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:
ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENTS
It is a little puzzling that WWE only now books Otis as an unstoppable bulldozer of a man, and not when he was the MITB winner, but better late than never.
Placing Otis in another team may have felt like a step backwards at the time, but the benefits of this one are undeniable. His decimation of Angelo Dawkins on SmackDown was great, and, combined with the new music and attitude, his new look paints him as an utterly believable hard man.
The growth of Alpha Academy has been slow, but sustained, and what they now have feels less thrown together, and far more like long-term credible contenders in the division. Otis and Chad Gable's rise in notoriety might be belated, but, nevertheless, entirely deserved.
CHEAP HEAT OF THE WEEK:
HEEL OR FACE?
I have no idea who is the heel and who is the baby face in the Rhea Ripley and Charlotte feud anymore.
Ripley was a face not too long ago, that much I do know, but a lot of her actions now seem decidedly heelish. For instance, when her team lost to Charlotte's on Raw, she immediately attacked her, made her escape, and then began mocking and gloating once at a safe distance. Classic white meat babyface stuff!
Meanwhile, Charlotte Flair, traditionally the heel, was teaming with Natalya and Tamina, who I think are face, or, at least were when they won the tag-titles, but are they? Ditto to Ripley's partners, Mandy Rose and Dana Brook. What are they? I am not sure I even care.
Shades of grey can be very successful, when done correctly, but I am not convinced that is what they are going for.
This is just poor booking.
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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