DaveyBoy’s Wrestling Menu – NYR Predictions, Awards Feedback + Heel Turns
Submitted by DaveyBoy on Wednesday, January 3, 2007 at 12:25 AM EST






THE WRESTLING MENU #212

Welcome one and all to the 212th edition of The Wrestling Menu, the column that is sure to satisfy your taste buds when it comes to discussing all things wrestling.

Yes folks, it’s now 2007! So remember that whenever you write out the date on something. Like those checks that are going to bounce because you decided to spend your last dollar buying a family member a Christmas present that they are most probably going to take back to the store in the next week or so! Don’t you love this time of year?

Anyways, it’s back to normal now. January 3, 2007 is just another day like August 21 or May 9 or November 15. But I hope you all had a great New Years Eve & New Years Day, and that the recovery from the partying is complete. I had a couple of big nights myself, but I wouldn’t call them “huge”. I can still survive “big”, it’s those “huge” ones that I feel for about a week nowadays.

Finally, best of luck to all with your New Years Resolutions (if you have any). I’m not usually big on them, but in all honesty, I did have one last year & I succeeded. That was to lose at least 5 kilograms (11 pounds) & get fitter. So for 2007, I’m going with exactly the same resolution. I’d like to lose another 11 pounds & get that little bit fitter as well. Who knows, I may even attempt a half-marathon towards the end of the year. If that doesn’t end my fitness fad, then nothing will!

As for wrestling and/or my column, I don’t really have any resolutions as such. Although, I will attempt to continue my weekly posting streak for as long as I can. With that said, it’s on with the show.....


APPETIZERS

Awards Feedback

For all those that have been away over the holiday period & just returned, I wrote my ‘WWE Year-End Awards & Report Card’ last Wednesday. Today, I will just provide the main feedback that I received for my annual awards. If you have yet to read last week’s column, you may still do so by clicking on the following link: http://www.lordsofpain.net/news/2006_/articles/1167205959.php

Edge was indeed the popular pick as Male Wrestler of the Year. But most went on to state that he should have also been named Overall Performer of the Year. I have no problems with that & admit it was a coin toss, but I do stand by my choice of John Cena for the latter award. The only other WWE wrestler mentioned with any consistency in these categories was King Booker, but I really didn’t think his match quality was up to scratch in 2006. Trish Stratus was the popular pick for Female Wrestler of the Year, although both Mickie James & Lita had their fans. Those favoring Lita mentioned how she helped Edge achieve main-event status.

With regards to the Tag-Team of the Year, many didn’t have a problem with me presenting the award to Paul London & Brian Kendrick. D-Generation X were mentioned intermittently, as were The Spirit Squad and Kane & The Big Show. Even The Hardyz one month’s worth of teaming gained mentions, which probably says something about the tag-team division for the first 6 months of the year more than anything else.

Johnny Nitro was indeed a popular pick for Most Improved Wrestler, although some people are still not totally convinced about his potential. There were no real other consistent picks though, with (from memory) King Booker probably being the name that popped up 3 or 4 times. While he obviously did great with a suspect & unoriginal character, I don’t think that really qualifies him for the award to be honest. As for me naming Kenny Dykstra as Rookie of the Year, it seems like that decision is getting less popular by the week, with obviously CM Punk being the other standout in that category.

The vote for Debut of the Year was split rather evenly between my choice of Finlay & Umaga. While Umaga has previously wrestled in the WWE as Jamal, I did consider him for the award, but felt that Finlay had climbed the card more than the Samoan Bulldozer, while also having better quality matches. At the end of the year, Umaga had yet to wrestle for the World Title, where-as Finlay had. As for Most Under-Used Wrestler, only 2 men were mentioned here & it’s not difficult to guess who they are; Shelton Benjamin & Carlito. I gave the nod to Shelton for more appearances on ‘Heat’. Yes, that show does still exist!

