Line #3 Wrestling/ElijahBurke


1	[[quoteright:150:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/joshelijah_cropped.jpg]]
2	[[caption-width-right:150:Da Pope]]
3	->''"Don't waste...my time..."''
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5	Elijah Samuel Burke (born May 24, 1981) is a former amateur boxer turned professional wrestler. He is best known for his time in Wrestling/ImpactWrestling (then known as TNA) under the ring name '''"The Pope" D'Angelo Dinero''' and later on as '''Da Pope''', and his time in Wrestling/{{WWE}} under his real name, wrestling on their revived Wrestling/{{ECW}} brand. Currently, he is signed to the Wrestling/{{NWA}}, wrestling under the name '''"Da Pope" Elijah Burke'''.
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7	He is a one-time NWA Television Champion, a one-time OVW Heavyweight Champion, a one-time OVW Television Champion, and a two-time OVW Southern Tag Team Champion (once with Private Anthony, and once with Big Jon).
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9	!!Tropes:
10	* AccidentalMisnaming: Calls Jeff "Cheff", and Wolfe "Roofe", among others.
11	* AlliterativeName: As D'Angelo Dinero.
12	* ArchEnemy:
13	** In WWE, Wrestling/CMPunk. Burke tried to recruit Punk for the New Breed on WWECW and temporarily succeeded only for their egos to clash immediately, causing Punk to ditch them within two weeks. He later served as Punk's most consistent rival after Wrestling/JohnMorrison and Wrestling/TheMiz during Punk's pursuit of the ECW Championship.
14	** In TNA, Wrestling/SamoaJoe. Joe saw right through his facade as a MrViceGuy and the two of them ended up hating each other.
15	* BadassLongcoat: Wore a long black one occasionally adorned with cross symbols.
16	* BadassPreacher: He's a Harlem street preacher.
17	* BigApplesauce: D'Angelo Dinero is billed from Harlem, even though Elijah Burke is from Florida, because god forbid you have a street preacher or a pimp that isn't from New York.
18	* BitchInSheepsClothing: As a heel.
19	* CatchPhrase:
20	--> "Pope...is...pimping!"
21	--> "Pope has spoken!"
22	* DemotedToExtra:
23	** He was positioned as one of the potential future stars cutting their teeth in WWECW, but his prominence gradually decreased until he was little more than a glorified jobber before being released in late 2008 after months of inactivity.
24	** As a microcosm of that, just look at the New Breed vs. ECW Originals feud -- the entire thing started as Burke spearheading a youthful movement against the old ECW faithful. After ''[=WrestleMania=] 23'', it eventually became more about getting Wrestling/CMPunk over.
25	** Thanks to the erratic nature of TNA's booking during the Hogan/Bischoff era, he gradually slid down the card and by the time of his first release was stuck in midcard hell. When he returned to TNA, it was as a commentator.
26	* {{Expy}}:
27	** For awhile, TNA seemed to be booking him how Wrestling/{{Sting}} was booked in Wrestling/{{WCW}}. His promo style contains a good deal of Wrestling/DustyRhodes, Wrestling/RicFlair, and [[Wrestling/DwayneJohnson the Rock]] mixed in also.
28	** He also inspired one notable Expy of his own, in the form of none other than Wrestling/KazuchikaOkada--who, upon his return to New Japan, adopted a similarly cocky, obscenely-rich persona, complete with fake money falling from the ceiling during his entrance.
29	* EyePatchOfPower: Courtesy of AJ Styles.
30	* HesBack:
31	** After disappearing from TV for several months, he made his return to television on the 6/14/12 edition of Impact as a participant in the Bound For Glory Series. Unfortunately, he was eliminated early from the Series, due to injury.
32	** After being released from the company following his injury and doing his own thing as an independent, he returned in 2015 to fill in at commentary when Taz left and Josh Mathews needed a partner. He was later made Mathews' permanent partner.
