High Road/Low Road 10.17.08: The Boogeyman

Welcome back to the High Road/Low Road!

A brief explanation of the column: Uncletrunx takes the Low Road (negative view) on angles, gimmicks, and other wrestling related “stuff” while Sat takes the High Road (positive view).

The Results for Carlito and Primo has the Tag Team Champions:

High Road: 42%
Low Road: 25%
Both Roads: 33%

The Boogeyman

High Road:
The Boogeyman is one of those guys that is willing to do anything for his character and I think that this is something that we do not see out of every competitor. This guy has been eating worms, crawling to the ring, getting his teeth knocked out for his character and banging a clock over his head. You are not going to find a wrestler, who is willing to do this much for his character.

Low Road:
This may shock you, but I agree with this. Unusually for one of those infernal “internet wrestling writers”, I don’t hate the Boogeyman. What I do think is that the character needs to move on a little if he is to be a success. Much like our recent column on Kozlov, I think Boogeyman needs a little more depth to the character. That may sound strange considering that it is deliberately played as a cartoon gimmick but I’ll expand on it in my next few sections.

High Road:
The Boogeyman deserves a ton of credit because he is awesome in all of the backstage segments that he has participated in. The Boogeyman has been in some memorable backstage segments such as the one at WrestleMania 23 or the one where he was talking about a spoonful of sugar. The Boogeyman is one of those guys that the WWE can count on to give them a great backstage segment.

Low Road:
He is a decent “skit guy”. However, that will only go so far. If Boogeyman is to become a top star, he will need to have more depth. He needs a major feud or rivalry which captivates peoples attention; that won’t happen on the back of a few entertaining backstage skits. He needs to develop the character to take it to the next level.

High Road:
One of the things that has shocked me about the Boogeyman is the response that he has been getting from the fans. Now, with him returning to TV after a long time off, I see him still having a ton of support from the fans. The response that the Boogeyman gets from the crowd makes him a valuable person to have around because we keep seeing wrestlers unable to generate a response from the crowd.

Low Road:
This is a great thing for Boogeyman but it is only half of the battle. Getting a response puts him ahead of a lot of others but in his current incarnation, I really can’t see him getting to the level where he’s wrestling for the big belts, at least not as a believable contender. His return to TV should have been the ideal time to give the character a bit of an overhaul; not too much but just enough to make him a bit more of a threat and a bit less of a joke. The “we remember you” and “you make us laugh” pop will only last so long.

High Road:
The Boogeyman is okay in the ring and he does get criticized for it. But, one of the things that should be mentioned is that he has been training in the ring. I seem to remember reading that he was training at King Booker’s school a while back. Plus, he has not been on TV for awhile, so most likely he has been recovering from his injury and also training at the same time. The fact that the Boogeyman is still training tells me that he is interested in improving his in ring work.

Low Road:
This is the other half. If he’s to progress, he needs better in ring work. I know it’s an easy shot, but working for the biggest wrestling company in the world suggests that one should be among the best in the world at one’s chosen profession; wrestling. I will concede that he’s improving and for that I give him all the credit in the world. He may never be another Dynamite Kid. He doesn’t need to but to get to the top he needs to be better than he currently is.

High Road:
The decision to move the Boogeyman to ECW was a good one because he is perfect for ECW. ECW only has an hour show, so he is the perfect addition to that show because he usually wrestles short matches and he is great in the backstage segments. Once he improves in his in ring work, he can be moved up to either SmackDown or RAW.

Low Road:
Firstly, it’s a great shame that ECW is still the “C” show and that the rosters are regularly raided for “over” wrestlers to send to Raw and Smackdown, but I digress. I can’t help but feel that putting the Boogeyman on ECW is going to hinder his development rather than help it. Short matches and quick skits are great for now but he needs to build both his skills and character, something that the shorter time ECW has won’t help him with.

High Road:
This is a minor High Road, but I think that it should be mentioned. The Boogeyman is a great fit in ECW because ECW is on the Sci-Fi network. The Sci-Fi network features aliens and weird stuff like that and we all know that the Boogeyman is strange and weird. This makes him a perfect fit on ECW.

Low Road:
Again, this works against his development. Being on the Sci-Fi channel to help with the Sci-Fi content won’t help him develop the character into something a little less cartoonish in the longer term.

High Road:
The Boogeyman is not great in the ring, but I think that he can be considered okay in the ring. The major knock on the Boogeyman has been his inability to be adequate in the ring. I think that this is a fair criticism of the Boogeyman, but I think that he is a good person to have around because of all of the reasons that I listed above. I think the Boogeyman will continue to look okay in the ring and that is enough for him.

Low Road:
He will look ok and entertain in backstage skits. If that’s all he wants then that’s great until it all gets stale and he gets released. If he wants a long run, he needs to look at how Kane started out as a bit of a two dimensional character and over time changed enough to stay relevant. Thus far, there has been very little sign of this happening.

Are you taking the High Road or the Low Road?

High Road
Low Road
Both Roads

OR

Simply write “High Road”, “Low Road”, or “Both Roads” in the comment section.

