Friday Freak Out: WWE's Poor Decision To Spark Paige And Charlotte's Feud, Tables Hate Randy Orton
Welcome back to Friday Freak Out, where every Friday going forward we will look at a number of funny, absurd, or just really poor moments in wrestling history across all promotions. With the help of visuals, we will also explore the background and fallout of some of wrestling's weirder moments. Last week, we focused on the more hilarious moments in Sin Cara's shaky career, but to kick things off this week, we'll explore that unfortunate time Paige went after Charlotte's deceased brother, simply because their feud needed a spark.
Back in November of 2015, Charlotte was WWE Divas Champion and was embroiled in a feud with former Team PCB member, Paige. Along with Becky Lynch, this trio had a downhill slide of betrayal and reconciliation that had gone on for weeks, which finally came to an end when Paige attacked both women, officially ending the group. With the focus going towards Paige and Charlotte, the two were due to clash at Survivor Series. The feud was lacking a real spark, so at the go-home episode of Raw, WWE decided to have Charlotte reference her brother, Reid Flair.
To back up a bit, Reid Flair was a big reason Charlotte decided to get into pro wrestling, pretty much convincing her to go for it. Reid had struggled with drug addiction and eventually succumbed to them at the age of 25. His death was ruled as an accidental overdose of heroin, along with trace amounts of Clonazepam and Xanax.
Getting back to the promo, Charlotte referred to Reid saying, "I am here today because of him, and that's the only reason, to fulfill his dream." It should be noted Charlotte could barely get through her lines, even Paige began to tear up a little. Paige recovered and went on to rip Charlotte and her Dad, before Charlotte continued, "I will continued to fight each and every day, just like everyone in my entire family has, just like my Dad did, just like my little brother did, and just like I do."
Then came the worst part of the promo, with Paige being told to say, "You know what Charlotte? You're wrong, sweetheart, because your little baby brother, he didn't he much fight in him, did he?" Charlotte then jumped the table and a brawl ensued. Fans and critics alike found this to be unbelievably distasteful and disrespectful to Reid, along with it being a cheap way to get some heat on Paige. Her line barely had any impact as most casual fans had no idea about Reid, or his passing. Maybe even worse was WWE didn't clear the segment with Ric Flair or Reid's mother, Elizabeth Fliehr. Shortly after the segment, Elizabeth tweeted out, "WWEWriters really, that lazy! #CheapHeat #disgusting #disrespectful #cruel #sad"
On Ric Flair's Woo! Nation podcast, he spoke on the segment as well saying:
"Obviously I have an opinion, but I'm afraid to voice it because I don't want anything to affect Ashley's career. I know that Hunter and Stephanie and Michael Hayes have her back. I don't think she feels she's comfortable enough to say 'no' to anything yet, she's only been up there three-months."
Flair continued with the challenges of being champion:
"It's a pressure cooker, and a tough spot to be in. If you're asked to do something, that's pretty much the way things operate up there. Everybody walks on pins and needles. Just because you're the champ, doesn't mean you say no. It's a very sensitive issue, it's very new. I know her mom is on fire. I'm not going out on a limb to say what I think."
In regards to WWE coming to him ahead of time, "I never heard a word about it. I started crying when I was watching." About three months after the segment, Charlotte spoke about the backlash that came from it:
"Honestly, I was [surprised by the backlash] because I already get it. Like, before this storyline, people think that being a [second] generation kid, everything is handed to you, but, honestly, it's that much harder. Could I have walked on set and been whoever I wanted to be? No. And then, people knowing about Reid's death, knowing the story behind it, knowing [what] my dad's private life has been in the media for years, so I'd already gotten backlash from social media anyway, saying negative things about my brother and father and it's like, I think, just the general public, is able to say their two cents anyway. Any great storyline came from a little bit of realism. I'm not saying it was good [or] it was bad. I don't know anymore just because once it was hashed and then getting the backlash, I was like, 'Am I a bad person? How is this making me look?' But you know what? People were talking."
Ultimately, WWE decided to drop the angle without ever referencing it again, Charlotte went on to beat Paige at Survivor Series. Okay, that was a pretty heavy start, so let's end on a lighter note, announce tables love to mess up Randy Orton at any chance they get.
Above, you'll see how Orton lands a kick on Kane and as he sets down his foot it goes right into where the TV monitor was initially. His weight went forward and he ended up tipping the entire table down. Orton immediately got up trying to laugh off the pain, while also selling it at the same time.
In the video below, you'll see the moment when Batista and Orton pull off a powerbomb/RKO combination on Daniel Bryan during their WrestleMania XXX match. Even though those darn TV monitors were moved out of the way, as Orton went through the table, one caught him in the lower part of his back, either Orton is a master seller, or that really...really hurt.
Finally, we have Orton attempting a solo RKO on Roman Reigns, with zero luck on the first try as the table held strong. It's amusing how Orton rolls gets off the table swinging his arms (probably in frustration). He regained his composure, climbed back on the table and delivered another RKO, this time breaking through.
Even though Orton has often been called one of the smoothest wrestlers in the ring, he tends to have the worst luck with tables! Enjoy your Friday everyone, see you back here next week.