Brock Lesnar's Tour Stops By Big Show

Before facing The Undertaker at Hell in a Cell, Brock Lesnar gets Big Show in New York City. And the WWE has been doing an okay job developing this. That's the kind of thing they need to do for these network exclusives.

The WWE could have stuck Lesnar with any jobber and just have him crush him. Instead, the WWE puts him against Big Show, the man that did beat him to put an end to his first title reign. But will the overall outcome still be any different? Lesnar should be getting the win here.

Could the WWE pull any swerve? Specifically, how about Heyman siding with Big Show during the match? That is how Big Show beat Lesnar that first time. I do not expect any shenanigans like that. I doubt the ring will get killed, either. I am expecting just a typical match between these two, with Lesnar getting the win.

Last thing to consider, does this match ruin the personal feel in the Undertaker/Lesnar feud? That feud seemed like it was getting really good a few months ago. The WWE has done an okay job developing some heat for the match between Lesnar and Big Show, but it still gets dwarfed by Undertaker/Lesnar. Even after this match, there will still be plenty of time to go back to hyping Undertaker/Lesnar, so I do not see this match coming up in New York as any kind of distraction. The worst thing the WWE can do is actually have some kind of swerve to make this match between Big Show and Lesnar more than it needs to be. That is how the development of Undertaker/Lesnar can get ruined. After everything those two have been through since last year, it is time to get to the conclusion of the feud. Just give it the proper focus it deserves.

Summerslam 2015 Preview: Part 3

When the feud between Seth Rollins and Brock Lesnar got started, there was this great promo from Triple H about whether Seth Rollins could handle the pressure and turn into a diamond. That could have led to a "make or break" moment for Seth. Instead, the WWE just continued to push him as a weasel. He retained the title and moved on to John Cena. There was another great promo on Raw this week. This one was John Cena talking about Triple H's relationship with Ric Flair and Triple H's relationship with Seth Rollins. Once again, the potential is there for something great to happen. This time, I am not going to even expect them to do anything great. That is, nothing great that will really help Seth. You will likely see Ric Flair again as John Cena does one day tie and break his record.

Will Cena tie it this Sunday? His title and Seth's title will both be on the line. Shenanigans can still happen that result in both guys holding onto their titles. It would be a cheap way out. The WWE just pulled a cheap way out at the last PPV. Brock Lesnar won the match due to DQ, but Seth Rollins retained the title. I know the WWE is purposely booking Rollins like this, but I do not think they will do it here. Let there be a true winner that walks out with both titles. Between these two, I would expect Cena to win.

There is a wildcard. Will Sheamus cash in? Many fans are expecting it. They are talking about Sheamus not even waiting for the match to end. He will use the briefcase to insert himself into the match. Seth Rollins did that to win the WWE Championship. Depending on how the WWE handles it, this can be a way out to get the title off Rollins without having Cena tie Ric Flair's record, yet. And Cena would still have his United States title. I do not think it should happen. Let Sheamus hold onto the briefcase.

I feel the current feud between Brock Lesnar and The Undertaker is better than the feud that was there when Lesnar beat Taker at Wrestlemania. It feels more heated. Back then, it felt like the development was so mediocre, there was no way Lesnar would win. If Taker was going to lose, the build would be more exciting. Lesnar did win, and that leads to a rematch more than a year later that will headline Summerslam.

Is The Undertaker the heel in this feud? I have seen some fans talking about that. The WWE is having him bust out low blows to get the advantage on Lesnar, which can be seen as heelish. I saw this feud as legend vs. legend. In those kind of feuds, it sometimes does not matter which guy is the heel or face. I am not convinced the WWE really wants to portray Taker as the heel. They had him do a promo after he cost Lesnar the title where he said he was okay with The Streak ending, but Lesnar and Heyman continuously rubbing it in angered him. I can buy that. If they wanted him to be a heel, they would have had him sound more petty. And Heyman kind of was running his mouth again on Raw this week when Taker finally came out to go after Brock. I don't view Taker as a real heel here.

Who wins? When this match was first taking shape, it seemed obvious Taker would get his revenge. It does not seem that obvious now. Taker has the momentum heading into Summerslam. That means Lesnar wins? Of course, Lesnar had the momentum heading into Wrestlemania last year. Vince McMahon decided to have him win then. You hear speculation of interference that might occur. You have such a strong, personal feud right here. Why would they ruin the match with interference? Of course, this match cannot be all Suplex City. It cannot be all about Brock Lesnar being dominant and possibly a low blow and Tombstone finishing him off. If The Undertaker has a truly great match left in him, this would be an occasion to pull it out. I will say Taker wins. A loss here will not bury Brock Lesnar.

Another thing to bring up is the reaction The Undertaker got on Raw. It wasn't his greatest reaction. They were in Lesnar Country and he did attack him. The Undertaker is a guy I would say has A+ overness. The fact that he did not get loud cheers for attacking Lesnar does not change that. There are a lot of ways you can describe A+ overness. It is legendary-tier overness. It is the kind of overness where you have a great connection with the fans and can possibly draw in more viewers. It is the kind of overness where you have a strong, consistent connection with the fans and you are doing it without even proper support from the company. The Undertaker is a legend the WWE treats as a draw. That reaction he got on Raw, especially given the circumstances, does not change that he has A+ overness.

