If you dont think that Dean Ambrose is being booked as a Stone Cold Steven Austin type of anti-hero, youre missing the boat. Sure, Ambrose is not raging against the boss (yet) or downing beers and flipping off opponents, but he is turning in outstanding, memorable performances week in and week out on Raw. Sad to say, but Roman Reigns hernia might be the best thing that has happened for Ambroses career. Monday night, Ambrose showed off the Brian Pillman part of his character, jumping Seth Rollins in the crowd, ditching John Cena and a tag match for a hot dog, and then returning with a vendor cart in tow. That Loose Cannon persona is quickly resonating with fans and making him a favorite in spite of and possibly because of how different he acts than the rest of the roster. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DODmsJVMFXw&list=PLF0CB8E7B4C77DB61 But the Austin-like moment came as Raw wound down. (No, it wasnt Ambrose using a hot dog cart in the same way that Austin used a beer truck.) Seconds after the Authority announced that Cena and Ambrose would square off at Hell in a Cell for the right to face Rollins in the cell, Ambrose spun Cena around and hit a vicious double-arm DDT, spiking his head into the mat. It was a pure Austin Dont Trust Anyone moment, and the fans erupted. Now, try that again outside of the smark-filled crowd in New York City and see if it gets the same reaction. If it does, then you know youre onto something.
Scott is a former journalist and longtime wrestling fan who was smart enough to abandon WCW during the Monday Night Wars the same time as the Radicalz. He fondly remembers watching WrestleMania III, IV, V and VI and Saturday Night's Main Event, came back to wrestling during the Attitude Era, and has been a consumer of sports entertainment since then. He's written for WhatCulture for more than a decade, establishing the Ups and Downs articles for WWE Raw and WWE PPVs/PLEs and composing pieces on a variety of topics.
