WWE's Future: Will It Be Bright or Boring?

As the leaves have done most of their falling, the clocks get ready to jump back an hour.

The winter weather begins to set in as the year of 2010 is about to enter the history books.

The year of 2010 in the WWE saw a lot of ups and downs, a lot of sad moments and a lot frowns.

We laughed, we cried, we got e-mails, we wanted to order pay-per-views, but couldn't decide.

As Michael Cole quoted on a nightly basis, more and more WWE fans had looks of despair on their faces.

When I look back on the WWE in 2010, I am disappointed, but at the same time, left with excitement headed into the new year.

Hey, maybe even "good ol' JR" will return.  Nah, who am I kidding?

Before we get too excited about 2011, let's take a look back on this past year in the WWE.

A bunch of rookies known as "Nexus," decided they were going to try to take over the WWE in June. As of November, no one has stopped them from doing so yet.  

2010 wasn't short of surprises however, just four days into the year on January 4, Bret "Hitman" Hart made a return to the WWE after being separated from the company for 12 years.

Hart hosted that episode of Raw and ended up staying with the company for most of the year.  Hart got some revenge on Vince McMahon at WrestleMania, but was ultimately taken out of action by The Nexus. 

We started off the year with a bang as Edge returned at the Royal Rumble in Atlanta and won the Royal Rumble match.

Elimination Chamber kept the WWE strong as we saw the WWE Championship change hands twice and Chris Jericho take home the World Heavyweight Championship.  You just can't go wrong with two chamber matches in one night.

At WrestleMania, The Undertaker's streak remained alive, but at what cost?  A legend in the ring, Shawn Michaels was forced to retire after losing to The Undertaker.

The Money In The Bank match at WrestleMania didn't disappoint as Jack Swagger shocked the WWE Universe by taking home the briefcase.  However, with the Money In The Bank pay-per-view announced for the month of July, in my opinion, it took away from how special it was at WrestleMania.

Jack Swagger cashed in the briefcase on a freshly speared Chris Jericho on a taping of Smackdown on March 30 to become the World Heavyweight Champion.

While a few briefcases have changed hands over the years, no wrestler holding the briefcase and officially cashing in has failed.

At Extreme Rules on April 25, John Cena defeated Batista to retain the WWE Championship.  Cena defeated Batista at WrestleMania to recapture the title after Batista was brought in by Vince McMahon to take the title from Cena at Elimination Chamber.

At Over The Limit, Cena defeated Batista again in an "I Quit" match to retain the WWE Championship.

This would be the last straw for Batista, as he left the WWE.  However, it seems he hasn't left for good, he could make a return in 2011.

Both major championships changed hands at Fatal Four Way as Rey Mysterio and Sheamus won a major championship for the second time in their career.  Mysterio with the World Championship and Sheamus, the WWE Championship.

The Money In The Bank match was so popular at past WrestleMania's, it got its own show. Raw and Smackdown both held Money In The Bank ladder matches on this night in July. The Miz won the Raw Money In The Bank match, a briefcase that he still holds through November.

Kane won the Smackdown Money In The Bank match and cashed in later in the night on a worn out Rey Mysterio that just defended and retained his title against Jack Swagger.

The Undertaker was out of action for the most part, known as a "vegetative state" by the WWE in a storyline.  He broke an orbital bone in a match against Rey Mysterio that caused him to miss quite some time, which WWE decided to turn into a big fued with Kane.

While he was out, the new World Heavyweight Champion Kane, brother of The Undertaker, began to blame others for his brothers demise.  

Kane was eventually revealed as the man who attacked The Undertaker over the Memorial Day weekend in May that knocked him out of action.

What followed was a major feud that Kane mostly dominated as the returning Paul Bearer helped guide Kane to burying The Undertaker alive at Bragging Rights.

Randy Orton won his sixth WWE Championship at Night of Champions on Sept. 19, he still holds the title heading into Survivor Series.

John Cena was forced to join the Nexus after losing a match to Nexus leader Wade Barrett at Hell In A Cell.  If Cena won, Nexus would have to disband, if he lost, which he did, he was forced to join the Nexus.

Since joining the Nexus, Cena has been forced to follow all orders from Barrett, or be fired from the WWE.

Survivor Series in November will see Barrett become WWE Champion and allow John Cena to become a free man, or if Orton retains, Cena will be fired.

This storyline is one of the more compelling storylines in the WWE over the past few years as I am actually excited about the outcome at Survivor Series.

I've only ordered a few pay-per-views this year, most of them didn't have enough build-up for me to be interesting.  I am with a lot of fans in saying, the WWE should cut down their 13 pay-per-views.  It is hard to believe that 2009 consisted of 14 pay-per-view events, but it did.

I went to the Royal Rumble in Atlanta, so obviously, I didn't order that event.  However, I did order Elimination Chamber and WrestleMania that followed.

Money In The Bank was the last event I ordered this year due to lack of interest and saving money.

We survived a year without The Undertaker for the most part.  No Triple H, no HBK and no Batista.

Wrestlers such as Jack Swagger, John Morrison, Sheamus, and Wade Barrett have stepped it up a notch and took on more prominent roles in the WWE.

2011 has a nice set up to be one heck of a year in the WWE, but could be a big let down at the same time.

So many things can happen to make it an exciting year, and an unforgettable at best.

We could say goodbye to wrestlers we've become so accustomed to over the years such as Triple H, Chris Jericho, and The Undertaker.

Sooner or later, the younger stars will be the new stars and we will have to deal with it as WWE fans if we still want to watch the product.

All I ask is for the WWE to remain original and use their talent to their fullest capabilities and don't waste any big moments.

Many fans believe that getting rid of the TV-PG era and returning to the Attitude Era, is a must for the WWE.

McMahon made a rare appearance on Raw from a hospital bed on the most recent episode of Raw.  This brought back so many memories of McMahon in the hospital before he was attacked by "Dr. Stone Cold." 

Some insist the TV-PG programming has nothing to do with Linda McMahon's senate campaign and it could change back to TV-14 any day, or some believe that the safe viewing for all ages is here to stay.

You've got to admit, if WWE flicked that switch and went back to the rude and crude Attitude Era, that ratings would skyrocket.

I don't think that the WWE needs to do this to succeed, but man, it wouldn't hurt either.

I hope I remember 2011 in the WWE as a new beginning, rather then the beginning of the end.