Yep, this is yet another crushing blow for me. Between this recent news and Daniel Bryan's retirement(I decided not to make a post since so many others already had), two of the wrestlers who were in my top ten will no longer be competing for the WWE in a couple of months. It's hard to describe just how disheartened I feel, but I'll attempt to put it in words.
For those who missed it, Stu Bennett, aka Wade Barrett, has announced that he will not be resigning with the WWE when his contract expires in a few months. Barrett was first introduced to WWE audiences in 2010 in the earliest incarnation of NXT, and was the leader of the group known as the Nexus that invaded the main roster later that year. After a famous burial at Summerslam, the group's momentum petered out, and Barrett would end up flying solo for most of the rest of his time in the company. He's had several gimmicks that got him pretty high up the card, but a combination of bad booking and injuries meant that he never moved past midcard status.
I've mentioned before that I began watching wrestling in 2009, and the Nexus' run in 2010 was what made me the fan I am today. Throughout all his many hardships, I've remained a loyal Barrett fan, and one that always wanted to see a massive push. He has remained one of the hardest workers in the company, and likely still has a massive future ahead. Despite that, this is still some pretty horrible news. Barrett will go down in WWE's history as one of their misused talents that could have been something with a proper push, but John Cena made sure that would never happen. This isn't the time or place for a rant, but this is one of the many reasons I will never be a Cena fan.
I'm sure Barrett will find work elsewhere, and will likely be one of the many WWE flops who turns out better on the indies. However, it is every wrestler's dream to work under the bright lights and every fan's dream to see him or her there, and he will never get another job as good as this one. That's about all I can manage.
Although this is sad news, there could be hope in the future for Wade Barrett. As I already mentioned, between this and Bryan's retirement, I'm a pretty unhappy wrestling fan at the moment. Stay tuned for my review of Fastlane, which airs on Sunday.
-Henry
Wednesday, February 17, 2016
Tuesday, February 2, 2016
WWE: The Ambrose Asylum
I know I haven't posted on this blog in a really long time, but I do want to bring it back. I'm planning on restricting my "A" blog, Otterworld, to the big series ideas with a careful schedule, and I'll post on this blog whenever I have something to share. I'll also include a category, if you will, in the title that tells the reader what this post is about, so you can skip it if you aren't interested in the subject. As you can see, today's topic is the WWE, which has found a home on Otterworld, so I wanted to share so of my thoughts off-script, if you will.
It's pretty common knowledge that the WWE is suffering through one of the biggest crises in a long time, with seemingly half the roster out injured at the moment, and the biggest event of the year in 2 months. However, I've come up with a sure-fire main event angle, that could not only serve to get WWE's hottest star massively over, but provide a great closing to 'Mania.
At Fastlane, the main event is a triple threat match between former champ Roman Reigns, IC Champ Dean Ambrose, and that other guy. The winner of this match will head to 'Mania to face Trips for the belt. Now, the obvious assumption is that Reigns will get the fall, Dean will take the fall, and Brock Lesnar will do some Wyatt stuff. Reigns has been given chance after chance, and the audience has yet to really connect with him. Having him go over at 'Mania is a horrible idea, as it furthers the idea that Vince wants to push Roman to the moon. You can have Roman win at 'Mania, but you can't do it in the main event. There is someone that can, however, and that's Dean Ambrose, the subject of this post.
Since the ending of the Shield, Ambrose was the forgotten man, with Rollins holding the belt and Reigns with Vince at his side. At the end of last year's 'Mania, it was like the WWE completely forgot Ambrose existed, giving Reigns and Rollins the main event rub. With the Rollins heel turn, one of Reigns or Ambrose was going to have to be the main face, and the WWE has desperately attempted to make that Reigns. Reigns has failed, somewhat spectacularly, to fill that role and it's time Ambrose got his shot.
How do this work? It's actually pretty simple. At Fastlane, have Ambrose pin Roman after Trips interferes. The following night, Triple H otherwise occupies Ambrose's time, perhaps screwing out of the Intercontinental belt, while he orchestrates an assault on Reigns, ensuring Ambrose will not have any backup. Ambrose will have lost everything at the cost of his big win, and goes on an absolute tear, ending with him winning the belt and receiving one of the biggest pops of the last decade. Knowing the WWE, though, they're likely to copy this exact story, but just reverse Reigns and Ambrose. We can only hope, as Ambrose winning the belt at 'Mania would be an awesome moment.
I'll have a part 2 to this post, explaining why Ambrose is the next top face in a company that desperately needs one. Hopefully you've enjoyed, and I'll see you next time.
-Henry
It's pretty common knowledge that the WWE is suffering through one of the biggest crises in a long time, with seemingly half the roster out injured at the moment, and the biggest event of the year in 2 months. However, I've come up with a sure-fire main event angle, that could not only serve to get WWE's hottest star massively over, but provide a great closing to 'Mania.
At Fastlane, the main event is a triple threat match between former champ Roman Reigns, IC Champ Dean Ambrose, and that other guy. The winner of this match will head to 'Mania to face Trips for the belt. Now, the obvious assumption is that Reigns will get the fall, Dean will take the fall, and Brock Lesnar will do some Wyatt stuff. Reigns has been given chance after chance, and the audience has yet to really connect with him. Having him go over at 'Mania is a horrible idea, as it furthers the idea that Vince wants to push Roman to the moon. You can have Roman win at 'Mania, but you can't do it in the main event. There is someone that can, however, and that's Dean Ambrose, the subject of this post.
Since the ending of the Shield, Ambrose was the forgotten man, with Rollins holding the belt and Reigns with Vince at his side. At the end of last year's 'Mania, it was like the WWE completely forgot Ambrose existed, giving Reigns and Rollins the main event rub. With the Rollins heel turn, one of Reigns or Ambrose was going to have to be the main face, and the WWE has desperately attempted to make that Reigns. Reigns has failed, somewhat spectacularly, to fill that role and it's time Ambrose got his shot.
How do this work? It's actually pretty simple. At Fastlane, have Ambrose pin Roman after Trips interferes. The following night, Triple H otherwise occupies Ambrose's time, perhaps screwing out of the Intercontinental belt, while he orchestrates an assault on Reigns, ensuring Ambrose will not have any backup. Ambrose will have lost everything at the cost of his big win, and goes on an absolute tear, ending with him winning the belt and receiving one of the biggest pops of the last decade. Knowing the WWE, though, they're likely to copy this exact story, but just reverse Reigns and Ambrose. We can only hope, as Ambrose winning the belt at 'Mania would be an awesome moment.
I'll have a part 2 to this post, explaining why Ambrose is the next top face in a company that desperately needs one. Hopefully you've enjoyed, and I'll see you next time.
-Henry
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