The Usos Or The Rhodes: Who Should Get The Tag Titles?

It was either talk about the tag titles or Jinder Mahal and his fancy flute. At the risk of starting a riot among rabid Jinder Mahal fans, I'll go with the tag titles.

The Shield have The Usos in the title hunt. However, they also have some storyline issues with The Rhodes, Cody and Goldust. The corporate regime has been tormenting Cody and his family. How likely is it that The Rhodes win the tag titles? But what about The Usos? Which team should end the title reign of The Shield out of these two?

The Usos have been pushed very well in the last few months. They have gotten over and are obviously exciting to watch. They have also already faced The Shield for the tag titles. Does this mean that they are closing in on the tag titles? Or that the WWE never plans to give it to them and are just using them to build up The Shield's momentum with some successful title defenses? How many times did Damien Sandow and Cody Rhodes fail to win the tag titles from Kane and Daniel Bryan?

The big thing The Rhodes have on their side is that this storyline just seems made for them to win the tag titles. They can be seen as greater storyline enemies to the corporate regime than The Usos. They have been bullied more than The Usos. What better "feel good" moment than to have them get the tag titles?

Which team do I think will win the titles? Which team do I want to win the titles? The answer to both questions is the same, The Rhodes. If either of these two teams will do it, it should be them. The storyline just makes you want to see them do it and it might make more sense for a team with their credibility to knock off The Shield, not The Usos. That is not to take anything away from The Usos. Down the line, when the tag titles aren't tied into a major storyline like now, they should get the titles. I usually want to see real teams like The Usos get the titles instead of these teams of guys who should be getting singles pushes getting it, like Kane and Daniel Bryan, but this storyline could really lead to a great moment with The Rhodes.

CM Punk Vs. Paul Heyman & Friends

Unlike last time, where I compared two wrestlers and gave an opinion about which of the two I think deserves a push right now, I am actually going to be talking about a feud this time. Mr. Ice Cream vs. The Walrus. Of course, Paul Heyman has two full-time roster members on his side, Ryback and Curtis Axel. How should the WWE handle this feud now that Punk has even more henchmen to work against?

Punk has to contend with two wrestlers against him. The obvious answer would be to give him a partner to help him feud against Ryback and Curtis Axel, which would then lead to Punk getting further in his quest to get Heyman. But who? If Rob Van Dam was not still feuding against Alberto Del Rio, I believe he would have been a great choice. Who else? How about Kofi Kingston? When ever I sound unhappy about Kofi Kingston getting all these midcard title feuds, it is because I think this guy deserves better pushes here and there. And this would be a better push for him. Would Kofi fit into this storyline? He did win the tag titles with CM Punk before. Not a lot of people bring that up. They have some kind of history, even though it is not that storied. Moreover, Kofi was having a little mini-feud with Axel a few weeks ago. Even though Kofi Kingston may not be the best choice to team with CM Punk, he seems like the best out of those that are available.

There is a path that doesn't really seem too likely. Ditch Axel. That sounds a bit harsh. The fact is, CM Punk has already proven that he could get through Curtis Axel. The next step should be to prove he can get through Ryback. How do you write off Curtis Axel? It depends on how the WWE wants to progress the feud after Ryback. Is this leading to a tag match at Survivor Series or not? If it is, you might want Axel back in the picture for the big PPV. That would mean simply writing Axel off for a few weeks, which would mean an injury angle. Have CM Punk destroy Axel. Would that mean the Intercontinental Championship would be vacated or not defended during that time. Not necessarily. Have Axel drop the title, then have Punk destroy him. If the WWE is not thinking about a Survivor Series elimination match for this feud, why not have Heyman simply drop Axel as a client for not living up to his standards? That would be simple. By doing things this way, the feud becomes just between CM Punk and Ryback for a while. You wouldn't have to think about who can help Punk against Heyman's henchmen.

The last possibility that I should bring up, the WWE does not get CM Punk a partner to help him and does not get Axel out of the picture. The heels are obviously not going to crush CM Punk in this feud, so you are going to have CM Punk overcoming the odds and doing it all himself. I hope they don't do that. That sounds like Cena. Then again, I don't think most fans will complain about it.

Zack Ryder Vs. Fandango

Mr. Woo Woo Woo vs. Mr. Summer Rae. I am not talking about an actual match or feud between these two right now. Nevertheless, would it be so bad for the midcard if they did feud?

What I want to talk about with these two guys is their overness. You can say that both of these wrestlers have unconventional stories to them in terms of overness. What do I mean by that? A wrestler will typically get over by how well they can connect with the audience when they go out to perform for them during the show. The stories with Zack Ryder and Fandango are a lot different.

First, you have Zack Ryder. This guy was a lower-midcarder. He was doing nothing or next to nothing on the main shows. But he got very over. In case you have forgotten, he did it through his web show. That got him so over, it put the WWE in the position where they had to push him. And they didn't want to. They danced around it for a while, created a storyline that made John Cena look like Ryder's best friend, gave Zack Ryder a moment where he won the U.S. title, continued to use him as a pawn in Cena's matters, then let him drop off again. You saw him this week on Raw in the main event, but he really hasn't been used well since the early part of last year.

