A face you would cheer(what would it take?)

[willywonka666]

So I'm reading posts and it has been clear for years now, that unless you're a little kid, hardly anyone seems to appreciate a real "good guy" anymore, which I find disheartening really. I can only guess that if Hulk Hogan was starting his run today, that people would shit all over him, because he was 100% face.

That's because times have changed I guess, which again is disheartening, but take the company's top full time face now, John Cena,-what would it take for you to appreciate him as a face?

Not an anti hero like Austin or Punk, but a full fledged face?

I suppose the lame jokes would have to go(and deservedly so) but what else would it take for a hero to get cheered my the masses of smarks out there?

[Urethra Franklin]

El Generico. He's a crowd-pleasing babyface without an ounce of snark.

[Bang Bang Bart]

I guess, we'd need a "vulnerable" hero, who basically doesn't always overcome the odds, but keeps on fighting.

[keezy]

I'm liking Del Rio right now so they're doing that right.

[Push R Truth]

Face Tensai in women's underwear

[EoE: Well There's Your Problem]

I feel like the falling support of faces is down to three factors:

1. People love supporting the underdog, but because the faces not only win most of the time, but are expected to win most of the time, that support goes to the heel.
2. The heels aren't evil bastards anymore who deserve our hatred, they're just... kinda douchey. No more douchey than the faces are, more often than not.
3. The rise of heels using "the truth" as a way of getting heat. I mean, a lot of people find it hard to boo Punk because they actually agree with what he's saying. It doesn't help that the face then comes down and runs down the heel for being wrong and, with WWE seemingly sanctioning that, they are, by extension, telling the fan that they are wrong for thinking the way they do.

[The Ichi]

Aside from his inability to peel off duct tape, Del Rio is a face done right.

[Branimal]

Jericho is an easy guy to cheer right now. He's just a likable character.

[TK The Friendly Robot]

A good face needs to seem real, they need to be beatable and have struggle and we as fans tend to enjoy supporting someone who, while getting knocked down at times, keeps getting back up and keeps on going. John Cena doesn't seem real in any way, he doesn't go away, he doesn't go down often and when he does it's for a cup of coffee and he's back and exactly the same as he was before. There's no real development or reason to care because we know that in the rare occurrence something does happen to him that he's going to be back next week with his same old jokes and shit eating grin, so why does it matter?

[Sam Punk]

I like Cena.

[The Doctor]

I always find it easy to cheer for faces. To me that is among the biggest attractions to wrestling. That simple good guy vs bad guy dynamic. That's what drew me in as a kid and that's what still excites me as an adult.

Even when I like a heel(which is often) I find it hard to cheer for them. It kind of ruins it for me. Rooting for heels is just going to make you angry or frustrated. Because heels win dirty, cheat and lose big matches a lot. That's what they're there for. It happens a lot on forums and twitter, people getting all indignant because their favourite heel lost a match. Or making up some tenuous excuse as to why John Cena or Sheamus is 'more of a heel' anyway.

[Deleted]

Cena's in no way a real good guy. That's the problem with him. He slut shames women, he makes homophobic jokes, he beats up dude's who have already quit matches and basically goes around acting like a complete ass. If he were a real good guy I'd totally cheer him. I love the hard fought simple faces.

[Optimus Prime]

Personally, they just have to come across as genuine (even if they aren't so in real life). Hogan and Cena always seemed 'fake' to me or just trying too hard to be liked. Someone like Ricky Steamboat didn't. Neither did Bret Hart (though in real life he apparently did some questionable stuff).

I am enjoying Del Rio as a face, though.

[Johnny B. Decent]

Jan 29, 2013 10:25:05 GMT -5 @rrnew said:

Cena's in no way a real good guy. That's the problem with him. He slut shames women, he makes homophobic jokes, he beats up dude's who have already quit matches and basically goes around acting like a complete ass. If he were a real good guy I'd totally cheer him. I love the hard fought simple faces.

He also made out with his best friend's then-girlfriend while he was literally right there in a Wheelchair.

Cena is an asshole.

[carp (SPC, Itoh Respect Army)]

This whole face/heel thing doesn't make much sense, anyway. There should just be characters, and then within specific storylines a good guy and a bad guy.

[kidglov3s]

Great lovable babyfaces of recent WWE past:




Del Rio has been an endearing face.

[The Doctor]

Eve made out with John Cena really. He just kind of got kissed.

And then she admitted it and that she exploited Ryder and planned on doing the same to Cena... but everyone just blamed Cena anyway.

[The Doctor]

Jan 29, 2013 10:54:02 GMT -5 carp (SPC, Itoh Respect Army) said:

This whole face/heel thing doesn't make much sense, anyway. There should just be characters, and then within specific storylines a good guy and a bad guy.

It has made sense in pro wrestling for decades. That has pretty much been the foundation of the business for as long as it's been around.
Just like it is in superhero comics or cowboy films. The good guy/bad guy thing is a fundamental ingredient.

[carp (SPC, Itoh Respect Army)]

Jan 29, 2013 10:58:28 GMT -5 The Doctor said:

Jan 29, 2013 10:54:02 GMT -5 carp (SPC, Itoh Respect Army) said:

This whole face/heel thing doesn't make much sense, anyway. There should just be characters, and then within specific storylines a good guy and a bad guy.

It has made sense in pro wrestling for decades. That has pretty much been the foundation of the business for as long as it's been around.
Just like it is in superhero comics or cowboy films. The good guy/bad guy thing is a fundamental ingredient.

The shorter the feuds, the less it works. Right now, feuds are super-accelerated, and most people aren't even IN feuds, they just kind of float around being good or bad. It doesn't work. In the absence of a weekly TV show, maybe face/heel stuff works. But right now, trying to sell the idea that "this guy is just innately good, trust us!" isn't going to be believed.

[Baldobomb-22-OH-MAN!!!]

look at Miz last night. the opposite of that.