This is the first time in 2005 that I will be evaluating the WWE roster. The last time I did one of these was in October 2004. I wasn't able to do one in March as I had hoped due to just being busy in my life. I've found some time now and wanted to get this done before the draft lottery shook things up in June. I said last year it would be an October and April thing for me to do. Now I'll try to make it June and December. Those months are generally slow for WWE, so it's certainly manageable for me.
The Grading System
I tried to look at each wrestler's workrate, mic work, charisma, drawing power and importance to the company as a way to grade them. For the people like the valets, managers or announcers I will just give them a grade based on the role that they play. I won’t be covering tag teams. I’ll just deal with the individuals when their names come up.
For a better explanation of my criteria, here's a look at the grading system.
A+ = Workrate, mic work, ring psychology, charisma are exceptional. The closest thing to a perfect wrestler.
A = Excels in all of the key areas that I explained above.
B, B+, A- = High midcard wrestler who needs a little work in some areas in order to improve.
C, C+, B- = Midcarder who has not reached his potential or a wrestler who is unable to improve on some areas due to their size and/or natural talent.
D+, C- = Nearly unwatchable.
D or lower = I would rather watch paint dry.
F = So bad that I’d rather watch Mae Young give me a lap dance.
Simple enough, right? This list of talent that I’ll be evaluating comes from the WWE.com Superstars list. It is current as of May 23, 2005. I will talk about everybody from the wrestlers to divas to announcers and whoever else is listed on the site. I used to break up the active wrestlers from the announcers, divas and general managers, but now I'm just going to go in the order they are listed. Some write-ups will be long while others will be short. Depends on the individual, obviously. The grading will be based on their current activity with the company. When judging talent I’ll factor in their activity over the last six months or so in order to gauge how valuable or invaluable they are to the company.
The section called Outlook will offer my opinion on the individual and where I think he or she can go in the future, both immediate and long term. It will be a prediction more than anything. I'll be posting the October 2004 Outlook as the first thing in each person's analysis. There will also be something at the bottom of each person's evaluation stating their previous grade (PG:) as well as their ranking on their roster at the time. If the person wasn't on the roster at the time or they were hurt then it will just say "NR" meaning No Ranking.
Before I get people complaining to me about any of my comments, please remember that I respect every person involved in wrestling. It’s a tough, demanding business that requires these performers to sacrifice many other things in their lives. While it may seem like I'm "bashing" somebody, it’s nothing personal. It’s just their work on WWE television.
Here’s the list coming at you in alphabetical order, as seen on Raw’s WWE.com page. Kudos to WWE, their superstar page is better than it has been in the past. That's for sure.
These are the active Raw superstars. They include both males and females.
ANTONIO
Then: Was not on the roster.
This is one of those people that is hard to write about because to this point I’ve only seen a little of him, as well as his partner Romeo of the Heart Throbs. Their gimmicks are those of metrosexuals, men consumed by their own beauty but still attracted to the opposite sex, as Coach tried to point out constantly during their debut. As workers, they still got a ways to go, but I think the gimmick can get over with the right kind of push. Even though I’ll give him a grade, he falls into that “wait and see” category.
Grade: C, PG: NR
Outlook: Working as a tag team with Romeo as they hopefully become one of WWE’s better tag teams because the division needs some help right now.
BATISTA
Then: I don't see his role changing much. Maybe they'll try pushing him harder after WrestleMania, but until then I see him as a support player.
Ha. Funny, eh? Remember, this was in October. Back then, we had Randy Orton as the top babyface with Batista still a crony of HHH. Soon after, WWE determined the Orton face run to be a failure, so they shot the angle with HHH turning on Batista by disrespecting him at every turn. I’m still amazed that their backup plan turned out so well. That’s not to say Batista is the best babyface on the roster or some amazing worker. It just means he has worked in his role. He has done well as his role has been increased. He’s proof that there are stars out there that may not stand out right away. Sometimes they need to be groomed in the midcard for a few years before they can explode. There is no better example of that than Batista.
What I like a lot about Batista is his presence on camera. He is excellent in those backstage segments when he is allowed to show his sense of humor when facing off with heels like Eric Bischoff. For the most part, his in ring promos have been pretty good. There has been a few occasions where he has seemed uncomfortable or forced in the role of babyface leader, but all in all I think it’s fair to say he’s been above average. In ring, he’s never going to be great, I’m sorry to say. He’s not bad, though. He can have good matches every once in a while with the right opponents. The good thing about Batista being a 39 (or 36, depending on what you believe) year old in his position is that he’s a mature guy who isn’t prone to making the mistakes that a 23 year old wrestler would in the same situation. I don’t know that we’ll be seeing Batista as a wrestler in five years time, for the next couple of years in WWE land he should have a solid role as a top tier guy in WWE. He’s not a great big man in the Lesnar mold, but he’s still good.
Grade: B+, PG: C+ (#15 on Raw)
Outlook: I think he’ll hold the World Title through the summer, then settle in at the top of the Raw roster after that. I don’t know if he’ll get a second title reign or who he will lose the title to (Edge or HHH seems like a good bet), but he’s done a great job at solidifying his role on the roster. I see that continuing.
CANDICE MICHELLE
Then: Was not on the roster.
A limited performer in many ways, she is still gorgeous. I think she’s awesome to look at. No doubt about that. After that, I don’t know what to say. She seems nervous when she gets a chance a talk. She’s eye candy, basically. Nothing more. Nothing less.
Grade: C-, PG: NR
Outlook: Since I don’t see her developing into a wrestler and WWE seems to be against using females as valets, she’ll continue to just be eye candy on the show.
CHRIS BENOIT
Then: As much as I'd love another title run for Benoit between now and WMXXI, I don't see it happening. Still, he's too good and too over to simply fade into the background, so I'd look for him to stay near the top of the card for a long time.
Since the last evaluation, Benoit has contributed to the Raw upper midcard by working with just about every worker on the roster. As usual, he has made all of them look great when they’ve been against him and has done it professionally, as you’d expect. The complaint I have is that since he’s lost the title, he has yet to have a great feud without being champion. The Edge feud was alright, although nobody ever believed Benoit was going to win that, so it lacked the little extra it needed to be special. I hope that he gets to have a great feud with somebody at some point in the near future as long as he’s not going to be the champion. Not like I’d complain if he were to be champion. I just don’t see it happening anytime soon. Benoit, today, is much like he’s been since he first came to WWE five years ago. Right at the top of the list in terms of people that have the best matches. I don’t see him slowing down. Even though he’s nearly forty, he shows no signs of slowing down. What will we do when Benoit has to move on? I don’t even want to think about it.
