Paybacklash season is over and it really feels like they're taking a knee until Summerslam. Outside of Champ Maharaja not much has changed. Been fast-forwarding through nearly everything on the weekly shows.

That being said, if WWE is leaving a void there's plenty fun stuff outside of the product to fill it. Lucha Underground starts back up tonight. ROH has been pretty good. NJPW is in the middle of their Super Juniors tourney. The indie shows I've seen recently have been practically dream cards.

Anywho, here's the prediction series for 2017. Same deal as before: running it for every PPV to WM 34. I believe I will be mailing some old trading cards/posters to the winner, but that prize is TBD. As discussed, the one thing changing is the nature of the title match predictions. We are now going off of who holds the title at the end of the night rather than who won the match, dusty finishes be damned.

Left a few spots under Y2Flound for newcomers. Bonus questions are under that. Please note the last one does NOT include submissions.

http://bit.ly/2rVpip2

I just got back into it with my son in October. But there is just too much content to follow. We only watch Raw and Smackdown. Tired of seeing the same mix of matches leading up to every pay per view. The same boring ass talking segments at the start of every show. I still watch with him because he likes it so much but it barely holds my attention. I am enjoying Breezango's TV time. They are funny as shit and different. Glad to see New Day back. So far Shinsuke has disappointed me in ring. But I dont know how you guys have been able to watch for so long. If there is a tag team title match on the line at the next PPV we get a month's worth of every variation of match involving those 4 competitors until the actual match happens.

November 8th, 2005 The greatest night in the history of GD!

Plus I subscribe to the Torch and, if I got a lil extra cash that month, Meltzer’s network. I’ve been a diehard fan since like 9 or 10 and sit in a cubicle 9 hours a day, so I have plenty of time to stay posted with content relevant to current episodes. If I watch on delay that week I can just check for the segments that got good marks.

As it stands the only segment I make sure I watch every week is Shinsuke’s, and yeah… they haven’t done him any favors. They’ve definitely made him out to be a badass but they’ve only allowed him to dip his toe into that water, instead favoring the “rockstar” thing. He’s winning matches and getting his spots but the matches have all been odd. They’re all a jumbled , choppy mess.

Problem is the modern WWE match style is essentially an indyrific “best of” montage of spots as opposed to a fluid story.

They need to go all in and let him dominate the heels. Instead he’s about to be the next victim of WWE’s 50/50 booking strategy.

But yeah, from what I've seen over the years most of us check in and out to varying degrees in terms of watching the product weekly.

Tired of seeing the same mix of matches leading up
>to every pay per view.

If there is a tag team title
>match on the line at the next PPV we get a month's worth of
>every variation of match involving those 4 competitors until
>the actual match happens.

It's killing the weekly product AND severely lessening the build to the PPVs. Even the Fatal 5-way has lost a lot of juice to me.

... and if there's a match or segment most worth watching, I either go to YouTube or try to remember to watch once it's on the Network. Otherwise I'm watching old stuff, international/indie stuff and the PPVs.

___

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Yeah, this is pretty much what I do around this time. I probably will watch more in July before SS and I really start watching starting with Survivor Series up to Mania. Then my trend starts again.

----------------------------------
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"you gotta be real white to hate on a nxgga for eating." (c) okp infin8

i know its deep in s3 now

and i try to pop in for maybe 10-15 mins of raw and smackdown here and there just to see whats going on. its usually not good but sometimes it is.

but overall im on an out phase rn

<--- Big Baller World Order

Its been every single Raw for like 3 years now.


Gallows and Anderson too.


____________________

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

November 8th, 2005 The greatest night in the history of GD!

even strowman should lose to a championship-caliber tag team. fuck that noise.

due to the team's experience as a team and as tag team specialists.

history and strategy > raw skill

It will give me a reason to watch these boring ass shows
____________________

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

i am failing at my only job

I kinda want in on this

=================
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I only play the games that I win at -
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just fill in your name and picks under y2flound and you're good to go. don't worry about floating in and out as the year goes on. we count both total picks correct as well as percentage correct, which complicates things on my end but makes everyone else's life easier.

