| 1 | [[quoteright:320:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ultimate_warrior.png]] |
| 2 | [[caption-width-right:320:"'''THE FAMILY THAT I LIVE FOR ONLY BREATHES THE AIR THAT SMELLS OF COMBAT!!'''"]] |
| 3 | |
| 4 | ->''"No WWE talent becomes a legend on their own. Every man's heart one day beats its final beat. His lungs breathe their final breath. And if what that man did in his life makes the blood pulse through the body of others and makes them believe deeper in something larger than life, then his essence, his spirit, will be immortalized by the story tellers, by the loyalty, by the memory of those who honor him and make the running the man did live forever. '''''YOU! -- YOU! -- YOU! -- YOU!''''' You are the legend makers of Ultimate Warrior."'' |
| 5 | -->-- '''The Ultimate Warrior's final promo''', ''Wrestling/WWERaw'', [[http://www.wwe.com/videos/2014-wwe-hall-of-famer-ultimate-warrior-speaks-raw-april-7-2014-26222865 April 7, 2014]] |
| 6 | |
| 7 | Warrior (born James Brian Hellwig; June 16, 1959 – April 8, 2014), best known by his WWF ring name '''The Ultimate Warrior''', was one of the most famous names of ProfessionalWrestling from the late '80s and early '90s thanks to an uncanny and unprecedented [[AscendedExtra meteoric rising to fame]]. Best-known for his appearances in Wrestling/{{WWE}}, where he had his most famous matches, first defeating [[Wrestling/HonkyTonkMan The Honky Tonk Man]] for the [[https://www.wrestling-titles.com/wwe/ic.html WWE Inter Continental Heavyweight Championship]] at ''[[Wrestling/SummerSlam Summerslam '88]]'' and then Wrestling/HulkHogan for the [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/wwe/wwe-h.html WWE World Heavyweight Championship]] at ''Wrestling/WrestleMania VI''. Back then he was seen as the next big legend of wrestling, the next Hogan, so to speak. His gimmick is bit hard to describe but, put simply, he's an [[MagicalNativeAmerican incomprehensible new-age nut]] who acts as sort of spirit channel for [[PowersViaPossession various great warriors across history.]] |
| 8 | |
| 9 | Unfortunately, he became infamous for being somewhat of a {{Cloudcuckoolander}} in RealLife, having legally changed his name from Jim Hellwig to Warrior in order to use it outside the WWE, his short-lived [[ComicBook/{{Warrior}} comic book]] containing bizarre imagery and WallsOfText, his disastrous run in Wrestling/{{WCW}} in the late '90s, again feuding with Hogan in what is now seen as one of the worst pay-per-view matches in the history of pro wrestling, and his nonsensical promos. |
| 10 | |
| 11 | On January 13, 2014, he was finally announced as a WWE Hall of Fame inductee. Sadly, he passed away on April 8, 2014, a few days after being inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame, with his last appearance on ''Raw'' the day before his death. |
| 12 | |
| 13 | ---- |
| 14 | !!'''"LOAD THIS SPACESHIP WITH THE ROCKET FUELS... LOAD IT WITH THE TROPES AND GET READY TO EMBRACE DESTRUCITY, DUDE!!!"''' |
| 15 | |
| 16 | * TenMinuteRetirement: The Ultimate Warrior came out of retirement to do a one time only match in 2008 for the independent Italian wrestling promotion Nu-Wrestling Evolution (NWE) against Orlando Jordan before he went on to Wrestling/{{TNA}}. |
| 17 | * EightiesHair: When he first appeared on WWF TV, he had a pure eighties HairMetal mullet bigger than most wrestlers. |
| 18 | * NinetiesAntiHero: Hogan himself has described him as "a good guy character with a maniacal edge". |
| 19 | * AbortedArc: |
| 20 | ** Warrior's suspension in 1991 forced a high-profile storyline between himself and [[Wrestling/JakeRoberts Jake "The Snake" Roberts]] to be dropped. |
| 21 | ** For whatever the reason, [=WCW=] never booked Warrior and Wrestling/{{Sting}} in a match sans one single solitary time as tag partners. [[note]]To put things in perspective, both met back when they started as bodybuilders, then went to the business at the same time and with the same people (Rick Bassman, mainly), forming a relatively obscure TagTeam called ''"The Freedom Fighter"/"Blade Runners"''[[/note]]. Surprisingly enough (for Warrior, that is), even when they were apparently not on the best of terms, there didn't seem to be any bad blood between them both. |
| 22 | * ActionFashionista: He started sporting quite cool jackets once in a while every time he ran down the aisle. Starting in '96, Warrior encased himself in a different BadassLongcoat each time, airbrushed with his trademark style imagery and looks. |
| 23 | * AdamWesting: |
| 24 | ** Warrior's commercial for ''WWE 2K14'' had him acting as an over-the-top parody of himself. |
| 25 | ** In his last promo on ''Raw'', he seemed well-aware of how popular his skronk had become. |
| 26 | ** In ''Ultimate Warrior: The Ultimate Legend'', he jokingly refers to his segments as "the interviews nobody could understand". |
| 27 | * AffectionateNickname: He called his child fans "Little Warriors". |
| 28 | * AllAmericanFace: [[SubvertedTrope Subverted]]. Probably the closest thing to an AudienceAlienatingEra that Hellwig had. No fanfare, no change in personality: he just showed up to the '91 Royal Rumble wearing red, white, and blue tights, tassles, boots and facepaint. At the time, Warrior was being pushed as the next Main Eventer--substitute "Hulkamania runs wild" for "trembling and [[http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m3dq5lZXS91r324lio1_400.gif chanting to the wrestling gods]]"--so somebody upstairs gave him a makeover he didn't need. |
