Sting Returns In 2013

When it comes to talking about how TNA runs their product, the main theme is rotation. They rotate who the centerpieces of their various divisions are. I don't see that as a good thing. They also rotate something else, their legends.

Sting is returning in 2013. How many times has Sting returned and left during just his TNA years? The same goes with Hulk Hogan. How many times have the two rotated who is running the show? Sting and Hulk Hogan are the two top legends that are a part of this company. It is understandable why they would hype them coming and going, gaining and losing power, and everything else. But it does become old after a while. And lame.

I respect Sting, but what is putting so much on him and Hogan really doing? The ratings for 2012 were sad. While showing so much inconsistency in developing the guys underneath the two legends, going up and down with the two legends has led to nothing. TNA should get a small bump in the ratings for Sting coming back, unless fans have gotten tired of it and it has lost its ability to draw. But how will TNA keep the ball rolling after? That is where they will mess up. What then? Hogan bumps his knee on a trash can, goes away for 2 weeks, then TNA hypes the epic return to battle of Hulk Hogan? 

And now, I am going to talk about something completely unrelated to what I was just talking about. What is the difference between being one of the greats and being one of the greatest? Not just in pro wrestling, but in almost any field. I want to give my take on that with my final post of 2012. To me, the greats go out there and succeed. They reach that pinnacle of success. The greatest do it in interesting ways. They overcome the greatest obstacles. They go above and beyond the call of duty. Whether that manifests itself in reaching that height of success multiple times, beating opponents that everyone thought were unbeatable, or accomplishing something that goes beyond what they set out to do, the greatest go further than the pinnacle.

And with that, best wishes in the new year.

Layla Has Gotten Better

Layla is definitely the most improved eye-candy diva in terms of in-ring ability to be used as a credible jobber, never as a true centerpiece. Of course, 2012 has not been the year where she has been used the best. The WWE featured her best when she was teamed with Michelle McCool. That angle lasted over a year, but the bulk came in 2010. I want to compare that period in her career to the current one.

Teaming Layla with Michelle McCool was the biggest thing to happen to Layla. Prior to that, she was just a minor periphery diva. Alicia Fox was originally Michelle McCool's sidekick. Alicia went to Raw. McCool was still having trouble connecting with the fans in the manner you would expect of a centerpiece. It is not surprising that they would find another sidekick for McCool. And they actually treated her and Layla as a team. LayCool. Together, this pair was treated as the centerpiece. Layla won some titles and started to improve in the ring. When McCool left in 2011, the WWE tried developing Kelly Kelly as the centerpiece. Layla was soon out with a long injury.

Layla came back this year. She has really shown that she is better in the ring. Thing is, what are they pushing her as? LayCool was pushed as the centerpiece. When you take away McCool, who was pushed as centerpiece before Layla joined her, where would that leave Layla? Even though Layla won the title as soon as she returned and had a long reign, she was not featured properly during the run and has been lost in the shuffle since putting over Eve. That is pretty much the career of a credible jobber. The WWE is going to show more consistency with the centerpiece, less with the credible jobber. It reaffirms whom the WWE really wanted to be the top star of LayCool. If they really viewed Layla as McCool's equal, they would have featured her better during her last title run, at the very least. And I would imagine that they would try to find some periphery angle to keep her fresh and develop her. She doesn't need to be pushed as hard as AJ.

Out of Eve and Layla, who should be centerpiece? This is one of those situations where the woman you don't choose would definitely still have the ability to be a good centerpiece. Neither of them currently have the overness to be a truly successful centerpiece, but the WWE will eventually be successful in making it happen.

What Has Become Of The Tag Revival?

It was obvious that the revival of the tag division would only last for so long. I think you should still give the WWE some credit for keeping it going as long as they have. Recently, it seems like that revival has really slipped away.

Kane and Daniel Bryan are obviously still the top team. Cody Rhodes and Damien Sandow are still alive. Sin Cara and Rey Mysterio are not reliable right now. The Shield have more going on than just making the tag division look good. Other than these teams, just about every other team consists of lower-midcarders. Go back a few weeks to that 4-way match to find which team would face Sin Cara and Rey Mysterio at TLC. The Prime Time Players, The Usos, Primo and Epico, and Rhodes Scholars went at it. It was obvious who would win that match. The other three teams all had better interest on them when the tag revival first started. They are also lower-midcarders that frequently have gotten lost in the shuffle since then and used as jobbers to the bigger teams.

