SCG Radio #6 - The Trial Of Triple H

Join myself, G. John Chase, Karl Jones, Luke Edwards and Kieran O'Rourke, as we engage in the first ever SCG Court Case! We hold Triple H up for debate for his potential crimes against the wrestling industry - his one man conspiracy to manipulate the system to the detriment of the company, and indecent overexposure. Judge Chase presides, Karl Jones and I are the prosecution, while Luke Edwards and Kieran O'Rourke form the defence. Does Triple H walk away a free man? Listen in!

http://squaredcirclegazette.podbean.com/mf/web/ay7qrj/SCGRadio6-TheTrialOfTripleH.mp3

The Bullet Club Fucking Sucks Ass

I can't come up with a more apropos and fitting title, creativity be damned. "Bullet Club Firing Blanks" did come to mind, but why sugarcoat my feelings?

The Aces and Eights of New Japan Pro Wrestling have dominated the landscape in 2014, much to the chagrin of anybody that's been watching the product closely for the last couple of years. Now, I like to write impartially, to analyse and explore both sides of the story. Not in this case, and I'll tell you why.

New Japan has been so good, for so long, it was almost hard to believe. The superb roster, the most consistently great Pay-Per-Views in years, excellent matches, exciting new stars and established acts reinventing themselves. As the clock turned to midnight on December 31st, 2013, it appeared as though things were heading in a direction reflective of it's current hot streak. Sure, the Tetsuya Naito experiment didn't pan out. The push was an honest attempt, but it was the wrong place and time for Naito, and people seemed to resist the idea of him being anything more than he currently was after his comeback.

Regardless, New Japan had so much going for it that it didn't matter. Kazuchika Okada as champion, engaging in a staredown with Katsuyori Shibata after defeating Hirooki Goto, teasing a match that had incredible potential. Shinsuke Nakamura and Hiroshi Tanahashi waging war for the prestigious Intercontinental title. The rise of Tomohiro Ishii, and his excellent series of matches with Naito. Kota Ibushi signing a contract and tearing the house down every time he had a chance. Things were great. Moving forward, they could have gotten even better.

Instead, they signed AJ Styles, and went all in on The Bullet Club.

I love AJ, incredible wrestler, but there is nothing worse in wrestling today than watching this group of nerds make nWo hand signs, crotch-chopping and screaming "suck it", like a bunch of backyarders acting like their heroes in 1999. Styles immediately getting the IWGP Championship seemed like a decision so disconnected from the audience, who had no desire to see Okada lose to this type of act (and not in a money drawing way). The large New Japan audience didn't know AJ well enough, and of all the things Okada was lined up for, this was such an anticlimax for his great reign. That would be bad enough.

But oh no. Shinsuke Nakamura, who has made the Intercontinental Title as important as the IWGP World Title in the last two years, loses the belt to Bad Luck Fale (pronounced Far-Lay, enough if "Fail" is a more accurate description), a man who has no business playing a role of importance in a company this good. Quite why this guy is in the spot, other than the fact he's big, is a mystery.

The insanity continues, as Yujiro Takahashi, a guy who was in the exact spot he deserved to be in, a midcard sleaze who didn't chew up too much of the scenery, was turned heel, put in the Club, and beats Tomohiro Ishii for the Never Title. Ishii was the breakout guy of 2013, and this was the year for that to pay dividends, putting him in important matches people were dying to see. Instead, he's cast aside. Yujiro, bless him, doesn't have close to the upside of Ishii.

Add Karl Anderson and Doc Gallows as tag champs (the only decision I don't have a problem with), and clearly the theme, by design, is Bullet Club domination of New Japan. Awesome. But the fact is that nobody cares. Gauging opinions from Japan, nobody hates them in a way to pay to see them lose. Like me, they just want it over with so we can get back to what we wanted, the product we loved.

Shibata, Ishii, Ibushi, Nakamura, Goto, Naito, Okada, Tanahashi. They make New Japan great. I will say, as my only defence of the Bullet Club, that they aren't the sole reason for NJPW's booking woes. It feels like Minoru Suzuki and Toru Yano have been feuding for about six years now, and the "divisions" that have been strong in previous years (Tags and Jr) are lacking in depth, which means the undercard feels the same, give or take, as it has for a while now. And maybe that is the reason why they took the gamble with the Bullet Club - to give the company a different vibe until the G-1 Climax, where the cards will really start to shift in a positive manner.

