10 Quick Fixes To Save WWE's Summer
Long Nights And Big Fights.
It's with worrying consistency that WWE can no longer prop up the long post-WrestleMania months with matches and angles that keep fans at the artificial level of excitement they'd reached shortly before the 'Show of Shows'.
Now heavily reliant on part-timers, surprises and 'dream' matches featuring big names from bygone eras, much of the current roster save for a few key talents are left parked at the most crucial time of year, making an April or May rebound for forgotten characters nearly impossible.
WWE were rightly credited for a stirring edition of Monday Night Raw this week, championed mainly for two outstanding segments in which Samoa Joe demolished Paul Heyman, and The Miz demolished a grandfather clock. The segments perfectly encapsulated all that could be achieved within the vast palette of sports entertainment, and yet just one week earlier, the Alexa Bliss/Bayley 'This Is Your Life' segment was so resoundingly awful that Kurt Angle was scripted to call it one of the 'worst in Raw history'.
But with only their current Universal Champion as a returning giant for the summer months, what else can WWE do with their existing crop of talents to try and ensure that their monster Brooklyn double header mirrors the drama of 2015 and 2016 rather than the malaise of the last few months?
10. Cena's Return
John Cena has been advertised for the July 4th edition of SmackDown Live!, and his return to the blue brand following his WrestleMania 33 proposal to Nikki Bella couldn't come at a better time for the 'B-show'.
The Leader of the Cenation will re-enter the hunt just over two weeks before July's Battleground pay-per-view, which should set the table for the company's build towards a SummerSlam card due to headline a weekend of action emanating from the Barclays Centre in Brooklyn for the third consecutive year.
Cena has a host of performers to work with following April's 'Superstar Shake-Up', but his big return to action could proffer an opportunity to subvert one of the coolest introductory angles for a new character in company history.
Currently US Champion and 'New Face Of America', Kevin Owens has been a riot as the cynical preachy Canadian holding the flag-laden strap hostage, and has even paid subtle tribute to Cena's outstanding Open Challenge series with his own version in which he humbles local enhancement talent.
In the original incarnation, Owens famously decked 'The Champ' rather than challenging for his title, before sensationally defeating him in his debut match. 'Big Match John' could potentially do the same in his return, then begin his chase to actually liberate the title to cap off a high profile SummerSlam showdown.