Cena Returns And Has A New Heel Foe

John Cena made his return to Raw on Monday. He was confronted by AJ Styles. Anderson & Gallows then came out. Next thing you know, AJ attacks Cena and has rejoined The Club. He is now an official heel.

If it was the WWE's plan the whole time for AJ to break up with his buddies just so they could pull off this swerve, it was a good move. If the WWE just had no idea what to do and went back and forth, they at least did something that excited wrestling fans for at least a little while.

A sense of doom then set in for many fans. Looking at how some fans are reacting, they feel Cena will bury AJ Styles. I think they are overreacting. Kevin Owens lost a feud to Cena last year. He went on to be treated pretty well since then. Seth Rollins lost the United States Championship back to John Cena. Rollins has not been buried. John Cena then took time off a little while after that and has not won a feud since. AJ Styles will be fine, whether he wins this feud or not.

The only way The Club could be featured properly is with the main spotlight. That means working with the centerpiece. John Cena may not be the current centerpiece anymore, but working with him is about the same as working with Roman Reigns. This will be good for the group. This will help them look impactful, especially now that the storyline about whether or not AJ Styles will turn has been put to rest. Just let the group look strong and look strong against a credible opponent.

I still feel like AJ Styles has not really broken out to his full potential. Will a heel turn and embracing leading a stable really help him? He needs storylines to help showcase some personality. It seems like all his feuds since debuting have been pretty routine for a guy like him. His first feud is against a WWE veteran. He moves on to a title feud against the new top star of the company. He moves on to a feud with the previous centerpiece of the company. Throughout it all, it seems like the story has always just been either putting over that fans like him or basing it off of his stuff before the WWE. Where's the character development? I mean more than just turning him heel. That will help him to get over with the wider audience. A depush to the midcard might not be the worst thing in the world for him. Getting as over as you can is more important than winning as many titles as you can. Even then, a midcard title run would not be bad for AJ Styles.

Time For Paige In The Periphery?

Despite certain changes with the WWE women's division, a lot of things are still the same. They still seem to want their division to revolve around a centerpiece. That would currently be Charlotte. And women are still not being given fair opportunities to earn that better career for themselves. Beyond that, there are still divas. There are still those eye-candy women. They may not be dominating title feuds, yet, but they are getting things to do in the periphery.

Interesting things happen in the periphery. It was that way in the beginning of the diva division. It was that way during the first dark age. It was that way in the golden age. Even during the recent dark age that ultimately brought about the supposed end of the "diva" agenda, you had interesting things going on outside of the title matters in the women's division at times. The periphery is where you see unique characters that stand out, like Chyna, Lita, and AJ Lee. The periphery is where you see eye-candy divas doing their thing, like Lana and Maryse. The periphery is where you see women interacting with the men, which can usually add some flavor to storylines.

The periphery scene right now is pretty weak. There are no unique characters for the women like those I just mentioned. Eye-candy divas cannot be utilized the same way now as they were a decade ago. There are also not a lot of great storylines featuring men and women interacting. The storyline between Dolph Ziggler, Lana, Rusev, and Summer Rae last year had potential, although wrestling fans hated it and circumstances led to the WWE botching it. That doesn't mean they should not do storylines where men and women interact. I am not talking about just a woman valeting or managing a man. I mean an actual storyline and the woman being better involved in the the guy's feuds than you see Lana and Maryse being used.

Who should get that push? Sasha Banks? I don't think so. I will talk about her another day. How about Paige? I am going to admit something that might make me look stupid. I think about the women's division every day. It is still my favorite topic to talk about here. And there have been some days that I'm thinking about what's going on and completely forget Paige is there. Paige is my favorite female wrestler currently on the roster. But the WWE doesn't utilize her well and most wrestling fans I come across are busy talking about Charlotte, Sasha Banks, Becky Lynch, Emma, Dana Brooke, and other women that have been a little more relevant. That's the problem with credible jobbers. That inconsistency with how they are utilized can kill their momentum, and the WWE also pushes other women in their place to make it even easier to forget about them.

The last female wrestler to get a great push in the periphery was AJ Lee. She was pushed with a unique character and given numerous storylines alongside top talent in the men's division. The WWE never pushed any woman to fill her spot. I think now is the time. Paige debuted right into an angle with AJ Lee and the two had a feud/partnership for months after that. But that's not why I think Paige should be the next top woman in the periphery. I think she has potential to be a unique character. She has a unique look. She has a personality. She doesn't need to be a psycho character like AJ. She doesn't need to be a character that wrestles men like Chyna. She doesn't need an extreme character like Lita.

The trick is to pair her with the right person to let her get that character rub. I read somewhere a while back that they were considering putting Paige with Bray Wyatt to play the role of Sister Abigail. I am sure there will one day be a woman paired with The Wyatts. I just don't think that needs to be Paige. This is a group of jobbers to the stars, after all. Unless the WWE actually plans to push the group well and not just to build them up to feed to someone, putting Paige with them would not be good. Paige also has a relationship with Alberto Del Rio. A pairing between those two might be interesting. One is British and the other is Mexican. But the characters might clash. I would also not put her with an authority figure. The drama going on with Shane and Stephanie does not call for someone like Paige getting involved.

How about Seth Rollins? If they are grooming him to follow in the line of Edge and CM Punk, he can use someone at his side. Edge had Lita. CM Punk had Paul Heyman. Rollins had those stooges, but he needs better than that. Despite smarks loving this guy, I do not think he really has broken out as a true superstar. Paige has already dropped more pipebombs than Rollins. She is charismatic. Rollins can help give her a main-event rub, while she might help him look more interesting. Paige doesn't even need any over-the-top gimmick or treatment. Just put her in this kind of position where she gets to work with someone else that can give her a rub and let her get involved in his storylines and his promos and his matches.