My choice of The BoogeyMan definitely had his fans for Most Over-Used Wrestler, although there was a surprise nominee here that got quite a few mentions. That man was Vince McMahon. And it’s a fair call too, as for a non-wrestler, he sure did have a lot of high-priority matches. Shane McMahon & DX even got some mentions here for what most thought was a feud that went on way too long. And as bad as Old Man Boogey is in the ring, I don’t think I had anyone argue the point that The Great Khali was the Worst Wrestler of 2006!

All 3 contenders for Match of the Year that I named had their fair share of supporters. A couple of WrestleMania bouts also got a mention. But overall, the vote was split on the award going to either the 4 Team Ladder Match or Angle vs Undertaker from February. However, it seemed pretty much unanimous that John Cena vs Edge was indeed the Feud of the Year.

My Storyline Awards are often the most debated, but there seemed to be 2 or 3 main contenders in each category in 2006. With regards to Best Storyline/Angle of the Year, the vote was pretty evenly split between my choice of Mickie stalking Trish & the whole Edge vs Cena feud (most specifically the Elimination Chamber aftermath). While in the Worst Storyline/Angle of the Year category, 2 nominees just shaded my choice of Boogeyman & his Worms. Those storylines were the short-lived Kane vs Kane mess, as well as the ridiculous God angle that somehow entered into the McMahons vs HBK feud! Rey Mysterio’s weakly booked World HeavyWeight Title reign also got a few mentions here.

Finally, there were 4 main contenders for Pay-Per-View of the Year, with all having their supporters for one reason or another. Despite being almost 11 months ago, my choice of ‘No Way Out’ definitely had its followers. As did April’s WrestleMania 22, September’s Unforgiven & December’s Armageddon.


MAIN – Heel Turns

In sending me feedback for my 2006 Year-End Awards, some readers even made up some of their own different awards & presented them to certain wrestlers. Needless to say, some of these gave me a laugh! But not all of the extra awards were played for laughs, with many of them being serious in nature. A couple of them actually got me thinking about the year in general, but one specific one that I saw a couple of times was ‘Best Turn of the Year’.

It got me thinking as to when was the last really good turn. This topic can include face turns, but I’ve always felt a good heel turn captured the imagination of the wrestling fan a lot more when booked logically & well. So I had a think over 2006 & the turns that occurred. And I really had to stretch my memory (which isn’t good in the first place) to think of more than a handful. There have probably been over 10 in reality, but some of them were so superficial that they hardly count. But even the turns that did occur won’t exactly stick in the memory for long.

With regards to face turns, three stand out & they were all on Raw. They were Triple H to resurrect D-Generation X, Carlito on the back of an ill-fated tag-team with Chris Masters, and Mickie James following her great feud with Trish Stratus. And as scary as it sounds, that’s just about it! Nothing else stands out to me in terms of face turns.

There were a few more heel turns throughout 2006, but again nothing much to speak of. I can’t recall if Shelton turned heel in 2006 or late 2005. Then there was Charlie Haas & Viscera in that ho-hum angle with Lillian Garcia. We have just had Eugene & Tatanka go all psycho on us, while both Chavo & Vicki Guerrero predictably turned evil mid-year. On top of those, are probably the 2 heel turns which stood out as the best to me, and believe it or not, they both (sort of) belong to the ECW brand!

Firstly, there was Mick Foley’s interesting turn to set up a tag-team match at the ‘One Night Stand’ pay-per-view. This wasn’t anything groundbreaking, but it’s worth merit just because of the battle that Mick had to fight to make many crowds boo him. Plus, it resulted in another interesting, if unfulfilled, feud against Ric Flair a month or so later. Then finally, there was the heel turn of Paul Heyman. This was a pretty formulaic turn in reality, but it did serve its purpose at the end of the day & shift the balance of power on WWE’s third brand.

Now don’t get me wrong, I am not a supporter of numerous turns over a 12 month period. The more you see turns, the more they become mundane. But I am very much one who would like to see quality over quantity. Hell, it wouldn’t bother me if there were only 3-4 heel turns per year, as long as they had genuine impact. Of that lot I just mentioned, maybe 5 of them could be seen as sufficient & nothing higher. And as sad as it sounds, Triple H’s face turn (which wasn’t exactly special) may have been the one that had the most effect!

