It would be fair to say that as of 2017, the WWE’s talent roster is probably the healthiest it’s been in years. So many exceptional performers currently on either RAW or Smackdown Live, and so many more waiting in the ranks of NXT or 205 Live that there are bound to be some superstars that get a bit lost in the mix. Sometimes it’s unfortunate, however, a lot of time WWE’s ‘creative’ team fail to provide any sort of plot for their characters which leaves them forgotten about and irrelevant. Here are in my view, 5 of the most tragic cases of character abandonment at the moment.
Bo Dallas
It’s strange the think that there was a time where Bo Dallas would be a weekly feature on WWE television, defeating an opponent before running around the ring in celebration. His ‘Bolieve’ catchphrase gained interest from the fans, and were left wondering when he’d be given an actual feud and someone to work a programme with. This never happened.
Dallas found himself just..there, he didn’t have any real purpose within WWE and was continuously overlooked. Things did start to look up for him as he was paired with 3 other superstars in the same position as himself and branded ‘The Social Outcasts’, but rather than build them into a serious force, they were booked as a comedy act, gaining very few wins or respectable appearances along the way, and disbanded.
He did make an attempt at being rebranded with new ring attire and a more vicious character which led fans to wonder if he’d be receiving a new push. He wasn’t, and after another very brief reunion with former Social Outcast member Curtis Axel, he was faded back into obscurity, rarely appearing since October of 2016.
Jack Swagger
The former World Heavyweight Champion is probably the superstar I get most disheartened at when I look at his current situation. It was only a few years ago he was enjoying success with Zeb Colter as ‘The Real Americans’, whilst playing the heel role fans loved to chant along ‘We The People’ at his demand. Since then he’s failed to make any sort of impact, but in fairness that’s down to the fact he hasn’t been booked at all. When news of the WWE brand split broke, many fans tipped him to reclaim the former glory he once had within the company, and in July 2016 as drafted to the RAW brand. Unfortunately he wouldn’t feature until September of 2016, where after suffering a defeat on the show would the next night make his debut on the Smackdown Live brand, revealing his contract had expired and had signed to the ‘blue brand’.
During his brand switching promo, he declared that everyone was about to see a new side to Jack Swagger, which as a fan of his left me very intrigued and excited to ponder over the potential in him being repackaged.
The anti climax of his short lived feud with Baron Corbin ended at Smackdown Live exclusive PPV No Mercy, and I can’t recall him ever being seen on television since. I find it really odd that they would even go to the trouble of switching brands for Swagger, giving him mic time to announce a change, but then never follow up with any of it. Perhaps creative have given up? I can’t see how, Swagger is a great athlete and it wouldn’t be hard to find a place for him somewhere.
Curtis Axel
Another former ‘Social Outcasts’ member, like Bo Dallas, Curtis Axel does have the potential and ability, yet WWE simply can’t seem to find anything for him to do. Underwhelming gimmicks such as ‘Rybaxel’ (his tag team with Ryback) and his Hulk Hogan inspired ‘Axelmania’, have left him with very little credibility on the main roster. His on-going joke of STILL being in the Royal Rumble 2015 (due to being attacked on the entrance ramp) is probably what fans remember him for the most at present day, which is a sad testament to how he’s been booked over the years.
I mean, seriously, how can creative not have anything good for the son of Mr Perfect? He has the in ring ability, he can talk on the mic and again, he’s the son of Mr Perfect! I’d have thought WWE creative would have a long list of ideas for Axel, but instead they seem to have booked him into a black hole unable to escape or redeem any sort of worth.
I really hope one day things turn around for him.
The Vaudevillains
These guys were quite a big deal on NXT, but have become quite lost in the shuffle since the WWE draft. I guess what I say about The Vaudevillains (Simon Gotch and Aiden English) can also be said for The Ascension, however, I was more familiar with the former during NXT. WWE missed a trick right off the bat by not making more of a big deal of their entrance, as I can remember many occasions where they were featured on television, but they were already in the ring, the typical jobber entrance. They have actually received WWE Tag Team Title opportunities at PPV’s such as Extreme Rules & Money In The Bank, and my idea was to have the guy who introduces their entrance be there live in person for special events to give it more of an exclusive feel. WWE seem to have not bothered with this guys at all since the draft.
In fact, since the draft they have lost in the first round of a Smackdown Live tag team title tournament, and they also lost a match to qualify to be on the Smackdown Live tag team for Survivor Series.
What has happened to them? Are they simply too lost in the mix on Smackdown Live with various other teams involved, do they need to move to RAW? Or is this another case of WWE having nothing for them, queue the disastrous split where neither guy does anything of worth, so a year down the line attempt to reform them? (Now where have I heard that before? Oh yeah….)
Darren Young
(..That’s where!) Not that I’m a particularly big Darren Young fan, I can’t say I’ve ever really been that invested in him or any of his characters during his time within WWE in all honesty. My confusion is that they spent so many weeks promoting and teasing this ‘Let’s Make Darren Young Great Again’ campaign, I mean those vignettes seemed to go on forever, until we finally got the reappearance along with new manager/coach Bob Backlund, and it started off alright(ish).
It has since faded, and after a brief rivalry with, yep you guessed it, his former tag team partner, Titus O Neill, Young found himself back on the irrelevant shelf.
The fact is that as of writing Darren Young has suffered an injury, but I can’t recall many fans questioning his whereabouts, or missing his presence on Monday Nights, which tells you a lot about how he’s booked, or rather how he isn’t booked.
See the problem WWE overlooked is that in order to make Darren Young ‘Great Again’, you had to have booked him great to begin with, which they hadn’t. No wonder his attempts to get over with the crowd have been a failure, the fans haven’t been given enough reason to get behind him. Young has unfortunately been a victim of the creative teams short term booking, where they hadn’t ever really given him a long term outline of his character or the direction it was ever heading.
On that basis, no wonder so many superstars are doomed.
Who do you think is the most underused superstar in WWE?
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