The Shield's Trial Separation

Romeo. Echo. India. Golf. November. Sierra. Reigns!

That's the only change that needs to be made to The Shield entrance music to make it suitable for Reigns as a solo act. It’s a change worth making because it feels right for his character to keep the music, the through-the-audience entrance and the ring gear of the group. It just doesn’t make sense to have The Shield name acknowledged when he enters.

Ambrose smells something unpleasant.

The reason I bring up the concept of Roman Reigns as a singles act is that it was given a trial run on RAW. His association with Dean Ambrose hasn't been brought to an end and it probably won't be for a while yet but the two did not appear together on the show. Ambrose ran in on a Seth Rollins match wearing jeans and a vest and then wrestled a match against Bad News Barrett, losing by count out after Rollins reappeared to taunt him. It's possible that he had new music too, but it wasn't played when he entered and was so nondescript that it could just have been Rollins’s.

Meanwhile Reigns appeared in a series of backstage skits in which he spiked Stephanie McMahon's drink with something that made her throw up so she'd get sent to hospital. He then manipulated Vickie Guerrero into adding him to a battle royal, the winner of which would be added to the upcoming WWE championship ladder match at Money in the Bank. Reigns won that in impressive fashion, tossing out several disposable names before last eliminating the undefeated Rusev. The final exchange was well laid out and it was heartening to hear the audience react so passionately to the stare off between Reigns and 'The Super Athlete'.

Both Shield members came across well during the trial. People responded to Ambrose's fervent promise that he would be getting his hands on Seth Rollins and the look he sported was a good one, similar enough to the riot gear look people expect without being an isolating radical departure. It's unlikely he'll get to keep it over a more generic look though: WWE seems to dislike casual gear on their grapplers. Besides, it's almost certainly too similar to the preferred look of scruff bag extraordinaire Luke Harper.

Reigns and the world title. The future?

Reigns knows how to work the cameras during an entrance (easier now he's alone), has a number of moves that are over, and has a star aura to him. It’s easy to accept him as a main event act. That’s the result of the good booking he’s received over the last year and a half, particularly his memorable, status-enhancing showings at Survivor Series and Royal Rumble.

The only negative regarding Reigns was the decision to put him in backstage skits. He handled them well enough and the audience reaction indicated that most people seemed to enjoy them but I don’t think it’s a good approach for a man like Reigns. His demeanour, stature and look make him the sort of man people want to see fighting his way to the top, not sneaking there in backstage segments. It’s part of WWE’s distressing habit of feeling they need to humanise their main event stars with comedy. It would have been more fitting for the Reigns character to simply storm to the ring and manipulate Triple H into adding him into the match himself rather than messing around with Vickie Guerrero. It’s a minor thing now, but if they stick with that approach it’ll become far more problematic.

Overall Ambrose and Reigns both looked good on RAW. While I hope their partnership continues for a while yet we now know that they’ll be accepted in singles roles. And that thoughts been given to how to present them as such. Which, considering generally poor approach to creating new stars, is nice.

The Long Game

Monday's RAW saw Vickie Guerrero fired from her job as interim RAW General Manager¹. She was consoled backstage by two men. The first was Vince McMahon. The second was The Ryback. Vince told her he’d make things right. 'Big Hungry' told her that she deserved better.

It's possible that McMahon and Ryback aligning themselves with poor, downtrodden Señorita Guerrero could be some deft foreshadowing of planned programming. Or I could just be reading too much into things. Read on and judge for yourselves.

Ryback's consoling of Vickie could lead to him taking her on as his manager (a lot of people seem to be thinking this and it’s difficult to imagine her doing anything else right now). Hopefully that would involve less romantic subtext than Vickie enjoyed with her previous client, Dolph Ziggler. The Ryback and Vickie combo (RyKie? VickBack?) could be built up throughout the autumn, enjoying the support of a heel Vince while also seeing heir apparent Triple H taking a keen interest in their dealings.

Vince's motive? He sees dollar signs when he looks at Ryback's muscles. You don't need anything more than that because it's utterly believable and in-character for Vince. Triple H's motive? He dislikes Vickie professionally because of the allegedly shoddy job she did as GM. 'The Game' could take an interest in overturning decisions that benefit 'back in order to mess with Guerrero.

Don't worry about Brad Maddox's role as the new RAW General Manager. His character is one that would be easily intimidated by Ryback, Vince and Tripper (Vickie too, for that matter). He could be scripted to go along with any plot development with ease. He’d just need to comply with whoever was in the room with him at any given time.

Outside of their interactions with Ryback and Vickie, Vince and Tripper would continue their current head butting over the direction of WWE and the storyline of who's in charge on-screen. It would be clear that their differing views on The Ryback would be part of their larger power struggle. Vince and Triple H are regulars on TV now. That wouldn't necessarily need to remain the case. They could appear once every few weeks to remind us that there's trouble between them as well as where they stand on the thorny issue of The Ryback as a concept.

