How’s it going, folks?
I apologise for being so late this week. Ever since we had to reboot the computer a few weeks ago, writing hasn’t been quite as satisfying, what with our need to go back to the stone ages of Microsoft Word 2003. I know, right?
It’s only a temporary thing, however, since I’ve got plans to purchase a new laptop over the next few weeks, so sit tight. Soon I’ll be able to write in comfort, and also go back to making my custom images in a more professional manner than using my phone to do it. *sigh*
Getting straight into it, this week we witnessed Cesaro defeat Rob Van Dam to become the #1 Contender for Sheamus’ WWE United States Championship. As you may recall, these two men squared off numerous times over the summer, with the title on the line. In fact, my friend Dylan said their match in Dublin back in May was the match of the night!
Normally I wouldn’t be in favour of restarting rivalries like this, with nothing more than a few unsatisfactory months for a break, especially since it highlights WWE’s lack of creativity and/or faith in the mid-card portion of their roster. But I will give them this one, since the matches were so damn good. If Dolph Ziggler and Fandango started fighting over women again, then we’d have something to talk about.
It’s really hard to tell how WWE management feel about Cesaro. First, Vince McMahon calls him boring, then he changes his mind when he sees him in fantastic matches with the likes of Bryan and Cena, then he’s paired with Paul Heyman for what we presumed would be a push after winning at WrestleMania, then he was unceremoniously separated from Heyman, and now he’s back on the road to becoming the United States Champion.
It’s like they have mood swings where one week, Cesaro is the greatest thing since sliced bread, and then a week later they’re bored with him. At this stage it’s almost difficult to get excited about Cesaro competing in a championship match, since it almost always ends in him being thrown to the wayside, whether he wins or loses.
But fortunately for us (I think), Cesaro’s win this week, along with the knowledge that he will soon attempt to grasp the US Title once again gave us something worth watching during an episode of Raw like we got on Monday.
I don’t like to admit when WWE does something beyond terrible, but to put it bluntly, this week’s Raw was shit. Hell, if I had decided to talk about John Cena burying the Wyatt Family, this article would probably have a hundred times more foul language.
But I think the image on the right perfectly sums up how I felt, so if the phrase “a picture’s worth a thousand words” applies anywhere, it’s here. At least we can take solace in the fact that Cena’s going to get his neck ripped open at Night of Champions, because there’s no way he’s going to win that match in a million years. Am I being sarcastic? You’ll never know!
……. Yes, I am.
One thing I will say, however, is how sorry I am for Sheamus. I’m not going to get into how many wins he had in 2012, or the fact that people see him as nothing more than an Irish John Cena, because to be perfectly honest, I think that viewpoint is moronic.
I think Sheamus is brilliant inside the ring, I think his mic skills are great, he’s got a great look for marketing and he dresses well. He’s a respectable dude, and he’d make a great WWE World Heavyweight Champion, and face of the company.
If you’re going to throw win/loss records at me, I think you’d be plain hypocritical, because if you feel that way, then prepare to hate Roman Reigns over the next year. The man is good, and this isn’t just me looking out for a fellow Irishman.
However, it looks to me like Sheamus is gearing up for a loss at Night of Champions. As good as he is, much like Cesaro, Ziggler, Miz, Rob Van Dam, Bad News Barrett and countless other stars, the WWE just doesn’t care enough about him.
They put a title belt on someone and expect that guy to go out and make something of it, but how can Sheamus bring prestige back to the US Title when he’s often not even booked in PPV Matches, or even on Raw or Smackdown? If it was up to me, I’d bring back the brand extension and Sheamus would be headlining on Friday Night Smackdown as the World Heavyweight Champion, but whatever.
The reason I think Cesaro is going to win here, is because they’re desperately trying to prevent him from going down the road of Curtis Axel. That guy was the centre of attention as Paul Heyman’s newest protégé, even winning the Intercontinental Championship, but as soon as Lesnar came back he was yesterday’s news, even after he took Lesnar’s spot in a feud with CM Punk.
I suppose that’s why Cesaro split from Heyman just before the Beast came back this year, and now by winning the US Title, he’ll be proving himself as a singles competitor, showing the world that he doesn’t need a manager. And that’s the way it should be, because Cesaro’s cocky attitude, which we even saw during the SummerSlam confidential panels, really makes him a great heel.
He doesn’t need shades, movie deals and bright lights (*cough* Miz *cough*) to make himself look good. He’s cocky because he’s a spectacular wrestler and he knows it better than anyone else, and it works wonders for him. At the end of the day, he’s there to wrestle. He can relate to this type of personality, and really make something of himself with it.
He can be an old school heel who goes out there with no need for a gimmick to get him heat. He’s a great wrestler, and the way he applies that talent to his persona is what makes him so special. I don’t know, I just love the guy.
Hopefully he brings back the swing too, because even though it does get a good pop out of the crowd, it goes well with his personality. The guy’s a show-off, and I hate to steal from Dolph Ziggler’s playbook, but he backs it up every night with his raw, brute strength.
Again, I don’t mean to lessen the significance of Sheamus’ abilities, because he is an absolute powerhouse too. When he delivered White Noise to Big Show in 2012, it was insane. Plus, the Brogue Kick is one of my favourite finishers in WWE right now. He’s just hit some bad luck as of late as far as the creative team goes.
To be honest, I’m kind of looking forward to this time next year, when (I hope) the main event scene is being dominated by the younger breed. Guys like Sheamus, Cesaro, Rollins, Ambrose, Reigns, Barrett, Ziggler, etc. There are countless great main event rivalries in the making there, if WWE was to capitalise on them.
Nevertheless, despite what happens over the coming months, or who carries the United States Championship into the closing months of the year, I think both Sheamus and Cesaro are fantastic talents who could potentially become future WWE Hall of Famers. They have the ability; all they need is the right booking.
I’ll leave it there folks, and before I finish up, I just want to update you on some stuff. I’ll be starting college in a week, and since I don’t know how hectic my timetable is going to be, and since I won’t be in Dublin on weekdays, I’m not sure if I’ll be able to catch weekly episodes of Raw, Smackdown or NXT, never mind be able to write articles.
So just as a heads up, I may be taking some time off soon, but nothing’s confirmed. I’ll keep you posted. And hey, Gary said he was taking a break from WWE after this week’s clusterfuck of a Monday Night Raw, so maybe I’d benefit from one too. You never know.
Anyway, I will definitely be here next Sunday, that’s for sure, so be sure to check back this time next week for more ‘Under the Spotlight’. If you enjoyed this edition, please share it on Facebook and Twitter, and leave your comments below. They’re always appreciated. You can also follow me on Twitter @AdamOB_SLTD to speak with me about anything from wrestling to writing.
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Thanks for reading!
Self-Professed Conversational Wizard.
Admin, Editor and Writer for SLTD Wrestling.
Creator of 'Under the Spotlight'.
Studying Computing in Games Development.
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