How Good Was 'Hollywood' Hulk Hogan Actually?

Being a heel came naturally to the 'Hulkster' because (being honest) Hogan believed every word he said. If you wanted arrogance, that came naturally to Hollywood. If you wanted a man who would step over his own mother (and yours) to make sure he was considered the best wrestler in the world, then Hogan's your guy. Hulk truly believed he was a God in the world of professional wrestling, so putting a mic in his hands and letting him tell you "you'll never beat the man that made professional wrestling" was authentic, believable bad guy material.

He also believed he was above everyone else. You know the stories, and so you know Terry Bollea under the hood of Hollywood. When he belittled the likes of DDP for not being at the required level, or he declared that Flair was never as big a legend as him and talked up his friendship with Dennis Rodman as being bigger than basketball, he meant it. No matter who or what he was putting down, you know he meant every word with every fibre of his being, and that made him a world-class, galling heel. 

All of his definitive Hollywood work came in WCW, but rewatch his promo when The Rock challenged him to the match at WrestleMania X8 (excellently aided by Jim Ross's disdain-fuelled commentary). Hogan was a master of his craft, comparing himself to Michael Jordan in the heart of Chicago, saying that Andre the Giant weighed 700lbs, and letting everybody know he's the reason that there's even a WrestleMania that they were on the road to.

Whilst he received thunderous boos across his heel years, he kept the Hulkamaniacs concept of calling fans his 'nWo-ites'. It occasionally blurred the line between face and heel, but it helped make the nWo arguably the most popular faction of all time. Sure, the logo and the presentation of the group helped, but Hogan talked the talk as the Don Corleone of the whole operation. 

9/10