The diva match before Lesnar came out also did not get a good reaction from the fans. No A+ players were in that match. Moreover, it was heel vs. heel. That sometimes throws some fans off. Sasha Banks is used to performing in the highly-respected NXT women's division. The general WWE audience is not 100% NXT fans. Nikki Bella once got a good reaction as a heel when she did a promo against face AJ Lee. The WWE has failed to build on that. I am not too surprised fans were not more interested in this match, even if it was two Champions going at it. Fans were antsy for Lesnar and the whole "Diva Revolution" storyline has been weak. Maybe if Sasha Banks gets some better personal development on the main roster, she will have an easier time keeping fans interested, even as a heel. Depending on how well she plays her character, she can very well be the kind of heel that gets cheered. But she just debuted a few weeks ago and has not gotten great focus. In the end, I would not make too much of this.

How Goes Lesnar Vs. Reigns?

Look at everything the WWE has done for Brock Lesnar in the last year. Look at everything the WWE has done for Roman Reigns in the last few months. Put those two things together. Those two guys are now feuding. On paper, you should have something epic on your hands. The rub Brock Lesnar gives to whomever beats him should be amazing. Roman Reigns is being groomed to be a top star.

And yet, this feud feels very weak. The same can be said for a lot of the feuds currently going on. One of the reasons for that is that part-timers are a big part of the major feuds this year. That really should not be a big excuse. The Rock and John Cena feuded two Wrestlemanias in a row. The Rock was a part-timer. That feud still felt better than what you have going on right now.

Paul Heyman is arguably carrying this feud, but he is not enough. One of the reasons that Rock/Cena was good is because both of those guys are better on the mic than either Reigns or Lesnar. It does not even feel like Reigns and Lesnar are feuding. They are not interacting enough. Last week, I talked about some feuds currently going on that I would have waited before pulling the trigger on certain things. This is not one of those feuds. Roman Reigns and Brock Lesnar should already have been interacting more. Last year, you had Lesnar feuding with The Undertaker. That feud was also not too great. The reason why poor development now is even worse is because Roman Reigns is not established. The Undertaker was already established. You could even say that feud sold itself. Paul Heyman could do his thing and the feud would be passable. Not this time. Not only should the WWE be trying to develop a feud that entertains and draws in viewers for Wrestlemania, they should be developing a feud that helps Roman Reigns look more legitimate.

There is not a lot of time left. I do not think the WWE can salvage this feud. If this was a feud likely to go on after Wrestlemania, I would say there was hope for things to get better. Regardless of whether Lesnar stays or goes, this feud will probably not go into April. This feud does not feel worthy of main-eventing Wrestlemania.

Seth Rollins Finds A Big Buddy

John Cena and Seth Rollins had a cage match on Raw. Brock Lesnar made an appearance and laid out Cena, helping Rollins win the match. Besides that, it would seem the WWE is teasing that Seth Rollins and Brock Lesnar and Paul Heyman are all on the same page. Rollins had attacked Brock Lesnar a few months ago in an attempt to cash in on him, but they do have a common enemy in John Cena.

I have brought up the point before that Seth Rollins being with The Authority added to his credibility. When you take that away, he just doesn't seem as credible. The briefcase and the stooges just don't sell it. How about aligning him with Paul Heyman for a while? Or at least teasing it? That would make him seem like a bigger deal. I think it's a smart move.  If you keep developing him properly, Rollins should soon be able to stand on his own.

Rollins still has the briefcase and Lesnar still has the title. Are you likely to see Rollins take the title from his new ally? I doubt Cena wins the title from Lesnar, which would bring up the possibility of Rollins cashing in on him. You are more likely to see Roman Reigns win it and Rollins taking it from his former partner. That probably won't happen until Wrestlemania or after.

Paul Heyman Tries To Turn Cena Heel

John Cena has been getting patchwork treatment ever since Summerslam. I used that word before when talking about AJ Lee. When it comes to her character and storylines, she is made up of patches from divas of the past, and even some men. The WWE sticking with one character for her would be nice, as well as some originality. How does this relate to Cena? Look at how they have been developing his storyline since Summerslam. First, he starts off destroying Bray Wyatt in a manner similar to what Brock Lesnar did to him. After that, you have The Authority doubting him and selling this idea that he will need to prove himself. This week, Paul Heyman tried to turn him heel. Exactly what is the storyline they are trying to sell with John Cena heading into Night of Champions? They have just been going in different directions every week now. This feud is just made up of patches of different ideas. They have not stuck with one idea. This kind of inconsistency is why I said that the feud with The Bellas is better than the top storylines you have going on right now. Thankfully, Night of Champions is almost here. They should be able to stick with a good direction with Brock Lesnar returning.

