The Final Boss is the best version of The Rock

It is interesting how often wrestling organizations need to pivot and the change creates something more amazing than the original idea. There are several examples of when real-life issues like injuries caused a change in plans. There’s a substantial change heading into WrestleMania 40 and that is the shift in The Rock’s character. The moment that was originally intended to pit him against Roman Reigns, is now focused on him being Cody Rhodes’s top foil. The transformation into The Final Boss is one of the best things going in professional wrestling and this may be the best version of The Rock ever seen throughout his career.

The Rock’s time on top of WWE was relatively short. From 1997 to 2002 he was considered a “full-time” talent, with 2003 being the first year when his focus was truly pointed in another direction. During his time with the company, he developed several characters, with Hollywood Rock being among the best. Well, The Final Boss version has completely supplanted all prior iterations of the superstar.

Initially, The Rock’s return wasn’t going well. Fans wanted Cody Rhodes to “finish his story” at WrestleMania and the strong backlash forced the change in direction. Then, The Rock’s tired act from the 90s generated more eye rolls than laughs. He needed to make a change, and that chance was amazing.

Now, The Rock is the embodiment of a man who is drunk with power. The creative direction for him to play up his position on the TKO board and turn that into the reasoning that he’s doing whatever he wants each week is working. Whether it is his profanity-laced promos on social media or beating a man to a bloody mess on WWE Raw, The Rock is doing whatever he wants and there’s no one on the roster that can stop him.

Some have pointed out that he’s quickly eclipsed Roman Reigns as the top heel in the company. That shouldn’t surprise anyone. The Rock is reminding everyone why he was one of the top characters in the industry when he was in his prime. Reigns’s growth as a heel has been fantastic, but The Rock is showing there are still levels to reach. Plus, his performance continues to push the door that they will end up on opposite sides of the proverbial table, battling for the position as Head of the Table, which is all their angle needs.

Few could have predicted The Rock’s return to WWE having this type of impact. Everything about his heel turn is working, as he builds Rhodes into a bigger babyface heading into WrestleMania 40. Thankfully, the company made the correct decision to make the change, rather than forcing the idea that he should supplant Rhodes in the main event.