I Book It: Saving the Tag Team Division

[futurechamp]

I Book It is a new Wrestlezone Forums exclusive column, that i am going to try to post once a week. This week I wanna disect the tag team division and look at what I would do to save the Tag Division. Keep in mind, I'm no Vince Russo, Eric Bischoff, or Stephanie McMahon.

Current Tag Teams
Cryme Tyme
Hart Dynasty
D-X
Legacy
Croft/Baretta

Ok, We have 5 real tag teams in the division with the demise of Jerishow. Thats exactly where i'm going to start now to.

My New Tag Teams
Air Raid - Evan Bourne and Big Show - I know this is an unlikely team but think about what they can do together. Show has the size and the power, Evan has the quickness, agility, and the high risk moves. I would have Evan getting a beat down by Sheamus next week on Raw. Than all the sudden, Shows music hits and hits the knock out punch on Sheamus. Bourne climbs up and Does Air Bourne. After that, you see them together talking and later, challange D-X.

The American Dream Team - Cody and Dustin Rhodes - Now you know they've got a chemistry that you don't get from a "makeshift" tag team. These guys are brothers, and the sons of a wrestling legend. After Debiase leaves Legacy. Have Orton beat down Cody in the ring, than have Dustin run down and make the save. No paint, no gold jump suit, and come out do Dusty's music.

Chavo Guerrero and Rey Mysterio - These guys are both cruiser weights, and former WCW cruiser weight champions. Both with a Lucha Libre style and both very quick. Have Chavo make a challange to DX for the titles w/ a mystery tag partner, out comes Rey.

The Colons - Primo and Carlito - Time for these guys to bury the hatchet. Good tag team, former champs. Even if they wanna keep Carlito heel, make Primo a heel.

Omega - Gregory Helms and Matt Hardy - These guys go way back and have great chemistry. They are both former tag champs and I believe putting them together could make for entertaining tv. Hell, Greg could still the Hurricane thing on the side. Have Gregory stand up with Matt Hardy against The Straight Edge Society.

a new Kai En Tai - Jimmy Wang Yang and Yoshi Tatsu -I know it seems like a racial stereo type. I don't know much about either of these guys. To an extent I guess you could call it a stereo type. But it could work. Have Funaki(not kung fu naki) make a TV return as the manager of the team since he is a member of the old Kai En Tai.

The Heart Breakers - John Morrison and Shawn Michaels - I think it may be the time to break up D-X. Heres a chance for Shawn to work with a younger guy, and "pass the torch" to JoMo. I think these guys could work together very well, but Shawn has to go back to the HBK gimmick. I think this could work very well.

Edge and Christian - Reunite these guys. They were an awesome tag team for anyone with "the benefit of flash photography.

Proud Irishmen - Sheamus and Finlay - Sheamus has looked like an unstoppable force lately, but what after this world title run? What if Finlay was to come to raw for one night and get jumped in the ring for some reason. Have Sheamus come out and make the save. Hell, have them take Hornswoggle to.


You could even throw one member of each of these teams in a battle royal for #1 contendership for the Tag Titles to get one of these guys started. I think that putting together a few of these teams could really save the floundering tag team division.


Thank you guys for checking my post. Hope you check out next week.

Next week: I Book It: CM Punk's Straight Edge Society

 

[Big Nick Dudley]

Cryme Tyme and the Hart Dynasty are good choices, and I think Primo and Carlito are too. But D-X needs to break up soon, and I have never been a fan of putting two mega-stars together as a legitimate tag team, same thing goes for Jericho and Big Show. The tag division should be saved for up and comers who actually have something in common with their partner, not just thrown together for the hell of it. Legacy would be the best tag team in the business, but it seems they want those two to go out on their own. If you're going to put together a tag division, you need to have teams that are going to be together, focusing on the tag belts, and not on singles careers two or three months down the road. Finlay and Sheamus would have been a perfect teacher-student team, but now that Sheamus has tasted the big belt, I doubt they want to dump him into tagging up. They need fresh faces. They need to take guys out of the developmental leagues who actually have some kind of relationship (good friends, brothers, cousins, etc.) and put them together and make a REAL tag division. I am really tired of this putting two top level guys together for a few months, giving them the belts, and calling them a tag team. That formula will never build a strong, long lasting tag division.

 

[Thriller Ant]

Air Raid - Evan Bourne and Big Show - I know this is an unlikely team but think about what they can do together. Show has the size and the power, Evan has the quickness, agility, and the high risk moves. I would have Evan getting a beat down by Sheamus next week on Raw. Than all the sudden, Shows music hits and hits the knock out punch on Sheamus. Bourne climbs up and Does Air Bourne. After that, you see them together talking and later, challange D-X.

I won't say never, as this is the same company that gave us a leprechaun as Cruiserweight Champion, but this is very, very, very, very unlikely. Show is face, Bourne is heel. Show is at least upper midcard, Bourne is low midcard. If Show is going to team up with anyone at this point, it'll be back with Jericho somehow.

