Jack-Hammer
YOU WILL RESPECT MY AUTHORITAH!!!!
For a while now, Dolph Ziggler is someone that's been getting mostly a mixed reaction from crowds. It's not uncommon for heels to be cheered by a good number of fans while being booed by others today. It's made me wonder, however, if Ziggler would be able to succeed as a babyface.
With Vickie Guerrero basically the Raw GM, I personally believe it's only a matter of time before WWE lets the Ziggler/Vickie pairing quietly fade away. It's true, however, that Ziggler & Vickie can still be allies just as heel authority figures often have "favorites" on the roster, but it'll be a huge logic hole if WWE allows Vickie to remain Dolph Ziggler's manager while she's also the person that's "in charge" of Raw. After all, that would constitute an "inappropriate relationship" between the two. It'd be a different kind of relationship than Cena & AJ are alleged to be having in the current storyline, but inappropriate nonetheless.
I think Ziggler could work well as a face if WWE really got behind him and pushed him strongly like they're doing with Ryback. One way they could go about it involves Ziggler's MITB briefcase and being forced to maybe reexamine himself. A scenario that I had involves Ziggler attempting to cash in MITB at Survivor Series following the Sheamus vs. Big Show WHC match. I think Big Show is going to win but, even if he isn't, there's a way to work with it. Ultimately, it involves Big Show being a central figure in the face turn. Ziggler attempts to cash in following the match, whether it be on Sheamus or Show, but Show is able to attack him just before the ref calls for the bell. Show could be majorly pissed that he just lost the title and is attacking Ziggler as a means of taking out his frustration for losing. If Show wins, he could simply attack Ziggler for being stupid enough to try and take advantage of the situation to take what's his.
In either scenario, Show delivers a brutal beating to Ziggler that ranges all over ringside and up onto the Titantron stage. Show rams Ziggler into everything around, punches him, kicks him, hits him viciously with steel chairs all while talking a lot of smack, ridiculing Ziggler hatefully for putting his nose in his business. I could see Show brutalizing Ziggler on the stage, maybe repeatedly & savagely ramming his head into the steel grating or against the big WWE logo that's there. This would be a rare situation in which a wrestler could bleed in order to sell the brutality of the beating, like we saw in the Cena vs. Lesnar match at Extreme Rules earlier this year. Show would then deliver a couple of chokeslams onto the stage before hitting Ziggler with the WMD a couple of times, including just propping Ziggler up against the wall to hit him again. Ziggler is "injured", maybe with some bruised or cracked ribs and most definitely a serious concussion that's going to put him on the shelf for at least a month, maybe two.
The week following, the WWE could begin a series of vignettes sent by Ziggler as a means of detailing his recovery, maybe showing him undergoing some "medical tests" or undergoing "physical therapy". The vignettes would also feature Ziggler in a more serious light with him speaking on how he's been thinking about his life and how he's conducted himself both in and out of the ring. A new vignette would be shown each week, each time with Ziggler recovering and pushing himself to recover quickly. During the weeks, Ziggler would also become someone that'd show a lot of intensity & passion, vowing to ultimately get even with Big Show.
I'd probably bring Ziggler back at the Royal Rumble with something of a different look, at least different ring attire. Ziggler would attack Big Show after a match, or during the Rumble match itsel if Show isn't champion by then. Ziggler still has a confident persona & attitude, but with a strong intensity without the cowardly characteristics of a heel. Ziggler is able to deliver a strong message to Show that he's a different guy and that he won't be denied what's his anymore.
The next night on Raw, again if Show is still champion, have the Royal Rumble winner go after the WWE Championship at WM and have Ziggler declare that he's cashing in MITB at WM against Big Show with the intent of having his WM moment at Big Show's expense. If Big Show isn't champ, then focus on building a feud between the two of them that culminates with at least one strong victory for Ziggler before, possibly, still having Ziggler announced that he wants his WHC match at WrestleMania.
I know it's something that almost certainly won't happen, but I honestly do think it's something that could work. Right now, the WWE needs some strong babyfaces apart from John Cena, Randy Orton & Sheamus. They need someone that's got charisma and someone that can deliver inside the ring. If the WWE got behind Ziggler, pushed him hard & kept him as a strong, passionate babyface, I think he could be a big babyface star for the company.