Paige definitely does deserve better than she is getting. Total Divas and those WWE movies don't mean anything. I see lower-midcarders being cast for those movie roles. Natalya, a credible jobber for her entire career in the WWE, is on Total Divas. These things do not take the place of how you are actually pushed. Paige has potential to do better than she is now. She has no chance to be the centerpiece of the women's division and you can't tell when she will be used as a jobber to the centerpiece or interim centerpiece again. The only other option is pushing her in the periphery. And the WWE might as well find something now.

Smackdown Gets An Upgrade

The WWE has announced that several changes will be made to Smackdown. First, it will be going live on Tuesdays. Second, there will once again be a brand split. That has a lot of fans talking about which titles will go where and which McMahon will run what show.

The best decision the WWE made here was to make Smackdown live. Regardless of anything else, that should help the show's ratings. A lot of fans just read spoilers and skip the show. Fans can just read a recap of the show and still skip it, but it seems more likely that more fans will now tune in to watch it live. Besides that, there will be no regular NFL action for the WWE to compete against on Tuesday.

How about the brand split? That is where I think there might be a problem. If this were a short-term brand split just for the sake of pushing a feud between Shane and Stephanie McMahon, then it would be fine. A long-term split is another issue. The WWE couldn't handle the brand split that ended just a few years ago. Their star power on the roster has not really improved since then.

Raw stands to suffer more from this than Smackdown. Important things are going to start happening on Smackdown. Raw, the show where big things are usually expected to happen, will be losing its full deck of talent. How can they fill three hours with the guys they will have left? Some fans are speculating that Raw goes back to two hours. That might be a good decision to further put Raw and Smackdown on equal ground. If they do not do it, Raw's ratings might suffer even more than they already are.

Let me bring up something else I do not like. I do not like how this whole thing just came about. The WWE just said it is going to happen. It is on their website. Why not have an angle? Announce it in a segment. They had a segment a few weeks ago where Vince McMahon named both Shane and Stephanie in charge. He could have made them both in charge of their own brand. They could then later announce on one of the shows that there would be a draft. The McMahon running Smackdown can announce making Smackdown live so it could be better competition for Raw. Everything that was announced on WWE.com could have played out in segments on TV. And it should have. Instead of making this feel like a storyline, it just feels like a business decision.

The WWE has had Stephanie McMahon act friendly towards her brother. The idea many fans expected was that Stephanie would eventually betray her brother. That payoff will not matter now. If the two McMahons go their separate ways with their own brand, then whatever angle the WWE had planned here doesn't matter anymore. Why not continue to tease tension between the two? Act like they cannot coexist sharing power. Have Vince McMahon come back and say that the only way to stop the chaos between the two is to have a brand split. That would have been a better way to handle things.

Go back to Wrestlemania. Shane McMahon had to beat The Undertaker to get control of Raw. He lost. The next night on Raw, Vince just gave Shane control. That was a mediocre way of handling things. You just made the storyline irrelevant. I feel like recent developments fall into the same area as what happened back then. The WWE is not doing a good job creating a storyline with this power struggle. After acting like he hated his son, Vince McMahon just hands him power. After acting like there was tension between Shane and Stephanie, which should have led to an obvious brand split, the WWE announces the brand split without the televised drama that might actually have had some entertainment value to it.

Of course, fans don't care too much about this stuff I have brought up. They are busy making mock drafts and talking about what they should do with the titles. I won't do that. From the standpoint of a writer, the WWE didn't handle this in a creative, linear way. Let's see if they make up for it in the coming weeks.

Dana Brooke: The Next Layla?

Michelle McCool was not a great worker. Great workers get the job done. They don't just get pushed like they are getting the job done. They don't just have the talent and attributes to get the job done. They actually go out there and get it done through their own abilities. McCool never got over at the level she should have. But the WWE pushed her like she was great. She was solid in the ring, but one of her biggest issues was a lack of charisma.

One of the things the WWE did to help her was give her a sidekick. There was a span where Vickie Guerrero was involved with Michelle McCool, but McCool's real memorable sidekick was Layla. Layla was charismatic. Did it really help McCool or the duo to get over? Not really. But it was a tool the WWE used to help McCool get over.

Just a few years after McCool retired, there is another woman in a similar position. Charlotte is pushed as the centerpiece. She is very athletic. But her main issue is her lack of charisma. She is not as over as she should be. The WWE has already handed her history, much like they did with Michelle McCool several times. They used Ric Flair to give her a rub. You can say that is comparable to Vickie Guerrero giving McCool a rub. Use a non-wrestler that is getting a better reaction from the fans to help the woman you want to push as a star. Ric Flair is now out of the picture. But someone else just entered the picture.

Dana Brooke has aligned with Charlotte. With Emma injured, you had to wonder what the WWE would do with her. Dana's best attribute, in my opinion, is her charisma. It certainly isn't her wrestling ability. Layla was not a great wrestler when she started in the WWE. She improved. Maybe Dana will continue to improve. Regardless, Charlotte has a charismatic diva to help her look more interesting. In this way, Dana Brooke looks like the new Layla.

This kind of thing didn't really work for Layla and Michelle McCool. Will it work here? The WWE pushed LayCool with an overbearing gimmick and stifled a lot of the other things that could have been going on in the division. LayCool was all there really was to talk about for a while. Charlotte doesn't have a big gimmick, especially now with her father gone. There are also other minor periphery pushes going on, like Lana with Rusev and Maryse with Miz, but nothing too huge. Fans will talk about Charlotte, but how over will she actually become? A lot of people are talking about Roman Reigns. Most of it isn't always positive. Same thing here with Charlotte. Fans talking about Charlotte does not mean she is actually over.