Paul Heyman tried to turn John Cena heel. This should sound familiar. There are a few angles that the WWE just loves recycling with John Cena. He rises above hate. He overcomes the odds. He can endure hell and bounce back. They also love using children in his angles sometimes. And they love putting over his work ethic. You have seen patches of some of these things during the patchwork job they have done with Cena in recent weeks. Kane failed to turn Cena heel. Bray Wyatt failed. Paul Heyman will likely fail. You can say Cena already overcame Heyman's attempt on Raw last night, but if Brock Lesnar should defeat John Cena again, would that lead to John Cena finally giving in? I doubt it. Aside from setting up next week, I just found that whole segment useless. All it did was create a situation where John Cena once again showed he would not turn. That is a stale idea. It's no good anymore.

I have actually given John Cena turning heel some thought recently. Let me talk a little more about it. On the one hand, it feels like something that will never happen. On the other hand, it feels like something that will eventually happen, assuming Cena does not retire soon. A heel turn would cause buzz. It is something you might picture the WWE using as a last resort. If the product is just too stale and fans are leaving, you will see Cena turn heel.

I wonder what good that heel turn would really do. Yes, it would create buzz. CM Punk's pipe bomb also caused buzz. What didn't it do? How about draw? Ratings and PPV buys remained pretty much the same they were around that time. There was no huge, steady increase. And of course, the status quo did not really change. In the minds of many, a Cena heel turn would be a change in the status quo. I don't really see it as that. If he is still pushed as the centerpiece, he is still the top guy. Does his heel turn fix all the other problems, including a weak midcard? His heel turn might generate buzz to get a ratings boost for the show after he turns, and maybe a few shows after that, but what happens as time goes by? If the quality of the show is still the same, ratings will continue to be mediocre. John Cena will continue to be the performer he is. What will change is the role he is performing. I don't think John Cena is that great of a draw. If you turn him heel, which many fans might say will get the kids turned off him, what audience will he really be drawing in? Angry guys on the Internet that will tune in even if he doesn't turn? Yeah, there is no draw there.

Of course, a lot of it depends on what kind of heel Cena is. Rapper heel? Corporate heel? How about an angry heel? Rapper Cena might be entertaining. Corporate Cena would definitely cause some buzz. Angry Cena? That is the kind of heel I feel a lot of these storylines about him turning would naturally lead to. You have guys pointing out how much fans hate Cena. What kind of character should that bring out of Cena? He just starts rapping? No, I don't think so. He gets so pissed off that he joins The Authority? I think there would have to be more of a storyline reason for that. They want Cena to crack and let the fans get on his nerves. That would lead to an angry Cena that is always blaming the fans and complaining. It would still be a serious character. And I don't think it would be a character that could either entertain or cause buzz. If he ever does turn heel, it would have to be off a better storyline than what they have attempted in recent years.

John Cena Vs. Brock Lesnar At Summerslam: Final Preview

Believe it or not, Stephanie McMahon vs. Brie Bella will most likely not be the main event of Summerslam. A feud between two guys that have barely interacted in the last few weeks will headline. The third PPV encounter between John Cena and Brock Lesnar. This one is for the title. They had a title match many years ago, but Cena was not at the level he is at now and you can say even Brock Lesnar is at a better place now. You have a few gimmick matches on the card already. I have said that I felt at least one more match could use some sort of stipulation to it. This title match between John Cena and Brock Lesnar does not need that. The title is on the line, the hype is there, and this match should get people interested without any fancy gimmick.

Let me talk about the build more. The build has been very poor. They are pretty much running on hype. The build between Lesnar and The Undertaker earlier this year was also poor. It was so poor, I didn't think they would dare let The Streak end on a feud like that. We all know how that turned out. I feel the build has been worse for this feud now. Part of it is probably due to the few weeks you had to build it in comparison to around Wrestlemania. It doesn't help that Brock and Cena were only on Raw at the same time once during the development of this feud. And there was no physical altercation between the two. It has been all hype and talk. And the talking on Lesnar's part has come from Paul Heyman. I know the guy is great on the mic, I will not take that away from him, but it seems like some of these promos just drag on and come close to him just rambling to kill time in the segment. If I sometimes get annoyed with Bray Wyatt talking so much and saying nothing in particular, I cannot let Heyman off the hook for doing something similar. Great mic skills, but there comes a time where a feud needs more of something else besides promos that say essentially the same thing. I am not letting Cena off, either. But his promos were what you would usually expect of him. I do not blame any of these performers. The WWE just should have come up with a better way to develop this feud. How much could Heyman really say about a feud with poor development like this one? It's all hype. He did his best, so I don't mean to imply that I am blaming him for anything.

To me, the winner of this one seems obvious. It has to be Lesnar. The whole point of this match is to cause some buzz. What better way to cause buzz than to put it on a guy with all this hype on him? I know Cena has a history of killing those with a lot of hype and momentum, but that is what it means to be the centerpiece. Would they do that in this situation? Develop a beast that beat Taker at Wrestlemania just to put over Cena? I cannot picture what good that would do. Create a situation where Brock destroys Cena for beating him to set up Seth Rollins using the briefcase? I do not think now is the time for Seth. Brock winning the title would create buzz. How long should he hold it? I'll wait to see whether or not he does win it before I talk about that.