A future foe of Triple H?

Ryback and Vickie could spend their time between now and the end of the year being built up as a winning combo. That's something that 'The Human Wrecking Ball' needs anyway². Come the Royal Rumble Ryback should be presented as a favourite to win and only find himself eliminated via some form of shenanigans, giving him a legitimate reason to complain about being cheated afterwards.

At this point 'The King of Kings' could take issue with 'back's bellyaching and the steely dislike between the two could erupt into a full-on feud. The problems between McMahon and Helmsley should be ready to come to a head by this point too. Vince, as full of machismo as ever, would challenge his son-in-law to a match at WrestleMania. Trips would naturally decline.

Give it a few weeks of Vince trying to push Triple H's buttons and get his match before the two execs would end an episode of RAW in the ring together. Some harsh words would be spoken and 'The Game' would finally appear ready to strike Vince. But he wouldn't. Because Ryback would come charging down the ramp or through the crowd to make the save and give 'The Cerebral Assassin' a pasting.

That would set up Triple H v Ryback for WrestleMania, with Vince and Vickie Guerrero at ringside. Throw in a Winner Is Totes In Charges No Takesies-Backsies stipulation and I think that could be a pretty enjoyable addition to the thirtieth 'Mania card. Give it about six months and we'll find out if I'm anywhere close to right.

***

¹ It's hard to see why: she's done no worse than any other GM in the show's history. In fact as far as kayfabe accomplishments go Vickie did pretty well. Maybe she should have kept her fictional job. But this is neither here nor there.

² He's not won on pay-per-view since July last year!

Power Game

Over the last few weeks we've been "treated" to the latest in WWE's long line of McMahon family storylines. This time they're bickering amongst themselves over who's really, actually, properly in charge of the company. So far this has been limited to comedy segments involving Vickie Guerrero being given conflicting instructions by different members of the family (oh the hilarity!) but sooner or later it's going to escalate. What would be the point if it didn’t?

It's that escalation that stands the best chance of interesting me in this. The McMahon family have been put into so many stories about who's in charge over the years that it’s not especially interesting anymore. They're all worthwhile performers (particularly Vince) but it's not an interesting situation for any of them due to the familiarity.

What may set this current storyline apart is its goal. It currently looks like the ultimate plan is to have Triple H acknowledged as WWE's top boss on-screen. Internet rumours back the presentation up.

Vince stepping down is nothing new. I remember a pay-per-view main event in 1999 that stipulated Vince would have nothing more to do with the running of the company if Undertaker lost. Guess what! 'The Dead Man' did lose and Vince was back on screen within two weeks. The final month or so of the (awful) invasion angle in 2001 revolved around Vince losing power too, as did his subsequent feud with Ric Flair.

So, no, Vince's on-screen authority being threatened is nothing new. But what sets the current plot apart is the fact that Paul 'Triple H' Levesque is the man expected to replace Vince as head honcho in real life. If Vince is replaced by ‘The Game’ as the on-screen boss now there's a very good chance he won't ever get the spot back.

The next boss?

I don't think this story is designed to coincide with a true exchange of power behind the scenes. Triple H, and possibly Stephanie, may be moved into leading roles on-screen but Vince is going to be the man in charge until he's dead or physically incapable of performing the role. It’ll probably be the former.

Another intriguing aspect of the current storyline is that real life elements are reportedly being included. Beyond the obvious acknowledgement of Vince, Steph and Tripper being related we've had Steph telling the Divas not to interrupt her and on-air nods to a shouting match between Triple H and Daniel Bryan regarding the latter's stopped match with Randy Orton. Both of those events are said to have occurred backstage. If true it's another instance of WWE blurring the lines between their real life locker room and the fantasy product they televise, something I think should do more of.

How the story's going to get where it's going is unclear. It's also not particularly important right now. What is important is that WWE provide us with logical TV show plots that please fans, attract new regular viewers, and have decent endings. Right now they appear to be on track.

The Brad Maddox Experience

WWE are not making the most of Brad Maddox. He's not the best wrestler or the best promo, nor does he have the best look. On the surface there's nothing remarkable about the guy and nothing that warrants any extra attention from the already stretched writing staff.
 
Look at the rough character that's been sketched in for him since he debuted on TV last autumn and you'll see there's an opportunity to do something different with him. The guy has been established as someone who wants to get over at any cost. He wants to be famous. He has said, point blank, he wants to be a Superstar™.
 
Considering the cult of celebrity that exists in today's world and the fact that WWE have been billing their wrestlers as Superstars™ for well over a decade it's surprising this sort of character hasn't cropped up before. Someone who wants to become a WWE star just so that they can say they're famous is the perfect self-aware character for the promotion.
 
