Pros and Cons of a Week in WWE
Welcome thee to thy 13th edition of Crunch Time. This time on Crunch…Time I will explore what I believe are the Pros and Cons of this week in the WWE. An underachieving Over the Limit left much to be discussed within the IWC. Then a just as lame episode of Raw left us with a little more to ponder. Here goes…
The Pros and Cons
Pro: The champ is still here, and we still have a golden All American American
Both the WWE and World Heavyweight championships we successfully defended by John Cena and Jack Swagger respectively. I say successfully, but in Jack Swaggers case he lost his match but still remains champion. Weird. Anyway, this is all round good news. Too often, in the past, have the titles changed hands on a nearly weekly basis. Both of the current top champions have held there title since around Wrestlemania time. They are doing what champions should be doing…winning. They’re restoring the credibility to the belts gradually. Not only that, but when someone does eventually come along and defeat them, it’ll be all the more impressive due to the fact that they’ll be defeating a worthy world champion, who’s held on to the title longer than just a couple of weeks.
Many of you didn’t agree with the way Swagger left with the championship, as a clean victory would have slotted in to his resume’ very nicely. However, I am of the opinion that it was the right decision. The WWE are trying, and succeeding on many levels, to push Swagger as a heel World Champion. Deliberately getting disqualified to escape a tough match, with title intact, is, and always has been, a classic heel-like action to take. These kinds of things are all playing their part in elevating Jack Swagger. The match itself was very short, but we all would have complained had it tediously gone on too long, anyway. This match needed to unfold in this manner, and I’m glad it did.
Con: Christian wasn’t on the card.
Now, I’m not saying I’m the biggest Christian fan around, that honour belongs to Shane. But I am a huge fan. He deserves a spot on each and every PPV event the WWE have. I cannot understand why an individual as talented and as popular as Christian is not main eventing Smackdown, never mind just making on to the PPV card. As entertaining as a Kofi/Drew program sounds, I would have been a nice twist to have the Intercontinental Title defended in a Triple Threat, and have the three competitors fight over it throughout the coming month – perhaps culminating in a ladder match at Money in the Bank. But I understand that wouldn’t have made much sense to the storyline between McIntyre and Kingston. I actually enjoyed the bout between those two on Sunday; it was exciting and ended well. Plus, they could both assist each other well in their individual quests to the top of the WWE Mountain. However, the Kofi/ Christian match we saw on Smackdown a few weeks ago would have been better justified on the Over the Limit card. There is absolutely no doubting the quality of that match was top notch, and they gelled nicely working with each other.
Whilst I was satisfied with the IC title match, I feel Christian should have been involved in some shape or form, and I’m disappointed he didn’t even make the card.
I’d like to say there’s light at the end of the tunnel for Christian, but if Christian PPV absence is anything to go by, I'll have to hastily disagree. It looks like he’ll be battling Dolph Ziggler in the coming weeks. That’s great news, right? Wrong. Let’s go back twenty years, when the anti-Christ was born. That’s when Hornswoggle popped his grubby little face out into the world for the very first fucking time, and set his sights on spreading his evilness throughout wrestling. And that’s why Christians current path isn’t something to celebrate. We know what Hornswoggle is like. We know how the writers view him. He’ll be involved in this storyline. He’ll be teaming with Christian on Smackdown this Friday. He’ll be the one screwing with Christian’s career whilst he continues to mess with Chavo’s mind. Hornswoggles already shown that he is after Dolph’s soul. I’m telling you; Hornswoggle is the anti-Christ, and it doesn’t look good for Christian.
Pro: CM Punk vs. Rey Mysterio
Despite the long pause due to Punks injury, this was my favourite of the three PPV encounters these two have participated in. The action was as we expected. It was high paced, exciting, some beautifully crafted manoeuvres were involved, and both men were on fine form. Unlike their previous matches there was a different feel to this one. I believe the stipulation injected a dose of unpredictability that the first two matches failed to. Don’t get me wrong; I enjoyed the other matches a lot, but with this one opinion was very much split. Some thought Punk was destined to win because it made sense to the storyline. Others felt that this was the closing chapter to this epic feud, and a Rey win would realize that. I was completely undecided as to who would clinch the victory in this one. I wasn’t sure who I even wanted to win; and I loved that about this match – I love that about any match. If you genuinely don’t have a clue about who will win a match your overall enjoyment is higher, and the experience is heightened. In addition, the atmosphere was intense, as the capacity crowd invested their full attention and passion into it.
