What Happened to Playing Ricky Morton?
Playing Ricky Morton- The point in a wrestling match where the babyface takes a beating. Named for Ricky Morton of the Rock n’ Roll Express.
An American institution is dying. Professional wrestling has survived the Great Depression, exposure as a scripted performance, and numerous steroid trials and scandals. The business has ebbed and flowed over the years, experiencing unprecedented popularity and lean times. It has always bounced back, but it might not survive much longer.
In the past year, the WWE has gone out of its way to rebrand itself. Vince McMahon has always resented the term “professional wrestling,” and coined the term “sports-entertainment” in the mid-1980s. This year he has taken things one step further. Wrestlers are referred to as “performers” and “entertainers.” Announcers are told to refer to the product as wrestling only when it’s absolutely necessary. He has even blurred out the “Of Wrestling” on old broadcasts of WWF Superstars of Wrestling. This is to reassure the public that the WWE is a mainstream entertainment brand.
I have been a wrestling fan for 20 years. There have been some mediocre years scattered throughout, but I never questioned my passion for the sport. Even when things were really bad, there was always something to sustain me. In 1995, we were saddled with Diesel as WWF Champion. He wasn’t ready to carry the ball and didn’t have any decent heels to work with. I kept watching because Shawn Michaels had a perfect batting average that year, taking everyone he wrestled to another level.
On a recent episode of Raw, Donald Trump and Vince McMahon made a complete mockery of the sport. I watched it for five minutes and turned it off in disgust. I finally admitted to myself that I don’t care about a single person on the Raw roster. It’s one of the most poorly booked wrestling shows I’ve ever seen, and I watched WCW at the end. McMahon has completely forgotten what professional wrestling is.
People like to call wrestling a soap opera for men. Wrestling has never been a soap opera. Wrestling is a western. Before you yell at me for demeaning American mythology, think about it for a second. The basic premise is a babyface (good guy) against a heel (bad guy) over a dispute. That’s the basis for every single Western. The sheriff rides in to town to confront the outlaw. There is a showdown in the center of town. Good triumphs over evil. The Western has become more complex, but the basic premise remains the same. This is why wrestling has been a part of the American landscape for over a century.
Part of the problem is that there are no clear cut heroes and villains anymore. Traditional booking dictates that the hero is a paragon of virtue. He always does the right thing, even in the face of impossible odds. His promos are always earnest, thanking the people for their constant support. Most importantly, he needs to be able to take an incredible beating. Fan support is based on sympathy, and nothing builds sympathy like a good beat-down. Ricky Morton was the master of this concept. He would be beaten to a pulp every week, so when he finally vanquished the heel that was tormenting him, it was a true triumph.
John Cena is the number one babyface in the company, but he’s never really threatened. He dispatches his opponent in such a way that he always walks away unscathed. Even Hulk Hogan had moments where he seemed human. If you watch the Piper’s Pit segments leading to WrestleMania III, it’s clear that he doesn’t want to wrestle Andre the Giant. He is dealing with the fact that Andre is no longer his ally, and it tears him up. There is a wonderful moment where Andre rips Hogan’s shirt and crucifix off. Roddy Piper spots a cut on Hogan’s chest and says, “You’re bleeding.” Little bits of humanity made the cartoonish aspects of Hogan’s character work. There isn’t a person behind the hero anymore. Jeff Hardy is more human, but he can’t cut a promo. The two extremes don’t work.
Because Cena is Superman, he is never pushed to his limit. Therefore, the most important element of babyface booking is missing, the revenge. When Magnum TA and Tully Blanchard feuded over the NWA United States Title in 1985, Magnum was the epitome of the virtuous hero. He appeared on TBS every week saying how much he loved to represent the hard working people of the United States with the belt. Then Tully Blanchard hit him in the eye with a pair of brass knuckles, causing Magnum to lose the belt. Blanchard taunted poor Magnum every week, culminating in an “I Quit” match at Starrcade ’85. Magnum and Tully beat each other from pillar to post.
The climax occurred when Magnum tried to shove a wooden stake into Blanchard’s eye. Magnum’s actions are out of character, but since Blanchard took so much from Magnum, it makes sense. Modern babyfaces have no concept of desperation. Jeff Hardy fought his brother at WrestleMania this year, and they didn’t even bleed.
The babyfaces aren’t completely to blame, because the heel side of the fence has a depressing lack of depth. Chris Jericho and Edge are awesome, but that’s because they created fully-formed characters with actual motives. Randy Orton is supposed to be the most evil man on the planet, but he comes off like a fratboy. He’s arrogant and cocky, supposedly because he’s the best wrestler in the world. This is fine, except his matches consist of ten minute chinlocks followed by his finisher. Instead of paying to see him get his ass kicked, I’m waiting for him to get off the screen.
Like Ric Flair before him, Orton has a posse of goons. Unlike the Four Horsemen, the other two members of Legacy have no business hanging with the champion. Tully Blanchard and Arn Anderson were not only two of the best wrestlers in the world, they always held a championship. Barry Windham could have a good match with anyone on the roster, and his Lone Wolf persona was years ahead of its time. Cody Rhodes and Ted DiBiase Jr. are as useful as the flunkies on the old Batman show. They are props for Cena, Batista and their cohorts to beat up. There is no legacy in Legacy!
Professional wrestling still works. It will always work, because it appeals to our basest instincts. Human beings like to see good triumph over evil, no matter how cynical the world becomes. When sports entertainment morphs back into pro wrestling, it will be a cultural phenomenon…again.
