Rambles about the wonderful world of wrestling.
Clash of Champions’ card was the dictionary definition of a brand-split PPV; full of multi-man nonsense and bad gimmicks. It had the potential to be alright, but the wrestlers would have had to work their arses off to get there. Sadly, that’s not quite what happened. Let’s dish out some stars.
The Brand Split version of Survivor Series is a weird beast. It causes people who spend the rest of the year hating each other’s guts to team up because they suddenly care about the name of their TV show. On top of that, it’s WWE openly telling you that one brand is better than the other. Does that mean we should now all give up on SmackDown? Or maybe, I should stop overthinking this stuff. Let’s dish out some stars.
War Games. It’s the one gimmick match that WWE hasn’t run into the ground. In fact, they haven’t touched it. Until now. After years of fans calling for it, it’s finally back. I’m not entirely sure if it was needed, but we’re getting it. Minor quibbles aside, NXT TakeOvers are always good and this one was no exception. Let’s dish out some stars.
It’s sad that Hell In A Cell doesn’t feel like a big deal anymore. Once upon a time, those four words were a source of giddy excitement. Now? It’s just another gimmick match. A glorified cage which has had more duds in recent years than greats. Let’s dish out those stars.
This Sunday Shane McMahon will walk into a Hell in a Cell match with Kevin Owens. It will be the third time he’s wrestled since his shock return in the build-up to WrestleMania 32. Both of those previous matches took place at a WrestleMania and yet, it’s possible this is the most important one yet. The Undertaker and AJ Styles didn’t need the rub of a McMahon to establish themselves, while Kevin Owens (despite having been around for a while) feels like he does at the moment. He’s been floundering since he moved to SmackDown.
For the second week in a row, the final segment on Raw (minus a short SHIELD tease) focused on the Cruiserweight Division vs. Enzo Amore. It’s a feud that has generated a double turn as an entire division turned face due to their disgust at the twat in a hat holding the belt. The question is, will this actually work? Is Enzo Amore the thing to save 205 Live?
No Mercy has, for the longest time, been a nothing PPV. One that is purely there to fill a gap. Then, this year, WWE got a bit excited, and we suddenly had a card headed up by two potential WrestleMania main events. It was a strange move, and the fact that the show wasn’t sold out a few days beforehand spoke volumes as to how successful it was (WWE reported it as a sellout on the day, but who knows if that was true). No Mercy felt like it had been given the chance to shine, and it was floundering. All of that would, however, be forgiven if it delivered in the ring. Let’s dish out those stars.
Last Tuesday night WWE sent Jinder Mahal (a heel whose main motivation is the fact he’s Indian) down to the ring to make a series of crass jokes about Shinsuke Nakamura. He made fun of the Japanese tendency to pronounce ls as rs and referred to Shinsuke as Mr Miyagi. They were dumb, insensitive jokes and screamed of something that Vince McMahon would find hilarious. They also speak to a problem at the heart of WWE.
Two years ago today, Charlotte Flair defeated Nikki Bella to win the Diva’s Championship. While it wouldn’t become the Women’s Title till WrestleMania the next year, this was Charlotte’s first reign and was the symbolic end of the Divas. Since then, Charlotte has gone on to become a four-time Raw Women’s Champion and it’s safe to say that on the whole, women’s wrestling in WWE is much better off, but how much better off is it?
The Mae Young Classic comes to an end with the final we all expected. The MMA badass vs the Pirate Princess, in another world this match would be ridiculous. However, for all WWE’s faults, they’ve done a good job of presenting this tournament as a serious proposition, with every wrestler in it to win it. It’s the easiest of things to do, but it makes it all feel so much more important. One final thing before we get to the stars, I’ve (rightly) been harsh on JR and Lita all tournament – and while JR was still awful – Lita wasn’t too bad during this match, so that’s something at least. Let’s dish out those stars.
Ramblings About Wrestling 