Royal Rumble Predictions are now live. Please note that the WWE title match is a handicapped match, so Owens, Zayn, or Owens/Zayn will all be considered the same answer. If you MUST write "Kami" then I will count that as well. That being said, I want "Kami" to die a quick death and urge all of you to never write or say "Kami."

https://tinyurl.com/ybvln8g9

It's at the end of March in Long Beach, CA.

Would make a nice trip to the west coast and if I'm going that far I'm going to shoot for front row spots. Would be the first time travelling that far for Wrestling and I haven't even done a Wrestlemania.

I need someone to talk me out of it, and by talk me out of it I mean tell me exactly why I should go and how awesome it would be.

>
>I need someone to talk me out of it, and by talk me out of it
>I mean tell me exactly why I should go and how awesome it
>would be.

I'm jealous. I will see a New Japan show eventually if it kills me to do so, but it doesn't look like that'll be happening in 2018 unfortunately.

http://uproxx.com/prowrestling/stephanie-mcmahon-wwe-royal-rumble/2/

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Haitch is the gawd of the shovel so maybe his wife picked up a trick or two on burying the whole roster.

Lita was alright during that Mae Young tourney, why not her at the announce desk? At least it would be a wrestler who might have something to add with each entrant. Goddamn this family really knows how to put themselves over.

I think Ciampa comes in to cost Gargano his title shot which reignites their feud for the Mania Takeover.

I HOPE Ember retains but I'm kinda pessimistic on that. They seem all in on the former UFC ladies and I think that's a shame given how much they've built up Ember.

I expect an AoP call-up soon and I think Undisputed Era will rule the brand this year, so no title switch there.

Cole beats Black, maybe after shenanigans, and goes on to win the NXT title in April.

Looks like they just added Velveteen vs. Kassius. Ohno is going nowhere and Dream is a star in the making so I expect him to win here. It's really a shame they couldn't capitalize on the great things Chris Hero did in the indies, but I do love Velveteen. It's crazy how young that guy is.

He's someone who is credibly tough, can put on a good match, but through a variety of factors isn't the guy. He could have been Hogan, you're right, but he aged and puffed up into Duggan.

And so I think he's where, for good or for ill, he wants to be right now. Helping to educate kids, hit some pretty cool spots, and make guys like Lars Sullivan and Patrick Clark look like the business. And when he hangs it up I think he'll probably join his Kings of Wrestling stablemate Sara Del Rey as a trainer.

He’s right where he deserves to be and blew a ton of potential to eat.

The high-tension elbow or whatever he's calling it when he jumps halfway across the ring is a fantastic move.

I suppose I can see that going either way, either of these guys would be fine title or no title and being made the man on the main roster eventually.

Maybe Cole is the one getting the Mania push so that Undisputed era can hold tag and world belts.

To me though, all year it felt like Black was being reserved for NXT Nola

and then drop the B a month later

I get that they put on good matches, but they're so tiny that them being legit physical threats just pulls me out of believability. That, and their generic ass names don't say champion at all
____________________

<================== Learn the name now before everyone gets dunked on

I've never liked Kyle O'Reilly though he works better as an enforcer in a heel faction cause his moveset looks believably painful. I think Fish is great and Cole is one of the best personalities in wrestling. The name of the group sucks though.

That little hunchback in his stance makes it look like he's there to fuck you up.

that and his little sneer. when he was taunting Sanity before War Games in that stance it was highly entertaining.

https://twitter.com/tagropemag/status/956553450740944897

.

where players, by rule, must stand for the national anthem.

I look forward to yet another failed non-wrestling venture by Vinnie Mac.

https://www.thescore.com/nfl/news/1473759

"we're listening to experts"

"it's going to be better and faster than the game we're accustomed to"

"they will have to stand for the anthem, as it is a time-honored tradition"

"i did not run this by Linda."


given that the talent pool is shrinking, this could be even worse than the first XFL.

https://twitter.com/_ChefDon_/status/956724154530705408

____________________

<================== Learn the name now before everyone gets dunked on

GOOD GOD ALMIGHTY!
STOP THE DAMN MATCH THAT MAN HAS A FAMILY!

because he was out fucking cold.

But his soul now belongs to that dude

He'll need a heater or, better yet, a stable, but I think this tandem could evolve into a top tier heel presence, qt least on SD.

I struggle to fim's the right pieces to put around him, but I think the right heater with these two could be a considerably better version of that Dolph/AJ/Big E trio some years back.

They'd probably have to bring in someone like Texano, though I'm not sure he's big enough to be an intimidating enforcer.

Perhaps a freshly reimagined Rusev or Mojo Rawley. EC III?

I don't have the answer but I two think there's something bigger here with Almas and Vega

Everything but the shirtless man and that fine ass valet still screams B-grade

The gimmick is cool otherwise.

As an aside, I wish KaKishi Ohno gave half a fuck.

Hero’s baby onesie gear does him no favors. He needs to either embrace the Big John Studd he’s become or take a page out of the Kevin Owens/indies Punk handbook and add basketball shorts to his gear.

But I thought his performance was just fine.

>Everything but the shirtless man and that fine ass valet
>still screams B-grade
>
>The gimmick is cool otherwise.
>
>As an aside, I wish KaKishi Ohno gave half a fuck.

It does. I love him as a rock solid work in progress, but I hope they don’t leave well enough alone with him because he’s already so over.

His packaged promos are money on the table. But he still needs to be the character at absolutely every moment. That way, he’d do more absurd stuff in random situations to put it over the top. Him and his friends should just be sitting around thinking of jackass stuff for a psycho wrestling Prince to do. If Prince is your template, there’s mountains of material to sift through. Sure, this not being attitude era stops lots of it, but there’s still plenty to do. It’s kinda like the Rock. Once Dwayne got to the point where he was totally the Rock all the damn time and everything that happened led to some kind of Rock reply or action, he was in there. I’m saying saying Dream is the Rock in waiting, but an absurd character can work if the guy playing the character gets like 6 good things to do that fit that character well. Then, you just roll with it and the promos damn near make themselves.

Right now, he has ‘say my name’. That works on me but he needs to add on.

I also want more lyrics or something from the theme song. If he’s gets those 6 good things, he could slide a few of those in there. Say my name is good enough to throw in right now!

The look is cool but those tacky ass contacts kill it.

Promos are ZZZZZZZZ.

She's a Titantron image and a great, if a bit overly complicated, finisher.

Conversely, I'm pretty sure Baszler is the embodiment of pure evil.

Fantastic finish.

Classic NWA heel style. Work the shit out of a body part, revel in your viciousness, rinse, repeat. She’s so great so quickly.

Or sister.

They actually have very similar body types and physical features. Right down to the hair. Similar personalities.

I bet if they hooked up, they'd own the domestic violence section of pornnhub.

At some point in the match she was standing over Moon and made this face and I was just like holy shit she looks exactly like female Corbin

This is how you have your stars do an extreme rules match, Vince.

Hell of a match by both men. I swear I hope they don't get ruined when they eventually get called up.

all solid stuff before that, but I was completely wrapped up in those 2. I don't see anything tomorrow topping those.

Nothing tomorrow is touching that.

That's how you put on an even. Why they won't let guys go like that on the main roster is beyond me.

The match was perfection, this isn't a real complaint, but him costing Gargano the match would have meant so much more than just a sneak attack as the show was ending.

I suppose you could argue that match deserved a clean end which is why the crowd was so mad when it looked like he was about to lose after the interference spot, but this would have been different.

Either way classic match and pumped to see this blowoff match finally happen at Nola

So that he could take it off him. I'll wait to hear Ciampa's explanation before I judge that part, but either way that match was incredible.

Match was great, ending with good.
Stuff after the ending was one hell of a moment.

Lot of great wrestling this weekend. I'll talk about it more once most of you have seen this. Passing out now this njpw time difference is hard on a brotha.

Missing a few

Monster Hunter World destroyed all my productivity this weekend.

It might have been semi-predictable but Nakamura winning was the best possible outcome save for some truly crazy fantasy booking like Daniel Bryan or something.

Seems like everyone is predicting that, since the men's Rumble went first, that means Ronda Rousey is gonna be involved in the women's Rumble after all, but I'm wondering if they're calling an audible and they're gonna put the belt on Strowman in the Universal Title to match to end the show.