| 29 | * AlternateCompanyEquivalent: |
| 30 | ** A [=WCW=] wrestler, Rick Wilson A.K.A. "The Renegade", was this to the [=WWF=]'s Warrior. The northern promotion sent a cease-and-desist letter to Atlanta because of this, they would eventually fire him once the real Warrior showed up there. Several months after he was fired, Rick [[CriticalExistenceFailure committed suicide]]. |
| 31 | ** He got the receiving end precisely in WCW, for he was turned into a somehow "Mystic" character since his very role was already taken by the sort of a SpiritualSuccessor of his: Wrestling/{{Goldberg}}. |
| 32 | * AnimalMotif: [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thunderbird_(mythology) The Thunderbird]], considered the "powergiver" amongst several Native American cultures. It was all over Warrior's imagery, not just in his [[ThisMeansWarpaint war paint]] but as a ChestInsignia from time to time. |
| 33 | * {{Angrish}}: Seriously, listen to ''any'' of his interviews and try to wonder what the hell he's saying. |
| 34 | * ArchEnemy: ...oh boy! Where do we start from? |
| 35 | ** In {{kayfabe}}, [[Wrestling/RickRude "Ravishing" Rick Rude]], [[Wrestling/RandySavage "Macho Man" Randy Savage]] and Wrestling/TheUndertaker. Ironically, he got along fine with and professed respect for them three in later shoot interviews. |
| 36 | ** In RealLife: |
| 37 | *** [[Wrestling/VinceMcMahon Vince [=McMahon=]]]. According to a ''MLW'' interview, Hellwig actually ''admired'' Vince as a businessman, didn't blame him for what happened, and had no ill will towards him. The problem was (according to him, at least) that both stood in each other's way to make a profit out of the Warrior's character. Their hatred apparently had weakened enough for Warrior to take his rightful place in the WWE Hall of Fame. |
| 38 | *** Warrior also didn't appreciate what [[Wrestling/TedDiBiase Ted [=DiBiase=]]] said about him in ''The Self-Destruction of the Ultimate Warrior'' and ripped into him. [=DiBiase=] has since expressed regret he couldn't make it to ''Wrestling/WrestleMania XXX'' and make peace with Warrior in person. |
| 39 | *** Wrestling/TheIronSheik at one point too. It was later revealed, after Ultimate Warrior passed away, by Sheik himself in an Instagram video that it was all a work and he had nothing but love for him. |
| 40 | *** On his Series/DarkSideOfTheRing's episode, Wrestling/EricBischoff, Wrestling/JimRoss and Wrestling/JimCornette expressed unanimously that he was the very worst and most under-developed wrestler they had to deal with in the business. Ross even mockingly said that Hellwig had it all to be a superstar except for in-mat chops or talent, and that to convey your ideas to him was a complete waste of time. |
| 41 | *** Wrestling/BobbyHeenan had absolutely no love for Warrior either. He was by far his most vicious critic in ''Self-Destruction''. Given the fact that Warrior was reckless with Bobby in the ring, to the point where he clubbed Heenan in the back of the neck so hard he actually broke Bobby's neck (And reportedly never bothered to apologize.) You'll see Heenan take a shot at the man every now and then. Once, during an interview with Website/{{WrestleCrap}}, RD Reynolds asked Heenan about Warrior. Heenan told Reynolds to bring the microphone with him and lead Reynolds into a bathroom. He asked Reynolds to say Warrior's name again and once he did Heenan flushed a toilet repeatedly he stated: |
| 42 | --->"...and [[ExcrementStatement that's what I think]] of that man!" |
| 43 | *** Wrestling/JakeRoberts for costing him what could be his first and most important shot for the Heavyweight title, Stating even that he beared a deep, bitter grudge for Hellwig for years. |
| 44 | *** ...and (For whatever the reason) exactly at the top of his shit list there was a certain [[Wrestling/HulkHogan HOAK HOGAN!!!]]. |
| 45 | ** In short, during his career his only worst enemy... was himself. |
| 46 | * TheAtoner: During his WWE Hall of Fame appearance, he sought out many of his peers that he had real life issues with in the past (e.g. Jake Roberts, Ted [=DiBiase=], Kevin Nash, etc.) mending fences with them. Right after, and having what was by all accounts a very good time in New Orleans, Warrior goes on to give a great speech at the following night's ''Raw''. Less than 24 hours later, he passes away from a sudden heart attack. |
| 47 | * '''BecomingTheMask''': It's generally believed that at some point, Jim Hellwig lost his original self to the Ultimate Warrior persona, thus why he kept the eye mask as long as he could. |
| 48 | * TheBerserker: During his matches, he would often enter a berserker rage and proceed to [[UnstoppableRage beat the ever-loving crap out of his opponent]]. Sometimes, he would even ''begin'' the match in a berserker rage; one match versus Macho Man lasted only a couple of minutes because the Warrior charged into the ring and proceeded to beat the crap out of Savage even before the bell rang. Within two minutes, Savage was so demoralized that he fled back to the locker room, causing the Warrior to win by countout. |
| 49 | * BittersweetEnding: After decades as a punch line, Warrior would finally gain the respect he had sought by entering the WWE Hall of Fame... and less than a week later he was dead, dying young as he always expected he would. His speech to celebrate his induction became recognized as him delivering his own eulogy. |
