wrestling / Columns
411 Fact or Fiction Wrestling: Is Owens as Champion The Right Call?
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 Len Archibald and Justin Watry!
1. WWE made the right call by crowning Kevin Owens as the new Universal Champion.
Len Archibald: FACT – Biases aside because Owens is a fellow Canuck, yes, this was the right decision to make. Actually, Boss Larry made a great case as to why in his own column, but instead of parroting the same talking points, I will attempt some semblance of independent thought. Kevin Owens is arguably the most organic superstar on the main WWE roster; he arrived as NXT Champion and was treated as a major player, defeating John Cena in his first main roster pay per view. From there, Owens made his rounds in the mid-card, but was never overexposed and he always made the most out of the time given. Owens has been consistent with his match output and promos, toeing the line between annoying heel and entertaining tweener nicely. He has an ongoing, never-ending feud with Sami Zayn that brought in a built in audience. Owens has hit the sweet spot in his career and even though the unfortunate injury to Finn Balor placed KO in a “right time, right place” circumstance, he is still new AND credible enough via his past work to be seen on the level of World (Universal) Champion. Reigns and Rollins would have been each a step back into the past (however recent that past is) and Big Cass winning could have backfired as fans may see a reign as too much too soon. Owens can be a dastardly heel or step into role of anti-authority face and run with it as champion. Good call to continue the “New Era”.
Justin Watry: FACT – There was no other choice when looking at it from all angles. Seth Rollins was the safe choice, but since he didn’t win at Summerslam, that told you WWE wasn’t going back to him. If they were, he would have got the championship last Sunday. He didn’t. Certainly was not going to be Big Cass. I was super impressed with his demeanor on Monday though. Dude is more than just a tall guy if you ask me. His time is not now. That left Roman Reigns, and as much as I would have LOVED to see it (just for the reaction), the fact is he has held the WWE World Title three times in the past year. Not much of a “new era” with him holding a title on top of RAW…again. That left Kevin Owens, who is relatively young at age 32, new and fresh to the WWE Universe having just debuted last year, has been injury free, delivered good matches and great promos. With Survivor Series being in Canada and the NXT takeover in full effect, it had to be Kevin Owens. Amazing how one Roman Reigns suspension and one unfortunate injury from Finn Balor has led to THIS!
2. While Ryback makes several of the same points that CM Punk made upon his WWE departure, Ryback doesn’t get the same support because he’s a muscle head and not an indy darling.
Len Archibald: FICTION – This is a totally unfair question posed to me, as Punk is my favorite wrestler, so again…biases and all. At the same time, I have not seen Ryback not get the “same” support from fans – at least not on 411. In all actuality, I think Ryback has recieved support from the IWC because some of his points about wrestler pay, taxes, insurance and knowing one’s worth are extremely valid and universal. If the story about WWE not allowing The Big Guy to participate in the Muscle and Fitness shoot is true, it is a truly boneheaded decision and I would not fault him if that was the straw that broke the camel’s back. Yes, at times it may seem like the IWC is some sort of hive-mind of drones…droning on about the same cliches about indy darlings, WWEvil, CENAWINSLOL, etc., but I still believe when a performer makes a good argument about certain changes the industry needs to take, no matter their status as either indy darling or “meathead”, they will be commended for it. I wish The Big Guy all the luck in the world.
Justin Watry: FACT – It is 100% true, and that is too bad. CM Punk mostly talked a bunch of nonsense in his laughable podcast interview with Colt Cabana. Yet, since it was the internet darling who bashed the big evil corporation, he was called a hero and hoisted up on our shoulders around town…until his supposed facts got dissected one by one, and he was sued. Now two years later, we await his UFC debut and whatever else he plans to do once he turns 38 years old. Ryback? Well, he has muscles, works out, doesn’t have a history in Ring of Honor, so when he speaks out, fans want no part of what he has to say. Same words, different man – two opposite reactions. As I wrote in my column on Monday, I agreed with some of what Ryback said but also disagreed as well. Long rambling short, yes, there is absolutely bias.
