Welcome to another edition of WWE Heat Index, wherein we discuss the interest level for the various feuds heading into the pay-per-view events. This time around, we’re focusing on Tables, Ladders and Chairs 2018 coming this Sunday night.
The way this works is a pretty simple three-way breakdown of Hot, Lukewarm and Cold. If you like something and you’re very interested in how WWE is setting up the program, it’s Hot (aka Good). If you’re a bit on the fence about it and see some problems, but it’s not awful, then it’s just Okay or Lukewarm. The ones that are the most problematic that you have no interest in are Cold (aka Bad).
Be sure to leave your thoughts in the comments section to let everyone know what your thermometer reads for each feud as I tell you what my thoughts are below!
Without further ado, let’s get started!
TLC Match: Baron Corbin vs. Braun Strowman = Hot / Lukewarm
Well I had thought this match wasn’t going to happen and that they were going to merge this with the Elias/Lashley and Balor/McIntyre matches to do something else, and I was wrong.
Now, I’m intrigued if that means that’s going to happen on the pay-per-view itself in some fashion and they’re just waiting to say that to pull a swerve twist on everyone, or if we’re actually getting that whole squash scenario that has been pitched online, with Strowman winning in one move.
I’m very curious, so I have to put this as a Hot/Lukewarm because I don’t know what we’re getting and if it’ll be amazing, just okay, or terrible.
Prediction: Braun Strowman wins.
WWE Championship Match: Daniel Bryan (c) vs. AJ Styles = Hot / Lukewarm
Admittedly, I’m not as excited about this match anymore now that they’ve had a couple encounters and I know that there’s pretty much no chance Daniel Bryan drops the belt, due to the contract situation with AJ Styles (and how he had an entire year’s length of a reign, of course).
With that being said, I’m still into it, because it’s Bryan and Styles, so it’s obviously still going to be good, even if it won’t be the most amazing thing in the world.
Maybe if this would have been one of the gimmick matches instead of the Elias/Lashley or Orton/Mysterio one, I would have given it a full Hot, but for now, it’s between that and Lukewarm.
Prediction: Daniel Bryan retains the title.
Raw Women’s Championship Match: Ronda Rousey (c) vs. Nia Jax = Lukewarm / Cold
I’m in a bit of a catch-22 here in that the most interesting things that can happen are all things I don’t want to occur.
One of those would be Nia Jax winning the title, which would be incredibly surprising to me as I’m expecting Rousey to retain. Another that could be tied to that, but doesn’t necessarily have to be, is if Natalya were to turn on Rousey.
I don’t want Jax as the champion, nor do I want Natalya as a heel again, let alone feuding with Rousey right now. I want Becky Lynch vs. Rousey at Royal Rumble and Charlotte Flair winning the Royal Rumble to challenge Rousey at WrestleMania, while Jax fights Lynch at Mania by forcing her way into the blue brand’s Elimination Chamber and winning it.
So while those are interesting angles to go down, I don’t want them, which means I’d prefer this to be a generic and predictable match with Rousey retaining and that’s it…which isn’t exactly the most exciting thing to be Hot on.
Prediction: Ronda Rousey retains the title.
SmackDown Women’s Championship TLC Match: Becky Lynch (c) vs. Charlotte Flair vs. Asuka = Hot / Lukewarm
Part of me says to not get my hopes up too much, as this could turn into a safe setup where Asuka is taking a bunch of falls and they all try to look like they’re doing more than they actually are, in the hopes that they can pass off a super awesome TLC match in just one spot or two.
However, I like all three of these women and I’m hoping they manage to prove that part of my brain wrong and go with the other part of my brain that says this could actually be the best match of the night, given their talents.
If Lynch doesn’t keep the title, I’m sure I’ll be unsettled and worried about what WWE has planned for WrestleMania, so I’m a bit nervous about that, but that also means I’m intrigued, so we’ll see.
Prediction: Becky Lynch retains the title.
Intercontinental Championship Match: Seth Rollins (c) vs. Dean Ambrose = Hot
I’d be even Hotter on this scale if this were a TLC match instead of some of the other things we have on this card, as I think Rollins and Ambrose would be able to completely steal the show in that environment.
Despite that not being the case, I do think they will put on a great show that will make me want to see more, and that’s all I can really ask for.
I’m excited about the potential of a new champion in the midcard of Raw in Ambrose (assuming his story doesn’t revolve around getting vaccines anymore, as that has to go) but I’m also intrigued about the idea of Rollins retaining the title and wondering what direction they go from there.
Prediction: Dean Ambrose wins the title.
