The "Ask the Specialists" Roundtable is the latest spin-off from the "Ask the Torch" feature. CSI led to CSI: New York and CSI: Miami, which is where you'll find the Specialists tackling a regular topic submitted by PWTorch readers to askpwtorch@gmail.com.

Ask the Specialists Roundtable #75

- Question from Jeff in Michigan: Will WWE drop the ball on Damien Sandow's eventual face turn? How can they go about it without losing fans or having Sandow stuck in the mid-card?

- "Instant Reaction" Ben Tucker (@BTuckerTorch) responds: This is really difficult because Sandow essentially has no character. His gimmick, for as great as it is, happens to be one-dimensional and hinges on another's character. WWE needs to transition his character slowly to maintain his popularity while increasing his chance for upward mobility in the mid-card. What that character can be, I have no idea, which makes me worry about Sandow's future post-Miz. There's a lot of talent there, but a lot of change needed as well.

- "Hits & Misses" Jon Mezzera responds: They are already starting to drop the ball with the way Damien Mizdow was booked in the Royal Rumble. I was critical in last week's Raw Hits & Misses about having The Miz fire Mizdow as his stunt double when the proper way to go about this is to have Mizdow quit. Now he was re-hired as Miz's personal assistant, so he can eventually quit. But, I have no faith that WWE can pull off the eventual face turn. And as I have also pointed out before, Sandow is almost destined to fail as a babyface because he won't be doing the schtick that made him popular with the fans in the first place.

I'm not sure how WWE can transition him from Mizdow to Sandow without losing fans. But even if they pull it off, Sandow is a mid-carder. They obviously don't see him as a main event talent, which is why they treated him like they did when he was Mr. Money in the Bank. And, I'm a fan of Sandow, but I'm not sure with Cena, Reigns, Rollins, Ambrose, Bryan, Ziggler, Rusev, Lesnar, Orton, Wyatt, Sheamus, and even guys like Barrett and Harper, that I would want him above the mid-card at this point.

- "Falls Count Anywhere" Tony Donofrio (@TonyDonofrio) responds: This current WWE creative team seems to constantly snatch defeat from the jaws of victory, so nothing would surprise me. Unless they add dimensions to Sandow when he turns, I picture this gimmick mid-card buried.

- "Common Fan" Jimmy Eaton (@TheCommonFan) responds: Hey, Jeff, thanks for the question. They will definitely drop the ball, but it's honestly not rocket science to make fans care about him. Regardless he'll be stuck in the mid-card, but there's no reason why they can't build a simple story that culminates in a match between Sandow and The Miz. The problem is no time is devoted to Sandow's character besides the usual schtick in their matches. Give it some substance and time with a solid build-up and you can have that WWE hasn't had in what feels like forever - a decent, interesting mid-card feud for a few months.

- "Showstopper" Shawn Valentino responds: Thanks for your question, Jeff. My initial instinct is that WWE will drop the ball on Sandow's face turn because they have not done logical, well-executed turns in a long time. I think that Mizdow is a gimmicky comedy act at best so there is not enough invested in him that WWE would actually care to give him a strong storyline turn. I do not really like the act because I think it goes to far in exposing WWE as being campy programming instead of serious entertainment.

To give them credit, both Miz and Sandow have been able to make it work, but I just do not see this as being a great step towards stardom. It is a mid-card act and when Sandow is back to being himself, he needs to re-establish himself as an individual talent. I think his strength is as a heel so eventually that is the direction his character will be headed in the future. The nature of this act is very short-term so enjoy it while it lasts if you like it.

- "Mr. TV" Justin James (@Justin_M_James) responds: Has anyone else's face turn been handled right in the last few years on purpose? Besides The Shield? WWE's track record says it all.

***

[ FYI: The specialists consist of a mix of current PWTorch contributors providing their opinion on today's wrestling scene and modern wrestling history questions, including Shawn Valentino, Michael Moore, Ben Tucker, Jon Mezzera, Justin James, Brian Leahy, Jimmy Eaton, Nathan Kyght, Tony Donofrio, Mike Roe, and Mike Metzger. ]

[Torch art credit Grant Gould (c) PWTorch.com]

We suggest these recent related articles...

ASK THE SPECIALISTS ROUNDTABLE: Who will be WWE's Next Top Star?

SATURDAY’S ASK PWTORCH STAFF for 4/11: How should WWE cater to Texas at WM32? Does WWE using Sting and Hogan add to chances more TNA wrestlers are hired? Do NXT gimmick wrestlers have a chance? Is El Generico really Sami Zayn?

THURSDAY’S ASK PWTORCH ALL-STARS 4/9: Are El Generico & Sami Zayn the same person? Next MITB cash-in for IC or U.S. belt? What match do you show non-fans so they get it? Why don’t heel teams cheat?