Evolution

[6.0] "Good, but massively overrated for how little good actually came out of it. Katy Vick, Triple H holding the belt hostage, endless 10-20 minute long boring promos, few actually good matches, burial of Booker T, stunting Randy Orton's growth and popularity, hurting Goldberg's and Steiner's run, keeping many young stars held down while never elevating any other main eventers. Like the Shield that came years later, the results of all 4 men's careers had made people look back at this group with rose tinted lenses. Compared to other 4 person stables like the UE or Horsemen, you don't have the catalogs of classic feuds and great matches. As a top heel group with the ultimate goal of getting Batista over as a top guy, it worked. But it only worked because no one wanted Triple H as champion anymore and were turning off their TVs when he came on screen. It only worked because they buried Orton and stunted his growth so bad. The group was more good than bad. Triple H was a fine world champion at points and eventually the pay off was worth it, but so much of it was so much worse than people looking back on it realize."

[9.0] "As far as factions designed to get the next generation over go, Evolution is the best example. You had the World Champion Leader, the Crafty Veteran, the Muscle, and the Rookie. All 4 men played their roles perfectly and everybody benefitted from being in the group. It would define an entire era of wrestling and has had its impact on the wrestling world that is still felt to this day."

[10.0] "The stable truly made HHH into a megastar, resurrected the career of Ric Flair, and made two stars out of Batista and Orton. Though HHH had a "reign of terror, " this stable was always must-see, and truly was the successor to The Horsemen. A decade after their first run, when HHH, Batista, and Orton were all megastars, they came back together to put over Daniel Bryan, and The Shield. I have my issues with some of their members individually, but as a unit, they are the pinnacle of stables in WWE."

[10.0] "As a kid I thought they were the best heel stable in WWE back during their reign on RAW, and they really showcased just how good Triple H is at being a heel. Evolution also helped jumpstart Randy Orton and Batista's careers as they would both become main event draws shortly after their disbandment. Honestly Batista was a little green but he more than made up for it with intensity."

[9.0] "This was a great take on the classic Four Horseman style faction where Triple H became allied with Ric Flair and Flair brought in two promising rookies who was both going nowhere and became huge stars. Orton's start kind of reminds me of how things started with The Rock where he started out as a blue chipper third generation star, but he really found his feet as a cocky arrogant heel and over time he would become an excellent performer. I really enjoyed the long term booking with Batista where he was the imposing brute, but started to overshadow Triple H and end up surpassing him. Their WrestleMania feud was really well built up. They would consistently become the best thing on Raw, particularly in 2004 where they had a lot of high quality tag team matches and they also had that big moment at Armageddon 2003 where all of them held the gold. The only weaknesses really was Triple H not really having great matches during his infamous 'Reign of Terror' although thankfully things do get a lot better in 2004 and his 2005 title reign was actually fun! They also they misfired badly with Orton's face turn where they betrayed him after he won the title because as memorable as that moment was, it felt rushed! WrestleMania XX was a huge highlight for this group as while Triple H was involved in the all timer triple threat match, the other Evolution members had a great match with Rock and Sock with it following with Foley's Hardcore classic with Orton."

[9.0] "Evolution sort of acts as the template for what a successful faction should be. You have people all working together to improve and dominate while helping people become stars. Randy Orton and Batista would've been successful and good without the group, but this really helped them. Triple H, you could argue he was too heavily pushed and that sort of thing with the Reign of Terror, but it really helped him become the top heel of the company. And having a legend as part of your group in Ric Flair is always a good idea for experience/knowledge reasons. Just a super great and talented group that helped everyone involved."

[9.0] "Incredible Stable especially during their peak when they held the monopoly for every title on RAW. They felt like a main event group you couldn't get one over on and it successfully launched the careers of Dave Batista and Randy Orton."

[9.0] "This is one of the best ways to properly start a hot stable in your promotion with the goal of pushing others. Ric Flair was already an absolute legend in the business and Triple H at this time was cemented as a main figure in WWE. Combining these two with two promising up and comers from OVW and painting it as a homage to one of the greatest professional wrestling stables of all time is ingenious. This put both Randy Orton and Batista on the map, regardless of some the booking (especially in regards to Triple H). Great stuff overall."

[7.0] "The group successfully launched the singles careers of Randy Orton and Batista and had a killer theme song. I never liked Flair being an active wrestler here. If he were the JJ Dillon and they added one more younger talent and had they been successful as well, I would give them a 10."

[9.0] "Not quite as good as the horsemen, but a good rendition of the idea. Classy, elegant, and just cool. Near perfect stable without many grips, the one thing holding it back is that Batista wasnt one of the best in ring workers, and Flair stepping in the ring a little too much, other than that its still great."

[9.0] "This just felt like a main event group, some of their booking was questionable but the presentation was AMAZING."