Fandango's story is even more peculiar. He has this dancing gimmick. He has these hot women he has been dancing with since the gimmick started. He loves to tell you how to say his name. But none of that is what has connected him with the fans. In fact, you can even question if he really has connected with the fans. His theme song gets a great reaction from the fans. Are they dancing along because they find Fandango entertaining or because it is a fad started by that crazy audience a few months back? Regardless, the WWE has been pretty consistent with him. He has not won any titles, but an injury is probably the only reason he never won the Intercontinental Championship a few months ago. He is coming off a feud with Miz that really looks like meaningless filler now. Miz has now been getting more involved in the corporate storyline. Showing better consistency with that prior to Night of Champions would have been nice. The feud between the two seems to have done really nothing for either in the long run and I still say a feud between R-Truth and Fandango would have been more entertaining. Am I going to complain about this every two weeks? Yes. Nevertheless, when you look at how much the WWE has done for Fandango, including that feud with Jericho, this is obviously a guy they like. But do the fans really like him? Or is it just the theme song?

No matter the reasons for their overness and what the WWE has done with them, you cannot deny that both have gotten great reactions and caused a buzz. The WWE created negative buzz for not giving Zack Ryder a push right away. Fans would chant for him regularly, even when he wasn't out there. The WWE created positive buzz through Fandango. Media outside of wrestling picked up on "Fandangoing" for a while. Whose story do you prefer?

Moving away from analyzing these guys in terms of overness, let me give my personal opinion on which of the two I think deserves to be pushed. As I am sure I have pointed out here and there numerous times, I am not a fan of either of them. I have never watched Zack Ryder's show. I don't like Fandango's theme song. I wouldn't say I hate either of them. I want to see them used properly and in a manner they deserve. All that being said, I would pick Zack Ryder over Fandango. There are a few reasons why. First, you just know for sure that this guy really got over. The fans liked him. With Fandango, it seems to be more over the theme song than the performer. Second, Zack Ryder never got a legitimate opportunity, in my opinion. I don't think it is even a matter of opinion. His "push" was mostly him being used in a storyline that was more about Cena. When it was all over, they dropped him like he was a credible jobber in the diva division. Fandango has been getting better opportunities than that and has been featured more consistently. Lastly, it would be nice to see a face pushed in the midcard that isn't Kofi Kingston. I know Santino is back, but he is a comedy character. I think Zack Ryder has potential to be more than just a gimmick. That push he did get, even though it was overshadowed by Cena matters, wasn't just a comedy storyline. They should do a better job of rotating around their midcarders, and Ryder should be one of them. 

Should Alberto Del Rio Join The Corporate Stable?

It is pretty clear that Alberto Del Rio has been getting very boring treatment recently. As I have pointed out before, the main reason for this has been the big angle involving Triple H and Daniel Bryan overshadowing so much else. With Rob Van Dam getting more involved with that big storyline recently, it is even more evident that there is some overshadowing going on.

Should Alberto Del Rio just join the top heel group? In case you have forgotten, he is the other World Champion. I know they have slightly teased the idea of Del Rio working with Triple H and Triple H setting Rob Van Dam up for Del Rio, but that path has not been clearly developed. I still think Del Rio deserves better than he is getting. Call me delusional, but I don't believe he is as not over as some fans seem to think. I am not saying he gets monster heat every second he is out there, but I think he tries and has connected well with the fans. They just cannot keep the ball rolling. There has been not enough great character development for the guy. They do a great job of showing how vicious he can be, but he has a gimmick that goes beyond that. They should be doing more to show him as a man of power and influence. Getting him more involved alongside Triple H would be a great rub for him.

Are they likely to do it? With the direction they are going with this angle, I don't think so. Instead of strengthening an actual stable, they are running this as Triple H and Stephanie faking being fair to their workers that are unhappy with them. And it just seems stupid. It should be leading in a direction where their allies become alienated from them. That is to say, all their goons should be getting pissed off and turning on them. Triple H did not hand Orton back the title. Big Show is being forced to do what the heels want. And now Triple H is putting The Shield in the kind of match they just had on Raw? Those are pretty much all the henchmen that are on their side, and all have legitimate reasons to turn on Triple H and Stephanie McMahon. Why would they have Del Rio align himself with Triple H? So Triple H can somehow screw Del Rio out of the title? This storyline just doesn't seem to be going in a believable direction. Is it entertaining, at least? For me, it's too confusing to be entertaining. With friends like Triple H and Stephanie, who needs enemies?

AJ's Pipe Bomb

No, not that AJ. The other one. The one in TNA. Yeah, AJ Styles. Yet another example of TNA drawing off of something the WWE has done. This current angle involving AJ Styles also involves some real character development from Dixie Carter.

