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:
A CLASH OF THE AGES
A few weeks ago, the split of Shelton Benjamin and Cedric Alexander made it into my heat column. Not so much because I desperately thought they should stay as a team, but more as a reflection upon their awful booking since their equally terrible removal from The Hurt Business. Mostly, I felt sorry for Shelton, who I had assumed would get very little to do now that he was approaching the twilight of his career.
However, fast forward a few weeks, and I am glad to see that this has not come to pass and, in fact, he is in now in an excellent extended feud with Cedric precisely because of his age! Who would have thought?
While the seasoned old-timer vs. the young pup is a tale as, well, old as time, it is this kind of mid-card feud that makes so many nostalgic for the Attitude Era. Everyone on the card from top to bottom had a story, and I am looking forward to see how this one plays out.
CHEAP HEAT OF THE WEEK:
GOODBYE TOM PHILLIPS
WWE has zero consistency when it comes to their commentary teams.
Samoa Joe doing well and liked by fans? Goodbye! Adnan Virk not learning fast enough? Goodbye! Tom Phillips has a decade of experience? Goodbye! JBL irritating fans and accumulating bullying allegations? Good old JBL!
I could go on, but what I would like to talk about is example three, Mr. Phillips. Why on earth did WWE let him go? As any wrestler who has a done a single guest spot will tell you, the commentary gig is insanely hard. The combination of remembering what you should say, what you cannot say, and then having Vince McMahon in your ear is not for the faint of heart.
Even if someone can contend with those hurdles, that does not automatically mean that they will actually be fun to listen to.
Phillips had a lot experience, which, if WWE continues to act as they do, will not prove easy to replace. Yes, they can pluck someone well-known from another commentary field, but, as Adnan proved, unless you are intimate with wrestling, it is unlikely to work out.
Tom had an inoffensive style which, even when being made to say all the current corporate buzzwords, never felt grating. Letting him go makes no sense, but, then again, that is the company in a nut shell all too often these days.
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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