The closest they've come to this before now is The Miz. The difference with him was that his past on reality shows was emphasised, making it clear he'd already gained some (minor) notoriety before becoming a sports entertainer. This isn't the case with Maddox: he has made the choice to go straight into wrestling as his sole means to gaining fame. Wrestling is his ticket to notoriety, not reality TV augmented by the status of sports entertainer.
 
Maddox's goal has been made very clear over the last six months. After low blowing Ryback at Hell in a Cell he stated that he trained to be a wrestler in WWE's developmental system before agreeing to become a referee just so that he could get on TV. Following that he started The Brad Maddox Experience, an internet show that followed his daily dealings, which was a solid idea but could have been better. His most recent on-screen role has been as assistant to Vickie Guerrero. It's a pretty uninspiring move.

It's Brad Maddox!

The scraps that we have on Maddox are enough to etch out a pretty decent character. The BME (no not Chris Daniels' moonsault, Maddox's net show) should continue with a weekly entry. Either follow Maddox backstage at WWE shows or out in the world trying to establish his name. He could be shown auditioning for a bit part on a TV show (and not getting it) or purchasing ad space on a billboard just to slap him name on it (in caps naturally). It's a great tool to get over what an ego he has and it sets him apart from the rest of the heels on the roster.
 
Have the guy wrestle on the weekend shows and maybe occasionally give him an outing on RAW or SmackDown. They don't have to be long matches and he doesn't even need to win often, the point would be to give the commentary team the chance to talk about him and for Maddox to get his character over, pausing during matches to pose or head out to ringside and chat with his adoring public.
 
I'd like to see him enter arenas not to music but to his own name said over and over again. Either the inflection could change each time it's said or different people could be recorded saying it. Once in the ring Maddox could say "Hi! I'm Brad Maddox... Brad Maddox! ... BRAD MADDOX!"
 
Let the guy stand out and be different to everyone else. It's the best chance he has of making an impact in a company that writes all of its bad guys the same.

The Return of Jack Swagger

On the September 3^rd 2012 edition of Monday RAW Jack Swagger suffered a loss to Sheamus. It was the latest in a long line of quick defeats that had plagued Swagger all year. In a backstage segment later on in the broadcast he informed General Manager AJ Lee that he would be taking time off. “I’m better than this!” he told her.

On the February 1^st 2013 edition of Friday Night SmackDown Swagger made his triumphant return to WWE television. His sabbatical was immediately referenced by Josh Mathews on commentary. JBL chimed in that Swagger had spent time away from WWE refining his game.

Neither claim was true. Swagger had not been on a sabbatical from WWE. He’d been removed from television because the writing team didn’t have a clue what to do with him. He had remained a regular on house shows and in dark matches at TV tapings. He had not undergone the image overhaul that JBL seemed to believe he had either. Unless you count growing your hair a little and introducing a beard to your face a radical new look that is.

I like Swagger and I want to see him succeed. His scripted lines on the September 3^rd RAW couldn’t have been more true. He is better than continual and meaningless losses.

Swagger has the height and look WWE is known to crave in their headliners. He has an impressive and well-documented amateur wrestling background. His verbal skills, while not the best, are enough to get him by if his limitations in the area are catered to. Yet he still finds himself not being taken seriously.

The reason for this is the way he was booked for much of his first year or two in the company. The writing team gave nobody any reason to view him as anything special. He wasn’t portrayed as a star on the rise or a headliner in the making. He was just another guy who wrestled and talked like everybody else.

A fine example of this mistreatment came during his World Heavyweight title reign in 2010. ‘The All American American’ won the Money in the Bank match at WrestleMania XXVI (the last match of its type to take place at a ‘Mania, fact fans!) and cashed in two nights later to beat Chris Jericho at a SmackDown taping. He went on to have a reign that included defences against ‘Y2J’, Edge, Randy Orton, Big Show and Rey Mysterio, but was never granted a clean win over any of them. It was incredibly clear that Swag was a fluke champion and not in the league of the seasoned main eventers.

 

The most under-pushed World Heavyweight champion ever

 

Later in 2010 the mistreatment of Swagger reached its zenith when he was paired up with his own personal mascot, a soaring eagle played by Chavo Guerrero and Jamie Noble (though never at the same time). Swagger was clearly a comedy character by this point. That a man his size needed help from someone in an eagle suit to win made it clear he was not to be seen as a threat to the top guys or as a serious wrestler.

The lunacy continued in 2011 as Swagger became Michael Cole’s on-screen coach during his insanely over-pushed feud with fellow commentator Jerry ‘The King’ Lawler. This situation could have been salvaged had Swagger and Cole’s roles been reversed. It would have made far more sense for the former World champ to represent Cole in a match against Lawler at WrestleMania XXVII rather than run interference at ringside. But then the entire Cole push was ludicrous from beginning to end.

