Mike Rickard
Rickard's Ramblings: Wrestlemania Afterglow, Overrated Superstars, No Mistaking Who the Fans Like, The End of the Brand Split, This Week’s "Magnificent Bastard"
By Mike Rickard II
Apr 7, 2007, 17:38

After a long week in court, there’s nothing like rambling on about the latest happenings in the wild and wacky world of professional wrestling.  Help me wind down from lawyer mode to smark mode as I ask a few questions of you, the intelligent wrestling fan. 

1. How long before Jeff Jarrett gets the paper cup applause from TNA fans?
   
   
2. Doesn’t the now bald Vince McMahon remind you of Rich Uncle Pennybags?
   
   
3. Was anyone surprised to see Donald Trump get the Stone Cold Stunner?
   
   
4. Didn’t the migration of fans from their seats during the Ashley/Melina match remind you of the exodus scene from The Ten Commandments?
   
   
5. Why hasn’t the WWE released a wrestling video game featuring WWE Legends?

WRESTLEMANIA AFTERGLOW:  It’s been a week since I attended Wrestlemania 23 and I’m still basking in the afterglow of a truly glorious weekend.   I know I’m not the only fan who’s still psyched after Wrestlemania and this is a great opportunity for the WWE to reel in new fans or lapsed fans who may have caught the big show and are tuning in to RAW and SmackDown! out of curiosity.  All honeymoons come to an end though and if the WWE’s smart, they won’t revert to booking on cruise control (as they’ve done the last few years after Wrestlemania).   The WWE really needs to take advantage of some of the momentum they’ve created hyping up Wrestlemania and the following could best benefit from it:

Mr. Kennedy:  After winning Wrestlemania’s Money in the Bank Match, Mr. Kennedy is SmackDown!’s Number One heel and it’s an honor well-deserved.  Mr. Kennedy has the big man look that Vince McMahon seeks in all his top stars.  Better yet, he’s a very good worker as well as a good talker.  In case you’ve been watching SmackDown! on mute (not an entirely bad idea with Michael Cole still doing commentary), he’s been getting some major pops from the fans.  The question with Mr. Kennedy isn’t when he’s going to get his run as world champion but whether he’ll be doing it on RAW or SmackDown!  Given the WWE’s tendency to mine SmackDown!’s best; it wouldn’t surprise me if Mr. Kennedy showed up on RAW by this summer.

Bobby Lashley: We love Bobby.  Okay, not everyone loves Bobby but Vince McMahon sure does.  The ECW champion continues to get a monster push and while he’s a one dimensional worker, it’s good to see the WWE making a concerted effort to build new stars.   There’s no doubting Lashley’s physique or charisma.  The question becomes, are there enough good workers on ECW to carry him to watchable matches and will he make any effort to improve his skills in the ring. 

WWE Tag Division:  For years, the WWE’s tag team division has been on life support but last week’s RAW back to back tag team battle royals showed there’s more than a spark of life left in it.  Not only are the RAW and SmackDown!  tag team champions both shows fantastic teams (The Hardys & Kendrick/London respectively) but the number of teams seen in the battle royals show that the WWE has lots of potential teams to feed to each show’s tag team champions.  Factor in that ECW is rumored to be getting a tag team championship of its own and you have the potential for a tag team revival in the WWE. 

OVERRATED OR JUST NOT READY FOR PRIME-TIME: There’s been a lot of talk in the Internet Wrestling Community (IWC) about guys like Johnny Nitro and MVP being future superstars.  While Nitro has shown some good work and MVP has a lot of raw potential (particularly in the charisma department); I just don’t think they’re at the level their fans see them at.  The problem is that WWE fans are looking for new talent to freshen things up and while both guys have a lot of promise, they don’t deserve big-time pushes just yet.   Neither guy is ready for the main event (or in MVP’s case; the upper mid-card) and if the WWE isn’t careful, they could end up ruining the careers of two future superstars.  How you ask?  The WWE is notorious for bringing guys up before they’re ready for prime-time, overpushing them, then showing them the door because they didn’t perform at the level they were shoved into. 

