Baron Corbin remains in alarming requirement of some modifications if his WWE profession is going to make it through the next couple of years.
This previous episode of Monday Night Raw saw him lose yet once again (this time to Dexter Lumis) which triggered John “Bradshaw” Layfield to stop being his supervisor, ending their collaboration that has actually just lasted the previous couple of months (beginning in October).
This wasn’t a case where Corbin dropped him, or they were required to go their different methods, or WWE simply silently stopped having JBL appear.
Rather, JBL mocked Corbin. He corresponded handling him to attempting to polish a turd. This was a burial and a demeaning sector for Corbin’s character. There is no concern about it: he simply devalued.
And this isn’t even the very first time this has actually taken place, either. That is the difficulty of everything.
Corbin was on a hot streak up until he stopped working as Mr. Money in the Bank. While he had some notable minutes occasionally, those are rare. Most of the time, he’s chastised and the butt of the joke.
Corbin was King of the Ring. He was Constable of Monday Night Raw. Delighted Corbin was a thing. Why isn’t any of it working?
In this edition of Save a Superstar, I’ll be pitching 10 concepts I believe might work for how to recalibrate Baron Corbin and make him more effective.
Something they have not attempted to do with Corbin considering that his days in NXT is to put him on the babyface positioning side of the lineup.
Look. Some individuals are natural heels or faces. Rey Mysterio can not work along with a bad guy. The Miz simply does not link as a hero. In general, Corbin is definitely more of a heel, and I believe that’s why WWE has actually been reluctant to even attempt this.
In some cases, doing the reverse can be unexpected. Hollywood Hogan was an incredible character shift. The Tribal Chief is the very best variation of Roman Reigns up until now. If you return to the very first age of The Undertaker and compare his run as a heel to his babyface run, those fans back in 1990 would not have the ability to think it.
What if Corbin’s been resting on a great babyface character all this time and WWE simply hasn’t shot?
At this moment, he’s been beaten down a lot that it is tough not to have compassion with him a minimum of a little. Bottom Ass Corbin would have been a much better time to turn him deal with, I believe, than now. Now that JBL has actually deserted him, possibly a redemption arc is on the method.
Reserve him to lose. He loses his self-confidence (not his cash, better half, and so on, because that’s currently been done). The secret is to return to Bum Ass Corbin without him doing the specific very same unfortunate sack “down on my luck” things. He needs to be more severe about it, like he’s questioning whether he ought to still be completing at all any longer.
Possibly have him approach somebody backstage like Edge and request suggestions. That person can compose him off in a sense of “Why would I assist you? You’ve been a cock to everybody. Go to hell. This is most likely a setup, anyhow.” Corbin can attempt to show himself to the babyfaces that he’s having a modification of heart. Possibly he attempts to train some with Chad Gable and Otis as a brand-new hire to Alpha Academy or something.
Ultimately, have him conserve another babyface from an attack. Offer him something notable, like that he battles Imperium to conserve Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn (as soon as those 2 groups are feuding for the tag titles, as I presume KO/SZ are winning those belts from The Usos at WrestleMania). That might turn the crowd formally in his favor.
Turn him heel once again if it does not work. If you do not attempt, how do you understand for sure?
As frequently as WWE attempts to make Corbin a loser, they swing the pendulum backward and forward to offer him more trustworthiness every couple months.
Among the important things they constantly return to is that he’s a three-time Golden Gloves champ. All they do with that info is state it. They never ever include that into his character whatsoever.
Let’s have him get encouraged. He wishes to return to his roots. Because he’s not a previous world champ in WWE, however he did win this 3 times, he can be revealed training to do more boxing fight. Perhaps that’s the missing out on component to his absence of in-ring success, in a kayfabe sense.
Go into the fighter side of this trick. Have him tape up his fists and toss more strikes. Put him in more conventional boxing trunks. If Grayson Waller can use it, why not Corbin?
I do not believe this is a dish for immediate success that will right away get him over like gangbusters and turn him into the next John Cena, however I do believe it has an opportunity to be something that injects more interest in Corbin in general.
Keep in mind when Corbin remained in NXT as The Lone Wolf, damaging individuals in simply a couple of seconds? The crowd would begin counting. He ‘d strike End of Days and win in no time flat.
