Watching wrestling this week was like eating a poorly baked cake; there was a lot of potential for greatness, but for the most part it was inconsistent, disappointing, and left you wanting more. That doesn’t mean there weren’t great moments, however - Absolution continued its early run of dominance, Matt Hardy found his dark side, and - shockingly - Roman Reigns makes our list for a positive reason - twice!
Spencer
Best: WONDERFUL is something that I say very, very rarely after a Bray Wyatt match nowadays. Usually, it’s simply because the Eater of Worlds has lost another meaningful match, but the aftermath of Wyatt vs. Matt Hardy was simply delightful. Since returning to WWE at WrestleMania, a lot of the talk around the eldest Hardy hasn’t been around his in-ring exploits, but if/when we would see #BROKEN Matt Hardy appear on our screens again. For those of you under a rock, #BROKEN Matt may have been the highlight of wrestling in 2016 - but up to this point, a lengthy legal battle has hindered Hardy’s attempts to claim his character back. Now that legal issues with Anthem - the now-former owner of the #Broken Universe - have dropped off, Hardy made his clearest reference to his former character after losing to Wyatt. While it obviously remains to be seen how WWE Creative handles the character, I’m damn excited.
Worst: We like to have a lot of laughs here at Win Column Sports, but I’m finally going to put my foot down and call a spade a spade. Kane sucks. Like, really sucks. Not that the guy shouldn’t be a first ballot hall-of-famer; it’s just that I can’t reasonably buy a 50-year-old future mayor as a destroyer on the level of Braun Strowman. I mean, the guy has always walked to the ring slowly, but now it’s because of arthritis as opposed to trying to look menacing. It’s just another example of WWE prioritizing its stars of the past instead of it’s future.
Pedro
Best: Samoa Joe attacking Roman Reigns. Samoa Joe hasn’t been involved in a relevant storyline ever since Extreme Rules. A potential one-on-one match with Reigns for the IC would be nice to see.
Worst: The New Day vs Gable & Benjamin. While the match wasn’t bad, this will probably lead to a feud between The New Day, the Usos, and Gable & Benjamin, where Gable and company will be totally irrelevant. The straps will go back and forth between the Usos and the New Day… business as usual?
Prince
Best: Elias vs Roman Reigns. I like the concept of booking Roman with the IC title similar to how WWE booked Cena with the US title. Having open challenges, putting on good matches, elevating midcard talent etc…. Ultimately Roman will win every time but it’s a good way to test out talent. Insert Elias. He’s been doing a pretty good job on garnishing heat on the main roster, and it is glad to see him transition well. He has a good character, and put on a pretty decent match. Hope to see where they go with him. Also, with Joe’s attack on Roman after the match, it might mean that everything I just said goes to waste and they just go ahead with a Joe vs Roman program, but that’s fine with me.
More of that sit-out powerbomb, please.
Worst: No Rusev, Ziggler, Nakamura, or Dillinger on Smackdown. Clearly Smackdown does not have the same star power that RAW, has but they aren’t utilizing some of their best talent. Ziggler and Dillinger are both lost, as creative have no idea what to do with the both of them. Nakamura is probably going to get shelved until WM season where he has a rumoured match with AJ Styles - and don’t get me started on Rusev. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again, RUSEV IS A MAIN EVENT TALENT. Seriously what are they doing with him? Just have him and Lana reunite and let him dominate the whole roster. It should be Rusev Day everyday!
Parker
Best: There’s a tie for me. Either the use of Samoa Joe lately, or the fact we may see Broken Matt Hardy. Joe has torn through everyone since he returned, and looks to reignite a rivalry with Roman Reigns for the Intercontinental Championship. I love Joe, and this feud could be excellent: Plus it has a high chance that Joe wins his first championship on the main roster – just let me hope!
I won’t pretend I’ve been on board with Broken Matt since day one (ish). In his time at TNA/GFW/Impact Wrestling, he showed he can make this work. Hardy has always had a strong character, and I believe he can make his variation of this gimmick work in the WWE with some creative control. Plus, its finally great to see Matt get the gimmick he loves back after a whole bunch of B.S with Impact.
Worst: I don’t think many people will disagree the worst part of WWE was the main event of RAW. To recap: Kane beats Jason Jordan in a MOTY Candidate by countout. Very slow paced beatdown occurs. Finn Balor enters - surely he can get some sort of revenge for putting over Kane? No, Kane decimates him with a chair. Then Braun enters to save Balor from a 50 year old Mayor.
This shouldn’t happen EVER, let alone in 2017.
Finn is someone who could be built up as Brock’s opponent at some point, even Paul Heyman made a point of putting him over. Just a few months later, he’s been beaten down by Glen Jacobs not just once, but thrice. Sad!
That’s our list! Thoughts? Comments? Just need someone to yell at for a frustrating week? Tweet us at @WCSportsCA, or let us know in the comments!
WWE: Last Five
- NXT Preview and Predictions: November 29th
- Smackdown Live Preview: November 28th
- This Week in Wrestling: November 24th
- Three Misconceptions about Jericho/Omega
- NXT Preview and Predictions – November 22nd