Let me talk about the PPV in general. This is Summerslam. This is one of the big four PPVs of the WWE every year. This is the biggest PPV of the summer. Did they really create an awesome card? I just talked about their top match. Great match to have on the card, but the development has been dry. Outside of that, your next top match is Stephanie McMahon vs. Brie Bella. Really? Yeah, it has been developed well and given great focus. Your other top matches are Seth Rollins vs. Dean Ambrose and Randy Orton vs. Roman Reigns. These are feuds months in the making. The former was said to be the hottest feud in wrestling by many fans. Both feuds have seemed to lose momentum. And the other matches on the card aren't worth bringing up in this discussion. Yes, that includes Jericho vs. Wyatt. Not a lot of great feuds and matches going on. I understand they lack stars. CM Punk is gone. Daniel Bryan is injured. You have former World Champions floating around. What kind of situation would the WWE have been in if either Cena or Lesnar had gotten injured before Summerslam? The whole show would have collapsed. With initial subscriptions to the WWE Network expiring soon, you would expect the WWE to really try around now to create an exciting product to keep those subscribers, in addition to getting more. Mentioning "$9.99" too much isn't doing it. This has been a horrible road to Summerslam.

One more thing I want to bring. It has nothing to do with Summerslam. Chael Sonnen was recently on Chris Jericho's podcast. He's an MMA guy. I don't follow that stuff. But he said something interesting as it pertains to the WWE. The WWE called to tell him they were not interested in him. That in itself sounds weird. But it gets interesting. The person that called him told him that they would be interested in the event TNA is interested. We don't want you, but we will if someone else wants you. Wonderful.

It made me think back to something I said a few months ago when I talked about GFW. I said the WWE might pull some maneuvers to stop top talent from going there. What happened with Sonnen isn't GFW going after him, but it is the same idea. You have someone the WWE does not want that they do not want some other promotion to have. What kind of things can you do to try to stop the competition from getting great workers or workers that can cause some buzz? This story with Sonnen is a blatant example of what I mean. They are literally saying that they will try to grab him up only if the competition wants him. There is no doubt in my mind that the WWE would try other things to keep talent they don't really want out of the competition. And I think it is horrible.

Your Former Heyman Guy: Cesaro

The business relationship between Cesaro and Paul Heyman seems to be officially over. Cesaro broke ties with Heyman on Raw last night. Heyman now has Brock Lesnar to manage again. But Lesnar is for another day. Today is about Cesaro.

Now that it is over, was it really worth it? Cesaro had so much momentum right after Wrestlemania. He was getting over. And along comes Paul Heyman. Do I blame Paul Heyman? No. I blame how Cesaro was pushed while being paired with Heyman. Even Curtis Axel looked better with Heyman than Cesaro did. I wonder if they really were serious with wanting Cesaro to make it. Or was this just something to keep Heyman on TV for a few months while Lesnar was away? If the WWE was serious about developing Cesaro to be a star, they would show it in how they pushed him. You can tell they are serious about someone like Seth Rollins. Aside from Cesaro's feud with Jack Swagger, they really didn't develop any proper feuds for him since putting him with Heyman. And that feud was pretty much a given. They had to do it. After that, they just pushed him as a B+ player. He was pushed a little better than the typical midcarder, but they didn't really take him to that next level. He never got the kind of focus on him that the former members of The Shield currently have. Those are A- players that will likely end up A players one day. I don't blame either Heyman or Cesaro for Cesaro not keeping that connection with the fans. He wasn't pushed right.

What now? He did win last night. Problem is, it was the loser of the match that looked better than the winner. Cesaro is still a jobber. It's too late to just toss him back with Zeb and Swagger. They turned face. Should Cesaro turn face now? I don't see the point in doing that for him now. I wouldn't even recommend a title reign. He needs his momentum back. Just tossing a midcard title on him when he is pretty much lost in the shuffle is not going to help him. It's one thing to toss a title on Miz or Sheamus, but Cesaro seems like he really needs to reconnect with the fans and a title reign won't help. And without Heyman, I cannot picture any great feuds for him.

Sheamus Vs. Cesaro At Payback

What else does Curtis Axel 2.0 need? He has Paul Heyman as a manager. He is getting a mediocre push. A midcard title! Curtis Axel won the Intercontinental Championship last year while aligned with Paul Heyman. And Cesaro stands a chance at regaining the United States Championship at Payback.

Sheamus will defend against Cesaro at Payback. Cesaro was supposed to be someone that did not need generic midcard title feuds to stay interesting. I said Curtis Axel got a mediocre push last year. Some might disagree. He wrestled top guys like Triple H. Thing is, that push was more hype than substance. He was getting fluke wins. No one in their right mind could really take him seriously. Cesaro is better than that. I would rather he was getting those rubs with top stars. And I'm not talking about fluke wins. Sheamus is a former multi-time World Champion, but he doesn't have that credibility right now. He's a midcarder. He's a B+ player. And that is the same type of treatment Cesaro is getting. It is better than where he was a few months ago, but he should get more.

Who wins? Sheamus just won the title a few weeks ago. Did they really give it to him just to shoot it to Cesaro? Losing could hurt Cesaro's momentum even more. Could this be a good feud if they carry it beyond Payback? Sheamus somehow retains at Payback, but Cesaro stays in the hunt and eventually wins the title. If developed properly, this might not be a bad feud to extend. Hornswoggle vs. El Torito is a bad feud to extend. Yes, I'm an old man and I hate fun. No, not really. You could just be devoting that time to pushing other guys better that could really use it or deserve it. As for this U.S. title match, I think Cesaro should win. They need to do something to improve his push.

