#HWETW Top 10 – Heat

1. “Born Better” Heat – Ric Flair/Brock Lesnar

This is the reserved for the select few good enough to back up the barrage of bullshit they spew or earn the things they get handed to them. There are two types of these performers: The Ric Flairs and Brock Lesnars.

For the Ric Flairs, the legend — almost entirely self-created — is so large that coming within sniffing distance is impressive. Actually hitting that level it as often as he, or Triple H or Randy Orton, do is even more impressive. But what makes them so hateable is how wonderfully they integrate every part of all of the other kinds of heat and become machines expressly created to engender loathing (and a small inkling of jealously/self-hatred) among large crowds of people.

They use the cheapest of heat — calling out the crowd for any number of reasons — and constantly turn their chicken salad into chicken shit, all while  having what are usually the most realistic and intense feuds on the show. And because of that, it’s the power they wield simply by being disproportionately talented that becomes the base of our hate. But what we really hate about them is how they use that power, and more often than not, who they choose to associate with.

They work with people like Vickie Guerrero, Bobby Heenan or Paul Heyman, refusing to give us what we want — less being on our side than them letting our guys do what they want — all so that slightly more easily get exactly what they want at all times.

But, because all most of their actual greatness comes from what they want us to perceive them to be, they often find themselves having a weakness, like a long-term rival that constantly mucks up their plans or at the very least makes their life an order of magnitude or two worse than it needs to be.

People like Brock Lesnar don’t have to worry about those kinds of things. He, and “legit” guys like Kurt Angle or even The Big Show (when given the opportunity), give off an aura of invincibility that they simultaneously project and support. People are afraid of them  not just because they’ve been told to be, but because they’ve been given reason to be.

It’s a step above “monster heel”, though there’s certainly a great deal of Rusev in them too, and something closer to “Sentient Monster Heel” where not only are the barbarians able to rip your arms off and beat you with them, they also did internet research to figure out the best angle to rip your arm off to maximize blood splatter.

They too use guys like Paul Heyman or Bobby Heenan, but function more “symbiotic parasite” relationship: Brock Lesnar doesn’t need Paul Heyman, he needs someone like Paul Heyman and likes Paul Heyman so he uses Paul Heyman. While Brock and Paul are legitimately close in real life, the quickness with which Brock’s character would eviscerate Paul’s character if he felt like it is the stuff that nightmares are made of.

And that’s what makes men like Brock Lesnar emanate the kind of heat that is worth its weight in gold: we are afraid of what life will be like if nobody does anything about them, but can’t possibly think of who could stop them. So, when that person finally comes along, it gives us exactly what we’ve wanted the entire time, the thing we’ve been willing to sit in the oven for: someone new to believe in.

Other examples: Randy Orton, HHH, Kurt  Angle, John Cena

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