What Is The WWE Doing With Jason Jordan?

The angle involving Kurt Angle and Jason Jordan has not exactly been very good. The big reveal was lackluster. It was certainly not a summer angle that looked like it could shake things up. Some might say it has been even more horrible than that.

This week on Raw, which was in Toronto, Jason Jordan went against a local talent and he certainly did not get a good reaction from the audience. What is the WWE doing with Jason Jordan? Do they want him to look bad? Aside from his wrestling talent and solid physique, this guy does look bad. His mic skills are not great and he is not showing great charisma. You can blame the promos on this being a terrible storyline to work with from the start. The WWE just does not seem to be helping him properly.

One moment, it looks like this guy is showing heelish tendencies and he's going in that direction. Another moment, it looks like he is supposed to be cheered. The WWE needs to decide what they want his character to be and go from there. This sloppiness will leave a lot of fans unsure what to make of him.

I know very well what a tweener is. It is a performer in between being a heel and a face. It is not unusual for a person turning either heel or face to have a tweener character for a while. Moreover, tweener characters are usually interesting. What will they do next? How will they interact with other characters? Thing is, I would say it is too soon to treat Jason Jordan as a tweener. He didn't exactly establish himself in American Alpha very well. Fans need a chance to get to know him, then play with his character. Beyond that, this is just not an entertaining character right now. It is just dull and sloppy. So, if the WWE is thinking tweener, they better think again.

The Big Reveal: Angle Has A Son

The WWE has a PPV coming up this Sunday. I usually like taking three days to talk about PPVs. But the Kurt Angle storyline is my topic for today. I will just cram PPV talk into Wednesday and Friday.

Kurt Angle made his big reveal last night. I actually tuned in right in time to watch it for myself. What would it be? An affair? An alliance with Dixie Carter? The storyline was a draw for me, and I expect a lot of fans tuned in just for this. It turns out Kurt Angle has a son. And that son is Jason Jordan, one of the members of American Alpha.

This reveal was just disappointment built on disappointment. First, this kind of angle is not exciting. It is not energizing. Nexus was a better summer angle. Even CM Punk's pipebomb was more energizing. This kind of angle is just a storyline that will not lead to anything that epic.

The other reason that this is disappointing is that Jason Jordan is the one getting the role. No offense to the guy. He is talented in the ring. But he is not a big deal. He just debuted on the main roster last year. He has not gotten over. His career, despite winning the tag titles on Smackdown, has been mediocre. Even though this storyline, itself, is kind of dull, I feel like it might have meant something more if someone better was involved. This isn't like Jinder Mahal, a lower-midcarder, becoming WWE Champion, but it is the same kind of issue.

Let me go back to the disappointment with the storyline. The storyline is obviously not over. It just started. There are various ways they can go with this. And I still fully expect this to lead to the return of Stephanie McMahon and Triple H. The WWE can run an angle where Kurt Angle shows too much favoritism for his son and Stephanie McMahon returns to put a stop to that. They can run an angle where Triple H had Jason Jordan lie about being Angle's son. But are any of these options really exciting and energizing? Is any likely option exciting and energizing? This is just not a storyline likely to lead to any good big moments from here.

Back to Jason Jordan. This is the end of American Alpha. The WWE needs to stop splitting up so many legitimate tag teams. It is true that the WWE can just toss any two guys together and form a team, but that doesn't always mean they will have a legitimate gimmick that they share. American Alpha already won the tag titles, which is more than you can say for Enzo & Cass, but there was more that the WWE could have done with them. They could have helped the depth in the Smackdown tag division. I feel like splitting all these teams is just lazy booking. It always results in an automatic story and feud and possible PPV match. It is much harder to keep teams together and come up with good uses for them, but I think it is worth it. The alternative is just a bunch of lazy feuds and the tag division getting hurt. Jordan and Gable may not feud now, but they could have just stayed together.

Lastly, how about Kurt Angle? One of the silver linings for this storyline was that it would finally unlock some personality for Kurt Angle. I brought this point up when I previewed that storyline last week. He has just been very boring. And hearing and watching him give that promo on Raw didn't change my mind about him. This is definitely a storyline personal to Kurt Angle and his career. He can give a rub to a younger worker. I am not even going to talk right now about the fact that the WWE is pushing too many new guys too hard right now. Just sticking to Angle, he still looks like a guy smarks would probably boo if they did not respect him so much. Even if he is a face, he is just that kind of face smarks would heckle. Remember when New Day were first faces? That didn't go over well. When is Kurt Angle going to be entertaining? Might that help him deliver better promos? That whole promo on Raw just didn't feel epic. I didn't have high hopes for this storyline. It looks like it will be a flop.

