SLAM! Wrestling Editorial: Rocked by The Rock
By NICK TYLWALK -- For SLAM! Wrestling
The debate on the merits of professional wrestling
versus those of sports entertainment is an ongoing
one. On one side, you have the wrestling purists, the
fans who prefer their in-ring action with a minimum of
(in the words of Mr. T) jibber jabber. The other side
consists of those people attracted to the soap opera
storylines and increased microphone time that are so
prevalent in today's WWF programming. While the issue
is largely one of personal preference and isn't likely
to go away any time soon, something happened this past
Monday night that changed the way this writer thinks
about things.
I'm speaking, of course, about the much ballyhooed
return of The Rock. In many ways, Dwayne Johnson's
alter ego is the poster boy for sports entertainment --
a victory for style over substance. For proof, you
don't have to look any further than the reason for The
Rock's absence: he was off in Hollywood shooting a
movie.
Then go on to consider The Rock as a wrestler.
Unquestionably a terrific athlete, Johnson actually
has a pretty decent arsenal of moves for a main event
performer. But as he's grown more popular, his
execution has become sloppier -- witness his basically
one-handed Samoan drop. And if making your opponent's
offense look good is the true art of a pro wrestler,
The Rock's penchant for overselling often borders on
the ridiculous.
Taking all of that into consideration, it's no stretch
to say that the fans at the First Union Center in
Philadelphia last Monday were more anxious for a dose
of The Rock's infectious charisma than they were to
see him actually work a match. The WWF promoted his
return heavily, so it was no surprise that fans were
outside the arena chanting his name and plunking down
28 dollars a pop for his still unexplained "Team Bring
It" shirts. They had to wait a few hours to get it,
but the fans in attendance got what they wanted and
more.
For disclosure purposes, I have to admit that until
recently, I considered myself more of a wrestling fan
than a sports entertainment enthusiast. Not that I
didn't enjoy some witty banter along with my
wrestling, but I preferred a well-worked 15-minute
match to a 20 minute segment of dueling mics. You
might say I was more Chris Benoit than Chris Jericho.
My preferences have shifted ever so slightly since the
beginning of this calendar year. A scan of the
Internet would show me to be in the minority, but
Steve Austin's more humorous heel persona was and is
much more entertaining to me than anything he does in
the ring, and a welcome change after seeing him
portray the surly anti-hero for so long. Edge,
Christian and Kurt Angle continue to impress me in the
ring, but I found myself sitting up and paying more
attention to their backstage antics. Still, despite
those concessions, I would still place myself more
toward the purists' end of the spectrum.
So even being there live, I wasn't that caught up in
The Rock's return. It came as no surprise that the
WWF teased his return throughout the whole show to
bring him out during the last segment, and the writers
took the safe way out by having him side with Vince
McMahon so quickly. Personally, I would have
preferred it if his decision was more drawn out. And
while the crowd reaction was enthusiastic when Rocky
finally showed his face, I've heard louder pops.
It was what happened after Raw went off the air that
made an impact. The Rock could easily have posed for
the crowd and soaked in a few more minutes of
applause, then hopped in his limo or rental car and
sped off. The fans leaving the arena that night would
still have gone home satisfied. But The Rock was
clearly having fun, and he wasn't about to stop just
because the TNN cameras stopped rolling.
What happened next was something to see. For a good
20 minutes, The Rock continued his interplay with the
McMahon family and the fans. He had people laughing
when he told the crowd to decide which chant they
wanted to go with and cheering when he hit Shane
McMahon with the inevitable Rock Bottom. No less a
consummate pro than Vince himself struggled not to
break character and laugh.
When it was all said and done, everyone in attendance
left happy. And why not? The Rock gave all of the
paying fans quite a bit more for their money, and even
I have to say he was the most entertaining part of the
entire night.
So when I tune in to Smackdown! tonight, I probably
won't care if The Rock wrestles or not. Maybe there's
something to this sports entertainment thing after
all.
