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411 Fact or Fiction Wrestling: Is Corey Graves NXT’s Biggest Success Story?
Image Credit: WWE
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 Tony Acero debate!
1. Corey Graves is NXT’s biggest success story.
Len Archibald: FICTION – This is honestly the hardest FoF question I have ever had to answer. To be honest, how I feel about this could depend on the day. If anyone told me years back that NXT Tag Champ Corey Graves would end up becoming the new voice of WWE (he has overtaken Michael Cole I feel at this point), I would have laughed, and maybe slapped you a few times. Once he announced his retirement and his stint as a commentator, there were some middling doubts. It wasn’t arguable that Graves could talk and had presence, but so can Booker T and his translation into a commentator has been…interesting. Graves’ rise up the ladder as pretty much the voice of everything WWE in the past couple years is that of a fairy tale and perhaps if this question was worded differently (WWE’s biggest success story) I would have been more than happy to agree. But Seth Rollins walks and breathes on this earth. First NXT Champion. First grad from NXT to become WWE Champ. First man to cash in MitB at WrestleMania. First man to hold the WWE and US Title at the same time. First NXT grad to grace the WWE 2K cover. A multiple WWE Champion in some capacity and perennial main eventer making media rounds. Again, this is an answer that could go either way, but today I have to go fiction. Graves probably wants both Enzo and Elias to kick my ass now. Sorry, dude.
Tony Acero: FICTION – I suppose this question is pretty subjective considering the definition of success is differently by most people; even when it pertains to wrestling. For instance, my immediate response to this statement is that Kevin Owens is arguably much more successful than Graves, but one could argue that Owens was something bigger than NXT even when he first appeared between the yellow ropes. Still, rather than claim that Graves is the biggest success story, I will say that he is one of the best examples of making the most of what is readily available and at your disposal. Graves, the wrestler, was fun to watch, but didn’t blow my mind. When he announced his shift into announcing, I was happy mainly because he found a way to keep within the world that he so obviously loves. Then he went on to become a standout in the booth, and a man they could depend on to be different enough to be liked by us IWC pundits, yet still be able to carry on as a voice of the WWE. I could only imagine what it’s like to have Vince in your ear spewing off idioms that simply don’t work in 2017, and being able to turn those into something interesting and likeable. That alone is a testament to Graves’ strengths. If anything, there’s no denying that Graves is a huge success story branching out of the NXT brand, but there’s a few others out there that started there and stood atop the world like Seth, Owens, and even Finn for a small second.
2. You are glad that JBL will no longer be doing commentary full time for WWE.
Len Archibald: FACT OVER 9000 – THIS is the question that warrants a “no explanation needed.” I should end it here. Mic drop. Boom. Walk away. But I would like to bask in this. As JBL would say himself, “it is morning in America once again!” Hallelujah, hallelujah, spaghetti monster. Look, JBL was one of the absolute bright spots in 2006 – 2007 as a commentator. Him and Michael Cole were the best 2-man team in WWE at the time. Upon his return, though. Ugh. This was not the same man. This was someone, who, honestly, wanted to cash his checks. There is a hatred for JBL for his life outside WWE and/or how he treats fellow superstars. I have my own opinions, but solely about his commentary work I am more than happy he has seen his last days. Because he sucked big fat elephant dicks covered in camel shit dripping in the sewage sweat of a transformers’ swinging fucking bloody balls.
Tony Acero: FACT – I read the announcement early morning, directly from the horse’s mouth, and immediately smiled for a hell of a lot of reasons: One – JBL would be doing something he feels is fulfilling and wonderful, two – I wouldn’t have to put up with the caricature that he has become as an announcer any more with the exception of a few dates. JBL was once a pretty damned good commentator who highlighted the wrestlers, the moves, the international inspiration they derived from, and the importance of wrestling in general. I don’t really know what happened, but I do know that the man who once was disappeared when he returned this last time. Of course, this was heightened by his alleged treatment of Mauro, who was the brightest spot of the Smackdown announce team – even with his little quirks. No, JBL quickly Matt Striker’d his most recent run, and it was a damned shame. He didn’t work well with Cole prior to the split, and he couldn’t step up after the split. I’m extremely glad with the decision JBL made. Thank you.
