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?
CHEAP POP OF THE WEEK:
NOT PAINFUL VIEWING
A few weeks ago, I wrote of my disappointment over what felt like an inevitable end for The Hurt Business.
MVP and his crew were shining stars throughout a very strange year, and it felt like there was so much more to do with them. However, fast forward to the most recent edition of Monday Night Raw, and we now find ourselves in a very different situation.
Not only is Bobby Lashley is looking like an absolute monster who, thanks to the business acumen of MVP, is on what feels like a collision course for the WWE championship, but Cedric Alexander and Shelton Benjamin seem to have patched things up too.
Their performance in the Tornado match against The Lucha House Party was clearly a cohesive one, and very much portrayed them on the same page.
The Miz is one of my favourites, and I am thrilled that he has become WWE Champion again, but would I greatly begrudge him losing to Lashley? Honestly, no. Lashley is equally deserving, and the idea of an even more dominant Hurt Business dripping in gold is rather an exciting one indeed.
Bonus Pop: I do not know if we can quite call Otis a fully fledged heel yet, but his more aggressive persona makes for great viewing. His team with Chad Gable is certainly one to watch.
CHEAP HEAT OF THE WEEK:
GOO AWAY
There has been plenty that has been cool about having Alexa Bliss as the Fiend's sidekick and their subsequent haunting of Randy Orton, but him spitting up black goo is not one of them.
I presume that this is all in aid of setting up the never-ending Merry Go round that is Orton vs. Bray Wyatt, but this was not one of the stronger pieces of that tapestry.
I get that this continues the thematic connections to Bliss and any number of horror movies, but it felt silly when measured against the more extreme acts such as, say, burning him alive? While it fits with Bliss being childish, it does not excuse the fact that it was plain corny.
Talk about working backwards.
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!
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