The Kurt Angle Mystery

The WWE typically likes to do a big angle every summer. You might take a look around and wonder where it is right now. The Kurt Angle mystery is it.

The big reveal is supposedly going to happen next week. Who has Kurt Angle been communicating with these past few weeks? There is a lot of speculation over what is going to happen. It will definitely lead to something big. But will it be good and actually help draw?

One of the ideas floating around is that Kurt Angle has been having an affair with Stephanie McMahon. They did interact back in the day in a few storylines. On one hand, it is not out of the question that they would revisit the storyline. It would be an excuse to get Stephanie and Triple H back on TV. On the other hand, that just seems like a terrible storyline for this PG era. The WWE has done some crass things in recent years. But it just doesn't seem like something they should do, and it probably would not lead to anything that would draw. It would just be a crass storyline out of some soap opera. It would be like the drama with The Bellas a few years ago. Wrestling fans hated that. This storyline could be just as bad.

The other idea floating around is something involving Dixie Carter. She has been working with the WWE recently. Whoever thought she would one day become an on-screen character for the WWE? Even if they did an affair angle between Dixie and Kurt Angle, it might be less controversial as Stephanie McMahon being involved. The whole affair direction still isn't something good for this era, but I can leave that alone. The real issue is that the majority of the audience won't know who Dixie Carter is. They won't care. When Eric Bischoff came to the WWE, that was a guy from WCW, a company that was beating the WWE in the ratings war for a number of weeks. Dixie Carter is coming from TNA, a company that has never threatened the WWE, despite being the #2 wrestling promotion. The WWE already has a whole bunch of TNA talent all over the place. Needless to say, it isn't drawing.

If it is anything else than something involving Stephanie McMahon or Dixie Carter, it will likely be something stupid or disappointing. I have already pointed out that angles involving those two individuals with Kurt Angle will likely not be great and not draw. This thing is likely to flop no matter what. Even if wrestling fans love it, the WWE will likely not draw.

I can give the WWE credit for at least giving Kurt Angle a storyline that will likely be personal to him and his career. Kurt Angle has been very lackluster as GM. He just needs to show more personality. This storyline might, at the very least, unlock that for him. For wrestling fans, they can get excited over this storyline possibly leading to a match for Kurt Angle down the line. In this way, even if the storyline itself is bad, it might do some good for Kurt Angle.

Does Kurt Angle Add Anything As Raw GM?

A few weeks ago, Kurt Angle got inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame. They followed that up by making him the new Raw GM, taking Mick Foley's place. How has Kurt Angle been doing? Ratings certainly have not been up since the WWE brought back one of the biggest names from the days the company was much hotter than it is today. Aside from that, what can be said?

One thing I noticed is some fans saying they wished Kurt Angle could be more like his goofy self. They understand he has to be serious for his GM role, but these fans think goofy Kurt was the best Kurt. I don't know how much that will really help the company turn things around. Regardless, I am sure there is plenty of time to get more of that Kurt Angle down the line.

As GM, has he really done anything major? I am not talking about decisions the WWE are making that they will attribute to Kurt Angle, like trades. I am talking about major storylines or interactions involving Kurt Angle. I mean, you can stick anyone in his position and have them make the trades, book the matches, and that kind of thing. But this is Kurt Angle being the GM. Has there really been anything special to take advantage of him being in that role? I don't really feel it. I guess there will be more when Triple H and Stephanie McMahon come back.

I am not going to go too much into comparing Kurt Angle to Mick Foley, but I just felt Foley stood out more in this position. Is it his promo style? He obviously couldn't keep going in the position, but he at least felt like he was trying to be that lovable character with honor and not totally selling out to be corporate. It wasn't always smooth, but I can see something there that I do not see with Kurt Angle, yet. What is his identity?

