wrestling / Columns
High Road/Low Road 02.26.10: The Pope D’Angelo Dinero As The Number One Contender
Welcome back to the High Road/Low Road!
A brief explanation of the column: Sat takes the High Road (positive view) on angles, gimmicks, and other wrestling related “stuff” while Chad Nevett takes the Low Road (negative view).
Results for WWE NXT:
High Road: 63%
Low Road: 18%
Both Roads: 18%
Chad Nevett: I thought people might lean a bit more towards Both Roads to hedge their bets, but, after seeing the first episode, I’d definitely go High Road. Solid show.
Sat: I was also expecting people to be leaning both roads. I agree that the first episode looked very good and this looks like it could be a high road.
The Pope As The Number One Contender
High Road:
When I think about The Pope D’Angelo Dinero becoming the number one contender to the TNA World Title, I think about the fact that the WWE gave up on this guy way too soon. I think it is great to see somebody that the WWE did not see any potential in getting a chance to shine.
Low Road:
I don’t see why that’s a High Road. What does him being let go from the WWE have to do with anything beyond the smug idea of somehow throwing it back in the WWE’s face? That doesn’t really matter to me since his past with the WWE is irrelevant to where he is now.
High Road:
The Pope has to be a threat to AJ Styles because he has been built by TNA as a main event player. First, he had a victory over AJ Styles a few weeks back and then he went on to win three times at Against All Odds. I think TNA has done a good job in building up The Pope into a main event player in such a short amount of time.
Low Road:
It’s too quick a push. He went from midcard sometimes jobber to main event player in the span of a month. He’s moved from the midcard to the main event in a shorter time than he’s been with the company. It seems less based on his talent and more on Hogan/Bischoff liking him, which could cause a backlash.
High Road:
AJ Styles and The Pope have shown that they can have good matches with each other and we can expect to see the same when they meet for the TNA World Title.
Low Road:
They had one decent match, but the Pope hasn’t had a real breakthrough performance in the ring yet. He’s shown he has endurance and doesn’t look out of place against main eventers, but he hasn’t gone above and beyond yet.
High Road:
One of the main complaints that people have had about TNA is that all of the veterans are getting the World Title shots. You have to give credit to TNA for giving somebody else a chance at the TNA World Title. I think The Pope getting a shot at the World Title provides for a change in the main event scene.
Low Road:
You mentioned the WWE missing out on Dinero, but Hogan and Bischoff coming in and pushing him seems like a WWE guy getting the push instead of a known TNA guy. The Pope hasn’t been with the company too long and him being fast tracked possibly based on being a WWE reject isn’t too different from veterans being pushed: it sends the message that the wrestlers TNA has aren’t good enough.
High Road:
The Pope has been getting an amazing crowd reaction for quite a few weeks. I think this past Thursday was probably one of the better reaction that he has had. I think TNA did the smart move by making the Pope the number one contender because the crowd has definitely been responding to him.
Low Road:
And then the Pope was only average on the mic. I’ve liked the Pope’s mic work so far, but his performance on Impact last Thursday was a miss for me as he attempted the ‘call your enemies by a fake, funny name’ gimmick and it fell flat. It wasn’t funny or clever, it was just bad. Unless he, Flair, and Styles can find a better rhythm during promos, their feud will cool down quickly.
High Road:
I would be surprised if The Pope won the TNA World Title from AJ Styles for a few reasons. One, it seems like they are working on giving AJ Styles a really long run with the title. Plus, it would be surprising to give The Pope the title in just his first attempt at it. While I would be surprised if The Pope won the title, I still think this is a smart move because it can establish him as a threat to the TNA World Title.
Low Road:
It can possibly establish him or it could be his one shot before falling back down to the midcard. With a quick push like this and a lot of other young, hot guys getting pushed, the Pope looks like he’s in for a quick shot at the belt before Desmond Wolfe, Mr. Anderson, or Abyss get pushed. Hell, Abyss is already looking like he’s replacing the Pope with his teaming with Hogan against Flair and Styles on the first Monday Impact in March. Not exactly a sign of confidence for the Pope’s longevity in the main event scene.
Are you taking the High Road or the Low Road?
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.
DJ V1.40 Writes:
All the pairings are interesting, if only to show where WWE thinks the Rookies would benefit the most:
WRESTLING AND MIC WORK
– Barrett with Jericho
– Slater and Christian
– Young and Punk (his WWE pic makes me think of Baba off FZero GX, a bit flamboyant)MIC WORK
– Danielson and Miz
– Otunga and R-Truth
– Sheffield and MVPThe two other pairings seem to be to get attention from specific parts of the audience. Having a Hardy on the show brings in the rabid Hardy fans, while Carlito helps get the Hispanic audience (ala Mysterio on Smackdown) to tune in.