Grade: A-, PG: A (#1 on Raw)
Outlook: I think his role will largely be unchanged. He’s very good as the veteran babyface worker who the fans are into because of all he’s done in his tremendous career. I would love another title run. Do I think it’s happening? No.
CHRIS JERICHO
Then: I think his feud with Edge will last quite a while, or at least it should. They’re good friends away from the ring and have probably come up with their own angle to work over the course of the next few months. I don’t see Jericho as a main eventer until after WM21 although I’d love to see him at that level at any time since I feel he deserves it as much as anybody.
The Edge feud didn’t really pan out in terms of being anything memorable. Sure, they wrestled a number of times over the course of the year, but they never had the chance to really be something special in there. As for his push, it’s in the same place it has been for a number of years now. Sure, Jericho can sniff title shots every once in a while, but he’s rarely going over people in matches. He’s been losing to people like Edge and Shelton Benjamin plenty over the last eight months or so. That’s what happens when you’re a veteran. It’s a part of the business. Thing is, I’m always going to think that Jericho as a top guy could work. It didn’t work as well in 2002 largely because of what was going on around him. Since he’s yet to crack through that glass in three years it seems like he took the fall for that, which is wrong. The good news is it appears as though Jericho is working on a heel turn. I think he’s much better as a heel, both in promos and his work in the ring. He’s good as a face. It’s just that he’s great as a heel. More natural in that role. The best thing for Jericho? A move to Smackdown, a heel turn and a feud with John Cena that would give us some of the best promos on WWE television in a long time. I doubt it happens. I just wish it would. Jericho’s grade reflects more on where he is on the show rather than what his talents are because he is still one of WWE’s best overall performers.
Grade: B+, PG: A- (#2 on Raw)
Outlook: I would love to be optimistic, saying that I think Jericho will be in the world title scene in a few months. I can’t do it, though. There’s no reason to think that Jericho will be used more than he is now. I hope I’m wrong. Please let me be wrong!
CHRIS MASTERS
Then: Was not on the roster.
Not a huge fan of the gimmick, as you’d know if you’ve read my Raw recaps as of late. I think it’s too 90s. It doesn’t work in 2005. So he’s got big muscles. Great. There are a number of people on both rosters that have big muscles the same way this guy does. The gimmick has been going for three months and has there been any progress? No. Just the stupid Masterlock Challenge that leads me to changing the channel every single time it comes on. Masters seems to be pretty good on the microphone, though. He’s still in his early 20s so there’s plenty of time for him to ditch the goofy gimmick and see what he can do with a more realistic act. It’s hard to evaluate three months of squash matches, but I see potential in him.
Grade: C, PG: NR
Outlook: I think the gimmick will be altered a bit, so he can stop doing the lame Masterlock Challenge. They’ll probably feed him some of the veteran Raw babyfaces, like Benoit, in order to help him get better as a performer.
CHRISTIAN
Then: I don’t know if he’ll ever get higher than where he’s at now. I also don’t think he has a problem with that. He’s smart enough to know that he can have a good career as an upper midcard guy and I see him staying at that spot. Plus, as long as HHH is a heel it’s not like anybody else can move up a whole lot.
I think my boy Christian is arguably the most popular WWE performer among internet wrestling fans. His support group seems to grow by the day. I’ve been on the bandwagon since it was a unicycle, so it has been a welcome sight to see this guy improved. Since the last evaluation, Christian has added some things to his act that have improved his status. He’s got a good entrance, he’s throwing the name Captain Charisma out there a lot, Peep signs are showing up everywhere and his catchphrase, “’Cause That’s How I Roll!” is growing in popularity. He’s still a solid in ring performer and an above average promo guy who is probably the funniest person on the roster. Where he goes from here is tough to say. On one hand, I could see him continuing his role as a midcard heel for another five years or so and being content with that. Like I said, there’s nothing wrong with being a support player. However, there are rumors of him moving to Smackdown, feuding with Cena and getting the strongest push of his career. Is he a future world champion? I don’t think so. Still, he’s at the very top of the midcard chain and should he move to Smackdown, it’s possible that he could main event a PPV there. That’s progress. It’s been great to watch and I’m looking forward to seeing where the Captain can go from here.
Grade: B+, PG: B+ (#6 on Raw)
Outlook: A move to Smackdown would really do him well. I see a mini-feud with Cena happening if he goes there. If he stays on Raw, he’ll do pretty much what he’s doing now, which is fine by me because he’s damn good at it.
CHRISTY HEMME
Then: She's already pretty decent, so I expect her to grow into her role as a Raw babyface diva. She's a good choice too.
She hasn’t grown that much. They tried her out as a wrestler for WrestleMania. Didn’t work that well. Fans are into her. It’s just that it’s hard to give her a role on the show that’s more than “standing around looking pretty” ya know? I always say women managers are good. Why not pair her up with a babyface wrestler? Better than doing nothing.
Grade: C+, PG: B-
Outlook: Doing what she does now: Bouncing and smiling. Nice gig if you can get it, I must say.
DAIVARI
Then: Was not on the roster.
One of the best things about the Hassan/Daivari pairing is that they found themselves with a potentially great heel manager in this act. Then they realized, “hey, maybe he can wrestle” and he would have better matches than Hassan. Of course Daivari is a trained wrestler, but since he is a small man in stature, WWE thought it would be wise to make him a manager. That’s fine. They need more managers. I wouldn’t mind seeing Daivari teaming with Hassan as a regular tag team although there really is no strong face tag team at this time, so that’s probably not going to happen. Whatever his role is, Daivari does it well. For such a young guy, he’s really good at drawing the ire of the crowd. That’s going to make him successful in the business for years to come.
Grade: B-, PG: NR
Outlook: I think he’ll continue to be paired with Hassan, although I wouldn’t be shocked to see him in the ring regularly.
EDGE
Then: Hopefully he’ll be sans injury for a while so that he can make his mark on the show. Also, let him be a heel, pair him up with Christian again and watch his performances be consistently awesome.
