Tim's Take 10.07.08: The Dichotomy of Triple H
Posted by Tim Livingston on 10.07.2008
WRESTLING FANS BEWARE! THIS ARTICLE CONTAINS SUPPORTIVE CRITICISM OF HUNTER HEARST HELMSLEY! YOU'VE BEEN WARNED! Actually, this is me trying to just build a case as to why the Triple H hating is kinda pointless. Read on if you'd like.
Is HHH really that bad? That's a question that has been pondered for the longest time by the "smartest" of wrestling fans. Most wrestling fans that make up the little community that we are in and that I write about have been fans of many different wrestler, but nobody polarizes the fans love for wrestling than The Game.
It's mainly because he has politicked his way to the top spot in the major wrestling company in the world, and to many, it's because they think that he has no discernible "natural" wrestling talent. Who judges what a "natural" wrestling talent is?
Is it anyone who's as good as Dustin Rhodes was in his prime? Okay, granted that was a joke, and a rather bad one at that, but let's be honest about a few things here. For all the people that have been the darlings of wrestling fans for years, the ones they hate are those who ape those who came before him.
You know, like how Ric Flair took Buddy Rogers' gimmick. And how Chris Benoit was a Dynamite Kid clone. Those guys were HATED by the Internet Wrestling Community because...wait, they weren't?
Weren't they loved because even though they were so much like their predecessors that they worked their ass off and earned their adoration? Weren't they the basis as to what professional wrestling was supposed to be like because of how they worked? How they carried themselves?
I'll say this about Triple H. For a guy who really couldn't do much in the first place, he worked pretty hard to get better and better, and only got complacent when he ascended to his rightful place. He was smart enough to know that to get to the top, he had to act like he wanted to be there. Bret Hart figured it out. So did Shawn Michaels. Eddie Guerrero did, too.
I know people get angry at Trips telling people they aren't worth anything on air, almost as if he's airing out dirty laundry. Who does he have that could possibly tell him to stop? He's married to the daughter of the most powerful man in professional wrestling. He'll go out and bury someone where they stand, and (how's this for another reason) they let him do it. Hell, they agree with him on it because they don't want to deal with the repercussions of not going through with it.
But then he'll do something like he did with last night.
Triple H carried himself in a manner befitting of the top guy in the company. He had matches with Jeff Hardy before, and they were spirited, but they didn't feel like big matches. As the WWE Champion on SmackDown!, he had been a bore, to a point. He hadn't had much of anything to work with, to be honest. Not in his mind, anyways.
In that match, however, he made the two wrestlers he honored most proud. Ric Flair and Harley Race enjoyed that match if they watched it, which I'm sure they did. They even put Arn Anderson in the post-match promo.
There is something to be said about the way Triple H carries himself as champion, or as a top challenger, which he has been for going on nine years, now. It's what always happens with the top guy: he'll go as far as making the opponent look good, but only if he looks good doing it. That's the thing, though. He makes the opponent look good.
I'll ask you all to give him credit on one thing, though. When he sees the next big thing, he is not afraid to put them over. WrestleMania 20, WrestleMania 21, WrestleMania 22, WrestleMania 24. Benoit, Batista, Cena and Orton. They all went over. Triple H made it happen. It happens because he wants to make sure that the people he has at the top with him are up to the task. Save the major exception above, the other three have not only been up to the task, they're the basis as to how far the company goes. With those three, so go the company.
Before we continue to vilify Trips and sit there and criticize everything he says and does, I'll be the first to point out that while he knows his spot and isn't really afraid of losing anything in the long run, he'll do what's best for the company when the time comes. I'm pretty certain that if Jeff Hardy gets the green light, he'll put him over the best possible way he could.
So, yeah. You just read a positive article on Triple H, the man who's supposed to be the most hated man in professional wrestling amongst these here parts. Remember this, though. When Magnum T.A., the man who was the future of the NWA for so long, went down to an injury in the accident that ended his career, Flair worked with whatever he could to make the business as good as it could be.
The only thing Trips has done is follow in his mentor's footsteps. He might have done it his way, and made things impossible while he did at times, he's still willing to put over people for the good of the company. Even if he isn't the biggest fan of the decision.
Then again, in his own way, he's kinda earned it, hasn't he?
