wrestling / Columns
411 Fact or Fiction Wrestling: Has Chris Jericho’s Latest Run Been a Disappointment?
Welcome back to the latest edition of 411 Fact or Fiction, Wrestling Edition! Stuff happened, people loved/hated it and let everyone else know. I pick through the interesting/not so interesting tidbits and then make 411 staff members discuss them for your pleasure. Battling this week are 411’s Mike Chin and Mitch Nickelson!
1. WWE Extreme Rules was the best WWE PPV of 2016.
Mike Chin: FACT – I am a complete and utter WrestleMania mark, so my heart makes this a tough decision, but my head says this is an easy call (if we’re not counting NXT). The Intercontinental Championship match was an early MOTYC, Roman Reigns vs. AJ Styles delivered at about it’s maximum potential, and Seth Rollins’s return was the perfect cherry on top. While I was a little let down with the opener and a lot let down by the Asylum Match, all in all, this show was easy to watch, more good than bad, and its highlights were pretty great. That earns the nod from me for 2016 so far.
Mitch Nickelson: FICTION – Extreme Rules was a pretty good show, highlighted by a fantastic Intercontinental Championship Match as well as a stellar WWE Title Match. I would not call it the best PPV of 2016 or even the best PPV of 2016 so far. Assuming that NXT is excluded, Royal Rumble takes the top spot for me at this point. The Owens vs. Ambrose Last Man Standing Match as well as the Rumble itself is what’s keeping it as the best for me. Even so, I’m hoping that WWE’s best PPV is still on the horizon.
2. While we can all agree that Cody Rhodes could have been booked better than he was, he was never going to be the “star quarterback/WWE world champion” like he wanted.
Mike Chin: FACT – This is a tough one because I feel that his promo skills, character work, and in-ring ability mean he really could have been the guy, but when you factor in Vince McMahon’s bias toward bigger bodies and the fact that Cody’s run was completely overlapped by John Cena, not to mention his successor Roman Reigns, and guys like CM Punk and Daniel Bryan who could arguably match or exceed all of Cody’s best talents, I don’t think it was ever going to happen for him–or at least not in a sustained away–in the contemporary WWE.
Mitch Nickelson: FACT – I’ll agree with this statement only because of how it’s worded. Was he ever going to be a top dog in WWE? No, but could he have been if he was given the opportunity? Absolutely. There are plenty of talented wrestlers who could be the face of the company but WWE simply goes in another direction. When he was ‘fired’ a couple of years back after losing in a match to Randy Orton, WWE could’ve easily used that as a catalyst to the main event. Instead, that story resulted in the formation of a tag team with his brother. That was still an enjoyable period in his career, but I wondered at the time why he didn’t get a receipt on Orton directly since he was the guy who defeated him. Even with the looming brand split, the best he could’ve hoped for recurring spot in the IC or US Title division.
3. Chris Jericho’s latest WWE run has been a disappointment.
Mike Chin: FACT – It feels as though there’s always a buzz when Chris Jericho comes back, and unfortunately that buzz withers more quickly with just about every iteration. Jericho vs. AJ Styles should have been a dream match that extended into a dream feud, but the guys never really elevated past three-star territory. The Dean Ambrose program, similarly, should have been great but never seemed to decide if it were a comedy feud or a blood feud, and thus didn’t really succeed as either. While I do feel Jericho still has a place as a veteran and as a big name, if this run has proven anything, it’s that he’s best as a true part-time special attraction, or as a smaller piece of the puzzle if he is to be a sustained presence (having a veteran spot in Money in the Bank actually feels reasonably promising).
Mitch Nickelson: FICTION – Ever since the splitting apart of Y2AJ, Chris Jericho has become one of the best heels that WWE has. It is true that the babyface period that directly preceded his current incarnation rubbed many the wrong way because of things like “Rooty Tooty Booty,” but at least it sort of paved the way for what we’re getting now. At the very least, his “Stupid Idiot” insult is something we can all agree on as working. Seeing him in the upcoming Money in the Bank ladder match is a good fit because he’s doing great work right now. There are others that I’d wish would win it ahead of him but I wouldn’t complain if he did.
SWITCH!
4. While personal disappointment in how they were used is understandable, no one should be surprised that guys like Wade Barrett and Cody Rhodes chose to leave WWE after 10-years and frustrations with creative.
Mitch Nickelson: FICTION – I’ll start by wholeheartedly agreeing with the first part of this statement. Of course Barrett and Rhodes would’ve been disappointed with how their careers have turned out. They both have an immense amount of potential. They both had the ability – from their looks to their in-ring skills – to be top-level stars but never really got there. Or better stated, what time they had flirting with the upper card was never sustained enough to hold them there. I’m calling Fiction for this one because despite their discontent it is still shocking that someone would choose to leave the biggest game in town. I guess more and more alternatives are emerging for wrestlers, and that’s a very good thing, but WWE is still the most secure paycheck. Walking away is a huge risk. There’s no guarantee that greener pastures are waiting. They could find a career revitalization like Drew Galloway or Matt Sydal, and I hope they do, but it can only happen on a smaller stage for almost certainly less money. It surprises me that they’d walk away but I admire the risk that they’re taking.