But like Naito, the Bullet Club is an experiment that didn't work. The entire foundation of the group was Prince Devitt, and once he was gone, the pure heel backbone was ripped out. Even when Devitt was around, the idea of Devitt getting the title and the company being built around them was utterly absurd. Of the members now - Styles, Gallows, Anderson, Tonga, Yujiro, Young Bucks, nobody has the charisma or appeal to justify basing a company around them in Japan. Styles was in the unfortunate position of being the stand-in for somebody else's faction, a no-win situation to begin with, that has gotten worse because they decided to go balls-out. All it did was shine a bigger light on the failure.

Shinsuke Nakamura should win the G-1 Climax at the Seibu Dome. Kazuchika Okada needs to beat AJ Styles for the IWGP World Title before the end of the year. That's your main event for Wrestle Kingdom on January 4th, 2015, and I believe this will occur.

But sooner rather than later, for the sake of New Japan Pro Wrestling, the company I've loved so dearly - somebody please put a Bullet in the Club.

SCG Radio #5 - The Good, The Bad & The Ugly of 1994

Join myself, G. John Chase, Karl Jones and Kieran O'Rourke, as we take your feedback, and talk about the Good, Bad and Ugly of 1994 in pro wrestling, including WrestleMania X, Taker Vs. Taker, Hulk Hogan, and all things WWF, WCW, ECW, Mexico and Japan.

http://squaredcirclegazette.podbean.com/mf/play/hjbyi2/SCGRadio5-TheGoodBadandUglyof1994.mp3

The John Cena Appreciation Society

 By Kieran O'Rourke

Ok, I get it. John Cena isn't everyone's cup of tea. His body mechanics are clunky. His promos containing the word "poop" can be cringeworthy and heat killers. And he's been pretty much the same guy in the same position for a decade.

Everyone is entitled to an opinion and everyone is free to like or dislike whoever they feel compelled to. But the polarisation of Cena is often used as evidence of his talents or, more often, the lack there of. The marketing appeals to kids, but 'smart' fans see through it and him. I guess that's the gist right?

Like I said, it's understandable. I'm not trying to get grown men to denounce their citizenship and emigrate to the Cenation, but I do think Cena is, by many, the most under rated and under appreciated wrestler around. And one day it'll change.

Let's not forget, once upon a time John Cena was cool. He was charismatic. He was edgy. He got popular. Really popular. And he was changed in order to cater to the populous. To carry the company. Witty innuendo was replaced with clichéd slogans and merchandise a grown man would be embarrassed to wear in public, other than for fancy dress or general ironic social commentary.

Therein lies the dichotomy of John Cena. Vital to the survival of a company who's most faithful fans are alienated specifically from him. Kinda like the other JC carrying his cross. That's right, John Cena is a bloody martyr.

Ok maybe not. But what would the WWE (née the mainstream wrestling industry) meant opportunities for other people to be positioned and protected as the top guy, would any have broken out and been more successful than Cena has been? Any answer is hypothetical. But what I would say is it's not like there would have been a different roster to consider. Hypothetically, had Steve Austin come around in 2010, and made the same undercard waves he did in '96-'97, do you think he would have been made stoop for Cena's glass ceiling?

To this day Cena is still the most certain ratings and box office draw on the roster. While emphasis on WWE as the key the brand somewhat guarantees (although not always a benefit) a relatively stable ratings environment, Cena is still the guy who consistently affects business metrics positively.

Yes, Cena appeals to kids. How old were you when you first got drawn to wrestling? New fans and kids in particular are the lifeblood of the wrestling business. We wrestling fans probably don't want to hear this, we're forced to defend our love enough as it is. But I don't mean it's a business for kids only. Today's WWE caters for a broader demographic audience than any wrestling company in history. But it's rare for the roots of an individual's wrestling fandom not to originate in their childhood.

Quite simply, John Cena has brought WWE more new fans over the last ten years than anyone else. It's not even close. Without him the company wouldn't be dead. But I think the baseline for success would be lower. Maybe a guy like CM Punk would have been given a proper run sooner and stronger. Maybe in the absence of the spectre of Cena, as the true number one guy, someone else would have flourished in the role. The evidence suggests there's a bottom line difference between appealing to a new fan base and being popular with an existing one that isn't going anywhere.

But enough amount money. People who think Cena Sucks don't care if 900,000 extra people will tune into Raw for him and not Punk. And neither should they. But John Cena doesn't suck as a worker. In fact he's really rather good.

