PWTorch Roundtable Question - Should WWE make changes to their February PPV in-between the Rumble and WrestleMania? Or, should WWE keep the Elimination Chamber PPV the way it is?

By Ben Tucker, PWTorch TV specialist

I don't see any reason to have a February pay-per-view, and each year it continues to seem like it just gets in the way of things. If anything, I'd rather have it be replaced by a three-hour Raw (which would be equivalent to one of the "event" Impacts that happen every few months), or maybe a lower-priced WrestleMania Rewind show, which would have various wrestlers come back for one-night-only to have WrestleMania re-matches.

While Elimination Chamber can be one of the more entertaining shows of the year (like in 2011), it always seems like it gets lost in the shuffle. Look at this year's show, with only four matches advertised (one of which is a Divas match)! (Questions or comments? Follow Tucker on Twitter at BTuckertorch, or e-mail btuckertorch@aol.com .)

Justin James, PWTorch contributor

I think that the Elimination Chamber is awesome the way it is! Chamber has really impressed me over the last few years, because it has enough participants to have that “anything can happen!” feel like the Rumble, but the format keeps the in-ring body count low enough for the action to really flow. It also gives some mid-card talent the chance to really shine - C.M. Punk and Drew McIntyre last year are excellent examples.

Last year’s Chamber was a great example of what the match can be like: exciting, unpredictable, and have a major impact on WrestleMania. In fact, the Chamber is probably more important to Mania than the Rumble, due to it having two titles on the line. The format also allows for some clever tricks, like Shawn Michaels hiding under the ring two years ago, or Edge taking out Kofi Kingston and sliding into a pod three years ago to insert himself into the match. And, the match is usually brutal to watch, at the level of Money in the Bank or TLC.

I think that the Rumble is a good way to kick off ‘Mania season and the Chamber is the perfect PPV to lead into it, too. The only change they need to make is to bump the Rumble up a week or two to give the cable bill some breathing room. (Read James's weekly reviews of NXT and Superstars.)

Shane McKinley, PWTorch Absurdity specialist

WWE should only make changes to their Elimination Chamber PPV if it's no longer profitable. Sure, no fan is really happy that Daniel Bryan has to face the likes of ... Santino (what the...?) in that World Championship Elimination Chamber match. But, it seems WWE is content with how their PPV business is run: undercooked hype for some gimmicky themed PPV that only has four matches announced. Truth be told, I don't think WWE writers know how to build for a PPV (even WrestleMania) any more. Let's say WWE cut the February PPV this year. There would be just as many slow spots and stalling on the road to WrestleMania. All I can remember this month is John Cena tweeting about tampons way too much. ("My Mangina's so big, Rock! Bigger than yours!")

I hope WWE knows that when many people check out a WWE PPV, they're putting blind faith in WWE to give them their money's worth. Last month's Royal Rumble was definitely not my money's worth. A PPV should take place to resolve key issues, to settle a score, to answer a question. I don't know why the Elimination Chamber PPV this year is taking place. Certainly bigger and better stuff has been shown (and will be shown) on free television. I say don't drop it, because I still like the concept and it can deliver, but if the sucker ain't truly making money and WWE is going with lame-ass build like this, then off with its head. I just want some other feeling than embarrassment when thinking about this PPV coming up. (Read McKinley's regular Absurdity of it All column covering WWE and TNA topics.)

By Nathan Kyght, PWTorch PPV specialist

I've always found the "Elimination Chamber" pay-per-view to be a little odd; not only does it require fans to spend another $50-ish pre-WrestleMania (and that show is always slightly more expensive), but it somewhat negates the Royal Rumble. Whereas, once the Rumble match was where a Superstar 'punched his ticket' to the main event, now it's just a match where the winner sits back and has to wait for the February show to play out in order to make an announcement. And, the Chamber matches themselves are now seemingly the "true" precursors to 'Mania.

Personally, I think that WWE already does too many pay-per-view events and the effect is essentially watering down the overall product. In some cases, these "special" shows happen several times in a matter of weeks, so I would be in favor of cutting back, and I think WWE would benefit with more time to tell stories leading in and truly make the fans feel that something is "must-see."

In my opinion, the Elimination Chamber idea is good, and it certainly comes across as a spectacle on television, so I don't think the theme should be given up on, but I do think that doing away with a February pay-per-view event would be a great idea. After the Rumble, take your time. Allow every match at WrestleMania to be built as if it were the main event, and really create the "WrestleMania feel" that WWE always at least attempts to do. They don't play the Super Bowl twice, y'know? (Read Kyght's PPV Evaluation column after every major PPV, including Sunday's Elimination Chamber.))

Mike Cupach, PWTorch contributor

No, I don’t think that WWE needs to change their February pay-per-view. In my opinion, it works pretty well hyping WrestleMania. In the past, the February PPVs were skippable and had very little impact on the scope of WrestleMania. With the Elimination Chamber, it is one last "out" to creatively set up the card that Vince McMahon wants for WrestleMania. As a result, it becomes a must-see show that has as much impact as the Royal Rumble for Mania. Also, I think it is a good, established gimmick PPV that can hold the audience and keep them interested in the product while things bridge from the Rumble to Mania.

But, if I were to re-work what happens in February, I would have the show be a Saturday Night's Main Event that is free to everyone and would be a major hype job/preview show for WrestleMania. I think a good example was a SNME episode in 2006 that had Shawn Michaels vs. Shane McMahon in a Hardcore Match, World Title and WWE Title wrestlers paired up in teams, and various interview segments featuring wrestlers who were going to have Mania matches. For example, this year, I would have C.M. Punk and Sheamus vs. Chris Jericho and Daniel Bryan, a Piper's Pit with The Rock and John Cena as the guests, a Divas Battle Royal (or something for the number one contender spot for Beth Phoenix's Title and have Kharma be a surprise entrant), and have a few other matches to feature names like Randy Orton, Dolph Ziggler, Cody Rhodes, etc. (Read Cupach's alt. perspective review of WWE Smackdown each week.)

Check back for Parts 2 & 3 on Sunday before the Chamber PPV!

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