Just to make it clear, Dana is there for the benefit of Charlotte. Charlotte isn't there to give Dana a big rub. The WWE wasn't trying to get Layla over back when she was with Michelle McCool. If they were, they would have done a better job pushing her the final years of her career after McCool retired. As long as Charlotte doesn't do anything to seriously screw herself, she will continue to be pushed at a high level until she leaves the WWE. Dana Brooke will eventually be phased out.

A lot of what has been going on recently seems very diva-like. I see some fans unhappy about short matches. Dana Brooke definitely is not someone with respectable wrestling ability. Sasha Banks has injury issues. Ric Flair was arguably taking too much of the attention for a while. Fans that were so eager for a revolution are not seeing a lot of the things they were hoping for. It is still a dark age. The WWE is definitely not efficient. Is a woman that is obviously not an eye-candy diva being pushed as a centerpiece a sign of things changing? Or is this just dark age shenanigans? I had some hope that the WWE might be doing something different. But they are showing signs of still sticking to their old ways. They had to go beyond this feminist-inspired division they were having for a while. The goal is to entertain, not get too self-righteous. At the same time, the WWE has to do a better job than they are. They are failing to create stars and create an entertaining women's division. Worse than that, they might risk another Twitter uproar if they keep going in the direction they are going.

Styles Without The Club

After a very mediocre feud with Roman Reigns that did not see the storyline raised to another level to make things interesting, how did the WWE follow up with AJ Styles? He separates from Anderson and Gallows on Raw. He then loses to Kevin Owens. And his former partners didn't even screw him out of the match. This is all extremely dull.

AJ's entire run in the WWE has been mediocre so far. He debuted to a lot of buzz, but the feud against Jericho went on longer than it needed to, and AJ ended up losing. His feud against Roman Reigns, even though it involved Bullet Club members and references, just felt like they just went through the motions without taking it to another level. The WWE has just really coasted on what AJ Styles is and things has done prior to coming to the WWE. They have not invested in him more than that.

Yes, the likely betrayal by Anderson and Gallows will still probably happen. But can you really see it as a betrayal now? And you might still get Finn Balor debut to feud with Styles, or whatever has planned for the two. But this angle has lost some of its edge. There is something to be said for developing a story, but there just comes a time when you pull the trigger on whatever it is you are doing. If you don't, you run the risk of your readers or viewers just losing interest. Wrestling fans will be hooked on this whether the payoff takes months to come about or it happened at Extreme Rules last Sunday. But there are a lot of other fans the WWE might have been able to interest with a better storyline than this. The WWE has already planted the seeds of something happening. Whatever it is just seems like it would be boring to the wider audience. AJ Styles has not broken out yet to connect with these fans. Why should these fans care about Anderson and Gallows? Why should these fans care about Finn Balor? A lot of these type of fans don't even follow NXT. The WWE needs to stop coasting and invest better in these things, as well as create some real swerves.

This all isn't crying about AJ Styles now losing 3 PPV matches in a row. This isn't about how the WWE can honor AJ Styles for being a great wrestler. This is about how the WWE can use AJ Styles better to help them. It starts with helping him to connect with the wider audience. Simply tossing a title on him will not do. Storyline development must improve.

Seth Rollins Returns, And That's About It

What was the story told in the main event match between Roman Reigns and AJ Styles last night at Extreme Rules? It was more of the same. The Usos and Anderson & Gallows got involved. In the end, Roman Reigns once again retained. And then Seth Rollins returned.

Before I talk about Seth returning, let me talk about how the WWE handled the storyline between Roman Reigns and AJ Styles. This was terrible. Just to make it clear, I am not saying anything about match quality. I am just talking about the storyline. People were anticipating so many things to happen with this storyline. The WWE can obviously still go somewhere with AJ Styles and the other two goons, but it will likely not have the same impact to it that it could have had if it had the main-event spotlight and WWE Championship involved.

The feud development for the last few weeks was just flat. It was Roman Reigns and his sidekicks going against AJ Styles and his sidekicks. I have seen a lot of fans eat this feud up like it was something amazing. No, it isn't. And how the WWE handled the match at Extreme Rules just further makes me stand by my point. Again, just looking at the story of the match, not anything about match quality or Seth Rollins, this was just more of the same. This was the same thing you had at Payback. The only twist you had was Shane McMahon and Stephanie McMahon each altering that match. But that was more their own story being developed. It didn't change the story of AJ Styles vs. Roman Reigns. This isn't even about Roman Reigns retaining against AJ Styles. This is about the WWE not taking advantage of the situation to have something big happen.

Is Seth Rollins returning something big? He never broke out as a star. He has main-event credibility. He held the WWE Championship for a long time. He won it at Wrestlemania. He never officially lost it. He beat a lot of top guys. A lot of his title defenses ended by shady means, but he has been pushed at a high level. But all the credibility in the world is not enough to automatically make you a star. Overness is based on more than just credibility. Seth obviously has the wrestling talent to get wrestling fans to love him. And this is an era where the WWE doesn't seem to know how to please the wider audience anymore, or they just don't care. Point is, this guy is not a star and the ratings issue will not be fixed just because he returned. He needs to break out beyond just connecting with those wrestling fans.

Previewing The Extreme Rules 2016 Main Event

Roman Reigns & his bloodline and AJ Styles & his club have seen a lot of each other these last few weeks. Maybe a little too much of each other. And they will be seeing even more of each other at Extreme Rules.