John Cena is a fantastic babyface. Yes he can look awkward, often when bumping, but he sells better than anyone. And he an absolute pro at connecting and interacting with the crowd. Watch him on the apron in a tag match. He works his ass off getting the crowd into the story of the match. Apart from knowing I'd be
jobbing if our team was losing, I'd pick him as my tag partner everyday of the week.

And he has a lot of really good matches. I challenge anyone to give me a list of guys who have had more 3.5+ star matches over the last ten years. Stylistically he's best suited to drawn out brawls (most recently with Bray Wyatt) where the emphasis is on selling and storytelling.

Is he Shawn Michaels? Of course not. Is he limited? Absolutely. Is a match with Kane a guaranteed stinker? He's only human. But he can go. Antonio Cesaro didn't carry Cena in their match before Elimination Chamber, he knew how bring out the physical, dramatic best in Cena while supplementing with his own talents.

One way or the other, Cena is always over. And one way or another his matches usually get over too. Which makes the claim that he's stale an interesting one. I equate staleness with apathy. The kids aren't apathetic. And everyone else seems to ferociously hate the guy.

Indeed, WWE seems to have been settled on how Cena is to be presented for a while, trying to cater to the Lets Goers while still manipulating his heat and rewarding the Cena Suckers with pay offs for their guys (think Punk at MITB, Bryan at Summerslam, even RVD at ECW) or, more recently, playing up to them with
Wyatt.

One of the most disappointing aspects of the Wyatt feud was the heavy handed, set piece orientated approach to the premise of fans gravitating towards Bray. They knew where the feud would go (think cellphones and sing alongs) but the feud was hollow. Bray was brilliant, and the association with Cena raised his stock. But the story told be Cena wasn't natural. It didn't grow and just felt phony.

As with the aforementioned "poop" promos, sometimes Cena's material does indeed suck. When Cena said he was scared of Wyatt, before anything had really happened between the two, it was an example the superficial, set piece and sound bite approach to booking and presentation WWE often takes. Maybe one of the reasons WWE highlight videos are so great is because angles are designed for SportsCenter moments rather than as narrative functions.

What's frustrating with the bad Cena material is he himself is capable of delivering such an intense, engaging promo. There's catering to kids and then there are shit promos. Poop = Shit. Can we blame him for bad material or angles? He could say no I suppose. But without knowing the man or the political situation maybe it's a little unfair to pass judgment. I think most would agree poopless Cena is usually a good to great promo.

By now you've probably assumed I'm a huge mark for Cena. I'm really not. If you're a wrestling fan you mark out for good stuff that has intrinsic appeal to you. So I don't mean that term negatively. I was a mark for The Shield. I wanted them to win. Always. I'm not a mark for Cena. I just think he's totally under
appreciated.

One day this will change. One day people will start using the word respect. Respect for Cena's talent. Respect for his work ethic. Respect for the respect he has for the business. Respect for asking to work with new guys.

Can the Cena Sucks crew be won over as things stand, while kids are still perceived as his target audience? Maybe not. While he may get an occasional standing ovation after a great match, Cena Sucks is a permanent part of the show. It's a contrary reaction to the PR of the Cenation.

A heel turn isn't happening in the foreseeable future. Not until a proven replacement comes along, and even then the stain of the Austin turn may weigh heavy. When one guy is so solely responsible for attracting a certain demographic, will turning him just alienate away his current fans and not bring in any new ones? The hardcores may be more entertained by his performance but they were watching anyway.

So maybe it can't happen until Cena's full time career is over. When there is no perception of being over pushed or in the way. Nostalgia and a change in perspective can make a believer out of anyone.

And if nothing else we've got all those kids to grow up and write their version of wrestling history.

The bandwagon will be picking up steam sooner or later so hope aboard today. Send a postal order for £50 (Sterling) to The John Cena Appreciation Society, PO Box 578, UK and receive your JCAS certificate, fridge magnet and tie clip.

SCG Radio # 4 - Who Is The Best "Big Man" In Wrestling History?

Join myself, G. John Chase, Luke Edwards and Kieran O'Rourke, as we take your feedback and discuss our own picks for the Best "Big Man" in the history of the business, featuring discussion on Andre The Giant, Vader, The Undertaker, Bam Bam Bigelow, Stan Hansen, Jerry Blackwell, Big Show and many more. A fun listen, so check it out!

http://squaredcirclegazette.podbean.com/mf/web/ftwmvy/SCGRadio4-TheBestBigManInHistory.mp3

Show Me The Money

On June 29th, WWE is in an interesting situation. And as fans, so are we.