3. WWE running Monday Night Raw live on Christmas night is complete bullshit.
Len Archibald: FICTION – I must have missed the memo why this is a bad thing. Wrestling fans are RABID. For some, attending Raw on Christmas is the ultimate gift from Xanta Claus. WWE is a business, if they can get people to come they will. Some families are wrestling fanatics. What better bonding time is there than to watch Roman Reigns adjust his vest as chestnuts roast on an open fire? Long story short: the people who want to be at Raw live on Christmas will be there, the people who don’t need to watch that evening can DVR, go on demand, or watch on Hulu the next night. That is what I will be doing. So much outrage! Grr.
Tony Acero: FICTION – The emotional side of me wants to say bullshit. Simply put, the idea of working on Christmas night is pretty damned sad, yet I don’t recall it being much different even if it’s ran live. I’m almost positive that those who WANT the night off to be with their family will be given said night off, and those who don’t will be highlighted on a show that will be filler. As for those who will be in attendance, I could think of any number of kids who would love tickets to a RAW show as a gift waiting for them under the tree in the morning. If the rumors are true, this a USA decision, and not a WWE decision, so with that in play, I can only imagine that there will be quite a bit of freedom as far as who will be on the show. It’s likely, The H walked into the locker room and said, “Alright, who wants to work on Christmas,” took notes on the hands, and will proceed from there.
SWITCH!
4. You’re excited that the WWE Horsewomen vs. MMA Horsewomen feud looks to be a real thing.
Tony Acero: FACT – Even if only just a little bit. Anytime the WWE can (properly) introduce real life athletes into the world of wrestling as something worth watching, it’s a relatively well put together program and entertaining in a level beyond just the WWE. This has been brewing just under the belly of the beast, and I think part of the reason the anticipation and excitement is so high is because of the time they took. There is also a special amount of props given to the fact that they took the Mae Young Classic to help sell the moments. This is all about the ladies, and it’s a beautiful thing. Once it bleeds onto Smackdown, I’m sure it won’t be nearly as anticipated because I don’t trust that staff to do anything right, but as of right now, there seems to be a nice little fire brewing under a bad ass pot of female.
Len Archibald: FACT – Ever since Ronda Rousey had that face to face with Stephanie McMahon at WrestleMania 31, there was a chance that some form of female MMA tie in would happen sooner than later. Rousey was the female equivalent of Mike Tyson with her dominance. This was before she became the female equivalent of Mike Tyson with her fall. Honestly, Rousey isn’t even my reasoning to why I am a fan of this idea: Shayna FUCKING Baszler showed up at the Mae Young Classic and established herself as the real deal – the female equivalent of Brock Lesnar that WWE have been looking for all their lives (even if they weren’t looking for her.) The shade she gave the WWE Four Horsewomen at one point dripped with attitude, the stare at the end of one of her dominating matches scared the shit out of little girls. The staredown between the three WWE and UFC representatives of the Horsewomen was great. Honestly, Sasha Banks should complete her heel turn saying she is bigger than the Horsewomen and be more focused on winning the WWE Women’s Title. Have the MMA Horsewomen lay waste to the WWE ones, complete with Baszler wrapping Bayley in a choke…When Askua appears and evens the odds. *salivates* Sorry, I just drooled on my shirt with that bit of BS fantasy booking. Either way, I will buy this feud for a dollar.
5. The Finn Balor vs. Bray Wyatt feud has not been good.
Tony Acero: FACT – Amen to that. Look, Bray is one of those guys who can survive any number of losses due to his continued ability to cut promos that are unlike anything else and keep his character interesting, but one thing the WWE seems to Forget is that even THAT type of talent has a limit. It gets even worse when Bray comes out to the ring to say he seeks revenge on all those that beat him, loses to Seth, loses to Reigns, then loses to Balor. Where there were smoke and mirrors, now there is just smoke, and it’s trying to be blown up our ass. Bray holds nothing in his hand anymore, and it’s tiring to hear him lie about the world being held in them. Balor needs something to do, sure, but this feud is relying too much on our love for Balor without realizing that they already blew their wad. Now we have Wyatt asking for Balor to NOT be The Demon? What’s the point of that? Who wants that? Even if Bray’s twisted mind, he’s essentially saying that he is a God and couldn’t beat a demon, but he wants a go at a man. That makes no sense, even in a macabre way of outworldy nature.
