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3 Up, 3 Down [January 25th]

1/25/2017

2 Comments

 
By:  Jason Stuart

It’s Royal Rumble go home week.  Both shows have had their struggles recently in using the go-home shows to get you excited for the special events.   Surprisingly RAW brought a very strong effort to the table.  Smackdown was a bit more uneven than usual but still solid.  So what did I like and what drove me crazy?  Well let’s find out as we go into my 3 ups and 3 downs for both shows.

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3 Up, 3 Down [January 20th]

1/20/2017

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By:  Jason Stuart

Well that was an interesting week.  We had attacks, injuries, cage matches, title matches, and a whole bunch of crap in between.  For my money Smackdown again was the better of the two offerings.  Raw has really been stagnant with little to no new developments or turns leading us into the Rumble.  Smackdown continues to turn up the heat despite the smaller, less marquee roster.  Both shows offered some good and some bad this week.  Here were my takes on what those were.
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  1. Cedric Alexander vs. Brian Kendrick - This Cruiserweight match was very good.  This didn’t play into either guy’s current story, but it didn’t hurt them.  Dar watched from the back, and I guess Alicia did her terrible acting at ringside, but the in-ring work is what landed this here.  These two guys busted their asses, and it ended with a SICK lumbar check for the win.  Cedric avoiding Fox after the match was a nice touch. 
  2. Neville Attack on Swann - Usually I am not a fan of sneak attacks before a match starts.  Also, given they did a similar angle with Sasha and Nia this could have been bad.  However, these guys made it good.  It felt real and surprising.  It made sense given Swann embarrassed Neville last week.  I like that these guys aren’t having non-title or tag matches against each other every week, but they are still staying relevant.  I would be happier if they hadn’t had any matches at all, but it is WWE so that wasn’t going to happen.  I thought this segment added a nice bit of fire to their match at the Rumble. 
  3. The Club vs. Cesaro and Sheamus - I enjoyed the work in this match.  I thought all 4 guys brought...IT! There was a logical reason to think a title change was possible, so the near falls were more impactful.  Also, this is the first time I can remember a Dusty finish where it’s the heels that get screwed over, so that was a nice touch.  All in all I am looking forward to another match and hopefully the reign of the Club getting underway because it is long overdue.
Honorable Mention - No Authority figures at all.
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  1. Charlotte/Bayley Promo - This was a train wreck.  You want to know the worst result of over scripting talent?  Just watch this segment.  Charlotte had moments, but she was not on her A game.  Also, don’t ever offer to read something unless you know you can.  It’s a really bad look on live TV when you scramble to try to recover from that.  Then Bayley came out and…well…Bayley is not good on promos.  This has been a weak point of hers all the way through NXT.  She’s gotten a little better but still feels nervous and flustered.  Those poems were horrible and made a loveable character seem dumb and contrived.  I give them credit for really pushing the “Bayley as a fan vs. Charlotte as a legacy” angle.  I actually really enjoy that they are going in that direction with the build.  This was just not a good way to do it. 
  2. Titus vs. The New Day - Why is this happening?  Are we that bereft of tag team talent and ideas that we can only take our 3 man tag team and feud them with a singles guy?  These bits haven’t been funny or clever.  Sticking Titus next to New Day only makes his total lack of charisma stand out and sucks the charisma out of the New Day.  This is a pairing that has only made both sides look worse.  The only direction this could go would be Titus making a 3 man group.  Maybe a new Prime Time Playas.  He just doesn’t have the IT factor for a singles push.  
  3. Opening Segment - I am never a fan of segments like these.  First off that was a waste of a Brock appearance.  He had little to no impact on the show, and once he was done he was forgotten.  Second it never works when you just have all these people come out constantly interrupting.  It always looks like a giant cluster and nobody really gets over.  We had Brock beat up your “Main Event guys” and a tease of a match that isn’t happening anytime soon.  If I were a regular fan nothing here would make me care about the rest of the show or the Royal Rumble.
Dishonorable Mention - The backstage skit with Rollins, Reigns, and Zayn made Sami look like a total moron.  You have been telling a story of him as a lovable underdog and a guy with a never give up attitude.  Now on TV you make him a bad comedy act?  I get the segment was a play on a Jericho podcast when they said Sami acts like that in putting together a match, but why damage his on screen character for a joke?  His part of this segment reminded me of old Santino bits, and that’s not a comparison you should want the fans making.
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  1. Steel Cage Match - This match was what a Main Event should be.  The work wasn’t flawless, but it was very good.  There was a build, a story, a reason for a cage.  There was a legit question as to who would win.  In the end they put a finish to the Alexa/ Becky/La Luchadora angle, all while starting up a new program with Mickie and Becky.  It was very entertaining and left me wanting to know where they go next. 
  2. Miz vs. AJ - I loved everything here.  You took your two biggest heels and gave them a conflict.  They both feel they are the best and went toe to toe to prove it.  In the promo to set this up Miz showed again why he is the best on the mic in the company right now.  If and when AJ turns face there is a great program to be had here.  Obviously the finish was designed to not give away too much for free.  They kept both guys strong but wet my appetite for what this could be. 
  3. Kings Court - I was incredibly skeptical when this segment began.  I saw Lawler in tights with no shirt and assumed we were headed down a really bad road.  Then Ziggler came out and did the silent treatment, despite talking at length on Talking Smack the previous week.  Then this segment took a very unexpected turn.  Ziggler did a very slow and measured promo and said he had footage of his own.  He proceeded to show footage of his repeated elbow drops on Lawler that occurred moments before his cardiac arrest.  I had totally forgotten Ziggler was in the ring with him before that.  This was a brilliant use of real life history to build a new heel.  Ziggler was almost proud of what he did.  Then the cherry on the sundae occurred as Ziggler was leaving he delivered a superkick right to the chest of Lawler.  I don’t think this goes to a match, but I thought Dolph finally showed something different and used this segment to really make himself stand out as a heel.  This was excellent use of everyone involved.
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  1. Nikki/Natalya Brawl -  I am on record as being a fan of this angle.  I thought the work these ladies did last week was excellent.  This week was a poor follow-up.  Nikki’s promo felt overscripted and not believable.  Natty did what Natty usually does on the mic and laid an egg.  Crazy Jealous Natty at the merch stand was ok, but not great.  The only part of this that was good was the physical stuff.  The fight was good, stiff, and believable.  Everything else was not good. 
  2. Where are They? - Smackdown has done a good job of building young guys, but no follow up with Corbin on the biggest match of his life the week before?  He was on Talking Smack and may have done the best mic work of his entire career in that segment, but the main audience didn’t see it.  Oh and what direction are our tag champs going in?  We have no idea because they weren’t on the show.  I get that SD has a time crunch that RAW doesn’t, but that’s not an excuse.  They could have easily spent two minutes doing a backstage promo with them where they get jumped by the Usos.  Now you have their faces on TV and an idea where they are going, and you really lose nothing in terms of time.  Young guys need to be featured regularly to keep them fresh on the audience's mind.  This was a bad week to be one of the young Smackdown talents. 
  3. Orton vs. Ambrose - I really have no issue with the work in this match but rather why we were having this match.  Ambrose and Orton have had little interaction, and that separation has the potential to make this a money match down the road.  Instead of making it feel special and building a program, we get an unadvertised match that does nothing for either guy.  The focal point was the Wyatt’s tension.  They could have accomplished the same result with a guy like Crews or Kalisto.  Ambrose was wasted in this as was the possible future money match.

