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Making Mid Carders

Hi Scott,

Feuding with John Cena seems to do more harm than good. It did nothing to elevate Bray Wyatt last year as it was nothing but a series of loses for him and  now the same has happened to Rusev as it's turned into a platform to actually only elevate Lana, not both of them.

To get the "rub" from a top guy aren't you at least supposed to get somewhat close to beating him in a highly competitive match only for experience to prevail so when you do go against each other again there is a chance the "younger" guy may pull out a win? Looking good even in defeat is a valid thing but having a 30 minute shit fest of an I Quit match was not it.

Is really the end game here to make another mid carder?

You said it yourself -- it's a platform to elevate Lana.  In the grand scheme of things, they don't give a shit if Rusev gets elevated by the feud because Lana is the money train as a babyface, and they're probably correct.  Rusev can easily be rebuilt anyway by winning the IC title in the Chamber and destroying a bunch of midcard goofs in the process, so I'm not terribly worried about him.  

Comments

  1. Lana as babyface? I don't get it. She's no Sunny, and even Sunny was a flash in the pan.

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  2. People liked Lana as the hot, prideful shit talker, simpering Ziggler fangirl = no buys.

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  3. Crikey Mate Down Under AussieMay 20, 2015 at 7:01 AM

    People keep saying smarks are too cynical about the Cena open challenge. Just keep waiting, the person that beats him clean for the title will get a massive rub.

    Pretty sure Wyatt, Rusev, Ambrose, Zayn, Barrett, and Neville were all viable contenders to receive that rub, at what stage, after how many bodies, does this storyline do more harm than good?

    Let's say Owens joins that list in two weeks of people who made an honourable effort but failed. Has the U.S. title been elevated, or is it all about Cena and we're no closer to establishing the next generation of star power?

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  4. so I found out Lana was in an episode of Banshee where Levy from The Wire does blow off her boobs in a casino bathroom. Also, Banshee is a great show.

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  5. R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A.May 20, 2015 at 7:04 AM

    Who cares? The challenge is awesome!

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  6. The WWE thinks guys jobbing to Cena doesn't matter; it's the rub of being in the ring with him. It didn't work out for the scrubs, jobbers and enhancement talent in years past so why would it now?

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  7. Belee_Matt!_INDEED!!!May 20, 2015 at 7:13 AM

    It's one of those unnatural things that Vince is pushing too hard and will ultimately do the exact opposite of what he's hoping it will do.

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  8. Belee_Matt!_INDEED!!!May 20, 2015 at 7:15 AM

    I agree. Best segment the last 3 weeks. Matter of fact, the challenge has been the reason I've watched the last 3 weeks. And you know how I like to mention how little I watch the current shows! :)

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  9. I'd blame it 100% on Cena's opponents versus Cena himself. Bray Wyatt hasn't evolved his character in a very long time despite him having a live microphone for 10+ minutes a week and PPV main events post-Cena feud. It's too early to tell with Rusev. He is a pretty one dimensional character as it is. He's going to be the evil foreign heel and that's pretty much it. Think of Kozlov, but Rusev is way better in the ring. It must just be the BoD that didn't enjoy the I Quit match because reviews on other sites praised the match. I thought the finish was awful, but it was a stunt brawl which entertained a majority of WWE's fanbase.


    Other than those two, who has Cena feuded with that he has brought down? Ryback? I'd say Ryback's character was killed when he lost to Punk in Hell in a Cell then the LC match then to Mark Henry before even feuding with Cena. Ziggler got a hell of a rub a few years ago at TLC that rolled into a World title victory a few months later.

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  10. But what do you really DO with Lana? She's not a wrestler. She's a good shittalking Russian heel, but how does that translate to being a babyface manager?

    NOTE: I am aware of lots of fun things you could do with Lana. I mean on WWE programming.

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  11. Have Vince remove the Authority from power and have Lana as the new face GM. That's really the only thing I can think of outside of a valet.

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  12. R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A.May 20, 2015 at 7:24 AM

    It's honestly kind of nice to have this awesome once a week segment we can just appreciate and not over analyze and shake our gusts at the clouds about.

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  13. Eh, the face GM thing really never lasts though (remember AJ as General Manager and the whole "Oh my goodness, she made out with Cena! That's two consenting adults kissing!"). WWE is still obsessed with the evil authority heel.

    Hell, let's be honest here -- Triple H and Stephanie love being on TV too much to ever really be removed for an extended period of time.

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  14. R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A.May 20, 2015 at 7:30 AM

    All of this

    It really felt like Cena let Wyatt score a lot of points off him verbally. My two favorite Wyatt promos are aimed at Cena ("They don't love you no more, John!" and the one where he was all decked out in Cena merch.)

    Rusev can forever say Cena was passed out in the accolade too.

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  15. Belee_Matt!_INDEED!!!May 20, 2015 at 7:30 AM

    I agree. Weekly segments that you know you're going to get and probably enjoy is kind of a nice change of pace. The only thing we usually know we're getting from a RAW is a 20 minute opening segment that could easily be a 5 minute opening segment that usually goes over like a wet fart. These open challenge segments are refreshing because 1) it's about wrestling and 2) there have been nice surprises.

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