Welcome fine people of Freakin Awesome Network to the third annual FAN WWE Awards. 2013 was an interesting year to say the least. We’ve seen Wyatts, goats, libertarian monsters, total divas, Rybully, a ton of 6-man tag matches, a new authority that knows what’s “best for business”, a selfie taking commentary team, and perhaps the most shocking of all this, an actual tag team division. Something many would have thought was dead long and ever ago.
So of all the good, bad, and the ugly, what stood out the most this year? Well, once again it’s me and Shawn Sommervile, better known to the forum as Excellence of Excecution, to recap the winning votes sent in by you. So, without much more ballyhoo, let’s break down the best and worst of the WWE in 2013.
BEST DIVA OF 2013: AJ LEE
Raymond: To say that the divas division is pretty much in the same state of disarray that it was for the last few years is pretty much the truth. And with the success of the reality show “Total Divas” it looks like any focus on actual quality in women’s wrestling seems more an more a pipe dream with each passing week. That’s where I have to say we should be thankful that AJ Lee is around and actually seems like she gives a damn about women’s wrestling.
It’s been a fruitful year for AJ. At WWE Payback in June, AJ would capture the Divas championship from Kaitlyn, and to the point of this article’s creation, she is still currently holding the title, making her the longest reigning Divas champ. A romantic relationship with Dolph Ziggler would last throughout the first half of 2013, until AJ would cost Dolph a rematch for the World Heavyweight Championship at Money in the Bank, to which she would soon part ways with him, as only the WWE’s resident psycho would.
But her most recent focus has been on the cast of Total Divas, to which she’d give a rather scathing “pipe bomb” about how the cast of Total Divas weren’t worthy of being in the same business as her. AJ is now a two time winner of the FAN Best Diva award, and if the WWE continues to stick to heavy focus on their terrible reality show, then she may be prime contender to recapture this award next year.
WORST DIVA OF 2013: EVA MARIE
SHAWN: Throughout the years, WWE’s Diva recruitment policy has centered on primarily one aspect… and surprisingly, it isn’t wrestling ability. Past winners of this award like Kelly Kelly and Rosa Mendes have embodied this attitude and provided us with many cringeworthy moments for the archives of wrestling history. Yet, there is one (artificially) flame-haired femme that could top them all. And she’s only just getting started.
Eva Marie was hired via a covert Diva Search along with JoJo Offerman, primarily for WWE and E!’s collaborative reality TV series “Total Divas”, which would showcase them as the newbies just getting their start in WWE alongside established talents The Bella Twins, Natalya and The Funkadactyls. Why this couldn’t have been done with someone from the pre-existing NXT Divas roster is a question only they can answer. Eva would go on to be one of the featured cast members of the show as JoJo faded into anonymity, with such classic moments as… the time she mispronounced Jinder Mahal’s name? How about when she nearly scammed her way into being Fandango’s dance partner? Or when she slapped Jerry Lawler? Good times were had by all, right? The joke was over when Eva made her next big step… into the WWE ring live on Monday night for a competitive wrestling bout. It wasn’t as bad as the infamous Jackie Gayda match of 2002, but that was pretty much because she hardly did anything. And that’s been the pattern of her in-ring career so far, other than a few scattered schoolgirl pins… at least I think that’s what they were meant to be.
At this point in time, Eva Marie has shown no discernible talents whatsoever for her job, but we all know that’s clearly not what she got signed for. That said, given time, patience and lots of training and commitment, who’s to say what the future holds for her? Anything could happen in WWE. And if not? Well, she’s always welcome to come back here next year. Godspeed, Eva Marie.
BEST TAG TEAM OF 2013: The Shield
RAYMOND: Back at the tail end of 2012, the trio of Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins, and Roman Reigns made their impactful debut as The Shield. The hounds of justice would tear though every superstar throughout the year that followed. Including their biggest claim to fame: triple powerbombing the Undertaker through an announce table, taking the dead man out of action since April of 2013. For what felt like a randomly picked trio, the group proved to be a truly well oiled machine in the ring, claiming many singles and tag team victories throughout 2013. The biggest victories coming at Extreme Rules 2013 where Dean Ambrose would win the United States Title (A title he still holds as of this article writing), while Rollins and Reigns would take the tag titles from Team Hell No.