The concept is promising, so a few weeks should help clarify the direction of the show. I believe whether the Rookies are treated more like WWE newcomers with experience than guys with little wrestling experience would define its success or failure.
Sat: That’s an interesting take on the pairings.
Chad Nevett: I could see that being the point, though with William Regal replacing MVP as a mentor, I’d move Sheffield into the ‘wrestling and mic work’ category maybe.
Comments:
Below are the comments for last week’s columns and our responses. Every comment will not be included because it makes our lives a lot easier.
Justin Writes:
High Road- There are only so many hours of wrestling I’m going to watch a week. After Smackdown and Raw I’ve pretty much had my fill so I stopped watching ECW. The new formula piqued my interest enough so that I’ll at least check out the first few episodes. Whether I keep watching depends on the quality.
Sat: If the WWE produces a quality show, then people will definitely watch.
Chad Nevett: Pretty much, yeah. The first show was good, so I plan to keep watching.
The Great Captain Smooth Writes:
High road. The new ECW has been a stepping stone for Miz, Morrison, Swagger, Kofi, etc. and NXT only takes that part of it and adds a bit of Tough Enough. The new wrestlers don’t have to worry about getting over by themselves. The more established wrestlers can’t help the WWE build more stars. There is also the potential for friction between each member. Anybody could wind up turning on their partner. Could a trade happen? There is a ton of stuff that could come out of this and I can’t wait to see what that might be.
Sat: I think we are assuming that the partners will be working together, but I see there being more friction than working together.
Chad Nevett: The first episode definitely showed a good mix of working together and friction, which is smart. The Miz/Daniel Bryan pairing seems designed to get Bryan over based on his conflict with the Miz.
ROH Commish Writes:
Based on the Pros alone, I have to say High Road. Becoming a Pro could be considered a indicator of who is being pushed or WWE values.
My key fear is the unknown season’s length. I don’t want Danielson in NXT for more than 6 months.
P.S. All reality TV is fake.
Sat: We do know how long the season will be; it will be about eighteen weeks. I kind of started wondering about the pros when Carlito was selected; I think he was selected just to give him something to do.
Chad Nevett: Carlito is good in the ring and puts on decent matches, so having him as a pro isn’t too strange a move. Plus, the fans know who he is, which is another key point.
Guest#5136 Writes:
High Road all the way.
My God The Miz is mentoring Brian Danielson…
How can this be anything other than awesome?
Sat: I think that will be the most entertaining thing about NXT.
Chad Nevett: If the first episode is any indication, there are a few other interesting story possibilities like the conflict between CM Punk and Darren Young that could result in another addition to the Straight Edge Society eventually.
The Gold Standard Writes:
Low Road. Only cause I think just like Tough Enough, will only produce one true star in the end or flop, but I’m a wait and check it out before I can make a true opinion of it.
Sat: I think all of the guys on this version will not exceed, but I think you can definitely get three guys to be stars.
Chad Nevett: I hope they lose the ‘one winner, one guy moves on’ concept and switch to the idea that any number of the guys could move on, it all depends on how good they are. If all are fantastic, they all get contracts; if none are ready, none move on. Limiting it to one means, what, the WWE introduces four new guys a year max? That seems unlikely and anyone bypassing NXT cheapens it.
Guest #7821 Writes:
Both Roads.
Positives:
– Great roster
– Another avenue for veterans (imagine Coach Kane)
– Rumored 16-week run, hopefully won’t get staleNegatives:
– No announced incentive for coaches. Money? Title shot?
– Rumored 16-week run, then what? Another 8 rookies?
– May work too well. Say all rookies graduate to the main rosters. (Unlikely, I know.) Smackdown and Raw will get bloated pretty fast. A third brand would have been a good place to keep the overflow.The bottom line is that we can’t really judge NXT now, or even after the first few episodes. We need to see the whole “season.”
Too many uncertainties to call a High or Low Road just yet.
Sat: You make two good points. Why are the pros agreeing to coach? And if all the guys graduate to the main roster, except a ton of releases.
Chad Nevett: The mentors roles need a bit more definition, but this could be a great place for guys like Kane and Finlay. And the WWE needs to solve the problem of new additions to the main roster since a limit wouldn’t work — but neither would promoting everyone.
Jbardo Writes:
High Road.
It sounds an interesting idea & they may as well try something new, plus by the sounds of it the talent is good, im really looking forward to the Miz-Bryan pairing.
Sat: I definitely think they needed to do something different.
Chad Nevett: What I really liked about the first episode was that it still had a strong focus on the in-ring action and seemed like a narrowing of the focus to the young guys proving themselves, which was what ECW was meant to be about before, but, now, it’s explicit.