These teams and a few others still do get featured now and then, but a lot of it is just filler. No real feuds and angles involved. They just go at it in filler matches. It's worth about as much as filler singles matches. Would you be content with more diva matches if it was just filler? Imagine the WWE running two diva matches every show. One would involve either the centerpiece or a top periphery diva to further the top diva feud or storyline. The other would involve credible jobbers or eye-candy periphery divas in a filler match. These women would still get an opportunity to perform, but they are not getting the proper treatment to become as over as those centerpieces and top periphery divas would get and there is no guarantee that these same lowly opportunities would be there next week. No improvement in the diva division, even though they are featuring more matches. That is how I view the current state of the tag division. Yeah, more teams are getting featured, but a lot of it is filler or using the lower-midcard teams to put over the teams they want to be the stars.

There is really no hope to expect a better tag division revival. You really just have to hope that the WWE keeps together these big teams and possibly makes some new ones, which would then replace the ones that end up splitting. No offense, but if the WWE ever puts the titles on The Usos, or any other lower-midcard team, the revival will be even more dead than it is now. They will not treat them properly.

How Much Longer For Mysterio?

Whether it is injuries, suspensions, or other issues, you really don't see as much of Rey Mysterio in recent years than you might like. Going by how popular he is and the fact that he can still work well in the ring, the WWE must also not be liking the lack of 619.

How much longer does Rey have before he should retire? One more strike with drugs would send him away, but that is not something to predict. Even though this is a worker that the WWE should be trying to push and develop storylines for, the fact that he can no longer be a true regular would make them think twice about developing  anything too long-term for him. How many times has a wrestler in the middle of a big push gotten injured or suspended? It causes a lot of reshuffling. Recent months are filled with examples of what I mean. Should Rey work a limited schedule, like The Undertaker? Maybe not as limited as that, but the WWE should start only planning short, but still relevant, feuds for him sporadically. It's better than having more elaborate feuds ruined. Rey Mysterio is pretty much done as a regular full-time worker.

It would have been nice to see Rey and Sin Cara win the tag titles. It might still happen sometime down the road. You also have a lot of fans who want to see those two go at it at Wrestlemania. The WWE still might try that in a few months, but I don't think the build would be as good as it would have been if both Rey and Sin Cara didn't have issues. Sin Cara seems to already be following the path of Rey, and his career hasn't even gone to far in the WWE yet. He's another topic. Aside from the tag titles, I don't see a need to force another World title on Rey for a "thank you" run. Would be nice, and Rey definitely has the credibility to be a contender at any time, but I'm not a fan of tossing a title to every popular worker who is about to retire. It's not necessary. Save it to make it mean more in those special circumstances. I'm not going to say too much more about what the WWE should do with Rey before he does retire, including who his final feud should potentially be against. Point is, being semi-retired isn't the same as a full retirement. I just feel now is the time to just accept Rey as semi-retired.

And with that, Merry Christmas.

Big Show Heading Into 2013 With The Title

 

 It has been a while since I talked about Jinder Mahal. Not going to start now.

Aside from his ECW Championship run, this has to be the best reign Big Show has had with a World title in the WWE. His previous runs were short. His current run is going to head into 2013. He has also been winning some of his title defenses cleanly. You can compare it to the kind of title push Mark Henry got last year. Mark Henry was built up strong for a few months, inducting guys into his "Hall of Pain". He eventually won the World's Heavyweight Championship, had a good reign, and didn't exactly completely unplug him after. Big Show's monster push really started with his "iron-clad contract" angle. That dominance has carried over to where he is now.

What more should they be doing? I would say to move on from Sheamus, but injuries and other issues has taken away a lot of potential top faces. Other good choices are tied into feuds, like Kane and Daniel Bryan. This would also be a good time to have Ryback set his sights on Big Show, but CM Punk's injury prolonging his feud with Ryback and the feud with The Shield are in the way there. If they are serious with turning Alberto Del Rio face, a feud with Big Show would be good. I'm not talking about just one title defense. All things considered, the WWE is doing the best they can with what they have.

When will Big Show lose it? Dolph Ziggler is still waiting around. Will Sheamus win the title back, then immediately lost it to Ziggler? That can branch into a feud between those two. You can imagine the change happening at Elimination Chamber. After that grueling match, whoever has the title then has to defend it against Mr. Money In The Bank. Fact is, the WWE still has a few months to tease Ziggler doing it. Until then, Big Show's run will only be good as long as they have fresh opponents. If they can't deliver, end it and let a new face feud with some of the heels, especially younger ones like Wade Barrett.