What makes them special is how different their styles are in the ring, and how well they mesh together. Rollins is a high flyer, proficient in knee strikes to take out his opponents. Ambrose is far more of a technical wrestler, with a devastating headlock driver that finishes his opponents. And then there’s Roman Reigns, the guy that everyone thought would be the weakest link in the Shield, who has proved all doubters wrong with his powerhouse style, complete with Superman punches, and some of the most devastating spears ever seen. The same spear that took out four men in a single Survivor Series match, tying Reigns with Diesel for most eliminations in a single Survivor Series match.
Lately, the WWE have been hinting on breaking up the trio, as dissension is beginning to show within the trio. But when the three of them finally go their separate ways, it’s safe to say that the futures for all three of them look golden. But no one will ever forget how they made one epic first year debut. Believe in the Shield. Believe in the best tag team of 2013.
WORST TAG TEAM OF 2013: LOS MATADORES
RAYMOND: Poor Primo and Epico. Seriously, I think the duo are far more talented than most give them credit for. The problem is they just never clicked as just themselves. Adding Rosa Mendes didn’t help matters either. And clearly, the WWE knew this too, and would soon take the team off WWE television for a good chunk of 2013 to be repackaged. And anyone who knows this business well enough knows that if you’re getting repackaged, that’s never a good thing. Isn’t that right Bad News Barrett?
Around September of 2013, vignettes began to air for Los Matadores, a pair of masked matadors who were set to make their “debut” to the WWE. Of course, it didn’t take a genius to figure out that the Matadores were the former Primo and Epico. But that wasn’t the only little bit of information that caught people’s eye. The vignettes promised that Los Matadores would debut with the “bull of legend”. And everyone was thinking, “What, are they bringing back Mantaur?”
Turns out they were right on the money with that assumption, as on their debut night, the newly coined Diego and Fernando would also debut a little person in a bull costume named El Torito, who would jump around the ring and often charge at opposing superstars. He’s not too bad in the ring, and I can’t say that the Los Matadores are bad wrestlers, because again I think Primo and Epico were a bit underrated. Not these amazing talents, but decent workers. The problem is the gimmick is awful. It’s like the WWE learned nothing when they slapped Tito Santana with the same matador gimmick back in the early 90’s. It’s stupid, it’s questionably offensive, and you all thought so as well. Making them the worst tag team of 2013. OLE!
BEST ANGLE OF 2013: THE RHODES FAMILY VS THE AUTHORITY
SHAWN: By and large, The Authority angle has been seen mostly as missed potential in the four months that it’s been the focal point of WWE television, but it has given some talents a chance to shine in the process. Never was this more evident than when the Rhodes family found themselves in the corporate crosshairs.
It all started with Cody Rhodes, having recently turned face after the breakup of his alliance with Damien Sandow, making an innocuous comment against Triple H and Stephanie McMahon’s rule. From there, Rhodes was put in a career-threatening match against The Authority’s chosen one Randy Orton, which he lost after a valiant effort. Older brother Goldust, getting better with age like the finest of fine wines, would come in and fight Orton in a thrilling match for Cody’s job, but came up just short. Soon, the ultimatum was put to family patriarch Dusty. One job for one son. With Dusty refusing to choose, The Authority put their blackmailed hitman Big Show to work, knocking him out and also putting him out of his role as NXT General Manager. However, all that did was light one hell of a fire under Cody and Goldust. After ambushing The Shield in a manner very much like the trio would do so themselves, the challenge was set. Cody and Goldust with Dusty in their corner against Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns with Dean Ambrose in their corner at Battleground, with The Rhodes family’s jobs on the line once and for all. On that night it would not be hard times, as The Rhodes Brothers triumphed in one of the best matches of the year. Another victory on RAW a couple of weeks later saw Cody and Goldust dethrone Rollins and Reigns as the WWE Tag Team Champions, which they still hold today.
This angle quickly became the highlight of the RAWs it was featured on thanks to the simple yet compelling story, the work of the talents involved and, at the time, a rare satisfying conclusion. With a refreshed Cody, an evergreen Goldust and a determined Dusty overcoming the corrupt Authority, the Rhodes cemented themselves as one of the great wrestling family dynasties.
WORST ANGLE OF 2013: THE SAD SAGA OF THE BIG SHOW
RAYMOND: So, the Authority didn’t just abuse their power when it came to the Rhodes family and Daniel Bryan. Interestingly enough, they felt they had the stroke to bully a 7 foot, 450 pound giant. It started shortly after the Triple H/Stephanie regime really kicked into full heel mode as Stephanie would talk to the Big Show in the ring and begin to mock the fact that he’s broke, that he really hasn’t got many options for work outside of wrestling, and that he’s most likely going to die at a younger age. So, if you’ve followed continuity better than the WWE does on a regular basis, you’d know that Big show was given an iron-clad contract last year.