How about fan reactions? He is getting the "You suck!" chants. But that is more just fans playing along with the old fad. It is not a sign of them really disliking him or making fun of him. I do wonder what his reactions would be like if that fad wasn't there. Because I do not really feel a strong love here. This is a guy in a situation that can definitely get stale fast. He'll still get the chant, because fans love fads and things to play along with, and wrestling fans will always respect him, but the WWE is doing enough already to please wrestling fans and that is not helping them improve on their inefficiencies. If they want to get the wider audience caring again, Kurt Angle will need to be more than just the guy getting "You suck!" chants out of nostalgic love and being respected by wrestling fans.

Should Kurt Angle Be The New Raw GM?

Kurt Angle is back with the WWE. He is going into the Hall of Fame. He is the kind of performer you don't expect to be inducted and never be seen again after Wrestlemania weekend. People expect him to be involved in something. People are talking about one last match. I want to bring up another role. How about General Manager of Raw?

Why not GM of Smackdown? Because Daniel Bryan is doing a solid job over there. Mick Foley has various issues. A fresh change wouldn't be bad.

Does Kurt Angle fit the GM role? He's done it before. He has been an authority figure before. He has pretty good mic skills. He has a history with Stephanie McMahon, as well as Shane. It could be a smooth transition for him to come in as an authority figure.

Just to make it clear, I am against the WWE bringing back too many people. Numbers show that all these returns are usually good for a temporary boost, but the overall loss in viewers is still continuing. The WWE should put more focus in the talent they have now and changing the atmosphere of their product. But if Kurt Angle is going to come back, you might as well use him for something. Outside of an in-ring return, a GM role is just an obvious option. And I think Raw would be the place for him.

Roode/Storm And Orton/Christian

This feud between Robert Roode and James Storm in TNA has this Orton/Christian-like vibe to it. Since I spent so much time talking about Orton/Christian earlier this year, I pretty much have to look at Roode/Storm.

Roode was the one who won the opportunity to face Kurt Angle for the World title. Even though Angle was hurting, he still retained the title there. Next thing you know, James Storm, the other half of Beer Money, is the one getting the title shot. He beats Kurt Angle for the title. Angle is off to heal, but that is another story. What about Roode? TNA had spent so long building up his title match against Kurt Angle. He was the face, the TNA Original, who was finally going to get the opportunity he deserved. He failed to win, but his partner didn't. Roode gets the opportunity against Storm, cheats, wins the title, and is now heel. James Storm's title reign ends abruptly.

Sound familiar? It is not an exact clone of what happened with Orton/Christian, but it is similar. Christian was a face who had just won his first major World title in the WWE. Fans were excited. The WWE books him to lose the title a few weeks after he loses it to Smackdown's new centerpiece, Randy Orton. This leads to a long, elaborate storyline that involves Christian turning heel and eventually regaining the title for a few weeks, only to lose it back to Orton.

First of all, you have short title reigns involved. A lot of people viewed WWE's booking of Christian as an insult. Especially when you consider the guy he was feuding with, it was clear who mattered more in the WWE's book. Storm's reign was short, but that is something TNA is known to do a lot. They have given short title reigns to Sting, Anderson, Jeff Hardy, Mickie James, Winter, and other such names. Obviously, these people are not being screwed over for the benefit of one centerpiece.

That is the second thing. Orton mattered more to the WWE in the Orton/Christian saga. Who matters more in Roode/Storm? Is there really a centerpiece involved? TNA is usually better at passing the ball around. Had the WWE been more like that, Christian's first reign, as well as his second, would have been better booked. In what has been going on in TNA right now, I don't feel you have one person unfairly treated for the benefit of the other guy. I don't feel you have one person being built up to put over another who is truly meant to surpass him by far. While the WWE screws over the booking of some individuals to let a centerpiece shine, TNA is once again showing that it is a little more fair than that. That does not mean they are necessarily entertaining, pushing the right people the right way, or build things up properly, but they are not trying to create a WWE-like centerpiece in what is going on.