Last thing I want to talk about, this year has featured no new World Champions in the WWE. CM Punk held the WWE Championship all year. Daniel Bryan came into the year with the World's Heavyweight Championship, lost it to Sheamus, who was a former WWE Champion, and he lost it to Big Show, who has also held World titles before. The WWE had an opportunity to put the title on Ryback, even if just to shake things up a little before giving it back to Punk to face The Rock at the Royal Rumble. Are these long title reigns and not putting the titles on new stars a good thing? I think it is making the product even more stale. Who will be the first completely new Champion of 2013? Ziggler doesn't count. It would be horrible if the WWE went another year without developing new main-eventers.

Alberto Turned Face?

Heel one minute, face the next. Alberto Del Rio has been playing the face role over the last few days, teaming with Miz. That came out of nowhere. Was it a response to Randy Orton being sidelined with an injury? You lose a face main-eventer and a heel main-eventer suddenly starts acting like a face.

I wouldn't say anything is solidified just yet. Without spoiling what happens on next week's Raw, which has been taped already, Del Rio seems to still be in tweener territory. Whether they are drawing out his turn, which would be better than a random turn out of nowhere, or just testing things while Orton is out, Alberto Del Rio is not yet fully a face.

Ricardo did get attacked by The Shield. That should bring Del Rio into that feud. You might even say that is more evidence that Del Rio is taking Orton's spot. Randy Orton had gotten attacked by the group prior to his injury, and then again to write him off. It would be interesting if the WWE had the stable attack a few heels more often. It would sell the idea that they really don't have any allegiances. Whether that turns out to be a swerve or not, it will get people wondering if they really are in it for themselves.

Back to Del Rio, can't really say what I think about this sudden turn. The guy had a lot of potential as a heel. I think they could have done a lot more with that side of him. Once that started to get stale, or some really good reason came up, then you can talk about a face turn. Is an injury to a top face a good reason? Considering there was no huge shortage of faces right now, I don't think so. I think you need more top heels right now. As long as the WWE doesn't push too hard with this face or tweener run, it will be interesting to see if the fans start cheering Del Rio.

One last note on Raw's ratings. It was a 2.9 this week. This week was their best shot to get a 3.0 or better before the year ends. The remaining Mondays are going to hurt. This week's football game was weak. Moreover, Raw had the Slammy Awards. They had some hype to that. It was great seeing Ric Flair. Things were in their favor. And yet, fell short of a 3.0. That streak of low ratings continue.

Eve And AJ Are Heels

Eve is the centerpiece of the diva division. She is the one being developed as the chief star of the actual diva division. AJ is a periphery diva. She is a diva developed to be a star away from that main focus of the diva division. And now, both are heels.

Starting with Eve, it looks like her feud with Kaitlyn is not over yet. I still don't think Kaitlyn is as good in the ring as other credible jobbers, or jobbers to the centerpiece. Of course, that is not something that will be written in stone. I'm sure she will get better in time. Until then, it is very likely that they may put the title on her. There was no need to force this feud to continue. They had other options to develop to feud with Eve. They had a battle royal on the TLC pre-show filled with possibilities. Kaitlyn did not win there, but it does not matter too much. She beat Eve on Raw. Eve is showing more character these days. In time, she may get the overness you would expect of the centerpiece.

AJ just turned heel. She turned on Cena. This woman has just been pushed extremely hard. Yes, I seem to say that every time I talk about her, but the WWE is showing no signs of backing down. She has been involved with the World Heavyweight Champion at one time, Daniel Bryan. She has been involved with the WWE Champion, CM Punk. She is now involved with John Cena, the centerpiece of the company. The obvious question? What's left? How long can they legitimately keep her so high at the top? It is going to become a headache to keep her going sooner or later. They will have to drop her momentum one day. They will probably be hoping her overness carries through for whatever angle she ends up with after this big storyline. Until then, this all shows just how much is invested in developing some periphery divas. Some can get just as much invested in them as the centerpiece, even though they do not hold the same position in the diva division.

With both women being heels, you will not see a title feud between just the two of them. I still don't doubt for a second that AJ will eventually win the title. I can picture Kaitlyn winning it and eventually dropping it to AJ. Where will that leave Eve? Will the WWE switch to a system where they have a model and wrestler switching off centerpiece duties? While one is positioned as centerpiece, the other gets periphery angles? From the time Trish became centerpiece in 2001 to her retirement in 2006, the WWE did not really split the centerpiece spotlight between her and Lita. Difference between then and now, the current diva division is struggling. A change could happen. Nevertheless, there are female wrestlers out there who deserve opportunities like this more than AJ Lee.

