Smark Out Moment

We all know what WWE thinks is a good idea and what WWE fans think is a good idea can be two completely different things. So here at Smark Out Moment, I've decided to have my say on how I think WWE should do things and compare that to how they actually do them. First of all, I'm going to take a look pay-per-view events and see how they should be used and what WWE needs to do to improve them.


There have been seven Extreme Rules pay-per-views and on the whole, they have been very successful and it has quickly become one of my personal favorite events. Extreme Rules works very well as a fun night the month after WrestleMania. The only change I would make is that I think it should be even more of a throwback to ECW and have even more extreme matches. I would also give every match a stipulation and have as many different stipulations as possible—even if that does mean a Kiss Me Arse match some years. WWE should see this as a chance to show their creativity and they tend to get it right more often than not. Overall, this pay-per-view should definitely be kept and it has potential to be one of the best events of the year.


Payback has only been around for the past three years and in that time, it's proven difficult to build a theme around. However, if WWE are keen on keeping it, it may not be a bad "filler" event between bigger ones like WrestleMania, Extreme Rules, and Money in the Bank. Overall, I won't be disappointed if it were to be dropped or changed for a new event, but if it sticks around, it needs some kind of gimmick to stand out.


I was very disappointed when it looked like WWE had dropped Elimination Chamber, so when it came back, I was extremely happy. We've now had six different Elimination Chamber pay-per-views and it's easily one of my personal favorites. Although sometimes, it's difficult to set up regular matches on the card, as long as there were two chamber matches and both have six people in them, both are over 30 minutes long, and the participants are good, WWE should be okay. This event also works well to book people to look strong without actually winning. WWE should keep Elimination Chamber on the calendar, as there are weaker events to get rid of.


Money in the Bank as a pay-per-view is only six years old, but it's one of the most beloved by fans. Still, I think it's a tough event to book other than the titular ladder match. It worked a lot better when there were two briefcases to be won, but now WWE tends to book a multi-man ladder match for the title itself in order to keep the theme. Both ladder matches should be over 30 minutes long, in my opinion, too. This may be an unpopular opinion, but I think WWE could afford to drop this event and just place the Money in the Bank ladder match on SummerSlam's card.


Battleground is almost exactly the same Payback, but it has even less going for it. If you're looking for something to drop, this is definitely one that can go.


SummerSlam is the second biggest event in WWE and is built as the WrestleMania of the summer. Despite this, I don't think there is really anything special about it any more, other than its 28 year history. Every match should get a huge build up, the event should be four hours every year, and as I mentioned before, the Money in the Bank match should take place here. SummerSlam of course should not and will not be dropped.


After eight years (nine on Sunday), Night of Champions has established itself as one of the biggest nights of the year. Having every title defended on the same night is a really good idea that WWE tends to utilize very well. However, one of the problems I have with the event is that non-title matches have been taking place. I know it's difficult to have a full card with only five titles, but WWE should counter this by making the matches longer or having the NXT championships defended here. Overall, this is a must-keep event.


Similar to Elimination Chamber and Money in the Bank, if an event is going to be built around Hell in a Cell matches, there should be two of them that are at least 30 minutes a piece. After six rather successful years, I'd have to rule this as a must-keep. Even if the Hell in a Cell matches aren't necessary for those particular feuds, the night tends to be overall very enjoyable.


Survivor Series is the second-longest running event in WWE history and as a result, it deserves its place as one of the "big four" shows. I sound like a broken record, but I'd like to see two traditional elimination matches that are over 30 minutes long. Actually, there should be even more, which is what they used to do in the past instead of putting throwaway matches on the card. Survivor Series has never felt as important to me as WrestleMania, SummerSlam or Royal Rumble, but after 28 events, there's no doubt it's here to stay.


TLC has been a pay-per-view for six years and on the whole I've been very impressed with how WWE have booked it. However, I think they should play up to the theme even more and have every match as either a tables, ladders or chairs match—or a TLC match, of course—although I did enjoy the stairs element being added last year. Overall, I really enjoy this pay-per-view and see it as a secondary Extreme Rules, but I don't want to see this event go anywhere any time soon.


The Royal Rumble is by far my favorite pay-per-view of the year—yes, even more than WrestleMania. Not only does it have the best match in WWE, but it's also the only event where it's easy to forget about bad or pointless matches happening earlier in the night. Even though that's the case, every match should still be important, despite how it shouldn't take away from the Royal Rumble match itself. WWE always manages to have surprise entrants and that hour is always something I get more excited for than anything else in the year. Also, please keep the Royal Rumble the main event, as no other match will ever top it!


Fastlane is only one year old and is filling a difficult gap between the two biggest pay-per-views of the year. The tagline "Fastlane to WrestleMania" works very well and as long as it isn't just a glorified episode of Raw and it actually leads into WrestleMania, I'm okay with it staying. I wouldn't be disappointed if they got rid of it, though.


Now we get to WrestleMania—the biggest event of the year; the grandest stage of them all; the showcase of the immortals; the show of shows; the granddaddy of them all. This is my second favorite event and WWE is really starting to get on a roll, as the past two years were great. If I was to make any criticism, I would say that every title has to be defended every year, possibly including the NXT belts. Overall, we all know WrestleMania is the top pay-per-view that is here to stay, forever.

So there we have it, every WWE pay-per-view reviewed and improved from my perspective. Clearly, Vince McMahon thinks that they're fine as is, but what do you guys think? How would you change the landscape of WWE's events? What would you drop? What's your favorite show of the year?

Let us know in the comments and let the debate rage on!