Bluetista, Dolph Ziggler, the Usos and More from the Blue Twitter Mailbag

So much wrestling activity has inspired social media trends these days, it’s only fair to field these microblogging inquiries as best as I can.

This first-ever Twitter mailbag couldn’t come at a better time. Because when Batista’s infamous blue wrestling gear from Payback becomes the No. 1 worldwide trend, it’s time to take this social media thing a bit more seriously.

Now, every moment in wrestling counts. Even a seemingly ominous shadow turned Stephanie McMahon into Vince McMahon circa 1998. The love-hate relationship between pro wrestling and social media has reached a point where any given wrestler is one fitting pun away from infamy.

If Dolph Ziggler puts on a wrestling clinic against a nine iron—before putting it over—he’d be Golf Ziggler, give or take a hashtag, for at least 24 hours.

Here’s to hoping Brock Lesnar never loses a wrestling boot while charging in for a takedown (#SockLesnar) and Bray Wyatt doesn't show up Friday on SmackDown with a new religious gimmick (#PrayWyatt).

But before this gets too out of hand, or inspires another trend, let’s get back to the man who started (or continued) this whole mess:

"

I think we need to just accept that it's Batista's gimmick to infuriate everyone with his fashion choices. #BlueTista #WWEPayback

— Matthew Shadrake (@Edible14) June 2, 2014"

Here's what many seem to be missing with the Batista character, by design of course. There are several subtleties (somehow that word seems ironic) to Big Dave's latest character. One of them is to maximize his already built-in resentment in ways that seem unintentional.

That's the beauty of it. If it seems like Batista sincerely believes in the fashion choices or character traits that fans despise—and more power to him if he does—it's doubly effective.    

If that means wearing skinny jeans, you can find Batista at an H&M clearance rack. If it's lashing out at the Twitterverse, expect a profanity-laced tweet. Batista even stayed true to these subtleties until the bitter end, when he performed an uncharacteristic Beauty Pageant wave that seemed optimized for reactions on Twitter. 

This is the opposite of the cool heel, who according to legendary commentator Jim Ross via Twitter "generally [doesn't] draw a dime."

Intentional or not, Batista has deftly turned social media against him to create legitimate animosity. Bray Wyatt, a cool heel in his own right, continues to draw counter-productive cheers with the subtleties of his character. Fans cheer as he announces host cities, and cell phones fill up live arenas during his dimly lit entrance. That's awesome, but at the same time, who wants to pay to see him lose? 

Meanwhile, Batista's living his gimmick before your very laptop. That pop and the "yes" chants, that reigned down from the Bakers Life Fieldhouse, once Batista quit was a payoff fitting for a true heel. Fans should want the bad guy to quit. That wasn't go-away heat. Batista couldn't be the No. 1 trend in the world if it was.

This was committed villainy at its finest. And while Batista brilliantly embodies everything internet wrestling fans hate, Dolph Ziggler is the opposite. Ziggler's compiling losses have made him that much more of a sympathetic figure online. This week's loss in a Money in the Bank qualifying match to Alberto Del Rio was again a hot topic: 

"

@ThisIsNasty Why does #WWE refuse to give Ziggler a push? It's obvious the fans would love to see him go over.

— Travis Peters (@TheTraPete) June 3, 2014"

The correct wording of this Tweet should be "why does WWE refuse to give Ziggler another push?" 

Ziggler has basically seen hot-and-cold booking for his entire WWE tenure. Somewhere between Spirit Squad and Vickie Guerrero, his hyper athletic, easy-on-the-eyes work rate made him an internet darling. 

It's that same style, however, that may have led to his latest downfall. Ziggler himself has acknowledged wrestling legends advising him to slow down, as he told Brian Fritz of Between the Ropes: 

"

I’ve been pulled aside by legends and guys backstage and being told that I put my body through too much sometimes. I understand that, but I’m out there in the ring trying to give the best possible performance I can. I can’t not run into something as hard as I can. I can’t not give my all. And one day that could be a problem, but so far I’ve never been injured to where I was out for weeks from anything I’ve done.

"

Professional wrestling has a history of rewarding the stubborn and overconfident. But for every CM Punk, there's, well, a Dolph Ziggler. As John Morrison once learned, (per The Wrestling Observer Newsletter via WrestlingInc), giving WWE legends the cold shoulder gets you nowhere, except maybe the doghouse.

But the doghouse cliche seems too lazy for these circumstances. As World Heavyweight Champion, Ziggler suffered a concussion that came via a fluke kick to the head from Jack Swagger, not his in-ring style.

Perhaps that opened officials' eyes to what could happen to Ziggler if he is to continue his hard-nosed pace. With Money in the Bank on the horizon—and Ziggler coming off a loss in a qualifying match—maybe WWE is protecting Dolph Ziggler from himself. 

The Usos continue to be protected by WWE, but for the right reasons. Save their clean loss to the Wyatt Family, the tandem has been palling around with John Cena like Cryme Tyme circa 2008. 

Some see this as a bad thing: 

"

@ThisIsNasty Feels like the Uso's are trying to help put Cena over. IDK

— Kyle (@Kyller12) June 2, 2014"

Not really. If anything, it's the other way around. John Cena is already over, and he will continue to be for the rest of his neon-green life. 

The Usos, who are shrewdly rocking neon-green ring gear at the moment as well, are getting the proverbial rub. Rubbing elbows with a top star like John Cena is a good thing. Any one of Hogan's 80s allies, like Hacksaw Jim Duggan and Brutus "the Barber" Beefcake, will attest.

Despite not being booked in a tag team match, the Usos were prominently featured on pay-per-view in a semi-main event. One of the biggest spots of the night came when Jey Uso hit an impressive butt bump on Erick Rowan. Jimmy went on to take a breathtaking superplex bump from the top rope. 

It's that type of performance that will raise the profile of tag team wrestling, as the Usos transition into a feud with the Wyatts. That performance would not be made possible without John Cena as the centerpiece. 

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