Mike Chin: FACT – While wrestling may not have a big two or big three set up nowadays, I like to think we have settled into a nice spot in which guys–especially guys who have saved money over the years, but aren’t creatively fulfilled–can justify walking from WWE in favor of Lucha Underground, TNA, ROH, the US independent scene, or Japan. Guys like Barrett and Rhodes likely won’t have more financially comfortable careers away from the ‘E, but if their bank accounts are in order, I completely understand their choice to seek out other opportunities.
5. Kevin Owens SHOULD WIN the Money in the Bank match.
Mitch Nickelson: FICTION – I wouldn’t be upset if any of these 5 guys that are already announced for this wins instead but Kevin Owens is among the best in that grouping. (Wait, Del Rio’s was added on SmackDown? Okay, I’d be a little upset if HE won it.) He’s arguably the most well rounded performer that WWE has right now. Considering WWE mutes any crowd that gets a little too out of hand with their Roman Reigns jeers, a heel that can attract all the negativity off of their opponent and place it onto themself like KO can is exactly what’s needed in the main event. Despite all of his positives, I’m calling this fiction because the man that SHOULD win the briefcase is none other than Dean Ambrose…hear me out. I still feel like WWE owes me a Shield triple threat main event at a WrestleMania and if Roman’s still the champ and Seth wins the Royal Rumble (or vice versa), then Dean will need a way into that match. The briefcase is how to make that happen. Is anybody else wanting the first 3way between these guys to happen on The Grandest Stage of Them All? I can live with myself if I’m the only one.
Mike Chin: FICTION – I very much like and respect Kevin Owens, and if WWE is to follow the traditional Money in the Bank booking of a sleazy heel stealing the title at an opportune moment, he’s as good or a better pick than the rest of the field. I think a fresher story would be more interesting for Money in the Bank, however, and therefore would posit that Cesaro or Sami Zayn is the more promising choice, to screw a heel down the road, facilitate a big-time turn (Cesaro, not Zayn who should only be face for the foreseeable future), or create a situation in which one of them, like RVD, puts himself in a PPV main event position and challenges for the gold honorably, as a fresh world title contender (win or lose).
6. At this stage of the game, you have no desire to see Velvet Sky signed by WWE.
Mitch Nickelson: FACT – I feel like a jerk for saying I don’t want to see Velvet Sky in WWE but that is my case. It’s not because I think she’s terrible or anything, it’s just that I don’t really know much about her. I’ve missed most of TNA’s existence but started becoming a regular viewer when wrestling writing became more of a job for me over a year ago. Velvet had her spot in the Beautiful People but I’m thinking that the bulk of the stuff happened with them before my tenure watching this show. Has she ever been a great promo or put in good work in the ring? I’ve never heard anyone recommend anything that I had to go back and watch. Feel free to suggest a good match if they exist and I’ll give her shot. Her real-life relationship with Bubba Ray would be an act to join in with if the Dudleyz were doing anything other than losing but when was the last time they got a big win on any team? WWE isn’t investing too much into what they have with that tag team so I see no reason to expand them.
Mike Chin: FACT – Velvet Sky would be a clear cut square peg in a round hole for the modern women’s division in WWE–a competent worker who can’t contend with the likes of Sasha Banks, Becky Lynch, Emma, Paige, or Charlotte, who I also suspect doesn’t fit the WWE mold for eye candy at this point. While there’d be a little novelty in seeing another figure from TNA’s better days finally make it to WWE, that’s not reward enough to justify signing her in 2016.
7. If you’re TNA, you try your hardest to sign Cody Rhodes, Damien Sandow and Wade Barrett
Mitch Nickelson: FACT – I’m offering an enthusiast FACT on this one. TNA has been a decent show over recent months but lacks any big buzz about itself. Any one of these guys could be the catalyst to bring some interest back into their product. Neither Rhodes nor Sandow nor Barrett can claim to have slipped down WWE’s card any lower than 3MB like Drew Galloway was. Now, he is a prime example of a career revitalization done right. Add these guys alongside the upper card of EC3, Mike Bennett, and Bobby Lashley and you’ve got a quality top tier. None of these three will push TNA ratings back up into the millions just on name value alone, but I could imagine a 6 digit spike for at least the first few weeks that they join the roster. As long as they’re given the same treatment as the current TNA Champion, they could make a difference. If I was Dixie Carter, I’d offer a few pink slips to free up whatever money can be scraped together to nab at least one of these guys.
Mike Chin: FICTION – I like them all and any given one of these guys has the potential to be a contributor, but part of what dug TNA the hole it seems to be perpetually digging its way out of these past few years is an over-reliance on bringing in ex-WWE guys for star power. I don’t suspect any of these guys will move the ratings needle significantly at this point, so unless TNA has very specific and long-term plans for them, and they’re willing to take mid-card salaries, they would be tough additions to justify at this point. Aside from all of that, I could actually see Cody thriving more in an environment like Lucha Underground where his smaller size wouldn’t be a factor anymore and there would be all sorts of opportunities for his creative side and personality to shine.