[9.0] "I'm only rating Evolution a 9 because Evolution ultimately failed in their main goal of making Randy Orton into the face of the company, but Evolution was a success in everything else. It made Triple H The Guy, gave Ric Flair a few more years as a featured talent, and made Orton and Batista into main eventers."

[10.0] "The stable did exactly what they wanted it to do. Gave exciting storylines, kept Triple H strong on the top of the card, helped extend the career of an aging but still able Ric Flair and turned two up and comers into true main event talents."

[10.0] "Updated version of The Four Horsemen. Triple H was a great leader, Flair the perfect mentor figure and made two new big stars in Batista and Orton. A legendary stable."

[9.0] "Amazing stable. You had the past, the present and the future. Ric Flair, Dave Batista and Randy Orton - all three men are legends in the industry and Triple H made sure that they would dominate the card, especially with Batista and Orton being called "The Future Of WWE". This stable was a highlight of the Ruthless Aggression era and was probably the peak of Triple H's career as a ruler. The stable helped create "The Animal" Batista and "The Legend Killer" Randy Orton, two of the greatest wrestlers of their time."

[10.0] "Evolution remains my favorite WWE stable. Orton, Triple H, Batista and Flair: a formula which had to be. These guys fitted perfectly together and played their parts fantastically. Triple H's arrogance together with Flair's jetset lifestyle molded Orton's character and having the animal Batista as enforcer created so much potential. Every combination between the four gentleman worked out perfectly, and having them all together come in for another classic Evolution beatdown of a helpless opponent never got old. Then there is the music... the best entrance theme in wrestling EVER. Evolution on top of the world! WOOOOHHHHHHHH"

[9.0] "They were not the greatest as a group and they are not the most recognizable, but they deserve a credit for the work they did. Triple H had a great singles career as well as he is being more associated with D-Generation X, instead of Evolution. The same thing with the rest of the guys. Looking at their career later on, they were successful on their own. However, this stable was a wind beneath the wings of both Randy Orton and Batista. This first one basically became successful mostly because of them. Evolution was pretty much the point to promote Randy. Either way, I really enjoyed this stable and they had a big impact on WWE back in a day."

[8.0] "They were pretty good as a group: for me personally I didn't really feel anything for their match quality (outside of the occasional Orton bout) and Triple H in particular during this time was insufferable as Reign of Terror World Champion, and not just because he was a heel. That being said as a group they succeeded in getting Orton and Batista over as creditable main event level talent (even if Orton got destroyed by Triple H after getting over as a face successfully..... ) and gave Flair something to do. Good promos and their status in terms of impact is undeniable."

[10.0] "The most quintessential stable possibly ever. This was exactly what a stable should be. A leader (Triple H), an enforcer (Batista), a fresh face (Randy Orton), and a veteran (Ric Flar). All 4 men worked beautifully together and it really helped skyrocket Batista and Orton into the next big parts of their respective careers."

[10.0] "This is a team that I feel had a real purpose for existing. Teaming a veteran with a current top star & two rookies is a perfect dynamic. The quartette felt like they meshed extremely well together."

[10.0] "A perfect example of what a professional wrestling stable should be. With Triple H as the leader, Orton as the up and comer, Batista as the muscle (and later up and comer), and Ric Flair as the veteran who could play the part of manager. and wrestler."

[8.0] "Although its run had a rocky start, the team of Triple H, Ric Flair, Randy Orton and Batista will always be remembered for their prominent rise to the top of Monday Night RAW by winning all available male gold on the red brand at Armageddon 2003, with Triple H as the World Heavyweight Champion, Randy Orton as the Intercontinental Champion and Batista and Ric Flair as the World Tag Team Champions - mirroring Flair's Four Horsemen with Flair as the NWA World Heavyweight Champion, Barry Windham as the WCW United States Champion and Arn Anderson and Tully Blanchard as the WCW World Tag Team Champions. Therefore, Triple H's Evolution truly is the second coming of Ric Flair's Four Horsemen. While the stable had an organic dissolution during its first run, mainly with Orton getting kicked out and Batista turning, both did come out as big stars from the group, ultimately making Evolution a success, fulfilling their main goal. It's a shame that their second run (minus Flair) was brief."

[6.0] "I know they were heels but I just hated the group. The coolest thing about the group was the theme song. The personalities could have made a believable threat but they didn't. The best part of Evolution was its dissolution."

[10.0] "Memorable heel group, who rises the carrers of both Orton and Batista and proves again that HHH is a great leader, the highlight of Raw each week, i will not even talk about the return in 2014, because i remember of that terryfing crowd reaction, the only thing left to be remembered in 2014 is obviosly the feud with the Shield and the two great matches, overall a great stable."

[8.0] "Not a perfect group but definitely a memorable one, how could they not be considering how they dominated Raw in their era? Still I find them mostly entertaining, except when the Triple H got a little too much to swallow at times. But it did a great job launching Batista and providing a strong foundation for Orton, and Flair had some of his better post-prime work. I will always think of them fondly... mostly."