3MB: What could have been!?

[Hard Hit Prince]

Heath Slater, Drew McIntyre and Jinder Mahal are probably the weirdest trio in WWE history - let's face it, we have a long ginger, goofy who thinks he's this generation Honky Tonk Man as the leader, followed by a Scottish guy, once billed as the Chosen One and an Indian guy with anger problems of all people to form a THREE MAN BAND!

The idea is so ridiculous and so goofy that people pretty much saw and deemed as a failure right out of the bat. But this guys made it work - I mean, we don't see 3MB very often on Raw or PPV's but every time they go out, their acting is great and their energy is quite catchy - like we know they are going to probably lose their match but they genuinely make me believe that they are the best thing going with their little antics. It's hard not to laugh when they are doing their thing because all of three really work their ass of and the thing is that all of three actually proved to be more than competent wrestlers inside the squared circle.

Just out of the bat I know I've seen Heath Slater in more than two great matches against Justin Gabriel, I've seen McIntyre working very well with Kofi Kingston, John Morrison, Christian and hell Chris Masters and Jinder Mahal had his run with Seth Rollins that was quite alright. However they are not getting opportunities to show themselves in this tag team division.

WWE is about entertaining and I don't know, to me a 3MB match, even if it's a jobbing contest is always something entertaining to watch and I really want to know your opinion on them. So just a few points below to help you develop your post:

1. What are your general thoughts on the performances and the idea of the 3MB?
2. Do you see them ever getting some TV time to develop a storyline/rivalry?
3. Who is your favorite member of the stable and why?
4. If you were the boss, would you've pushed 3MB sooner? How?

 

[klunderbunker]

3MB is fine just the way they are. They're jobbers and can still be entertaining enough to stay on the roster. There's no need to push any of the guys as anything more than they are now and there's nothing wrong with that. They're a funny act and losing doesn't make them any less entertaining so there's no need to mess with them. 3MB is fine where they are as wrestling needs jobbers that people enjoy seeing get beaten up.

 

[Mustang Sally]

I believe there were some grander plans when the group was first formed. I remember reading that a feature called "The State of 3MB" was planned for the end of two Raw shows in a row, in which they would get some ring time to yak about something or other. Both segments were deleted for time constraints. After that, no more was said about it.

Also, there were a couple backstage vignettes at the beginning, which a tag team that's thrown together normally doesn't receive.

After that, management seemingly abandoned whatever plans they had for the group, but kept them together as jobbers. At the very least, it's better for the company to have an established tag team come out to be sacrificed to an up-and-coming-tandem, rather than throwing a couple of guys together for one night only and calling them a team.

Still, a few months ago, Drew was wrestling in singles matches and it seemed the end of 3MB was close at hand. Now, there's no mention of him going on his own, at least not that I've read.

3MB is probably salvation for Jinder Mahal because I can't imagine what WWE needs him for otherwise. Heath Slater can go back to his comedy act and get beat up by some more legends, unless Creative sees something bigger for him.

As for my guy McIntyre, people are still saying he has a future because he's "only 28" but I was reading the same thing about him when he was "only 26".......and wonder when.....and if.....his time will ever come.

In the meantime, at least 3MB gets fairly steady work. While they often miss Raw or Smackdown, they can still be found on Main Event.

It beats the unemployment line, no?

 

[Ziirox]

Let's all face the facts here: They're three jobbers who had nothing better to do. What was Heath Slater doing before 3MB? How about Jinder? And don't even get me started on how f'ed up they have been treating Drew McIntyre, a guy who could have easily been a World Champ by now. I don't think there were any "grand" plans for this group. This group may have just been an idea concocted to pass the time and keep them in the company because at some point they may actually want to do something relevant with these guys. However, it won't be as 3MB. It's a goofy gimmick that only the IWC has really taken a liking to. These guys are simply enhancement talents for other tag teams right now, and there's nothing left for them to do as a group. When they do break up, it won't be a big deal. Heath and Drew will land on their feet, but Jinder will probably job a while longer, and I wouldn't be surprised to see him future endeavored.

This group needs to end. I think all three of guys can still have decent careers if WWE does in fact have bigger plans for these guys as individuals or as parts of different teams. 3MB has run it's course, and there was nothing good coming from this gimmick because they have been jokes since the beginning of it. Air instruments? C'mon...

