Thoughts From The Top Rope 11.06.2007: All Good Things Must Come To An End

But I think you and I know the real reasons I was let go. I was getting too many hits – no one was reading anything else. I heard Larry tried to get a fill-in for the 4 R’s but no-one had heard of it. So they got rid of me before my fan club took over the site and demanded I write everyone else’s articles while they wrote my pay-per-view simulations. It’s a shame that things have come to this, and I only wish that I wasn’t so damn good.

What sucks even more is that I’m going out with a whimper; no context today, just feedback and my responses to it, maybe followed by a few bullet points if you’re all lucky. I was told not to bother writing a full article, probably because the site would implode with all the hits it gets.

And what better way to kick off my final column than with my loyalist reader, Samer;

Hey Dan, how is it going?

Not too great, as you’ve read.

Interesting look there at some of the stars of tomorrow.. Here’s my take on what you said:

Umaga: Yes, Umaga has definitely gone a long way from being that Jamal guy in 2 minute warning, and he’s a valuable asset to Raw, but i think he’ll always be stuck in this “highest level of Jobber to the stars” level.. Just like Kane. I mean that’s how the whole “monster” character works in wrestling, it’s pretty one dimensional, and therefore it’s almost impossible to be a real star.
Look at Kane, sure he held the title for one day, and he main evented a couple PPV’s but that was it. Look at Abyss in TNA, he won the title once, lost it, and has been stuck in higher mid-card feuds ever since. That’s not criticism mind you, just an observation. Khali is another example (although he sucks), he won the tile but that’s about the only run he’ll ever get (hopefully). Again that’s not to say that Umaga doesn’t have a chance of one day being WWE champion or anything, with all these injuries, who knows? And he proved that he works hard and can have a good match under the right circumstances, it’s just that i can’t picture him being a long term “star”. Any monster not named The Undertaker can’t stay on top for long. Fans want to be emotionally tied to the wrestler, and it’s hard with monsters.

You certainly raise a good point, but I’d argue that a few other monsters have been stars for long amounts of time. You mentioned the obvious one, Taker and you also mentioned Kane. Yes, he’s a jobber to the stars right now and has been for several years now, but he’s as over as he ever was and that is a testament to the big guy. I’d still consider Kane a star now, and had he been giving a longer run back in 1998, he could very well have reached the same levels of Taker.

MVP: well i can’t argue there. The guy has it all, BUT i think he should be booked to wrestle more. And no not wrestle in 6 minutes matches with Kane that end in a count out. They need to put him with a good worker who can elevate him, because he still has the ability to improve in the ring. His feud with Benoit benefited him immensely as he really improved in the ring. A series of matches with Matt Hardy can do just that too. He has the mic skills, the charisma, and the fans care about him. That (and what i said earlier) is all you need.

Just a question though Dan, NO LOVE FOR CM PUNK? You can argue that he’s already a star, but let’s face, does the ECW title mean that much more than the US or the IC title? I don’t think he’s a star yet, but if they really give him the ball, the guy can do wonders for them. Yeah he’s a cool babyface champion, but it’s when he’s a heel that he’s in his best form, especially when it comes to mic work.. Let the guy feud with Cena sometime in the future.. That i’ll pay to see.

I was really torn on whether to include Punk or not – I think he has a potentially great future, but it depends on where WWE values the guy. Guys like MVP and Kennedy are stone-wall future main-eventers and WWE knows this – we can tell by the way they are booked – working big matches, promo time etc. But Punk hasn’t really had any of that. Even with the ECW Championship, Punk is always low down the card and gets very little mic time on a show with only 12 or so guys. So basically, I figured WWE (at this stage) doesn’t view Punk as a future star and thus neither should I.

So great topic this week, and really you nailed most of it. There are possibly other future main eventers, but the problem in the WWE is that you NEED to have good mic skills. That’s why someone like Jeff Hardy, no matter how over he gets, can’t be considered by the management as a long term star in the company. Sure he might get the title, and it would be really cool to see, but he’ll have the Mysterio type of reign. Same thing goes for Matt Hardy, although he’s really improving on the mic thanks to his feud with MVP, i can definitely see a good program between Matt and Edge for the World Heavyweight Title.

I don’t why but the recent promo work from Jeff Hardy has been really enjoyable. He owned Kennedy on the mic a few weeks ago. I think I’d love to see Hardy go heel at some point and go full-blown emo, cutting emo promos and generally blaming the fans for everything. I don’t know if he’d have to change up his offense to work heel, but it’d be interesting nonetheless.

I’m glad you didn’t mention Carlito, because quite simply, he sucks. In the ring at least. He has Charisma, and the fans are kinda into it, but that’s where the praise ends. I’m sorry but he’s been in the WWE for a while and he’s the sloppiest worker on Raw. Hell even the VERY green Harry Smith looked better and way more sharp than young Carli. And can he get any slower? The way he runs the ropes is embarrassing quite frankly. Some people are still high on hm but i can’t see why.

Sheton is another one who i don’t think will ever be a main eventer. Which is a shame because the guy is great in the ring, although he screws up every once in a while. But when he’s feeling confident he’s one of the better wrestlers on the roster. They should at least stop treating him like a jobber though.

Shelton’s a weird one. From 2004 to 2005, he was gold – great matches every night and the fans loved him. It really all started to go wrong when they made the decision to turn him heel and do nothing with him. Hell, if they’d turned him heel and let him feud with someone like Shawn Michaels, he’d be a star right now.

Finally if it was up to me, and that’s a weird choice, but i would go for Paul London. What WWE fans don’t know is that Paul London isn’t just a guy with cool moves, he’s also a great wrestler. People need to check out his work in ROH for evidence. He can have the babyface Shawn Michaels 1996 run. Of course that’s a long shot, and it needs time to elevate him, but he can have great matches. He’ll make a fitting “underdog Champion” Kinda thing that they like to bust out every once in a while (Benoit, Rey, Eddie…).

Great column,
Cheers.

Thanks Samer!

And finally, this from 411’s Justin Pelletier;

Hey Dan,
Great column and I agree with all the guys you mentioned but I think you forgot about two important guys: Lashley and CM Punk. I realize both have held world titles already (or at least the ECW title) but so has Morrison and you included him. Clearly Punk and Lashley have a huge fan base and both some something special that will propel them tot he top of the card for a long time to come.

again, great work
Justin

Well, I explained my thesis on CM Punk earlier, and I have my reasons for not including Bobby Lashley – I cannot stand him. He is as bland a performer as I’ve seen in years – generic look, generic moves, and no charisma. I have no doubt that if WWE really wants him to be a star, then they can turn him into one, but right now I just don’t like him as a performer.