It’s that time of year again.
Wrestlemania is over, the draft is around the corner… that means one thing. Spring cleaning time for the WWE. Future endeavors will be wished starting… yesterday.
7 WWE Superstars are now ex-WWE Superstars. In most cases, it’s not really a surprise. Funaki? Jimmy Yang Wang? It’s a safe bet that most of us had almost forgotten that those 2 gentlemen even still held jobs. Katie Lea? Once Paul Burchill’s WWE tenure was served, it was only a matter of time. Slam Master J (formerly Jesse of Jesse and Festus, and the son of the late great Terry “Bam-Bam†Gordy) and Mike Knox though… both of those guys deserved more of a shot than they actually got. Mike Knox had a great, Bruiser Brody-esque look, and had been showing signs of improvement since his ECW debut before he vanished from television. He even had been given a character to work with, a sort of intellectual mountain man type of deal, but it was awkward and never really was given a chance to go anywhere. Slam Master J on the other hand, was saddled coming in as straight man to a goofy gimmick, and then when that ran it’s course was given his own goofy gimmick to replace it. The best wrestling pedigree in the world can’t help you if you’re looked at as the hip hop Santino of Smackdown. Of all the “lesser†cuts, Knox is the one that seems most likely to me to get another chance one day down the line; he has the size, he has a look, and it seems that with time he could have the skills to be at least passable both in ring and on mic.
And then there are the two releases of fan favorites (one of the internet community, and one who was actually fully over with the regular audience) that could arguably be described as “shocksâ€.
Shelton Benjamin of course is the release that the internet wrestling world will be up in arms over. And hey, I get it. He’s a talented guy, capable of amazing athletic feats that arguably no one else on the roster can duplicate. But alas, today’s WWE is not about amazing athletic feats, at least not to a level where a guy like Shelton can shine without it mattering whether or not he can hold his own in an awkwardly written comedy sketch. I can’t speak to the rumors about his being unmotivated, or the ones that say the company was always down on him because he played video games or some such nonsense, but for about 3 or 4 years now, he’s pretty much only been around for one thing and one thing only: a breathtaking spot in the Money In The Bank match at Wrestlemania. The lack of a big Shelton spot in this years MITB match was a telling sign that Shelton was bound for the spring cleaning release list. So no, I’m actually not surprised by his release at all. I’m not even chagrined, because it allows for a possible reunion with ex-World’s Greatest Tag Team/Team Angle partner Charlie Haas. Outside of his MITB spots, that was really the high point of Benjamin’s WWE career (Haas‘ as well), and one can bet TNA would jump at the chance to reunite the former Team Angle with their namesake.
Mickie James is the other fan favorite who met an unexpected Divas demise in this round of cuts. Unlike Shelton, Mickie really is a total package. Personality, looks, mic skills, mat skills, charisma, crowd reaction… they’re all there. And she put them to good use in her tenure with the company; every one has fond memories of her time as Trish Stratus’ lesbian stalker, but my favorite Mickie moment by far was her Backlash 2007 match vs Melina. Still, much as I like her, given that the company has only found cause to use her in weight related storylines as of late, it’s probably for the best. If athletic feats come second to being able to hold your own in a bad Saturday Night Live skit (which is not to say athleticism doesn’t matter at all, please don’t be confused) in today’s WWE undercard, then they don’t even enter the picture when it comes to the Women’s and Diva’s divisions. Again, there are reports that this release is rooted in more backstage politics; late arrivals for buses on the last European tour, and her interest in pursuing a career outside the WWE, and again… hey, what do I know. I don’t have sources, I’m just a dude who writes an opinion column about pro-wrestling. What I do know is that, as with Shelton, I’m sure TNA would love to have the former Alexis Laree back in the Knockouts fold, though given the booking as of late, I’m not so sure that would constitute the step up it would have even as recently as 3 months ago.
But really, when all is said and done, there’s really one thing that all these releases have in common. And that’s money. More specifically, the company no longer sees any of these wrestlers as a draw for the company. And really, in all these cases, that’s something that can’t be denied. Sure, some of it can be argued as the company being creatively deficient and thus never allowing the talent to truly shine, but really, there’s only so long you can expect them to hold on to an gymnastically gifted performer who needs a full personality transplant, or to a bearded big man who still is honing his skills, or to an actual women’s wrestler who has been lost in a sea of awkwardly moving, interchangeable stick figures for the past 2 years. It sucks, to be sure. But the WWE has picked a certain direction for itself, and much as I hate that direction, as a business they need to hold on to people who can work within that framework and give them a return on their investment. That’s just how it works. It’s not a fault issue.
It’s just spring cleaning.