Triple H is such a contradictory person...I am not sure what to think anymore. One day, I will watch as he is burying his opponents on the mic and telling Umaga he cannot have DX green on his pants. Then, I get this pay per view last night and he basically sells Hardy's moves and acted like someone at the top should. I guess I think Triple H believes WWE will never strap the title on Hardy due to his unreliability, and seeing that as a lack of a threat, he is willing to put on great matches with Jeff.
Just a thought.
Posted By: Not A Fan (Guest) on October 07, 2008 at 12:15 AM
I don't give a good god damn what you, the "IWC" (whatever the hell that is anymore), or anyone else. I don't like that boss's ass-kissing, petty, insecure scumbag and there's not a person on this world who can tell me otherwise. It's not a matter of "being a sheep" or "falling in line" or whatever catch phrase you're using now to conceal the fact that you just DON'T GET all the hate. It's the same thing with John Cena. Quit trying to "understand" it and just deal with the fact that literally millions of people cannot stand the son of a bitch.
"There's something happening, and you don't know what it is,
Do you, Mr. Jones?"
-Bob Dylan
Posted By: Guest#3100 (Guest) on October 07, 2008 at 12:26 AM
Lets see... HHH is the best company man ever not named Kane or The Undertaker. He ALWAYS does house shows and apart from injuries never misses anything. He is a fine ring general and can get a decent match with everyone on that roster.
Sure, he has an ego.. woop de doo, if we were in his position try and tell me we all wouldnt do the same? Hell, he put Jeff over where I would have burried oh so much if I was in that position.
Posted By: Brad (Guest) on October 07, 2008 at 02:09 AM
"Not a fan, guess I think Triple H believes WWE will never strap the title on Hardy due to his unreliability"
obv your not a fan or you'd no that Trips is putting Jeff hardy over because he has said off camera and in shoots that he trully belives Jeff is the future...And guess what?......he RIGHT
Posted By: Glaceau (Guest) on October 07, 2008 at 02:10 AM
Nice column, but the HHH haters are not too far away/
Posted By: HHH Fan (Guest) on October 07, 2008 at 02:18 AM
if he wasn't boning Stephanie, he would be fighting Scotty Too Hotty in mid card independent shows right now. He's had the same move set for 12 years. The crowd yelling Pass the Torch isn't what they'd say to someone who's over. He's gathering Jarrett levels of empathy right now, and at least JJ had the common sense to drop the title.
Posted By: jayt11 (Guest) on October 07, 2008 at 06:23 AM
HHH rules ..you guys can suck a cock
Posted By: cenasucks (Guest) on October 07, 2008 at 09:27 AM
"if he wasn't boning Stephanie, he would be fighting Scotty Too Hotty in mid card independent shows right now"
Wasn't Triple H already something like a five time world champion when he got married? Face it, if Triple H wasn't married to Stephanie, he would be in the same spot he's in today, just like Shawn Micheals and the Undertaker. Triple H is where he is because he's one of the best WWE-style wrestlers in the world.
Posted By: Homie (Guest) on October 07, 2008 at 11:53 AM
Finally.. someone is willing to say the truth, HHH is not that bad!
He is in a position that he can put over whoever he wants and rightfully he's choosing only the good ones because a win oven Hunter is huge and can take the winner to a whole other level in the WWE and not everybody can and should get this upgrade!
Hunter is making the crowd eat from the palm of his hand, he can get hits and pops whenever he likes, he has great in ring abilities, he can make his opponents look good all the time and whenever the company needs something he's there to make it happen!
Triple H is one of the greatest ever whether people like it or not.
Posted By: LIRON (Guest) on October 07, 2008 at 12:24 PM
I think a lot of what HHH does is specifically to heel it up for the internet while playing face to the live crowds. And I think in that regard he does it brilliant. Yes, he's THAT damn good. And the more he gets your blood pressure to rise, the better he is at what he does.
In this business, apathy is the only real failure.
Posted By: M:-X (Guest) on October 07, 2008 at 12:33 PM
HHH is no Flair. Forget all this putting over Hardy's offense, HHH doesn't allow himself to be pinned very often. Flair let Ronnie Garvin beat him for the title. That's making an inferior wrestler look good.
