What Would You Do? #2 - Evan Bourne

[BigBombB]

I'm going to keep these on a weekly schedule from now on but would rather that schedule be more "mid-weekish" so this thread will act as the beginning of that schedule!

The second in a series of threads that asks you "What would you do if you were in charge of handling this superstar's future?" All you need to do is answer the following questions:

01. Push or Bury?
02. Revamp or Continue (their current character)?
03. How would you book them?

01. Push

02. Continue

03. His character is a solid midcard act that WWE can utilize in so many ways. What I would do is debut Kalisto a few weeks beforehand, so that he can get the singles exposure that he deserves, then Evan Bourne returns, he and Kalisto tear the house down in a singles match, but before either can win, a heel tag team (Swagger/Cesaro if they're still hanging on at this point) attack them and they find they work well together. This would lead to a short tag team run where they eventually go their own ways but remain good friends.

 

[LoudClearVoice]

Why is this even a question anymore?

He's too injury prone and there really isn't a place for him on the roster. He has no real gimmick to speak of. He should be Future Endeavored. End of Story.

 

[Max K]

Evan Bourne vs Tyler Breeze for #1 contendership for the NXT Championship. The match would end in controversy setting up a triple threat for the belt.

or

Evan Bourne with Yoshi Tatsu vs Justin Gabriel / Tyson Kidd vs The Usos. Triple Threat Tag Team Ladder Match for the Tag Team Belts at Wrestlemania.

 

[MCMG]

Bourne can be a useful guy on the roster. He is talented and has exciting style (+ finisher) If Bourne is healthy then he can easily have a run in the middle of the card. He has the potential to become very popular (with the younger audience) and make the WWE some decent money. That is his level.

A tag-team is a possibility. There are breaking up a lot of teams and probably need a replacement. Like I said, Bourne is probably too talented not to be used so that could be a way get him on TV. I just want to see that finisher weekly.

 

[Pedigree1]

Evan is an extremely talented individual! A very useful talent,and serviceable guy.. But he needs to make amends for what he has done with the higher ups. I believe in just a short time,he failed twice on the wellness Policy. I know hes injured and that is not his fault at all.

Upon his return though,most fans have forgotten all about him. Bourne is talented maybe throw him on NXT wouldn't be a bad option. Or Main Event,somewhere where he can connect with the fans again.. Somewhere he can't really screw up.. I am just being honest here,he is one strike away from being fired!! It be hard pressed to give him a major program only for him to fuck it up again!

 

[Jack-Hammer]

I think Evan Bourne's ship has long since sailed in WWE. Just when he was finally getting a push and doing something with some level of relevance, he fails a drug test. Shortly thereafter, he winds up failing another drug test. He failed the Wellness Policy twice in a three month period and was in a car accident in March 2012 that resulted in his foot being broken in four places and dislocated in another five. Bourne hasn't been seen on WWE television in well over 2 years and, if I'm not mistaken, the last match he worked was in NXT in late March of last year.

I don't see WWE giving him another opportunity. After all, flunking two drug tests in a three month period isn't going to earn the trust of management. Also, frankly, Bourne doesn't bring anything to the table that Sami Zayn and/or Adrian Neville can't bring, plus a lot more. I'd either bury him or just release him altogether. Fans have moved on in the well over two years since Bourne's been out of commission and so has the roster.

 

[Eddie Menuek]

First and foremost, get him back in the mix. Whether it's on NXT, Main Event or Smackdown, I'd like to see Evan Bourne on television again. For whatever reason WWE are holding off on bringing him back to the roster, which I think is a shame because as far as high fliers go, I think Evan is one of the most entertaining to watch. He's probably never going to find himself towards the top of the card, but being on television as a utility character is better than not being on television at all. If he was back on the roster you could think about putting him in the tag team division, maybe reuniting Air Boom; his partnership with Kofi was entertaining and the thought of the matches that they could have with The Usos, The Brotherhood and The Real Americans is really tempting.

At this point I'd be far more surprised to see Bourne return to television than to see him released, but I think if he can stay out of trouble he could be a valuable guy to have around.

 

[THTRobtaylor]

It all comes down to WHY he has been away so long and what he now does in the ring.

To be honest I think we might have a Brian Pillman type situation here, where what he is known for in terms of flying etc is now off the table. If Bourne has been working to "re-learn" or change his style then we might not see him ever return as he was, perhaps more repackaged. Bourne as a mat technician for example doesn't work unless they got he whole "2 years re-learning to walk, wrestle etc" which is hokey, but if they tweak his gimmick/name etc he could easily make something work for himself.

You then have the issue that they have guys like Adrian Neville and Zayn close to taking his "spot" on the roster as a flyer. As a flyer Evan has something to offer in getting those two over, but only in the early stages of their push.

That they have stuck with him on the roster this long to me says he will be back, the Mania battle Royal is perhaps his return, as he'll get a nice pop as a Surprise entrant and they can evaluate him against a couple of different talents in the same match.

 

[TempestH]

I think Evan Bourne's ship has long since sailed in WWE. Just when he was finally getting a push and doing something with some level of relevance, he fails a drug test. Shortly thereafter, he winds up failing another drug test. He failed the Wellness Policy twice in a three month period and was in a car accident in March 2012 that resulted in his foot being broken in four places and dislocated in another five. Bourne hasn't been seen on WWE television in well over 2 years and, if I'm not mistaken, the last match he worked was in NXT in late March of last year.

I don't see WWE giving him another opportunity. After all, flunking two drug tests in a three month period isn't going to earn the trust of management. Also, frankly, Bourne doesn't bring anything to the table that Sami Zayn and/or Adrian Neville can't bring, plus a lot more. I'd either bury him or just release him altogether. Fans have moved on in the well over two years since Bourne's been out of commission and so has the roster.

While it's true that Sami Zayn and Adrian Neville have more potential, that's exactly the reason why I'd keep Bourne around. Bourne is a great seller and would at the very least make a good enhancement talent. He can relieve better talents like Zayn and Neville of jobbing duties so that they can get bigger pushes.

The least they can do is put Bourne in a tag team with another underused star such as Justin Gabriel or Tyson Kidd.