411 Fact or Fiction Wrestling: Is Chyna a Hall of Famer?

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: First up is Tony Acero! He battles Jack Stevenson!

Questions were sent out Monday.

Participants were told to expect wrestling-related content, as well as possible statements on quantum physics, homemade pharmaceuticals, the Turtle Total Trip Theorem and hydroponics.

1. Despite backlash from part of the WWE audience, the company will stay the course and main event WrestleMania 31 with Roman Reigns challenging Brock Lesnar for the WWE Title.

Tony Acero: FACT – Although rumors as recently as tonight dictate that the main event of Mania may very well be a Triple Threat, I feel that the stubbornness that is Vince McMahon will be the be all, end all. After all, they’ve firmly decided on Reigns as the next big thing. Bryan is a mere speed bump, albeit a strong one that we fans stick firmly behind. After RAW, I’m not sure which direction they want to go with Reigns (although it looks like he’ll be heel for one night, at least), but I can’t seem them altering their card for us again, with the same guy, even if I don’t see a problem with said alteration. This is all with the strong hopes that I am wrong. I wouldn’t mind Bryan in the main event come Mania, and a Triple Threat could make for a much better match. Still, the end result would be Reigns winning the title, and although our good buddy Bryan may be ok with that, I fear the crowd would turn on it.

Jack Stevenson: FICTION – When the questions were sent, the received wisdom was that it would be Reigns-Lesnar in the ‘Mania main event, but since that time it’s become apparent that Daniel Bryan is likely to be shoehorned in to create a Triple Threat that hopefully will satisfy all corners of the increasingly fragmented WWE universe. So, my heart hitting analysis in response to this question is “I heard through the Observer that they’re changing the main event.” Quality journalism! Where’s my Pulitzer? Where is my wrestling Pulitzer?

2. You have no interest in WWE booking Chael Sonnen or Wanderlei Silva in any capacity.

Tony Acero: FICTION – The truth is, I have very little interest, but still interest. I’m not really sure what either of the two would or could do for us, the audience, or the WWE, the product. Sure, the names are strong, but the two crowds don’t really mix, do they? I mean, at the very least, I know a few wrestling fans that are UFC fans, but it hardly ever goes the other direction. Because of that, I don’t see what these guys bring to the table, if not fans, and if that’s the case, then why waste the money on them? Of course, this could all be a negated argument when we find out that they’re signed for a one-off appearance, right?

Jack Stevenson: FICTION – I am at best a very casual follower of MMA, but even I know who Chael Sonnen and Wanderlei Silva are. I know that Sonnen is charismatic and controversial and interested in wrestling, and if I remember correctly Silva’s nickname was at one point ‘The Axe Murderer,’ so that suggests he’s at least got some kind of impressive physical presence about him. WWE rarely uses its celebrity guests in a particularly compelling way but I think all things considered these two fight humans have as much a chance of anyone as actually bringing something worthwhile to the card. I would be more interested in, say, a tag match pitting Big Show and Kane against Sonnen and Silva than I would Ziggler and Ryback, particularly considered Show’s match with Floyd Mayweather at WrestleMania 24 was such a baffling, outstanding success. I suppose they could get involved in an angle as well, be guest enforcer referees or something? Maybe they could do a stirring duet of America the Beautiful to open the show? All of these things have the potential to be entertaining. There are definitely capacities where Sonnen and/or Silva could be put to use.

3. Chyna deserves to be in the WWE Hall of Fame.

Tony Acero: FACT – I mean, it’s the WWE Hall of Fame, so the legitimacy is somewhat iffy. It’s sad because Triple H was right in that for everything she has done for the product, she does deserve to be in the WWE, but at the same time, she’s done way more than just be in porn to ruin her chance to be a part of the ceremony. Truth be told, just take a look at all she’s said since the question has been brought up. From all that I’ve seen, she wouldn’t be in it to highlight her legacy, instead she’s in it for the ego and the money. Everything that she has said since the question came up has simply caused me to roll my eyes, which makes it hard to truly defend her spot in there. So, does she deserve it? I think as a performer and wrestler and a game-changer, yes. But as a person…eh.

Jack Stevenson: FACT – She’s far from one of the all time greats or anything, but if Rikishi can carve a Hall of Fame worthy career out of gyrating his flabby, partially naked arse in the face of his hapless opponents for supposedly comic effect, then Chyna, the first and so far only female wrestler in WWE to have a lengthy, credible run competing against men, should absolutely receive a Hall of Fame berth. The argument about her adult film career not being compatible with PG WWE has been pretty comprehensively dismantled; Sunny is in and there are only slightly less explicit images of her available on the internet, Steve Austin is in despite pleading no contest to domestic abuse, Jimmy Snuka is in and he fucking murdered his girlfriend. Morality is demonstrably irrelevant to WWE when it comes to deciding who should be allowed to cross the threshold of the Hall of Fame, and I think this public snubbing of Chyna shows how illogical and misogynistic attitudes still are towards female sex workers in the Western world. If she’d settled for simply twice posing for Playboy, she’d be in the Hall of Fame already.

SWITCH!

