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Wrestling’s 4Rs 10.07.13: WWE Smackdown & TNA Impact Reviewed
How the 4Rs of wRestling Work!
Here is a quick explanation of the 4R’s. The column will run TWO times a week. We will group our feelings on the shows in various categories: The Right, the wRong and the Ridiculous. The Right is stuff that worked very well: a great promo, a great match and so on. PuRgatoRy is a section between the right and wrong. It shows equal traits from both sides that cannot be ignored and needs discussed. It is not a bad place per say, as things can get remedied or go the wrong way the very next week. The wRong is what it sounds like: bad matches, bad or boring promos and so on. The Ridiculous is stuff that had no right on TV: Stupid angles and so on. And there is always a possibility of a 5th R, which is as bad as they come. This column is supposed to be analytical, and at the right time very critical of the shows, it was the whole reason it was created. This is not a “mark” column, nor a “smark” column, our goal is to analyze the show from many different fronts, reward the good and call out the bad. We will not apologize for our opinions, they are as they are, whether positive or negative.
Impact 10.03.13:
By: Danny Bennett
QUICK MATCH RESULTS:
THE RIGHT:
BFG Build Begins: Impact kicked off with AJ Styles finally diverting his attention away from Dixie Carter and reminding us that he has a match against Bully Ray at Bound For Glory. Although I feel not enough has been made of the match itself with the hype finally beginning it still stands a chance, however I feel it might be too little too late. Styles’ promo was short and simple which it needs to be due to his promo style not translating well to TV and thus coming off as whiney and self-righteous. Bully Ray interrupted alongside Brooke, The Aces were absent this week, which was a needed move , in order to place the spotlight on Ray vs. AJ, instead of the dissention in the group. Ray trashed Styles and became a Dixie Carter supporter, which only added to his crowd heat. Ray has been TNA’s promo man of the year and most consistent character, his tone, delivery and presence adds to any angle or feud and has salvaged several TNA plot lines which could have derailed lesser skilled workers. This also setup the main event of Ray vs. Joe , which was met with mostly apathy from a tired crowd, Joe should be perceived as a genuine threat.
Mid Card Madness: The first match of the evening was also the best as the X division took center stage in a tag match, which connected a lot of various feuds from over the summer. The division itself has seen a great deal more attention than it has in several years the past couple of months and been established as the definitive secondary title in the company. The match was fast paced and showed inklings of what an extended PPV match between various of combos could be like. Austin Aries was on commentary and added, with interplay between Taz and Tenay. Manik continues to impress and will only get the rub from being in scenarios with three former world champions. Sabin seems fully committed to his new persona and Velvet Sky was a non-factor, which is a plus after last week. The post match announcement excited the crowd and this reviewer as Ultimate X rarely disappoints. Sabin’s reaction however was perplexing due to his vast experience edge in such a match.
Magnus has EGO Problems: Magnus’ gauntlet challenge ate up a big chunk of TV time and really helped everybody involved in my opinion as Magnus’ quest for retribution over EGO let him take on too much to handle and the Heel faction took advantage. Magnus vs. Daniels was a solid start although a tad short, the second match with Kazarian was the best of the three and once again makes me feel Kazarian is the most underrated of the group. It also setup the third match against Bobby Roode, the pace was slow but heated up down the stretch and the finish was great as it sets up the Magnus post match promo and also throws a hint out towards a Angle vs. Roode match at BFG.
Hall of EGO: EGO’S post match celebration was awesome , singing the lyrical version of Roode’s theme was so funny it deserves a YouTube look if you haven’t seen it. Next week’s promise of Roode being the first inductee in the Hall of EGO should be great and once again makes Angle vs. Roode look more likely for BFG.
puRgatoRy:
Team Dixie: This was the segment hyped all night and might prove to be a catalyst of a new creative direction in TNA. Dixie laid out her plan to take Hogan’s career to new places and make him a even bigger star, Hogan thanked her but said he wasn’t the right guy and quit. Carter began trying to physically prevent Hogan leaving before giving up and screaming that she didn’t need him. To her considerable credit Carter sounded a lot more comfortable on the mic and garner the most heat all night, with her Southern drawl she has a distinctive promo style and can get under the audience’s skin ,however she needs to continue with her advancement. . Hogan’s promo was good but more explanation why he doesn’t want to join her would have helped. Many have complained about Carter’s reaction making the company look bad and sending Hogan out with the ultimate ego move, however the segment was to advance Carter’s character and that was achieved by making her look deluded and somewhat unstable.
