T-Bar, Mace and Slapjack. Seriously? The amount of build and resources that has gone into Retribution and that is the best WWE can come up with. What are your thoughts?
The names were as bad as Husky Harris (what Bray Wyatt was originally called) and Michael McGillicutty (the original WWE ring name of Curtis Axel). With names, sometimes WWE hits it out of the park like they did with Bray Wyatt or Fin Balor and sometimes we get T-Bar’d. I honestly don’t know why or how things like this happen in WWE. I can just see a scenario where Vince isn’t really paying attention, the names are run by him and he just says, “Sure, whatever.” Or, I could see him getting really excited and screaming T-BAR! Regardless, the names are bad but the logic of Retribution has gone from shaky to non-existent. The faction has caused chaos for weeks on in and suddenly they are granted contracts with the company? How’d that happen? Not only is Retribution far short of anything of the nWo as a group of outsiders, it is nowhere close to the original Nexus. Unless things change in a hurry, this program is in trouble.
Does Aalyah Mysterio turn heel and align with Murphy and/or Seth Rollins?
There was a lot of speculation over the last week Aalyah Mysterio was entering the Seth Rollins/Murphy storyline and now she’s in. Some had assumed she was going to get romantic with Murphy and while that may be teased, it is not confirmed. I think WWE wants to play it as Aalyah being brainwashed as a young and influential girl as a way to continue a program many thought would be over after Payback. Vince McMahon loves this angle and feels like it is one of the most engaging programs they’ve had, so he has made the call to continue it with Aalyah now coming in.
Roman Reigns was recently off WWE an extended period of time. Was he paid throughout that?
WWE is paying talent throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, even if they sit at home. This is why talent have what is called a downside guarantee – money they make regardless of whether or not they work. WWE took good care of Roman Reigns while he was gone as he used the time off to train and spend time with his family. If there is anything that comes out of 2020, I hope it’s that WWE will allow stuff like this moving forward. Allow talent to take some time off without them losing their spot to give them time off the road to heel up and spend it with family. It is good for physical and mental health and will only benefit the company in the long-term.
I read where there was some head scratching over Dabba-Kato being put under Braun Strowman clean. Doesn’t that make Raw Underground look more realistic in that anyone can lose on any given night?
The thinking with Raw Underground is the fights are “shoot” in nature so anything can happen on any given night. But the best thing to come out of the segments so far has been Dabba-Kato. He was a legitimate threat and WWE crushed that right out of the gate. There was no reason to put Braun Strowman over him right out of the gate and it seemed lazy. Clean finishes are great but if anything, Kato should have KO’d Strowman.
The next installment of Ask WNC is scheduled to run on Thursday, September 24, 2020.
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