4. You’re more excited for NXT Takeover: Rival than WWE Fast Lane.

Jack Stevenson: FACT – I’m super excited for Reigns-Bryan at Fast Lane because I think it will be a really good, interesting match and it will be fascinating to see how WWE contrives its finish to get both men into the main event (if that is indeed the direction they’re going in). The rest of the card will probably be uninspiring though, if John Cena and Rusev have a great match in them they’ll probably save it for WrestleMania and the undercard will largely be thrown together in a hurry. Takeover; Rival looks fabulous. Zayn-Owens could be a real epic, full of emotion and drama. Balor-Neville should be superb as well, and the Female Fatal Four Way could challenge for Match of the Night honors if it’s constructed with rhyme and reason. The other three matches seem solid, they probably won’t hit the real high notes but they’ll be enjoyable enough. I think there’s a strong chance that Takeover: Rival will have a representative come year’s end on the Match of the Year list that I obsessively update and tinker with, which I can’t say for Fast Lane, so it’s fairly obvious which show is the more exciting proposition.

Tony Acero: FICTION – The right answer is FACT, right? This is the Internet, and NXT is made for us. And the truth is, I’m very, very interested in Rival, especially considering the card and the emotion that it carries. But that doesn’t change the fact that if I had to choose, I’d choose Fast Lane. Lucky for us, we don’t have to choose, and get to enjoy both! It’s not because I think Fast Lane has the better card, or that I don’t think NXT is going to blow Fast Lane out of the water with its wrestling. No, I firmly believe that the comparison of NXT and the WWE is rather dumb and makes little sense, even though I’ve seen comparisons all around for months now. Fast Lane is, and will be, hopefully, a fun and entertaining card that really puts us on the road to Mania, because I cannot lie…I feel like we’ve been on a road, but certainly not to Mania.

5. You have no interest in the ROH 13th Anniversary PPV

Jack Stevenson: FICTION – Awkwardly situated just a couple of weeks before the frenzy of WrestleMania weekend, and headlined by a Four Way championship match that would scream of mediocrity if it wasn’t so crushed by its own depressing averageness that it simply didn’t have the spirit to raise its voice above a whisper, ROH’s 13th Anniversary show is far from must see PPV. I wouldn’t say I have zero interest in it though- indeed, the other three matches announced seem like they could be pretty darn good. Alberto El Patron and Jay Lethal could well steal the show; the two are among the most polished, well-rounded grapplers on the ROH roster and they should be able to put on a smooth and satisfying encounter. AJ Styles and ACH could be excellent as well, with the former better than he’s ever been and the latter the most rawly exciting talent ROH have. At the very least it will be a noteworthy clash between two of the best high flyers of their respective generations. ReDragon and The Young Bucks have clashed for tag team gold numerous times before and so another rematch doesn’t exactly leap out at you, but it will still surely be a really good contest. I won’t be buying the show immediately, but if it gets good reviews I might get the DVD release later in the year. It has the potential to be a strong event.

Tony Acero: FICTION – I was actually supposed to go to this show before plans fell through, so I can’t fully say I have NO interest. I most likely won’t go out of my way to watch it, but that’s not the product’s fault. The card looks strong, and the main event is going to be something to watch. ROH is simply one of those products that I haven’t given a lot of time to. And no, there is no sound or just argument in the comments that will dictate the amount of hours I give to “wrestling,” so it’s best not to try and lambast me for simply being unaware or somewhat uninterested. With that being said, I may very well look up a match or two after the event if word of mouth warrants as much. But to question my interest, like I said, I damned near went to the show before issues arose, so there is obviously some semblance of interest.

6. The Kevin Owens vs. Sami Zayn video package produced for the NXT Takeover: Rival special is the kind of thing the needs to be done for the main roster feuds.

Jack Stevenson: FACT – I love video packages like this. They’re humanizing, and that’s something that could benefit a guy like Roman Reigns so much. They went a decent way to achieving that with the Raw after the Rumble where he confronted Brock Lesnar and his rich heritage in the wrestling industry was brought up, but by having him sit down and explain, calmly and without cringeworthy scripted jokes and smug, labored threats, why he entered the wrestling industry, why he cares about the business, why he wants the WWE Championship more than anything in the world… I mean, I’d still be cheering for Daniel Bryan, and the match with Lesnar would probably still be middling at best, but at least Reigns winning the WWE Championship wouldn’t feel like some frustrating inevitability, it would seem like the culmination of a deep ambition, of hard work and sacrifice. Right now, it doesn’t feel like there was any jeopardy in Reigns’ rise to power, it was all too straight forward for him. For Zayn and Owens, that video package makes it clear that their paths to where they are now were fraught with difficulty and disappointment, and we want our heroes to experience those emotions, to feel on a grander scale the things that we feel on a day to day basis. If video packages like that could demonstrate that the WWE’s top superstars that aren’t named ‘Daniel Bryan’ have those same human vulnerabilities and challenges, the company would be much better off for utilizing them.

Tony Acero: FACT – But only to a degree. Remember the video packages WWE used to do? Like “My Way,” and the like? Well, this felt kind of like that in that it gives the match a more “epic” feel to it, like it’s super important. We just don’t get that feeling anymore. This is not to say that the video packages we do get aren’t good; they’re great, actually. No, this is more a knock on the writing leading up to the matches that the video hinges itself on. The Owens vs. Zayn story didn’t start in NXT, and it’s great that they acknowledge that. The video is proof that a good story can only enhance a good storyline, and great performers can take that to the next level, a level I can’t wait to see.