I'll never forget the night the Nexus debuted. It was one of the best endings in the history of Monday Night Raw. No one saw that coming! They destroyed everyone and everything in sight. They tore apart John Cena and CM Punk, along with Jerry Lawler, Matt Striker, and poor Justin Roberts. They decimated the entire ringside area, including the ring, the mats outside, the announcers desk, and everything in between. It got me excited about wrestling!
In the early days of NXT, it was a game show of sorts for WWE hopefuls, trying to gain a contract. It was somewhat like Tough Enough but without the reality show aspect. There were eight individuals in this competition. No one was familiar with any of them except for one man, Bryan Danielson, known in the Indies and Ring of Honor as the American Dragon. He would later go on to be Daniel Bryan, which was a dumb name change but I think it's safe to say it worked out, at least until his forced retirement. Each "rookie" was teamed with a pro, a current WWE wrestler on the roster. In what I'm sure was intended to troll the audience, Daniel Bryan was teamed with The Miz.
One night on Raw in June of 2010, NXT winner Wade Barrett made his way to the ring, followed by the remaining eliminated contestants coming through the crowd. These men made a statement! In fact, Daniel Bryan did two things that made people take notice. One was telling John Cena he was better than him before spitting upon him and kicking his head off. The other was choking ring announcer Justin Roberts with his own tie. Due to that incident, the storyline was almost dead in the water, as Bryan was fired for taking things too far. This, of course, was due to the USA Network not finding it appropriate for WWE's PG rating.
The following week, Barrett and the other six remaining men came to the ring. Barrett spoke about how they all felt they were treated unfairly during NXT, having to partake in nonsensical contests and made to look like fools. Barrett proclaimed that they would be called the Nexus! Barrett's objective was to gain the rest of the men contracts. He also stated they all made a deal before NXT began that whoever won, they would all still be together and wreak havoc upon the WWE roster. To explain Bryan's departure, Barrett claimed Bryan felt remorse for what they had done and was kicked out of the group. Their motto was; "you're either Nexus or against us." So far, so good for the Nexus.
They continued to destroy everyone in their path, including current wrestlers and even legends of the business such as Bret Hart and Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat. Even though Barrett claimed they were all equal, he was the clear leader and he ruled with an iron fist. It wasn't until SummerSlam that things started taking a turn and thus completely killed the Nexus storyline in my eyes and to many other wrestling fans. Yes, beyond Barrett and Bryan, the rest were nobodies, but it was still a dominant force at first. The beginning of the end was their match at SummerSlam where they lost to the WWE superstars, most notably John Cena. It was reported that Chris Jericho and Edge both felt Cena should have asked for the Nexus to go over. Looking back years later, Cena agreed and regretted the way things went down.
Here's where I'd like to do a little fantasy booking and slightly change the direction. I'll take it back to the night they debuted. There, I wouldn't change a thing! Also, since my own rule of thumb for fantasy booking is to use things that happened out of my control, I have to keep Bryan getting fired and removed from Nexus. In this scenario, John Cena is the WWE Champion. Money In the Bank 2010 is the next PPV coming up. The two World Title matches are John Cena vs. Sheamus and Edge vs. Randy Orton. The Money In the Bank Ladder match is the main event and due to Barrett being the NXT winner, he gets a slot in the match. During the match, the remaining 6 Nexus members storm the ring and attack the other competitors. Using this distraction, Wade Barrett wins the match and gets the briefcase.
Heading towards SummerSlam, the main event is still the WWE Raw members vs. The Nexus just like it was. I'd still have Daniel Bryan be Raw's last member and the Miz's interference to set up their feud towards Night of Champions for the US Title. The last two people left are Barrett against Cena but Barrett wins the match. Momentum needs to be with the Nexus at first. The next night on Raw as many will recall, matches were set up between Raw and Nexus in which each Nexus member needed to win in order to stay in the Nexus. I'd keep that exactly the way it was with Darren Young being the only one to lose. Here's where things change!
