wrestling / Columns
The Wrestling 5 & 1 6.06.14: Nikki Bella vs Eve Torres
What a slow news week, amirite? Obviously, I’m being facetious, as what happened on Monday Night RAW was a story that some are calling equivalent to Hulk Hogan joining the NWO. I won’t go that far, but Batista quitting sure was a shocker…I jest. Of course, I’m talking about Seth Rollins ditching The Shield for greener pastures and sledgehammers. Was it the right decision? Will the WWE be able to explain it, and possibly retcon a couple month’s worth of build that saw both groups despise each other completely? Fuck if I know, but let’s talk about it.
Seth Rollins Shocks the World
We have heard rumors for months about a breakup within The Shield happening soon. First, it was when they were still hated by fans everywhere, heelin it up like the baddies that they are. Everyone – including myself – assumed if it ever went down, the loose cannon Dean Ambrose would be the culprit who caused the implosion. Then, we had sputters of rumors flying about once the fact that Roman Reigns was a powerhouse of a superstar became apparent. Still, no turn – and we were happy because of it. The Shield had become a group that no one wanted to see break up, and people were even going so far as to say that they wished the group would never break up and simply “part ways.” I’d argue that they as individuals may not have been able to stand on their own, but in recent months, each man has grown into his own person so much in fact that they could quite possibly survive on their own. With that being said, this turn was quite shocking, and although a lot of people seem to be on board with it, there are some detractors. To those, and to the supporters, I say that we must first ask ourselves two questions. Should the turn have happened, and was Seth Rollins the right choice?
Should the turn have happened?
This question is a bit harder to answer than the second one mainly because it’s one of those decisions in which the follow-up will be more important than the turn itself. I can go on about how Seth, at one point, turned his back on The Shield, and although he was considered The Architect, it was only a matter of time before he got tired of playing second (third) fiddle. But is that a good enough reason? After all, how many months ago was that? And wasn’t the reason behind the walk out simply because they couldn’t all be on the same page? What we’ve seen the last few months was them being on the exact same page, with two wins over Evolution, and the upperhand more often than not. So doesn’t that blow the reasoning from months prior out of the water?
Well, what about the simple fact that he can go bigger places with the backing of Triple H? Sure, it’s believable, but it’s a bit of a stretch. After all, The Shield have been in the upper echelon of the card since their debut, and could possibly have gotten title shots at any time they wanted, especially when they were doing The Authority’s bidding. And although the obvious answer is that every wrestler wants a title at one point or another, why haven’t we seen Seth vying for a belt of any kind before? Why haven’t we seen him so much as give a damn about being a breakout star or singles wrestler? He was a part of a brotherhood that saw it at its strongest?
So we get to the behind the scene reasons that may or may not be true – that Vinnie Mac got his panties in a twist after the ratings for RAW were a bit on the low side, and pulled the trigger on a “shocking” moment. As much as I’d love to bite and talk shit about how asinine this mentality is, I don’t see it to be true. Maybe it has something (very little) to do with the decision, but this “moment” seemed to be a while in the making, which leads me to believe that they will have an explanation worthy of telling and believing in. I just hope that it’s not as stagnant and unappealing as the RAW Anonymous GM reveal…
Was Seth Rollins the Right Choice?
We knew the breakup was inevitable, and I think I’m pretty comfortable in saying that a lot of people assumed the same thing that I did – that it would be Ambrose who would make the turn on the group, if anyone, and breakout as something viable, thereby leaving Seth in the midcard forever and Reigns one step closer to the top of the card. And I think it was because of this thought that we saw what we saw; Seth Rollins officially making the turn and standing aside Triple H. While I can’t pinpoint any one GOOD reason for the turn, the choice of Seth being the man behind the steel chair was the definite right one. We already know that Reigns is being primed for the big breakout moment, and may very well be the next John Cena. We area also aware that Dean Ambrose is the right kind of fucked in the head that causes an adoration of a character far behind normal. In short, both men have an almost assured survival plan after The Shield expires. The worry laid in Seth Rollins, and his future. Sure, in the past few months, he’s really grown both on the mic and in the ring, but there was no mistake that his crutches were the two other men in the group, and once they were gone – it’d be unlikely that Seth would survive as any type of big name in the uppercard. No, he’d most likely flounder around the US title for a while, or become the Kofi Kingston of 2015.
