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Panic/Disgust
Join Date: Dec 1999
Location: definitly not nebraska
Posts: 74,774
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A look at the new Raw talent
A LOOK AT HOW THE 'NEW' RAW TALENT IS DOING INCLUDING BENJAMIN, RHYNO, TAJIRI, AND OTHERS
by Buck Woodward @ 2:00:00 PM on 3/31/2004
The WWE draft lottery and following trades are now a week old, so I thought it would be interesting to see how well some of the talent has done since being swapped to a new brand. Obviously it is too early to tell if the move from Smackdown to Raw (or vice versa) will help the careers of these wrestlers or not, but often a "first impression" is everything in this business. I will be discussing the Smackdown talent after the show is broadcast, so as not to spoil anything. So, let's start off with the talent that was drafted and traded to Raw:
Triple H. I have to admit, I laughed when I saw on WWE.com that they were promoting "Triple H Returns" as the headline for Raw. It's not like he really left the show, he just wrestled Eddie Guerrero on Raw under the assumption that he was now a Smackdown worker. As we all know by now, they traded him back to Raw in one of the greatest ego strokes of all time. Three wrestlers, all former champions, were traded to Smackdown for the mighty Triple H. I suppose I could continue to bash that ridiculous piece of booking, but I won't. After a good match with Guerrero last week, Triple H had a fantastic match with Shelton Benjamin this week. Slowly, Triple H is starting to show the form that led to some classic matches before his quad injury. He should also be applauded for doing the right thing for business in putting over Shelton, not just in doing the job, but in selling for the youngster. Triple H is the one person who never has to worry about his spot, so he can elevate people without fearing that he will get bumped out of the top programs.
Shelton Benjamin. Last week, he was split from his partner, Charlie Haas, only days after an impressive singles performance on Smackdown against Haas, Billy Gunn and Rey Mysterio. With him going to Raw, it seemed a singles run was forthcoming. Instead of starting slow, WWE shoved him right to the top, and he delivered. Benjamin proved with his work in the ring that he deserved to be in the main event slot on Raw. The fans chanting his name during the bout cemented it. Triple H put him over, but Benjamin deserves just as much credit for hanging with him. This wasn't a "carry job" by a veteran. This was a more than solid match between two wrestlers. Will the push continue? Will he be squashed next week? If WWE is smart, they won't even think about doing the latter.
Nidia. After being drafted to Raw (and away from her storyline with Jamie Noble), Nidia displayed her talents by taking her shirt off. This week, she entered the highly competitive Women's division on Raw, where there isn't a lot of TV time to be had, and the workrate has steadily risen over the last year. Her match with Molly Holly was too short to tell us much about Nidia's ring skills, but at the same time, she didn't really impress either. Nidia is going to need to work hard and long to be seen in the same league as Victoria, Molly, Trish and Jazz. With a babyface champion currently reigning in Victoria, it may be some time before Nidia gets her title program anyway, so she will have time to work on her matches.
Yoshihiro Tajiri. His drafting was given no fanfare last week, and he didn't wrestle at all. This week, Tajiri was given an angle that resulted in him becoming a babyface again (because spewing green mist at Coach will automatically make you a fan favorite). When he was put in a match with Kane, it appeared that the Japanese Buzzsaw was going to be riding the chokeslam express right to Heat. Instead, Tajiri was given a suprising amount of offense, and portrayed as someone who wouldn't be intimidated, and more importantly, wouldn't give up. He then outsmarted Kane to get a countout win. While Tajiri was laid out post-match, he certainly was allowed to give a better accounting of himself than most of Kane's recent opponents.
Rhyno. Definitely someone who has benefitted from the change of scenery. A week before the draft lottery, he was getting squashed by John Cena. After being swapped to Raw, he was allowed a decent showing against Chris Benoit. This week, he got to squash Lance Storm and begin to reestablish himself as a monster. With every week that goes by, the memory of his loss to Cena will fade, and Raw viewers can be reeducated to Rhyno. He is a fresh face on a program that needs one, and WWE just needs to decide if they want to push him as a babyface or a heel, since they have presented him as both in the last two weeks. Rhyno could certainly be contending for the Intercontinental Title by mid-summer.
Edge. Edge made his return last week by spearing Eric Bischoff, firmly establishing him as a top star because of the unwritten rule that only the main eventers get to beat up General Managers. This week, he took down Kane with a spear, and has lined himself up for his first program on his way to the World Title. Make no mistake, Edge is being groomed for a World Title feud, and Kane will just be the first stop on the trip. The real proof of Edge's push though, has nothing to do with his two spears on Raw. It's the simple fact that WWE is saving his first match back for Backlash. It tells the audience "Edge's return match is so important, you need to pay for it" which is practically a flashing neon sign that "THIS GUY IS A STAR".
Paul Heyman. Was traded to Raw, gave a great "farewell" promo, then walked away. Heyman is far too talented, both as an on-screen talent and behind the scenes in a creative role, to be left at home as a consultant. Eventually, he has to be brought back in some form, unless WWE just wants to waste a valuable resource. Rhyno could use a manager...
A-Train. Was traded from Smackdown to Raw, and didn't have a match this week at all. No Raw match, no Heat match, not even a dark match. He's the equivalent of the torn, worthless baseball card you toss into the trade just to make your offering look bigger than it is.
Chuck Palumbo. Only faring slightly better than A-Train, the former FBI member was given a dark match win this week at Raw. In my opinion, Palumbo has shown improvement, and could be a solid mid-carder, but really needs to be repackaged away from the FBI gimmick. And I don't mean a return to the "Billy & Chuck" days either.
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Last edited by Ragu; 03-31-2004 at 03:30 PM.
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