Swagger was briefly rehabilitated later in 2011 when he joined forces with heel magnet Vickie Guerrero and bump machine Dolph Ziggler. Thanks to ‘The Show Off’s’ distinctly average height Swagger looked larger than usual during their partnership, and the two proved to have good chemistry as a tag team. Meanwhile having Vickie as his manager paved over the weakest area of his work: promos.

By the time September 2012 rolled around Swagger had been split from Ziggler and Guerrero and been used as a glorified jobber with no proper role on any of the company’s TV shows for months. It had reached the point where he needed to be taken off TV to give fans a break from him, allowing him to return fresh for a renewed push sometime down the line.

Unfortunately it doesn’t look as though the refresh has had as much thought put into it as it should have. As I mentioned above Swagger’s new look is pretty generic. He’s not got himself any new ring gear or changed up his style. He has to shoulder as much blame as the writing team here: it’s up to wrestlers to give the creative types a reason to invest time in them. Longer hair and beards don’t qualify. At the very least Swagger should have invested in some new singlets and decided on a new move for his arsenal.

Despite the half-hearted approach to Swagger’s rejuvenation taken by all involved the decision was made to bring him back to TV. There Swagger cannot be blamed: he has nothing to do with WWE’s scripts. That his return was attributed to Teddy Long taking a random interest in him is either ridiculous or an insult… or a ridiculous insult. Swagger and WWE’s audience deserve better.

There was nothing about Swagger’s promo or match on the February 1^st SmackDown that indicated he was a changed man who would soon be headlining cards. I assume that his return means he’ll be a part of the blue brand’s Elimination Chamber match on February 17^th. Why would he return in this fashion if not to take part in the match?

I can’t envisage him winning this match. In fact beyond making up the numbers in a cage match while Sheamus is off tangling with The Shield I can’t see any reason for his return to television. There are no clear feuds for him over the next two months. There is no clear match for him at WrestleMania. There just doesn’t seem to be anything for him to do.

It’s a great waste. Swagger could be a star if used with a little thought. He could have been reintroduced to TV as a babyface and set against Antonio Cesaro. Swagger has been a pro-American heel throughout his entire WWE career. A minor tweak, turning him into a good guy, would have refreshed his entire character without requiring any sweeping changes. WWE fans always respond well to a flag-waving hero.

WWE has surprised us with Swagger pushes from nowhere before. They have never gone well. The best approach to take with a guy like him is to prepare him over a course of a few months before launching him to the very top and sustaining his push. Swagger’s confidence has been battered by prematurely quashed pushes before. If he’s going to amount to anything now he’s back on TV then WWE need to come up with a plan for him and stick to it. He’s good but he’s not the sort of guy to become a star overnight.

SmackTalk 23.11.12

This is what SmackDown should be every week: an exciting collection of matches and segments (more of the former than the latter) that help to create and advance feuds and acts. It’s rare for the programme to achieve it but it did so this week, and in style. Time was allocated to acts WWE is going to rely upon in the future and there was more than one good match. It was the best episode in a very long time.

Damien Sandow v Kofi Kingston, Dolph Ziggler v Randy Orton, and Sin Cara v Alberto Del Rio were all above average for WWE television. The battle of the former CMLL employees was the masked man’s best outing since joining the sports entertainment group. While he and ADR have clashed in WWE before they have never set such a quick pace. It’s a shame we’ve had to wait a year and a half for a passable outing from Triple H’s star signing.

The appearances from John Cena and Ryback were welcome too. Cena, as the company’s leading man, lent the show some star power. I could have done without the continuation of his dreary relationship saga with AJ and Vickie but at least Ziggler is getting to work with the number one guy. Meanwhile ‘Big Hungry’s’ star will continue to rise thanks to the back to basics approach of having him squash a defenceless mid-carder.

The show’s central strength was the prep work done for various feuds. The Big Show and Sheamus programme rumbled on with the two men taunting each other after the World champ had won a handicap match. It was a strange booking decision. Being the tag team champions Team Hell No should not have been jobbed out to a singles competitor. The fact that they’re babyfaces meant the match had an odd dynamic (heels being disadvantaged never makes sense). It was a good match nonetheless and did at least keep the story of Bryan and Kane being dysfunctional alive.

 

R-Truth got a non-championship victory over US champ Antonio Cesaro, setting up a title match at some point in the future. Finally, Wade Barrett made it very clear he wants to take the Intercontinental gold from Kofi Kingston.

 

A great deal was packed into the ninety minutes and the majority of it made sense and entertained viewers. Again, this is what SmackDown should be every week.

e

 

Intro video

Tweet 1: "Tonight, on SmackDown... Vickie Guerrero continues her crusade against AJ and John Cena's scandalous relationship." Yeah... STAY TUNED!!

