>>12919651I don't know how to explain it or where it starts, but between the initial Punk blowups and all the injuries that happened during the last calendar year, I feel like this is one of the first times where there's been little to no improvement in both ability or mobility from the talent this year. Be honest with yourselves: How many people this year actually raised their stocks?
>MJF became the face of the company (even if he KWABed himself at the end of the year)>Samoa Joe, Christian, and Orange Cassidy have been trying their best to keep the midcard above water (and now Joe has to hold up the main event scene)>Swerve is probably the breakout star of the year and almost assuredly will win the big one down the line, but can anyone say with any confidence that he's ready to carry the company>With the exception of Jamie Hayter's brief run before getting injured, the only women you point at and saying they're 100% a bigger deal are "Timeless" Toni Storm and Julia Hart and it had nothing to do with their wrestling ability. Even Statlander doesn't feel like anything special sending Jade packingEveryone else I feel is just doing the exact same shit they did a year but with different people.
>2/4 pillar are duds, Darby is underused even if he's a blast with Sting>Maybe the worst Jericho year on record>Tag and Trios division are ice cold>Despite how much heat he gets, not one single person managed by Don Callis is any bigger of a deal now then when then before he got themI just don't see any upward movement other than new toys coming in (and they were significantly less successful this year than any other year, see Jay White). Just felt like a lot of lost years. That's my blogpost.