Would think something big happens right? So nothing probably will haha

I mean, seems strange for them to put the women's Rumble on last if it ends just up being Asuka winning—which is the only other possible outcome other than the Rousey surprise—unless it's, God forbid, the nightmare scenario of Stephanie McMahon coming in at 30 and winning.

My son lost his shit when Rey Mysterio’s theme hit. They used Cena and Orrin perfectly. Nice bounce back after last years mess.

Normally it would be a surprise fest, but I think Almas, Cole, Rey, and hell even Hurricane were all good entries. I would have let the Heath Slater thing happen a little bit longer and as usual Kofi comes with something awesome. I really dug this rumble.

Leaving Cena and Orton in late, then having Cena and Reigns bully Nakamura...it was slick

Dolph Ziggler is as over as a plate of cold boogers. He so obviously thought he was gonna get a great pop from the crowd only to be met with a shrug. Dude could have come back doing ANYTHING different, and he came back with the same music and wearing pink. He’s just a whiny dumb dude at this point, may be time for him to just go away.

when making my picks.

The Rumble match was pretty good, Hurricane was making the MOST of his moment.

That’s the big money main event sitting in their lap, and they just can’t get to it because of their hard-on for Reigns. Reigns is good. But Strowman is special and he’s due, and they just keep dodging his moment.

That way she can get a title shot then lose and immediately cash in.

Or should I say the legends delivered? They came through and tore it up and looked amazing. So when a male superstar retires he gains 30 lbs and gets hooked on drugs and alcohol. When a female superstar retires she stays in amazing shape and can still wrassle.

If you want to nitpick, Bella vs Asuka should’ve been Sasha vs Asuka, but who cares.

I think really for the first time since they switched from “divas” to “female superstars”, there’s legitimate intrigue. Who does Asuka pick? What are Rousey’s motivations? What about Carmella? That’s good stuff.

The match is Charlotte vs Ronda. They probably know that.

1) Michelle McCool with no Layla? Boooooo.

1a) I know she’s Undertaker fam and all that, but did we need McCool dropping that many eliminations

1b) kinda strange to set up two factions that are supposed to have the drop on the current roster and have them all eliminated by women who haven’t wrestled for years.

2) way too many spots with the competitors knocked through the ropes.

3) Bellas in the final 4?

Kinda shit on Asuka's winning with Rousey coming out and almost declaring a title shot at WM. She's done nothing to deserve it. Vince loves his celebrities though. Gonna wait to see how this plays out but I'd love a win from Asuka on that stage.

Hyped if it's Nak vs AJ. They need to let them go. That stage and Nak giving a shit about this match should be one hell of a show from the both of them. Honestly should go on last since I got the fans Booing like crazy If Roman wins. I'll be happy though bedside we will babe a champ that's acutally around.

So looks like she is in it for the long haul. I knew her acting was bad but she looked bad and awkward up there for even wrestling standards.

Asuka doesn't get her moment, Rousey immediately jumps into a match she hasn't earned*, plus she thinks she's too important for the ROYAL RUMBLE.

I’m sorry, but some of those women, and specifically their offenses, are not good. Lana sucks, Bayley sucks, Natalya sucks. The Bellas still really SUCK, despite being literally wed to two HOFers. All of the new Riott Grrlz or whatever, garbage. Not to mention the dozen women from yesteryear who mostly all looked awful performance-wise.

I was blown away by Ember Moon’s offense - she looked like more credible of a threat than most, as if she really did want to hurt people and win. Asuka works well on a big stage. Sasha was the most obvious star in the match and, after Charlotte, is the most can’t-miss female they have.

And I really liked the match! But we got just enough doses of everyone. WWE got serious about women’s wrestling, like, three years ago. It will get better. In the meantime, Rousey gives them some mystery and, more importantly, some badly needed grit.

She has real chops, and that’s what women’s wrestling needs. The women’s stuff needs to look physical and feel violent, not like patty cake. Rousey is bonafide and can help. We’ll see if she can go.

she can come in and main event and i got no real problem with it. she's not as dominant as she was though.

But I guess they're not going to do that when she's wearing Piper's old jacket.

Have Rousey come in on Monday and challenge Sasha for Mania or come in on Tuesday and challenge Becky for Mania. That gives her the Mania spot, still gives a great wrestler the spotlight against her, and doesn't hot-shot her while hiding the women who have been around for a while. She's a big name so I'm not gonna argue she should be on the preshow with Dana Brooke or whatever, but I simply think it makes everyone look like shit if she comes in and immediately faces whoever she wants.

You have a point about the women you named, but most of them won't be in a big spot at Mania anyway, and you can say the same about plenty of male wrestlers too. I just don't think there's a point to the women's revolution if a couple years in a newcomer can roll in and basically main event right away. It's the same shit they always do and we often criticize it when it's a guy. If it's 4 horsewomen vs. 4 horsewomen at mania that'd be a bit better and would make more sense, but idk... she still stole Asuka's moment and that's not really cool.

> She has real chops, and that’s what women’s wrestling
>needs. The women’s stuff needs to look physical and feel
>violent, not like patty cake. Rousey is bonafide and can help.
>We’ll see if she can go.

I wouldn't count on crossover though. MMA folks are hit or miss when transitioning to pro wrestling. Baszler looked great last night, but maybe Rousey won't. We really don't know. That's why a Sasha or Becky startup program seems like a better idea to me.

>Kinda shit on Asuka's winning with Rousey coming out and
>almost declaring a title shot at WM. She's done nothing to
>deserve it. Vince loves his celebrities though. Gonna wait to
>see how this plays out but I'd love a win from Asuka on that
>stage.
>
>Hyped if it's Nak vs AJ. They need to let them go. That stage
>and Nak giving a shit about this match should be one hell of a
>show from the both of them. Honestly should go on last since I
>got the fans Booing like crazy If Roman wins. I'll be happy
>though bedside we will babe a champ that's acutally around.

I think/hope we’re okay here. If Asuka rakes Alexa upside the head for the Raw title and Rousey goes at Charlotte, we’re okay. Ric’s kid is bulletproof for now. And they could have Rousey put the beatdown on Bayley fo they want to be dynamic. Otherwise, Ronda’s gonna stand around smirking for 2 months while we all pray that she can work when the bell rings. I hope she’s Performance Centering her ass off in prep.

A few things-

-Menunous's announcing was awful. Should have let JoJo run with it but I get why they did it.

-Lita looked like garbage, literally and figuratively. Kelly Kelly and Tori looked unsafe at times. Not a fan of their time tonight. Lots improved as the match progressed but she wasn't very good eqrly.

-Molly, Candace, and Trish all brought it. Jacqueline wasn't given anything to do and that's unfortunate, but she shined for a second.

-The Beth/Nia moment was great. Much as I clown Nia's ring to hear, she's really come into her role as the resident monster quite well.

Yikes@Mickey James. She looked like a character from Mama's Family or some shit. The visual contrast between her and Trish was not good.

-Sasha's officially turned, right? If so, great move at a good time.

The Rousey pointing thing was corny, but I'm intrigued. I'm betting it will be her and Charlotte.

Generally speaking, this was a well executed Rumble for the women. The pacing suffered at times but aside from that I was pretty into the whole thing.

Regardless of if she goes on last she is undeniably about to bring in the most viewers, especially casual fans. We know WWE is obsessed with "making history" with the women and main eventing Mania is the last big thing at this point.

Say what you want about her overshadowing or burying the division but Rousey is 1000x bigger than the entire division and if she's signed full time you make her the center of the division ASAP. The rest of the women can be happy counting their money they'll make on on the back of her.

I'd like to wait and see, but then I feel like I know the WWE playplaybook well enough to know she's going to be used in a way that sucks the air out of the division.

It's already a poorly booked division where every angle more or less includes every woman on the roster. Plus they spend so much time talking about the revolution/evolution that it actually highlights a lack of progress instead of showing actual progress.

Stephanie already dominates the division on Raw. I just don't see how they don't screw things up with Rousey in a way that yields diminishing returns.

The crowd was mild as fuck outside of legends/surprises and Asuka doing Asuka things. This division needs Ronda.