I am not going to analyze this whole thing. Unless something really outstanding comes of this, I doubt I will even mention it again. The only thing I do want to look at, will this storyline possibly be effective? AJ Styles drops a pipe bomb and you have yourselves TNA's answer to CM Punk's big promo and storyline. That caused a lot of buzz and helped make CM Punk into a huge star in the WWE, although ratings didn't really boost very high. Nevertheless, it still accomplished something for the WWE.

Will this TNA storyline do anything for them? I really don't think so. That isn't a shot at AJ Styles. If they ever did develop anyone to be the centerpiece of that company I would have said at one time that it should be Styles. Will this storyline do for him what the WWE version did for CM Punk? Given TNA's history of naturally dropping the ball with everything, it won't. People already know what this guy is. He is a great wrestler. No promo or storyline alone will take him to the next level. So much inconsistency will always hurt TNA. Will it cause buzz for TNA? It isn't exactly original. Just looking around the Internet Wrestling Community, I don't feel a huge buzz. And will it do anything for ratings and PPV buys? Does TNA even have legitimate PPVs anymore? Again, because it really isn't that original and causing a ton of buzz as you would have liked, I doubt it will draw much for them. Unless there is some huge twist at some point, this will most likely be another failure for TNA.

Let me switch topics. Last week when I was talking about Mickie James not returning to TNA, I mentioned that some fans believed that the fact that Mickie James has won so many titles means she has done it all and it wouldn't be a problem for her to just walk away. I made the point that she has not done it all, since she never got the career she actually earned. I was a little bit ignorant there and should add something else. It isn't just about title reigns and accomplishments. It isn't just about adding things to your resume. If you enjoy doing something, if you are good at doing it, if people enjoy what you are doing, and a company can benefit from having you around, why should you just walk away just like that? As long as you have that worth, you should want to go out there and enjoy going out there. Mickie James definitely has that worth. The problem is, you do this for a living, so money just has to be a practical issue. Moreover, how many people want to work for a company that will mistreat them? It would be sad if these backstage, contractual issues ruin someone's career to the point that they just stop doing what they do. That is another reason why I disagree with people that say Mickie James winning all those titles means that her quitting wrestling would be fine. A worker like Mickie James should not have to quit the business on terms like this. She still has worth and I don't think she has lost her interest in wrestling.

How Do You Analyze Nothing?

Some people say Seinfeld was a show about nothing. I never agreed with that. The show had these great, funny characters. The four main characters all had these great quirks about them. It was a show about those characters. No matter what situation you put them in, they were what made the show entertaining. I think that makes it a show about something.

How do you analyze nothing? I am talking about wrestlers that are either doing nothing or nothing much. What do you say about them? How do you classify them? Specifically, I am talking about the diva division. Why not say too much about the men's division? Because I think the answer is obvious there. Just to make it clear, I am not talking about those wrestlers doing nothing because they are out with an injury or taking some kind of hiatus. I am talking about those wrestlers that are usually there, but they don't get used on Raw or Smackdown on a regular basis, if at all. For the most part, these are your lower-midcarders. They are typically the ones treated like this.

What is the equivalent of lower-midcarders in the diva division? I always break the diva division into the centerpiece, periphery divas, and credible jobbers. But where would these divas getting nothing fit? Tamina has not been relevant in months, and she wasn't too relevant prior to that. Aksana has not had a great angle since being with Cesaro. You can go through the history of the diva division and see divas mistreated. Things are worse now, especially since even eye-candy periphery divas may not be getting good angles. But how would I classify these women? How I classify the divas is based on how they are being pushed. How do you classify what is not being pushed? Should I create a "nothing" class? I don't think so.

If you are ever analyzing the diva division and don't know what to make of a certain diva because the WWE is doing nothing or nothing much with her, let me give you a tip. Well, the first tip would be to wait and see what the WWE is doing with the diva in question over time. Of course, some people can't wait sometimes. For whatever diva you are unsure about, look at how much wrestling credibility they have. If they have a ton of it and you see them doing nothing, they are a credible jobber. If you have very little wrestling credibility, they are most likely a periphery diva. What else could you do with them if they lack wrestling credibility? It's natural for the WWE to do nothing with a credible jobber for long periods of time. In this day and age, like I just mentioned, it isn't unusual to see even eye-candy divas misused. To put it simply, if you cannot analyze the manner they are being pushed, analyze the characteristics they possess.

What is the point of analyzing and categorizing divas that are doing nothing? Waste of time? Busy work? Nothing better to do on a Friday morning? I don't see it like that. Trying to understand what type of career they are getting might help you anticipate what they will be doing when they do get a push. Tamina had been pushed as a credible jobber before 2013. The push she did get this year should be no surprise. If they ever do something meaningful with Aksana again, it will most likely be some kind of valet position or romance angle. It gives you an idea on what to expect even when nothing is currently there. And when you see more divas treated like this in the future, because it will happen, you can follow the same logic.