So those were my bests and worsts from RAW and SmackDown this week.  I'd love to hear your opinions, so Join Our Discord or comment below and let me know what you think.  Also, listen to The Rundown this week as I am sure I will be arguing some of these with my fellow co-hosts.
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3 Up, 3 Down [January 13th]

1/13/2017

1 Comment

 
By:  Jason Stuart

With Smackdown coming off of two of their best episodes in the last decade, RAW had a lot to prove.  Not only was RAW coming off a bad show, but they were following another top notch episode of Smackdown, and they were up against the National Championship game for College Football.  RAW made every attempt to set themselves apart, advertising the US title handicap match as well as appearances by HBK and Undertaker.  Did all the efforts of RAW swing the momentum back in their direction?  Time to break it down and find out…
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  1. Jericho/Owens vs. Reigns - I feel like this has been the destination we have been heading to for a while.  I wasn’t crazy about teasing it early and setting it up for later  (What was the planned main event?).  I especially disliked the bait and switch of this given that they did the same exact thing with Charlotte and Sasha just a few weeks ago.  However, the main event was done very well.  They told a great story, and at the end they did the right thing.  Roman should have never had the US title.  Now the title is on a guy that it feels right on.  It also opens up more possibilities for the expected Jericho/Owens match down the road.
  2. Strowman vs Rollins - I was curious how these two would work together.  This is the second match between the two so far, and while neither has had a real finish, I have been very pleasantly surprised.  Seth may be a guy better suited to fighting bigger guys.  He bumped like nobody's business for Braun and made him look like a million bucks.  They put on a good match while staying true to their characters.  I loved the touch at the end with Seth holding him off with the chair.  I actually look forward to a program with these two someday.  Also, I cannot say enough about the progression of Strowman in ring.
  3. Dorado vs. Neville - I’m a fan of both of these guys, but the work Neville has done as a heel is off the charts.  I love that Neville has worked in moves like the Rings of Saturn to be finishing holds so the heel doesn’t have to give the fans the Red Arrow they want to see.  He can break it out for a big match, but changing your move set as a heel is sort of a lost art that Neville has done well.  The match itself was good, but what happened after really got it a spot here.  Swann coming out and finally getting some heat back on Neville was tremendous.  He needed this.  To this point Swann had been booked to be dominated by Neville.  It makes their match far more interesting to see that Swann can hang with him.
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  1. HBK Segment/Jinder vs. Cass - This might be the only time any segment involving HBK ends up in the down section of my column.  I am an unabashed HBK mark and have been since I was a kid.  That said using an HBK appearance in an attempt to further the most brutal storyline you have was a terrible call.  The match sucked, and the best part of this entire bit was Rusev showing he is one of the funniest guys on the roster.  HBK was in full on mail it in mode here.  The jokes were bad, and even the plugging of his movie was lackluster.  This type of appearance should be done as a surprise because when you advertise the guy as they did you create an expectation that he will have something major to say.  Instead they advertised him and delivered one of the most disappointing segments in HBK’s career.
  2. Foley Performance Review/Undertaker Segment - There was WAY too much Steph and Mick on this show.  The logic of this segment wasn’t there.  First, I always hate the “Performance Review” gimmick.  Now, let's check some logic.  Steph was upset that he told people that Taker would be there… Actually WWE said that in their advertisements for the building.  Then she chastised him for things that happened on weeks where he wasn’t even on the show.  Then she basically hints that his status comes down to whether or not Taker shows up.  This segment was a huge waste of air time and used solely as a vehicle to intro the Undertaker, who doesn’t need any special build.  Im not a huge fan of Taker, but the guy has no direction.  One week he randomly appears on Smackdown to say he’s back.  Then he disappears, and weeks later randomly shows up on RAW to announce he is in the Rumble.  Taker should have just said “I would normally be on Smackdown, but I needed to make this announcement on RAW cause we are up against a huge College Football game.”  This was just a horrible way to use him. 