I think she's the last thing the division needs, because she'll allow them to do what they do best on the booking/writing front:

Hotshot established names.

She's a net gain that will allow them a thick layer of protection from their worst tendencies.

Those women are over because they're too busy putting WWE and Stephanie over. They're actively puttingnover "History!" Instead of the women.

The wrestlers didn't get exposed.
Vince and his creative team did.

I'll give the caveat that since the trash writing isn't going to change either way, it's better to have a ready-made band-aid in the box, but Ronda is yet another star they don't have to actually do the work of making, same as they get by with boring ass Brock stories and rinse, wash, repeat matches on the strength of a name.

they only really write the title programs for the women, which is why none of them besides Alexa and Charlotte have real characters. Even Sasha, Becky, and Bayley aren't FULLY fleshed out characters and we've been watching them every week for years now.

>they only really write the title programs for the women,
>which is why none of them besides Alexa and Charlotte have
>real characters. Even Sasha, Becky, and Bayley aren't FULLY
>fleshed out characters and we've been watching them every week
>for years now.

It’s bad cuz nxt style and booking efforts had crowds in love with all of the main ladies. But that main roster situation sucks because they all but bury/cool off folks on purpose when Vince decides he’s not sure about you. Sasha and Bayley are getting killed by that on the reg. Bayley especially. As much as I have liked her, she needs some protection and effort wrapped around her character or she’s a big-legged Ziggler developing right in front of our eyes. She came out at 29 and folks didn’t sweat it at all cuz she was fo sho not winning.

Overall, I am confident that the actual wrestling with the women is on its way up again once the best ones are all established...even with wwe’s lack of ability and/or will to get everyone as over as we’d like. Nakamura dreams that WWE booked him with as much love as they’ve put into Asuka. She wins every single time and folks still love her and root for her to win again. And all she does is make accurate for the situation faces in between some solid at worst rasslin. I love how money she is at milking situations in-ring. And she reminds of Eddy and that whole small but awesome crew from the early 2000s wwe: you can see how she hits the gas when she’s in there with someone who can go fo sho. It’s a nuanced sign of respect in my opinion when folks trust each other enough in the ring to go full blast.

There are some, like Nakamura, Finn, Joe, Sasha, Charlotte, and Elias who can just make the leap because they're characters on their own that play in arenas. (the first three because they have already).

Then there are folks that got over in NXT by building a story. The Ascension, Bayley, Emma. And while there's a subset of people that watch NXT and the main roster, it's not everyone, and they need to take the time to tell their stories. The problem is knowing which is which, and it's not always clear which.

More so as she worked the match - but I think she might be someone like Elias who will work much better on the main than the tight confines of NXT.

once Ember finally beats Asuka like a year or two from now it's gonna get a huge pop.

That little "oh, look at this badass/I leave the division and you get hurt AGAIN?" face she pulled was fantastic.

Will there be a “outsider/celebrity” backlash from the fans or is she such a badass that they won’t care about that?

She seemed pretty awkward in there last night. I wondered if she pointed at the Mania sign at the wrong time, because she did it like 3 different times. It just felt weird and off. Like she shouldn’t have done it before shaking anyone’s hand, she should’ve just waited and pointed to it only at the end.

So a heel run is where she may end up working best

of the division. so strap in.

I don't mind her winning and you just know they'll throw the title on her eventually. This was a huge moment for Asuka though and I hope this doesn't overshadow her winning the first woman's rumble since she actually participated instead of just showing up when everything is done.

Just let Asuka face Bliss at WM and have Ronda go after the smackdown woman's title, she's gonna need some convincing wins before WM.

Former UFC Champion Ronda Rousey needs to convince the audience she's a credible challenger to Charlotte?

go watch Brock's last few fights in the Octagon, he looked every bit as lost as Ronda

Sure he's a monster in the WWE, that's also pre determined. Those of us that watch both know better.

So he was an established pro wrestler that left to peruse MMA. He was a legit wrestler before WWE also so I'm good with that.

I'm sure she'll be fine, but not every MMA star looks great when they transition to WWE so I don't like giving her one of the biggest spots right away when there's plenty of deserving women. If McGregor came in and challenged for the WWE or Universal title right away people would rightly shit all over that, and they'd cite the fact that he looked embarrassing in the boxing ring.

"All I have to do is avoid the armbar and punch you in the face a few times, right?"

And this is wrestling, not UFC, so I doubt anyone cares. If they let her I'd just play footage of Amanda Nunes beating her ass over and over on the titan tron.

She JUST got there. She hasn't earned what those girls have yet. She's a celebrity that got thrown in the mix because of her name. I'd say she still needs some convincing wins.

I don't mind her being there, I don't mind her eventually getting a title run. I'm not ok with them undermining some of the other talent after such a meaningful victory.

the rest of these girls just do crossfit

for the past 4 years they've been steadily wowing audiences, putting on some match of the year candidates, having some really great feuds and closing out multiple shows, but sure, all they do is crossfit and all of them should take a backseat to someone who hasn't done this ever. we've seen people fail to transition from MMA to wrestling before so why is it SUCH a crazy idea that she shouldn't immediately take the top spot? no one is arguing she should be on NXT or anything, just that the current roster deserves more respect than this. plus if she's really signed full-time then why rush it?

>the rest of these girls just do crossfit



^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Without Ronda Rousey making women's combat fighting a serious, money drawing sport, the emphasis on quality women's wrestling likely doesn't exist and the "women's revolution" would look a hell of a lot different.

Those girls are no doubt extremely grateful for the glass ceilings she shattered and assuming they aren't dumb very excited she's now a part of the team.

Yeah, she got her ass handed to her by Holm and Nunes, but what do you think it would look like if you sent Sasha Banks or Becky Lynch or whoever in the Octagon? Ronda is a STAR with a legitimate fighting background and an impressive resume to back it up. Assuming she doesn't struggle to find her "tv character" and all that jazz, she is the top star in the women's division and should be booked as such.

>Yeah, she got her ass handed to her by Holm and Nunes, but
>what do you think it would look like if you sent Sasha Banks
>or Becky Lynch or whoever in the Octagon?

which is why they aren't going to the Octagon. If that's a different playing field then why isn't wrestling considered a different playing field? It's not the exact same as combat sports so I see no reason to hot-shot MMA people.

Ronda is a STAR with
>a legitimate fighting background and an impressive resume to
>back it up. Assuming she doesn't struggle to find her "tv
>character" and all that jazz, she is the top star in the
>women's division and should be booked as such.

And what if she gets a title shot too early and looks bad as Charlotte drags her through a yawner in the middle of the Mania card? Her heat will dissipate and then they won't know what to do. Just give her a good spot against great workers until she's earned that top spot. It won't be that long anyway.

The post I replied to was saying she hasn't earned her spot yet and needed to have some convincing wins to get there. I'm saying she does not need convincing wins to get to that spot because her background has plenty of convincing wins already.

Now if you want to say she shouldn't be a top spot because she isn't a great pro wrestler yet, I agree, and how steep of a learning curve she has ahead of her remains to be seen.

Got a freebie through a friend of a friend. I was pleasantly surprised overall by the quality of the card.

Very surprised at the card order, especially the Womens' Rumble being last. The early stuff was, well, blah, like the cruiserweights and the tag match. I'm quickly getting tired of Roode...we'll see.

Styles match was good IMO, no surprise there. Usos also a good match, surprised it was two straight falls.

Mens Rumble was pretty decent...good to see no Scott Hall, XPac, or other ancient entrants. I guess Nakamura was the obvious pick (though I didn't pick him on the contest...lol) and I have no issue with him winning.

The Bar wins...meh. I'd much rather they win than the Jordan/Rollins garbage, but the match was ordinary besides Rollins IMO.

Then the worst match of the night happened. Brock wins again and Kane really needs to go away. A Lesnar / Strowman match would have been much better, but unless Braun won that matchup, he would have looked weak as hell, and I doubt they want him to headline WM at this point.

Then my surprise of the card...the Womens match was very good. My only complaint with it was the old folks reunion of sorts, but to have 30, they almost had to do that. A 20 person match without the older entrants would have been epic, but as it was it was a pleasant surprise.


