Happy Easter! Now that that’s over, let’s get down to wrestling. We still have a couple of shows that could add something to the card, but I’ve decided to take a look at the already confirmed matches, starting with the fatal four-way for the United States Championship. It’ll be champion Randy Orton defending vs. Bobby Roode, Jinder Mahal, and recently-added Rusev. With Rusev added, a match that held little-to-no interest from me holds closer to little interest from me. Actually, if done right, I think this could be a big moment for Rusev, and also a big one for Bobby Roode’s character. Let’s face it: Roode’s character SUCKS as a face. It’s not really his fault. For some reason, faces don’t seem to be allowed to show any charisma or do anything but get to their catch phrase. Every Roode segment is just a short boring journey to get him to say “GLORIOUS!” Yes, we all loved to SMELL WHAT THE ROCK WAS COOKING and knew it was the bottom line BECAUSE STONE COLD SAID SO, but leading up to those lines, we were captivated and drawn in by what our wrestling heroes had to say. Roode’s gimmick is not built for a face anyway. He needs to be the cocky, win-at-all-costs, I’m-better-than-all-of-you-peons heel he was in NXT. Or, if you’re going to keep him as a face, let him be more like Orton, let him be a snake who stabs people in the back but can still elicit cheers. But don’t keep giving us this generic character who is supposed to be GLORIOUS but is just like everyone other cookie-cutter babyface right now. WWE has an opportunity to pull off a good and much-needed heel turn here with Roode. How could they do it? Glad you asked:
Rusev is hot. I’m actually surprised he’s been put into this match since Vince seems to like to CRUSH anything that gets over naturally rather than by his design. It’s a pleasant surprise that he’s been added to this match, and just like it’s time for a Roode heel turn, it’s time for a Rusev face turn. I will admit this finish was not my idea but something I read somewhere else, but it makes all the sense in the world to me: have Rusev win the title, and as he’s celebrating, have Roode go nuts with chair shots. Boom. Double turn. Roode then turns his attack to Orton and goes off on another face. It’s logical.
Orton doesn’t need the title. He didn’t need it in the first place, but I don’t have a problem with him winning it because it’s only for a month (hopefully) and it lets WWE bill him as a grand slam champion. They gave another rub to someone who has been one of their top guys for almost 20 years. He should NOT carry the title past Wrestlemania. I don’t think the title will do anything for him, nor will he do anything for the title.
I could see Jinder taking it. A foreign heel whose entire gimmick has been anti-America winning the U.S. title may help his character. It’s not like it’s a totally out of the blue and fresh idea, but what is these days? Simple is better. Think about how thrilled everyone was when someone FINALLY got the WWE championship off of him. It could make for a big moment for a face to eventually beat him for this title. This wouldn’t be my first choice, but it’s not the worst decision.
As Adorable Adrian Adonis pointed out in yesterday’s post, I WANT ACTION. That matters more to me than who actually wins this match. Like he mentioned, give us more than two guys fighting while two guys lay on the ground overselling clotheslines. I’m sure we’ll see the obligatory combination powerbomb-superplex at some point, but that’s lost it’s appeal since it’s done in every multi-person match ever. That’s the move that allows four guys to lay there and rest for a few minutes, I get it. But it’s dumb.
Overall, I don’t have a lot of high hopes for this match. But I’m also hoping that it’s the sleeper that surprises people. Unfortunately, I think we will get a lame match that helps none of these wrestlers with Orton retaining. WWE: Prove Me Wrong.
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