  3. Stephanie/Bayley/Sasha Segment - The positive here is that Stephanie is willing to take the piss out of the women on the roster as well.  My question is why?  Steph eviscerated Charlotte a few months back, so on camera there is no alliance there.  Steph has not presented herself as a heel authority figure.  Bayley and Sasha have done nothing on screen to raise her ire.  She is supposed to be the one who brought us the women’s revolution.  It makes no sense for Stephanie to be tearing down these ladies.  Unless we are heading to Sasha and Stephanie at Mania, this was a poor usage of your female talent.
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  1. Ambrose Asylum - This segment has fallen very flat for me in the past.  However, I must say this was great stuff.  I loved The Miz being the guest after losing the belt to Ambrose the week before.  I especially loved the Participation Award making a return.  I really enjoyed the touch of having Maryse accidentally slap Miz.  I think the best part was this was all we got from these guys.  They were not in 5 more segments.  They gave us something good and left us wanting more, which is always a recipe for success.  Miz continues to bring out the best in everyone he works with.  Miz does not have the largest name, but he may very well be the MVP of Smackdown.
  2. Natalya vs. Nikki - I was not optimistic going into this.  When they did the attack in the back, I thought we wouldn’t get anything else.  Instead of the tired old "Nikki can’t compete" gimmick they gave us something rare.  We got two strong women just trying to kick each other’s asses.  I thought this was a great way to keep this angle going and do so without it getting stale.  We still haven’t seen the match, and it feels like we got a satisfying result.  That says a lot to the booking of this.  Natalya continues to execute a really second rate Sharpshooter, but otherwise this segment was great. 
  3. Alpha vs Wyatts - Let’s start by saying Jordan and Gable need more seasoning on the mic.  Their promo was not ready for prime time.  Luckily for them when they get in the ring none of their promo work is remembered.  I liked the touch that the Wyatts were represented by Bray and Randy, who were the two who won the belts but not the two who lost them.  I wasn’t crazy about the two hot tag spots they did with Alpha, but it’s a small nitpick.  My favorite part of this was that it was the rare match in this day that ended with a surprise roll-up and didn’t relay on a finisher or even multiple finishers.  I also thought we added to the Wyatt tension well without being corny.
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  1. Carmellsworth vs. Mae Younger - This was a total waste.  I get the fact that they want to get over that Carmella is using Ellsworth, but come on.  Carmella is still improving in the ring but needs a general, not a local talent to work with.  This jobberette managed to screw up the finish as well.  I am interested in the “Shopping Spree” videos as those could be fun.  However, this match on its own provided no fun at all  I really think a better use of Ellsworth would be several weeks of vignettes with Breezango giving him a makeover. 
  2. Ziggler vs. Kalisto - I love that they finally pulled the trigger on the Ziggler heel turn.  However, there was no explanation on Smackdown for why he finally snapped.  Instead he played almost reluctant like he didn’t want to be doing it but couldn’t help himself.  WWE decided they would have him lose in his first match since the turn.  So despite the turn nothing has actually changed; he’s a less loveable loser.  Then on Talking Smack, Dolph cut pretty much the same Dolph promo and barely played heel.  Also, despite assaulting two guys with a chair, Shane McMahon didn’t reprimand Dolph and instead compliments him and gives him a spot in the Rumble. 
  3. Cena vs. Corbin - I was actually looking forward to this.  WWE was sticking a young talent they obviously have plans for in the ring with Cena.  I don’t think anyone expected Cena to lose given that he is in the title program at the Rumble.  That said these guys didn’t seem to have great chemistry.  It may just be a function of being short on time and being their first time working together, but it just didn’t click for me.  I am interested in seeing future matches between the two.  This seems like a program they could go to when the Corbin push really gets going.  What I really hated was the Corbin promo.  This guy is amazing on the mic on Talking Smack when he is going off the cuff.  Instead of capitalizing on that the Smackdown writers continue to give him scripted crap that makes him sound ridiculous.