The crowd...well...for a Philly crowd, it was ok I guess. Very hyped up early then petered out after the Mens RR match. Not the typical Philly crowd I'm used to.
Oh yeah, the Rousey thing...for me it shat all over the purpose of the Womens RR match. All the top talent goes to war for a title shot, and afterwards she strolls her ass to the ring, points at the WM sign, and she's in?? All I can say is she better be good...but I doubt it.

OOF:
https://twitter.com/WrestlinGifs/status/957808015108902912

and a closer look at the punch:
https://twitter.com/HeymanHustle/status/958016860699660289

That 2 piece absolutely crumbled him.

... then gets blasted a half-second later.

https://twitter.com/WWE/status/957992286515843073

Nah, I've never been.

But NJPW this March I will be there ringside baby!

and the 80's was fucking bursting at the seams with them.

yeah we watched the event Steph. No need for a verbal recap.

get with the program man

This shit last night was terrifying.

https://twitter.com/WrestlinGifs/status/958174725213163520

>This shit last night was terrifying.
>
>https://twitter.com/WrestlinGifs/status/958174725213163520

as a #1 contender's match sure, but there are often title defenses (including Alexa this time around), which doesn't belong in between the Rumble and Mania. 30 people go to war to earn a Wrestlemania title shot and then 5 people who probably lost that match get gifted a shot the next month in a completely unfair match for the champ. If it was around in the spring or fall to help out a dead spot on the calendar that'd make a lot more sense.

The Rumble isn't just about a title shot that other people just get handed at elimination chamber. It's about being in a Wrestlemania main event. In Kayfabe, a title match at Mania is worth more than a title match at other events.

I also like that it can help get things where we need for Mania. Last year Wyatt winning helped us avoid Cena vs Orton again (as bad as the match wound up being with Wyatt/Orton)

It helps keep the Rumble a little less predictable too when you know the title will be on the line in Elimination chamber.

at the event before WM, so essentially you have a 1 in 6 chance to get that same Mania spot AND the title. plus your pod can open up last and you don't have to do much work cause everyone who's left has been through the ringer.

>I also like that it can help get things where we need for
>Mania. Last year Wyatt winning helped us avoid Cena vs Orton
>again (as bad as the match wound up being with Wyatt/Orton)

saving themselves from problems they've created is not much of a feather in their cap lol.

>It helps keep the Rumble a little less predictable too when
>you know the title will be on the line in Elimination
>chamber.

I do like that element, but there's been a million ways they've switched Mania plans before EC existed though. Not all of them made sense of course, but I still think EC is very unfair to the champ and slightly unfair to the Rumble winner.

>I do like that element, but there's been a million ways
>they've switched Mania plans before EC existed though. Not all
>of them made sense of course, but I still think EC is very
>unfair to the champ and slightly unfair to the Rumble winner.

and there have been people who entered early and didn't do shit till the end (hi Vince)

Just as impressive as anything HBK has done.

perfect outfit for a wrestler. collects sweat and still allows arm mobility, plus jeans are cool.

in that case, he's just looking out for the safety of his employees/co-workers

... and Aleister-Cole was better than Omega-Jericho.

That's all.

>... and Aleister-Cole was better than Omega-Jericho.
>


hmmmm... these 2 are about equal in my book but the one moment that sticks with me is Y2J locking in the Walls of Jericho on Red Shoes' son. that's some heel shit I've never seen before.

... but I thought the spots and pacing of Cole vs. Black were better, even if Jericho's overall performance was probably the single best part of either match.

I certainly don't think Jericho-Omega was bad by any stretch, but it suffered from NJPW's tendency to have matches go super-long for the sake of length alone. If they kept it to 20 minutes or so I might agree with Meltzer's ***** but as is it feels a bit like Omega/NJPW stannery.

but I also thought it was a good length. As stated before it really came off as them hating each other so I thought 35 for that and the other main event was perfect.

Omega-Jericho and Cole-Black were about equal to me.

That Almas and Gargano match though good god that was pretty damn amazing and honestly may end up MOTY.

... to show them why I love wrestling. It's pretty much perfect and I think a complete outsider or even a hater of the form could watch it and appreciate it.

>... to show them why I love wrestling. It's pretty much
>perfect and I think a complete outsider or even a hater of the
>form could watch it and appreciate it.

Gargano may not have the most well-rounded character just yet, but in-match there's no one better at playing the babyface-in-peril. Absolutely no one. That's perfect for showing non-fans/casual fans cause they go in thinking "maybe this will be fun" and then by the end they are screaming in agony every time the babyface looks like they're in trouble and jumping up-and-down at the hope spots. I showed it to my buddy after the rumble and he had already seen Almas with the title so he knew who won... still had all the same reactions I did.

That's a standard hardcore match man, one that Dean Ambrose probably wrestles at every house show three times a week. It was cool because it was Jericho in Japan, and Omega is obviously a special talent, but it wasn't especially unique.

but enjoyed the storytelling much more on rewatching it. I thought they turned it into a blood feud with very little interaction beforehand and the match itself had a great build/payoff.

It was a very good match for what little interaction they could have. You felt like it turned from a simple competition on who's better to two people that grew to hate each other.

equal to Omega-Jericho

They pretty much gave away Bliss and Braun winning, since they're playing for Connor's Cure, but the match with Becky and Sami was a lot of fun. Looking forward to seeing the Mandy/Goldust team next week.

Finn/Sasha and Miz/Asuka are great team-ups, New Day wearing Carmella's gear alone was worth it, and Braun and Bliss' videos are hilarious.

> New Day wearing >Carmella's gear alone was worth it, a

the views went down from the 1st week and it got lost in the post-Raw25, pre-Rumble mix.

i follow some of the divas on IG so i keep seeing some of the vignettes and they're hilarious.

>i follow some of the divas on IG so i keep seeing some of the
>vignettes and they're hilarious.

best idea they've had in a while.

This is the kind of stuff they need to do so much more of: https://instagram.com/p/Beq2apqgfow/

It allows them to be sorta candid w/o breaking character conpletely. Actually it helps their characters cause they're interacting with people they wouldn't have before. Becky trusting Sami and then him being a coward about tagging in and acting like it was all a big mix-up was perfect. Lots of little moments like that.

Kinda sad Goldust spent like a month trying to pump up Cedric Alexander on TV with what they wrote and couldn't help the kid but he does a photo shoot with Mandy Rose and it's far more entertaining.

The stereo power slams were pretty choice too. And the post-match Rusev/Lana promo was brilliant. Rusev calling everyone by their "not quite right" nicknames (BobRoode, "Jim") is comedy gold

he's a genius and his twitter is GOLD

Goldust taking a breather after the running and shouting "I'm a lot older than you".
DB not making the count as Goldust went for the kiss was hilarious as well.

i like this rap adlib call & response thing they got going.

also...wtf at them burning a KO/Zayn/AJ/Nakamura match on a random smackdown.

>i like this rap adlib call & response thing they got going.
>

me too. last night was their best work imo. actually it seemed like they were leading in to a classic team returning to interrupt them and then the BludgeBros music hit and I was like "oh right, I forgot about these fuckers."

that Locked Down sequence had me hype.

Once they switched from the pre-match Haka, "barefooted savage" role to being just dudes who happen to be Samoan, everything got better. Match quality, promos, etc.

>Once they switched from the pre-match Haka, "barefooted
>savage" role to being just dudes who happen to be Samoan,
>everything got better. Match quality, promos, etc.

their music was actually good but there was just too much going on before it hit

They've shown they're willing to put over young tag teams, they'll be there for the HoF, and the Revival can promo on how they're considered an all-time great tag team but they're just dumb catchphrases and tables.

The last few weeks of 205 Live post-Enzo have been solid, and tournaments are usually pretty awesome, so maybe the weeks leading up to WM will turn the brand around.

And man, they need to do something more with Bate. He's phenomenal and always gets crowds to buy in. His height is probably gonna limit how far he can go in the company but he should at least get a shot as a 205 regular if nothing else.

NXT and 205 are all Hunter's now.

like he's really struggling announcing this women's elimination chamber match

I want to believe he just fumbled from the start and had a hard time recovering.

