10 Times WWE Babyfaces Were Heels Backstage
2. Shawn Michaels
Shawn Michaels had what countless colleagues described has "nuclear" heat in the locker room throughout much of the 1990s, but his tumultuous 1997 remains the peak of his political powers and thus - subversively - the most fascinating to reflect upon two decades later and just weeks ahead of his potential return.
'HBK' was in near-weekly form as a botherer, once flatly telling Bret Hart in front of others that he won't lose to him, before effectively extending it to the entire roster and bragging about it on camera with a "won't lay down for anybody" catchphrase. This came not that long after his infamous "Sunny Days" promo triggered an overdue scrap with 'The Hitman' that saw Hart release a year or so of frustration on his face.
It became more problematic when his in-ring work eclipsed virtually everything else on the show. Michaels' vile side was suddenly splashed across hours of television in the form of the original D-Generation-X. It was deliciously entertaining when it wasn't deeply unpleasant.
Only Stone Cold Steve Austin's inexorable rise could topple a man at the top of his game before some coffin-shaped karma got in there first.