Injury free since September? Yep, pretty much. Pair him up with Christian? Not really, although they have been on the same side a few time since then. Obviously Edge is better as a bad guy. He knows it, the fans know it and I’m glad that WWE now knows it. His face act was very forced. The focus on him now is everything that happened recently involving Matt Hardy’s firing over Edge’s real life (and now storyline) relationship with Lita. If you look past all that, you’ll see that Edge has grown as a performer very much over the past couple of years. He’s dumped the comedy from his act, going for more of a sick, disgusting heel act that he seems to be comfortable with. He has also been the beneficiary of one of the strongest pushes on either roster, going over virtually every Raw wrestler except for HHH and Batista. He’s right near the top now. If he were given the world title tomorrow it would be believable because of the build he has had. He deserves it too. Now in his early 30s, Edge is peaking as a performer and has shown that he has learned what works and what doesn’t work for him in the ring. I wish he would dump the Spear as a finish and instead use the Impaler DDT, but I don’t see that happening soon. Can’t have it all, huh? Edge is no longer the guy that got carried by all of those great guys. He's good on his own and getting better all the time. It's been fun to see.
Grade: A-, PG: B (#9 on Raw)
Outlook: A Kane feud seems likely. After that, I see him as a world champion by the end of the year. Wouldn’t be shocked if it was at Summerslam, but they could wait a bit to do it later in the year.
ERIC BISCHOFF
Then: He'll continue to do what he's done for the past two years as the heel GM of Raw.
His role hasn’t changed a whole lot. They added a harder edge to him as he stood up to heels regularly for a while, but is still pretty much a heel. He’s good in the role, as he has been for three years now. As I said in the last evaluation, it’s almost been a decade for him in this role if you count his WCW days. He’s perfected it. That’s for sure.
Grade: B, PG: B
Outlook: I think his role will be unchanged. Still the GM who favors the bad guys over the good guys.
EUGENE
Then: I think Eugene’s going to be a name of the past, much like Zach Gowen, in the near future. I think Nick Dinsmore has an awesome future ahead of him in a different gimmick, but I don’t see Eugene lasting another six months.
Technically I was right because he got hurt in January, but obviously he's not out of the picture as I thought. Since the last evaluation, his role decreased from being in a high profile feud with HHH to winning the tag titles with William Regal. Then they won the tag belts, which was a good role for him, only to see him tear his ACL at New Year’s Revolution and he’s been absent since, save for his role at WrestleMania. He’ll get no ranking due to being inactive for so long. He’d be around the C range, I’m guessing. Good for what he does, but it’s still a limited gimmick.
Grade: NR, PG: C+ (#13 on Raw)
Outlook: He’ll have some freshness to him when he gets back, but I see him settling into the tag division again. It’s a good fit for him.
GENE SNITSKY
Then: No idea. My guess is he doesn't last a long time since this "baby killer" gimmick can only go so far. Then again, I think about his eyes. They are evil! Evil, I say!
Ah, the eyes comment. That was back in the day when JR and King would try to get over his meanness by commenting on his names. They even used to say he was evil because his name sounds evil. Bad gimmicks. You have to love them. This is a bad gimmick. Is it even a gimmick anymore? His longevity is wearing thin. Don’t be shocked to see Snitsky disappear for good in the future. The fact that he has lasted thing long has surprised me, to be honest.
Grade: F, PG: C- (#25 on Raw)
Outlook: I don’t see him lasting much longer on the main roster. He’s a limited performer in many areas.
IVORY
Then: She'll continue to do whatever it is that she does.
She’s not technically ON Raw, is she? She hosts that Sunday morning WWE show that I don’t watch. She’s not on Raw, yet she’s still on the Raw roster. Weird. No rating for her because she’s not a part of the Raw show enough.
Grade: NR, PG: C
JERRY LAWLER
Then: The color analyst on Raw that fails to add much in the way of color or analyzing.
I was probably too hard on Lawler last time. There was a time, I’d say about a year and half or two years, where I just found him to really be annoying. I know there are some who have always found him annoying. Not me. I used to like him a lot when he first started and found him to be pretty damn great during WWE’s peak years in the late ‘90s. Then he got into a lull, left for almost a year and came back rusty. Now he’s back at that high level again. Maybe not as funny as he was a decade ago, but he’s still fun to listen to for two hours every Monday.
Grade: B, PG: C+
Outlook: Still the color commentator on Raw. There’s no reason to change up a good thing.
JIM ROSS
Then: Same as it is now. JR is the voice of WWE.
Still the best play by play man in the business. He’s the voice that fans recognize when they think about WWE. He’s a legend at what he does. The previous generation had Gordon Solie. This generation has Jim Ross. He’s on that level and shows no signs of slowing down. Just please, don’t put him in any more matches, alright?
Grade: B+, PG: B+
Outlook: His role remains unchanged. Still the voice of WWE.
JONATHAN COACHMAN
Then: I don't see him changing roles anytime soon.
His act is fun. He’s the cocky, heel suckup guy who everybody wants to beat up. If you listen to him talk, you wonder why he’s so cocky. It’s annoying, but in a good way. He has grown a lot as an announcer over the years, finding his niche now. He’s good at what he does.
Grade: B-, PG: C+
Outlook: Doing the same that he does now. No need to change.
KANE
Then: I think WWE will try the face run for Kane even though in the long run they’ll realize it was the wrong move. He is much better as a despised character rather than a sympathetic one.
I like Kane generally, but I HATE babyface Kane. Why should we give a crap about this guy? What’s worse is when Jim Ross shows sympathy for him. It’s like, “oh, he only tried to burn me to death but I can forgive him because I’m the stupid babyface announcer.” No. It’s stupid. Turning him face was a bad idea. Now that he gets to play the Matt Hardy role in the Edge/Lita angle, it seems like his face run is going to continue for a while. In 2003 and 2004 he grew as a character in ways that I didn’t think were possible. He became one of the top actors in the company, without a doubt. This year he’s been lame for the most part, treading the waters as a sympathetic character that has me scratching my head on a regular basis. Still a solid contributor to the show, though. That doesn’t change. I just wish he was always the bad guy. He’s too good as the bad guy.
Grade: B, PG: B+ (#8 on RAW)
Outlook: A feud with Edge seems likely, with him being on the losing end of it. I don’t see him as a title holder again. He’ll just stick around as an upper level wrestler as he has been for most of his career.
