#liv and ruby are suffering in the midcard | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

justanotherprowrestlingblog · 6 years

Photo

This wasn’t planned, but i actually had some free time so i decided to spend it by coming up for a little column, where i’ll give you “My Two Cents” on something... so today we start with the 2018 Superstar Shake Up*

From Smackdown to Raw:

Jinder Mahal: First move in the Shake up and a very predictable one because usually WWE loves to switch secondary champions between SD and Raw and they did that with Mahal but not with Rollins as i thought while watching the beginning of the show...because Jinder lost the title to Jeff Hardy who got then traded to SD the following day. Mahal on raw could be a good move if he stays away from the Universal title picture.

Riott Squad: Since their debut, they didn't do much and maybe moving them to Raw could be a good move if they also get to be treated less like a women's job squad and more like a serious treat for the division. Ruby and Sarah could have some good matches with the likes of Sasha, Bayley, Alexa, Ember and even Ronda, while Liv is still very green for me but actually showed some sights of improvement in the squared circle

Sami Zayn and Kevin owens: Another predictable move and it makes sense storyline wise that they got picked up by Stephanie to punish Angle for his actions as GM. Now it will be interesting to see what they are gonna do with them: keep them as a tag team, going singles but still friends, feuding with each other like old times. Many options and potentially a great move for Raw

Breezango: Personally not a great pick for Raw, which actually got his tag team division weaker after the shake up but we will see why later. They defeated the Bar on Raw but personally i don't feel like WWE wants to give them more than just a random win in and there, but i hope they can rebuild them and make them more legit.

Natalya: Nattie did her time on SD and it's a good move to send her to Raw, where she can work with everyone and help the newcomers. She will 100% work with Ronda in a couple of weeks and potentially it could be a good match.

Dolph Ziggler&Drew McIntyre: well...this came outta nowhere because i wasn't even expecting Drew to be on Raw and watching him joining forces with Ziggler is kinda weird but i'm sure in the next weeks they will give us a reason why they are friends. Many people see in them the new “Shawn Michaels-Diesel” duo but Ziggler wishes he could be as good as HBK and Nash can say the same about McIntyre. No matter what will happen to their team, they are both two very solid picks for Raw and McIntyre going full heel, maybe with his old gimmick, would be pure gold. Also #BringBackBrokenDreams

The Ascension: I'm happy they're still employed with the WWE but i feel like their stint on Raw won't last too much...

Baron Corbin: Could this be Corbin's big break after losing the MITB Briefcase last summer? Personally it might be, he is the kind of athlete that WWE loves and with a good booking he could become a big star. He still needs to improve in the ring but in the past we had the Great Khali as World Heavyweight Champion so it's not a big problem. I can already smell Corbin facing Reigns soon

Zack Ryder: i'll say the same i said about the Ascension, but personally they have the possibility to bring back the team of Hawkins and Ryder and i hope they'll do it because it could be a good addiction to the Raw Tag Team Division. They'll never win the titles again but at least it's better than what they would do as singles.

Mike Kanellis: he deserves more than he did in WWE. Kanellis-Bennett is a great wrestler and i loved his TNA stint as the Miracle. WWE can bring him back to at least the level where he could be a good midcarder rather than a prestigious jobber. If his wife Maria will come back on screen (which i doubt, because she has a daughter now..congrats btw) i think it could help him a lot, they could do what Zelina Vega and Andrade Cien Almas (even tho Almas is better than Bennett as a wrestler) did on NXT

Chad Gable:Quite a shocking move because i never thought they would split him from Benjamin, but i see it as a very interesting and wise move because now we can have an American Alpha Reunion or having Gable going to be the “new Kurt Angle” kind of wreslter and Gable is such an underrated performer who needs the spotlight and the chance to have a big break.

Mojo Rawley: I see Mojo in the future as a good midcarder, he is an ok performer and personally i like him but sometimes he gets to much shit from the fanbase. I'm not saying he is or he will be an excellent performer, but at least he needs a chance to prove his doubters wrong. He seems to have some charisma and mic skill, now he needs to show something workrate wise.