So those were my bests and worsts from RAW and SmackDown this week.  I'd love to hear your opinions, so
Join Our Discord or comment below and let me know what you think.  Also, listen to The Rundown this week as I am sure I will be arguing some of these with my fellow co-hosts.
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3 Up, 3 Down [December 26th]

12/26/2016

0 Comments

 
By:  Jason Stuart

Before I begin this week’s column, allow me to extend the warmest of Holiday greetings to all of you that read this column every week.  I was hoping for these shows to fill me with holiday cheer.  One felt more like a lump of coal in my stocking.  The other show was kind of the nice gift that isn’t quite what you want but still you realize you can use.  I like to be topical with my analogies.  Anyway, to the lists…
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  1. Heel Neville - I was not sure how Neville would do in this heel role.  His intro at Roadblock was great, but once he had to grab a mic and explain himself, would it translate?  The answer was yes.  I thought he was believable and real.  He pulled the whole thing off much better than I ever thought he would have.  I am very excited to see where this goes.  What I know for sure is that this has given fans a recognizable and known face for the cruiserweight division, which was an ingredient that was sorely missing. 
  2. Braun Strowman - I have not been a huge fan of Strowman to this point.  That said, I really enjoyed him doing the human wrecking ball gimmick on Monday night.  He worked this part of the monster gimmick really well.  I loved that they planted seeds for him vs. Roman as well.  The lack of Sami Zayn to follow up on the story was not great, but the way they used Strowman covered up for it. 
  3. Opening Segment - I loved some of the interplay between Owens and Jericho here.  Owens calling it the Chris and Kevin Show was nice.  Then you had the “Hug of Jericho, bring it in maaaan.” All of that stuff was tremendous.  These two continue to provide some of the most entertaining segments every week. 
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  1. Opening Segment - For the first time ever I had to include the same segment in both the Up and Down section.  As good as Owens and Jericho were Foley brought the whole thing down.  First, saying the wrong City during the cheap pop gimmick was cringe worthy and uncomfortable.  Then the fanny pack segment was tedious and unfunny.  Then the payoff was the Shark Cage gimmick that just flopped in NXT.  The second half of this opening segment really took a lot of the enjoyment away from a very good start.
  2. Charlotte vs. Bayley - Charlotte’s promo to open this segment was tremendous as most of her mic work is.  Then Bayley came down, and things fell apart.  Bayley seemed to be reciting lines more than speaking from her heart.  It came across here that she is nowhere near Charlotte’s level on the mic.  Then you get to the match, which was ok, but once again you establish a top contender by beating the champion on RAW.  Of course it is well established how I hate casual losses for the champion in non-title matches.  Even worse than the actual match result was that Charlotte’s shoulder was up.  For those of you that may have forgotten it was a few months ago in a very similar spot with Bayley and Sasha leading into Night of Champions.  During that spot Sasha got the win, but both women had their shoulders down.  These finishes are way too similar way too close together. 
  3. Cass vs. Rusev/Sensitivity Training - Two words: HOT GARBAGE.  The sad truth is that with Enzo having to cut promos weekly or multiple times a week rather than once or twice a month, as in NXT, you are seeing the quality really drop off.  The match was terrible in that Cass got himself disqualified about 30 seconds in for beating Rusev beyond the ref’s count.  So, clearly this story will continue.  That in and of itself would have made the 3 down list, but then we sent Enzo to sensitivity training with the misfit toys.  Darren Young, Bo Dallas, Jinder Mahal, and Bob Backlund were his fellow attendees.  There were just awful jokes here.  There were bad sexual innuendos.  This was everything that was bad about the attitude era.  The segment ended with Jinder and Rusev working together to destroy Enzo.  If this results in League of Nations 2, I may tap out on RAW.
Dishonorable Mention - Noam Dar vs. Cedric Alexander.  This is the most forced and contrived angle I have seen them do in a while. You have to establish the relationship between Cedric and Alicia as special and get the fans invested in that before you have the heel coming in to try and steal her away.  Fans don’t care at all about the pairing of Cedric and Fox and couldn’t care less if Dar breaks them up. 
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  1. Opening match/Segment - I loved they opened with Styles and Ellsworth.  This match was exactly what it needed to be.  They could not afford to have anything other than total destruction.  The post-match beat down by AJ was brutal and helped him look tremendous as a heel.  Ziggler came out and cut the “Dolph promo” as I am now referring to it.  That part was utterly predictable.  Then they sent out Corbin to say he should have been in the contenders match and wants a shot.  I thought Baron did a good job here, and it set things in motion nicely.  All things considered this opener blew RAW’s out of the water. 
  2. Natalya promo - Natalya is largely horrible as a heel.  Her biggest issue is that she is not good on the mic.  To see what I mean watch Talking Smack this week where she was atrocious.  On Smackdown, though, I thought she did some of her best heel work on the mic.  I liked the switch in her personality as it was revealed along with the brutality towards Carmella.  I was a little let down by Nikki standing there and doing nothing.  Other than that I thought it was great. 
  3. The Miz post-match - This was a segment I loved.  Miz continues to play his character to perfection, and after months of dancing around the Renee Young/Dean Ambrose relationship, it was brought out on Smackdown.  Renee for her part did an amazing job here.  Everything felt real.  This has the potential to go in many different directions and I am eager to see what the choose.
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  1. La Luchadora - This type of angle is tried and true in wrestling.  However, this sort of thing usually only happens when one guy is ducking and dodging the other.  Alexa has not been refusing to wrestle Becky.  Becky has the match next week for the title already.  Add to that the fact that Becky kept yelling during the match and has a pretty distinct voice the thing was way too obvious.  So aside from being predictable and non-sensical it was fine. 
  2. Miz vs. Crews - This match was centered around a Gabriel Iglesias selfie.  It had all the heat you would imagine a match with a build like that to have.  The In-ring work was fine, but with no energy in the crowd and nobody buying the possibility of a change it just came across as a match that meant nothing which should never be the case for a title match. 
  3. Ambrose vs. Harper - So last week Luke Harper was a top guy worthy of a spot in the #1 contenders match.  This week he does the job to Ambrose. I wonder why I said he didn’t feel like he belonged in the match last week.  The post-match beat down was fine and I loved The Miz coming out to pick the bones.  The issue here is that Harper is the latest guy to be booked in a stop and go fashion.
​So those were my bests and worsts from RAW and SmackDown this week.  I'd love to hear your opinions, so visit our forums and let me know what you think.  Also, listen to The Rundown this week as I am sure I will be arguing some of these with my fellow co-hosts.
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3 Up, 3 Down [December 18th]