That isn’t the kind of lightning in a bottle you can catch once again and equate to the primary lineup. A minimum of, not in the very same method. It would take months of reconditioning, having him squash individuals every week in simply a couple of seconds.
Even if you do not precisely do that, perhaps Corbin can at least revert back to this more stoic destroyer character.
The Knights of the Lone Wolf was such a brief effort to provide him some partners that I do not even believe it counts. It does not make any sense. He’s a Lone Wolf. Do not provide him partners.
Have him dress more like a badass, rather of coming out with a jazzy gambling establishment style, smiley and energetic. Treat him more seriously (and really book him to win– a crucial element frequently overlooked in spite of how it is the most apparent method to rehab a character) and individuals may believe that he’s returned around to being “cool” once again.
The absence of the long hair impedes this. I do not believe you can put him in a wig or anything along those lines, and hair treatment is long past an alternative. Possibly there’s a cool method to do something various with this trick in spite of him being bald. Look at a character like Kratos.
Simply get him out of the silly hats and patterned brief sleeve buttoned up t-shirts. That appearance isn’t going to rollover.
Possibly The Lone Wolf does not need to remain alone. That can be part of his renewal trick if he’s hired by The Judgment Day.
For a while, they were targeting individuals who were losing, attempting to transform them over to the group. He’s in a completely susceptible position for that. “You were a Lone Wolf, attempted to be Happy and now, where has that gotten you? You require us.”
Corbin is quite into the macabre. Behind the scenes, he’s been revealed to go and gather skulls to curiosity stores and such. Let’s see more of that on screen! That’s a side of him they’ve yet to check out.
Make him the unusual death-obsessed member of the cult. Picture him standing beside Damian Priest as one of the more enforcing tag groups, all dressed up like 2 guys who delight in causing discomfort on other individuals.
Honestly, I believe he ‘d be a much better suitable for the group than Finn Balor. Take Balor out if you require to boot somebody out of it. Even if that’s not the case, you’ve got an excellent system going. Balor or Priest as the centerpiece leader, the other as the midcard champ level, and Corbin can even team with Dominik Mysterio. Or, Dominik can be dealt with as the midcarder, Corbin/Priest as the tag group, and Balor as the leader. Rhea Ripley, naturally, serves her function as the ladies’s department agent of the group.
Perhaps WWE simply does not desire Corbin to be taken seriously. Take a look at all they’ve been finishing with him. That might be an indication they simply desire him to be a goofball heel.
Stop beating around the bush if that’s the case. Do not make him a comical loser who we likewise need to take seriously as a hazard on an impulse any week you choose he’s not a joke.
Make him a real joke– a full-blown loser– 100% definitively a comical character, with no ifs, ands or. Half-assing this jobber function for him does not permit him to completely welcome it one method or another.
“Corbin the Clown” does not imply he would be Doink the Clown with the face paint and all. Rather, simply make it completely transparent that he’s very short on the totem pole and just utilize him as a jobber to the stars with decreasing returns. Because he’s still got a little steam, have him lose to individuals now who are larger offers, however slowly decrease the lineup to the point that he can lose to somebody like Akira Tozawa.
Any time somebody from NXT gets called up, have them beat Corbin. Make it a running gag or something.
Wish to simply quit on Corbin as a wrestler? Well, considering he’s somebody who can cut a good promotion, simply make him the supervisor, instead of provide him a supervisor.
It never ever made much sense to me why JBL was together with him. Corbin didn’t require a mouth piece. The problem has actually constantly been that he does not have the best character for individuals to be bought, however they didn’t go full-blown into anything JBL might give the table.
Since he kept losing all his matches, Corbin didn’t end up being a Wrestling God. He didn’t begin using a stetson and return into the abundant man personality like a copycat JBL since, once again, he simply kept losing his poker video games.
Perhaps if the focus isn’t on Corbin, however rather, somebody Corbin is supporting, he can be the mouth piece for somebody else who can’t cut a promotion.
A single person that pertains to my mind is Von Wagner. That man has an enforcing appearance, however has a hard time on the mic. If he’s going to lose Mr. Stone, perhaps Baron Corbin is the one who can improve up his spoken existence.
