TJR Q&A: McMahons As WWE TV Characters, AEW Talent That Should Be Pushed, More

The question and answer session known as the TJR Q&A is back for the 82nd time on TJRWrestling answering the best questions about WWE, AEW, wrestling’s past and the future.

I do these every few weeks. The questions come from the Facebook page right here. Let’s roll.

1. Matt Tome
Of the former WWE talent that jumped to AEW, whom do you think will make a WWE return to have one final run? Do you foresee any of the AEW talent that isn’t former WWE ever making the jump to WWE?

I can see Bryan Danielson back in a WWE ring in three years on a part-time deal. I don’t know about Christian Cage. Chris Jericho seems like he’ll be in AEW long-term where he’ll probably be an announcer if he chooses to retire soon.

I’m sure some AEW wrestlers will go to WWE at some point, but it’s hard to know who those people are. If they have a three-year deal and started when AEW began then some people might be free in 2022. A lot of them might stay in AEW where morale is strong while WWE fired over 70 wrestlers this year.

2. Daniel Hill
I thought John Cena’s last run was pretty good and his program with Reigns and match was pretty good. Who would you like to see have one more run in WWE if possible and any particular program that would interest you?

I’d love to see Cena stick around for a few months to work with different people, but he may never do that again since he’s so busy and making so much money not wrestling. There are obviously big names for him to work with, but then I think about a guy like Austin Theory and think that would be cool for him to work with Cena. Use Cena to elevate the younger guys. That would be cool. Who knows where Bron Breakker will be in six months or a year? Maybe Cena against him too.

3. Mike Anderson
If Steve Austin hadn’t gotten injured and left the top spot open, would Rock and Hunter have still been as big as they were?

I think those guys would have been top guys for sure. I think the absence of Austin for that time period from November 1999 to October 2000 (nearly one year due to neck surgery) definitely opened the door for Rock as the top face and Hunter as the top heel. They were both all over every show and wrestled eachother a lot. I think if anything, Austin’s absence really just accelerated the ascent of Rock and Hunter, who were on their way.

Then when you look at the rest of the roster, guys like Kurt Angle and Chris Jericho had a faster rise in part because of Austin being out. Then when Austin came back, he worked with those guys, so that’s good for all of them.

4. Dale Schofield
I think it’s a shame that Survivor Series has gone from a top 4 show, with a unique format, to a version of Bragging Rights. Do you think they should have the Champions from each Brand as team captains for a return to the elimination format?

I think Survivor Series should have title matches on the show where the top men’s and women’s titles are defended and then you do the Raw vs. Smackdown themes for the elimination matches only. Then you say the losing brand has to take the first five spots in the Royal Rumble while the winning team members will be anywhere from 21 to 30 in the Rumble. I wouldn’t say last five because it’s good to have a surprise in there. Then if you do it that like, it’s a better show.

5. Shay Smithers
What do you think is the reason why Cody Rhodes refuses to turn heel in AEW? Do you think he’ll change his mind after all the fan backlash?

I think maybe Cody is saying that all the time to piss people off because what wrestler goes out to publicly say something like that? So he could be saying it as a work. Just because somebody talks like that in an interview doesn’t mean they are being genuine. Sometimes wrestlers work the fans in interviews too.

6. Ryan Emmrich
Rumors of NXT going to TV-14. If that improves ratings even a little, do you see that causing a change in RAW and SD eventually?

It’s already TV-14 in some ways when you see how the camera zooms in on Toxic Attraction during their entrance. They don’t film Charlotte, Becky, Sasha or whoever that way. I don’t think anything is going to change that much. People obsess over those things a lot.

7. Vincent Prayle
Bronn Breaker aside, which of “new crop” of NXT recruits do you think could have the biggest impact/future?

I think Carmelo Hayes is a special talent. That’s the guy that really stands out and they are featuring him a lot, which is great to see. I hope Von Wagner pans out, but he doesn’t have a strong personality right now. Xyon Quinn looks the part of a star and so does Solo Sikoa, who is the younger brother of The Usos.

8. JT Adams
Do you see CM Punk turning heel with people booing him?

It might happen. I think Punk loved being a heel in the past and if fans are getting sick of the “happy to be here” dude then he should do it.

9. Gary Lund
Who is replacing Sami Zayn on the Smackdown Survivor Series team?

I think it might be Sheamus. We should find out soon!

10. Darrius Gaddy
Who’s missing out on tv time in AEW that you would like to see featured more? There’s so much talent there and more coming over I’m sure within the next couple of months how do you balance it all without hurting anyone’s momentum?

I think Ricky Starks should be wrestling nearly every week or every other week yet they barely use the guy. I don’t get it. Maybe his neck injury is a reason why but they should use him more.

As for tag teams, I want Santana & Ortiz in the title hunt. They are on the show, but let’s see them going for titles soon.

In the women’s division, I really like Serena Deeb and want to see her wrestling more often on TV. One match a month isn’t enough. More Serena!

11. Pete Sooklall
Can you see AEW Rampage getting an extra hour in the future so more talents can get air time?

Hopefully not. I don’t want to write more lol. That is a serious answer! To add to it, I think it’s overdoing TV time and that’s a bad thing.