12/18/2016

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By:  Jason Stuart

This week RAW had a go-home show for a PPV.  Smackdown should have been into full Royal Rumble buildup mode.  On paper both of these shows should have been exciting and fun to watch.  The problem was that neither show actually delivered on that promise for me.  What did I like or dislike?  Well, let’s get into it and find out.

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  1. Jack Gallagher - This guy is quickly becoming one of my favorite parts of the cruiserweight division if not all of RAW.  His announcing his intention to interfere in the match was one of the funniest things on RAW in quite a while.  While they crowds have not yet become invested in him, I feel like it’s just a matter of time until that happens. 
  2. New Day Celebration - Despite the predictable result, I actually really liked the work in both New Day matches on RAW.  I thought everyone involved brought their A game and made the night feel important.  I didn’t like adding Rollins and Reigns to the match for no real reason.  I feel like adding them took away from the main event.  All that said, my favorite part was the party in the back with Booty O’s and champagne.  That scene was tremendous.
  3. Perkins vs. Kendrick - This was far from their best match.  I did enjoy the way they continued to set up the triple threat at the PPV (which they announced on the go-home show).  Using the guys in singles matches adds interest in a triple threat, and the fact they had a clean victory for Kendrick was a refreshing surprise. 
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  1. Sami/ Mick anf the trade that wasn’t - I’m a huge fan of Sami Zayn.  I’m glad they are actually using him on the show, but the way they are using him is fairly underwhelming.  Also during the trade talk Mick says he traded him for Eva Marie.  Sami craps on Eva, saying he is worth a million of her.  Now I understand many people hate Eva. I also understand Sami is probably worth a million Eva Maries; I totally understand Eva is not a great or even good wrestler yet.  What I don’t get is why WWE needs to tell us this.  They should never make their own talent feel less than great.  If WWE doesn’t even believe this person is worth my time, why should I?  Of late, WWE has taken to building one star by crapping on another, and nobody wins in that scenario.  I know what Eva is, but what you should be telling me is that she is a future star.  For this bit you should have used an established star like the Miz cause then Sami can make that statement, and it doesn’t hurt the Miz because he’s already established as a top guy.
  2. Rollins Report - This was all over the place.  Rollins calls out HHH, who isn’t there.  Then calls out his guest Kevin Owens.  This segment was flat for me and didn’t get any better when the term "Sparkle Crotch” re-appeared.  For the last 3 weeks Rollins has been in promo battles with Owens, which would be great, except he isn’t fighting Owens at Roadblock.  The choices here continue to baffle me.
  3. Bayley vs. Alicia, pt.2 - Yes folks, one altercation between Bayley and Alicia wasn’t enough, so we are launching a full on program.  This time it’s not about Alicia being mad about Cedric (not on the show) getting a bear from Bayley.  Nope, this time we have really upped the storyline.  Now it seems it’s Bayley, who is furious because Alicia destroyed a Bayley Beat.  I know a match occurred, but I think I was unconscious from slamming my head off the wall by that point. 
Dishonorable Mention -  You can make a great case that Charlotte vs. Sasha is the most anticipated match of the PPV.  Despite that, you couldn’t find a spot on RAW for them other than a video package?  It was a nice video, but on a go home show you would think we would get a hotter segment than just a video and no live appearance. 
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  1. Miz TV - Once again Miz and AJ provide homeruns.  This time they did it together.  The fact that they took shots at each other over who is the better champion was great.  Dolph got ivolved, and the segment got far less interesting.  Notwithstanding the verbal exchange between Miz and AJ, Dolph had me hoping they would go this route. 
  2. Tag Team Battle Royal - I enjoyed this match.  I liked the fact they didn’t do the one member is eliminated then the whole team is gone style match.  I also liked how they told little stories withing the match, such as continuing the Slater and Rhyno breakup story.  I liked that they tried something new by making the Hype Bros the winners and #1 contenders.  Sadly, as is often the case with Ryder, it’s one step forward two steps back.  Ryder injured his knee at the end of the match and will be out of action after Knee surgery.  It will be interesting to see where they go now, but I applaud them for trying something new here. 
  3. Talking Smack - From Daniel Bryan telling us “Smackdown really likes fisting” to the Usos arguing over who is Shawn and who is Marty, I found Talking Smack to be highly entertaining.  If you are not watching this every week you are missing out.  The way you see moments of the people behind the characters makes the show worth the brief half hour of your time. 
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  1. Alexa’s First Defense - I love that Alexa Bliss is champion.  I hate what they did with her first title defense.  Playing the fake injury angle is tried and true in wrestling and was on display again here.   My issue with this is that, at her diminutive size, when you portray Alexa as a chicken shit champion that damages her going forward.  During a person's first major title run when they are booked in the chickenshit heel role the perception of them is lowered.  For evidence look no further than Seth Rollins first world title run.  He almost never won cleanly and lost anytime the title was not on the line.  The result was the perception by the fans not that he was a great wrestler who cheated but that he was a fluke who was lucky to have the belt.  I fear this is the road we are going down with Alexa. 
  2. Dolph Fails Upwards - Yet again despite being soundly defeated in his feud with the Miz, Dolph finds his character undeservedly in a world title match.  He won an entertaining match, but the fact that the top two programs have just been re-juggled tells you a lot about the depth on this brand.  While the lack of depth is glaring Apollo Crews and Baron Corben who could be future stars are only to be found in one (Crews) backstage segment where he makes a Uranus joke.  
  3. Carmella vs Natalya - So we are to believe that Natalya, graduate of the Hart family dungeon, former champion, one of the most respected women in the locker room, is more concerned with Nikki being mad at her than her opponent?  That promo made Nattie look like a joke.  I’m not sure where this angle of “Who attacked Nikki” is going, but I can tell you I am already not interested.