You also have a heel turn. Christian's heel turn was drawn out over weeks and weeks after his first title reign ended on Smackdown. They developed it to the point where he attacked Orton and officially turned heel, then kept feuding for the title. TNA did something a little different. The heel turn for Roode came a short time after he failed to win the title from Angle, and it came at the very moment when he actually did win his first TNA World Championship. But there was development for that turn as well. It came while Roode was feuding with Angle. TNA did a good job of building up Roode to win the title, including having other wrestlers put him over. When he failed to beat Angle, you could almost feel his disappointment. A lot of TNA fans definitely did. And then his own partner and friend, James Storm, wins the title? There is your reason to have him turn heel. The WWE really did not do a great job building Christian up in this same way prior to beat Alberto Del Rio to win the title for the first time earlier this year. How could they? It was supposed to be Edge's push, but he was retiring. Nevertheless, that was still Christian's moment. If the WWE really did care about taking advantage of the situation to create the type of storyline Roode/Storm have now, they would not have had Christian win the title back from Orton in the crappy way he did and still screw over the booking of the second reign. Roode's character looks much stronger than Christian's.

Which feud do I prefer? Not that I am a huge TNA fan or big fan of any of these guys, except Orton, but I prefer how TNA has handled their storyline over how the WWE handled Orton/Christian. Again, I am not saying it is entertaining or TNA is flawless in how they are handling every aspect of this, but I like how it seems to be going so far. I am sure TNA hardcore fans love that TNA Originals are now holding the World title again.

Kurt Angle's Mistress and More Thoughts On The Christian Situation

Since I am in the mood to spoil stuff, I am going to talk about who TNA has signed to be Kurt Angle's "mistress" in his feud against Jeff Jarrett and Karen. It was revealed at the TNA tapings a few days ago, which will air next week.

Let me just say that I am glad that it was not Isis. There are a number of reasons why, and none of them are anything personal against this woman. Reports were saying that she was not too impressive during her TNA match a few months ago, but that was not such a big deal for this storyline. They just wanted someone intimidating that Karen would think twice about bullying, which Velvet Sky is not. Isis could have done the job. No great wrestling needed. Would you even expect it with Karen Jarrett? Next, TNA's little mistress angle was pretty much an answer to WWE teasing Awesome Kong's debut. If they had gone with Isis, most fans would have seen that as lame. She is a poor man's Kong. Not much hype to her, even though TNA was hyping the mystery. Lastly, I am glad it was not Isis because it means dirtsheets were WRONG! WRONG! WRONG! WRONG! One of the major things I like pointing out in my blogs is that you cannot trust these sites blindly every single time. This example here once again proves it. It does not matter if Diva Dirt confirmed that Isis would be debuting at last week's set of tapings, it did not happen. An assumption is not the same as a confirmation. Even when you do have a source, they can be wrong or deliberately trying to mislead you. Now these sites can say that TNA changed plans at the last second, and I have heard that before, but it does not really matter. For whatever the reason, the report was untrue.

Who is the mistress? Someone Jarrett has worked with before. Someone Angle himself has worked with. Someone who is a better choice than Isis. Chyna! Where do I even start with this? Let me say why she is a better choice than Isis. First, she is more well known. Yeah, another WWE reject that shows up in TNA, but still a big name who fits the role they were looking for. Second, shock value. While many people were spreading rumors that it would be Isis, and wrestling news sites were busy confirming that she would be debuting and it remained to be seen whether she actually would be taking the spot or not or whatever else, no one was seriously expecting Chyna at all. TNA did a good job there. While I would also like to talk about this in comparison to WWE signing and debuting Kong, I am going to put it off right now. But I will still give TNA credit again for actually pulling off something shocking that might potentially help a storyline and the company.

Let me talk more on Christian. I said that I wanted to wait until the WWE furthers the feud between him and Christian before I spoke more about it, but then I see Chris Jericho pointing out that fans may be getting worked up over nothing and Orton seemingly viewing the fans like they are ignorant morons. So I decided to say why I don't have faith that the WWE will do things properly.

A bigger storyline. That is what Jericho says may be coming. A lot of fans seem to believe that is possible too. I even held back to wait and see if that might be the direction it would go. Thing is, for whose benefit? Christian? He is going to regain the title? I can point to a lot of diva feuds where one woman wins the title, but the feud was really more for the benefit of the other woman. Moreover, just having the title is not enough. Christian can be World Champion, feuding with Cody Rhodes in the midcard, while Orton feuds with a returning Jericho or some other star bigger than Cody Rhodes in the main event. Yes, there are stars bigger than Cody Rhodes.

