Over the course of the last two months, we've seen two WWE superstars turn heel, their storylines different, not quite the same, but in one instance, the wrong story is being told.
In April, R-Truth turned on his one-time tag partner, John Morrison, after losing a match to Morrison on Raw while on the spring European tour. As we know, Truth committed a faux pas by taking a cigarette from a fan and lighting up, which happens to be illegal both in England and in much of the US. Morrison is on the shelf now with a neck injury, and after Truth decisively beat Rey Mysterio at Over the Limit, he's earned a title match vs. John Cena at Capitol Punishment on June 19.
Truth (Ron Killings), has been ranting about a supposed conspiracy within the WWE, but has been careful not to completely pull out the race card. The creative team has misfired using that plot device on a couple of previous occasions, including the build toward a World title match between Triple H & Booker T at Wrestlemania 19 in 2003. However, some may look at Truth's over-the-top antics on June 6, where he was dressed as a Confederate soldier for a promo, as stopping short of using Truth as a stereotype, again skirting the issue of race as delicately as possible.
Would WWE even consider putting the title on Truth, even in the short term, knowing that their Raw main event for Wrestlemania 28 is set (Cena-Rock)? That's up in the air right now. If they were smart, they would, but then, smart is something the company Chairman/CEO, Vince McMahon, really isn't right now, as illustrated by this next item......
On May 1, Christian (Jason Reso), stepping in for his good friend, Edge (Adam Copeland), who'd been forced to vacate the World title and retire after beating Alberto Del Rio at Wrestlemania 27, defeated Del Rio himself----with a minor assist from Edge---at Extreme Rules. The PPV would be Edge's last appearance on television, and little did we know that it would also mean the start of a downward slide for Christian.
2 nights later, at a taping for the May 6 episode of Smackdown, Christian dropped the World title to Randy Orton. It later came out in the press that the plan all along was that regardless of who won at Extreme Rules, be it Del Rio or Christian, he was going to end up a transitional champion. Once Edge announced he was retiring, the creative team---and McMahon in particular---panicked, and sent Orton to Smackdown via the annual draft. McMahon just doesn't see Christian as a tentpole player, a man on whom he can build either Raw or Smackdown around. Orton & Cena are the tentpoles, the organizational golden boys, and the only ones McMahon now trusts to be the faces of his two brands. Triple H & Undertaker are now, for all intents & purposes, special attractions, in the twilight of their careers. Triple H is in the front office these days, preparing for the inevitable end of his career, but we'll likely see him back in the ring before this year is out.
Back to Christian. As we have seen on Smackdown on June 3 & 10, the "frustration" over losing the title so quickly has led him to turn heel for the first time since returning in 2009 after a 3 1/2 year sojurn in TNA. However, this was not the right time to effect this change. Not at all.
Consider. Edge & Christian were lifelong best buds who came up through the ranks together, and dominated the tag division, in concert with the Dudleys & Hardys, from 1999-2001. Edge's retirement opened the door for Christian to fulfill his dream, only to see it shattered just 48 hours later (5 days in continuity). It should not have been that way, but, as I noted before, McMahon had decided to put the World title on Orton, whether it was out of creative panic, or, as some suggest, to appease Orton, no one can say for sure, but it was the wrong move at the wrong time.
Christian may have turned his back on his "peeps" on the June 10 Smackdown, but in truth, he does have support from the loyal ones that are tired of Cena & Orton being shoved down their collective throats. It is Vince McMahon's stubborn, myopic reality-challenged worldview that shapes the so-called WWE Universe. You know where I stand as it relates to him, but this time, he screwed Christian and the public.
There is one common link that Truth & Christian share, besides their recent turns. Both returned to the WWE from TNA. Both have 2 NWA World titles on their resumes, which WWE refuses to acknowledge, again thanks to the myopia of McMahon. Christian also has a pair of ECW title reigns, while that brand was active, on his resume. He has proven that he IS a tentpole player, and while it's more likely he'll regain the World title, it's not on his terms, but on McMahon's, and that is the worst insult "Capt. Charisma" and the WWE Universe can take. As for Truth, he would be the first African-American to hold the WWE title since The Rock 10 years ago, entering Wrestlemania 17. (Mark Henry, Bobby Lashley, & Ezekiel Jackson all held the ECW title, and Booker would get the World title from Rey Mysterio in 2006) Both Truth & Christian, then, have served penance since returning from TNA, more than was truly necessary, and both deserve to be rewarded for their efforts. I'm not disputing that. However, as long as Vincent K. McMahon remains the active leader of WWE, their success will be tainted by the chairman's disconnect from reality, which has placed them against the fans, even those who quietly applaud their performances now.
Bottom line: It's not our fault as fans, contrary to what Truth & Christian have been told to say on the air. It's McMahon's fault. He ignores common sense and reality. His sanity is questionable, has been for years. It's time for someone else to take charge. It's Game Time, preferably now.
