High Road/Low Road 10.24.08: Sting Winning the TNA Title

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 the Boogeyman:

High Road: 35%
Low Road: 42%
Both Roads: 23%

Sting Winning The TNA Title

High Road:
Sting winning the TNA title three years in a row will be something that we look at a few years down the road and say that was the one of the defining moments of the early Bound for Glory shows. Plus, when you think about it, Bound for Glory really does not have that much history and we are just supposed to buy it as TNA’s WrestleMania? I think that Sting winning the title three years in a row helps make it TNA’s WrestleMania.

Low Road:
I see this as a huge step backwards for TNA. They had a champion who is young, hard working and probably the one top level star they’ve got who isn’t seen as coming in from somewhere else. So what do they do? Book him to lose to an old wrestler who doesn’t work house shows and is seen as the embodiment of the now defunct WCW. By putting Joe over strongly, they could’ve cemented him as the top star and moved forward; as it is, this is a bad piece of booking in my view. The champion won’t be on house shows and the young up and comer takes a step back down and had what momentum he had built up wiped out.

High Road:
One of the things that had been happening at Bound for Glory was that the baby face had been walking out with the title. Rhino won the TNA title at the first Bound for Glory and Sting had won the title had the last two Bound for Glory. I think that TNA knew that sooner or later the heel was going to have to walk out Bound for Glory with the TNA title because if it did not happen, then the main event for Bound for Glory was going to get very predictable. And with Sting winning the TNA title, it will make future Bound for Glorys that much harder to predict.

Low Road:
It seems to me that they’re easy to predict; Sting will win the title! I think we are all now used to having “big” events end with a heel win. To me, the more important thing is doing what helps the business. I don’t feel that this result is helpful to TNA, looking long term and that, surely, is what should matter, not whether a heel or face wins.

High Road:
I like Sting winning the TNA title from Samoa Joe at Bound for Glory because it gets Samoa Joe out of the title picture because of the no rematch clause. Samoa Joe did a good job as champion, but it was time for a change. Plus, as I will write below, Samoa Joe is heading into a new feud and that feud should not involve the TNA title.

Low Road:
I can’t see how getting Joe out of the title picture is in any way, shape or form a good thing. Joe is the future of TNA if they want to be a true alternative to WWE; if anything he should be wearing the belt and moving on to feuds with other homegrown stars rather than dropping out of the picture so that those who are painted with the colours of other organizations can take his place at the top of the card. I agree that he needs a new feud but it should be him holding the belt. Joe vs AJ Styles would be a step towards TNA carving its own identity. Sadly that’s not where they’ve decided to go.

High Road:
As I wrote above, Samoa Joe is heading into a new feud with Kevin Nash and this feud should not involve the TNA title. Kevin Nash is at the point in his career where he should not be in the main event. If this match had been for the TNA title, then it would have a low road, but in its current position, it is a high road.

Low Road:
Everything I said about Sting also applies to Nash, with the key difference being that Sting can still work a good match, while Nash is much better off out of the ring. Are there no other people Joe can work with? To me, TNA seems to take two steps forward then one step back, which is frustrating and annoying because I can see how good it could be if they’d just take the risk with their younger guys.

High Road:
Sting winning the titles sets up the stage for a match that I have been looking forward to and that is Sting versus AJ Styles. Sting has been in TNA for awhile now and I do not recall these guys ever facing (with TNA they might have had a match on Impact), but I know for a fact that they have not had a feud. I remember watching Sting’s TNA DVD and I remember AJ Styles saying that he was looking forward to wrestling Sting in the ring. Add the TNA title to this feud and I think that this has the potential to be an excellent feud.

Low Road:
I’d much rather see Joe vs AJ for the title. To me, that would be new and fresh, rather than having to see both Joe and AJ working with guys whose role should be building up stars for TNA, not taking the top spots for themselves. I know that it’s possible Nash might put Joe over but based on his track record, I doubt it. Indeed, with his record he’ll grab a series of wins then develop a hamstring injury on the day he’s due to return the favour.