THE ICON Speaks: Magnus post match meltdown ended with an appearance from Sting who after trying to reason with him finally snapped and issued a challenge for a match at Bound For Glory, Magnus’ facials were great and Sting brought the fire that the promo needed, I hope the match can live up to the occasion as it will be the semi main, and could establish Magnus as a headliner.
Whatcha Gonna Do Hulk?: The show long story tying the narratives together was Hogan’s impending showdown with Dixie, the first vignette with Sting might have gone over the viewers head as Eric Bischoff was mentioned and his character was wrote off early last year and Hogan was in Bischoff’s camp for years. The second segment with Austin Aries was a lot more interesting due to Aries’ character and the line about black and white was clever. The last part was the video of Hogan’s TNA Career and was really well done and laid the foundation perfectly for the show closer.
ETHAN: Very short but builds intrigue, with his identity unknown at this point the character of a prima donna could play out, definitely one to watch.
Bully’s Felina: Forgive the Breaking Bad title , but I can draw a huge comparison to Bully Ray and Breaking Bads’ Walter White, Bully is by far the most fleshed out character ,with clear motivations, desires and goals, like White , Bully created a tissue of lies which led to his reveal as the mastermind. Both created groups based on loyalty however after a while the switch from business to ego drove away their loyalist and set about their demise. Tonight was stage one in what I predict will be Bully’s comeuppance at Bound For Glory. The match against Joe was very basic ,however the compatible styles helped things out. Hebners’ ref bump was weak, however the conclusion with Bully having to resort to the chain and then getting ran off by Styles heated up their conflict going forward.
Tag Title Match Announced: While the division has been stagnant since Slammiversary , the interview of the tag champs was nicely done and the announcement of a pre show battle royal at BFG should be a good free online attraction to gain possible buys
THE wRong:
Tapa Takes Over: A huge wrong this week as after one week of hype, Lai’d Tapa made her debut on impact attacking Velvet Sky before her match against Brooke. Tapa looked horrible, whether it was Sky’s selling or Tapa’s offence, but it came off clumsy and awkward and maybe a sign she was called up from OVW too soon.
THE RIDICULOUS:
Atlas security at it again: A short segment where Dixie got AJ thrown out of the building, this was unneeded and served no purpose as Styles end show run in rendered it pointless.
Ray vs. Styles promo video: Okay so the main event of the biggest show of the year featuring the two top guys in the company, and yet Bully Ray is hardly mentioned for all of 5 seconds. Come on TNA, let AJ vs. Bully be the focus not Dixie Carter.
The episode was a very mixed bag the direction of TNA has improved from a couple of months ago, but their priorities need adjusting, Styles vs. Ray needs the hard sell and fast, it is going to be the drawing card of the show , not Dixie Carter, if this is Styles’ big year long story arch ender then it will be an anti climax if things continue. The X division is heating up and should have a lot more great matches before BFG with the four men involved. Magnus vs. Sting is compelling and could make or break Magnus , however EGO continue to be the highlight of the show and turn every segment into gold, next weeks show should flesh out the BFG card and give us a good idea where things are heading. Show Rating: 6.8 As a reminder, I will be going by the 411 scale… 0 – 0.9: Torture |
Smackdown 10.04.13
By: Maxwell Baumbach
QUICK MATCH RESULTS:
THE RIGHT:
Angle Advancement with Triple H and Big Show: Smackdown felt inconsequential for a long period of time, and much of that had to do with the fact that nothing of importance happened on the show. By introducing a new wrinkle into the Triple H/Big Show angle (Triple H owning Big Show’s mortgage), they made the show feel like it mattered. It’s the little things, people.