LILIAN GARCIA
Then: Ring announcing? Yeah, I think so.
I guess we can add “Viscera’s girlfriend” to her resume, huh? I think the angle sucks, but it’s good for a laugh every once in a while. Garcia's good at her role most of the time.
Grade: C+, PG: B-
Outlook: Still ring announcing. What a reach, right? I know.
LITA
Then: A run with the Women’s championship would make sense as we head into 2005.
She did have a run with the women’s belt. If you’ll recall, they even had her title win off of Trish as the main event of Raw the week it happened. That was a sign of WWE having strong faith in those two to have a good match and they delivered. It was memorable for Lita’s dive to the floor that saw her land square on her neck in a painful looking bump. I’m hurt just thinking about it again! In January, at New Year’s Revolution, she tore her ACL in her knee against Trish, lost the belt and then returned soon after to manage Kane, then turn on him with Edge. This is her first real run as a heel in WWE (a brief relationship with Essa Rios five years ago doesn’t count as a “real run” for me), so it should be interesting to see how she does. To her credit, I think she’s improved as an actress in recent months and I have to say I don’t miss her in the ring. She’s an effective valet, especially when you consider there aren’t many heel valets, which is a role WWE needs to bring back en masse.
Grade: B-, PG: C+
Outlook: I see the alliance with Edge lasting a while. It’s going to be fun to watch her in a different role because her face act was getting boring. She could thrive as a heel.
MARIA
Then: Was not on the roster.
She’s Greek, so that scores her some points with me. Other than that, though, I don’t know much else to like about her. I think she’s cute too. As an announcer, she flubbed her lines enough times that WWE has now made it her gimmick to screw up her lines. At least they’re having fun with it. She seems nervous as hell on camera too. Hopefully she grows out of that and embraces her role because it could be fun once she got more used to it. At least she has a role, which is more than what you can say for Christy and Candice.
Grade: D+, PG: NR
Outlook: The ditzy backstage announcer girl seems like a role she’ll have for a while.
MAVEN
Then: While I hope he gets a chance to do something, I have no reason to believe that he will. Thus, he’ll toil where he is now.
I guess he has moved on, technically. He’s gone from babyface with no direction to heel with no direction. No, wait, he’s Simon Dean’s sidekick. What a role. This guy won WWE’s first Tough Enough competition four years ago? So what do they do with him all this time? Nothing. Absolutely nothing. When it seemed like he was getting pushed in the IC title division, he jobbed out to Shelton Benjamin in two minute matches regularly. They obviously have little faith in him, which is sad. He seems like he could be a pretty good performer. He’d be solid in a heel tag team, but one that’s not a joke like he and Simon are. Just seems like WWE has no interest in really getting behind this guy for whatever reason.
Grade: C, PG: C (#20 on Raw)
Outlook: It’s going to be hard to see him getting out of his role as lower card heel jobber, so he’s probably staying in that role.
MUHAMMAD HASSAN
Then: Was not on the roster.
There's a lot to like about Hassan. He's very strong on the microphone and has a really good sense of presence when he's in the ring. He's still green in the ring, though. He has a ways to go in that area. He wrestlers a very basic style, has matches that are just okay at best and generally comes across as passable in the ring. Nothing in his moveset makes you get excited about him. With that said, he's far from bad. Obviously WWE has high hopes for him since he has yet to be pinned on Raw (he has lost via DQ and Daivari got pinned on PPV) and they had him "beat" Batista via DQ on Raw this past week. He's a good talent with tremendous potential, but I don't think he's hit his groove yet. In a year's time he could be really good or decidedly average still. I think he's going to be big. Just going to take some time.
Grade: B-, PG: NR
Outlook: I think a run with the Intercontinental Title is likely at some point this year. I'm hoping he gets a long feud with somebody because he needs something like that to really make a bigger impact on the show.
RANDY ORTON
Then: I think he’ll be back as a heel after WrestleMania XXI because he’s better off in that role. I also think he’s got many more titles in his future.
The heel turn happened just before WrestleMania as the cocky Orton returned to challenge Undertaker. Sadly, he wasn't able to capitalize on it because he suffered the second shoulder injury of his career and is now out at least four months, due back at some point in August at the earliest. Since the last evaluation written in October, Orton flopped as a babyface not because he was bad in the role, but because WWE force fed him down our throats. The face turn of Orton wasn’t one that fans really were clamoring for. It was a forced one that came out of nowhere and the result was a flat babyface run that hurt his status on the roster. Before WM, though, he made the heel turn and it worked well. The fans took to him as the bad guy very well again and it seemed like everything was right in Randy’s world again, until he got hurt.
As a performer, Orton is definitely rounding into shape as a guy who WWE will be relying on in main events for the next decade. He has great presence on the microphone, drawing the ire of the crowd pretty easily and allowing his cocky demeanor to translate onto the screen. In the ring, he seems like he has the potential to be great. He’s already good at this point at age 25, so I can only wonder where he’ll be in the next four or five years. He’s been able to work with legends like HHH, Michaels and Benoit plenty, obviously picking up some traits from those guys along the way. I think Orton’s going to be huge when he gets back, but please WWE, keep him a heel. Always. He’s a lot better in that role. If he wasn’t hurt again he’d be an A-, but since he is out and unable to grow as a performer for these few months he’ll remain a B+ as he was previously.
Grade: B+, PG: B+ (#5 on RAW)
Outlook: I think once he comes back around August or September his first target will be Batista based on his promos. There’s some history there, so it could be a good feud. If he moves to Smackdown, I’d love to see Orton vs. Cena. I don’t know if he’ll be world champion in 2005, but I could see him getting to that level in 2006 for sure.
RIC FLAIR
Then: I think he really comes close to having a retirement match. Could be at WrestleMania XXI. Wouldn’t be shocked to see his real life dispute with Mick Foley turn into a WWE angle too.
I was wrong at both counts. There is no indication that Flair is going to really retire for good. I admit to being foolish with that comment because after all this is professional wrestling. Does anybody ever really retire? The Foley thing never happened. Flair didn’t wrestle at WM and Foley never showed up for it. What a shame. Flair’s role now as HHH’s buddy remains unchanged although I wouldn’t be shocked to see Flair go babyface by the summer and feud with HHH. Even though he’s pushing sixty I think WWE has faith in him to pull off a big feud with Trips. And why shouldn’t they? He’s Ric Flair! The fans had a chance to cheer him for about three weeks against the likes of Tomko and Christian and it seemed to me like it would work. He knows his role and he plays it well. Still a good fit on the Raw roster even though he is wrestling less as the weeks pass.
