Smark Out Moment

Welcome to another edition of Cheap Pop and Cheap Heat from Smark Out Moment! Each week, we break down the world of professional wrestling and examine two of the polar opposite ends of the spectrum: one thing that was by far the worst thing (Cheap Heat) and the best thing (Cheap Pop) to happen over the past 7 days in sports entertainment. So, what went down this week that we loved and hated about the business?


Maybe it is because he has always reminded me of Adam West's crazy mayor character in Family Guy, but I am enjoying Bob Backlund's recent WWE role as Darren Young's life coach.

I have my doubts that it will do anything to make Darren Young great (again?) but it makes for an interesting interlude to the rest of the program. Too often, predictability is rife among scripted backstage skits and sketches, but you just never know what Bob is going to say. As everyone has attested, this is not an act; this is not even him dialed up to ten. Bob is the same on and off-screen, and I hope that we get more of it over the coming weeks.



WWE got some bad press last week for having Chris Jericho strap the "insane" Dean Ambrose into a straitjacket proclaiming that "this is what you do to lunatics."

Naturally, this was cue for an uproar and outrage across social media and wrestling sites alike. Admittedly, it was not the most sensitively handled segment, nor was it the most well thought out choice of words by Y2J, but was this the negative backlash really justified?

For the longest time, people have begged for a return to non-PG programming, so WWE gives them something that bears semblance to the more offensive Attitude Era, and, unsurprisingly, they get offended.

The Attitude Era encompassed pushing the envelope, but they try it here and get slapped down for it?

Oh, and for the record, I have a long history of fighting mental health issues, and this did not offend me. It did not even occur to me that I should be until I read so much about it online.

Cake+Have+Eat it = not possible.


Extra Heat: Emma suffered a back injury at a live event. This is really unfortunate news. I really liked the quirky Australian, especially since she returned with a dark heel persona. Here's hoping she is not out long. Get well soon Emma.

So there you have it, my two choices for the week. What do YOU think are the Cheap Pop and Cheap Heat this week in professional wrestling? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!