If Bob Holly had it rough with his gimmick and made it work as much as a guy with no push could, Gregory Shane Helms probably had it worse: saddled with a comedy superhero gimmick, and a cruiserweight star to boot, Helms didnt even have the necessary size to benefit him in moving up the ranks. But Helms had and has intelligence, creativity and what Mick Foley used to call testicular fortitude. He threw himself headlong into one of the most hilariously silly gimmicks in history, that of a delusional man who thought he was an invincible superhero, and got over with the crowd for four years, from 2001 to 2005 - even briefly taking on The Rock. When he finally got a break to try a more realistic heel persona, Helms ran with it, onscreen and off, adding size and attitude, and becoming the longest reigning Cruiserweight champion of all time at 385 days, and the longest reigning champion of any kind in Smackdowns history. During his reign Helms upped his game still further, carrying the cruiserweight division on his back practically singlehanded. At two separate points, he was feuding with the lot of them, all at once. Gregory Helms was forced to have major neck surgery for a serious issue with two broken vertebrae pressing on his spinal cord in mid-2007, shortly after dropping the Cruiserweight title. He was out for over a year, never recovering his momentum in WWE. With his talent, promo skills and work ethic, the sky could have been the limit otherwise: had he been working in WWE only a few years later, its entirely possible that he and CM Punk could have spin-kicked through that glass ceiling together.
Professional writer, punk werewolf and nesting place for starfish. Obsessed with squid, spirals and story. I publish short weird fiction online at desincarne.com, and tweet nonsense under the name Jack The Bodiless. You can follow me all you like, just don't touch my stuff.
