Where the WWE have gone wrong with Tyler Breeze
In two thousand and ten Tyler Breeze made he's way into the WWE going straight to FCW (Florida Championship Wrestling) and competing under the ring name Mike Dalton. A generic character with little long term potential. It was clear that Breeze was amazingly talented in the ring and was able to deliver solid matches but with massive characters such as Dean Ambrose, Leo Kruger, and Seth Rollins to name some it was easy for people to forget about Dalton and while I was a fan I questioned how long he would last and how he would work up on the main roster when he eventually got there still working that character. He did go on to have great success in FCW having a couple of championship reigns including tag teaming with Roman Reigns but it still wasn't enough and he still needed something new to insure he's WWE career. When FCW re-branded into NXT we saw a change up in gimmicks and eventually we saw the birth of Tyler Breeze. The Breeze character could not be further off from the Mike Dalton character. A flamboyant, ex model gimmick with an eye catching ring gear graced the NXT stage and with time became one of the strongest characters in NXT. The more we saw of Tyler Breeze the more we all grew to love, respect, and appreciate him as become one of the most influential superstars both in the ring and backstage. The turn around in Tyler's career was without a doubt he's one on one match against Sami Zayn at NXT Takeover. Prior to this match we had seen some solid, memorable performances but on this night Breeze truly arrived proving that he was far more than a pretty face. A huge victory over one of NXT's top talents put Breeze at the top of the roster making him one of the most must see talents on the roster. From that moment onwards Breeze just got better and better as he's booking grew stronger. Taking on top names and competing in phenomenal championship matches there is now a list of matches that Breeze finds himself in that are labelled as some of the greatest in NXT history.
On the twenty second of October twenty fifteen, Tyler Breeze made he's much anticipated debut on Thursday night Smackdown when he was introduced by Summer Rae as her new Boyfriend. Receiving what was actually a strong reaction from an always weak Smackdown crowd Breeze focused he's attentions on the show-off Dolph Ziggler during and episode of Miz TV. After spending so long working in NXT building he's character, creating a brand, developing both himself and NXT, and creating a huge following, the main roster debut of Tyler Breeze was something we all found ourselves desperate to see. The big Breeze call up is something he massively deserved. For almost a year, Breeze had been working dark matches on RAW and Smackdown and he's official debut date was rumoured for months and months. I remember writing blog post after blog post talking about he's debut and how much I anticipated it. For anyone that had been watching him compete in NXT they knew full well what he was capable of and he belonged on the main roster performing at the highest level. Was the debut what I was expecting? Not completely. I didn't like the fact that he debuted on Smackdown and I will go into more detail with that a little later on. There had been rumours of Breeze allying himself with Summer Rae when he was set to arrive on the main roster months before he even actually debuted so that didn't come to a surprise to me at all and feuding with Ziggler was something I was expecting so see at some point in he's career but maybe not so early on. It was one of the highlights of that episode of Smackdown and one of the highest rating segments of the night as it should have been. Breeze has developed a huge following over the years and that did show on he's arrival night on October twenty second but there is no doubt that this should have been a lot lot stronger. Attacking Dolph Ziggler was a good start and a great way for Breeze to get himself noticed. Ziggler is known for being one of the most popular superstars and loved amongst the WWE universe the moment anyone makes an enemy of him they have generated some level of attention. This wasn't the old school debut that you would usually see with a new superstars getting the call up, arriving on RAW or Smackdown and competing in a squash match to gain momentum. This was a little different as he arrived in true NXT style. Making an impact right then and there on a major WWE Superstar. He's motive for attacking Dolph was questionable to say the least but it gave him the attention he needed and it was spoken about greatly amongst the WWE universe across all social media platforms.
If you have been following me on twitter and have been reading my blog for a great deal of time then you would have seen me talk a lot about the idea of Tyler Breeze and Dolph Ziggler feuding. Throughout he's career, Breeze has been compared to Dolph Ziggler and the thought of the pair of them taking each other on was always going to be appealing. It was a dream feud and a dream match. Both have similar in ring styles and capability and for anyone that had been a fan of both or had been following the careers of both superstars than the idea of the two of them colliding and going one on one was very attractive. It was hugely spoken about amongst the WWE/NXT universe for months on end. Dolph Ziggler VS Tyler Breeze was money and we all knew it. And so when Tyler made he's main roster debut in October of last year and focused he's attentions on Dolph Ziggler it was a dream come true and we all knew that we were in for something special. After all, if there was any WWE superstar that would be able to push and elevate the young, up and coming superstar in Tyler Breeze it was always going to be Dolph Ziggler of all people. The standard for this feud and their future matches were very very high. Everyone was expecting the best. Something outstanding. These were two superstars who were both capable of brining out the best in one another. Was there a clear, strong, interesting reason why these two were feuding absolutely not but the standard and the expectations remained very very high.
