Santa Claus is an Illegal Alien

[Mustang Sally]

That was the sign carried by Zeb Coulter on Smackdown last night as he sat at the announcer's table during the Real Americans match.

It was clever, it was amusing.....and it made me wonder where the company is going with Zeb. Plainly, he wouldn't have a job with WWE had Jack Swagger not needed help. As hard as management tried to get Swagger over as a single, his lack of mic skills worked against him......which was augmented by the fact there wasn't much of a storyline to build around him since he didn't possess much to work with except technical excellence in the ring and a nasty personality, which often came off as comical because viciousness on his "goofy" face just didn't make it.

Giving Jack a manager was the smartest thing they could do.....and giving him a tag partner was even smarter; those things allowed Swagger to do what he does best.....perform in the ring, making fierce faces and functioning as a heel.

The combination of Coulter, Swagger and Cesaro has worked better than I ever thought possible, and it's surely lasted longer. The company wants to build it's tag team division, and here's a team that has made themselves a viable entry. Good presentation, good timing.

Still, Zeb Coulter's immigrant schtick can last only so long. What does he do for an encore? If the company splits up the Real Americans, does Zeb still have a job? Does he just stick with either Swagger or Cesaro? Several people on this forum are talking about either guy being ready to go out on his own again (an ill-advised move, as I see it). But if they do it, what becomes of Zeb?

Would he be given two more wrestlers to keep the Real Americans going? Or does he develop an entirely new plan of action? If the latter, what can he do?

A better question might be: Is there anything else Zeb can do?

 

[Jack-Hammer]

It was kind of clever, a little corny, but the idea of jolly Ol' Saint Nick as an illegal alien seems appropriate given Colter's character. It's a far cry from how serious Colter was portrayed at the beginning of 2013, but just look at the uproar that caused. Republican politicians, right wing radio pundits, Tea Party members, people of Hispanic descent, etc. got all torn up over a character in a pro wrestling storyline. With the ravenous beast that is political correctness devouring everything in sight, they had no real alternative but to tone his character down. If you pass gas and it happens to blow in someone's direction, they'll take it to Twitter and make a federal case out of it.

Although, Jack Swagger's punishment had a big impact on the alterations to Colter's character as well. Swagger sabotaged the biggest push of his career, and what could be his last, with his DUI bust not long after returning and the anti-immigration angle having just gotten off the ground. Otherwise, who knows what sort of impact Colter & Swagger could have had on long term WWE plans? Swagger was scheduled to beat Del Rio for the World Heavyweight Championship so, for all we know, he'd be WHC right now. Maybe WWE wouldn't have even gone through with the plan to unify the titles.

With repackaging, I see no reason why Colter couldn't be of use to anyone as a manager. Colter has a ton of knowledge and experience that's helped a lot of guys make it big in the business. If absolutely nothing else, Colter could always be used as a producer/road agent or I'm sure Triple H could make use of him in NXT.

 

[Pedigree1]

Zeb colter is great. IMO he really has helped out Swagger out a lot and i mean a lot. Swagger is all world talent but really zero mic skills and Colter is a genius in that department.. I believe Zeb can do anything he wants once the real americans split up. The tag team division is alive and well (Thanks to Triple H) and I look forward to the Real Americans having a tag team title run in 2014.

Zeb basically has written his own ticket. Whether or not he manages the RA or is even a road agent or a manager for another superstar Colter is worth the investment. Colter has a ton of knowledge and any superstar could use his knowledge,only to go further

 

[The Eighties]

I think Zeb's switch from militant anti-immigrant character spouting rhetoric that probably didn't interest the bulk of the younger audience members, to cartoonish, hypocritical blusterer has paid off, especially when coupled with the good work in the ring from Cesaro and swagger. The three of them have become an entertaining act and I wouldn't be surprised if they got a Tag title run soon.

As for Zeb post-Real Americans, I think he's the kind of guy with the experience to adapt, maybe he could be Harper's (After the Wyatt's split) manager and go back to his Blu Brothers roots, or he could flip his current gimmick, become anti-American and manage a guy like Aleksander Rusev.

 

[chicagokmc]

if zeb stays around, I could easily see him being used as a raw or smackdown general manager somewhere down the line. this is usually a speaking role and he has clearly shown he is good with the mic.

 

[Slash-LN]

This is by far his most interesting character. I have to give him that.
Although I don't know a whole lot about Dutch Mantel to be honest but from what I saw he wasn't better then than he is now. I did used to read a column he wrote for a magazine.
Uncle Zabekiah wasn't really all that great although it was funny when one of the announcers (Doc Hendrix I think) would call him Uncle Zebekukel.

If he goes away from Cesaro and Swagger I wouldn't be bothered if he managed a different team. It would probably mean a face turn for Swagger and Cesaro and it could be done similar to how Mt. Fuji switched teams he was managing where he helped Powers of Pain over Demolition which set up an instant rivalry.

Have Zeb help out his new team over Cesaro and Swagger and then cut a promo the next Raw about how Cesaro and Swagger strayed from his ideals or something along those lines. He could take credit for their popularity and say the only reason people know who they are is because of him.

They could feud with his new team for a while and then once the feud is over they can go their separate ways and Zeb would still have a team to manage.

I'm not sure who he would manage that could fit the whole real Americans thing. Maybe it would be a good way to debut a couple wrestlers from NXT though.

 

[Ayden Awestruck]

I was laughing and I'm not afraid to admit it. He's definitely come a long way since the serious militaristic character we came to know and loved to hate. But that says something doesn't it? It says that he can adapt. And while I honestly believe that the Real Americans deserve at least one good title run, there's no way that the end of them will mark the end of him. Whether that means he takes a more behind the scenes role or becomes the mouthpiece for another aspiring team or superstar? Who knows. But I don't think he needs to be restricted to the Real Americans gimmick. Zeb is just too good to be defined by one gimmick. His beard hasn't been what has kept him in this business for 40 years, that's all I'm saying. Here's to seeing him around for forty more years!