| 50 | * BoisterousBruiser: A loud blowhard with NoIndoorVoice, except he almost never loses wrestling matches, all that screaming was just part of his appeal. |
| 51 | * BullyingADragon: On ''The Self-Destruction Of The Ultimate Warrior'', Bobby Heenan tells an amusing antecdote about how, in his feud with Wrestling/AndreTheGiant, he would run at Andre as fast as he could and slam him with a clothesline much harder than he needed to. Eventually Andre got sick of it and shot on the Warrior- holding up his fist and hitting Warrior right between the eyes as he ran in for the clothesline. After that, Warrior was apparently so dazed that he would barely touch Andre in their matches. |
| 52 | * TheCameo: ''Attacks the Amazon'' in ''VideoGame/AbobosBigAdventure''. |
| 53 | * CaptainErsatz: |
| 54 | ** Ultimate Warrior did not face any Japanese wrestlers but after WWF did some cross promotional shows with Wrestling/{{All Japan|ProWrestling}}, Wrestling/{{New Japan|ProWrestling}} and Germany's Super World Sports, Human Entertainment gave him one in ''Videogame/FireProWrestling'': '''Astro Blaster'''. |
| 55 | ** '''Abadede''' from the ''VideoGame/StreetsOfRage'' saga is heavily based on him. |
| 56 | * CharacterFilibuster: The Warrior's trademark. He derailed his own WCW debut show for talking twenty four minutes longer than he was supposed to in his promo. |
| 57 | * '''{{Cloudcuckoolander}}''': As his former wife Shari Tyree stated bursting in tears: |
| 58 | -->"...it was all short-lived, because literally like two months after (''Wrestlemania VI'') Jim Hellwig left and Ultimate Warrior came home." |
| 59 | * ClusterFBomb: |
| 60 | ** Previews for ''"The Warrior Show"'', an attempted television show where he put metalcore bands (such as Asking Alexandria and I See Stars) through rigorous training, were edited in a way that showed him constantly swearing. |
| 61 | ** [[InvertedTrope Inverted]] if you hear him say ''[[TotallyRadical "Foke"]]''... meaning being in a perpetual state of ''focus'', and not... [[NotWhatItLooksLike you know!]] |
| 62 | * CulturedWarrior: Sort of. He invented an entire philosophy out of whole cloth- ''Destrucity''. It is both elegant in it's simplicity, and baffling in it's complexity. |
| 63 | * DeadpanSnarker: Though occasionally, the veil dropped. |
| 64 | -->'''Warrior''': HISTORY TELLS US, HOGAN....\ |
| 65 | '''Crowd''': Hogan sucks!\ |
| 66 | '''Warrior''': ...let's talk about something he doesn't know! |
| 67 | * DefeatingTheUndefeatable: |
| 68 | ** He was the one who ended [[Wrestling/HonkyTonkMan The Honky Tonk Man's]] record 64-week reign as Intercontinental Champion. |
| 69 | ** He's one of the few wrestlers to hold a clean win over Hogan. At ''[=WrestleMania=]'', no less. |
| 70 | ** Besides of this, that was his quest when he asked for Jake The Snake's help against The Deadman. |
| 71 | * DemotedToExtra: Many of his peers as Wrestling/BretHart have said they believe Vince had every intention to put the title back on Hogan by ''Wrestlemania VII'' one way or another. Warrior's big victory was more about Vince getting an advantage in his bidding war with The Hulkster by proving that he could get the latter to [[{{Jobber}} job]][[note]]It worked out way too fine 15 years later at WM XIX ''[[HoistByHisOwnPetard ....for Hogan!]]''[[/note]]. The half-assed manner in which they booked Warrior afterward may lend credence to that. |
| 72 | * DivergentCharacterEvolution: Before they split, he and Sting were a pair of interchangeable big guys/pretty boys, who evolved into a Road Warriors ripoff. After they broke up, they eventually became two of the most distinct characters in wrestling, with very little in common except a penchant for facepaint. |
| 73 | * DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything: During his promo quoted above, Warrior kept motioning his arms as if he was doing pelvic thrusts at the camera. Between that and his talks of how he would "keep coming" and would "swell" really big it sounded, whether he wanted it to or not, like he's describing how he gets an erection. |
| 74 | ** "...feeling the injection from the gods above" stands as the worst ever. |
| 75 | * DoNotCallMePaul: He legally changed his name to "Warrior". |
| 76 | * DrugsAreBad: He never took a test while employed by the WWE, but he's been accused of using steroids throughout his career. He almost certainly did, especially since Sting confessed to using them until 1990 and the two broke into the business together. |
| 77 | * DudeWheresMyRespect: The notorious [=WWE=] compilation, ''The Self-Destruction of the Ultimate Warrior'', who chafed at Warrior retaining the trademark to his stage name (among other things). It's basically a 90-minute hatchet job, interspersed with [[TheWarOnStraw glowing praise for Vince]] and for his patient benevolence throughout the Hellwig affair. |
| 78 | ** He finally got the respect that deserved when he was the first inductee into the 2014 class of the WWE Hall of Fame. |
| 79 | ** WWE has also stopped selling ''Self-Destruction'' on their shop and replaced it with ''Ultimate Warrior: The Ultimate Collection'', which is a compilation featuring Warrior in a much more positive light. |
