches he bombed in. Nash, Steiner, Booker T, Orton on occasions, Batista… Since returning from his first quad tear, he’s been up and down in that regards. Maybe he just lost some of his work ethic because he knew he was established as the number one wrestler on his brand? Maybe aging and the extra muscle slowed him down.
As for his astonishing number of world title reigns, 13, it’s not as inflated as you’d think due to politics. He earned five world titles before the roster split started. In that era we saw Randy Orton, Edge, and John Cena reach double digit title reigns. All were won after the roster split, and Edge won all of his in a five year span. Triple H’s 13 isn’t too far off from what he would’ve gotten without any type of politics. And again, I’m not naïve enough to believe politics haven’t been a factor in his career. I just think maybe the number would be cut down to nine or ten, and the length of the reigns, especially his first run with just the big gold belt, would’ve been shorter. Vince wouldn’t be able to justify giving Triple H that kind of focus and tv time when his Raw segments grew so wearisome.
Degeneration X’s influence in wrestling history is greatly overstated, in my opinion. 1996 saw flashes of TV-14 type material, but not enough to get the WWF that rating. Sunny, Goldust, some vulgar language here and there… these flickers of mature programming are what the WWF went back to, turned up the volume on and used over and over again. Degeneration X ran with that mature theme more than anyone else, and in 1998 were a huge supporting force in making the WWF gain so much momentum. Wrestling fan or not, you heard the phrase “suck it” in 1998 and recognized their signature gesture. But as for being influential, I don’t buy it. They were just the first group of wrestlers to use it as a heavy theme on a weekly basis.
“Oh my God, oh my God, no! What the hell?..Oh my God, no. Oh my God no. Hunter what are you doing? (bell rings) This match up is underway, Bryan’s out cold. Randy Orton, Randy Orton (bell rings) has cashed in Money In The Bank. Orton is a seven time (WWE) Champion.” – Michael Cole on Randy Orton cashing in at Summer Slam 2013.
The two year anniversary the Authority coming to existence is right fast approaching, when Triple H and Randy Orton crushed Daniel Bryan’s first WWE title reign faster than his celebratory confetti rained from the rafters. This faction, lead primarily by Triple H, has dominated WWE’s airwaves since Summer Slam 2013. Through the good, bad and the ugly, the sledgehammer shots, Occupy Raw movements, firings, Kane’s mistreatment, and promos that drag on and on, they’ve been WWE programming’s key fixture since that August night two years ago. Even more so than John Cena, who’s steadily faded from being the face of the company to the degree he once was. I agree with the jaded fans who feel the Authority hasn’t been “BEST for business”. I emphasize “best”, because while they haven’t been best for business, they’ve still been pretty damn good.
Almost every wrestler who’s feuded with the Authority was over in a major way. Daniel Bryan had a ton of momentum in the summer of 2013, but after Triple H started squashing his championship dreams over and over again, his “yes” chants became deafening, to the point they became the anti-Authority battle cry. The storyline played out impeccably, regardless of the original plan. The Occupy Raw movement couldn’t have more perfectly symbolized how fans outright forced management WWE to change their WM plans. Big Show’s abuse as the Authority’s giant hit man, for lack of a better term, is one of the highlights of his career and his knockout punch to Triple H was one of the most satisfying comeuppances of a heel. Cody Rhodes, Dolph Ziggler and Ryback all reached a higher level after battling the Authority. Not the main event level, but a higher level none the less. Dean Ambrose stayed as over as anyone could while getting hardly any big wins over them.