Posted By: Iron Knee (Guest) on October 07, 2008 at 12:54 PM
if he wasn't boning Stephanie, he would be fighting Scotty Too Hotty in mid card independent shows right now. He's had the same move set for 12 years. The crowd yelling Pass the Torch isn't what they'd say to someone who's over. He's gathering Jarrett levels of empathy right now, and at least JJ had the common sense to drop the title.
Posted By: jayt11 (Guest) on October 07, 2008 at 06:23 AM
You mean APATHY.
Anyways, HHH has no problems making Jeff look good, cuz he will never job to him. Anyone that threatens his spot gets the squashes...
Jericho
Booker
the list goes on.
Hardy moves merchandise so therefore he remains strong, but he is a babyface that can do jobs. And Trips loves to beat people, so hardy will be over forever.
Posted By: The Fuj (Guest) on October 07, 2008 at 12:57 PM
"It's the same thing with John Cena. Quit trying to "understand" it and just deal with the fact that literally millions of people cannot stand the son of a bitch."
I don't think "LITERALLY" millions of people hate him. I think LITERALLY a bunch of nerds on the internet hate him.
Wrestlemania gets about a million buys, that's about the size of the fanbase, I'm pretty sure THE ENTIRE FANBASE plus millions MORE (who don't even watch the programs) don't hate him.
Posted By: etcetcetc (Guest) on October 07, 2008 at 01:10 PM
i agree. the HHHate is getting old. He isnt that bad and was already 2 time champ before marrying Steph. i enjoy HHH but he is getting a bit stale as a face.
Posted By: Farmer Tim (Guest) on October 07, 2008 at 01:28 PM
Triple H put over Eugene.
Posted By: Chico (Guest) on October 07, 2008 at 01:32 PM
HHH's "elevation" of Eugene is an excellent example of his refusal to make the product better. Eugene posed no real threat to his status. When has HHH allowed a legitimate star-to-be defeat him cleanly? Instead, he let's them get in a bit of offense and then
crushes them with the Pedigree.
It's truly perplexing to me because he'd lose nothing if he allowed Kendrick or Hardy to beat him. Most fans respect or enjoy his schtick and thus he'll always be a top man.
Posted By: Iron Knee (Guest) on October 07, 2008 at 02:01 PM
Say what you will. HHH is a decent wrestler, puts guys over when it seems necessary, and he has shown grit by coming back from not one, but two serious quad injuries. He performs hurt, and bleeds for the company. He's a solid pro wrestler.
BUT:
HHH is also in the position of writing his own script, playing power politics behind the curtain because of who he's married to, and flat BURYING whomever he chooses...if you're a young wrestler, don't get on his bad side. And you KNOW he won't retire until he's held the belt at least 17 times so he can CLAIM to be better than Flair. He's NOT: I know it, you know it, Flair knows it...EVERYONE knows it, except HHH...
Posted By: DG_W (Guest) on October 07, 2008 at 02:04 PM
Iron Knee...how about Batista? HHH put him over clean 3 x in a row on ppv. He put hardy over a year ago clean, and hardy threw it all away by failing a piss test... HHH puts people over who deserve it, and everyone he has put over is a main event guy now...
he doesnt put anyone over these days ,cuz come on! who is there?
Posted By: Luthor (Guest) on October 07, 2008 at 02:18 PM
HHH is awesome. I was at no mercy on sunday and he was the best performer without a doubt. Even my mom, who is not a huge wrestling fan, was impressed by his presence. Everything he does in the ring is intense and looks more "real" than a lot of the other performers.
Posted By: Guest#0764 (Guest) on October 07, 2008 at 02:25 PM
Here's the deal with Triple H. He has a HISTORY of keeping people from advancing. It's well documented backstage (if you believe the Observer) of cutting people's legs out from under them.
In addition to backstage manipulation, only does what he needs to in the ring to get by. He frequently has blah matches. This wouldn't piss me off so much if I didn't know he had better matchs in him. Every once in a while he turns it on and has a great match, but they are few and far between. Generally, he has the same boring match he's had since roughly 2000.