| 80 | * DumbassHasAPoint: Shortly after Wrestling/RandySavage's departing, Hogan gave an interview about him, their rocky friendship and the details of the marriage to Wrestling/MissElizabeth, including how paranoid and protective Randy was of her. Warrior responded with a vlog that, predictably, rambled through the point, pointing out that Hogan airing the sordid details of his friend's failed marriage was certainly a dick move, ''especially'' on the heels of [[NeverSpeakIllOfTheDead the man's untimely demise]]. |
| 81 | * DyingMomentOfAwesome: His surprisingly intelligible promo the night before his death, essentially having this message: "I wouldn't have been this star if it wasn't for the fans. Even after death my fire will live on within you." In essence and maybe unbeknownst even to him, Warrior gave his FinalSpeech that fans will always remember, because he was performing his own eulogy. |
| 82 | * {{Expy}}: His TagTeam with Wrestling/{{Sting}}, ''"The Freedom Fighters/Blade Runners"'' were very much modeled on [[Wrestling/TheRoadWarriors LOD]]. |
| 83 | * {{Face}}: He was ''never'' a {{Heel}} in the WWF. Reportedly, they planned on turning him heel in the summer of 1992 but Warrior vetoed it. |
| 84 | * FacialMarkings: His trademark facepainted mask symbol. It originally was on Warrior's right cheek, then the symbol was painted as a mask shape around his eyes, which then stuck with his persona. |
| 85 | * FakingTheDead: According to one interview with Wrestling/PaulBearer, in preparation for one such memorable ''[[TalkShowWithFists Funeral Parlor]]'' segment, Paul and Wrestling/TheUndertaker and the others had to remove the airtight rubber seal from the lid of the casket they had bought and decorated and drill holes in said lid to allow breathable space inside, so in that manner Warrior would not suffocate when they locked him in the casket. Which explains that once inside, Warrior would tear up the coffin for show before closing his eyes and calmly relaxing in order to create the apparition of a DisneyDeath when the casket was unlocked and opened. Warrior must have been very good in convincing his rescuers and everyone involved that he was OnlyMostlyDead, giving them quite a scare (before the administration of CPR, of course). |
| 86 | * FamilyMan: It's been stated that once the man known as Warrior winded up a fatherly figure himself, he came to terms with most of his insecurities, thus quenching the demons that tormented him during his life for good. |
| 87 | * FinishingMove: Much like Hogan's ''Atomic Leg Drop'', Warrior adapted a fairly basic maneuver, the BoringButPractical ''Jumping Splash'' to a grounded opponent off a rope run as his . Needless to say, he did carry that championship so one must say it worked. The fact that the splash was often (But not always) preceded by a ''Gorilla Press Drop'' probably helped, too. |
| 88 | * FiveMovesOfDoom: A punch/kick, two rebounding clotheslines, jumping shoulder block/gorilla press slam, and the running splash. |
| 89 | ** After his return in '92, he sub the gorilla press for the jumping shoulder block completely for some reason. |
| 90 | * {{Foil}}: To Hulk Hogan- an intense and charismatic power wrestler with a ''very'' limited technical skill but huge crowd support. They even had similar move-sets by then, and Warrior's look was in many ways an exaggeration of Hogan's long hair, tanned skin and body-builder physique. |
| 91 | * {{Forgiveness}}: The Warrior achieved maybe the most difficult feat in his life-time during his inception to the WWE HOF. |
| 92 | * TheGrinch: Something must have really traumatized him on Christmas as a kid for him to create something as horrifying as [[http://www.i-mockery.com/minimocks/warrior-xmas/ THIS]]! '''WARNING''': Not for the faint of heart. |
| 93 | * HeelFaceTurn: In Dallas as "Dingo Warrior" and he never looked back, working obsessively as a {{Face}} for the rest of his career. |
| 94 | ** His homophobic ramblings may potentially be considered a heel turn though. |
| 95 | * HiddenDepths: |
| 96 | ** Jim Hellwig was a trained and licensed chiropractor, able to heal spinal columns as easily as he turned them to powder. |
| 97 | ** He had an outside career as a conservative lecturer. [[http://www.ultimatewarrior.com/Media/FullBlownPostsandComm/WarrioronQueerStudies.html Yes, really]]. Hence, you can call him "[[BadassTeacher Professor Warrior]]". |
| 98 | ** At his ''Ringside Collectibles'' shoot interview, everybody who first looks for it expected to see an incoherent, demented person rambling about WWE, [=McMahon=], and Hogan. They're surprised at a guy that actually speaks clearly and coherently, bringing up many interesting facts like his early friendship with Sting and his very early matches with one of [[Wrestling/VonErichFamily wrestling's most tragic dynasties]], having some, if not many, fond memories about his career. |
| 99 | * HonorBeforeReason: A very sad case of TruthInTelevision: |
| 100 | -->'''Shari Tyree''': Jim's greatest downfall of all time was his inability to see things from somebody else's perspective. He just always thought that his way was the right way. |
| 101 | * '''HotBlooded''': '''Very!!!''' |
| 102 | -->'''Warrior''': ''(shaking his head rapidly)'' AWWWWWWWWWWWWWW YOU CAN FEEL IT, DUDES! |
| 103 | * IconicItem: For one, there's his arm tassels, which in the [[ComicBook/{{Warrior}} comic book series]] is described as "[[InsistentTerminology belief banners]]" ...and fringes... TASSELS AND FRINGES EVERYWHERE! |