However, the Authority do have their problem, besides the obvious one that their segments are boring and too long. Wrestlers who join them lose their identity to a certain level. The Shield had a collective identity as a pack of wolves, but really became anonymous henchmen once they sided with them. What little individual identity each had was lost during that time. Orton, the number 2 wrestler behind Cena for a while, became a faceless puppet for the Authority. Ironically called the “face” of the WWE, he didn’t stand out as a corporate champion the way Rock did in 1998-99. Rock stood out on his own with a distinct character. Even when Hollywood Hogan lead the N.W.O., most members had individuality. Orton’s feuds were really Triple H’s feuds, and Orton was just his muscle, and most of his character traits shown then were frustration with losing matches and with Triple H’s leadership. Same for Big Show when he joined the Authority, and left once he started his own program with Ryback and Miz. Kane in his current storyline and Seth Rollins may be exceptions, but without Seth ever being on his own we don’t know what he’s capable of, character wise. I think there’s more Seth can do without being the Authority’s top prize fighter.
Would he have the management position he does now without Stephanie? No. At least not that exact position. Triple H seems to love wrestling, and while he may be selfish with his own booking, it appears he has a great mind for it. NXT is doing well with him at the helm. He’s said he’s been sitting in on creative meetings since the late nineties, and obviously has first hand experience drawing money and performing before huge crowds. I have no problem with his current management position, earned or not, because WWE is a family business, like many businesses in America. If Steph married someone else with a background in wrestling, business, entertainment and/or marketing, they’d have a top position in WWE as well. That’s how family businesses work. Triple H admitted himself he might not have his current backstage status without being an in law, but would still have a similar position, and in my opinion, it could be with any major wrestling organization.
His legacy will be similar to that of Barry Bonds, Alex Rodriguez, Roger Clemens, etc. The famous players of Major League Baseball who used steroids to reach an elite level will always have their careers tainted. How many homeruns would Barry Bonds and A-Rod have had they not used steroids? How many Cy Young awards for Clemens? We don’t know. In my opinion Triple H fit in with this crew. Each of these guys are probably HOF worthy without steroid use, just as Triple H would be had he never had backstage connections. But for many, there is a cloud of doubt over the aforementioned players’ careers and over Triple H’s. To say Triple H wouldn’t have been a big name player and a multi-time world champion without politics is ludicrous, especially considering his consistency during his initial main event run. Going back to Clemens, it’s believed he only earned 3 Cy Young awards legitimately, which alone is enough to make him a HOFer. Triple H probably could have achieved enough on his own merit, and possibly has, without politics (I’m not behind the scenes) to be one of wrestling’s top names.
Regardless of who Triple H married, he’d be a hall of famer, and a headlining one at that. While he possesses skill, he hasn’t always been consistent with his matches and promos. He’s held others back at their most inopportune times, but relatively few fans want to give him credit for using his elite credibility to give others huge rubs. Degeneration X’s influence may be exaggerated by WWE, but The Authority has been more beneficial to the product than most realize. Ultimately though, through the good, bad and the ugly, Triple H has proven he deserves most of the kayfabe accolades he’s been given, even if not all of them. He may not be at the level of a King of Kings, but a King none the less.
One of the topics of discussion for Triple H on the internet include his “burials” of wrestlers and his 2003 reign of terror. We’ve all heard it to no end how he’s held down his peers. Quite frankly I agree with many who say he stood in the way of Booker, Steiner, Orton at WrestleMania 25 and especially Punk at Night of Champions 2011. It’s been said Triple H needed to beat CM Punk to look strong going into his match with Undertaker at WM 28. I really disagree that this is an excuse, because Punk caught lightening in a bottle with his Summer of Punk storyline. No great wrestler will truly be held down by one loss. But to recreate the white hot momentum Punk had in 2011 is too much to ask of any wrestler. Triple H, a 13 time world champion who beat damn near every big name you can think of, didn’t need that victory. Booker winning at WM 19 would have been an epic feel good moment, but instead everyone’s spirits were crushed, and Booker’s momentum came to a screeching halt.