First, The Usos will face Karl Anderson & Luke Gallows. This is a match for Anderson & Gallows to obviously win. They just debuted a little while ago. Give them the momentum. The WWE has not booked these guys as completely unbeatable, but a win here would be good.

There is only one way I can picture them losing. The WWE can have them lose to sell the idea that they turn on AJ Styles later in the night due to frustration. AJ Styles wasn't there for them during their match, so Anderson & Gallows decide they are done with AJ. I would rather a swerve happen.

Back to the main feud. It has been getting a little lackluster recently. Having Roman Reigns and his group facing AJ Styles and his group might have been exciting the first time the WWE booked it. Even the rematch might have had wrestling fans excited. But the WWE has had these guys face each other in some form every week. They should have thrown in some other supporting characters or rely more on segments and not just matches. We have seen AJ Styles face Roman Reigns already. We have even seen The Usos vs. Anderson & Gallows already. Gimmick matches may make things a little fresher at Extreme Rules, but this rivalry is pretty much spent. The WWE cannot keep it going as it is after Extreme Rules.

So what happens at Extreme Rules? How does the WWE handle this storyline to take it to another level? Or do they just have Reigns retain and end the feud? I can talk about all the possible turns and debuts you can have, but I already brought that up for the previous PPV. The WWE went nowhere then. There is something to be said for developing a storyline, but I already brought up how the WWE hasn't really done anything too interesting with this storyline in recent weeks. It is just more of the same. They should have done something more at Payback. Smarks are still eager for whatever happens at Extreme Rules, but I am not that excited for what might happen. And as far as exciting and drawing in that wider audience, I think the WWE dropped the ball in creating a situation that could deliver for them sooner.

Since anything goes in this match, Anderson & Gallows can get involved without the match ending in a DQ. Of the many possibilities, I will say they turn on AJ Styles and screw him out of the title. Finn Balor eventually debuts, whether at Extreme Rules, the Raw after, or a few weeks later. "The Club" can then get a better name and AJ Styles feuds with them. Does Roman Reigns stick with this storyline or move on to something else? Or does a returning John Cena get involved with this? Let's wait to see what happens with AJ and his friends, then worry about all that.

Previewing The Extreme Rules 2016 Undercard Title Matches

New Day defend the tag titles against The Vaudevillains. I have said before that New Day should have lost the titles already to other teams that had the momentum. I do not think they should lose it here. The Vaudevillains don't look like they are ready. Have New Day retain here and eventually drop it to Anderson & Gallows to give The Club some credibility. 

Kalisto defends the United States Championship against Rusev. Rusev looks monstrous again. They are even running an injury angle with Kalisto. Or is he really hurt? Can't even tell these days. Are they doing all this to make Rusev look dominant and give Kalisto a bit of an excuse when he loses the title? Or is this just to stack the odds against Kalisto so he can overcome them? Speaking of overcoming the odds, I see some fans dreading that the only reason Rusev looks strong again and might win the title is to drop it to Cena when he returns. That doesn't really make sense to me. Cena does not need a title to be pushed well. Beyond that, Alberto Del Rio was the guy that beat Cena cleanly for the title last year and retained it again against Cena prior to Cena's injury. Wouldn't it make more sense to give the title back to Alberto Del Rio so he can drop it to Cena, if the plan is for another United States Championship run for Cena? In any case, I will say Rusev wins the title at Extreme Rules.

The Intercontinental Championship will be decided in a fatal fourway. Miz defends against Cesaro, Kevin Owens, and Sami Zayn. Cesaro just felt like he had the momentum when he returned last month. It felt like he would eventually win the title from Miz. Inserting Owens and Zayn certainly confuses things. These two could have had their own gimmick match at Extreme Rules. Make it a Last Man Standing match, or something like that. Owens and Zayn do have that history together. Leave the title to be decided between Miz and Cesaro, where Cesaro would win it. The WWE can still have Cesaro win it, then feud with Miz, while Owens and Zayn go back to killing each other, but I think a lot of Cesaro's momentum is hurt. I will say Miz retains.

No title is on the line, but I want to talk about Chris Jericho vs. Dean Ambrose. This is an Asylum match. WWE must like Dean Ambrose a lot to let him have his own match. He might just be the new Mick Foley. Foley got a few runs with the WWE Championship, but he was never the centerpiece. That will be the story with Ambrose. He will eventually win the WWE Championship, but he will not take the true top spot. Until any of that happens, he has Chris Jericho. They have been murdering the other guy's favorite inanimate object. Might as well try to murder each other in an extreme environment. Logic might say that Ambrose wins this match since it is his match, but he seems to have too much of the momentum. I can see Jericho winning this to make the rivalry more interesting and extending it.

Charlotte Vs. Natalya At Extreme Rules 2016: Final Preview

Raw this week ended with the contract signing between Charlotte and Natalya. It went against the NBA playoff game between the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Golden State Warriors. Which would I rather watch? Basketball. But I did watch most of the final segment on Raw.

The WWE is certainly putting work into Charlotte. If it really needs to be said, Shane and Stephanie McMahon weren't really out there to give Natalya a rub. Charlotte is the one the WWE is going to stick with and they intend to push as a star. It was just a few months ago that Charlotte and Paige closed out Raw. What has Paige been doing since? Charlotte, on the other hand, is still pushed very well. As long as she doesn't flop or do anything to screw herself, many more main-event segments will be coming for Charlotte. I do not think she has earned the career she is getting, but that's another issue.

Charlotte has been getting help from her father to retain the Women's Championship. This Sunday, Ric Flair will not be allowed at ringside. To make things more interesting, this is also a submission match. If Charlotte does retain, will she get Natalya to cleanly tap out? Or will there be more shenanigans? There were shenanigans the last time these two had a title match on PPV. Natalya got the momentum on Raw in a big way. It seems likely that Charlotte retains. But how will the WWE have her do it?