| 104 | * InsistentTerminology: '''JIM HELLWIG''', his own name, on his ''DSOTR'' episode. As if all of them were keen on trying to remember ''him'' for who he really was. |
| 105 | * InvincibleHero: The Warrior's career in the WWF was this personified. At first, Warrior was everything Vince loved in a wrestler at the time (insanely ripped, unique promo style, lots and lots of energy) and was built up as the next generation's Hogan. Warrior rarely ever lost and when he did, it was pretty much never cleanly. He ended the IC championship reign of The Honky Tonk Man (the title's longest ever), beat the likes of André and Hogan, capping it off by completely no-selling Wrestling/TripleH´s finisher. Chances are this treatment helped turn him into the person everyone knows after. |
| 106 | * IHaveManyNames: Jim "Justice" Hellwig, Blade Runner Rock, Dingo Warrior, the Ultimate Warrior, the Warrior. |
| 107 | * {{Irony}}: After being dumped by WCW, Warrior didn't have another match until 2008. The match was with the Italy-based Nu-Wrestling Evolution against Jordan, giving us a fight between "Mr. ''Queering doesn't make the world work''", and the man who would a few short years later be [[DepravedBisexual sexually assaulting his way through both genders]] in TNA. |
| 108 | * '''LargeHam''': '''IN SPADES!!!''' |
| 109 | -->'''[[https://franticplanet.wordpress.com/2014/04/09/always-believe-warrior-1959-2014/ Stuart Millard]]''': His 100% commitment to the character is what made a snarling, facepainted maniac with neon tassels on his biceps spitting black metal poetry monologues and shaking the ropes completely believable. |
| 110 | * LegacyCharacter: [[DownplayedTrope Downplayed]]. He would often try to claim that he and his opponent du jour (usually Hogan), were the latest in a long line of champions/heroes/spiritual avatars/whatever representing two sides in an ancient conflict. Needless to say, they weren't. |
| 111 | * LightningBruiser: Mostly out of necessity; because of his habit of running full-tilt into the ring during his entrance, he would be too out-of-breath to have a protracted match. Incidentally, his average match was over in barely 6 minutes, you'll notice that even the most bloodthirsty "berserker" characters nowadays make a habit of ''walking'' down to the ring. |
| 112 | * '''LostInCharacter''': He was notorious for coming up with some extremely bizarre promos during his run as a wrestler where he would talk about powers he could tap into and strength he could summon. However, there was a twinge of this that could also be glimpsed particularly in his [[RealLife post-wrestling career exploits]]. |
| 113 | * MagicalNativeAmerican: Although at times he sounded more like a MilesGloriosus with a KnightTemplar's edge, that's possibly the best way we have to describe his gimmick. Furthermore, it's in his [[MeaningfulName name]], [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin right?]] |
| 114 | * MeaninglessMeaningfulWords: It's a mystery why no one has yet published a coffee table book entitled ''The Wit and Wisdom of the Ultimate Warrior''. |
| 115 | -->'''[[http://www.ddtdigest.com/updates/1999062m.htm DDT]]''': Randy Savage is in trouble. When he gets on the mic, I actually find myself thinking things like "I really wish {{Wrestling/WCW}} would hire the Warrior back so we could get some interviews that make an ounce of sense on occasion." |
| 116 | ** Wrestling/ChrisJericho once described his reaction to Warrior's promos as this: |
| 117 | -->"I don't really know what he just said, but I think it sounded cool, so yay!" |
| 118 | ** Similarly, in 1999, Warrior posted a statement on his website about him supposedly joining Wrestling/{{ECW}}. |
| 119 | -->'''Wrestling/PaulHeyman''': "I don't know what to say, because after reading what he wrote, I don't know what he said!" |
| 120 | * MirrorMonster: WCW tried to give him these powers. Unfortunately, their specials effects department weren't up to the task. TNA would later duplicate the trick to less critical derision with [[Wrestling/KatarinaWaters Winter]]. |
| 121 | * MuscleAngst: Tier 1, most likely one of the many reasons Warrior ended up as he did. According to the episodes related to him on ''A&E Bio'' and ''DSOTR'', he used to be a scrawny, insecure little kid who by the time he reached high-school, weighted barely 140 lbs. |
| 122 | * MusclesAreMeaningful: He was a bodybuilder before he got into wrestling, Hellwig and Borden (Sting) had [[OddFriendship previous history together]] working in ''Gold's Gym'' and then forming a TagTeam, thus entering to the business. And while working singles in WCCW as "The Dingo Warrior", he got a BearHug on '''[[Wrestling/AbdullahTheButcher ABDULLAH THE BUTCHER!!!]]''' |
| 123 | * NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: Would you want to face a man simply dubbed "The Ultimate Warrior" in combat? |
| 124 | * NeverSpeakIllOfTheDead: Warrior was a divisive figure in life to say the least, but after his untimely demise, there has been a noticeable softening of opinion around him, including on Website/ThisVeryWiki. For example, Wrestling/TripleH spent much of ''"Self- Destruction"'' DVD blaming his squash at the Warrior's hands at ''Wrestlemania'' on the latter's backstage politicking, but backtracked and later considered it an honor to work with him. |