With Vickie Guerrero basically the Raw GM, I personally believe it's only a matter of time before WWE lets the Ziggler/Vickie pairing quietly fade away. It's true, however, that Ziggler & Vickie can still be allies just as heel authority figures often have "favorites" on the roster, but it'll be a huge logic hole if WWE allows Vickie to remain Dolph Ziggler's manager while she's also the person that's "in charge" of Raw. After all, that would constitute an "inappropriate relationship" between the two. It'd be a different kind of relationship than Cena & AJ are alleged to be having in the current storyline, but inappropriate nonetheless.
I think Ziggler could work well as a face if WWE really got behind him and pushed him strongly like they're doing with Ryback. One way they could go about it involves Ziggler's MITB briefcase and being forced to maybe reexamine himself. A scenario that I had involves Ziggler attempting to cash in MITB at Survivor Series following the Sheamus vs. Big Show WHC match. I think Big Show is going to win but, even if he isn't, there's a way to work with it. Ultimately, it involves Big Show being a central figure in the face turn. Ziggler attempts to cash in following the match, whether it be on Sheamus or Show, but Show is able to attack him just before the ref calls for the bell. Show could be majorly pissed that he just lost the title and is attacking Ziggler as a means of taking out his frustration for losing. If Show wins, he could simply attack Ziggler for being stupid enough to try and take advantage of the situation to take what's his.
In either scenario, Show delivers a brutal beating to Ziggler that ranges all over ringside and up onto the Titantron stage. Show rams Ziggler into everything around, punches him, kicks him, hits him viciously with steel chairs all while talking a lot of smack, ridiculing Ziggler hatefully for putting his nose in his business. I could see Show brutalizing Ziggler on the stage, maybe repeatedly & savagely ramming his head into the steel grating or against the big WWE logo that's there. This would be a rare situation in which a wrestler could bleed in order to sell the brutality of the beating, like we saw in the Cena vs. Lesnar match at Extreme Rules earlier this year. Show would then deliver a couple of chokeslams onto the stage before hitting Ziggler with the WMD a couple of times, including just propping Ziggler up against the wall to hit him again. Ziggler is "injured", maybe with some bruised or cracked ribs and most definitely a serious concussion that's going to put him on the shelf for at least a month, maybe two.
The week following, the WWE could begin a series of vignettes sent by Ziggler as a means of detailing his recovery, maybe showing him undergoing some "medical tests" or undergoing "physical therapy". The vignettes would also feature Ziggler in a more serious light with him speaking on how he's been thinking about his life and how he's conducted himself both in and out of the ring. A new vignette would be shown each week, each time with Ziggler recovering and pushing himself to recover quickly. During the weeks, Ziggler would also become someone that'd show a lot of intensity & passion, vowing to ultimately get even with Big Show.
I'd probably bring Ziggler back at the Royal Rumble with something of a different look, at least different ring attire. Ziggler would attack Big Show after a match, or during the Rumble match itsel if Show isn't champion by then. Ziggler still has a confident persona & attitude, but with a strong intensity without the cowardly characteristics of a heel. Ziggler is able to deliver a strong message to Show that he's a different guy and that he won't be denied what's his anymore.
The next night on Raw, again if Show is still champion, have the Royal Rumble winner go after the WWE Championship at WM and have Ziggler declare that he's cashing in MITB at WM against Big Show with the intent of having his WM moment at Big Show's expense. If Big Show isn't champ, then focus on building a feud between the two of them that culminates with at least one strong victory for Ziggler before, possibly, still having Ziggler announced that he wants his WHC match at WrestleMania.
I know it's something that almost certainly won't happen, but I honestly do think it's something that could work. Right now, the WWE needs some strong babyfaces apart from John Cena, Randy Orton & Sheamus. They need someone that's got charisma and someone that can deliver inside the ring. If the WWE got behind Ziggler, pushed him hard & kept him as a strong, passionate babyface, I think he could be a big babyface star for the company.