Tweet 2: I watch wrestling for storylines about scandalous affairs. It's what drives me. That and the uppercuts.
Tweet 3: Epic recaps are boring. Take note, WWE.

Miz TV, featuring John Cena, AJ Lee, Vickie Guerrero and Dolph Ziggler

Tweet 4: Miz TV opens ANOTHER SmackDown? Stuck for ideas much? How about opening with Kofi Kingston versus any athletic heel.

Tweet 5: Wow. Cena's on SmackDown. This week's top of the ramp comment is "Miz TV: let's go!" Brilliant. That's why he shifts so much merch...
Tweet 6: I do like the fact that Cena's sitting on the couch. Nobody else does...
Tweet 7: Miz needs to sort his tenses out.
Tweet 8: Beautiful recap of Cena botching walking there.
Tweet 9: Wait... Cena and AJ Styles are having an affair?!
Tweet 10: This is how to get Miz over as a babyface: book him as a tweener. He can use all his catchphrases but isn't a heel. Good call.
Tweet 11: It sounds like AJ's music contains the line "Slut it up" over and over again.
Tweet 12: I wonder what Cena's ex-wife makes of all this.

Cena's expression says a lot about his feelings on this current storyline

Tweet 13: The way this is going AJ's going to be involved in WrestleMania XXIX's main event.
Tweet 14: Vickie Guerrero bragging about kissing Dolph Ziggler there. She won't be removed from her spot as RAW Managing Superviser though.
Tweet 15: Cena shakes Miz's hand, cementing 'The Awesome One's' face turn.

Ryback v Darren Young

Tweet 16: Ryback's on too? All the big names are on this week's show.

Tweet 17: 'Mr No Days Off Except When He's Suspended' is the opponent. I hope Titus is on commentary again.
Tweet 18: Titus Alfonso.
Tweet 19: The new feud: Ryback versus the Prime Time Players.
Tweet 20: That feud didn't last long. Could've stretched for months. WWE blew it by having Titus go down to a single Muscle Buster.

Note the large kneepads on Darren Young

Antonio Cesaro v R-Truth

Tweet 21: Antonio Cesaro... Heeey!!

Tweet 22: I agree with Cesaro's feelings on Thanksgiving.
Tweet 23: I'm surprised that Truth won that but it does follow the trend of Cesaro losing non-title matches.

Medical notes and a backstage meeting between Sheamus and Booker T

Tweet 24: On a side note I think I have a broken toe on my left foot. It's been tender for a while now and doesn't flex well.

Tweet 25: I don't want to go to a doctor about it. My assumption is it well mend itself if it's broken.
Tweet 26: Anyway, Booker and Sheamus are chatting backstage. They are standing very close to one another.
Tweet 27: Chairs match at TLC. Predictable but still a good move. Also, I like the way Booker pronounces pint as "paint".

Sin Cara v Alberto Del Rio

Tweet 28: I like Sin Cara's new blue and red outfit. He should have introduced a wider variety of outfits far earlier.

Tweet 29: Albertooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo Dellllllllllllllllllllllllllllll Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiioooooooooo!
Tweet 30: Sin Cara should enter wearing old style scuba diving gear. It would explain the bottom-of-the-ocean lighting his matches are subjected to.
Tweet 31: This is one of the best Sin Cara matches I've seen. Put him against Spanish speakers more often.
Tweet 32: Josh Mathews channeling Vince McMahon there. #whatamaneuver
Tweet 33: Handspring elbow. I honestly think Tajiri did that better than anyone.
Tweet 34: It slowed down a bit in the middle but I think that was the best Cara match I've seen. Very good.

A new outfit and his best WWE match. It was quite the night for Sin Cara

Kane and Daniel Bryan backstage

Tweet 35: Why has WWE started cutting to crowd shots during backstage segments?

Tweet 36: Kane and Bryan spending Christmas together is a vignette waiting to happen. #goldJerrygold
Tweet 37: "Can I beat up Santa Claus?" – Kane

Team Hell No v Big Show

Tweet 38: How many times are they going to cut to Sheamus in the skybox during this match? Double figures shouldn't be a stretch.

Tweet 39: Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes!
Tweet 40: Why is the heel at a disadvantage? Why is this match happening?
Tweet 41: Sheamus and Regal shot one. They're chatting amiably. I reckon they're talking about charcoal.
Tweet 42: "I'm not totally sure why Booker T did this" - JBL on the nonsensical match taking place in the ring
Tweet 43: Kane's getting the night off.
Tweet 44: It is firmly established that Kane can create and control fire. So why doesn't he just set his opponents on fire to win every match?
Tweet 45: Another shot of Sheamus looking simple.
Tweet 46: Bryan goes down to the rarely seen choke slam. Decent match but I still don't know why it happened.
Tweet 47: I'm warming to Big Show as a heel champion. He's grown in the role. In every sense. #gut
Tweet 48: Sheamus cutting a promo without a microphone. Forget fighting, he loves to shout.

