Randy Orton is The Best Heel of My Generation
“Now why would he do that? Randy is so evil I tell you.” This is what my grandfather said to me when he saw Randy Orton kiss Stephanie McMahon back in 2009. Every time I’ve watched Randy Orton in the past 10+ years I’ve been a wrestling fan he’s made me sick. His antics are horrendous and his mindset is appalling. Everything that Randy Orton does is precise and calculated, as expected from a cold SOB such as himself.
But with everything I can say about Orton there’s no denying his greatness. After all, he’s a 14 time world champion for a reason. He’s well-known and immensely respected in the wrestling industry as “that guy”. There’s a reason why when Keith Lee was thrust onto the main event scene, his first feud was Randy Orton, because where Orton goes, attention follows. Randy is decent as a face. In my opinion he’s great as a face because people love him no matter what. I say he’s decent because most people feel as though he cuts sub-par promos and doesn’t give it his all as a fan favorite.
But as a heel? Randy Orton is one of the best heels not only of my generation but of all time. Randy has a way of getting people to hate him with every promo, every movement, his actions in the ring, and his ability to display certain mannerisms every time he’s on camera. The main thing Randy has that a lot of wrestlers don’t have nowadays is creating genuine heat.
The Ages of Orton
Randy has this aura about him that leaves a bad taste in peoples mouths. Back in 2003, Randy was just starting to develop his Legend Killer persona that we know and love today. When Randy was in the ring with The Fabulous Moolah, he didn’t hesitate to step over her on his path to glory. Randy told the audience “This woman is a legend!” garnering cheers from the crowd. He then immediately broke their hearts when he shook her hand and introduced himself saying, “I’m Randy Orton. Legend Killer.” before he blasted an 80 year old woman with a thunderous RKO.
This isn’t the only instance of Randy pulling on the audience’s heart strings by putting someone in harms way. Randy Orton is the same man who punted John Cena’s father while John was handcuffed in the ring. In 2009, Randy Orton was definitely in my opinion the best heel in the business, he was hated by everyone. Orton used Legacy who consisted of his young proteges Ted DiBiase JR. and Cody Rhodes to win that year’s Royal Rumble. He handcuffed Triple H to the turnbuckle during his feud with him. Not only did he give Stephanie McMahon a brutal apron DDT, but he then proceeded to kiss Triple H’s wife right in front of him as she laid unconscious from the beatdown she received.
When a wrestler has a program and the heel is Randy Orton, people are going to tune in because everyone knows the lengths that Randy will go to to make his opponent look like the nicest guy ever, by making himself look like the Devil.
Orton Still Has It
When Edge had his first wrestling match in 10 years, I suspected a Rated RKO reunion was bound to happen. Imagine the look on my face when I saw Randy give Edge an RKO on his surgically repaired neck, then followed it up with a vintage con-chair-to. I was livid! I couldn’t believe Randy caught me slipping again. Then a few weeks later after taking her husband out of commission Randy gives a heart tugging promo to Beth Phoenix, one of the best of his career.
And you know what, call me crazy but his explanation somewhat made sense. He made me believe that by taking Edge out he was helping Edge by sending him back home to take care of his daughters. Randy loves Beth, Edge and their children. He was able to pin Edges problems on to Beth, he blamed her for letting him come back to the WWE. This promo cut by Randy on March 2, 2020 was amazing, and it was a prime Randy Orton we were watching. To end the segment he then gave an RKO to the woman he blamed for all of Edge’s problems. Although a heel, he had the whole crowd chanting RKO before he stormed out of the ring in disgust.
I’ve seen a lot of heels in the WWE. CM Punk, Big Show, Kane, The Miz, Bray Wyatt, Seth Rollins, Drew McIntyre, the list goes on and on. The fact of the matter is that no one has been able to get more heat and a better reaction from the crowd than Randall Keith Orton.
So many memories!