Welcome back to another Monday Morning Q&A where I toss out some questions to get a feel of how you guys and gals are feeling about certain topics.
So here are 5 questions I’d like to toss out for this week. I’ll give my answers, too, but the key here is that I want to know what YOU think! So make sure you chime in!
1) Did you give or receive anything wrestling related as a gift for the holidays?
Nope, but that’s not a regular thing for me to begin with. Plus, this year, I had an understanding of not exchanging gifts with friends and family due to travel issues. But even if that were the case, no one I’d give a gift for would be into any pro wrestling stuff and I wouldn’t ask for any in return.
2) What do you think was better overall this year, AEW or WWE?
Woof. Both went through some really rough times to the point that I feel like it’s almost even.
However, for my personal tastes I still enjoyed more overall things in WWE than in AEW. That’s by and large because AEW tends to just put matches on television with less story, and since I don’t tend to get hooked by that (particularly if it is featuring talent I’m unaware of because I’m not following other companies), it leaves a lot to be desired.
I skipped a lot of AEW and WWE television this year, if I’m being honest. Dark, Elevation, Main Event and Level Up were no-go shows for me. Rampage was only on my spectrum if it had something noteworthy. Even Raw, Dynamite and SmackDown had plenty segments I wasn’t paying attention to because of how boring, flat or uninteresting they were.
But we still got things like Chase University, Honorary Uce Sami Zayn, and Cody Rhodes, while for AEW, all I can really say I sunk my teeth into was Blackpool Combat Club against Jericho Appreciation Society or when MJF had a microphone in his hands.
3) What are your predictions for AEW New Year’s Smash?
- The Elite beat Death Triangle (that Best of 7 series can’t end at match #6)
- I’m about 50/50 on Wardlow winning back the TNT Championship. At this particular moment, I’m more leaning toward yes, Wardlow will win it back.
- Bryan Danielson beats Ethan Page
- Hook and Jungle Boy will come up short against Lee Moriarty and BiGG BiLL if the priority is to keep BiGG BiLL looking strong. But if Ethan Page somehow beats Danielson, then Hook and Jack Perry win by pinning Moriarty.
4) How long do you think it will be before we see John Cena wrestle again? Will he wrestle in 2023?
I’d imagine he’ll wrestle at least once in 2023, now that they’ve acknowledged the idea that he should at least once every year. Frankly, I think he could be wrestling at WrestleMania.
It’s a bit of a long shot, considering how his work schedule would need to be free enough for that, but who’s to say they don’t just make it a cheap build? Look at what they’ve done in the past. He just called out The Undertaker a few times and didn’t even have a match set up, only to get squashed super fast. After 2022’s WrestleMania consisted half of people saying “I don’t have anything to do for Mania, so how about ___?” I wouldn’t put it past WWE to just have Cena film something on his cell phone calling out Austin Theory or Gunther or whoever, and that’s your whole build.
Of course, part of me is still hoping we might see something like Cena vs. Stone Cold and they could have a strong build for it. But yes, I do think Cena will wrestle in 2023, and potentially at WrestleMania 39. If not, I think we’ll see him back around SummerSlam or they might be able to get him for whatever non-USA event they have planned that they haven’t announced yet.
5) Are there any last minute surprises you think AEW or WWE has in store for 2022?
Doubtful. These end of the year shows tend not to be packed with too much, since the ratings aren’t necessarily going to be great while people are traveling or dealing with spending time with family rather than being focused on watching television. A few surprises do happen here and there, just to shake things up, but I think having John Cena wrestle is already enough of a draw in WWE’s eyes, and I think AEW is going to hold back a bit. New Year’s Smash isn’t Revolution by any means.
Let us know your thoughts about these questions by answering them in the comments!