Cesaro's Lost Momentum

What has happened to Cesaro? I actually thought the WWE was serious about this guy and would give him a good push. He is lost in the shuffle, like so many others.

Pairing him with Paul Heyman was supposed to be something good. Heyman has spent more time putting over Brock Lesnar than Cesaro. Lesnar is not even around. I know they are saying that Cesaro will face Lesnar, but how can the WWE seriously be considering that feud? Cesaro looks mediocre. He is eventually going to get tired of Heyman and that will lead to a big feud with Brock Lesnar? That would be a waste of Lesnar. I am not saying Cesaro is unworthy of such a feud. I am saying they are not developing him properly to be worthy of such a feud. I doubt they will follow through with it, if they were really serious about this in the first place.

They could have developed a proper feud between him and RVD. There could have been a great story there. Personally, I wasn't interested in it. Nevertheless, it would have been better than nothing at all. It would have been even better than a generic midcard title feud. That is, if it was done right. It is not even being done at all.

Some people say that the issue is that they didn't turn him face. Cesaro was connecting so well with the fans. Keeping him heel ruined his momentum. I disagree. They could have turned him face and still pushed him as mediocrely as they have now. He could have been treated as a very dry, very generic face. That, most likely, would have led to a loss of overness and momentum. What would fans be saying then? He's a bad face? Worst face turn since Randy Orton in 2004? The issue is not developing proper feuds for him and putting great focus on him. Heyman hasn't done him too many favors. I find "King of Swing" is a stupid nickname. But the real problem is a lack of commitment on the part of the WWE.

Your New Heyman Guy: Cesaro

After Cesaro won the Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal, I was ready to talk about just that. I was going to compare it to Damien Sandow winning Money in the Bank. Both situations were the biggest wins in the WWE career of the respective wrestler. Both led to them getting good midcard feuds. Sandow got a good feud against Cody Rhodes and Cesaro is entering a feud with Jack Swagger. What happened on Raw now gives me something else to talk about. Cesaro ditched Zeb and joined Paul Heyman.

With Brock Lesnar once again riding off into the sunset, it would make sense to give Heyman a new guy to keep him active. Last year, that was Curtis Axel. Let me compare Cesaro to Axel. I just felt that push for Curtis Axel was doomed from the start. Not only was he not over, but they did not even push him properly. He was more of a pawn developed for the larger feud between Punk and Heyman than anything else. Will Cesaro end up like that? Is he only getting this push alongside Heyman to keep Heyman relevant? I would hope not. Cesaro has really developed himself to get over. He can be a great midcarder. I think it is too soon to talk about making him World Champion. There is nothing wrong with being a midcarder. There is nothing wrong with feuding with a few top guys now and then without ever winning the top title. Push him as a B+ player or an A- player. I wouldn't be quick to say he is bringing A+ overness, but that vocal audience is connecting well with him.

Is he a face or a heel? Paul Heyman, a known heel, is his manager. He is feuding against Jack Swagger, another known heel. He is getting face reactions, but that does not determine whether or not you are a heel or a face. Right now, he is in tweener territory. He should go complete face soon. It will be interesting to see how that works with Heyman.

Is this the kind of change CM Punk would love to see? What more will it take to bring that guy back? You have a lot of new talent and over talent getting pushed better now. Focus on new talent. Isn't that what TNA has been trying recently? WWE trying to follow TNA's lead? Whatever the motivation may be, this still may not work out for the WWE. TNA's focus on new talent will fail them. They couldn't take established stars and utilize them properly to help the company grow. They have not figured out how to handle stars as stars. What is all that new talent going to do for you if you can't feature them to connect with more than just wrestling fans and your core fanbase? The WWE's problem is still that their midcard is a mess. I saw a lot of filler matches on Raw last night. Cesaro vs. Swagger will be a breath of fresh air in comparison to all that, but can they keep the ball rolling after that? They didn't with either Damien Sandow or Cody Rhodes.

All this is nice. Cesaro getting a big push. Daniel Bryan finally gets a legitimate run with the title. Debuts coming. You have to keep in mind, it has to draw. There is a difference between being over and drawing. Ratings have been mediocre for a while now. If viewership sinks badly with the new direction the WWE might be heading in, they will have pretty much every right to move on to something else. That means possibly returning to the Cena quo. As long as the WWE gives these guys a fair, legitimate opportunity, it is up to them to prove that they can actually help the company grow, or at least stop sinking.

The WWE stock has been hit hard in the last two days. When the stock dropped the day after Donald Trump "bought" Raw, I said it was foolish to automatically blame it all on that. If you looked at how the market was that day and the WWE's own numbers throughout the day, it seemed more likely that overall market factors were the main reason for the WWE's decline on that day. The whole market took a hard it that day. The market isn't exactly amazing right now, but it does seem like this drop is happening independently of the overall market. There is an article explaining why that drop might be here.