And it is because of all of these reasons that having Seth be the baddie who turned on his brothers be the perfect choice. He can be called The Architect as much as he’d like to, but the facts are that he was the third string quarterback in the group. He is good, even great, and has stood taller than I ever thought he could within the group, but he still was the only one who truly needed that push. As I said above, the followup will be huge here and integral to his growth, but in terms of who needed it and who was the right choice, it most assuredly was Seth Rollins.
As with most things WWE, we must eventually stop asking whether the choice being made is right or not, and just ask how they will be able to utilize it in the future. The turn of Seth Rollins was a big deal, and although it’s not on the level of Austin or Hogan, it was one of the bigger moments in wrestling – and this came about AFTER Batista quit – which was a nice way to telegraph the moment coming later. It almost put us in a false security blanket before ripping it off of us and pouring ice across our warm and comfortable body. Well that metaphor went a bit further than I wanted it to. In closing, was the breakup of The Shield necessary or the right decision? I don’t know. Was Seth Rollins the right guy, though? Oh hell yeah.
Your Turn: Would you have broken up The Shield? Was Seth Rollins the right choice?
And the commenter with the most “likes”???
Joshua Stangle: “Paige already regrets eating some of RVD’s brownies…”
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We are joined by the always fun Chad Perry this week, as we talk about Seth Rollins and his decision to turn among other things!
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Eve beat Melina pretty solidly, and although she has been in the competition recently getting all the way to the end before being beaten, I figure we’ll give her another fighting chance. Eve, you’re up!
And now…..
Voting ends Wednesday night and you can vote once every hour!
Lots of LOVE from Eve this week, particularly from NT86, Anthony Tate, AdamMcc83, and CM Wolf but not so much from SS87. I’ll have to side with SS, however, in saying that Melina had a certain appeal, particularly during her waning days. Thomas Stockel doesn’t find my 40-something year old cousin’s bathing techniques to be the least bit appealing. Neither do I, Tommy boy….neither do I. Aaron Scott seems to think that in one year, Velvet Sky will sweep the floor with Lana, and I can’t disagree. The HOB has really become (and likely always will be) a litmus test for flavor of the month, but I do have to establish the fact that those in the top row are true testaments to strength within the hall, and perhaps next week, we’ll see how far Lana can go within the Hall. There was talk about the possibility of Reigns taking over the entire match on Payback from Katamari democracy which duh and D2kVirus each giving their own two cents. I’m curious to see how your guys’ opinions have changed given the recent happenings on Monday.
Your favorite and mine…Eva Marie! The Brunette Version!
Tony joined 411Mania in April 2010, and currently contributes in both music and wrestling. Tony is an avid drinker of Mountain Dew and Jack Daniels. He is a writer who hardly takes himself seriously, yet has an innate ability to create moments that are both human yet fearful in his writings.
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Greg DeMarco is a graduate of Virginia Tech (Bachelor’s in Business Management) and Arizona State (Master’s in Higher & Post-Secondary Education). He works in online higher education. Greg started in improv comedy in 2001, making his stand-up debut in 2004.
Greg first appeared as a ring announcer for Rising Phoenix Wrestling in Phoenix Arizona in 2006 and served many promotions in both on-stage and back-stage roles for over six years, most notably Ring of Honor in 2010. He began writing for 411Mania in October 2010, founded The Greg DeMarco Show in May 2011 and opened WrestlingSmash.com (and Wrestling Smash Radio) in January 2013.
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Until next week…
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