High Road:
Sting’s win at Bound for Glory really add some fuel to his argument that the younger wrestlers need to respect the veterans. On Impact, he said if Samoa Joe had not gotten cocky that he would have kept the title. Plus, it makes sense for his next feud because AJ Styles did not shake his hand when he won the title, so Sting now has another wrestler that needs to be taught to respect the veterans. Add Nash helping Sting win the title and you have the potential for a feud that I am very interested in.

Low Road:
I’m not interested in it at all, either of them. I’m tired of seeing the “veterans” lay waste to the TNA roster. Looking at the comments on the various TNA event reports, it seems a lot of people share my frustrations. The “respect the veterans” angle has been done to death and now is not the time to be bringing it back. It reminds me a lot of the WWE “Invasion” angle, and that’s an iron-clad low road.

High Road:
Even though Sting came out with the TNA title, I think that both guys came out better than how they entered it. Sting by winning the title showed that he still has it and that the younger wrestlers should respect him. Samoa Joe came out of it looking good because Sting said that Samoa Joe had him beat and the fact that Kevin Nash helped Sting win the title. When I see a world title match and both guys come out looking good from the match reminds me why I love this sport.

Low Road:
When I watch another screwy ending with the good work of recent months being undone to put over guys who are over ten years past their prime, it reminds me why I’m so often frustrated with this sport. It could all be so good but sadly, it simply leaves me feeling like TNA miss every opportunity to establish their own identity and break out of the shadow of WWE.

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:

High Road. The Boogeyman may not be a mat technician but he does have an interesting character. He is also entertaining with the whole worms thing and that’s why I like him. I also like him because he doesn’t have the standard gimmick most wrestlers are stuck with, hes different and that’s a good thing in the pretty stale WWE.

Sat: Good point, most wrestlers are given a standard gimmick. But, he might have also gotten this gimmick because of his age. I can’t see the WWE giving this gimmick to a young guy.

Uncletrunx: As I said, I actually like the Boogeyman but I think they need to develop him a bit more now. I deliberately didn’t mention his age, but I don’t think it’s a factor in the gimmick he was given.

Freddy Neuwendyke Writes:

I think the Boogeyman is doing just fine for what he is, comedy filler. Granted I don’t picture him as somebody to build the company around but I think if pushed a little more seriously he could carve out a decent run for himself. Yeah yeah I know he’s not one of those generic bingo hall flipfloppers who do 3,456,789,021 variations of the headlock but guess what that’s not what WWE is marketing. WWE is about what’s entertaining and that is what Boogeyman is all about.

Sat: I agree that if he was taken seriously, he could have a decent run, but I just don’t think the WWE wants to do that with Boogeyman.

Uncletrunx: I agree entirely. I’d love to see what could happen if he was given just a few slight tweaks and allowed to develop the character’s more serious side. Remember, Undertaker was once a two-dimensional cartoon gimmick. I’m not saying Boogeyman will scale ‘Taker’s heights but he could have a decent run with just a bit of freshness.

Comments:

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. The comments are as of Sunday Afternoon Pacific Time.

Roman Bellic Writes:

High Road. The Boogeyman is different and thats why I like him.

Sat: He’s definitely something we don’t see nowadays.

Uncletrunx: I like him. He is indeed different, I just think he needs a few slight changes to keep him interesting. As it stands, he’s going to get stale sooner or later.

KanyonKreist Writes:

Both roads: The character, in its very essence, is childish and absurd, plus the guy can’t work, but I guess WWE’s target audience right now is kids, so I can understand. Also, the worms gimmick is terrific.

Sat: The guy can’t work, but you can’t have all great wrestlers on the roster

Uncletrunx: Why not? There are enough decent wrestlers in the world that the biggest company could easily fill the roster with the best. There is room for guys who work the gimmick more than pure wrestling but there’s no reason they shouldn’t be able to bust out wrestling skills if needed. It is their job after all.

Anthony Writes:

Im definitely taking the high road. I love the Boogeyman and have since he started. He is my favorite wrestler other than Undertaker at the moment. Sure, he is a little weak talent or ability wise, but he makes up for that in entertainment. I want to watch wrestling for some entertainment, and some 2nd and 3rd generation stars with no personality are not doing it for me. I actually have a reason to watch Raw now and not just the A show Smackdown. hehe

Sat: As I wrote above, you can’t have all technical wrestlers on your show. And he gives you something that the technical wrestlers don’t the majority of the time and that is entertainment.

