KB’s Review: Let’s Think About This

So it’s Wednesday and that means I need to put a column together. Unfortunately it’s also the week of WWE’s UK tour and that means that almost nothing of note has been going on. Well at least nothing that can be turned into a full column. TNA is TNA and I’ve complained about their nonsense enough lately. ROH…..please.

With nothing else going on, I figured I’d try something new and just talk about whatever came to my mind. Therefore, today I’m going to just start talking about something wrestling related and see wherever it goes. Don’t expect this to make a ton of sense or have the most coherent series of connections from one point to another. This is going to be far closer to a series of ramblings that are loosely connected at best.

Let’s see. Today is May 10 and a quick search shows that both Tito Santana and William Regal were born on this day. That’s quite the starting point as these are two of the best midcard acts you’ll ever find. Neither of them ever got close to the World Title scene (though allegedly King Regal was on his way there before some health issues brought him down and Santana claims he was in line for a World Title push in 1992) but there’s nothing wrong with that.

These two are the kind of guys who you really need to have on a roster. I can’t remember a truly bad Santana match and Regal has some of the most in-depth knowledge you’ll ever find in wrestling (being in the ring since you’re fifteen and going strong for the next thirty plus years will do that for you). They’re the kind of people who you can put out there against anyone and you know the kind of match you’re going to get: steady, entertaining and well put together. Can you think of a truly bad match from either of them? If you can, they’re few and far between.

William Regal's WWE Debut

Speaking of people who can get a good match out of anyone, I hope Kofi Kingston comes back to the ring sooner rather than later. While New Day certainly isn’t going to be ruined by Kingston being away from the ring, they’re probably not going to have the longest shelf life. Once they have feuds with everyone on “Smackdown Live” and probably win the Tag Team Titles a few times, how long can they really go before one of them tries for some singles gold?

You know what I could go for? Kingston as Mr. Money in the Bank. Are you telling me that New Day carrying around that briefcase and making a bunch of jokes about it while still taking on the tag division wouldn’t work? Kingston is somehow thirty five years old and with his high flying style, you can’t imagine he’ll be around seven or eight years from now. With the new Brand Split (How was that nearly a year ago?) he’s perfect for a short World Title run, which I’d think he’s deserved over the years.

I mean, I know the definition of being a star in this company is someone over 40 who doesn’t work every week but maybe someone can make an exception for Kingston. The guy has been around for a long time now, never gets in trouble, wrestles good matches, and is more than over with the crowd. Let him do something, though to be fair he has a few years before he’s ready to hang it up so it’s not the most urgent need in the wrestling world at the moment.

Kofi Kingston pulls off another miraculous save in the Royal Rumble Match: Royal Rumble 2017

Speaking of people who could be near a World Title shot, Rusev is scheduled to come back on next week’s “Smackdown Live” and he’s already demanded a title shot. I know the blue show is supposed to be the land of opportunity of all that jazz but why not just throw him into a title match at the June pay per view? Rusev vs. Randy Orton would be fine for a pay per view main event and Rusev winning the title is just believable enough to work.

That’s where the Brand Split is so valuable: with so many spots open, people actually can move up and down the card. People like Jinder Mahal are getting chances to go after titles they never would have had a chance for prior to this and it makes things a lot more interesting, which is almost always a good thing in WWE.

Of course on the down side you also have people like Mahal getting a title shot and that brings up a ton of problems on its own. Why in the world is that something that’s supposed to appeal to the majority of fans, especially those who have sat around watching this guy do a total of nothing in his career? Mahal has done well in the last few weeks but I really don’t know if he has the legs to last more than a few more weeks in this role. At least it seems like something short term though, which is the best for everyone involved.

Speaking of short, Alexa Bliss has indeed taken “Monday Night Raw” by storm and is already one of the best characters in the women’s division. She’s gorgeous, she’s getting better in the ring and she’s already got the perfect character down. To put it mildly, she’s completely exceeded expectations and is a major success story.

Mickie James vs. Alexa Bliss: Raw, May 8, 2017

Then I watched “Bring it to the Table” where Corey Graves said he wanted to see a dream match between Bliss and Charlotte. I’m sorry what now? Charlotte has shown that she’s one of the best of all time and Bliss has shown that she’s gotten better than people expected her to be. I’m not sure what qualifies that as a dream match but WWE has some odd definitions of the concept.

The women’s division hardly has the most depth in the first place and I really don’t know how many dream matches you can have. Aside from anything involving Lita or Trish Stratus, I really can’t imagine any true dream matches that could happen on paper. Three years ago, we were watching the Bella Twins wrestle minute long matches against Alicia Fox. That’s not exactly a division with the kind of history necessary to have a dream match. A big match maybe, but a dream match? Come on now.

We’ll wrap it up with…..oh let’s go with Curt Hawkins. I don’t know why but this guy makes me chuckle. Maybe it’s the personalized entrance for every city they’re in or the fact that he was clearly just brought in as a job guy but he’s clearly having a good time and just enjoys wrestling. I doubt he’s ever going to go anywhere but it’s better to have someone with some personality than someone who is just a wrestler in boots and trunks losing in thirty seconds. That doesn’t help the fact that you know he’s losing but at least you get a bit of a smirk while he’s on the way to the slaughter.

Finn Bálor vs. Curt Hawkins: Raw, April 17, 2017

I could go on for days like this but I think you get the idea. Wrestling often brings out some rather random thoughts, especially when there’s so much of it to digest. WWE offers us so much every single week and while a lot of it can be terrible at times, there’s a lot of interesting stuff going on as well. I’m sure you can find something to give you some food for thought almost every show if you watch long enough, or at least you should be able to.

 

Remember to check out my website at kbwrestlingreviews.com, follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the NXT: The Full Sail Years Volumes I and II, now in PAPERBACK. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2017/03/24/kbs-history-of-nxt-volumes-1-and-2-now-available-in-paperback/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

 

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6