However, he’s used his elite level of credibility to give back to the product. Benoit, Batista, Cena and Lesnar all got huge rubs from Triple H at big stages. Did you know Trips holds the record for most submission losses at WrestleMania? Tapping to Benoit, Cena and Undertaker. He added some luster to Taker’s legendary streak when he put him over at WM three times in three great matches. Batista was legitimized as a main eventer and World Champion by Triple H, and Cena’s victory at WM 22 cemented him as the face of the company.
He’s been very good with developing stories in his interviews. His facial expressions and change in the tone of his voice add to progressing whatever storyline he’s in. The anger in his voice is top notch whenever his character had his ego bruised and badly wants revenge, like after losing to Chris Benoit and The Shield. The smug grins make you think he’s overconfident when the storyline calls for it, like leading up to WrestleMania 22 against John Cena. He focuses on drawing out his current plot lines in promos. And while he does a good job in that sense, so many times it feels like he’s just going through the motions, just following the script. He just has a hard time staying fresh and keeping people’s interest from start to finish, unlike his peers Austin, Rock, Jericho, Angle etc. While Triple H is technically skilled at advancing stories on the microphone, it doesn’t make a difference if fans are mentally tuning him out or changing the channel.
As for his in ring work, that’s another topic discussed to death by IWC members. We all know the matches he bombed in. Nash, Steiner, Booker T, Orton on occasions, Batista… Since returning from his first quad tear, he’s been up and down in that regards. Maybe he just lost some of his work ethic because he knew he was established as the number one wrestler on his brand? Maybe aging and the extra muscle slowed him down.
As for his astonishing number of world title reigns, 13, it’s not as inflated as you’d think due to politics. He earned five world titles before the roster split started. In that era we saw Randy Orton, Edge, and John Cena reach double digit title reigns. All were won after the roster split, and Edge won all of his in a five year span. Triple H’s 13 isn’t too far off from what he would’ve gotten without any type of politics. And again, I’m not naïve enough to believe politics haven’t been a factor in his career. I just think maybe the number would be cut down to nine or ten, and the length of the reigns, especially his first run with just the big gold belt, would’ve been shorter. Vince wouldn’t be able to justify giving Triple H that kind of focus and tv time when his Raw segments grew so wearisome.
Degeneration X’s influence in wrestling history is greatly overstated, in my opinion. 1996 saw flashes of TV-14 type material, but not enough to get the WWF that rating. Sunny, Goldust, some vulgar language here and there… these flickers of mature programming are what the WWF went back to, turned up the volume on and used over and over again. Degeneration X ran with that mature theme more than anyone else, and in 1998 were a huge supporting force in making the WWF gain so much momentum. Wrestling fan or not, you heard the phrase “suck it” in 1998 and recognized their signature gesture. But as for being influential, I don’t buy it. They were just the first group of wrestlers to use it as a heavy theme on a weekly basis.
“Oh my God, oh my God, no! What the hell?..Oh my God, no. Oh my God no. Hunter what are you doing? (bell rings) This match up is underway, Bryan’s out cold. Randy Orton, Randy Orton (bell rings) has cashed in Money In The Bank. Orton is a seven time (WWE) Champion.” – Michael Cole on Randy Orton cashing in at Summer Slam 2013.
The two year anniversary the Authority coming to existence is right fast approaching, when Triple H and Randy Orton crushed Daniel Bryan’s first WWE title reign faster than his celebratory confetti rained from the rafters. This faction, lead primarily by Triple H, has dominated WWE’s airwaves since Summer Slam 2013. Through the good, bad and the ugly, the sledgehammer shots, Occupy Raw movements, firings, Kane’s mistreatment, and promos that drag on and on, they’ve been WWE programming’s key fixture since that August night two years ago. Even more so than John Cena, who’s steadily faded from being the face of the company to the degree he once was. I agree with the jaded fans who feel the Authority hasn’t been “BEST for business”. I emphasize “best”, because while they haven’t been best for business, they’ve still been pretty damn good.