Switching topic slightly, I once said that a centerpiece needs good credible jobbers around her just like a quarterback needs good receivers to throw the ball to. There is a little storyline going on in the NFL that perfectly illustrates that point. I have to bring it up. Tom Brady is the quarterback for the New England Patriots. Tom Brady is one of the greatest quarterbacks today and will most likely be inducted into the Hall of Fame when he is done. The Patriots have been a dominant team with him. This year, however, there are some issues. Almost all of Brady's usual, reliable receivers are not there. They have left, are injured, and one of them is in jail. The Patriots are still undefeated for the season (2-0), but they have been very close wins and the offense has not put up a lot of points. Brady's rookie receivers are dropping the ball and failing to get in the right positions to make plays. This is obviously not Tom Brady's fault. He is a great quarterback. The problem is that his rookie receivers need more work with him. You would hope and assume that everyone will eventually get on the same page, but it still goes to show that even the best quarterbacks are nothing without great receivers to catch the ball. Tom Brady's stats are going to look awful and the Patriots may soon taking bad losses, and it will all be mainly because of issues with the receivers, not the quarterback. The quarterback and the whole team will look bad. Swing that back around to the diva division, without a good array of credible jobbers, the diva division will still look bad and that will not help the centerpiece look the best that she could look. Even if the WWE does bring in a woman they are willing to push as centerpiece, issues with the credible jobbers will keep them in a dark age.

Night Of Champions Corporate Storyline Aftermath

Things certainly have taken an interesting turn. Randy Orton losing the title is one thing, but how it went down and how the WWE followed up on Raw is something else. There was some referee controversy at Night of Champions, which would actually be nothing new. And it was actually a smart idea. Get people talking. With football back, you need to draw big interest somehow. So far, Raw's ratings have not taken a huge hit from football. Ratings aren't amazing, but neither horrible.

The ref made a fast count. Nice bit of analysis from Triple H to show the obvious. Show the ref making a normal count, then compare that to the controversial fast count. The real kayfabe (storyline) mystery was why the ref did it. They are setting up Daniel Bryan as needing to get the ref to cheat for him, even though Orton was out for a long time after the pin. They are just screwing with Daniel Bryan. But that does not seem to be the only person they are screwing with this.

Triple H did not hand the title back to Randy Orton. They have even teased friction between Orton and Triple H and Stephanie. That I find more interesting than the controversial finish with the ref. It is not a direction you would have expected. Controversy and intrigue can draw, but I really don't feel this is the kind of intrigue that will really draw big interest in terms of ratings. This is still an interesting storyline development. Pressure is now on Randy Orton to prove himself. It just seems too soon to run a story like that. You can anticipate CM Punk eventually getting involved and even Cena when he returns, but anticipating tension between Orton and Triple H so soon? And Triple H being the one to initiate it by not rewarding the title back to Orton? It would make better sense for Orton to get upset about Triple H becoming overbearing.

You also have the fact that a bunch of faces ran out at the end of Raw to stand up for Daniel Bryan. It wasn't exactly the united main-event face front I was expecting, but it is better than all of them just standing on stage and watching again. Once again, it just seems to soon to run a story like this. How do the heels properly squash this young revolt without making it seem meaningless? If they just go back to everyone standing around and being terrified to do anything in two weeks, then that is bad development. You are right back to where you were a few weeks ago. And yet, does this mean that everything is going to start crumbling for the heels now? Daniel Bryan will be making Triple H tap out by next month and Big Show will be giving Stephanie McMahon a spanking over his knee for tormenting him? I was hoping this regime could last to around Wrestlemania. Is the midcard revolt a sign of things speeding up to another level?

Another interesting thing to note, does this all mean Triple H is a tweener? He has still shown some resentment towards Paul Heyman recently, but that was not shocking. But tension with your own hand-picked WWE Champion, Randy Orton? And just reading Smackdown spoilers for this week, some of his actions are sending of a tweener vibe. He doesn't seem to be on Daniel Bryan's side, but he has tension with Randy Orton. He definitely isn't in it to please the fans. Is he acting this way to appease the faces upset with him? Is that the storyline direction things will take? Most tweener characters are intriguing. Triple H's current character just makes me confused. Let's see what it does for them during football season.

Mickie James Not Returning To TNA?

Reports are saying that Mickie James will not be renewing her contract with TNA. She has already dropped the title, so there's no issue with that. Still, this is a big deal.

First, can you blame her? TNA has been dropping the ball with their women's division for a while now. They didn't do anything with Mickie James in 2012 worth getting excited over. And you know they have financial issues. You don't need inside sources or secret documents to know that. The fact that they released many workers recently is one indicator. Mickie James is not someone they wanted to lose, but if they cannot pay her what she would like and push her properly, you should not blame Mickie for not being eager to stay.

