LogFAQs > #941953079

26. Mick Foley
Score: 74
# of Lists: 7
Highest Vote: tennisboy, 4th

or Mankind, or Cactus Jack, or Dude Love. Theres nobody in wrestling more famous for their multiple characters than the Three Faces of Foley. But what makes him an all time great, and what makes all those characters work, is Mick Foleys ability to connect with the audience. What natural talents Mick lacked, he made up for with heart and a willingness to have ridiculous shit done to him, whether intended or not.

Hed begin his career as Cactus Jack (Manson), the violent psychopath that would play right into the style Foley would be known for as well as fitting right in to several territories at the time noted for their chaotic, wild brawls first World Class in Texas, and later Tri-State an early version of what would become ECW. After a trio of matches in one night with Eddie Gilbert got some national attention, he would sign full time with WCW in 1991.

In WCW he would begin to develop the character in earnest adding his Bang Bang! catchphrase to what would eventually become a significant repertoire and he entered a program with Sting, where he has what Foley would consider his best match for several years. Shortly after the Sting match, though, Cactus Jack would enter perhaps his most memorable and infamous feud with Big Van Vader.
Vader and Cactus immediately got off to a violent start their first match ended in a countout, and their second was an angle where Vader legitimately knocked Cactus unconscious with a powerbomb on exposed concrete. When Cactus returned, they would face off again in a Texas Death Match a match so violent WCW refused to book the two together on PPV again. Unfortunately for Foley, they still didnt hold back the next time they were in the ring together in Europe where Foley tore off most of his ear by getting caught in the ropes, and Vader finished the job, tearing it off his head himself. Foley, of course, finished the match and refused surgery to have it reattached as it would have cost him winning the Tag Titles. Not the smartest, but this is wrestling Im here for big dumb tough guys.

Losing the ear is a legendary moment but it led to the end for him in WCW frustrated with Bischoffs refusal to work a program around his lost ear, he would depart the promotion in 94 and work in Japan (where hed get to wrestle his idol, Terry Funk) and around the US most notably in ECW. Its here he would really exhibit his range as a character, giving his famous Cane Dewey promo and scalding the crowd for their love of hardcore wrestling. Despite his extremely contentious relationship with the ECW fans during his run, for his final match there they showered him with love and begged him not to go to the WWF.

In the WWF, though, Foley would easily reach his greatest heights. Of course, it was 1996 WWF, so Cactus Jack would not fly here (in March, at least). Foley would introduce his newest character, Mankind the tortured soul who resided in the boiler room. The Mankind character was, from day one, attached to The Undertaker and what a stroke of genius that was, because the two had amazing chemistry. Mankind would have some of the first legitimately good matches of Takers career through 96, before receiving a title match against Shawn Michaels at Mind Games. That match is not just the best of Foleys career, its one of the gems of 90s WWF as a whole.
As WWF entered the Attitude Era, all three of Foleys personas adding in his childhood fantasy character, Dude Love would become major parts of that shift. Engaging in programs with all of the top stars of the time Austin, Rock, Triple H, and always being around McMahon produced more memorable moments than I can detail here. But the one moment I will detail is when he once again ends up across the ring or, in this case, Cell from The Undertaker. Maybe the most replayed clip in wrestling history, Undertaker throwing Mankind from the top of the Cell is as iconic as moments in wrestling get. You add in Foley not only getting up from that, but from a second, unplanned fall THROUGH the Cell and Foleys absolute willingness to do anything for the love of the crowd comes right back to the forefront.

That same willingness wouldnt just manifest in crazy hardcore matches and bumps though Foley really would do anything for the crowd, and as his wrestling career (somewhat) wrapped up in 2000 and he moved into the GM role, Foley would continue to exhibit that same trait in having no shame whatsoever about getting the cheapest pops imaginable. Still, at that point Mick Foley had earned it. He was one of the most believable performers in an era of wrestling that was still plastered with cartoonishness whether as a violent psychopath or a sympathetic underdog, Foley was able to get you to feel what he felt almost effortlessly. The secret, it turns out, is really feeling it.

https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x3fv5u9; Cactus Jack vs. Triple H (January 23, 2000)
https://www.dailymotion.com/video/xlmsec; Mankind vs. Shawn Michaels (September 22, 1996)
https://www.dailymotion.com/video/xzod1g; Cactus Jack vs. Big Van Vader (October 24, 1993)

25. Sting
Score: 78
# of Lists: 7
Highest Vote: malyg, 4th

(Guest writeup: War)

There are people who will say WCW was defined by Ric Flair. There are people who will say WCW was defined by the New World Order. These people are wrong. WCW, through the best and the worst, had one person who was, unquestionably, The Man. The Man called Sting. When people left WCW, or returned, or simply left the business, Sting remained. Perhaps the most shocking part about Sting is that he wasn't made by a victory. Sting was made by a 45 minute draw with Ric Flair at the first Clash of the Champions, and he never looked back. From that moment, he was the hero of WCW. There have been many heroes in wrestling who were loved. Sting was more than that. He was revered.

Sting and Ric Flair's feud would carry throughout the years. Nearly every match followed the same formula, and nearly every match was fantastic at bringing out the absolute best out of both men. Sting's crushing at the hands of the unstoppable Vader was just as fantastic. There are few wrestlers that define babyface, and even fewer do it as well as Sting.

Perhaps Sting's greatest babyface trait was his belief in others. He was always willing to give people the benefit of the doubt, and sometimes it worked out. Sometimes it led to him being betrayed, and one time it led to one of the greatest gimmick changes of all time. Some fans use this to insult Sting, but isn't an important trait of a hero the ability to forgive, to believe the best in the people around them? Wrestling, and the world, needs more Stings.

https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x7diwsm; Sting vs. Big Van Vader (December 28, 1992)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=80tkrqXyJC4; Sting vs. Ric Flair (March 27, 1988)

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Maniac64