But this didn’t matter as the Authority still had the power to threaten Big Show with a possible firing if he didn’t do their bidding. Knocking out Daniel Bryan. Knocking out Dusty Rhodes. If you were on the authority’s bad side, you’d be forced to take a punch from their 7-foot slave. This was finally making the Big Show lose his temper, but he of course could do jack about it. After knocking both Daniel Bryan and Randy Orton out, along with a referee at Battleground, Stephanie would fire Big Show for not doing what was “best for business”. So, did this mean that Big Show would be gone for a while?
Of course not. He’d still show up on both Raw and Smackdown. His most notable appearance would be aiding Cody Rhodes and Goldust in winning the WWE Tag Team Championship from The Shield. Big show would then focus on making Triple H and the McMahons pay by filing a class action lawsuit poised to shake the WWE down for every last penny. And it seemed like he would actually win. So logically he throws that away for his job back, and a shot at the WWE championship. Which the authority would screw him out of. And now Big Show is back in midcard mediocrity, and as we saw on Raw last week, in a diaper as the world’s largest baby new year. Really puts these last few months of television into perspective, huh?
BEST PPV OF 2013: SUMMERSLAM
Shawn: While the match quality has been excellent for the most part, it has been let down by mostly disappointing storylines. SummerSlam was the last show before that effect truly set in according to many, but it does stand out on its own merits as a quality pay-per-view. As such, it takes home the award this year.
After a good United States Championship match between Dean Ambrose and Rob Van Dam on the YouTube Kickoff, things started out in earnest on a somewhat disappointing note with the Bray Wyatt v Kane Ring Of Fire Match. From there, things ebbed and flowed gently. Cody Rhodes vs Damien Sandow and Alberto Del Rio vs Christian for the World Heavyweight Championship were decent, while Natalya vs Brie Bella was OK for a “Total Divas” grudge match. After that, we went to the first of the two big matches of the night, that being CM Punk vs Brock Lesnar. And they didn’t disappoint, with Lesnar returning to his brutal fighting best after the long Triple H feud and Punk staying with him every step of the way until he let his hatred for Paul Heyman distract him long enough for Lesnar to hit an F-5 onto a steel chair for the win. After a fun mixed tag between Dolph Ziggler and Kaitlyn against Big E Langston and AJ Lee, the stage was set for the other big match of the night, John Cena vs Daniel Bryan for the WWE Championship. And it was another classic match for the resumes of both men, with Bryan getting the shocking win and taking an even more shocking loss, with Randy Orton cashing in Money In The Bank after a Pedigree from special referee Triple H.
SummerSlam often gets hyped up by WWE almost as their second WrestleMania of the year, although more often than not it fails to live up to that hype. This year, however, it was backed up by two high quality bouts and a solid undercard which led to an overall great show.
WORST PPV OF 2013: BATTLEGROUND
SHAWN: And now, the latest in the conveyor belt of new PPVs over the last few years. Battleground occupied the dreaded early October spot this year, and expectations were low. The show itself barely made THOSE expectations except for one or two matches, yet it had an ending that left several voters with a sour taste in their bank accounts when all was said and done, one that likely carried it to this award.
After Dolph Ziggler bested Damien Sandow in a decent bout on the YouTube Kickoff, things started with a Hardcore Match between Alberto Del Rio and Rob Van Dam for the World Heavyweight Championship that turned out to be all right, but kind of forgettable. The Real Americans then fought Santino Marella and The Great Khali in a match only put on the card to showcase Antonio Cesaro’s Giant Swing, a move from years gone by that was quickly getting over with today’s crowds thanks to Cesaro’s freaky strength and some minor media exposure. From there things slowed to a halt, with dull title matches between Curtis Axel and R-Truth, then AJ Lee and Brie Bella. The Rhodes Brothers vs The Shield took the show to great heights temporarily in an awesome match that will be in many other Best Of 2013 lists, but after that there were disappointing matches between Bray Wyatt and Kofi Kingston, and in a rare miss for The Best In The World, CM Punk and Ryback. It then all relied on Randy Orton vs Daniel Bryan for the vacant WWE Championship to deliver a saving throw… only for the match to be stopped and declared a no contest after interference from Big Show, the worst of a run of unsatisfying PPV endings throughout the fall.