What does this mean for the TNA KO division? They just lost another female wrestler. And this is one of their top women, if you can even consider anyone having that kind of rank in a division that rotates women like TNA does. Believe it or not, TNA is actually developing a periphery right now. That is to say, they are developing angles for their women in the men's division. Brooke Tessmacher is with Bully Ray. ODB still has her angle with Eric Young. They don't have enough women to push proper feuds over the title. Unless they debut more women fast, I think they should just consider getting rid of the KO title altogether. Remember how the KO tag titles died? They put it on ODB and Eric Young, stopped developing tag teams, and that was all. You have that same kind of situation coming up now. And if they cannot turn things around by bringing in more women, just put the title out of its misery.

 Will Mickie James return to the WWE? She never wanted to leave in the first place and the WWE obviously has an open opportunity right now to bring her back. Question is, do they want her? They released Mickie James at a time when their top priority was to develop a new centerpiece and Mickie James, being a credible jobber, being the most over diva on the roster did not exactly make that agenda run smoothly, especially with the centerpieces failing even without her in the way. Since then, the WWE diva division has collapsed even further into a dark age. However, they have developed a success in AJ Lee, a periphery diva. Do I consider that a good sign that the WWE might bring back Mickie? Are they warming up to pushing female wrestlers better? I don't think so. Outside of AJ Lee, no female wrestler on the main roster is being pushed well and there are still a lot of eye-candy divas all over the scene. I think they will eventually get around to making a new eye-candy centerpiece. Moreover, the fact that AJ Lee is a success makes it even less likely that the WWE would need Mickie back. They also have Total Divas working out for them. Their diva division isn't exactly as "golden" as it was with Trish and Lita, but the WWE seems to have at least regained some control over it. They don't need Mickie James. I think it is more likely that Mickie will one day return to TNA, again.

Looking at how some fans are reacting to Mickie's possible leaving, two types of comments strike me. First, a lot of people want to see Mickie James vs. AJ Lee. Psycho vs. Psycho. I personally do not give a damn about seeing it. Second, I have seen some say that Mickie James has done it all by winning the three main women's titles and being a 9-time Women's Champion. To them it would be fine for Mickie James to just walk away to her music career. Combine those two ideas. All Mickie James will be remembered for is a gimmick that didn't even last a full year and getting a lot of title reigns? There is more to this woman's story in wrestling than that. She accomplished more than that. This woman is more than a gimmick and a lot of title reigns. Her legacy should be more than that.

Let me talk personally about what I would like to see. I do want Mickie James back in the WWE. Obviously, it would help if the WWE's agenda changed first. I do not want to see Mickie James back just to put over other women. Fact is, Mickie James has not done it all. There is one thing she has not done in her career that I would like to see. She has never gotten the career she has earned from the WWE. You become the most over diva on the roster so you can be pushed in the same manner you would have had you never gotten over? That is not how it is supposed to work. Individuals that over don't just get title reigns. They get a type of career in which they are being pushed as someone that is a top star and can draw and can deliver. TNA does not know how to keep the ball rolling to give that career to anyone. In the WWE, Mickie James was getting the same cyclical treatment that a credible jobber typically gets. Used to serve a purpose, depushed once you are done serving that purpose, and rotate another credible jobber in. She was never pushed with the consistency and development that the WWE would a star. That is what she earned. That is what she deserves. That is what she has never gotten and never done.

Your New Heyman Guy: Ryback

The feud between Paul Heyman and CM Punk is not over yet. Punk did not get sweet revenge at Night of Champions. Someone did indeed come out to help Heyman. That someone would be Ryback.

Something you might be wondering, why didn't I speculate that it would be Brock Lesnar coming in to rescue Heyman? He has so many times before. I just wasn't feeling it. First, you just had CM Punk and Lesnar going at it a month ago. It just seemed too soon to bring him back. It also seemed just too obvious. Moreover, it would kind of be a step back. It would be like a roller coaster. Having Punk feud with Lesnar was huge, then you drop down to feuding with Curtis Axel, then you quickly zoom back up back to Lesnar. The development and progression of the feud would be better if you develop up to that moment CM Punk finally gets his hands on Heyman without anyone interfering.

And bringing in Ryback is good development to this feud. How many people actually took Curtis Axel too seriously? Ryback is obviously not Brock Lesnar, but he is a good step up from Curtis Axel. And that is a good way of building this storyline up. I was hoping that there would be more Heyman guys in between Punk and Heyman. If they just left it at Lesnar and Axel, the typical way to build this feud would have been to just have Punk knock off Axel on his way to a match or two with Lesnar, then get Heyman. Inserting more guys on Heyman's side makes this more elaborate, which I like.

What does this mean for Ryback? He was lost in the shuffle for around two months now. I was saying that he should get more involved in the corporate stable currently being pushed. If they are not running with that, having him align with Heyman is great for him. I think they are progressing this feud well.

Will Sandow Cash In At Night Of Champions?

Whenever you have a briefcase hovering around, you have to be asking when it will be cashed in. Does that mean I will be writing about that every week? No. Once a month around the time of a PPV? Maybe. Sandow still has the briefcase and Night of Champions is coming up. Will he cash in at the PPV? Possibly on the Raw or Smackdown after the PPV?

