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| Hell in a Cell 2013 Photo by WWE |
@chadsmart & @my123cents on Twitter
A few months ago, Kevin
started branching out and making my123cents more of a pop culture blog instead
of strictly a wrestling blog. I’m thinking I should probably start to follow in
his footsteps and write about anything other than wrestling. Last week, I wrote
about how I was done watching TNA because I didn’t want to watch WWE-lite. After watching this year’s “Hell In A
Cell” pay per view, I think I don’t care to watch WWE. This show
encapsulated the majority of what’s wrong in wrestling today.
Before I get all negative
and cynical, I’ll mention the few positives of the show. The opening Tag-Team
Title match was, as expected, really good. Goldust is making the most of his
return to WWE. Goldy and Cody are working well as a team and their feud with
The Shield has provided several exciting matches.
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| Summer Rae dropkicks Nattie Photo by WWE |
Summer Rae had her WWE debut
match in a mixed-tag match. Summer teamed with dance partner Fandango to battle
Natalya Neidhart and The Great Khali.
Anyone who watches NXT knows Summer Rae can deliver inside the ring when
given the chance. While she and Nattie had a decent match last night, I can’t
get my hopes up too high for the future as WWE is not known to give the Divas
much time nor do they let the talented Divas really showcase their
talents.
Now lets move onto the
cynicism. While Summer Rae had a
good debut, I couldn’t help but wonder why this match was on the PPV. This
wasn’t anything more than what you’d find on RAW or Smackdown. In addition to this
match, Hell In A Cell also featured The Real Americans vs. Los Matadores and an
impromptu match between Big E. Langston vs. Dean Ambrose that ended in Dean
being counted out. Originally Big E was supposed to face Curtis Axel on the
YouTube/WWE App pre-show match, but due to Curtis being injured the match was
scrapped and the match with Dean was set up during the pre-show. Due to the not
being originally scheduled, I anticipated a count out to end the match as I
couldn’t see Dean losing the US title nor would it make sense for Big E to
lose when he’s starting to get a push. If WWE pulls and audible and continues a
feud between these two then the ending to the match could be justified. This
match served no purpose other than to fill 15-minutes of airtime on a show with
too much filler if it doesn't lead to an extended feud.
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| Ole! It's El Torrito Photo by WWE |
While Los Matadores and The
Real Americans was set up for the PPV over the last couple weeks of RAW and
Smackdown, my issues is the match was more about getting El Torito over than
anyone else in the match. I may be wrong, but I’d be willing to bet the
commentary team spent more time talking about “the bull” than talking about
anyone else in the match. This is one of WWE’s biggest problems right now, in
my opinion. No wrestler is getting built up to be a major player. Wrestlers are
either becoming mid-card comedy/humor fodder (Santino, Fandango, Tons of Funk)
or simply stuck into mid-card purgatory (Ziggler, The Miz, Sandow). This was evident in the two main title
matches.
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| The Champ is here! Again Photo by WWE |
John Cena returned after a
two-month hiatus for elbow surgery and promptly won the World Title from
Alberto Del Rio. There was no warm
up match to see if Cena was healthy to compete. There was no, he’s been away
for two months so now he has to work his way back to the top story. John Cena
simply walked into American Airlines Arena and regained the “Being John Cena”
title. It’s almost like WWE wouldn’t know what to do if John Cena wasn’t
holding a title. Instead of using Cena to help elevate new main event talent,
he has to be the man on top. After nine years, it’s time for Cena to not be the
main focus. I strongly believe if Cena were gone for at least a year, his
return would negate the “Cena sucks” jeers.
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| Orton wins Photo by WWE |
As bad as Cena winning the
World Title is, it’s overshadowed by Daniel Bryan once again looking like a
joke. Thanks to a super kick from guest referee Shawn Michaels, Daniel Bryan
failed to become a three time WWE champion in the span of two months. After the
match, I commented on Twitter that WWE should stick a fork in Bryan, as he’s
officially been Zigglered. Even if he wins the title in the coming months, the
current storyline has devalued him to the point where I don’t know if fans
would buy into him being a credible champion.
In the last five years, how
many legitimate main event wrestlers has WWE created? The only name I can think
of that may fit the bill is Sheamus. But I’m not even sure if he’s at that
level. The lack of trusting anyone other than Cena or Attitude Era wrestlers to
be the focus of shows is hindering WWE’s enjoyment factor for me. Maybe I’m the
only one who feels this way.
Last week, I said I was done
watching TNA. This week, I’m going to say that with the exception of NXT, I
think it’s time I take a break from WWE programming. I’ll still keep up to date
on what’s happening and will still make plans to attend Wrestlemania 30, though
that’s more for the chance to hang out with friends from around the world than
about the show. But as for watching RAW or Smackdown on a regular basis, I’m
done.
So look for more pop culture
blogs in the future. At least until the return of Chikara.
