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?



Contract signings tend to happen roughly once a month in WWE, and we all know what to expect by now. Wrestler One will attack Wrestler Two after signing, the facilitator will be shocked, and a table will fall over. Occasionally, when they feel like freshening it up, there will be no conflict at all, but a heck of a lot of death stares instead. The latter is rare, but not unknown.

However, Raw really had a go at mixing it up by introducing a double contract signing session. Different enough on its own merit, but made all the better for how it ended up going down. Instead of ending the show with the signing, as they are want to do, it kicked off the program, with wrestlers not even waiting to be introduced, and simply charging down when they felt like it.

Obviously, it did break down into madness, but it benefited from not going immediately off the air, allowing it to lead into the booking of a mixed tag match between the challenger and champions. A very good reason to stick around!



Following the exile of Austin Theory, I was happy that Angel Garza and Andrade were sticking together under the banner of Zelina Vega.

Sadly, I am not sure that WWE agrees. Or, more likely, they have not made up their mind.

Week after week they act like petulant children fighting, with only Zelina Vega's admonishment keeping them together. On Monday, once again, things very nearly came to head during a match with the Viking Raiders, but, eventually, they were able to get on the same page and get the victory.

So, all good now? Well, not exactly. That same night also saw them face off with the Big Show in a 2-on-1 match, with Garza walking out towards the end, leaving Andrade to take a painful loss.

I really dislike overly drawn out distension between teams, the kind where you are 99% sure it will happen, but WWE continues to dither on when exactly.

Ideally, I want them to stay together, but, if this is not on the cards, I hope that WWE pulls the trigger soon, and lets them both get men on with something new. This extended limbo is neither fun nor beneficial.


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!