3. The Dudleyz’s return to WWE was largely a waste of time.
Len Archibald: FACT – Yeah, the Dudleyz were pretty much a non-factor in the year they were with WWE, weren’t they? No title runs, not even a compelling chase for the WWE Tag Titles; no potential Bully Ray run, pedestrian matches and barely any promo time for the Dudleyz to explain…almost any reason why they were doing…anything. Sure, they took some losses to lend credibility to the younger teams, but with no discernable storyline or heat behind it, what was the point? It’s super disappointing as well because the Dudleyz are the most decorated team in history. You would think the WWE would have run that into the ground to get another team a significant rub. But, I am just a lowly columnist. I know nothing, Jon Snow.
Justin Watry: FICTION – The Dudleyz made it clear from day one their goal was to return to WWE, have one final run with the company, and work with newer/younger tag teams to improve the division. They succeeded on all of that. Just like the Brock Lesnar topic, you can’t have it both way. Pick a side. I guarantee you if the Dudleyz won gold and became dominant, the complaints would be flying in no time! Look at what they did in 2015 and 2016: Lost to The New Day numerous times, did the (predictable) ECW reunion to lose to The Wyatt, feuded with The Usos during WrestleMania 32 season, turned heel to battle other teams, and even on their way out, the legendary duo got beat down by The Club. One last gift to yet another tag team. Awesome return moment in Brooklyn last year and a fitting farewell 12 months later.
SWITCH!
4. WWE is wasting a Brock Lesnar appearance on another house show.
Justin Watry: FICTION – Brock Lesnar is always great to bring out the hypocrisy of fans. When Brock Lesnar wins on pay-per-view, he is BURYING(!!!!!!) a full-time talent. When Brock Lesnar loses on PPV, WWE is stupid and making him look like a fool when he should be The Beast. When Brock appears every few months, he is a bum who should work a real schedule like everybody else. When Lesnar does work more live events and matches, his luster is gone, and WWE are wasting him on pointless appearances. Never gets old, just a cycle that never ends. I am fine with the rematch happening now and NOT later on in early 2017. Get it over with now. The fact that it is on a Saturday night before a pay-per-view? Well, yeah. That is definitely strange but again, I do not have a strong opinion on it one way or another. Sell out the place and enjoy the added buzz for a weekend show.
Len Archibald: FICTION – The great debate when it comes to WWE’s business practices: where and how are they making their money and what is the best way to maximize profits? Look, the WWE Network is pretty much guaranteed money for the company and that model is going to consistently grow over the next decade barring some major catastrophe. WWE needs to look back at their money losers and begin beefing those monies back up. House show business for WWE has not been the greatest for the past five years, which is not a good look since WWE is first and foremost A TOURING COMPANY. They can have all the network subscriptions, television deals and endorsements they want, but if fans are not paying to see their live shows, they (and any other promotion) can be essentially dead in the water if they require further growth. So, the easiest and most logical step is to take WWE’s biggest draw and place him on a house show. It gives the fans an extra bang for their buck and gives the impression to future ticket buyers that someone or something major may happen when the ‘E comes into their part of town. It was the same mindset behind Samoa Joe winning the NXT Title at a house show to get people talking and rack up future ticket sales. Selfishly, fans may consider it a waste because it is one less televised appearance from The Beast, but honestly, this is just good business for their house show circuit.
5. Mick Foley’s list of top 10 WWE MVPs lacks credibility due to his omission of Roman Reigns on the list.
Justin Watry: FACT – Mick Foley? Credibility? Didn’t he smash a baseball through a TV when he was upset about a match outcome and praised the fans hijacking the result, yet he ripped the fans at Summerslam for the exact same thing? Or that he would bash WWE relentlessly and ‘break up’ with them for the millionth time, until his kid gets “hired” and his family is filming a reality show for them? Yeah, needless to say, it is difficult to keep track of what the heck Mick Foley is talking about these days. He left Roman Reigns off his top ten list. Guarantee you in the future he will talk about how amazing his 2016 was, and blah, blah, blah. Before this question, I didn’t even know he had a Top Ten list, and now, I wish I had never even bothered.