CM Punk and Rey Mysterio have done a superb job with this rivalry, and this was a fitting way to end it if Rey Mysterio is in fact taking some well deserved time off.
Con: Edge was Rated Rubbish
Yes, the match between the former members of Rated RKO was poor – a contributing factor being Randy Orton’s seemingly serious injury. However, the thing that disturbed me most was Edges performance. In actual fact everything Edge has done since his return has been substandard. Ever since his miraculous return he’s lacked that cutting edge (pardon the pun) he once had. He’s been sloppy, and he looks out of shape. His matches are suffering because of it.
In my opinion, Edge and Orton did not work well together. The chemistry was non-existent. Although Orton has been red hot since his face turn, so he can be excused. Edge on the other hand has been poor for some time now, and he isn’t showing any signs of improvement. On top of that; his abysmal form is rubbing off on his colleagues. He’s bringing the guys he works with quality down. Sundays match proved this. Yet still he qualifies for the Fatal Four Way WWE Championship match at the expense of Chris Jericho. The writing team are frantically trying to make amends with Edges failed return by continually pressing him forward in the Raw main event. But it's not working. Edge hasn't rekindled any of the fire he possessed before injury.
I used to be a fan of Edge. Regrettably, I am rapidly becoming an Edge hater. He came back too early and I don’t want to watch him any longer. Or at least until he has regained full fitness and shaken off any ring rust.
Pro: Bret Hart as General Manager of Raw
I am a big fan of this move. At first I thought it would be JR, which was nixed early on. Abraham Washington was mention – thank god it wasn’t him. I honestly did not think Bret would even consider the job, so I didn’t view him as a candidate. Therefore it was a nice surprise when he emerged as the new General Manager of Raw. He brings a star power to a role that has severely lacked it for a considerable time – and I’m including the guest hosts. The interaction he could potentially have with a vast number of the WWE Superstars is an interesting prospect.
At a time when the WWE are, apparently, searching for ways to rekindle the older fans love for wrestling, Bret Hart is a smart appointment. The fans that grew up watching Bret Hart may be tempted to once more taste life as a wrestling fan. For example, my older cousin was a big wrestling fan over a decade ago. He was one of the guys who grew up watching wrestling but slowly fell out of love with the business, until he lost interest completely. Yet when he became aware of Bret’s return, his eyes light up like a startled rabbits. He made a point of watching the next episode of Raw just to see his beloved Bret Hart back in a WWE ring. He swiftly came to terms with the fact that Bret was far from his former self, but just the sound of his gravelly voice on the microphone echoing through the arena was enough to get his wrestling heart racing. In the end, the desire for wrestling was creeping back into his body, and he was hooked once again.
From the WWE’s perspective this is a massive pro that may pay off in their quest to draw back the older fans in the PG era. For the more mature fans it’s a more nostalgic pro. He has the respect of the crowd, he cuts to the chase promos-wise, and he’s Bret Hart for crying out loud.
Con: The Daniel Bryan/ Michael Cole fiasco
I don’t get it. I don’t get Brian Danielson. I can't come to grips with the fascination people have in every slight movement he makes. I can't accept how Michael Cole can be face on one show and heel on another. For a start; I do not find Michael Cole that annoying. I’ve always been pretty satisfied with his commentary, even though he can over sell things and go way over the top on specific aspects. Michael Cole is passionate about his job and him as a face play-by-play commentator fits perfectly – well maybe not perfectly, but it fits. Yet for some reason, unbeknown to me, it is a Cole heel character, of which he only takes up on a Tuesday, which is being used to push this so-called superstar, Brian Danielson. To be honest, I completely agree with heel Cole’s opinion; I think Danielson is miles overrated. But that’s beside the point. If Danielson is held in such high regard, why isn’t he bickering with the Miz, with a view to setting up a match? Surely this isn’t the best way to introduce him to a wider span of audience. I’m certain that none of you here want to see the dear Brian Danielson join the Raw roster as a guy who picks fights with commentators instead of fellow wrestlers. I desperately want to be proved wrong when it comes to Mr Danielson, I really do. I’ve seen many of his matches on the internet, and whilst I’ve been impressed, I think his time on NXT has shown that he doesn’t have the complete package that is required to be successful in the WWE. I want to see what the majority of you here see. However, if this little stint with Michael Cole goes on much longer, I can’t see it happening.
That about does it for the 13th edition of Crunch Time, and the first on the new and improved, sleek looking forums. Please look out for the next. I hope you either enjoyed, hated, loved, liked, loathed it…...any emotion will do. Thanks for reading.
Keep Crunchin’
Last edited by Pringle; 05-28-2010 at 04:12 AM.
Not too shabby my friend. I believe that this is the first of your columns that I have read, so it defintely caught my eye. You need to work a little at your grammar, but otherwise it was good. Altho, it felt like a cheap rip-off of my This Week In Pro Wrestling. LoL no just kidding. Read you next time brother!
Legit lol at the Hornswoggle comment. I honestly thought he was a lot older.
Bret Hart makes me wish the RAW GM was Abraham Washington, and I don't say that lightly.
Edge is really out of shape, too. Just cause a man has a slender build doesn't mean it doesn't start showing up.
Good stuff, Pringle. I really like your opinion columns. You offer strong opinions whether I agree with them or not and it keeps me up to date and what I may have missed.
(Ps. your [I], [I]'s are showing in the Christian section. Might want to add a /)
I am beginning to look forward to these columns. Happy 13, bro.
Firstly I just want to say the quality of this cmpared to how you started out is great, not that you were bad to begin with but your confidence is booming these days and so it should.
Part 3, Im the opposite...I think Bret as GM is stupid, he has the charasma of a pube. I could think of 10 better suited at the role. One of those being Micheal Cole (what the fuck, did I just say that??) yes, the storyline is perfect for Danielson. We all know he's the fucking bees knees in ring. He's not even too shabby on the mic, but not perfect so what better way to help his mic work than in a storyline with someone that doesnt wrestle? Cole is proving to be quite a decent heel, he'd make a good manager imo, its also showing how good Danielson can be on the mic. Fuck Bret...make love to Bryan...
Also Regal > Christian ;)
Good stuff dude, this a weekly thing???
That's ma boyo...
Sparty - How dare you pickout my grammar like that. Just kidding man, thanks for the feed back, man.
Shane - I'm telling you, Hornswoggle is the anti christ. He hates good wrestlers. I honestly hate Mr Washington with a passion, but each to his own I suppose. Oh, thanks for pointing the "I" out, it also inedvertedly pointed out that I accidently cut a big chunk out of the Christian section before. Thanks for the feedback, man.
Bear - "He has the charisma of a pube". I'll give you that one Bear, that had me loling. Cole would be an interesting GM, but I'm really digging the Bret appointment.
Also, Bret > Danielson, Christian > Regal. hahaha. Thanks, as always, for the feedback.
I like it. I may not agree with all of it, but to each their own. I like how you reason your decision, though. A lot of people will be like, I don't like so and so because...then they go on a rant that is basically the same ole song and dance that everyone else has said and there is no logic behind it. It's like they are a robot. But you come out with some good opinions and I enjoy reading them.
I agree that this is a fun concept, but a disagree on number three as well. Bret just doesn't work. I want him off my tv. The only good thing he ever did as a face was hand out the glasses, but he screwed that up at mania. Also, I think the Danielson storyline is great. It is well done and shows what good long term booking can do. Still, an enjoyable read, hopefully we can look forward to another.
The Greatest Story Never Told
Dear Mr President
LOPNXT 2.0: The Savior Self Roast of Demolition
The only difference between suicide and martyrdom is press coverage.
Originally Posted by ChrisBear
Ziggler > Rob Terry
Nice work, mate. It was a great format to use and quite entertaining. Most people are quick to bash PPV's and include all of the negativity without focusing on anything positive at all. At most, they include a sentence saying how good the best match on the card was, then continue bad-mouthing the rest of the card.
I don't really think Hornswoggle is the anti-christ, just a waste of TV time. I mean, he got involved in an angle with DX, and I think brought new life into an old stable. I'm not saying that he's one of the best things on Smackdown!, but he does his job. He provides a comedy value to the show that no one else really does. Going back to DX, people were getting tired of their childish antics, and Hornswoggle could do the childish stuff perfectly without lowering the reputation of Triple H and Shawn Michaels, in my opinion. If Hornswoggle had spray-painted 'JBL is poopy' on JBL's limo instead of Cena, both workers would've came off better.
I'm also a bit annoyed at the Daniel Bryan saga/fiasco. To me, it seems like he is just playing to the IWC as of late. He disses Cole, who the IWC love to hate, and also dissed the 'big man' standards of the WWE, before laying into Michael Cole without being provoked. The whole thing seems stupid. It doesn't make sense for Daniel Bryan to be playing to the IWC when the majority of it already worship him as the Second Coming. I must admit, I haven't seen his work outside of WWE, but it shouldn't matter. Most people don't or haven't seen half the stuff that Evan Bourne does, yet he gets amazing crowd reactions. The wider WWE fanbase, particularly it's main demographic, won't be understanding half the stuff he says in his promos if he keeps acting the way he is. He should be laying into the arrogance of The Miz and using his fabled arsenal of wrestling intricacies and maneuvres instead of attacking commentators.
I like this little weekly recap of things. This is a good little niche series...the kind of thing that nets people a main page spot when there's a slot open because it's something more people will read than a creative piece (on a larger scale). When you look at the other major sites in the IWC, you see a lot of stuff like this. The reason? People read it...
Couple of things...
-At least Christian isn't wrestling over the IC title. The silver lining is that it keeps him as a viable option for MITB and a potential main-event program with Swagger or another heel champion. He missed the PPV, but so did Sheamus (who didn't have a match either). He's biding his time and, yes, he's involved with Horny. But they have to do something with him right now. Glass can still be half full. If he loses to Ziggles, then we'll be worried...
-Edge and Orton suffered from yet another dead PPV crowd and mostly the injury. Edge isn't setting the world on fire right now, but he'll get back. At least his character is interesting again...
-Show vs. Swagger ending would've been fine had it come about 5-10 minutes later than it did. The length of that match for a PPV world title/co-main-event was disgraceful.
-Michael Cole isn't really a heel...he's just anti-IWC...he's playing the role of WWE stooge, which he truly is so it's not much of a stretch. Everything he's done is a logical reaction for a guy who knows nothing but WWE. I feel the same way he does about Daniel Bryan...but I must admit I have loved the TV in the last two weeks that the new and improved Bryan Danielson character has produced
I agree. Nice way to review a week in the WWE, with a perfect blend of recap and opinion. I think the Michael Cole/Daniel Bryan storyline has rejuvenated NXT, and like Hustle said, has made me care about Cole for the first time in years. Bret Hart as GM was a nice surprise, but then again, at least it wasn't Vickie or Abraham Washington.
Good outing, man.
Jacob - Thanks man. Wrestling is a topic that can split opinion like few others, and everyone has something different to bring to the table. Thats the beauty of it. Thanks for the feedback, dude.
Savior4Hire - It looks like I am one of the few who likes the decision to hire Bret, and hate the Danielson/Cole. I'm honestly quite surprised that this is the general consensus. Anyway, thanks for reading, my friend.
Shane - Couldn't agree more.
fenixx - Maybe anti-christ is a bit strong, because when used correctly Horny isn't all that bad. But when he is meddling with great professionals careers, that what gets to me. Finally someone else who doesn't get the whole Daniel Bryan shit. Thank you.
Doc - I like the optimism you have for Christian, and I wish I could share it. I really hope you're right. Thanks for the compliments man.
Chrisss - Maybe I'm not enjoying the whole Daniel Bryan/Cole thing because I honestly did not mind him before it. The story is making people care about Cole, but I already cared about Cole (In the least gay way possible). Thanks for reading, my man.
I should clarify, I'm not against the hiring of Bret as GM, I'm against face Bret being on my tv. I think he's always made a better heel, and would much prefer him do the GM thing as a heel if he is going to do it.
The Greatest Story Never Told
Dear Mr President
LOPNXT 2.0: The Savior Self Roast of Demolition
The only difference between suicide and martyrdom is press coverage.
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