One of the things I was thinking of changing was tracking match pick % and then bonus question points separately. That way we keep a running track of who is the best at predicting winners and not just best percentage of both winners and first match of the night, length of matches, etc.

>One of the things I was thinking of changing was tracking
>match pick % and then bonus question points separately. That
>way we keep a running track of who is the best at predicting
>winners and not just best percentage of both winners and first
>match of the night, length of matches, etc.

Oak, you did this for a year dude and it worked great so thanks for starting this as it's been lots of fun, and a huge thanks to Pretentious for picking up the baton.

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getting more excited for the fatal 5-way as we get closer. i'm pretty sure it won't be either of the shield guys, but i really don't know which way they're gonna go otherwise. neville/aries will probably be great again. the rest of the card is EXTREMELY meh.

and fill out your picks

But damnit, I HAD Joe winning before I read Stroud's preview and agreed that yup, feeding Reigns to Brock would have been the move to hold everyone for Braun.

Though, and I know CT is going to hate this (b/c MOAR MCMAHONZZZZ_) , but Joe as the Authority strongman keeping the title isolated from Braun might be awesome.

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"This (and every, actually) conversation needs more Chesterton and less Mike Francesa." - Walleye

I just want to see that with less screen time for the authority (or maybe Angle representing the Authority rather than the McMahons). The rumor mill is saying the mysterious call Kurt Angle got is leading to Steph's return, which probably leads to Aitch vs. Angle at WM. UGH. Just give us till Mania season before we see them again please.

Started with Crossfit Jesus. That didn't work, so he went with Owens. Got bored, tossed the belt to Brock, and now has SmoJoe as his hired arms.

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"This (and every, actually) conversation needs more Chesterton and less Mike Francesa." - Walleye

i hope brock isn't a shithead like he was in that ambrose match and he actually makes joe look good. hoss match all the way.

It's going to be so awesome, especially since this exists solely to kill Tim edit Strowman at SS.

Joe will get juuuuuuuust enough hope spots for people to cop the usual pleas for these awful Brock matches that do nothing but shit on whoever he's in the ring with.

There was no good winner for this match though and there was absolutely no reason for any excitement since the "prize" for the "winner" was a glorified squash match at a B list show with the worst name I've ever heard for a ppv.

I know this because that's what Brock matches have largely been since he demolished Cena at SS.

Goldberg was an anomaly because he already had a marquee name and they had enough sense not to fuck up a sure thing. The triple threat with Rollins and Cena was dope but Rollins and Cena carried the day while Brock lied outside for a large portion of the match after a table spot.

We went through this dance with the Ambrose match and that match was exactly what I said it would be. As was Orton. This will be no different. This is scheduled to be a one off and nothing more because they're saving him for Strowman.

You can be as excited as you want though. I'm not preventing you from thinking it's going to be a great match at Great Balls Of Fire.

GOOD:
vs Cena at Extreme Rules
vs CM Punk at Summerslam
vs Roman Reigns at Wrestlemania San Fran
vs Undertaker at Hell in a Cell
vs Cena + Rollins at Royal Rumble
vs Cena at Summerslam

BAD:
vs Triple H wherever the first one was
vs Triple H wherever the second one was
vs Triple H at Wrestlemania a total piece of shit match
vs Undertaker at Wrestlemania (but effective)
vs Seth Rollins (a total disaster just to get to Undertaker)
vs Undertaker again wherever the second one was
vs Randy Orton at Summerslam
vs Dean Ambrose at Wrestlemania

It's been mostly a crapshoot. If he's game he's 2nd only to Cena as a big-match performer. If he's not game he sucks - most notably, you're right that that Dean Ambrose match was a total mess.

I think this will be good because I think everyone else involved sees how special this could be. I think Vince and Hunter get it, I think Heyman gets it, Joe obviously gets it. I think enough players are involved to see the potential this has.

I'm looking at recent history + current short & long term plans.

We’re in 2017. Going all the way back to an Extreme Rules match against Cena upon his return after a long, estranged absence hardly provides in context or insight into the current climate and short term plans.

Since 2015 we’ve had:

-Rollins/Cena
-Reigns w/Rollins cash in at the end.
-Rollins
-Kofi
-Big Show
-Del Rio
-Sheamus
-Taker X2
-Rusev X2
-Reigns/Ambrose
-Ambrose
-Orton X2
-Kevin Owens
-Handicap matches against Bray and Luke X2

As I already said, the Rollins/Cena match consisted of Brock being outside for a long stretch. I suppose we’ll give him credit for that however it does play into a significant issue I’ll get to below. Once you get past the strong start to 2015 there’s a drastic shift.

-The Reigns Mania match WAS fantastic and, IMO, didn’t need the Rollins cash-in. In fact I think the cash-in hurt the match big time.
Brock and Reigns delivered and told a great story on their own and Seth came in just when that match would have peaked without him.

-The Rollins match, as you said, was a joke. As was Ambrose and Orton, as you already stated.

-The last Taker match was dope but again…still plays into my issue with Brock and WWE’s mindset overall.

Then we have a string of house show/special event matches with Kofi, Big Show, Sheamus, Rusev, Del Rio and KO that did absolutely nothing for anyone.

My issue is that Brock is a taker. In fact, I’d argue his actual value to WWE is effectively zero because he allows them to rest on their laurels with lazy, hotshot booking at the expense of an entire generation of guys who should be priorities to groom as big-time players. Instead they’re all being booked as equal to one another while also being clearly displayed as an inarguably less than guys from the good ‘ol days.

So when Brock finally hangs it up, we’re left with a bunch of even-steven wrestlers who don’t really stand out by any metric. The money he draws relative to what he’s paid could easily be made up by elevating 2-3 guys into a higher status. These guys aren’t even allowed to become a draw and recent history shows Brock is being positioned as significantly greater than these young guys. Rollins and Ambrose weren’t even given a fighting chance, truth be told. My issue isn’t that they’re losing, it’s that they’re being decimated. Steamrolled. Dominated.

Which brings me to Joe. The two guys Vince is actually trying to protect are Reigns and Strowman, and yes, Reigns is protected by losing a 5-way. Since long term plans are for Reigns to beat Brock at Mania and short term plans are to keep Brock strong with a victory over Stroman at SS, it wouldn’t do much for Brock to struggle against Joe beforehand. Joe’s not in this spot because Vince sees how special it can be. He’s there to keep Strowman’s seat warm before Strowman keeps Roman’s seat warm and the match is very likely to be booked accordingly.

Joe’s here to be a credible fluffer for Strowman, who is a significantly higher priority and will essentially serve as a fluffer for Reigns. It will be cool to see them in the ring together, but this is no “dream match” once you get past the names involved.

On one hand you want someone to stand out as definitively greater than the rest and that’s good and well, but that can be done without making him a cheap, spamming video game boss. Make no mistake, Joe is about to take a quick trip to Suplex City and that will be that. He’ll get a few hope spots but he’ s going to eat a disproportionate mountain of shit.

I hope this match is good though, it's obviously a dream match on paper

I.E, I was hopeful for Shinsuke but now it seems that they’ve gone Full WWE-Tard with him. It’s still great to see him in a WWE ring with AJ and Kevin Steen © but, well… it’s been a disappointment thus far.

Trust me, I'll be more than happy to eat my words with Joe if they do this right.

Him falling 3 feet out of the ring is the referee equivalent of Mankind falling 16 feet through an announce table on Hell in a Cell.

The man got up, most of the time a replacement ref would be needed. Probably the most important spot in that entire show and I hope it doesn't go over looked.

=================
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________________________________
There are dozens of us! Dozens!

http://www.cagesideseats.com/wwe/2017/6/4/15738810/wwe-great-balls-of-fire-video-penis-dong-member

tf were they thinking?

Around

Extreme Rules is set up for storytelling failure already, but it seems like taking the extremeness out of it just leaves everyone confused.

The mixed tag was fine for what it was. I wasn't as "WHY ISNT SASHA IN THE TITLE PICTURE?" as everyone else. If it didn't exist the card wouldn't suffer, but also people would've complained the women and cruiserweights only got one match. Fun little program while it lasted. Now on to the next thing for Swann and Banks, though they do make a fun duo so I hope they pop up together every now and again.

Alexa-Bayley made little-to-no sense. Happy to see this program go away and for Alexa to move on to bigger things.