A lot of the fun of being a wrestling fan, the thing that drives us to want more, and feeds our thirst for knowledge, is in the mystery, the not knowing, the thrill of being taken along for the ride. Obviously with the internet, there is very little that people can't find out, and as such, future directions are typically known months in advance, and the only thing we really don't know is the detail of the execution. The thrill of ride is often sacrificed.

Though I do hate the fact that Daniel Bryan got hurt when he did, and the sad fact that he has been completely derailed by poor planning and worse timing, this does create a very unique scenario, one we don't often get any more.

At Money In The Bank, there are eight directions the company could conceivably go. Of them, six are completely realistic. And the beauty is that we have no idea which path they're taking.

Eight men are wrestling for the WWE Title in a Ladder Match, at an event likely to start the course for Summerslam. The lingering presence of Brock Lesnar looms large, as his inevitable return may well play a factor in the outcome. But since the purpose of this site is analysis, let's examine the seven possibilities that lie in store.

Roman Reigns

People loved The Shield, they really did. And as much as that is to be credited to the three individuals, equal credit (if not more) needs to go to the much-maligned creative team. Regardless of what anybody wants to say, I can't think of anything in recent memory that was booked as inch-perfectly as the Shield's entire run. Three unknowns brought in, straight to the top, immediately portrayed as important. Given promo time, put over everyone for months and months, rarely jobbed, never sacrificed. Elevated correctly over former stars.

Was there more mileage in the group? Possibly, but regardless, the timing of the split may also be a masterstroke. Every single member of the team is still completely fresh, and now must sink or swim.

And that's the interesting thing with Reigns. Roman Reigns is going to get the chance to be THE guy. And not a half-assed chance either - the company reportedly sees him as the next John Cena, and that comes with a lot of protection. But people need to realise right now that the job description for the top guy is much different to being one third of a perfectly booked act with two other incredible performers. It's going to be all on him. To work. To talk. To convey. To connect. Not saying he can't do it, but he's got a lot to prove, and this is the time to prove it.

The flipside is that being put in this Ladder Match is dangerous. It seems incredibly soon to win the WWE Title, and we've seen rushed megapushes tarnish potential top stars before (as Randy Orton can attest).

The possibility of Reigns Vs. Lesnar not being at WrestleMania is enough to turn my stomach, and while I'm as big a supporter of the business stepping into the future as anybody, this is one move I wouldn't make.

Not yet, anyway.

Cesaro

This one is a big surprise. He seemed like a shoo-in for the actual briefcase (a position I now see Seth Rollins sliding into very naturally, possibly with the King Of The Ring '99 finish as the corporate favourite), so his entry into the big one is quite surprising.

Whispers and rumblings seem to indicate that Cesaro may end up in the title mix at some point, and that a Cesaro/Lesnar match may be on the cards.

Since WrestleMania, Cesaro's momentum has somewhat slowed down. A lot of people point to the alliance with Paul Heyman as a reason why, but I disagree. The timing is strictly co-incidental. The break-up and feud with fellow heel Jack Swagger was an awkward one for anybody to thrive in, and since then, Cesaro has been directionless. Treading water in the middle with Sheamus isn't doing anything for anyone.

If he was being elevated at the same time as the Heyman element was added, that's one thing. But ultimately, I think this is where his own weakness comes to light. I wrote a column called "The Ceiling Of Cesaro" about a month ago, where I said that the overall package and presentation of Cesaro needs improvement, and that a lot of it lied with him. The look. The charisma. The promos. Granted, he has Paul Heyman to talk for him, but the fans know that Heyman is the established star of the two. The Heyman rub alone didn't make Curtis Axel. It didn't make Ryback either. You can't rely on the manager entirely if the client is booked to tread water.

But to be devil's advocate here, Cesaro himself hasn't done anything particularly memorable other than a strong match with Sheamus at Payback, but guess what, we see really good matches with a lot of different guys on TV for free too. We need more from Cesaro for him to break out. Cesaro hasn't been built to be the champion. If they pull the trigger, and he gets it out of nowhere, who knows - with Heyman and the megapush, it may work. But it is, without a doubt, a gamble at best.

Alberto Del Rio

No.
















Randy Orton

2014, thus far, has been the most heatless year for Randy Orton since 2006. Almost every avenue this character can go down has been explored ad nauseam at this point, and his last WWE Title run was a ratings and Pay-Per-View bust.

