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Has Rock's return since 2011 improve his legacy, or worsen it?

  • My thoughts towards the Rock are more negative since his return

    Votes: 96 43.8%
  • My thoughts towards the Rock are more positive since his return

    Votes: 50 22.8%
  • My thoughts towards the Rock are neutral since his return

    Votes: 73 33.3%

Has the Rock's return tarnished or "bettered" his legacy for you?

8K views 96 replies 84 participants last post by  #BadNewsSanta 
#1 · (Edited)
Ever since his return in February 2011, I've only liked 2 things that the Rock has done. His return promo when he was unveiled as the guest host for Mania 27 and his Survivor Series promo at Madison Square Garden. Everything else, I just plain out didn't like or just found extremely underwhelming. His feud and match with Cena was underwhelming, ditto for his Punk feud etc.

Before Rock's return, he was regarded as this mythical figure in WWE history who was an absolute legend, and was far above professional wrestling at that point. Well, 2 years later, have you guys changed your outlook towards the Rock and his career at all after all the matches, all the promo, vignettes etc? And if so, is has it made Rock's legacy even greater for you, or has it tarnished Rock's legacy for you?

EDIT: There is no doubt Rock is the biggest box office draw that WWE has, but let's leave that out of this discussion. Base this PURELY out of whether you like the Rock more or not since his return.
 
#2 ·
Re: POLL: Has the Rock's return tarnished or "bettered" his legacy for you?

It hasn't 'tarnished his legacy', I don't take wrestling that seriously. But I haven't really enjoyed it and I don't think anyone can dispute that it has been extremely underwhelming aside from the obvious nostalgia factor.
 
#3 ·
Re: POLL: Has the Rock's return tarnished or "bettered" his legacy for you?

I soured on the rock from his promo at the royal rumble but this monday he showed he still has it on the mic; it reminded me of his return promo. I still love the guy and he's still my favorite wrestler. The feud with Punk, while the matches weren't that good, was full of intensity and it was a lot better than Rock/Cena.
 
#5 ·
It's completely subjective. To some people, it might. To others, it might not have. Some people may have enjoyed the hell out of him in the Attitude Era, but might not have liked him in his return or vice versa.
 
#6 ·
-I enjoyed his return promo and one/two promos against Cena

-Other than that,I don't feel like I am watching The Rock.It feels like I am watching Rock morph into Cena

-Rocky fans would argue with statistics.Not going to argue that he didn't improve the PPV buys though

-Best moment:Rock's return promo

-Worst moment:Rock beating Punk to win the championship

-Has he over-stayed his welcome:Somewhat considering his star power makes WWE focus just on him
 
#8 ·
The Rock was one of my GOAT his return against Cena and Punk has made him drop about 15 - 20 places.

It just became glaringly obvious how overrated, suck up/pandering, repetitive one trick pony he is. His shtick is for kids and lazy people.

His previous work is still safe and holds a special place in my heart but probably a lot more for child nostalgia than anything else.
 
#9 ·
I don't see how he has worsen his legacy. Sure he isn't the same as before but people need to realise that this is the modern day WWE where babyfaces will sound cheesy and make kiddy jokes. Just look at CM Punk's face run in 2012. Rock hasn't been horrible on the Mic as people like to make out either. His first segment with Punk was great because Rock did his part. He clearly showed the importance of the match and he put Punk over as well by describing how dangerous he is. Some on here think it was horrible because Rock said "Cookie Puss" but that's just silly. You cannot judge a promo by just one word and ignore the rest of the promo.

The fact that people on here are praising the CM Punk and Rock feud shows how well Rock has contributed to the feud (well both Punk/Rock have contributed equally to the feud so kudos to them).
 
#10 ·
The Rock's promos since his return have been better and more entertaining that anyone else on the roster other than CM Punk's promos as a heel during his title reign. If anyone disagrees than please post videos of promos that were better. How anyone can criticize The Rocks promos in comparison to today's superstars is incredible.
 
#12 ·
he is a waltered down version of him self and sucks. I root for punk over him
 
#13 ·
Both
 
#15 ·
I was too young to enjoy wrestling before Rock left, but from every AE episode of Raw I've watched and every Rock promo I've ever seen, this Rock is fucking horrible. He has literally lost any sort of charisma.

I'm not exaggerating this, and I'm not really a Punk mark in particular, but it is ridiculous how his current run has gone. I feel that it's like he's not a wrestler anymore, he does legitimately feel like a movie star making a cameo appearance. I can not take his current run seriously and his 2 matches with a reliable worker in Punk have been absolutely awful.

But you really can't tarnish a legacy IMO, he is what he is and he still is the 2nd most successful wrestler of all time and he is one of the most charismatic too.
 
#21 ·
This is so true. The Rock, as much as I love the guy, has lost his in-ring charisma because he's too busy breathing heavily. I'm not saying that's a bad thing, it's understandable he'll be running out of breath, but he shouldn't have returned for a wrestling role. He can promote feuds and WWE all he wants, but the minute he stepped in the ring, you end up forgetting this is the same guy who just cut a promo about beating CM Punk. His promos are at a 50% what they once were. Sure, he has control over the audience like he once did, but it definitely lacks a significant amount of electricity they had, partly due to him having to play so many different roles as an actor, basically toning it down. The Rock isn't "The Rock" anymore, he's Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson.
 
