GUEST COLUMN: “Chair Shots: The Obligatory End of Year Column” by TripleR

Welcome back dear readers to the column that just bought a new house – Chair Shots! Yes, that’s right; I’ve taken the leap and purchased a new home. Now comes the fantastic fun of moving. So who wants to help? Anyone? Anyone? Anyway, we’re at the end of 2013 and what a year in wrestling it has been. We’ve seen the rise of Daniel Bryan, the unification of the WWE and World Heavyweight Titles, the rise and fall of TNA, and so much more. Instead of doing the usual “Wrestler of the Year”, “Match of the Year” type of thing, I’ve decided to point out some of the highlights and lowlights of the year that was 2013.

Biggest Surprise of 2013 – The Title Unification in the WWE
Quite honestly, this was one I didn’t see coming. For quite a few years now, wrestling fans have been debating the merits and the problems surrounding unifying the WWE Title and the World Heavyweight Title. On the plus side, there is more uniformity to the WWE title landscape. No more questions of Royal Rumble winners and who they challenge. No more PPV that have the World Heavyweight Title curtain -jerking the card. Those days are gone. But on the negative side, there is now a more narrow Main Event focus. Those wrestlers who previously were given the opportunity to challenge for a top tier title are now jockeying for position even more than ever. At the end of the day, whether you’re Daniel Bryan, Alberto Del Rio, CM Punk, or Randy Orton, you have to be a bit dismayed that John Cena still remains the #1 guy in the WWE. Time will tell how this plays out, but it’s been an interesting journey so far.

Biggest Flop to an Angle that Started Off Strong – Aces & Eights
Much like TNA’s 2013, the path of Aces & Eights started off with a bang, but ended with a whimper. I’ll admit it, I was intrigued. A group of thugs attacked Sting, and week after week we saw masked men take their shots at the TNA Elite. Who were they? Why were they there? Who was in charge? There was so much potential in this angle, and for a little while it seemed like it was going to be a real winner. When Bully Ray was ultimately revealed as the leader of Aces & Eights and won the TNA Title, things couldn’t have been going better for TNA. But then things went downhill, and downhill fast. Releases started happening left and right. D’Lo Brown was cut loose. DOC was let go. Mr. Anderson left for a short time, and when all was said and done it was Bully Ray, Wes Briscoe, Garrett Bischoff and Tazz on commentary. How exciting was that? Bully Ray did his best to continue to make the club seem like a force to be reckoned with, but even the die -hard fans knew the angle ended in a thud.