The American Dream Team - Cody and Dustin Rhodes - Now you know they've got a chemistry that you don't get from a "makeshift" tag team. These guys are brothers, and the sons of a wrestling legend. After Debiase leaves Legacy. Have Orton beat down Cody in the ring, than have Dustin run down and make the save. No paint, no gold jump suit, and come out do Dusty's music.

Goldust is way too over for them to drop that gimmick, and Rhodes will be occupied by Legacy until they are totally broken up, so probably WrestleMania. I could see this down the road, but once again, unlikely.

Chavo Guerrero and Rey Mysterio - These guys are both cruiser weights, and former WCW cruiser weight champions. Both with a Lucha Libre style and both very quick. Have Chavo make a challange to DX for the titles w/ a mystery tag partner, out comes Rey.

Heel/face again, and these two are on opposite ends of the card spectrum right now. It would be way to big of a jump for Chavo or drop for Rey to team up. Plus, they are on different brands.

The Colons - Primo and Carlito - Time for these guys to bury the hatchet. Good tag team, former champs. Even if they wanna keep Carlito heel, make Primo a heel.

They were a good team, but no one gave a shit about them. Carlito is a good heel when they use him, so he should stay heel, and I don't think Primo could turn heel with his moveset and lack of mic time.

Omega - Gregory Helms and Matt Hardy - These guys go way back and have great chemistry. They are both former tag champs and I believe putting them together could make for entertaining tv. Hell, Greg could still the Hurricane thing on the side. Have Gregory stand up with Matt Hardy against The Straight Edge Society.

This could work if they get on the same brand. They both need something to do at this point. I like it.

a new Kai En Tai - Jimmy Wang Yang and Yoshi Tatsu -I know it seems like a racial stereo type. I don't know much about either of these guys. To an extent I guess you could call it a stereo type. But it could work. Have Funaki(not kung fu naki) make a TV return as the manager of the team since he is a member of the old Kai En Tai.

This would be the worst thing possible for Yoshi. He is a main eventer on ECW. The other two are lucky if they are on TV once per season. This would drag Yoshi down into a hole that I don't know he could dig out of.

The Heart Breakers - John Morrison and Shawn Michaels - I think it may be the time to break up D-X. Heres a chance for Shawn to work with a younger guy, and "pass the torch" to JoMo. I think these guys could work together very well, but Shawn has to go back to the HBK gimmick. I think this could work very well.

Follow me on this. This would be a step back in the development of John Morrison. He has been labeled a tag team specialist in the past, even though he is a former ECW and IC champ. While he would get a nice rub from working with Shawn, this wouldn't help Morrison prove that he is a singles star in any way.

Edge and Christian - Reunite these guys. They were an awesome tag team for anyone with "the benefit of flash photography.

If I had a dollar for every time I heard this since Christian was rumored to return, I wouldn't have to worry about the loans I have to pay when I get out of school. They are both solid main eventers now. E&C was good in its day, but that day is long gone. They've moved on, why hasn't everyone else?

Proud Irishmen - Sheamus and Finlay - Sheamus has looked like an unstoppable force lately, but what after this world title run? What if Finlay was to come to raw for one night and get jumped in the ring for some reason. Have Sheamus come out and make the save. Hell, have them take Hornswoggle to.

Once again, step down for Sheamus. He's the fucking WWE Champ right now, why team him with the resident face jobber on SmackDown?

You could even throw one member of each of these teams in a battle royal for #1 contendership for the Tag Titles to get one of these guys started. I think that putting together a few of these teams could really save the floundering tag team division.

So use a singles match to get tag teams over? As overused as it is, a tournament would be the best way to get interest in the tag belts. The problem is that no one, Vince included, gives a shit about them at this point.

 

[CaptainCrazy74]

Editor Comments (Lord Sidious)

Spell Check is also free for you as well. I also noticed a couple in this very post you may want to address, to set the example for others to follow.

futurechamp and nickb03 great stuff real intillectual and very well written.

ags123 Spell check is free. Always explain yourself because I believe you are not giving all of them a fair shake. I think you need to see the benefit of Hornswoggle number 1. Number two, the benefit of a veteran like Fit Finlay working with a sloppy hack newcomer like Sheamus. Three, you are missing the boat on the real ratings hop that happens with heel/face turns and tag team wrestling. Four, if the Colons are overdone then why kill Edge with Christian again. Hardy and Helms would be a great team with or without the superhero aspect. Bourne recieving a push could change his attitude and benefit the "Tag Division" with or without the Big Show(Again young talent learning from veterans and torch passing come to mind). Know that your opinion is not the only one and think about the business as a whole when you consider this type of forum.

That said I would just like to see something different or unused in the previous 15-20 years. I too am over DX. I think Legacy has two top potential champions locked in no man's land. I think the writers have forgotten fans are not just uninteligent couch potatoes. I think wrestling is bit lost with it's current writing staff of "idea men" from the eighties. I miss solid storylines and wrestlers who were artists telling the story in the ring, not just talent waiting to show off the latest thing they drew on paper and worked out with toys in the hotel room.

 

[AGS123]

Lets go through them one pair at a time.

-Air raid- I don’t think big show should be in the tag team title hunt for a while after Jeri show has ended. He ran his course and will probably go on to compete for the US title for awhile. As for Bourne, well first off he may not be with WWE to far in the future because of respect issues. That and his blog is a good indication he might quit soon.
Not only is the team not possible, I’m also getting tired of small/large teams. Even if it’s for just one match, I still don’t like it. Rating of this team= 2/10

-The American Dream Team-This was one team I thought they were teasing at last years Royal Rumble. I would love to see these two as faces more then heels, because I have a strange feeling that Cody has a very HAHA personality deep inside him. Plus like you said, no Goldust. Rating of this team= 8.5/10

Chavo Guerrero and Rey Mysterio- They would have to explain why they are friends again. WWE always uses this method "If you’re a face, your friends with faces. If your a heel same thing." That’s why I wasn’t truly digging John Morrison's face turn because they would basically have him tag and hug with CM Punk. WTF? Last month these two hate each other and now they are beasties? No sense at all. I see that’s how they would do Chavo and Rey, pretend nothing happened and wrestle together.
Although realalisticly out of reach, they have great matches together, it only makes sense to see these guy win the Tag titles at least once. Rating of this team- 7/10

-The Colons- I never liked them, and again the whole all of a sudden they made up. This already happened and I don’t want to see it again. Rating of this team- 3/10

-Omega- This would be a fun team. Matt needs someone to work with. With Jeff gone, there seems to be no excitement with him anymore. Helms would balance this team off nicely even as "The Hurricane". But I swear, if they pull a Kaz and Eric young/Super Eric Tag title situation, where Hurricane and Hardy win but not Helms and Hardy so they have to give up the titles, I will shit on that for life. Rating of this team- 7.5/10

-a new Kai En Tai- I didn’t even know one already existed. But Yoshi needs to be focused as a singles star. As for Wang Yang, I believe it may be to late for him to even seem credible in any situation. Though these two would work well off each other, I just don’t see it happening. Rating of this team- 5/10

-The Heart Breakers- A true honor that it is to work with HBK for not just one match, but almost every week. WWE is starting to realize who they have and may play towards that in the future. This would be a team epics are made of. I almost see a stable more then a team with a possible "Gold Standard". Rating of this team- 9.5/10

Gee I can only guess who can make a perfect score. Hmm......oh I know!

-E&C- No explanation. 10/10

-Proud Irishmen- This one seems a bit...overdone. Having a team from the same nation, I’ve never seen that before (Sarcasm).Plus Horny doesn’t belong anywhere anyway.
Rating of this team- 4.5/10

All in all, this was a good try. A hell of a lot more then WWE is doing now. Final rating for all teams- 7/10.

 

[AGS123]

ags123 Spell check is free. Always explain yourself because I believe you are not giving all of them a fair shake. I think you need to see the benefit of Hornswoggle number 1. Number two, the benefit of a veteran like Fit Finlay working with a sloppy hack newcomer like Sheamus. Three, you are missing the boat on the real ratings hop that happens with heel/face turns and tag team wrestling. Four, if the Colons are overdone then why kill Edge with Christian again. Hardy and Helms would be a great team with or without the superhero aspect. Bourne recieving a push could change his attitude and benefit the "Tag Division" with or without the Big Show(Again young talent learning from veterans and torch passing come to mind). Know that your opinion is not the only one and think about the business as a whole when you consider this type of forum.

I made the spelling changes. And just because my option is different, dose not mean it is wrong or right.

1). Yes, I know Hornswoggle has a place. The kiddies love him. My problem was making him the center piece of the show.

2). I wasn’t talking about Sheamus and his personal gain from Finlay. I was talking as a fan that would see it as "Irish and Irish is such a original team." and not buying into that.

3). my main concern was not explaining how they would turn Heel/Face.

4). I do agree with you. But I bet you would burst the kid inside you just once to see those two together even for just 3 months.

 

[Michael_Page]

One thing that i am getting pissed about is when WWE just throws a cpl of superstars together and makes them a tagteam.Im getting tired of the 75th reunion of DX every month. Jerishow wasn't bad but you knew it wasn't gonna last.Its like WWE just doesnt have their heart in tagteam wrestling anymore. Why even bother with a division when its never gonna be showcased by true tag team specialist. I guess the days of Arn Anderson & Tully Blandchard,Steiner Bros,Harlem Heat,Midnight Express,and The Road Warriors are something we will never see again. Im glad that TNA is keeping their tag division alive.