| 125 | ** The fact that he spent much of his hall of fame weekend making a conscious effort to mend some bridges and make peace with a lot of people he was at odds with[[note]]INCLUDING [[EnemyMine HOGAN]]!!![[/note]] no doubt has a lot to do with this. Ted [=DiBiase=], one of Warrior's biggest critics on the Self Destruction DVD, utterly laments the fact that he never got the chance to speak with Warrior that weekend. |
| 126 | * NinjaPirateZombieRobot: Beyond being a big guy who beat people up in a berserker rage, it's difficult to pin down exactly what the Warrior character was supposed to be, especially since it was almost impossible to understand his promos; at various times he seemed to claim to be an alien, an ancient mystical warrior or some kind of superhero. Or perhaps it was intentionally a mix of all three, something akin to a really coked out version of Marvel Comics' [[Characters/MarvelComicsThorOdinson "The Mighty Thor"]]. |
| 127 | * NoSell: Much like Hogan, Warrior made a career out of no selling even the most powerful moves used against him. One of them was [[MadeOfIron IMMEDIATELY STANDING UP AFTER BEING]] [[FinishingMove PEDIGREE'D]] by HHH at ''Wrestlemania XII''! This feat alone was a testament to his {{Invincible Hero}} status. |
| 128 | * OnlyOneName: James Hellwig legally changed his real name to "Warrior" in 1993. |
| 129 | * ParentalAbandonment: As stated in ''DSOTR'' and ''A&E Bio'', his dad left home when he was around twelve, since the man was cheating on his wife with one of the neighbors and that caused Warrior several issues during his life. |
| 130 | * PartsUnknown: He's billed from there. |
| 131 | * PerfectlyCromulentWord: Destrucity, Foke, Jet-Jack. |
| 132 | * {{Portmanteau}}: '''Destrucity''' is the '''truc'''e between '''des'''tiny and real'''ity'''; in other words, staying true to what you are right now while striving for your ultimate destiny. |
| 133 | * PowerStable: |
| 134 | ** (as "Blade Runner Rock" in Mid-South): [[Wrestling/EddieGilbert The First Family]]. |
| 135 | ** (as "Dingo Warrior" in WCCW): Gary Hart's Army. |
| 136 | ** (In WWF): |
| 137 | *** ''[[Wrestling/SurvivorSeries Survivor Series '88]]'': with [[Wrestling/BrutusBeefcake Brutus "The Barber" Beefcake]], [[Wrestling/OwenHart The Blue Blazer]], "Jumping" Jim Brunzell and Sam Houston. |
| 138 | *** ''Survivor Series '89'': "The Ultimate Warriors" with Wrestling/JimNeidhart and [[Wrestling/ShawnMichaels The]] [[Wrestling/MartyJannetty Rockers]]. |
| 139 | *** ''Survivor Series '90'': "The Warriors" with [[Wrestling/VonErichFamily The Texas Tornado]] and [[Wrestling/TheRoadWarriors The Legion of Doom]]. |
| 140 | ** (In WCW): He attempted to start the "One Warrior Nation" ([=OwN=]) , but only managed to recruit "The Disciple" before leaving the company. |
| 141 | * PrecisionFStrike: During his WWF comeback in 1996, he responded to a particularly innuendo-laced approach from Wrestling/{{Goldust}} with this interesting quote (keeping in mind, of course, that this was ''pre''-[[Wrestling/StoneColdSteveAustin Austin 3:16]]): |
| 142 | -->'''Warrior:''' Whatever you're trying to pull from the minds of those you '''screw with,''' and whatever those choose to do with what you dish out, let me make it perfectly clear: what is, is. And whatever you're into, ''I don't give a shit''!!! |
| 143 | * PublicServiceAnnouncement: He did a [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ebN17xoJbLg hilariously over-the-top anti-smoking [=PSA=]]], where he began ''chewing'' on a pack of cigarettes. |
| 144 | ** Made HilariousInHindsight when he (briefly) returned in 1996 and smoked a cigar during a match to mock Wrestling/{{Goldust}}. |
| 145 | * PurpleProse: Much of what made his promos unique was his tendency to add odd and complicated metaphors and/or ridiculous hyperbole to get across his point. He couldn't just tell you he was going to beat Hulk Hogan, he had to let you know he was going to invade Hogan's plane in mid-flight to ''Wrestlemania'' and throw the controls into a nosedive. While it made him unique in the context of the other wrestlers, it's so overblown and complicated in comparison that nobody really grasps what he's saying. As a result, his promos are seen most often as [[{{Narm}} hilariously stupid.]] |
| 146 | * RealMenWearPink: Often seen wearing bright, gaudy colors and bizarre design patterns. |
| 147 | * TheReasonYouSuckSpeech: His big promo on Hogan on the August 17, 1998 ''Wrestling/WCWMondayNitro'' qualifies. More specifically, he was telling Hogan how, when he came to WCW, thought he'd be able to reach the same WWF's levels of popularity, but [[AmericansHateTingle when he found out he was wrong]], Hulkamania "became boring" to him, leading him to a FaceHeelTurn, thus launching the [[Wrestling/NewWorldOrder nWo]]. |
| 148 | * RedOniBlueOni: The Red to Sting's Blue. |
| 149 | * RunningGag: In re TheOtherDarrin on the Trivia page: This created an early one on the UsefulNotes/{{Usenet}} newsgroup rec.sport.pro-wrestling that said, "he died and was replaced by Steve [=DiSalvo=]". The gag [[Memes/ProfessionalWrestling took on a life of its own]] and when some new poster would ask, "Who is <Wrestler X>?", some joker would answer, "Steve [=DiSalvo=]." |
| 150 | * RyuAndKen: He had this relationship with [[TheRival Hulk Hogan]], at least for the first 2 and a half years or so. |
| 151 | * SanitySlippage: From the fairly calm "Dingo Warrior" to... ''this!''. At this point, he's presumably lost his original personality to Warrior [[RealLife for real]]! |
| 152 | * ScreamingWarrior: Especially during his rope shaking sequence. |
