It seems WWE started a bit of controversy this past week on WWE RAW . In the final segment of the night, two women in Paige and WWE Diva’s Champion Charlotte ended the night hot with a very interesting angle that truly made you interested in their rivalry, if you weren’t already. Some still do not care, but the segment made you curious if nothing more. However, the main focus coming out of it was that WWE went too far.
WWE had the ladies bring up Reid Fliehr (real spelling of name), the brother to Charlotte and son of WWE legend Ric Flair. Reid sadly died years back, just when Charlotte was getting started in the WWE through the developmental system. This led Ric into a dark place, causing him to show up at events drunk, such as the infamous 2K Panel that resulted in the firing of Jim Ross for quote “not controlling the panel.”
Reid passed due to drugs, there is nothing more to really go into regarding it. He was involved in what he should not have been, and it cost him his life. Ric was the one who found him, only making it worse for him to deal with. The wounds are still somewhat fresh, as this didn’t happen a decade ago, but both Charlotte and Ric have healed from it mostly.
There are conflicting reports going on regarding the angle, however. According to Uproxx ‘s With Spandex section, it was Charlotte who actually came up with the idea to use her brother in the angle with Paige. Meanwhile, PWInsider reports the opposite as Charlotte was asked by WWE creative if it would be okay to do so, which she obviously agreed with. They also claimed Ric Flair was asked about it before doing it, which Ric came out on his podcast declining.
The problem with the entire thing is that it was a very personal situation. No one can be mad at either Charlotte or Paige, as they either did the job they were told to do or wanted to do with Charlotte’s permission. Clearly Reid’s passing is by no means healed from completely, and Ric was apparently very upset by it. He said he cried during the angle, which it seems he does any time Charlotte does anything to begin with but it seems it was upset tears more than happy ones.
When talking about the angle on his show , he brought up how Ashley (Charlotte) may have not had a choice on what creative wanted, saying the following.
“You know, here’s the problem: I obviously have an opinion but I’m afraid to voice it. Because I don’t want anything to affect Ashley’s career. I would just say that I know that Hunter, and Stephanie, and Michael Hayes have her back. I think if anything that could be considered a negative, I don’t think she feels like she’s comfortable enough to say ‘no’ to anything yet. She’s only been up there three months and it’s a pressure cooker. It’s a tough spot to be in. Even though she’s the champion doesn’t mean she goes ‘hey, this is what I want to do and what I’m not going to do.’ I think if they asked her to do something, that’s pretty much the way things operate up there.
“I just spent 10 days in Europe with the Raw group, the red tour, which is half the guys and I just think that they’re walking on pins and needles. Just because you’re the champion doesn’t mean that you have the right to say no. If somebody writes it down, one person approves everything. Does that make sense?”
Basically, Flair is saying that if Charlotte was asked to bring up her brother, she wouldn’t say no to it because it would have cost her and he obviously didn’t want to go further into the issue as it could cost her in the company. In other words, Flair was upset about it, and feels his daughter was unrightfully put in a position she couldn’t say no to.
He feels that she had no choice in the matter and it would have happened if she said no or not, which he could very well be right on that, as well. Creative has a way of forcing people to do things and if you don’t do it, they can break your career. People like John Cena and Randy Orton can say no, even the Shield guys can. However, they have been in the company longer and have big stock in WWE. Whereas, like Flair claimed, she has been on the main roster for 3 months.
It was an interesting angle and people are talking about both of the divas heading into WWE Survivor Series this Sunday.
[Image via WWE]