 

[Dagger Dias]

1. What are your general thoughts on the performances and the idea of the 3MB?

My general thoughts are that I wish they were more than just jobbers. I know that somebody has to fill the role, but the Drew McIntyre fan in me and the Heath Slater fan in me would want to see both of them in a more successful spot on the card. Jinder I don't care about. He can stay a jobber.

2. Do you see them ever getting some TV time to develop a storyline/rivalry?

At this point, no. I'd like to see them compete for the giant pennies and win them under The Freebird Rule. This is a band gimmick. There's a song called Freebird. Have them win the pennies and try to sing Freebird in their promos. Hilarity would ensue when their opponents attack them.

3. Who is your favorite member of the stable and why?

Heath Slater by a landslide. I've stated numerous times that I am the biggest Slater mark on this whole forum. I've been a fan ever since day 1 of NXT season 1 and said at that time that this guy is going to be a star. He can still get there. A more serious heel gimmick could help him get there and I stand by that statement.

Second is Drew McIntyre. Other than Sally, I'd say I might be the biggest Drew mark around here. He had a great deal of potential with The Chosen One gimmick and I still think he can get to the top one day. He has better odds than Slater of getting there and this group may be holding him back, but at least it's giving him something to do.

Jinder is my least favorite. He sucks and it never made sense to put him in this group in the first place.

4. If you were the boss, would you've pushed 3MB sooner? How?

Absolutely. They would have been Tag Team Champions under The Freebird Rule, although Team Hell No or The Shield would eventually have dethroned them. I'd keep 3MB around in the division for a while but plans would eventually call for Slater and Drew to get big solo pushes while Jinder becomes a jobber after the inevitable split if I were booking the show.

 

[CM Steel]

The 3MB are the "Job Squad" of the current WWE era. "Pin me, pay me" should be their faction motto. Atlease the Freebirds are WWE hall of fame bound, not the 3MB. The 3 *********e stable were just a group of guys who the WWE weren't pushing as single's wrestlers so they gave them a project to run with...right into the ground. The 3MB won't even be remembered in the next 5 years. Much like how the WWE-PG fans don't remember the Job Squad from the attitude era.

And Heath Slater is no Honky Tonk Man so enough with all that WWE!

 

[Alastor]

They are good at the spot they are in. Goofy comedy acts always have a spot on the roster. Santino and Goldust have become memorable just by being comedy acts while being 'enhancement talent'. Out of the three, I would say Drew has dropped the most from his previous spot as the 'chosen' one. He seemed on a career path of a Alberto Del Rio instead of a Zack Ryder. I guess it is probably due to his personal issues that he dropped down the ladder but at least he still has a job with the WWE.

My favourite of the three is Health Slater. I always thought he was on a path towards mid-card respectability considering he was the one pinning superstars in Nexus and was holding tag belts too. He was also given a personal programme with legends beating him up on RAW. 3MB is a vehicle for Slater and the other 2 were brought along for the ride. The gimmick feels natural with him and feels forced from Drew and Jinder.

 

[deadfox081]

If they were ever intended to be anything but a 201x version of the J.O.B. Squad I'd be very surprised. It never hurts to be able to trot out a bunch of people that the fans have at least heard of to lay down for people as it gives the win at least some meaning. I don't personally think they are overly funny or even good gimmicks but they do their job just fine.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

When the creation of 3MB was announced, I never had any genuine aspirations that they'd be anything other than a faction of jobbers. Why? Because the idea of their gimmick in its entirety is pretty ridiculous. From the moment they had that little sit down interview segment just after they were formed, you had to know that this was a gimmick that nobody could take with a straight face.

Think about it really: their gimmick is that of a "rock band" who can't sing, can't play instruments and have such unlikely backgrounds. I for one am thankful that WWE didn't go further with this gimmick and actually waste precious television time by actually featuring these three put on some sort of "concert" or debuting "music videos" for the group. Such segments would have been total disasters that would only cause people to switch channels.

As I alluded to, usually, most music groups are made up of people who have some sort of similar background. Heath Slater is a 30 year old country boy from West Virginia whose hair is pretty close to the same shade of reddish orange as the General Lee, the '69 Dodge Charger from The Dukes of Hazzard. Drew McIntyre's a 28 year old Scot with a degree in criminology whose been in the business for almost 12 years. Jinder Mahal is a 27 year old Indo Canadian, 10 year wrestling veteran who happens to be the nephew of Gama Singh. Aside from being in the same age range, there's just nothing about them to suggest that they have all that much in common based on background.