After Young loses to John Cena, the Nexus, sans Barrett, come out and beat up Young, subsequently kicking him out of the group. A reluctant Cena comes back in to help but it's still 5 on 2. They leave both Young and Cena laying and leave the ring. At this moment, Barrett comes out with his Money In the Bank briefcase in hand. Barrett cashes in on Cena and becomes the new WWE Champion to end Raw.
At Night of Champions, there was a Six-Pack Challenge where Barrett was one of the participants, and Randy Orton had won the Title from Sheamus within the match. Here, whoever the Raw GM was at the time, will try to get the belt from Barrett, forcing him to defend his Title against 5 other challengers. Meanwhile, Nexus members Justin Gabriel and Heath Slater would challenge the Hart Dynasty for the Tag Team Titles at Night of Champions as well. At Night of Champions, Gabriel and Slater become Tag Team Champions and the Nexus helps Barrett retain his WWE Championship.
Due to Michael Tarver's injury, he was ousted from the Nexus so that stays. Also, Skip Sheffield, the man who later became Ryback, was injured as well and he was written out of the group. Meanwhile, Hell In a Cell was the next PPV. In the original storyline, there was a match between Wade Barrett and John Cena where if Cena lost, he would be forced to join the Nexus. While that stays the same, the difference here is that Barrett is the WWE Champion. Another stipulation for this match was the Nexus members were banned from ringside. Due to that, Barrett had a backup plan and he recruited Michael McGillicutty (Curtis Axel) and Husky Harris (Bray Wyatt) when they helped Barrett win over Cena. Also, they would be known as Joe Hennig and Wydham Rotundo but that's neither here nor there. Due to the loss, Cena was now a member of the Nexus.
Much like what happened, I'd have Cena be a reluctant member at first. However, I'd have Cena slowly embrace being a part of the group, helping with dirty deeds and turning on his allies. For years, many people claimed that John Cena could never turn heel due to how much merchandise he sells. However, when Hogan turned heel, just as many if not more nWo shirts were sold than Hulkamania shirts. With that in mind, even if it was for an extremely short period of time, I would have had Cena-Nexus related merchandise come out and believe it would have done tremendously. Also, Cena for the time being, would become so loyal that he became Barretts second in command, clearly leading to dissension within the Nexus. This is where Nexus member David Otunga would start to butt heads with Barrett like he did. Only this time, Otunga starts getting paranoid about being replaced by Cena in the group
In the early days of NXT, it was a game show of sorts for WWE hopefuls, trying to gain a contract. It was somewhat like Tough Enough but without the reality show aspect. There were eight individuals in this competition. No one was familiar with any of them except for one man, Bryan Danielson, known in the Indies and Ring of Honor as the American Dragon. He would later go on to be Daniel Bryan, which was a dumb name change but I think it's safe to say it worked out, at least until his forced retirement. Each "rookie" was teamed with a pro, a current WWE wrestler on the roster. In what I'm sure was intended to troll the audience, Daniel Bryan was teamed with The Miz.
One night on Raw in June of 2010, NXT winner Wade Barrett made his way to the ring, followed by the remaining eliminated contestants coming through the crowd. These men made a statement! In fact, Daniel Bryan did two things that made people take notice. One was telling John Cena he was better than him before spitting upon him and kicking his head off. The other was choking ring announcer Justin Roberts with his own tie. Due to that incident, the storyline was almost dead in the water, as Bryan was fired for taking things too far. This, of course, was due to the USA Network not finding it appropriate for WWE's PG rating.
