The Teacher's Book: What could happen post-Summer Slam?

There are days where it is hard to be a wrestling fan.  If you read the Summer Slam preview Doc Manson and I had late last night, you could tell that for both of us (though Doc is suffering far worse than I), there is a definite vein of pessimism in how we feel about the WWE product.  In our minds, too much has been mis-managed, too many worthy superstars are being ignored, and there is way, way, WAY too much being shoved down our throats.  

Yet, despite the negativity that can drag me down at times, I have hope.  Perhaps its, as @NewAgeInsiders says, just because the relationship I have with WWE is an abusive one.  Or perhaps its because, as an actual classroom teacher, hope is sometimes all you can hold on to in order to maintain your sanity.  But I think there are opportunities abound here for WWE to start heading in a positive direction.  

We all have our ideas on how we’d book it were we a McMahon, so I humbly submit my own thoughts on a few directions WWE could go.

(Disclaimer:  All of this is conjecture, based on the information I have gleaned, rumors floating around, or just my best guess.  This should not be considered to be anything other than a series of thought experiments, and should in no way be considered entirely original thoughts.)

World Title Picture

Tonight, I want to see Brock Lesnar win the title.  I want it to be a competitive match, but mostly controlled by Lesnar, with Cena having to resort to more and more desperate acts to stay in it.  In the end, though, Lesnar’s just too big and too bad.

On RAW, I want Heyman to come out and be presented with the new belt.  Lesnar would be here, says the Advocate, but frankly, there’s just no reason to be.  He dominated Cena, and there is nobody out there who is worthy of a title shot, so Brock’s going on a little vacation.  

Heyman than calls out the WWE roster and says, simply. . . “Impress me”.  He wants to see somebody step up and make themselves worthy of the honor of being next conquered by The Beast.

Number Two Contenders Summer Slam Preview!

Summer Slam is less than 24 hours away, and the Number Two Contenders have you covered.  Doc Manson and The Teacher are here to discuss matches, angles, predictions and more!

The Teacher:  Doc, does it feel to you like this PPV has taken forever to get here?  It seems like these feuds have been building (or in some cases, not building) for months!

Doc Manson: Yeah, the build has been pretty slow for almost the entire card. I’m starting to feel like a broken record, always talking about the same stories and wrestlers. Although, a few of those wrestlers I talk about aren’t even on the SummerSlam card.

T:  I assume you are referring to one of our favorites, Mr. Cesaro, who will be kicking off the card by not wrestling on it.  He and RVD are scheduled to face off in the Pre-Show.  I’d like to say that having two of the better wrestlers in the company going at it before the PPV means that Summer Slam will be stacked with epic encounters top to bottom, but I just think this is more indicative of some of the lack of quality booking for certain talents.

Cesaro has to win, right?  Even if he’s going nowhere.

DM: They can pull the trigger on Cesaro at any time and he will deliver. I don’t think a win or a loss against RVD on the SummerSlam pre-show is going to make much difference in Cesaro’s career.

Guesses on the first match of the night?

The Teacher's Lounge: If all Summer Slams had Twitter

As almost every single pair of eyes who reads this knows, I, The Teacher, have been pretty addicted to Twitter since the birth of #2Contenders.  One thing I’ve been fascinated with is how the social media age allows everyone to share their feeling right as things happen.  This gives us a primal sense of how people are feeling, since from the looks of it, most people don’t spend a whole lot of time thinking about their tweets before sending them into the Inter-ether.

Which got me thinking. . . With Summer Slam around the corner, what would the history of this huge WWE event look like if Twitter had existed since its inception. . . Quite the thought experiment. . . I humbly submit some of what I believe we’d have seen in the last 20 years.

8/29/88

MegaPowersRule:  Can’t believe we’re getting a 4th #WWF PPV!  Can’t wait to see MegaPowers SLAM MegaBucks!  #Hulkamania  #OhYeah

MillionDollarBaby:  @MegaPowersRule - No way! Everybody has a price, and Dibiase and Andre can’t be stopped!  #MoneyMoneyMoney

The Teacher's Lounge: Best Women's Division Ever?