For that matter, what if he simply partner with Von Wagner, or somebody else?
Madcap Moss and Happy Corbin wasn’t a group I was incredibly keen on, however it did permit him to play off somebody in a favorable method, instead of to simply trade spoken barbs with a challenger who would mock him.
The difficulty with this is discovering the right synergy and choosing a character that fits with Corbin. In specific, it is tough to do that when we do not understand what Corbin’s character is. If WWE isn’t going to invest in repackaging him in any method and simply desires him to be “Baron Corbin, whatever that suggests”, possibly he simply requires to be put with somebody else who is “some man, whatever that implies” like a Von Wagner.
If you wish to reform The Hurt Business, possibly group Corbin with Omos? Attempt that out?
Possibly go with the Odd Couple path if you do not desire to go with somebody comparable to him. Match him with somebody he does not appear to fit with AT ALL.
Utilize your house reveals to experiment. Put him with Rick Boogs, Elias, Robert Roode, Noam Dar…… whatever. See what might be fascinating. For all we understand, putting him with Quincy Elliott results in something enjoyable.
Among the easiest things to attempt is to simply make him a big wheel in a little pond once again.
Everybody who returns to NXT is dealt with like a mega star. Individuals go nuts for Natalya, Jinder Mahal and more.
Corbin appearing in NXT to have a reboot run might make all the distinction, especially if you integrate that with a few of the other concepts above. Lone Wolf works much better in NXT with that little audience that can support it instead of on the primary lineup. The group with Von Wagner or whoever is a much easier shift on NXT than to attempt to make it deal with Raw or SmackDown.
This would a minimum of offer him an immediate bump in prestige. That may be the momentum-builder to begin growing out of control.
Method back throughout his early time in NXT, Corbin obviously made the label “Football Tom” (his genuine name is Tom Pestock). This was, allegedly, since he had a more cavalier mindset to the wrestling market and individuals didn’t believe he was taking it seriously.
This is certainly a bit more inside baseball (or…… inside football? How does that pun work?) In some cases, playing into the smark side of things can pay off. Take a look at nWo, Bullet Club, The Kliq, the entire Yes Movement for Daniel Bryan and much more examples.
Undoubtedly, it isn’t my preferred concept, however what if Corbin embraced more of a trick based around not being a professional wrestler’s professional wrestler.
I do not suggest that he ought to all of a sudden begin dressing like a football gamer, alter his name to Football Tom, and shout “hut!” prior to doing his finisher or anything. This isn’t the ’80s. Perhaps Corbin’s character might get some significant heat in more of a Jericho Appreciation Society sort of method, where his character has a vendetta versus the professional wrestling organization and sports home entertainment in basic. That method, he rubs traditionalists the incorrect method and can quickly fight with a person like Cody Rhodes who has this in his blood.
“This is simply an income to me. I do not appreciate any of the legends. These fans do not imply anything. Who offers a shit if the Intercontinental Championship was held by Stone Cold Steve Austin? You geeks are all thrilled about NXT utilizing the In Your House graphics? How lame!” – – In a sense, make him somebody the audience dislikes since he dislikes the audience, and wants to rustle some plumes more than to simply state the regional sports group draws.
As a last case situation, possibly Corbin remains in the variety where he would take advantage of a long time away.
In some cases, the very best thing for somebody in this market is to step aside, let individuals forget the bad things and miss them, and return with a restored vitality.
Perhaps that suggests launching him from his agreement to conserve some cash, let him battle on the indies and go to locations like Impact Wrestling and NWA to win some world titles and increase his stock, and after that return to complete his profession in WWE. Maybe it simply suggests offering him a couple of months off tv for a reset.
In the meantime, if he’s still used by WWE, start coming up with concepts. When he returns, do not simply have absolutely nothing in mind for him. Otherwise, he’ll simply return as the usual Baron Corbin and within a couple of weeks, you’ll wind up lessening his push and he’ll go back to square one.
What would you make with Baron Corbin if you were on WWE Creative? Drop your ideas in the remarks listed below!
The post Save a Superstar: How to Fix Baron Corbin After JBL Ditched Him appeared initially on eWrestlingNews.com.