Like the other PPVs that were on that metaphorical conveyor belt I mentioned, Battleground will likely not see a second installment, based mostly on one of the company’s lowest ever PPV buyrate numbers, even though that may reflect more on the buildup going in than the show itself. Make an effort to find The Rhodes Brothers vs The Shield on its own in your internet travels and let Battleground leave a positive impression in your mind just for that match, instead of the negative one it would leave for watching the whole show.
BUMP OF 2013: SHEAMUS FALLS THROUGH A LADDER AT MONEY IN THE BANK
SHAWN: The Money In The Bank ladder matches have led to some insane thrills and spills throughout its history. Think Shelton Benjamin running up a ladder to hit Chris Jericho with a clothesline at WrestleMania XXI, or Jeff Hardy diving onto Edge at WrestleMania XXIII. While this bump here might not equal those for high risk, it sure did equal it for high brutality, with a sting in the tail that left the victim on the injured list for pretty much the entire second half of the year.
That man was Sheamus, who was simply caught in the crossfire of one Daniel Bryan. His high energy, high impact offense went to a whole new level in 2013, and it was on show during the Money In The Bank All-Stars Match for a WWE Championship shot. Back and forth kicks to Sheamus and Rob Van Dam here, a running dropkick to Randy Orton there, suicide dive to CM Punk, double missile dropkick to Sheamus and Van Dam… Bryan was a, as they say in the classics, casa en fuego. After picking up a ladder and knocking down Orton and Van Dam, Bryan saw Sheamus climbing a turnbuckle, and made his move. One strike with the metal later, and The Celtic Warrior had been sent flying over the top rope, going shoulder first through a bridged ladder with a sickening crunch, to the floor below. The impact broke the ladder clean in half. Sheamus had already taken severe hits during the match, notably an earlier scary ladder fall involving Van Dam, and this was enough to put his chances to bed for the night. Afterwards, the initial concern for Sheamus was the hip area, which had bruised and swollen severely enough to keep him off TV for the following week, but after that had healed, a deeper issue was found. A torn ligament in his shoulder was restricting his arm movement and surgery was required, putting him out of action. He is still yet to return to the WWE ring at the time this article was published.
Much like in motor racing, my first sporting love, it’s the impacts that look relatively harmless that usually are the dangerous ones. Men have fallen from higher through more things and come out mostly unscathed. For Sheamus, all it took was a bad landing to wipe out at least six months of his career. Sheamus, I know you’re reading this, so here’s hoping our award is some consolation for your injuries.
NEWCOMER OF 2013: The Wyatt Family
RAYMOND: What happens when you take a dash of Deliverance, a portion of the Manson family, and a heaping helping of Cape Fear? You get the Wyatt Family of course. Debuting on NXT in 2012, Bray Wyatt was a psychotic sort of preacher, believing that he is the eater of worlds. His strange words would catch on as he would soon find followers in Luke Harper and Eric Rowan. The Wyatt Family would tear apart the NXT landscape, eventually landing Harper and Rowan the NXT Tag Team Championship in the process.
But the NXT landscape is but a mere pond for the manic message of Bray Wyatt to be spread, and soon the family would set their sights on debuting on Monday Night Raw. And on July 8th, the family would make their impactful debut by attacking Kane. They’d focus on the monster, taking him out of action for a few weeks, and at Summerslam, following the bizarre “Ring of Fire” match, the Wyatts would injure Kane further, drag him out of the arena with them. Whatever they did to Kane, it seemed to have worked since upon his return he would remove his mask and go corporate for the authority.
In the last few months, the Wyatts have focused their attacks on the likes of Kofi Kingston, The Miz, and CM Punk. But their biggest target has been Daniel Bryan, who the family have been trying to convince to join them. While Bryan has fought back the best he can, the Wyatts seem to have him beaten at almost every turn. It’s been a freaky 2013 thanks to this new trio. What will 2014 bring for them? And will we finally learn more about the mysterious Sister Abigail? Only time will tell.