Two weeks ago, I indirectly stated what I feel is very important in making a good turn, especially a heel turn. I was writing about Carlito’s depush & suggested that a heel turn may be required to get him out of his current trough. But I also recommended building up some face momentum for him first, so that when he did finally turn, it had more impact to it. This makes fans dislike him more, thus making the heel turn initially more shocking & eventually more successful.

So I hear you all asking; Is there anyone else I can see being built up as a strong face & then shockingly turning heel in 2007. Well, I have already mentioned in my column that arguably the most popular face on the WWE roster could be a strong candidate. That man is the current World HeavyWeight Champion, Batista!

A heel turn from Batista would have huge impact on SmackDown & surely provide some sort of freshness to the main-event scene on Friday nights. Plus, wrestling as a heel would most probably hide some of his in-ring weaknesses that have been apparent ever since he returned from injury. With a rumored match against a face Undertaker at WrestleMania 23, I wouldn’t totally write this heel turn off. But I do doubt it as his Armageddon tag-team match alongside John Cena would have been a good opportunity to pull it off.

As boring as it sounds, the other likely contender for a big heel turn in 2007 is Triple H. He naturally plays a heel well & the turn would practically book itself. However, I get the feeling that he is quite content playing a face right now & would prefer sticking with the role for at least another year. I’m sure many would suggest John Cena for a heel turn as well, but I think the WWE has had that many opportunities to turn him, that they would have by now if they wanted to.

So we will just have to wait & see I suppose. We can only hope that the WWE surprise us out of nowhere & we witness a heel turn almost as well-booked & effective as Hulk Hogan’s in 1996 or The Rock’s in 1998!


DESSERT

’New Years Revolution’ Predictions

CARLITO vs CHRIS MASTERS: Many fans are constantly stating how Carlito is reminding them so much of Chris Jericho of late & one similarity that is often overlooked is that Carlito is starting to take part in the opening matches of pay-per-views more often now (although it wouldn't surprise me if the cage match kicked things off). One thing that Jericho didn't have to put up with much though is feuding against the same opponent for a year. Yes, it's almost been that long that Carlito & Masters have been feuding (off & on). If you recall, the friction between the 2 started at The Royal Rumble! Anyway, this should be a decent, but run-of-the-mill type of match. If they can bring some intensity to the bout like they did a few weeks back on Raw, then it may surprise me. But otherwise, this is pretty much just filler. The man with more potential wins. Winner: Carlito

JEFF HARDY vs JOHNNY NITRO in a Steel Cage Match for the InterContinental Title: This match has "feud settler" written all over it. And so it should, as the feud between these 2 could reasonably be declared amongst the top 5 of 2006. And who would have thought that at the beginning of last year? Alas, the Hardy vs Nitro war has probably run its race & must come to an end here, but what better way than in a cage match. And from what these 2 have put together in the past, this should be a fantastic bout, with the steel cage gimmick adding sufficient variation for both of them to work with. When long feuds such as this come to an end, it is often the reigning champion that emerges victorious. But something that I can't quite put my figure on tells me to go against the statistics here. Winner: Johnny Nitro

RIC FLAIR vs KENNY DYKSTRA: With every mention of Daniel Rodimer on an internet news report, I shudder that the WWE are going to banish my 2006 Rookie of the Year; Kenny. But it's good to see that since splitting from The Spirit Squad, the creative department has found a suitable feud for him to take part in. Sure, he could be spending time with Orton & Edge, but I feel that Kenny will learn just as much from Flair, no matter how short the feud may be. This particular feud also gives the talented rookie a character to grow with as he has already reasonably shown some cockiness in defeating Flair a few times, while there are elements of a whingeing spoilt brat that is lurking in the background. What better way than to bring that out more than having the youngster get beaten in a ppv singles bout by an ageing veteran. The booking has to be careful here & will decide whether this is simply filler or a pleasant surprise. Winner: Ric Flair

