Rock's NEW Theme and Titantron

That's awesome! I love how he has one of the weakest finishers in wrestling, yet people go mental when he hits it. OH MY GOD! AN ELBOW DROP!!

Hahaha yeah! And I've never seen anyone kick out of the pin that follows either

Tell that to Hogan...

Why, did he kick out of it at WM18?

Where's Dave?

Not so much the kicking out as the fact that he has a crappy finisher that hardly anybody seemed to get out of.

Hogan and Austin have both kicked out of both the Rock Bottom and the People's Elbow, as have HHH and the Taker.

Just as Rock has kicked out of all their finishers at one point. Nothing says main event match like finishers not being decisive.

But yes, its a pretty poor finish when you think about it, but then quite a few finishing moves over the years have been pretty poor really. The Stunner/RKO/Diamond Cutter isn't a great move that you think "Wow, that would hurt and keep me down for a three!" but its a great finish nonetheless.

For me, the best finishers are the ones that are quick. I don't like the long drawn out one where people have to stay down for a stupid length of time before they get hit - like Hogan's leg-drop or Rock's Elbow. I also think wrestlers should have a finish they can hit on anyone. Taker struggled somewhat in his early years when they put him up against huge guys he couldn't physically tombstone. These days of course with Hells Gate he's got a finish he can slap on anyone.

But I much prefer stuff that can come out of nowhere. That's why the RKO is such a great finisher for Orton. He can hit it from anywhere at any time on anyone, and the sudden strike fits his Viper character perfectly. Michaels also had it right with the superkick. He could do the full version and tune up the band in order to pop the crowd, but he could also hit it from nowhere (see Shelton Benjamin) and end a match.

That's one of the reasons I have it in my characters kit bag. The superkick, I mean. It looks damn good, it works against big men or cruisers, and it's got a sort of realistic edge that a kick to the face could take somebody down. I still remember HBK hitting it on Shelton...now that was a nice move!

That's the same reason I gave Paul Trouble in Paradise. You lose focus for a second, and you've been downed by that awesome spinning kick that Paul calls TTLS (Stands for either Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, or titles with the vowels taken out).

See, I got past that problem of having a finish I could hit on anyone by being the biggest fecker in the company

The biggest, ugliest fecker in CXA has spoken, and we all listened.

Rock's general in-ring work, to me, has always been a bit of a strange condridiction.

On one hand, I never really thought that his moves were ever that effective, or believably devestating looking. But the way he pulls them off, his ring presense, his charisma when pulling them off, and the way that he takes these rather lame and ineffectual moves and puts absolutely 100% of his emotion behind every one of them seems to more than make up for them.

He glides around the ring, he seems to know exactly where to go and what to do. His moves are lame and sloppy, but also so well acted and dripping with emotion that you don't care if his moveset is small, or his moves have more flash than substance because you know he believes it, and they're all so easily sellable.

He's always been a charisma guy, a sports entertainer of the highest regard. Not a technical wrestler, but he hides his shortcomings magnificently by making them appear larger than life.

I think that's the distinction...The Rock has never been a wrestler, he's an entertainer.

Well TBH, I think that sells him a bit short.

Rock is actually a good worker and a good wrestler. OK, I've been as critical as anyone else of his version of the Sharpshooter, and I agree that he doesn't have the technical excellent of a Daniel Bryan. But I always thought he was solid in connecting with what he did in the ring, and made it look effective. Remember also that being a good wrestler is also about how you sell other people's moves, and he's always been excellent at that. I really don't think there's anything wrong with Rock as far as being a wrestler goes. Remember, he was trained by his Dad, who was decent, by Haku, who was himself a good worker, and then polished up by Jerry Lawler down in Memphis, and Lawler is a superb worker. Rock knew his stuff.

Having said that though, I do agree that his real strength was in the entertainment side of the business. He had more charisma than most of the rest of the roster put together, and he was always brilliant at connecting with the crowd. That certainly helped him to be able to do less in the ring and make it mean more, and that's certainly a key factor in a great wrestling performer.

But let's not forget that I also think I have a good point about how Rock EXECUTED his moves.

He throws everything into 100% of his moves. Hes very subtle and yet very extreme in throwing himself head first into every stomp, every rock bottom, every spinebuster, and every elbow he's ever done.

It's the little things he does combined with the big big things he does, like shake his foot when he stomps, paces with that Rock swagger, does his little intricate twitches, closes his eyes, his little focuses, his head turns, every little gesture. The moves themselves might not be great, but that's why he makes every little thing into a beautiful production all it's own.

Combined with how he throws himself completely into every little move he does. The moves themselves might not be much, but good god, you believe every little gesture and every vaulting leap. The man can make even the weakest little jab or armlock somehow seem like the fate of the world depends on it, and that deserves worlds of credit. He could give someone a simple kick to the gut, but it somehow becomes the most emotional kick to the gut he can muster.

One of the greatest wrestlers of all time, definitely.

I was being a little general when I said what I did. I do think that he was better at the entertainment side than the actual move side. On charisma alone he'd get a place in any Hall of Fame I put together. But you're right that he did some solid work in the ring. But he would get the award for the worst Sharpshooter!