SHOCKER OF 2013: DANIEL BRYAN BEATS JOHN CENA CLEAN AT SUMMERSLAM
SHAWN: John Cena is, without a shadow of a doubt, the man in WWE. On his broad shoulders rests years of company investment and a merchandising empire, sometimes to the detriment of others. Even when not holding a championship belt, Cena’s exploits are usually put front and centre of WWE television. And on the rare occasions where he does lose, it’s often with an asterisk. CM Punk’s famous Money In The Bank win of 2011 was partially due to Cena releasing the STF to avert a corporate screwjob. The Rock’s WrestleMania XXVIII win was on the back of Cena getting arrogant and taking his time in trying for a mocking People’s Elbow. To many, Cena is the glass ceiling.
On the other hand, we have Daniel Bryan. The man with the shaggy hair and bushy beard who toiled on the independents for years, with the heart of a dragon and a fiery wrestling style to match. Right from the jump of his WWE career, Bryan was confronted with odds to overcome, from curmudgeonly commentators, to wrestling tropes that have felled many in their tracks, to “18 Seconds”. Yet every single time, not only would Bryan dive in with all the enthusiasm he could muster, he would come out the other side stronger than before. And come August 2013, with unparalleled crowd support and more momentum than anyone could fathom, he was ready to overcome the biggest odds of them all… Yet many still had their doubts. But besides coming into the match with an injury, Cena had no excuses at SummerSlam. He gave it his best, and on the night, Daniel Bryan was the better man and pinned him 1-2-3 in the middle of the ring. The wrestling world stopped spinning for a brief second to comprehend this. The man in maroon from Aberdeen, WA just toppled the mighty Cena.
A brief second was about as long as Bryan was WWE Champion as well, as it turned out. Bryan would later win back the gold, only for it to be vacated on a technicality and accusations of conspiracy the next night. So, while it looks like Bryan still has odds to overcome for the foreseeable future, he has something only a select few in recent years have ever gotten. A decisive victory over the man. And as they say, to be the man… well, you know the rest.
MOST EMBARRASSING MOMENT OF 2013: THE SELFIE
RAYMOND: It’s no secret that the WWE has been shoving their focus on social activity down the throats of their audience for the last couple years. Hashtag this, trending that. Wasted television time focusing on Tout, which was easily forgotten due to the rise of Vine. Constant mentioning of twerking as if most of their audience gives a damn about it. And who can forget their constant shilling of their app, from rigged polls, bland stuff that happens during the break that you really don’t care about. And since the WWE thinks their audience is a bunch of troglodytes and therefore don’t know how to use an app, they’ll make sure to tediously remind you how to download the App on both an iOS device and an Android. Because, you know, they’re so different you’d never be able to tell the difference.
So, why do I bring all that up when your choice for most embarrassing moment is the selfie? Because it just goes to show just how the WWE is coming off as the old grandparent trying to be “down with the kids, yo”. I saw an ad from a company called Telus where the parents and grandmother in the ad were talking about likes, and retweets, and using “hashtag” as a catchphrase. This ad reminds me of the WWE. Their heavy social media pushing borders on downright embarrassing. And no better example of that was given than on the December 9th edition of Monday Night Raw, as in the middle of a match between the Rhodes Brothers and the team of Rey Mysterio and the Big Show, the commentary team would instead focus on taking a selfie during the match. And when Lawler botched the picture the first time, why bother doing this during the break? Let’s take another shot to get it right.
This says it all about the product right now. If the commentary team doesn’t care about the action in the ring, why should the audience care? And it’s a shame it happened in a match with four talented workers (yeah, even Big Show). It’s easy to see why this is not just an embarrassing moment, but the easy pick for most embarrassing moment of 2013.
PROMO OF 2013: AJ LEE Vs. THE TOTAL DIVAS CAST
SHAWN: The best of those on the mic can take any crowd into the palm of their hand and captivate them with nothing more than words. This year saw several memorable promos, ranging from the sincerely heartfelt by Dusty Rhodes, to the wonderously arrogant by CM Punk, to the downright batshit insane by Paul Heyman. Yet it was one diminutive and disturbed Diva that stood tallest among the pack in 2013 with a tirade that made even the most jaded fans of wrestling sit up and pay attention.
It looked to be a run-of-the-mill Divas tag match on RAW, with The Bella Twins and Eva Marie taking on The Funkadactyls and Natalya. However, the victory celebration for the Bellas and Eva was short-lived, as Divas Champion AJ Lee arrived on the scene. She started off with some faux excited hype for the latest exploits of the “Total Divas” reality show, of which all the match combatants were a part of. But it was with the question of “Do you want to know what I see when I look in that ring?” that AJ started dropping her real sermon. Cheap. Interchangeable. Expendable. Useless. Worthless. All words that many in the wider fanbase have used to describe the Divas division in the past. In her own words, while AJ worked for her chance, the others got in by coasting on family legacy, their looks or even making nice with people in power. Even The Bella Twins and Eva Marie loudly trying to goad AJ into a closer confrontation couldn’t overshadow AJ’s scathing words.