Len Archibald: FACT – Do you know how a feud is not successful? When you are watching the wrestling program at hand and one of the participants of the feud appear and you then JUST REMEMBER THEY EVEN EXIST. Finn Balor…The Demon King…how do you forget he is on a show? How is that possible? Oh, yeah, Bray Fn Wyatt is the WWE’s answer to the neutralizer in Men in Black. Can someone tell me why they are fighting? Can someone point me in the direction of the one who thought this feud was a good idea in the first place? They need a good asskicking. Graves needs to send Elias and Enzo on THEM. No, that’s not good enough. Calling Brock Lesnar…
6. You like that WWE made the Raw Women’s title match at No Mercy a four-way featuring Sasha Banks vs. Nia Jax vs. Emma vs. Alexa Bliss.
Tony Acero: FACT – I mean, I guess. Honestly, the only time Nia Jax is good in the ring is when she’s in a multi-person match. She gets to look like a monster while still lending a hand in the match and the competitors. What I didn’t like was Sasha getting another title win just to lose another defense. is this a horrible build to a heel turn for Sasha? A string of title losses to make her finally snap? If so, then you’re putting a character over a title instead of a title meaning something. We don’t like losing streaks to begin with (they never work), so we sure as hell don’t want a title losing streak. Back to the Fatal Four Way, it looks like in some way, shape, or form, Emma was actually listened to and got her opportunity. Sure, she’s not going to win, but she’s getting a shot, and that’s an interesting turn of events from my seat. Nia has no right even sniffing the title, and I’m tired of seeing Sasha win just to lose. Alexa is the Goddess, and she’s damned good at it. Her winning a Fatal Four Way after a one-on-one will help to make statement, and I hope that this statement is made come No Mercy.
Len Archibald: FACT – So, this fatal four-way should have been the natural progression of things to find the WWE Women’s Champion a new solid contender. If neither Banks or Bliss lost the goddamn title in the first place. Booking BS aside, yes this is one of the few times where a clusterfuck Women’s Title Match makes sense. It is the end of summer, no one cares, WWE should use this time on the road to the Royal Rumble to take some chances to see what they got. The chance is Emma. If she impresses, she may have saved her career the way Becky Lynch saved hers in NXT facing Sasha Banks at Takeover. If she flounders…well, at least Paige will have someone to squash when she returns. I am hoping Emma does take the chance to succeed. Oh yeah, Nia Jax is there, too. Who cares about Nia when there is SHAYNA FUCKING BASZLER. Can she just take Nia’s place?
TONY ACERO: – It appears that Lenny and me being in the same Fact or Fiction for, I think, the first time ever is as good a time as any to announce a project that’s been in the works for a while now. Without spending too much time, I scoured the site for the best writer and asked him a simple question; “What do you think about the state of the WWE in 2017 thus far?” This question resulted in a conversation worthy of four columns on the only site that could handle it; 411mania.com. So with that being said, this is the official announcement of a tag team duo like no other. Len Archibald and Tony Acero take on the WWE in a No Holds Barred Match. A four week project coming only to 411mania.com Get Ready.
LEN ARCHIBALD: – Confession time: I think Bossman put myself and Ace (can I call him Ace, is that even allowed?) together as a practice round of something really cool we have been cooking up. I was asked to put something together with Tony and was honored to participate. Because of the size of my ego (thanks, 411 readers!) we figured that whatever reason to dig this corpse up would have to be pretty substantial. I have been watching a lot of wrestling, LOTS of WWE – but I have been following wrestling from around the world as a whole and have been awed at how much the landscape has changed in terms of global outreach, progression of gender roles, media consumption, etc. and figured that now would be an amazing time to reflect on all of these. Obviously professional wrestling is something important to myself and Acero and we both consider it a viable artorm – we wouldn’t all be here if we didn’t believe this. Stay tuned: we are about to enter a new state soon.
