Why So Much Hate On Slater?

[Trill Co$by]

This guy must've pissed in a lot of peoples' cereal or something, because when it comes down to his talent and in-ring ability, I see nothing there that's worth hating. In fact, to be honest, I see shades of Owen Hart whenever I see him on Smackdown. He's a young talent (well, not really "young") that you know spends time trying to harness his talent, and he gives it his best when he's in the ring.

When he was in Nexus, and paired with Gabriel, he shined better than Gabriel from the sheer in-ring ability alone and to this day he's still got that same talent. Maybe I'm just a little out of it because I like good talent, but if there's anyone who can give me a legitimate reason why he's got so much hate then maybe I can start buying into the hate.

I mean, afterall, isn't a talented performer all that the IWC cares about nowadays anyway?

 

[Matth3w]

I was actually going to create a Slater thread, but I'll ramble here

I think it's his gimmick: the one man southern rock band. It's like - what is that? How can a gimmick like that get over when the dude isn't even what he says he is. Sure, he's southern and he's one man, but what about the rock band part? He needs to change his attire to more Axl Rose-esque, or show some charisma like a rock band front man does. DO SOMETHING Slater instead of BEING something.
Curt Hawkins is another one: The Party Starter? What is that? How do you start parties? Show us you're a party starter by doing crazy moves or looking crazy/wild or something! Coming out with Tyler Reks and a Cane is not my idea of kicking off a party.

Back on topic, other than that, Slater has OK skills to me. Nothing impressive, but gets the job done. Nothing boring either. Just needs a gimmick change I think....

 

[#hamler]

When I see Ezekiel Jackson, Big Show, Sheamus or any other powerhouse prepare for a squash match, I always pray Heath Slater is standing in the other corner - and that's not in a bad way. Heath Slater has a unique skill very few on the WWE roster have. He sells better than 9/10 of the current active roster. I'm a sucker for an oversold move, and Heath Slater sells a beat down to the max. Heath Slater is perfect at his job; making others look good. When Sheamus hits Slater with a Brogue kick, it really looks like Slater gets knocked the fuck out. Slater is without a doubt a phenomenal seller and that's a rarity in the WWE nowadays. Selling takes talent and doesn't come naturally. While I couldn't give two shits less about Slater's gimmick and whatnot, his selling is steller and that's enough of a reason for me to like him.

 

[Unsold Bacon]

For the past few months now I have actually kinda started to like him. I'm not sure what it ever was but there something about him dating all the way back to the 1st episode of NXT Season 1 that made me want to punch him in the face. He just irked me. I really don't know what is. His stupid long ginger hair doesn't help though.

 

[Dagger Dias]

I think the main reason a lot of people on here dislike Slater is due to a combination of the cheesiness of his nickname of The One Man Rock Band and the weird way he plays with his hair. It comes off as a poor excuse for a taunt/pose from a WWE video game. Regardless of his cheesiness, I have been a fan of his ever since NXT Season 1 and have defended him in many threads. He's got the look and his skills are underrated. Heath just needs the right gimmick. An arrogant heel role would probably fit him just right, but they need to give him promo time so that he can improve a little there as well. While he might not be the best to ever set foot in a WWE ring, Slater is far better than a lot of people seem to think.

 

[Isaac Kaye]

http://forums.wrestlezone.com/showthread.php?t=189842&page=2

See above. I think I was one of the few people who actually saw things from a rational point of view. Slater is nothing special but he certainly doesn't deserve all the hate he gets.

Slater is very good enhancement talent and is still the best seller on the roster, perhaps alongside Ziggler and Bourne.

And Hamler! You seem to have changed you tune A LOT since the last Slater thread. I'm not trawling intentionally but why the sudden affection for Slater given the scathing assessment you gave of him back in October??

Hmmm, let's see if I can take my post from when Darren Young was suspended and take out his name an replace it with Heath Slater:

The fuck cares?

Heath Slater isn't John Cena. Heath Slater isn't Randy Orton. Heath Slater isn't even Kelly Kelly. Slater needs to do some hard thinking during his time off. He gets suspended from a company that doesn't care whether he exists or not then I hope he expects to do little to nothing when he comes back. Heath Slater is completely replacable on the WWE roster. He's bland, boring and brings nothing to the table that isn't already there. I guess he was doing fine on Smackdown with a couple of matches here and there but he fucked up his one chance at doing something even remotely relevant in the WWE. He can go fall in a deep hole.

....Hey, it worked. Get my point? It isn't a big deal. Heath Slater is born to make everyone else look good. He's a magnificent seller and one of the best the WWE has. Yet, he's completely replacable. It was always unlikely Slater would have a successful WWE career and I wouldn't be suprised if this was the last we heard of Heath Slater. He didn't interest me in Nexus, The Corre and was one of the few wrestlers on NXT Season One who I didn't care about. Heath Slater can join his buddy Darren Young in the imaginary hole I've created for wrestlers who do nothing relevant then get suspended for making a fucking stupid decision.

When I see Ezekiel Jackson, Big Show, Sheamus or any other powerhouse prepare for a squash match, I always pray Heath Slater is standing in the other corner - and that's not in a bad way. Heath Slater has a unique skill very few on the WWE roster have. He sells better than 9/10 of the current active roster. I'm a sucker for an oversold move, and Heath Slater sells a beat down to the max. Heath Slater is perfect at his job; making others look good. When Sheamus hits Slater with a Brogue kick, it really looks like Slater gets knocked the fuck out. Slater is without a doubt a phenomenal seller and that's a rarity in the WWE nowadays. Selling takes talent and doesn't come naturally. While I couldn't give two shits less about Slater's gimmick and whatnot, his selling is steller and that's enough of a reason for me to like him.