Big Mike Watters Writes:
I’m hoping that for the wrestling parts, it’s kayfabe…but then they break to after the matches…on the road…and it goes to a “documentary type” feel, and everybody breaks character, pro and rookie alike….
Sat: That is the direction I hope they go.
Chad Nevett: I’m glad they kept the out of the ring stuff to a minimum.
Guest#7635 Writes:
This is really the bottom of the barrel for High/Low, huh? It doesn’t matter at all until a few episodes have aired. Sheesh.
Sat: Yeah, let’s wait a few episodes and run this column during WrestleMania time. Then, there will be comments asking why we are covering this instead of WrestleMania.
Chad Nevett: Gotta strike while the iron is hot and when people are interested most.
Guest#1457 Writes:
High road. Getting new wrestlers some exposure is a good thing. Now I have no clue how the show will take place but so far it introduces 8 new guys one we know is a damn good wrestler.
Sat: I’m kind of surprised we really have no idea what the show will be like.
Chad Nevett: Even after one episode, I’m still not sure if this will be the format every week or if it will evolve over time. I’m not sure the WWE knows 100% what they’re doing with NXT yet.
s1rude Writes:
Both roads, I guess? We can’t do much but speculate at this point…but I can see how this could be a great show (if it takes a “Beyond the Mat” or “A Lion’s Tale” approach to examining the business and the people who work in the industry because they love it) or an embarrassing one (guys stay in character backstage).
The cynic in me agrees with the Low Road – the company that aired 10 minutes of footage of the Hitman being taken out by an indoor traffic accident that trapped his foot in a car door is probably not going to break kayfabe routinely any time soon. Maybe it will at least introduce a new way to use managers/valets?
Sat: With the WWE, I would not blame you for being a cynic.
Chad Nevett: While watching R-Truth and David Otunga come out, I mentioned to my girlfriend that R-Truth would make a good manager/lackey since his rap entrance came off stronger when it was for someone else.
HeartBurnKid Writes:
I’m going with High Road on NXT. It introduces a lot of fresh faces to the WWE, and gives them a chance to interact with, and get a rub from, some popular veterans. And I’m really interested in the Danielson/Miz pairing, since, as John Morrison put it, “He knows more than [Miz does].” I can see Miz being an arrogant jackhole and trying to put Danielson in his “place”, while Danielson feels his “place” is well past Miz.
Sat: The Danielson/Miz pairing is definitely the most interesting thing about the show.
Chad Nevett: The WWE is definitely high on the Miz right now, so making his interactions with Daniel Bryan a focus of the show is good sign for Danielson fans.
Michael L Writes:
Overall, I’d have to say high road, at least for now. This does what the WWE has been unwilling to do for the last 3 years or so: give new talent a buildup before bringing them in. I think Punk was the last new wrestler to even get clips previewing his debut, and that was in 2006. Since then, they’ve been throwing wrestler after wrestler on the air, expecting the casual fans to give a shit. Only Shaemus has stuck, and they had to give him the title victory over the almighty Cena.
The only major areas of concern is that this could get old after a season or two, and that it’s uncertain of what these wrestlers will do once they are on the main brands. Also, they are going to be tempted to do the soap opera BS like they had with S2 of Tough Enough. Let’s keep the show focused on the training and wrestling, with just enough on their background to make us care for these guys.
Sat: I had not thought about it, but it has been a while since a wrestler was given a video package hyping their debut.
Chad Nevett: I like the amount of in-ring action. There was a good mix of wrestling and promos… and the pros giving the rookies a chance to show what they can do.
Lukodactyl Writes:
NXT is a competition, right?
Since we already know that Danielson’s the only guy with a real contact (not a developmental one), don’t we know well ahead of time he’s going to ‘win’?
Sat: It is a competition, but I don’t think that is indicative on how will be joining the main roster.
Chad Nevett: I don’t know what’s going to happen here. I doubt that the WWE is really going to limit themselves to only one of these guys if more than one proves himself, so we’ll see.
Joe Schmoe Writes:
High road.
Way too early to know whether the concept will succeed, but I’m happy that we’ll still have a WWE developmental show, and ECW had become stale. Even a bomb would freshen things up, but I suspect that having people like Danielson, as well as always entertaining superstars like Jericho, Punk, Miz, Christian, and Regal, will prevent this from bombing.
Sat: ECW was definitely stale, so it is good to see something new for once.
Chad Nevett: ECW was stale and NXT seems like it made enough small changes to not lose what was good about ECW (lots of wrestling and a place for young guys to prove themselves) while adding new, interesting elements.
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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.
