The Best Of The Rest 9.03.08: Volume 57 - The Conclusion of the Pro's and Con's of Today's Champions

Posted by Alex Mattis on 09.03.2008

Wrapping up this 3 part series I look at the Pro's and Con's of the E's tag champs, as well as the champion of TNA and ROH. Come on in to the "Best Of The Rest!"

Hello and welcome back to the "Best Of The Rest!" Anyone jakked as hell that Randy Orton is back? Marvelous. Well this week I'll be completing my report on the Pro's & Con's of today's champions. Enjoy this wrap up and be sure to come back next week when I will be discussing a format change that is coming to this column. Let's get down to it.


World Tag Team Champions:
Cody Rhodes & Ted DiBiase

Pro's:
One of the best up and coming duos in all of the game right now is this team. Indeed Pricele$$. Their heel work and promos have been stellar up until this point and their wrestling skills, which was already good, are rapidly increasing. These guys benefitted greatly from being raised in the business, as you can tell they have knowledge that some can only hope to learn. Much like Ted's father, these two are natural born heels. I never bought Cody as a face and since the heel turn he has really come into his own. I have never seen Ted as a face, but already love him as a heel. I have seen his brother Mike up and down Texas and it is safe to say that the heel gene runs in that family. If the E puts some more time and effort back into their tag division, Pricele$$ could be the jump start to making the division really mean something again.

Con's:
It's hard to find some cons with this tandem but in the end the con's can be that of all of the E's tag teams, and the division as a whole. The E doesn't take it seriously, and uses it as filler. Want proof? Rhodes & DiBiase were wrestling Jerry Lawler and Jim Duggan on the "flagship" show just a couple of weeks ago. Not to mention them losing the belts to Batista and Cena just to further their feud. A potential showdown with Cryme Tyme looks like it could have some promise; the two biggest tag teams on Raw would be interesting. Overall, however it doesn't seem like the E is going to let these two go anywhere. Like all of the recent tag champs, it seems like they are just going to flounder on Raw until being split up in the draft for one of them to be made into something bigger. But I would love for the E to prove me wrong in this situation.


WWE Tag Team Champions:
Hawkins & Ryder

Pro's:
Fresh faces holding gold in the E, I've said it before and I'll say it again that is never a bad thing. I thought the way these two were brought in was pretty well done, their debut on ECW where they won a big upset. They floundered around ECW for awhile then were brought into a big angle on SmackDown as Edge's backup. While acting as Edge's lackies they were able to get over about as good as they could for being 2nd string chicken-shit heels. They eventually split and went back to trying to score upsets in the tag division, and that's just what the did. At the GAB this year I expected Miz & Morrison to retain in their 4 corner tag, well the last team I expect to win the straps ending up taking the gold home and thus starting their something of title reign.

Con's:
The first thing I said when these two won the tag titles was "who the fuck are these guys?" Literally I know who they are and such, but what I mean is the E had done little to make them stand out. Even now after they have held the titles for awhile the E doesn't seem too interested in making them noticeable and memorable. They have defeated no one of note really, they're just SmackDown wrestlers who happen to wear gold belts to the ring. These guys are really trying hard and I give them props for that, but this just once again goes to show that the E isn't in a hurry to make huge stars out of their tag teams the focus is on the single players. Now I don't think that Hawkins & Ryder could be the next Rockers or Hart Foundation or anything like that, but I would just like to see what they could do if the E were to give them the ball and let them run with it. I thought good things were about to happen with the Miz & Morrison and then they lost the titles pretty much out of no where, that may turn out to be the case here as well.

Switchin' Gears...


TNA World Champion:
Samoa Joe

Pro's:
The fact that Joe is finally the TNA champ is the greatest pro of them all. The man who should be the face of the company is the face of the company. Joe put several years of great work and great dedication into TNA. He gave them many of greatest matches that they have had in their short history. He was/is TNA. Joe represents the difference (there aren't many) between TNA and the rest. He has been the best thing to happen to the product since they opened their doors. I don't know how much more I can stress the importance of Samoa Joe to TNA. He changed the company and brought new attention in, and the fact that he is now their champion is well deserved. Despite what seems to be a lack of motivation as of late, no one can deny he put on an incredible performance in winning the title from Kurt Angle at Lockdown earlier this year. If TNA comes to appreciate what they have, they can make Joe the star of the company. But at this point it'll take awhile for TNA to un-do what has been done.

Con's:
The trigger on this was pulled way too late; the fact that the show is not built around Samoa Joe, the fact that Joe doesn't turn it on anymore. Take your pick. This just shows you how fucked up TNA is currently. Their champion is seemingly a second string player. TNA has their biggest player, holding their biggest title yet they were like to turn the attention to former E/WCW/wherever stars thus cheapening the product and making it look like WCW 2k8. This hasn't just affected their product in many of the fans eyes, it has affected Joe. It has altered his in-ring performances and his all around demeanor. The Samoa Joe that came in 2005 was a hungry, motivated individual. He busted his ass in every match he had, be it a 25 min classic with AJ or a 3 min squash with Delirious. Joe was there to deliver and make a name for himself. Then TNA just kept putting off giving him the belt. "Oh Kurt Angle is here now, piss on what you've done." By the time Joe won the belt it wasn't so much of a "YES!!!! JOE FINALLY WON THE BIG ONE!!!!" as it was a "It's about fuckin' time." That's why we don't see the same Joe we did several years ago. The Samoa Joe that holds the TNA title today is not the same Samoa Joe we saw back in 2005, and rightfully so.


ROH World Champion:
Nigel McGuinness

Pro's:
The picture I used to represent him speaks loudly. He has been an amazing heel since his turn and has really made the fans despise him and made them salivate at the thought of him losing the title. At one of his last defenses, when he retained the title, you see that the fans were so outraged that they began throwing they're trash in the ring. It has been a while since I had seen that number fans so outraged over a wrestler winning that they started throwin' shit in the ring, old school nWo '96 style. Another pro of every ROH champion has been dedication. Every champ they have had has dedicated himself to that belt, to the company, and to the fans. Nigel is no exception. Since winning it he has given everything he has to the ROH title and making sure that even if the fans wanted to rip his head off, they went home knowing they had seen a good show.

Con's:
It's really hard to say what the con of Nigel being champion is. With an indy company like ROH you always have to worry about title security because a guy could go at anytime. I will credit ROH and say that there contracts were a very wise idea, but at the same time any guy could find a way to go to the next level at anytime. And I will give ROH props again because they want their guys to succeed and help them get to the next level. This one is more of a matter of opinion, but I have often found Nigel to be hit or miss. I've seen some of his matches and thought "Holy shit that was incredible!" and then I have seen others that struck me as just "eh." Sometimes I have felt that he over-commits to certain aspects of the match, that is also often what make performers like him great, but on the other hand that over-commitment can also be physical demanding and detrimental, as we have seen in the past with some of the serious injuries Nigel has sustained. But with a wrestler like that, one who dedicates himself completely to his title defenses and performances, it's hard to find many cons.


Well, that's it for this week. Finally wrapping up this P's & C's business.

Come back next week for more from around the wrestling world, as well as an announcement on a forthcoming format change for the column.

Remember feedback, as always, is welcome at [e-mail] or directly below.

*This Week's YouTube Sendoff*

^Reason #47583292 Human Tornado is my hero.

Take Care,
Alex