Csonka Looks at 5 Candidates For Goldust’s Masterpiece

– Welcome back to column time with Larry. It’s time for a look back at the Goldust and 5 candidates for his next masterpiece. On Raw, Goldust revealed that he will announce his next masterpiece at WWE Summerslam. With the program with R-Truth failing to capture the interest of the “WWE Universe,” word is that Goldust may be transitioning to a managerial role and that his next masterpiece will be his new protégé. I feel that this is a great chance to bring up someone from NXT or to bring back someone from the main roster that hasn’t been used in forever. I hope that you enjoy, and feel free to share your thoughts on who it may be. The only rule is “have a take, be respectful of other’s opinions and don’t be a dick.” We all have opinions, we’re going to disagree, just be cool about it.

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Mandy Rose: First up is NXT’s Mandy Rose. She’s young (26) and has been working hard in NXT on live events. I have heard nothing but good things about her effort and willingness to improve. Also, she’s a gorgeous young lady and can pull off the “golden” look for sure. Rose would certainly be a project if she were to be brought up, as she’s only been working since January of 2016, but has worked approximately 125 matches since then. That’s more than double the matches Lana has worked (approximately 47), and hell, she’s on TV so why not take the chance on new blood. She can work main roster live events, working with more experienced performers as they prepare her for a full time wrestling role. Bringing her in a “Marlena 2k18” type of role may be a great way to introduce her on the main roster, giving her TV time with Goldust to talk her up as his new muse/protégé until the story progresses and Goldust can announce and promote her big premiere as a wrestler. Rose is a risk due to her inexperience, but you have to give her a chance at some point and trying to make new stars is never a bad thing. If she fails, ship her back to NXT. If she fails spectacularly and shows she doesn’t have what it takes in anyway, shape or form cut bait and release her.

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Summer Rae: You may not realize this, but Summer Rae has been with WWE since 2011, starting back in FCW. She was a favorite of Dusty Rhodes, and was given the role of FCW General Manager and did well with the part. But with the birth of NXT, her roles became erratic; she did ring announcing, she occasionally wrestled and then played a major role in the NXT heel turn of Sasha Banks, leading to the Beautiful Fierce Females, which later added Charlotte. She then did a stint as Fandango’s dance partner, had a string of forgettable matches, and then got tossed to the curb by Fandango for Layla. She filmed the Marine 4, and then returned for a horrible feud with Layla. Summer Rae was “interchangeable blonde #5,” being placed into associations with Ziggler, Sandow, and then Tyler Breeze, where it appeared she landed in a role she could thrive in. That ended for no real reason, and she has been largely absent since just after WM 32 due to injury issues. While the recent injury issues have certainly held her back, WWE never really invested in Summer Rae from a creative point. When given a real chance, like in the Fandango & Breeze pairings, she did well. I have mentioned in my Raw reviews that bringing her back after such a long time off in a “Marlena 2k18” type of role could work. She’s established she can work in tandem with male performers, and Goldust would be a great character for her to play off of. They would just need to actually stick with it and give it time, she’s been under contract since 2011, and you have to see if something is there with her by giving her a real chance. And if she gets the chance, a real chance, and fails to deliver, cut bait and release her at this point.

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The Iconic Duo (Billie Kay & Peyton Royce): While they haven’t won any gold in NXT, I firmly believe that The Iconic Duo have done all that they can in NXT at this point. Right now they play the role of roadblock/gatekeeper to the next challenger for the NXT Women’s title and fill space on live events. Now those are important roles to be sure, but they feel completely stalled and like they haven’t evolved in forever. They badly need a change of scenery, they need new challenges and the women’s main roster could use some fresh faces. The Iconic Duo is a very over the top, sports entertainment oriented act that to me feels as if they would work really well on the main roster. Bringing them up and having then sit under the learning tree of Goldust would be a great way to bring them up and learn the ropes of the main roster; Goldust has a ton to offer as a teacher and mentor, and while he can still go in the ring, I feel that his skills would be best used in a role like this. Kay is 28, and has been under a WWE contract since 2015 while Royce is 24, also signed since 2015. Unless a big push is coming in NXT, they need to be moved up and utilized to the best of their abilities. I can only handle so many poorly done selfie video skits.

The Velveteen Dream: I went woman heavy with the column, because they were the first names that came to mind. And then I started to examine the male roster members, and the first and only name that popped out to me as a possible candidate was The Velveteen Dream. The Velveteen Dream (Patrick Clark) is only 21 years old, has been working since 2014, and has over 160 matches under his belt. The early Goldust character was over the top, overly sexual and played off of the homophobia of not only his opponents, but the crowds as well. His NXT TV time has been extremely limited, but I’ve heard nothing but good things about his wok on NXT live events, and the small exposure he’s had on NXT TV shows he has good character control and plays to the audience well. If they are going to move forward with an overly sexual that will play into the homosexual themes, who better than the man that reinvented himself from a cowboy/son of a plumber’s son in Goldust. I have mentioned before, working with Goldust could be a huge opportunity for someone, to sit under the learning tree, to ride the roads and to even work with him in the ring (in this case they could team for a while, as he gets on the job training on live events). This seems like the exact kind of character Vince McMahon and Kevin Dunn would want to run with. The one hang up I can see with him is not lack of experience, and I am going to compare apples to oranges here, but his age may keep him in NXT for a while. I think that WWE is terrified to bring up someone so young after all of the issues they have had with Paige.

– End scene.

– Thanks for reading.

“Byyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyye Felicia!”