The following week, Barrett and the other six remaining men came to the ring. Barrett spoke about how they all felt they were treated unfairly during NXT, having to partake in nonsensical contests and made to look like fools. Barrett proclaimed that they would be called the Nexus! Barrett's objective was to gain the rest of the men contracts. He also stated they all made a deal before NXT began that whoever won, they would all still be together and wreak havoc upon the WWE roster. To explain Bryan's departure, Barrett claimed Bryan felt remorse for what they had done and was kicked out of the group. Their motto was; "you're either Nexus or against us." So far, so good for the Nexus.They continued to destroy everyone in their path, including current wrestlers and even legends of the business such as Bret Hart and Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat. Even though Barrett claimed they were all equal, he was the clear leader and he ruled with an iron fist. It wasn't until SummerSlam that things started taking a turn and thus completely killed the Nexus storyline in my eyes and to many other wrestling fans. Yes, beyond Barrett and Bryan, the rest were nobodies, but it was still a dominant force at first. The beginning of the end was their match at SummerSlam where they lost to the WWE superstars, most notably John Cena. It was reported that Chris Jericho and Edge both felt Cena should have asked for the Nexus to go over. Looking back years later, Cena agreed and regretted the way things went down.
Here's where I'd like to do a little fantasy booking and slightly change the direction. I'll take it back to the night they debuted. There, I wouldn't change a thing! Also, since my own rule of thumb for fantasy booking is to use things that happened out of my control, I have to keep Bryan getting fired and removed from Nexus. In this scenario, John Cena is the WWE Champion. Money In the Bank 2010 is the next PPV coming up. The two World Title matches are John Cena vs. Sheamus and Edge vs. Randy Orton. The Money In the Bank Ladder match is the main event and due to Barrett being the NXT winner, he gets a slot in the match. During the match, the remaining 6 Nexus members storm the ring and attack the other competitors. Using this distraction, Wade Barrett wins the match and gets the briefcase.
Heading towards SummerSlam, the main event is still the WWE Raw members vs. The Nexus just like it was. I'd still have Daniel Bryan be Raw's last member and the Miz's interference to set up their feud towards Night of Champions for the US Title. The last two people left are Barrett against Cena but Barrett wins the match. Momentum needs to be with the Nexus at first. The next night on Raw as many will recall, matches were set up between Raw and Nexus in which each Nexus member needed to win in order to stay in the Nexus. I'd keep that exactly the way it was with Darren Young being the only one to lose. Here's where things change!
After Young loses to John Cena, the Nexus, sans Barrett, come out and beat up Young, subsequently kicking him out of the group. A reluctant Cena comes back in to help but it's still 5 on 2. They leave both Young and Cena laying and leave the ring. At this moment, Barrett comes out with his Money In the Bank briefcase in hand. Barrett cashes in on Cena and becomes the new WWE Champion to end Raw.
At Night of Champions, there was a Six-Pack Challenge where Barrett was one of the participants, and Randy Orton had won the Title from Sheamus within the match. Here, whoever the Raw GM was at the time, will try to get the belt from Barrett, forcing him to defend his Title against 5 other challengers. Meanwhile, Nexus members Justin Gabriel and Heath Slater would challenge the Hart Dynasty for the Tag Team Titles at Night of Champions as well. At Night of Champions, Gabriel and Slater become Tag Team Champions and the Nexus helps Barrett retain his WWE Championship.
Due to Michael Tarver's injury, he was ousted from the Nexus so that stays. Also, Skip Sheffield, the man who later became Ryback, was injured as well and he was written out of the group. Meanwhile, Hell In a Cell was the next PPV. In the original storyline, there was a match between Wade Barrett and John Cena where if Cena lost, he would be forced to join the Nexus. While that stays the same, the difference here is that Barrett is the WWE Champion. Another stipulation for this match was the Nexus members were banned from ringside. Due to that, Barrett had a backup plan and he recruited Michael McGillicutty (Curtis Axel) and Husky Harris (Bray Wyatt) when they helped Barrett win over Cena. Also, they would be known as Joe Hennig and Wydham Rotundo but that's neither here nor there. Due to the loss, Cena was now a member of the Nexus.
