WWE has had a rough year.....other than Drew McIntyre win the WWE Championship at "WrestleMania" or finally turning Roman Reigns heel.....oh, and Edge coming back. But aside from that, it hasn't been stellar. Even with a pandemic going on, WWE or Vince McMahon for that matter has really decided to make decisions that ultimately piss off fans or wrestling experts alike. This one wasn't intended to piss everyone, but really, c'mon.
The Money In The Bank pay-per-view this year had an unique setting. Due to the pandemic, WWE had a vision of doing the men's and women's match at WWE Headquarters in Stamford, Connecticut, which was in my opinion, spectacular. It was out of the box and unheard of the company in 2020, somewhat. The matches began on the first floor and they worked their way up to the roof of Headquarters, where the ring was. There was a "Die Hard" vibe or any action movie settled in a high rise building, for that matter. There were instances when the matches showed entertainment value, and there were instances where it showed WWE in 2020. Brother Love and Vince McMahon make cameos! Yep, that happened. Also, Dana Brooke grabbed a promotional Money In The Bank suitcase in a conference room and thought she won and was not in the match on the roof. She was "buried". Asuka leaping off the balcony onto the other competitors was fun to watch. I wanted Shayna Baszler to be the winner and so did everyone else I assume, but they gave Asuka the win, which I didn't mind. She deserved the shot. But an unscripted twist happened. The match was for the Raw Women's Championship, as Becky Lynch relinquished the title to become a mother. Asuka's reaction to this announcement is great to watch and one of the best moments of the year.
The men's match wasn't bad either. There was a point where it was too corny like the Brother Love appearance and Rey Mysterio and Alesteir Black were "thrown" off the side of the building as they were Hans Gruber. So, if you are keeping score at home, Rey Mysterio was "thrown" off a building and "lost" an eyeball during matches in 2020. The match ended when A.J. Styles grabbed the suitcase and while in possession, dropped it and that landed in the hands of Otis. The 2020 Money In The Bank winner is....Heavy Machinery member Otis!
Before I start the botching of this peculiar run, right off the bat, I like Otis. While in NXT, He and Tucker Knight formed Heavy Machinery. They were a throwback of sorts. The pairing reminded me of a 90's tag team due to it being a character-driven duo which NXT was bringing actual wrestling into the lore, thanks to Triple H. The team was a fan favorite with Tucker being the workhorse of the group. Otis was also a workhorse, but he had charisma. Fans quickly loved Otis for his over-the-top persona. They never won the NXT Tag Team Title during their run even though they were over with the NXT faithful. Do they call NXT fans the NXT universe? The team was called up to the main roster after the McMahon's took over both shows due to the backlash of "the worst Monday Night Raw of the all-time" in November 2018. During their run on the main roster, they have been entertaining and wrestling fans adore the group, but it was the same as NXT. The duo didn't win tag team titles. The company decided to put Otis in a storyline in late 2019 where he pursued Mandy Rose. This was actually one of the best storylines going into 2020. Otis, a man who is part of a tag team was about branch out. He was the Shawn Michaels or Booker T of the group....ok, ok, um.....calm down with that claim. Fans loved the storyline because Otis was someone that everyone related to and he was going after a woman who was "out of his league". Dolph Ziggler was put in the storyline to be the dastardly heel to try to steal Mandy Rose from Otis. It was determined that Sonya Deville, Mandy Rose's tag team partner and friend, was part of the conspiracy. That set up a match at "WrestleMania" with Otis against Dolph Ziggler. Otis won the match and the affection of Mandy Rose, where they embraced on the ramp with a kiss. If fans were there, it would have received a massive pop.
So, Otis is on a high. He has the woman he loves, his best friend who is his tag team partner and the Money In The Bank suitcase, which he turned into a lunch pail. How did WWE capitalize on Otis's push?.....really, nothing. The company seemed to second guess their decision to put Otis in that position. It reminds me of Bart Gunn winning the Brawl-For-All, and the company did nothing with him until WrestleMania 15, when he was murdered in front of a live audience by Butterbean. Otis looks like a goober here, because he was probably getting the best push ever in his career. WWE did a 180 and involved the Miz and John Morrison into this. I've been saying for years, the Miz deserves another World title shot. His title run in 2010-2011 showed promise, but it was too early. Also, his promo heading into his main event contest with John Cena at WrestleMania 27 is still one of the best. Otis wasn't elevated as a Money In The Bank winner. He didn't gain momentum at all. In storyline, the Miz or John Morrison wanted to gain the Money In The Bank suitcase despite the fact the person who lost the suitcase, A.J. Styles, was a better option. A.J. Styles doesn't need the Money In The Bank suitcase to elevate him, but it adds to his legacy. It was a quandary that the company was put in. They knew that maybe this wasn't the right decision. Hell, Baron Corbin, Ken Kennedy, Damien Sandow and even John Cena lost their bids as Money In The Bank winners, but this one seems bad. So, with Mandy Rose "transferred" to Raw and Otis was facing the Miz at Hell In A Cell with the Money In The Bank contract on the line and then, (spoiler alert) his tag team partner, Tucker, turns on him and costs him the Money In The Bank suitcase.
In the end, Otis lost his girlfriend, his best friend and his Money In The Bank contract. Is Otis a main eventer right now? Nope. Can he be? Absolutely. Kofi Kingston won the WWE title after many years with the company, so. I think WWE dodged a bullet here for tapping an unproven talent to win a world title, I mean, when did that go wrong for them?
Oh, yeah.
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