Smark Out Moment

Welcome to another edition of Triple Threat from Smark Out Moment, where three of us get together to discuss three questions based on one big topic going down in the week of professional wrestling.

This week, Dallas Allsopp, Bodeen Green and Robert DeFelice will be giving their opinions on the upcoming TLC pay-per-view.

TLC marks the final WWE pay-per-view of the year, however the build for this year's event has been significantly poor, with only 3 matches announced with only a week of television shows to go. Does this mean it will be a bad show, or are we in for a surprise?


ALLSOPP: As The Fiend himself has not been mentioned thus far, I’m inclined to believe we will be seeing the Firefly Fun House presenter himself in action. This makes sense as The Miz is not a significant threat, therefore the additional power of The Fiend is not required. This will allow Wyatt to show his incredible mannerisms and reactions during the match, which are otherwise hidden under a mask. I expect a fairly even match, with Wyatt coming out on top once he has finished playing with The Miz. No offence to The Miz, but he has no right even sniffing the win in this contest.

GREEN: I'm very interested to see what WWE will do with Bray Wyatt's character, as it looks like we will be seeing Firefly Fun House Wyatt making his in ring debut, rather than him competing as The Fiend. Will he have a fun entrance that is different to The Fiend? Will he have less power than The Fiend? The mystery over what will happen on Sunday is really interesting. Personally, I have no idea what will happen, with my only prediction being that Daniel Bryan will get involved somehow, leading to the Royal Rumble where Bryan will face either The Fiend, Firefly Fun House Wyatt or even The Miz, with Bryan transforming into a darker character as a result of The Fiend.

DeFELICE: This match came together quite randomly. I feel it is bizarre there was no build up to the first ever attack from Bray Wyatt without The Fiend mask on. I thought the incarnation of Wyatt wearing the sweater only cared about things like friendship and hugs. Now all of a sudden he wants to be with The Miz's wife? Very weird. That being said, it is always good to see a new wrinkle added to an established character, and I'm sure this will be a great step towards whatever they do with the Royal Rumble. I can’t help but wonder where Daniel Bryan is right now. Might Bryan wrestle The Fiend on the same night? As for the outcome, I wonder if Bryan or The Fiend will play a role in this bout. I definitely don't see The Miz winning here, regardless of whether or not the WWE Universal Championship is on the line.


GREEN: Wasn't this match being built up as a dog collar match originally? I'm not sure what that would even be, but I much prefer a TLC match. Both performers have the chance and skill to put on a great match, hopefully surprising a lot of fans. However, is this feud worthy of a TLC match? The match type has been built up as a career reducing match where injuries can easily take place. Firstly, I feel that a TLC match should have a title or something else suspended above the ring, otherwise it is just an extreme rules match with 3 guaranteed weapons. Secondly, this feud does not feel personal enough to be a TLC match. As for who will win, I feel it will be another Roman Reigns win unless Dolph Ziggler or Robert Roode attack him.

DeFELICE: Plain and simple, I hate TLC matches that don't require the stipulation. This is just a way to give an established rivalry the top billing on this pay-per-view. I used to want to see these 2 fight each other, but then King Corbin became very vanilla as a character, and I lost interest. I hope it is still a good match. Either way, this is definitely the beginning of Roman Reigns' rise back to the top of the card.

ALLSOPP: This is a match I am not looking forward to at all. The entire storyline has been farcical, with no aspect of it enhancing the reputation of either wrestler. The TLC stipulation is an excuse for Corbin to call on his number of lackeys to beat down on Roman Reigns, with Reigns overcoming the odds to the sheer delight of the fans in attendance. In reality, a Reigns victory will only be greeted with mild reactions, as this storyline is stripping his character of it's last remaining credibility. It is a shame this match is happening, as it is an affront to the TLC stipulation and WWE as a whole.


DeFELICE: Pay-per-view means a lot less than it did when we were younger. Hell, it means a lot less than it did 5 years ago. I think WWE understands that their audience knows not every major show is important. Still, that’s trying to provide an excuse for really poor booking, and I wish they would stop treating their pay-per-view events like throwaways.

ALLSOPP: WWE clearly believes they can sell each pay-per-view on the basis of it being included in the standard WWE Network package. This is not good enough though, as a poorly booked event reeks of indifference in writing and performances. But hey, WWE swear by this approach for their lesser events. Hell in a Cell suffered from this, and that event turned out to be one of the worst of the year. Despite the backlash to that event, WWE clearly feels there is no need to change the formula, so expect this same stale creative process for the next B show pay-per-view.

GREEN: Ever since WWE booked the Saudi Arabia shows, they shot themselves in the foot. Due to the Saudi Arabia shows taking place so close to other pay-per-views, the booking for each show ends up being a mess. TLC is also hurt by Survivor Series being so recent, as it is hard to book rivalries when you only have few weeks to turn former teammates into rivals. Personally, I feel that if WWE are going to hold events so close to each other, they should use other ways then just Raw or SmackDown to book future matches. This includes social media, and even making pre-shows relevant by booking rivalries onto them.