For a brief moment, the Divas were all the talk after that episode of RAW, and there was actual anticipation for where it would go next… At least until the matches started happening, where for the most part they were about the same quality as usual (except for AJ vs Natalya at TLC, which was one of the better matches of the whole night). That said, with one “pipebombshell” AJ proved that there was method behind her madness, and that she is the closest thing that the Divas division has to a total package. And that… is reality.
BEST MATCH OF 2013: DANIEL BRYAN VS. JOHN CENA: SUMMERSLAM 2013
SHAWN: It’s amazing that for the three years we’ve been doing these awards, the one common denominator of our Best Match winners has been one man… John Cena, a man I feel often does not get the recognition he deserves for his abilities due to his consistently strong booking. On this late summer night in Los Angeles, carrying a triceps injury that left his elbow with a lump the size of a tennis ball, he fought a white-hot challenger in Daniel Bryan, and both men left it all in the ring in a classic championship bout.
For a raucous crowd at the STAPLES Center, Cena and Bryan threw everything in their arsenal at each other for over 25 minutes until it boiled down to primal, hard-hitting slaps. After countering an Attitude Adjustment into a signature small package that nearly got the win, and a stiff kick to the head, Bryan pulled out a new trick and hit a running knee strike to get one of the few clean wins there has ever been over Cena, and his first WWE Championship. Of course as history shows, Bryan would get betrayed by special referee Triple H and cashed in on by Money In The Bank holder Randy Orton, ending that reign in a matter of minutes, but the fact that the reign was so short should never undermine the effort it took for Bryan to win that championship in the first place, both in that one match and the career leading up to it.
2013 will go down in the books as one of WWE’s best in-ring years ever, with high-quality matches from the peaks of pay-per-view, right down to the proving grounds of NXT and everywhere else in between. The fact that this match won, over all those others, truly stands as a testament to the skills of both Cena and Bryan, the two best wrestlers in WWE today.
WORST MATCH OF 2013: THE BIG SHOW Vs. RANDY ORTON: SURVIVOR SERIES 2013
SHAWN: We actually had tied winners for this award at the end of polling, and as such, it was left to me to cast a deciding vote between the two matches concerned. The reason I am going with the match between Randy Orton and Big Show at Survivor Series over Bray Wyatt and Kane’s Ring Of Fire Match at SummerSlam was that Wyatt and Kane was hamstrung by the cumbersome (if not visually impressive) Ring Of Fire gimmick, which has never really produced a classic when it’s been used in the past as the Inferno Match.
On the other hand, Orton and Big Show was the main event, the match that WWE were telling you that you must fork over your greenbacks to see… again, since it was a match that had already happened on PPV in 2013 at Extreme Rules with the Last Man Standing stipulation and the alignments the other way around. That comes with a whole different set of expectations to live up to. The fact that the match was disappointing (and short too, clocking off at approximately 11 minutes) just added to the general malaise that the Authority angle had entered into once Daniel Bryan had been sidetracked out of it by The Wyatt Family. Orton was at his chickenshitty worst, which left Big Show playing catch up all match, and things just didn’t click from there for these guys. Top that off with the always hilarious “Get distracted by music and turn around” run-in that wasn’t quite a run-in from The Authority, and you have a very underwhelming title bout.
Big Show’s involvement with that angle ended on the winning 3 count, as he soon moved to new hobbies, such as partnering up with Rey Mysterio, being a New Year’s baby and contemplating what his life would have been like as the owner of WWE had he not settled his unfair dismissal lawsuit for that title shot. Orton meanwhile, now stands alone at the apex, holding both major gold belts as the undisputed WWE World Heavyweight Champion after unifying the titles at TLC over John Cena. Hopefully, he’ll have better title bouts in the new year.
WORST SUPERSTAR OF 2013: ALBERTO DEL RIO
RAYMOND: Well, here we are again one year later, and to my honest surprise once again the people of FAN have chosen Alberto Del Rio as the worst superstar of 2013. And of course, when I say I’m surprised, I’m really not. The WWE have tried for the last several years to make Del Rio this big star, giving him multiple World Title runs and feuds with top stars. But time, and time again, he just proves to have no heat whatsoever.
