The KJR's TLC Preview

You know me. I'm no fan of unification. And not just the title unification in WWE. I don't like unification anywhere. There needs to be dispersion. Could you imagine how the government would be if the liberals and conservatives all agreed with each other? Boring. If there were no feuding amongst religious factions? Tedious. If the XBox One and the Playstation 4 combined to make one combination video console capable of playing all the games from their respective systems? That would be - that'd be awesome actually. Let's all just get along as I preview each matchup on the PPV card and predict who should and will win each match.

THOUGHTS ON THE MATCH: How exactly did this match come to be? Did I miss something on Superstars? Did WWE pick a random babyface and a random heel to face each other? Or did they just figure to use their most agregioulsy underutilized babyface and their most popular heel with the biggest upside in a match instead of continually ignoring them? I think it's the latter. It's always the latter. This is precisely why I don't want the WWE and World Titles to be unified. It's only going to lead to more of this. We all know from past years that WWE is really only able to focus on one storyline at a time and everybody who isn't part of that storyline gets overlooked and eventually forgotten about. Superstars like Dolph Ziggler, Alberto Del Rio, Jack Swagger and The Miz have no chance at sniffing the top gold in the company if there's only one. Sure, it'll shore up WWE's mid-card, but it'll also lead to these talented superstars being more and more overlooked.  
WHAT SHOULD HAPPEN: This is a textbook case of a predestined kickoff match. It comes from nothing. It means nothing. It has no real consequences. It's nothing more than a random match scheduled on Smackdown. It barely deserves to be predicted.  
WHAT WILL HAPPEN: This entire PPV is seemingly custom-made for almost all heels to win. Someone has to represent for the babyfaces. And given this is a kickoff match, that's most likely what will happen. Dolph Ziggler wins.
 

THOUGHTS ON THE MATCH: I couldn't be happier about this match taking place. It's what I and others have been begging for. Begging for years. Finally, Natalya has returned to the Divas Championship contention. I know this isn't the first Divas Championship match that Natalya has been in this year, but it's the first that I think she may win - especially when you consider her other championship match was on Main Event. One may think that I have a bias or a preference for AJ Lee to win this match, but I don't. Before there was an AJ Lee in WWE, I was on Team Natalya. I still am. I want Natalya to win the Divas Championship again and reign over the Divas Division as she should. Just not right now. I also happen to be in the camp that wants AJ Lee to hold on to the Divas Championship until Wrestlemania. So I'll be rooting for AJ Lee, but I'm good either way.  
WHAT SHOULD HAPPEN: Given that this is a contest between the two best wrestling divas on the main roster, it should be a good match. Of course, this is WWE's Divas Division, so hoping for a good match - even amongst the best they have to offer - is usually a pipedream. But I'm holding out hope for this one. I'm trying to be optimistic for a change.  
WHAT WILL HAPPEN: It's just too bad that Tamina Snuka will be at ringside to muddy things up. And because of her presence, I'll be looking for someone from Total Divas - most likely one of the errantly named 'Divas of the Year,' The Bella Twins - to make the save for their fellow babyface, costing her the match in the end. AJ Lee retains the Divas Championship, but only by that much.