Uncletrunx: I agree that a bit of variety is a good thing and as I’ve said before, I like Boogeyman. He also appears to really enjoy his gimmick which is a huge bonus.

M:-X Writes:

Both roads. As a wrestler– I can’t stand the Boogieman. As a character– he’s decent. The way you know he’s expendable is because when he’s gone you never miss him. That said, Being able to use parts of his entrance for CAWS in SvR09 is going to be awesome.

Sat: I think that this is a fair assessment and I don’t argue with this.

Uncletrunx: I’d forgotten that you’d be able to use the entrance in SvR09! That’s a high road right there!

Curtis Writes:

You seemed to repeat yourself a lot here…Plus the Boogeyman will NEVER wrestle for big belt, so that doesn’t matter. Overall I say low road because he is old, not very talented and the the time dedicated to him could be used better.

Sat: I don’t think that wrestling for the big belt is an indicator for success. And I agree with you that he is older than most stars, but you can’t just keep pushing young guys.

Uncletrunx: It seems others have far stronger feelings than me about this. I don’t dislike Boogeyman half as much as most online writers, I just wish he would improve somewhat in his in ring work and would freshen up the gimmick.

technicalwrestlersruleWrites:

LOW ROAD HANDS DOWN. The Boogeyman has done nothing for this business. He’s really old and I don’t understand why Booker T had to job for him at Wrestlemania. How out of his mind can Vince McMahon. That win over Booker T did nothing for him because the fans didn’t buy it. All the time he’s been on TV has been a waste. Where is he now anyways. Stuff like this make people leave the WWE. Luckily he’s never held any championships (sigh).

Sat: I’ll agree with that he probably shouldn’t have lost to Booker, but to say that the time spent for him on TV has been a waste is something I just don’t buy.

Uncletrunx: I agree that jobbing Booker T to him at Wrestlemania achieved very little. Booker T seems to have had a bad time at Wrestlemania in general and I can’t see that ever being put right now!

J.R. Writes:

LOW ROAD all the way! People give TNA a hard time over the Prince Justice Brotherhood but at least they can wrestle. I don’t mind cartoonish gimmicks (Santino) as long as they can perform in the ring.

Sat: The point I would make with your argument is that while Santino is a good wrestler, he has not been allowed to show that in the WWE.

Uncletrunx: I’d like to see Boogeyman improve his in ring performances. As I said above, it is his job and a certain level of competence has to go with that.

Insider Writes:

Low Road: I could agree more with the fact that “The Boogeyman” doesn’t get over cause people DON’T BELIEVE IT. Plus his name is THE BOOGEYMAN, you would think the creative minds in the WWE would come up with something a little more functionable and wasn’t so limited.

Sat: Boogeyman is over, but not over in the sense of being a world title contender. The name is okay and knowing the WWE, who knows what they would have come with?

Uncletrunx: See, I think that with a few tweaks it could become more believable and thus less limited. I think this is where a comparison to Undertaker is valid. However, I would note that Boogeyman doesn’t have time on his side as ‘taker had, and his gimmick is even more cartoonish that the early incarnation of Undertaker was.

Michael Writes:

Low Road, he’s in his forties, he’s injury prone, and is awful in the ring. the character while at first interesting now sucks and basically has given us nothing but wrestlecrap hall of fame moments such as him tearing off and eating Jillian Hall’s mole.

Sat: You can find wrestlers at an older age, so I don’t blame the WWE for that. Injury prone is a difficult subject. Remember, just a few years ago Batista was injury prone. And he hasn’t had a major since that time. And I completely forgot about him eating the mole. That would have been another high road, where I could have said that it helped Jillian’s career, though I know exactly what Uncletrunx would have said…

Uncletrunx: …I don’t think I need to say anything. I think that moment speaks for itself well enough.

the gold standard Writes:

Low Road. I don’t see much.Maybe a tag title reign but that’s it.I feel his gimmick its just like most creepy gimmicks, their good first time around but 2nd time just stale.

