Change is the only constant and to dilute Darwin, the strongest are those who are the best at adapting. That means an organism has to be versatile and constantly search for ways to evolve.
Unfortunately, in the WWE the evolution part is primarily in the hands of the creative team who design a character’s gimmick. And that can be tricky because of the inevitable trial and error component. Greats like Stone Cold and The Rock are living proof of far off center the first shot can be.
And another guy with massive potential who wishes he could be a “before and after” case study is Ryback. The Big Guy is 100% Vince’s type, but is stuck between a rock and a hard place in the WWE. After trimming the fat this past week (which included some very questionable releases), the WWE might be on the verge of doing something they will rue in the years to come.
Which is why I, the milk of human compassion cascading from my pores, thought up a few ways the WWE could keep feeding Ryback more and in the process, could have another bunch of attractions handy:
Stable
This would be the easiest but not necessarily the least bankable option. Ryback could be camouflaged in a group of mid-carders like Golden Truth, where he would do wonderfully as the muscle. And with the rumors growing of a brand split, stable wars with titles could become an attractive fixture; perhaps even a tournament where the winners get to challenge for the tag titles.
Alpha heel on SmackDown
The biggest learning from Ryback’s addressing of his departure from RAW was that he is deeply discontent with his current booking and doesn’t feel he’s getting the attention he deserves.
Ryback is in his element as a heel and if we see the WWE divided soon, he could become SmackDown’s resident monster in the cave.
Gimmicks
Ryback’s permanent look of almost becoming the Hulk could actually play in his favour. Other expressions seem incongruous on his face but a Jekyll and Hyde gimmick would assimilate it well.
He could come out as a polite, congenial, sensitive, limerick-reciting (poetry can be superfluous) sweetheart before snapping when it crosses a line. Imagine the possibilities of that in a tag team!
Managers
With everybody scrambling from pillar to post about new talent, the question of what kind of talent is all but forgotten. WWE should start paying attention to representatives, who are sadly, a dying breed in the capital of wrestling.
Individuals like Paul Heyman and Bobby Heenan are anomalies, but that doesn’t mean skilled people aren’t available. It is almost a certainty that there are struggling stand-ups who are wrestling fans.
Super Heavyweight
Most fans believe the brand split is more a question of ‘when’ rather than ‘if’. That engenders another question – will they dismember the WWE World Heavyweight Championship? A disastrous move it would be, because the sovereignty of the crown is tainted.
What they should do is introduce a division for the monsters of the WWE; 300+ pounders who do nothing but smash. That's the core of wrestling and it would give guys like Luke Harper and Erick Rowan, amongst others, a stable angle. It could be called the Titanweight Championship or Colossus Championship or such, if Super Heavyweight sounds like it undercuts the World Heavyweight Championship.