Almost every wrestler who’s feuded with the Authority was over in a major way. Daniel Bryan had a ton of momentum in the summer of 2013, but after Triple H started squashing his championship dreams over and over again, his “yes” chants became deafening, to the point they became the anti-Authority battle cry. The storyline played out impeccably, regardless of the original plan. The Occupy Raw movement couldn’t have more perfectly symbolized how fans outright forced management WWE to change their WM plans. Big Show’s abuse as the Authority’s giant hit man, for lack of a better term, is one of the highlights of his career and his knockout punch to Triple H was one of the most satisfying comeuppances of a heel. Cody Rhodes, Dolph Ziggler and Ryback all reached a higher level after battling the Authority. Not the main event level, but a higher level none the less. Dean Ambrose stayed as over as anyone could while getting hardly any big wins over them.
However, the Authority do have their problem, besides the obvious one that their segments are boring and too long. Wrestlers who join them lose their identity to a certain level. The Shield had a collective identity as a pack of wolves, but really became anonymous henchmen once they sided with them. What little individual identity each had was lost during that time. Orton, the number 2 wrestler behind Cena for a while, became a faceless puppet for the Authority. Ironically called the “face” of the WWE, he didn’t stand out as a corporate champion the way Rock did in 1998-99. Rock stood out on his own with a distinct character. Even when Hollywood Hogan lead the N.W.O., most members had individuality. Orton’s feuds were really Triple H’s feuds, and Orton was just his muscle, and most of his character traits shown then were frustration with losing matches and with Triple H’s leadership. Same for Big Show when he joined the Authority, and left once he started his own program with Ryback and Miz. Kane in his current storyline and Seth Rollins may be exceptions, but without Seth ever being on his own we don’t know what he’s capable of, character wise. I think there’s more Seth can do without being the Authority’s top prize fighter.
Would he have the management position he does now without Stephanie? No. At least not that exact position. Triple H seems to love wrestling, and while he may be selfish with his own booking, it appears he has a great mind for it. NXT is doing well with him at the helm. He’s said he’s been sitting in on creative meetings since the late nineties, and obviously has first hand experience drawing money and performing before huge crowds. I have no problem with his current management position, earned or not, because WWE is a family business, like many businesses in America. If Steph married someone else with a background in wrestling, business, entertainment and/or marketing, they’d have a top position in WWE as well. That’s how family businesses work. Triple H admitted himself he might not have his current backstage status without being an in law, but would still have a similar position, and in my opinion, it could be with any major wrestling organization.
His legacy will be similar to that of Barry Bonds, Alex Rodriguez, Roger Clemens, etc. The famous players of Major League Baseball who used steroids to reach an elite level will always have their careers tainted. How many homeruns would Barry Bonds and A-Rod have had they not used steroids? How many Cy Young awards for Clemens? We don’t know. In my opinion Triple H fit in with this crew. Each of these guys are probably HOF worthy without steroid use, just as Triple H would be had he never had backstage connections. But for many, there is a cloud of doubt over the aforementioned players’ careers and over Triple H’s. To say Triple H wouldn’t have been a big name player and a multi-time world champion without politics is ludicrous, especially considering his consistency during his initial main event run. Going back to Clemens, it’s believed he only earned 3 Cy Young awards legitimately, which alone is enough to make him a HOFer. Triple H probably could have achieved enough on his own merit, and possibly has, without politics (I’m not behind the scenes) to be one of wrestling’s top names.
Regardless of who Triple H married, he’d be a hall of famer, and a headlining one at that. While he possesses skill, he hasn’t always been consistent with his matches and promos. He’s held others back at their most inopportune times, but relatively few fans want to give him credit for using his elite credibility to give others huge rubs. Degeneration X’s influence may be exaggerated by WWE, but The Authority has been more beneficial to the product than most realize. Ultimately though, through the good, bad and the ugly, Triple H has proven he deserves most of the kayfabe accolades he’s been given, even if not all of them. He may not be at the level of a King of Kings, but a King none the less.