Sat: I think Boogeyman will be okay in his current run and I don’t see any championships coming his way.

Uncletrunx: I’m intrigued as to who you think he could tag up with.

setobakura Writes:

Both roads. Interesting character, and a fresh face since hes been injured, but hes old, injury prone, and hasn’t improved his wrestling ability.

Sat: I’ll agree with this, but as I wrote above, what is classified as injury prone?

Uncletrunx: He hasn’t improved and he needs to. As for the injury prone part, let’s see how long he lasts this time around.

The Glide Writes:

Low road. When the Boogeyman can have average or better matches consistently, I will accept him. Not until then.

Sat: As I wrote above, you can’t have all technical wrestlers on your roster.

Uncletrunx: Consistency is not too much to ask for from a wrestler, especially a wrestler in the largest wrestling company in the world.

JLAJRC Writes:

I say High Roads. I enjoy Boogie for the comedic wrestler he’s supposed to be. He’s not a main event or even a midcard wrestler. He’s doing what Charlie Haas and Santino are doing, making us laugh and having fun.

I think they should move him to RAW, though, since I don’t think there’s a lot for him to do on ECW. Maybe after the Kane/Myterio feud is done, maybe they can turn Boogie heel, have him team with Kane and go after the tag titles. Or start a small, comedic feud with either Haas or Santino. Or team with Khali.

Sat: I think you make a good point about him moving to RAW. There is not a whole lot that he can do on ECW and will need to be mvoed.

Uncletrunx: I think that ECW needs to be an alternative product, and thus wrestlers like Boogeyman can have their place there. It may not be a popular view and perhaps it needs to be called something other than ECW as it’ll annoy those who remember the Heyman version of that name but WWE need an alternative and making ECW into a bit more of a “freakshow” could do it.
Or perhaps I should lay off the strong coffee when I’m writing this column…

Ray A Writes:

High road. The kids buy into him. WWE is getting more “PG” and he’s great for the kids. Sure, you can say “He sucks at wrestling!” but let’s be honest, is this what the WWE really is about now a days?

Sat: Excellent point and a point that people seem to be missing.

Uncletrunx: Sad but true. How well you can wrestle will always take a back seat to how many toys you can sell in the current WWE.

The Great Capt. Smooth Writes:

Both road, but leaning high. Low, because he is a pretty bad wrestler and as cool as his gimmick is, today’s audience get’s bored a little too quickly. High, because of what you can do with the character. The Undertaker is at the end of his career. I say that the WWE should turn him into the next Undertaker, but isn’t Marty Wright old as well. In that case, make him like a comic book character. He could pass his mantle to another wrestler. They could have different powers, looks, and loyalties. If he gets stale, pass him to somebady else. It might even be a woman that gets the mantle. Imagine Kofi as a “voodoo priest”, Beth Phoenix as “JUNGLE BOOGEY”, or Evan Bourne as a corrupted “prince of extreme”. The mantle could be stolen, given away, bought (Imagine JBL biting off more than he can chew.) , and my favorite would be for the mantle to be on the line with the winner getting it. It has endless potential. I know it would be over the top, but isn’t the Boogeyman already?

Sat: Wow, let’s not give the WWE ideas and if they do this, then it better involve the likes of Braddock and Spears because they better not do this to the people you suggested.

Uncletrunx: It’s an interesting thought. I made comparisons with Undertaker earlier (before I read this, I should add) but I wouldn’t go so far as to suggest that Boogeyman should be the “next Undertaker.” The idea of “doing a Doink” with him is an interesting one though, and one i’m not 100% opposed to.

JcJames Writes:

I’m going to agree with Ray, the world wrestling federation is entertainment and that’s what the boogeyman provides. As long as kids are into him and his merchandise sells, he’ll have some part with the WWE. If the WWE was “real”, then I would say to get him the heck out.

Sat: Another good point.

Uncletrunx: As I say, if WWE were to give each brand a true identity, and present one as the “freakshow” then I think he’d fit right in.

Governator Writes:

Low Road… I don’t want to see Boogeyman FULL STOP. Stupid gimmick, just plain boring.

