#23: Mark Henry
by Eric
It appears people are finally accepting Mark Henry as a great worker, 4 years after he really started getting awesome. Even your average Shawn Michaels or C.M Punk apologist will admit that Henry is awesome now. I know America's climate changed a lot in 2008. We have a new black president with inexplicably great abdominal muscles, so it could be that America is now just used to the idea of black men with inexplicable abdominal muscles. Maybe Henry never had as great a year as this one because every other year he would get rolling, then would get injured within a month and disappear for 8 months. He's got Tony Atlas to travel with now, keep his diet in check, and keep his training on point, and that must be worth something. His offense has really been fine-tuned, and he has different sets of it depending on the opponent he's working and what part of the body he's working. His selling is what's really gotten spectacular, though, knowing how to realistically stumble into and take offense from people smaller than him, knowing when to cut off comebacks, knowing when to look like a monster, and how to sell vulnerability. It took 10 years, but Henry is an elite worker now.
Recommended 2008 Matches:
~vs. John Cena, 2/11/08 Raw
~vs. HHH, 6/23/08 Raw
~vs. Matt Hardy, 8/19/08 ECW
~w/ Mike Knox vs. Fit Finlay/Matt Hardy, 9/9/08 ECW
~vs. Fit Finlay, 11/4/08 ECW
Career Recommended Matches:
~vs. Booker T, 11/17/03 Raw
~vs. Chris Jericho, 1/12/04 Raw
~vs. Rob Van Dam, 1/26/04 Raw
~vs. Rey Mysterio, 1/20/06 Smackdown
~vs. Undertaker, 2/10/06 Smackdown
~w/ MNM vs. Rey Mysterio/Kurt Angle/Randy Orton, 3/17/06 Smackdown
~vs. Bobby Lashley, 4/28/06 Smackdown
~vs. Chris Benoit, 5/20/06 Smackdown
2009 Outlook:
Great, as long as he stays healthy. I think he has a legitimate chance to be higher in '09, with a few really great performances already under his belt on ECW (vs. Dreamer, great 4-way with Finlay/Miz/Morrison). Somebody gon' get they wig split.
posted by EricR @ 10:29 AM
4 Comments:
A few of those matches...
http://www.youtube.com/view_play_list?p=69084F3F7E7B2D26
i'm a huge fan of the 1/20/06 match from SD! versus Rey.. - Rey and Orton had a tremendous match around that timeframe, too..
Mysterio/Orton was from the 4/7/06 Smackdown and one of my favorite matches of 2006.
One of the coolest things about putting together a list of career Mark Henry matches was seeing all the great TV matches he had in 2006. I really had to whittle that list down, as there were about 10 other matches of his in '06 I could have put on there. 2006 Mark Henry TV matches would make a great comp.
And thanks for the youtube help, Dan. You people should watch ALL the matches he posted.
I can't say enough good things about any of the three matches with Rey in 2006, or the 2/10/06 Undertaker match. If him and Taker had put on that exact same match at Mania that year, I think people would have come around to Henry a lot quicker.
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