THOUGHTS ON THE MATCH: It says a lot that on the heels of unifying the two main titles - and therefore elevating the Intercontinental Title to second-tier - that WWE chose to put that title on Big E Langston. And make no mistake, they did choose to put it on him. They could just as easily left it on Curtis Axel. It shows that WWE is intent on pushing him, and why shouldn't they be? He is what they salivate for. BIG man with moderate to above-average wrestling skills who seems to actually desire to remain and succeed in WWE. That's what they hoped Brock Lesnar would be. That's what they hoped Bobby Lashley would be. Hopefully Langston doesn't decide to get interested in MMA. But onto this match. I LIKED the matchup on paper. I LIKED it because I thought that Damien Sandow could help Langston in the one area he's sorely lacking in - mic skills. Sandow is a talker. Langston is not. By putting him in a feud with a talker, I figured maybe Big E would, you know, talk. I wasn't expecting anything akin to Chris Jericho and The Rock's epic promos, but something. Anything. Instead, it seems as if this short-lived rivalry will be nothing more than a notch on Langston's belt. Sandow and all the lessons he could teach Langston will be squandered and he'll just be fed to the BIG man.  
WHAT SHOULD HAPPEN: If nothing else, this should be a decent match. Sandow is just as skilled in the ring as he is on the microphone and Langston has a good mix of power and agility. I fear that they will just allow Langston to throw Sandow all around the ring, which would be a mistake. Sandow has a huge upside, too. They'd be wise to make him look strong, even in a defeat.  
WHAT WILL HAPPEN: There's no reason to take the title off of Langston right now. I'd hope this rivalry does continue after the PPV, because WWE will definitely not have time to start a new Intercontinental Championship feud while focusing solely on the Royal Rumble. That means Sandow could pick up a win via DQ or Count-Out. But I think Langston will win and retain the IC Title because he has to represent for the babyfaces.

THOUGHTS ON THE MATCH: With the plethora of solid tag teams in WWE already, why are there two makeshift tag teams in this match? I don't so much mind Curtis Axel & Ryback. They were teammates under Paul Heyman, even if they rarely tagged. I can at least buy why they are teaming together now. But Big Show and Rey Mysterio were just thrown together on the most flimsiest of whims. They could easily be replaced (and should be replaced) by The Usos. This is presumably going to be a Tables, Ladders and Chairs match - though nothing has been said to back that assumption up. There should be some high-flying involved. Rey Mysterio is getting too old for that shit. But that's my only gripe about this match. I love that WWE finally pulled the trigger on it. It only took them 'til Smackdown to announce it. Since the tag team division is the best in WWE, and they are supposed to be making it a priority, there's no reason to wait until the last second to make a PPV match.  
WHAT SHOULD HAPPEN: Everytime WWE makes a match like this, they like to throw out the percentages of the champions retaining the titles... and then the champions end up retaining the titles. Truth is, WWE just likes to make us think the championship titles are in jeopardy when they really aren't. But they might just be this time. The Tag Team division in WWE is stacked. Rhodes & Goldust don't have to be champions. Any team could be. I wouldn't be surprised if there was a title change.  
WHAT WILL HAPPEN: I have a feeling that the long lobbied-for match between Cody Rhodes & Goldust will happen at Wrestlemania XXX. For that to happen, there must be a break-up. Considering that Rhodes eliminated Goldust in the Royal Rumble last year, some feelings may start to stir as that event draws near. But this isn't that PPV, so I'm sure Cody Rhodes & Goldust will retain the Tag Team Championships and live to defend the titles another day.

THOUGHTS ON THE MATCH: It's a little strange that the amount of handicap matches in WWE has increased tremendously in the past few months. I don't know whose idea it was to have two handicap matches in one PPV, but I'm not a fan. It's interesting the differing dynamics surrounding both Handicap matches. Whereas The Shield just wants to take out CM Punk, The Wyatts don't want to hurt Daniel Bryan at all. They want him to join them. With three guys as BIG as they are, I don't know why they'd want the diminuitive Daniel Bryan to join them. It doesn't make any sense. I understood why they targeted Kane when they did, but not Daniel Bryan. I'd have rathered they ran with the storyline of wanting to corrupt Daniel Bryan, seeing how popular he is right now. No matter the aim, this does setup to be a pretty good matchup whether you like the handicap element or not. We all know Daniel Bryan is more than capable of putting up an amazing match, regardless of the stipulations. And with the size and power of the Wyatt Family bearing down on him, this is going to be a match that shows just how much of an underdog he is.  
WHAT SHOULD HAPPEN: It's not the size of the dog in the fight. It's the size of the fight in the dog. And Daniel Bryan has a hell of a lot of fight in him. There's no word if weapons will be allowed in this match, which seems like the only way Daniel Bryan could possibly get any kind of offense in. I kind of hope they aren't allowed. Daniel Bryan is at his best when he's fighting the odds and showing off his wrestling skills, rather than swinging a steel chair.  
WHAT WILL HAPPEN: Both Handicap matches can't end the same way. One of the teams have to lose. Easy money would have that being The Wyatt Family since they're not as over as The Shield. But I think not. Daniel Bryan had his moment in the sun on RAW this past week. Usually when you're that high on RAW, you get brought back down to earth at the PPV. The Wyatt Family wins, but Daniel Bryan will come away looking better for having put up a great fight.

