Holy shit Kurt Angle is replacing Roman in the tag match this Sunday. Guess I will be watching TLC.
Also, AJ Styles is replacing Bray against Finn Bálor, which means we’re finally getting that match as well. Meningitis turned out to be the best thing to happen to this PPV.
I guess. I'm trying to be positive, but I'm having a little trouble on this one.
Don't get me wrong, I am stoked as fuck for Styles and Balor. But it also kind of sucks that we're getting it under these circumstances. That match should be the main event of a Pay Per View for a major championship with a solid storyline. Instead, we're getting it with no build-up because somebody is out sick.
And as for the handicap... once again, don't get me wrong, I am thrilled to see Angle back in the ring. But the match seems utterly ridiculous now.
To be honest, I was already pretty skeptical about it. I couldn't see how it could possibly end without a rising star being damaged. If the Shield won, it would kind of hurt the credibility of their
five opponents, and in particular, Braun Strowman's monster push would take a big hit. Yet if the Shield lost, it would kind of derail the momentum of their reunion. But I was still hyped for the match, and I was keeping an open mind, because there is a lot of hype for the Shield, and I could suspend my disbelief enough to imagine that they MIGHT be able to use their teamwork to outclass the merry band of misfits.
Now, though, we have lost the Shield element. This is no longer a band of brothers with a wolf pack mentality taking on impossible odds. Now it is the tag team champions and a 48 year old man who hasn't wrestled in months vs the former tag team champions, Kane (okay, fair enough, a 50 year old man who also hasn't wrestled in months), the intercontinental champion, and Braun fucking Strowman. For perspective, they've painted Rollins & Ambrose and Sheamus & Cesaro as pretty evenly matched teams in their title feud. The added ingredients here are Kurt Angle on one side and the Miz, Kane, and Braun Strowman on the other. On paper, this should be a squash match. I'll mark out for Angle's return to the ring, and I'm sure the pop will be magnificent, but it will be kind of a waste if he just gets crushed. And if his team wins, the other team looks like kind of a joke.
I'm kind of hoping that the match changes on the show. My big hope is that the Miz does something really obnoxious and Strowman gets pissed off and decimates him. Strowman walks, and we're left with Rollins, Ambrose, and Angle vs Cesaro, Sheamus, and Kane. Then you have a couple pretty good options. Angle can pull off the win for a huge feel good moment, or Miz can limp out to the ring to attack Angle from behind and cost him that feel good moment for nuclear heat. Hell - you can maybe even build an Angle/Miz feud out of this, and some of the heat from the Miz/Bryan feud can sort of carry over and get a proper payoff.
But that's just me fantasy booking.
I'm sure it will be a fun show. Probably a lot more fun than it would have been before. The Angle return will be a joy to watch, and Styles vs. Balor is sure to be fucking magic. But I'm a little worried about how this is going to affect their booking in the long term.