At the 16 Rumble, Braun eliminated Kane, Brock eliminated Braun and Braun and the Wyatts eliminated Brock.

I misspelled eliminated twice while conveying this.

and not made him look like a joke while doing it. he got that attitude era swag.

>and not made him look like a joke while doing it. he got that
>attitude era swag.

the braun/bliss interactions were adorable and took nothing away from him.

lowkey these MMC vids have been some of the most entertaining stuff of late. the New Day/Carmella stuff was good too.

Rusev with his new personality, WITH Lana was fantastic. Throw them in with English on regular TV, and start printing money.

>he got that
>attitude era swag.

it's reminiscent of Austin's "WHAT"-era stuff

Dude can really pull anything off. Get these hands is a great phrase for him also.

As much as they try to manufacture Roman to being "the guy", from a fan standpoint Bruan has it. They need to get a title on this man quick.

i kinda want to hear him sing for real now. he was going acapella so it got messy, but it seemed like he could carry a tune if there was music behind him.

"(insert goal), (insert reason why it's so important to everybody), (insert reason why it's extra important to him), NOW LET'S GET IT!"

i love ya john, but cmon dawg. they're not gonna leave you off the mania card if you don't win the chamber match. that's just silly.

How great would this Elimination Chamber be?

Cena
Rollins
Balor
Reigns
Miz
Strowman
Elias

Elias won't win but will be that role of the guy everyone is super hot for and excites you just at the chance- like when Santino came in 2nd in an elimination chamber when he was red hot

Cena/Rollins/Balor/Reigns/Miz all have some path where you could see them main eventing WM with a good story. Cena's record win, Rollins rebuild complete, Balor in the david vs goliath match, Reigns as Reigns and Miz in a champ vs champ match after the best 2 years of his career.

I'd be so fucking hyped! But they spent a year making it obvious Reigns is getting this spot so there is little excitement other than a cool match.

I made it clear to him I hope he's right, but it's Roman's show and there's no stopping it.

I know it's gonna be Reigns. And I know that even if Strowman wins, they'll shoehorn Reigns in on some silly Dusty finish BS. But I could see a Strowman gets in scenario.

Strowman is so ready. I think they have it in their heads now that the top guy has to be able to go on Good Morning America, and do Make-A-Wish appearances regularly, and ring the New York stock exchange bell with a smile on his face - that the "top guy" role isn't just being the guy on top, but the guy in public too. Who's to say Strowman couldn't do that?

Elias just chillin and playing guitar in one of them pods though? Yes please.

I want Bruan to have enough of it and do something freak of nature like with the pod.

>I want Bruan to have enough of it and do something freak of
>nature like with the pod.

While they're still in it

If they can find a way to have him completely rip someones pod out with them still in it that would be one of the most incredible things the WWE could do right now. Have him pick one up and toss that shit across the ring. The man already flipped a truck, this should be easy.

while 4 refs are playing tug-of-war on the other side.

I think what we'll see is Reigns beat Lesnar, maybe 1 on 1, maybe in a triple threat.

I think Summerlsam is Roman vs Braun

Maybe in between Braun finally beats Brock to send him on a long vacation and push Braun to the summerslam main event.

Also I'm excited to just have the champion back on TV and have wrestlers able to compete for it again once Brock drops it. Give Balor, Rollins, Braun, Joe etc... something to compete for.

the rest of the Mania card is shaping up REAL nicely so it's tough to complain, but to Y2's point: these two pre-Mania ppvs look very anticlimactic.

>Elias won't win but will be that role of the guy everyone is
>super hot for and excites you just at the chance- like when
>Santino came in 2nd in an elimination chamber when he was red
>hot


^^^^^This....

Yet again. Give people time to shine and they knock it out of the gotdamned park. Rusev/anyone main eventing the next Mania, please and thank you.

An 8 team Tag Team tournament as a way to give a little bit of interest to a pitiful tag team scene...this is my proposal...

8 teams in a bracket format. The tag champs of each show as the #1 seeds. Then fill in the other six...my example would be Usos, Bar, New Day, Gun and Gallows, Revival, Authors of Pain, War Machine and (since they are gonna get push) Bludgeon Brothers.

Mix and match the teams for a bit more exposure during the first round matches (Revival goes to SD or Bludgeon brothers go to Raw)

The semifinals and Finals could happen at the new and improved King of the Ring PPV with the winner named the Tag Team Kings of the Ring and awarded a title shot of their choice at SummerSlam.

Feasible? Bad idea? What do you think?

Would be great to have a Royal Rumble/MITB equivalent for tag teams, a way to earn an automatic shot

over the last couple years, it's that tournaments almost always work

>The semifinals and Finals could happen at the new and improved
>King of the Ring PPV with the winner named the Tag Team Kings
>of the Ring and awarded a title shot of their choice at
>SummerSlam.

last I heard Vince HATES King of the Ring and that's why the last one was a really feeble attempt at a tournament and it was all on Smackdown iirc. Now that Vince is slowly starting to loosen his grip on the product it could make a comeback though. The King gimmick has kinda run it's course but I think a "Tag Kings" gimmick could be a nice fresh spin.

so i'm all for it but they gotta give a shit first

Their story with the Revival fuckin up their chances against AOP was GREAT. Not quite as good as the Finn and Joe stuff, but it built to one of the best tag matches ever and ended up setting up one of their best stories (assuming that Johnny isn't off to 205).

like...yall made a marketing gimmick out of the feminism and current MeToo wave, when other brands been had legitimate women's divisons w/ multiple belts, tag teams and main events.

and EVEN STILL with the increased focus yall can only tell 1 story revolving around the belt on each brand.

i kind of wonder if the division would be better off just having a GLOW show for the women instead of still being piss break status on Raw/SD

and now this rumor that Ronda's coming to help get Stephanie over in the mainstream....lmao
http://www.wrestlinginc.com/wi/news/2018/0208/636804/wwe-using-ronda-rousey-to-help-make-stephanie-mcmahon-a-big-star/

im just thinking out loud here
everytime i hear
"the FIRST women's royal rumble" "the FIRST women's money in the bank" "the FIRST elimination chamber" i just look around like do yall realize you're telling everybody "hey we're MAAAAAAAAAAAAAAD late on this women's wrestling thing"

i totally agree they talk WAY too much about all the history they're making with each "first." All the firsts are worth mentioning like once but it's insulting/condescending to the women to drive it into the ground. I wish they'd save the back-patting for the retrospective documentaries in 10-20 years.

>i kind of wonder if the division would be better off just
>having a GLOW show for the women instead of still being piss
>break status on Raw/SD

they could probably pull this off at this point, but if it's not at Full Sail I think it will sink like 205 Live. The stars of the division are too big for Full Sail though so that's a tricky one.

RE: they only write for the title program... the Sasha/Bayley slow build has me hopeful that will change.

Hearing them talk about the “women’s revolution” is beyond tired. Many of the matches are quite good. They could do a lot better job booking the angles and developing characters.

It wasn't NXT saying "this is important," it was Paige and Emma putting on barnburners, it was Sasha and Bayley being undeniably the top two draws in the promotion at the time of Takeover Brooklyn, because they were given time, and just as importantly, patience to tell stories in and out of the ring.

>It wasn't NXT saying "this is important," it was Paige and
>Emma putting on barnburners, it was Sasha and Bayley being
>undeniably the top two draws in the promotion at the time of
>Takeover Brooklyn, because they were given time, and just as
>importantly, patience to tell stories in and out of the ring.
>

They get pulled up to the main roster and can't put on half the matches they did in NXT where the wrestling got them over and they were involved in pretty good storylines.

They've proven time and time again they can go, so let them GO!

Instead we get "This is your life" segments with Bailey portraying her as a child or worse yet an adult who ain't wrapped too tight and never got to grow up. She's not Michael Jackson! They don't want to continue what got them over in NXT and it seems like their match quality goes down as well. It's got to be draining and I wouldn't doubt if eventually they start phoning it in.

They can main event if they want to, but creative is also short changing them, throwing them in six women tag matches all the damn time instead of letting them shine individually for the audience. I like Bliss as a heel, but there is no way she should still be champ with very few title defenses in the past few months and all that other female talent they have.