So those were my bests and worsts from RAW and SmackDown this week.  I'd love to hear your opinions, so 
visit our forums and let me know what you think.  Also, listen to The Rundown this week as I am sure I will be arguing some of these with my fellow co-hosts.

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3 Up, 3 Down [December 8th]

12/8/2016

2 Comments

 
By:  Jason Stuart

​I had high hopes for this week’s shows.  On Raw we were coming off an episode with pretty good stories and in ring work.  On Smackdown we were coming of a PPV, that I though far exceeded expectations.  So did the follow up shows this week meet my expectations?  Well check out my thoughts below and find out.
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  1. Love Rectangle - The Enzo, Rusev, Lana, and Cass bit has been much discussed.  Some people loved it, and some people hated it.  For my part I loved this for many reasons.  First we got a story that threaded throughout the entire show.  Every character played their role; nobody acted in a way that you wouldn’t believe that their character would.  Perhaps my favorite part was the moment when Cass is standing in the ring and recognizes what is going on.  His reaction probably fit many of the viewers who at that point realized where this was going.  I loved him stealing the phone from the timekeeper.  Nice touch to have Enzo say it’s Unknown so he didn’t answer it.  Yes the “Face” was sneaking off to have sex with the “Heel’s” wife, which is a bit confusing.  That said they covered it well enough by making it obvious Enzo was uncomfortable with it.  All in all I really enjoyed the work of everyone involved here.
  2. Rollins and Owens - I liked a lot of things about this segment.  I enjoyed the fact that several months after the fact, Seth has finally decided to announce he wants to fight Triple H.  So yet again they throw a breadcrumb for a story that likely won’t pick up until after the Rumble.  I have not been a fan of the total lack of follow-up on that story, but I get they are holding the match off until WrestleMania so I can at least appreciate the periodic reminders.  Also this was the first time I thought Seth cut a believable face promo.  For too long since turning he has still come across as a heel.  This was the first time I thought he held a segment as the leading face and did it well.  Then Owens came out and played his role very well.  My particularly favorite part was the logic he inserted when Seth challenged him and he said, “No, I already beat you two weeks ago.”  Everything here worked and furthered the storylines.
  3. Jericho vs. Roman - This was easily the best match of the night.  I wish the finish had been booked differently.  I would have liked to see the title switch here, and I think it would have helped everyone.  Jericho and Rollins, at Roadblock, would be bettered by adding the US title to it.  Roman not having the US title makes his match with Owens more interesting.  I also think Jericho would increase the profile of the US Title.  All that being said, the in ring here was fantastic.  I bought the false finishes because I believed they were doing the switch.  The crowd was really hot for this.  Everything in this match worked well.
​Honorable Mention - Charlotte’s promo was great.  The whole setup was very old school Flair.  Charlotte took the torch and ran with it and executed the in-promo heel turn to perfection.  Yeah, you could see it coming, but it was still done well.
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  1. No Sami/Mick Follow-up - One of my favorite parts of last week’s show was the promo with Mick Foley and Sami Zayn.  Aside from Mick’s teeth falling out, I thought it worked beautifully.  They were clearly building to something and even giving me a reason to care about Braun and Sami as a match.  So to follow-up this week they apparently do something on the pre-show (because everyone is watching that).  I guess in this unseen footage Sami asks for Braun again, and Foley tells him Braun is too dangerous and Sami can’t handle it.  Foley’s solution to Braun being too dangerous for Sami to get in the ring with was simple.  Mick decides to put Sami in the ring with a pushover like the Universal Champion Kevin Owens.  This was a horrible burial of your champion.  Sure the match was good.  Sami and Kevin will always have good matches.  The issue here is twofold, 1) YOU told us that Braun was more dangerous than the top guy on your brand, and 2) We had the match between two guys who were supposed to have had their final battle at Battleground.  This whole storyline is being fumbled in front of our eyes. 