Now, having said this, he has been, way, WAY better over the last two or three years, and I think that's because most of his competition is gone. There is no more Rock, or Austin, or Angle. It's pretty much just H and the Undertaker. Cena and Bautista are selling tickets, but they aren't really threatening HHH for his spot, are they? The commentor at the beginning had it right. Just as soon as you see the next Big Thing come along, you will see the old Trips come right back out. He might say he's following in Flair's footsteps, but his actions smack more of Hogan.
Posted By: xjuggernaughtx (Guest) on October 07, 2008 at 04:45 PM
Putting backstage stuff aside, Triple H isn't so bad. He's just.... really really boring. His moveset feels stale and his matches tend to drag on for me. Its not that they are terrible matches, just always average.
Posted By: Weston (Guest) on October 07, 2008 at 04:53 PM
This piece written here just makes me want to relate my own personal HHH story.
Back in the day, maybe 10 years ago, when wrestling was getting so big, noone could gnore it, my mom worked for Nintendo, who used to sponsor the events that came to Canada.
HHH was the champ, and he was still with CHYNA, if that helps the time frame at all.
Nintendo hosted a meet and greet with the two of them, and the kids of the employees were also invited.
I brought a friend, and found ourselves the ONLY kids there...
needless to say, the resulting "meet" part where the questions were asked were quite boring..
Questions such as "how do you see the WWF's financial strategy for the next 5 years working," to "how do you manage your finances?"
After about 5 or so redundant questions about financial operations and such, my friend and I did not really feel like asking anyhting, though in retrospect, they probably would have enjoyed a question about DX or something.
OOPS, I guess that's what happens when you're a scarwny 15 year old with glasses and a bad haircut.
Fianlly, it's time for the "greet" part of the event.I'm thinking "great, now I can say hello and stuff a little more privately and tell him he's cool and stuff,"
BUT NO!! everyone is getting their pictures taken with HHH and Chyna!! I don't want to get my picture taken WITH THEM!!
Shit, it's my turn.Now I'm kind of regretting this.
I get up there, I shake HHH's hand and say,"Hey"
My mom says, "Come on, you should get your picture taken with them, it'll be fun!"
"Really?!?"
"YES REALLY, I WANT TO TAKE A PICTURE OF YOU WITH THEM!!"
HHH has not let go of my hand, pulls me in a little bit closer and says, "I think you better do it, it looks like she'll beat your ass if you don't."
I started laughing and looked up. BAM!! PICTURE TAKEN!!
HHH and Chyna then started laughing too, and then HHH said, "just kidding man, she looks like a pretty nice lady."
We finished up, I shook Chyna's hand, touched the title, and had a good day.
This is a story I can never forget, and it always resonates in my head. especially whenever all this HHH jibber-jabber comes up on the net.
Personally, for the most part i enjoy his matches and ricgwork, but the politickin' and what not disappoints me to a degree, and deep down as a mark for a lot of the guys he fights (Hardy, Kendrick, MVP, et al.)I wish he did more to build them up sometimes, rather than tear them down
"I'm the fucking Game" - from HHH's mouth himself.He DID earn his spot, he may not want to let it go, but there's not a damn thing YOU or I can do about it.
Not sayin' you have accept that, but it is the way it is.
Posted By: the casual observer (Guest) on October 07, 2008 at 05:24 PM
BATISTA AND ORTON are his boys!!!!! Thats nothing. Thats like saying, oh hey, Shawn Michaels let Kevin Nash beat him, he's a company man, fuck that!!
Posted By: Guest#2095 (Guest) on October 07, 2008 at 05:54 PM
Triple H hate is for those who live in the past.
What good is it to argue with people who won't listen, really? Like that Guest#3100 (2nd comment) who basically tells people not to understand or look any further than his opinion. Saying this, or "You're not allowed to debate on this because I will lose, and that is unacceptable" amounts to the exact same result.
Would you try to shove your own ass down someone's throat? Doesn't make a whole lot of sense, does it? Why would it make more sense to shove your opinion down someone's throat, then?
After all, opinions are just like assholes, right?
Posted By: lulz (Guest) on October 07, 2008 at 06:07 PM
He seems more motivated since he's been given a title but at this point I have no hate for the guy just complete indifference. I have no interest in ever watching him have a match ever again and if he retired tomorrow I wouldn't miss him.
Posted By: scott (Guest) on October 07, 2008 at 07:54 PM
I like Triple H, I like his matches.
