Yeah, as negative as my view of WWE as a whole has been, I honestly don't think their are many problems with how WWE has handled The Shield. They really don't have to explain anything more than what they did, some subtlety/ambiguity is a welcome change from the norm for me. I'll attempt to address the questions ask from what I've managed to conjure up based off what WWE has told us.
Crayo said:
There is not enough back story to this. All we know is that they have attacked people because Heyman employed them, but that gives us more questions than answers. Are they actually his employees, or do they just do him favours? How did Heyman find them? Why are they attacking people now if Paul is clearly caught up in another feud that Shield aren't in? They need to build these guys as the outlaws they clearly are, and not just have it as the typical "bad group doing bad things because they're bad" ideology that insults many of the fans.
I feel like if this were TNA we would at least have more talking segments with Shield so they can explain it, and more selling from the company. Now Shield are seemingly feuding with Big Show and stuff, but why? Why would they concern themselves with that? It will be just another random midcard feud to fill a Wrestlemania spot, when it can be so so much more.
To begin answering this one, I'm going to have to quote Stopspot . . .
Stopspot said:
They stated that they formed because Dusty Rhodes told them down in NXT/FCW that they needed to seize opportunities. They also said something about feeling overlooked for call ups or something and thus felt that the system was wrong. This was pretty early in their run but what I made out as their backstory from it. How they got in cahoots with Heyman I don't know though.
This kind of fits into the whole scenario with Heyman. During the time this was probably happening, Heyman had a big problem on his hand with the upcoming triple threat match between Ryback, Cena, & Punk. Obviously he needed to devise a plan in order to ensure Punk's victory. So, he looked to the developmental and found The Shield, or perhaps he heard about them through the grapevines (which isn't unlikely, considering that Heyman was the head booker at OVW, so it isn't a stretch that he'd have connections with those in the developmental territory). Perhaps, he is even the reason they're together, it's not clear but I somewhat doubt that that's the case. One thing has become apparent in this story, and that is that Heyman is not the total mastermind behind The Shield. Yes, it could also be assumed that he instructed The Shield to target other wrestlers so to avert attention away from their connection to Punk, but the storyline really hasn't given us any indication that that's the case. What is clear though, is that Heyman provided them the opportunity they were looking for, the one Dusty talked to them about. Also, it's very likely that they still believed helping Punk to be the right thing to do. So yeah, they helped Heyman but aren't going to exclusively focus on helping him. He hired them to help him keep the belt, and since he lost it they've avoided him like the plague [unless I've missed/forgotten something]. If they were still working for Heyman, or if they were exclusively working for him, they would still be focused on helping Punk and would've interfered in the Chamber match against The Rock. So obviously, the affiliation with Heyman was just that, and it still benefited their cause.
As for why they are feuding with Big Show . . . ever hear of obstruction of justice? Because that's why, Big Show decided to attack them while they were exacting justice on Orton. It fits with their motif perfectly. Now, I'd rather they not face Big Show since that guy has a tendency to kill my excitement for anything he's involved with but it aligns perfectly with both Show & The Shield's characters and motivations. Also, it showcase that they really are outlaws, that they really do have ideals they believe and fight for because they aren't just limiting their attacks to faces anymore.
TeenGohan Randy Savage6425 said:
Yeah they were always going to botch this IMO, it's similar to Sandow it requires more thought than they tend to have. An easy out to a few issues would be Paul scouted them and used his influence to recommend them to the E to get them contracts, it's not ideal but it's a simple if anticlimatic experience. A more pressing issue is why did they stop and start attacking Ryback?
Because they finished their feud with Ryback, as anti-climatic as that was. I mean, they beat him three times in a row, they've taught him justice. Keep in mind, the main reason the Ryback feud went as long as it did was because Paul Heyman hired them to assure that Punk would retain and Ryback just so happened to be the challenger every time. Once that was no longer the case the feud continued because Ryback demanded revenge. Ryback was the one going after them, which again, kind of falls under that "obstruction of justic" idea so of course they'll retaliate. After that Raw match, they taught Ryback his lesson and Ryback hasn't retaliated again, why would they continue to attack him? Their idea of retribution isn't to incapacitate an opponent so he can't compete, it's to shield from the wrong, and even teach them their lesson. Mission accomplished. Them continuing to attack Ryback after that wouldn't have made any sense, except from traditional booking logic which dictates that the feud should finish at WrestleMania but I'd rather the characters dictate the actions honestly. Ryback learned his lesson, he wasn't going after someone they were paid to help protect (and I remain, thought was the right thing to do), and he wasn't persisting to seek revenge on them. I mean, this is more of a flaw concerning Ryback than The Shield if you really want to think about it.
Crayo said:
Your post pretty much sums up how WWE have messed up. We're going by things they might have said and we're assuming. In a story like this, this needs to be emphasised. They can still be bad but actually have a reason for going around and causing havoc.
This is why Nexus was perfect. They were a group of rookies who were pissed off at the NXT system making them look like crap, and the pros treating them like that. They had a clear agenda at first of getting contracts and making an impression. Then they wanted to actually dominate the WWE and eventually went into the direction of trying to get Wade the title. Everything was clear. We knew what they wanted and why they were doing the things they were doing to get there.
They do have a reason to face all three of the guys they currently are. One of the biggest reason is because pretty much all three of them are targeting The Shield. Of course their attentions are going to fight them. I don't think the story line needs any emphasis, like I said, I personally prefer this way. I prefer the fact that they don't feel the need to tell us stuff that is pretty obvious, like why are they facing such and such. I prefer the fact that they don't even feel the need to tell us stuff that aren't entirely obvious and requires some thought. Way to often wrestling is very straight forward and obvious, not a trace of subtlety to be found. I can happily say that this is not the case here and I for one am happy that's the case. Granted I'm talking strictly personally and from an objective point of view but even from an objective point of view I don't think I'd change much. There are still plenty of angles going on currently that satisfy those needs, and ones of higher value too. Plus, The Shield are still coming across as a big deal, so it's all good in my book.
Also, on the note of Nexus, I thought their booking was terrible after SummerSlam (Well to be fair, their booking was so atrocious on the Raw after SummerSlam, that I immediately lost all interest I had in WWE and quit watching regularly [outside of some Bryan matches] until the Raw roulette with Punk's shoot but I kept track similar to how I do now).
Oh, and I'm not trying to say that WWE couldn't have done more with The Shield, that they've reached their full potential, anything to that extent. I'm just saying that I don't think it's nearly as flawed as you guys seem to.