Miz-Ambrose was laid out poorly and the ending was stupid. Easily the worst chapter in their feud and the stipulation proved to be as dumb as it sounded. Why would a GM listen to Miz's plea and say "oh yeah, THAT'S the problem. Dean, not the Miz, gets away with too many shenanigans."

Hardys-Sheasaro was okay but confusing. No more tag matches in steel cages please. Also I hate the steel cage door. It ruins everything.

Neville-Aries was good, but disjointed. I wanted Aries to win, but the longer Neville holds the title the more it actually means something when a change happens.

The Fatal 5-way was good, but I think the pace should've been quicker. I'm usually not bothered by people taking a bump and then staying out of the match for too long, but it was too noticeable here.

I'm a fan of this Crews/Titus thing. I hope they spend a few months together while never getting on the same page. I get a kick out of it.

I get the story they were trying to tell with Bayley but why they were given 5 minutes is beyond me. I wonder what Hunter thought of it. They were booing Bayley which was weird so something's gone very wrong.

I agree about the tag/cage match. Everything about the psychology of it was irritating to watch. Why are people trying to leave while their partner is still in there, and why are people trying to stop them? Surely, the plan would be to let one guy leave, beat the shit out of his partner (2 on 1), then walk out of the door. Matt was by himself, knocks both out, then tries to climb over the top... use the door Matthew!!

The door shouldn't be an option in cage matches as it makes zero sense.

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>The door shouldn't be an option in cage matches as it makes
>zero sense.

that there was a spot where Matt is grabbing one of them trying to prevent them from heading out the door when he could easily have let him go (or even pushed him out) and then walked out after him. That didn't even phase me just cause I'm so used to the door, but it really does ruin the storytelling.

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Largely because what's worked well at Full Sail has been a slow burn that's taken nuance (Bayley being the superfan made good, Sami Zayn The Most Decent Guy in the Universe, Emma's Obliviousness, the Ascension, Prince Pretty, Adam Rose, etc.). People that have gimmicks that would work elsewhere (or "no gimmick")- Owens, Nak, Balor, the Revival, SmoJoe - are good money because they don't require as much story to set up.

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"This (and every, actually) conversation needs more Chesterton and less Mike Francesa." - Walleye

and sometimes, every now and then out of the blue, they'll accidentally do some legitimately artistic shit. It happens so infrequently that it's clear these instances occur out of happenstance. But Joe, off-mic, talking very frankly about hurting Heyman and then hurting Heyman is about as good a way to manufacture heat as you'll ever see.

>and sometimes, every now and then out of the blue, they'll
>accidentally do some legitimately artistic shit. It happens so
>infrequently that it's clear these instances occur out of
>happenstance. But Joe, off-mic, talking very frankly about
>hurting Heyman and then hurting Heyman is about as good a way
>to manufacture heat as you'll ever see.

This was a great segment. Was surprised how quick they got to the wrestling this week. I went from "Oh jeez... Bray's gonna talk about some bullshit" to "Nice, right into the fighting!"

I'm loving the lower card stuff with the Titus brand and Golden Truth promos. Miz-Ambrose was well done. Also lol @ Angle saying "This is your life was one of the worst segments in Raw history." The bad Raw segments are insulting to the audience's intelligence, so for them to call that out is a sign that they get it. The Enzo/Show promo was the only thing I didn't enjoy (and again, an established team shouldn't lose to a new one, especially do easily).

And Joe picked the mic back out and yelled "SO. DO. I."

Man, that was great. That entire segment was great. It was some mafia shit how Joe was telling him exactly what he was going to do, and did it.

I like this a lot.

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Everything about that off-mic exchange was gold, from Heyman's fear to Joe's a##hole bully demeanor was gold. I'd love to know whose idea that was.

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If you don't already know who I'm talking about based on the description, you shouldn't even be here.

I give him full credit for the Cubs WS win last year for spitting a nuclear warhead of a promo as a pep talk.

Hyperbole? Maybe. MAYBE. But mot much.

First ep is up on soundcloud. About to check this out and pray I'm not disappointed because I'm GEEKED over this.

Listen or I will find you and give you a DDT.