TAG TEAM WEEKLY
By Joel C. Croyle on 8/15/2007 10:35 AM
Introduction:
This week was much better in the world of tag team wrestling. Many teams really shined and even single stars that did Tag Team bouts came through. This was a much needed change as the last year for tag team wrestling has not been stellar. And so with that, I give you the run down for this week…
Cryme Tyme
Cryme Tyme had a fantastic week both on the mic and in the ring. They gave the tag team champs a real go of it even though it was a non-title bout. I expect to hear an announcement that JTG and Shad are going to get a title shot very soon. One they’ve deserved since WWE: NY Revolution. The stuff with Lillian and the 1,000 dollar chair was hilarious. A Big Thumbs Up this week.
Cade and Murdoch
Cade and Murdoch won their bout with Cryme Tyme in a non title bout via DQ. They stood toe to toe with Cryme Tyme and may have won by pin fall had it not been for that nasty chair shot. Finally these two are a team to be reckoned with once again. Slight Thumbs up…They would have gotten a full thumbs up had they beat Cryme Tyme straight up.
Kendrick and London
Unfortunately this week was not a good one for L and K. They did get a minute of face time as they stood around the ring listening to Mr. McMahon and Steph converse. This team is so much better than what they are being used for. I really wish they would be placed back on Smackdown or when their contract runs out go to TNA. For that matter, if they aren’t going to be used as a team anymore – let them go battle Hornswaggle for the soon to be defunct Cruiser Weight Championship. Thumbs Way Down.
The Highlanders
Robbie got beat by Snitsky in a matter of Seconds. Rory got nailed for his efforts. These two are in a worse position than London and Kendrick. At least those guys don’t get pummeled every single week by a singles star that is going no where himself.
WGTT
The World’s supposed greatest Tag Team wasn’t even a tag team this week. Benjamin played corner man to that of Haas. I will state this however; Haas really gave it a go with the new kid on the block Cody Rhodes. It was a very good match and now after seeing this I really do wonder if it isn’t time for WGTT to go back to the singles division. As a tag team I give them a thumbs down, as two great performers I think they deserve some props.
Deuce and Domino
This was not the best of weeks for the Smackdown world champs. They have no one chasing after their titles and that can never be a good thing. On top of that Batista destroyed Domino in their singles match and then cut Deuce into an Ace as well. These guys are really on the decline and not shining a bright star in anyway. Maybe they’ll fall from the sky all together like in the great movie Stardust…at least that had a happy ending. I don’t see one of those in the future of D and D. Thumbs Way down.
The Major Brothers
Well…again they weren’t around at all. Although I might have seen them standing around the ring at RAW this week – If they were there I didn’t notice them. They haven’t wrestled a TV match in weeks. So, with that in mind this will be the last week for the Major Brothers to be on this list of teams. If they come back and wrestle they will return to my article. I did check on the WWE.com Roster page and they are still there but I can no longer give space to a team who does nothing. Thumbs…Off the Grid.
Jesse and Festus
More Promos Plus more face time Divided by no wrestling multiplied by no fan response = this sucks and they need to change it. Thumbs Down into the bowels of the auditorium.
Sting/Abyss/Punisher
On Impact these guys didn’t wrestle but announced at the TNA PPV Hard Justice it was to be a doomsday chamber of blood match (cage with barbed wire) in an excellent promo. Then at the PPV they went on to get the win in a great match. Not only does the team get a win but Abyss gets the pin and a shot at the world title in a month. It would not surprise me that now that this feud seems to be finished that these guys as well as Cage, Styles and Tomko all go back to their singles competition from here on out. Thumbs up.
Styles/Tomko/Cage
Basically see above and do a rewash. They had good promos and a good match but lost in the end. I think Styles is absolutely the future of pro-wrestling and Cage is at the top of his game – look out singles title holders because here they come. Thumbs in the middle.