RANDY ORTON & EDGE vs TRIPLE H & SHAWN MICHAELS for the World Tag-Team Titles: I wouldn't be totally surprised if this was the card's main-event, but I don't think it will be & I will explain why in a moment. This has been a nicely crafted feud that has never been stagnant. It's been cleverly booked in different forms (singles, tag-team, 6 man, handicap), while the underlying tone of the feud has gradually progressed to being more serious. There is a nice element of factors involved in this particular bout too, with revenge playing a part, as well as the World Tag-Team Titles. I actually believe that this feud (in one form or another) will indeed continue (possibly up until WrestleMania 23), so the booking here is crucial. With that in mind & the titles being on the line, I do feel that we may see a disqualification ending here (hence not being the main-event), with the face team's revenge motive getting the better of them at the end of the day. Even if there is a clean victory, I think it's best to protect the heels for the betterment of the feud. This "should" be a good one. Winners: Randy Orton & Edge

MICKIE JAMES vs VICTORIA for the Women's Title: Given a short amount of time to work with, the bookers of the Women's Division (I think Finlay somehow still plays a part) have done a very good job in building up Victoria from glorified fill-in jobber to genuine title contender. I mean, we all know she should have been thereabouts in the first place, but the booking has made her look rather credible of late. Hopefully, it all comes together on the night & this match doesn't disappoint. There shouldn't be any reason why this shouldn't be more than passable, if given at least 5-7 minutes. Furthermore, let's hope that Victoria's steamrolling crazy character can somehow get the fans to care about a struggling face Mickie James. For that reason alone, it wouldn't totally surprise me to see a title change here, but I'll play it safe & say that the champ retains. Winner: Mickie James

JOHN CENA vs UMAGA for the WWE Championship: Especially if this is placed as the main-event of the night, this is a bit of a test for Cena, who has been starting to get a better reaction from the live crowds of late. But can he take it a step further in the ring against a man unproven at this level of competition? While the feud has always been coming, it has been booked underneath the radar, with other matches & storylines distracting its progression. To be honest, I'm unsure what that means. It could be that the feud still has legs? If so, does that mean we see a surprising short title reign for the heel here (just like Edge last year)? I really don't know, nor am I confident that this bout will be any better than the main-event involving Cena that closed SmackDown's Armageddon. This one is filled with question marks & I approach it a little skeptically. For that reason, I must play it safe & say that the champ retains. Winner: John Cena

Ok, so there we have this year's version of New Years Revolution. It's actually not too bad of a card, although there are enough question marks involved with many of the matches to say that anything could happen. You would think that the Cage Match for the InterContinental Title will be very good, as should be the Tag-Team Title bout. Everything else could be solid, but could also severely disappoint if not booked & performed well. And sadly, this event has a history of some shocking performances & it's only been around for all of 2 years! I can actually see one more match being added to the card & after seeing the 4 team match on Raw, I would suggest that either a rematch will occur, or Cryme Tyme will take on Shelton Benjamin & Charlie Haas. Either way, I am predicting a win for the self-proclaimed "World's Greatest Tag-Team". To all those who are going to watch the show, join me in crossing our fingers that the WWE come up with the goods. To those skipping the event, you know where & when I will have my review up.


That is all for column #212. If you would like to send me feedback on any of the 3 topics that I have discussed today, you may do so by emailing me at DaveyBoy123@bigpond.com. My PPV Predictions are always popular in discussion, while I am especially interested to know what you think about heel or face turns in general, or more specifically some that could occur in 2007. As per usual, I will reply to everyone. But if you are an LOP Forums member, it would be much appreciated if you could leave feedback on my thread at http://www.lopforums.com/showthread.php?t=217&page=2

Next week in 'The Wrestling Menu', I haven't quite got the whole column planned. I will obviously have my review of the New Year's Revolution ppv, but I am still tossing up whether to jump straight into my predictions for 2007, or leave that for the following week. In fact, if I get some decent quality feedback about ideas for heel and/or face turns, I may include some of those in my column next Wednesday. So get thinking folks. Whatever I will serve up, my column will be posted at the same Wednesday time on the same LOP channel. Until then, this is DaveyBoy signing off & asking you to remember that dinner is best served in 3 courses.


DaveyBoy’s Wrestling Menu. 2002-2007

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