Now could something be done with them without the 3MB gimmick? Oh sure, I've no doubt about that. They're all three really young guys. I read a brief snippet in the past few days suggesting that WWE is thinking of repackaging Drew McIntyre. I think McIntyre has a good deal of untapped potential. I'm not saying that he'll ever be the face of the company, but he's got way too much overall ability to be wasted jobbing out in the lower card of WWE.

Jinder Mahal...I dunno, the guy is the weakest of the bunch in my view. He's not all that great inside the ring and he can't cut a decent promo to save his life. Although, I guess to be fair, I haven't really heard him cut one in which most of it wasn't conducted in his native tongue. Maybe if he said something I was actually able to understand, it might be a bit better.

Slater is someone that I think could be genuinely charismatic if they repackaged him and did away with all the silly music references and the little dance moves that he's used since he debuted in WWE. Hell, I'd even consider sticking him with the Wyatt Family. Slater's deep WV accent makes him sound like a hick from Tobacco Road anyhow, so having him brainwashed and become a member of this backwoods, Florida hillbilly cult might honestly work.

 

[Mustang Sally]

From the moment they had that little sit down interview segment just after they were formed, you had to know that this was a gimmick that nobody could take with a straight face.

Well, that's what makes this topic interesting; I keep asking what the company originally intended for 3MB. On the one hand, I can see Vince McMahon being smart enough to create a jobber tag team on purpose, giving them a quasi-gimmick that was intended to not go anywhere. I can see it, but I don't think that's what they did......I believe they created the team with a purpose.....and then abandoned that purpose.

Early on, they were off-screen, apparently rehearsing their music. All I could see was a shot of the locker room, while my closed-captioning was showing: "Bay-beh......Bay-beh......Bay-beh" and I was trying to figure what the hell was going on. I thought the company could have done more with the comedy aspects of this team, although it's all a matter of what you prefer, I guess.

Florida hillbilly cult might honestly work.

It might, but isn't Bray Wyatt already doing the "hillbilly" schtick? I like Heath Slater as he's been since splitting with Nexus; loud, bellicose and obnoxious. Seems there's always something you can do with that type of character.

I read a brief snippet in the past few days suggesting that WWE is thinking of repackaging Drew McIntyre.

From your keyboard to God's ears.

 

[S.J. Maximus]

I personally love Heath Slater and his gimmick, 3MB is nothing more than an expansion of his act. Jinder Mahal and Drew McIntyre have done a masterful executing Heath's gimmick and I think that together, 3MB is one of the most entertaining acts in the WWE today. I remember going to WrestleMania AXXESS this year and seeing all the fans (myself included) lined up to see them and they were even just as entertaining for that! Unfortunately, I do not see them getting pushed at any time in the future. As someone already mentioned, it seemed like the WWE machine was actually behind them when the group first started, with many vignettes and mic segments from the trio. At this point, with Darren Young coming out, the debuts of the Shield, Wyatt Family, and Los Matadores, it seems like 3MB will be put completely on the backburner for the foreseeable future.

If I was the boss, I don't think I ever would've put 3MB together. But if the question is how would I push them if I did, then I would keep them in the limelight but never give them a title, because although Heath is the clear star of the trio, I don't think it would be fair to give Drew the other half of the belts and not Jinder. And there's no way I'd give them the "Shield" treatment of 3 belts, I feel like that should only be saved for special trios (I'm not even sure if the Shield qualifies for that accolade)

 

[MWRedskins]

oh a 3MB thread, well let's answer these questions.

1. What are your general thoughts on the performances and the idea of the 3MB?
i thought WWE at first had a plan for them, but then later scrapped those plans. i think McIntyre has potential and same with Heath, they both can wrestle and Heath isnt a bad speaker. 3MB kinda fits Heath, doesnt fit McIntyre so much though.
2. Do you see them ever getting some TV time to develop a storyline/rivalry?
no, they are just jobbers who are there to get beat up by top tag teams or stables.
3. Who is your favorite member of the stable and why?
well i like McIntyre's potential, just not with 3MB. i thought he had huge potential when he was Vince's "Chosen One" but with 3MB, he seems like an odd fit, so in 3MB, it's Heath, but not in 3MB, it's McIntyre.
4. If you were the boss, would you've pushed 3MB sooner? How?
i would've pushed Heath Slator with a big man who's more like a monster and a tag partner and called them 3MB and have Heath as a talker/leader and have Heath and his partner (with his muscle's help) steal tag team wins and maybe even the Gold if they got over enough, the one thing i wouldnt have done was put McIntyre in a rock and roll type of gimmick.