Much like what happened, I'd have Cena be a reluctant member at first. However, I'd have Cena slowly embrace being a part of the group, helping with dirty deeds and turning on his allies. For years, many people claimed that John Cena could never turn heel due to how much merchandise he sells. However, when Hogan turned heel, just as many if not more nWo shirts were sold than Hulkamania shirts. With that in mind, even if it was for an extremely short period of time, I would have had Cena-Nexus related merchandise come out and believe it would have done tremendously. Also, Cena for the time being, would become so loyal that he became Barretts second in command, clearly leading to dissension within the Nexus. This is where Nexus member David Otunga would start to butt heads with Barrett like he did. Only this time, Otunga starts getting paranoid about being replaced by Cena in the group
The next WWE PPV was Bragging Rights, which was a Raw vs. Smackdown PPV. Instead, I'd take the King of the Ring tournament that happened on Raw and have it replace Bragging Rights. At that event, the match between Barrett and Orton that took place still happens but is for the Title. Cena is named the referee and favors Barrett in order to retain. The stipulation would be that if Orton wins, Cena would be fired. Also, this combines the Orton/Barrett match at Bragging Rights (King of the Ring) with their match stipulations at Survivor Series. Instead of Cena doing the right thing and calling it fairly with Orton winning and being fired, he helps Barrett and keeps his job. Later that night, Barrett and the rest of Nexus, except for Cena, help Kane bury the Undertaker in their Buried Alive Match. I'd still have that happen but I would tie up the loose ends instead of just forgetting about it. If there's one thing I like in wrestling, it's consistency. So don't you worry, the men that buried Undertaker alive will get their comeuppance sooner or later.
The next week, the Nexus members are torn as some pledge their allegiance to Punk and others still look to Barrett as their leader. A match at the Royal Rumble will take place between Punk and Barrett for official full control of the Nexus. Also in the weeks leading up to the Rumble, each Nexus member is randomly attacked during a match when the lights go out, except for Punk and Barrett. During the Punk/Barrett match, the lights go out. When they come back on, Barrett is laying flat on the mat. Punk finishes him off with a GTS to win the match and full control of the Nexus. After Punk leaves, the lights go out again and when they come back on, the Undertaker appears. He proceeds to destroy Barrett with a Tombstone. Ultimately, that reveals that the Undertaker was the one picking off each Nexus member leading up to Barrett himself. I would then put in place a Casket Match at the Elimination Chamber PPV between Undertaker and Barrett, which Undertaker would win.
At this point, Barrett is kicked out of the Nexus after his loss to Punk and all members stay with Punk. The stable remains as The Nexus, not New Nexus. As we've seen in wrestling, generally most things with the word "New" are doomed to fail. Meanwhile, the Corre never exists. However, I keep Barrett heel and still align him with Ezekial Jackson, who helps Barrett defeat Kofi Kingston for the Intercontinental Title. At WrestleMania XXVII, Gabriel and Slater lose their Tag Team Titles to Kane and the Big Show. Meanwhile, CM Punk begins his feud with Randy Orton as it happened. Punk defeats Orton at WrestleMania with the help of the Nexus. At Extreme Rules, it was a Last Man Standing Match between Punk and Orton with my new stipulation that if Orton wins, the Nexus disbands. Orton wins the match and the Nexus is no more. Briefly, Punk recruits the help of Mason Ryan before ultimately dropping the "Pipe Bomb" and the rest is history.
These are just some changes I would have made in the booking of the Nexus. I really couldn't think of a great ending but disbanding due to the leader's loss is still much better than them just completely abandoning the storyline. Also, the Nexus keeps their momentum for much longer, Barrett gets a title reign, it ties up loose ends, and the Corre is never created. After their loss at SummerSlam, it was all down hill for the Nexus. I hope everyone enjoyed my view.
If you have any further thoughts on this topic, let me know in comments. Heck, let us all know on The WAR Report podcast, every Tuesday at 7PM EST, brought to you by tagmeadate.com, the first and only dating site for wrestling fans. Go to askthewarreport@gmail.com or #askthewarreport. For TagMeADate members, our Android and Apple apps are vastly approaching so stay tuned!
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