#16 · (Edited)
People want Rock to bury the whole roster like he did back in the day thats why they have this stupid notion on their heads that this is not The Rock,fans actual fans not some kid who goes to youtube and thinks he saw Rock in his prime would understand why he had to change and why is better for the product and the credibility of the people he fights

as i see it he has made his star even bigger by entertaining a new audience and has brought back a lot of older fans by givin us a lot of memorable moments and as for the business itself well he just put 2 of the biggest Manias of all time back to back one of them being the biggest money show the industry has seen and by the looks of it hes going for the 3rd and 4th when he goes against Lesnar at 30
 
#33 · (Edited)
It didn't tarnish his legacy. There's still plenty of casual fans who like him more than Punk and Cena but he is definitely nowhere near his prime.

The weird thing is, when The Rock return when he was revealed to be guest host, that promo is the very same The Rock from Attitude Era but once he started his feud with Cena, he become downgraded.

Why can't The Rock cut promo like he did when he was reveal as guest host? I keep getting the feeling he was pull down to let other superstars look on level with him on mic skills.
All of my sentiments are summed up here, in The Rock's 2010 return promo, after WM28 on Raw, Raw 1000, a few of the taped segments about Cena, Smackdown promo's with Rhodes Scholars, etc. Those are true Rock promo's, he cuts them as if he's fully in character. People think he's been hogging the spotlight, but in reality he's working the crowd just as he's always been and putting people over his own way.

The Rock of old got over by pretty much shitting on the entire roster, making fun of them and just acting like a elitist piece of shit, yet he never took himself too seriously. He has great delivery and he seemed human then because The Rock was never really protected in his prime, he laid down and put over a shit ton of people, nobody can deny that. His universal appeal helped too.

The difference now is that The Rock can't do that, because it's counterproductive. The roster he worked with in the Attitude Era could take the abuse, because pretty much everyone, even down to some of the midcarders were over and they could eat the insults without getting their credibility reamed if your name wasn't Billy Gunn.

He's not trying to get himself over anymore, and that said, he's trying to give the illusion that the stars of today are on par with him. Look at the "promo notes" shit that they pulled with Cena, look at many of the Rock/Cena promo's last year. In many of the times that they were in promos together notice that The Rock didn't even get a word in edgewise.

If anything, they executed his entire return poorly. Because he already had that aura, they should have built upon it, let The Rock be himself, then put someone up and coming to feud against, someone credible and have them go over Rock, making them stars.

But there is no one other than Cena and to a much lesser extent Punk and Orton. And that just goes back the WWE's shitty booking. So yes, I do believe that The Rock's latest run added to his legacy because it shows how selfless one can be. If anything, when you've done something right, people won't be sure you've done anything at all.
 
#19 ·
The Rock is the same as he was before. In fact, he is better because he came back because HE WANTED TO. McMahon didn't beg him. Rocky wanted to. He is a retired superstar and didn't need to wrestle but he came back because people wanted to see him. The only way he could tarnish his legacy is if 20 years from now, he is pulling a Hogan and wrestling. He is 40 years old for crikes sake, no legacy tarnishing here.
 
#23 ·
I actually don't think Rocky's current run is as bad as some think. He was superb in 2011 (loved his return promo, via satellite promos, survivor series promo), not his best in 2012 but still had some gems (Promo on RAW after Mania, RAW 1000), and showed last night that he could still work the mic. I think people are too hard on him because he ended Punk's reign, you can't fault them for that I guess.
 
#24 ·
I wouldn't say he tarnished his legacy but he is showing more weakness than he used to. As I got older I soured on Rock's act because its sort of sophomoric but he's a fabulous performer because he can make stuff that's NOT funny and NOT cool and make it funny and cool. Its all in the delivery, he still delivers his lines excellently but what he actually says isn't funny.


Nostalgia is fun sometime but Rock surpassed being a nostalgia act when he decided to take the title. I give all legends some respect and I don't really criticize them because they usually are there for a short time and then they disappear for awhile so its best to just enjoy them while you can but Rock is out there like he's still got it and while its better than most he really doesn't still have it.


That's not a bad thing either, hell HHH doesn't have it anymore, neither does Undertaker, Sting, Hogan etc it happens with age. Rock is very useful as a talent, shit they All are. Older acts generate interest and people want to see them interact with the new guys but he should pick his matches and wrestle an Undertaker-ish schedule instead of trying to make a title run.
 
#25 ·
i liked his fued with cena but after that hes just gotten annoying
 
#26 · (Edited)
It didn't tarnish his legacy. There's still plenty of casual fans who like him more than Punk and Cena but he is definitely nowhere near his prime.

The weird thing is, when The Rock return when he was revealed to be guest host, that promo is the very same The Rock from Attitude Era but once he started his feud with Cena, he become downgraded.

Why can't The Rock cut promo like he did when he was reveal as guest host? I keep getting the feeling he was pull down to let other superstars look on level with him on mic skills.
 
#28 ·
For me personally, his involvement isn't delievering on any level (three tiers he fails at: angles, promos, work rate), so there's nothing that I can enjoy. Other people may enjoy The Rock getting by on his natural charisma, but that isn't enough for me. The third one is unforgivable for me because the WWE usually prides itself on delivering great ppv main events.

I also think more generally, Rock has gotten involved with CM Punk, and there's always going to be a vocal minority that doesn't care that wrestling is a show. They think Rock winning the title off of CM Punk is the ultimate disrespect and he/WWE/Cena/the system are doing CM Punk wrong. Therefore, he doesn't have the entire WWE Universe backing him and a super mega legend needs that wide backing to really sell that special attraction aura.

He does come off as just a transitional champion. There's are just my opinions, sorry to The Rock marks. I do think this run has been pretty much a joke. The sooner John Cena gets his win back, the better.
 
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