Len Archibald: FICTION – Subjectivity is a major item to consider with Foley’s 10 WWE MVPs. Maybe Foley believes the ten performers listed had a bigger impact on his enjoyment of the product than Roman Reigns. Perhaps Foley feels morally obligated to be sure not to include a doper on a list of best performers to show younger fans that cheaters do not get recognition. Perhaps Foley is part of that hive-mind we rave about and just hates Roman Reigns’ guts. Who knows? What I do know is that from my POV, even though Roman Reigns has shown the improvement necessary to become the major player WWE envisions him becoming, Charlotte and Sasha Banks have taken the WWE Women’s Title to heights it has never seen before, Finn Balor helped raise NXT to the international level it enjoys, Cesaro is a consistent workhorse that always gets the crowd going, Dean Ambrose is reaching his potential once the shackles of shoddy booking fell off, Seth Rollins is Seth Fn Rollins, Sami Zayn has been in TWO MOTYCs, Chris Jericho has reinvented himself again and is one of the most entertaining aspects of RAW, AJ Styles is the best wrestler on the planet and Kevin Owens proved to everyone what the hype about him has been all about. Reasons, man. Everyone has them. Foley is neither right or wrong; credibility is in the eye of the spaghetti monster. Now, if he listed Bo Dallas…then we could have a discussion.
6. You are all in on Netflix’s G.L.O.W. series now that Alison Brie is attached to star.
Justin Watry: FICTION – I don’t even know who Alison Brie (spelling?) is. *fires up Google* Okay, she was (is?) on Community. Never seen it. Mad Men? Never watched it. Yeah, Netflix has done a great job with Making A Murdered, Stranger Things, and plenty of old movies. A GLOW series? Eh, I may check it out. I may not. Announcing Brie as a star though changes nothing.
Len Archibald: FACT – I was all in on this show as soon as it was announced. Look, I am a wrestling junkie. I am going to get my fix no matter what, and seeing a Netflix-produced show that focuses on one of the lesser known (but still cult) promotions is a win for me. It takes place in the 1980’s, so that is right in my generation and I will searching episodes for easter eggs and musical interludes that will take me back to the days of being a naive mark. Add Allison Brie to the project and G.L.O.W. may have elevated itself from campy goodness to campy goodness that may hold some weight to it with a hot lead role. I am still waiting on someone to produce either a documentary or embellished account of Wrestlelicious. Like I said, I’m a junkie. I admit I will lose points in the fan voting for this opinion.
7. Despite the buzz that the Miz’s Talking Smack promo got last week, it will largely lead to nothing.
Justin Watry: FICTION – It has already led to something. People are actually discussing Talking Smack. That alone gets WWE Network some coverage and shines a light on the Smackdown talent who have been able to let loose a little on the microphone. As for the future, I am writing this before Smackdown, so I have no idea about the immediate fallout. What I do know is that The Miz has always had a gift got gab, and it is AWESOME that he is (again) getting some attention. He is as dedicated as anybody to the wrestling business; you would think that would garner him some respect, not hatred. Either it is jealousy or something else. The Miz has a great opportunity here to look like a million bucks in and out of the ring. He already completely embarrassed Daniel Bryan on the mic with ease, so that is a start. Follow up is key of course, and no matter what that is, I will be watching.
Len Archibald: FICTION – I’m being the optimist. Here are a few things to consider: The Miz was BRILLIANT in his promo last week, so brilliant in fact that I believe he may have found himself in the midst of a WWE Title program in the future. We are also in the “Reality Era” – the whole point of how feuds and programs are started either via social media, Talking Smack, etc., is to create an organic buzz around each one of WWE’s superstars, something The Miz more than succeeded at. Then we have Daniel Bryan: AUTHORITY FIGURE, so we now have a twist on the Authority Figure storyline where the heel is the one being tormented by the face. Let’s not even get into the history between Bryan and The Miz and how they have been perfect rivals for each other. The Miz was given a platform to speak his mind, he did it extremely well and Daniel Bryan plans to address it. Whether that means D-Bry brings in a hired gun to shut The Miz up, The Miz uses this new fire to translate into a great Intercontinental Title run or even parlay that into a WWE program to prove Bryan wrong, it will lead to something. Nothing would mean that it would be forgotten next week. I don’t think that is the case.
