by Xenorama » Mon Mar 23, 2009 2:48 pm
i wouldn't call him the first face to inspire fear in the villains- how about his and Sting's (or should i say "Flash" and "Rock"'s, AKA the Bladerunners) inspirations, the Road Warriors. the heel teams had to be sneaky and attack them from behind, or en masse to beat them- the Freebirds, the MX, the Russians, the Powers of Pain, Demolition and the Horsemen all used underhanded and sneaky tactics to gain advantage over them.
it put butts in the seats, so it worked, but they were even getting face pops when they were heels in the AWA in 1985 or so.
David