So, the name Waylon Mercy popped into my head today. Don’t know why, just did. Remember that guy from mid-90s wrestling? The polite southern dude who was actually kinda scary? Yeah, him. Decided I’d spend a bit of time digging into that character again, just see what I remembered and what I could pick up now.
Going Down the Rabbit Hole
First thing, I grabbed my tablet, sat down on the couch. Went straight to searching for videos. Found a bunch of his old promos pretty quick. Man, those were something else. He’d stand there, real calm, talking in that slow, southern way. Always polite, “sir” this, “ma’am” that. But there was always something… off. That weird smile he had.
I watched a few of those back-to-back. Then found a match snippet. It was interesting seeing the switch. He’d be all calm and then just snap, get real vicious in the ring. The contrast was the whole point, I guess. It wasn’t just about being a bad guy; it was about that hidden darkness behind the nice act.
Spent a good hour just watching clips and thinking about it. Tried saying a few lines like him, just for laughs. Felt kinda silly, but it helped get the feel for the character. It wasn’t over the top like a lot of wrestling characters back then, or even now. It was subtle, creepy.
- That super polite talk, almost too polite.
- The handshake that seemed friendly but wasn’t.
- How he looked genuinely calm even when threatening someone.
- The sudden bursts of violence that came out of nowhere.
What I Got From It
Honestly? It was just interesting to revisit. Made me appreciate the thought that went into some of those older characters. It wasn’t just about muscles and shouting. There was some real acting going on there, trying to build a specific, unsettling vibe. That kind of psychological gimmick felt pretty different for its time.
Didn’t really achieve anything big, you know? Wasn’t trying to. Just spent some time exploring an old memory, looking at a performance piece from a different angle now that I’m older. It was a decent way to kill an hour, thinking about how characters are built and portrayed, even in something like pro wrestling. Yeah, Waylon Mercy. Quite the character study, turns out.
