25 Most OUT OF POCKET WWE Attitude Era Moments
10. The Rock Gets Over
Mark Henry took a right kicking in the Attitude Era, good goddamn grief. Cynical whispers suggest that Henry was such a disappointment to Vince - who frankly was an idiot for expecting a rank amateur to get good straight away just because he was enormous - that many attempts were made to bully him into quitting. All of this stuff was gross, and Vince was again only successful in bullying a marginalised community. At one point, it was even “revealed” that Henry had lost his virginity to his sister at eight years old. That’s weird for a supposed punishment. Wouldn’t Vince have been mad into that sort of thing?
Still, it is possible to laugh at Mark Henry, and trust the Rock to get the job done.
Rock was incredible in the autumn of 1998, which is what put his shock heel turn at Survivor Series 1998 over the top. It felt like a real betrayal; just as he was turning face, and letting the people fall in love with him, he let them down. But those couple of months after SummerSlam were fantastic.
In one backstage promo, a still-green Rock was asked about his upcoming match with Henry and his ongoing dispute with Vince McMahon. Rock actually gets a bit flustered, stumbling over his words as he tries to talk up how cool and powerful he is. But then, in a last-gasp save, he realises something: Mark Henry is overweight!
“The Rock is gonna walk out down the people’s aisle, into the people’s ring, and lay the smack down on-a Mark Henry’s fat ass!”
You have to wonder if Rock was not originally going to say that, but felt he had to go there to save the promo. Much funnier if so.