Or should the WWE just let Natalya get the title? Let her have a short reign. Not as short as what Zack Ryder got last month. She can drop it back to Charlotte next month. That's typical centerpiece booking. The WWE has done a pretty good job with this feud. With someone they want to push as a star involved, that's not shocking. This feud might have been developed well enough to deserve a title change. I was in the group that believed the WWE should just move on to someone else for Charlotte to face, I admit that, but they have done a good job since then. Many fans might have written Natalya off as just someone to feed to Charlotte, but I wouldn't mind her getting a short title reign. Once this feud is truly done, then Charlotte can move on to Sasha Banks.

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.

Will Cena Save The Day?

Raw's ratings have been pretty terrible this year. The annual average for 2016 so far is already below the average for 2015, and we haven't even touched football season yet. Obviously, the WWE will not be able to save themselves at this point.

One of the problems has been injuries. The WWE has lost people they would be pushing as top stars. That includes Randy Orton, Seth Rollins, and John Cena. John Cena is the only one I want to talk about here. He is due to return very soon. Will his return lead to at least some kind of ratings spike to help things before the WWE goes against NFL action?

Why is it even an issue to talk about John Cena and the ratings? Why not bring up Orton and Rollins? Because Cena has been pushed as the centerpiece for almost a decade. Even though Roman Reigns is the new guy, Cena obviously will not be buried. One of the justifications for Cena being pushed as hard as he has for a decade is because he is a draw. I have seen even his critics bring that up as a justification for Cena being where he is. Well, if there was ever a situation to test if Cena is a draw for the WWE, this is it. His new show on Fox certainly isn't pulling amazing numbers, but how will he do back on Raw? The star power there right now is obviously lacking. The WWE isn't creating any big angles that are producing results. If the return of John Cena can create a good boost to the ratings for a few weeks, then you have to give the WWE credit for what they have made with John Cena. If not, his critics might have even more to criticize him about. And you have to wonder if that would be a sign that the WWE won't get anywhere with Reigns. If they couldn't make Cena into a proper draw, what are they going to do with Reigns?

Do I think the return of Cena will be enough to bring results? No. He's not The Rock. You might get your ratings boost after PPVs, but there will likely be no substantial, lasting improvement just because of Cena. It all comes down to how he is pushed. Cena has benefited from frequently being a part of big storylines. How likely is it that he will get a big storyline when he returns? The big storyline right now, whether you say it is Shane/Stephanie or AJ/Reigns, is pretty dull. Cena getting involved in any of that might not improve it. I don't think he has the star power to interest the wider audience with just his presence in these storylines. The WWE will need to step up to create better hype. Simply continuing to run a product that speaks mainly to smarks isn't going to cut it. The WWE will never turn things around like this.

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.

Does The WWE Need Ryback?

Ryback does not seem too happy in the WWE anymore. He has been disgruntled about a variety of things. It looks like he may not be sticking around.

Ryback has been in the WWE for many years. His first big angle was being a part of Nexus. An injury took him out for a long time. He came back and got a big push. He was Goldberg-like. He had a few shots at the WWE Championship. He never won it. It took him a while to finally get a title in the WWE, but he got that last year. In between all that, however, he has been featured pretty well. You don't need to be involved in the title scene to be pushed well.

But should the WWE really try to get him to stay? I don't think so. He can talk. He is okay in the ring. He is somewhat charismatic. Overall, I do not think he knocks it out of the park enough to really warrant keeping him. The "Feed Me More" chant may have gotten over and he may have had a lot of momentum at one time, but I don't think he has an A-tier connection with the fans. I would let him go.

There are other guys on the roster to fill his role. Ryback is a big guy. Rusev can play that role. You have Big E. Luke Harper is a big guy a lot of wrestling fans love. It is obviously time for the WWE to move on from Big Show and Kane. With all the investment the WWE has put in Ryback and how long he has been in the WWE, it would have been ideal if he did stay, but I wouldn't bend too much to keep him. The WWE just needs to put that kind of effort into any other decent big guy they have and they should be able to fill the void.

Sandow Released

The WWE had some releases last week. I have said that there is a lot of dead weight on the roster that the WWE needed to do something about. There was no way they could properly utilize everyone, especially with the WWE continuing to hire and bring back more and more people. They had to let some of these people go. And they did it. Looking at the individuals released, there is nothing shocking. These are all people who have had some usage on the main roster over the years. Some went down to NXT after a while. Lately, however, none of them were relevant.The exception might be Wade Barrett, but his contract was expiring this year and he did not want to stay. As for the rest getting released, I just see it as something the WWE had to do. If you can't utilize them in a meaningful way, why keep them?

Damien Sandow was one of the people released and the only one I want to talk about. Looking around, fans seem most upset about his release. #ThankYouSandow was trending on Twitter. He got very over with his impersonation gimmick a few years ago, especially when working with Miz. And the WWE just failed to follow up with him. There was no big fan backlash to get him a proper push after that. Zack Ryder and Daniel Bryan did get better fan support when the WWE was not eager to push them better. Nevertheless, Sandow did get over enough to earn better.

I would say this guy is an asset. He is a solid in-ring worker. He can talk. He has proven that he can play various gimmicks in an entertaining way. The WWE definitely could have done more with him. He can be useful to some other promotion. I am not saying he should go to TNA and be handed their top title. Use him to entertain. Build him up to be a true star that might actually help the promotion grow, then worry about handing him title reigns.