Numbers are out for the WWE Network. They actually got more subscribers than I thought they would get. However, they seemed to have fallen short of some original estimates. Getting over 650,000 is still pretty good. I'll get to what that means for Wrestlemania in a minute.As for just expectations for the WWE Network, I keep on hearing that the magic number is a million subscribers by the end of the year. It is to be expected that the most subscribers would come before Wrestlemania. How many more can they really expect? How many international fans will get it? Moreover, I already see some fans wanting to cancel. Of course, you have a 6-month commitment. And it is the failure to get a better number that seems to be hurting the WWE stock right now the most. Hype for the WWE Network was one of the factors that helped boost the number a few weeks ago. It should be no shock that investors not seeing a number they like in terms of subscriptions will react. This is something that will appeal to the core fanbase of the WWE the most. The WWE better start pandering more to them. Daniel Bryan should hold the title for the rest of the year. Cesaro should be pushed to the moon. Give CM Punk anything he wants to get him back, even them ice cream bars. And if the content on the WWE Network gets stale, you can expect people to eventually cancel after the 6 months.

What does this mean for Wrestlemania XXX? I was saying that you should expect the WWE to want a lot of buys for a Wrestlemania so special. You had to give a little leeway for those watching it through the WWE Network. Given how many subscribers they have, do you automatically say that there should be about 350,000 in PPV buys from non-subscribers? Not so fast. As I said before, it is the core fanbase that is more likely to subscribe, not the casual fans. Wrestlemania is supposed to be a major success because of the casual audience it will draw in. How many of that 650,000 even would have bought Wrestlemania? Some of these WWE loyalists use illegal streams, watch it at a friend's house, simply read what is going on online, or other things like that. And just because someone subscribed, that does not mean that they were able to watch Wrestlemania on it. They might have had to work at that time, were having technical difficulties, or something like that. Point is, despite the number of subscribers, I would still have high expectations for the number of PPV buys. I will grant them a little more leeway. I would expect around 700,000 PPV buys. In terms of PPV buys, that might be horrible for a Wrestlemania in this age, but when you add in those that watched it on the WWE Network, it is a great number. The WWE pretty much roped in more of their regular fans to pay to watch Wrestlemania with the cheap price of the WWE Network, but was Wrestlemania good enough to get the casual audience?

Big E Langston: Big Face Jobbber To The Stars

One of the bad things about not following through with Team Heyman vs. Team Punk at Survivor Series is that guys that could have benefited from being supporting players in that feud are left with nothing important to do. One of these individuals is Big E Langston. He turned face during this storyline. He looked like he would enter a feud with Curtis Axel over the Intercontinental Championship. That didn't work out.

What has he been doing? Pretty much being used as a jobber to the stars. He wins here and there against guys at his level and under him, but he also got used to put over Randy Orton recently. No storylines or legitimate feuds. That is what it means to be a midcarder these days. It was obvious that this would eventually happen to Big E Langston after his face turn, but having him actually remain involved in the feud between CM Punk and Paul Heyman would have made him look more interesting for a little while longer.

What about the other supporting players in that feud? Some of them are in an even worse position than Big E Langston. Both Kofi Kingston and R-Truth feuded against Curtis Axel in recent months, and both would have been obvious choices to keep in the storyline. Nothing from them now. Ryback is lost in the shuffle just like Big E, while also being used as a jobber to the stars. And then there is Curtis Axel. He still has his title. Many are left wondering why. He is also not doing anything major. In the end, all this was to be expected. Would have been better if they booked Heyman/Punk better.

Does Punk/Heyman End At Hell In A Cell?

The issues between CM Punk and Paul Heyman continue on to another pay-per-view. At Hell in a Cell it will be CM Punk vs. both Ryback and Paul Heyman inside Hell in a Cell. Is this where the feud ends?

Hell in a Cell matches used to be the kind of match that mark the climax of a feud. That is probably the only real reason to think that it will end here. It has lost that big feel over the years. And is the cell supposed to be what keeps Heyman in and Curtis Axel and any other potential Heyman guys out? It has been proven over the years that people not meant to be inside the cell can still get in and the guys involved in the match can somehow get out.

There is one big reason why this should not be the end of the feud. You have Survivor Series right around the corner. That is one of the biggest PPVs for the WWE. What better place to end it or make things even more interesting? Hell in a Cell isn't at much of a throwaway PPV as Battleground, where it just seemed too obvious that nothing was going to be ended there, but the feud just doesn't seem like it is ready to end so easily.

Does another Heyman guy debut? The last time Punk was close to beating Paul Heyman at a match, Ryback entered the picture. This time around, it wouldn't be hard to picture some other Heyman supporter finding his way inside the cell and costing Punk the match. Will it be Brock Lesnar? Another star returning from injury? Someone from NXT? Curtis Axel? Probably not Axel. Time to raise the bar, not lower it.

Another reason I don't think this feud is going to end, the emotion just isn't there. CM Punk seems too jolly. The momentum isn't really against him. The WWE still has time to change that before the PPV, but the feud just doesn't seem like it has reached that moment for it to end. I still find it disappointing that the feud doesn't have the same fire that it once had. They did get creative on Monday to decide the stipulation, but that does not overshadow the emotion. The WWE may not make the feel of this feud as intense as it once was, but I still don't think it ends at Hell in a Cell.