Grade: B, PG: B (#10 on Raw)
Outlook: I think by the end of summer/early fall he’ll be feuding with HHH with Flair as the veteran babyface. Retirement? No. I’m not predicting that again.
ROB CONWAY
Then: Since they’re Raw’s only real tag team, I see La Resistance sticking together for another six months at least.
This gimmick was old and tired in October. It still is today. Thank God it looks to be over. I think it’s likely that either he or Grenier will be moved and I sure hope that Conway is given the opportunity to shine as a singles star. The “French sympathizer” thing is so lame. I’m looking forward to this guy getting a new look and hopefully being a singles star. Let him talk, give him some time in the ring and go from there. He’s got tremendous potential. It’s just about getting opportunity.
Grade: C+, PG: C+ (#14 on Raw)
Outlook: I think he’ll wrestle in singles, but won’t go anywhere for a while. He’ll be stuck in that midcard level where nobody ever moves up a whole heck of a lot.
ROMEO
Then: Was not on the roster.
I’ll be honest with you. If it weren’t for WWE.com’s roster page I’d have no idea which one of these guys was Antonio and which one was Romeo. All I know about Romeo is he’s got brown hair. Like I said with Antonio, it seems like the gimmick could get over. It’s certainly different from the norm, so it’ll allow them to stand out more than most wrestlers/teams. Still green at this point, obviously. Six months from now could be big or could be a flop. We’ll see.
Grade: C, PG: NR
Outlook: Since there are so few teams, it’s conceivable to think that they’ll win the tag titles at some point. Whether they are good or not is another question.
ROSEY
Then: Stuck in a tag team somewhere or released. Pick one.
Stuck in a tag team it is. I think WWE putting the tag titles on him and Hurricane was done mostly because they have no other options as far as babyface teams go. They’re not a great team. They’re just okay. They never get promo time and they have yet to be involved in a deep storyline in the past, what, two years? Rosey does his role well, but that doesn’t make him a great performer or anything. He’s still one of the weaker performers on either show that is limited in many ways.
Grade: C-, PG: D (#26 on Raw)
Outlook: Tag title run probably continues as they feud with the Heart Throbs and whatever else WWE tries to throw at them as they attempt to make the tag division into something serious.
SHAWN MICHAELS
Then: I think his role will be similar to what it is now. He'll be close enough to the top of the card that he won't be main eventing PPVs regularly, but he can always be pushed up there when they need him.
There are few people on either roster who you could say enjoy being in the ring more than HBK these days. You can see it on his face. He loves performing still after all these years, especially because he’s had a new lease on his career over the past three years. The amazing thing is, injuries aside, he’s not slowing down a whole lot. He missed a few months with a knee injury to close out 2004, but came back this year at the Royal Rumble with a strong feud with Edge. Now he’s on the shelf again with another knee injury although as of this writing we have no idea how long he might be out. If you look at what he’s done this year I think it’s fair to call him the best performer on the Raw roster these days.
His feud with Edge produced not just one good match at the Royal Rumble, but an even better one on Raw a few weeks later as they had a very good street fight. He’s also wrestled in some great tag matches in recent months, most memorably a tag match with Randy Orton against Edge and Christian on Raw that was very good in many ways. He lived up to his own Mr. WrestleMania moniker by having a classic with Kurt Angle that is my match of the year. Couple weeks later, he had one of the best TV matches I can ever remember against Shelton Benjamin, giving the youngster all he had before finishing him off in a match that saw a number of nearfalls. Michaels is perfect as the veteran babyface who the fans love and respect because of all that he’s done over the course of his career. The other thing Michaels has done plenty since he’s been back is he’s put people over quite a bit. Sure, his haters will point out that he got his win back on Edge for example, but he’s also put a guy like Daivari over on Raw in a three minute match through some heel tactics. The immature Michaels of 1997 is long gone, replaced by a man that is professional and a part of the WWE team that is, in my opinion, the best on the Raw roster these days. If he moves to Smackdown as has been rumored, I think he’d do the same thing over there.
Grade: A, PG: A- (#3 on Raw)
Outlook: I would love to see him get another run with the World Title, but I don’t see it. I think he’s content with his role and he should be. Barring any major injury, I see him continuing to perform at a high level, making all of those around him better just as he has his whole career.
SHELTON BENJAMIN
Then: I think he'll capture the IC title this year, then possibly move up a notch on the card about a year from now.
Pretty good call, huh? He’s held the belt since Taboo Tuesday in October, one of the longest IC title reigns I can ever remember. At some point in the near future he’s going to give the belt up and move on to bigger things I hope. I wouldn’t mind seeing him with the IC title for like a year, though. Make it a really long reign. It’s not like you have to take the belt off of him for him to move up the roster. Just keep it on him, make the belt seem that much better because of how much he cherishes it and then move up him the card based on that. Sometimes I think about what wrestling will be like in five years when the top in ring performers like Michaels, Benoit and Angle, to name a few, will probably be done in terms of their in-ring careers. I wonder who will carry the mantle of being the top worker. Somebody always does. To me, Benjamin is the safest bet. He has all the tools. Physically, he’s as gifted as anybody and mentally he sure seems like a guy who has the passion for the business and the willingness to improve any way that he can. His promos are just okay at this point. Not great, but not bad either. He’s not going to get over based on those anyway. He’ll get over because of what he does in the ring and he IS getting over because of that. The only thing he has lacked to this point is that one breakout feud. That one opponent for him to feud with for three months, wrestle a number of times and ultimately overcome in a gimmicked match on PPV. I hope it’s a heel Chris Jericho because that could be a lot of fun. I think Benjamin’s right there with Cena and Orton in terms of guys who will be WWE’s biggest stars in the next few years. In the ring, he’s better than both at this point. He just needs that feud to propel him to the higher level.
Grade: A-, PG: B+ (#7 on Raw)
Outlook: My hope is that he’s in one of the main events at WrestleMania 22, but that’s a tough spot to have. I think he’ll be close to the main event by the end of this year and come 2006, probably later in the year, I think we’ll see him become a World Champion.
SIMON DEAN
Then: Was not on the roster.