Orton has a place on the show, but to be perfectly honestly, near the championship is not that place any more. They may be tempted to go this route on the belief that he "never lost the belt", and makes a natural opponent for Daniel Bryan's comeback if the idea is to put title back on Bryan before or at Summerslam, but I don't see how this route excites anybody in any way, or, most importantly, ends up getting anybody over more than they already are.

He should be in the match because he's a name associated with the title, and you need that in there with the new guys. But that's all, folks.

Sheamus

This guy has had his chance to be a difference maker in the company, and it didn't pan out.

A good worker for a guy his size, I can appreciate he's talented, but at the same time there is absolutely nothing interesting about him that tells me he needs to be anything more than he is right now.

A guy to hang around the upper midcard, win most of the time and lose to the guys who are top priorities. A Sheamus win would get us nowhere, and this isn't the time to be going nowhere.

John Cena

This is where this match gets tricky. If we absolutely must have a babyface winning, Cena is the choice. I know it's not what a lot of people want to hear, and I'm not saying I want him to hold it for any length of time. But of the three babyface choices, he's the most credible, he brings stability to the belt because people truly believe he's the top guy (and given the last year of booking the title could do with a credibility boost), and when the next big heel beats him for it, it means a lot more beating John Cena for the title than anything else will. I still wouldn't do it.

To me the more interesting options are the heels. I fear Reigns would be hurt in the long run more than helped if they pull the trigger now, and I wouldn't take the risk on him. Let that build.

The downside is that during a time when we need the product to progress, this would reaffirm the belief that we are riding the treadmill.

In addition, the only justifiable reason for a babyface victory is that the winner faces Brock Lesnar at Summerslam. And if this match takes place again, anything other than a Lesnar victory is inexcusable.

Bray Wyatt

I think this is the pick I would go with. New. Interesting. Dynamic. 

A character like Bray Wyatt's, exactly like those that came before him, needs to be fed constantly to stay relevant. If Wyatt ends up as a floating character like so many others in WWE, his luster will fade, and it's not as easy to get back. 

We also are yet to see how Wyatt will fare at the top away from Cena, who, for better or worse, always guarantees maximum audience interest and interaction. But if the people want to ride this wave, there is more immediate potential in Bray than any other option. You have the ready made match with Daniel Bryan at Summerslam (with a callback to the Royal Rumble where Wyatt pinned Bryan), and you can go anywhere in the world with it, depending on which way the wind blows. Fans want to cheer him? Then go with it. You want him as the purest of evil heels, you can go that way too.

The only downside is that, with Brock on the horizon, the fact is the shadow his return will cast following his WrestleMania win will easily engulf any WWE Title match that doesn't involve him. And that isn't the start you want for a first time champion that you're going to want to bank on for the next few years.

Kane

Speaking of new, interesting and dynamic, here is the old, uninteresting and uninspired option.

I hate this character. In 2014, it has no business at the top of the card, and the fact this is all they had for Daniel Bryan, the man who won it all at WrestleMania 30, is a disgrace, and the biggest indictment of the creative team's current presentation there could possibly be.

With that said, as much as I absolutely hate the possibility, there is a case to be made for Kane. And the case is - he holds it for one month and jobs out to Battleground, proper, to Daniel Bryan once and for all. If the destination is Bryan Vs. Lesnar at Summerslam, the logical choice is, unfortunately, for the man they pass off as a Demon (you know, the guy that got beat in 3 minutes at Mania), to win it in a match where it hurts nobody in losing, and has a built-in (and short) shelf life. He put Bryan out, he has to face him on his return. I hate it, but that's what we've got. It can make sense, it all just depends on the destination.

Final Verdict

With the F4W newsletter reporting Cena as the most likely winner this past weekend, a lot of the above (written the prior week) seems to be verified. But ultimately, we don't know until Sunday. The wind is blowing in different directions than was originally forecast. And it's rare that we get swept along a different path, one we don't have knowledge or preconceived notions of. 

Knowledge is power, but power isn't everything. Enjoy the ride.

  

SCG Radio #3 - What Does Wrestling Need?

Click on the link below to listen to the latest Squared Circle Gazette Radio show, as we discuss what wrestling needs most in 2014, including some good debate on women's wrestling, whether wrestling is cyclical, the next top star, and much more...

http://squaredcirclegazette.podbean.com/mf/web/b9w4fs/SCGRadio3-WhatDoesWrestlingNeed.mp3