Has CM Punk Found A Friend?

A while ago, I said one of the likely things to do with this feud between CM Punk and Paul Heyman was to give CM Punk someone to help him against Heyman's henchmen. Two against one just screams for that lone guy to get a friend, or get one of the antagonists out of the way or be prepared for one to conquer two. Getting CM Punk a friend just seemed like the best option. Recently, R-Truth has been thrown into the mix. He teamed with Punk on Raw. He has been feuding with Curtis Axel. Is this the start of a beautiful relationship?

Part of me likes how things went down on Raw in regards to this storyline. The story in the tag match was pretty good. Punk actually acted pretty friendly towards R-Truth. If they are going to start pushing these two as a team as long as Ryback and Curtis Axel are a team, this is a good way to get things started.

Part of me also dislikes how things went down on Raw in regards to this storyline. This feud between CM Punk and Paul Heyman had so much heat to it. It looked like a lot of fans and critics would be naming this the feud of the year. They still might, but it has taken a step back. CM Punk was talking and acting like he was out to murder Paul Heyman for weeks and weeks. This week, that emotion was not there. I would be the first to say never jump to conclusions after just one week, but if CM Punk was so determined to get Heyman, didn't he have a good chance on Raw? He takes out both Axel and Ryback, leaving R-Truth to clean things up and win the match, and doesn't chase after Heyman? Not to blame the writers, but I wonder if the WWE knows how to progress things from here between CM Punk and Paul Heyman in a good way.

Lastly, assuming they do run with R-Truth in this angle, is he a good choice? Considering I was saying they should run with Kofi Kingston, I wouldn't say picking R-Truth instead is a bad idea. Considering that this storyline could lead to Curtis Axel eventually dropping the title to someone aligned with CM Punk, why not R-Truth? He has not held as many midcard titles as Kofi Kingston. They just need to get him involved a lot more in promos. Make this thing more interesting. If they don't do that, and they don't bring back that fire between Punk and Heyman, this storyline may not be as great as it could have been.

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.

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.

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.

Curtis Axel's Slowed Momentum

I've spoken about Curtis Axel recently mainly in terms of being a possible opponent for faces to feud with. But how has the Intercontinental Champion been doing?

Things certainly have slowed for him since that big push started. No angle with Triple H. Lost to Chris Jericho. No real feud for him right now. After so much hype for the guy when he first aligned with Paul Heyman, it seems like he is not living up to the push. I don't blame him. I have my doubts about how serious the WWE was about this push to start with. Having him pick up these fluke wins would get him over? Really? People would buy into him just because certain top individuals put him over in promos. I don't think so. They didn't keep the ball rolling by having him get proper feuds with top stars. If they built up his credibility better, he might have stood a better chance of getting over. He still might not have gotten over, but he would have had a better chance. This guy isn't good enough to get over without a proper build.

Right now, he is a pawn in the issues between CM Punk and Paul Heyman. That is not a bad thing. I like how that feud is set up. I wish there were a few more Heyman guys on his side for Punk to run through before Brock Lesnar and eventually Heyman, himself. I also wish they had not wasted Curtis Axel's first loss on Chris Jericho. Save it for CM Punk on his road to Heyman. It would have meant more. I don't need to say too much about potential feuds Axel could have been getting now. RVD and Miz are two options I have already mentioned in recent days. Despite no personal feud, Curtis Axel may have lost momentum, but he's not entirely buried, yet.

CM Punk Returns At Payback

Payback, the next WWE PPV, will be in Chicago. That is CM Punk's town. On Raw this week, they had Chris Jericho challenge CM Punk to a match through Paul Heyman. Heyman accepted.

The possibilities fans are discussing are already running wild. Before I talk about that, is it a good idea to handle CM Punk's probable return like this? You have Jericho issue a challenge and CM Punk will most likely not show up until the actual PPV. Will that make the build for this feud bad? I don't think so. They have done this kind of thing before. Go back to John Cena vs. Chris Jericho in 2008 after Cena was injured late in the year. This would be similar to that. Moreover, I think hyping it like this builds the intrigue and can help draw for the PPV.

Now, what interesting possibilities can this lead to? I mentioned before that this could be CM Punk's probable return. Probable? What if they pull a swerve and CM Punk does not show up. Chicago would hate that. But the point would not be just to annoy the fans. Heyman pulls a switch and has Curtis Axel face Jericho instead. That guy can use a real feud against an established star sooner or later. I don't like that idea and I don't think they will run with it. Have CM Punk return. Then what? He beats Jericho? How about Paul Heyman screws Punk by having Brock Lesnar interfere? Turn Punk face. He is guaranteed to get a face reaction in Chicago, anyway. Returning him at that time could be the perfect time to turn him back to a face, if they want to go there. Why would Heyman do this? Unhappy that Punk walked out? Unhappy Punk lost to The Rock and The Undertaker? They could have Curtis Axel cost Punk the match, but Punk vs. Lesnar would be bigger. I just finished saying Axel needs a big feud and I deny him CM Punk. Hypocrite? Yeah, guess I am. The fact is, Punk might be too much of a top star for this younger talent to work with. Jericho would be a better fit for Axel to feud with, in my opinion. Leave Punk to feud with Lesnar. Lesnar needs more variety in his opponents.