Sandow wasn't even that demanding. I remember hearing that all he wanted was to be used every week. He would be content with just that. On the one hand, there is something to be said for not being too demanding. Being too pushy might lead to someone being labeled hard to work with or rumors that he has a backstage attitude. On the other hand, there is nothing wrong with knowing your worth and not settling. Some people might respect that more. There is nothing wrong with having a little bit of an ego to help motivate you and give you some pride. I do think Sandow should have not settled. And if the WWE was not going to treat him better and he did not like how he was being used, he should have been the one to ask for his release. He didn't need to let the WWE have their way with him and toss him aside. Leave the WWE, make a name for yourself elsewhere, and then maybe they will want him back one day. It still might work out like that, but Sandow needs to not settle.

It is a new era in the WWE, supposedly, but they might still have that issue with giving workers fair opportunities. That is what has really screwed them up in the last decade. They stick with things that may not be working that they do want to work and hold down things that are working that they do not want to work. I don't think workers should have to be playing backstage politics and complaining constantly to be utilized better. The system should just be fairer. Aside from mistreating their workers by handling things like this, and upsetting fans, the WWE is just messing themselves up. I would like to see what the WWE does if another man or woman becomes more over than the WWE would like. AJ Styles has not yet broken out. Fans can definitely get hotter for him than they are. Sasha Banks has her fans, but the WWE doesn't take those chants seriously at all. All they have to do is give her a typical credible jobber push and most fans wouldn't even know better. I want to see someone get so over that the WWE will feel that pressure to push them. What will they do? Legitimately push them better? Use them to put over whom they want over? Ignore it? This will really tell just how much the WWE has changed.

The New Era In The WWE

The WWE is saying that there is a new era in the company. Some fans are pessimistic about things and think there is no real change. There are a few things going on that would suggest this is a new era. Roman Reigns is officially the new centerpiece of the company. Shane McMahon returned and now has power, despite losing his Wrestlemania match to The Undertaker, and is sharing control with Stephanie McMahon. The overall product seems to be more open to wrestling talent that vocal wrestling fans love. AJ Styles debuted this year and has definitely not been underutilized. And if you are going to pander to wrestling fans with the men's division, you might as well do it with the women's division. There have been changes there, as well. But how many of these changes are genuine and how successful is this new era going to be?

Start with the change in overall philosophy of the company. They are doing better with wrestling talent. NXT was the initial source of a lot of that buzz. The WWE will be doing other specials catered towards wrestling fans on the WWE Network. And the main roster has a number of great wrestlers that are being featured. I mentioned AJ Styles. How about Kevin Owens? People were ready to write him off as buried after he lost his feud against John Cena. He has done pretty well since then. Seth Rollins will likely be featured at a high level when he returns from injury. He was in the midst of a lengthy run with the WWE Championship when he got hurt. There's talent everywhere in the men's division.

Over in the women's division, there have been changes to make things look more respectable. There are still divas. There are still women there primarily for their looks. But female wrestlers are still getting the opportunity to shine. Charlotte appears to be the centerpiece of the new division. I always have to wonder what would have happened if Nikki had not gotten injured. This isn't like Tamina getting injured. Nikki Bella was the centerpiece just last year. Losing her was big. In any case, fans are excited for the new emphasis on wrestling in the women's division.

Despite embracing wrestling like they have, the WWE still has issues. The roster is too full, both the men's and women's rosters. And it is just going to get more crowded when guys return from injury and more debut from NXT. It is even worse in the women's division. How can you have so many women in the roster and only have one legitimate women's feud going? Maryse and Lana have periphery angles, but there are still other women not being featured well at all. The WWE needs to improve there. It is inefficient. Who cares about that? It is annoying to fans of these women and likely can get irritating for the women too. It gets even worse when dirtsheets come up with dumb reasons why these women are not treated better. The atmosphere may be more respectable than it used to be, but the WWE has to utilize all this talent better.

Roman Reigns is the new centerpiece. This is not just a filler push because Cena took time off to do something else and got injured soon after returning. While Cena can be moved out to the kind of role Shawn Michaels had in his last run with the WWE, Roman Reigns is the new guy. He has already had three runs with the WWE Championship. If he stays healthy, he should be able to get to ten in a few years. His character isn't exactly the same as Cena's. You would think fans might appreciate that. No, they hate him. Some might say he is more hated than Cena. And yet, the WWE will stick with him. The best you can hope for is they turn him heel one day.

Consider the direction the overall product is going and consider the centerpiece choice. Does it really fit? The centerpiece should either be someone that best represents what you want your company to be about or someone that energizes the company. The WWE is making a lot of decisions that would please wrestling fans, but they pick a centerpiece that is not a great, respected wrestler and just irritates wrestling fans. It just does not seem to be a smart choice. Just because Roman Reigns gets loud boos a lot of the time does not mean he energizes the product. The WWE sells Roman Reigns as the leader of the new era, but he really may not be the best representative of this era. Is the WWE making a lot of these decisions that please wrestling fans just in hopes that they lighten up on Roman Reigns. That might not work the way they hope.

The centerpiece choice in the women's division is also questionable. Charlotte is not that over. She is obviously in the position she is in because of who her father is. Not a nice thing to say, but speaking realistically, just being a solid in-ring worker is not enough to get the kind of push she is getting. And she doesn't have much else going for her as a performer. A lot of fans would rather Sasha Banks get the push. I wonder what happens if Charlotte suffers some serious injury. The WWE has fumbled over the years when their centerpiece in the diva division went down. What happens if one of the divas still there now becomes solid enough in the ring? Revert back to a diva status quo? If these changes in the women's division hinge mainly on Charlotte, then things can easily become terrible again. Of course, all the WWE has to do is send two great in-ring workers out there and let them steal the show and wrestling fans won't care about anything else.

