Either as Sugar Shane, The Hurricane, or any name in between, Gregory Helms has always been a favorite of mine. Helms is one of many OMEGA veterans whom I enjoy watching in the ring. It seems the Hardy Boyz are quite adept at training pro wrestlers. Former WWE women’s champion Lita, current TNA star and former MF’er Shannon Moore, and Joey Matthews (a.k.a. MNM’s Joey Mercury) are among Helms’ fellow OMEGA alumni, and favorites of mine.
TODAY’S ISSUE: The Real Gregory Helms
I always believed Gregory Helms truly embraced his opportunity in the WWE after WCW closed down for good. He was ordered to play a silly character, someone who believed he had super-human powers. This was not an easy task to accomplish, but Helms did the one thing you can do with a difficult assignment: he dove into the role as deeply as possible, and made it so camp and funny that it was quite enjoyable to watch.
He eventually settled into his over-the-top superhero gimmick as The Hurricane quite nicely, although the character ensured the glass ceiling for him was permanently stuck at the comedy mid-card level. There was no way he would ever be taken seriously while parading around in a neon green and black superhero costume, spouting stereotypical good-guy phrases and whooshing into rooms like George Reeves did in the 1950s. He even threw in the whole “mild-mannered alter ego” shtick at one point, to really drive home the silliness of his character. His interplay with a heel Rock was fun, however. The Hurricane versus The Scorpion King was entertaining television, if not dramatic pro wrestling.
The superhero gimmick ran it’s course, going as far as it could in the process. He molded Robin-wanna-be Mighty Molly into a typical sidekick, and won the Cruiserweight title on SmackDown! before jumping to RAW in late 2002.
Hurricane got another requisite sidekick in former 3MW member Rosey, now dubbed the S.H.I.T (super hero in training, of course – bravo, Creative Department. That is SO funny!). The duo enjoyed some success, winning the RAW version of the tag-team titles, and later acquiring a female team member, “Super” Stacy Keibler.
However as time went by, it became clear that Helms was starting to lose his passion for playing a comedy act, and generating laughs but not respect. He displayed his frustration at several turns, building to the fateful night in October of 2005, when enough was finally enough. During a battle royal on RAW, Hurricane gave up the superhero gimmick and his friendship with Rosey. Helms declared that from now on, he was only out for himself. This was a strong statement of his new heel status, and it signified a different direction for the former hero. Tearing off the proverbial bandage with one swift move, Helms shed the comedy gimmick and reinvented himself as a serious competitor, and a man who wanted respect.
With RAW being the land of the giants, Helms’ quest for respect seemed unlikely at best on Monday nights. Seizing an opportunity, he emerged as a surprise entrant in the Cruiserweight Open match at the Royal Rumble. Helms won the WWE Cruiserweight championship that night, and the victory completed his transition to the “dark side”. He’s a newly successful heel with a new look, new theme music and a brand new arrogant attitude.
I for one am very happy with this Gregory Helms, and see great opportunity for him in the future. He’s got all the tools to pull off this aggressive, arrogant character who has a large chip on his shoulder.
Speaking of that chip on his shoulder, Helms has been making enemies quickly on the SmackDown! roster. On the February 17th episode, Helms’ big mouth and cocky attitude got him into a lot of trouble. Following his victory and post-match beat down of veteran cruiserweight Scotty 2 Hotty, Helms talked his way right into a dark alley, so to speak. Claiming that none of the other men in the locker room were in his league, Helms attracted the ire of seemingly every other cruiserweight in the back.
Helms was attacked by several other members of the division, being pummeled in succession by devastating maneuvers from London and Kendrick, both Mexicools, Nunzio, Funaki, and Kid Kash. The final humiliation came when Scotty delivered his “deadly” W-O-R-M in retaliation for the beating he took from Helms moments earlier.
Things went from bad to worse for Helms while he was being treated backstage for his injuries. SmackDown! General Manager Theodore R. Long felt the mammoth onslaught he endured from the gang of angry wrestlers just wasn’t enough punishment. Long ordered a match at the No Way Out pay-per-view in which Helms would be forced to defend his coveted gold against all the men who had just pounded him. Eight men would be coming for his gold, all at the same time. Eight men, it’s worth mentioning, who can’t stand his arrogance and want to hurt him. Fun!
Whether he’s friendly with the other cruiserweights or not is irrelevant; this match was certainly not fair for the champ, as the odds were stacked firmly against Helms in this environment. However, he did the only thing he could possibly do with eight men gunning for him at once. He snuck out the back door with the gold, and lived to fight another day. Like a true conniving champ who’s willing to go to any lengths to retain his title, Helms ran and hid, then capitalized on another man’s efforts to win the match. He got out of Dodge with his title, and survived the overwhelming odds.
Good for him, I say. Helms could run with this character for many moons, if Creative sees fit to allow it. I’m happy for his opportunity to play a dastardly heel, and a more serious, dramatic character than his former role. Helms deserves this chance, and with his ability to convincingly play a part, if his efforts as the Emerald Avenger are any indication, he’ll be a fantastic heel champion. Good luck, Champ.
We now return you to your regularly scheduled reality.
p.s. – I was at Home Depot the other day to get a oscillating tool and make some repairs at home, then I noticed an inordinate number of handicapped parking spaces. Exactly how many people who can’t walk the extra 25 yards from standard parking spaces are spending the weekend undertaking home repairs and small construction projects?