| 153 | * ScrewTheMoneyIHaveRules: Warrior claimed in his WWE Hall of Fame speech that the company asked him ''not'' to mention or reference ''The Self-Destruction of the Ultimate Warrior''. In classic Warrior fashion, after barely avoiding the subject one or two times, he gave up and mentioned it anyway, albeit never by name. |
| 154 | * SelfDeprecation: The ''Ultimate Warrior: The Ultimate Legend'' special makes it quite clear that Warrior was well aware of the fact no one could understand his promos and laughs about it. |
| 155 | * SesquipedalianLoquaciousness: This combined with his unusual pronunciations made him hard to understand, but fans seemed to buy into his promos anyway, just because he was so enthusiastic about whatever he said. Part of this was also from the fact Warrior would sometimes make up words. |
| 156 | * ShoutOut: "I was sent in a capsule from a place long from here", is a either a reference to Franchise/{{Superman}}, or another bit of rambling nonsense, or somehow, [[TakeAThirdOption both]]. |
| 157 | * SignatureMove: A rebounding clothesline known as the ''Dingo Bomber'' (similar to Hogan's running lariat, the ''Axe Bomber''), ''Oklahoma Slam'', or a series of rope-assisted ''Toe Kicks'' to a cornered opponent. |
| 158 | * SimpleYetAwesome: His wrestling style in a nutshell. Warrior had a ''very'' limited moveset, fairly slow workrate and generaly couldn't wrestle for more than a few minutes at a time. However, his intensity and charisma meant everything he did popped the crowd llike crazy. |
| 159 | * SmokeOut: 12 October 98 ''Nitro''. The nWo (Black & White) attack the Warrior during a tag team match between Sting/Warrior and Hogan/Hart. During the attack, smoke starts to fill the ring, and they end up [[https://gfycat.com/RecklessFamousBubblefish hurling Warrior onto the apron.]] It looks like either Warrior was too gassed to make the vanish exit work, or they blew the timing, because you can clearly see Hogan 'call' the move from outside of the ring. So, in spite of all of the Warrior’s supernatural powers--including but not limited to summoning magic smoke-- simply tossing him outside the ring renders his abilities useless. |
| 160 | -->'''Tony Shiavone''': ''"....oh, th-they threw him out of the ring to keep him from disappearing, Mike!"'' |
| 161 | ** It comes to mind that Wrestling/{{ECW}} achieved OffscreenTeleportation with a severely limited budget by simply ''switching the lights off''!!! ...really, WCW??? |
| 162 | * SmugSuper: He would occasionally refer to non-wrestlers as "normals", expressing contempt for their weakness compared to him and his opponents. |
| 163 | * SquashMatch: What most of his matches were, but Warrior’s defeat of The Honky Tonk Man to win his first Intercontinental Championship is particularly noteworthy. Honky was supposed to fight Wrestling/BrutusBeefcake for the title, but since Bruti was attacked and injured the week before, Honky made an open call to anyone to fight him for the championship. [[OhCrap Out comes the Warrior]]! [[FiveMovesOfDoom After a few punches, body slam, and a flying tackle]], the Warrior did his [[FinishingMove splash]] on Honky and got the pinfall. |
| 164 | * TagTeam: He and Wrestling/{{Sting}} started in Memphis together as ''"The Freedom Fighters"'' (''"Justice"'' (Warrior) and ''"Flash"'' (Sting)) before moving on to first make their name in "Cowboy" Bill Watts' Mid-South Wrestling (Louisiana/Oklahoma)/Universal Wrestling Federation as ''"The Blade Runners"'' (''"Rock"'' (Warrior) and Sting AsHimself). |
| 165 | ** The one where he fought [[EnemyMine alongside The Hulkster]] in '92. |
| 166 | ** ''The Ultimate Maniacs'', with Wrestling/RandySavage. |
| 167 | * TalkativeLoon: The Ultimate Warrior's wrestling promos often took the form of long, rambling diatribes addressed at Hulk Hogan that often made little sense. It's unclear how much James Brian Hellwig himself [[ShrugOfGod actually understood]] what he was saying. |
| 168 | * TakeThat: He was the subject of the '''''[[NoPunIntended Ultimate]] Hatchet job''''' on pro wrestling's history, ''"The Self-Destruction of the Ultimate Warrior"'', released in 2005. |
| 169 | * TakesTenToHold: When you got Warrior angry, you really don't want to be in his way, and not even a small army would be able to fight him off. This was the case at New York's Madison Square Garden in January 1991, shortly after he lost the WWF World Heavyweight Championship to Wrestling/SgtSlaughter. During a steel cage match against Wrestling/RandySavage, Wrestling/SherriMartel constantly interfered, ultimately helping Savage to win the match. Afterward, Warrior went completely berserk, chasing Sherri into the cage and attempting to pummel her into submission. Literally a dozen people came to the ring, but he fought them off as he continued to get at Sherri; at one point all of them attempted to restrain Warrior by the arms, but he successfully muscled them all off (simply by moving his arms) before going after Sherri again. In the end, Warrior completed his objective by press-slamming Sherri into submission. |
| 170 | * TermsOfEndangerment: |
| 171 | ** You know things really went south if he started to call you "''Jet-jack''". |
| 172 | ** Watch any of his promos and tell us sincerely if he didn't sound like he was threatening you instead of... well, inviting you to one of his matches. |