12. Mike Robinson
Do you think there was too much blading at Full Gear or do you think it’s necessary to tell the stories they was telling?

It’s a way for AEW to be different from WWE and be edgier like old-school wrestling. I didn’t think it was too much. Sometimes they overdo it.

13. Joe Sondag
Considering his age and that the last two years have not been the best period of his wrestling career do you think it’s time for Chris Jericho to be either a part-time special attraction guy or just maybe it’s time for him to retire completely? As someone who used to like him & his work in the past, it’s becoming sad to see him offer bad matches, storylines, and feuds to his later legacy.

I think he’ll just wrestle less often over the next couple of years, maybe do a few retirement matches before losing. The thing with Chris is he’s had no major injuries, no surgeries and stuff, so he’s pretty healthy and even at 51, he can still go for a few more years.

14. Van Wilhoite
Which do you think has a better chance of happening eventually: Hit Row becoming Smackdown tag champs or Swerve Scott winning the IC title?

I think Hit Row as tag team champions is more likely.

15. Drew Jefferson
Which wrestler do you think had has the best return and the worst return of all-time in your opinion?

Best return would be Shawn Michaels in 2002 and the run he had over the next eight years.

Worst return is Eva Marie this year lol. What was the point? No idea.

16. Steven Cheffie White
Are storylines better when the McMahons are on air characters?

Sometimes yes, sometimes no. If you think back to the late 1990s into early 2000s they were mostly good to have around. Then I think all of them overstayed their welcome a bit, so it got repetitive and boring. For example, I thought Stephanie McMahon with The Authority angle dragged on too long. I thought Vince and Shane as heels in 2006 were annoying. However, I loved Vince and Shane as performers from those 1999-2001 years.

17. Robert Lee Thomas
Will AEW be apart of your Johnny Awards this year? I can’t remember if they were last year.

I did not include them last year. I think I’ll stick with WWE Johnny Awards for year 13 and probably AEW Johnny Awards separately. I might as well. I’d rather keep the companies separate.

18. Adam Symes
Do you think it would be better for Kevin Owens career to stay with WWE or go to AEW?

I hope he stays in WWE. I think he’ll be lost in the shuffle in AEW. If he stays in WWE he likely gets a big raise and will be featured. With that said, I know he has good friends in AEW and if he wants to go there then I’ll continue to support him. Kevin is one of my favorites.

19. Nate Kuhl
When the inevitable break up of RK-Bro happens what are the chances it’s Riddle who turns on Orton?

I guess that’s a possibility, but I think Riddle is more of a natural face and we know Orton loves being a heel, so I think that’s how it goes. I assume we see Riddle vs. Orton at WrestleMania. I like that it hasn’t been rushed.

20. Daniel Lerma
Do you think long term champions sort of hurt the unpredictability of WWE? I mean, while I’ve personally enjoyed most of Roman’s matches, I’ve only been interested in the Mania and Summerslam ones.

It does hurt a bit I guess, but it helps build credibility for a title and when that person loses, it feels like a big deal. When Big E beat Lashley it felt like a big deal becaue Lashley was a champion that was strong. When Roman loses, it will mean a lot.

21. Junior Lindsey
If he’s signed with AEW do you see Kross being their big man star?

Probably not. I think he would fit in fine, but his in-ring work isn’t at the level of top AEW guys. I think Keith Lee would do better there.

22. Frank Shattuck
Who sold the Stunner the worst…Donald Trump or Linda McMahon?

Trump! Both were bad.

23. Geoff Landtbom
If Shawn Michaels never suffered his 1997 knee injury would Sid have beaten him on Thursday Raw Thursday for the title and Sid drop it back to him before Wrestlemainia 13? I say this because Sid conveniently won the title 4 days later on Raw.

It would have been Shawn defending the title vs. Bret at WM13 and probably would have been Bret winning the title. At least we got Austin vs. Bret out of it.

24. Brandan Kelly
Need this debate settled. Do you think The Rock, when it comes to moves-wise, was a bad wrestler? I say no he was very good but my friend says he sucked.

I think Rock was an outstanding professional wrestler starting from about 1999 through his run (had plenty of good moments in 1998 although he was still learning) and his last match in 2004 before he came back in 2011. I think he was tremendous at it. In terms of selling, he was great. When it comes to moves, a lot of them looked good and Rock got better as he got more experience. Maybe Rock as a worker isn’t like a Shawn Michaels or Kurt Angle, but few people. Rock was very good for a long time.

25. Daniel Mount
How would you have handled Broke Corbin? He did some great character work with it, but they bungled it.

It could have been better. Maybe he learns to be a nice guy, turns him babyface for a few months and then he can go back to being a heel. The Vegas winning money thing was a lazy way to turn the story.

26. John C Hoddy
What’s your overall opinion of NXT 2.0? Is it better or worse than its predecessor?

It’s not a better show than the previous edition of NXT. I get why they changed it to try to develop young talent, but it’s clearly not a better product. What they are doing is building for the long term, which is fine. I totally get that aspect of it.

Ultimately it is Vince’s money and company. If they want to invest in the future this way then that’s his right.

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That’s all for now. Thanks to everybody that participated and to you for reading.