Best heel turn for a seemingly lifelong face?

[tekkenguy]

What was the best heel turn by a wrestler who seemed like someone who’d stay face forever?

[Main Event Mark]

Hogan's turn has to be it.

"But whose side is he on?!"

["Gizzark" Mike Wronglevenay]

Yes. I think we need to have this be a non Hogan answer because his really is the best by most metrics.

[ChitownKnight]

Bryan’s turn in 2018? It seemed like he would be a lifelong face after 2014, but the turn was a huge shock and the heel run was even better, bringing everything full circle when he called Kofi a B+ player

[fw91]

"YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO BE MY FRIEND!!!!!!"

[Stone Coke Miami Watson 🥃]

Bob Backlund!

[Tiger Millionaire]

Ricky Martel into The Model and Scott Steiner into Big Poppa Pump.

[Ronny Rayguns Is All Elite]

Jan 26, 2020 18:58:50 GMT -5 Stone Coke Miami Watson 🥃 said:

Bob Backlund!

I came in here to post this.

As a little kid I had no idea who Backlund was, other than a goofy looking "old" man who looked out of place wrestling among the New Generation era Superstars

and THEN he turned heel and it was legit disturbing to watch him snap and put the crossface chicken wing on people

[Laces]

Bayley?

[Cranjis McBasketball]

Well Hogan is #1 we all know that.

Vince McMahon is a clear #2. (Hehe)

[dangerousdanpotato]

Andre in '87 must have been pretty shocking.

[MolotovMocktail]

Jake the Snake in 91. He was arguably the #3 face behind Hogan and Warrior at the time.

[karl100589]

Jan 26, 2020 13:38:45 GMT -5 Main Event Mark said:

Hogan's turn has to be it.

"But whose side is he on?!"

I never understood why Heenan got so much grief for that line. His character hated Hogan so it made sense for him to doubt Hogan's loyalties. In this case he just happened to be right.

[bob]

it's gotta be Hogan

[Cranjis McBasketball]

Jan 31, 2020 16:41:07 GMT -5 karl100589 said:

Jan 26, 2020 13:38:45 GMT -5 Main Event Mark said:

Hogan's turn has to be it.

"But whose side is he on?!"

I never understood why Heenan got so much grief for that line. His character hated Hogan so it made sense for him to doubt Hogan's loyalties. In this case he just happened to be right.

It fit the character but people seem to think it spoiled it. I didn’t. Hogan turning was unthinkable. Even when he said I didn’t think Hogan was possible.

WWE wavers on this too. Sometimes they pull the line in clips. Sometimes not.

Unrelated but you can tell how the relationship with Nash is by whether they leave “Look at the adjective, play!” in. If it’s good they cut it. If they’re mad at each other it’s included.

[Urethra Franklin]

Jan 31, 2020 16:41:07 GMT -5 karl100589 said:

Jan 26, 2020 13:38:45 GMT -5 Main Event Mark said:

Hogan's turn has to be it.

"But whose side is he on?!"

I never understood why Heenan got so much grief for that line. His character hated Hogan so it made sense for him to doubt Hogan's loyalties. In this case he just happened to be right.

I used to hate it and think it absolutely telegraphed everything, but now that I think about it, it made perfect sense.

Here is WCW in its hour of need and Hulk Hogan seemingly answers the bell and not even then can Bobby Heenan acknowledge there might be some good in this man. That’s how much he always hated him and in this one instance after all these years, he’s proven right, but he can’t gloat about it because of what it means.

[Joe Neglia]

Jan 31, 2020 18:49:06 GMT -5 Cranjis McBasketball said:

Jan 31, 2020 16:41:07 GMT -5 karl100589 said:

I never understood why Heenan got so much grief for that line. His character hated Hogan so it made sense for him to doubt Hogan's loyalties. In this case he just happened to be right.

It fit the character but people seem to think it spoiled it.

Anybody watching that show - knowing there was a mystery partner set to arrive at any moment - seeing Hogan walking out either had the exact same thought in their head or they were still in elementary school.

[Cranjis McBasketball]

Feb 1, 2020 0:13:33 GMT -5 Joe Neglia said:

Jan 31, 2020 18:49:06 GMT -5 Cranjis McBasketball said:

It fit the character but people seem to think it spoiled it.

Anybody watching that show - knowing there was a mystery partner set to arrive at any moment - seeing Hogan walking out either had the exact same thought in their head or they were still in elementary school.

I guess I was 13 and either watching in Spanish or with CC turned on. Never saw it coming. I even had the thought because Okerlund said earlier they were behind closed doors but he thought he recognized the muffled voice. I remember thinking "He'd know Hogan's voice". I wasn't a WCW fan, but I watched when I happened to see it. The idea of Hogan turning was impossible in my mind.

[Milkman Norm]

Andre turning and joining the Heenan family after years of them tormenting him has to be up their. It was just done over the course of several weeks as opposed to a single night so maybe the impact was lessened?

[Triangle Lancer]

Jan 26, 2020 18:58:50 GMT -5 Stone Coke Miami Watson 🥃 said:

Bob Backlund!

There's mine. He's still the same All-American Boy character, wrestles the same - he was always aggressive in the ring. He just snapped because all his hard work came short of the goal and he couldn't take it.

I love how Bob turned it onto the fans: "I haven't changed, YOU changed!" Bob's inability to move on from 1983 is the key.

Even in hindsight, his last match for the WWF (8/4/84 against Salvatore Bellomo), he grabbed the mic and said "I'm ready to be your champion again!"

Then when he joined Pro Wrestling USA, he was touted as one of their 3 champions: Flair, Martel and Bob was called "the uncrowned champion" because he never submitted the title.
(It most likely didn't even come up in this turn, but a fun sidebar that adds a layer to it. Just the thought this guy's still stuck in the past works.)