VKM
Kip teamed with Devon from 3D and won a match against Homicide and Rick Steiner. For all four of these men I give them big props for being able to seamlessly work with another partner different from their usual one and do a great match. VKM also lost at Hard Justice over the weekend and from what I understand really didn’t carry the match as a veteran team should have. I really think it is time for VKM either to retire or go back to WWE and resume their old DX gimmick. There are many cases in this world where people do best and are known and revered most when they are doing what they are remembered for. For instance, Patrick Stewart can play any part but he is never as good in the eyes of many as when he is Jean Luke Picard from the Starship Enterprise. The kid who plays Harry Potter (who isn’t a kid no more) is never going to be seen as much of anything but Harry. This is unfortunate but truth. Kip and BG need to be Billy Gunn and Road Dogg. Thumbs in the middle – moving downwards.
The Steiners
The Steiner’s hit their old moves and won a great match at the PPV. They got a clean win! Rick Steiner lost on Impact but thoroughly held his own in there. This team is fantastic and yet it may be time for them to finally wind down. It really is hard to say. Thumbs up.
LAX
Homicide won in his match on Impact. They also won at the PPV and on top of that they are about to be in a program it seems with Hector Guerrero. Anytime you can get a rub from a true legend in the business it is a plus. LAX is really coming into their own and that is the bottom line. I can’t wait to see where this team goes in the near future. Thumbs Up.
XXX
They had a fantastic match at the PPV with Lethal and Dutt and the Motorcity Machineguns. This team is arguably the best team in any tag division in any company on any roster today. Since they lost at the PPV I have to give them a thumbs in the middle
Motorcity machineguns
These are the up and comers. They have great character for their team developing. They also lost at the TNA PPV but I think great things are gonna come from this duo in the near future. Thumbs in the middle.
Team 3D
The Dudley ’s had one of their best promos in a long time at the TNA PPV on Sunday. They also lost the match to the Steiner’s. With that said, they lost the match to what some would argue would be the greatest team in tag wrestling history. Not a bad team to lay down to. Also, they confronted who they thought would be the world everything champion in one Samoa Joe. Anytime you can be in the ring with the top face in the company it’s a good thing. In my opinion, Team 3D shot thumbs up this week.
Dutt and Lethal
Simply put, they won what most might consider the best match of the entire week. This team is on the rise and might be unstoppable. Big Thumbs Up
Best Tag Team of the week award – The Steiner Brothers
In Closing
Before I close I want to mention two things. First, the Carlito/Orton vs. Umaga/Cena match from RAW this week was a fantastic tag match. It had a lot of back and fourth action and is really how a big name tag team match should be built. Neither of these teams are official teams in the WWE so I didn’t want them to be in the main section of this article but their fantastic match needed to be mentioned. It was not lost on me that three of the four people in this match had former experience in the tag team world. Orton was one half of the tag champions in Team RKO. Cena was a tag team champion with Michaels earlier this year. Umaga used to be part of the great 3 minute warning who I never thought got a real chance to shine.
Also, I must say it was absolutely great to see the APA back together in the same segment. Ron Simmons has been doing awesome stuff lately in his hardly verbal, bad-ass character and JBL always worked so well with him. I could even handle Michael Cole being in the segment because the APA were. It was just great to see and I wish they could do one more run in the WWE tag scene. The same goes for Nicolai Volkoff and the Iron Sheik on WWE – IDOL. This was quite possibly the greatest heel tag team of all time, and they never let you forget it.
To wrap up I must say this was a phenomenal week in the world of the tag teams. It was quite hard to pick a Best Tag Team of the Week award but I chose the Steiner’s because it was great to see their effective team work in the ring and a solid clean win. Lethal and Dutt as well as Cryme Tyme were a very close second in the running. I hope to see more of this in the coming weeks of programming.
I urge everyone to continue to support wrestling in what many would consider a low and trying time. Also, get out to your local independent wrestling shows. These guys are the future of this business and tag teams will never shine as bright as they once did if we don’t hold the flashlight for them to walk under.