>>It wasn't NXT saying "this is important," it was Paige and
>>Emma putting on barnburners, it was Sasha and Bayley being
>>undeniably the top two draws in the promotion at the time of
>>Takeover Brooklyn, because they were given time, and just as
>>importantly, patience to tell stories in and out of the
>ring.
>>
>
>They get pulled up to the main roster and can't put on half
>the matches they did in NXT where the wrestling got them over
>and they were involved in pretty good storylines.
>
>They've proven time and time again they can go, so let them
>GO!
>
>Instead we get "This is your life" segments with Bailey
>portraying her as a child or worse yet an adult who ain't
>wrapped too tight and never got to grow up. She's not Michael
>Jackson! They don't want to continue what got them over in
>NXT and it seems like their match quality goes down as well.
>It's got to be draining and I wouldn't doubt if eventually
>they start phoning it in.

I'm guessing this is why when I see Bayley, Sasha, well most of the heralded NXT grads that I am very unimpressed. Besides the Charlotte/Banks series of title matches, the whole division is lacking for me...no distinct believable stories, lackluster matches terrible booking.
>
>They can main event if they want to, but creative is also
>short changing them, throwing them in six women tag matches
>all the damn time instead of letting them shine individually
>for the audience. I like Bliss as a heel, but there is no way
>she should still be champ with very few title defenses in the
>past few months and all that other female talent they have.



So many things wrong...how has Nia Jax - once built to be the Strowman of the women - now just "there"? Besides the new faction and Bliss, there are no heels at all, and that aspect is worse on Smackdown where everyone is friends against the three newbies. They give corny mofos like Breezango and New Day whole segments, but refuse to give one iota of support behind the "womens' revolution" outside of lip service. Now they're putting Rousey on Raw and will probably give her a WM spot ahead of all the workers that built the platform to start with...WWE is so bad with this stuff...

There are some bright spots here and there but they've stopped writing for the women, have inexplicably added Zigs and Corbin to the title match, the top 10 thing is dumb so far, and I'm also pretty bored with the US title. I don't believe the Riott Squad has actually won a match but we're supposed to think they're a terrifying new heel faction.

And this whole Ziggler debacle over the past couple months is insanely stupid. I could write an essay on everything bad about this. They either didn't plan this out at all or they made a few different ways to go with it and abandoned all of them.

Turn him heel (which is fine) then have hi,win the US title...just to give it up...then disappear for a month and a half and then...return to go for a title shot? Again, the story telling doesn't make any sense.

Roode as US Champ...meh. I liked him in TNA, but never saw him as top of the card guy as a singles wrestler. The way he got there was convoluted at best, and besides the entry music, nothing stands out for me with him.

The AJ/Owens/Zayn thing is growing tired, but I think that's because it's an extension of the Shane/ Bryan "thing"...why they are using the world title as a pawn in that game is silly IMHO.

The women's division is just bad...everyone is friends against the Riott Squad, who show little reason to garner such attention. They have Flair, Naomi, Natalya, even Lynch, and can't come up with way to showcase the talent...pathetic.

I've heard him described as "imagine Arn Anderson thinks he's Ric Flair," and that's pretty apt. As NXT champ, he was an arrogant dickhead heel. Yes, despite that music being over as fuck (and DIY Glorious Bombing everything: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O3oCVsfPmB4).

>I've heard him described as "imagine Arn Anderson thinks he's
>Ric Flair," and that's pretty apt.

Put "Stan Wilkerson" after those damn quotes.

http://board.okayplayer.com/okp.php?az=show_topic&forum=8&topic_id=2602459&mesg_id=2602459&listing_type=search#2602547

>http://board.okayplayer.com/okp.php?az=show_topic&forum=8&topic_id=2602459&mesg_id=2602459&listing_type=search#2602547

>>I've heard him described as "imagine Arn Anderson thinks
>he's
>>Ric Flair," and that's pretty apt.
>
>Put "Stan Wilkerson" after those damn quotes.

It was amongst your best works!

I’m guessing wwe wants to milk his heel persona by positioning him to turn in some amazingly scumbag way. So that way, he gets the turn heat added onto ‘this guy is a jerk’ heel heat that we all know he’s great at. If I’m right, it’s gonna be a fun fall on smackdown. As it stands, smackdown is an exhibition of talent squandering.

if he wins the title at Fastlane. Obviously he'd drop it before Mania but that would be a great "I told you so!" promo on SD the Tuesday after, and some added drama going into Mania with AJ chasing the title back. The only thing that's likely to happen in the AJ/Shinsuke build anyway is miscommunication in random tag matches.

If anyone was a fan of the CWC then they should really be watching this. It's 2 matches per show at the moment as part of the title tournament and Gulak & Neese had a genuinely great match this week. Good work Hunter. The real test will be after Mania though and how they can readjust their style outside of the tournament format.

this has gotta be because wwe is eating off tna developing talent.

>this has gotta be because wwe is eating off tna developing
>talent.

There almost has to be a specific reason that is not related to Jarrett. Tape libraries that Jerry has? Jeff is somehow still involved with something TNA-related or he has an in that will allow WWE to quit messing around? IE: TNA is forreal about to die and this is a means to that inevitable end?

>There almost has to be a specific reason that is not related
>to Jarrett. Tape libraries that Jerry has?

If Vince can get his hands on the full amount of Memphis wrestling tapes he could put those on the network and I would watch religiously. Between Jeff (really Jerry Jarrett though) and Lawler they probably have about 80% of the library already. The last 20% is in the air because the guy who had control in its last good years (Angle, Rock tapes) died in a car crash several years ago and him and Lawler weren't on speaking terms at that point.

These classes are pretty big and have been getting worse every year. The Dudleys are the only ones I give a shit about.

Are you on good terms with WWE at the time?

Look at the names who got in before Macho Man who only got in because he died.

Koko B. ware is in the Hall of fame, The Godfather is in the hall of fame.

It's not that unreasonable to put in a 4 time IC champ, multiple tag champ and WCW world champ to be in, as unimpressive as most of his runs were.

If you were ever pretty over and are on speaking terms with WWE you're getting in

>Are you on good terms with WWE at the time?
>
>Look at the names who got in before Macho Man who only got in
>because he died.
>
>Koko B. ware is in the Hall of fame, The Godfather is in the
>hall of fame.
>
>It's not that unreasonable to put in a 4 time IC champ,
>multiple tag champ and WCW world champ to be in, as
>unimpressive as most of his runs were.
>
>If you were ever pretty over and are on speaking terms with
>WWE you're getting in
>
I's so arbitrary who gets in and who is in exile...blow Vince, get a shrine...work your ass off but fall out with VKM, ass out.

This may be his way of getting them. It's a lot of people with WWE that have heat with Jarrett, they honestly have no reason to let him in for that alone.


BUT

As shitty as he may have been, that man was a hell of an IC champion, and he had massive heat at times. I remember hating this motherfucker which means he was doing his job.

And lets be real, anyone responsible for this may deserve to be in the hall of fame https://www.instagram.com/p/BfZxpJmB8LE/

https://www.cagesideseats.com/wwe/2018/2/19/17029594/apollo-loses-crews-newest-one-name-wwe-superstar

so dumb and unnecessary.

And we're not even a third of the way through.

Edit: and this is the best Rollins has looked since coming back from the injury. Helluva worker.

The Rumble was bullshit-free, and actually played with fans in the right way (and even set up the current Cena story, as he was starting to react to the crowd chatter during the Rumble). Strowman's out here crushing people with upright basses. 2 hour gauntlet matches. WATTBA.

If it keeps his hands off stuff and we get things like this in return I'm all for it.

Shit, let him make an Xtream Soccer, Baseball, and Hockey League. As long as it keeps him busy enough to stay off wrestling.

I was highly entertained last night and we had 2 hours of wrestling instead of Stephanie talking about how she refused to sit on the back of the bus so black folks could ride up front.

boy they better get an extra check for this lmao.

damn and now rollins gotta fight another one.

I'm a little woozy after getting my wisdom teeth yanked out of my skull today, so here's this short ass card with no bonuses:

https://tinyurl.com/y9af5lk7

Thinking I'll start a new post when we get to Fastlane or something. It's Mania season so these are bound to get long.