Is The Authority dead? Fans complained about them ruining Raw for years. Shane McMahon to save the day? Stephanie McMahon is also back from a few weeks off after getting speared by Roman Reigns at Wrestlemania. Triple H has yet to return after losing the title. The Authority isn't fully gone. One of the reasons that group became irritating was because of the bickering within the stable. It just became annoying. With Shane and Stephanie both running things, things can get annoying again. And there will eventually be some kind of angle to oust one McMahon. Is that when The Authority retake full control? Overall, I would not say this new era has really changed much as far as authority figures go.

I do not think the WWE has reacted well to fan criticism. For years, the WWE treated "wrestling" like it was a bad word. People accused Vince McMahon of being out of touch. They pointed the finger to John Laurinaitis. Then Kevin Dunn. Well, the WWE has now given these fans a lot of things they want. Not everything. A heel turn or depush for Roman Reigns and push for Sasha Banks are probably the only two things these fans seriously want. Nevertheless, between NXT and changes to the main roster, the WWE has given these fans a lot.

You ever have someone accuse you of not listening to them? It isn't because you are too busy listening to Miley Cyrus on the radio. You can hear them. You are just not agreeing with them or don't want to do what they want you to do.

After years of fans accusing the WWE of not listening to them, the WWE has just started giving them a lot of the things they want. I do not think that is the right thing to do. Listen to them, give what they want a fair opportunity, incorporate it into your own way of doing things, and see if it works. I do not think the WWE has done a great job of that. Look at AJ Styles. He debuts a few months ago and the WWE already treats him like he's established. He has not broken out like CM Punk or Daniel Bryan did. The WWE either needs to do a better job of helping him do that or he needs to step up and connect with that wider audience his own way. You can also look at lot of guys that just debut from NXT and are treated like people already know who they are. A lot of people don't.

The problem with listening to these vocal wrestling fans is that they are really not representative of all fans out there. Just because they are getting certain things to trend on Twitter does not mean they are really that popular. The WWE cannot get fooled by listening to these fans. They still have to do what they do to make and feature stars. I think they have just started to lose their way with that a bit. Wrestling is not as popular as vocal wrestling fans will lead the WWE to believe. The WWE still needs star power, entertaining storylines, and an overall entertaining and exciting atmosphere. The WWE still has a lot to improve on, and let's not forget their issue of not giving all workers fair opportunities to earn better spots for themselves.

I would say the decline in ratings will continue. Some people say ratings don't matter. Ratings are still an indicator. The WWE's lifeblood is their network? That's all they care about? Well, what is the big draw for the WWE Network? There is a reason Wrestlemania season typically sees the most subscribers. People want to see the big event. And the WWE still builds and promotes their PPVs mainly on Raw and Smackdown, not really on the WWE Network. The WWE can do all these cruiserweight specials and whatever else do please wrestling fans, but isn't the archives and NXT enough to please them? What do they need to do to get the wider audience interested enough to keep subscribing? You need to sell those PPVs. That's where big matches happen and storylines reach their climax or get taken to a new level. And if Raws and Smackdown are not interesting these fans, what are the chances they will subscribe?

The WWE really does need to stop focusing so much on wrestling fans. They are pushing away a lot of other fans. It is not just the decline in ratings. If they did a great job in bringing these fans in, they would be likely to subscribe to the WWE Network, as I mentioned, buy tickets to events, buy merchandise, and just really help the WWE make even more money. Does the WWE not want their money? Vocal wrestling fans will give money to the WWE even if the WWE irritates them. Other fans will just lose interest and change the channel. If the WWE doesn't please that wider audience, they will have to raise prices, add more commercials to the network, have to add more shows, which will result in workers working more and increase the possibility of injury, make pay cuts, possibly start releasing people again, and all those other decisions that will be needed to make more money and cut costs. This may not be a great era for the WWE, although wrestling fans seem excited.

Natalya Gets Another Shot At Charlotte

The WWE had the Payback match between Natalya and Charlotte end with a kayfabe screwjob. Why not? Bret Hart was there. It causes a little bit of drama and extends the feud to Extreme Rules.

I do not even want to talk too much about the angle or feud development. I just want to talk about the decision to continue to push Natalya against Charlotte. I do not think that is the best choice. They should have ended the feud there and have Charlotte move on to someone else.

This is nothing personal against Natalya. I think she has developed well since she debuted many years ago. If she was the most over diva on the roster, I would say she has a right to still be in the picture. Even if she does not have that level of popularity, I think she still deserves something to do outside of the title picture.

There are just so many other women on the roster with nothing going for them. A lot of them are younger and fresher than Natalya. Some of them debuted less than a year ago. The momentum of Becky Lynch and Sasha Banks has really been killed. Becky Lynch entered a feud with Charlotte that had a lot of potential. Sasha Banks rejuvenates the belief of wrestling fans in her whenever she puts on a great match. She was part of one at Wrestlemania last month. Neither woman has had anything meaningful to do in the last few weeks. And it does not all have to be about wrestling. The WWE should get these women involved in periphery angles to develop their characters more, which will help them connect with more than just wrestling fans.

There may be change in terms of making things more respectable and featuring wrestling more for the women, but there are still problems. This is still a dark age. There is still inefficiency. Women are still not being given fair opportunities. Both the female wrestlers and eye-candy divas on the roster are not being used to the best of their potential. Adding more women to this mess is definitely not the answer. The WWE has to learn to do better with what they have.

AJ Styles Vs. Roman Reigns Continues

Aside from the drama with Shane and Stephanie McMahon, the Payback match between Roman Reigns and AJ Styles was more of what you were getting prior to the PPV. Anderson and Gallows showed up to help AJ. The Usos got involved. Reigns ended up winning. No heel turns. No debuts. No big swerves in this storyline.