Curtis Axel is a goober, and I love it: After Ryback destroyed either-a-jobber-or-number-one-contender-to-a-midcard-title-at-all-times-for-the-last-year-and-a-half R-Truth, Curtis Axel picked up the scraps. I love that Curtis Axel being a massive disappointment is being worked into his character. Heyman having his doubts, and Axel knowing he has to resort to sneak attacks provide for a different dynamic than we usually see. It also gives the writing staff some unique creative directions that they can take with his character going forward.
Alberto Del Rio vs. Dolph Ziggler: These two have great chemistry, and it led to another great match between the two on Smackdown. Both guys did a fantastic job of building off of their previous matches, which is much appreciated. It’s kind of silly when two wrestlers who have gone at it multiple times still fall victim to the same things. I’m glad that Del Rio and Ziggler put on a fun match that wasn’t insulting the intelligence of the audience.
puRgatoRy:
Remember Los Matadores from Raw? Same thing. Again.: So Los Matadores are a bit polarizing. First off, if you’re really butt-hurt about the “Ole!” thing, you need to lighten up. El Generico is one of the best wrestlers in the world, and I think he can get over without that catchphrase, especially with a different gimmick. Secondly, the idea that Primo and Epico need to do a “worked shoot” on this gimmick and go back to being themselves is idiotic. Both guys are serviceable in-ring workers with little-to-no charisma. Giving them this gimmick allows them to stand out and gives them an identity that leads to merchandise sales from the younger demographics. This gimmick is the best thing for everyone involved. That said, their ring presence still needs work. It’s early on in their run, so there is no sense in rushing to judgment, but they might be digging their own graves if they don’t start putting more effort into the way they carry themselves.
In case you were wondering, Big E is of no value any more: This goes in purgatory because it all depends on what WWE depends on doing with Big E. If they see him as someone who could be a big star in the company one day, it’s probably a pretty shitty idea to have him losing in 40 seconds to a career midcarder. However, if they see him as a solid big guy who they want to use to put over other people, this isn’t as bad. However, how much stock will fans put into Big E after this? Having him lose so quickly did some big (e) damage.
Big Show vs. The Shield and Orton, Bryan runs in post-match: The biggest problem with the Triple H authority angle is that it feels like Big Show is the focal point of the feud at times, not Bryan. I think it’s pretty silly that they feel the need to keep Big Show strong at all times. In this match, he took on FOUR GUYS and couldn’t go down the way Bryan has on a number of occasions. However, Bryan’s run-in after the match lifted this segment a little bit. Bryan is the most universally over guy they have had in a long time, and the WWE is going to make a huge mistake if they transition this angle to be more about Big Show.
THE WRONG:
Hey, did you know that in two days Rob Van Dam and Alberto Del Rio are wrestling for a title called the WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP?!: That’s right! You may have forgotten, because this was only brought up for about 12 seconds on this show. At this point, the World Heavyweight Championship is nothing more than a midcard belt. I wish that WWE would deactivate the title for a few reasons; first off, it would let the title keep some of its dignity, and secondly, there is no need for a second “world title” or a third midcard title without the brand split.
AJ/Brie build: So apparently Brie turned babyface by not listening and yelling over AJ like a guest on Ricki Lake when AJ cut a promo on the Total Divas cast. What a great way to get someone over. I had no idea that Brie was a babyface, and I don’t think the crowd does either. What has she done to get cheered? What has AJ done to get booed, speak her mind and say what many fans already thought? This angle feels backwards, and the idea of “everyone on Total Divas is a babyface” is absurd, because no one on that show comes across as completely likeable.
THE RIDICULOUS:
NOTHING!
This was the go-home show to a pay-per-view, but it didn’t feel like it. They didn’t do anything that made me want to see Battleground more than I did previously. For that reason, it is hard to give this show a ton of credit. Ziggler and Del Rio had a strong match, but I feel like this show needed another good match because everything else was a squash or DQ. You can skip this week and not miss much of consequence. Show Rating: 4.5 As a reminder, I will be going by the 411 scale… 0 – 0.9: Torture |
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