I just watched an old-school type match.  The two competitors traded offense in the beginning, then the obviously more polished one began to dominate.  They isolated a body part and worked it over, shades of Arn Anderson or the British Bulldog.  The younger talent made a valiant but fleeting attempt at a comeback, but it was firmly swatted down, ending with a quick finishing maneuver.  This was the type of match you saw all the time on TV in the 90’s, and it was excellent to see it today.

Who were the competitors in this excellent event?  NXT Women’s Champion Charlotte and Becky “Thank God they don’t make me Irish step dance anymore” Lynch.

I’ll be the first to admit that I’m a little iffy on women’s wrestling.  Maybe I watched too many botched moves by Trish Stratus back in the day, or maybe I still have nightmares of Bull Nakano (talented, but terrifying), but when a women’s match is on, I usually reach for the fast forward button.   It’s not that I don’t think they are supremely athletic and talented; many of them are.  It’s just usually not my cup of tea.

However, even a not-even-fairweather fan has to admit:

There has never been a better women’s division than there is in WWE right now.

Class is in Session: What we learn from Del Rio's firing.

One of the biggest pieces of wrestling news this week was the apparent firing of Alberto Del Rio by WWE.  Apparently, he slapped a WWE.com employee.  A lot of people online have put on their conspiracy theorist hats, assuming that this is all a work based on the wording of the WWE’s statement as well as the odd Twitter posts @WWE had as of late, but I’m not so sure.  

I’d love to see Dos Caras make a few appearances before heading back to Mexico, or more intriguingly, have Alberto join the Kofi / Big E stable, using these “events” as a springboard, but I don’t think that’s happening.  I think all of this really happened and it is a harbinger, in some ways, of the future of WWE.

Let’s take a look at what we definitely know to be true.

The WWE.com statement

“WWE announced the release of Alberto Del Rio due to unprofessional conduct and an altercation with an employee.”

RAW Response: The Teacher flies solo.

With my friend and partner Doc Manson taking a well-deserved vacation this week, I thought I’d shape our Raw Response a little differently.  Being an only child, it made the most sense for me to make this as self-centered as possible, so as I watched last night’s program, I jotted down my likes and dislikes, and now I’ll share them with you, since I am sure you are desperate to know my thoughts…

Liked:  The Authority opening the show, specifically Triple H and Stephanie.

Over the last few weeks we have seen some all-time classic promos from Triple H, and last night was no different.  He’s learned that by using the “DX” side of his persona, he can either lambast the “smart fans” or at least echo what’s being shouted about on Twitter, and none of us will mind too much.  In fact, I enjoyed the entire show’s tongue-in-cheek way to continue referencing the Network.  They all know it’s become a joke, so by being in on the joke, it just becomes funnier.

As for Stephanie, she’s got her daddy’s way to get crowd reaction, doesn’t she?  I haven’t heard boos that loud in a long time. . . Well, outside of anytime John Cena shows up.

Didn’t like - Lack of logic in Beat the Clock challenge

State of the WWE: A very early Summer Slam preview

The Teacher:  Doc Manson and I are back once again, friends, only this time, we’re actually going to discuss the art of wrestling, and not just the business of it.

Summer Slam is just a few weeks away, Doc.  Are you excited yet?

Doc Manson: Yes. Absolutely, sort of. What’s on the card again? Aside from Cena v. Lesnar?

T:  Frankly, I don’t think there’s all that much else that’s been decided, besides our main event.

In fact, WWE.com is only reporting 3 matches as of yet.  Cena and Lesnar, Jericho and Bray 2.0, and Stephanie McMahon vs. Brie Bella.

So, I ask you again, Doc.  Are you excited yet?

DM: I had a sudden vision of Bray Wyatt as a cyborg, and I was entertained.