To paraphrase the great Bart Simpson, I can’t decide if this gimmick sucks or blows. I think it’s both, personally. It’s amazing how somebody in WWE got paid money to think that a gimmick where a guy called people fat and tried to sell milkshakes to people would get over. Who knows, maybe they know it’s a bad gimmick or a joke and they decided to laugh at it the way we did. What I don’t get is that a guy like this, ECW’s former Nova, was a pretty decent in ring performer. Now what? Now he’s laughed at, never taken seriously and has about as much credibility as Jim Ross in the ring. I guess every show needs a few jobbers and that’s his role on Raw. This gimmick seems like something out of the mid ‘90’s when WWE was throwing lame gimmicks out there all the time. In fact, it is a gimmick from that time since it’s like the Bodydonnas. Didn’t work then. Doesn’t work now. You’d think somebody would realize this. But no, the “evil infomercial guy” continues. Lame.
Grade: D, PG: NR
Outlook: I see no change. Still a bad gimmick, still a guy that loses all the time and still one of the worst characters WWE has trudged out there in the last five years.
STACY KEIBLER
Then: As long as she has those legs she's not going anywhere. Great outlook, huh?
I like Keibler. I used to think she was a limited performer, but I’ve taken note of her lately and she’s really come across as somebody who likes the business. She’s not just in wrestling because she won a Nitro Girl contest five years ago, ya know? She likes it. She tries her hardest to get better and I think it has shown. Sure, her gimmick is limited as a dull babyface who was too dumb to realize Orton was going to hit her with an RKO, but I’m hoping she can change. I think she’d make a great heel valet for a wrestler. Putting her with Hurricane and Rosey will get a rise out of the crowd (literally), so it’s a good move to help an ailing tag division. I don’t think she’ll ever work that well as a wrestler, nor should she. She’s perfectly fine in her role as a valet. I just hope she does something different soon because while “bending through the ropes for a cheap pop” is still a nice visual, I think as a performer she deserves more of a challenging role.
Grade: B, PG: B-
Outlook: I think she remains a babyface valet for a while. The heel side of women seems full at this point, so it would make sense for her to remain on the face side for a little while longer.
STEVEN RICHARDS
Then: I can't see him changing what he's doing now. He'll be the "Heat guy" for a while. Cutting and pasting rules!
Still the Heat guy. Nothing more. Nothing less. That was easy! (That was the same write-up I did in October '04 and I'm keeping it now.) He’s not a bad performer. There’s just very little chance of him being moved up the roster at all. I don’t see it happening ever.
Grade: C-, PG: C (#23 on Raw)
Outlook: Since Heat is likely coming to a close due to the new deal with USA network, I guess his role decreases by becoming a dark match jobber. Ouch.
SYLVAIN GRENIER
Then: Stuck in a tag team, which is probably where he belongs because he's not ready to venture out on his own.
I don’t see much in Grenier. I’ve tried to notice the guy, tried to see if he could be something great on his own, but he screams “indy wrestler” to me. All he does are the basics. There’s nothing about him that makes me think he could be some huge singles star. Sure, he’s a young guy still in his 20s, but there are other guys on the WWE roster (like Rene Dupree) who you think might be something big one day. Grenier doesn’t make me think that way. With La Rez likely being done in the very near future, I think this guy’s future is grim.
Grade: C-, PG: C (#22 on Raw)
Outlook: Either they put him in some other tag team or he becomes a heel jobber to the stars.
TAJIRI
Then: I don't see much of a singles career for him on Raw. He's probably destined to be tagging with somebody somewhere on the card.
I was right about the tagging thing since he’s been paired up with Regal since the new year, as well as Rhyno before that. I remember when I got feedback for my October evaluation and had people telling me I put Tajiri too high. My reaction was I put him where he belonged. He’s a very good in-ring performer. Have you ever known Tajiri to look bad in a match? To screw up a spot? To look like he didn’t belong in a ring? No, I have not. Obviously due to his height he’s not going to be pushed that hard, which is a shame. He works well as either a face or heel, but probably better as a face. Fans dig the mist thing still after all these years. He’s still a support guy, though. A role player who plays his role well.
Grade: C+, PG: B- (#11 on Raw)
Outlook: I would love a singles push for him in the IC title division, but I think that’s unlikely. He’ll probably just remain a tag team wrestler.
THE HURRICANE
Then: I see him ditching the mask, but not going anywhere with his career unless they do the wise thing, which is moving him to Smackdown.
Whenever I say anything about how he should ditch the mask and be called Shane Helms, people email me saying it sells merchandise. Great. Good for the merchandise. What about the wrestler? Shouldn't he be used to his fullest. I think so. I watched WCW at the end. I was one of the few people left. I saw this guy shining as a singles star. When that ended and he came to WWE, he was never allowed to shine in that same way. For years now I’ve been clamoring for a move to Smackdown, for a chance for this guy with the other great cruisers that WWE has. But no, he’s still on Raw. He’s a part of the go nowhere tag division, the same one that didn’t even get a match at WrestleMania because of how weak it is. I talk a lot about people being underused. This guy is right at the top of that list. He enjoys his job, you can see it in his face, but I’m sure he’s wondering if he’ll ever get a chance to let loose and shine on his own without the Hurricane gimmick.
Grade: C+, PG: C (#17 on Raw)
Outlook:
TODD GRISHAM
Then: He's a backstage announcer. He'll be backstage interviewing people. Another tough one to predict, eh?
He’s fine in his role. Still seems like he was not a big wrestling fan before he worked for WWE, but he does his job fairly well. No major gripes from me.
Grade: C, PG:C
Outlook: Still working backstage on Raw as an interviewer and calling matches on Heat until that’s taken off of the air.
TRIPLE H
Then: I think he's probably holding on to the belt until WrestleMania XXI when he'll likely drop it to Randy Orton. Keep him heel. He's better there.