Intercontinental championship – Kofi Kingston (c) v Damien Sandow

Tweet 49: Fans of Wade Barrett's ring coat will be disappointed again.

Tweet 50: This match could and should have been the opener. Kofi is popular. Sandow is hated. They'll have a good match. It would have made sense.
Tweet 51: "I'm a real man" - Wade Barrett
Tweet 52: I had a dream last night that Kofi Kingston turned heel.
Tweet 53: There's something a bit David Brent about Barrett on commentary.
Tweet 54: All this talk of eye gouging makes me think they're building towards Wade and Kofi in Eye Poking's Legal match at TLC.
Tweet 55: Kingston wins an enjoyable match. Meanwhile Wade takes off the headset and stands on a desk.
Tweet 56: Booking a feud between two guys who want the Intercontinental title is a good idea. Why has it taken so long to do?

Randy Orton v Dolph Ziggler

Tweet 57: Ziggler v Orton would normally be guaranteed to be the best bout on SmackDown but it has some competition tonight. It's been a good episode.

Tweet 58: Who is Orton feuding with? And why?
Tweet 59: There's a fat guy with an embarrassing beard wearing a Ziggler T-shirt in the front row. His presence is inappropriate.
Tweet 60: An update on my toe: I clicked it and it feels better. For now...
Tweet 61: "He's a viper!" - Josh Mathews (sounding aroused) on Randy Orton
Tweet 62: That was a high superplex. Nicely done.
Tweet 63: Ziggler defeats Orton clean on a roll-up! That was tremendous.
Tweet 64: Less tremendous is a post-match run-in from Ricardo Rodriguez. ADR is now on the apron. The boring rivalry continues.
Tweet 65: Meanwhile Cena has attacked Ziggler from behind and applied the STF. Isn't he meant to be the good guy?

That RAW Recap 19.11.12

I've not recapped an episode of RAW since the 1,000th episode in July. Since then Daniel Bryan and Kane have formed a tag team, The Miz has gone babyface, Chris Jericho has been banished, Ryback has been promoted to headliner status and former ROH champ Seth Rollins (or, if you prefer, Tyler Black) has made the TV debut some of us have been waiting two years for.
 
More has stayed the same than changed though. John Cena and CM Punk remain the company’s most heavily promoted acts. Show opening promos are still very much in fashion too. It's a tried and tested approach which WWE aren't likely to change anytime soon. They should though, because a formulaic and predictable three hour TV show is not the best way to keep viewers happy. Perhaps most amazing of all, RAW is still three hours long.
 
This week's episode started with a Ryback promo. I suppose that could be considered a novelty. 'Big Hungry' has not had much talking time despite his increased standing. This segment highlighted why. Ryback is essentially a modern day Ultimate Warrior, carrying analogies far too far while barking about being hungry and at the top of the food chain and generally making as little sense as possible while still using the English language.

Uh-oh... he's got a microphone

 
Ryback's point (yes, he had one) was that Punk had stolen the championship for the second pay-per-view in a row at the Survivor Series. He demanded that Punk and the three NXT wrestlers that had attacked him on Sunday (Seth Rollins, Roman Reigns, and Dean Ambrose) come to the ring or he'd destroy things. Scary.
 
Thankfully no destruction occurred. Vickie Guerrero, a capable woman with a microphone and a magnet for heel heat, took to the stage to inform Ryback that she was booking him in a match with Tensai. She acted as though this would be a big challenge for ‘The Human Wrecking Ball’, even though we've seen the two clash twice and the man from Japan lost both encounters. This bout was no different… except Ryback actually managed to hit his finisher this time.
 
Backstage we got a brief shot of Sheamus shouting at a referee about incompetence. He was angry about having missed out on the World Heavyweight championship at Survivors. He looked like a bully. John Laurinaitis was right to fine him.
 
Wade Barrett defeated Intercontinental champion Kofi Kingston in a good match that lasted around fifteen minutes. Before it began footage was shown of Barrett stating he wanted the IC strap back. His non-title victory makes it clear that this is the new direction for both men. They should have a good feud judging by RAW and their collisions last spring.
 
Kaitlyn dropped Aksans in match number three. It was nothing special. I'd only suggest watching it if you're a big fan of one or both women.
 
The ladies were followed by a non-title match between Antonio Cesaro and 'The Funkasaurus'. Brodus Clay has had a spectacular fall down the card recently. During his first few months as the all-singing, all-dancing funk-lover he was protected and given a very strong push. He seemed set for a permanent upper mid-card position. That push is gone and not a trace of it remains. Cameron and Naomi watched as their man got powered up for 'The Swiss Superman's' Neutralizer finish.
 
