Notes from the Nosebleeds #87
October 16, 2010
By: Matt O’Brien of Wrestleview.com
Since last spring one of the top talents in WWE has been on the sidelines as fans have awaited his return. This individual is one of the most controversial in WWE history because of his relationship with the McMahon family. Of course I am referring to Triple H. After taking some time off and then suffering an injury, fans have experienced a number of months without the Game. Since then the WWE landscape has changed drastically and one must wonder with the impending return of the Cerebral Assassin, what is in store for Triple H upon his return. What follows are a few possible roads WWE could travel with the Triple H character once back on television.
HHH is revealed as Raw’s mystery GM
If it is such a mystery who the Raw GM is, then one would hope that the revelation would be worth the wait. At first, this could have been any big name out there, but over the past several months the mystery GM has built itself its own character. With a character comes limits on just who the GM can be. While there are limitations it can still be exciting. With Triple H now having an official title in the WWE office, making him the GM of Raw could play into that. The problem is that the Triple H character has never before been shy to throw his weight around. Having him hide inside of an email really makes no sense. Should WWE decide to go that route with him, they could drastically play off of his relationship with the McMahon family and take into a new direction they have never done before.
A feud with Sheamus
Since the Celtic Warrior was the one to put him on the sidelines back in April, Triple H returning to resume his rivalry with Sheamus is just logical. The trick becomes not overdoing the feud. In recent years WWE has been guilty of doing rematches to death on pay per view (remember 2008 with Edge-taker and HHH-Orton, or this year with Cena-Batista?). With HHH and Sheamus already having two ppv matches with one another this year, the fans might not stomach more than one more match. A program with Sheamus would effectively slide Triple H back into a prominent role. Looking back at his 2007 return, he really had nothing to come back to and seemed to spend several months before he was involved in a prominent storyline. Whenever a wrestler makes their return, having them slide naturally into a feud makes their presence all the more comfortable and interesting. A feud with Sheamus would be Triple H’s way to accomplish just that.
Have him feud with Nexus
With John Cena now in the ranks of WWE’s top stable they will need someone else to going to war with Nexus while the Cena storyline plays out. HHH fits that role perfectly. He is one of THE veterans in WWE and is returning to find his company run by a band of rookies. One reason Nexus has been believable as being so dominant was because of Wade Barrett’s intuitive mind. His character is smart and manipulative. He was able to take what Chris Jericho taught him and bend it to his will. He and Triple H could play some very interesting mind games.
A heel turn
At this point in his career Triple H does not need to be a heel. Much like Shawn Michaels and Undertaker he is free to ride off onto the sunset as a baby face for his remaining years. Still, HHH’s best days were as a heel. His 2000 run was one of the best a heel has had in the last fifteen years. His run of 2002-2005 became unbearable for many fans, but there was no denying they some if his best days. Like Randy Orton, he is much more intriguing when he is at odds with the crowd. For as many times he has been a face, his most recent run lasting four years, it always feels like his run as a baby never reaches its full potential. It seems like for whatever reason he is just not as effective a baby face as he is a heel.
Since HHH has been gone Raw has become a different world. When he left John Cena was the king of the mountain, now he takes orders from a rookie in Wade Barrett. Instead of Shawn Michaels, Cena, and Batista on top, Sheamus, Nexus, and Miz have been running the show. And of all things his fans now support Randy Orton; the guy who took to him and his family one by one and even put his hands on his wife. There was one character in particular that underwent this same transformation some years back. The 1996 return to WWE of Bret Hart is very similar to the position HHH will find himself in when he comes back. Different people are on top, different people are in control, and with Shawn Michaels retired, his best friend is gone. Bret Hart’s case was different because he dealt with a business he had been in since a kid morph into something he stood against. Bret Hart had more of a cultural war going on. With HHH you have a guy who has been able to manipulate the top for so long yet here he finds himself in a world where punks have taken over his show having not paid their dues the way he had to, yet dominating his business. Triple H would find himself becoming less relevant as WWE focuses on new star. This would undoubtedly cause him great frustration that he would eventually take out on those around him, namely Randy Orton and John Cena as they would be responsible for allowing Raw to become the place it has.
With new talent a lengthy main event run is likely out of the question. WWE could have him in a role where he functions as his character not center stage, yet still a cornerstone of the show. While the above options for HHH are interesting, possibly none of this could happen. Triple H could go back to being a baby face and keep doing what he is doing. He could even end up on Smackdown. Soon we shall all find out when the Game makes his return.
Matt O’Brien
Columnist, Wrestleview.com
mattman5436@yahoo.com