33	* InspectorJavert: He really, really didn't trust Mr. Anderson. Anderson proved him wrong. Conversely, Wrestling/SamoaJoe really, really didn't trust him. He proved Joe right; they hated each other.
34	* IntergenerationalRivalry: As the leader of the New Breed against the ECW Originals. He had a particular enmity with Wrestling/RobVanDam, who was the Originals' nominal leader as their biggest star and best wrestler.
35	* {{Irony}}: Remember the 2011-2012 feud where he tried to corrupt [[Wrestling/TheDudleyBoys Devon]]'s sons? Bet he was wishing he could take that back when [[Wrestling/AcesAndEightsWrestlers someone's new crew]] beat him down about 8-9 months later in what turned out to be his final appearance as a wrestler in TNA.
36	* JerkJock: In WWE, this was his initial gimmick. Really prevalent during his time as leader of the New Breed, where he was basically leading the brand's biggest pack of bullies.
37	* LargeHam: He's taken his preacher background to heart.
38	* MoneySong: A cross between a rap song and a gospel revival number. It's pretty awesome.
39	* MrViceGuy: He's implied to be a bit of a womanizer and can be a bit of a jerk, but when he's an honest face he's one of the purer folks [=TNA=] has. It helps that his real personality veers more toward the "honest face" bit.
40	* TheNicknamer: As a commentator, is pretty fond of testing out {{Red Baron}}s on certain talents. So far the two that have stuck are the Bearded Terror for Eric Young (though World Class Maniac is still more prevalent) and the Tenth Wonder of the World for [[Wrestling/KiaStevens Awesome Kong]].
41	* OlderHeroVsYoungerVillain: He was the Younger Villain in almost all his feuds, particularly during the New Breed vs ECW Originals feud.
42	* OvershadowedByAwesome: This was Elijah Burke's problem in WWECW. He was talented enough to be acknowledged by Wrestling/VinceMcMahon himself, but had to live in the shadows of far more talented young wrestlers and could never make it far with them on top. This includes Wrestling/BobbyLashley (future WWE Champion and TNA/Impact World Champion), Wrestling/JohnMorrison (also a future TNA/Impact World Champion and a highly-decorated wrestler both in and out of WWE), and Wrestling/CMPunk (one of the greatest and most successful professional wrestlers ''of all time'').
43	* PowerStable: The New Breed on WWECW, of which he was the Centerpiece of.
44	* PutOnABus: His contract in TNA expired while he was still injured.
45	* RapidFireFisticuffs: As a former boxer, when the Pope punches you, he punches you really, really fast.
46	* RainOfSomethingUnusual: As part as his gimmick as the Pope in TNA, part of his ring entrance was being showered with money. It was also a pun on his name, as "Dinero" means "money" in Spanish.
47	* RedBaron: "The Pope", before being later restyled as "Da Pope".
48	* SharpDressedMan: Not just a pope, but a pimp, too.
49	* SinisterMinister: Whenever he played heel.
50	* SmugSnake:
51	** Almost all the time during his tenure on WWECW. He was unquestionably talented but couldn't quite measure up against the actual top talent there.
52	** As a Heel, the Pope will go into the ring and forgive you for all your transgressions with one of the biggest, phoniest grins ever.
53	* ThirdPersonPerson: As the Pope, he has a tendency to speak in this manner during his promos.
54	* TookALevelInBadass: In WWE, Elijah Burke is barely above enhancement talent and never made it out of C-Show ECW. In TNA, the Pope is positioned as a major player from the beginning and nearly claimed the world title a few times.
55	* VerbalTic: Daddy, oddly enough.
56	* WeCanRuleTogether: This was his pitch to Wrestling/CMPunk in order to get him to join the New Breed, after it became clear that Punk was the second best wrestler on the brand behind ECW Champion Wrestling/BobbyLashley.
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Context Wrestling / ElijahBurke