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One has to commend WWE for reinventing the way that it does business in the year 2020, adopting a more cinematic style of storytelling, and in the absence of real fans in the arena, bringing in virtual fans for a special experience.
But with the praise, the brickbats must also follow. As good as some of WWE's decisions in 2020 were, one has to admit that not all of their calls were right, and some of them can be considered knee-jerk.
Here are 5 knee-jerk decisions from WWE in the year 2020, that made very little sense and left a bitter taste in the mouth of long-term fans.
For every Roman Reigns vs. Jey Uso, WWE also gave us RETRIBUTION.
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#5 Revealing Mustafa Ali to be the WWE hacker, and then not following up on the angle at all
Has there ever been a faction that has been booked more poorly than RETRIBUTION has, in WWE history? They came into the roster as a bunch of outlaws, got drafted to the WWE RAW brand, and just haven't been able to pick up any momentum at all ever since. Some believed that Mustafa Ali, who was revealed as the leader of the WWE RAW faction, would breathe new life into them, but that has not been the case at all.
Speaking of Mustafa Ali, if he was the WWE hacker, why was this angle dropped all of a sudden? Could it not have been used to determine who it was that ran over Elias? Could it not be used to maybe expose that Angel Garza as someone who was making advances towards several women, thereby antagonizing them against him?
WWE stars promising storylines and then just abandons them for no rhyme or reason whatsoever. It's completely baffling.
#4 Splitting up Otis and Mandy Rose, one of WWE's hottest ongoing storylines
WWE booked the Otis and Mandy Rose relationship arc perfectly, not making it easy for the 'working-class man' to become Rose's love interest. But when they came together at WrestleMania, it was a great moment for fans, who were thrilled to see the 'regular guy' get the gorgeous girl, for a change.
And then, all of a sudden Mandy Rose and Otis were separated, with Otis remaining on SmackDown and his love interest moving to WWE RAW, bringing this storyline to a really abrupt halt. There are so many possibilities that could have been explored with Otis and Mandy Rose, maybe even clashing with another similar mixed tag team, such as Alexa Bliss and The Fiend.
It has turned out okay for Mandy Rose, who has seemingly found her footing on WWE RAW as Dana Brooke's tag team partner, but it's still a step down from what could have been.
Did WWE run out of ideas or could there be a backstage reason for such a strange decision?
#3 Awarding the Money in the Bank briefcase to Otis and then having WWE RAW star, The Miz win it
WWE embraced the cinematic contest at WrestleMania, with the Boneyard Match featuring The Undertaker and AJ Styles, and the Firefly Fun House Match with John Cena and Bray Wyatt.
And then, they took this concept to the next level, by announcing that the Money in the Bank match this year, would be held at WWE Headquarters. While Asuka was the favorite going into the match and then, went on to win the contract, to the surprise of none, many eyebrows were raised when Otis won the men's match.
WWE seemed to second-guess their decision as well in the following months, as they went on to award the contract to The Miz, soon after. While the idea of Otis as the WWE Champion or the Universal Champion may seem ludicrous at this point in time, so is the thought of The Miz as the face of the company in 2021. This decision was certainly knee-jerk and makes little sense.
#2 Splitting up The IIonics, and then pairing WWE RAW star Peyton Royce with Lacey Evans
If you consider the entire WWE Women's Tag Team Championship picture, The IIconics were the only 'real' tag team to have competed in the division with the exception of The Riott Squad. Every other tag team, be it The Golden Role Models, or Nia Jax and Shayna Baszler, consists of singles Superstars that WWE threw together. The IIconics had something special going on until WWE decided to have them go their separate ways.
One would have assumed that WWE booked The IIconics to go their separate ways because Peyton Royce is young, talented, and has a world of potential.
But now, it turns out that Peyton Royce will be in a makeshift team with Lacey Evans going forward, where neither woman is really on the same page, and honestly, it is a team that not many seem to be invested in. This has to be one of the worst decisions of the year, one that makes no sense whatsoever from a booking perspective.
#1 Splitting up Heavy Machinery and then having WWE SmackDown star Otis team with Chad Gable
Because this is the third point featuring WWE SmackDown star Otis, it is only fair that we end this article with a special interview that SK Wrestling conducted with Otis a few months ago.
Heavy Machinery was a beloved tag team, consisting of two actual best friends, which was split up by WWE not very long ago. Tucker turned heel and was drafted to WWE RAW, while Otis remained on SmackDown, seemingly for what seemed like a major singles push.
WWE seems to have forgotten that Tucker is still a part of the active roster following the heel turn because it nowhere at all. Moreover, Otis has been paired with Chad Gable on the SmackDown brand in a pairing that seems odd and is doing nothing to elevate either man.
Otis used to get massive organic reactions from the WWE Universe when he gyrated his hips, and maybe he needs crowds in the arena again to remind the creative team what a unique talent he can be.
