Greetings.
Only a couple of weeks after they staged the Hell in a Cell pay-per-view – which was an unadulterated orgy of extremism, the WWE is staging a similarly excessive pay per view, this weekend – the Tables, Ladders and Chairs charade, in which the various contestants will be doing little or no wrestling, but, instead, will be bludgeoning each other with steel chairs, smashing each other through tables and using ladders to batter and maim one another.
I have no particular problem with so-called stipulation matches such as cage matches, ladder matches and whatnot, as long as the ends justify the means, or if the special proviso serves the purpose of enabling the combatants to resolve their ostensible differences.
All too often though, the WWE lately stages these contrived orgies of excess for no perceptible reason, other than to satisfy the vicarious whims of the smart mark moron who like to chant “holy shit” when some poor son of a bitch nearly breaks his neck. Fortunately, there haven’t been any in-ring fatalities in the WWE, since my brother Owen’s accident, but I find it disconcerting that the WWE doesn’t seem to have learned from that unfortunate and entirely avoidable tragedy, as they now seem to be pushing the proverbial envelope farther and farther once again – almost as if they’re tempting fate.
Not to be telling Vince, Hunter and company how the hell to run their business, but I think they’d be better served cutting back on a lot of the excessive and illicit extremism and, instead, revert back to the type of exciting and compelling old school style wrestling that stars like Owen, Bret, the British Bulldogs, the Funks, the Briscos, the Guerreros, Shawn Michaels, Daniel Bryan, Bob Backlund and others used to practice.
In any case, now that I’ve gotten that off my chest, I’ll now endeavor to render my perspectives and predictions on this weekend’s Tables, Ladders and Chairs card, from top to bottom.
The Shield (Roman Reigns, Dean Ambrose & Seth Rollins) vs. The Miz, Braun Strowman, Sheamus, Cesaro & Kane
5-on-3 Tables, Ladders & Chairs Match
Even though the lead up to this match, with Strowman getting thrown into the mix for no discernible reason and the Shield, similarly, being re-united, with no particularly compelling pretext for it, I, nonetheless, am confident that this should be a pretty exciting match, as most of the guys are pretty good workers, who tend to rise to the occasion, when the chips are down.
As for the ostensible outcome, given all the hype and hoopla surrounding the Shield’s reunion, I’d be surprised if Roman and company didn’t kick the Miz and friends’ asses convincingly and then catch a fall – probably on either Sheamus or Cesaro, both of whom are expendable, sacrificial offerings.
Asuka vs. Emma
I’m anticipating that Asuka – who seems to be on a fast track to superstardom, will win this match handily. Since Emma has been linked with the Queen of Mean – Alexa Bliss, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Alexa get involved in some kind of attempted sabotage to aid her friend – which could then serve to ignite the fuse for their impending rivalry.
Alexa Bliss (c) vs. Mickie James
WWE Raw Women’s Championship
Although it’s a foregone conclusion that Alexa will be going over in this match, I’m still expecting a terrific match between, as both are decent workers who are capable of rising to the occasion on the big stage. Bliss has improved by leaps and bounds since she won the strap and getting a solid win over the veteran James should serve to enhance her credibility as champion and should also help set the stage for a showdown between her and Japanese sensation, Asuka, perhaps as early as the upcoming Survivor Series show.
Finn Balor vs. Bray Wyatt
(Match in Question)
While there’s a certain amount of justifiable reason to justify having these two working with each other, including their supposed esoteric elements and speculation that the Sister Abigail angle will soon come to fruition, this ongoing conflict still doesn’t really grab me – as their styles don’t really seem to compliment each others’. I have no idea whom the WWE plans to put over here, but hope that it’s not too far fetched or immersed in hokus pokus.
Kalisto (c) vs. Enzo Amore
WWE Crusierweight Championship
A while back, after Enzo had been demoted to the 205 Live show, I expressed reservations about his ability to get over – certainly as a face, and suggested that the only way he was capable of getting over was if he was transformed into an obnoxious, chicken shit type heel. At that time, most of my readers disagreed and opined that Enzo was better suited to be pushed as a Daniel Bryan type face.
It appears that my colleagues in the WWE arrived at the same conclusion as I had, vis a vis Enzo’s inability to get over as a face and, as a consequence, he’s now been re-cast, as a heel. There are still some justifiable concerns whether Enzo’s capable of delivering the goods if they do choose to give him a major push, but if they keep it simple and logical, I could see him getting over, similar to guys like the Miz and Honky Tonk Man – neither of whom were the greatest workers, but because they worked within their became pretty hot heels. It’s still a little early to tell whether Enzo can emulate their success, but he seems to be on the right track. We shall soon see.
Titus O’Neil vs. Elias
By all accounts, both of these guys are decent, hard working team players who are striving to climb the proverbial ladder. Having said that, I don’t have anticipate this to be much more than your standard undercard fare, with Elias, who seems to be in the process of getting a modest push, probably going over, with no strings attached, so to speak.
On that note, I’ll call this a wrap, but will look forward to catching up with you next time for post mortems on the TLC show and candid perspectives on whatever else.
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