Randy Orton is suppose to be a ruthless, cold, calculating, killing machine type of heel. However he is almost always cheered depending on the city, state, and crowd he is in front of. The reason for this, especially in the first few months of 2009 is simple, he was booked as a baby face. After winning the Royal Rumble last year Orton was set to main event Wrestlemania 25 with one of the "three" (Two) champions in WWE. Speculation arose on who he would challenge at the biggest wrestling event of the year, with most fingers pointing at Triple H, which turned out to be the correct guess. Orton started a tirade against the McMahon family, kick Shane, Vince, and ruthlessly DDT'ing Stephanie McMahon in front of her husband. It became clear, Orton didn't care who you were, or where you stood in the company, he was going to kill you. Obviously this would give sympathy to his victims and bring a big pop for the baby face champion to defend the honor of those being destroyed at the hands of this monster. Or would it?
The McMahon Family had been portrayed on television since 1997 as mean spirited, cut throat, do-what-ever-it-takes to stay on top promoters. You know, that dick boss you just hate but stay with the job because it pays well, you like your co-workers, whatever you tell yourself to stop from leaving the company and find work else where. On average 4 million people tune into WWE's Monday Night Raw every week. This number fluxuates over a ten plus year period, but still for over ten years this family has been portrayed as such, with sprinkles of kindness here and there to change it up a bit. But still on the whole, most people believe the McMahons are your classic evil Wrestling promoters who care nothing for their talent and are only interested in making money. So when about 4 million or so people see this every week for ten plus years, and I'd be willing to bet at least half of them hate their boss, me personally I like my current boss, but cant say that I love my old ones. So, to make Randy a cold ruthless killer what do they do?
He totally kills the McMahons, the evil wrestling family who has screwed almost everyone on their roster, and only helped those who are willing to help them. And as with wrestling, we as fans love to live vicariously through the wrestlers. Over eight hours of wrestling are broadcasted in the US every week, more when theirs a pay-per-view. So for about two to eight hours a week we live through these wrestlers, superstars, Gods to some even. Wishing we had the guts to do some of this stuff they do. Sometimes I just want to kick my boss in the head despite the fact that I like him. But that my friends leads to something called Assault. So watching Randy Orton do it to his boss should what? Make me hate him? No! Of course not I love Randy Orton. Especially now. He kicked the head off his boss, who dosent really want to do that?
And Triple H comes to their defence. Protecting the honor of his family, his own wife. Damn it Randy! You just beat the crap out of my evil wrestling family, and I'm going to get you back! Triple H clearly comes off as the heel, mostly because almost anyone who was aligned with the McMahons was a heel. Rock, Austin, Mankind, Shawn Michaels, Triple H, etc. So whose going to get booed? The Guy who kicks the crap out of the evil wrestling promoter, thus living your fantasy of beating up your boss? Or the brown noser, kiss ass, who the boss loves? Yeah that's a classic heel vs face routine, but this time the roles were reversed. Orton was the Heel, Triple H as the babyface. Which seriously made no sense to me at all.
Then to take it to another level. One Monday Night, Orton is at "Home" with his 'wife' talking to the fans via satellite. Then what happens? A ruthless maniac comes barging through the door with a slegehammer in tow trying to not only scare Orton's wife, and I guess his 'staff'? But to hurt Orton even more, get some retribution. Who the hell is suppose to cheer for a crazy man going around a neighbor hood with a weapon, stalking someone? It makes no sense to cheer for such a person unless your watching this show in an asylum. Now it is a cool scene. Which is why it probably got the pop it did, but still. (Side Bar: Wouldn't have been halarious, if Triple H said "Here's Hunter!" when he busted through the door?) I think my point is getting across.
Then comes the match. These two want to destroy each other. No bones about it. They hate each other. You can take out all this context of whose the good guy, whose the bad guy, they want to kill each other. And what happens? They wrestle a complete regular match with a heel finish no less from the 'babyface'. Makes no sense to me. Now, firstly and well, I'll never be in a position to make these decisions, I would've never put that match as the main event, simply because after the Undertaker vs HBK match, that live crowd, and the home crowd probably, were just worn out. After that amazing match, nothing was going to compare. Either way, the two guys who wanted to kill each other but didnt do anything to prove that they did. Much like the Jeff Hardy vs Matt Hardy match earlier that night, (Sidebar 2: Want to see two brothers go at it because ones jealous of the other? Watch Bret Hart vs Owen Hart from Wrestlemania X).
So why is Randy Orton a big babyface? Another thing of note is that he is booked as an "Attitude Era" babyface. He's done some of the same things that guys like Austin and The Rock would do, rebelling against Vince. And WWE fans have been conditioned so hard that this means this guy is a babyface and that this other type of guy is a heel. That is why I believe Randy Orton is one of the biggest babyfaces today. Not a fact, just an opinion.
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