 

[#hamler]

And Hamler! You seem to have changed you tune A LOT since the last Slater thread. I'm not trawling intentionally but why the sudden affection for Slater given the scathing assessment you gave of him back in October??

Tell me what exactly changed? Nothing. The major point was clearly pointed out in both posts:

Selling takes talent and doesn't come naturally. While I couldn't give two shits less about Slater's gimmick and whatnot, his selling is steller and that's enough of a reason for me to like him.

Here, I say I couldn't give two shits less about Heath Slater. Then go on to say he can be used to make other guys look good; a glorified jobber if you will.

He's a magnificent seller and one of the best the WWE has. Yet, he's completely replacable.

Here, I mention that he's a great seller. While phenomenal sellers are hard to come by, there are still others out there.

Not much of a difference there in any way. I like Heath Slater based on his selling abilities - nothing more. At no point did I mention in either post that I like Heath Slater because he's got a great gimmick or anything like that, and take it back in another post. I said the exact same thing in both posts just different words. I never changed my opinion on Heath Slater whatsoever. He's great a selling and that's enough of a reason for him to remain in the WWE and that's enough reason to care about him.

 

[pharrison0scorpion]

IMO, its just his voice. I hate it. I know there is nothing he can do about that, but I that is the brutal truth. His mic skills arent great, and his voice coupled with that just makes me cringe every time he talks. This may be a little harsh I know, but I think that is the only reason why I dont like him, but I do agree that he is a great seller, and a magnificent jobber.

 

[ThePredator95]

I like him. He fits his gimmick well but what can make him better is improving his mic skills.

 

[Scofield]

I personally think he needs to be repackaged. The whole Wendys jibe that was thrown at him did not do him any justice at all. I say cut the hair, change its colour and give him a new gimmick.

 

[JWGunslinger]

I've been a little harsh on Slater in the past, I won't say that I hate him but my biggest problem with him is that he's mediocre in the ring and shit on the mic, yet he gets a decent amount of exposure while more talented guys like McIntyre and Riley are nowhere to be found. So really I'm mad with the WWE but I stand by the fact that everything about him aside from one thing is mediocre.

When I see Ezekiel Jackson, Big Show, Sheamus or any other powerhouse prepare for a squash match, I always pray Heath Slater is standing in the other corner - and that's not in a bad way. Heath Slater has a unique skill very few on the WWE roster have. He sells better than 9/10 of the current active roster. I'm a sucker for an oversold move, and Heath Slater sells a beat down to the max. Heath Slater is perfect at his job; making others look good. When Sheamus hits Slater with a Brogue kick, it really looks like Slater gets knocked the fuck out. Slater is without a doubt a phenomenal seller and that's a rarity in the WWE nowadays. Selling takes talent and doesn't come naturally. While I couldn't give two shits less about Slater's gimmick and whatnot, his selling is steller and that's enough of a reason for me to like him.

Hamler picked it up and I'm glad, Slater is great at selling which makes him perfect for those matches against the likes of Sheamus and Show.

I see no future for Slater as a successful superstar and I doubt he ever holds anything outside the tag titles, he should continue to job and then get the fuck out when that gets old.

 

[The 1-2-3 Killam]

His look is weird and undesirable. He doesn't strike you as a competitor, a challenger, or any sort of fighter at all. He strikes me as a pasty white loser... Sheamus is super white, but he's got size, charisma, and the whole Irish thing going for him. I've learned by this point not to lean too heavily on look alone, but Slater doesn't have any real traits to back himself up. His promos are cheesy, and not in a way that would make him a hit on YouTube. His ring work is average, and although he can sell fairly well, he's never had enough offense to back it up. He looked pathetic in Nexus, wouldn't have made it out of NXT without Nexus, and was the reason Gabriel could make it over as a tag team star. Probably the reason Gabriel isn't bigger right now...

I'm not a Slater hater. I don't go on the forums and slam him and say he should be fired, and spend all my time and energy against him. This is probably my first post about Slater, outside of my normal "he's only good for a John Cena joke" comment... But I believe everything I said above. His talent is minimal, and I don't think he has a future. That is why there is so much hate against Slater. It is justified...

 

[¡Roján!]

The hate against Slater is just a product of him doing his job well. Basically, his hate is the same hate that Vickie gets. Yes, yes, he may be a ginger douchebag, but that's the role he's playing and boy, does he nail it. Hell, he gets better heat reactions than half the roster. He's not got very likeable looks and he's used that in his favour. He's a heel jobber that makes talent look good. He sells the fuck out of everything and that's not a bad thing. Do I see him as a champion? Hell nope. But, a Chavo Guerrero like position in the company wouldn't be off the cards. With regards to his heat, simply put, Slaters be slatin'.

 

[Captain Morgan Freeman]

To be fair the WWE haven't given us much of a reason to like him. His time on Smackdown has simply consisted of him jobbing out to more over guys on the roster. His look isn't that good either and no one has been able to take him seriously ever since Cena made the Wendy's joke. Even when he does get some mic time he doesn't exactly shine there either. His only good quality is his selling. If you look back at Wrestlemania 27 i don't think ive seen anyone sell Big Shows WMD punch better then he did that night. He's a good jobber no doubt about it but he's exactly where he should be in the WWE in my opinion.

 

[Dr. IaN]

I'd give him a new gimmick. The guy is just jobbing. Ya'll see that Randy Orton vs Heath Slater match on RAW sometime ago? What was the point? At least with Gabriel, they're giving him wins up against other mid carders. But I digress, Heath has good mic skills and isn't bad in the ring. He's grown on me. They just need to do something about his horrid "One Man Southern Rock Band" gimmick.