THOUGHTS ON THE MATCH: Unlike with the above handicap match, this is just the start of greater things to come. Rumors and dirt sheets have rumblings of a CM Punk vs Triple H feud, perhaps at Wrestlemania. But that's a little bit down the road. It's pretty evident in the present that The Shield is about to break up so that Roman Reigns can be pushed as a solo act. There's no guarantee that it's all going to come to a head in this match, but it would be a perfect opportunity.  
WHAT SHOULD HAPPEN: It's not a matter of what is going to happen in this match, but how it's going to happen. We know what The Shield is capable of. Ditto for CM Punk. If weapons are involved in this match, it only ratchets up the violence that we're sure to see. Unlike with above, I hope weapons do come into play here. I mean, you can't have only one match where tables, ladders and chairs will be legal, right?  
WHAT WILL HAPPEN: Both Handicap matches can't end the same way. One of the teams have to lose. Because of the rise of Roman Reigns and the impending breakup of The Shield, I think CM Punk takes advantage and pulls out a win. Plus, I expect CM Punk to become a bigger thorn in The Authority's side after this is all said and done. Can't do that if he can't past The Shield. 

THOUGHTS ON THE MATCH: More than the finger-pointing between John Cena and Randy Orton as to whom had everything handed to them (answer: you both have); more than my general dislike of both superstars; more than my outspoken disagreement with unifying the WWE and World Heavyweight Championships, I think the one thing that upsets me the most about this match is the fact that WWE is completely ignoring the fact that the two titles have been unified before. There's been no talk of Chris Jericho winning the tournament that created the Undisputed Championship, other than a subtle aside by Cena mentioning this is 'eleven years in the making.' I don't need to defend Chris Jericho. He's a grown man. He can defend himself if he so pleases. No, it makes me upset that WWE is insulting my intelligence. All this talk of the match being 'historic' and 'first time ever' is just bullshit. And they have to know that we know it is. Yet they don't care. They don't care because a 26 year-old, lifelong fan who has spent the majority of his life watching their product, ordering their events, buying their merchandise and singing their praises isn't their target demographic anymore. Where most television shows and sporting events would salivate at the chance to cater to people like me in that ripe 18-34 year-old male demographic, WWE is more worried about the kiddies. They are more intent on solidifying that base for the future than their current crop of fans. That's why they get to ret-con and revise history as they have so many times lately. The demographic they care about won't know the difference, and they couldn't give a shit about what I think or what I know. But it doesn't matter how upset I am, because the match is happening and I just have to deal with it.  
WHAT SHOULD HAPPEN: We've seen Randy Orton vs John Cena matches before. Plenty of times. And none of those matches have been in 'Match of the Year' contention. We know what we're going to get here. It's a TLC match, meaning weapons are allowed and there are no disqualifications. It'll be fun and attract a lot of eyes due to the unification of the two main titles. I'm still not sold on the fact that there will only be one champion after the match. Not saying there won't be. I'm just saying I'll believe it when I see it.
WHAT WILL HAPPEN: Since this is a TLC match and the titles will be hanging above the ring, that means there will be no pinfall or submission in this match - the perfect type of match for John Cena to lose. (See: Cena 'accidentally' falling through a table in a Tables Match against Sheamus.) Because of that, if there is only one winner, Randy Orton will be the Unified Champion. However, what really clued me into the fact that Randy Orton would win is that during his promo on RAW, Cena promised the first title match to Daniel Bryan if he won and we all know that ain't happenin' anytime soon. Cena sealed his fate right then.