Speaking of Jericho, feuding with CM Punk again sure is a step up from the dark days he spent with Fandango. I agree with ending the feud between those two, but having Jericho enter the Intercontinental title feud still might have been a good option. Nevertheless, this is a bigger feud Jericho is in now and I don't think anyone really gets hurt by the WWE going in this direction. Fandango is not lost in the shuffle yet.

Your New Heyman Guy: Curtis Axel

Over the last two days, I have been saying that I don't like overkill. Giving one person too much more than they may need at a time when many other people are not getting anything great can get annoying. It's okay to do it in moderation, especially in those situations where you would like to cause a shot of controversy to draw or honor someone that has really earned it. But if you do it too much, it might start losing value and not even be effective, in addition to leaving others with scraps. I talked about this with Dean Ambrose winning the U.S. Championship and AJ Lee likely getting the Diva's Championship. I don't hate Dean Ambrose. I don't think AJ Lee should be getting nothing to do at all. Right now, I feel what they are doing with Curtis Axel (former Michael McGillicutty) will become overkill.

Recently, there was a dirtsheet report that the reason Antonio Cesaro was depushed was because he was boring. That is believable. I even said that depushing someone if they are not connecting well with the fans is understandable. Funny thing is, I seem to remember the WWE burying Michael McGillicutty a few years ago for not being exciting. This was back when he was teaming with Otunga. And this was no rumor or something being reported by those sites. The WWE actually ran an angle with it. What exactly has this guy done since then to deserve what he is getting now? Right now, I don't consider myself a fan of either Antonio Cesaro or Curtis Axel. However, I would say that Cesaro actually deserves a better push right now out of the two.

Who can forget Chris Jericho's epic return in 2012? There was this aura of mystery around it. Why was he acting like that? Did he have a scheme to win the Royal Rumble? Would he win the WWE Championship? And nothing happened. All that hype, and nothing happened. To me, this week's Raw felt the same way.

With all that out of the way, let's go to the issue itself. The WWE hyped that Paul Heyman had signed a new client. When I heard that, I got excited about who it could be. A lot of people were thinking that it could be the return of Rob Van Dam or Batista. I didn't think it would be Batista. Would it be a midcard heel? Would it be Randy Orton turning heel? Zack Ryder getting that big push after all this time complaining? Jinder Mahal? No one ever expects Jinder Mahal. Heyman hyped it up so well, which is nothing unusual for him. And then, Michael McGillicutty comes up on the tron. I thought that it had to be some kind of swerve. Somebody bigger than that had to be coming out later in the night to save Heyman from Triple H. Nope. And I did not see anything special in his match against Triple H. Of course, it was Triple H he was going against and the story of the match was more about Triple H not being able to continue the match.

Does Curtis Axel deserve the rub of aligning with Paul Heyman and the debut match against Triple H? I am not against this guy getting an opportunity. How about repackaging him and bringing him back as a midcarder? Obviously, he stands a better chance of possibly succeeding with this kind of push he is getting now than a regular midcard push, but there are other individuals who are showing better potential who are already featured more regularly who can use the kind of push he is getting. And to repeat the three ideas I mentioned previously, this can end up being overkill, they are giving a big push to a guy they themselves buried for being boring, and all this hype may not lead to success. If this guy is going to succeed, I am going to hope it is going to be up to him, not Paul Heyman and the WWE carrying him. I will not like this guy just because Paul Heyman and whoever else praises him. I am not that kind of fan. For me, it doesn't really matter how good this guy is on the mic. Heyman will be his mouthpiece. But he does need to show a good character and step up in the ring. Of course, if people do buy into him without any real improvement from him and he gets over, then he has earned his spot. You don't earn a spot by impressing me.

Triple H Vs. Brock Lesnar II

The development of the feud between Triple H and Brock Lesnar this week added to the disappointment of this year's Wrestlemania season. Triple H was forced to sign the contract without knowing what the stipulations would be. They had the potential to make this count for a lot and be a really interesting match.

First of all, the actual segment last night wasn't too horrible. Paul Heyman did his job of selling that he and Lesnar could put Triple H in a match where he could be at a real handicap. Heyman also sold the idea that Lesnar could get something important if he should win. Triple H attacking Heyman and the security was fine. It was the reveal that was the problem for me.

What kind of match is it? It's one of those regular matches where anything goes. That's nothing too special. I am not saying that they should have run with some idea where Triple H had an arm tied behind his back, but an I Quit match wouldn't have been bad, or something like that. That is how you could have made it an interesting type of match.

And what is on the line? Triple H's career. Triple H's part-time career is on the line. Really? Triple H is pretty much semi-retired already. He may wrestle slightly more than The Undertaker, but he is pretty much in the same position, albeit he has a corporate job. They really could have made this count for so much more. How about control of the WWE? How about taking it all away from the McMahons. That would up the ante. Hearing it just be the career was a little lackluster. It doesn't make me eager to see what happens.