  2. Bayley vs. Alicia Fox - This is how far Bayley has fallen?  She is now involved in an angle with Alicia Fox revolving around a stuffed “Bayley Bear.”  Alicia is not the best worker, but she is a decent personality and could do something interesting with Bayley.  Instead we get one of those old school approaches to the women’s angle where it revolves around a man or boyfriend.  Everything they have done right with Charlotte and Sasha, this was the exact opposite.  Yeah, Bayley wins and that’s great, but my fears of WWE mishandling the Bayley character, when she got called up, are being realized. 
  3. Tag Team Contenders Match - So take two teams that have already lost to the New Day, and have them face off to see who gets another chance to lose to them.  Well they pulled a swerve on us because, due to the non-finish, BOTH teams get a chance to lose to The New Day next week as they break the record.  Can’t envision the New Day losing next week unless Demolition backs out of the lawsuit against the WWE.
​Dishonorable Mention - The Big Show with 2 more turns in the same show.  It’s sort of like the WWE is in on the joke. 
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  1. Miz TV - This segment was amazing.  Dean and the Miz had great chemistry in this promo.  The Miz participation award might be SD’s version of “The List” and should become a regular feature.  Then they had a pretty good match.  I could get into a program between these two, and Miz needs something to freshen him up now that his story with Ziggler is done.
  2. Carmella Promo - Carmella has really been quality on the mic of late.  I thought this was another good effort.  She delivered her message clearly and with all the attitude her character would.  She has cut the accent out largely and seems much more comfortable talking now.  I wasn’t crazy about the fact that Natty, who was a heel, is being portrayed as some sort of shocking culprit of a sneak attack. 
  3. Baron Corbin vs. Kalisto - I’m not talking about their promos because both were scripted and awful.  Corbin is really good talking off the cuff on Talking Smack.  Why WWE continues to make him look bad by scripting his promos on the show instead of letting him speak freely is beyond me.  Despite the failings of the promos these two have an undeniable chemistry in the ring.  The match at TLC and this one both exceeded expectations.  I imagine this was the last we see of these two for a while, but they gave me more than I expected.
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  1. Alexa’s Championship Celebration - When the WWE advertises a Championship Celebration, I think back to history.  I think of Eddie Guererro’s Fiesta, JBL with his dollars falling from the sky, Edge’s live sex celebration, etc.  The point is that it’s always grandiose and over the top.  So when I hear Alexa is going to have a celebration I was interested.  Instead it was just her coming out to an empty ring to cut a promo.  Now her and Becky did a nice job with the promo, but there was really nothing making this any more special than the promos they have cut all through this feud.  On the scale of celebrations this was a letdown. 
  2. Hype Bros. vs. Ascension - Cause this needed to happen.  It seems there is a chance that Ryder and Mojo might be next in line for the Wyatts.  I’m not really that excited at the prospect of these guys as number 1 contenders, but nevertheless we need a placeholder until the Alpha/ Wyatt story gets going.  What I don’t get is why even have the Ascension cut a promo only to be jobbed out in 3 min?  I am a fan of Konnor and Victor and think they have been horribly misused.  This  Tag division started with so much promise but has floundered since putting the belts on the comedy act (Who could have seen that coming? Oh yeah…).  Hopefully The Wyatt’s reign leads to seriousness and importance being placed on those belts.  Oh, and where the hell are the Usos?
  3. Gable vs. Breeze - Why?  This made no sense.  American Alpha should never be booked in a program over fashion tickets and jokes about dye jobs.  I enjoy Breez-ango’s gimmick of fashion police, but that’s a gimmick you do with the Hype Bros, not the team you are portraying as Collegiate and Olympic champions.  Only thing this displayed is that Gable has star potential down the road as a singles guy.