Really, the only thing that REALLY gets to me is his total freedom on the mic. THAT'S where I feel he has a completely uneven playing ground, and gets to throw in these little one liners regarding backstage stuff that no one could possibly respond to.
If others could shoot a little something back- without it having been pre-written for them- I'd be totally fine with everything Trip does.
Hell, I was one of the jerks SCREAMING for Vince to throw the title on him in the spring / summer of 1999.
Posted By: Oswald (Guest) on October 07, 2008 at 09:24 PM
" think Triple H believes WWE will never strap the title on Hardy due to his unreliability, and seeing that as a lack of a threat, he is willing to put on great matches with Jeff"
This is the kind of lame and biased IWC comments that makes me think not matter what Hunter will do and accomplish in the ring, people will always complain about him .
Should I remaind the person who wrote this that HHH DID THE JOB to the SAME GUY last DECEMBER when HE was on the verge of a MITB WIN AND a WWE TITLE REIGN in the SPRING ?
Is it HHH's fault if Jeff Hardy is one of the biggest idiots and retards in pro wrestling history for screwing things out forever , be it on the drug policy or into an AIRPORT ?
Should I remind people here that the current WWE Champ did job not once not twice no three times but FOUR TIMES on a ROW AT Mania ?
Yes you've read it right he is 0-4 in his last four Mania appeareances.....
But again I guess it's because he jobbed out to "guys who wouldn't last enough for him to claim his crown back" right ?
Posted By: Guest#9686 (Guest) on October 07, 2008 at 11:33 PM
"I think a lot of what HHH does is specifically to heel it up for the internet while playing face to the live crowds. And I think in that regard he does it brilliant. Yes, he's THAT damn good. And the more he gets your blood pressure to rise, the better he is at what he does.
In this business, apathy is the only real failure."
I needed to point out that this is one of the best comments I have ever seen on this website. What makes HHH great IMO is that he plays the psychological game with the fans better than anyone. Or at least he did. Watch his Summerslam 2002 match with Shawn Michaels and take notes on how to be a heel and tell a story. Of course, the fact that I'm citing a 2002 match may give some fuel to the other side of the coin that he has gotten stale.
Posted By: Chuck (Guest) on October 07, 2008 at 11:38 PM
"This is the kind of lame and biased IWC comments that makes me think not matter what Hunter will do and accomplish in the ring, people will always complain about him"
and this is the kind of lame and biased IWC comment that makes me think not matter how many people he buries in the ring people will always defend him.
Posted By: scott (Guest) on October 08, 2008 at 02:34 AM
Someone please find me an example of Hunter burying someone in a match in the last three years. Not beating, but burying - no selling offence, kicking out of finishers, treating the competitor like a joke.
I'll wait.
Posted By: Ian (Guest) on October 08, 2008 at 08:56 AM
To the poster who mentioned it, Flair losing to the likes of Ronnie Garvin ensured that beating Ric Flair wasn't an automatic rub to superstardom and in Flair's case helped lower his status as the no 2 box office draw behind Hogan during his peak.
You don't have your main event guys lose freely unless their genuinely the biggest names in the business. HHH has and will put over people Vince wants him to put over.
Seriously is anyone going to compare him to Hulk Hogan who during his WCW tenure (and, on occassion, incidents in the wwf/e)in one way or another refused to lose ground to his fellow main eventers(agreeing to job to Piper at Starrcade 96 but only on the condition that the match, advertised as being a world title match, was made non-title, changing his mind about cleanly jobbing to Sting at Starrcade 97, an incident that started WCW's downfall, making Vader look bad during their feud in 95, refusing to trade the title with Flair in 94 when he came in which was the original plann, the apparent rivalry between him and Kevin Nash during the period Nash was the booker etc).
Posted By: saxon (Registered) on October 08, 2008 at 09:53 AM
The entire Raw tag team division. Specifically Londrick, whom he pedigreed that one time for absolutely no reason. And that one was just right off the top of my head.
Posted By: To Ian: (Guest) on October 08, 2008 at 02:23 PM
I haven't read the whole commentary, but in the fourth paragraph, you indicate that the IWC hate wrestlers who ape other wrestlers. Who are you referring too? I think Cena is hated, but who is he aping?