First of all, who will be the World's Heavyweight Champion that he might potentially cash in on? It's Alberto Del Rio vs. Rob Van Dam. This has been a very dry feud. If it wasn't for Ricardo being involved, this feud would be even more horrible. Even with him involved, the storyline build has not been great. RVD has looked mostly great during the feud. Christian looked great when he feuded with Del Rio last month. Christian, however, did not win the title. I would expect Del Rio to retain again. However, and this is where the wildcard comes in, if the WWE is going to have Sandow cash in, it would make sense for the heel with the briefcase to cash in on a face. A rule like that is not written in stone, but if they are going for the cash in, RVD winning it just to drop it to Sandow would not be unimaginable.

That leads to the big question, is now the time to have Damien Sandow use the briefcase? If you are going to develop someone to be a World Champion, it would help to, you know, actually develop him. Sandow has not had any proper development since his feud with Cody Rhodes ended. Since then, he has been getting random matches. He has been losing a lot. I know I have pointed out the World's Heavyweight Championship's fall from proper focus, but just handing it to Sandow right now would be even worse. I am not saying he should never be a World Champion. They just need to develop the guy better. Fluke wins against Sheamus and Miz won't do it. They need to get around to giving him bigger feuds. Why is Fandango the guy feuding with a former WWE Champion, while the guy that might become the first first-time World Champion in the WWE in over a year is getting nothing? If they have him cash in without proper build, I am not confident they will book him to win. There is still plenty of time for Sandow to cash in. I don't think he will cash in this quickly and I imagine Alberto Del Rio will retain his title.

Heyman & Axel Vs. CM Punk At Night Of Champions

This one isn't about titles. This one is personal. And it isn't even really about Curtis Axel, the Intercontinental Champion. The issue here is really between CM Punk and Paul Heyman. But will it end at Night of Champions?

CM Punk just seems to have all the momentum heading into the PPV. Paul Heyman has already sold that he doesn't believe Axel will be enough to save him and he is likely to get destroyed by Punk at Night of Champions. Having it work that easily just isn't believable. Go back to when John Cena was going to have a match against John Laurinaitis. Things just seemed too in the favor of Cena. What happened? Big Show screwed Cena. Who will come in to save Heyman? I am not even going to bother speculating on that. Fact is, if they were really developing this to be the end of the feud, I think they would have done a better job in giving the heels the momentum or spreading it more evenly. Right now, everything just seems too good for Punk. He can beat Axel. After that, there's Heyman.

Assuming the feud does continue, Survivor Series would be the perfect PPV to finally end it, in my opinion. Team Punk vs. Team Heyman. I miss Survivor Series matches where something is actually at stake. If Punk's team wins, Heyman is either gone or has to finally get in the ring with Punk without any help from Axel and whoever else. If Heyman's team wins, Punk is out of the WWE or is forced to once again work for Paul Heyman. One of the ideas coming up in promos has been that Heyman has been somewhat leaching off of Punk. Why wouldn't he want to leach some more? We were the best in the world? That was CM Punk. Heyman was just along for the ride. Problem is, can they prolong this storyline properly until November? I think it is possible. Just have Punk feud against the next Heyman guy in line. Could be good.

Midcard Mix In The Corporate Regime Angle

Two things stick out for me concerning the big storyline they are pushing with the corporate heels. Both have to do somewhat with the midcard. One is good and one is bad. One involves incorporating midcarders into the storyline, while the other involves the failure to incorporate wrestlers properly.

First, the good. Good to see Goldust back. The way they have incorporated Cody Rhodes into this storyline has been very good. After his feud with Damien Sandow, it would have been easy for them to do nothing with Cody Rhodes. He is just a midcarder, after all. Nevertheless, having him get fired like they did and having Goldust come back to stand up for him and face Randy Orton was great development in the story. It makes Cody Rhodes look more interesting and does not take Randy Orton out of the bigger picture. He still came out to confront Daniel Bryan at the end of the show and he is being made to look like a true heel. It also raises the question, will Cody Rhodes turn heel and side with the heel regime to get back his job? It would be similar to what happened with Big Show and John Laurinaitis a year ago, but the WWE could come up with a way to make it a little more unique. I think they have already done that by bringing in Goldust like they did. Moreover, you have a conflicted Big Show that some people might believe will crack to save his job and turn heel. Big Show refuses to sell out, but Cody Rhodes does sell out. That can then make for a good feud between Cody Rhodes and Big Show. I know they feuded before over the Intercontinental Championship, but the storyline here would be so much better.