E-Mails:

These are all of the e-mails that we received this week. We do not respond to the actual e-mail, but the reply to your e-mail will be below.

Tim Schmidt Writes:

Think I have to go Low Road on this. While Carlito and Primo are OK wrestlers, they have the tag belts and these days the belts are a complete joke. Which is sort of to bad because if booked right, they could be an entertaining team. Since the belts are treated badly it reflects badly on the guys holding it. The tag titles go for months without being defended, so I don’t see much happening with the Carlito/Primo tag team.

Sat: While I agree, that the WWE has made the tag titles a joke, I see them pushing Carlito and Primo because they are interested in getting the latino demographic rating.

Uncletrunx: Is that a real push? If they’re not even paying any attention to the belts, it’s more like being stuck in a backwater than getting a proper push.

Comments:

411 has added a new feature. Below are the comments for last week’s columns and our responses. The comments that will be included will be the ones that pertain to this week’s column. Also, your comment will not be included if you are commenting on another reader’s comment.

Iron Knee Writes:

Why does there have to be a feud between the Brother Colon? Why not have the Colons function as a well-oiled team until one or the other leaves? It’s much more realistic and unexpected than the usual break-up feud.

Sat: But, this is a brother tag team and brothers feuding does not happen that often.

Uncletrunx: I’d like them to form a faction rather than just feud. An updated version of the Hart Foundation idea from 1997 could work nicely now, and it would be a bit more interesting than the inevitable and predicatble feud.

Mr. Fish Writes:

Low road, but more for the state of the division than the brothers – although I don’t really care for them.

There are so many problems with the tag division it’s impossible to believe that the wwe will ever take it seriously. One of the biggest problems to my mind is that we only ever get a string of new champions – people feud over the belts, win them and then move on. Why aren’t Miz and Morrison – one of the best teams on the roster – still trying to get their titles back? The belts are passed from one team to another without any continuity (Simply Priceless losing them and winning them back the next week doesn’t count). Once a team loses the titles, they have a rematch, then apparently forget all about them. In the last six months I think CM Punk is the only person on the roster who’s even expressed a desire to win the belts. I’d have more time for Hawkins and Ryder if they actually had a proper feud with the Colons.

On a related note, this is exactly what they do with the ECW title as well – how many different champs have they had in the last year? Off the top of my head I can think of Punk, Chavo, Kane, Henry and Hardy, and not one of them has held it twice. One of the reasons the big two titles are some important is that its only a small elite that ever gets to hold them. The titles shouldn’t be treated like a badge that anyone gets to wear – that means you Hornswoggle – you killed one of my favourite belts you little bastard.

But I digress. I don’t think we’re ever going to get back to days of the Hardyz, E&C and the Dudleys and I doubt think we’ll ever see the likes of Edge’s 12-times reign (or whatever it is) again.

Sat: The tag team division is never going to be what it was, but I see the Colons having one of the better runs in recent memory.

Uncletrunx: The sad thing is, with just a little attention WWE could have a great tag division. Booking the belts as if they actually matter would be a good start rather than throwing them on whichever team has just got together. The idea of making title changes special and titleholders an elite group would certainly be a great start.

Michael Writes:

Both Roads, It depends if a certain brother can be reliable and not be lazy in the ring like he was all last year and early this year. If Primo can motivate Carlito to actually appear interested than yeah they could be great. But let’s not forget their opposing teams. The two former stooges of Edge and The Moving boys. That’s not a good division, even the Diva’s division has more competitors in it than the tag team does.

Sat: Yeah, the other teams are kind of weak. But, I don’t see Carlito being lazy in the ring because he won’t want to be outshined by his brother.

Uncletrunx: He might not be lazy short term but longer term he could get fed up with being stuck in tags, unless WWE actually puts effort into the tag division.

Farmer Tim Writes:

I go Low Road. The tag titles are being treated as complete jokes these days and as such the guys holding them arnt viewed as much either.

Sat: I agree, but I see this being one of the better tag team runs that we have seen.

Uncletrunx: A division is only as good as the depth of the talent. Right now, the tag division is a joke.

The Gold Standard Writes:

I’m going to take the high road. I’ve always been a fan of Carlitos and Primo amazes me. I say let them get a few tag title reigns and feud with Hawkins & Ryder, Miz & Morrison and other tag teams.

Sat: I don’t see Miz and Morrison making an appearance on SmackDown, but if they do then that will make the tag team division a little bit better.

Uncletrunx: I’m still convinced that WWE needs one set of tag titles on one show. That way they can mean something, tag wrestling with established teams can be a speciality of that show and the belts can mean something. As it stands, the most important tag titles in the USA are in TNA. That surely is not something Vince McMahon wants.

Ammoo Writes:

Both Roads.

Looking back, I think the Colons are a huge improvement from those (former) Edge guys. I mean, their brief reign was a gigantic downgrade from Miz & Morrison. For obvious reasons. But it didn’t look like anyone had much of interest in pushing the two, anyway. Which leads to the current champions, the Colons. They are apparently gaining plenty a more limelight than those (former) Edge guys did, perhaps due to the fabled latin audience appeal or whatever. Which is a High Road, as there was nowhere to go but upwards from the sheer disappointment that was the eyeblink-reign of those (former) Edge guys.