So those were my bests and worsts from RAW and SmackDown this week.  I'd love to hear your opinions, so visit our forums and let me know what you think.  Also, listen to The Rundown this week as I am sure I will be arguing some of these with my fellow co-hosts.
2 Comments

3 Up, 3 Down [December 1st]

12/1/2016

0 Comments

 
By:  Jason Stuart

​Allow me to start this week's column with an apology for not getting an article up the last few weeks.  Sometimes real life gets in the way as has been the case for the last few weeks.  However, I am back to give you my unique view on the happenings of this week's RAW and Smackdown.  Let's get right back in the saddle.
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  1. Opening Promo - It seems a stretch to have Owens and Jericho here every week.  That said they were once again one of, if not the best, part of the show.  The skit in the beginning where the tension was teased was tremendous.  Then the way they worked that thread through the whole show had me hooked.  They told a great story where after they split off they both got beat on their own (even if one was a backstage brawl).  I assume that was done to highlight that they are more powerful as a unit and will lead to a reunion next week.  That said I thought the Owens and Reigns match was very good.  On a side note you can say what you want about Reigns’s reactions, but by the end of his matches the crowd is largely with him. 
  2. Sami Zayn/Mick Foley Promo - Finally it seems they are telling a story with Sami.  What appeared to be a one off squash at the hands of Strowman is turning into a compelling story.  What really sold this though was the passion that came across from Sami in his promo exchange with Mick.  Hats off to Mick for not getting flustered when his teeth fell out mid-promo.  I loved the breadcrumbs of Stephanie wanting to fire Sami.  I am hoping this payoff is Sami being fired and showing up on Smackdown.
  3. Charlotte vs. Sasha - I know what all the critics will say: “They are doing too much hot potato with the title,” and they are right.  “They are fighting too often,” and they are right.  “They used Ric Flair as a prop to try and get Sasha a cheap pop,” and they are right.  So you might be wondering why this match ends up in the 3 Up?  Well it’s quite simple, these women are magic together.  No, this match was not a classic.  Not everything was smooth.  What made this match was the fact that they set a new standard for physicality in women’s matches in the WWE.  I enjoyed this match even more than the Cell match.  The ending was creative, and the visual of Charlotte bent around the railing was amazing.  Hopefully we can get on a consistent roll with the women.  From here Charlotte and Bayley should go into a #1 contenders program while Sasha moves on to Nia.  They have a great story to tell where two times Bayley was going to be next in line Sasha cut in front of her and took the title.  Hopefully this will lead to Bayley and Sasha and Mania.
Honorable Mention - Not one segment of Stephanie McMahon.
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  1. Cedric Alexander - There have been two moments with the cruiserweights on RAW that have felt special.  The first was Noam Dar’s debut, the second was Cedric's return home.  The reactions from the fans made these guys seem special and important to fans, who are not familiar with them.  The problem is WWE Creative remains unable to envision these moments.  They continue to kill any momentum you could get off of these moments.   Cedric had this great moment then lost in 3 minutes.  This is similar to Dar, who was on the losing team in his debut.  I will never understand the hometown losing thing that Vince has a hard-on for, but when you skip moments you never get them back.  This was just the latest case of them not knowing the crowd and missing a great opportunity.
  2. Cesaro and Sheamus Skit - Everything about this was bad.  It looked cheesy, it made no sense, and the ending was lame.  The worst part about this was that it seems these two are staying together now that they have gotten on the same page.  I will give them credit for the Tessa Blanchard cameo, but otherwise this was hot garbage.
  3. Rusev – I just don’t know anymore.  I have no idea what the issue with Rusev is.  This is a guy that should be in the main event picture.  He would breathe a much needed breath of fresh air to the top of the show. Instead he gets jobbed out to Goldberg and Reigns.  Now we get the next chapter.  Rusev is now feuding with a tag team.  Enzo and Cass should be wrestling teams, not feuding with a singles guy because his wife saw a penis.  This is another great example of how talent gets wasted on this main roster.  I can tell you for sure nobody will come out of this program in a better spot.
Dishonorable Mention - The New Day have gotten so incredibly stale.  They appear to be in the middle of a heel turn, and nobody really seems to care.  The best thing that can happen to them would be to drop those titles ASAP. 
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  1. Contract Signing - As per usual the ladies of Smackdown brought their A game in the opening contract signing this week.  Both Alexa and Becky looked stunning in their street clothes.  The back and forth was pointed and entertaining.  They even played off of the Kevin Dunn hates Becky's voice story.  In the end the women got physical, and Becky went through a table.  My only question is why not announce it was a table match first because this was just like a flashing neon light.  Credit for Becky's backstage promo later as well.  It was much improved from her earlier work.
  2. Carmella's Promo - Carmella's heel turn has really done wonders for her.  The promo work Carmella did this week was easily her best.  She played up on the details of Nikki's life from Total Divas.  Then she pulled no punches even making a breast implant joke. When Nikki came out, they put on a believably intense fight.  They have done a good job of really selling a personal hatred between the two women.  Hats off to all the ladies on this week's show; they really brought it,
  3. Tag Team contenders match - It may be a surprise to some to see this in the 3 Up section.  As much as I dislike the use of American Alpha, overall I can't argue with this.  First I thought the match was highly entertaining.  That said Orton and Wyatt were the obvious choice here.  They are the heels, and the champs are faces.  In a weird way if they give the belts to the Wyatts it may be the best thing for American Alpha.  I hated the Luke Harper materializing out of thing air part of the finish, but I loved the sequence it led to,  I find myself enjoying Wyatt and Orton as a team.  All that being said despite all the talent in the division the tag title match at TLC features 4 singles guys competing for the tag titles. 
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  1. Tag Team Wackiness - Is there anything more contrived in wrestling than two guys teaming up to face the two guys they have singles matches with at the next PPV?  The answer is probably yes, but this is pretty bad, too.  The match was fine though Corbin's character probably should have just left Miz on his own and walked out.  Match was fine but did nothing to get me excited for either match at TLC
  2. Kane vs. Luke Harper - Pretty much any time Kane is given a two segment match, you can count on it being in 3 Down.  I'm a fan of Harper, but his character has had zero development and is still the same guy he was when he showed up.  Neither of these guys is particularly interesting at this point.  While there was nothing overtly bad about the match, there was nothing here that I cared about at all. 
  3. Ambrose Asylum - Crazy Uncle Dean is back.  I hated the banter between Dean and Ellsworth.  It did nothing to further the angle.  Things got better when the brawl broke out, but AJ focused on the guy who wasn't his opponent at TLC.  He had Dean down and weakened yet passed on the chance to take his real threat out.  The Styles clash off the stairs was great, but I thought the segment as a whole was flat and made little sense.  They did redeem themselves later with the brawl to close the show.

​So those were my bests and worsts from RAW and SmackDown this week.  I'd love to hear your opinions, so visit our forums and let me know what you think.  Also, listen to The Rundown this week as I am sure I will be arguing some of these with my fellow co-hosts.
0 Comments

3 Up, 3 Down [October 26th]

10/26/2016

0 Comments

 
By:  Jason Stuart

​This week was once again a solid win for Smackdown.  Both shows delivered non-title matches with their Champions.  Both shows featured promos with their top women.  Both shows featured the mid-card champs and contenders in a promo battle.  That said Smackdown crafted the show together better than Raw, so once again the edge goes to them.  How did I reach that conclusion?  Well, let’s take a look at the best and worst of this week’s shows.

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