Now, the bad. Miz and Fandango are still feuding? Really? Really? Really? That is to say, what is the point? A few weeks ago, they made it look like Miz might serve a bigger purpose in the main storyline going on, as he should. At the very least, he should be feuding over the tag titles with The Shield. At best, The Shield is going to end up defending the titles against some midcard team at Night of Champions. They have been right in the thick of this corporate heel storyline as the main henchmen since after Summerslam. They have been facing Daniel Bryan and attacking top faces, but they are in line for such a mediocre title defense? I know injuries have damaged the depth of top faces, but Miz is still there and they could have run an angle where he gets to choose his own partner to face The Shield for the tag titles. Or just pair him randomly with Kofi Kingston. And Fandango? First of all, while the angle with Cody Rhodes is a great way to elevate a midcarder into a bigger storyline, this feud between Fandango and Miz is not really elevating Fandango into anything bigger. It is taking Miz out of something that he should be a part of. This feud is looking similar to Fandango's feud with Jericho. That was his first real feud. Big feud. But that is not what is connecting him with the fans. The theme song is what makes him interesting. And the WWE failed to really follow through with him since then. I know he got injured, but he does not need a feud with Miz to prepare him for a midcard title run. Have him feud with R-Truth until a midcard title ends up on a face, then have him feud with that face. Last thing that I don't like about this feud between Miz and Fandango, it doesn't even have an interesting storyline to it. Miz beating Fandango should have ended it. Fandango costs Miz a match, and then? Fandango just says his name. That is just needlessly prolonging something that does not need to continue. Both Miz and Fandango can move on to other things.

The Overshadowing

Over the last week, I have spoken about a few angles or feuds that have been overshadowed by this big corporate heel stable storyline that is going on. Fandango and Miz's feud just seemed so pointless in comparison to it. Alberto Del Rio and his title seem to be losing strong focus. Storylines you could have had for the GMs are dead. Overshadowing is definitely going to be a theme while this bigger storyline is being pushed.

Why was overshadowing not really a big deal during Vince McMahon's reign of terror or Triple H and Stephanie's McMahon's reign of terror over a decade ago? First of all, there was no second World title to be overshadowed. Moreover, there were no General Managers being used so trivially against the McMahons in power. You had some other authority figures here and there, but they were used to work against the heels in power. Remember Linda McMahon standing against Vince McMahon? How about Mick Foley? There is no real power struggle like that right now.

Sticking with the theme of overshadowing, how about everyone's favorite cultist, Bray Wyatt? It is no shocker that he hasn't really had anything too interesting since taking Kane away. He has had promo time, but there has been no feud development for him. Kane's return will definitely bring back interest into Wyatt's storyline, but think a little further for a moment. Assuming the big corporate storyline is still going strong, what will there be for Wyatt, brainwashed Kane, and the dynamic duo to do? Most of the big names would still be involved in the bigger storyline involving Triple H and his stable. This can either be really good or really bad. It is obvious how this can be really bad. The Wyatt angle will continue to be overshadowed by the bigger angle. Such a waste. How can this be really good? The WWE will invest resources to make some good feuds for Wyatt/Kane against whomever they make available. You will have something interesting going on outside of the main event. How likely is it that they won't drop the ball so easily? Well, Kane is involved in this storyline. He isn't someone that they hate. I have some confidence that the WWE might make things interesting when Kane returns and not just overshadow this angle.

Just to toss the idea out there, should Wyatt and his clan join up with the corporate heels? It would save them from being buried under everything else going on. The Shield didn't look like they had much momentum prior to getting involved in this corporate angle. Obviously, The Shield fit better as henchmen than Wyatt's gimmick. If you think about it, it would be stupid for Wyatt to join with Triple H and his stable. This does not seem like a real option. It is either going to come down to Bray Wyatt's push getting hurt badly or the WWE setting aside better resources for him once Kane returns to still run with the gimmick.  

Evaluating The General Managers Under The Corporate Heel Storyline

A few months ago, they had this angle about evaluating Vickie Guerrero's job as Raw GM. That led to some shifting of power in terms of who was running the two shows. Brad Maddox took over on Raw, while Vickie got Smackdown. I am not going to be looking at how entertaining the two are as authority figures right now. I am going to be evaluating how the WWE is actually utilizing them.

Why even bother bringing this subject up? Because the roles seem almost pointless. You have Triple H, Stephanie McMahon, and Vince McMahon all being heels and calling the shots. The General Managers are both just pawns under them. It would make more sense to consider them corporate assistants to Triple H and Stephanie. Their roles are being overshadowed.

When Maddox took over on Raw, they treated him as the GM the fans deserved. It was a heel move from Vince McMahon. What should that have led to? An incompetent GM angle? Instead, it manifested itself in just another authority figure being used by the bosses above him.

When Vickie went to Smackdown, it looked like she would be bitter over the fans wanting her to lose her job on Raw. That could have led to an angle revolving around Vickie Guerrero getting a reign of terror on Smackdown. It didn't happen. Well, not with her. Triple H is getting the reign of terror.

