Roundtable: Hell In A Cell 2018

Which match are you most looking forward to?

Jack Goodwillie: The card, as I mentioned on the most recent episode of the Freakshow, is surprisingly shaping up. WWE’s bad booking has actually generated fever pitch heat for Charlotte and Becky Lynch, and I would have to say this match checks more gimmick match boxes than Orton-Hardy does, but it’s further evidence why you’d be doing yourself a Strowman-sized favor in just calling this pay-per-view Unforgiven. In fact, that’s how I will refer to it from now on. But as stunned as I am to say it, I’m most interested to see the direction they take with Charlotte and Becky, and that’s on a show with Styles/Joe (not in the cell, WTF?) and Strowman/Reigns.

Steven Jackson: As everyone knows I don’t watch WWE regularly anymore, so looking at the card, it’s the same as SummerSlam…AJ Styles vs. Samoa Joe.

John Corrigan: This is such a stacked show, but Becky Lynch and Charlotte are going to steal the show. There is so much heat between them, plus we know they can tear the house down.

Juan Bautista: Becky Lynch vs. Charlotte has the least amount of predictability surrounding it. I’m not sure what direction they’re going or how creative they’re going to get. Becky can afford another loss, but she can also take the title.

David Gibb: Becky Lynch vs. Charlotte Flair. The women’s divisions are the best parts of the WWE main roster, and this rivalry is the most captivating thing going on Raw or SmackDown.

Chad Gelfand: Jeff Hardy vs. Randy Orton in a Hell in the Cell. I’ll probably be cringing most of the match out of concern for Jeff’s well-being, but I’m sure Jeff and Randy will put on a great match.

Anthony Mahalis: AJ vs. Joe. They were having a very good match last time around, and I don’t expect this one to have a count out finish.

Jenna Leigh: Surprisingly, I am excited to see Roman Reigns vs Brauny The Strowman (shout out to Brian Zane-that is the only way I describe Strowman). I am also cautiously optimistic about Charlotte vs Becky.

Has including Brie Bella watered down or enhanced the Daniel Bryan-Miz rivalry?

Goodwillie: I’ll say no change whatsoever. Brie probably shouldn’t be wrestling, given the awful night she had on Raw a couple weeks ago, but WWE’s biggest mistake was jumping right into a match with these two. There would have been a great benefit to Miz weaseling around Bryan for a few months with the first encounter happening at WrestleMania. To say my interest in Sunday’s mixed tag match is middling might even be a stretch.

Jackson: Including Brie was unnecessary and unfortunately, it hasn’t added to the feud. Bryan and Miz have had a great story arc over the last half decade, but Brie doesn’t really play a part in the story. I prefer just Daniel Bryan vs. Miz without anyone else involved

Corrigan: Watered down. While Maryse adds to Miz’ character, Brie Bella just doesn’t connect the same way with Bryan, especially when she and her sister are clearly building to a heel turn on Ronda Rousey.

Bautista: Brie Bella should be nowhere near a camera. This rivalry was great way before Brie was associated with Daniel Bryan. No one has asked for this. We have seen the two worst suicide dives you will ever see. If it was up to me, both Bellas would be sent on a one way trip to Mars.

Gibb: Brie jokes are easy, but I actually think she brings a lot to the story. Part of the current incarnation of the Miz’s character is that he draws power (and gets help from) his relationship with his wife and child and their reality show that proves they’re really important people. Daniel Bryan also has a wife and child who he appears in a reality show with, but their relationship is portrayed as idyllic and they’re supposed to be humble about their success. I think making this Couple vs. Couple; Reality Show vs. Reality Show is actually the way to go.

Gelfand: Adding Brie Bella was a necessary step in extending this feud. Adding Brie makes the story more personal, and it allows Daniel Bryan and The Miz to have another match without them going one on one.

Mahalis: It waters it down, just slightly. There wasn’t really a need for this, but I get why it is happening. It would probably be a little better if this wasn’t a recycled John Cena match.

Leigh: Ok, I know I am notoriously NOT a Bella fan, but I actually don’t dislike Brie when she is away from Nikki. What I do not like is her constant siphoning of her husband’s gimmick: the YES! chant, the kicks, and now changing the color of her ring gear from the black and red she most commonly wears to the colors of the Seattle Seahawks. Whatever happened to BRIIIIiiiiEEEeee MmOOOOooDDddddeeee? Know what? I don’t wanna know. Either way, the Bryan/Miz feud could be an incredible story, with their rivalry truly beginning during Bryan’s time in NXT as Miz’ “rookie.” Their careers had different trajectories, but crossed again on that crucial episode of Talking Smack where Bryan called Miz a “coward” and Miz absolutely lost it. It made for an incredible promo and added more to the constantly underlying tension between the two. This story could be a truly powerful one; where these two could make each other and create something classic. It has the potential to be career defining, unlike the Miz/Maryse vs. Cena/Nikki feud. I think in this particular story, Brie would be better utilized as the supportive wife, rather than in-ring partner.

Should Charlotte vs. Becky Lynch take place inside the Cell?