When it come down to what the WWE have done wrong since they gave Tyler Breeze the call up we have to talk about he's feud with Dolph Ziggler. As I have just spent an entire paragraph talking about, this was a feud that the fans wanted to see. Fans of NXT, fans of Dolph Ziggler, fans of Tyler Breeze. It something that had been spoken about for ages and something that everyone wanted to see. As proven with past storyline's with NXT talents such as AJ Lee VS Paige, when a storyline, feud and match has such high expectation from the WWE universe it puts the WWE and the superstars/divas under immense pressure to deliver. I actually wrote a blog post talking about why I felt the feud between AJ Lee and Paige was a fail and I will link that bellow so you can give it a read if you haven't already done so. But you will be able to see a lot of comparisons between the two. Everyone was expecting something great between Dolph Ziggler and Tyler Breeze but it just did not work and there were so many reasons why. First off: the direction of the storyline. There was no storyline. This was the story of an NXT talent arriving on Smackdown as the new Boyfriend of Summer Rae who had an issue with Dolph Ziggler and the way the show off spoke to he's "lady". That was it. They never called Breeze up with clear long term direction both for in this storyline and in general. The storyline made no sense what so ever and once again we were stuck with another love triangle based story. There was no actual reason for Ziggler and Breeze to be feuding and what I personally felt was that the WWE called Breeze up because it was about time and he was more than ready and shoved him in a feud with a popular superstar who they knew the fans wanted to see him feud with. But it didn't work because there was zero direction. There's no point calling an NXT superstar up regardless of how ready they are if there is no real place for them at that the time. The other big issue was that Dolph Ziggler and Tyler Breeze had next to no chemistry what so ever. There was just nothing. They didn't connect well in the ring, I didn't feel as though they worked all that great together, and they didn't bring out the best in one another in the slightest. Had Breeze been called up, taken in a different direction and eventually feuded with Ziggler somewhere down the line, preferably for a championship, then we most probably wouldn't of had the same issue. When I was watching the pair of them go one on one with each other it felt like they were in different worlds. I don't know if anyone else got this or if it's just me and I sound insane but when they were competing against each other I felt like they were both in two different places completely. It was basically watching two separate individuals hit a thew moves, some rather impressive on one another and that was it. There was no story being told, they had no chemistry, no build up, nothing. Personally, I had such high expectations of this match and the feud in general but it fell flat and was a huge mistake. This was supposed to be the feud that kick started a phenomenal WWE main roster career for Tyler Breeze and it didn't do that at all. It was a terrible fail and one of the biggest reasons why Breeze is struggling now. He may have picked up a couple of victories over Ziggler but they mean absolutely nothing today.
Another issue was Breeze's early alliance with Summer Rae. Now, I love Summer Rae. I have mentioned it several times here on my blog and on twitter before that I think she's seriously underrated and underutilised but putting her and Breeze together was just ridiculous and make Tyler look like an absolute joke. On paper the pairing makes sense of course but for anyone that had not seen Breeze and he's work in NXT then this would just seem stupid, boring, cliché, and like I said before, one big massive joke. Their alliance did no good for Breeze or Summer for that matter and while it did make help make sense as to why Tyler and Ziggler were feuding it was something that was never going to work. Everyone that had seen Breeze in NXT and had read the rumours about him joining forces with Summer Rae knew this was going to be a bad idea and dreaded it. As it stands now, the pair are no longer together witch is the best news and the best thing for both of them but once again the early split does nothing for Breeze. He's pairing with Summer had him in a position where he was doomed no matter what. Whether if he stayed with Summer by he's side or ditched her it did no good for him. What the WWE need to focus on now is starting again with Summer Rae and especially of course Tyler Breeze.
