Before we get started, I must first apologize, as my busy schedule prohibited me from updating until now. What brought me back though was a VERY busy day in WWE Land.
With the emergence of a plethora of young talent, many experienced players have been worrying about their position in the company. Well, six will worry no more, as they were given the old "good luck in your future endeavors" sendoff. Luckily, none of these workers will really be missed, though as someone with some compassion, I'm never happy to see someone lose their job. That said, let's look at who go the heave ho:
Luke Gallows - Perhaps the most notable of the releases, Gallows previously worked under the Kane mask in that short lived story as well as Festus. Point for dealing with what is given to you, but as a big guy with no distinguising characteristics, this isn't much of a surprise. Had the Straight Edge Society continued longer, he'd most certainly be employed, but unfortunately for him and all of us, it was dropped way too soon. Gallows is a fine worker, but name recognition is not something that Gallows has, so he'll probably wallow around the indy's for a while. I doubt TNA will look at him, and I would gather that Ring of Honor definitely won't, but any former WWE guy can usually get some work, so look for Gallows to appear at your local independent show in the future.
Shad Gaspard - This was probably coming the second he was taken off TV. With the WWE completely de-emphasizing tag team wrestling, Shad was split from his longtime Cryme Tyme partner earlier this year. No one understood it then, and it makes more sense now seeing how it played out. Shad became the bad guy, saying it's "my time", but with lackluster ring skills and mediocre presence for a big guy, his push was over before it got started. While his partner is a solid worker who is now enhancement talent, Shad is another dime a dozen big man and thus is out of a job. Until JTG loses his though, Shad's future doesn't look very bright. He would probably get a lot more bookings as part of Cryme Tyme, but I'm sure he'll find something to do, as long as it's not one of the three more notable wrestling companies in the USA.
Vance Archer - Noticing a trend here? Big man from a former tag team is out of a job, part 3. I actually like Archer and I thought he could be inserted into numerous teams, but again, Tag Team wrestling is not something of value these days. Thus, Archer is basically a generic big man, and those are not held in the high regard they once were. Today's wrestling landscape calls for unique talents or average size men with above average athleticism. If you don't have that, you probably aren't making it. Archer has previously worked for TNA as Lance Hoyt, but with budgetary concerns, I don't think he's a big enough name to justify bringing back. Yet another big guy that will have to try to make a living off of his "former WWE superstar" tag.
Caylen Croft - This one happened before his tag team even broke up! The dudebusters were still together, but one is now without a job. Granted, Croft is a lot older than his counterpart, but their team dynamic worked well. I don't understand this release in that regard. His partner may follow, but he's young and a good worker. Problem is, none of us know if he has potential to make it as a singles star. Time will tell. Croft though will probably get indy work do to having a nice knack for ring work, moreso than the other releases, but his name value is weaker. Either way, these 4 men are most certainly not going to be heard of on any big stages anytime soon.
Tiffany - Man, you assault one superstar and it costs ya! The former ECW GM had a diminished role to begin with since her show's demise, but she didn't help herself by having a domestic dispute with her husband, Drew Galloway (Drew McIntyre). Since then, she was suspended, and when her suspension was over just wasn't used. Unfortunately for her, new Divas are on their way to the main roster and she was expendable. We don't know enough about her ring work, but she's pretty and her husband is a wrestler. If she wants to find work, she will. I would guess she'll do some acting, modeling, wrestling etc. Whatever will pay her, she will do. Plus, her husband makes good money and is "the chosen one" so I'm pretty sure her salary is subsidiary anyway.
Jillian Hall - The word recently was that Jillian's character was going to be written off of TV and she was going to be used in a backstage capacity. I'm guessing she decided against that and just asked for her release. She was annoying on screen, but she could always work a match. She had a nice career that spanned almost 6 years, which in diva years is quite long. This woman will now head on home to be with her husband and start a family. Can't complain about that. We wish all the best to Jillian as she starts a new phase to her life, because I'm pretty sure she's going to hang it up at this point.
We here at MouthoftheSouthShore.com wish all these men and women good luck in their lives and we hope they find success in whatever they do. In some way, they all worked hard to entertain us, and for that we are grateful. Unfortunately, this may just be the beginning of releases, so don't be surprised to see an update here in the near future with this same kind of news.
Written by:
