Mickie James Back To NXT

A few weeks after Mickie James left TNA in 2013, the WWE brought her in to be a guest trainer in NXT. Beyond that and an interview she did for WWE.com, she didn't do anything else with the WWE for a few years. Of course, she had a baby, got married, and had a brief return to TNA, in addition to other matches on the indies. It has now been announced that Mickie James will face Asuka for the NXT Women's Championship at the next NXT special next month.

Let me take this opportunity to say a few things about NXT. NXT has obviously been a bit of a weapon for the company over the last few years. They have used it to generate hype with smarks. It has been an expected draw for the WWE Network. The brand tours all over the world. They sell merchandise. The WWE even acts at times like people that debut from NXT are established stars. I have said many times how that is not smart business, but the WWE obviously treats NXT as more than just a developmental territory.

In recent months, however, NXT has lost some of its luster. There was a report that viewership was down for NXT on the WWE Network. NXT events aren't always selling out, despite not regularly being held at the large venues the main roster events are held. And it just seems like the brand has lost a lot of its star power. Triple H cannot take top talent from the minor leagues as quickly as he needs to in order to keep NXT as hyped up as it once was. Key injuries there can also cripple it, much like how key injuries hurt the women's division on the main roster. Hideo Itami recently suffered another big injury.

I find it interesting how certain workers are draws for NXT, but then they come to the main roster and they really haven't helped to draw for the main roster. Ratings are still sinking. Raw and Smackdown are not regularly selling out. The WWE still relies on these big part-timers to help draw subscribers to the WWE Network. Goldberg is now added to that rotation. And just going by fan reactions, these NXT stars don't regularly get amazing reactions, unless they are in a smark city, especially PPVs. It just goes to show that the WWE needs to put in better work in these talent. Getting over in a brand that only interests a fraction of your overall audience is not enough to make you a true A+ star.

What will Triple H try to save his pet project? There are a still a number of workers out there that would appeal to the NXT fanbase, but it is also an issue of whether these workers are willing to come to the WWE. The WWE obviously is not going to give them all big contracts. There might be some other promotions out there that can hold onto these great wrestlers by offering them better deals. Will Triple H rely on part-timers to cause buzz for NXT, much like the main roster relies on part-timers? Jushin Thunder Liger worked in NXT before. Details have not been released on how long Mickie James will be working with the WWE. This could just be a one-time deal because NXT women's division lacks credible contenders for Asuka. It certainly is causing some buzz. It might lead to more past female wrestlers getting this type of use. Outside of part-timers, the only other thing I can imagine is sending some main roster talent to NXT. They have done that before. Certain guys being underutilized might do better in NXT. Apollo Crews? Even Sami Zayn looks like he is just floating around. A return to NXT might be an option to him. It would not be a demotion. NXT needs help and he might be able to help them.

Overall, it just seems too problematic to treat NXT like a brand. Not only does the WWE have to deal with various issues trying to get the main roster shows to draw, but those same issues are now being exposed in NXT. Key injuries are making things difficult. There is a lack of star power. There is a reliance on part-timers that could hurt the development of the overall roster. I just think that NXT should not be its own brand. I sometimes see fans having these big discussions on the booking of NXT and things they need to. They talk about what might hurt or help the credibility of certain workers there. Relax! Why put so much thought into the developmental territory? A lot of these workers come to the main roster and lose a lot of the edge they did have in NXT. Even if some of them keep the edge with smark fans, the wider audience is obviously not immediately impressed. The WWE has to put the work in on the main roster. That is where it really counts. These fans getting so worked up about what is going on with the NXT booking sometimes reminds me of parents getting worked up for little kids playing flag football. It's not the NFL. It's not even college football. Just relax! There is no need for smarks to get so worked up about NXT. But because Triple H has done the job he has done with NXT, some fans now take it that seriously.

Back to Mickie James. She is the first credible jobber back since this "new era" philosophy started in both the women's division and the overall company. It is obviously a good choice to bring her in, even if just for one match. She was the most popular credible jobber the diva era ever had. She was the most over diva on the roster at one time, connecting with fans even better than the women pushed as the centerpiece. No one ever even considers whether Mickie James getting in the way of the status quo back then had anything to do with her mistreatment and release. They should. But it is a new era now.

I do not think Mickie James should spend any long time in NXT. There are so many talented women in the indies that would love to be in NXT, and eventually the main roster. What about Taeler Hendrix? What about Santana Garrett? What about Tessa Blanchard? These kind of women have worked for the WWE to some degree in recent years, but how about actually signing them and building them up to be stars for NXT? Don't just use them as jobbers. NXT should not be looking for easy answers in the same way the main roster sometimes seems to do. Stop hunting for workers that are only making a ton of buzz on the indies or these former WWE talent that are liked. Take a chance on these other talent and put that worth into them. And if they can't do that, NXT is definitely not that star factory the WWE might hope it was.

Mickie James should be on the main roster. The depth in both women's divisions on the main roster is not too great. But it shouldn't only be about using her to work with the talent already there. This woman earned the career of a star, but was in the WWE at the wrong time to get what she earned. Even this era has some issues. She would be a great periphery diva, but the periphery is pretty much not an option for female wrestlers these days. I helps to build stars and create entertaining storylines. Sadly, I still don't think Mickie James will get the career she deserves. It isn't even about the WWE trying to screw anyone these days. It is just them focusing too much on pleasing wrestling fans and not enough on working on the wider audience.

Prefab Stars

Prefab. Makes me think back to when I would go on long road trips with my family when I was younger. I would sometimes see these houses being towed down the highway. I don't mean mobile homes. I mean actual houses. It was a sight to see back then. These houses would be taken to a site and set up there. Instead of building the home piece by piece at the site, most of the work is done elsewhere, the site is prepared, and then everything comes together. Seems pretty efficient.

What does that have to do with anything? I've been thinking about how the WWE has been handling the debut of new talent from NXT, and even the indies, in the last year. There is obviously a problem. I am not even the only one seeing it. I notice more and more wrestling fans bringing it up. The WWE just seems to be running on the assumption that people are watching NXT and know who these wrestlers are. If someone is making some noise in NXT, the WWE seems to act like they are automatically stars when they come to the main roster.

These are prefab stars. The WWE is treating NXT like it is just some kind of star factory. And it isn't. These performers are only connecting with a minority of the WWE's total audience. By treating these workers like they are already established, the WWE is alienating a lot of fans. They are either going to start following NXT, and likely subscribing to the WWE Network, or they will just get annoyed and stop watching. If they are having a tough time connecting with the product, why should they keep watching?

One of the things about prefab homes is that the site still has to be prepared. There is work to be done once the sections of the house get there. Workers don't just dump it and leave. The "site" these prefab NXT stars are coming to is obviously the main roster. And that is a mess. The brand split did not fix anything. If anything, some depth issues might have popped up due to the brand split. The WWE is inefficient on the main roster. Smackdown is a little more efficient than Raw, but that doesn't mean it is perfect. It has not been regularly getting more viewers than Raw, even with Raw going against football now. The main roster needs to be handled better to create a better foundation. All houses need a solid foundation. The same goes for the WWE.

Another reason the WWE should not be relying on NXT as a star factory, it is just better for fans to see that growth and development for themselves. There is entertainment value in that and that is what really helps someone get over. If the WWE just brings someone from NXT or the indies and starts talking about how great he is, the millions of viewers that don't follow NXT and the indies will just be hearing all this hype and might not be seeing the actual character development to help that worker get truly over. There is nothing entertaining about building a house. I have never built one, but I have been around when the house I am living in went through renovations. Very stressful. But this is pro wrestling. It is supposed to be entertaining. And building a star should be entertaining for the fans. Let me bring up a few names to illustrate my points further.

Look at AJ Styles. He didn't go through NXT, but he is an indies guy. Needless to say, wrestling fans loved this guy for over a decade. When the WWE debuted him, they hyped up how popular he was. Who is being targeted with that? Wrestling fans already love the guy. The wider audience is supposed to love the guy because other people do and the WWE is telling them to? The WWE then went through various motions with Styles and he has been heel for the last few months. If he was really so popular, why didn't his heel turn flop because fans refuse to hate him? Smarks will cheer for him because they cheer for guys like him, but the wider audience definitely does not appear to be sold on him.

Look at Daniel Bryan. The WWE wishes AJ Styles could be that over. Daniel Bryan was loved by wrestling fans even before coming to the WWE. They were the ones that really fought for him to come back after being fired. But he did not yet have A+ overness. How did he get it? Thanks to the whole "Yes!" and "No!" chants. And it all played out for the audience to see on the main roster. It was something that energized them and something they could play along with. AJ Styles has not done anything like that. #BeatUpJohnCena appeals to the smark crowd, the ones already loving Styles before he came to the WWE and that have been annoyed by Cena for the last decade. He has not done anything to become A+ over on the main roster.

American Alpha did go through NXT. If you think about it, these two are the kind of guys that wrestling fans should love. They are wrestlers. But they are pretty boring and have not gotten as over as the WWE might have expected. The WWE put that focus on this team when Smackdown became its own brand again. They looked like the obvious winners of the new tag titles that were being made. They flopped. Heath Slater & Rhyno rose. These two guys, unlike American Alpha, actually had an interesting storyline that played out for the general audience to see. American Alpha needs to be a part of some interesting angles. It is not as easy to pander to wrestling fans as it might sometimes seem.

Women's wrestling has been hot in NXT. Some women made a name for themselves down there. But how have these women done on the main roster. In terms of their performances, none of them have lived up to the hype, in my opinion. I just expected much better from these women after all the hype I have been hearing in recent years. And I don't just mean in terms of wrestling. Their promos are also often not as great as I expected. Their characters also do not seem that entertaining. Blame the WWE for certain things, but these women also need to improve. In terms of their overness, none of them are as over as they should be. One of the dumbest things the WWE has done with them in recent weeks was that Sasha Banks angle on Raw. Why even fake a retirement for her? I talked about it before, so I won't say much more. I will say that they put her in a position to draw and it flopped. If the WWE fell for the hype generated by smarks over Sasha Banks, they made a terrible mistake. Sasha Banks still needs to be pushed a lot better than she has for her to get over to the point where she might draw.

On the other side of that, look at Mickie James. She wasn't a big name in wrestling when the WWE signed her. OVW back then isn't like NXT now. There was no big hype for her when she debuted on the main roster. She eventually became the most over diva on the roster, connecting well with both wrestling fans and the general audience. And she did it without the hype that women like Sasha Banks and Bayley have gotten. How did she do it? She earned it on the main roster. Even when the WWE took away her psycho gimmick and gave her the inconsistent treatment of a generic credible jobber, she solidified her overness. She did it by just having qualities that could appeal to various types of fans. She was a solid in-ring worker that can get wrestling fans on her side. She had an appealing look that could attract fans interested in that. And she had a charisma that could also draw in fans. Sasha Banks has been pushed like a credible jobber in her rookie year on the main roster, which makes the WWE's decision to give her that fake retirement segment even more weird. Unlike Mickie James, she is not a credible jobber that has earned her overness on the main roster. She cannot simply rest on her success in NXT. And if the WWE is serious about her being a star, they can't make that mistake, as well.

Building a prefab house is not as easy as it may sound. There is still a lot of work to do, both at the factory and at the site. The same thing has to be true for prefab stars the WWE is creating in NXT or taking from the indies. Yeah, develop them in NXT, but there is still work to be done when they get to the main roster. There are millions of fans that did not see them in NXT or the indies and are not going to be sold on them right away. To treat these workers like they are already established is something that could lead to these fans not watching anymore. And the foundation on the main roster needs to improve. Without that, a lot of these prefab stars are just going to flop on the main roster. Just like a building needs a good foundation, so does the main roster. 

How Goes Things For Baron Corbin?

One of the debuts this year from NXT is Baron Corbin. He won this year's Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal. Don't make too much of that. No huge push has been associated with that win. But it is still a nice thing to do yearly. Back to Corbin, how goes things for him since his Wrestlemania moment?

He has been feuding with Dolph Ziggler. They have traded wins already. That kind of kills some of the hype for Corbin. Remember the last fresh NXT debut to feud with Dolph Ziggler? Tyler Breeze hasn't been doing too well since that. I am not saying Dolph Ziggler buries people. But I just find it hard to get excited for this feud. I am not saying the WWE needs to put Corbin in a title feud for him to be interesting, but this feud against Ziggler just doesn't feel that fresh. I feel like they just did this thing a few months ago with Ziggler and Breeze. There may be a few differences, like Summer Rae not involved in the current feud, but it still feels like the same feud. Ziggler vs. NXT call-up. It might have been fresher to have Corbin feud with any other available face. The issue isn't even whether or not he loses so soon after his debut. Just give him someone else to feud with.

How far will Corbin go? I can picture him winning a midcard title one day. I do not think he will end up exactly like Tyler Breeze. The WWE has shown some signs of interest in him since his debut. They can just do better. A little win streak might have been nice. As I said, however, he just really needs some fresher guys to feud with. Then they can move him up the card and give him a title reign.

What about overness? Like everyone that gets called up these days, Baron Corbin had the opportunity to get over with vocal wrestling fans that follow NXT. A lot of these fans don't seem to have been too impressed by him for a while during his time in NXT. But he has shown signs of improvement. How about connecting with the wider audience? They still matter, right? I don't think this guy has what it takes to stand out on his own. That's where proper booking comes in. If the WWE books him right, I think he can get over with the gimmick he has. Time will tell how that works out.

Dana Brooke Joins Emma On The Main Roster

Emma worked with Dana Brooke back in NXT. It is no shocker that Dana would debut a few weeks after Emma returned to the main roster. Dana helped Emma with Becky Lynch on Raw this week.

First, let me talk about that feud between Emma and Becky Lynch. The WWE started it a few weeks ago. It lost some momentum. It looked so terrible for a while, it looked like the WWE wasn't even serious about this. Debuting Dana Brooke at least rejuvenates it back to a respectable level. Becky and a friend can now feud with Emma and Dana. That would likely be Sasha Banks.

Another debut? Is the WWE going to have a debut or return in the women's division every month? Maryse returned last month. Emma came back from NXT a little while before that. I have already made it clear multiple times how I feel about this. They are just crowding their women's division. Releasing Cameron, a woman that wasn't even relevant on the main roster for a long time, did not really create a situation where they needed to debut someone new. The WWE just needs to slow it down and do a better job with what they have on the main roster right now.

Let me look at Dana Brooke. She is like a more diva-like Beth Phoenix. That might not be a great thing as far as match quality goes. But even the divas that are going to be a part of this new women's division deserve a chance. I think the WWE has enough eye-candy divas on the main roster already, but Dana Brooke might have potential as a character.

How about the duo of Emma and Dana Brooke? They obviously had the chance to develop some chemistry in NXT. Despite whatever criticisms I have brought up, I do think this duo has potential. I just do not have confidence in how the WWE will utilize them. How likely is it that they will just be used to put over some faces, then lose all their momentum? And I think a lot of wrestling fans might be unhappy if they win a feud against Becky Lynch and Sasha Banks and those two faces are the ones that lose their momentum. The WWE just cannot keep the ball rolling with everyone. Who deserves to be treated as the priority in this situation? And what is the WWE likely to do in this situation?

Should there be tag titles in the women's division? I do not think so. Even with Emma and Dana Brooke, there are not a lot of teams in the division to make this practical. Look at what happened less than a year ago. You had 3 vs. 3 vs. 3. That is when talk about tag titles for the women really had some merit. What happened? Nikki Bella suffered a serious injury. Brie Bella retired. Alicia Fox is irrelevant right now. That's one team down. Paige turned on Charlotte and Becky Lynch. Charlotte turned on Becky Lynch. That's another team down. Sasha Banks separated from Naomi and Tamina. Naomi and Tamina have injury issues. Even if the didn't, the WWE isn't serious about pushing them. That's the other team down. That's why I do not like getting attached to teams in the women's division. Most of them don't last long. And if the WWE is going to handle things like this, it just isn't practical to have tag titles. And also keep in mind that some of these women have diva-level wrestling ability. Some fans may just get upset if these women won titles.

It is more important to entertain than it is to hand women accolades. The WWE has to be able to create entertaining situations without titles. Most intelligent people in the world know wrestling is scripted and won't get too aggravated over titles in a scripted show. But if the show is entertaining, that is what will draw them in. The WWE needs to do it with interesting gimmicks and storylines.

I think Emma and Dana have potential to be good on the main roster. The WWE just needs to stick with them. They are not likely to be pushed as LayCool. No centerpiece in this duo. But they shouldn't end up like Layla and Summer Rae. And they can do it without tag titles or any other titles. If they catch momentum and the WWE is able to create an entertaining situation with putting the Women's Championship on one of them, that is when they should get the title. Knowing how the WWE operates, however, that is not likely to work out well.

Another Memorable Night In Brooklyn For Sasha Banks?

It wasn't that long ago that Sasha Banks was part of a great match with Bayley in NXT in Brooklyn. That great match made her more of a hero to wrestling fans. I saw some fans ready to crown her wrestler of the year, even ahead of some men. Fans would even chant for her during other diva segments.

The final Raw of 2015 was in Brooklyn, my hometown. The WWE booked Sasha Banks in a match. It was against Becky Lynch, who also happens to be talented in the ring. This match, however, was not received as well as that NXT match against Bayley. It got "boring" chants at one point. Same city. Talented opponent. Different results.

I would say the main problem here is it was given too much time. The match wasn't too awful, but it just dragged on for a while. Too many rest holds. I remember watching a match between Gail Kim and Lita. These are two women that know how to wrestle. This match was okay, but it also felt like it could have been better. It wasn't as exciting as it could have been. This match between Sasha and Becky was given even more time than that match. Aside from the finishing sequence and a few other spots here and there, a lot of this match just wasn't necessary.

I know a lot of fans care way too much about match time. That was one of the big issues with #GiveDivasAChance. People were actually timing matches on Twitter. Ten seconds is definitely too little time to give two women a chance to put on a good performance, but there is such a thing as having too much time to work with. The WWE does not manage diva matches well on the main roster. The average Raw diva match should last about 5 minutes. Save 10-minute matches for PPVs or special situations on Raw or Smackdown where the divas need and deserve the time. That diva match on Raw this week was not a special situation that called for a long match. If there was some special angle going on, maybe fans would have been more invested and the two women would have been able to feed off that to put on an even better performance.

I said a while ago that I did not think Sasha Banks would be able to live up to the high expectations placed on her by wrestling fans. That is not a comment on her talent. That is a comment on fans expecting too much and not taking into account the WWE not booking matches better. Ever since fans protested on Twitter and the WWE started giving divas longer matches, I have seen a few dull matches here and there. Not horrible, but just matches that dragged on. It seems like some fans just get more excited for how long a match lasts than the actual quality of the match. In this environment, it would not be likely Sasha Banks would succeed. Her only hope is for the WWE starting to put individual focus on her better. Once her character starts getting connected with the audience better, she will become more legitimately over. She is already over with wrestling fans as an in-ring performer, but there is more to it than that.

GFW Has TV Tapings

Global Force Wrestling (GFW) had their first television taping last Friday. They still do not have a network, but they are taking the first steps towards getting things done. They still have a long way to go before they are even near TNA's level.

One thing that stood out to me from reading about the taping and just looking at GFW in general is how the promotion is featuring Jeff and Karen Jarrett. It is obviously their company. But the way they are featuring both of them is very similar to Triple H and Stephanie McMahon in the WWE. GFW shouldn't try to play chess with the WWE. TNA has done that in the past. Many fans often roll their eyes at it. You can probably count on one hand the number of times TNA actually has beaten the WWE at their own game. I am not saying GFW should not look at what the WWE has done to make them successful, but do not try to imitate them. The WWE isn't exactly knocking it out of the park with every swing these days. They should not want to imitate that. Yes, Triple H and Stephanie being authority figures makes sense because they actually have power. But it has gotten stale and irritating at times. Jeff and Karen running things also makes the same sense, but I am looking forward to the day they get someone else to play an authority figure.

Jeff and Karen are known for playing heels. The two of them playing face roles just does not seem natural now. And when I look at GFW's shop site, I see a lot of generic company merchandise. The only individuals that have merchandise for sale so far are Jeff and Karen. I know the company is just getting started, but seeing them only marketing merchandise for the founders just does not seem right. A lot of fans view the current NXT product as Triple H's baby. There is even merchandise for the performers on there. Go back to when the promotion really started to take on the identity it now has. Before there were any real stars there, how would you react if the first NXT merchandise available was generic NXT shirts and autographed photos of Triple H and Stephanie McMahon? It's just awkward. That is just my overall impression of Jeff and Karen Jarrett. The whole thing just does not seem natural. They should eventually become the kind of owners that are not involved in storylines. If they are going to get involved, eventually turn them heel.

GFW is in the position to not make the same mistakes the WWE and TNA have made. The WWE is guilty of not giving their workers fair opportunities and often trying to force things. Too much ego. TNA is kind of the opposite. They are far less forceful. That is not a good thing. There comes a time where you have to make a decision on whom your top stars are, commit to them, and push them the way they deserve. TNA just rotates everything around. Will Jeff Jarrett do better with GFW? They have some talent to look at and decide which will be the stars.

Mickie James is in GFW now. What will likely be her final TNA match will air soon. Is she finally going to work for a promotion that lets her be the top star of their women's division? She was a credible jobber in the WWE. She was used to put over whom they wanted to be the stars and used as filler when the stars were not around. She had the overness to deserve to be pushed as the centerpiece, or at least a periphery diva, but the WWE was too focused in going in one direction. TNA rotating everyone around led to her not being pushed right. She is the best option GFW has for the centerpiece of their women's division. They are showing signs of promoting her as the top star of their women's division, but they just need to follow it up with proper booking.

Three NXT Divas Debut On Raw

The Bella Twins and Alicia Fox came out to gloat on Raw last night. Stephanie McMahon came out and put them back down. That led to Paige, Naomi, Tamina, and a few new divas from NXT coming out. Those NXT divas would be Charlotte, Sasha Banks, and Becky Lynch. Charlotte and Becky sided with Paige. Sasha Banks has been paired with Naomi and Tamina. Not surprisingly, a lot of fans are praising it as the greatest diva segment in years.

What kind of feud do you have here? 3 vs. 3 vs. 3? As I have said before, the WWE has just made the diva feud more complicated than it needed to be. They did not need to call up three women in one night to insert them into this feud. If they had kept things simple weeks ago, they only needed to debut one diva to keep things fresh for the rest of the year. No need to put Alicia Fox with The Bellas. No need to bring back Naomi and Tamina against The Bellas. If they really wanted to do something with these other divas, do a better job utilizing other women already on the main roster, like Emma. I know #GiveDivasAChance is not all about Emma, but she was the one that took the pin the night all this started. And what has she done on the main roster since? No need to hand her the title, but a minor feud on the main roster would be nice.

Another issue with the development of this diva feud, there isn't exactly a lot of time between the debuts and Battleground. The WWE could have debuted a new diva a week or two ago and spent the time between then and the PPV introducing her to the main audience by having her wrestle singles matches and be in Paige's corner for her matches. The PPV match would then be Paige and the new diva vs. The Bellas. Instead, all you have until the PPV is one more Smackdown. And how well can you feature three new divas on that one show? It has just not been timed right to properly build to whatever match they are aiming for.

How the WWE follows through with these women after Battleground will also be interesting. If they had just debuted one diva, you could just put the focus on her as she slowly takes the spot against The Bellas Paige has held for months now. You now have three new women in the picture. Obviously, these women still have NXT stuff to do. That makes the decision to use all three on the main roster right now even more questionable. It would have been better to just debut a diva you were prepared to properly develop on the main roster. Good luck trying to keep the ball rolling with this after Sunday.

Let me just talk about Stephanie's promo. She talked about a revolution with women in sports. She brought up women's soccer, UFC, and tennis. Yeah, I can respect what the US women's soccer team has done, what Ronda Rousey has done, and what Serena Williams has done. What makes these women great are not the accolades. It is how they have earned those accolades. It is not just talent. It is how they have utilized that talent. It is the fact that they have beaten other top challengers. Competition. Stephanie also brought up that word. But is there competition in the diva division now? There is fresh talent in the diva division. But will they be given a fair shot to actually succeed and earn the top spot from The Bellas? If not, nothing has changed. This is still a women's division that revolves around eye-candy divas and women with wrestling credibility are often just used to put the stars over. These new divas will get to show how great they are on the main roster. That freshness will excite a lot of fans. But there is more to it than that. What about earning those better careers? What's the point of earning something when you are not allowed to get it? What if those female athletes I brought up did everything right to earn a major title, but some official or committee decided to just hand the title to someone else that did not earn it? Unthinkable, but it happens in the WWE. And I don't mean titles. I mean being actually pushed as a star.

Looks Like Paige Needs A Friend

Through all the storyline sloppiness and questionable turns you have had in the diva division recently, the current situation has Paige waging a one-diva war against The Bellas. That will obviously lead to a debut from NXT. Most likely Charlotte. On the one hand, I don't want the WWE to drag this on. Just get to the debut. They easily could have done it this week. On the other hand, there is a lot of time until the next PPV, so I can understand dragging this out a little.

Since debuting on the main roster, Paige has not really had any competition. I am not talking in the sense of succeeding and earning a better career. That does not really define what the WWE does. I mean more in the sense of overness. She has connected well with wrestling fans since she debuted. With AJ Lee gone, she is pretty much the top diva for those type of fans. But what happens when someone like Charlotte debuts? This will test just how over Paige is. Charlotte has also become a very good in-ring performer. Her father is also a legend. Paige also comes from a wrestling family, but not one that was a part of the WWE, so I usually do not group her with someone like Natalya or Charlotte. In any case, it will be interesting to see whom wrestling fans will prefer.

There is also competition when it comes to getting time. Paige has been the only C+ player in the diva division since debuting. She is the only top-tier credible jobber. There are a lot of divas with wrestling credibility that can be featured more in the type of pushes Paige has been getting, but they are frequently overlooked. Natalya and Naomi have had short pushes here and there, but nothing consistent. Paige has only experienced short periods of not getting anything to do at all, and part of that was due to her taking time off to make a movie. There is a good chance Charlotte will be pushed as a credible jobber. And I don't think she will be a low-tier or mid-tier credible jobber. She will eventually be getting pushed like Paige. Paige has benefited from weak depth for the last year. What will happen to her when more divas debut to be given the type of pushes she is used to?

It is a shame that it takes debuting someone new to keep this division fresh when the WWE does have women on the main roster they could do better with. Last year, you could say the WWE pretty much buried the entire diva roster at Wrestlemania. They had AJ Lee go over all of them. That led to the debut of a new diva to take the title off AJ. Is the WWE doing that kind of thing again with the storyline they are running? How are they making these other divas look? None of them are willing to step up and it will take an NXT diva to once again make things fresh and save the day. They are really inefficient with the current roster.

John Cena Vs. Kevin Owens At Elimination Chamber 2015

John Cena came out for his usual title defense on Raw. That never happened. The segment ended up being used to promote NXT and set up a new feud for Cena heading into Elimination Chamber. Kevin Owens, NXT Champion, interrupted Cena and laid him out.

Let me get a few things out of the way. I do not watch NXT. I do not care to watch NXT. I am not a fan of Kevin Owens. Aside from a few bits, I have not watched any of his work. I have never been a fan of Cena. All that out of the way, I like this feud. I think it has a good feel to it. It reminds me of when there were two (or more) World Champions in the WWE and they would sometimes face each other. You had the WWE Champion, World's Heavyweight Champion, and the ECW Champion, if you want to count that. John Cena is not the WWE Champion right now, but he is still the centerpiece until the WWE gets rolling with someone else. He has been the top guy for a decade. He is feuding against the top guy of NXT right now. John Cena is holding the United States Championship right now, but that title seems unimportant against the bigger story of NXT's top guy against the WWE's top guy.

A lot of people have been liking how they have used Cena in the last few weeks. He has been defending his title in good matches against NXT guys. This is better than just having him go through random midcarders. Of course, they can't keep it up too long. Aside from running out of good opponents, it might become stale. They'll need to mix things up more. They are showing signs of doing that. Again, I would say what matters here is that these new talent are working with the centerpiece, not necessarily the United States Championship. Nothing wrong with that.

What Do You Do With The Eight?

A few days ago, I talked about how cutting down on the number of divas featured on the main shows could help the division. With the way the WWE utilizes their divas, you might think they have cut down. Regardless, they are still not efficient. Even if you do cut down to the 8 divas I recommended, what do you do next? How do you utilize them?

You are obviously not in a position to run a great women's wrestling division with the women I would feature. That is not the point. The point is to utilize these women efficiently, entertain the fans, and regain some momentum to eventually get back to a diva division that also features respectable women's wrestling. That is why I selected a range of divas. You have twins, a pair of female wrestlers with "anti-diva" gimmicks, two eye-candy divas that have no great wrestling credibility, and two eye-candy divas that do have wrestling credibility. I think that is a great mix.

Go back to the first dark age. It was obviously not as respectable as the golden age that came after, but stars were made in this era and it was entertaining. One of the reasons it worked out is because you had a lot of periphery angles. You had a lot of mixed-tag matches. Start doing that again.  You have seen some of it, but you can do more. You will not see much in terms of male-on-female violence, which I would say helped a lot of women gain respect points back in the day, but you do not need it if these women are getting good rubs and actually getting involved in storylines in the men's division more. You have seen some of that over the years with AJ Lee and The Bellas. It might be time to return there more often. The hottest thing a few years ago in the diva division was what they were doing with AJ Lee in the periphery. The actual title matters were an afterthought at times. When The Bellas started to get their big push involving Stephanie McMahon last year, it was AJ Lee getting the shorter end of the stick while in the title scene.

What do you do with the actual title scene? Don't try to force it. If you downsize the diva division the way I am saying, you are obviously not going to have enough credible wrestlers to run a great women's division. Even now, do you have that? Whether you do or you don't, the will is not there. The WWE does not have the drive to be efficient. During the first dark age, you had eye-candy periphery divas with worse wrestling credibility than The Bellas holding the Women's Championship. Right now, the Diva's Championship cannot be the crown jewel of a great women's wrestling division. How about you use it more for storyline purposes and less as a "reward" for being a great wrestler or trying to make stars? That might involve putting the title on someone like Eva Marie, or even Lana. I can hear the complaints already. You have to feature these women.

They should do a lot more with Paige. During the first dark age, you had Chyna and Lita being featured very well without even looking at the months they held the Women's Championship. During this dark age, only AJ Lee has been pushed at that level. And she hasn't had that in a while. Paige has never been pushed like that. Give her some of those main-event storylines. It will really help her to get over.

How about Layla and Naomi? The Bellas, AJ Lee, and Paige are the divas I would treat as the top stars. Lana and Eva Marie are primarily eye-candy divas. Layla and Naomi are hybrid divas. You can treat them as eye-candy periphery divas, but they also have the wrestling credibility to be pushed in the ring. And I would let them do a little bit of both. Give them some angles alongside midcarders. They don't need the main-event rubs. They can also be pushed as credible jobbers.

Even if you are doing more in the periphery and not even trying to give that half-hearted attempt to maintain the wrestling aspect of the division, you might not be able to go far with only 6 divas with actual wrestling credibility. Luckily, you have NXT. You can pull women from there when needed for jobber duties. How about to be extra bodies in 12-diva tag matches? No. No more of those right now. Some women that I have not included in my 8 divas I would keep on the main roster would end up on NXT. No need to release them all. Women like Natalya and Alicia Fox would go there. It might sound insulting, but these women are pretty much credible jobbers already and are not going anywhere. If they are content with their current usage, they should be content with doing more to help the women on NXT and doing their part to help the main diva division be efficient again. How do these divas and women currently on NXT become priorities on the main roster? By either making the most of their opportunities when they are utilized on the main roster or really being amazing on NXT. Besides that, when the diva division does regain momentum and is ready to grow again, you will definitely need these women.

Will this work to get some momentum back into the division and help some women to get over? It wouldn't hurt. You are basically trying to do what you did during the first dark age. You are cutting down the main roster divas to women you are going to commit to featuring on a regular basis. You are going to feature them primarily with periphery angles. Right now, the title is not a priority. Work to entertain and get these women over. Once you have that momentum, keep it going. You will have women's matches. As you regain momentum in terms of making stars and featuring them properly, you can separate those that are good wrestlers from the eye-candy divas. You will obviously need women with wrestling credibility to put over your stars with wrestling credibility, so bring those women out from NXT. If everything works out, you have another golden age. They should try something different. After how hard they pushed AJ Lee, it is amazing to see them start pushing her mediocrely in comparison to back then. And the same is even true for The Bellas now. A lot of these title feuds are just boring. And it gets even worse when you don't give these women a lot of time and the storylines and feuds you develop are bad. Just stop trying to force it and focus on entertaining and making stars and featuring them for now. Be efficient. It will help you to be productive.

Another Year, Another Nexus

I'm not against reusing old angles. After a while, it should pretty much be expected that old angles will be revived with little variations to make it something different. Those variations can possibly even make the new angles even better than the old ones. What I am not liking with current WWE events is the fact that they have not even waited a good enough period of time before reusing an old angle. I talked about pacing just yesterday. The WWE didn't pace this out very well.

I am, of course, talking about the WWE's decision to have guys from NXT randomly show up and go on a rampage. That's Nexus, the big summer storyline from 2010. It continued into 2011, with CM Punk leading a watered-down version on Raw and Wade Barrett leading his own faction on Smackdown. 2010, 2011, and now 2012. Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins, and Roman Reigns have arrived. And with a huge impact? That's how the WWE will sell it. If it wasn't pretty much a weaker version of what happened in 2010, I would care more. I know a lot of wrestling fans love some of these guys. I don't judge wrestlers by how they were in the independent circuit or development. If I am going to like these guys, it is going to be based off their work on the main roster. They are already coming in with some hype and in a big storyline, so that should benefit them with connecting with some fans out there.

One thing that the Nexus angle lacked that a lot of fans were expecting was a leader from the main roster. Who was behind the attacks? It turned out Nexus was in it for themselves. This time around, the WWE might have an actual leader. It would be too easy for CM Punk to take credit for this. Paul Heyman? Brad Maddox will likely be it. Why not? He has issues with Ryback. Ryback has been the chief target of the NXT thugs. If the WWE did try to run the exact same angle as 2010, it would look stupid. Three rogues from NXT? Three? Nexus had more than double that amount during their prime, not to mention forcing John Cena to join. Who would buy three guys as that kind of threat as Nexus? No, the best way to go with these guys would be to develop them with a leader.

As I said before, pacing counts. Had the WWE tried another NXT/Nexus storyline in 5 years, that would be one thing. But they have done this kind of thing every year since it started in 2010 now. I have pointed out many times that the Nexus angle was successful in bringing in good ratings for Raw in the summer of 2010, so it should not be too surprising for them to want to go to that again when their ratings need a boost. How many more tricks do they have left?

NXT Diva Action - Maxine & AJ

Before I get into what I really want to talk about, there is one thing I would like to add about what I talked about last time. CM Punk has been depushed. Whether fans will find his current storyline more entertaining than what is going on with Cena and Del Rio or not, Punk is no longer working directly against the centerpiece and no longer in the direct title hunt. He has started to change direction away from that. What I would like to add is something I have brought up many times, yet it is one of the most important things to remember. What if this was going on in the diva division? What if a centerpiece lost to a credible jobber twice at PPVs, then beat that jobber on Raw/Smackdown, and the two went there separate ways, with the centerpiece staying in the title hunt? I left one thing out. The centerpiece goes after the title, but where does the jobber, who had been built up well, go after the feud? Look at the history of the diva division. In the vast majority of cases, the person who was being used to put over the centerpiece gets a depush even worse than what CM Punk is now getting. That is an understatement. They are really getting dehyped. One clear exception was when Lita and Trish feuded back in 2004. Trish went on to be the regular in title matters, thus making her the centerpiece, but Lita faded out of that, but still had an awesome position through storylines with the guys. In other words, she fell back on what the WWE typically had her do even before 2004. Lita was always treated differently from most women. She was a periphery diva, not a jobber. Most women do not have that to fall back on. Why? Because the WWE just cannot treat all the women that well. They also need jobbers and sidekicks. If the diva division was not a closed division, and that is my whole point of bringing this up, they could still be given a fair chance to get proper hype and interest invested into them, much like CM Punk is still benefiting from now. I have seen people ponder why the WWE ended the psycho gimmick Mickie James had. For one thing, where was she supposed to do it? Where on the card? There are rarely two or more true diva storylines going on at the same time on one show, and one usually ends up getting the shorter end of the stick sooner or later and the jobbers involved will always get what little attention they were given taken away from them. The difference between CM Punk's current gimmick and Mickie's psycho gimmick? There is still plenty of space on the card and major players for CM Punk to run with his gimmick. Back in 2006, the need for a face credible jobber led to Mickie losing the gimmick and turning. There was no space for her gimmick to be a priority. As time went on, and despite her overness, it was also obvious that there was no space for a jobber like her to stay as long as she wanted. Closed division. That is why CM Punk can still be treated well and the diva division is the way it is.

Speaking of diva division, NXT has a little diva feud going on. AJ Lee is feuding with Maxine. Keep one very important thing in mind. Before Maryse needed to take time off, this was her storyline on NXT. Not that NXT matters, but it is where they can treat unimportant people like royalty. Keep something else in mind. Before Layla got injured herself and needed time off, it looked like she would have been centerpiece of Smackdown. AJ debuted soon after Layla left. In other words, it is taking injuries for the WWE to call some of these women up. Moreover, I will not expect the WWE to treat either of these two women very well. Being pushed well only on NXT and debuting right after other women need time off are not two good signs to me. I will give WWE some credit. It is a storyline. Women are being given time to work. Coming back down to Earth now. On NXT? I just can't get over that element of it.

Assuming the hurricane does not wipe me out when it comes to New York, hope to be back Monday.

The Importance Of NXT

Why should I even be talking about NXT? Being honest, I don't even watch the show. However, I do follow the spoilers. I do know what is going on over there, even if I do not find most of it worth remembering. Nevertheless, I am aware that I may sometimes say a certain wrestler is not getting pushed, treated well, or doing anything relevant, but yet that person may be looking like the most important person in the universe on NXT. That is why I want to explain why I may not mention NXT angles when I talk about someone like Zack Ryder or Maryse.

I think I can pretty much end the discussion as quickly as I have started it. Remember WWE's ECW? Especially during the final year or so? I believe I have spoken about this before. Men and women made to look like they were a vital part of that show were then made to look like mediocrities when they would later go to one of the major brands. Zack Ryder was treated as a serious contender for the ECW title at one time. There was a huge difference between that and his "title shot" against Sheamus on Raw last year. But even jobbing to Sheamus got him more camera time on Raw than where he is at now. I could run down a list of names, including Christian, Katie Lea, Tiffany, Rosa Mendes, and so on. Very few people go from being a part of the ECW roster to being a well-pushed main-eventer. Different people may have different definitions for what a "well-pushed main-eventer" is, but let me just say that no one in the position of a John Cena or Randy Orton would be wasted on the ECW roster. If you even examine most of the ECW successes, you will see that they are the type of main-eventers developed frequently to put over someone the WWE would rather have as a centerpiece, then they get depushed. Look at CM Punk. Need I say more?

Back to NXT. NXT pretty much took over where ECW left off. I am talking about more than just the time slot. At first, it featured important stars as the Pros. I would say things started to go downhill after Season 2. Now look at it. Zack Ryder? Hornswoggle? Poor William Regal? Maryse? In case anyone has forgotten, Maryse used to be pushed at the centerpiece diva of Raw. After I saw her performing not as seriously and solidly as she should have since her return in late 2009, I am not surprised they did give up on her. Instead of releasing her, they have found a purpose for her on NXT. She actually looks relevant there. Back on Raw, she has not looked like she matters since Kharma attacked her over a month ago. The major focus is off her. The same goes for the men. In almost every case, the men do not have two angles going for them. They do not have an important NXT storyline and a Raw/Smackdown feud that has any real meaning. Back when NXT first started, guys like Miz would have angles going on for NXT and Raw. Things would mix. It was more interesting.

I would say that almost everyone on NXT right now would have probably been a candidate for release if the show wasn't dragging on. The few exceptions are those with connections with people in high places, like William Regal, and possibly those who are only there to act as comic relief anyway, like Hornswoggle. They are not really that relevant. Interestingly enough, there may not have been a huge, regular Spring Cleaning of the roster, but some of the releases that did take place a few weeks ago were indeed NXT Rookies. Nice coincidence there.

To wrap it up, just because a wrestler is being pushed on NXT, that does not mean the push actually matters. When you hear people complaining about Zack Ryder not being used right, they don't want to see him getting used on Superstars or NXT. They want to see him on Raw in a real feud. Stars are pretty much almost being buried if all they have is this web show. It is obvious that the WWE is not putting as much interest in it either. The last winner deserves to be released. I can go without his crappy promos, and he does not seem too unique either. Kaitlyn is not doing anything useful. Wade Barrett still has some promise, although he was the winner back when NXT was still something. Kaval got released for Christmas. If the Rookies are pushed like this, what hope do the Pros have, especially when this is all they pretty much have in many cases to stay over?

Thoughts on Raw, Alberto Del Rio, and AJ Lee

My thoughts on Raw follow the same theme from the last few weeks. Not that interesting. If you count the Edge/Khali matches as 1, there were only 5 actual matches on the show. Didn't Edge and Khali have a match just a few weeks ago? Their latest showing will not be giving Taker vs. HBK II at Wrestlemania a run for its money for MOTY. Chris Jericho vs. John Morrison was good for giving Morrison fans another reason to say he should be in the main event, and also furthered the angle with Jericho. Nevertheless, neither of those two have been fresh for a while now. Then you have Nexus and Cena and Orton. Darren Young will fail to bring the intrigue back to Nexus. Melina once again defended the Diva's Championship. Is Maryse the only credible heel on Raw left for her to knock down before the PPV? Miz/Daniel Bryan segment furthered Miz/Daniel Bryan feud. Honestly, not to parrot Michael Cole or say something just to start an argument or be different, Daniel Bryan does not interest me. At least Chris Benoit had an intensity to him. Before anyone says the old CM Punk excuse, I don't want to watch Daniel Bryan's ROH stuff. I am not going to watch his indies work to say that the stuff the guy is doing now is so interesting and entertaining for me. No one knows better than me where the real blame should go, but I think Daniel Bryan has to be able to be better than this. I am getting tired of the same old faces in the same old spots. Where is DiBiase's push? They injected credibility in Bourne, thus creating an even more credible jobber. Even pushing Mark Henry can really make something different. I need not mention that the Tag Champs are wasted on Raw. How can two hours just go by with the same thing for so many weeks in a row?

Now something I do like. Alberto Del Rio. I am not going to make the comparisons to other wrestlers. Anyone who has been watching wrestling for a while knows them themselves. This guy is entertaining. He is one of those superstars who can get themselves over with their own abilities. It helps that the WWE is hyping him pretty good too. Is it too early to wish he becomes a WWE Champion one day? Hope his push does not get too messed up in the future. On a sadder side, what midcard heel has really lost that momentum recently? Resources devoted to Alberto Del Rio have to be coming at someone's expense. I would say McIntyre has really lost what he had. He had an epic entrance, great angle, and good hype on him for months. Recently? He looks like he's staling.

AJ Lee. Every NXT seems to have someone the internet is high on before it even starts. First, Daniel Bryan. Second, Kaval. Now, AJ Lee. I am approaching her with the same philosophy that I have every other wrestler I have ever seen in the WWE, whether it be Daniel Bryan, CM Punk, Mickie James, William Regal, Randy Orton, or whoever. I am going to wait and see what she can actually do in the WWE. I will not even judge her from her NXT work that much. I will wait until she is doing what the regular divas must do on the main rosters. However, I still want to bring her up. I have read the hype the sites are already spreading. Everyone seems in love with the fact that she was the first female with wrestling experience to be hired by the WWE in two years. I also read she was only wrestling for two years before WWE signed her. She had just over 20 matches under her belt. Two years? 20 matches? OH MY GOD! THIS IS BIGGER THAN THE SECOND COMING OF JBL!!!!!!!! Not by a mile. This is the woman who is now supposed to save the diva division? Sounds like Angela Fong all over again. Sounds like when Smackdown needed Gail Kim to debut so badly. Sounds like so much that I have already heard. This woman is not here to replace Mickie James. She is here to replace the credible divas still there whose role is to put over the major star(s). How many times can McCool go over Melina? Once McCool finally pins Beth Phoenix, Beth's days might as well be numbered in terms of either when she gets released or the countdown to when she gets a meaningful push and proper treatment again. WWE has not pushed a fresh real wrestler in the diva division in years. They need more divas like that. AJ Lee seems to be a perfect choice to me. The fact that she is already gaining some overness without having to do anything on actual WWE programming may make her a good face to put over the heels they want over. I highly doubt she is here to be made a centerpiece. Don't get too attached.

And They Won't Die Young

Reports say Wade Barrett is missing due to issues with his work visa. If you cannot tell, the guy is from Great Britain. The leader of Nexus, the winner of NXT1, is out of the picture, at least for the moment. That is a heart-breaker.

I said that the WWE did not need Daniel Bryan to have that NXT angle work. I stand by that. He was not the winner of the competition. He was doing more to make himself stand out in the initial attack than the WWE would have intended. Wade Barret was the one meant to stand out. He had his contract. Bryan and the other losers were all in the same boat. Barrett, who also had a title shot coming up sooner or later, was the one that the WWE had to build as a leader so they can credibly put him against a World Champion. Point is, Barrett was the one that mattered the most in this angle. Without him, what do you have?

And then there were 6. Who is the leader of the group? The group does need a leader. They cannot stay a unit forever. When they break up, the WWE must have invested more in some than in others. That is how they will get certain of them over more in relation to the rest. That is how they will build momentum in the ones they plan to really push. If the WWE just pushes them equally, who are the fans really supposed to latch on to? The black one? The sexy guy? The dude who does the cool flips? Even if that is how it works, the popular member may not have the momentum for a good push after the group if all are pushed evenly now. Moreover, they need someone to really give the group directionality and focus. Without it, they just seem even more mindless, which begs the issue that someone else has to be pulling their strings.

Who steps up? Assuming Barrett, who I liked as leader, is written out, that leaves 6 men. Otunga finished in 2nd place. He would be an obvious choice. Heath Slater looked like he could step up on Monday. Honestly, whatever they choose, the angle seems damaged now. They started with 8, did not lose much momentum at all after Daniel Bryan was released, but now lose their leader and the man who had the most credibility to gain, and had to gain, from being in front of a group like this. Sad. The chosen ones have dropped. Soon there may be only one left. Speaking of all that, how's Drew doing?

NXT Got Vince!

First, Bret Hart is fired as GM. I am glad. As bad as this guy was in the ring since his triumphant return, I thought I could put up with him as GM. He was not doing a good job. If he returns to the WWE again in the future, we will see what happens. Until then, things get more interesting.

The new GM sends e-mails. Also, looks like guest host crap may be done. Now we have a mystery over who the new GM is. This is the stuff that attracts viewers. There were those rumors about The Rock coming back. That is the only guess I have right now.

As one mystery rises, another folds. Vince McMahon revealed that he had a hand in NXT1's attacks over the weeks. Sadly for him, they attacked him too! Love that! They show no allegiance except to themselves. Thing is, they already have their contracts and were a bit apologetic. They even had the boss on their side. Why would they screw that? Were they upset that Vince thought he could use them too? That is what I am expecting to be the reasoning, but I do wish there would be something more to it. In any case, the plot developed well tonight.

Kane: Tweener Defined

Although Kane seems to be going after anyone he feels may have wanted to take out The Undertaker, that does not make him a heel. He is not fully face either. Tweener. Kane loves being tweener.

A PPV is this Sunday. Kane may not have a match, but he has a rich storyline that I am sure they will have to develop in some way. The NXT storyline seems to be focused mainly on Raw right now, which is good in a way. Things balance out. Smackdown has this thing with Kane. Could you imagine what would have been happening if Taker was not injured? You would probably see a basic title feud with Taker in Rey Mysterio's spot, not that Taker is not a worthy draw. Kane would probably be off jobbing to Vance Archer. Things are a lot more interesting like this. The WWE took a bad break and made something great out of it. For that, I give them credit.

The fact that Kane is a tweener means you do not know exactly who he may target next. Neither faces nor heels are safe. Will he pull an NXT and target commentators and ring crew next? Will he go as extreme as the NXT extremists? The WWE can continue to push Kane as a tweener up to the point of Taker's return. At that point, the plot will really have to be revealed further. I am thinking the obvious option is for Kane to fully turn heel again. Taker and Kane have not had a feud in years. They can get a good 2 or 3 PPV matches out of this between the two, including at least one gimmick match. Undertaker does have that DVD out, right? Might be too late to hype it by the time he returns, but they can always work on content for the next DVD. Until then, Kane keeps things interesting for the moment.

Crashing A Limo Around Is More Family-Friendly Than Choking With A Tie

The NXT angle progressed greatly last night. The rookies attacked again. Wade was "fired" by Bret Hart. More was developed on the Daniel Bryan situation. A lot happened.



Let me start with Wade's speech. First of all, he basically implied Daniel Bryan had second thoughts for the huge attack last week, so they beat him up and kicked him out the pack. There is something hilarious about that. Daniel Bryan arguably went further than most of those other rookies last week. He spit on Cena. He trashed him verbally. And he is the one regretting his actions? Obviously, this is just a reason to cover up his release. Wade also said something about management treating them like animals. If you treat someone like an animal, they are going to act like animals. Storylines like these are great. An intelligent person cannot completely blame the rookies. They were disrespected. Just passing around some petition would not get their respect back. They went out there and made a statement. That statement is what brings them their hate. It is a good story. And their side does hold merit. I had said long ago that these guys were being treated like divas. Animals...divas...same thing? In something not directly related, let me just say that if you treat women like they are divas, you are making it easier for them to act like divas and think they really are just that. Does not matter now.



Daniel Bryan. Unless he is driving the limo, or unless the WWE is leaving the door open for him to return as face to feud against the rookies, he is gone for real. As I said before, he was not vital for this angle. Barrett can play leader. I am still thinking that these guys have to have some supporter in the WWE for this storyline to really work, but that "leader" can be revealed later. I want to talk about how some fans are viewing Bryan. They are saying he made a huge impact in a short time. He became very over in a short time. I disagree. There are two things you have to consider in the idea that he was so over. First, Bryan Danielson wrestled around the world for years before coming to the WWE. The internet really is crazy about him. He developed a great following from all those indies. Before he even showed his face on a WWE program, he was already insanely over in the hearts of many. Thing is, I am talking about people who already knew him. To the general WWE audience, this guy really is new. Second, many may confuse this guy as being insanely over based on how the WWE used him. The WWE was hyping that this guy is respected by many before he even won an official match in the WWE. Miz was doing it. Michael Cole was doing it. They were putting special attention on this guy from the start. Even after he was eliminated, and after being ranked in the top spot despite never being booked to win a match, he was still appearing regularly in big ways. He attacked Michael Cole! They were still investing in this guy. They were still treating him in a special way. Unlike certain instances where they build a guy up just to pass momentum on to someone else, they seemed to have been doing this for his own sake. This special treatment of Daniel Bryan and his huge following pre-WWE are the reasons he appeared to be so over. He really was not to the general audience. Call me deaf, but when Barrett mentioned him on Raw, I did not hear that great of a reaction. The WWE was hyping how great fans already found this guy, as if that would be enough to sell him to the regular audience, and it was not working that awesomely. Now Danielson's strong fanbase is petitioning to get him back. Fine. But he did not really accomplish anything in the WWE to really be that over. I think he deserves another chance and all that, but he did not become that crazily over in a short time, as some fans want to believe.


Back to the actual storyline now. The radicals attacked Bret Hart this time. They crashed him around in a limo. Many fans are wondering who was driving the limo. Can be a good plot detail to keep fans tuning in. The fact that Barrett and his guys want a decision by Sunday may even raise interest for the poorly hyped PPV. I like how it seems like it is the entire WWE against these guys, but how can they possibly win a war like that? I want to believe that they have to have someone more on their side. Vince? Someone! If not, it may become too difficult for this angle to last without them getting their contracts. Will that be the tough decision Bret must make? Once again, bring in Vince McMahon?

Daniel Bryan Gone?

This is a shocker. Has a lot of people thinking that it may be a work (part of the storyline). I do not know what to make of it just yet. Bryan Danielson, the highly-rated wrestler from the indies, has been released by the WWE. People treated this guy like he was some kind of god. The WWE pushed him with a very unique angle and focus before they did any of those other rookies in his class.

That all being said, part of me just felt that they were going to treat him like crap sooner or later anyway. The WWE is not always about pushing great wrestling to the top, or having something like that really be their centerpiece. Bryanson would have his talents and potential wasted in the end. What will you be impressed by? Having him spam 3 or 4 submissions, but then get beaten down for most of the match and do mediocre moves you can see from The Miz? Many may not have ever appreciated his skills. Maybe the hype from the WWE would have filled in for that, but it is not the same in my book.

If this is real, what was the last straw? Spitting on Cena? Choking a guy? Making himself stand out to much in the ending segment of Raw? Backstage issues? Being too cocky? I look forward to reading those dirtsheet rumors.

Cena Has Two Feuds?

One of the many things that made the NXT attack on Raw shocking was that it focused on John Cena. If there was going to be any huge attack to end Raw, the typical thing would be for Sheamus/Edge to run out to get Cena, Rey Mysterio/Big Show run out to stop the heels and get some of Punk, and Swagger to run out to join the fun. In other words, have the eight men in the title matches go at it, with or without Orton. That is not what happened. The WWE threw a curve ball. Cena is supposed to have his three opponents for the PPV on his mind, right? Now he has NXT to deal with? That is two angles in my book.

Cena "broke his silence" on Twitter. On Twitter, he sold his injuries. Many fans criticize Cena for not selling well during shows. The fact that he is writing about his injuries on the web does not exactly take the place of real selling, but he is definitely furthering the angle.

This all makes me even more interested in how Raw's main event will progress. Will the title match build be hurt? Will the NXT angle have to take a side road for a while? If they can coexist well, I would like to see what that looks like.