State of WWE: WWE Network Edition

The Teacher:  Doc, my friend, it’s been far too long.  We’re a little late to do a proper RAW recap, so what say we just go through a few topics in only mild particular order.  That work for you, sir?

Doc Manson: This isn’t going to be on the test, is it, Teach?

T:  There’s always a test.

First off, today’s big news in the world of wrestling is that, once again, WWE Network subscribers are not coming in the droves Vince McMahon would like them to.  I don’t want to spend too much time on the business end of wrestling, especially since I have next to no business acumen, but tell me, are you surprised or concerned about WWE’s seeming lack of financial support?

Class is in Session: RAW's Love Letter to the WWE Twitter-verse

Triple H was in rare form last night.

The COO of WWE and leader of The Authority reminded us all why, when he wants to be, he can be one of the more entertaining promo-men in the business.  Last night’s RAW opened with a heavily sarcastic shot at the WWE’s Internet community, specifically the multitude of fans on Twitter.

Now, as someone who has spent far more time than is healthy on Twitter in the last week (the benefits of an actual teacher’s schedule), I can say he was right on the money.  While there are some absolutely stellar wrestling fans out there dedicated to intelligent conversation and articulate, respectful debate (Head over to @The2Contenders and you’ll easily find who I’m talking about), the vast majority of Internet wrestling fans do nothing but whine, complain, and threaten to take their friend Mark and stop watching if WWE doesn’t listen to their demands.

So Triple H started out the show by giving us “smart” fans a verbal shellacking, condemning us for our constant complaining.

The next 3 hours showed that they were listening, however, as last night’s RAW could have been subtitled “A Love Letter to our Twitter fans”.

The Teacher's Lounge: 'Stable'-izing the WWE

For my money, there’s nothing like a good wrestling stable.  If you were a wrestling fan in the 1980’s, it was the Four Horsemen or the Heenan Family.  During the Monday Night Wars, it was the nWo or the Corporate Ministry.  Raven’s Flock, Los Boricuas, Right to Censor, the Filthy Animals. . . The list goes on and on.

A well-put together stable allows you to showcase multiple talents in a single segment.  Most importantly, it allows young talents to have a chance to grow and shine (Randy Orton in the early days of Evolution) while veteran talent who are getting on in years but can still bring it on the mic get to continue being a relevant force (Arn Anderson during the final days of the WCW Horsemen).  In addition, a stable can help elevate a single superstar by having him be the focus of the group.  (Straight Edge Society is one example, another one that failed dramatically was The Brood.)  Also, stables can sometimes serve as a metaphor for broader issues, be it inside or outside of the wrestling world.

Here are 6 stables (4 re-iterations of a group from the past as well as 2 brand new ones) that I believe could exist in the WWE.  Many of these also provide opportunities for many of the next wave of NXT stars to make their way onto the main roster, while also giving a current Superstar a leadership role.

The Teacher's Lounge: Fantasy Booking the Battleground Main Event

Tonight is Battleground, the PPV lead-in to August’s Summerslam extravaganza.  Our main event this evening is a Fatal Four Way for the WWE title, as John Cena defends against Randy Orton, Kane and Roman Reigns.  If you asked 100 average wrestling fans who they thought was going to win this match, I’d wager at least 85-90% of them would say that John Cena will defend his title.  Between the leaked promotional material for SummerSlam as well as Paul Heyman’s cryptic “Plan C”, all signs are pointing to John Cena and Brock Lesnar for the title next month.

But what if that’s just what WWE wants you to believe?

Perhaps. . . Actually, it’s almost a certainty that I am venturing much too far down the conspiracy theorist road, but let’s go down that road anyway.  Consider it a thought experiment.  Putting on my fantasy booker hat, here are the ways I can see six other wrestlers walking out of Battleground with the WWE title.  As an extra challenge, I’ll even include how I’d follow tonight’s match up at SummerSlam.