If we are being honest the WWE got things wrong with Breeze from the very moment they called him up. Why they thought debuting a top NXT talent on Smackdown was a good idea I will never know. I really am not a fan of superstars making their first main roster TV appearance on Smackdown, mainly because it doesn't generate as much attention or viewers as RAW does, there isn't many people I personally know that watch Smackdown on a weekly, regular basis, I included, and it doesn't have the same appeal as debuting on RAW. It was bad enough that the timing made no sense and it was an odd stage of the year but having him debut on Smackdown was a big mistake. I really do believe that Breeze deserved to debut on Live TV, in front of thousands in an arena and millions at home, and while many people still do watch Smackdown and there were plenty of people at the Smackdown recording it's just not the same at all. There are still a great deal of fans who don't watch NXT and so when a superstar like Breeze makes he's debut they really need to make an impact and be noticed. That didn't happen with Breeze. Yes he attacked a top superstar on Smackdown but it wasn't how it was supposed to be or should have been. The reaction would have been much much stronger if they debuted him on RAW with a fantastic segment. It was a bad start for Tyler and he hasn't been able to get on the road he needs to be on. Since debuting on the main roster he has had a couple of decent matches here and there but nothing that has showed him for what he really is and what he is really capable of. He's been booked terribly since debuting and none of he's victories have meant anything or got him anywhere. What I was hopeing was that he was going to have a great night at the Royal Rumble but it couldn't have been any worse. I wasn't expecting him to win the rumble at all but that style of match could have really allowed Tyler to gain some of the spotlight and really impress the fans, leaving some kind of impression. But it was a terrible night and he spent less than two minutes in the rumble. It's such a shame because last Sunday could have really been a stand out night for Breeze.
With a rough first couple of months up on the main roster how can the WWE turn things around and get Tyler Breeze back on track? Well in my opinion they need to start again. We need to forget these past couple of months and just start a new. There is no need what so ever for the WWE to question the Tyler Breeze character what so ever.Throughout he's NXT days Breeze and the prince of Pretty gimmick proved to be a massive hit. He works as a phenomenal heel, able to cut strong promos and be apart of great segments, feuds, and storyline's with the gimmick. There isn't character like Tyler Breeze on the roster right now at all, separating him completely from everyone else allowing him to stand out massively if done right. There isn't an issue with the character at all, its entertaining, different and suits the product. Breeze and he's skill doesn't need to be assisted either. Tyler Breeze is a ready made superstar. He has the experience, the following, and the skill to be a major top WWE superstar. Will it take time for him to reach to the top and be where he rightfully deserves to be? Yes, absolutely, but if the WWE really pay a lot of attention on him and focus on building him then they are onto something very very special. The first thing they need to work on is getting people to understand the character. Like I said, for anyone that has watched NXT for long enough they understand the Tyler Breeze character. It makes sense, it works, all is good. But if I look at Breeze and get into the mind set of someone who has never watched NXT and seen him perform then I'm looking at Fandango two point o. The characters have simulates and the direction Breeze is going in is very very similar to Fandango. That is something that needs to chance and something the WWE need to work on. So we are going to have see and hear more of him. That means more matches on Smackdown and especially RAW, more promos, segments, video packages, interviews, the lot. If the WWE look at what they have done with Adrian Neville over the past year and replicate that then it could really work and get Breeze onto the right track. So the booking needs to get stronger. He doesn't need to win every single match he competes in. Almost the opposite in fact. Book him in matches against top superstars and superstars who can really challenge him and bring out the best in
him such as Dean Ambrose, Adrian Neville, John Cena and Cesaro when they return, superstars that Breeze has history with as well. Once they start putting him in matches that are longer, more interesting, more entertaining the more he will connect with fans slowly, grab attention and showcase he's abilities to the best. I think the main attention right now should be the Money in the bank pay per view for Breeze. If he picks up a couple of really strong victories here and there as we get even closer to the Money in the bank than that pay per view should be and could be very very strong for Tyler Breeze.
For anyone that knows Tyler Breeze well enough you will know that he is worth so much more than a three minuet match against Zack Ryder or R-Truth on Smackdown or main event. He's the type of superstar that could easily find himself main eventing against the likes of Seth Rollins or Cesaro and he is bound to be a major major part of the future of the WWE. He has worked he's butt off over the years, having a change in character, working in NXT, and developing in every single aspect. He has helped many NXT Superstars and Divas backstage and is a well respected talent. What the WWE need to do is set him off in the right direction. Was this the wrong time to call him up? Yes, most probably. But can the WWE turn things around? One hundred and ten percent. He has had some great comments from the commentary team since getting the call up and if the WWE focus on starting again with him and set a goal for him then Tyler Breeze could be looking at a great year and a fantastic future in the WWE. Remember you can let me know what you think about what we have spoken about today by leaving a comment bellow or by tweeting me at @TezangiVictoria.
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