Smark Out Moment

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?



After months of lackluster Raw episodes, this past week saw the McMahon family promise that changes were forthcoming in WWE programming, and that they would now listen to the audience. Never mind that Stephanie presented at a business conference a few months ago and literally said that their success was down to how they listened to their audience.

While it would be fair to say that they must have meant starting in the new year, as there was plenty of rinse and repeats on this show, there still was a moment that sowed a small seed of hope inside me. Namely, the potential dissolution of the automatic title rematch clause.

While it is not yet known if this is official, as Shane McMahon may have acted on a whim when he denied AOP's rematch request and declared the rule antiquated, it does bode well that WWE might actually be trying to address some of our gripes going forward.

For years the rematch clause has been a cornerstone for boring booking by falsely extending feuds long beyond natural conclusions, and not to mention how it slightly reduced the magnitude of a title loss. After all, how devastated can you really be if the chance to win it back tomorrow is always there.

Now, who wants to break it to Finn Balor?



Does anyone else feels like SmackDown Live is that well-behaved child in class that gets collectively told off because of the actions of few naughty ones, and then gets made to stay behind after school? Thanks Raw.

Kicking off SmackDown Live was an odd speech by Shane McMahon emphasizing the need for change, but is there? Sure, there has always been the odd duff section, or misstep, but for the most part, SmackDown Live has largely been the better show since the brand split happened. One example of this is their use of smart booking for General Managers. Never overbearing or excessive, and largely only appearing when needed.

Some might say that Paige was gifted her position as a token gesture, but there is no denying that she grew into the role and has been a popular fixture for the past eight months. So, it is for this reason I bring up the school metaphor.

We have now lost Paige as the GM for little other reason than Raw has been fairing so poorly lately. Her role abolished in light of whatever new regime is coming, and I am not sure that I feel that positive about it. Supposedly, she does have another role lined up, but nobody seems to know where. I have my doubts that it will be anywhere near as prominent.

Will having no managers work in the current wrestling landscape? I know that their existence is seen as unnecessary by some, but will it be case of better the devil you know? Only time will tell.


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!