No Ryder At TLC

Instead of talking about who you did see in action at TLC last night, I want to first talk about who you did not see in action. TLC was in New York City, where I call home. Another New Yorker a lot of WWE fans care about is Zack Ryder. Was Ryder in a match? No. Was Ryder unhappy with this? Yes.

Usually, the excuse would be that the WWE could not fit him into a feud, so how could they fit him into a match easily at the PPV? These days, there is usually filler matches on PPVs. TLC this year was no different. Ryder could have easily been featured in a match.

Ryder definitely deserved to be featured. It was at TLC last year that he won the U.S. Championship, after months of the WWE trying to dance around giving him a legitimate push. More importantly, the guy is over and is from the area. How many fans in attendance may have been eager to see the guy? I'm not a fan of the guy and don't blindly support NY sports teams or celebrities, but he deserves better than that. I'm not saying they need to push him in the main-event scene or ruin someone's push for his sake, but can't you even feature him a little better?

Should Ryder just quit? He gets over on his own, gets taken advantage of to make Cena look good, and then goes back to being mistreated. He got that over just to become a lower-midcarder who gets to job on Raw more often than he did before? What's the point of staying? The guy must be an annoyance to the WWE. Fans love him, they are not pushing him, and how long can all that continue? Will the WWE succeed in burying or will Ryder be gone. Ryder getting treated better isn't even an option I am willing to put out there. I don't usually say this, but I think TNA would be a good destination for this guy. Even if he only gets a few weeks in the legitimate spotlight before the depush, it is better than being frustrated in the WWE.

John Cena Vs. Dolph Ziggler For The Briefcase

With CM Punk not defending the WWE Championship at TLC, Dolph Ziggler defending his "Money in the Bank" briefcase against John Cena in a ladder match seems like a good option to close the show. Many people may say that Cena doesn't deserve to be above the World's Heavyweight Championship match, but there is a way things can turn out that can make it worth it.

Technically, Dolph Ziggler could cash in his title shot prior to his match with Cena. Assume the Smackdown World title match happens early on the card. No matter who wins that title match, the loser beats on the winner. Ziggler runs in, wins the title, and thinks he has screwed Cena out of getting the briefcase. The WWE has been running this angle where Vince influences Vickie into making decisions. Building off that, Vince pressures Vickie into defending his new title against Cena in a ladder match in the main event. You end up with a main event that does involve a World title, as well as the centerpiece of the company. Should this happen, it would be a horrific flashback for Ziggler if his title reign ends the same night he won it. Nevertheless, it is a swerve a lot of fans are expecting and they can really use something big happening on this PPV.

All that build for Dolph Ziggler, and he loses to Cena like that? Wouldn't be the first time something like this has happened. Does Ziggler deserve better? I'm pretty much running on the assumption that Cena wins, no matter what is on the line in that ladder match. Cena has not won a PPV match in a while. They have had Ziggler look very impressive in recent months against the likes of Chris Jericho, Randy Orton, and so on. He definitely could be developed to be a top star on Smackdown. On the other side of that, he could also end up losing his push and going back to the midcard. The Royal Rumble is also coming around, so he might win that after putting over Cena. If Dolph does eventually regain the title from Cena, assuming Cena wins it, that would be huge for him. Dolph can definitely become the next Edge, in terms of position.  

Orton Injured & The Shield

I guess I shouldn't have said anything about watching out for injuries in the month of December. Randy Orton suffered an injury a few days ago. I waited a while to talk about it to see how serious it would be. On the Smackdown taping this week, the WWE had Orton attacked by The Shield as a means to write him off. Yes, looks serious. Randy Orton was a face main-eventer. He wasn't in the middle of a feud or storyline, but it looked like he was going to be inserted into the matters with The Shield, as they attacked him last week. Nevertheless, that is another top star unable to compete at an already tough time for the WWE.

And what about The Shield? Because of recent circumstances, it seems they will be getting featured better than they might have. Sound familiar? When Cena was out for a few weeks from performing in the ring, Ryback benefited. He is still benefiting. New faces are getting better treatment with established stars getting injured. I would still say that Cena vs. Ziggler should be the main event of TLC, but would it be out of the question for the WWE to really close the show with Ryback, Kane, and Daniel Bryan facing The Shield? That would be big for the new guys.

Who wins? This is the first official match in the WWE for The Shield. In this kind of match, a TLC match that will end by pinfall or submission, there obviously must be a winner. You have a similar situation to what you had with Ryback at Hell in a Cell. There had to be a winner in that WWE Championship match. Ryback ended up taking his first loss. Will The Shield lose in their debut? For the sake of keeping them dominant, I would have them win here. Have a team consisting of Cena, Orton, and some other face beat them down the road.