What makes a wrestler good face?

[thewrestleranurag900]

I mean we all know everyone cant be a good face.And there some faces like john cena who generally gets mixed reaction.No,doubt he has been loved by the kids but at the same time has been hated by many adults.I think a wrestler character should be unique so as to get over with the fans.Look at rany orton ,back in 2004-05 his face turn was disaster because of being plain as a face.Now look at him,with his unique gimmick as a viper in the current era ,he is one of the top face of the current era.Same goes for the rock in his early days,currently mvp ,etc.So what r ur thoughts ,what is most importantly required for a wrestler to get over with the fans as a face.

 

[dwith]

My general thought on what a FACE is:

1)Play's to the crowd or interacts with them(mysterio)

2)Usually doesn't play dirty(cheat) (flair)

3)More of a mild tempered persona

 

[XgringolocoX]

Respect from the fans. While you can be hated and respected or not, you can't be over as a face without the fans respect.
Orton came in as a blue chipper but character wise was VERY bland. From that time he's improved his game drasticly in every category. Orton has gained respect, fans want to see him. therefore they cheer.
There are many reasons but IMO respect is at the top of the list.

 

[bringitback]

What makes a wrestler a good face? quite simply: A good heel...as it is the heels job to get a face over. When was John Cena was at his most popular in the wwe? When he was feuding with JBL...which was down to JBL being so good at getting heat and being a good heel.

What made Edge such a good face for the last three months? Chris Jerico.

What made Stone Cold such a good face in the attitude era? Vince McMahon.

And so on.

 

[TheUnknownOne]

First of all, a face must be over with the crowd, if they aren't, they've got nothing. Second, a good face must also have somewhat of a falshy moveset and entrance theme, lastly, a good face needs to be an appropriate size, faces like evan get squashed an others, such as Kane, just don't seem right as a face. My idea of a perfect face is Jeff Hardy, this doesn't necesarily mean I liked him, it just means that he had all of the three points listed above.

 

[CobraVenom]

What makes a wrestler a good face? quite simply: A good heel.

Correct. Even Hogan was a decent heel before Hulkamania erupted.

What made Edge such a good face for the last three months? Chris Jerico.

I felt Edge was very boring in the face role against Jericho. I was glad to see him turn back on RAW.

What made Stone Cold such a good face in the attitude era? Vince McMahon.

I disagree here too. In my opinion, Austin was a great face (if you can ever call him a face) because he captured the anger my generation had. We basically lived through him. We wanted to beat the hell out of everybody who even looked at us wrong, but we couldn't for fear of being arrested or worse. We wanted to tell our boss or any other authority figures to go fuck themselves. Austin was the voice of my angry generation. That is why we loved him, not because of Vince.

 

[CuddleBuns84]

This is such a tough question. It really matters on some many different levels. Like, is the gimmick just right for the performer. The HBK gimmick was great, and the great thing about his gimmick was it could work both ways. It could be heel or face, it would work.

You look at guys like the Rock and Stone Cold. The gimmicks were good both ways, and they knew both roles very well. Not also that, but the promos they gave were priceless. I sometimes youtube the Rock, just to see the perfection on the mic.

Great fueds that the crowd can follow. Austin vs. McMahon is another good example. I mean, the boss did anything to screw over Austin, and the fans loved it. Cena vs. Edge was great. Edge always finding away to cheat Cena out of a title, the crowd enjoyed that.

So, great mic work, good fueds, and real life or good gimmicks are the secret to success of a big time heel. Oh and one more thing, Don't stand in the spotlight for too long. When it's your time, it's your time to walk away.

 

[pgerasucks]

i think to be a good face that is over with all fans it has to be in you,you cant be the generic boring face,you have to come out be yourself and if the crowd likes you and your not the typical face that just seems generic and fake then you are a good face for some examples of good faces that have it in them i would say kofi,rey mysterio,and thats all i can really think of right now. for an example of a generic typical face i would say cena,edges last face run sucked luckily they changed that fast,orton when he was face,dx ect.


triple h is an exapmle of someone who can be believeble as a heel or face away from dx,and shawn micheals when away from dx also

 

[TwistofRKO]

You just have to be able to draw the fans in, whatever avenue is chosen to do so. The Undertaker has a great gimmick, Stone Cold was just like everyone else, The Rock was all charisma, you (used to) root for Orton to do worse and worse things, you loved to see Jeff Hardy and Mick Foley take bumps.

You don't even have to be a face most of the time to possess top face qualities. Orton and Edge have demonstrated that recently. You have to have something the crowd wants to see, which then gets elevated by not wanting to see the heel take that away.

 

[Mustang Sally]

All the posters in this thread make good points. (OK, so I'm a politician)

It's easy to be a face. Every time someone discusses an individual wrestler, they claim that he (she) makes a better heel. When do you ever read someone on this forum claiming that someone makes a better face?

In the 1950's-60's I've been told that no face ever broke the rules.....while no heel ever wrestled by the rules. It was easy to cheer the faces simply because they were law-abiding lovers of Mom and apple pie. They were often depicted as war veterans, honest laborers and pretty boys.

To me, two guys changed the landscape. Larry Zbyszko, in 1980, turned heel after a career as a mega-face, yet wrestled in exactly the same fashion as before. No one ever talks about this but it must have baffled wrestling fans everywhere: a heel who used scientific tactics. He was the prototype for heels who could be respected even though they were booed. Then, there was Sergeant Slaughter, depicted as a U.S. Marine and war veteran......who wrestled as a heel (at first). This flew in the face of everything we knew wrestling to be. How could a true American be a heel? He was the first I can remember.

It morphed into the development of the anti-hero, a role that no one played better than Steve Austin. He came in as The Ringmaster, a heel who the fans couldn't help cheering for, and he quickly transformed the role into the anti-hero we all knew: a rulebreaker whom we idolized. Amazing.

It's easier to play a heel. Getting a reaction from the crowd is much easier when you're doing things they wouldn't do themselves in real life. Being a face requires simply squaring off against an effective heel.

It's no wonder all the wrestlers want to be portrayed as bad guys. It's easier.....and a hell of a lot more fun.

 

[3,000 Pound Gorrilla]

To be a face requires all of what all the posters have said so far. So I agree with everyone. IMO, a face must be able to connect with the crowd. Cena connects with the kiddies, but not the older demographic... He MUST be decent on the stick. John Morrison will NEVER be a top face in the company cause he just plain sucks on the stick. He must have a decent move-set (as stated above) with a viable, believeable finisher. I mean, when SCSA hit the Stunner... you knew. And, really this conversation could go on for ever. But most important is the fan reaction. If you don't get face pops, you just plain ain't a great face. When HHH was Hunter Hearst Helmsley, the Connecticut blue blood... noone gave half a damn... now he transcendes what a face character is. He can hit someone with a sledgehammer and still pull huge face pops. So, it is the fans... And there you have it.

 

[Stone_Cold_Randy_Orton]

Well the obvious answer is they have to be way over with the crowd. IMO what makes a good face is someone who is over with the IWC. He also has to be guy anyone can like. Someone who has something entertaining, maybe personality or mic skills. Anyone who can be believable. Also someone who looks good. An example of this would be anyone who does not wear shorts or have an orange shirt. Also someone who can carry the company outside of wrestling.

 

[spinningtorturerack]

For me its having that certain something as "hook" which makes the audience listen to you as opposed to someone else, for example:
- The Rock on the mike
- Austin's atittude
- Mankind's likeability and being different
- Chris Jericho and his Jerichoholics/mocking

Of course i think having the right opponents to bounce off makes the biggest difference but the audience need that something that makes them want to like you in the first place.