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?



The Miz is my favorite wrestler on the current roster, and I enjoy The Miztourage, too. Nevertheless, as much as it jobbed them out, I really enjoyed their segment on Monday Night Raw with Brock Lesnar and Paul Heyman. The Miz and Paul Heyman are two of the finest talkers in WWE today, so perhaps it is not surprising that this turned out so well.

A spot on impersonation of Paul Heyman by The Miz, a typically great sneaky setup from Paul Heyman, and then, a lovely massacre by Brock Lesnar—it is not too hard to see why this section worked.

It was entertaining, it helped build anticipation for SummerSlam, and we got an awesome dose of action. In addition, it was novel. This was not the same old faces that trot out every week to exchange barbs before an inevitable tag match, but a mix of talent that we had not seen all together before. It was a perfect recipe for an excellent segment.

Also, for anyone who still thinks The Miztourage is a useless idea, Bo Dallas and Curtis Axel have now been involved in the aftermath of Raw's main event and have shared the same ring as Brock Lesnar. Ok, it is no title belt, but it is a significant upgrade from sitting in catering!



From being one of the biggest ongoing stories of the year, it now feels like the Jordan-Angle story is little more than a minor lower mid-card story. Possibly WWE want to avoid another Roman Reigns backlash by pushing him at a much slower rate, but I am not convinced that the audience will care too much either way.

This past week saw Jordan come out to barely any reaction whatsoever, and then face local competitor, Jean-Pierre Goulet. However, in a clear bid of defiance to WWE's new chosen one, the crowd started chanting for Goulet instead! This enthusiasm for the wrestling equivalent of a film extra does not bode well for Jordan.

In addition, to further damper the story as a whole, WWE appears to have dropped all the unresolved mystery aspects the story. Who was texting Kurt? Why was Corey Graves in the know? Was it too much to ask to have some conclusion there? Apparently.

Sadly, WWE has created a rod for Jordan's back here. We are never going to not remember him as Kurt Angle's secret son, but with barely a month gone by and fan interest already waning, WWE needs to be careful where they go from here with their prodigal son.


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!