Bobby Roode: Last but not least wrestler that went from SD Live to Raw, we have Bobby Roode and i think it's finally time to turn him heel and bring back the real Glorious One or even the IT Factor Roode we saw on Impact. He is a great pick up for Raw and he can do basically anything and he will do great Stuff for the red brand. Raw got indeed Glorious...

From Raw to Smackdown Live:

The Miz: What a lovely time for Miz to get drafted to SD Live when Daniel Bryan got back in the squared circle. Miz on SD can easily be the star of the brand i predict him to win or the MITB or the title by the end of year...but first he might have to substain a few kick from Bryan...

Jeff Hardy: As i said in the Raw after mania, i hoped for Hardy to be splitted from his brother matt so they could do their stuff and sending Jeff to SD is a great move because you have a guy who can work with anyone and they have a always ready uppercard for any occasion when you need one. Also Jeff bring some star power to the brand for the casual fans

Absolution: With Paige being the SD GM, it made sense for Mandy and Sonya to get drafted to SDLive. And also it made more sense to send them to SD after the Riott Squad got sent on Raw.They won't do much to be fair, unless we get some women's tag titles.

Samoa Joe: Huge move: Joe on Smackdown will finally have the right place where he can steal the show and being the good old samoan submission machine. I'm already hyped for the possible matches with the likes of Bryan, Styles and even Orton, as Joe said he always wanted to face Orton. Great idea from WWE to send Joe on SD, i'm less happy that i won't see him in Turin in may but that's life and he is more important for SD rather than Raw.

Sanity: Another very solid pick up for SDLive because they bring so much stuff for the show: EY can be a main eventer-uppercard, they could have Dain do the same, they could go for the titles thanks to the freebird rule. Nikki Cross with them is a bit of a bummer at the moment but i'd say there is a reason why she hasn't yet called up on the main roster and she will be probaly called up around SummerSlam. Let's hope she won't get repackaged because that won't help her at all.

Big Cass: i honestly don't like Cass, he is not my kind of wrestler but i'll give him a chance to prove me wrong because so far he has done nothing on NXT and Raw and this could his moment to show something rather than he is 7' tall. Let's see if he will do something with Bryan

Asuka: With the shake up, they made Asuka's move to SDLive official and she can be easily the next champion and get some payback for her loss at Mania with Charlotte. Asuka vs Becky is actually one of my few personal dream matches that could be huge with the right scenario and booking.

R-Truth: another guy i'm happy he's still employed with the company but at this stage i see him retiring soon and becoming a road agent/producer for SD Live. He won't bring much to SD as an active performer.

Luke Gallows&Karl Anderson: the division on SD live is now very stacked so i don't see them being involved in the title picture soon, but i see them reforming something WWE called once “a very famous club in Japan” with someone who is at the moment the WWE Champion..too sweet right?

The Bar: I hope they get to be tag team champions also on Smackdown but personally i predict them to split soon and give SD two new single wrestler who basically can do anything.

Zelina Vega&Andrade Cien Almas: outta nowhere, we get Zelina and ELLLL IDOOOLOOOO on SD Live and this is huge for the blue brand. I loved what they did on NXT and i see them doing the same on SD Live, but this time with the likes of AJ Styles, Daniel Bryan, Shinsuke Nakamura and even more. My god...what a time to be alive...NXT lost a big name but SD gained a future star.

Overall:I feel WWE did a good job with this Shake Up because they actually balanced their roster, gave us some new fresh faces, some new fresh feuds and also brought back some interest to SD Live, that in the last weeks felt a bit stale and boring to watch. NXT suffered the more but they are the brand where they are supposed to build people from scratches and send them to the main roster when they are ready for Raw and SD.

*In this shake up analysis, i haven't included they guys and girls who debuted(Lashley made his return) on Raw and SD during the AfterMania episodes and i already talked about them

7 notes · View notes