That last one would be fun but I still think Vince doesn't get Broken/Woken Matt Hardy. He's just letting it happen to sell some merch. After a hot start this feud has been pretty meh.

past years he'd have NEVER allowed Nak to win the Rumble. He's in XFL mode.

>past years he'd have NEVER allowed Nak to win the Rumble.
>He's in XFL mode.

Might want to check so whoever did doesn't miss out on their picks

jfc stop w/ the reigns shit already. that was fucking asinine.

But now, they’ve got a nuclear-over superstar in Strowman that happened organically that they obviously didn’t anticipate. Rather than Pivot to cashing in on Strowman, they’ve double down on their master plan and will AGAIN put Reigns in the main event. It’s as if they feel both guys can’t be on top at once, like only one guy can be Lesnar’s equal.

Had Strowman never come along Reigns is of course the pick to be the next guy. But he did, and they’re spinning their wheels with him as a result of their unwavering obsession with Reigns.

*probably more at this rate. it's a fucking joke. most fans dont even like him and i bet even the ones that do are tired of him. hell i'd rather see cena win than him at this poiint

what a meteoric rise just to job to Roman.....again.

Obviously Vince carved Reigns-Lesnar in stone a year ago and they've been forced to keep that course, and I'd bet on Strowman getting his run with the belt at Summerslam if not earlier, but it's so strange to me that the company clearly acknowledges that Braun is a superstar *right now* yet won't just go ahead and push him as far as he can go *right now*.

I'm not even mad at Roman/Lesnar. I think they put on an excellent match during their Mania bout that was WELL on its way to becoming a timeless, bonafide classic with 5 more minutes without the cash-in.

But this Mania should have been Reigns vs Braun. Reigns should have had the title match at Rumble, Braun should have had the same dominant Chamber match, and the smartest money here, short and long term, was Reigns vs Braun, with Braun being coronated in an OVERT double turn that begins tomorrow night.

But as usual, this is Mania season, where smart, nuanced ideas will get shelved in favor of more of the McSame, McMundane, Paint-By-McNumbers snorefest.

This shit is like Hometown Buffet or Golden Corral. Sure there's ostensibly "something for everyone", but there's no soul in that kitchen. No spice. No seasoning.

Just bland, muted flavors used in order to appeal to the broadest palette possible, despite the fact that they could EASILY utilize the same ingredients in more interesting ways to create something that not only appeals to a broader audience, yet still ignites the passion and imagination of core fans.

No nuance
No imagination.
Not even an eye toward the big picture.

What's funny is that this year, they cant even point to fans being enamored with some Indy darling who doesn't translate to a broader appeal. This time it's the most blatantly traditional pro wrestling archetype, a guy who is literally larger than life and overflows with old school charisma.

He's correctly tagged Monster Among Men. Despite being absurdly overpowered(I mean... come the fuck on. That shit is cringe worthy at this point) in ridiculous ways, he's still red hot. The people are behind him. He's the ultimate cake-and-eat-it-to option.

There's no reasonable counter argument to this. There has never been more proof that Vince does not listen to the fans than the creative choices between RR and EC. There's no easy deflection. There's no plausible rebuttal.

I like Reigns. I'm good with him and Brock and I think they'll prove worthy of a Mania main event. But it's clearly, inarguably the lesser option creatively and economically.

The timing was perfect to pivot. The fans have spoken, and they- we- have clearly chosen a guy who checks every one of Vince's traditional boxes, and then some.

But then, this is par for the McCourse. Every year.

>I'm not even mad at Roman/Lesnar. I think they put on an
>excellent match during their Mania bout that was WELL on its
>way to becoming a timeless, bonafide classic with 5 more
>minutes without the cash-in.
>
>But this Mania should have been Reigns vs Braun. Reigns should
>have had the title match at Rumble, Braun should have had the
>same dominant Chamber match, and the smartest money here,
>short and long term, was Reigns vs Braun, with Braun being
>coronated in an OVERT double turn that begins tomorrow night.
>
>But as usual, this is Mania season, where smart, nuanced ideas
>will get shelved in favor of more of the McSame, McMundane,
>Paint-By-McNumbers snorefest.
>
>This shit is like Hometown Buffet or Golden Corral. Sure
>there's ostensibly "something for everyone", but there's no
>soul in that kitchen. No spice. No seasoning.
>
>Just bland, muted flavors used in order to appeal to the
>broadest palette possible, despite the fact that they could
>EASILY utilize the same ingredients in more interesting ways
>to create something that not only appeals to a broader
>audience, yet still ignites the passion and imagination of
>core fans.
>
>No nuance
>No imagination.
>Not even an eye toward the big picture.
>
>What's funny is that this year, they cant even point to fans
>being enamored with some Indy darling who doesn't translate to
>a broader appeal. This time it's the most blatantly
>traditional pro wrestling archetype, a guy who is literally
>larger than life and overflows with old school charisma.
>
>He's correctly tagged Monster Among Men. Despite being
>absurdly overpowered(I mean... come the fuck on. That shit is
>cringe worthy at this point) in ridiculous ways, he's still
>red hot. The people are behind him. He's the ultimate
>cake-and-eat-it-to option.
>
>There's no reasonable counter argument to this. There has
>never been more proof that Vince does not listen to the fans
>than the creative choices between RR and EC. There's no easy
>deflection. There's no plausible rebuttal.
>
>I like Reigns. I'm good with him and Brock and I think they'll
>prove worthy of a Mania main event. But it's clearly,
>inarguably the lesser option creatively and economically.
>
>The timing was perfect to pivot. The fans have spoken, and
>they- we- have clearly chosen a guy who checks every one of
>Vince's traditional boxes, and then some.
>
>But then, this is par for the McCourse. Every year.

I wonder how much Brock takes away their flexibility. Aka let’s say that Haitch or someone near the top ‘understands’ that Strowman should be the guy and soon. But they need to deal with the whole Brock is champ and wrestles an hour a year issue. Also, if that Dean Ambrose Mania match is any indication, Brock isn’t above not giving up real offense if he’s not interested in the opponent. And he’s likely not above vetoing an opponent either...especially if he’s supposed to lose.

This doesn’t let them off the hook of course. They made the Brock bed that they are lying in. But I wonder if they will be relieved to have him gone whenever that time comes.

There’s also the potential for Braun to get added. Otherwise, I’m not sure what other huge spot he could get. Tagging with Rousey is not huge for Strowman by the way.

The women’s match told a story, I truly didn’t know who would win, and it had a good finish that made sense. The alliances were built up, made sense, and had more drama and tension of when they would end.

The men’s match was a cartoon where they all kept hitting their finishers and kicking out, and the ending was predictable. The “alliances” were mostly played for jokes. Just a big jokey finisher fest like a video game match, with the guy nobody wants to win predictably winning.

Glad they're going to hide her in the celebrity spot tagging with Kurt, but man, was that segment laughable.

like he had neck problems or something.

cause i damn sure would've remembered that.

http://insidepulse.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Kurt-Angle-the-SHIELD-6.jpg

https://uproxx.files.wordpress.com/2017/10/angle.jpg?quality=95&w=650

and then $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$kies the limit

BTW, Baszler meanwhile just ripping shit down in NXT on that microphone. In that ring.

if you can't get Rock, what casual fan who only tunes in for Mania wouldn't want to see Ronda/Brock vs Hunter/Stephanie ?

You could have even called it "Dangerous Alliance vs the Authority"

imagine Rousey and Lesnar teaming up

Because Brock is low-key fantastic as a promo. He's just never around, so you need Heyman to keep his feuds bubbling.

Imo she needs to be out there cutti g her teeth. She may need to fail a little first. She needs a story that shows that this isn't as easy as she may have thought and she needs to scratch a little.

I think making her the female Lesnar, in any regard, would be an awful move because she doesn't have that type of cache right now and fans will kill her if she's over protected. She needs to be a badass, but also sympathetic.

I'm as happy for Nakamura as the next mark but you're going to get, what, another two years from him?