And you could say they tried really hard to make him relevant this year. A babyface turn that saw a world title victory ensured that Del Rio would go into Wrestlemania with the World Heavyweight Championship. This new face Del Rio would claim to be the voice for the Mexican people. Which considering his heel run was a snobby aristocrat who would often call most people peasants, this of course made no sense. The face run remained rather cold, even with a feud with the “Real American” Jack Swagger and his newfound manager, the ever vocal about illegal immigration Zeb Colter. But it proved that no one really cared in the end, and were just waiting for Dolph to take the belt from Del Rio.
And he would the night after Wrestlemania. But Dolph would soon get a concussion, taking him off television for almost two whole months. When he returned, he would lose the belt right back to a once again heel Del Rio. But despite another long world title reign where he would beat down Ricardo Rodriguez on every given chance, no one really cared. Didn’t help that most of his matches on Raw and Smackdown were usually against the usual suspects. Sin Cara, Kofi Kingston, The Miz. The wheel of aggression spun around, but no one really cared where it landed on.
At Hell in a Cell, Del Rio would lose the world title to John Cena, returning early from injury. After losing again to Cena at Survivor Series, it seemed like Del Rio couldn’t sink any lower. But we were all proven wrong as he would lose two weeks in a row to Sin Cara (even if this was a new Sin Cara altogether). While Del Rio had a productive 2013, in the end, no one really gave a damn about it, and the fact that you the fine people of FAN voted him in as worst superstar for the 2nd year in a row is proof of that. Here’s to him probably winning it again in 2014.
BEST SUPERSTAR of 2013 AND BREAKOUT STAR OF 2013: DANIEL BRYAN
RAYMOND: Speaking of two time winners. Daniel Bryan’s 2013 was really the stuff of legend when it comes to not just a breakout year, but also cementing himself as a true main eventer, even if the WWE seems a bit shaky on making that a reality. And you all agree with that, since not only did Daniel Bryan win Breakout Superstar of 2013, but also Superstar of 2013. So, instead of just rewriting the same stuff twice, we’ll celebrate the year of the beard in this handy dandy little section.
Bryan saw tag success with Kane throughout the majority of the first half of 2013, even finally getting his moment of redemption at Wrestlemania 29 after last year’s embarrassing 18-second loss. After losing the tag titles to the Shield, Bryan became more focused on proving to everyone that he wasn’t the weak link of Team Hell No. Despite not being able to regain the tag titles with, of all people, Randy Orton, he would still try to prove he was worthy of being a main event player. And he would get his chance as he was hand picked by John Cena to be his opponent at Summerslam. With Triple H refereeing the match, Bryan would shock the world by pinning John Cena cleanly to win the WWE championship…
Only for it to be taken from him by Randy Orton thanks to a pedigree by Triple H.
Now Bryan was faced with the biggest opposition ever. With the authority claiming that he’s a B+ player, not worthy of being champion, Bryan would continue to fight as he would be punished week in, and week out at the hands of Triple H and Stephanie, who would put him against Orton, The Shield, and even Big Show. Despite that, Bryan held on as he continued to feud with Randy Orton for the WWE Championship. However, despite winning the title again at Night of Champions, a screwy finish would cause the belt to be stripped from him. And more screwjobs would continue, eventually leading to Shawn Michaels costing him another shot at winning back the WWE title.
But this hasn’t diminished Bryan’s focus. He’s still trying to earn another opportunity to capture the newly created WWE World Heavyweight Championship, while also having to deal with the Wyatt Family. And all while the WWE crowd is almost 100% behind him, chanting “Yes!” and “Daniel Bryan” at every given opportunity. While the McMahons still don’t see him as the future of the WWE, the crowd is certainly letting them know loud and clear. And you all are making your voice clear too, as you’ve given him two award victories this year. So, here’s to Daniel Bryan, Breakout Superstar and Superstar of 2013.
And that’s our award ceremonies for this year. Thank you to everyone who sent in their nominees for each category. It was an amazing turnout this year. And once again thanks to Shawn Sommervile, AKA Excellence of Execution for his help in this article. Couldn’t have done it without you. And now we enter 2014, where anything can and will happen. Who will take the top spots next year? Who will fail to deliver? Only time will tell.
Have a great 2014 everybody.