10 Times Wrestling Fans Turned On Internet Darlings

6. Triple H

Triple H
WWE.com

The Big Show has turned heel far more often, but never has he straddled such extreme ends of the spectrum, with Motörhead on full blast, as Triple H.

The man has shifted from the destroyer to the saviour of U.S. professional wrestling over the course of a divisive career defined by euphoric highs, catastrophic lows, and mid 25 minute matches playing out to removed silence.

He first earned the ire of the hardcore set by being very bland, less over than his valet, and draping his craven shoulder around the arm of Shawn Michaels, but won them over with his á la mode lowbrow jock antics in 1998. He practised *Lionel Hutz vioce* heel work 101! in 2000 before practising *Lionel Hutz voice* heel work 101 in 2003, a year so awful that his fictional work in the form of a villainous quasi-combat athlete was compared to that of a terrorist.

But he won them back, following a babyface performance he could never hope to replicate in the ring, with his unbelievably great and even wholesome stewardship of NXT, with its heartwarming underdog stories and scintillating in-ring action divorced from the patterned, dull main roster in-house mode.

Then NJPW gained traction in the west, to which he responded by fighting critically acclaimed fire with critically acclaimed fire, reimagining NXT as a glorified banger exhibition league lacking in soul, killing several Indies by thieving their soldiers for the fight.

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Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!