MVP:  MVP’s charisma reminds me a lot of the Rock.  His ring work on the other hand reminds me way too much of Nathan Jones (Okay, that’s a bit too harsh).   I was really looking forward to MVP’s match with Chris Benoit at Wrestlemania but even Benoit couldn’t lift the match to a watchable level.  It wasn’t Kronik vs. Brothers of Destruction bad, but it wasn’t the kind of match where you say “This guy’s a future main eventer”.  MVP could be a future main eventer but he needs considerable improving.  It would be a shame to see the WWE push him too fast and then give him the “good luck in your future endeavors” treatment because they brought him up too early.

Johnny Nitro: Despite a nice run as Intercontinental Champion, Johnny Nitro is not ready for a world championship run.  He’s a decent to good worker but it would be a mistake to put him in world championship matches (except perhaps an occasional television match) at this point in his career (as his fans are clamoring for).  Nitro needs to be put into some programs with veterans who can help him round out his skills (Shawn Michaels would make a great opponent for Nitro) and get him ready for the big time.   Another six months to a year in the mid-card and I think Nitro will be ready for a serious main event push. 

Right now though, Nitro is in a puzzling situation where he’s gone from upper mid-card guy to Missing in Action.  Unless there’s some undisclosed problems backstage or injuries keeping him on the sidelines, it’s inexcusable that Nitro wasn’t in the Money in the Bank Match at last week’s Wrestlemania.   If he’s getting heat because of his association with Melina, he needs to dump her ass post haste. 

THE FANS HAVE SPOKEN: One of the advantages of live events is that you can’t escape hearing how the fans feel about different wrestlers.  The WWE may be able to sweeten the audience with fake applause (John Cena’s biggest friend) on TV and PPV but there’s no mistaking the fan favorites when you’re at a live show.  Case in point, Wrestlemania Weekend where WWE fans weren’t shy about sharing their thoughts on various wrestlers at events ranging from the world premiere of The Condemned, the Hall of Fame ceremony, and of course; Wrestlemania 23.  Here are your winners and losers as far as the fans in attendance were concerned:

Triple H:  The slightest mention of Triple H’s name brought out deafening cheers.  The guy is over, way over and anyone who denies it is living in denial.  While he’d never go for it, Triple H would be a godsend to the SmackDown! roster.  Since that’s not going to happen, a world championship run (consider that he hasn’t held the belt in over two years) should be considered as an alternative to Cena.

Shawn Michaels:  Not only do the fans love DX but they love the individual members of DX.  The pops for Michaels were close to that of Triple H and that can’t be a good sign for the WWE since they seem to be turning Michaels heel.   With Michaels apparently continuing his program with John Cena, this could be a disaster for the WWE if the fans don’t buy HBK’s turn.

Undertaker: The fans never seem to tire of the Dead Man gimmick and the Undertaker continues to bring in new legions of fans.  As his career begins to wind down, the Undertaker will have a job as a special attraction in the WWE as long as he wants.

John Cena: Cena has his loyal cadre of fans but the deafening boos that broke at the sound of his name make it hard to believe that the guy is the WWE’s #1 guy.  I’m sure the WWE has its reasons for keeping him at the top but there’s no denying the boos.  At what point do the fans start tuning out the WWE with Cena on top?  It could be sooner than the WWE thinks.

Batista: Lots of boos for Batista.  The question that needs to be answered is whether the boos were due to Batista facing the super-over Undertaker or because the fans are just sick of him in general.   If it’s the latter reason, the WWE needs to turn Batista heel where I think he’ll get over better than he does as the smiling badass.

THE END OF THE BRAND SPLIT:  With the WWE ending the brand exclusive PPV’s and the continuing crossovers between brands, does anyone think the brand split has much life left in it?  I give the WWE credit for putting the time and effort into trying to make the brand split work but it’s clear that it’s time to end it.  If the WWE is serious about starting international territories/brands, there’s no way they can sustain three brands in the United States with the current dilution of talent.

THIS WEEK’S MAGNIFICENT BASTARD: This week’s Magnificent Bastard Award goes to a wrestler who some would say has seen his best years are behind him.   Apparently someone forgot to tell him though as he put on a memorable match at Wrestlemania 23, getting a decent match out of the much overpushed Batista .   Of course I’m talking about the Undertaker.  At this stage in his career, “The Dead Man” could be phoning in his performances but he refuses to do so.  This isn’t just about his amazing dive over the top rope at Wrestlemania either; it’s about the fact that he continues to improve in the ring, putting in solid efforts whenever the WWE needs him.  He may be semi-retired but you won’t find a speck of ring rust on the Undertaker.