Why wouldn't you instead put Strowman on one show and Reigns on another? They NAILED this when they brought Batista and Cena up at the exact same time. Those guys were attached at the hip, and the company knew that Batista was hotter at the time but that Cena had more upside. At Wrestlemania 21, Cena won the WWE Title from JBL in a co-main event and Batista main evented against Triple H. All goals were accomplished - WWE managed to capitalize on Batista's meteoric rise and sudden popularity while still laying in the foundation of Cena's now-historic run. YOU CAN GET TWO BIG GUYS OVER AT ONCE - IT CAN BE DONE.

AJ as well.

They ARE using the brand split correctly, in terms of dividing the roster. It's divided correctly.

What you're describing would be far worse than what they have now, as it would be yet another band-aid that alloows them to wallow deeper into their worst proclivities at the expense of other talents. It would be yet another mu same solution as opposed to creative atorytelling.

Reigns and Braun should be joined at the hip, but the fans have made Braun the face. So it's time for Reigns to embrace that hate and go heel. Bring up AOP as his enforcers, add a 4th guy with mic skills to the mix, and BOOM. ROMAN Empire is born and Braun has something major to contend with.

There's enough creative ineptitude as it is, on both shows, but putting Reigns on one and Braun on the other would just make both shows more of the McSame.

i do agree with you that the best match they could make would be a big time Braun vs Reigns match. Book it really silly and violent and just print cash

Braun and Roman have an intrigue based on history and their 1a/1b stature behind Brock, and the Hossyness of their battles is equally interesting as the insane workrate an Aj/Seth match would be.

>i do agree with you that the best match they could make would
>be a big time Braun vs Reigns match. Book it really silly and
>violent and just print cash

We need less silliness. Just make it a fight. Boss level hoss shit. The end.

Theyh don't need gimmicks. They don't need attempted murder or any other theatrics. They just need to beat the dogshit out of each other for 20 minutes, even-steven, until the last 5 minutes where one gets the advantage.

After that, build that Roman Empire and let Braun deal with stacked odds of brutal men. But more more "silliness".

we haven't really seen a solid match from him yet...a lot of great stunts and he fit great in that Summerslam four-way, but his one straight "wrestling" match against Lesnar sucked. So I don't know what to expect.

Yeah, I said it. I said it on OKP, I said it.

From a pure Hoss standpoint, Sheamus is one of the best I've ever seen. I'd love to see him have a stint in NJPW at some point while he can still go. And Sheamus can absolutely go.

Anyhow, Braun ain't that. He's old school. Not Earthquake, but he's the prototypical Immovable Object in ways typically embodied by embarrassingly bad stiffs like The Great Khali, and those guys historically have short shelf lives. Braun isn't that.

But he's actually rather nimble in there and while he's green, he can go. Prior matches with Reigns or Big Show are good examples. But while he's not quite at that main event level in terms of work rate, he's a fantastic mix of, well, everything. Monstrous size and appearance, blah blah blah, but he's deceptively quick for his size, has showcased surprising athleticism, and most importantly, has a connection with the fans no amount of 450 splashes can ever create.

Plus everyone hates Roman, and even guys like me, who genuinely like Roman and think most are laying it on extra thick in their disdain for him, still cheer when Braun catches him with those hands (c).

And make no mistake: Roman CAN work. He got credit early for his match with Bryan, for example, for "holding up his end". But he's since proven he can put together high quality main event matches with just about anyone- Braun included.

Roman and Braun has all the ingredients for a fantastic Mania Main Event...... except quality, sensible storytelling.

Announced for Strong Style Evolved

HYPED!

Card is shaping up to be pretty damn good.

I hated how he kept saying "they don't want me to say this" and "now let me go get chewed out" as if it was a shoot when it so obviously wasn't.

been waiting, I don't know, four years for him to acknowledge his pedigree?

Scored front row for my daughter and me and wanted to know what to expect. Is it a bit more laid back than the main roster? As far as getting to meet people or having them play it up for the crowd a bit more?

Trying to make this a good experience for her and if there is a chance she can get some pics or something.

House shows are always fun fan experiences in general, but NXT being full of wrestlers not jaded on the business yet in smaller arenas makes it even more fun.

You'll have a blast for sure being in the front row.

Lesnar "no-shows" TV last week

Reigns cuts *by far* his best promo ever

Lesnar squashes Kane in 30 seconds at a house show and leaves the ring as quick as he got to it


Preying on the perceptions of smarks is really inspired. They also did this at the Rumble when they paired Nakamura against
Reigns.Everyone thinks Lesnar is an arrogant prick already, so run with it. Can they fix Reigns in a month and convince an entire football stadium to go with it? We'll see, but so far they're off to a commendable start.

I get what they're doing but they kinda booked themselves into a corner. You have man with the title you hardly ever see and he's facing someone who's been shoved down our throats and as much as the fans reject it they keep trying to force feed him to us.

And I'm one of the people that's honestly glad Roman gets a shot at this title so at least I can have my champ on tv more. I don't think he holds it for a year and I believe that Bruan will get it off of him later this year after a few title defenses. I'm just happy to have Lesnar gone after this so I'll take what I can get. Funny they're trying to play the crowd against him so much that people have no choice than the cheer for Roman.

it's a known fact now he'll only do business if it serves HIS business. In the minds of fans, that serves to help Reigns.

the crowd last Monday was prepared to boo Reigns worse than the one after Mania 33 did and Reigns didn't let them. Good reading of the tea leaves that they suddenly recognize not every one is in love with Lesnar.

Is he done after Mania?

Signs point to him going to the UFC for one more run. But signs pointed that way last time he was poised to be a free agent and he really just played Dana off of Vince to get more money.

This time though Dana has more aggressively hinted at Brock being on the way. They were photograph together last week, and not on some TMZ ish but a proper picture. There’s still a few money fights there for Brock. Lest we forget he’s still a great grappler. He’d be in trouble against Stipe or of Cain still, but he’s formidable against anyone else if he sticks to his bread and butter ground and pound.

He definitely seems intent on returning to UFC so it's interesting to note whether he'll work past this Mania.

Can't imagine how terrible this would be to sit through.

http://www.wwe.com/worldwide/article/saudi-arabia-to-host-greatest-royal-rumble-april-2018?sf183666033=1

>

I am so glad that he’s over. It didn’t work in nxt at all but he’s a main roster machine. He’s gonna get turned tho. He almost has to. The crowd is already somewhat openly cheering him.

Side: can anything save Bray Wyatt? He’s so ruined at this point that he’s damn near dragging down Hardy in the process. He’s like a more talkative Ziggler out there.

He has to win matches, and be dangerous.

The way he came out and beat up Slater and Rhyno, more of that.

Wyatt's gimmick feels worn out because his words mean nothing anymore. He loses to everyone, he's a jobber with a gimmick. He's essentially become a longer lasting BoogeyMan.

But all he'd have to do is go into the Hardy compound and destroy it and Matt with him (Matt putting Bray over here is what SHOULD happen)

Move on post Mania and just go on a tear- even if not important feuds, but just beating people. Beat up Titus and Apollo, Beat up The Revival, Beat up all the mediocre tag teams and wrestlers. Build up a winning and mean streak again.

His gimmick will go back to working when we believe he'll win, but losing every major feud because it won't hurt him in the long run has finally caught up and hurt him.

Something about Bray does kinda seem like it's never too late to turn it around but... well, maybe it is.

I was always curious to know how Broken Matt was going to work in WWE and it clearly isn't working out at all either which is such a shame. I'd prefer that they just left him as a vignette character like Breezango but we're not even getting that. Such a shame.

>Something about Bray does kinda seem like it's never too late
>to turn it around but... well, maybe it is.

and the programs he's in never change anything. My problem was never even specifically that he lost a lot (although that was a problem) it's that "the new face of fear" should shake things up 100x more than he has. A character like him can lose about 50% of his major programs and still have a huge impact if they book it right. Someone should have converted to his cult (besides 2 weeks of Daniel Bryan). Someone who won their Wyatt feud should've come out the other side changed (ESPECIALLY Cena). Most of all I'd like his promos to make some sense though. Booking aside that will still always handicap him. In between Orton and Hardy everyone he feuded with was left with "I have no idea what he's talking about but I'm gonna fight him anyway" and then they all won.

but there's talk of him and Hardy uniting and going at The Bar for Mania. Hmm.

absorb whatever Broken "powers" Matt has and just go on an absolute tear.