Posted By: question (Guest) on October 08, 2008 at 02:35 PM
I don't hate the man, but I am not a fan of his either. I personally feel that HHH would be a main-eventer without ever meeting Stephanie, He has everything the company looks for in a mainevent guy. It also doesn't hurt that he was a friend of Vince's before dating Stephanie.
Some of the things I hold against HHH:
The RUMORS from 2002 when Christian, Test and Jericho were asked to cut their hair to look different from HHH. I never bought into that one, as Edge didn't change his until some years later.
His one-sided feud with Jericho that at one point included an undisputed title match at WM18 that had HHH hatred for Stephanie and running over the family dog being more important than facing Jericho.
The rumor he didn't want to work with "The next big thing" Brock Lesnar
The Feud with Booker T. A chance to put over a talented worker, who was one of the top faces in the company gets thrown to the side, so Hunter can work programs with Kevin Nash and Goldberg.
His rumored refusal to work a one on one program with Edge. For those that forgot this is what led to a DX vs Rated RKO feud.
His weekly consumtion of TV time, I could honestly keep going, but I'm tired of writing.
Posted By: K. Bett (Guest) on October 08, 2008 at 08:20 PM
Ian.
The entire Raw tag division, the spirit squad and Carlito.
Posted By: scott (Guest) on October 08, 2008 at 09:10 PM
HHH=Zzzzzzzzzz
You can make this argument for a ton of wrestlers, but HHH's stale moveset is so boring and predictable (who doesn't see the high knee and facecrusher coming a mile away?), that I can't stand to watch him. He gets in a good joke every now and then and can have good matches, but when HHH comes on, zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz...
Posted By: eRIC (Guest) on October 09, 2008 at 12:50 AM
So, in three years, you've come up with one tag team (Londrick, which was admittedly stupid), the Spirit Squad (who also lost to Ric Flair and Roddy Piper, the Highlanders, and pretty much everyone else they ran into), and Carlito (who, during that period, was booked like a chump against EVERYONE because he was being a whiny little idiot)? Wow. Hunter sure has buried everyone he's come into contact with.
Although, thinking about it, he didn't bury any of these guys in the way I described, except maybe the Spirit Squad. And even then they had competitive matches and got the better of beatdowns against the guy.
What do I think? I think, Cena, Batista, Undertaker, Shawn Michaels, Randy Orton, and others have been given almost exactly the same dominant wins and squashes in the manner of those that've been named for Hunter. And yet no-one decries each of them and designated them a special plac ein IWC Hell.
Posted By: Ian (Guest) on October 09, 2008 at 03:29 AM
If it's anyone's fault that RVD, Jericho, Booker T, Kane, the Raw tag division etc were 'buried' it's Vince/the company. If a promotion doesn't have enough faith (for whatever reasons) in the abilities of certain midcarders main event potential you'll get scenarios where you'll believe that 'jealous' main eventers are fiercely protecting their spots from possible rivals.
Vince had faith in Benoit (on a short term basis), Batista and Cena hence why HHH did the clean jobs he was instructed to. In the case of Booker T at Wrestlemania 19 wasn't the decision reversed because Vince wanted HHH to look strong going into a feud with Goldberg who had signed at the last minute? He placed his bets in Goldberg and Booker lost out as a result, not because Trips showed up on the day and changed his mind about putting him over.
He has obvious control over his career but not to the point where Vince would allow that to ruin the company's plans and future (Hogan in WCW).
You truly think if he showed up for each or any of his Mania main events and refused on the spot to put over Chris, Cena or Batista he'd be allowed to get away with it?
Posted By: saxon (Registered) on October 09, 2008 at 07:40 AM
"Someone please find me an example of Hunter burying someone in a match in the last three years. Not beating, but burying - no selling offence, kicking out of finishers, treating the competitor like a joke.
I'll wait.
Posted By: Ian (Guest) on October 08, 2008 at 08:56 AM"
This may not answer your question exactly how you asked it, but it's a fair response nonetheless. Anyone else remember last year when HHH was attacked by.....I don't remember exactly who it was....and London and Kendrick came running down to save him? The three of them beat off the attackers, and when they retreated, HHH rewarded London and Kendrick with Pedigrees for their troubles. Your wait is over.
Posted By: Frank (Guest) on October 11, 2008 at 01:46 AM
