My Friday Pittsburgh Tribune-Review column was a six-pack of WWE questions. Here’s a sample:
A six-pack of questions regarding WWE:
1. Why is everyone in such a rush for Samoa Joe to be on RAW and SmackDown?
Samoa Joe is a solid talent. I’m happy he’s getting paid well and is a face of what’s arguably the hottest wrestling show in the world, NXT. Constant questions come from fans about should he be on RAW or SmackDown. I’m not expecting the 36-year-old to be pushed to the top for a world title run, and that’s going to disappoint his fan club.
The NXT environment and audience is where he’s worth the most. The landscape of the roster and image of the brand is perfect for him to offer his veteran credibility. The NXT fans are the fans who know the most about him and his career. Don’t change something that’s working.
2. Is Kevin Owens the most entertaining WWE talent on social media?
This is a big, fat yes. Owens acknowledging the ridiculous tweets he gets has become a daily enjoyment of mine. His comebacks and motivation to get the final verbal shot in before blocking someone is better comedy than anything on WWE programming.
So, make it WWE programming. I’d take a 10-minute weekly WWE Network special that shows him logging onto Twitter and sees his face reading things out loud before responding. Call it “Block Owens Block.”
3. Will wrestling fans chant “This is awesome” for anything?
Sure seems like it. AJ Styles and Chris Jericho did the most basic beginning of a match Monday with a collar and elbow tie-up. As soon as they did, the fans began a “This is awesome” chant. I understand that was meant to be a verbal tribute to finally seeing Styles on RAW and in a match with a fresh opponent for his career in Jericho. But doing the chant right off the bat kills the relevance of the chant.
I watched fan video online of Austin Aries making his first appearance on NXT, and I’m hearing fans in the highest pitched voice chanting about the greatness of the moment. Really? He came out in a suit and later got attacked by Baron Corbin. I think some fans just want to see a fish out of water. If they see anybody who was previously wrestling somewhere else show up, it’s deemed a big deal to them. It’s their money, they can chant whatever, but they’ve diminished the power of what an arena full of people saying that use to have.
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