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TAKER’S LAST RIDE, OHNO’S LOOK, RATING MANIA 33 AND MORE

By Dave Scherer on 2017-04-12 10:00:00

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The new NXT belts are fantastic and a welcome change from the old belts, especially the heavyweight belt.  However, the one obvious issue is the big prominent X in the middle of them, which makes the belts look very similar to TNA's X division belt.  Is this a flaw that no one saw during the design process, or does WWE simply not care?

I would guess that they did due diligence before they debuted the belt.  I am sure if Anthem has any legal ground to stand on, they will do it.  

Now that the Undertaker has retired (and assuming he doesn't transition to a backstage role), who do you see from the roster - if there even is one - that is capable of eventually becoming the next locker room "boss"?  Taker was on such another level above in terms of being respected and larger than life, that I think even someone on Cena's level wouldn't be an automatic lock to fill the void. 

And Cena won’t be around full time anyway.  The top guys are generally the leaders but as time goes by in the company, the emphasis for leadership has gone from the talent policing its own to the company doing it.  That isn’t to say that there won’t be kangaroo court, but I can’t think of anyone off hand that will take over for Taker and really no one has since he cut back his schedule.

Has Kassius Ohno let himself go a bit since his first run in NXT?  His choice of ring attire, with his basketball shirt tucked into his trunks, are not flattering at all.  Do you think the way his body looks now hurts his appeal to the casual fan, who doesn't know his background or experience level?  And do you think a change in ring attire would be a good thing?

Well, one of the issues that Triple H always had with him was his appearance/look because as you just said, it’s a visual that the consumer notices.  The current ring gear he has been wearing is not flattering.  The guy is an amazing worker and I am not one that thinks every star has to be chiseled but I do agree that he needs to reevaluate the outfit he has been wearing because it doesn’t portray him in the best light.

I understand that Roman Reigns is being groomed to replace John Cena as the next long term big thing for WWE and I am OK with that, but do you think that if this is and was Undertaker's last match that Taker should have lost?  Anyone else, probably would not have an issue with who Reigns beats but this is Taker, one of the most respected and well thought of wrestlers in the business.  I know that Taker would do anything that is right for business and what Vince would request of him, within reason, but I am interested in your opinion on this and if you would have done it the same way it was presented at WrestleMania if it was up to you. I am sure that if it HAD to be Reigns against Taker here, they probably could have made Reigns look strong in the loss, have Taker win and move on in life.

The word going around was that Taker wanted to be a true pro and “put over the young guy as he left the territory”  I have the ultimate respect for him.  That is what the veterans are supposed to do.  Plus, losing to the young gun was the perfect bridge to him deciding that his time had passed and he needed to “hang it up”.  I thought it was the right call.

I don’t want to sound too negative, but little by little I’m getting more and more frustrated over the decision making by WWE. Surely there were great and memorable moments at WM33 but on the downside there were too many face palm moments. It seems like a lottery: Out of ten storyline decisions WWE makes, nine are bad. I know, this is probably subjective, but it’s just the way I feel. Still, WM is always entertaining, but it could have been SO MUCH better with a little tweak here and there and the use of common sense.  How is your overall opinion on Wrestlemania 33?

An Elite member said B Minus on one of the shows we do and I pretty much concur with that.  The work, overall, was great.  The booking, overall, was not.  But as I say all of the time, it’s Vince McMahon’s product and he will book what he wants to book.  We just have to accept that if we follow the product.  But the in-ring work, plus the retirement of The Undertaker, was forced to compensate for a lot of lackluster booking in my opinion.

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