The following night on Raw was once again more of the same. Roman Reigns & The Usos teamed up to face AJ Styles & friends. Styles won this time, but you once again had no heel turns or debuts. Styles is still being conflicted about embracing being a heel. He didn't want to attack Reigns with a chair. There was a brawl and some table action to help sell their match at Extreme Rules.

The fact that the feud is going on still is not surprising or something to complain about. What is a little disappointing is that the WWE did not really further the storyline at Payback. It was the same thing you were getting prior to Payback. It was the same thing you were getting on Raw last night. This will eventually go somewhere, but I feel they are just dragging it on. I do feel they could have developed this feud better to get more out of it between Wrestlemania and Payback, but I would still say they did enough to make the overall point that Anderson and Gallows are trying to be on AJ's side against Roman Reigns, but Styles is not willing to fully become evil.

There is something to be said for solid storyline development. That is important. But you also have to entertain. The entertainment value of this story rests mainly in whatever swerve the WWE is going to pull. If they don't pull any swerve at all, this whole thing falls flat. Will it be a heel turn? Debut? Whatever it is,wrestling fans were anticipating it even before Payback. The WWE didn't give them anything to get worked up for. I also think this is important in intriguing the wider audience. It will help to create some real buzz that should benefit the guys involved. Right now, the buzz isn't there as much as it could be.

Just look at this storyline for a moment and think about one of the simplest ways it can go. AJ Styles is not fully on the same side as his two friends. He's face, while they are clear heels. What if the WWE has Anderson and Gallows accidentally cost AJ the title match at Extreme Rules? AJ tells his friends to go their own way. He doesn't turn on them. He tries to be respectable about it. Anderson and Gallows get upset about Styles not wanting their help and attack him. Obviously, it is a 2-on-1 fight, so AJ needs a friend. It will probably be Roman Reigns. Or a debut. Either way, it is a linear storyline. No big swerves. And it would be flat.

Why did I bring that scenario up? Because it is the kind of story you had with Mickie James vs. Trish Stratus. Mickie James was the psychotic fan of Trish Stratus. She became a little too pushy and was starting to irritate Trish. Trish tried to be respectable and just have them go their separate ways. Mickie was the one that turned on Trish. She turned heel. The rest is history that no one ever talks about. Mickie James became the most over credible jobber the diva era ever had. And I frequently praise this storyline as the best pure women's storyline the diva division ever had.

This was a pretty linear storyline. It did not have any big swerves and it did not need any big swerves. It involved the debut of Beth Phoenix. In terms of the storyline, it was no huge thing fans were looking forward to. In terms of roster depth, Beth Phoenix became the only face credible jobber on Raw at a time even Trish was injured. Mickie turning heel wasn't a swerve. Given the story, it was obvious it was coming.

What made this elaborate storyline that never even saw a proper finish so good even without big swerves? They had big segments that were actually fun to watch. Mickie James has a great charisma. The development was playing out for everyone to see. It was easy to become invested in it.

How does this storyline between AJ Styles and Roman Reigns compare to that? First of all, not everything is playing out in the WWE. A lot of it is based on what happened in Japan with the Bullet Club. The WWE is using it and referencing it, but it isn't the same as seeing AJ Styles actually build that relationship with Anderson and Gallows. Wrestling fans may know all about it, but the casual audience can't appreciate it.

Second, the big segments here aren't that entertaining. It is mostly Anderson and Gallows attacking The Usos or Reigns and AJ Styles being hesitant to embrace the dark side. Yeah, people going through tables is always fun to watch, but you see this kind of stuff a lot whenever the WWE is developing a hardcore-style match for a feud. And I don't think the WWE having Anderson and Gallows kiss each other would suddenly take this storyline to a better place.

Lastly, you don't have anyone in this storyline that is as charismatic as Mickie James. AJ Styles is a great wrestler. He is a better wrestler than any other guy involved in his current storyline. He is better than any of the women that were involved in the Mickie/Trish storyline. But when it comes to charisma, he lacks that. Wrestling fans are not going to care too much for that, but it makes it harder to enjoy this extended storyline until it develops in a bigger way.

I would say the only thing that can make this feud great is whatever swerve the WWE has planned. They need that to create true buzz. As I have said, wrestling fans may be sold on this because they know about the Bullet Club and they love AJ Styles for his wrestling ability, but this storyline is missing mass appeal. A lot of fans have not seen much of its development, the segments aren't that entertaining, and you don't have performers that are very charismatic. You have a struggling centerpiece in Roman Reigns, a great wrestler that has not yet broken out on his own in the WWE in AJ Styles, Festus, and Karl Anderson. Once this story gets taken to another level, then it should get really good. And I would have done it already.

Both Shane And Stephanie In Control

Vince McMahon made his decision at Payback. Which of his children would be in control? Both. Both Shane and Stephanie McMahon get to run things.

I would have had Shane run Raw and Stephanie run Smackdown. Same thing as both sharing power? No. They are going to directly be stepping on the other person's toes now. You got a little taste of that in the main event of Payback. Imagine them getting into it for multiple decisions on a single Raw. That can get annoying. This situation can become just as bad as The Authority became very quickly.

Of course, this is a situation that won't last for years. There will eventually be something to decide which McMahon gets overall control. When should that be? Ideally, it would be Survivor Series. Have an elimination tag match to settle things. Problem is, I don't think the WWE can keep this thing going for that long. I am sure fans will be irritated by it before the end of May. If the WWE is able to make this truly enjoyable, I would love to see how they do it.