Goodwillie: Yes. More so than Hardy/Orton, less so than Styles and Joe. If you’re going to have Hell in a Cell at “Unforgiven” at least use it on the programs with actual heat. For fuck’s sake…

Jackson: It should take place inside the Cell because I feel in terms of gender equality, it is taking a step back. It would help the match feel more exciting, too.

Corrigan: Yes, but not for their first match. As we stressed in last week’s roundtable, this is a great example of why having Hell in a Cell at a predetermined time of the year is a detriment. Aside from Joe and Styles, this match has the most heat on the card. Yet, neither bout is taking place inside Satan’s Structure. Wassupwitdat?

Bautista: This match probably makes the most sense for being inside the Cell, but it should’ve started around Money in the Bank to feel even more proper. Either way, it’s going to be a great match.

Gibb: No. They have a great storyline and strong characters. Let them tell a wrestling story in the ring rather than feeling like they “need to use the Cell.”

Gelfand: Charlotte vs. Becky Lynch should take place inside the Cell. I know it’s early in the feud, but it’s already so personal, and they have so much bad blood between one another that the Cell is warranted.

Mahalis: I don’t think that is necessary. We all know that they will put on a great match regardless of where it takes place, and it may be a little hard to live up to Charlotte vs. Sasha. If anything, Styles and Joe should have been inside the Cell.

Leigh: Abso-fricken-lutely! This has the potential to be a career-defining feud for both ladies. The fans feel very strongly about this as well, as evidenced by the crowd reaction at SummerSlam; Becky attacks Charlotte, and while this was clearly designed to garner sympathy for Charlotte, it backfired. As Charlotte, one of the most coddled and over-pushed stars in the entire company, cried, the crowd chanted “You Deserve It!” at Becky. On SmackDown, as Becky spoke lines written with the intention of making her into a “baddie”, the crowd AGREED, going so far as to get #GiveBeckyAChance trending worldwide on Twitter. This is such a big feud for them and the fans, that it deserves the HIAC treatment.

What crazy shit will Jeff Hardy do in his HIAC match?

Goodwillie: How about a Twist of Fate through the trap door on top of the cell? Some Smackdown vs. Raw level shenanigans…

Jackson: Asking what craziness Jeff will do is almost an unanswerable question. Knowing Jeff’s reputation it could be anything; possibly a Swanton off the Cell into the crowd?! Who knows?!

Corrigan: Randy Orton is going to squish Jeff’s ear through the cage and then yank that sumbitch right off.

Bautista: He may come out in his Brother Nero gimmick. This makes sense because as a babyface he’s been tortured. Now he’s in a setting where he is allowed to get revenge. This maybe the craziest Cell match in sometime. It’s probably going to be a leap of the top or maybe taking an RKO of the roof.

Gibb: He gets shoved off the turnbuckle, flies back into the Cell, and then bumps down to the floor.

Gelfand: Jeff Hardy was one of my first favorite wrestlers and still is one of my all-time favorite wrestlers, so I hope that whatever insane spot that he has planned, it goes as safe as possible and he’s not too banged up at the end of it. Jeff is a madman, though, so I’m predicting that this dude does a Swanton Bomb off the top of the Cell and through the announce table after Randy Orton moves out of the way.

Mahalis: The only thing that comes to mind is a Swanton Bomb off the top of the Cell through the announce table. I’m on record that I feel like Jeff probably should stop doing things like this, but I am highly intrigued.

Leigh: Honestly? I just want him to land most, if not all of his moves. I know that recklessness and a carefree attitude has always been Jeff’s thing, but as he gets older, my biggest wish for “The Charismatic Enigma” is for him to be, as VKM himself would say, “spectacular but safe”.

Who wins: AJ Styles or Samoa Joe?

Goodwillie: At Unforgiven, AJ Styles will best Samoa Joe once again, but I also think that if the SummerSlam match told us anything, that the big blow off is going to be an I Quit match, one of my favorite match gimmicks of all time and one that could be perfectly appropriate for this feud. Then again, if I had a nickel for every time someone on this roundtable bet against AJ Styles during this title run, I could maybe get a free play or two out of the ol’ slot machine.

Jackson: AJ Styles all the way. He needs to hold the title forever (like Kazuchika Okada in NJPW) and only relinquish it when he decides to retire (which I hope isn’t any time soon).

Corrigan: WENDYYYYYY! A new champ is coming home!

Bautista: Samoa Joe has to win or will it will just be a copy and paste of the Nakamura rivalry. If WWE still wants to erase every accomplishment of CM Punk, then AJ styles will win in order to eclipse the 434-day reign.

Gibb: Styles has been champion for so long, and this feud feels heated/personal enough that his eye could be taken off the ball long enough for Joe to slip over.

Gelfand: Samoa Joe has done a fantastic job in this feud, and he has been my favorite part of WWE programming recently, so I would like to see him at least get a short reign.

Mahalis: Samoa Joe is taking home the gold. It is the logical way to continue the feud without another lame non-clean finish.

Leigh: Joe is a rare specimen: built like a heavyweight, with all the power that comes with it, yet agile like a cruiserweight. For years I have wanted to see Joe vs. AJ, and I am psyched for it. The Phenomenal One will find a way to get his hand raised in the end.