| 173 | * TrashTheSet: Of [[Wrestling/BrucePrichard The Brother Love Show]] on the March 2 (taped January 28), 1991 ''WWF Superstars'', as this was Bruce Prichard's last appearance in the gimmick until the November 25 (taped November 20), 1995 episode.[[note]]Two weeks earlier, Brother Love had introduced Wrestling/PaulBearer as the Undertaker's new manager.[[/note]] |
| 174 | ** For whatever the reason, he did just the same when he was guest on ''[[Creator/ArsenioHall The Arsenio Hall's Show]].'' |
| 175 | * UngratefulBastard: The opinion of ''MANY'' of his coworkers who did not have the same attitudes towards money that he did. Bobby Heenan for never being apologized to for being injured by him. Also many other wrestlers who were squashed by or had to carry him through matches felt he was ungrateful with them for making him look ''THAT'' good. |
| 176 | -->'''Wrestling/JimRoss''': For Hogan to do what Hogan did for The Ultimate Warrior... is a miracle. He '''carried''' The Warrior to immortality in ''Wrestlemania VI'', and he did it ''live'' what it makes it more astonishing! |
| 177 | -->'''Wrestling/JakeRoberts''': ...so I went to his private dressing room, knocked on the door a couple of times --- ...he got right in my face and said ''`Listen... I don't care anything about your family, I don't care anything about you...[[ItsAllAboutMe I don't care ANYTHING ABOUT WRESTLING]]! I just wanna do my shit... here's the deal: you better don't miss a show 'cause if you miss a show you're messing with [[OnlyInItForTheMoney MY MONEY]]! ...and if you mess with my money I'm gonna get'cha... end of the story, GET OUT!´'' I walked out and I was in shock, for this jackass commming at me like that, just like pissing in my mouth! |
| 178 | * TheUnintelligible: It is often difficult to make out exactly what he's saying, and if you actually do manage to work out what words he's saying, there's still a pretty good chance that it won't make sense. |
| 179 | * UnlimitedWardrobe: It seemed that Warrior had a set of bracelets, tassels, trunks, knee pads and boots for every occasion, almost never repeating a single attire. |
| 180 | * UnskilledButStrong: On a good day, Warrior could pull off maybe four different holds. However he had the strength and the looks for the role, so he didn't need any more. |
| 181 | * VerbalTic: As mentioned [[TheUnintelligible above,]] his... bombastic delivery of his promos led to him slurring and [[AcCENTUponTheWrongSylLABle over-enunciating certain words,]] which in turn led to his FountainOfMemes status. There's also his distinctive grunt/snort, which his comic book rendered as *SKRONK*. |
| 182 | -->'''Warrior''': [[MemeticMutation HOAK HOGAN!]] |
| 183 | * VitriolicBestBuds: Briefly in 1992 with Wrestling/TheUndertaker. Before a tag match against Papa Shango and the Berzerker at the Civic Complex in Cornwall, Ontario, UsefulNotes/{{Canada}} on June 3, 1992, they could be seen trash talking each other, most likely in reference to their feud a year earlier. |
| 184 | * VoiceClipSong: In 2016, HardcoreTechno DJ [=AniMe=] took some clips from Ultimate Warrior promos and put them into her song [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zOBaNX73oWU "Fear The Dogfight."]] Warrior fits the hardcore techno aesthetic like a glove. |
| 185 | * WarIsGlorious: An integral part of his gimmick. Nevertheless, he was [[AlwaysSecondBest beaten by a long shot]] on this by [[Wrestling/SgtSlaughter the man who stripped him]] from the World Heavyweight title. |
| 186 | * WordSaladPhilosophy: Destrucity. |
| 187 | ** The short-lived ''ComicBook/{{Warrior}}'' comic book was essentially a long promotional tract for his philosophical ideas. You can read an amusing summary of it [[http://www.i-mockery.com/comics/longbox14/ here]]. |
| 188 | * WorthyOpponent: Scoff if you will, but there was a serious attempt in the run-up to [=WrestleMania=] VI to build Warrior up as Hulk Hogan's [[TakeUpMySword equal and rightful heir]]. |
| 189 | * WrestlingMonster: A rare {{Face}} example. |
| 190 | * WritingAroundTrademarks: Billed as "The Warrior" in [=WCW=]. |
| 191 | * YouWouldntLikeMeWhenImAngry: Already depicted as highly volatile, when Warrior was angry, he went on a rampage. In addition to the infamous 1991 steel cage match against Wrestling/RandySavage mentioned elsewhere, on a fall 1990 episode of ''WWF Superstars Of Wrestling'', Brother Love and Sensational Sherri got Warrior riled up, with Warrior going on a backstage rampage, beating up jobbers (including four [[TooDumbToLive who just stood there in a line and took their beating, without trying to run or at least defend each other]]), running after WWF officials, smashing a mid-carder's head into the wall, destroying furniture and then going after a cameraman (and presumably, "you," the viewer at home (during the point where he grabbed the camera) before the scene faded to black as "you" passed out and the Warrior (presumably) continued his rampage. |
| 192 | * YourDaysAreNumbered: Jim Hellwig learned at a young age, when his grandfather passed away, that men in the Hellwig family rarely lived to their 60s. He eventually found out that his own father had died in his mid-50s. Ultimately, he himself would pass away at 55, just as he had expected. |
| 193 | ---- |
| 194 | ->'''"YOU HAVE JUST WITNESSED THE POWER THAT MAKES THE SKIES CRUMBLE AND THE EARTH SHAKE... THE POWER OF THE WARRIOR... <SKROOOONNNK>!!!"''' |
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