Just taking a general evaluation in how the WWE is creatively handling the GM positions right now, it seems really useless. I don't blame the writers. The McMahons obviously want to run a big storyline about them being the top heels against Daniel Bryan. It just isn't really possible to treat Vickie Guerrero and Brad Maddox better with all this other stuff going on. It is a waste. I find it hard to consider them true GMs when they are overshadowed like this. As I said before, make them assistants to the real heels in charge. They will still have power to make matches. The only thing that would really change is the job title. Sounds trivial, but it might help with the flow of the storyline a little better. I just can't take Vickie and Brad seriously as in charge as a GM should be.

The Main-Event Face Front Does Not Look Too Good

How has the WWE been developing that big storyline revolving around Daniel Bryan, Triple H, and Randy Orton this week? More importantly, what has been going on with those top faces that you would hope would be backing Daniel Bryan up? With Mark Henry's injury, there is no point to speculate on him. Christian is also out for a little while with an injury. But what about the rest?

Starting with The Miz, it looks like his mini-feud with Fandango may be over. Did it really do anything major for either guy? Was it really worth it? Looking at the bigger picture, I still say getting Miz involved better with the big angle going on is more important. They did not do a great job developing that for Miz this week.

The big development has come for Big Show. The corporate heels are now targeting him more. Stephanie McMahon is personally getting involved there. On the one hand, I like that they are getting another face involved so well. On the other hand, you have a PPV coming up where the theme is supposed to revolve around the titles. The top henchmen for the heels have gold. Dolph Ziggler looks to be getting a feud with Ambrose over the U.S. title. Fine. Where does that leave the tag titles? I really think they should have set up Miz and Big Show to go after that. Does that kill off the storyline Big Show is currently getting. Not necessarily. If anything, I would have them develop it further. Have Big Show be the guy on the face side that is really causing trouble for the heels. Triple H and Stephanie see this, then they come up with the loophole to Big Show's iron-clad contract to make him the conflicted giant he currently is. They could still terrorize other midcarders until then, but build up to this Big Show angle. Of course, too late for that now. The reason why I would have gone with this idea is because it develops a proper feud for the tag titles, while still leading to the Big Show angle you have now.

Let me look down the road. After CM Punk finishes up with Heyman, how likely is it that he gets involved against Triple H and his group? He should. His whole rise to the top came off of trashing the people in power. He now finds himself a face and the people in power are heels. This writes itself. Let's see how long it takes to go there.

The Decline Of Alberto Del Rio? And His Title?

Alberto Del Rio has not really been featured that well in the last few weeks. He has not been featured in the main event of Smackdown. WWE title matters are overflowing to Smackdown recently in a manner that you have not had in a while. As far as Raw goes, he has not exactly been regularly featured in the hot spots. The start of the show, 9:00, 10:00, and the end of the show, the main-event segment, are usually when you get a nice growth in viewers and the WWE puts in their top stars and angles. The corporate stable storyline has been getting those slots, as well as CM Punk's issues with Paul Heyman. No Del Rio.

His feud with Rob Van Dam isn't that interesting. Aside from the World title being on the line, the only thing to spice this up is the fact that Ricardo is involved. Whose side is he really on? I can't picture Rob Van Dam keeping a ring announcer for an extended period of time. The expected swerve would be for Ricardo to help Del Rio retain the title. Ricardo just fits better with Del Rio. Aside from that, this really is a dull feud. Even with that added angle, this is still a dull feud. They need to develop this more outside of just wrestling matches. Have more segments. If they don't want to tease Ricardo still being on Del Rio's side to treat screwing RVD out of the title as more of a surprise, that's fine. But how about still using Ricardo more in this feud? It is so dry right now.

What does this all mean for the World's Heavyweight Championship? This is a World title in the WWE. Many PPVs have closed with this title on the line, including a few Wrestlemanias. Right now, it can't even find a consistent spot in the main event of Smackdown. How much is credibility of a title worth? The credibility of this title is definitely taking a hit to be handled like this. It is like a midcard title. I think it should definitely be possible to spread the spotlight better. Not only for Del Rio's sake, but for the sake of keeping title feuds over this title hyped well. Keep people interested in it. Help it help you draw.

Mark Henry Injured, Again

Mark Henry got injured over the weekend. Not good. Obviously, because he was not deep into any storyline right now, the WWE won't have to worry about trying to replace him in anything too important. Nevertheless, this is another top face that has been injured in recent weeks.

Mark Henry had signed on for a few more years recently. How good of an investment will that end up being for the WWE? I like Mark Henry. I find him entertaining. But should he have retired this year? It isn't like injury issues are a rarity for him. And as age becomes more of a factor, things are not going to get easier if he keeps going at this pace. If he is going to stick around a few more years, should they consider giving him a lighter schedule? I would say so. And if you are going to have him travel around, how about giving him something more meaningful to do? He hasn't had a real angle for a while now. It's stupid for this guy to get injured for the simplest of things when he is not even being utilized better. This is a guy that doesn't have to be pushed all the time in the ring. He is good at cutting a promo. Just don't make his final years a waste and filled with needless injuries.