SmackDown Tag Team Championship Triple Threat Match: The Bar (c) vs. The Usos vs. The New Day = Lukewarm
This match is one of those scenarios where I like all of the teams and I know they can put on a damn good show, but there’s such little substance to it that I feel like WWE just wrote it down on a piece of paper and said “good enough, take it or leave it.”
I’ll take it, but I’m not going to go gaga over it. I’d rather be seeing something different and not beating the same dead horse of The Usos vs. The New Day with another team thrown between the two.
But at least they have a history of fun matches behind them, right? At least that’s something to hang your hat on and know that this isn’t going to be underwhelming.
Prediction: The Usos win the titles or The Bar retain just so The Usos can win them in a few weeks and not have too many title changes on this card.
Ladder Match: Elias vs. Bobby Lashley = Lukewarm / Cold
I really, really hate it when WWE does gimmick matches like this that make no sense. This is already a No Disqualification match by the sheer virtue of being a ladder match. Why are they fighting to reach the top of the ladder to retrieve a guitar that they can use on their opponent when they can just hit them with the damn ladder or anything else ringside?
It flies in the face of logic and it bugs the crap out of me, so I know I’m going to be thinking about that this entire match and be stuck in my head.
Prediction: Elias wins.
Finn Balor vs. Drew McIntyre = Lukewarm / Cold
Knowing that Balor is injured really hinders this to me, as I can’t imagine they’ll be going all-out like I’d want them to, and my expectations have to be rather low.
If this were a WrestleMania match that was happening for the first time ever and for the Intercontinental Championship or something like that, I’d be very excited. But this is just a glorified Raw match and I think it’ll be a decisive victory for McIntyre that goes by very quickly and is nothing to talk about or to dissect.
Prediction: Drew McIntyre wins.
Mixed Match Challenge Tournament Finals: MahAlicia (Jinder Mahal and Alicia Fox) vs. Fabulous Truth (R-Truth and Carmella) = Lukewarm / Cold
Boy, if you told me at the start of season 2 that this would come down to these two teams and the winners would be the #30 entrants for the Royal Rumble, I would have thought you and/or WWE were crazy. I highly doubt this was the plan from the start, and it’s become a joke that that’s what this all boiled down to.
I really don’t have a ton of faith in this being anything but something to scoff at and something that hurts the Royal Rumble down the line, so I’m not particularly fond or interested in it, and I hope there isn’t another season of this.
Prediction: Jinder Mahal and Alicia Fox win.
Tables Match: Natalya vs. Ruby Riott = Cold
Well, at least this is a feud. It might not be the most interesting one to me, but it’s something, and I’ll give them credit for using the sticker of Jim “The Anvil” Neidhart on the table. That’s a nice touch.
I haven’t been particularly invested in any storylines with Natalya for a long while and I don’t think there’s been a single thing The Riott Squad has done that has ever made me question my belief that they aren’t a good unit and that they would have been better off never forging a stable to begin with, and when this feud has revolved around broken glasses and Jim Neidhart’s death, but it hasn’t actually had much passion to it, I’ve gotten to a point where I’ve checked out.
Hopefully, this is on the quicker side and it’s the end of the feud, but I doubt that will even be the case.
Prediction: Natalya wins.
Cruiserweight Championship Match: Buddy Murphy (c) vs. Cedric Alexander = Lukewarm
The plus side for this is that these two are super talented and they’ve always had great matches, so it’s pretty much guaranteed that this will be good. The down side, though, is that they’ve had plenty of matches together already, Murphy isn’t going to drop the title, and it’s ultimately not going to amount to anything.
That makes it hard to get specifically excited for it beyond just the baseline foundation of knowing the match will deliver and be good enough to take up some time on the card.
Prediction: Buddy Murphy retains the title.
Chairs Match: Randy Orton vs. Rey Mysterio = Lukewarm
I love how Orton is a vicious jerk again, I like how Mysterio has looked since returning, and I don’t mind that these two are feuding, but I really hate the idea of a “chairs match” as it’s just ridiculous that one weapon is allowed to be used, making it No DQ, yet they never use anything else and they just stick to that rule, so this match and the Elias one just further illustrate to me why TLC as a pay-per-view needs to end, as the gimmicks are beyond eye-rolling.
This should be fine, but the card is stacked and I have a feeling this and everything else will be underdeveloped and rushed.
Prediction: Randy Orton wins.
Those are my thoughts, but how do you feel about these particular feuds? What’s hot and what’s cold in your mind? Fill us in on your point of view in the comments below!