Just to let you know, in the April 2004 evaluation I said he would "probably face Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania 21." Then there was the Orton prediction in October. Oops. Bad predictions aside, HHH is a guy that has been performer at a very high level especially for the last year and a half. It may not be as good as what he was in 2000 (when I would have given him an A+, which is rare), but it’s very close to that. I fully admit that I didn't order Backlash because I had no interest in seeing Batista/HHH II. Their match at Mania was alright. I didn't care for a sequel, nor am I that interested in the upcoming Hell in a Cell match at Vengeance. With that said, if you go back to the last evaluation in October the thought was that he'd feud with Orton. He did, but it ended at the Rumble with a whimper. The Batista feud has been fun. Really good story there with HHH playing the insecure champion trying to fend off his good friend who he knows has the potential to beat the hell out of him. It was very fun to watch and I'm glad that they spent all those months building up to it because when Batista did finally beat HHH's ass it popped a big rating and generated plenty of interest in what was WrestleMania's main event. Batista played his role well but make no mistake that if it was against any person other than HHH he might not have gotten as over as he did. HHH made him better, just as he's done for people for years now.
My biggest gripe when it comes to HHH is that Raw never seems to be able to move on without him in the title scene. The problem is it's hard to say that somebody else deserves his spot, ya know? I think Edge is good, for example, but can he really thrive as the top heel the way HHH has? Could Edge turn a guy that was a heel for his career into the top babyface the way that HHH did for Batista? I don't think so. I also am tired of HHH doing the same interview week after week although I realize that he does it in order to get people to boo him more. It's just annoying by this point though. Where HHH rules, where HHH is great still is in the ring. He still does his job well in the ring. He's been able to go without major injury for a few years now and the quality of his work is as good as it has ever been. Where he has really opened my eyes has been with his acting. He picked it up a notch during the Batista angle, playing his part perfect the whole way. If he didn't act as insecure as he did then the angle would have been less successful. He's really grown in all areas as a performer. I don't know if he'll ever be as good as he was in 2000 due to the quality of opponents he had then and he was five years younger without a torn quad at that point, but he's really performing at high levels these days and it shows with every performance he gives. His grade goes up a notch since the last time because of what he was able to do with Batista in making him a star.
Grade: A, PG: A- (#4 on Raw)
Outlook: Where he always is. Around the World Title, either as the champion or a top contender. Wouldn't be shocked to see a feud with Flair at some point too.
TRISH STRATUS
Then: I think a big feud with Lita over the women's title is imminent. I think it ends with Lita finally capturing the belt that has eluded her for so long. Trish should still be a heel for a while since there's still more for her to do.
She’s injured now with a back injury, but she’ll be back soon. The growth of this woman as a performer has been phenomenal to see. It’s time to stop comparing her to the other women because she’s on a level above all of them. When I think of where she is now, I think of how we (by we I mean wrestling fans in general) measured some of the best men in the business. Often times fans will say, “oh he’s good as a face but can he be as good as a heel?” and it’s a fair question. If you can do both at a high level then you’re a special talent. Guys like Steve Austin, Ric Flair, Shawn Michaels, Bret Hart and The Rock among others are some of those recent special talents who could perform at that level in either role. Trish Stratus has proved over the past year as a heel that she is probably better in that role. Keep in mind that she was already a very good babyface too. Forget about being good “for a woman.” She’s good for any performer, man or woman.
I can’t remember how many times I’ll see her on Raw performing against a green performer like Christy Hemme and carrying the segment in the way that you would expect the top men in the business to perform. Remember the Raw in NYC when Lita was taking so much heat from the smart crowd chanting at her about the whole Hardy thing? Trish carried that thing, she took everything the fans had and she used it to help her angle get over some more. She had fun with it, she made some jokes and she kept her poise. Five years ago there’s no way she could have done that. Now, though, she’s more than capable of carrying any segment she’s a part of. Not only is she the undisputed best female performer in WWE right now, but she’s as good as any woman in wrestling over the past twenty years for my money. Before that, who knows? It’s hard to compare women of today to the likes of Moolah and Richter. Different era with much different roles. The only problem now is that there’s no babyface contemporary for her to be against. Until that happens, either she’ll go face again or she’ll continue to be a class above everybody else as she has been for a number of years now. Notice I wrote all that without pointing out how gorgeous she is or how attracted I am to her? That’s another example of her greatness. She’s more than looks. She’s got talent. Tons of it.
Grade: A-, PG: A-
Outlook: She could turn babyface in order to feud with Lita and Victoria or she could remain a heel and continue to shine in that role. She has the talent and the range to shine in either role.
TYSON TOMKO
Then: I see him continuing to be Christian's flunky. If they decided to break them up then Christian would probably be a babyface, but I don't know how likely that would be.
Knows his role and he plays it well. I think the greatest Tomko moment ever was during the Royal Rumble when Christian was confronting John Cena. Christian was set to do a rap so he asked Tomko to give him a beat. Tomko looked at him, simply said “no” and it made me laugh hard because on his face his expression was hilarious. He plays the straight man well. I can’t remember man matches where he has scored the pin on people. That’s fine. He’s not there to do that sort of thing. Here’s there to get his ass kicked so that Christian can run away. It works. I hope they don’t break them up during the lottery.
Grade: C, PG: C (#18 on Raw)
Outlook: Working for Christian works, so that probably means he gets to go on his own via the lottery because WWE likes to screw up a good thing.
VAL VENIS
Then: They'll do nothing with him. What else is new?
Bingo! I told ya. He’s like the babyface version of Steven Richards. I’ll never understand it. Has a good look, is a good talker and is very capable in the ring. I would love to see him in a tag team, heel or face, because he’d be perfect in that role. Even when they got him out there jobbing to Chris Masters I love seeing this guy. He works his ass off, he did his job when called upon six years back and for my money he has done nothing to cause a shunt down the card. I really liked him as Chief Morley. That ended too soon and now Coach gets to play that role for whatever reason. It’s a shame because this guy has too much talent to be misused as much as he is. I’d welcome a move to Smackdown for him because he needs a change of scenery as much as anybody. Just please don’t fire him!
Grade: C, PG: C (#19 on Raw)
Outlook: I hope he gets moved to Smackdown, but I think he stays on Raw and continues to put over the young, new heels that get brought in all the time.
VICTORIA
Then: I doubt she changes from what she's doing now. With Lita probably getting the babyface push, Vic will fade into the background a bit.
Pretty good, huh? Not only did Lita get the push before her, but so did Lita. Now Vic’s back to being a heel, which is great. Since the last write-up in October she was barely seen, stuck in the background behind Lita and Christy as they challenged Trish. Since she's now a heel she is in a role that suits her better. I always thought her babyface act was forced and that she's always been better as the evil, jealous woman. It'll be interesting to see how she does in this role once again.