Low Road, however, would be the known problem that is the poor condition which the tag team title scene is in. Just take a look at the SD!-roster. One can’t really see that many tag teams in there. There’s two on ECW: Finlay&’Swoggle and Miz&Morrison. And from the looks of it, neither one of those teams are appearing on SD! that regularly any longer, what with the ongoing RAW/ECW Talent-exchange stuff. Perhaps once ECW stops travelling with RAW, but, well, that remains to be seen. So, that leaves us with just a couple of SD! tag teams. Seeing how fast the (former) Edge guys are descending into nothingdom, that leaves us with nothing but Jesse & Festus as the only credible contenders. If you want to try real hard, you might find a tiny underdog team of Dykstra and that other guy who’s name escapes from me (Braddock or something?), whom he teamed up with recently, but the little credibility they ever had was quickly disposed of thanks to their magical bubble-wrap adventures, which, in my opinion, keeps the two of them far away from a title-hunt. Unless SD! forms new tag teams, we’ve got nothing in the horizon but the Colons fending off Jesse/Festus every now and then.

Sat: SmackDown will need to introduce some tag teams for the Colons to have a successful run. Only time will tell, but I think that they will have one of the better runs that we have seen.

Uncletrunx: They will only have a good run if they have good opponents. Right now that’s highly unlikely.

B.W.G. Writes:

High Road…

…but only because I’m hoping against hope (and Uncletrunx’s sound arguments) that these two can surprise me, elevate the belts (and the division) to some worthwhile degree, and make the tag team division in the ‘E respectable again for the long term.

There has been, for the most part, enjoyable tag wrestling in the WWE lately. Of course, it seems that most of those matches are just used to advance as many feuds as possible in as short a time as possible, and not to actually build the credibility of the division (not that I mind that, but I’m one of the few who doesn’t really care for good storyline advancement).

Could Carlos and Eddie bring the division back to respectability? (Primo is a stupid name, so I’m sure as hell not calling him that)Based on the way Miz/Morrison’s great run was treated–lots of good matches in feuds that all started and ended in less than a month, for whatever reason–not likely. But you can’t really sink any lower in terms of champs than the Major Brothers and Rhodes/Holly, so maybe the worst is over and improvements are coming (or so I can dream).

Sat: My main concern is even if they manage to elevate the titles, it doesn’t mean much. Kendrick and London had a great run as champions, but what happened after that. Not much.

Uncletrunx: I’d love to see things turn around and tag wrestling to become meaningful and valuable to WWE again. I’m just not at all optimistic it will happen for all the reasons I gave last week.

Champ Writes:

Both Roads.While I think Carlito and his brother are an awesome tag team.The E will want to break them up sooner or later. Either by draft or have them feud with each other.Carlito will probably end up in IC/US Title level as for Primo unless they bring back the Cruiserweight Title I see nothing.

Sat: I do see them breaking up, but I don’t see it happening for awhile.

Uncletrunx: It would be nice if they were part of a new, revitalised tag scene. Sadly I think that Champ has seen the future, and it’s bleak.

The Great Captain Smooth Writes:

Both roads. Low, because of Primo’s lack of being over yet, Carlito’s potential bad attitude, and they really haven’t been together enough for people to care about them yet. High, because people can see Carlito as a credible tag champion, it gives Primo a potential rub, there is plenty of family drama to be mined, Carlito appears motivated, and we may get introduced to Carlos at some point. Right now, I would say Low, but they have the potential to prove people wrong. I’ll give them a chance.

Sat: Yeah, I agree with what you said. But, the one thing I disagree with is that since Primo joined Carlito he has seemed more over with the fans.

Uncletrunx: I’ll also give them a chance and hope it works out for them. I’m just not holding my breath…

17 Writes:

High Road. The tag division may be more or less dead but think about it from the casual viewer’s perspective. If they seek Carlito and Primo holding belts it may convince them to give the brothers a second look. Plus Carlito and Primo are already an improvement on their predecessors ‘who strike fear into the hearts of no one’.

Sat: True, Carlito and Primo are already better than their predecessors. Plus, I think that Carlito and Primo can have a good run, but it depends on if they have worthy opponents.

Uncletrunx: They are at least an improvement over their predecessors but that’s not saying much!

Matt Eli Writes:

A definite high road from me. Tag team wrestling as a whole is not a relevant issue. The point is, Carlito’s talents are now being put to good use while he further “pays his dues,” and Primo gets a nice push out the gate by teaming with a recogniseable star. No one loses out here.

Sat: I agree. Primo is getting a good rub from Carlito and Carlito is now motivated.

Uncletrunx: That “Tag team wrestling as a whole is not a relevant issue” is the sad truth, and is the whole reason why the team is a low road.

Your reasons for taking the High Road, Low Road, or Both Roads and suggestions for future High Road/Low Road are welcome at [email protected] or in the comment section. Your reply will be included in next week’s column.