R-Truth was on commentary for this one. He explained he was scouting Cesaro in the hope of capturing the US title in the future. I can't see it happening. He lost at Survivor Series for a reason.
 
Managing Supervisor of RAW Vickie Guerrero returned to the ring for the next segment. It was a continuation of the nonsense concerning "inappropriate behaviour" between Cena and AJ (it cost AJ the General Manager job, you know). As I find this one of the most disengaging storylines of the year (it's up there with the Claire Lynch stupidity) I shan't recap it all. All you need to know is that Vickie brought two people with her who claimed to have witnessed “inappropriate behaviour” between Cena and AJ. Some of this allegedly took place in a car.
 
AJ and Cena cane out to deny the allegations then, for no fathomable reason, shared a long, passionate kiss. That was broken up by Dolph Ziggler. Despite 'The Show Off' having had a career highlight night the previous evening he was quickly dispatched by Super Cena. This was Ziggler’s sole appearance in front of the live crowd during the broadcast. It was a less than ideal way to build on his success as the sole survivor in the Team battle.

As the merch machine left the ring to chase his foe he landed awkwardly on his left leg and had to hobble backstage. Luckily for WWE and eight-year-olds everywhere Cena did not suffer a serious injury. He will probably be booked to face 'Mr Money in the Bank' at TLC.
 
Bout number five saw Alberto Del Rio and Randy Orton clash in a two out of three falls match. This struck me as an odd stipulation to give them. After the wild brawl they had on SmackDown a couple of weeks ago it seemed like a step back. Two out of three fall matches should take place towards the beginning of feuds or in rivalries based around technical expertise. It was decent but nothing more. 'The Viper' won after clinching the first and third falls.

Intensity. Raw intensity

 
Following a handicap match that saw the Great Khali batter Epico and Primo, and also featured some shenanigans from Hornswoggle and Rosa, David Otunga and The Miz faced off. Fans gradually warmed to 'The Awesome One' throughout the contest. Miz did well playing the babyface again, and the man from Harvard was solid too. I don't think Otunga gets enough credit for generating heat. He may not be the greatest wrestler ever but he knows how to get his character across.
 
The Sheamus promo that followed was flat. 'The Celtic Warrior' bored the fans so much that they dusted off the dreaded "What?" response to taunt him with. He either needs to be pitted against someone genuinely loathsome or turned heel. Probably the former, seeing as WWE are determined to have him become a genuine star.
 
The point of Sheamus's promo was to antagonise World Heavyweight champion Big Show. 'Great White' had saved the chair he'd used to batter the champ the night before and shouted (yes, shouted: Sheamus is not a quiet man) about each dent on in representing a bruise on Show's body. Both men talked over each other, which was pretty sloppy.
 
Damien Sandow stopped the madness when he came out for his match with the Irishman. He proved immediately more entertaining than both WHC rivals as he told the referee that he would not compete while Sheamus was holding the chair. Sandow v Sheamus was one of the highlights of the show. They battled for fifteen minutes before Sheamus hit White Noise and a Brogue kick for three. It was a cut above the average TV match.
 
Cutting backstage AJ was shown confronting Vickie. Tamina was present to act as a bodyguard. She towered over AJ. That should help portray 'The Diva Next Door' as the underdog babyface during their inevitable collision.
 
Anyway, Ms Lee told Vickie Cena was hurt (the ankle injury mentioned earlier) and asked to know what was going to be done about it. Vickie said she would do nothing, prompting AJ to say she would take matters into her own hands. Following a break we found her striding down a corridor alongside Layla. The Brit made a wet attempt to convince AJ not to follow through on her plan and was told to go away. With that AJ strode into the men's locker room (Heath Slater could be seen dressed only in a towel). She had a bit of a shout at Dolph Ziggler who retaliated with some brutal putdowns about her being desperate and needy before Cena ran in and lumped him.
 
They fought and got separated. It was fairly predictable and designed to provide more clips for the Cena v Ziggler video package at TLC.
 
The evening's final match was a non-title encounter between tag team champions Team Hell No and Rey Mysterio and Sin Cara. Despite featuring Daniel Bryan, one of the promotion's most talented wrestlers, and Mysterio, who shines with the right opponent, the highlight of the segment was Titus O'Neil on commentary. ‘The Big Deal’ was hilarious. His charisma and quick wit were a revelation. He deserves more mic time if he can get results like that.
 
Darren Young was also at the commentary booth.
 
The PTPs ran in at the end to cause a disqualification. They ruined what had been an enjoyable match but the decision was understandable: WWE wanted to protect both babyface teams. A clean loss wasn't going to happen.

RAW’s final segment was a celebration of CM Punk’s one year long reign as WWE champion. Throughout the show we had seen clips of Heyman and Punk backstage, preparing for the festivities. The in-ring stuff kicked off with Heyman berating the fans for booing him. It was solid heel microphone work. CM Punk was then introduced to the predictable mix of boos and cheers.