Sat: Since you didn’t write much and you don’t generally post comments to us, here is a question I would ask. What do you not find boring in pro wrestling?

Uncletrunx: Here’s another case for WWE having better brand identity. They’d keep people like governator happy if one show was all about the wrestling, and he could avoid the heavy gimmickry on the other show(s)

Anonymous Smart Mark Writes:

Both Roads. I’m not stupid enough to believe that Boogeyman will ever be anything more than a mid-card gimmick (or that he’ll ever be a good wrestler, for that matter), but if used sparingly and in the right situations (such as his most recent appearance or the segment where he, Hornswoggle, and Khali joined DX for one night), he’s a fun character who adds a little levity where it might be needed.

And besides, if he was let go, I guarantee TNA would grab him up and give him the X-Division Championship, and God knows Vince doesn’t want that to happen.

Sat: I agree with you here and if TNA does pick him I wonder what name they would come up with for him?

Uncletrunx: I don’t want to see Boogeyman in TNA, because they’ll probably put him over Joe and AJ…

Wilford Brimley Writes:

High Road. Not every wrestler can, or even should be a main eventer or title contender. The comic relief promos and feuds are an important part of wrestling. I do agree that they need to expand his character, but it will take time to reintegrate him after the time-off.

Sat: Yeah, he doesn’t have to be a main eventer. Plus, when somebody does beat the Boogeyman, it will mean a lot. Big Daddy V beat the Boogeyman and I think that it definitely helped him out.

Uncletrunx: I don’t think that at present people think “wow, this guy must be a contender, he holds a win over Boogeyman!” I agree that it may take time to change the gimmick around but it needs to happen and they need to start soon.

Texter Morgan Writes:

Low Road – Boogeyman will be useless in the ring, and his initial push hurt more than it helped in the end, since nothing came of it.

High Road – He’s good for the occasional segment. That’s about it.

Overall : I’m leaning more toward low road. There’s only so much that an injury prone 40+ year old can do besides the occasional segment.

Sat: True, you can’t keep giving Boogeyman backstage segments.

Uncletrunx: It’s interesting just how much feedback we’re getting on this, and just how divided opinion is. I think that his initial push would’ve been better had it not ended in injury. I also think that he needs to do more than skit work. He needs to learn how to wrestle to a higher standard for one thing.

Guest#2067 Writes:

High Road. If the E wants to train him, they will, if not he plays his role perfectly. Although I can definitely see him holding the US or Intercontinental title in the near future. I think if they do another ministry he can fit great in that too and it would help boost him into main event status.

Sat: I don’t see Boogeyman getting anywhere near a title.

Uncletrunx: As a member of a stable who is “let out of the cage” to torment someone, he could be a useful addition. It might be a good way to freshen him up and add a slightly darker edge too; making him a bit more like Mankind was when he started in WWE.

Michelle Writes:

Both roads. While the character is fun, different and entertaining both in backstage segments and in matches, he lacks a good understanding within the ring and is only good for squash matches.

Sat: True, the few long matches that he had with JBL and Booker were not fun to watch. But, he still is very entertaining.

Uncletrunx: A character who has nothing but squashes will only be entertaining for so long. In ring improvement is vital.

Logical Larry Writes:

What does crawling to the ring have to do with anything? We’re supposed to praise his dedication to his character because he crawls to the ring?

Maybe my standards are too high, but I require more from wrestlers in order for me to praise their dedication.

Sat: Yeah, I put the crawling in there, but what about the other three things (that you conviently ignored) that he does? If that isn’t dedication, then I don’t know what is.

Uncletrunx: I think his dedication to the character is pretty well documented, it’s the things such as constant improvement which are needed now. I’ve seen little improvement in Boogeyman’s in ring ability and that alone is worth a low road.

17 Writes:

Low Road The Boogieman is one of the worst things that wrestling has ever produced. All his matches suck and he’s backstage skits are beyond dreadful. The WWE really need to get rid of this guy..

Sat: I’ll give you that his matches suck, but I don’t agree with the backstage segments sucking.

Uncletrunx: As I said before, it seems that a lot of people hate Boogeyman far more than I do!

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.