I hear someone will turn heel. That makes sense. Which one? It would make sense for Christian to turn heel. The fans were the ones who gave Orton the shot in a sense. Christian can blame the fans. They were pushing the idea that this situation was unfair to Christian. Christian can complain about it. Heel move right there. I do not think Orton really did anything himself to warrant him turning heel so far. They can still go in that direction, but I would like to see how they do it without it looking too forced. Issue is, if Christian does turn, will the WWE still build his next title win to mean as much as his first one did? I know some people are trying to sell the idea that Christian's win at Extreme Rules was for the benefit of making a moment for Edge. I do not see it like that. Edge did not really take Christian's attention. The commentators did not overshadow Christian for the sake of Edge. It really does seem like Edge was there to help make Christian's moment. If Christian is going back after the title as heel, his moment of winning may not be as good as the moment for the reign that just got killed off. On the other hand, besides Orton turning heel possibly being less fluid in the storyline, that move leaves few top faces. Meanwhile, a bunch of heels who are near the main event are not getting the push.

It is ignorant to hate on the WWE so soon for what they have done to Christian's reign? Is it also not ignorant to watch what the WWE is doing year after year and still blindly believe that Christian losing the title like he did, and to the type of superstar he did, is a sign that Christian will get a fair shot in the coming weeks? Smackdown has traditionally been the brand where one top guy does not dominate all the main-event matters for an eternity. They are usually good with passing the ball around. Orton goes to Smackdown. He pretty much is given the major spotlight right away. I am not saying anything bad about the guy. I am talking about what the WWE is doing. If the WWE could not even hold off a little to give Christian a fairer chance, what hope is there really? Yeah, maybe the little backlash from the fans may change a few decisions here and there, but will Orton still be top guy? When Christian was going for the title, I wanted him to have that top spot to go with the title. A feud with Orton would not have been bad to give him a rub, but taking the title off him like they did was just not good. It is a sign that Orton is meant to overshadow Christian.

To wrap it up for now, I am really just waiting for the WWE to give a legitimate reason why they had to take the title off Christian so fast. If it builds to him regaining the title in a bigger moment, it would have been for the best. I doubt they can do it. If it builds to a title reign where he is given the ball to really run with, I can accept it. But where would that leave Orton, who the WWE seems to want to have the ball? It does not really matter if Christian is fine with all this deep down inside. This is also about the fans. Seeing a new version of Cena on Smackdown in Randy Orton may not make a lot of fans happy. Seeing a guy who is popular to some degree get treated lowly is obviously not pleasing all the fans. This is also about making new stars. Is Christian really being made into a star or a jobber to top stars, somewhat like a John Morrison or Khali? While Orton and Christian are tied together, what about heels waiting for a push who could have gotten a rub from feuding for the title with Christian and from a feud with Orton? If the WWE had shown more faith in Christian and broken up the feuds better, I think a lot of things would look better for Smackdown. Then again, I would still like to wait for what happens next.

Swagger Reborn?

Jack Swagger lost his World title to Rey Mysterio last Sunday. That was the end of a reign that saw Swagger drop the usual goofy demeanor he had since he came to the WWE in ECW. Even though he lost his title, however, he continues down the path of being a serious contender.

On Smackdown, in addition to saying when he will be taking his rematch, he faced Big Show. Big Show is a man Swagger has had really no luck against. When they first started this feud, I was hoping that Big Show would be used to show that Swagger can hold his own against a real main-eventer. That did not happen, until tonight. Ankle lock? Swagger showing a vicious attitude to get himself DQed and "injure" Big Show? It took losing the title to have the WWE push this intensity in him? This is what the fans need to see. I think it is a great development.

Make all the comparisons to Kurt Angle you want. When I first saw Jack Swagger, with his cocky gimmick and that pose he did, I thought of him as a Randy Orton dunked in toxic waste. He was a clown. Now he has definitely developed further to follow the path of Kurt Angle. Excuse me. The WWE has developed him further to follow the path of Kurt Angle. Honestly, he is a poor man's answer to Kurt Angle. He is going to have to develop himself further to really stand on his own, not to mention really surpass Kurt Angle. The WWE can try their little tricks to get the job done, but I doubt that will do it for me. It may con some of the fans. If it needs to be said, this is coming from a Swagger fan. I like him. I would rather the WWE stop using certain people to be answers to what TNA has, but that is another issue.