Pro Wrestling Torch was established in 1987 by Wade Keller. One of the primary traits PWTorch has been credited with over the years is assembling the best and most diverse staff of columnists with broad knowledge, but also areas of specialty where they have a particularly strong grasp of history. Every day PWTorch.com presents that team of writers answering your questions, some of which are fact-based and others of which are opinion-based. Either way, we've got you covered with Bruce Mitchell, Pat McNeill, Sean Radican, Greg Parks, James Caldwell, and Wade Keller. Collectively they have over 80 years working for the Torch, writing about wrestling and studying industry history and trends.

If you have a question you'd like us to respond to, send your question to askpwtorch@gmail.com. I, along with the Torch staff, will address you questions in this feature and also the “Ask PWTorch: All-Star Panel” edition which is also published most days here at PWTorch.

===

PWTorch reader Iain from Edinburgh, Scotland asks: Hi guys. Many thanks for answering my last question. I hope you can answer this one too. The poor commentary on WWE programming has been a long standing and much bemoaned issue. Without doubt the product is being damaged by the lack of passion shown by Michael Cole et al. Would there ever be a point where, say, Cole would express Gorilla Monsoon or Jim Ross levels of moral outrage over a heel cheating or Rusev and Lana running down the USA without being told to by his producer, simply because he knows that's what's missing and what a particular angle needs? Or if he did that, would he get hooked at the next commercial break? I just think it's potentially such an important part of the stories that simply is not being utilized these days. Thanks for all your hard work over the years, guys, with hopefully many more to come.

PWTorch senior columnist Bruce Mitchell answers: He's not THAT micromanaged and he's hardly a dumb guy. I bet Michael Cole expresses outrage at heels without being prompted on the headset all the time.

PWTorch editor Wade Keller answers: Michael Cole does not express outrage at heels nearly enough, and in general not very often at all. The announcing has become one of the biggest drags on the product, making this down period in booking even worse. There really is just one missed opportunity after another after another where the announcers need to be setting the tone by reacting naturally, as if what they are watching is real. The disconnected emotions and lack of any sense of moral outrage just castrates the product. It makes the viewers feel that nothing matters. There is no way Vince is telling Cole not to express moral outrage, but at the same time Vince should be aware it's not happening and is vital to the product so it should be happening with Cole. I pin that on both Cole and McMahon. When you watch announcing of any wrestling product today or from past decades and you hear an announcer rooting for fairness and an even playing field and decrying cheating and short-cuts and bullying, it really jumps out how important that aspect of a wrestling show is and how flat a show can feel without it.

===

PWTorch reader & VIP MEMBER Cody B. asks: Which wrestler in WWE is most underutilized right now? I think Titus O'Neil is the most underutilized. He has the size and strength to work with a lot of baby faces. There is a reason he is on TV right now but he is way better than a comedy act.

PWTorch columnist Greg Parks answers: I think it's Justin Gabriel. He's got decent size and working ability, and a good look, yet he's stuck jobbing on NXT, barely even appearing on the main show. At worst, he should be paired in a tag team where he previously found some success with Tyson Kidd.

PWTorch columnist Sean Radican answers: I see potential in Titus O'Neal as well, but I haven't seen enough out of him to say he's underutilized. It seems any chance WWE gets, they cut his legs out from under him when he has an opportunity.

I would have to say Cesaro is the most underutilized talent on the roster right now. He's got a ton of potential and was really starting to gain some momentum when WWE suddenly paired him with Heyman and then dropped Heyman from his act only a short time later. Cesaro was gaining a lot of momentum and the fans were really into him when it looked like he was going to split away from Swagger and turn babyface.

Cesaro can talk, he can put on good matches in the ring, and he has shown he can build a connection with the crowd, but there's only so many times WWE can push a guy and then halt their push before they become just another guy to the casual audience. Cesaro is someone that I think can overcome the way he's been booked and rise to the top tier, but it's going to take management believing in him and investing in his push consistently.

PWTorch columnist Sean Radican answers: Cesaro is the most underutilized. My theory is Cesaro reminds Vince McMahon too much of President Obama so he doesn't even like to watch him wrestle. It's just a theory. As for Titus, for probably many good reasons he's not the next big main event star, but there's plenty that he has going for him where he could have been much better utilized the past year or two. It almost feels too late now, but I was interested to see him get involved in the main event NXT Title match last week. Maybe he'll have a chance, at least on NXT, to show what he can do when given something to sink his teeth into storyline-wise.

===

PWTorch reader R. Jack asks: Who did *you* think would win the Monday Night Wars?

PWTorch columnist Greg Parks answers: I was in high school during the apex of the Monday Night War (no "s," please) and I honestly wasn't looking much past the next week's shows. I never thought about someone coming out the "winner"; rather, I was kind of hoping both shows would continue their incredible momentum for years. Of course, that didn't happen.

PWTorch senior columnist Bruce Mitchell answers: I really didn't think of it in those terms. I thought both companies were large enough and producing more than enough revenue to survive. I still think that's the way it should have gone.

PWTorch editor Wade Keller answers: It's funny in retrospect the assumption is there was always destined to be a winner. During the time they were battling, the feeling was they would each fix their problems over time and each survive. It was a series of events, as Eric Bischoff discussed in depth with me in a five-hour Torch Talk interview I conducted with him several years ago (VIP members can read it in its entirety or listen to it in its entirety in the Torch Talk audio and transcript sections of the VIP website), that led to WCW going out of business. It took a confluence of several unlikely events to lead to the demise of the company, and almost to the very end people were in denial WCW would go away. So I don't think I thought, or most people thought, there'd be a winner in the sense of one of them going away. Instead, the feeling was eventually one of them might switch days. Vince McMahon told me early on in the Monday Night War that he wouldn't hesitate to switch days if he felt Raw would do better not going head-to-head with Nitro. Instead, though, he caught fire with some positive changes and new breakout stars and decided to go to war with WCW. I thought it was more likely one of the two shows would move nights than one of the companies outright going out of business.

===

Catch up on past Ask PWTorch articles...

-ASK PWTORCH - FREE WEBSITE.
-CLICKING HERE - ASK PWTORCH - VIP VERSION

********

(Send your question for PWTorch editor Wade Keller and the PWTorch staff exclusively to pwtorch@gmail.com for consideration! You can hear expanded conversation on the above topics from Wade Keller by becoming a VIP member and gaining access to the daily Wade Keller Hotline, posted every day for VIP members for over 1,000 days straight. Sign up at www.PWTorch.com/govip)

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?