Grade: C+, PG: B
Outlook: A heel run looks likely for her again. She's better in that role, so it should be fun to see.
VISCERA
Then: Was not on the roster.
I was shocked when they re-hired this guy. I wondered why re-hire a guy who was never that good to begin with. The world's largest love machine makes me laugh, I admit it. But I wonder where it's going? It's not just that he's a bad wrestler. It's that I wonder what the point is of having this guy flirt with Lillian Garcia for weeks. What's the payoff? Is he going to get some push because people laugh at this fat man humping the mat or singing songs off key while weigh three times as much as the woman he is singing to? I just don't get the point of dedicating ten minutes to this act. You have to wonder what the payoff is. In this case, whatever it is, it won't be good. Just a guess. Viscera lovers, bring the hate. I could use the laugh.
Grade: C-, PG: NR
Outlook: No idea. If he wasn't on the roster at the end of the year then I would not be saddened a whole heck of a lot.
WILLIAM REGAL
Then: I think he'll continue to be the veteran leader in the locker room that he's been for a while now.
He's another guy who knows his role is that of a midcard veteran wrestler is going to make people around him better at their jobs. Personally, I liked him a lot as the commissioner back in the day, but obviously he wants to wrestle these days and that's cool. I just hope he goes back to being an authority figure when he does decide to call it a career. I don't see him getting a singles push again, but he's fine in the tag division. When Eugene comes back, I hope they get together again because they were fun to watch together and it was a good way to use both of these two good talents.
Grade: C+, PG:C+ (#12 on Raw)
Outlook: I think his role will remain the same, I think. I don't see much change for Regal.
These are the people who have missed significant time due to injuries, personal leaves, movie roles and/or other reasons. None of these people will receive a grade. Just brief comments.
MARK HENRY – Still on the injured list, just as he always seems to be.
MICK FOLEY - Hasn't been on Raw in many months.
STEVE AUSTIN - Appeared at WrestleMania and will appear at some European house shows, but isn't scheduled to be a regular on TV anytime soon.
THE ROCK - Busy filming movies. Not active enough with the WWE. When he’s around he’s arguably the best performer on the show.
This is for every performer. Note that just because a guy like Jim Ross appears higher than most wrestlers does not mean he's a better wrestler. Just means he's better at his job than whoever is below him is at their job. In the past this list used to be broken up into men, women and then the other non-wrestlers. Now, everybody is included. In the case of multiple people being given the same grade I’ll just put them in the order that I see fit.
1. Shawn Michaels (A)
2. Triple H (A)
3. Chris Benoit (A-)
4. Shelton Benjamin (A-)
5. Trish Stratus (A-)
6. Edge (A-)
7. Batista (B+)
8. Christian (B+)
9. Chris Jericho (B+)
10. Jim Ross (B+)
11. Randy Orton (B+)
12. Eric Bischoff (B)
13. Kane (B)
14. Ric Flair (B)
15. Jerry Lawler (B)
16. Stacy Keibler (B)
17. Muhammad Hassan (B-)
18. Lita (B-)
19. Daivari (B-)
20. Jonathon Coachman (B-)
21. Tajiri (C+)
22. The Hurricane (C+)
23. William Regal (C+)
24. Victoria (C+)
25. Christy Hemme (C+)
26. Lillian Garcia (C+)
27. Rob Conway (C+)
28. Maven (C)
29. Chris Masters (C)
30. Val Venis (C)
31. Tyson Tomko (C)
32. Todd Grisham (C)
33. Antonio (C)
34. Romeo (C)
35. Viscera (C-)
36. Rosey (C-)
37. Sylvain Grenier (C-)
38. Candice (C-)
39. Steven Richards (C-)
40. Maria (D+)
41. Simon Dean (D)
42. Gene Snitsky (F)
Note: No Eugene due to injury. He'd be around 21 or 22 if he was healthy. No Ivory due to being inactive on the Raw program.
Comments: Michaels was third in October '04, second in March '04 and is now first for the first time…Triple H was fourth the two times before this one…It was very tough deciding who was first between Michaels and HHH, but I went with Michaels because his matches with Angle and Benjamin stood out more than any of HHH's recent matches…Benoit has been second, first and now third…Benjamin was seventh in March '04 and has first place overall potential…I may get some heat for where I put Trish, but I think she's earned it by consistently putting on good performances no matter who she is working with…Batista has moved up eight spots since the October '04 edition…Jericho was first in March '04, second in October '04 and has now fallen to ninth due mostly to how he has been booked. I don't think he's lost that much in the way of talent…If Randy Orton stayed healthy after WM he'd probably be fourth or fifth…I think Chris Masters will be in the top twenty in the next evaluation in December…I think everybody in the bottom eight are expendable talents.
FINAL THOUGHTS
The Raw roster is as strong as it has been in a long time. The change in the lottery will do it good, though. They could use some fresh talent. What I like about the roster a lot is they've got the right mix of established veterans (HHH, Michaels, Benoit, Jericho) at the top with some newer stars coming up the card ever so slowly like Batista, Orton, Benjamin and even Edge has some freshness to him as a singles heel wrestler. The women's division lacks depth, but thanks to Trish Stratus it appears strong at the top. The tag division is still weak, as evidenced by the majority of tag wrestlers appearing in the lower half of the list. Make no mistake about it, though, the top of the roster is as strong as it usually is. Sometimes we forget how good some of these people are. Not just good, but consistently good too.
So what did you think? Liked it? Hated it? Let me know. Don’t be afraid to email me at oratoryjohn@gmail.com, playa.
The Smackdown Evaluation will be posted as early as this coming Monday before Raw or at the latest, next Friday. I want to get it done before the lottery starts, so I'm aiming for Monday. It will be done by next week, though, I promise.
Lastly, here are some links to the previous evaluations:
Raw Roster Evaluation - 10/6/04
Smackdown Roster Evaluation - 10/14/04
Raw Roster Evaluation - 02/29/04
Smackdown Roster Evaluation - 03/22/04
Note: I did not do a News & Views this week. It will return next week on Tuesday or Wednesday. I wrote this evaluation and the Smackdown one is coming soon. Don't forget to check out my post about how we're hiring a writer at the Oratory in the Oratory Writer Search. It's a tremendous opportunity and the deadline is June 12th, so please respond to that if you are interested.
Thanks for reading.
Smell ya later,
John C. - oratoryjohn@gmail.com
