The Nexus and the Core: Paving the Way for the WWE's Future

The Nexus. The top heel faction in the WWE. A throwback to another time when stables were featured in major storylines and sold pay-per-views, Nexus has been the focus of Monday Night RAW since their debut on June 7^th 2010.

The Core. A splinter group from Nexus, The Core is currently taking shape on Friday Night Smackdown. This new group threatens to do to Smackdown what their predecessors did to RAW.

With the heat on CM Punk’s Nexus, and former leader Wade Barrett’s push as he forms The Core, the heel stable concept is bigger now than it has been in years. Considering WWE creative’s penchant for putting crap on TV, I have to say, this is one of the better ideas I have seen in a long time.

It’s a great angle. WWE is, after all, going younger. These two factions are the perfect vehicles for featuring these new faces and priming them for the future. As fans sit back and debate the pros and cons of this new “youth movement” in WWE, the fact is that by cultivating younger talent the company is staying ahead of the curve.

At some point, WWE has to move forward and develop its future Superstars. It is the only way to guarantee that the company will even have a future, and it is the same game plan that helped lead WWE over WCW during the Monday Night War.

Going younger and moving forward is what WWE does. For better or worse, at some point the veterans, though still important, will begin sharing the spotlight. It is the nature of the business. Every wrestler involved understands that.

The fact is, the one man who may understand it better than anyone is the superstar many fans love to hate. John Cena.

Cena was the rookie in the locker room at one time. Established veterans like JBL did the job for Cena in order to propel him to the next level. Now, Cena is doing the same for the members of Nexus.

He’s the first big name that Nexus attacked. They warred with him for months on TV and pay-per-view. Fans tuned in every week to see how Cena would respond next, and now with Punk at the helm of the group, the plot is once again beginning to thicken.

I’m reminded of one night at an event several years ago. I was in the locker room with a couple dozen wrestlers. My spots for the night were done, and I just wanted to watch the next match on the monitor. Seated next to me was NWA and WWF Legend, The Barbarian.

In the ring were two young wrestlers, each around 18 or 19-years-old. Two cruiserweights flying around the ring, doing their best to tear the house down. Barb, still a fan himself after all these years, watched the match and nodded his head. “Good,” he said. “Young guys in the ring, that’s good. It’s their time now. It’s good for the business.”

If only the powers that be in WCW understood that and accepted it, perhaps that company would have not only survived the Monday Night War, they possibly could have won.

Another debate among fans is the constant comparisons between Nexus and stables of the past, namely The nWo.

I have to say, other than the obvious link of both groups being heel and heavily featured as the top draw of their respective programs, I don’t get the comparison.

The nWo was all about money and ratings. The faction featured some of the biggest names in the business, guys who had already headlined major events and were the face of the promotions they worked for. The nWo were a collection of stars who not only lived in the limelight, they owned it. The younger talent in the group was non existent. The nWo were right here, right now.

In other words, the complete opposite of Nexus and the Core.

Of course, the reason for the comparisons overall, besides their recruitment of new members, is the fact that like The nWo, Nexus is dominant, and have been so since the night they first laid out Cena.

I can only imagine the buzz around this faction in the locker room when they debuted.

Again, veterans who understand that the business needs to evolve in order to exist, probably had no issue with the concept. But, for some others, who knows?

Think about it, a group of young wrestlers, who have been in the business for all of 10 minutes, have headlined nothing, sold no tickets, are now being given the keys to the castle. And now everyone on the roster is expected to job to them. It is a tough sell, make no mistake about it.

But despite any concerns from other workers or complaints from fans, the fact is that this thing is over. It’s working. Nexus fits on RAW, and The Core will fit on Smackdown. Diversity is the source of interest for fans when it comes to the business.

The more faces, the more varied the angles and storylines are on a program, the more fans have to choose from. While there is a fine line between not enough and too much, in my opinion, Nexus and all the storylines that run from it only add to the drama.

In the short term, yes, the WWE undoubtedly hopes that Nexus and The Core will increase ratings and do big business. In the long term, both groups are merely the starting point for the Superstars of the future. The WWE formula for creating true legends has been undeniably successful, as the cream always rises to the top.

With the proper push, smart storytelling and rising star power of the guys involved, The Nexus concept could go down as a landmark moment for the future of WWE. In the meantime, I will simply enjoy the storylines and try to predict where it will go next.