 

A Paul Heyman guy

 

The champ stated that holding the championship for a year is just the beginning. Apparently he won’t stop until he is the longest reigning champion ever. Good luck with that. Bruno Sammartino, who was referenced by name by both Punk and Heyman, held the WWWF world title twice, his second reign lasting just under three and a half years and his first lasting nearly eight years.

As good as Punk is and as heavily pushed as he’s been over the last seventeen months I cannot see him lasting that long as champion. The modern wrestling approach simply wouldn’t see it happen. It doesn’t matter though because the comments were made in character. I’m beginning to think there’s a chance he’ll squeak by The Rock at the Royal Rumble but I still think it’s likely he’ll drop the title by or at WrestleMania XXIX.

The party was broken up by Ryback. ‘Big Hungry’ stomped down to the ring, presumably wanting to get his hands on Punk. Unfortunately for him he was jumped by Rollins, Ambrose, and Reigns. They again put WWE’s hungriest man through a table and then got into the ring to pose.

Punk acted as though he was nervous around them, leaving the ring as they entered. He overcame that pretty quickly to pose and shout about being the best in the world. The show went off the air with him making this boast while his foot was planted firmly on Ryback’s chest.

As formulaic as it was I enjoyed RAW. There were three matches of a decent length, Barrett and Kingston were given the chance to create a connection with fans through their ring work and Titus O’Neil surprised us with a personality. Even the Cena and AJ stuff didn’t seem as bad as it has in previous weeks.

Although I complained at the top of this article about Punk being overexposed I enjoyed his main event promo. As his title reign had reached such a significant milestone it made sense for a fuss to be made of him. The use of Ryback was good too. It took three guys to take him out and he still has a score to settle with Punk. Presumably that will happen at TLC.

When Worlds Collide

As I was watching SmackDown earlier I begun thinking about WWE having two world championships. I’ve written before that having two world titles on a combined roster dilutes the importance of both and makes it more difficult for guys to rise up the card (and has also created a company where many members of the roster have a ridiculous number of world title reigns to their name). As the show unfolded I came up with an idea that would lead to a title unification match sometime in the latter half of next year, ideally at SummerSlam.

The first step would be to have Dolph Ziggler cash-in his Money in the Bank contract relatively soon and win the World Heavyweight championship. He wouldn’t necessarily have to defeat the Big Show. ‘The World’s Largest Athlete’ could lose the strap to Sheamus at Survivor Series and ‘The Show Off’ could cash-in on the new champ.

With the title on Dolph Ziggler that would place John Cena back into a world title programme. No, I’m not the biggest Cena fan either, but in fairness he hasn’t really been involved with world titles that much over the last year and he’s not challenged for the WHC for years.

Cena and Ziggler’s feud could probably be spanned out until Royal Rumble thanks to the addition of AJ and Vickie Guerrero. A match at TLC could see Ziggler retain the championship, likely by losing via disqualification or due to some form of Vickie-related shenanigans, setting up the Rumble rematch.

At the Rumble Cena would defeat Ziggler clean to become the new World Heavyweight champion. In the evening’s main event CM Punk would face The Rock. ‘The Great One’ is the heavy favourite to win the WWE championship at the show even now and I can’t imagine that state of affairs will change. This plot would see him lose. Punk would continue his epic title reign.

 

Who doesn't want to see this sight again?

 

From there there would be two options. The first would be to have ‘The Brahma Bull’ earn or be granted a rematch with Punk at WrestleMania XXIX (which would be easier to accept if Punk had cheated at the Rumble). The second is to have The Rock challenge John Cena for the World Heavyweight championship at ‘Mania.

With option one The Rock would defeat Punk in their rematch and leave WrestleMania as WWE champion. With option two he would defeat Cena for the WHC. Whichever scenario goes ahead Rock would leave Met Life Stadium with a belt. The company’s other world title would be held by either Punk or Cena.

From there Rock could appear intermittently and snipe back and forth with the other world champion about whose title is the most meaningful. Around June a champion versus champion title unification match could be agreed upon for SummerSlam. That would pit The Rock against either John Cena or CM Punk.

Admittedly the Cena v Rock match would probably be best for SummerSlam as it would put that much more distance between their “once in a lifetime” clash at WrestleMania XXVIII and the rematch. Cena has more history with The Rock than does Punk and they would feel like the natural choice for a unification bout. Personally I think Punk would be a fine choice too, and placing him in the situation would cement his position as Cena’s equal, which should be a priority for WWE.

This scenario would create a long-running storyline, have the potential to attract a large pay-per-view number, and tidy up the promotion’s cluttered championship scene. I can’t see any reason not to do it. That means it won’t happen.